diff --git a/.README.md.kate-swp b/.README.md.kate-swp new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..16812f4e29db45aa294192bb6b67b9cddcad8641 Binary files /dev/null and b/.README.md.kate-swp differ diff --git a/README.md b/README.md index 7b95401dc46245ac339fc25059d4a56d90b4cde5..fb076a68759f230da06580bfc897dc0b51d71f54 100644 --- a/README.md +++ b/README.md @@ -1,3 +1,12 @@ --- license: apache-2.0 +task_categories: +- text-generation +language: +- en +pretty_name: >- + A collection of blog posts I wrote (most quite old) that I used for + fine-tuning a stylistic writing generator +size_categories: +- 1K { const folderId = config[folderType]; if (!folderId) { throw new Error ( `Folder ID not configured for ${folderType} ` ); } const rootFolder = DriveApp.getFolderById(folderId); const yearFolder = findOrCreateFolder(rootFolder, year); const monthFolder = findOrCreateFolder(yearFolder, month); findOrCreateFolder(monthFolder, 'Israeli' ); created++; }); return { success : true , message : `Successfully created folder structure for ${created} folder type(s)` }; } catch (error) { return { success : false , message : `Error creating folder structure: ${error.toString()} ` }; } } function processFiles ( files, folderType, monthOverride ) { try { const config = JSON .parse(PropertiesService.getUserProperties().getProperty( 'accountingRouterConfig' ) || '{}' ); const folderId = config[folderType]; if (!folderId) { throw new Error ( 'Folder ID not configured for ' + folderType); } let year, month; if (monthOverride) { const [targetYear, targetMonth] = monthOverride.split( '-' ); year = targetYear; month = MONTHS[ parseInt (targetMonth) - 1 ]; } else { const now = new Date (); year = now.getFullYear().toString(); month = MONTHS[now.getMonth()]; } const rootFolder = DriveApp.getFolderById(folderId); let yearFolder = findOrCreateFolder(rootFolder, year); let monthFolder = findOrCreateFolder(yearFolder, month); const results = []; files.forEach( file => { let targetFolder = monthFolder; if (file.isIsraeli) { targetFolder = findOrCreateFolder(monthFolder, 'Israeli' ); } const blob = Utilities.newBlob( Utilities.base64Decode(file.bytes), file.mimeType, file.fileName ); const newFile = targetFolder.createFile(blob); results.push({ name : file.fileName, success : true , url : newFile.getUrl() }); }); return { success : true , message : `Successfully processed ${files.length} file(s)` , results : results }; } catch (error) { return { success : false , message : `Error processing files: ${error.toString()} ` , results : [] }; } } function getConfiguration ( ) { try { const config = PropertiesService.getUserProperties().getProperty( 'accountingRouterConfig' ); return config ? JSON .parse(config) : null ; } catch (error) { console .error( 'Failed to get configuration:' , error); return null ; } } function saveConfiguration ( config ) { try { PropertiesService.getUserProperties().setProperty( 'accountingRouterConfig' , JSON .stringify(config)); return { success : true }; } catch (error) { throw new Error ( 'Failed to save configuration: ' + error.toString()); } } function findOrCreateFolder ( parentFolder, folderName ) { const folders = parentFolder.getFoldersByName(folderName); if (folders.hasNext()) { return folders.next(); } return parentFolder.createFolder(folderName); } + +Index.html (but save with lower case ‘i’)! + +< html > < head > < base target = "_top" > < meta charset = "UTF-8" > < title > Google Drive Accounting File Router < style > @keyframes slideUp { from { transform : translateY ( 100% ); opacity : 0 ; } to { transform : translateY ( 0 ); opacity : 1 ; } } @keyframes slideDown { from { transform : translateY ( 0 ); opacity : 1 ; } to { transform : translateY ( 100% ); opacity : 0 ; } } .israeli-animation { animation : slideUp 0.5s ease forwards; } .israeli-animation-exit { animation : slideDown 0.5s ease forwards; } .tabs { display : flex; margin-bottom : 20px ; border-bottom : 2px solid #ddd ; } .tab { padding : 10px 20px ; cursor : pointer; border : none; background : none; font-weight : bold; color : #666 ; } .tab .active { color : #4285f4 ; border-bottom : 2px solid #4285f4 ; margin-bottom : - 2px ; } .tab-content { display : none; } .tab-content .active { display : block; } .config-group { margin-bottom : 15px ; } .config-group input { width : 100% ; padding : 8px ; border : 1px solid #ddd ; border-radius : 4px ; } .help-text { display : block; margin-top : 4px ; color : #666 ; font-size : 0.9em ; } body { font-family : Arial, sans-serif; max-width : 800px ; margin : 20px auto; padding : 20px ; background-color : #f5f5f5 ; } .container { background-color : white; padding : 20px ; border-radius : 8px ; box-shadow : 0 2px 4px rgba ( 0 , 0 , 0 , 0.1 ); } .form-group { margin-bottom : 20px ; } label { display : block; margin-bottom : 8px ; font-weight : bold; } select { width : 100% ; padding : 8px ; border : 1px solid #ddd ; border-radius : 4px ; margin-bottom : 16px ; } .file-list { border : 2px dashed #ddd ; border-radius : 4px ; padding : 10px ; margin-bottom : 16px ; min-height : 150px ; max-height : 300px ; overflow-y : auto; transition : all 0.3s ease; background-color : #fff ; position : relative; } .file-list .drag-over { border-color : #4285f4 ; background-color : #f8f9fa ; } .drop-message { position : absolute; top : 50% ; left : 50% ; transform : translate (- 50% , - 50% ); color : #666 ; font-size : 1.1em ; text-align : center; pointer-events : none; } .file-item { display : flex; justify-content : space-between; align-items : center; padding : 8px ; border-bottom : 1px solid #eee ; } .file-item :last-child { border-bottom : none; } .button-group { display : flex; gap : 10px ; margin-top : 20px ; } button { padding : 10px 20px ; border : none; border-radius : 4px ; cursor : pointer; font-weight : bold; } .upload-btn { background-color : #4285f4 ; color : white; } .clear-btn { background-color : #dc3545 ; color : white; } .status { margin-top : 20px ; padding : 10px ; border-radius : 4px ; display : none; } .success { background-color : #d4edda ; color : #155724 ; border : 1px solid #c3e6cb ; } .error { background-color : #f8d7da ; color : #721c24 ; border : 1px solid #f5c6cb ; } .loading { display : none; text-align : center; margin : 20px 0 ; } .checkbox-label { display : inline-flex; align-items : center; margin : 0 ; gap : 5px ; font-weight : normal; } .file-rename { width : 100% ; padding : 4px ; margin-bottom : 4px ; border : 1px solid #ddd ; border-radius : 4px ; } .file-original { color : #666 ; font-size : 0.8em ; margin-bottom : 4px ; } < body > < div class = "container" > < h1 > Google Drive Accounting File Router < h2 style = "color: #666; margin: 0 0 15px 0;" > Routes accounting documents in Google Drive < div id = "currentMonth" style = "color: #666; margin-bottom: 15px; display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 10px;" > < span > < img src = "data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAABAAAAALCAYAAAB24g05AAAAxUlEQVQoU2P8//8/AyUAIwUGwA2orKxk/P//P8PmzZvRvQszYAEQnwBiZSB+D8SbgPgMEP8F4t1AvBiIQWwUgGKAGxCvBeI/QCwAxIeB+BUQGwAxyIA9QCwOxMgGIGvGMOA/EDsC8WMg/gTEpkD8GIjPArEFEIMM2QTESkCMzQCQpBUQPwBiEH8BEL8BYgMgBhmyE4jFgBjDAJBkHhDfAmKQQisg/gDEukAMMmQDECsCMU4DQAoSgfg6EIMM+QvEq4AYJM6AAgAp8kAx/Db8YAAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==" alt = "Israeli Flag" style = "width: 24px; height: 24px;" > < div class = "tabs" > < button class = "tab active" onclick = "showTab('upload')" > Upload Files < button class = "tab" onclick = "showTab('config')" > Configuration < button class = "tab" onclick = "showTab('howto')" > How To Use < button class = "tab" onclick = "showTab('create')" > Create Folders < div id = "uploadTab" class = "tab-content active" > < div class = "form-group" > < label for = "folderType" > Select Document Type: < select id = "folderType" > < option value = "" > Please select... < option value = "EXPENSE" > Expense < option value = "INVOICES" > Invoice < option value = "RECEIPTS" > Receipt < label for = "monthOverride" > Target Month: < select id = "monthOverride" > < option value = "" > Current Month < div class = "form-group" > < label > Select Files (up to 10): < input type = "file" id = "files" multiple accept = "application/pdf,image/*,.doc,.docx,.xls,.xlsx" style = "display: none;" > < button onclick = "document.getElementById('files').click()" class = "upload-btn" > Choose Files < div class = "file-list" id = "fileList" ondrop = "handleDrop(event)" ondragover = "handleDragOver(event)" ondragleave = "handleDragLeave(event)" > < div class = "drop-message" > Drag and drop files here < br > < small > or use the Choose Files button < div id = "fileListContent" > < div class = "button-group" > < button onclick = "processFiles()" class = "upload-btn" > Upload Files < button onclick = "clearAll()" class = "clear-btn" > Clear All < div class = "loading" id = "loading" > Processing files... Please wait... < div id = "statusImage" style = "text-align: center; margin: 20px 0;" > < img src = "https://res.cloudinary.com/domtm8wiy/image/upload/v1738782120/accounting-router/otidlvt8pofbzcpknbc6.png" alt = "Status" style = "max-width: 200px;" > < div class = "status" id = "status" > < div id = "configTab" class = "tab-content" > < h2 > Folder Configuration < p > Configure the Google Drive folders for each document type. You can paste the full folder URL or just the folder ID. < div class = "config-group" > < label for = "expenseFolder" > Expense Folder: < input type = "text" id = "expenseFolder" placeholder = "Paste folder URL or ID" onchange = "handleFolderInput(this)" > < small class = "help-text" > Example: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/YOUR_FOLDER_ID < div class = "config-group" > < label for = "invoicesFolder" > Invoices Folder: < input type = "text" id = "invoicesFolder" placeholder = "Paste folder URL or ID" onchange = "handleFolderInput(this)" > < small class = "help-text" > Example: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/YOUR_FOLDER_ID < div class = "config-group" > < label for = "receiptsFolder" > Receipts Folder: < input type = "text" id = "receiptsFolder" placeholder = "Paste folder URL or ID" onchange = "handleFolderInput(this)" > < small class = "help-text" > Example: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/YOUR_FOLDER_ID < button onclick = "saveConfig()" class = "upload-btn" > Save Configuration < div class = "status" id = "configStatus" > < div id = "howtoTab" class = "tab-content" > < h2 > How To Use < div style = "line-height: 1.6" > < p style = "margin-bottom: 20px;" > This app was developed by Daniel Rosehill (danielrosehill.com) using Claude Sonnet 3.5 & Cline. < h3 > Setup < ol > < li > Go to the Configuration tab and set up your folder IDs for each document type. < li > Use the Create Folders tab to create the initial folder structure if needed. < h3 > Uploading Files < ol > < li > Select the document type (Expense, Invoice, or Receipt). < li > Choose files using the button or drag and drop them into the designated area. < li > Optionally rename files before uploading. < li > For Israeli documents, check the "Israeli" checkbox next to the file. < li > Click "Upload Files" to process the documents. < h3 > Folder Structure < p > Files are automatically organized in the following structure: < pre style = "background: #f5f5f5; padding: 10px; border-radius: 4px;" > Root Folder (Expense/Invoices/Receipts) └── Year (e.g., 2024) └── Month (e.g., 01_Jan) ├── Regular files └── Israeli (folder for Israeli documents) < div id = "createTab" class = "tab-content" > < h2 > Create Folder Structure < p > Use this section to create the initial folder structure for your documents. This will create the year and month folders according to the current date. < div class = "form-group" > < label > Select folder types to create: < div style = "margin: 10px 0;" > < label class = "checkbox-label" > < input type = "checkbox" id = "createExpense" checked > Expense Folders < div style = "margin: 10px 0;" > < label class = "checkbox-label" > < input type = "checkbox" id = "createInvoices" checked > Invoice Folders < div style = "margin: 10px 0;" > < label class = "checkbox-label" > < input type = "checkbox" id = "createReceipts" checked > Receipt Folders < button onclick = "createFolderStructure()" class = "upload-btn" > Create Folders < script > const months = [ 'January' , 'February' , 'March' , 'April' , 'May' , 'June' , 'July' , 'August' , 'September' , 'October' , 'November' , 'December' ]; function updateStatusImage ( state ) { const statusImage = document .getElementById( 'statusImage' ).querySelector( 'img' ); switch (state) { case 'ready' : statusImage.src = 'https://res.cloudinary.com/domtm8wiy/image/upload/v1738782120/accounting-router/otidlvt8pofbzcpknbc6.png' ; break ; case 'uploading' : statusImage.src = 'https://res.cloudinary.com/domtm8wiy/image/upload/v1738782120/accounting-router/lvameumllsc7lny3pddj.png' ; break ; case 'saved' : statusImage.src = 'https://res.cloudinary.com/domtm8wiy/image/upload/v1738782120/accounting-router/izle2zu9xgfkmkskmv2r.png' ; break ; case 'israeli' : const img = statusImage; img.src = 'https://res.cloudinary.com/domtm8wiy/image/upload/v1738782120/accounting-router/yiw6yhd5r6oc4icka3ad.png' ; img.classList.add( 'israeli-animation' ); setTimeout ( () => { img.classList.add( 'israeli-animation-exit' ); setTimeout ( () => { img.classList.remove( 'israeli-animation' , 'israeli-animation-exit' ); updateStatusImage( 'ready' ); }, 3000 ); }, 500 ); break ; } } function populateMonthsDropdown ( ) { const monthSelect = document .getElementById( 'monthOverride' ); const now = new Date (); const currentYear = now.getFullYear(); for ( let i = 0 ; i < 12 ; i++) { const date = new Date (currentYear, now.getMonth() - i, 1 ); const monthNum = String (date.getMonth() + 1 ).padStart( 2 , '0' ); const monthName = months[date.getMonth()]; const year = date.getFullYear(); const value = ` ${year} - ${monthNum} ` ; const text = ` ${monthNum} _ ${monthName} ${year} ` ; const option = new Option(text, value); monthSelect.add(option); } } window .onload = function ( ) { populateMonthsDropdown(); const now = new Date (); document .getElementById( 'currentMonth' ).querySelector( 'span' ).textContent = `Current Accounting Month: ${ String (now.getMonth() + 1 ).padStart( 2 , '0' )} _ ${months[now.getMonth()]} ${now.getFullYear()} ` ; const localConfig = JSON .parse( localStorage .getItem( 'accountingRouterConfig' ) || '{}' ); document .getElementById( 'expenseFolder' ).value = localConfig.EXPENSE || '' ; document .getElementById( 'invoicesFolder' ).value = localConfig.INVOICES || '' ; document .getElementById( 'receiptsFolder' ).value = localConfig.RECEIPTS || '' ; google.script.run .withSuccessHandler( config => { if (config) { document .getElementById( 'expenseFolder' ).value = config.EXPENSE || '' ; document .getElementById( 'invoicesFolder' ).value = config.INVOICES || '' ; document .getElementById( 'receiptsFolder' ).value = config.RECEIPTS || '' ; localStorage .setItem( 'accountingRouterConfig' , JSON .stringify(config)); } }) .getConfiguration(); updateStatusImage( 'ready' ); }; function extractFolderId ( input ) { const patterns = [ /\/folders\/([a-zA-Z0-9_-]+)(?:\/|\?|$)/ , /id=([a-zA-Z0-9_-]+)(?:&|$)/ , /^([a-zA-Z0-9_-]+)$/ ]; for ( const pattern of patterns) { const match = input.match(pattern); if (match) return match[ 1 ]; } return input; } function handleFolderInput ( input ) { const value = input.value.trim(); if (value) { const folderId = extractFolderId(value); input.value = folderId; } } function showTab ( tabName ) { document .querySelectorAll( '.tab-content' ).forEach( tab => { tab.classList.remove( 'active' ); }); document .querySelectorAll( '.tab' ).forEach( tab => { tab.classList.remove( 'active' ); }); document .getElementById(tabName + 'Tab' ).classList.add( 'active' ); document .querySelector( `.tab[onclick="showTab(' ${tabName} ')"]` ).classList.add( 'active' ); } function saveConfig ( ) { const config = { EXPENSE : document .getElementById( 'expenseFolder' ).value, INVOICES : document .getElementById( 'invoicesFolder' ).value, RECEIPTS : document .getElementById( 'receiptsFolder' ).value }; localStorage .setItem( 'accountingRouterConfig' , JSON .stringify(config)); const statusDiv = document .getElementById( 'configStatus' ); statusDiv.className = 'status success' ; statusDiv.style.display = 'block' ; statusDiv.innerHTML = 'Saving configuration...' ; google.script.run .withSuccessHandler( () => { statusDiv.innerHTML = 'Configuration saved successfully! ✓' ; setTimeout ( () => { statusDiv.style.display = 'none' ; }, 3000 ); }) .withFailureHandler( error => { statusDiv.className = 'status error' ; statusDiv.innerHTML = 'Error saving configuration: ' + error.message; }) .saveConfiguration(config); } function createFolderStructure ( ) { const config = JSON .parse( localStorage .getItem( 'accountingRouterConfig' ) || '{}' ); const folderTypes = []; if ( document .getElementById( 'createExpense' ).checked) folderTypes.push( 'EXPENSE' ); if ( document .getElementById( 'createInvoices' ).checked) folderTypes.push( 'INVOICES' ); if ( document .getElementById( 'createReceipts' ).checked) folderTypes.push( 'RECEIPTS' ); if (folderTypes.length === 0 ) { showStatus( 'Please select at least one folder type.' , true ); return ; } document .getElementById( 'loading' ).style.display = 'block' ; google.script.run .withSuccessHandler( response => { document .getElementById( 'loading' ).style.display = 'none' ; showStatus(response.message, !response.success); }) .withFailureHandler( error => { document .getElementById( 'loading' ).style.display = 'none' ; showStatus( 'Error creating folders: ' + error.message, true ); }) .createFolderStructure(folderTypes); } let selectedFiles = []; document .getElementById( 'files' ).addEventListener( 'change' , function ( e ) { const files = Array .from(e.target.files).map( file => ({ file, isIsraeli : false , newName : file.name })); if (files.length > 10 ) { alert( 'Please select up to 10 files only.' ); return ; } selectedFiles = files; updateFileList(); }); function toggleIsraeli ( index ) { selectedFiles[index].isIsraeli = !selectedFiles[index].isIsraeli; if (selectedFiles[index].isIsraeli) { updateStatusImage( 'israeli' ); setTimeout ( () => updateStatusImage( 'ready' ), 1000 ); } updateFileList(); } function updateFileName ( index, newName ) { selectedFiles[index].newName = newName; } function handleDragOver ( event ) { event.preventDefault(); event.stopPropagation(); document .getElementById( 'fileList' ).classList.add( 'drag-over' ); } function handleDragLeave ( event ) { event.preventDefault(); event.stopPropagation(); document .getElementById( 'fileList' ).classList.remove( 'drag-over' ); } function handleDrop ( event ) { event.preventDefault(); event.stopPropagation(); const fileList = document .getElementById( 'fileList' ); fileList.classList.remove( 'drag-over' ); const droppedFiles = Array .from(event.dataTransfer.files).map( file => ({ file, isIsraeli : false , newName : file.name })); if (selectedFiles.length + droppedFiles.length > 10 ) { alert( 'Total number of files cannot exceed 10.' ); return ; } selectedFiles = [...selectedFiles, ...droppedFiles]; updateFileList(); } function updateFileList ( ) { const fileListContent = document .getElementById( 'fileListContent' ); if (selectedFiles.length === 0 ) { fileListContent.innerHTML = '' ; return ; } fileListContent.innerHTML = selectedFiles.map( ( fileObj, index ) => `
Original: ${fileObj.file.name}
` ).join( '' ); } function removeFile ( index ) { selectedFiles.splice(index, 1 ); updateFileList(); } function clearAll ( ) { selectedFiles = []; document .getElementById( 'folderType' ).value = '' ; document .getElementById( 'files' ).value = '' ; document .getElementById( 'status' ).style.display = 'none' ; updateStatusImage( 'ready' ); updateFileList(); } function showStatus ( message, isError = false ) { const status = document .getElementById( 'status' ); status.className = 'status ' + (isError ? 'error' : 'success' ); status.style.display = 'block' ; status.innerHTML = message; if (!isError) { setTimeout ( () => { status.style.display = 'none' ; }, 5000 ); } } function processFiles ( ) { const folderType = document .getElementById( 'folderType' ).value; if (!folderType) { showStatus( 'Please select a document type.' , true ); return ; } if (selectedFiles.length === 0 ) { showStatus( 'Please select at least one file.' , true ); return ; } document .getElementById( 'loading' ).style.display = 'block' ; showStatus( 'Preparing to upload files...' , false ); updateStatusImage( 'uploading' ); const promises = selectedFiles.map( fileObj => { return new Promise ( ( resolve, reject ) => { const reader = new FileReader(); reader.onload = ( e ) => { resolve({ fileName : fileObj.newName, mimeType : fileObj.file.type, bytes : e.target.result.split( ',' )[ 1 ], isIsraeli : fileObj.isIsraeli }); }; reader.onerror = ( e ) => reject(e); reader.readAsDataURL(fileObj.file); }); }); Promise .all(promises) .then( fileObjects => { const monthOverride = document .getElementById( 'monthOverride' ).value; showStatus( 'Uploading files to Google Drive...' , false ); google.script.run .withSuccessHandler( response => { document .getElementById( 'loading' ).style.display = 'none' ; if (response.success) { let message = response.message + '

Files processed:' ; response.results.forEach( result => { message += `
• ${result.name} - View file` ; }); showStatus(message); updateStatusImage( 'saved' ); setTimeout ( () => { clearAll(); updateStatusImage( 'ready' ); }, 3000 ); } else { showStatus(response.message, true ); updateStatusImage( 'ready' ); } }) .withFailureHandler( error => { document .getElementById( 'loading' ).style.display = 'none' ; showStatus( 'Error processing files: ' + error.message, true ); updateStatusImage( 'ready' ); }) .processFiles(fileObjects, folderType, monthOverride); }) .catch( error => { document .getElementById( 'loading' ).style.display = 'none' ; showStatus( 'Error preparing files: ' + error.message, true ); updateStatusImage( 'ready' ); }); } + +This project was created by Daniel Rosehill (public at danielrosehill dot com) and is licensed under CC-BY-4.0. + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/google-drive-accounting-doc-router-for-israeli-freelancers-apps-script](https://heyitworks.tech/google-drive-accounting-doc-router-for-israeli-freelancers-apps-script) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/Home-Assistant-Shabbat-Yom-Tov-Automations.md b/posts/hashnode/Home-Assistant-Shabbat-Yom-Tov-Automations.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..84dc75a58e9be16a00dbdcd00d6809a33a35cc59 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/Home-Assistant-Shabbat-Yom-Tov-Automations.md @@ -0,0 +1,149 @@ +# Home Assistant Shabbat & Yom Tov Automations + +This post details how to configure Home Assistant to support the observance of Shabbat and Yom Tov. This is an updated guide, building on previous documentation with modifications that simplify the setup process. + +AI credit: Cloud 3.5 Sonnet for rewriting some of the previous YAML in order to avoid redundancies and unnecessary additional automations. + +If you're interested in this topic, you are likely already familiar with Shabbat, Yom Tov, and Home Assistant. + +For those who aren't, these observances involve refraining from using electricity for a 24-hour period, making them ideal for home automation. + +Part 1: Configuring Time Sensors + +In order to provide the automations with the correct times for Shabbat, we need to use a sensor providing these. Additionally, we need to make sure that our geolocation is correctly configured in Home Assistant because Jewish religious times are geosensitive. You might have this configured out of the box, or if not, you can add it. + +The sensors for providing the zmanim (religious times) are: + +Hebcal API: This API provides the necessary data for Jewish religious times. + +Jewish-Sabbaths-Holidays Home Assistant integration: This integration makes the Hebcal API accessible within Home Assistant. It's available through HACS. + +Configuring Your Geolocation + +To get started, ensure your geolocation is configured in Home Assistant. This is required for accurate time calculations. In your configuration.yaml file: + +homeassistant: latitude: 32.0667 longitude: 34.7667 time_zone: Asia/Jerusalem + +Replace the example coordinates with your own, and choose the right time zone. + +You can find coordinates using various utilities like this one. You'll also need to have HACS installed. + +Adding Shabbat Settings + +Once we have integrated the sensor providing the Shabbat and Yom Tov times, we need to make sure that it is properly configured in our configuration.yaml . + +The following YAML provides a baseline configuration for HebCal (at the time of writing). + +sensor: - platform: hebcal resources: - shabbat_in - shabbat_out + +In the above code, we are making sure that HebCal is integrated with our Home Assistant and telling it that we will be using the shabbat_in and shabbat_out sensors (only). + +However, we can configure more granular settings such as using the name of the Yom Tov, specifying what havdalah setting we wish to use and even calling in the resource which provides the name of the weekly parsha. + +One of the nice things that you can do with all this sensor data is to configure a dashboard to run on a display tablet during Shabbat. + +Here's a recent version of one that I set up. + +You might notice that I have the red alert sensors configured also as well as the current weather in Jerusalem. These are provided through the Home Alert integration and then styled a little for presentation: + +type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.oref_alert_jerusalem_all_areas name: Jerusalem All Areas icon: mdi:check-circle styles: card: - padding: 12px name: - font-weight: bold - color: white state: - color: white icon: - color: white - width: 24px - height: 24px state: - value: "on" name: Jerusalem All Areas (UNSAFE) icon: mdi:alert-octagram styles: card: - background-color: "#ea4335" icon: - animation: blink 1s ease infinite - value: "off" name: Jerusalem All Areas (Safe) styles: card: - background-color: "#34a853" - value: unavailable styles: card: - background-color: "#ffa500" + +I have this running on a Android display tablet and have also automated the turning on and turning off of the tablet to coincide with Shabbat. + +Here's what a more extensive configuration for the HebCal sensor might look like: + +sensor: - platform: hebcal havdalah_calc: 42 time_before_check: 10 time_after_check: 1 jerusalem_candle: False tzeit_hakochavim: False omer_count_type: 0 language: english resources: - shabbat_in - shabbat_out - parasha - hebrew_date - is_shabbat - yomtov_in - yomtov_out - is_yomtov - yomtov_name - event_name - omer_day - zmanim + +Refer to the add-on’s Github repository for full configuration options. + +Creating a Combined Shabbat and Yom Tov Sensor To Drive Automations + +The Jewish Sabbaths and Holidays Times integration provides, out of the box, two binary sensors to use in Home Assistant: is_shabbat and is_yomtov . + +But for my specific use case, and likely for many others, it's more practical to use a single binary sensor that indicates if it is either Shabbat or Yom Tov. + +To enable this, I created a binary sensor, which is a sensor template that works downstream of the sensors provided through the add-on. The additional benefit of doing this means that if you later want to use a different method for determining zmanim, you can simply update your sensor template with a new upstream provider. + +binary_sensor: - platform: template sensors: is_shabbat: friendly_name: "Is Shabbat" value_template: " {{ states('sensor.hebcal_is_it_shabbat') == 'True' }} " is_yom_tov: friendly_name: "Is Yom Tov" value_template: " {{ states('sensor.hebcal_is_it_yom_tov') != 'No Info' }} " is_shabbat_or_yom_tov: friendly_name: "Is Shabbat or Yom Tov" value_template: >- {{ states('sensor.hebcal_is_it_shabbat') == 'True' or states('sensor.hebcal_is_it_yom_tov') != 'No Info' }} + +The above YAML should be added to your Home Assistant instance’s default configuration file ( configuration.yaml ) and creates three downstream sensors: one for Shabbat, the other for Yom Tov and the final one that runs against both. This approach provides you the flexibility to create automations which are specific to Shabbat or Yom Tov. But I'd venture to guess that for most people the last is like me the one that will be useful + +The Is Yom Tov? sensor provided by the Jewish holidays add-on reports either with the name of the Yom Tov or with ‘No Info’. So my filtering logic uses an “anything other than No Info'“) check to translate that into a true/false binary value which we can use for driving the automations: + +If the state of the upstream Yom Tov checking sensor ( sensor.hebcal_is_it_yom_tov ) is anything other than ‘No Info’, it's determined to be ‘True’, and ‘No Info’ is interpreted as a false binary sensor state. + +Needless to say, if the add-on changes its logic, you'll need to modify the configuration just a bit. + +Part 2: Configuring Automations + +Using the Combined Sensor for Automations + +The point of configuring sensors to check whether it's Shabbat or Yom Tov is to drive a series of automations around the house to automate the turning on and off of lights, switches and appliances when it’s Shabbat or Yom Tov. + +My method of doing this is creating different scenes for different times over Shabbat and in the automation adding the sensor state condition check as a conditional so that the automations will only run on Shabbat or Yom Tov and not on regular days. + +I've created several scenes for different times during Shabbat and Yom Tov: + +Start of Shabbat/Hag + +Evening + +Morning + +Afternoon + +End of Shabbat/Hag + +The last one turns off the Shabbat or Hag visual indicators which are just Zigbee E27s that I’ve set up specifically for this purpose (see: below). When Shabbat is in they come on and when it's out they turn off. + +A down the line aspiration is to build a more decorative Shabbat state indicator using the same bulbs. + +Create Your Scenes For Various Shabbat Times + +Before we create the linking automations, we'll need to set up the scenes for various times on Shabbat. + +A start of Shabbat scene might be turning on the living room lights while turning off the lighting and switches in the home office for example. + +A bedtime Shabbat scene might be turning off the lights in the living areas and bedrooms. Etc, etc. Modify according to your own requirements! + +Create these just as you would any other scene in Home Assistants and give them a clearly identifiable name: + +Linking Scenes to Automations + +Now we've set up our sensors, configured our scenes, and all that's left to do is create the automations that bring everything together. + +While Home Assistant can sometimes seem frustratingly complicated, there are some advantages to taking the approaches that it kind of forces you to work with: it's easy to update the run times for any of the scenes when those are configured in automations - you can simply update the trigger time for any of them! + +This is useful when you might want to tweak air conditioner settings or lights on and off times according to the season. Alternatively, you could add a separate sensor that is active when you have guests staying over and which can add additional configurations to a guest bedroom. These can all be tied together in an automation. + +If, like me, you find writing YAML slightly crazy-inducing, this is one of the LLM use cases that first got me amazed by them. I haven't tried this automation yet, so configure it at your own caution, but here is a quick one that Claude drafted asking for a guest mode button: + +automation: - alias: "Guest Mode - Start Monitoring" trigger: - platform: state entity_id: input_boolean.guest_mode to: 'on' action: - service: automation.turn_on target: entity_id: - automation.guest_mode_lights_on_morning - automation.guest_mode_lights_off_night - alias: "Guest Mode - Lights On Morning" trigger: - platform: time at: "07:00:00" condition: - condition: state entity_id: input_boolean.guest_mode state: 'on' action: - service: light.turn_on target: entity_id: light.guest_room data: brightness: 255 - alias: "Guest Mode - Lights Off Night" trigger: - platform: time at: "22:00:00" condition: - condition: state entity_id: input_boolean.guest_mode state: 'on' action: - service: light.turn_off target: entity_id: light.guest_room - alias: "Guest Mode - End Monitoring" trigger: - platform: state entity_id: input_boolean.guest_mode to: 'on' for: hours: 24 action: - service: input_boolean.turn_off target: entity_id: input_boolean.guest_mode - service: automation.turn_off target: entity_id: - automation.guest_mode_lights_on_morning - automation.guest_mode_lights_off_night + +Here's an example automation for triggering the Shabbat bedtime at midnight that has the condition that my downstream sensor needs to be true in order to run. This condition check prevents it from running on any other day. As you can see, I have added a living room AC scene in order to turn off the air conditioning in the living space. + +alias: Shabbat or Hag bedtime description: Triggers bedtime lighting on Shabbat or Hag triggers: - at: "00:00:00" trigger: time conditions: - condition: state entity_id: binary_sensor.is_shabbat_or_yom_tov state: "on" actions: - metadata: {} target: entity_id: scene.shabbat_bedtime action: scene.turn_on data: {} - metadata: {} target: entity_id: scene.living_room_ac_off action: scene.turn_on data: {} mode: single + +Optional: Shabbat Control Dashboards + +Finally, you might want to add a control dashboard to do things like add an occasional guest mode switch and monitor that everything is working as expected. This is especially valuable the first time that you set it up and you want to be able to check that everything is running as expected. + +I added quick links to the various scenes in my dashboard to make it easy to periodically update values and have monitoring entities for the sensors driving the automations and the individual peripherals that need to be controlled by them: + +Enjoy Your Shabbat Automated Home! + +In order to get going with Home Assistant, I picked up an industrial fanless mini PC and installed Home Assistant OS on Proxmox. But if you don't envision making other use of the mini PC, it makes more sense to install Home Assistant OS on bare metal. It can also be run as a Docker container, but doing so will limit your ability to access much of this functionality. So HAOS is, in my view, the definite way to go. + +You’ll also probably want to pick up a ZigBee coordinator and Zigbee devices to control: + +E27 light bulbs + +Light switches + +Smart plugs + +It might seem like a lot but the nice thing about Home Assistant is that you can gradually build out your smart home over time. I started with AliExpress Tuya devices, then picked up my coordinator and purchased ZigBee devices as my mesh network took shape (I use MQTT). + +Good luck! + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/home-assistant-automations-for-yom-tov-shabbat-observance](https://heyitworks.tech/home-assistant-automations-for-yom-tov-shabbat-observance) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/Home-Assistant-Shabbat-Yom-Tov-Dashboards-Jan-2025.md b/posts/hashnode/Home-Assistant-Shabbat-Yom-Tov-Dashboards-Jan-2025.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4369b27b16de5cd1b8c321ebce6acd124d516d50 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/Home-Assistant-Shabbat-Yom-Tov-Dashboards-Jan-2025.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# Home Assistant Shabbat & Yom Tov Dashboards (Jan 2025) + +For religiously observant Jews, home automation provides a great means of observing the Shabbat and its strictures around the use of electronics. I've covered some binary sensor configurations in another post. + +In this one I wanted to share a slightly updated version of my Shabbat dashboard which I have running on an Android display. This version was updated in January 2025 with the help of Claude Sonnet 3.5 which added some nice stylistic elements to the sensor displays. + +Shabbat Dashboard + +This version of the dashboard leverages a few different add-ons in order to provide a unified display providing the red alert sensors, the Shabbat times and the weather forecast provided by the Israel Meteorological Service, IMS. The weekly Torah portion (parsha) and zmanim geolocated to your locality can be easily added as well. + +Add-Ons & Integrations + +I use the following add-ons and integrations in order to build my dashboards: + +Many thanks to all of the authors for their hard work in making this technology available and accessible. + +Security Disclaimer + +As I'm based in Israel, it's important for me to keep on top of the Red Alert sensors. But given that these are hugely important, I feel obliged to make the recommendation that you shouldn't rely on these as your only source of information for this vital purpose. I use the official Pikud HaOref app as my primary notifier but these provide a nice additional display (hopefully they remain green!).# + +Shabbat Display Setup + +The beauty of Home Assistant is that just about anything is possible. + +In order to display this dashboard over Shabbat, I picked up a budget Android tablet and installed Fully Kiosk Mode Browser. It's even possible to coordinate the tablet's turn-on and turn-off time in coordination with the Shabbat times provided by that sensor. + +Although I began my Home Assistant journey before the AI era, large language models have made configuring Home Assistant configurations vastly easier. I use Claude's Sonnet 3.5 for writing a lot of widget elements that would be too time consuming to code manually (or, frankly, beyond my abilities!) + +YAML Snippets For Widgets + +If you like the approach and styling, feel free to customise these YAML snippets to create your own dashboards: + +This snippet provides a two column styled button card showing the Hebrew date alongside the local time: + +type: custom:button-card entity: sensor.hebcal_hebrew_date show_name: false show_state: true show_icon: false styles: card: - background: "linear-gradient(135deg, - border-radius: 15px - padding: 16px state: - color: white - font-weight: bold - font-size: 18px - text-align: center - justify-self: center + +Next / Upcoming Shabbat Display Row + +type: grid title: Next Shabbat titleColor: white columns: 2 square: false cards: - type: entity entity: sensor.hebcal_start_of_shabbat name: Shabbat In card_mod: style: | ha-card { background: linear-gradient(120deg, border-radius: 15px; padding: 15px; } .card-content { color: white !important; } .primary { font-size: 1.8em; font-weight: bold; color: white !important; } .secondary { font-size: 1.2em; color: white !important; } :host { } - type: entity entity: sensor.hebcal_end_of_shabbat name: Shabbat Out card_mod: style: | ha-card { background: linear-gradient(120deg, border-radius: 15px; padding: 15px; } .card-content { color: white !important; } .primary { font-size: 1.8em; font-weight: bold; color: white !important; } .secondary { font-size: 1.2em; color: white !important; } :host { } + +Red Alert Display Row + +Important note: you will need to refer to the add-on documentation to change the entities to your alerting area.; + +square: false type: grid columns: 2 cards: - type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.oref_alert_jerusalem_all_areas name: Jerusalem All Areas icon: mdi: check -circle styles: card: - padding: 12 px name : - font-weight: bold - color: white state: - color: white icon: - color: white - width: 24 px - height: 24 px state: - value : "on" name : Jerusalem All Areas ( UNSAFE ) icon: mdi:alert-octagram styles: card: - background-color: "#ea4335" icon: - animation: blink 1 s ease infinite - value : "off" name : Jerusalem All Areas ( Safe ) styles: card: - background-color: "#34a853" - value : unavailable styles: card: - background-color: "#ffa500" - type : custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.oref_alert name : Jerusalem Center icon: mdi: check -circle styles: card: - padding: 12 px name : - font-weight: bold - color: white state: - color: white icon: - color: white - width: 24 px - height: 24 px state: - value : "on" name : Jerusalem Center ( UNSAFE ) icon: mdi:alert-octagram styles: card: - background-color: "#ea4335" icon: - animation: blink 1 s ease infinite - value : "off" name : Jerusalem Center ( Safe ) styles: card: - background-color: "#34a853" - value : unavailable styles: card: - background-color: "#ffa500" title: Red Alerts + +IMS Weather Widget + +And finally, a weather widget! + +show_current: true show_forecast: false type: weather-forecast entity: weather.ims_weather forecast_type: daily name: Jerusalem, IL + +Full Dashboard Configuration + +Here's a full YAML configuration for my Shabbat dashboard with my personal sensors (like lighting displays) excluded: + +views: - title: Home sections: - type: grid cards: - type: grid title: Shabbat Times titleColor: white columns: 1 square: false cards: - type: entity entity: sensor.hebcal_start_of_shabbat name: Shabbat In card_mod: style: | ha-card { background: linear-gradient(120deg, border-radius: 15px; padding: 15px; } .card-content { color: white !important; } .primary { font-size: 1.8em; font-weight: bold; color: white !important; } .secondary { font-size: 1.2em; color: white !important; } :host { } - type: entity entity: sensor.hebcal_end_of_shabbat name: Shabbat Out card_mod: style: | ha-card { background: linear-gradient(120deg, border-radius: 15px; padding: 15px; } .card-content { color: white !important; } .primary { font-size: 1.8em; font-weight: bold; color: white !important; } .secondary { font-size: 1.2em; color: white !important; } :host { } - type: entity entity: sensor.time name: Current Time (Jerusalem) card_mod: style: | ha-card { background: linear-gradient(120deg, border-radius: 15px; padding: 15px; } .card-content { color: white !important; } .primary { font-size: 1.8em; font-weight: bold; color: white !important; } .secondary { font-size: 1.2em; color: white !important; } :host { } - square: false type: grid columns: 1 cards: - type: markdown content: | 🌅 ** Start of Shabbat** Shabbat Mode Active 🌙 ** 00 : 00 ** Bedtime Mode ☀️ ** 09 : 00 ** Morning Lights 🌤️ ** 14 : 30 ** Afternoon Lights style : | ha-card { padding: 16 px; background: var( border-radius: var( } h2 { color: var( border-bottom: 1px solid var( padding-bottom: 8px; margin-bottom: 8px; } - type: entity entity: sensor.hebcal_parsha name: Parsha card_mod: style: | ha-card { background: linear-gradient(120deg, border-radius: 15px; padding: 15px; text-align: center; } .card-content { color: white !important; } .primary { font-size: 1.6em; font-weight: bold; color: white !important; line-height: 1.2; } .secondary { font-size: 1.4em; color: white !important; line-height: 1.2; } :host { } badges: - type: entity entity: sensor.hebcal_hebrew_date name: Hebrew Date attribute: '' state_header: 'Shabbat Dashboard For:' secondary_info: none card_mod: style: | ha-card { background: linear-gradient(120deg, border-radius: 15px; padding: 15px; text-align: center; width: 100%; margin: 0; box-sizing: border-box; } .card-content { color: white !important; width: 100%; } .primary { font-size: 1.6em; font-weight: bold; color: white !important; line-height: 1.2; width: 100%; } .secondary { font-size: 1.4em; color: white !important; line-height: 1.2; width: 100%; } :host { width: 100%; } .name { display: none; } + +Yom Tov Version + +I created a downstream binary sensor for Shabbat or Yom Tov because for the purpose of driving home automations, at least in my case it doesn't matter which of the conditions is true. + +Here’s the configuration: + +binary_sensor: - platform: template sensors: is_shabbat: friendly_name: "Is Shabbat" value_template: "{{ states('sensor.hebcal_is_it_shabbat') == 'True' }}" is_yom_tov: friendly_name: "Is Yom Tov" value_template: "{{ states('sensor.hebcal_is_it_yom_tov') != 'No Info' }}" is_shabbat_or_yom_tov: friendly_name: "Is Shabbat or Yom Tov" value_template: >- {{ states('sensor.hebcal_is_it_shabbat') == 'True' or states('sensor.hebcal_is_it_yom_tov') != 'No Info' }} + +With this dual sensor, you can easily create styled status grids like these: + +type: vertical-stack cards: - type: horizontal-stack cards: - type: custom:button-card entity: switch.plata name: Plata icon: mdi:lightbulb styles: card: - border-radius: 12px - transition: background-color 0.3s ease, box-shadow 0.3s ease - box-shadow: | [[[ if (entity.state === 'on') return '0 6px 10px rgba(0, 128, 0, 0.4)'; else return '0 4px 6px rgba(255, 0, 0, 0.2)'; ]]] - background-color: | [[[ if (entity.state === 'on') return 'rgba(0, 128, 0, 0.6)'; else return 'rgba(255, 0, 0, 0.6)'; ]]] icon: - color: white name: - font-weight: bold - color: white - type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.is_shabbat name: Shabbat? icon: mdi:candle styles: card: - border-radius: 12px - transition: background-color 0.3s ease, box-shadow 0.3s ease - box-shadow: | [[[ if (entity.state === 'on') return '0 6px 10px rgba(0, 128, 0, 0.4)'; else return '0 4px 6px rgba(255, 0, 0, 0.2)'; ]]] - background-color: | [[[ if (entity.state === 'on') return 'rgba(0, 128, 0, 0.6)'; else return 'rgba(255, 0, 0, 0.6)'; ]]] icon: - color: white name: - font-weight: bold - color: white - type: horizontal-stack cards: - type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.is_yom_tov name: Yom Tov? icon: mdi:star-david styles: card: - border-radius: 12px - transition: background-color 0.3s ease, box-shadow 0.3s ease - box-shadow: | [[[ if (entity.state === 'on') return '0 6px 10px rgba(0, 128, 0, 0.4)'; else return '0 4px 6px rgba(255, 0, 0, 0.2)'; ]]] - background-color: | [[[ if (entity.state === 'on') return 'rgba(0, 128, 0, 0.6)'; else return 'rgba(255, 0, 0, 0.6)'; ]]] icon: - color: white name: - font-weight: bold - color: white - type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.is_shabbat_or_yom_tov name: Shabbat Or Yom T... icon: mdi:calendar-clock styles: card: - border-radius: 12px - transition: background-color 0.3s ease, box-shadow 0.3s ease - box-shadow: | [[[ if (entity.state === 'on') return '0 6px 10px rgba(0, 128, 0, 0.4)'; else return '0 4px 6px rgba(255, 0, 0, 0.2)'; ]]] - background-color: | [[[ if (entity.state === 'on') return 'rgba(0, 128, 0, 0.6)'; else return 'rgba(255, 0, 0, 0.6)'; ]]] icon: - color: white name: - font-weight: bold - color: white + +An approach to creating a Yom Tov-specific dashboard would be to copy the Shabbat dashboard in its entirety and just swap out the sensors for the Yom Tov ones. + +You could even integrate the display into the automation for your tablet (if it’s Shabbat, show the Shabbat dashboard; if it’s Yom Tov, show the Yom Tov dashboard, etc). + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/home-assistant-shabbat-yom-tov-dashboards-jan-2025](https://heyitworks.tech/home-assistant-shabbat-yom-tov-dashboards-jan-2025) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/Home-Assistant-Smoke-Alarm-Display-Automations.md b/posts/hashnode/Home-Assistant-Smoke-Alarm-Display-Automations.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..07c09cf98993473b24ced8e40d122508303862c6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/Home-Assistant-Smoke-Alarm-Display-Automations.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# Home Assistant: Smoke Alarm Display & Automations + +Safety is paramount, and integrating smoke alarms into your Home Assistant setup is a crucial step in ensuring your home's safety. This guide provides a comprehensive overview of how to integrate smart smoke alarms into your Home Assistant dashboard and create related automations. + +Integrating Your Smoke Alarms + +The first step is purchasing smart smoke alarms and integrating them into your smart home system. Both Wi-Fi and Zigbee-based smoke alarms are widely available. While Zigbee devices typically cost more, they offer several benefits, including lower battery consumption, less interference with home Wi-Fi networks, and easier integration into Home Assistant. I highly recommend buying Zigbee devices whenever possible. + +Inspect and Note the Devices + +After integrating the devices into Home Assistant, identify the specific sensors they expose. Typically, smart smoke alarms will expose three different sensors: + +Smoke Detected State: The most important sensor, usually presented as a binary sensor. Use this for alarming. + +Battery Sensor: Some devices report this as a battery level percentage, while others display a binary "OK" or "not OK" state. I strongly recommend purchasing devices that report the battery level as a percentage. This allows you to monitor the battery level and take proactive steps to replace batteries before they run out. + +Creating a Group (Helper) for the Binary Sensors + +Here's my approach to monitoring the alarms: + +I use a binary sensor group to monitor all smoke alarms collectively. I have four smoke alarms in my house. I don't need to know whether each one is on or off all the time. I just need to be alerted if any one of them goes off. + +I have a home safety dashboard where I monitor all the alarms individually and their battery levels. + +For smoke detection, we're going to create a group for binary sensors. Make sure that you're adding the correct sensor for each smoke alarm to the group. Add the smoke sensor, not the tamper sensors (as they might also be binary). + +If you have additional home safety sensors, such as a carbon monoxide sensor, you could add all of these into one broader safety group. This way, you can minimize the number of things you have to monitor and just get an alarm if any sensor condition is positive. + +Home Assistant allows you to nest groups within groups. In the safety sensor group, I didn't have to manually list each smoke sensor. Instead, I added the smoke sensor group as its own entity and added the carbon monoxide sensor on top of it. + +In this default configuration, the group will switch to "on" if any smoke alarm is "on". I imagine that essentially all users would prefer this configuration. + +Dashboard Elements For Smoke + CO + +This is a dashboard element showing the alarm state collectively and the carbon monoxide sensor. Replace the entities with your own. + +type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.smoke_alarms name: Smoke Alarms (All) icon: mdi:smoke-detector show_state: true styles: card: - padding: 12px state: - padding-top: 8px state: - value: "off" color: var(--success-color) - value: "on" color: var(--error-color) + +Quadrant Display For 4 Smoke Alarms With Color-Coding + +Widget: + +YAML: + +title: Smoke Detectors type: vertical-stack cards: - type: grid columns: 2 square: false padding: 5 cards: - type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.kitchensmokedetector_smoke name: Kitchen styles: card: - padding: 12px - margin: 5px name: - font-weight: bold - color: white state: - color: white state: - value: "on" styles: card: - background-color: "#ea4335" name: - color: white state: - color: white - value: "off" styles: card: - background-color: "#34a853" name: - color: white state: - color: white - value: unavailable styles: card: - background-color: "#ffa500" name: - color: white state: - color: white - type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.office_smoke_detector_smoke name: Office styles: card: - padding: 12px - margin: 5px name: - font-weight: bold - color: white state: - color: white state: - value: "on" styles: card: - background-color: "#ea4335" name: - color: white state: - color: white - value: "off" styles: card: - background-color: "#34a853" name: - color: white state: - color: white - value: unavailable styles: card: - background-color: "#ffa500" name: - color: white state: - color: white - type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.bedroom_smoke_sensor_smoke name: Bedroom styles: card: - padding: 12px - margin: 5px name: - font-weight: bold - color: white state: - color: white state: - value: "on" styles: card: - background-color: "#ea4335" name: - color: white state: - color: white - value: "off" styles: card: - background-color: "#34a853" name: - color: white state: - color: white - value: unavailable styles: card: - background-color: "#ffa500" name: - color: white state: - color: white - type: custom:button-card entity: binary_sensor.living_room_smoke_detector_smoke name: Living Room styles: card: - padding: 12px - margin: 5px name: - font-weight: bold - color: white state: - color: white state: - value: "on" styles: card: - background-color: "#ea4335" name: - color: white state: - color: white - value: "off" styles: card: - background-color: "#34a853" name: - color: white state: - color: white - value: unavailable styles: card: - background-color: "#ffa500" name: - color: white state: - color: white - type: markdown style: | ha-card { padding: 16px; margin-top: 16px; } content: > {% set total = 4 %} {% set active = namespace(count=0) %} {% set unavailable = namespace(count=0) %} {% set devices = ['binary_sensor.kitchensmokedetector_smoke', 'binary_sensor.office_smoke_detector_smoke', 'binary_sensor.bedroom_smoke_sensor_smoke', 'binary_sensor.living_room_smoke_detector_smoke'] %} {% for device in devices %} {% if states(device) == 'on' %} {% set active.count = active.count + 1 %} {% elif states(device) == 'unavailable' %} {% set unavailable.count = unavailable.count + 1 %} {% endif %} {% endfor %} {% set online = total - unavailable.count %} {{ online }} alarms online, {{ active.count }} activated, {{ unavailable.count }} unavailable + +Aggregating Battery Statuses Into One Reporting Entity + +As mentioned earlier, different smoke sensors report their battery states in different ways. Just as with the smoke alarm sensing, we might want to try to reduce this to one sensor for convenience. + +You can add a template like this into your configuration to achieve this + +template: - binary_sensor: name: "Smoke Detector Batteries Status" state: > {% set bedroom = states('sensor.bedroom_smoke_sensor_battery')|float(0) %} {% set office = states('sensor.office_smoke_detector_battery')|float(0) %} {% set living_room = states('sensor.living_room_smoke_detector_battery')|float(0) %} {% set kitchen = states('binary_sensor.kitchensmokedetector_battery_low') %} {{ bedroom <= 10 or office <= 10 or living_room <= 10 or kitchen == 'on' }} device_class: battery + +Battery level row with conditional styling for alerts + +This card lists the battery levels for the sensors and will only show red if any are below 10% or it's a negative binary state. + +type: custom:button-card show_name: false show_icon: false show_state: false custom_fields: battery: > [[[ const bedroom = states['sensor.bedroom_smoke_sensor_battery'].state; const office = states['sensor.office_smoke_detector_battery'].state; const living = states['sensor.living_room_smoke_detector_battery'].state; const kitchen = states['binary_sensor.kitchensmokedetector_battery_low'].state; const kitchenStatus = kitchen === 'off' ? '✓' : '⚠' ; return `BR: ${bedroom}% | OF: ${office}% | LR: ${living}% | KT: ${kitchenStatus}`; ]]] styles: card: - padding: 8px custom_fields: battery: - font-size: 14px - text-align: center - color: white state: - operator: template value: > [[[ const bedroom = Number(states['sensor.bedroom_smoke_sensor_battery'].state); const office = Number(states['sensor.office_smoke_detector_battery'].state); const living = Number(states['sensor.living_room_smoke_detector_battery'].state); const kitchen = states['binary_sensor.kitchensmokedetector_battery_low'].state; return bedroom <= 10 || office <= 10 || living <= 10 || kitchen === 'on' ; ]]] styles: card: - background-color: "#ea4335" - operator: default styles: card: - background-color: "#34a853" + +Driving Automations/Alarming + +Finally, we get to the question of what to do about alarming. Clearly this is actually the most important part of setting up smoke alarms! + +I'm using the helper grouping again in order to simplify the process of setting up an automation. I'm departing from the principle that if any smoke alarm is positive or the carbon monoxide sensor, I'll want to know about it anywhere in the house immediately. So my automation will be triggered based upon a true state on the group sensor. + +You can use YAML or the Visual builder to create an automation like this. + +Trigger: + +If the state of my binary sensor safety group turns to ON, which would happen if any constituent sensor were to become on: + +Action: + +Alarming. + +Then my warning sirens (another entity group) will toggle to on: + +You probably also want to add additional alarming to take advantage of the fact that unlike a conventional fire alarm, smart fire alarms can notify you wherever you are. + +If you are at home when a smoke alarm triggers, it's pretty obvious that you're going to be alerted to the alarm by the alarms in your house if you have them, the physical alarm on the device, or other factors. + +But you might wish to configure push emergency notifications on all your connected devices that will send through a designated emergency alerting channel in the event that this state becomes positive. + +Low Battery Warnings + +Finally, let's add a bit of notifications to the battery level monitoring, seeing as we have it as an option. + +If you have smoke alarms that are all of the same type and report their sensor type consistently, then it's easier to do this. This is a great reason, in fact, to buy your smoke alarms in a batch - You'll know that they have the exact same functionality and sensors (I just wish I had thought of this beforehand!) + +Let's create a sensor group for the battery levels: + +I'll call this one "smoke alarm battery levels": + +You could use the minimum value as the "type": + +Low Battery Notifications + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/ha-safety-alarming](https://heyitworks.tech/ha-safety-alarming) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/How-are-Deep-Seeks-innate-current-information-retrieval-capabilities.md b/posts/hashnode/How-are-Deep-Seeks-innate-current-information-retrieval-capabilities.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1b44840963b8d7ce30c79a8731e1fa21180fd13f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/How-are-Deep-Seeks-innate-current-information-retrieval-capabilities.md @@ -0,0 +1,41 @@ +# How are Deep Seek's innate current information retrieval capabilities? + +Deep Seek has been all over the news for the past few days with the AI community in awe of its abilities to rival OpenAI on major benchmarks - for a fraction of the development cost. + +Before getting too excited, though, it's worth considering how these tools can be accessed. + +Firstly: Navigating The Deep Seek API Nomenclature + +Having been using Deep Seek for a number of months now (according to one X poster that makes me a “hardcore geek!”), one of the first things to know about it is that the API naming is a little confusing. + +With the world of AI experiencing seismic shifts every few days, the expression “at the time of writing” has never been more useful than at the moment. So with that disclaimer aside, at the time of writing (the publication date of this blog) here is why everybody is getting excited about these models: + +Deep Seek has opted for a very different approach to OpenAI when naming models. + +While users of ChatGPT are shielded from these strange details, here's what the model selection on OpenAI looks like currently (via Open Router). + +There are actually dozens of different models available: + +And even relatively famous variants like 4.0 actually have different timestamped variants which users can access: + +The two models that Deep Seek provides through its API actually track different (actual) models on the backend: deepseek-reasoner maps onto R1 and deepseek-chat maps onto V3. In my opinion this is actually a wise decision and means that users effectively only have to pick one or the other when choosing the model for their prompt. + +Who Is The President Of The USA, AI Tool? + +Given that the White House has just had a change of guard It's currently a great time to use my go-to test prompt for assessing whether models appear to have a built-in RAG pipeline. Sometimes these are undisclosed or mysterious forces at work in the background providing LLMs with knowledge that cannot be explained through their training data alone. + +Here's the first test prompt I ran. Note that v3, confusingly, self-describes its training data cutoff as being in October 2023 (running the same prompt reveals that the model varies a bit in its description). + +Trying out R1 via Open Router we get the same result, with the model this time stating its training date cutoff to be July: + +Note how ChatGPT responds (ChatGPT is an OpenAI API model as well as the famous platform): + +Sonnet 3.5 actually does worse, claiming decisively that Biden is their current president without mentioning the constraint of its knowledge: + +Augmenting the model with real-time search capabilities via Tavily, however, finally yielded an accurate answer, although performance was a little sluggish: + +Or via DeepSeek’s web platform: + +Conclusions + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/how-are-deep-seeks-innate-current-information-retrieval-capabilities](https://heyitworks.tech/how-are-deep-seeks-innate-current-information-retrieval-capabilities) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/How-to-create-your-own-home-inventory-chatbot-using-Homebox-an-AI-Agent.md b/posts/hashnode/How-to-create-your-own-home-inventory-chatbot-using-Homebox-an-AI-Agent.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cd8a6f9cc563b3f542326bc8031f90dd8600689d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/How-to-create-your-own-home-inventory-chatbot-using-Homebox-an-AI-Agent.md @@ -0,0 +1,47 @@ +# How to create your own home inventory chatbot using Homebox & an AI Agent + +I've undertaken a few ambitious tech projects in my time. But perhaps none was as grueling as the month-long process of taking a home inventory using the excellent open source project Homebox. + +My home office had reached a point of non-functionality. Trying to find anything I needed among my sprawling collection of tech things was proving essentially impossible. When it became quicker to buy cables fresh than find the ones I already had, I knew that my current system was broken, wasteful and needed changing. + +The process of creating a home inventory using Homebox is a laborious one, but has ultimately proved highly efficient. While I initially bought a laser printer and used QR codes to record my inventory, I later switched over to using NFC tags. + +As crazy as the system is, it undeniably works. I can now use Homebox to look for anything I need, find its box number and retrieve it all in about 10 seconds. + +However, with so many advances in AI over the past year, I couldn't help but think that it would be pretty cool if I could find some way to connect a large language model to my inventory. That way I could sort of avoid the Homebox UI entirely and simply use natural language in a chatbot interface to interact with an agent. + +Distlaimer, I haven't quite yet reached that objective. The tools required to get models to interact with APIs are in their relative infancy and more presciently, my Homebox instance is secured behind a Cloudflare network and I don't want to go through the hassle of figuring out how to safely provide remote API access to it. But here is a proof of concept that shows that it can work. + +The limitation here is that this is a static system, and therefore, if you're regularly updating your inventory, you would have to go through the trouble of deleting the previous context data and uploading a new file to simulate overriding the data. But here is at least a starter system. + +Export Inventory, Embed In Vector Database (RAG) + +The first thing you'll want to do is export your inventory from Homebox. This will download the data as a CSV. + +Context-enhanced agents rely on RAG in order to serve up relevant data to the user. I decided to give the vector database a bit of a head start by going through the CSV export and manually deleting all the columns that did not contain data and I thought might confuse the agent. + +For the same reason, I also did a little bit of reformatting of the column header names in order to make what they were more obvious to the AI: + +RAG still being a fairly early stage technology, you may have to play around with the download format in order to find a file type that embeds well into your vector store.Although it doesn't make much sense for a data file, you could try using PDF or HTML if the embedding in CSV doesn't work nicely. + +Next, I created an agent in LibreChat in order to be able to interact in a chat interface with my inventory store. I chose Sonnet 3.5 as the underlying model, but it would probably make more sense to choose a less powerful LLM for this relatively rudimentary task. + +The type of agent that can be created in systems like LibreChat involves taking a stock large language model, adding a system prompt, usually described as instructions, and then connecting them to their specific contextual knowledge source. + +The system prompt doesn't have to be amazing, here's one that I wrote that works reasonably well. + +Now it's time to connect the agent to the knowledge. Use the Upload for File Search button in LibreChat in order to allow access and make sure that you tick the Enable File Search functionality so that the agent has permission to access the data. + +When you can see the file name display, the process has been successful and your agent can now access the inventory: + +Make sure to click on save to make sure that the knowledge has been added: + +Now our chatbot is ready for use and we can ask you questions about our inventory: + +You can see that it's checking the files when asked a question: + +It was able to identify all the infrared controllers in my tech cabinet and isolate the one that I was looking for, number 3! + +You can ask follow-up questions to retrieve details about the thing you're looking for: + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/how-to-create-your-own-home-inventory-chatbot-using-homebox-an-ai-agent](https://heyitworks.tech/how-to-create-your-own-home-inventory-chatbot-using-homebox-an-ai-agent) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/OpenWebUI-With-Postgres-And-Qdrant-A-Setup-Guide.md b/posts/hashnode/OpenWebUI-With-Postgres-And-Qdrant-A-Setup-Guide.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bd5a7f21a171f41f62154855b6cbcb231b5cc276 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/OpenWebUI-With-Postgres-And-Qdrant-A-Setup-Guide.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# OpenWebUI With Postgres And Qdrant - A Setup Guide + +OpenWebUI is one of the best known and quickly growing frontends for those prepared to take on the challenge of self-hosting a frontend for large language models. + +While self-hosting an LLM UI isn't for everyone and comes with the usual pros and cons of self-hosting, the advantages, for those prepared to invest the time, are many. + +Users can avoid the usage caps associated with SaaS offerings like ChatGPT and gain direct access to a vast array of models from both mainstream and niche providers. There's also a prompt library, a built-in feature for maintaining knowledge, enabling RAG workflows, and a growing library of tools and pipelines delivered through Open Web UI Community. + +Another powerful advantage of customisable frontends like OpenWebUI, LibreChat and others, is the ability to dial in models to suit your exact preferences. Everything from the system prompt to the temperature to parameters like Top P and Top K can be fine-tuned until you experience the kind of performance you're looking for. + +Open Web UI is well known for its association with Ollama - and many choose to back the front-end with entirely self-hosted infrastructure for inference. However it works perfectly well without any attachment to that project whatsoever. My own instance simply uses cloud LLMs. As the name suggests, OpenWebUI places a high value upon excellent UI, and personally I've come to much prefer it than anything else I've found on the market. + +But … is Open Web UI “production” ready? + +While many open source projects like OpenWebUI have an association with hobbyists and tinkerers, with AI workflows embedding themselves quickly in the technology stack of even small businesses, a growing pool of users are wondering whether these tools can take the place of mainstream AI platforms in their workloads. + +While ChatGPT recently informed me that SQLite is deployed in avionics, which sounded impressive, many old-schoolers, like me, will still balk at the idea of relying upon it as a database for production use. This isn't to say that SQLite isn't suitable for countless use cases, including this one. But from a data integrity and backup perspective, I’m firmly on the side of Postgres, and use it wherever and whenever I can in tech stacks. + +OpenWebUI’s “RAG Problem” + +You don't need to be an internet sleuth or spend much time on GitHub to see that users are not enamoured by the out-of-the-box performance of OpenWebUI's RAG integration.The issue of lacklustre or unacceptable RAG performance has come up on countless threads on GitHub, Reddit and wherever else the project is discussed. + +Like many open source projects, the pace at which documentation is generated to keep track of features doesn't always move in sync with the evolution of the codebase. Thus, many users are unaware that other RAG databases are supported and virtually anything can be configured with a pipeline. + +Out of the box, OpenWebUI uses ChromaDB, which comes pre-installed with the container. However, digging through the environment variable documentation reveals that a number of other databases can be provisioned.These can be configured by setting the appropriate choice with the vector_db environment variable. Besides Chroma, Milvus, Qdrant, OpenSearch, and PGVector are currently supported. + +After moving from Chroma to a standalone Qdrant database, which I deployed as part of a stack, I found that the RAG performance was significantly faster, although some quirks about file type remained. Qdrant has the advantage over other other self-hostable RAG databases of having a basic web frontend as part of its design, so it's relatively easy, by visiting that or monitoring the container logs, to verify that embeddings and retrieval are actually happening against it and not ChromaDB. + +Configuring Postgres + +Another facet of Open Web UI configuration that should probably be highlighted far more prominently in the documentation is the fact that Postgres is also a supported database. However, as the documentation rightly notes, simply configuring an updated environment variable won't actually set the migration. + +To set OpenWebUI set the DATABASE_URL environment variable and provide a Postgres connection string. + +Migrating From SQLite to Postgres + +So what can you do if your instance started with SQLite and you’re ready to move over to Postgres (and swap out ChromaDB for another RAG database?) Fortunately, there are a number of useful community projects, including a server-side Postgres script, which can make fairly light work of database data migration. However, expect some imperfections. I wasn't able to import my models with the web UI feature and instead had to resort to scripting and import with PSQL. + +https://ciodave.medium.com/migrating-open-webui-sqlite-database-to-postgresql-8efe7b2e4156 + +Sadly, RAG is not so straightforward. Given that every vector database employs a slightly different method for embedding text and providing it for retrieval, the best advice is probably to either “start again” or, better yet, avoid this quandary from the get-go by separating your front-end from the other components of your AI stack. + +Why Go To The Trouble? + +Much like how I spent the first few months of my journey with Linux “distro hopping” (as it's come to be called) I spent a few months trying out all manner of front-ends for AI use before deciding that I liked Open Web UI the best. + +I had a landmark moment when my instance wasn't accessible for a few hours and I had to go back to using ChatGPT (like a normal person!). For the record, I think that ChatGPT is an outstanding product and has provided the gateway for many to explore more fully the world of AI. But I was surprised to reach the conclusion that an open source project can actually reach a higher level of performance and utility than a product like ChatGPT with the backing of some of the world's leading and best funded technology providers. + +While it took two very long days without much sleep to get there, I decided that my long-term interests were best served by ripping up the starter instance which I provisioned without much thought to longevity and replacing it with a much more deliberate and planned instance that I hope will serve my needs for quite some time. + +One of the amazing things about AI is its ability to help even with understanding and developing with AI! I find that AI tools are extremely capable at creating and editing custom Docker Compose files, possibly a reflection of the fact that there is so much data around this that presumably makes it into their training data. + +My main challenges in deploying the stack were the more usual and mundane complications of database migrations and DevOps concerns. But once all the pieces were finally in place and the container networking and reverse proxying and security figured out, the components talked to one another just as they should. + +The Bottom Line + +While the environment parameters are buried in a very long piece of documentation, it's absolutely possible to provision OpenWebUI with Postgres and a non-default vector database including Qdrant and others. Those who want to explore even further can use tools and pipelines to bring just about any type of RAG storage and connect it to the front end. + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/openwebui-with-postgres-and-qdrant-a-setup-guide](https://heyitworks.tech/openwebui-with-postgres-and-qdrant-a-setup-guide) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/Personal-RAG-Beer-Recommendation-Assistants-But-Really-So-Much-More.md b/posts/hashnode/Personal-RAG-Beer-Recommendation-Assistants-But-Really-So-Much-More.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..82051a5d4bbe2eeb068930019af600d22046eabc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/Personal-RAG-Beer-Recommendation-Assistants-But-Really-So-Much-More.md @@ -0,0 +1,95 @@ +# Personal RAG: Beer Recommendation Assistants (But Really, So Much More!) + +Between Sora, Gemini’s impressive new real-time capabilities, and everything else going on in the world of AI, you might be forgiven for thinking that we've reached beyond the point of saturation. + +But to quote many a shady late-night advertising TV sales pitch, “but wait there's more.” + +The purpose of this post is to demonstrate a workflow for creating a personal AI agent using the excellent Open Web UI which - in my opinion - competes with LibreChat for the title of the best LLM front-end that can be self-hosted. But although this is the platform I've used for this experiment, it should work fairly well regardless of which front end you're using. + +Small Context, Big Results + +The beautiful thing about using context in AI workflows is that you don't need an awful lot of it to achieve great things. Okay, so getting personalized beer recommendations from a bot might be stretching the definition of “big things” just a little bit, but the use case here is one of many that can be easily achieved by taking a slightly deliberate approach to generating context for personal use. + +In my opinion, a huge opportunity is being missed in leveraging more modest implementations of RAG workflows for personal inference. + +When most people think about RAG, they think about vectorizing enormous enterprise document stores. But it can be used very effectively for personal uses, too. Consider the example of somebody developing a job search assistant who can curate a personal knowledge store with their resume, career aspirations, and even update it with their interview statuses as they go along. + +Generating Knowledge / Data Stores + +The implementation for contextual data vector stores that's OpenAI has used in its Assistants has inspired the implementation for a lot of other tools. + +Context data can be very lightweight - it doesn't need to be anything more complicated than markdown files or JSON containing snippets of information about a specific topic. I've personally adopted the nickname “context snippets” to describe these documents, for want of a better term. + +A popular implementation, and OpenWebUI does it very well, is the ability to create data stores consisting of collections of documents around a similar theme. So to get going with this project, I created a knowledge called “Daniel's Food and Drink Preferences” and then began generating the requisite files to fill it up. + +I Love Dry Cider. Do you? + +I like to take the approach of thinking strategically about what I want to include in each vector store. + +The example chosen for this demonstration is clearly a flippant one, but for more serious uses (consider perhaps a vector store with your medical and health data) you'll want to think carefully about what type of information would be useful for an agent working with it as context. + +In that example, it might be things like your medication list, your health history, your wellness objectives, but in the case of my food and drink knowledge store it was lighter topics such as my cider preferences. + +Lately, I've become a huge fan of voice typing, and speech-to-text is another of the many technologies that have developed tremendously in recent years thanks to advances in AI. I use a dictation setup in order to jot down these context notes as naturally as possible, and try to imagine that I'm speaking to a friend, giving them all the mundane details about whatever note I'm capturing. + +The question of how to get your context data from a convenient format into vector storage needs a little bit of polish in today's tools. You can either use platform frontends like that in OpenAI Playground (OpenWebUI's implementation is a bit better). Or if you're feeling up to the project, you can create your own frontend to develop a data pipeline for sending off your context data pieces for embedding. + +Context Data Is In Flux, Like Life + +I didn't start this blog on any kind of mission to promote Open Web UI, but having gotten into it, I feel the need to commend their implementation of this feature. I believe that a very important facet of context for personal uses is the fact that it is a living body of data. + +This is where context implementations that are really only designed for one-time writing are, in my opinion, rather flawed. Some pieces of context data, like the city we were born in, remain constant, but others, like whether we're looking for a job or how many rooms are in our apartment, might be in a periodic state of flux as our life circumstances evolve. + +The most powerful mechanisms for managing personal context are those that allow the context store to be edited, deleted and added to just like any other pool of textual data. + +Now, The System Prompt + +It may seem like this is an awful lot of work, but once you get the hang of configuring assistants with personal context data, you'll discover that the time invested is well worth it. + +To achieve an agent-like behavior from a standard large language model API endpoint, the next requirement is to configure a system prompt to modify the default behavior of the model and hone it in on the objective of assisting with whatever we configured the agent for. + +These don't need to be pieces of poetry or works of art. They just need to be instructive enough and determinative enough to guide the model towards the expected and desired behavior. + +For the purpose of this example: + +“You are the food and drink advisory assistant to the user Daniel Rosehill. Your name is Dave. Daniel will ask you to provide your recommendations from a menu which you might supply through an image upload. Quickly parse and analyse the context of the menu and provide Daniel a recommendation based upon your knowledge of his tastes, which is in your context.” + +Which Underlying LLM To Use? + +Deciding on the model is a matter of preference and sometimes also of budget. + +If you're configuring a high volume personal context agent, perhaps something like generating personalized cover letters, then you might want to go for something like GPT 3.5 for the relatively easy task of text editing. + +But you might want a model with stronger reasoning abilities for more involved and complicated usages. + +Finally, Connect Agent To Knowledge + +Where connecting curated personal context stores to agents becomes positively transformative in my opinion is when you begin attaching multiple storage tranches to individual agents. + +This allows you fine-grained control over the type of information you wish to ground your agent on and provides a compelling reason to carefully gather and segregate your context data thinking about what kind of use cases it can support. + +But today, I’m just connecting the humble beer advisory tool to the new “food and drink preferences” context pool: + +Hey Dave, What Beer Should I Order? + +if you've made it this far, then the good news is that we’re finally at the eagerly awaited end point of this journey when we can ask our newly minted bot to provide us with some personal recommendations for beers. + +AI to the rescue situation one: you're in an airport bar somewhere in Germany, you've no idea what any of these beers are, and you need your trusty AI sidekick to guide you towards something you’ll have a better chance than not of enjoying: + +Good thing we have our new on-call personal beer assistant on hand! + +“Dave” has reviewed its context and provided you with recommendations based upon what you've told it about the type of beer you enjoy. + +But wait, there's more! + +Assuming that the underlying model that you chose is vision capable, then you can provide a screenshot or take a photo of a beer menu or the taps that are visible at the bar and then ask your personal assistant to give you its sage advice. + +To model that experience, I picked a random craft beer menu from the internet. + +And prompted like this: + +Dave comes to the rescue again, successfully deciphering the text out of the menu and then providing recommendations based on context. + +Ways You Can Use Context In Personal RAG Workflows + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/personal-rag-and-context](https://heyitworks.tech/personal-rag-and-context) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/Personal-RAG-Data-Pipeline-Implementation-Github-To-OpenWebUI-Chroma-DB.md b/posts/hashnode/Personal-RAG-Data-Pipeline-Implementation-Github-To-OpenWebUI-Chroma-DB.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..41ce2ce5253ea5e1eaa722557a76cfd23f9c4cbd --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/Personal-RAG-Data-Pipeline-Implementation-Github-To-OpenWebUI-Chroma-DB.md @@ -0,0 +1,81 @@ +# Personal RAG Data Pipeline Implementation: Github To OpenWebUI (Chroma DB) + +I've been working on a project recently that I wanted to share: a data pipeline that automatically syncs markdown files from a GitHub repo to OpenWebUI's Knowledge Store. + +This is part of my effort to create a personal context data store for improving inference with cloud-based LLMs. + +The idea came from the observation that many tools focus on extracting context and creating memory stores from ongoing conversations. This project is an experiment in the opposite direction: deliberately creating context data and injecting it into conversations using Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG). + +The code for this, along with other related projects (including assistant configurations that "interview" users to generate context data!), is available on my GitHub profile. + +Manually curating and annotating details can be time-consuming. This pipeline is designed as one component of a larger system, efficiently loading data into the vector store. The broader system includes intelligent agents configured to extract structured data, which leads to the next point... + +Why Use a Pipeline? The Limitations of Manual Uploads + +OpenWebUI's Knowledge Store has a user-friendly interface and all the basics needed for RAG. However, uploading markdown files one at a time through the web interface becomes impractical when dealing with a large or constantly growing number of files. It might work for quick tests, but it's a limitation when building a substantial knowledge base. + +The pipeline provides a more resilient solution, allowing for incremental syncs. I can treat my context repository more like a database or code repository. This allows me to manage changes with Git, create reproducible builds, and automate tests. It also allows me to control my infrastructure and integrate directly with OpenWebUI. + +The main benefit is the ability to manage your personal knowledge and apply version control principles to it, treating your knowledge as code. + +OpenWebUI includes ChromaDB out-of-the-box, hosted locally. It can also connect to external vector stores like Qdrant and Milvus. + +The Starting Point: OpenWebUI API + +The first step was to examine the OpenWebUI API documentation and identify the correct methods for the Knowledge Store. I needed the specific endpoint, the expected data format, and other essential details for integration. + +For initial testing, I created a dedicated knowledge store called "testing". + +After creating the store, you'll need its UUID, which the upload script uses to specify the destination for the data. + +Context Repository: Simplicity First + +My original goal involved building a "knowledge graph" for personal information, which required a data store. + +Initially, the repository was a simple collection of markdown files in folders, organized organically. The Python script I wrote uploads these files individually to the knowledge store because the server-side implementation doesn't handle hierarchical structures. Keeping the implementation simple is key in the present. + +Building the Data Pipeline + +To be frank, I used Google's Sonnet AI model, providing it with the OpenWebUI API documentation via Cline, to guide the process. + +The pipeline performs two key actions: + +Incremental Syncing: Uses a JSON file to track file changes. + +Selective Uploads: Only uploads new or modified files on subsequent runs, which is more efficient than manual management. + +This JSON-based change tracking, while simple, is important for scaling the amount of context data. + +Implementation and Verification + +The implementation process went well. I added logging to the upload script to monitor its progress as it processed my context repository. Each file was uploaded to the "testing" knowledge store, and a quick check in the UI confirmed the successful transfer. + +Testing the Knowledge: Was it Effective? + +To verify the knowledge's usability, I created a test assistant designed to prioritize the use of ingested knowledge: + +System prompt: "You are an assistant that tries strongly to use knowledge before answering a prompt. If suitable knowledge exists, use only this knowledge for answering the prompt. If suitable knowledge exists, use only this knowledge for answering the prompt." + +Knowledge: the testing knowledge base for the purposes of this experiment + +I then gave the agent a prompt that could only be answered using the uploaded context data. + +The agent initiated a RAG request and provided the correct answer. + +Ideally, the model should also avoid using its "internal parametric knowledge" when relevant knowledge is available. + +Separating Front End User Interfaces from Knowledge + +RAG performance on OpenWebUI is currently variable but improving. There are trade-offs to consider. + +The key benefit of this pipeline approach is the ability to decouple the context store from the front end. This enables the injection of data in a way that optimizes context reliability. + +If the integration isn't satisfactory, components can be swapped out while maintaining the data injection pipeline, simply by developing new retrieval or orchestration logic. + +Conclusion + +This project demonstrates the feasibility of building an automated pipeline for injecting context data into a vector store. Doing this opens up possibilities for experimenting with RAG and building flexible knowledge management systems. This approach allows us to gain control over how injected context impacts cloud-based LLM inference. + +Whether for personal notes or an organization's knowledge base, this architecture offers flexibility and choice. + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/personal-rag-data-pipeline-implementation-github-to-openwebui-chroma-db](https://heyitworks.tech/personal-rag-data-pipeline-implementation-github-to-openwebui-chroma-db) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/Personalized-AI-Interviewing-Your-Way-to-a-Smarter-Assistant.md b/posts/hashnode/Personalized-AI-Interviewing-Your-Way-to-a-Smarter-Assistant.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a0fd812584f58602ad6a106620db0761b39a06e8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/Personalized-AI-Interviewing-Your-Way-to-a-Smarter-Assistant.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# Personalized AI: Interviewing Your Way to a Smarter Assistant + +Have you ever wished your AI assistant was just a little more you? + +This blog post explores an architecture for generating personalized context data for AI systems, moving beyond passive data collection to a proactive, interview-driven approach. Imagine an AI that truly understands your needs and preferences, offering assistance that’s both accurate and relevant. That's the power of personalized context. + +The Problem with Generic AI + +Today's large language models (LLMs) are impressive, but their knowledge is based on broad training data. This generic approach lacks the personal touch. While we rightly protect sensitive information, even small amounts of personalized context can dramatically enhance an LLM's ability to provide useful insights. + +Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) has emerged as a key technique. RAG uses embedding models to convert files into numerical representations, stored in vector databases optimized for LLM access. Imagine uploading your resume to a vector database connected to a career advice AI. Suddenly, the advice becomes incredibly personalized. + +This process can be dynamic. Instead of manual uploads, a constantly updated data store (like your Google Drive) can feed a RAG pipeline. This is exciting for business workflows. Imagine a support team accessing a model connected to the company's internal knowledge base. The possibilities are endless. + +Diagram + +Proactive Vs. Passive Context Generation Approaches + +A More Proactive Approach: The AI Interview + +Current RAG pipelines and memory stores passively create context. They extract and convert existing data, which can be slow and doesn't always capture the nuances of individual needs. + +My proposed system takes a proactive approach. + +It deliberately generates context data through a structured "interview" process, using the following components: + +1. The "Interviewer" AI: This AI assistant, created using existing APIs or system prompts, acts as an inquisitive interviewer. You can even create multiple interviewer bots, each specializing in a different area of your life. + +Here's an example system prompt to get you started: + +Your purpose is to interview the user, asking a wide range of questions to gather substantial data about their life. This data will be used to create a personalized context store for improving LLM-based assistants. Begin by asking if the user wants to focus on a specific domain (e.g., professional life, health). Tailor your questions accordingly (e.g., career objectives, medical history). [... further prompt instructions as in the original text ...] + +2. The Vector Store Pipeline: The interviewer AI can directly write data into the context pipeline, or the user can manually copy and upload the information. + +3. The Personal Agent: This agent accesses the personalized context data store, providing tailored guidance. The more information gathered, the better the assistance. + +4. The Data Classification Agent (Optional): This agent can categorize the data, separating sensitive information from less sensitive context that could be shared with other services. Imagine this as your personal data footprint, automating form filling and other tedious tasks. + +Context Aggregation: How Deliberate And Passive Context Generation Could “Coexist” In Integrated RAG Pipelines + +Empowering Users with Data Control + +This architecture prioritizes data sovereignty. You control your context data. You choose what to share, and what to keep private. + +Potential Use Cases: From Personal to Professional + +Imagine using a speech-to-text interface to conduct these interviews, making the process even more engaging. Or think about a sales team providing focused information about their quarterly targets, jumpstarting a powerful, personalized AI tool. + +These systems can also coexist, integrating data from multiple sources – chat history, deliberate context data, and information from internal tools – to create a comprehensive context repository. + +The Future of Personalized AI + +This interview-driven approach represents a powerful step towards truly personalized AI. It's about empowering users to shape their AI experience, creating assistants that are not just smart, but truly understand them + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/personalized-ai-interviewing-your-way-to-a-smarter-assistant](https://heyitworks.tech/personalized-ai-interviewing-your-way-to-a-smarter-assistant) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/Product-label-extraction-agent-for-quicker-tech-inventory-population-with-Homebox.md b/posts/hashnode/Product-label-extraction-agent-for-quicker-tech-inventory-population-with-Homebox.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..da983bfa832f1beae90e4cf6dd50a662d26eb555 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/Product-label-extraction-agent-for-quicker-tech-inventory-population-with-Homebox.md @@ -0,0 +1,57 @@ +# Product label extraction agent for quicker tech inventory population (with: Homebox) + +About this time last year I decided that my home inventory system needed a dramatic overhaul. + +After too many years of trying out various tech projects, my inventory management system consisted largely of looking hopefully at a large pile of boxes and wondering where on earth the cable I needed was. + +I realised that things had hit a breaking point when it was quicker and easier to buy a cable that I knew I had than spend an hour trying to dig around looking for it. Besides being a waste of money, this was unsustainable, so I figured that it was time to put a proper system in place. + +Enter picture Homebox, a self-hostable inventory management system that, unlike just about every other such project that has been undertaken to date, was actually designed with the needs of crazy people like me and maybe you in mind. In other words, tech fiends with ridiculously large collections of cables, adapters and all the rest of it. + +At the time I thought it was going to be a one-week project maximum. In reality it turned into one of the most grueling projects I've ever undertaken. I've logged over 4,000 items. Yes, I told you I had a lot of stuff. + +And although I had no idea at the time how much work it would take to create an inventory of my belongings, ultimately it has proven a very worthwhile experience. + +Ironically, the system has allowed me to declutter by identifying duplicates I no longer need. I've been able to donate some tech products to those who were newer at my hobbies. It's made it vastly easier to find whatever I need. + +And it's made the entire process of building up a collection of tech things strangely more fulfilling. Because the inventory process forces me to record each item I buy, take a photograph of it and find a place for it. It makes the whole process of curating things much more deliberate. I don't think it's by mistake that I've purchased far less junk and far more things I really love since discovering Homebox. + +Picking the right vision-capable LLM for the agent + +In 2025, the rapid advance of AI has made literally any tech project seem feasible. However, there is always a balance to be struck between time investment and … where the project sits within your priorities. + +I say this because I realise that there is almost certainly far more advanced ways of achieving the functionality I'm about to describe For example, by interacting with an API you could achieve this all programmatically But if you just have occasional need for this kind of workflow using the agent and manually providing the product images might strike the right balance. The agent only takes a few minutes to configure and could be provisioned on ChatGPT or just about any other AI building platform. + +I used Diffy.ai. To state the obvious, you'll need to make sure that you're using a large language model with vision capabilities. In the near future, this will probably be almost every model. + +The choice of which model to use is up to you, but if you're doing this in batches and at scale, because this workflow doesn't require much in the way of reasoning capabilities at all, I would recommend using a older generation model with vision capability for cost optimisation reasons. + +System prompt for label processing + +The foundation of AI agents and assistants is a system prompt which takes the model they're provisioned on top of and provides custom instructions to target their behaviour towards achieving a specific workflow, thereby differentiating them from the chat iterations of the models that have taken the world by storm. + +Here's my very basic configuration for this agent. + +Your purpose is to assist the user by providing a list of detected data points from a product label. You can expect that the label provided by the user will be a technical label of some kind, and you should attempt to list all of the following pieces of information if they are available. If a particular piece of information isn't available, you can simply skip it. Here are the data points that you should list: Manufacturer name Product name Serial number Model number Version number Power and voltage instructions, Date of manufacture, Any other text listed on label. + +Using output format instructions to specify a desired output format + +You might want to improve upon this by adding what I call output formatting instructions. This is my terminology to describe the part of the prompt where you direct the assistant to provide the output you're looking for in a specific format. + +I commonly use a CSV output format instruction in order to ensure that the model provides the data in CSV format. One trick I've discovered to ensure consistent data formatting between multiple runs is to provide the CSV header row and then write a prompt along the lines of extract the data from this photo to match this CSV structure exactly. + +Unless there is a great textbook that I have not read, there is no hard and fast rule about the best way to configure these and some trial and error is advisable. Eventually you tend to get the hang of what specific models adhere well with. + +Use Your Bot! + +And that's basically all there is to know in order to get this simple workflow up and running. Here's an example of me interacting with my bot. I simply provide it with the product photo image along with a short initiation instruction and it returns the requested details to me. + +Another tweak that could be made to the configuration is specifying that the bot must return just with the parameters and not with any text before or after. Sometimes I write this configuration like, you must return only the information I've requested, do not prepend any text to your output or add any text after it. + +But this is how the default configuration ran: + +Ideas to take this further + +This agent suffices for my own relatively basic needs, but if you wanted to take this configuration further, as mentioned, you could script it, ensure a consistent output format using JSON, and then use an API to write the extracted data into your catalogue system. + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/product-label-extraction-agent-for-quicker-tech-inventory-population-with-homebox](https://heyitworks.tech/product-label-extraction-agent-for-quicker-tech-inventory-population-with-homebox) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/Self-Hosting-Your-Own-LLM-Stack-A-Guide.md b/posts/hashnode/Self-Hosting-Your-Own-LLM-Stack-A-Guide.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5d8d88b2403f80adae52b05f25d73b8716f0ebfb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/Self-Hosting-Your-Own-LLM-Stack-A-Guide.md @@ -0,0 +1,93 @@ +# Self-Hosting Your Own LLM Stack: A Guide + +2025 is set to be the year in which agentic AI makes it to the mainstream. + +OpenAI’s just-launched Operator will provide countless users with their first glimpses into what it will look like when AI tools can do more than just retrieve text. + +But many personal users and small businesses are going to be grappling with the first time with how to afford the growing litany of AI tools that are required to keep up with the fast pace of technical evolution. This is especially true for high volume LLM users who might be using them for everything from brainstorming to product ideation and competitive analysis. + +Here is a stack that I've put together over the past couple of months which allows for uninterrupted high-volume use at a relatively affordable price point. + +Component 1: A Cloud VPS + +A Virtual Private Server, or VPS, is the foundation of this stack. + +While you can deploy self-hosted tools just about any way possible these days including through dedicated platform as a service solutions, cloud VPSs are affordable and allow you to quickly spin up a machine in the cloud onto which you can provision all manner of software. + +You're still responsible for security, so using tools like Cloudflare Tunnels makes sense for many users. But you don't have to worry about maintaining the underlying infrastructure or securing services that are physically located in your own home. + +Popular providers include DigitalOcean, Hetzner, among others. + +Component 2: An LLM Frontend + +The next thing that you're going to need in order to use a large language model is a frontend to access the familiar chat interface. + +There is a growing ecosystem of LLM frontends available both for cloud hosting and local deployment. + +The differences between them, at least at the time of writing, are somewhat nuanced.For example, while I love OpenWebUI for its intuitive design, it doesn't currently natively support Anthropic models (although as a workaround these can be accessed via Open Router). + +Others are more oriented towards specific use cases like speech-to-speech interaction. + +But it's hard to go wrong with LibreChat or OpenWebUI. Both can be deployed via Docker onto a server. OpenWebUI is particularly straightforward to deploy as it only requires one image. Portainer is a highly useful tool for streamlining the deployment process. + +Component 3: LLM API Keys + +The next thing that you're going to require in order to use these just as you would use ChatGPT is to get API keys for the platforms that you like working with. + +Personally I’m a big fan of Open Router. It's a unified access platform which allows you to access a vast number of different models through one key pair. + +Together AI is noteworthy for its focus on making open source models available at very affordable price points. And of course you can directly run a balance on Anthropic, Google, or Deep Seek. Increasingly, the OpenAI API is emerging as a standard for interoperability. Frontends are increasingly supporting that, which effectively allows you to use any LLM API that conforms to this standard. + +Component 4: Cloudflare Tunnel (Optional) + +Once you've got your shiny new AI infrastructure deployed on the cloud, you’ll want to implement some basic security measures to ensure that random people aren't having fun with AI tools on your dime. You might also wish to consider hiring a friendly AI sloth in a tuxedo to monitor the entrance. + +A robust security posture might entail blocking all non-essential ports at the web application firewall level, installing the Cloudflare agent on the server, and then relying upon the Cloudflare tunnel to expose internal services. Connectivity between applications on the server itself (like containers running in the same Docker environment) will not be affected. + +Component 5: Vector Database, LLM, STT Model (Local) + +There are two emerging workflows for those deploying their own LLM infrastructure in the cloud: + +I would summarise them as follows: + +Option 1: Minimise Local Services + +This is the deployment method that I'm currently using. + +I'd personally rather consume a LLM via Cloud API and likewise for speech-to-text, text-to-speech and the vector database. + +While it's absolutely possible to deploy all of these things locally on the same server in which your LLM frontend is being hosted. + +Here's an outline of my current setup: + +Service Deployment Method APIs LLM (for inference) Accessed via Cloud API OpenRouter Vector database & embedding models Locally hosted or SaaS Pinecone, Weaviate, etc Frontend Locally Hosted (Open Web UI) STT Via Cloud API Whisper / Deepgram (where supported) TTS Via Cloud API OpenAI + +Option 2: The Full DIY Approach + +Some people are lucky enough to have powerful enough local hardware to run advanced LLMs totally on-premises or budgets large enough to deploy them onto sufficiently resourced cloud servers. + +Similarly, embedding models can be self-deployed and managed. + +The great thing about the world of open source and self-hosting is that the options are vast.It's possible to start out your self-hosted AI journey using option 1. And then perhaps as your resources increase or the cost of provisioning cloud hardware comes down, you can gradually shift towards option two, self-deploying and managing all your own services. + +Achieving a “full DIY” implementation might entail a setup like this: + +Component Deployment LLM Lllama deployed on the server; Ollama for local availability Frontend OpenWebUI (as before) Vector Database Chroma (deployed on VPS) Speech to text (STT) Whisper, locally deployed + +Deployment Price Estimates + +Deployment method one is going to be significantly more affordable. A basic VPS is sufficient to run a LLM front-end. Arguably such a VPS doesn't even need any AI specific requirements such as carefully chosen GPUs. + +Deployment option 2, the full DIY option, is going to be significantly more expensive. A credible absolute minimum budget for this might be $500 per month and even that would require careful selection of hardware. + +Component 6: A PWA (Or Hermit) + +Once you finally have your front end up and running, you're likely going to want to be able to access it from your mobile devices, as well as when you're at a desktop. + +The easiest way to do that is to make sure that your front-end is PWA compliant. If so, you can very easily create apps with just a couple of clicks on Android or iOS. + +However, the authentication provided by Cloudflare can make it slightly more tricky to configure these. + +In that case, Hermit provides a useful workaround. This is a highly versatile tool for Android that allows you to create light apps from any URL. The user agent add-on might be necessary to ensure successful authentication through Google. + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/llm-tech-stack](https://heyitworks.tech/llm-tech-stack) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/The-Elephants-In-The-Room-Of-The-Headless-Static-CMS-Hype-Cycle.md b/posts/hashnode/The-Elephants-In-The-Room-Of-The-Headless-Static-CMS-Hype-Cycle.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e867402e0fb627298cddbe2a0839261e69ee9710 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/The-Elephants-In-The-Room-Of-The-Headless-Static-CMS-Hype-Cycle.md @@ -0,0 +1,191 @@ +# The Elephants In The Room Of The Headless & Static CMS Hype Cycle + +I’ve been building Wordpress websites way back since I was a chirpy, enthusiastic young university student (I was neither that chirpy nor enthusiastic but let’s stick with that as the story please). + +And Wordpress — for all its … simplicity ..has served me very well over the years. + +Back in the day, I built a whole news website type thing with it (this was before everyone and their grandmother had a blog). + +Lately I hacked together a data portal. Wordpress is great. But — okay, I’ll admit it — it’s very … vanilla. + +I think that this motivation — the proclivity of many to explore whatever’s just a little more ‘out there’ and alternative (in CMS terms that is — this is a tech blog) is a huge part of the reason why there are officially a gazillion and one static site generators (SSGs), flat file CMSes, and every other combinations of bits and bytes that can take some ideas and put them into some human-digestible format on the internet. + +The Long Tail Of CMSes Is … Oh My … It’s Long + +No, really. + +If you ever get a rabbit-hole-impending warning coming from me you know it’s a fricking deep one. + +If you haven’t gone down the CMS rabbit hole, please (I beg): Do yourself a favor and temper any desire you may have to try them all out. + +You will disappear for days, maybe weeks, into an online abyss that’s deeper than you ever imagined. You will mumble to your spouse or anyone prepared to listen about what a CMS is and what you’re about to discover by tapping to the great beyond of them. + +Wait, somebody’s made the 50th markdown-first CMS … in 2024 alone .. you will find yourself dreaming. + +Why yes they have! It’s called MDStaticGPT and it’s taken all the best things about ChatGPT, static, and … yawn. And it comes replete with a shiny Discord server and some cool graphics. But it’s okay. I give you permission to let this one pass you by. + +Jamstack is cool. + +I really want to try Statmatic. + +And Wagtail. + +But look at this list of CMSes. Perhaps I’m just jaded and cynical but I don’t think humanity has ever wished to spawn a list of website-making technologies this long. There are almost as many CMSes in existence as there are medicines on the WHO Essential Medicines list (*okay, I exaggerate a little). + +Who Really Benefits From The Sprawling Labyrinth Of Niche CMS Projects? + +(Rhetorical question. Your answer can’t be “the people selling them as SaaS) + +So getting above the minutiae of differentiators and deployment mechanics, here’s what I would argue has really happened: + +The collective interest of developers to create something more “dev-friendly” ”/ “hackable” / [insert your buzzword] than Wordpress (utter it quietly) hasn’t resulted in the arrival of one “anti-Wordpress” that’s like Wordpress for people who can tolerate editing (prepared to shudder) code. + +Rather, it’s spawned a long tail of literally hundreds of CMSes many of which are buggy, poorly-documented, and — yes, some will hate this — hard to distinguish from one another. + +It reminds me of adopting the Linux desktop around the year 2000 when it seemed like there was a new distro coming out every second minute. Things have gotten a little better since. + +Oh. And rapid development of very similar things demands extraordinary creative powers to think of ways to differentiate them. + +The weirdest trend in tech marketing I’ve seen in a while? + +Describing new products by referring to them as the hypothetical love-child of two well-known technologies (really … can this be stopped somehow). + +”It’s like Git and PostgreSQL had a baby” + +Wordpress and MySQL were having sex in missionary but then our AI thingy came on the scene and made it in a threesome worthy of porn (okay, this one I made up). + +(Postgres is typically represented by an elephant and if Git were personified it would be a cranky startup founder in Silicon Valley worried about running out of Ritalin. Beastiality aside, they’re not having a child any time soon. Why has noone but me done the due diligence on these mental images before unleashing them on the world!?!?) + +Headless CMS: The Stack Devs Made For Content People Who Are Confused By Them + +So here’s the thing about the great and never-ending attempt to reinvent Wordpress: + +Arguably like so many ‘things’ that gone before it, it was working on a problem that didn’t need “fixing.” + +Because here’s a fact that I think is deeply disappointing for many: + +For the vast majority of the great unwashed internet-using population and — one might argue — even the vaunted ‘enterprise,’ plain old Wordpress is Good Enough (trademark pending). + +And “Good Enough” is the arch nemesis of the technology industry which prides itself upon the restlesness of its need to innovate. + +Don’t get me wrong, here: + +There are valid concerns about the security of the Wordpress codebase and the fact that like all the internet is probably running on it makes it an enormously appealing attack vector for would-be hackers. + +If you’re going to put effort into cooking up some good ransomware, Wordpress is probably a much better bet than Daniel’s Markdown Generator 3.0 with its userbase of Daniel. + +Static websites (note: this site is static) are inherently faster (although that doesn’t stop the various static site generators from differentiating themselves based upon the number of miliseconds of loading time they reduced themselves by. Word of truth: nobody but the benchmarking tool is able to detect any of these differences). + +But those aspects of the value prop are totally negated by the majority of the internet-building community by the massive elephants in the room this blog’s title alluded to. + +But first, another sloth graphic: + +Headless CMS & Stack-Creep: Swapping 1 Tool For 4 + +In a simpler time, your classic web script for creating blogs (AKA ‘CMS’)consisted of a single component which had a frontend and a backend. + +It was easy to use and the fact that millions of other simple people like you were using it meant that if you couldn’t figure something out there was always a plugin just a couple of clicks away. + +If you got hacked, so did lots of other people and you could find solace in collective misery. + +But while Wordpress is effective, for those of us beholden of a desire to tinker with technology, it isn’t satisfying. + +Even simple Wordpress users like you and me have moments when we feel that we could leverage something better and conquer the world if only we had it. + +We reckon that if only we had the CMS equivalent of a Ferrari and not the beat-up hunk of PHP everyone is using and abusing that then we could really go on to prove our mettle in an internet that’s never been more crowded. + +In 1991 you could impress your date by mentioning that you were distantly related to somebody who once owned a computer and it only took up a whole floor of their house and could do a math problem in only a decade. + +In today’s era you need something extraordinary to differentiate yourself from the great unwashed hordes of Wordpress users. + +But then you Google the alternatives and get back to this: + +In its well-intentioned quest to create something really innovative, truly spectacular, the runaway industry of new -and-better CMSes has instead spawned a whole new tech stack where before there was just … CMS. + +To reuse content — a sensible recommendation, by the way — we’re told that we need to stop thinking about it as words and thoughts. + +It’s code — those expressions and thoughts that lowly non-developers have running through their heads. + +And it needs to be reduced to an API (has someone termed the call API-fication yet or can I get that claim to fame?!). + +Surveying the sprawling ecosystem of better, cooler CMSes one feels a whiff of shame for feeling the need to resort to using any level of GUI in order to create ‘content’ on the internet. + +Markdown is offered as a kind of friendly middleground (lest this ever be misconstrued: I’m a huge markdown fan. In fact, I’m writing this post in markdown!) + +If you can’t handle markdown then I guess you should accept that you were too stupid to have Googled easy to use Wordpress alternatives and should crawl back into your Wordpress came from whence you came. + +(Pet peeve #2: as a somewhat tech-literate non-developer who has made a reasonably good career to date working in tech marketing alongside plenty of actual developers, I hate seeing ‘non-technical users’ referred to as a homogenous category of presumed imbeciles who might on a good day know how to turn on a computer but on an average day, if they knew what an SSH key was, be assumed to be stupid enough to delete the whole AWS account. Also: who decided that “developers” should be knighted the kings of this strange new content fiefdom? Besides developers, I mean…) + +The Boring Nuts And Bolts Of CMS Trump What’s New And Flashy + +The above is why Wordpress still not only proliferates but thoroughly dominates the CMS market. Drupal and Joomla and to a lesser extent Ghost are somewhat known. But venture beyond Reddit and the name ‘Strapi’ won’t get the kind of recognition you might have been hoping for. + +So where were we? + +What’s probably not coming across is that I think that headless CMS is a bloody good idea. This isn’t a hatched job on headless/static/flat-file (yes, I know that these are different things). Rather, it’s a case against unnecessary proliferation of unrefined products whose common denominator is that they regard useability for mere mortals as a ‘nice to have’ (if even). + +Key problems: + +Way Too Many Novel CMSes Fall Down On Basic Useability + +For alternative CMSes to become … non-alternative … they will have to accept the need to accept that for most non-technically-gifted users there are some basic must-haves for a tool to be useable. + +And a properly QA-d codebase and adequate documentation are only the beginning. Plenty of companies understand this and invest well in customer success and customer support and documentation. Such companies tend to be loved by their users. + +Some of the “must haves” include that: + +The CMS Has To Be Functional At A Basic Level + +This goes of all software but especially CMSes which are the workhorses of day to day online content generation. + +1: There’s a whole litany of CMSes out there that are terribly documented and barely useable but which are nevertheless dressed up in delightful marketing. This is probably known to the devs and the few people who’ve actually spent time using them. + +A Single Keystroke Shouldn’t Ever Kill The Entire Backend! + +2: Many headless CMSes — even those I love, like Astro CMS — are, by normal people standards, also completely unfit for their intended purpose of creating websites + +If I were to botch a HTML entity in the CMS I’m using for example my whole dev server — the only way I can visually preview the content I’m typing — will come crashing down. + +Wordpress may be tempermental but you at least don’t have to hope that you’ll manage to debug an NPM package just to be able to get the nice-visual-thingy back. + +If I were to bring this up as an obvious problem in a dev-centric community I presume I’d be considered an imbecile and told to go back to Wordpress. + +But outside of the developer bubble one sometimes feels these tools are intended for, issues like this are justifiably considered complete deal-breakers and blockers to widespread adoption. + +Other “Real World” Issues With Headless CMS: + +No-one Really Wants A Content “Stack” (Besides Those Marketing It). Especially Not Content Creators. + +Finally I come back to stack-bloat. + +I was sincere when I said that I think that headless CMS is a brilliant idea. However, I think that the downside of the idea is also easy to underappreciate. + +If we reconceive of the CMS from being an end to end tool that is great at making it easy to publish web pages and see it instead as only a constituent element in a pipeline then: + +Where One Tool Sufficed, We Now “Need” An Entire Toolbox. Is This Progress? + +Where we had one tool we now need about 4 + +We interject version control / Git into a workflow thereby making it intimidating for anyone not literate in Git which is the vast majority of people who aren’t developers + +For most end-users we now need a “stack” — like Astro + a visual backend. While this is typically celebrating as offering fantastic modularity, for many people this just sounds like a massive PITA. Give me one tool that gets the job done and leave “stacks” for those crazy developers. + +Concluding Thoughts + +If a random friend of mine were to ask: is there something that’s better than Wordpress that I can use to make a really great blog? then unless they were a) a developer or b) somebody who relished challenges, then I would tell them something like that’s a great question but ask it again in a few years. + +There’s a lot of innovation happening right now and some very cool tech (the two tools I’m enjoying right now are Astro and LocalWP for a local Wordpress workflow). + +However, while the “big ideas” are awesome and dovetail perfectly with other lots of great ideas in tech (serverless, for one), I think there’s far too little emphasis on boring considerations like: + +The useability of these tools to normal people (ie, non-developers) + +The fact that the majority of users — even technical ones — would rather one good tool over a stack of components, even if that means losing out on some customisation + +The fact that being able to interrupt the visual backend to a site with a single misplaced keystroke is a big impediment to typical use + +Documentation and quality control + +Until the next blog/rant. + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/the-elephants-in-the-room-of-the-headless-static-cms-hype-cycle](https://heyitworks.tech/the-elephants-in-the-room-of-the-headless-static-cms-hype-cycle) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/hashnode/Using-AI-Agent-Interviews-To-Develop-Context-Data-Demo.md b/posts/hashnode/Using-AI-Agent-Interviews-To-Develop-Context-Data-Demo.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d1152ffbd3002f339b5c3d32e307697b60cf72f3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/hashnode/Using-AI-Agent-Interviews-To-Develop-Context-Data-Demo.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# Using AI Agent Interviews To Develop Context Data (Demo) + +Enhancing LLM Interactions Through AI-Driven Context Generation + +Have you ever wished your interactions with AI were more personalized and context-aware? That's exactly what the AI Context Generation Interviews project sets out to achieve. Let me walk you through this fascinating demonstration of how we can make AI interactions more meaningful and personalized. + +What's This All About? + +At its core, this project showcases an innovative approach to enhancing AI interactions through what we call "agentic workflow-based context extraction." In simpler terms, it's a smart system that actively learns about you through natural conversation, then transforms those insights into structured data that can make AI interactions more personalized. + +How Does It Work? + +The magic happens through a straightforward workflow: + +Choose Your Focus: Start by selecting an area you'd like to discuss Have a Conversation: Engage in a natural interview with the AI agent Behind the Scenes: The system automatically extracts and processes relevant context from your conversation Ready to Use: Get your personalized context data in a format ready for use with LLMs + +The Cool Parts + +What makes this project particularly interesting is how it: + +Stays Proactive : Instead of passively collecting data, the system actively generates meaningful context through targeted questions + +Keeps It Natural : The interview format feels like a regular conversation, not a formal data collection process + +Makes Data Useful : All that conversational data gets transformed into a format that's perfect for RAG pipelines and vector databases + +Builds Over Time: You can have multiple interviews, gradually building a richer context pool for more personalized AI interactions + +Screenshots + +Technical Implementation + +The system is built using Streamlit for the frontend and implements a sophisticated workflow that: + +Automatically extracts context from user interactions + +Generates contextual metadata proactively + +Integrates smoothly with LLM inference processes + +Enables progressive enhancement of personalization + +Why This Matters + +In the world of AI, context is king. The better an AI system understands you, the more valuable its interactions become. This project demonstrates a practical approach to building that understanding through natural conversation, making it easier than ever to create truly personalized AI experiences. + +Try It Yourself + +Want to see it in action? Head over to the Hugging Face Space and give it a try. The entire project is open source and available on GitHub, so you can also dive into the code and see how it all works under the hood. + +Attribution + +This project represents a collaboration between Daniel Rosehill and Claude (Anthropic), demonstrating how human creativity and AI capabilities can come together to create innovative solutions for enhancing AI interactions. + +**Source:** [https://heyitworks.tech/ai-context-interviews-demo](https://heyitworks.tech/ai-context-interviews-demo) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/-Coming-out--with-mental-health-journeys-and-diagnoses---professionals-share-their-experiences.md b/posts/medium/-Coming-out--with-mental-health-journeys-and-diagnoses---professionals-share-their-experiences.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f435c8306efa6a171072f5359eda480fdfceebe5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/-Coming-out--with-mental-health-journeys-and-diagnoses---professionals-share-their-experiences.md @@ -0,0 +1,237 @@ +# “Coming out” with mental health journeys and diagnoses — professionals share their experiences + +#### Sharing a mental health journey can have professional consequences, but these individuals decided to do so anyway. They shared why. + +Sharing mental health diagnoses is in vogue. But could it prove the kiss of death to corporate careers? I reached out to some professionals from various industries to ask whether they hesitated to share their diagnoses in light of stigma and potential risk. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/architecture-black-and-white-building-business-273209/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Like many young professionals, I spend a little bit of time every week scrolling around the professional network known as LinkedIn. + +As I’ve made known before, there are many things about LinkedIn that I, frankly, despise: To name a few of those, the brown-nosing, the humble-bragging, and the one-upmanship that sometimes feel endemic to the network, almost as if they were built-in features. + +And yet, there are also enough redeeming factors about the network that it feels worthwhile to stay there (besides the fact that, professionally, it remains useful to me; us humans are ultimately self-serving animals). + +For one, among the odes of praise to former bosses and the gracious letters of thanks about the generous gift hampers (with HR conveniently tagged, of course), _some_ people continue to share useful statuses inviting professional discussion among their networks. + +But recently, I’ve also been observing an unmistakable trend. And this, too, has encouraged me to stick around. + +**Increasingly, members of my LinkedIn network whom I never would have suspected of being in anything other than stellar mental health have shared their stories of battles with depression, anxiety, and other mental illnesses.** + +I found the stories humanizing — for one because some of them doing the sharing were “only” smallish freelance clients to me or names on an email thread. Remote relationships can feel stifled and professionally superficial. The color really changed my perceptions of some of those I have done business with. + +Reading their stories also chipped away at my own sense of stigma around the diagnoses they talked about. And I didn’t think any less of them as professionals after having read their accounts. So I began to wonder: was it time for me to do the same? + +In very short order, this trend towards mental health awareness has become so commonplace, in fact, that at times it even strikes as slightly trite. + +_“Oh, not another contact posting about anxiety!”_ + +The pendulum has quickly swung. But it still makes the dynamic a healthy one. + +**Among all this positivity and work against stigma, I’ve also come to believe that there’s another parallel conversation that needs to be taking place — but which isn’t currently getting the airing it deserves.** + +Every professional who shares their story in any public forum is taking a brave decision. LinkedIn may be a closed social network but its reach still permeates outward, especially in professional contexts. Don’t people worry about what their bosses and future bosses might think if they know that they have been diagnosed with a mental health “problem”? + +That’s not the only ground for those thinking about sharing to be reticent. + +The reaction to sharing isn’t always positive. + +I can’t help but notice that the baby boomers who are part of my LinkedIn network — or secondary connections — seem to take particular issue with the idea of “coming out” about mental health in this manner. I’ve seen attitudes that I thought belonged in another era — they do — proudly emblazoned onto comments threads. In response to sharing, I’ve seen posters affirm that they think that therapy is a waste of time and that they’ve always managed handling things themselves. + +Some are even openly antagonistic towards those who choose to share. Although inevitable, this is disappointing. There’s a definite generational divide between the baby boomers, millennials like me, and Gen X. The latter, at times, almost seems to relish in being open about their thoughts on gender, mental health, and race equality. + +So while a movement towards greater openness in mental health is brewing — the unifying hashtag, by the way, is #mentalhealthawareness — forces that work in the other direction, and encourage patients to stay silent, remain active too. + +**So I’ve discovered that to pretend that we have reached a point of enlightened universal acceptability about mental health issues — and I’ll be honest, I thought that we really had — would be delusional. It’s more accurate to say that we, by which I mean human society, are simply taking our first paces towards making the _status quo_ a better and healthier one.** + +Seeing reactions like those is also partially why I fought through enormous hesitation that lasted many months before sharing the story of my own diagnosis with ADHD and dysthymia (the latter’s correct modern title is persistent depressive disorder or PDD; it’s essentially a milder but more chronic form of depression; being mild doesn’t make it any easier, by the way. But it can take a lot longer to spot when your baseline level of functionality is never quite _that_ bad. The illness tricks sufferers into believing that feelings of persistent bleakness and low self-esteem are simply part of the human condition). But this story isn’t about the specifics of my journey. + +Before I put pen to paper — or fingers to keyboard — I encountered enormous skepticism from … unnamed individuals … who told me that I would be _insane_ to put anything about a mental health diagnosis on my public record. These were much the same voices that those who have already shared have contended with publicly. + +I was told that clients would never hire me again (so far, that thankfully hasn’t been the case.) + +That nobody can really trust somebody with _any_ mental illness to be a competent employee (I won’t know the answer to whether that’s an impediment until I look for an in-house position). + +That there was nothing to gain by sharing (but plenty of adverse consequences). + +And that things like depression and ADHD and anxiety were all shameful and person dirty laundry that would be better kept under lock and key — both professionally and personally. + +In spite of those hesitations — and the vociferous and insistent nature of those making those arguments — I choose to share anyway. Not so much because I _wanted_ to. But rather because I felt that I _had_ to. I felt _compelled_ to share. + +What swayed me to do so? One simple thought. + +Had _others_ not shared their own journeys of diagnosis and treatment that showed _me_ that there was nothing shameful or embarrassing about having a mental health condition, I may never have felt empowered enough to reach out for help myself. + +How, then, could I be a hypocrite and not pass the hope on forwards to somebody who might similarly need to hear the simple message that it’s okay to be not okay? _(My final rationale: I was trained as a writer . It would have seemed like a particular shame not to use this “skill,” if it can be called that, constructively.)_ + +I’ve also written, by now, about virtually everything else in my life (not all of it!). + +Keeping this aspect hidden, as if it were a sordid detail, felt disingenuous — particularly as it has consumed so much of my time and energy over the past few years. + +Doing so would be to play, albeit indirectly, into that same narrative of shame that keeps so many reticent to talk about their own diagnostic processes or even open up a conversation with their family doctor about what they might be experiencing. + +By _not_ sharing, I felt like I was open-sourcing my thinking about everything I care about — something I advocate — but stashing a few pages away for only my own eyes. + +I believe that this conversation — about the prejudices that exist in society and the stigma that still surrounds mental health and the potential repercussions of those currently doing the sharing — has been grossly under-discussed. + +Which is why I’m trying to do my little part to open it by sharing these stories. + +**Most of us seem to be staunchly in favor of de-stigmatizing mental health treatment.** + +**And yet we seem to have a collective blindspot when it comes to talking about very pragmatic concerns: like what doing so might mean for careers and professional reputations.** + +We talk about breaking down stigma. But — to have a rounded conversation — we also need to be pragmatic. + +If sharing publicly about mental health struggles means a future of un-employability and shunning from the workplace, those thinking about sharing need to keep those concerns in mind even if they are grossly unfair. **And perhaps there’s another role on the part of patients too beyond the work that we’re already doing:To make the case that treated mental health patients can not only be competent employees but indeed exemplary ones.** + +Depression — the most prevalent mood disorder — affects 7.1% of adults in the US. To suggest that patients should be ostracized into a lifetime of unemployment, under-employment or self-employment is extremely problematic. + +A couple of weeks ago I put out a request through SourceBottle asking respondents precisely the same set of questions I asked myself only a few months ago: + + * Did you worry about the professional repercussions of disclosing, publicly, your mental health diagnosis? + * Why did you choose the time you did to share? + * How has that affected your career? How have colleagues and bosses reacted? + +Here are some of the responses I received _(due to the demographic that uses SourceBottle — the only major quote-request platform I could find that accepts humble bloggers — the respondents are disproportionately from Australia!)_ + +#### [**Natalie Coulson, Founder and Director, AmpedUp Marketing:**](https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-coulson-419111a/) + +**_Were you worried about the potential repercussions of sharing?_** + +Not at the time of posting. + +But I did realise afterwards there might have been some risk involved. + +But, I’d rather use my voice and experience to change the conversation around mental health. I don’t live in fear anymore. + +**_How did your current employer react? (If you have one). Did your boss see and remark upon your post?_** + +I run my own business, and any clients who feel mental health issues are shameful are not clients I want (editorial note: this is a brilliant point!). + +I make a point of also showing how much my mental health crisis has taught me — and how practicing self care is vital. + +**_Why did you choose to share your journey when you did?_** + +It was World Mental Health Day — so perfect timing. + +I’ve decided to be really intentional about sharing my story to become more visible this year. + +It has helped me grow my business as almost everyone has either suffered from anxiety/depression — or know someone who has committed suicide or struggled due to mental health issues. + +It’s more common than people think. + +#### [Rik Schnabel, Owner, Life Beyond Limits](https://www.linkedin.com/in/rikschnabel/) + +“I have been sharing publicly my challenge with mental health for almost 20 years now. + +**I do this because it encourages people to take action, instead of suppress or hide it.** + +My story from depression to suicidal ideation to a life of freedom has now helped hundreds of thousands of people to stand up to mental health. I now have a radio show about it and have written several best-selling books on the subject. + +Though you might be asking, how did me coming out affect my employment? + +In short, it had to end. + +I left my job to start my self development company Life Beyond Limits and my world couldn’t be better. + +I am now an ambassador for positive mental health and today we are helping by teaching others how to help people overcome their problems and limitations.” + +#### [Danielle Sady, Every Day Lingerie Company](https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-sady-267261ba/) + +“I was extremely scared to share my mental health journey as I wasn’t sure how my followers would find this as I own my own business. + +However it was the best thing I could have done. + +Not only did finally talking about my battle with postnatal help, but I got some many messages from people who felt they too could open up within the network and or ask for the help because they didn’t feel alone after hearing my story. + +**I was defiantly worried how my brand would be impacted by this, but I saw it as if I help one person to get the help they need or not feel alone this means so much more than any negative kick back I could get.** + +No one should feel alone, but when taking that step you need to be well enough yourself I feel to understand what you are going through or have been through.” + +#### [Ainslee Hooper, Ainslee Hooper Consulting](https://ainsleehooper.com.au/) + +“I chose to share my journey for a couple of reasons. + +**I needed to heal and move on.** + +**There was no way that was going to happen unless I spoke about what happened.** + +**I needed to stop feeling ashamed for something that wasn’t my fault.** + +I needed to help break the stigma of mental health by showing the contributing factors to mental health. + +In hindsight, I wouldn’t be who I am today had I not gone through all of that.” + +#### [Justine Martin](https://www.justinemartin.com.au/), Speaker, Author + +“I chose to share my journey as my story is someone else’s survival guide. + +To show people that they are not alone” + +#### [Melani De Sousa](https://www.sourcebottle.com/profile/194209/Melani-De-Sousa), Wellness Expert & Workshop Presenter + +4 years ago I shared my (once) deeply secretive mental health story publicly on Facebook. + +As someone who doesn’t often use social media, I did this intentionally to create an impact amongst family, friends and colleagues who saw me as a happy, successful person who would be the last person they thought would struggle with mental health. + +**Were you worried about the potential repercussions?** + +I was very worried about the repercussions initially given for 27 years created a persona that was happy, bubbly and successful. + +Sharing my story meant others might form a label or judge me in a way that negated all my other traits and achievements. + +I suffered with Binge Eating Disorder, Anxiety, Depression and OCD. It meant people often looked at the way I ate differently and questioned my experience. + +At the time of sharing my story publicly, I opened a mental health clinic dedicated to helping sufferers of mental health and their families. It provided understanding into why I left my previous career — and my previous employer did comment on the post. + +I chose to share my journey when I did to expel myths about mental illness and encourage others (both those I knew and didn’t know) to share their story and get help.” + +#### [Alana Mai Mitchell](https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanamaimitchell/), Results Coach + +“I have shared my mental health condition (which is well-managed schizophrenia) on LinkedIn, in the workplace, in the media and live on national TV. + +**I was not worried about the repercussions at all as I have 100% accepted in myself that I have a mental illness and the phrase “I have a mental illness” no longer has any power over me.** + +**My current employer reacted with overwhelming support, where my manager at the time said “Wow, I didn’t know, and we are so lucky to have you on the team”. I retained my employment some 1.5 years later after sharing that story.** + +I chose to share my journey because it was the next step I could see in my leadership growth — particularly around my story of resilience and resourcefulness.” + +#### [Susannah Birch](https://susannahbirch.com/) + +“I’ve shared my story publicly, in outlets around the world, because I have a thick skin and I know that I can stand the trolling and negative feedback that sometimes occurs. + +Many people are too scared to even tell their friends about their mental health problems, due to the repercussions you mentioned. + +**My employers and coworkers have always been supportive, even when I’ve had to take some time out.** + +I have proven through my career that I can still do my job, and sometimes I’m even better at it because of my experiences.” + +#### [Lunaria Gaia, Founder, More Confidence](https://www.linkedin.com/in/lunariagaia) + +**Were you worried about the potential repercussions?** + +Most definitely! + +I think that shame is so insidious in our human condition and it’s much easier ( in the short term) to sweep it under the rug. + +I am sure that companies that might want to hire me may see me all over the internet in bikinis and such and see my brand as “ _lacking credibility”_ but I’m determined to break the stigma. + +**Why did you choose to share your journey when you did?** + +I suffered alone for years! + +Long before the body positivity movement, I was just a fat girl who hated herself and thought that everyone else had all their shit together. + +As I started my healing, it became apparent that so many of us suffer from low self esteem, negative self talk, feeling of self harm/destruction and are in long term abusive relationships with ourselves. + +I learnt that shame only holds power when it’s kept inside so my mark on the world is to eradicate shame inside of myself by putting it out there and for others too. + +When we can see normal everyday people experiencing the same thing as us, we can start the healing journey for ourselves. + +#### [Tamara Sloper-Harding](https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamara-sloper-harding-oam-4a386b8/) + +I am a war veteran with PTSD. + +I have shared my story because it may help other veterans and also it helps me assist a village in East Timor, the country where I served. + +**It has been hard for me to tell my story, but heartache and challenge for me could provide many benefits for others.** + +I have been judged and ridiculed but at least something good comes from it. diff --git a/posts/medium/-Everyone-Has-ADHD----And-Other-Insulting-Things-People-Say-To-ADHD-Patients.md b/posts/medium/-Everyone-Has-ADHD----And-Other-Insulting-Things-People-Say-To-ADHD-Patients.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9e5dec10fac00aacaf93844e99cb1d8fb5772481 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/-Everyone-Has-ADHD----And-Other-Insulting-Things-People-Say-To-ADHD-Patients.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# “Everyone Has ADHD” — And Other Insulting Things People Say To ADHD Patients + +#### Why, In This Day And Age, Do ADHD Patients Face A Struggle To Prove That Our Diagnoses Are Even Real? + +ADHD: no, “everybody” doesn’t have it. Even “just a little.” Photo by [Tara Winstead](https://www.pexels.com/@tara-winstead?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/adhd-text-8378730/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Browsing through a social media feed the other day, I came across a post by an “influencer” whom I hitherto respected. + +I try not to throw people under the bus on the basis of one stupid remark — so I won’t go so far as to say that I no longer respect this individual — but the poster provided a strong wake-up call that society’s understanding of ADHD is far less evolved and empathetic than I had previously assumed it to be. + +The poster was talking about the difficulties inherent in making it through any long ream of text. + +He suspected — thinking out loud — that the internet had a lot to do with that. + +It’s gotten us accustomed to browsing quickly through snippets of information, he reasoned. + +And then he threw in a non-sequitur: or maybe I just have ADHD. + +In response to a question about that throaway comment, he threw in something else: you know, we all have it these days. + +I checked for pushback. There was none forthcoming. And before I could get angry or felt compelled to start an internet flame war, I closed the tab. + +### Are We Actually Arguing About The Fact That ADHD Is Real!? + +Today, something about ADHD popped through another social feed. + +And it flung my mind back to the conversation. + +Had that actually happened? + +Had I just witnessed somebody affirm — to other educated adults — that ADHD isn’t even a real condition? That “everybody” has it — at least to a mild extent? And had I just witnessed as everybody who read that post stood there in silence, apparently agreeing with what had been posted. Yes, I actually had. + +[**My ADHD Diagnosis Story** + _Cross-posted from Twitter, lightly redacted, and expanded:_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c "https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c")[](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c) + +[**Will Sharing Your ADHD Diagnosis Destroy Your Professional Reputation?** +_Those thinking about sharing an ADHD diagnosis–particularly the self-employed — often worry about the effect it will…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/will-sharing-your-adhd-diagnosis-destroy-your-professional-reputation-f1aa7d13a2f4 "https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/will-sharing-your-adhd-diagnosis-destroy-your-professional-reputation-f1aa7d13a2f4")[](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/will-sharing-your-adhd-diagnosis-destroy-your-professional-reputation-f1aa7d13a2f4) + +And then I thought what a proper response to that should be. + +It didn’t take more than a few seconds to track down resources designed to highlight the pervasive and damaging nature of this societal trope from ADHD advocacy organizations. But that felt a little too JADE-like to me ([from another context](https://psychcentral.com/blog/imperfect/2018/03/dealing-with-difficult-family-members-dont-justify-argue-defend-or-explain), but a rule that I have found incredibly useful and widely applicable). + +We can point, for instance, to the fact that the diagnostic process for ADHD is pretty tightly controlled depending on where you live in the world. ADHD medications are powerful and controlled substances. Even after you’ve been diagnosed, maintaining access to them can be tricky. + +In Israel, I have to complete paperwork every single time I pick up a prescription — which is typically once a month. When I recently needed to get more in order to keep my supply going while in the US, the pharmacy needed to apply for a special permit from the Health Ministry. I needed to submit my passport, plane ticket, and prescription (the same one I’ve presented countless times). + +When my doctor decided to increase my Vyvanse dosage during the middle of the month, the only means for me to pick up the new script was to physically return the weaker tablets. I forgot about the fact that I had left one in a car which I keep as an emergency backup (note: for obvious reasons, probably a bad idea). The pharmacist counted and asked me why one was missing. I had to go back and fetch it. Only then could I get the stronger dosage. + +I can talk, as well, about brain scans. + +About how the most advanced medical imaging that society has at its disposal has proven that the brains of studied diagnosed ADHD subjects tend to look functionally different than those of neurotypicals — and that those differences might be what’s at the root of the fact that brains of ADHDers have a hard time using the dopamine that their brain produces (before I butcher the science any further, I’ll stop myself here). + +From what I have learned and understand about the condition, it seems that ADHD is more a neurological than psychiatric condition — although any condition affecting the locus of our thoughts and feelings is strongly liable to result in both manifestations. + +About how — despite ADHD being a complicated condition with subtypes and variable presentations — the medical community does the best possible job that it can at helping us to live with the limitations that it poses. + +Incidences are well-known. + +Treatment approaches are standardized. + +Diagnosis — for adults — tends to be a complicated and sometimes unfortunately protracted affair. + +We know what factors increase the likelihood of an ADHD diagnosis. So why are laypeople still denying the fact that the condition exists? + +### ADHD’s Stigma Is More Than Just A Slight + +But here’s what really gets me worked up when people make that throaway stupid comment about “everybody” having ADHD — typically qualified with “just a little” if the person making the remark realizes halfway through that he’s just universalized (and thereby denied) the existence of a very real health condition. + +Sadly, the space for discussion that we’ve created around mental health conditions, as societies, is far from ideal. + +Yes, even in this day and age that we commonly hold up as a model for how “evolved” we are and how much better we are than that ghastly time when we locked up the mentally infirm in asylums. + +Stigma remains a problem. + +Not just for ADHD but for just about any mental health condition ranging from anxiety to depression and bipolar disorder. + +Every remark that implies that our everyday actions meet a diagnostic criteria, in a small way, delegitimizes the condition to which we compare our actions. + +For if we _all_ suffer from a condition, then we deny the fact that there may be a subset of humanity that suffers from the condition to an extent that requires some form of treatment. + +If we keep our ears open, we’ll hear lots of these. Perhaps uttered by ourselves. + +_“Oh, I’m just a bit OCD about diary keeping. That’s why I lay out my calendar appointments like this.”_ + +As somebody with more neuroticisms than I can keep count of, I totally get the intent behind remarks like this. But language is powerful, and often we are unaware of the subtleties in how it is perceived; and how different and more sensitives audiences (read: patient populations) may interpret our words. + +What would I recommend doing instead? “Neurotic” or “finnicky” or “pedantic” would all be better substitutes that don’t draw an equivalence to a mental health condition that needs to be diagnosed by a mental health professional. None of those imply that the weird way you lay out your diary means that you’re suffering from the same condition that means that it takes somebody else two hours to leave the house because they need to wash their hands two hundred times in order to do so. + +Unless you know for certain that you suffered from an actual panic attack — I’ve had a real one and they’re absolutely horrible — it’s better not to describe your minor freak-out upon learning of your credit card bill as “a panic attack.” “I got a shock,” is totally fine (ahem … I’ve been there recently). How about you were “taken aback” by the amount on the bill? + +One of the useful things about the English language — something you don’t really appreciate until you compare it to a language with a smaller lexicon — is just how many words there are. There are synonyms and words that communicate fine degrees of nuance. It’s unlikely that you’re missing one. If not you can combine words that aren’t diagnoses into sentences. + +Feel a little bit down after the weekend has reached its conclusion? You might be feeling a bit “sad.” But even though the distinction might seem slightly, it’s better than saying you’re _depressed_ — which you could argue implies that you’re suffering from clinical depression. + +Am I sounding high and mighty here? Probably just a little. Do I make these mistakes myself? Actually, yes. All the time. Not about ADHD. Because nobody needs me to convince me that it’s a real thing. But about other conditions. If you hear me making a slip up, please call me out on it. + +We can all do better when it comes to attempting to understand the challenges that other people live with — even if we can’t fit them within the frame of reference through which we view the world. + +hey may be totally beyond the pale of our lived experiences. But that doesn’t mean that they’re not real. + +As a golden rule if you want to hold on to no other: don’t refer to a mental illness in the DSM unless you actually intend referring to that illness or a manifestation of it. + +And certainly don’t pretend that what the medical profession _has_ collectively determined to be a real thing is something that’s merely an exaggerated description of a condition that’s universalized among the human race. diff --git a/posts/medium/-Green-Flags---Tips-For-Recognizing-High-Potential-Leads-In-Your-Freelancing-Pipeline.md b/posts/medium/-Green-Flags---Tips-For-Recognizing-High-Potential-Leads-In-Your-Freelancing-Pipeline.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..198fe2c5638608ab2794d729f981518d37369580 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/-Green-Flags---Tips-For-Recognizing-High-Potential-Leads-In-Your-Freelancing-Pipeline.md @@ -0,0 +1,78 @@ +# “Green Flags”: Tips For Recognizing High Potential Leads In Your Freelancing Pipeline + +#### Can you tell those prospects who are really interested in your freelancing services from those who are just collecting price points? + +Lead scoring: can you tell your high potential leads from those less likely to turn into customers? Photo by [Lukas](https://www.pexels.com/@goumbik?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-writing-on-notebook-669615/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +If you’re shoring up your efforts in the realm of inbound marketing then sooner or later — if your efforts bear fruit — you’re going to notice an uptick in the number of inbound leads that make it into your pipeline. + +Before I go any further, let me explain why I’ve added the “freelancing” qualifier to the title of this article. For the past five years, I’ve been operating at the smallest (solo marketing consultant) level of scale. + +If you want to know how to tell which multi-million deal prospects are likely to convert and which are not then I’m 100% unqualified to provide advice as I have zero experience in this domain. Speak to a B2B sales manager and I’m sure they’d have lots to say about that. + +However, I _have_ handled plenty of inbound leads for consulting services over the years and have begun to develop a sixth sense for which are going to materialize into business and which are going to …. end up dropping out of the pipeline. + +This sixth sense is invaluable because — when things get busy — it can help direct you to where it’s best to focus efforts. You can’t put together an amazing + +I’ve spoken before about the red flags that should give you pause for thought before adding a new account to your freelance/consulting book of business. + +[**5 Red Flags to Help Avoid ‘Difficult’ Freelancing Clients** + _I recently wrote about my deliberate decision to be less responsive — about how taking slightly longer to get back to…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d) + +But today, let’s look at the opposite. What clues might tip you in to who the high potential leads might be in your pipeline. + +(Everything here is based on personal experience and intuition; I don’t have data to back up these claims.) + +### They’re Oddly Focused + +The most reliable gauge I have for whether a prospect is going to convert is the level of focus that they bring to the first interaction. + +This one’s a little tricky to explain. + +Window shoppers — those who might be blitzing out quotes to lots of potential vendors — tend to leave off subtle signals that they’re not really all that serious about doing business with you. + +I’m not saying that these leads aren’t worth of attention. Simply that if you want to try to focus on those that have the most potential, these mightn’t be the ideal targets of your focus. + +A message from a window shopper might sound very much like it’s copy and pasted or a quick adaptation from a boilerplate. Whereas outreach from a highly engaged prospect will be a lot shorter and to the point. + +_Generic style outreach from a potential window shopper:_ + +> Hi Daniel, + +> I came across your website and would love to hear more about the type of marketing consulting service that you offer. + +> We’re a 50 person tech firm based in Seattle and are thinking about doing more in this area this year. + +> Have a few minutes to chat on Zoom about this? + +I’d give this type of message a lead score of about 2 out of 5. + +_Much more focused outreach:_ + +> Hi Daniel, + +> I saw that you offer marketing communications consulting and we could definitely use some of that right now. I liked the fact that you have tech experience because that’s exactly our space- we’re a backup provider. + +> We’re looking to onboard some kind of resource to cover this area by early next month and I looked at your resume and think you could be a great match. More specifically, we’re about to make some new appointments and need somebody to lay the groundwork for PR. Let me know if it would be possible to talk about this this week and whether you’re open to the idea of working on a retainer? + +And I’d rate this a 4 and make sure to follow up. + +### They Know What They Need And When They Need It Actioned By + +As the above example messages make clear (they’re not real, by the way, but _are_ very representative of the type of messages I’ve received over the years), prospects that _are_ really determined also tend to have already done the groundwork to understand and layout what their identifiable need is. + +The more specific they can be the better. + +They know what they need. They know approximately when they need it. And they’re interested in having a conversation with you to see whether you can be the service provider to address those “pain points.” + +### They’ve Done Their Homework About You + +If a prospect is really serious about hiring you as a freelancer or consultant, then they’ll typically send out some signals that they’ve invested a bit of time in actually checking out your business — or you — in order to evaluate whether you might be the right man or woman for the job. + +They might reference case studies you have on your website demonstrating your work for previous clients. They might make it clear that they’re already familiar with your professional background. + +The more leads you handle, the easier it becomes to get an intuitive sense for those that are likely to turn into business and those who will probably end up wasting your time. + +Obviously lead scoring can be whittled down to a near exact science — many CRMs have formulae that do this automatically — but there are also some intangible personal dimensions that need to be taken into account. + +These are some of the signals that I’ve found useful to determine whether an inbound lead is “really serious” or “just shopping around.” diff --git a/posts/medium/-Salary-Confessions--Page-Helps-Lift-The-Lid-On-Salaries-In-Israel.md b/posts/medium/-Salary-Confessions--Page-Helps-Lift-The-Lid-On-Salaries-In-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..04608234f82274d4e398ede811ee0041e629ce3e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/-Salary-Confessions--Page-Helps-Lift-The-Lid-On-Salaries-In-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,72 @@ +# “Salary Confessions” Page Helps Lift The Lid On Salaries In Israel + +#### Anonymous salary reports open up a whole new world of data about how much jobs in Israel are paying; salaries in “high tech” trend above 30,000 NIS/month, almost 2.5 times the national average. + +Israel is an expensive country, but average salaries in the high-tech sector are continuing to trend significantly above the average and remain at above six figure territory in the US dollar. Photo: Wikimedia Commons + +In Israel, as elsewhere, there’s a strong movement going on towards salary transparency right now. + +As I wrote this January, jobseekers in Israel already have several means at their disposal to research where salaries stand in the job market: + +[**How To Research Salaries In Israel** + _Places To Research Your Market Value In The Israeli Job Market_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-research-salaries-in-israel-3c0c6ca577f4 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-research-salaries-in-israel-3c0c6ca577f4")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-research-salaries-in-israel-3c0c6ca577f4) + +For one, there are national salary surveys typically conducted by recruitment agencies . These provide good insights into the average (note: not _mean_) salary being paid in a specific field. + +Increasingly, [Glassdoor](http://www.glassdoor.com) is proving itself useful not only for reading anonymous reviews of working conditions at Israeli companies, but also for finding anonymous salary reports. + +According to recent data compiled by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Israel’s national statistics body, monthly salaries rose 5.5% in March and stood, then, at an average of 12,470 NIS. **At today’s exchange rates (October 28th), that’s roughly $47,168 and €40,577 (salaries in Israel are quoted monthly).** + + Yes, you read that paragraph correctly. The average salary in the world of “high tech” now stands at more than 30,000 NIS per month. + +[**השכר הממוצע במשק - 12,740 שקל, השכר בהייטק - 31,525 שקל | כלכליסט** + _לפי נתוני הלמ"ס לחודש מרץ, השכר הממוצע במשק עלה ב-5.5% לעומת החודש שקדם לו, ואילו שכר עובדי ההייטק זינק ביותר מ-10%…_ www.calcalist.co.il](https://www.calcalist.co.il/local_news/article/H14WlMLc00 "https://www.calcalist.co.il/local_news/article/H14WlMLc00")[](https://www.calcalist.co.il/local_news/article/H14WlMLc00) + +[**Average salary in Israel rises another 5.5%** +_The average monthly salary in Israel rose 5.5% in March to NIS 12,740 compared with February, the Central Bureau of…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-average-salary-in-israel-rises-another-55-1001373269 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-average-salary-in-israel-rises-another-55-1001373269")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-average-salary-in-israel-rises-another-55-1001373269) + +Notably, the CBS computes a separate average salary figure for the country’s high-tech sector, where salaries significantly outpace those in the rest of the economy. + +Despite the fact that recent data showed that the sector employs only a small cohort of 20,000 workers at its core, “high tech” remains a major economic driver of Israel’s economy, with jobs largely concentrated in Tel Aviv and the surrounding area (Hebrew: the _merkaz,_ center). Successive Israeli governments have committed to driving participation rates in the high tech sector, particularly through encouraging the study of STEM subjects in high schools where, in recent years, Israel has showed concerning trends when benchmarked against other OECD member states. + +**According to data quoted in _Globes_ the high tech average, in March, rose to 31,525 NIS. At the exchange rates in operation at the date of publication, that’s $119,244 and €102,577 in Euros and United States dollars respectively.** + +Broken down, the CBS numbers show that the high tech average now trends above the national figure at a multiple of slightly more than 2.47, laying bare the stark differences between Israel’s internationally-focused “high tech” workforce and the rest of the economy. + +[**Just 20,000 people drive Israel's tech industry - study** + _Israel's technology industry relies on 20,000 talented people who are responsible for the sector's technological…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-just-20000-people-drive-israels-tech-industry-study-1001384225 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-just-20000-people-drive-israels-tech-industry-study-1001384225")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-just-20000-people-drive-israels-tech-industry-study-1001384225) + +### Salary Confessions Page Shares Anonymous Reports Verified By Payslip + +In recent months, another weapon has arisen to help Israeli jobseekers get and stay appraised of their market value. + + + +_Vidui Sachar_ (Hebrew: וידוי שכר; literally “salary confessions”) is a nascent Facebook page which features anonymous reports of salary from across the Israeli workforce. + +In order to verify the claimed earnings, those submitting listings are asked to submit pay stubs (Hebrew: _tlushim)._ + +In order to preserve the anonymity of respondents, the information is submitted by Google Form and no personally identifiable information is collected. + +Interacting with me by private message, the page owner said that he/she expressly refuses to collect information through any other means and that in the even that somebody submits information through Facebook, the messages are immediately deleted. + +Among recent data points shared with the page: + + * **A football referree who makes 1,554 NIS per game** through officiating at matches + * **A software engineer with 5.5 years’ experience pulling in a monthly gross salary of 36,00 NIS** + * **A data analyst with 3 years’ experience earning 19,00 NIS per month** + * A**help desk assistant being paid 8,000 NIS per month** + +To check out the page, click the link above. And share it with your Israel-based friends and family! + +**(Hat tip: Elisheva Hecht-Bronner, via Facebook)** + +### To share your salary report: + +### Coverage in Hebrew: + +[**קבוצת וידויים או גימיק שיווקי מבריק? מה עומד מאחורי "וידויי שכר"** +_לימודים וקריירה זוהר אורבך | לימודים וקריירה mako בחודשים האחרונים אחד העמודים הבולטים באינטרנט הישראלי היה "וידויי…_ www.mako.co.il](https://www.mako.co.il/study-career-career/articles/Article-211aa91d24e9971027.htm "https://www.mako.co.il/study-career-career/articles/Article-211aa91d24e9971027.htm")[](https://www.mako.co.il/study-career-career/articles/Article-211aa91d24e9971027.htm) + +[**כמה מרוויחים הקולגות שלכם? קבלו הצצה לסוד השמור של שוק העבודה** + _עד כמה עובדי ההייטק מנותקים בשכרם מרוב המשק הישראלי - ניתוק שככל הנראה רק הועצם בשנת הקורונה? עמוד פייסבוק בשם "וידויי…_ www.globes.co.il](https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001369264 "https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001369264")[](https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001369264) diff --git a/posts/medium/-Thought-leader--is-an-earned-title.md b/posts/medium/-Thought-leader--is-an-earned-title.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b043fa5dcacc7f78bdf9260f57f5a69812485e39 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/-Thought-leader--is-an-earned-title.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# ‘Thought leader’ is an earned title + +#### Why Thought Leaders Need To Be Judicious About Using The Descriptor Until It’s Definitely Time + +As a writer and communications consultant specializing in working with technology thought leaders, I get some version of the below approximately once a month: + +_“We are looking to establish ourselves as thought leaders in the [technology niche] space. We are hoping to achieve that by the end of this quarter. We’d also like two placements in TechCrunch and to appear on the front page of Google News.”_ + +(Query exaggerated for dramatic effect). + +Thought leadership _is_ an effective form of marketing that is related to, but [slightly distinct from](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/the-4-key-differences-between-thought-leadership-and-content-marketing-entrepreneur-com/), content marketing. Its uses extend from lead generation through to positioning the authoring party as a premium provider. But there is a faulty premise underlying the above. + +The purpose of this blog post is to unpack it. + +### True Thought Leaders Are Not Self-Appointed + +If you can get past whatever connotations you _may_ have about the term, think, for a moment, about somebody you consider to be a thought leader. + +Perhaps it’s a pivotal figure in the tech world — such as Bill Gates — whose prognostics you have come across as a soundbite in a Netflix documentary. + +Maybe it’s somebody influential you’ve seen quoted in the media. Alternatively, you may have come across an op-ed in the _New York Times_ that is doing the rounds on LinkedIn. + +Hold those images in your mind for a moment. + +Now think about (again) a LinkedIn post from a startup founder who declares himself (or herself) a “thought leader on innovation.” Or an email newsletter that proclaims itself to be thought leadership. Perhaps you’re at a networking event and a technologist — but one you’ve never heard of before — introduces himself as a _“thought leader on the future of cloud computing.”_ + +I’m guessing that you noticed some differences in terms of how you conceived, in your mind, of both these groups. Pause and think what those are for a moment. Now see whether the perceptions you automatically arrived at differ from what I suggest they’re likely to be. + +For the first group, you may have silently affirmed the authority of the thought leaders — in the sense that mentally you didn’t rise to challenge the title that they proclaimed. + +The latter examples, by contrast, may well have aroused in you feelings of skepticism and jadedness. “ _Not another LinkedIn thought leader!”_ you may have explained to yourself. + +But what are the differences between the two sets of examples? Why did I feel that way? + +Let’s dig into a few: + + * **It’s not easy to become an expert that is quoted in a Netflix documentary**(yes, even if you’re listed in an established experts’ directory.) By contrast, it’s not particularly difficult to set up a LinkedIn profile, or website, that declares oneself to be a thought leader. + * Thought leaders who are household names — like Bill Gates — typically don’t need to introduce themselves as thought leaders. Their reputation -quite literally — precedes them and declaring their thought leadership would, in many cases, simply be redundant. When people are at pains to depict themselves in those words through constant repetition, it tends to have a counterproductive effect and leads audiences to wonder if “the ‘thought leader’ doth protest too much.” + * In the latter set of examples, the thought leader’s standing is being externally validated. By being invited to contribute commentary to a documentary. By being offered lucrative real estate in the _New York Times_. By being invited to offer commentary to other top tier media. Introducing yourself as the thought leader doesn’t leverage any external validation. Most likely, it will be perceived instead as a claim. Perhaps a vacuous one. + +### The Good News: You Can Start Your Journey Now + +The above is not intended to suggest that it is forbidden for thought leaders to declare themselves to be thought leaders. Or to suggest that every self-reference to thought leadership is going to backfire and result in charges of charlatanism (or perceptions of the same). + +Rather the point is that — when subjected to the cold, hard light of public perception — there’s a very simple litmus test that readers or viewers can use to differentiate who they perceive to be “true” thought leaders from who they might mark out as wannabees. And that’s whether anybody _else_ is affirming the speaker’s standing as a thought leader. + +That social affirmation can take many forms. + +It can involve being named as a thought leader by a respected and trusted author with a reputation to defend (consider, for instance, the “40 Under 40” style awards). It could be the glowing introduction from a well-known event MC. Or it could take the form of one’s (repeat) invitation to appear on a television program. + +The important point is that the thought leader’s standing is being validated by a party that is itself well-perceived. The effect of these endorsements can be collective. But they’re naturally more powerful when they arise from an external source. + +As a general principle, self-references to one’s standing as a “thought leader” should be carried out judiciously until one is unquestionably worthy of the title. That’s because ultimately, whether one’s thoughts are considered leading is decided in the court of public opinion. + +Until arriving at that point, thought leaders in development should make every effort to share influential ideas and thoughts that can inspire and change viewpoints whatever their industry. This is the simple (but arduous) way through which one goes from being an unknown presenter on a stage to an expert contributor to prime time television programs. + +The business of becoming a thought leader is hard graft. It usually involves a combination of perseverance, having something interesting to say (or many things), and connecting with the right audiences at the right time. But doing so to a fixed timeline is at best a very difficult thing to achieve. + +Ultimately one’s success depends upon public perception. As any PR practitioner will tell you, despite one’s best efforts, that tends to be a very difficult thing to guarantee. diff --git a/posts/medium/-You-Have-To-Be-Authentic--Every--Single--Day-.md b/posts/medium/-You-Have-To-Be-Authentic--Every--Single--Day-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..41c012379b8ed12681c82134dbaba44f903b8ffe --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/-You-Have-To-Be-Authentic--Every--Single--Day-.md @@ -0,0 +1,67 @@ +# “You Have To Be Authentic. Every. Single. Day” + +#### A valuable lesson garnered at a social event + + _(A sort of public diary entry cross-posted from my blog)_ + +Ten months or so I had the merit of attending a friend’s wedding. + +It was quite a glamorous affair on account of the prestige of the bride’s family. + +The Friday night dinner which preceded the wedding was held in just about the fanciest hotel in the city. There were bodyguards. Politicians. It was quite an interesting _milieu_. + +Despite our un-eminent station in society (I am a marketing writer; a friend in our contingent is a free-living musician) the groom kindly invited us to both the preceding dinner, the wedding itself, and a party after (the point of this blog post isn’t to brag about being invited to this wedding, so although there were more interesting details to the affair, I will not be embellishing beyond what’s necessary.) + +This wedding was shortly before my gallbladder surgery when beer and my digestive system were still on good terms. + +My wedding companion and I arrived a little early and had a drink in the hotel lobby. The nice thing about it was that after one small beer I loosened up about the idea of being in a room with people I knew from watching the news and began to get into the groove of just enjoying the evening. + +After some time we were seated at a table by the entrance. Next to us are seated an attractive couple, probably ten years older than us, who are part of the travelling delegation from what I could tactfully describe as the famous half of this couple that necessitated aforementioned security. + +Seeing these two seated at the “kiddy’s table,” by the door, I instantly felt a bit embarrassed for them. What kind of short straw did they draw to be seated next to _us_? + +Nevertheless, my anxiety and pity were both unfounded. + +The couple were warm and friendly and — despite clearly being very affluent — had no airs or graces and were surprisingly down to earth. If they were bummed about the seating arrangement and not being around more important adults, well, they did a great job of disguising their feelings. I got talking to the husband during the meal and we shared a shot of _arak._ + +The gentleman, it turned out, was a successful diamond trader from New York City. We listen to the same Rabbi on the internet. So we had enough at least, to start up a cordial conversation about. + +At some point — perhaps after the first shot of _arak_ had sunk in — the guy decided to bestow his best life advice upon me. Perhaps I had asked for the key to his success (after five minutes this would have been uncharacteristic!). Maybe we had impressed upon him the difficult grittiness of making a living in Israel and he had sporadically decided to offer it. Maybe none of those things were segues. I can’t recall. But it doesn’t really matter. + +**The secret to success in life, he claimed, was to be authentic.** But he didn’t stop there. + +**You have to be authentic, he insisted, every single day.** And this is the part that has stood with me. + +As he described it, it wasn’t good enough to have moments or flashes of authenticity or to be on a run of it and then stop. + +No. Authenticity, he claimed, was sort of like a chain. If you let up, even for a day or two, the chain is broke and you’re back to square one — or at least you’ve muddied your messaging because those following you no longer know what’s the true you and what’s a front. + +He emphasized this far more than the value of authenticity itself, which of course is much more commonplace advice. + +As is sometimes the case, this comment — that perhaps was meant as as throwaway — has stuck with me ever since (and it’s always those small remarks that linger, good or bad). + +For some reason, I decided — viscerally, subconsciously — that this advice spoke to me on some deep level. + +I don’t expend mental energy trying to parse and unpack every nugget of wisdom I receive. But for some reason I felt an instantaneous attachment to this one. And I still feel that today trying to verbally unpack it. + +That’s all I really to say for now. + +In the intervening months since, I’ve tried to be a little bit braver about being authentic in my online writing. I’m always wary about where the mark is between sharing enough and over-sharing. + +To give an example: + +I wrote a piece today in which I offered my true feelings about _hasbara_ (amateur pro-Israel advocacy). I think that _hasbara_ is a colossal waste of time and energy even though I’m virtually certain that my views are going to offend a couple of friends who are involved in the world. Nevertheless, if I were going to write a piece about the things that I would like to see change in Israel, it would be unauthentic to not include that. + +Likewise, and despite undoubtedly seeming like a Biblical loon to some who read the piece, I penned a piece for my blog earlier outlining my day’s investigation into the burning issue of [how much wine, precisely was consumed during the times of the Bible. ](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/some-information-about-biblical-wine-in-ancient-israel/)It was authentic to talk about a subject that has deeply interested me for some time (the society and diet of the Ancient Israelites!) + +So these are the little baby steps I have been taking, trying to push through small measures of reluctance on my part to skirt around my true feelings — or, more commonly to frame them euphemistically, which is, ultimately, a form of intellectual dishonestly. + +However pop-psychology-like as this will sound, I don’t think that the journey towards being as authentic as one can possibly be done overnight. + +I know, intuitively, that it’s a process. And I also know, intuitively, that — having a terrible habit of bottling up my feelings — I have a very long way to go. + +I still struggle to think, exactly, how I will need to make sure that I am as authentic, or more so, one day after the next. + +That I don’t let up. Even for a single day (as the advice demanded). But I guess that that meditation can be part of the journey. And perhaps some sort of daily meditation into who I am and what I hope to achieve is the answer to giving that process the guidance and strategy it probably needs to succeed. + +**Do you have insight into what being authentic every day might mean?** diff --git a/posts/medium/10-Things-I-d-Like-To-Change-About-Life-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/10-Things-I-d-Like-To-Change-About-Life-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a5b946829d6c5ef9c002b9310404e9cbe0578476 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/10-Things-I-d-Like-To-Change-About-Life-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,154 @@ +# 10 Things I’d Like To Change About Life in Israel + +My Facebook poll. Source: Author + +When not thumping out writing projects for [technology clients](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) or tending to my new and thriving YouTube channel (just kidding, I have 10 subscribers), I have been known to frequent the odd Facebook group. + +Although they can be addictive, over time I have found a way to make them work for me without derailing my work day. The “pro tips”: log out of Facebook rather than close the tab down and disable notifications when you’ve had enough of the back and forth. + +One of the groups I have discovered is one which — controversially — provides a safe forum for those considering leaving Israel. In Israeli circles,_‘yeridah’_ — the process of leaving Israel — has always been rife with controversy ( _The Jerusalem Post_ has a good piece [explaining the dynamic here](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/middle-israel-time-to-shed-the-complex-of-yeridah-569871)). + +The group comprises individuals that have already left Israel after moving here, those that are hell-bent on doing so, and those who — like me — are just kind of continuously thinking about it (one study I read indicated that 40% of _olim_ eventually return to their countries of origin, so those in the undecided category has to comprise a pretty large contingent!). + +**Although it could well be my imagination, I believe that in recent weeks and months I have noticed a change in the discourse about leaving Israel** — a more open and tolerant one emerging, in which pointing out some of the things that need urgent rectification in the country is no longer met with the typical aggressive and dismissive response of “ _if you don’t like it here, you can leave”_. + +I have seen this at the national level in which even right-wing voters have been unable to contain their disgust at [the extravagant government that has been assembled during a time of national austerity (a wave of protests swept through the country).](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-israelis-be-the-ultimate-freyers/) + +And I have also seen this on an inter-personal level. Now, with the country partially shut down and citizens swiftly deprived of the [Amazon free shipping offer](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-amazon-halts-free-shipments-to-israel-1001322732) which took the country by storm, it’s painfully obvious, once again, that Israel is vastly overpriced and simply unaffordable for too many to live in. + +And so — emboldened by [my previous Medium post](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) on this topic as well as [a blog post I contributed](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-israel-i-would-like-to-live-in-in-10-years/) to this website about how I would like to see Israel in ten years — here’s a slightly expanded wish list of the things I would like to see change in the country by the time the next generation arrives. + +### 1\. A Lower Cost of Living + +As I mentioned in my blog post, an informal poll which I initiated on aforementioned Facebook group showed that for the vast majority of people, Israel’s extremely high cost of living ( [it was recently named the eight most expensive country in the world](https://www.ynetnews.com/business/article/By5ba11dfL)) is the main factor pushing people out of Israel. + +**Studies have shown that as many as 41% of the country**[**lives in some kind of overdraft**](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4633784,00.html)**.** + +Although it may sound like the stuff of conspiracy theories, a vast percentage of the Israeli economy is controlled by a small number of tycoons. + +Israel’s economy is one dominated by oligopolies and monopolies at virtually every level. And immigrants are tired of being paid insufficient salaries that don’t match up to the cost of living. Despite the rosy picture painted by Nefesh b’Nefesh and other organizations, I and many _olim_ can attest that many of our first friends in Israel have since left the country for precisely this reason: they found maintaining a reasonable standard of living in the country, or surviving, simply impossible (and yes, that even includes those working in “high tech”!). Although it typically happens with less fanfare than the arrival of a Nefesh b’Nefesh flight full of new immigrants, _olim_ are voting with their feet and leaving the country — and have been for some time. Israel’s absurd cost of living is unsustainable. To keep voluntary migrants in the country, this simply _has_ to change. + +**Possible solutions:** + + * Israel enacting more aggressive antitrust law and lessening bureaucracy to encourage international competition in the market as well as local small + * Israel could consider abandoning its often restrictive policy of not recognizing international standards which again restricts foreign competition. + +### 2\. Breaking The Property Bubble + +Israeli currency. Many of these are needed to buy property in Israel! Source: Wikimedia Commons. + +If you thought that $10 beer was bad, just wait until it’s your turn to start thinking about getting on the property ladder. + +[This piece](https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/), by Simona Weinglass (for this website) does an excellent job of summing up the dynamic for far too many. + +To quote from that article: + +_“Unless they are in the top 20 percent of income earners, Regev told The Times of Israel, or unless they already own significant assets, a typical professional couple making aliya from abroad will likely never be able to save enough money for a down payment on an apartment.”_ (Eitan Regev was one of the researchers at the Taub Center for Social Policy Studies that commissioned the paper being referenced in the piece). + +This generation’s difficulty in getting on the property ladder is well-known and not a uniquely Israeli phenomenon. But with absurdly high real estate prices propped up by restrictive government control of land the dynamic in Israel is exaggerated. + +**Possible solutions:** Israel developing currently sparsely populated peripheral areas such as the Negev and Golan and making them attractive for young people to move there. Most saliently, these areas — and Jerusalem — needs jobs. And lots of them. + +### 3\. Less Shitat Matzliach (Taking Advantage) + +Tel Aviv: the home of the Israeli high-tech scene. And some immigrant exploitation.Source: Wikimedia Commons. + +I’ve talked about _freier culture_ in several pieces before. + +If that word is new to you [then this piece I wrote about how to work with Israelis ](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca)— and do so while keeping your sanity — might be of interest. + +**A working culture prevails in _some quarters_ in Israel in which it is seen as smart and tactful to try out-negotiate the vulnerable** — often new immigrants — into taking bad deals or accepting salaries that are not commensurate with their skills. + +Too many immigrants end up getting repeatedly burned by unscrupulous employers. Again, immigrant exploitation is not a uniquely Israeli phenomenon. But, as the only Jewish country in the world, and one premised on Jews uprooting their lives in order to share in a collective form of national self-determination, I feel like we can and must do better than taking advantage of one another at every opportunity. Many Israelis are the grandsons and granddaughters of immigrants. Taking advantage of those two generations down the line is nothing other than shameful opportunism. + +**Possible solutions:** Some kind of collective moment of national reckoning that life is not a zero sum game and compromises can be reached at whereby both parties in an employment relationship benefit. Mercilessly haggling down contractors and employees is not a great way to get them to do their best work. Additionally, a raising of the national minimum vacation day allowance from its current paltry figure of 12 to 20, which would be more in line with (non-US) international norms. + +### 4\. Better Customer Service + +A shopping mall in Israel. Source: Wikimedia. + +If you’ve never been to Israel then you might be unaware that customer service is _often_ painfully bad here. + +Putting a finger on ‘how’ or ‘why’ isn’t all that simplistic. A the retail level, tellers will commonly ignore customers and pay attention to their smartphones instead (or complete their stock take and keep the customer waiting in line until it is convenient for them to serve them!). + +At a more national level, many Israelis and immigrants alike have amassed vast collections of horror stories about dealing with some well-known national utility and telecommunications providers. By the standards of Western democracies, Israel’s current defamation laws are also [stifling](https://www.pearlcohen.com/israel-sharing-a-post-on-social-media-may-constitute-defamation-liking-it-will-not/). This contributes to a culture in which businesses feel able to treat customers with impunity. They know that they don’t have many alternatives. And even if they did, complaining about their treatment on Facebook, to warn other customers, could constitute an actionable offence. + +**Possible solutions:** A gold standard customer service award, independently audited, which would allow those Israeli businesses which take customer service seriously and treat their customers fairly to objectively demonstrate this. More international competition and exposure should raise standards. More generous consumer protection law would prevent businesses from being able to treat customers poorly. + +### 5\. Politicians That Serve The People (Rather Than Themselves) + +I don’t want to slant this politically by advocating for a political side of the political spectrum, although recent happenings have indeed pivoted me to one end of that spectrum. + +Instead I will say this: recent events in Israel have made it abundantly clear (for me and for many) that too many Israeli politicians care about very little other than their own preservation in power or that of their “tribe” — which might be a particular religious sect or a narrow demographic of immigrants. [As I wrote in my last piece decrying the grossly bloated government we’ve been foisted with](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-israelis-be-the-ultimate-freyers/), it’s a system which seems to have cronyism and a lack of accountability hard-wired into it. + +To my eyes, Israel’s political system is thus both hopelessly divided and myopic in terms of its relentless, though justifiable, focus on security matters. Voters vote in party lists rather than individual candidates with constituencies and politicians have a longstanding habit of forming tiny splinter parties the moment they hit a disagreement with the party leader. As a result, the vast majority of the country which doesn’t share in the bounty of the “high tech” job market (the ‘periphery’ — the country beyond the ‘merkaz’) finds itself underrepresented. But even within the _merkaz_ there is no door to knock at when, say, your local municipality decides to begin a noisy street party outside your front door and refuses to listen to your complaints or those of local residents . + +Additionally, the national level focus which this system necessarily engenders continuously pushes what for me are the “hot button” issues (cost of living, cost of property) to the periphery of the political discourse. Instead, macro issues, of collective importance, dominate the political agenda at both municipal and national level. Thus, a [cable car to the Western Wall](https://www.jpost.com/opinion/the-jerusalem-cable-car-610932) is deemed a vital infrastructural project for Jerusalem despite the fact that many residents oppose it. It strengthens Israel’s connection to the Old City and shows off that connection to the world. Never mind the fact that many local residents think that it is going to be an eyesore and an extravagant waste of the city’s perennially limited budget. There are other more controversial examples. But suffice to say that in Israeli politics whoever is perceived as toughest on security traditionally wins the game. + +**Possible solution:** Reform of the political system led by experts in the field. + +### 6\. And End to Hasbara (And National Gloating!) + +People won’t like this one — at least not the second part — but I’m going to include it anyway. + +I’ve long argued that _hasbara_(Israeli public diplomacy) has not demonstrated a positive return on investment (ROI), despite the millions that are pored into it. + +Furthermore, I believe that this form of global echo-chamber self-righteousness is a prodigious waste of the intellectual resources and energies that many devoted and talented friends of Israel worldwide could put towards more constructive ends. + +Instead of serving as needless and often overlapping amateur spokesperson for the Jewish state (or commandeering organizations with often almost identical mission statements) these individuals could focus on developing skillsets that are of use to the economy here and move to the country they so profess to cherish. + +_Hasbara_ , to my mind, is like a national attempt at defeating the classroom bully by dint of protracted reason and logic. In my view, it’s never going to work. Israel’s existence hasn’t made anti-Semitism go away — it has merely changed form and become harder to detect. I would love to see Israel draw what I feel is the right conclusion from this lesson and pull the plug on this insidious waste of resources that serves the detrimental purpose of constantly putting Israel and Israelis on a defensive footing when it comes to justifying their positions. + +Although Israel’s achievements are impressive, if it were to put an end to _hasbara_ culture perhaps — just perhaps — Israel also might be a little less hyperbolic in the claims it makes about itself to the world. + +In my view, Israel is a country that is doing tremendously given the circumstances and its age. Nevertheless, its leaders, I believe, are too trigger-happy to claim that it is the “best in the world” at every endeavor under the sun. Israel has made achievements in the space of 100 years that few would have thought possible. But rather than engaging in vain and premature boasting about its handling of a public health crisis, mending its fences and internal divisions would be an important activity that merits attention at this moment. + +**Possible solution** : Stop funding _hasbara_ organizations unless there is clear evidence that they serve a constructive purpose and do more than make people feel good about answering fire with fire. While at it, stop answering back every criticism the worlds make. Let people disagree and think differently. Instead, focus inwardly on construction and on growth. + +### 7\. Better Tenant Protection Law. Better Renting Options. + +For many immigrants that face a lifetime of renting, Israel’s rental system, at least in its current guise, simply doesn’t serve their needs. + +The country’s rental stock is overwhelmingly dominated by what are colloquially referred to as ‘mom and pop’ landlords — ie one of the hundreds of thousands of _sabras_ who chipped in on property when it was cheap and are now renting them out as sources of passive incomes to more hapless recently immigrants. + +Unless Israel’s macroeconomics are to dramatically change and property is to suddenly become affordable, Israel needs a stock of professionally managed property. Additionally, it needs proper tenant protection law unlike the Fair Rental Law which ultimately proved teeth-less. Otherwise, renters will continue to be used and abused by often unscrupulous landlords that cannot be held to any kind of account. Renting in Israel is currently a jungle. That needs to change. + +**Possible solution:** Devise tenant protection law that isn’t so hopelessly ambiguous that it gets thoroughly twisted by those adept in the art of practicing _shitat matzliach_. Involve actual renters in the formulative process for that legislation and not MKs who are unlikely to have ever rented in their lives. + +### 8\. Better Consumer Protection + +Like tenant law, consumer protection law in Israel currently, frankly, often sucks. + +Israel, in my opinion, should enact far more generous consumer protection law that force retailers to do better than fob them off to usually unhelpful (and monopolistic) “official importers” whenever a defect emerges with the pricey electronic they bought just a few months ago. + +**Possible solution:** Enact consumer law with teeth. Again, the gold standard idea: devise a way to highlight businesses that are expending effort to buck the often downward trend. + +### 9\. Better Post-Aliyah Support + +Despite some glossy web pages and brochures from official government organizations, Israel’s approach to post-aliyah, at the moment, can essentially be summarized as _“you sink or you swim and we don’t care much either way”_ + +It’s time that Israel recognized that the survival of the fittest methodology may work in army bootcamp — but it doesn’t work towards keeping people in the country and becoming happy and constructive citizens of it. + +Many _olim_ have become discouraged and demotivated by far too many negative experiences in Israel. The rate of suicide among olim in Israel, tragically, remains at a multiple of the national average. It’s time that the State prioritized keeping those that have already made the move to the country. Post-aliyah — and those _olim_ that have moved here — have for too long played a very distant second fiddle to those who are already in the country. Priorities need to be reshuffled. It’s time to change this. + +**Possible solution** : Invest in post-aliyah to the same extent as investing in aliyah. If as many people leave Israel as come in, all that has been created is a revolving door of Jewish immigrants! + +### 10\. Better Banking + +If one thing epitomizes so much of what is wrong about life in Israel, for immigrants, then it is the banking sector. + +Banks, in Israel, often offer notoriously poor customer service, charge outlandish fees for the provision of very little service (including extremely limited opening hours), offer miserly credit card rewards, and are held to absolutely no form of accountability. Paradoxically, for a high tech pioneer, banking and financial services in Israel can often also seem rather surprisingly low tech: PIN codes on credit card payments are only just being introduced and contactless payments are still a far cry. + +**Possible solution** : Reduce bureaucracy so that Israeli FinTech pioneers don’t just see the country as a tiny test market not worth investing in. Introduce an efficient and online only bank that can afford to charge reasonable fees. + +### That’s All I’ve Got! + +That’s about the totality of my quick brainstorm. + +I could write a list of twenty things that I like about Israel (right now, summer watermelon would be very close to the top). + +But I feel like focusing on things that need to change might be more constructive. + +Israel is always fast changing. I hope that in the years to come it will continue to innovate and become an even better place in which to live. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/11-Things-You-Learn-About-Living-in-Israel-Only-By-Moving-Here.md b/posts/medium/11-Things-You-Learn-About-Living-in-Israel-Only-By-Moving-Here.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6d7e4d7bcb5675fce14c59f24aefb4adcf562ba3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/11-Things-You-Learn-About-Living-in-Israel-Only-By-Moving-Here.md @@ -0,0 +1,168 @@ +# 11 Things You Learn About Living in Israel Only By Moving Here + +#### There are things you find out about living in Israel only once you already … actually live here + +Enjoying a wonderful outdoor lunch at Motza Cafe near Jerusalem. Israel likes to brandish its Western credentials, but its Mediterranean nature is one of its major pluses. Photo: author. + +Think your _aliyah_ pilot trip prepared you for life in Israel? + +Think again! + +The best way to come to grips with living in Israel … is probably to live in Israel. + +Here are a few things that most immigrants only find out … actually they’ve already begun living here. + +### 1\. Everything — No Really Everything — Runs On WhatsApp (Or WhatsApp Groups) + +If you’ve never heard of — much less used — the instant messaging app known as WhatsApp (not _WhatsUp_ which appears to be Anglo baby-boomers’ favorite mis-appellation for it), then all that’s about to change. + +WhatsApp dominates both business and personal life in Israel. + +It’s the ubiquitous form of communication used to organize office parties, socialize, and plan neighborhood committees. + +_Everything_ has a WhatsApp group. I’m invited to so many that I effectively use my business line as a WhatsApp Group gathering number and my other account for one on one conversations. + +Don’t be surprised when your doctor/lawyer begins sending you communications over WhatsApp. Oh, and people _looove_ the voice notes here too (thankfully WhatsApp is finally rolling out automatic transcription of these soon). + +### 2\. Almost Nothing Runs Precisely On Time + +For those who like to stretch the concept of being fashionably late to its limits, this is probably good news. + +As a Mediterranean country and culture, Israelis sometimes adopt a _laizzer faire_ attitude to time-keeping. + +Like much cultural nuance in Israel, though, nothing is black and white. + +Just as members of the Knesset (parliament) do _not_ typically show up to vote in flip flops and jeans, while it’s probably (sometimes) okay to be five minutes late to an office toast, being 30 minutes’ late probably isn’t. + +### 3\. The Customer Is Not Always Right — Sometimes, In Fact, You’d Be Led To Believe That They’re Always Wrong + +There are things that Israelis do well — refreshing honesty. + +And things they tend to do horribly poorly — like customer service. + +When you think about it, that’s entirely logical. Being disarmingly honest and conventional customer service don’t really go hand in hand. You can tell the customer that they’re buying an idiotically overpriced camera, but the impression it leaves isn’t usually a good one. + +Americans are often aghast to find that the _“yes, sir”_ service culture they are used to simply doesn’t exist here. Joking about the issue does it a disservice, though. Shoddy customer service — and abusive companies exploiting a captive market position — are real problems here. + +### 4\. Many Israeli Websites Look Like They Were Built By A Stoned Teenager Some Time In The 1990s When MS Paint And Popups Were Enjoying Their Heyday + +One of the strangest paradoxes of life in Israel. + +For a country that prides itself on the state of its technology, it seems to have an amazing talent for cooking up some decidedly old school websites for its own population. + +As even domestic-focused businesses become more sophisticated, this is sadly become a thing of the past. But until its recent facelift, Yad2.co.il — a national buy and sell directory — was an outstanding example. + +To make an authentic Israeli website, it needs to be hosted on a .co.il domain name. All graphics need to be designed exclusively in Microsoft Paint (that still exists, right?). And popups should appear at least once every five seconds. + +This is an official Israeli government website for paying taxes. Replete with some random guy and a superimposed ‘chip’. + +A pixel not filled with banner advertising is a wasted pixel. This is the essential premise from which traditional Israeli web design departs. + +### 5\. There Are Basically Two Technology Stores: KSP And Ivory. No Wait, EVERYTHING Is Vaguely An Oligopoly/Monopoly. + +For those into tech — and I’m one of them — you’ll quickly learn that there are two major national technology chains, KSP and Ivory. + +Sure there are a punch of hobbyists’ outlets, such as Plonter, and tech shops that supply business. But if you’re a consumer looking for consumer-level gear, KSP and Ivory are essentially your options. + +And guess what? + +They appear to typically sell almost the exact same inventory for almost the exact same price. + +As one lives longer in Israel, one begins to find dubious oligopolies like this popping up in every industry. They’re part of what makes Israel one of the most expensive places to live in the world. According to one statistics, actual consumer purchasing power in Israel was lower than in every OECD country minus Japan. + +### 6\. Amazon Doesn’t Really Deliver Here. Instead, People Use Something Called Zap. And This Crazy Chinese Site Called Aliexpress. They Also Go Justifiably Nuts Whenever Amazon Puts On A Promo. + +Firstly, it’s not actually true that Amazon doesn’t deliver to Israel. + +What _is_ true is that they don’t ship very much of their global inventory here. + +Don’t believe me? Add an Israeli address to your Amazon account and see what you can get that actually delivers here — for less than the cost of the item. + +Thankfully all isn’t doom and gloom. + +There’s Zap which is an online comparison engine that lets you sift through offers from many (in my experience, typically bad) Israeli online retailers. + +Israelis — largely for this reason — also love to buy from Aliexpress, which is basically Alibab’s direct-to-consumer online marketplace. Sure, stuff takes a while to get to Israel (like over a month). But so long as it’s under $75 (after that, Israel charges 17% VAT) it’s cheap and fairly bureaucracy-free. + +From time to time — to keep the locals hopeful that one day Amazon will _truly_ operate here — Amazon puts on a promo deal. + +One avid Israeli online shopper, who totally isn’t me, sent in this pixeallated image of one of their old order hauls. + +### 7\. It’s Really Hot For A Really Long Time. Like It’s Hot Half The Year. + +If you’ve never lived in a hot climate before, then checking the climate graph for whatever city you plan on living in in Israel is probably worthwhile. + +There are two things worth keeping in mind about Israel’s climate: + +1: The summers are very hot. + +2: The summers are _long_. + +Here’s Jerusalem’s climate graph courtesy of Wikipedia: + +Some notes about Jerusalem’s data: + + * The daily average high is at or above 25 degrees celcius (rounded) for six months of the year. That’s half the year! + * For five months of the year, there is negligible precipitation. + +A personal observation, at least about Jerusalem’s weather: the intermediate seasons in Israel — spring and autumn — are far less pronounced than my country of origin. Jerusalem and Tel Aviv also have remarkably different climates from cities just an hour’s drive apart. Tel Aviv remains hot and humid throughout the summer, including at night. Owing to its topography, Jerusalem’s climate is more “liveable.” + +### 8\. Realtors Will Still Insist You Don’t Need Air Conditioning. Politely Ignore Them. + +One of the greatest things about Israel: + +It’s totally unique — lest you need a reminder, Israel is the only Jewish country in the world. + +And simultaneously it’s vaguely similar to just about every other country in the universe. Some examples: + + * Realtors are often sketchy people who will tell you anything to make a sale + * Government workers commonly go on strike + * Banks appear to open to the public only when it’s convenient to them and still charge you exorbitant sums for the privilege of doing “business” with them + +Case in point: when I was last apartment-hunting in Israel, countless realtors told me that I didn’t “need” air conditioning. Or that I could comfortably live without it. + +Apparently the cave-like nature of many Jerusalem rental apartments renders them naturally permanently cold. How convenient! + +I would love to know how many of these realtors don’t have air conditioning in their own homes. Although it’s worth pointing out that this AC-skeptic attitude _is_ prevalent among the more old-school Israelis who grew up at a time when air conditioning wasn’t almost universal in the country. By “old school Israelis” I mean the elderly Yemenite women you’ll find throwing bread to stray cats. Every neighborhood in Israel has at least one. + +If you come from a much colder climate like I did, I personally advise you _not_ to listen to these real estate agents. + +My post-aliyah life in Israel can be divided between the clammy era before I rented my first AC-sporting apartment and the time thereafter. I like the time thereafter better. + +### 9\. Driving Here Is Sort Of Crazy. But Public Transport Is Really Good. + +Perhaps this is common knowledge among Jewish immigrants who grew up taking summer holidays in Israel (note: my family never did this), but Israeli drivers are by and large lunatics with engines, wheels, and horns at their continuous disposal — the last of which they use very liberally indeed. + +But really: driving in Israel is kind of crazy in a way that’s vaguely astounding if you come from a country in which people compete with one another for who can be the most polite and considerate driver around. The good news is that it’s apparently possible to adapt to the oddly aggressive style that dominates on the roads here. My wife tells me that you just have to go to war — I mean drive — every day. + +The better news is that public transport in Israel — at least between major cities — is pretty decent. There are now regular high speed trains running between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv which are great both for people without cars and for newfound traffic-phobics like me. Although getting anywhere else in the country is still liable to prove challenging. + +### 10\. The Postal Service Is Kind Of Rubbish + +Israelis love to make fun of how bad the postal system is here although I’ve actually been really impressed by how _little_ of my prodigious online ordering they’ve lost. Really. They’re not fast. But they rarely seem to lose things. + +_Doar Yisrael_ been the subject of comedy sketches (see below). + +It has previously ranked as the most complained-about state-run institution — which in a country full of whingers like me really says something. + +And it’s well known that it can take _months_ for some letters delivered from abroad to finally make it into our letterboxes (now you know: sending a physical birthday card to somebody based in Israel is an exercise in futility; a bereavement card may as well be addressed to surviving relatives instead). + +The likely reasons: like most postal systems, the Israeli one is struggling under fundamentally difficult economics. Far more people are ordering online than sending mail to one another or to relatives abroad. + +The second reason is that nobody probably anticipated the extent to which Israelis would pick up on Aliexpress and online shopping in general. The post office has made periodic upgrades to its sorting network. But they still seem to be struggling to keep up with demand. + +### 11\. Israelis Still Love It Here In Spite Of All The Above + +Israel is a crazy country. That much you probably already knew. + +And yet — despite some of the insane features of life here — it’s an oddly enjoyable country in which to live. + +It offers a decidedly first world standard of living even if sometimes it feels oddly like a country whose GDP per capita statistic is far lower than what it actually is. Its healthcare system is excellent. And there are many jobs in the technology sector. + +I’m convinced that the key to enjoying life in Israel is to cast aside the image that Israel loves to project about itself to the world (that it’s a sophisticated Western ‘little America’ in the Middle East). Those features are true to an extent. But they do the full picture of what it’s really like to live here a massive injustice. + +Remember: + + * **It’s a Mediterranean country.** Tempers can be frayed during the hot summer months. But on the plus side there’s plenty of good weather during the summer and it’s sunny enough to eat outside for a decent chunk of the year. + * **It’s a Middle Eastern country**. My cultural impression of the Middle Eastern aspect of Israel’s culture is something like this: rules aren’t the conventional things that we conceive them as in the West. There’s something vaguely spiritual about the way in which Middle Easterners try to swim their way around them. The common description is that rules here are conceived of as recommendations rather than strict edicts. That comes pretty close to depicting reality. + diff --git a/posts/medium/11-Work-And-Life-Philosophies-That-I-Currently-Believe-In.md b/posts/medium/11-Work-And-Life-Philosophies-That-I-Currently-Believe-In.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..511bc3ca2407dc287920e9aa5529e1109e5bf764 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/11-Work-And-Life-Philosophies-That-I-Currently-Believe-In.md @@ -0,0 +1,136 @@ +# 11 Work And Life Philosophies That I Currently Believe In + +In no particular order. Very non-exhaustive. + +I currently subscribe to the power of: + +### 1\. Asynchronous Communication + +I’m an enormous fan of deep work. + +I was also recently diagnosed with ADHD which probably explains why I’ve put so much effort into the years into making this mode of working work for me (see: flight mode article). + +Deep work isn’t just my preference. It’s the _only_ way I can work effectively. + +The good news: once I have a supportive environment to work in, I can be very productive. Or so I’m told. + +[**It’s Time To Untether Remote Work From Synchronous Communications** + _Remote work doesn’t have to be a blur of Zoom meetings_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-time-to-untether-remote-work-from-synchronous-communications-4ca81a1ffc2a "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-time-to-untether-remote-work-from-synchronous-communications-4ca81a1ffc2a")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-time-to-untether-remote-work-from-synchronous-communications-4ca81a1ffc2a) + +[**Why Flight Mode Has Been My Best Productivity-Enhancing Intervention to Date** + _And I Think That Synchronous Communication Platforms Like WhatsApp And Slack Are Today’s Destroyers of Focus_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664) + +### 2\. Open Source + +I’ve been a daily Linux user — in both my work and personal lives — for well over 10 years now. + +I’ve been using Linux for so long that I don’t even think about it any more. Linux is just how computers work for me. Windows is that thing in a virtual machine file I spin up when I have no other option. + +Having benefited so much from the open source community over the years has also made me an ardent supporter of it as a concept. Not only for technology. But also for life. + +Outcome: I’m selective about what I choose to monetize. + +Want to hire me to write a book for you? It’s going to cost you. + +Want to pick over my thoughts about freelance writing? Help yourself to them for free. Sharing that information and creating the connections that reaching readers brings is worth more to me right now than generating a small side income from paywalling it. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +### 3\. Inbound Marketing + +Growing up, I was an intensely private person that didn’t share much about my inner world. Breaking out of that strait-jacket has been a lifelong process for me. It’s still going on. + +If you’re like me and want some additional encouragement to get out of that mindset here’s a chunk of it: inbound marketing is a pretty neat way to reward authenticity! + +[**The Connection Between Inbound Marketing And Authenticity** + _An argument in favor of amorphous free-flowing content creation and leveraging authenticity to create change_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3) + +Of course, if something business-connected is your goal then you’ll want to be more strategic than just sharing everything with everybody. + +But there’s a lot to be said for the power of doing just that. + +### 4\. Remote And Hybrid Working + +Let me circle back to deep work for a moment. + +If I want to keep working in an office environment my fate is a tiny chunk of desk space in an open office environment that is the arch nemesis of anybody who is easily distracted. + +While cable management admittedly isn’t my strong suit, working from home I can show up to this setup everyday. + +Remote and hybrid working arrangements can also untether us from geographies we don’t particularly want to live in. Employers can gain access to more talent than just the talent that can be easily recruited in their locality. + +We live in a world in which it’s eminently possible to work effectively remotely. + +For the 99% of knowledge workers that don’t work for state defense contractors or otherwise have advanced technical requirements … there are literally no impediments to working from anywhere on the planet. + +### 5\. Freelancing + +I’ve done it for 5 year both as a side hustle and as my full-time income. + +A point I’ve made repeatedly here on Medium is that done right freelancing can be more secure than office employment. Yes, you read that correctly. + +More thoughts about that here: + +[**Ways You Can Diversify Your Freelance Writing Business** + _The Art Of Not Putting Your Eggs In One Basket_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5) + +### 6\. Doing Business Internationally + +In light of point 4, above, why wouldn’t you? We have all the technology in place to conduct knowledge work with any company we can legally do business with. + +[**How to Work With The World — From Israel** + _At the crossroads of Africa, Asia, and Europe, Israel is uniquely positioned on the geopolitical map._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569) + +### 7\. Self Directed Learning + +The internet has been a sort of surrogate additional parent to me since I was a child. The muse to whom I ask my most perplexing questions. A teacher. An entertainer. + +I’ve also learned so much from YouTubers, podcasts, and online bloggers. + +Although I hold a couple of conventional university degrees, I feel like I’ve learned just as much by doing and learning on my own. + +### 8\. Continuous Professional Development + +[**Will tomorrow’s freelance writers be the custodians of bots rather than wordsmiths?** +medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/will-tomorrows-freelance-writers-be-the-custodians-of-bots-rather-than-wordsmiths-5d91a125b149 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/will-tomorrows-freelance-writers-be-the-custodians-of-bots-rather-than-wordsmiths-5d91a125b149")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/will-tomorrows-freelance-writers-be-the-custodians-of-bots-rather-than-wordsmiths-5d91a125b149) + +The cold winds of AI are knocking at the door. + +What’s the best way we can avoid redundancy? + +Staying a few steps ahead of the AI bots and doing something that they currently can’t. + +Knowledge is key. In today’s environment, we can’t afford to count on what we already know. + +Ongoing learning and professional development is going to be key. + +### 9\. Working With Nice People + +The hardest part about freelancing? + +I’d love to tell you this wasn’t true — and I hesitated before adding this — but I could fill up a book with horror stories from working with bad and sometimes even downright abusive clients. + +On the plus side, there have been enough good ones that it’s been a major source of my income for the past five years. + +Earning a liveable wage matters. But over the past year I’ve come to really prioritize mental health (disclaimer: as noted before I struggle with ADHD and anxiety. Addressing these has been a big focus for me of late). + +Generally speaking, whenever I can afford to do so, I’ll prioritize working with respectful, pleasant and supportive people over those who simply pay more. + +### 10\. Everything On The Cloud + +I thoroughly believe that the software of tomorrow will be OS-agnostic. + +I believe that some version of thin computing is the future of …. technology. + +When architects are doing AutoCAD work on the cloud and professional video editors are rendering video there we’ll be almost there. + +For now consumer internet bandwidth remains a constraint — at least in many parts of the world — to full utilization of the cloud’s potential.I expect that this will change sooner than we expect. + +Desktop software (other than web browsers) and talking about local storage capacities will soon come to be regarded as as anachronistic as that weird dial up internet we used to use that made squelching noises. + +### 11\. Sharing, Authenticity, Communication + +If there’s one trait I’ve been trying to cultivate over the past few years, it’s this. + +We’re living in a world in which being transparent and open is viewed as a positive thing. Stigmas are eroding. These are all good changes. diff --git a/posts/medium/16-facts-about-Ireland-to-get-Israeli---Jewish-tourists-excited-about-visiting.md b/posts/medium/16-facts-about-Ireland-to-get-Israeli---Jewish-tourists-excited-about-visiting.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..594c1c8fe4ab144dfd1b63f5d40a50ee2ef580df --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/16-facts-about-Ireland-to-get-Israeli---Jewish-tourists-excited-about-visiting.md @@ -0,0 +1,217 @@ +# 16 facts about Ireland to get Israeli & Jewish tourists excited about visiting + +#### El Al May Have Dumped Dublin As A Destination This Week, But Just In Case You Still Wanted To Visit, Here’s A Selection Of Facts About The Island Of “A Thousand Welcomes” (Israelis Excluded) + +Ireland’s national women’s basketball team is seen refusing to stand opposite the Israeli basketball team during the playing of national anthems in Latvia tonight. The team’s coach later praised the team’s “mature” behavior. Screenshot: Twitter/X + +El Al[ announced this week](https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/el-al-wont-restart-ireland-morocco-flights-for-summer-season/) that it would be cancelling its service to Dublin, which only began operating this March. + +But just in case you were excited about the prospect of a trip to the Emerald Isle next year, here are some facts about the country which may be of interest to potential visitors from Israel. + +### 1: Its Prime Minister Supports BDS + +In case you missed this week’s hot-button issue in the always “colorful” world of Ireland-Israel relations, here’s the scoop: + +Ireland’s women’s basketball team recently got themselves into a bit of political mud for deciding that they should boycott a fixture against Israel. The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) said that the Irish team would have to pay fines totalling more than €100,000 for the privilege of being… you know… racist. + +Ireland’s Prime Minister, Leo Varadkar (_the same guy of Emily Hand “lost and found” fame, by the way_) responded by saying that _“it may well be appropriate”_ to _“expel”_ Israel from _sporting or music events_ like the Eurovision (or a basketball game). I think he just doesn’t want Ireland to have to pick up the tab for doing the expelling. Isn’t this essentially state-endorsed BDS? It sure sounds like it to me. + +Cowing to pressure to play the fixture, the team ultimately decided to play against the hatred Israelis. But a-la-Iran they refused to shake hands with their counterparts and even stood to the side while the Israeli anthem was played. + +The Wolfe Tones … another Irish grouping with uncharitable thoughts towards the Jewish State. + +### 2: Its Eurovision Contestant Wants Israel Kicked Out Of The Context… As Do The Wolfe Tones + +It’s not just the thoughts of playing Israel in basketball that stirs up the enmity of the Irish, it seems. + +The idea of competing against us in _Eurovision_(for those unaware: that’s a song contest)__ is also a noxious prospect to many in Ireland. + +Joined by other noted European moralists the Swedish and the Finns, support for Ireland to boycott the song contest was extremely widespread with its contestant ‘Bambie Thug’ affirming that she didn’t believe it was fair for the EBU to have one rule for Russia and another for Israel. + +Beloved (to some) trad group ‘ _The Wolfe Tones”_ stated in January that they would be interested in representing their country. But only on the precondition that Israel were banned from competing. One gets the feeling it wasn’t a sincere offer. + +### 3: A Member Of Its Parliament Has Openly And Repeatedly Called For Israel’s Destruction + +Richard Boyd Barrett calling for an “intifada” to “bring Israel down” in Dublin. Photo: Daniel Rosehill (Via: X). + +Just in case you needed a model for what fringe antisemitism in mainstream western politics looked like when it’s allowed to go unchallenged, Ireland’s Richard Boyd Barrett and the People Before Profit party he heads provide an excellent example. + +Last December, Boyd Barrett called Israel a “filthy” “psychopathic” state adding that it had to be “brought down” through the process of “intifada.” + +The remarks were shared at a public event in Dublin city centre. After I shared the remarks on Twitter, my video went viral accumulating more than one million likes. + +The comments were brought to the attention of the country’s deputy prime minister who said that he would tend to see them as wrong. + +Ireland, by the way, is busily debating the parameters of potential hate speech legislation. + +But an unspoken exemption seems to be in place whenever Israelis or Jews are the targets. + +### 4: Ireland Is Home To A Political Party Which Calls For Israel’s “Total Dismantlement” + +People Before Profit also recently released a pamphlet calling for the “total dismantlement” of the State of Israel and its replacement with a state called .. you guessed it .. Palestine. + +For clarification, the party added that calls of “From the river to the sea” are not antisemitic. The pamphlet was not condemned in Ireland’s parliament because that would require the presence of somebody who didn’t hate Israel. + +Ireland’s People Before Profit Party has published a pamphlet urging the “total dismantlement” of Israel. Screenshot: The Irish TimesA poster in Dublin, Ireland photographed on February 2024. It carries the inscription “a woman’s place is in the intifada” and the logo of the Popular Liberation Front For Palestine (PFLP), an EU-designated terrorist organisation with a long history of carrying out terrorist attacks against Israelis. Photo: X. + +### 5: You Might Just Bump Into A Self-Published Antisemitic Rag While You’re There + +A conspiracy theorist freesheet newspaper — The Irish Light — is also published and circulated in Ireland. The publication frequently peddles in extreme antisemitism like this piece about how the Jews “conquered” Ireland. Screenshot: Daniel Rosehill. + +Irish conspiracy theorist Gemma O’Doherty and her Israel-bashing partner in crime John Waters publish a freesheet “newspaper” entitled _“The Irish Light”_ (the name might provide a chuckle for fans of irony, of course, as it does an exemplary job at spreading scientific illiteracy, racism, and all manner of general darkness on its often unwilling recipients). + +The publication frequently engages in the kind of grotesque antisemitism that many of my age probably naively thought died out a generation or two ago. + +A screed entitled _“How The Jews Conquered Ireland”_ lashes out at “Jewish control” in Ireland including the age-old charge that Jews enslave societies through usury. + +The piece also takes aim at two Irish Jews — Ronit Lentin and former justice minister Alan Shatter — highlighting them as _“agents of destruction”_ intent on destroying Ireland. + +Ironically, Lentin is an advocate for the Palestinian right of return. She is, however, Jewish. + +### 6: In Ireland, There’s A Palestine Support Group For (Almost) Everyone! + +In Ireland whether you’re a politician who hates Israel, an artist, a teacher, a psychologist, or anybody else .. the good news is that you can find cosy intellectual shelter in your nearest Palestine support group. You could fill up a phone directory with them! + +A group of academics repeatedly write to newspapers arguing for an academic boycott of Israel. + +In 2021 a pledge to boycott Israel circulated by the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) attracted more than 1,000 signatures. + +A grouping of 250 psychologists wrote to the newspapers last week stating that they were “united in their horror” at the events unfolding in Gaza (on October 7th and other global conflicts, it seems, they are mute). + +A group called “Irish Sport For Palestine” recently sprung up and began advocating for a boycott by the women’s basketball team. The Irish Palestine Mental Health Network is a real organisation and its top recommendation (filed under: “do no harm”) is “refrain from holding conferences in Israel.” + +The Irish media does not need its own affiliate grouping. It’s simply the Irish media. + +Irish Pets for Palestine and Galway Goldfish For Gaza have both as far as I know not been formulated although I thought it would be remiss to deprive this readership of these creative and alliterative possibilities. + +There’s also the Cork Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Dublin Gaza, Gaza Action Ireland to name but a few more options. + +Cork, Ireland: Ireland’s second city is officially commited to the BDS movement and will boycott goods and services made even by “supporters” of Israel according to a recent resolution. + +### 7: Ireland’s Largest Local Government Body Recently Voted To Support BDS… Against Anyone Who “Supports” Israel + +Ireland’s largest county council (local government body) by territory governed, Cork County Council, recently passed a motion. + +It stated that: + +> Cork County Council declares the country of Cork to be an apartheid free zone, a space of proactive solidarity with the Palestinian people. It commits to encourage and assist all efforts to show solidarity and fundraising for humanitarian efforts in Palestine.” + +It added that: + +> Cork County Council declares its support for the BDS campaign and agrees not to purchase goods or services produced or provided in whole or in part as is practicable by Israeli companies or companies that support the Israeli state.” + +So there you have it. + +This might just be the world’s most far-reaching statement of endorsing BDS by a government body. + +You don’t only get on the blacklist with Cork County Council for being Israeli. Supporting Israel is enough of an ideological crime to have you shunned. + +Dublin City Council seems to pursue a similar policy. Last December it refused to meet with Israel’s ambassador to Ireland (before hosting — to the usual confetti-throwing — the Palestinian envoy). Two months ago Dublin concluded a treaty of friendship with Ramallah. + +Ireland is also home to an initiative called the ‘Apartheid Free Zones’ (AFZs) designed to encourage companies and local government bodies to declare their territories _Israelrein._ + + Ireland works at international institutions like the EU and the UN to oppose Israel. Stock: EU flag. + +### 8: Ireland Wants To Cancel Israel’s Trade Agreement With The EU + +After a brief period of condemnations of Hamas that felt extremely strained, Ireland’s reaction since October 7th has been one of increased solidarity with the Palestinians. The chorus of criticism from every part of Irish society is now, one feels, deafening. + +In the wake of the tragedy, Ireland’s president [backtracked from statements from the EU Commissioner stating that the “EU stands with Israel”](https://www.arabnews.com/node/2394336/middle-east) reasoning — presumably — that such a wording was unacceptably supportive. Ireland tried but failed to interject moral equivalency into an EU resolution released shortly after the tragedy. + +Not content with their legion efforts to harm Israel at the UN and through funding partisan anti-Israel NGOs, [Ireland is now going for the jugular at the EU](https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2024/02/01/ireland-seeking-review-of-eu-israel-trade-agreement-and-recognition-of-palestine-taoiseach-says/) attempting to have the trade agreement between Israel and the EU nixed on account of a human rights clause. + +Of course, Irish statesmen are wont to put it that bluntly. Instead Prime Minister Varadkar statement that his country and a few other states were “interested” in having the document “reviewed”. No prize if you can guess correctly the outcome he’s rooting for. + +Irish lawyer Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh drew widespread veneration in Ireland after appearing before the ICJ in support of South Africa’s legal case charging Israel with “genocide.” + +### 9: Ireland Is Considering Supporting South Africa At The ICJ + +Irish lawyer Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh emerged as one of the “stars” of South Africa’s absurd intervention at the International Court of Justice. The Irish counsel was providing support to the South African side alleging that Israel was conducting a “genocide” in Gaza. + +It seems that Ireland’s legal eagles may soon find themselves with more opportunities to hurl lies towards Israel before the world. + +Following the preliminary ruling, Irish Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Micheal Martin [instructed lawyers to investigate the possibility of Ireland joining the ICJ case](https://www.thejournal.ie/ireland-israel-genocide-case-south-africa-six-months-6285483-Jan2024/#:~:text=Ireland%20previously%20filed%20an%20intervention,Russia%20under%20the%20Genocide%20Convention.) in support of South Africa. Israel, he said, needed to be “held to account” for their actions in Gaza. + +Ireland’s justice minister — Helen McEntee — [has already stated that she would be “in favour” of Irish intervention](https://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/justice-minister-voices-support-for-intervention-in-south-africa-israel-icj-case-1581040.html). Which begs the question of why the Irish feel the need to go through with the charade of supposedly “evaluating” the prospect. We await the decision with bated breath. + +### 10: Despite Being Massively Anti-Israel, Ireland Somehow Sees Itself As Neutral + +If mental gymnastics were a sport, Ireland might consider fielding a national team. + +Perhaps more amusing than all the criticism is Ireland’s longstanding commitment to a “neutrality” that nobody else seems to really understand. + +The definition is somehow considered to extend to Israel, too. + +At a debate in its parliament shortly after October 7th, Irish politicians expressed concern that some of the statements emanating from their colleagues could be perceived as harming Ireland’s vaunted “neutrality.” + +In other news, the sky is pink. + +### 11: Ireland Invests In Anti-Israel NGOs + +Non governmental organisations (NGOs) are great political proxies for governments who don’t want to openly declare their foreign policies. Ireland provides an excellent illustration of this point. + +Ireland [has provided state funding](https://www.ngo-monitor.org/funder/ireland/) to organisations including Addameer and Al-Haq which Israel proscribed as terrorist organisations owing to documented affiliations with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). + +### 12: Ireland Is A Big UNRWA Funder And Decided To Continue Providing Money To The Organisation After The Recent Revelations + +In the wake of October 7th, Ireland decided to earmark €10M of its taxpayers’ money in emergency support to UNRWA to provide “emergency support” for the organisation. + +In the wake of revelations showing that some UNRWA employees were active participants in October 7th, Ireland decided to double down on its commitment to the agency stating that the government in Dublin had no intentions of pulling funding. + +The Palestinian Ambassador to Ireland is met with rapturous applause as she arrives to a Sinn Fein meeting. Photo: X + +### 13: The Palestinian Ambassador — Who Refuses To Condemn October 7th — Is Adulated By Sinn Fein + +Shortly after the October 7th massacre, the Ambassador of Palestine to Ireland Dr Jilan Wahba Abdalmaji interviewed on Irish radio. She was repeatedly asked if she would condemn Hamas and the heinous atrocities which they had just committed. She repeatedly refused to do so. After three persistent attempts, the interviewer — with an air of sorrow — gave up the chase. + +For being Palestinian, Ambassador Wahba Abdalmajid has become a sort of sudden star among the Irish left. Abdalmajid has become a regular fixture at Sinn Fein conferences where she is frequently afforded standing ovations. + +Her October 7th denialism appears to be just another uncomfortable fact that the Irish do not want to get into. + +### 14: Israel’s Ambassador To Ireland, However, Was Almost Voted Out Of The Country + +Israel’s many opponents in Ireland frequently demand, with bated breath, to “expel” the Israeli Ambassador from Ireland. + +Lest you fall for the idea that this is a “Gaza War” thing, a previous resolution came before the Oireachtas in May, 2021. It alleged that “the Israeli ambassador’s presence in Ireland is untenable in these circumstances.” It failed. + +Alongside other trending classics at Ireland pro-Palestine rallies like “ _from the river to the sea”_ and _“globalise the intifada,” “Israeli Ambassador: out, out, out!”_ has become a favourite rallying-cry for the masses who protest Israel’s war in Gaza every weekend in cities across the country (a pro-Houthi slogan got an airing in Cork recently too). + +Last November, the Social Democrats brought a motion before parliament which would have forced the expulsion of Dana Erlich, Israel’s ambassador to Dublin. The vote was defeated by 85 votes to 55. + +I’m not sure what wrongs Erlich must have committed on previous forays to be condemned to a posting to Ireland, but I have heard high praise from those who know her. At the very least, she’s a few thousand measures more diplomatic than I am. I wish her better luck with her next posting. + +### 15: Irish Jews Are Concerned By A Rise In Antisemitism + +It should come as no surprise that in this climate of Israel-hatred [anti-Semitism is also a growing concern.](https://www.irishtimes.com/video/video/2023/11/29/anti-semitism-in-ireland-theres-been-a-huge-uptick/) + +Stickers describing Israeli-made products as being “contaminated” with Zionism were placed at supermarkets throughout Ireland last week. Screenshot: X / Daniel Rosehill. + +Last week BDS activists placed stickers throughout supermarkets in Ireland stating that Israelis-made products were “contaminated” with “Zionism” and “apartheid.” I guess if you don’t have that many actual Jews to go after, these kind of theatrics are about the best that you can do. + +Ireland’s Jewish population is small. Most Jews who were born there, like me, have since left. Those still in Ireland report concern about the rise in antisemitism including on university campuses. + +Ireland is also home to an Israeli expat population many of whom moved to Ireland for employment. Israeli software company Wix set up an office in Dublin a few years ago and recently made the news when an employee there took to social media to label Israel a “terrorist state.” She was dismissed. Ireland’s Prime Minister advised her to seek legal recourse. + +At a recent debate in University College Dublin, a Jewish student was screamed at by a Jihadi supporter who stated that Hamas will commit October 7th “again and again”. It is a troubling climate to say the very least. + +### 16: Ireland’s Government Could Become Even More Anti-Israel After The Next Election + +Ireland took a full 15 years to offer _de jure_ recognition of Israel, only doing so in 1963. It previously refused to recognise the Jewish state citing alleged violations of UN resolutions. In Irish-Israeli relations there is not much new under the sun, it seems. + +If Ireland and Israel were two prospects on a dating website, you’d imagine that some newfangled algorithm might suggest them to be a match. + +Both are small countries. Both have large diaspora populations that help to amplify their international reach. Both have transitioned rather rapidly from poor economies dominated by agriculture to export-oriented forward-looking economies with a strong affinity for technology. + +There’s just one obvious spanner in the works and it probably doesn’t need to be stated. + +Perhaps the most interesting question looming in Ireland-Israel ties is _“how bad can things possibly get with a country in the EU?”_ + +An accession to government by Sinn Fein after the next General Election would provide a datapoint on exactly that kind of scenario which may prove instructive for broader approaches to foreign relations. + +Because for all the noise that they make, in the broader scheme of things, huffing and puffing at the EU and trying to rally up a few stragglers to form a _“Western buddies of Hamas”_ type geopolitical alliance may be the most harm that they can do. + +For now. + + * _Dublin and other Irish cities can be reached through connections in Istanbul, Amsterdam, and more. Between connections and delays it takes about a day to get there and back. For Israelis purchasing comprehensive medical and travel insurance, and heeding the latest travel advice, is strongly advised._ + +_This was originally published in The Times Of Israel as a blog_ diff --git a/posts/medium/2-Blogging-Workflows-For-Creators-That-Want-To-Work-Across-The-Text-Audio-Video-Divide.md b/posts/medium/2-Blogging-Workflows-For-Creators-That-Want-To-Work-Across-The-Text-Audio-Video-Divide.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1f9839ce57e96dbd9668d3c19a6e4f792e4accf3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/2-Blogging-Workflows-For-Creators-That-Want-To-Work-Across-The-Text-Audio-Video-Divide.md @@ -0,0 +1,114 @@ +# 2 Blogging Workflows For Creators That Want To Work Across The Text-Audio-Video Divide + +#### Two suggested workflows for using text, audio, and video in your blogging strategy + +I’ve written previously about the divide between text, video, and audio. + +We’re currently living during an exciting era in content marketing. + +The “gaps” that delineate between the three are rapidly closing with tools like voice synthesization and AI video generators chipping away at the divisions and making it easier than ever before for content creators to embrace a future in which content creation is truly format agnostic. + +My predictions about whether text or video are going to dominate for content marketers tomorrow can be summarized as follows (at least at the time being): + + * **What I call ‘format agnosticism’ is soon going to become entrenched as an expectation among readers.** Our readers are going to _expect_ that we’re also working across other formats — and that, at the minimum, we’ve invested in automated (AI-backed) solutions to bridge the divide. If we don’t provide an easy means for them to, say, consumer our blog posts in podcast format, they’re going to quickly loose interest in what we have to say. + * **Today, content creators can take advantage of the fact that jumping from text to audio to video (let’s call it the TAV divide) is relatively cheap and easy.** This is an easy win that just about everybody should be taking liberal advantage of. On today’s market: a mixture of manual and AI-backed approaches. To take text to audio as a simple example, you can record a podcast of your recent blog post (that’s the manual method) or you can use a TTS engine like Play (speech synth) to do that for you. In the latter, you’re serving as the human overseer of a robot. Both approaches are valid. + +For much more in depth thinking about that, please check out this post (naturally, it has an accompanying video). + +[**The Looming Flight Towards Format-Agnostic Content Creation: And Why It Matters (Now) For Creators** + _To get ahead of the curve, consider leveraging easy win syndication opportunities that straddle distribution formats_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92) + +[**Does Text-Based ‘Content’ Have A Future In The Age Of Video?** +_My own evolution as a content creator — and why I believe that format-agnosticism may be the way our industry moves_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/does-text-based-content-have-a-future-in-the-age-of-video-3fad6037a683 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/does-text-based-content-have-a-future-in-the-age-of-video-3fad6037a683")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/does-text-based-content-have-a-future-in-the-age-of-video-3fad6037a683) + +If you want to get started and you blog, then here are two workflows. + +### Text To Audio To Video (TAV) + +As most of my content creation is textual (e.g. the post you’re reading) let me start by looking at things from this perspective first. It’s where my natural affinity lies. + +We start with a blog post. + +If you’re blogging, then you’re likely already familiar with how to do that. + +You have a CMS. You have resources on your team that blog. And — if you’re a content marketer — you’ve got some kind of a strategy in place that looks at things like keywords and marketing mission to distribute the type of content you know is going to be most advantageous to your business. + +How do we get to audio? If we want to begin leveraging audio to distribute our textual content as a podcast then we can use two approaches: + + * Firstly we can use our own voice to record a podcast version to accompany our blog post. + * Alternatively we can use text to speech (TTS) in order to use an AI bot to “narrate” the podcast on our behalf. + +Clearly each approach has its advantages. + +The first method is much more personal. Listeners get to deepen their connection with the author by hearing the nuances in his or her actual voice. + +The second requires less effort to produce. + +What should you do in any case? + +Honor the format. That’s the guiding principles here. + +You don’t want to just copy and paste a ream of text into a TTS generator — or read it off. To do so risks coming across as lazy and insincere — you’re just trying to blast the same content out across every channel. + +Instead, you want to optimize the content for the format it’s being delivered in. + +That might involve: + + * Editing the blog post in order to simplify language and streamline the flow of text. When speechwriting, writers are encouraged to ‘write for the ear’ as their central guiding principle. This is a good approach to take when writing for podcasts too. Edit the transcript before you either run it through a generator or sit down to record your own version. + +For making the jump to video, similar principles apply. + +If you’re going to create a video blog version of a post that was originally published as text, for instance, you’re going to want to honor the format there too: + + * Video is more immersive than audio. It’s difficult to watch a video while riding a bicycle. Therefore, aim for brevity. Consider whittling your text post down to just its bare essentials. + * Video provides you with the ability to leverage … well, a visual medium. You can do more than just record yourself sitting at a desk running over the same thoughts you blogged about. Can you think of ways to make the video more immersive? A large budget isn’t even a pre-requisite. You can use a video stock library, for instance, to affordably add some B-roll to break up the narration. + +### Video To Audio To Text (VAT) + +Let’s say that you decide to record a video blog. + +How can you work in that direction? + +Let’s skip a little faster with this explanation. + +Honor the format. The same principle applies. + +We don’t need any fancy technology to extract audio out of video. It’s already in there. + +But we can and should honor the format: + + * Give your embedded video audio its own postproduction workflow if you’re shooting for a podcast or other audio product as the final output. Edit out pauses. Remaster the track. Consider skipping sections entirely. Record a personalized intro and outro. + +No AI is needed here because … well, if you started with a video blog then _you_ recorded the original. So we’ve got a leg up over the TTS version we might have used in the previous workflow here. + +Next to break down to audio: + + * If the video blog was uploaded to YouTube then we can actually download the automatically generated captions file and get a strong leg up on the job of creating a text version of the video blog. + +We can use a subtitle editor in order to take out the timestamps and just work with the text that YouTube automatically created from our video. Then we can attempt to model that into a blog. + +A subtitle file automatically generated by YouTube being inspected on a computer. Photo: author.After using a subtitle editor to extract a plain text version and remove the timestamp tags + +Next we need to … once again, honor the format. + +We’ll need to spend a bit of time — potentially quite a bit of time — taking our thoughts as we conveyed them over video and editing them into a format that’s going to look good in text. + +We might need to rewrite entire sections, skip over others, and add headers. The final product will be a blog post that is designed to be _read._ + +It’s quite a bit of work. But if you want to maximize distribution options and make readers _want_ to read the text version, then you’re going to have to offer them something more attractive than the raw output of the automatically generated YouTube file. + +### The Final Step: Bring It All Together + +The final step to take in order to make your content as format-agnostic as possible: bringing it all together. + +If your blog post was originally published to YouTube as a video blog: + + * Link off to the blog version of the video that you put together using the above methodology. + * Link to the podcast version that you edited too. + +If your blog post was originally published in writing (say here on Medium): + + * Link to the audio version from the blog post + * Embed the video + +If you blog on owned channels–like your blog — consider using share icons to make this more visually attractive. diff --git a/posts/medium/2-Tech-Hacks-To-Make-Job-Hunting-Online-Easier-And-Less-Frustrating.md b/posts/medium/2-Tech-Hacks-To-Make-Job-Hunting-Online-Easier-And-Less-Frustrating.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..991d515f54aa75a936ffb7cffa03331db07ec535 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/2-Tech-Hacks-To-Make-Job-Hunting-Online-Easier-And-Less-Frustrating.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +# 2 Tech Hacks To Make Job-Hunting Online Easier And Less Frustrating + +#### A couple of pieces of software can make the process of looking for a job, or acquiring new clients, vastly easier + +For the past month or so, I’ve been dipping my toes into the world of remote work — checking out what’s “out there” and building up my client base. + +More and more companies are becoming open to the idea of working with remote talent on both part-time and full-time bases. Whether it’s your first time or you’re a seasoned remote worker, it’s an exciting time to be exploring the field. + +In the past, I’ve experimented with different approaches to landing clients and finding work for myself. With three years of full-time self-employment and three more years of side-hustling under my belt, it’s a skill that I’ve drawn upon whenever I’ve needed to. + +My first crude attempts (I say this as I blush): crudely-targeted mass-communications attempts to get my foot in the door. Impolite description: spamming. My favorite way to describe that: it works. But even the successes aren’t pretty. + +Over time, I would like to think that my methodologies have become a lot more refined and, often, more effective. While I (increasingly) think that in a saturated online environment, _offline_ networking (who you know) is the key to standing out, equally, it almost never makes sense to cut off the online world entirely, particularly when you’re trying to source opportunity in other countries. + +Unfortunately, job hunting is also really time-consuming and (frequently) a rather thankless endeavor. Which is why I think that a few processes can take that process and make it more palatable. Here are a couple of the shortcuts I’ve been using. + +### Using A Keyboard Macro Tool To Put Commonly Accessed Links (Like Your Resume) At The Press Of A Button + +As a longtime user of Ubuntu Linux, Autokey is the program I reach for whenever I want to set up a few keyboard macros to put key pieces of information within one button’s reach. + +AutoKey is an incredibly easy but powerful tool for configuring keyboard macros on Ubuntu Linux. Screenshot: author. + +Here’s one of my job-hunting aspirations: never to send out an application or cover letter structured around a template again (like ever). + +The best and most authentic cover letters and applications are going to be those that you write completely from scratch. Every single time. Getting across the extent of your enthusiasm for a role is always going to be challenging if you’re doing so with a stock letter that’s been sent to many other companies. Originality is key. + +I use Autokey to take the links that I commonly need when job hunting, and a couple of rough cover letter skeletons, and assign them to hotkeys on my numeric keypad that I rarely touch in the course of actual typing. + +I have configured text inserts for: + + * A link to my Linktree + * A link to my resume + * A skeleton cover letter for tech-related positions + +[**GitHub - autokey/autokey: AutoKey, a desktop automation utility for Linux and X11.** +_AutoKey, a desktop automation utility for Linux and X11, formerly hosted at OldAutoKey. Updated to run on Python 3…_ github.com](https://github.com/autokey/autokey "https://github.com/autokey/autokey")[](https://github.com/autokey/autokey) + +[**Macro Recorder - No more repetitive tasks - Mouse and Keyboard Capture** + _No more performing the same task twice! Macro Recorder captures mouse events and keystrokes like a tape recorder…_ www.macrorecorder.com](https://www.macrorecorder.com/ "https://www.macrorecorder.com/")[](https://www.macrorecorder.com/) + +The advantage of putting your job-hunting shortcuts at _this_ level of the operating system is that it’s very powerful and the links can be used wherever there’s room to insert text into a computer program (but most typically a web browser). + +If you’re having a direct message exchange with a prospective client or employer on LinkedIn for instance, you could quickly use one of your keyboard macros to drop your resume or a link to your writing portfolio into the conversation. + +The downside of this approach is that keyboard macros are tied to an individual computer. If you’re doing job-hunting from, say, a computer in a hotel business center, or from multiple computers at once, then things are going to get kind of complicated. + +I compute for the most part from a desktop so haven’t looked into this. But _perhaps_ some macro editors exist that include the functionality to sync updates to hotkeys across computers (although different keyboard layouts would pose a problem here). But if you just need these hotkeys on one computer — say, whichever one you use for job-hunting — then you should be set. + +### Setting Up A CRM For The Purpose Of Job-Hunting + +A slightly more elaborate approach is to set up your templates and text snippets for job hunting in a CRM. + +Naturally, setting up a CRM is more complicated. But also more powerful. + +Additional functionality this approach will give you that may come in handy during the job search: + + * **The ability to track opening and clickthrough rates to receive valuable clues about prospective employers’ level of engagement.** (Personally I’m not a fan of email tracking and find it privacy-invasive, but I know that many are enthusiastic about its powers). + * **Being able to keep a careful log of all _inbound_ communication received from a job lead.** + +Hubspot’s free CRM is a great option if you’re just looking for a quick and easy tool to get going with job-hunting. It integrates easily with common email platforms and if you’re looking to do something more advanced — like use separate mailservers for SMTP and IMAP — you can configure that also. + +The two important components from the job-hunter’s perspective: + + * The template manager where you can create and save templates for sending to prospective clients/employers. + * The snippet editor where you can easily create and edit text snippets for inserting into cover letters. + +Preparing a template to use in Hubspot. Screenshot: author. + +To really take advantage of the functionality that Hubspot offers, it’s worth creating custom fields that you can then use in your templates. + +The snippet editor in Hubspot. Screenshot: author + +Creating snippets can also be a great way to make the process of inserting commonly-accessed links, like links to resumes and Linktrees, that much quicker. You can insert them by referencing hashtags or manually select them in the email editor view in Hubspot. + +The above are two methodologies that can speed up your job-hunting process. + +They can be useful whether you’re looking to land a remote gig, a part-time (in person) job, or simply looking to pitch new potential clients on your freelance/consulting services. diff --git a/posts/medium/3--Major--Obstacles-Currently-Standing-In-The-Way-Of-A-Truly-Remote-Global-Workforce.md b/posts/medium/3--Major--Obstacles-Currently-Standing-In-The-Way-Of-A-Truly-Remote-Global-Workforce.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..69ef4cce8d1ff45d5e0b2e39dc286b5d75e6c4a5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3--Major--Obstacles-Currently-Standing-In-The-Way-Of-A-Truly-Remote-Global-Workforce.md @@ -0,0 +1,94 @@ +# 3 (Major) Obstacles Currently Standing In The Way Of A Truly Remote Global Workforce + +#### These factors stand in the way of the kind of remote mobilization many are currently imaginging as already being here + +Remote working: the vision that many are describing as being already here is still, too often, a far-off reality. Photo by [Anna Shvets](https://www.pexels.com/@shvetsa?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/earth-globe-with-googly-eyes-on-gray-background-5217882/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +There’s so much positive energy going around at the moment in favor of remote working. + +Barely a day goes by in which we don’t hear one of remote work’s many passionate advocates arguing that the office is obsolete — and decrying companies who are asking their workers to return to in-office employment. + +**And while I’m fully in favor of remote working (really, I think its potential is world-changing!), I think the future is going to look a lot more nuanced.** + +To demand that all companies make remote work fully optional is to ignore the reality that many workers — and companies — would rather work from an office than from a home. + +They’d prefer their colleagues to do the same. + +This is to be expected and, I believe, it’s also totally reasonable. Arguments are rarely won by aggressively spewing dogma and insisting that the other side (the non-remote-firsters) are anachronistic Luddites. + +After all, it’s what working has looked like for virtually all knowledge-based workers since the Industrial Revolution. + +Just as we (those on the ‘pro’ side of the remote work fence) are encouraging companies to respect our preference, we need to realize that we can’t dictate that everybody adopt ours. Change won’t come all at once. We’ll more likely have to meet somewhere in the middle. + +So the future of remote working — while rosey — is going to be limited by the above factors. As well as these. + +### 1: Deceptive Remote Work Advertisements + +Yes, a strange one to kick this list off with perhaps. + +Candidates looking for remote work opportunities at the moment (to disclose the obvious, I’ve been keeping my eye on what’s out there for the past month or so ) have been noting an enormous proliferation of miscategorized remote working “opportunities.” + +[**Fake remote jobs are becoming a major nuisance for today’s jobseekers** + _Today’s remote jobseekers are having to wade through a haystack of fake advertising to find the few potentially…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/fake-remote-jobs-are-becoming-a-major-nuisance-for-todays-jobseekers-9faeb8113b63 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/fake-remote-jobs-are-becoming-a-major-nuisance-for-todays-jobseekers-9faeb8113b63")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/fake-remote-jobs-are-becoming-a-major-nuisance-for-todays-jobseekers-9faeb8113b63) + +These can take the form of: + + * Positions advertised as remote because the term sounds trendy but … they’re not actually remote. + * Major T&Cs that preclude anybody except those based in the immediate environs of the office from fulfilling the job + +Responsibility for weeding these out lies on the shoulders of remote job marketplaces. More specialist websites have begun doing a good job at policing their listings. LinkedIn really has not. + +### 2: Geographically-Limited Remote Opportunities + +I’m currently based in Israel. + +And it didn’t take more than a few minutes on LinkedIn to suss that an enormous amount of remote opportunity — perhaps the majority of it — is circumscribed by one very significant term and condition: the positions are only accessible to those based in the United States (or Canada or the EU). + +So what’s a Bulgarian or Indian or Israeli remote jobseeker to do? + +[**A Remote World Would Be More Accessible If Only….** +_While attitudes towards remote work are rapidly changing, there remain legal and administrative obstacles that stand…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79) + +You could work remotely for a domestic employer, of course. But isn’t the whole idea of remote working to widen employment opportunities for companies and employers beyond those in one’s immediate geographic radius? + +Working remotely and domestically has always seemed somewhat less appealing — almost like trying to make contrary objectives meet. + +These are various reasons for this state of affairs. + +One is that US-based organizations sometimes believe — or have been advised — that hiring non-American remote workers is a bureaucratic headache they’d rather live without. + +Another is that the positions being billed as remote are actually hybrid roles. These require periodic on-site attendance. Hence, if you’re not at least in the _country_ it’s very unlikely that the position is going to work out. + +This really speaks to the point above. + +Right now, we’re seeing a lot of confusing categorization that makes many job forums very frustrating experiences for remote opportunity job-seekers. + +Hybrid isn’t remote. And if we want to move forward with remote working to the fullest extent possible, we’re going to need to make sure we’re all on the same page about these (extremely significant) nuances. + +### 3: The World We Live In! + +About twelve months ago, a friend was waxing lyrical about his newfound remote working existence in — of all places — the Canary Islands. + +I felt an instant pang of jealousy. How cool and what a great way to take advantage of the zeitgeist towards remote work! Then I remembered that my wife holds down a non-remote job here in Israel and … other obstacles. + +Here are a few that sprung quickly to mind: + + * My wife and I currently rent and — like many renters — are contractually precluded from subletting. Legally, there’s no easy to way to simply vanish from the country for a few months without putting our lease (and housing) in jeopardy. + * Twelve months ago I was diagnosed with inattentive ADHD (I mean … you should totally still hire me notwithstanding that!). The medication I’m prescribed — Vyvanse — has been nothing short of mildly life-changing. Unfortunately ADHD stimulants are controlled substances and, generally speaking, prescriptions are not internationally recognized. Do I really want to set back all the progress I’ve made just for a short term adventure? + * Tax and compliance. Although I’ve never been hailed as a tax planning expert, I believe that most jurisdictions have some concept of tax residency. Spend more than a certain number of days in the country and you now owe tax to … some other sovereign. This is a complicated reality that digital nomads have to deal with. + * The spotty nature of internet connectivity worldwide. I have setup some pretty ridiculous business-grade connectivity for my home office. + +I can throw out some ideas, even though none of them strike me as tremendously realistic: + + * We — as in … human society — need to develop a more flexible paradigm for housing that acknowledges the fact that, these days, people tend to be more geographically footloose than ever before. I love the idea of housing as a service (HaaS) becoming more normalized. Just as we can rent server space from month to month (and it’s advisable to make our codebase easily transportable if we’re doing so; see Docker, Kubernetes, etc), we should be able to rent housing on a monthly basis and something like minimalism would probably be well-advised to help us do that. (Sorry — I sometimes think in tech analogies.) Normative rental contracts in many jurisdictions effectively force those not wealthy enough to pay rent for multiple properties simultaneously, or to own property, to effectively never leave their base for an extended period or to risk being found in breach of contract. + +**Mentioned:** + +[**How To Set Up A Home Internet Connection That Almost Never Goes Down** + _If you’re struggling with home internet connectivity, there are some cool solutions out there. This may save you a few…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b) + +**Related:** + + + + diff --git a/posts/medium/3-Advantages-Text-Based-Content-Retains-Over-Video-Marketing.md b/posts/medium/3-Advantages-Text-Based-Content-Retains-Over-Video-Marketing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c57d01164c8ec5bd2f413f1d7fdb987658d42067 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3-Advantages-Text-Based-Content-Retains-Over-Video-Marketing.md @@ -0,0 +1,89 @@ +# 3 Advantages Text-Based Content Retains Over Video Marketing + +#### The written word still has its advantages over those fancy video-slayers, especially for nascent companies + +A few days ago, I penned a piece here about how — from the perspective of a hobbyist creator, at least — video is more fun and fulfilling than writing: + +[**4 Reasons Making Video Is More Fun Than Writing** + _As a longtime writer dipping my toes in video, there are aspects of this mode of creative expression that already…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382) + +I wrote that piece from the perspective of doing both for fun and enjoyment. And I stand by what I wrote in that piece: + + * There’s something fulfilling about the fact that videography involves using your body as well as your mind + * As a tech geek, I love the fact that video-making — even simply creating videos for YouTube — allows me to jive with both my creative and technical proclivities. I can spend hours fressing over gear. But ultimately what keeps me inspired to keep moving forward is the pursuit of storytelling and creativity. + * Video is a cool way to meet people. In real life! + +Shooting video at a political march in Jerusalem earlier this year. Photo: author. + +Nevertheless, there’s a part of me that feels the need to stick up for the written word. + +For one, I can speak to the advantages of using writing professionally — it’s a large part of what I do for a living and what I have been doing for the best part of 10 years. + +It’s also something that I _have_ helped plenty of companies — especially early stage ones and entrepreneurs — to make good use out of. To date, my video career has been purely a hobby, although I’m keeping one eye firmly on how I could (down the road) weave it into my service offering. + +So while my perspective here may be limited by the second qualification, I can vouch for three things that writing “does” really well. + +### Barriers To Entry To Create Written Content — Say, Content Marketing — Are Low + +As I write this point, I feel an irrepressible jolt of anger at myself for publishing it. + +Because I know that it’s a rationale that has frequently haunted me as a professional writer and which is exploited by merciless cheapskates to keep writing rates artificially down. + +Writing’s cheap (or it should be). It doesn’t require much skill. Anybody can do it. These are all helpful (and untrue) slurs that writers have probably heard all the time. + +Now here’s the truth. Good writing requires an investment — in the humans doing the writing. + +I’m a firm believer that nobody gains from cheap, ineffective copy. Sadly, we live in a world in which many clients would roll their eyes with disdain at the thought that what they perceive to be a simple piece of writing — let’s take a blog post — could cost $300 (or $500 or … dare I say it … $1,000). I was tempted to add the word “increasingly.” + +While transitioning towards an inbound-led pipeline has been a huge boost for my business, I still spend too much time fending off the unrealistic demands of business owners and marketing agencies (who really should know better). They want a white paper about their client’s emerging AI platform written tomorrow (written by a writer that must be able to demonstrate prior experience in the subject matter). Their budget: $200. + +[**Opinion: $300 Really Isn’t A High Rate For Freelance Writing Services** +medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/opinion-300-really-isnt-a-high-rate-for-freelance-writing-services-8581a0139d1a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/opinion-300-really-isnt-a-high-rate-for-freelance-writing-services-8581a0139d1a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/opinion-300-really-isnt-a-high-rate-for-freelance-writing-services-8581a0139d1a) + +What I’m talking about instead is that the barriers to entry to create the _physical hardware_ needed to produce writing isn’t comparable to video. Cameras, green screens, and fancy microphones aren’t required. Us writers tend to need screens, keyboards, and steady supplies of internet connectivity and caffeine. Get out of our way and let us do our thing. For small budget-constrained-businesses, what’s not to love about that? + +### Writing Is More Accessible Than Audio Or Video Based Content — For The Moment, At Least + +I’ve written before about my “forecast” for what I see happening to the world of “content.” + +[**Does Text-Based ‘Content’ Have A Future In The Age Of Video?** +_My own evolution as a content creator — and why I believe that format-agnosticism may be the way our industry moves_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/does-text-based-content-have-a-future-in-the-age-of-video-3fad6037a683 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/does-text-based-content-have-a-future-in-the-age-of-video-3fad6037a683")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/does-text-based-content-have-a-future-in-the-age-of-video-3fad6037a683) + +A few months later, and I haven’t much to add, or change, to that prediction. + +We’re seeing, at the moment, a slew of technological developments that — collectively — could change the face of content marketing. We just haven’t all recognized it yet: + + * Getting text transcripts of video is becoming easier, cheaper, and faster. Case in point: YouTube’s built in automatic captioning engine which I generally find to be amazingly fast and accurate. Or Rev. It’s going to get easier for video creators to produce automatic text-based readouts of their videos. As in, a _lot_ easier. + * Moving in the other direction, speech synthesis is speeding up the rate at which realistic human-like voice can be used to take a ream of text and convert it into audio. We haven’t quite gotten to video yet. But as I mentioned in the post linked above, it’s not hard to imagine a future in which stock libraries and more AI could be paired to finish off that process. + +The point I was trying to make with the above piece (and if I may say so myself, I think it’s still salient): + +We’re marching quickly towards a future of format-agnostic content; in fact, the first manifestations of it are already here waiting to be digested. + +It’s a reality in which the _format_ through which we distribute content — currently audio, video, or text — matters far less than what we have to say. Unironically, the knife that helps cut through the noise and takes us back from the precipice of content saturation might be .. content itself (in a stricter sense of the word). + +In one direction (text to video) we have synthesization and tools yet to be developed but which are probably around the corner. In the other, AI and automatic transcription engines. A few clicks and creators can go either way. A couple more and consumers can control how they wish to consume the latest from their influencers of choice. + +That’s tomorrow. But the easiest means which creators have at their disposal to _start_ that process is still … the written word. + +### Writing Lets You Iterate Quicker — And Fail Faster + +Have I been working with startups for too long? Probably. + +But in an increasingly saturated content marketplace, creators are going to have to become more imaginative with their content marketing in order to actually get their voices heard. + +One method is shouting — let’s call this the brute force approach (publish a lot!). + +Another is trying to be more strategic and clever about what’s being said. The two aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive, by the way. + +As above, my prediction remains that the key to that endeavor is going to be a return to focusing on messaging. It’s going to be easier for us creators to focus on what we have to say rather than how we’re going to distribute it (format-wise, I’m talking). Consumers are going to have the easy ability to override us at arm’s reach anyway. + +Content saturation is here. Consumers aren’t interested in hearing more fluff. Say something significant. Or don’t say it at all. + +Even those who _do_ truly have something significant to say aren’t likely to get their by tomorrow. + +Content creation is an ongoing process. + +It requires developing thinking. Refining how that thinking is expressed. And advancing slowly towards a form of communication that really gets the intended idea across to audiences. + +The easiest way to get through that process as quickly as possible is to fail as fast as possible. The Agile philosophy. And probably the quickest way to go from idea conception to execution in the creative world … writing. diff --git a/posts/medium/3-Damaging-Myths-That-Keep-Writers-Poor-And-Undervalued.md b/posts/medium/3-Damaging-Myths-That-Keep-Writers-Poor-And-Undervalued.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ef57a255b4581f3833d5db2254a50b2f912e4476 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3-Damaging-Myths-That-Keep-Writers-Poor-And-Undervalued.md @@ -0,0 +1,143 @@ +# 3 Damaging Myths That Keep Writers Poor And Undervalued + +#### Too many clients buy into these three tropes which have together helped to make writing a difficult world for many to survive in + +Professional writing: hard to do in practice. Commonly regarded as very easy by prospective customers. Photo by [Negative Space](https://www.pexels.com/@negativespace?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexel](https://www.pexels.com/photo/coffee-notebook-pen-writing-34587/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels). + +Recently, I decided to share something that truly came from the heart: + +It was about why — after spending more than 10 years spent in writing-centric roles — I’ve decided to veer off that path a little and focus, instead, on selling clients on a mixture of writing _and_ the strategic input needed to make written content really ‘work’ when it’s being used towards marketing-related ends. + +I call it marketing communications consulting. + +Consulting rather than freelancing because I want to make it clear that I’ll be providing _consultative_ services rather than just executing writing briefs and .. scribbling. + +Marketing communications because I try to bring value _beyond_ content marketing, even if it’s an immensely popular area (though much derided, I see a significant difference between content marketing and thought leadership and continue to feel passionately about the potential of the latter — done well). + +[**The 4 Key Differences Between Thought Leadership and Content Marketing** + _Thought leadership garners a lot of attention among entrepreneurs and those aiming to pick up more traction in their…_ www.entrepreneur.com](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323 "https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323")[](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323) + +[**Why I’ve Stopped Identifying As A ‘Freelance Writer’ — Or A Writer At All** + _Why I (Sadly) No Longer Think Freelance Writing Is A Good Space To Be In_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb) + +In the course of explaining my decision, I expressed frustration at some (perceived) ‘home truths’ that I have observed during the past six years during which freelance writing has been at least part of my income base. + +The first of those is that writers are chronically undervalued. + +The second is that it seems to me that ‘writer’ is a label that — sadly — in may be in the best interests of many marketing professionals to discard. + +And the third is my earnest belief that not only are things already difficult, but they’re only getting harder. Hence why it seemed like a sensible time to pivot. + +But what’s underpinning the sometimes dismal plight of today’s marketing writers? + +This is a question I’ve thought about a lot, too. And these factors explain it at least in part. + +### “Anybody can write.” + +The first way we can take a pop at this is to point out that actually _no_ not “everybody” can write. There are people in the world, for instance, who are neither literate nor capable of typing on a computer–and the latter is really the main prerequisite for a career as a “writer” in today’s world. + +But that’s typically not what the naysayers are trying to allege. + +They mean that because _anybody they can readily conceive of_ can type at a computer, it means that writing is a complete non-skill. + +By that token, writing is like respiring air. Just as you wouldn’t expect to be paid for the service of walking into an office and breathing air, it’s absurd to think that a business is going to pay you to “just write.” + +The rebuttal: + +The gulf between writing for fun and writing professionally is actually rather large. Anybody who makes a living from writing knows that. And knows that there are few things about this career that could be considered ‘easy’. + +Do you know how to use a video camera? Do you know how to drive a car? Do you know how to take a photograph? Have you built IKEA furniture before? + +Assuming you answered yes to at least one of those now try to answer this: + + * Do you regard yourself a videographer — such that if a local cinema production company were looking for a fill-in you’d think about applying? + * If somebody rocked up to your door in a rally car — would you know what to do in order to take it out on a circuit? + * Do you think that knowing how to put together the odd piece of IKEA furniture qualifies you to begin marketing yourself as an interior designer and professional mechanic? + +If you _did_ answer yes to any of those things, you’d likely find yourself getting horribly out of your depth in very short order being asked to do things you didn’t have the first clue how to pull off. Annoyed clients. Annoyed you. Misery all round. + +And you know what? + +This _is_ kind of what’s happening in freelance writing. + +The lack of barriers to entry — and not the odd YouTube huckster who tells you that you can absolutely get very rich if you get into freelance writing and buy my course — further the notion that _anybody_ can write. And many people who are unable to write — even to normative standards of grammar — enter the market. “Freelance writers” who can’t string together a grammatically correct sentence abound. As do “cybersecurity experts” who couldn’t tell you the difference between, say, a VPN and a proxy if their life depended on it. + +The result? Clients _assume_ that freelance writing is a skill-less craft filled with those changing their arms at it and that the next prospective writer who sends them a resume is a charlatan. The next step: bad pay for everyone. + +Freelance writing, by the way, requires knowing how to do a lot more than “just write” — even if that _were_ easy. You’ll also need to know: + + * How to run a business. There’s a _lot_ to this and freelance writers are typically one man or woman shops who have to do everything from keeping books to filing tax reports. + * How to market yourself to find work. Or network in order to hear about it that way. + * How to keep on top of written deliverables for potentially as many as 8 clients at the one time. Deadline juggling becomes an art form. + +### “Writing is easy “ + +A corollary to the notion that anybody can write is the idea that writing to professional standards on complicated topics is somehow easy. + +You know how easy such writing _isn’t_ (at least for me)? + +So un-easy that whenever I sit down to write for clients I have to make sure that my room is perfectly silent, that I’ve drunk my coffee, and that I’m going to be focusing on absolutely nothing but the draft for the next X minutes. It takes every once of concentration that I can muster. + +I put such a premium on the value of deep work, in fact, that I put my phone into flight mode whenever I’m doing something like this: + +[**I Went Into Flight Mode For Six Months. Here’s What Happened.** +_Back in January, I wrote an excited Medium post about how being slightly less responsive was going to be the motto of…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/i-went-into-flight-mode-for-six-months-heres-what-happened-e8ffd86e88b1 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/i-went-into-flight-mode-for-six-months-heres-what-happened-e8ffd86e88b1")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/i-went-into-flight-mode-for-six-months-heres-what-happened-e8ffd86e88b1) + +The problem? + +I’ve got the impression that many freelance clients have thought that writing their blogs is something I could do while a little tipsy and typing into my phone while taking a touristy horse and cart ride in some busy Spanish holiday resort with screaming teenagers trying to sell me _churros_ from the roadside. Perhaps I’d have the odd conversation going on too. “ _Si señor, déjame terminar el blog y estoy contigo”._ + +The reason I say this? + +Their budgets often made zero sense _unless_ writing is a near zero effort enterprise. + +I recently encountered a client whose maximum budget for a blog post was $300 (and even getting there was a strain) — including an outline that needed approval. When it came to leveraging their one revision they went all out. Multiple stakeholders needed to leave their two cents in excruciating detail. + +The question that went through my head — and if you’ve been in this industry, you’ve probably had this thought too — “does this person _really think_ it’s worth my time to go through all this hassle for $300?” + +There are a couple of possibilities that lead to answering that question in the affirmative: + + * No but the client doesn’t really care and will try extract maximum value from whoever they work with (of these in the writing space there are plenty; the best solution is typically not to worth with them). + * The client thinks that this process is really easy and that actioning their massively detailed feedback could take you all of five minutes. + +Neither of those options is entirely benign. Again: the only real option, in my experience, is avoidance. The problem: when such clients comprise a significant chunk of the buying-side of the industry. Perhaps even the majority of it. + +### Freelance writing is just a gig job + +Here, again, I have to argue that freelance writers are often freelance writers’ worst enemy. + +If your average client were to come across most messaging forums and blog posts written by and for freelance writers, they might conclude a few things about us in very short order. + +Firstly that we’re money-obsessed and that getting decent “rates” was really all we were after. That might seem like where our horizon of focus started and ended. + +The reason that so many freelance writing clients seem obsessed with rates? + +It’s getting harder and harder to survive in this industry and money is .. well, how we pay the bills. For too many of us, that’s the furthest we can lift our eyes upwards. We’re getting paid enough. We can get to thinking about whether we actually _like_ the work that we’re doing, or find it fulfilling, some other day. + +[**The Pros And Cons Of A Career In Freelance Writing** + _As a lifestyle, it offers its ups and downs. Here are some of them._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-a-career-in-freelance-writing-d13e1597e8a7 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-a-career-in-freelance-writing-d13e1597e8a7")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-a-career-in-freelance-writing-d13e1597e8a7) + +[**To Grow As A Writer, Write About (Slightly) Uncomfortable Topics** + _As freelance writers, we’re constantly being adjured to niche down._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/to-grow-as-a-writer-write-about-slightly-uncomfortable-topics-2bf304ef58e9 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/to-grow-as-a-writer-write-about-slightly-uncomfortable-topics-2bf304ef58e9")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/to-grow-as-a-writer-write-about-slightly-uncomfortable-topics-2bf304ef58e9) + +I’ve often been told that where I live (Israel), “content writing” is seen as a first rung in the ladder kind of a gig — which explains why recruiters have sometimes sounded baffled when I explained “five year goals” that didn’t involve ditching the field as soon as possible. This is partially why I by and large stopped working with locally-based clients and why if I go back in-house I’m probably going to be relocating (or working remotely). Israelis get tech. But — to interject my opinion here — they don’t get the value of communication done well. + +If an entire industry agrees that writing is just about hemming out a few words for pay — the knowledge-based equivalent of being the office janitor — then nobody is going to take what we do seriously or be prepared to back it with proper budget. + +Can “freelance writing” be a career? + +I would say ‘probably’ — but I’d attach to that the caveat that even those writers who love writing the most will probably feel a natural thirst and inclination to do a little bit more over time. Common ancillary add-ons involve developing skills in SEO, content strategy, or even public relations. I don’t think the kind of pivot I’m taking at the moment is necessarily that uncommon. + +When I think about _why_ writers are chronically undervalued a few factors come to mind. The culprits here: both self-described writers themselves and the industries we commonly work among. + +Perhaps the most prescient of all the reasons: The total lack of a barrier to entry to the profession of freelance writing. + +We have no licensing exams to pass. No professional associations really sticking up for us (at least in many parts of the world). We typically don’t unionize and, at best, can be found banding together in online communities — often moaning about things like rates. + +The industry has responded harshly to this weak hand. Too many clients think freelance writers are “not real” professionals. And they’re insistent on paying them rates that accord with that status. To many, this industry has an entry level but no higher rungs. + +Are there any actionable ideas here? + +I can think of a few but I also think that we’re up against an endless incoming tide of so-so writers who will provide bargain basement rates that attract clients who never really wanted to pay that much anyway. + +Writing is a valuable activity and writing well, professionally, requires real skills that takes years to develop and sharpen. Unfortunately too many of us are trying to assert our value to clients who really aren’t interested in hearing it. diff --git a/posts/medium/3-English-Speaking-Jerusalem-Influencers-To-Follow-On-Social-Media.md b/posts/medium/3-English-Speaking-Jerusalem-Influencers-To-Follow-On-Social-Media.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..819cf714457b9af7ce44cfdebeeac9a34eac1ece --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3-English-Speaking-Jerusalem-Influencers-To-Follow-On-Social-Media.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# 3 English-Speaking Jerusalem Influencers To Follow On Social Media + +If you’re moving to live in Israel’s capital, Jerusalem, and want to keep in the know about what’s going on, then you might wish to keep an eye out on the following bloggers and influencers. + +Better yet, they write in English. So you won’t even need to come to grips with the language to keep on top of their feeds (although, of course, improving your Hebrew is always a sensible thing to do). + +Without further a-do. Here are three worth keeping an eye on. + +### Shimshon Sam Leshinsky, Lifestyle Commentator + +Leshinsky seen with a packet of the salt and vinegar crisps which recently came to Israel. Photo: Courtesy / Shimshon Leshinsky + +In the space of just four months, Australia-born Jerusalem-based immigrant Shimshon Sam Leshinsky has shot to prominence as one of the most engaging voices in the English-speaking community in Jerusalem. + +[**Meet: Anglo Jerusalem's Newest Social Media Influencer - After Aliyah** + _What comes to mind when you picture your stereotypical social media influencer? Leshinsky during a recent snow day in…_ www.afteraliyah.com](https://www.afteraliyah.com/blogs/meet-anglo-jerusalems-newest-social-media-influencer/ "https://www.afteraliyah.com/blogs/meet-anglo-jerusalems-newest-social-media-influencer/")[](https://www.afteraliyah.com/blogs/meet-anglo-jerusalems-newest-social-media-influencer/) + +Leshinsky’s platform of choice is the Secret Jerusalem Facebook group — a community which numbers more than 91,000 members (and growing). + +[**Facebook Groups** + _Secret Jerusalem has 91,022 members. Welcome to Secret Jerusalem! We are a welcoming, diverse community of…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/secretjerusalem "https://www.facebook.com/groups/secretjerusalem")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/secretjerusalem) + +Although the Melbourne-born immigrant began sharing reviews about Jerusalem restaurants on the group, he soon expanded into other areas — including Jerusalem doorframes. Leshinsky has also featured natural trails in the city and shone a light upon worthy causes such as a woman attempting to raise money to support a chocolate venture. + +Leshinsky’s posting features an inimitable blend of frank questioning and trivia from his Jerusalem outings. He told _After Aliyah_ that he likens posting on social media to kicking off a conversation at a Shabbat (Sabbath) table. + +Leshinsky’s observations can be followed both on Instagram and on his own Facebook page: + +[**Log into Facebook** + _Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know._ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/Shimshon-Leshinsky-Daily-Food-Comments-105290711559622/ "https://www.facebook.com/Shimshon-Leshinsky-Daily-Food-Comments-105290711559622/")[](https://www.facebook.com/Shimshon-Leshinsky-Daily-Food-Comments-105290711559622/) + +### Sarah Tuttle-Singer, Taxi Driver Stories + +The Times of Israel’s social media editor, Sarah Tuttle-Singer, has been amassing stories from taxi journies which she intends publishing in a forthcoming book. Photo: Wikimedia / Creative Commons + +Tuttle Singer, whose day job is as the social media editor at the _Times of Israel_ is a well-known left-leaning voice in the Israel English-speaking community — and far beyond it. + +She is also the author of _Jerusalem Drawn And Quartered_ and has passionately argued in favor of greater coexistence between the city’s Jewish and Arab populations. + +Tuttle-Singer has a propensity for picking up anecdotes and trivia from her many taxi journeys (American readers: that means cab rides). + +[**Log into Facebook** + _Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know._ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/taxidriversaid/ "https://www.facebook.com/taxidriversaid/")[](https://www.facebook.com/taxidriversaid/) + +After sharing plenty such anecdotes on social media groups and her _Times of Israel_ column, Tuttle-Singer decided to launch a Facebook page which is intended to precede the launch of _Israel On The Road_ which will be the author’s second book. + +[It can be found here.](https://www.facebook.com/taxidriversaid/) + +### Debbie Kandel, Food And Travel Blogger + +Keeping an eye on Jerusalem’s ever-evolving culinary scene is Debbie Kandel, a British-born, Jerusalem-based food and travel critic who runs the [Restaurant Club Jerusalem Facebook group](https://www.facebook.com/groups/restaurantclubjerusalem/members) which features spirited discussions on restaurant openings (and closings) in the city. + +Kandel travels throughout Jerusalem (and Israel) sampling the country’s delicious food and frequently reports back her findings through her Facebook pages. + +To learn more about Kandel and her blogging, visit [DebbestFood.com](https://debbestfood.com/about/). diff --git a/posts/medium/3-Great-Reasons-To-Begin-Posting-On-Reddit--And-Not-Facebook-.md b/posts/medium/3-Great-Reasons-To-Begin-Posting-On-Reddit--And-Not-Facebook-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..348274f5947e21c32ceaac3a94972a43b8f029f1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3-Great-Reasons-To-Begin-Posting-On-Reddit--And-Not-Facebook-.md @@ -0,0 +1,67 @@ +# 3 Great Reasons To Begin Posting On Reddit (And Not Facebook) + +#### Some reasons to become active on one of the most fascinating (and controversial) spaces on the internet + +Reddit: though typically considered to be one of the internet’s more obscure online communities, Reddit is growing in popularity and influence. Photo by [Brett Jordan](https://www.pexels.com/@brettjordan?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/red-white-and-black-labeled-box-5437588/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Reddit is one of the largest social media networks on the internet. + +With more than 2.8 million discussion forums — known as subreddits — it’s a sprawling labyrinth of online discussion, with subreddits covering everything from current affairs to nice subjects like health support groups and geography-specific communities. + +And although Reddit _does_ tend to be US-centric, like any social network, its reach is truly global. + +[**Did You Know? Reddit Has Its Own Search Language. Here’s How To Use It.** +_One of Reddit’s lesser known features is the search syntax it contains_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/did-you-know-reddit-has-its-own-search-language-heres-how-to-use-it-a081a957891b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/did-you-know-reddit-has-its-own-search-language-heres-how-to-use-it-a081a957891b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/did-you-know-reddit-has-its-own-search-language-heres-how-to-use-it-a081a957891b) + +If you’ve never thought about posting there, here are three great reasons why it’s worthwhile for you to consider doing so. + +### The Long Tail Of Communities Is Incredible + +I’ve always wanted to learn about home networking. + +And while I’d been dabbling around with routers and ethernet cables for too many years, I never quite had the confidence to try pull off something a little bit more elaborate. + +A few months ago that changed. + +After about 5 years of living with sub-par home internet in Israel, I decided it was time to implement something that could make home connectivity issues a thing of the past. I typically work from home. So it’s not an exaggeration to say that daily downtime was literally impacting my business. + +[**How To Set Up A Backup (Cellular) Home Internet Connection In Israel** + _For when your sapak just isn’t really all that great and fiber is nowhere to be seen_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-set-up-a-backup-home-internet-connection-in-israel-83959b3f178c "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-set-up-a-backup-home-internet-connection-in-israel-83959b3f178c")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-set-up-a-backup-home-internet-connection-in-israel-83959b3f178c) + +Two things got me from where I was (sucky internet!) to where I wanted to be (insanely reliable home internet connectivity for the fraction of its usual price): + + * Desperation + * /r/homenetworking + +Reddit’s long tail of support communities is amazing. And many are populated by extremely knowledgeable posters. + +### You’re Creating Indexed Discourse On The Internet Every Time You Start A Thread There + +Here’s a more unusual one but it’s actually one of my main motivators for participating on Reddit. + +I frequently find that there are overlapping communities between Facebook and Reddit. + +Increasingly, if that’s the case, I go out of my way to post on the Reddit community, even if it’s less active. + +My reasoning? + +Lots of Facebook communities have their privacy set to private. This effectively makes them part of the deep web — the part of the internet that isn’t indexed by search engines. + +Creating “content” on Reddit in the form of discussion and questions creates more information that’s freely available on the internet for anybody who might wish to find it. + +Every time I post a question on Reddit, I like to keep in mind that I’m not just asking a question on behalf of myself. I’m creating a question that may make it quicker for somebody with the same question to find the answer (because mine, and a chain of responses, will already exist). + +Contrast: Quora. Which also hosts many questions and answers. But you need to be a member and login to access many of them. Reddit content is up and out there on the internet. A click away whether you’re a user or not. + +### Reddit May Be An Acquired Taste, But It’s Growing In Popularity + +[**Reddit: Why I Predict That This Social Dark Horse Will Only Get Bigger And Better This Year And…** + _If Reddit Can Tame Its Sprawling Web Of Hyper-Engaged Communities, It’s Primed To Capitalize On Influencer Ennui And…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/reddit-why-i-predict-that-this-social-dark-horse-will-only-get-bigger-and-better-this-year-and-1633155092ca "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/reddit-why-i-predict-that-this-social-dark-horse-will-only-get-bigger-and-better-this-year-and-1633155092ca")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/reddit-why-i-predict-that-this-social-dark-horse-will-only-get-bigger-and-better-this-year-and-1633155092ca) + +Traditionally, Reddit is thought of as something as an unusual dark horse among the world’s social media networks. + +It tends to be tech centric and particularly popular among an American demographic (because it’s a lot harder to see where users are based, there’s an annoying and virtually universal assumption on Reddit that every poster is based in the US. Many are not!) + +Because most Redditors post anonymously — under pseudonyms (note: you there’s nothing stopping you from _not_ doing this, or operating multiple accounts), toxicity is and hate speech has become a prevalent problem there. + +Like any social network, there are good things about Reddit and less desirable qualities. But posting there can be a valuable and even educational experience. diff --git a/posts/medium/3-Ideas-To-Help-Scale-Up-Your-Content-Creation-Process.md b/posts/medium/3-Ideas-To-Help-Scale-Up-Your-Content-Creation-Process.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fd73ec185ebaa145a309d02a6b96e8e61f8117a2 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3-Ideas-To-Help-Scale-Up-Your-Content-Creation-Process.md @@ -0,0 +1,92 @@ +# 3 Ideas To Help Scale Up Your Content Creation Process + +#### If You’re Looking To Write More Online This Year, These Tips Could Help + +Writing. Image: PixHere + +While the “write every day” debate continues to be endlessly trashed out on Medium and elsewhere (note: I tend to think it’s bad advice), there are those who, for other reasons, are looking to do more online writing _without_ necessarily striving to reach that magical “daily writer” KPI. + +If you’re simply looking to write _more_ online this year, then here are a few suggestions to make the process work more fluidly. + +### Hold A Brainstorming Session — With Yourself + +It should go without saying that if you’re striving to write more online (or create more YouTube videos or podcasts) you should invest some time into coming up with ideas to write about. + +My own content creation process is a mixture of ad-hoc writing (I didn’t plan to write this post but inspiration struck) and more formal sprint-based tracking. + +For the latter, I’ll set aside some time to brainstorm new ideas for both my business content marketing and my personal writing. When I adopt the more formal approach, I take a pen and paper and jot down some ideas. Then I log these — as quickly as possible — into a project management system. + +I use a project management system to keep track of my writing and divide it between onsite and offsite. + +Once it’s in the latter I use a simple Kanban board project management layout in order to move pieces of writing between various stages. + +For a workflow for Medium.com I might include: + + * Ideas + * To write + * Writing + * Published + +For articles that I intend pitching as guest posts (offsite) I might include: + + * To write + * Writing + * Pitching + * Placed + +None of these categories are hard and fast suggestions and you should obviously come up with whatever categories work best for you. + +Find somewhere comfortable and jot down some great ideas for writing. My recommendation is then to digitize the output of that brainstorming session as quickly as possible, preferably as soon as you’ve filled up a whiteboard / piece of paper. + +### Build Out And Maintain Your Own Stock Image Library + +Much to the annoyance of my significant other, I’ve taken to shooting random images of restaurants / road signs / cranes / other urban features in order to slowly build up a stock image library which I can use in future blogs / social media posts / etc. + +I try to grab a few images whenever I’m out and about and chance upon something interesting or which I haven’t seen before even if the topic is as obscure and relatively unexciting as the arrival of salt and vinegar crisps in my city. + +My current process is to batch the images I shoot (at least the halfway decent ones) into Google Photos albums. I sometimes also add descriptions (thanks Google support forum!) so that I can add more keywords which can be searched. + +I’ll give each album a theme. Like so: + +Some of my recent Google Photos albums + +What I like about this process is that it’s scalable and cloud-based. I can add photos to the cloud from wherever I happen to be, whether I’m working at my desktop or on the road. I plan on creating literally hundreds of albums. + +### Don’t Get Caught Up In Responding To Every Comment And Notification + +(But don’t ignore your readers / commenters either). + +[Tim Denning](https://medium.com/u/b6d641be1066) recently authored an interesting piece which caught my attention. + +[**I Don’t Read the Comments on My Writing. There, I Said It.** +_It’s not for the reason you think. I will radically transform your perspective on comments._ writingcooperative.com](https://writingcooperative.com/i-dont-read-the-comments-on-my-writing-there-i-said-it-4aab2d0df0cd "https://writingcooperative.com/i-dont-read-the-comments-on-my-writing-there-i-said-it-4aab2d0df0cd")[](https://writingcooperative.com/i-dont-read-the-comments-on-my-writing-there-i-said-it-4aab2d0df0cd) + +Tim’s reasoning is that he doesn’t want negative comments to ruin his motivation to keep writing. + +[Doran Lamb](https://medium.com/u/669cf08a2170) authored this piece in rebuttal: + +[**Why I Won’t Be Following Tim Denning’s Latest Advice** + _I know he’s the Godfather of Medium, but he’s not always right_ medium.com](https://medium.com/feedium/why-i-wont-be-following-tim-denning-s-latest-advice-a486307e520a "https://medium.com/feedium/why-i-wont-be-following-tim-denning-s-latest-advice-a486307e520a")[](https://medium.com/feedium/why-i-wont-be-following-tim-denning-s-latest-advice-a486307e520a) + +I have to be honest, I’m on Doran’s side of the argument here. + +As I commented, while I understand Tim’s motivation, I think that avoiding negative comments because they’re energy-sapping is a form of avoidance behavior. + +As writers, we need to be able to roll with the punches a little and if we’re afraid to do that then I think that learning to confront that feeling is a better approach. And while trolling and hate are indeed virulent punches to receive, civil and respectful disagreement with what you write is not. It’s par for the course. And I think that as professional writers we need to learn how to deal with that. + +Nevertheless, I think that there’s a fine line between being reasonably engaged with your readers and not obsessing over every notification and follower. + +I’m guilty of periodically refreshing my Medium homepage to see whether I’ve picked up any new followers. It’s an unproductive habit that I would like to break, even though I assume that there’s some sort of neurochemical / addictive basis for doing so (probably rooted in the dopamine system and the validation of receiving new followers as a small form of reward). + +Don’t be like me. Monitoring your personal brand development is one thing, but it’s easy to become a little too involved in tracking how much engagement your work is getting. + +Again, I don’t advocate Tim’s approach and deliberately ignoring comments. I think that reciprocating reader engagement is courteous. But equally it’s probably prudent advice not to get pulled in too far, particularly as you begin scaling up and your engagement volumes increase. + +These are three quick ideas for scaling out your content creation process. They’re mostly applicable if you’re writing on the internet. But even video and audio creators could benefit from these tips. Simply build up your own stock video (or audio) library instead of images. + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) + +Or to receive the stories directly through Medium, please sign up below: diff --git a/posts/medium/3-Keys-To-Creating-A-More-Effective-Remote-Working-Environment.md b/posts/medium/3-Keys-To-Creating-A-More-Effective-Remote-Working-Environment.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0c5e488f2368e6f03a763345b02cbaa0f189ae75 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3-Keys-To-Creating-A-More-Effective-Remote-Working-Environment.md @@ -0,0 +1,71 @@ +# 3 Keys To Creating A More Effective Remote Working Environment + +#### The 3 keys I believe can make remote working vastly more enjoyable for all involved + +Remote work: organizations do it superlatively well — and totally awfully. Photo: Black laptop on bed by Kaique Roche [via Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-laptop-on-bed-3568792/). + +Over the past number of years, as a self-employed marketing consultant, I’ve formed part of a number of different remote and hybrid teams centered around a number of different geographies. + +Although my perspective is only my own, I believe that I’ve seen the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to running teams in these configurations. + +Learning from both experiences — the great ones and the terrible ones — these are the three things I would say that teams that run remote well get right. + +### Appropriate, Collaborative Management Is Key + +Many organizations are currently making their first forays into the remote world at the moment, working with external contractors for the first time or those only on site one day per week. + +**Unfortunately, when presented with these unfamiliar arrangements, many managers’ tendencies is to swing straight into aggressive micromanagement mode, which is virtually always a mistake.** + +This reaction to offsite subordinates might be natural from a psychological perspective for mangers who are used to leaning over the shoulders of those working for them. But it tends to have a disastrous and stifling impact upon retention. And after all, why should a manager’s anxiety be a subordinate’s problem? + +By and large, those willing to work remote jobs tend to be self-motivated — otherwise it’s difficult to have confidence in your ability to make such a job work. And many — potentially unlike their superiors — have worked in remote configurations for years. + +This mismatch creates a culture clash that’s ready to explode at any moment in the faces of many companies. Remote opportunities tend to attract those who thrive working in such environments. But existing hierarchies may be uncomfortable or even hostile to such working relationships. + +Authoritative top-down management processes are a real turn-off for many, but particularly those who see themselves as being capable of collaborating and thriving remotely. + +When organizations and managers instinctively reflex to these ways of working simply because an organization has gone remote, the outcome, for retention, can be disastrous. Talent feels suffocated, unheard, and unappreciated. And so they leave. If remote is going to be the new normal, encouraging management to successfully navigate this trend is the logical starting point for improvement. + +Organizations that do remote work well hire a management layer that trusts those they hire to get their job done well without resorting to micromanagement. Bottom-up (or outside-in) decision-making also tends to hitch along for the ride. Both can drastically improve retention and hence cut down on the sometimes tedious process of recruiting remotely. + +### In Remote Environments, Documentation Becomes King + +Perhaps unsurprisingly (I’ve spent a large part of my career writing), I’m an enormous believer in the power of documentation to better how companies operate. + +Ever organization has some degree of institutional knowledge that should be cataloged, nurtured, and passed down between layers of a hierarchy or simply between colleagues on the same level. + +Almost every organization (I contend) could benefit from some kind of formalized process for recording and storing that information in the form of a knowledge management system or KMS (truly almost any will do, even Google Docs, although I’m particularly fond of Confluence). + +Too often, companies only properly commit to knowledge management once they’re big (think: enterprise scale). However, even microscopic business units often hold substantial knowledge within their ranks. + +Human turnover is actually another argument in favor of recording internal knowledge. When staff leave, particularly longstanding players, knowledge bleeds out. Capturing every contributor’s know-how and input from the get-go can help to greatly mitigate the loss. + +The benefits of documenting what you and your people know are manifold but again these are magnified in remote working arrangements. For the sake of simplicity consider the onboarding use-case. + +Many organizations I’ve worked with have been in the throes of scaling, onboarding new team members on an almost weekly basis. Failing to document company knowledge in these circumstances represents an enormous wasted opportunity and will quickly swallow up managers’ time telling new hires more or less exactly the same thing about the company’s mission, what it does, and what internal procedures look like. This is a perfect use-case for async communication if there ever were one because none of this information needs to be transmitted in live sessions (although far too often it is). + +As the onboarding process scales, this dissemination process can quickly become an informational bottleneck. But the repercussions of failing to document information are magnified when the operating environment is a remote one and even simple meetings require scheduling. + +Personally, I advocate being pedantic about managing knowledge. Does your hybrid office have an address and door code? Jot that down somewhere staff can predictably access so that the all hands isn’t delayed by five contractors texting the CEO to ask how they get in the door. Non public facing bios? Those should go in the same place. + +### Make Asynchronous Communication Your Default + +While I’m an enormous advocate for asynchronous communication and the growing panoply of tools supporting it — I love email, Loom, Yac, and more — equally I realize that most organizations can’t _only_ be async. + +To illustrate the limitations of asynchronous communication, consider the case of calling an ambulance to assist with a medical emergency (yes, really!). + +Many of us would be justifiably miffed if we called 911 only to be told that the ambulance service was only checking its voicemail once per day and communicating asynchronously with patients. So clearly async can’t be the _only_ game in town. + +Extrapolating from that experience, we can see that for _most_ organizations it’s some _combination_ of synchronous and asynchronous that’s going to yield the best results. + +The remote environment presents a few unique features. One of those being that colleagues spread across different time zones are frequently called upon to collaborate on a daily basis. In such a setup, asynchronous communication should be the _default_ mode of communication with synchronous meetings held only when real-time back-and-forth exchanges are needed and desirable. + +Practically speaking, this often does not happen. + +The most salient feature of the organizations I’ve thought have done remote work poorly (to horribly!) has been that _“let’s hop on a quick Slack sync”_ has been the default method for collaboration and decision-making, leading to a steady stream of meetings between colleagues that quickly ends up monopolizing the working day and preventing anybody from achieving fruitful periods of deep work. + +There are organizations that ‘do’ remote superlatively well. + +And those for whom this recent trend has been, frankly, a retention-killing disaster. + +For those organizations that want to come out of this trend performing better than ever, the three tips, above, might be of guidance. diff --git a/posts/medium/3-Things-Freelancers-And-Management-Consultants-Typically-DON-T-Have-In-Common.md b/posts/medium/3-Things-Freelancers-And-Management-Consultants-Typically-DON-T-Have-In-Common.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..197940c86ac3cd1c909673304f3d91cf4bcccbcd --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3-Things-Freelancers-And-Management-Consultants-Typically-DON-T-Have-In-Common.md @@ -0,0 +1,116 @@ +# 3 Things Freelancers And Management Consultants Typically DON’T Have In Common + +#### Management consultants, attorneys, dentists: the professionals that so many freelancers can learn so much from + +Consultants are commonly self-employed, like freelancers. But there are important distinctions between the two. Photo by [Andrea Piacquadio](https://www.pexels.com/@olly?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/formal-man-with-tablet-giving-presentation-in-office-3760093/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Freelancers, attorneys, dentists. + +They probably haven’t been mentioned in the same sentence many times before. + +But wait: + +**What’s the difference between a freelancer and a consultant anyway, I hear you ask?** + +The dividing line is thinner, and grayer, than many imagine it to be. + +But the one I would default to if somebody asked: freelancers provide _deliverables_. Think: pieces of writing. Coding projects. Graphic design projects. + +Nothing wrong with that. + +Consultants commonly _do_ provide deliverables (consultants can be used to plug manpower gaps). But more commonly their deliverable is their thinking, or rather the actionable advice that they derive from it. These are consultative services after all. + +I position myself as a marketing communications _consultant —_ or strategist — who executes (does projects). + +I want to keep the focus on the thinking and experience I can bring to clients — and ideas and ways in which I can add value — and less on what I simply ‘do’ or ‘produce’ while still making it clear that I _do_ some of the execution. Which is why I lead with strategy rather than output. If you want to sell on value and not on price, consulting often provides an easier model for doing that. + +Beyond that: semantics and sometimes differences in occupational classification vis-a-vis tax. But important ones. + +Consultants — at least the ones that I know who work for themselves — are careful to avoid the ‘freelancer’ label. + +Their rationale: they want to hone their value offering in on the _thinking_ and the strategic input that they provide and not get pidgeon-holed into being thought of as simple task-doers. + +And vice versa, if you’re a freelancer who “just” produces deliverables, it doesn’t make sense to brand yourself a strategist. + +There’s no judgement intended here. + +Many freelancers are perfectly happy with what they do. And some freelancers make more money than consultants. + +But the differences, or distinctions, are actually very significant for other reasons. + +There are a few very important things that consultants can learn from consultants and other self-employed professionals. + +### Consultants Don’t Generally Do Trial Projects For Free + +If every freelance writer who had been asked to produce a piece of writing for free to “test out” their writing skills were to receive a dollar, and that dollar were to be put toward some kind of fund to send them all off to Barbados for a week’s rest and relaxation (I’d call it the Jaded Writers’ Hammock Fund), I think we’d have hundreds of millions of dollars at our disposal . + +Sadly, freelance writers are asked _all the fricking time_ to do a project for free as a means of “assessing” their writing skills — often, ludicrously, when they already have an extensive portfolio of clips (more ludicrously, many say ‘yes’). + +This is abusive. And — in my opinion — always wrong. Testing out a writer is fine. You just have to be prepared to pay for the _privilege_ of defraying the risk involved. That’s the quid pro quo. + +Companies hiring talent — or people for that matter — are commonly expected to foot the risk that the service provider, or business, will turn out to be a dud. + +If you hire a plumber to fix your toilet, you take the risk that they’re not going to do a great job. You _don’t_ attempt to defray that risk by asking them to do a freebie. They would probably say no because fortunately their industry hasn’t reached a point of downward evolution at which this kind of this has become acceptable. They might be insulted. I think they are right. + +Before you say ‘yes’ to any form of unpaid trial project, ask yourself how likely any of the following professionals would be agree to the following propositions: + + * _“Hey! I’d love to make you my family doctor. But I’d like to know that you’re good first. Would you be willing to do a free checkup just so that I can get a sense that you know your stuff!?”_ + * _“I love the thought of using you as my dentist. So here’s what I’m thinking. We’ll start with one wisdom tooth extraction. And then we’ll see where we can take it from here. I can write a blog if the first one goes well and tag you on Twitter. Deal?”_ + * _“I heard you were a great corporate lawyer. So before we move forward, I’d just love to get a sense for how you draft. Could you perhaps write up this email and send it over and then I’ll take a look at your lawyering sample?”_ + +### Consultants Charge Mercilessly For Their Time + +This makes total sense. + +There’s no reason you should be “merciful” to your clients. + +You’re not even under any obligation to charge them the lowest rates that you can. + +Of course, a lot of people will feel _compelled_ to keep their services affordable so that a certain type of client or catchment can afford them. + +But don’t mistake that for an _obligation_. + +If you want to get a feel for what it looks like to be charged _well_ for something, just hire a lawyer (at least one that’s in-demand). Lawyers are sometimes accused of being predatory chargers. I think there’s a much more positive way to look at it. They’re the gold standard for how self-respecting professionals _should_ be charging for what they do. + +In many cases, you’ll note that: + + * Everything was itemized and billed for. You probably got charged for that consultation phone call. Which is totally rational when you think about it because it took up the lawyer’s time and that time has an opportunity cost associated with it. + * Nothing was all that cheap. + +Again, I’m by no means suggesting that freelancers should start charging their clients through the nose. Simply that by comparing standards in their industry with the manner in which other professionals behave, they can see how truly dysfunctional things are and rally others to push back against them. + +This is actually why I have always been a fan of very tightly defined service level agreements. Here’s _precisely_ what I’m willing to do for _precisely_ this much money. Take it. Or leave it. + +But equally, I think it’s illogical to work for free. Under any circumstance. + +Common ways in which freelancers allow themselves to do work for free: + + * Holding sales calls which clients who ask them how they would solve their business problems in minute detail. This is kind of the same thing as a free writing test. It’s just harder to spot. They’re looking for free consulting. I’d call this a red flag. + * Holding out of scope calls and being expected to tend to lengthy email correspondence chains with unexpected stakeholders. + * Freelance writers who commit to “unlimited” revisions. Many advocate for this approach. For the above reason, I’ve always been firmly in the opposing camp. + +### Consultants Think About The Big Picture + +Finally, here’s one that might tick some people off. + +Preface all this with _in my opinion_. + +**Consulting is more likely to be a “big picture” type engagement than freelancing. And it’s hard to present yourself as one without getting rooted to the label.** + +You come into a business and look at what they’re doing right and where, you think, they might be able to improve. + +Some consultants will look at the business’s supply chain management (SCM) and make recommendations based on that. Others will look at their marketing. And others yet will look at their approach to PR. + +One of the problems I see with _exclusively_ freelancing is that–by focusing on task delivery — freelancers loose sight of the higher order thinking going on inside businesses. + +Before businesses decide to _do_ something — like even write a blog — they do some thinking about _why_ they might want to do that. + +What are their objectives? How might they wish to do that? How can this play into the business’s larger branding and marketing objectives? + +It’s a lot easier to capture some of the work that there is to do in that space if you look like you’re primed to do it. + +So if strategy work is something that you have offered to clients and know how to do, make sure to make it clear to your prospects that it’s a part of your service offering. + +The similarities between several different categories of self-employed workers belie some important distinctions beneath the surface. + +Freelancers and consultants typically offer different services to businesses. Ther are parts of the typical consulting engagement process that can be instructive to freelancers. diff --git a/posts/medium/3-Very-Cost-Effective-Ways-To-Get-PR-Exposure-As-A-Startup.md b/posts/medium/3-Very-Cost-Effective-Ways-To-Get-PR-Exposure-As-A-Startup.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..674fb6a5a3d9be02479701123e7d85127ba236ba --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3-Very-Cost-Effective-Ways-To-Get-PR-Exposure-As-A-Startup.md @@ -0,0 +1,93 @@ +# 3 Very Cost-Effective Ways To Get PR Exposure As A Startup + +#### If you want coverage without the five figure pricetag, these could be some options to explore + +Securing media coverage doesn’t have to involve retaining an expensive PR agencies. These are some cost-effective or free ways to achieve some of the results. Photo by [Redrecords ©️](https://www.pexels.com/@mjlo?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-holding-microphone-while-talking-to-another-man-2872418/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Many startups are looking to leverage the power of media exposure to get more eyes on their brands. + +However, not everybody is willing, or able, to go to the expense of hiring out a PR agency. + +According to Agility PR, retainers can run from as little as $1,500 a month up to around $20,000 per month. This puts them beyond the reach of many smaller organization. + +Leah Frazier is the owner of Think Tree Media and also runs the PR Yourself podcast which I just recorded an episode for. + +If you’re interested in the whole subject of how to PR yourself — or your company — then check out Leah’s podcast ([Apple](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pr-yourself-with-leah-frazier/id1537875452)). + +My conversation with Leah prompted me to think about some of the free tools that I’ve introduced startup founders to over the years. + +If you’re just looking to get some basic traction then these are some ways you can do it — no five figure investment required. + +### Sign Up For Help A Reporter Out (HARO) + +HARO, by PR giant Cision, is well-known in PR circles as a tool through which reporters put out requests for expert commentary. + +[**Help A Reporter** + _Edit description_ www.helpareporter.com](https://www.helpareporter.com/ "https://www.helpareporter.com/")[](https://www.helpareporter.com/) + +Anybody can sign up as a source and receive one of the daily briefing emails that the company puts out. + +Each opportunity is paired with a unique email address and journalists can access their dashboard to see which sources have responded to their queries. + +Here’s my “pro tip”: + +My HARO alerts folder in Google Groups + +Because sifting through HARO emails can be a tedious process, I set up a dedicated address at my Gsuite domain which they send to. This then aggregates into a Google Group and keeps the emails from cluttering up my inbox. + +It also makes it really easy to search through the HARO messages by topic. And they come in thick and fast. + +If you’re looking to get quoted in a few media stories (and more), then HARO is a great (and free) resource to start with. + +### Get The PodcastGuests.com Newsletter + +From a PR perspective, it’s hard to know what to make of podcast sometimes. + +Looked at in traditional PR terms, their listenerships can be small — a lot smaller than traditional broadcast radio programs, for instance. + +However what they sometimes lack in reach they often make up for in engagement levels. + +Podcasts are almost like the audio equivalent of trade media publications, which similarly tend to have smaller circulations but which are read by a highly engaged industry readership. That’s why, in spite of the fact that they are sometimes relatively obscure, trade media editorial outreach continues to be a core component of many PR strategies, particularly for clients in the B2B world. + +But speaking of podcasts, there are a few platforms out there that serve the purpose of connecting people that want to be on podcasts with show hosts that want to get guests. + +One of them is PodcastGuests.com. It’s free to receive their opportunities newsletter and you can pitch yourself onto shows. + +[**Connecting Podcasters with Great Guests - Podcast Guests** + _Find relevant experts and other podcasters to be guests on your podcast. Get booked on great podcasts to expand your…_ podcastguests.com](https://podcastguests.com/ "https://podcastguests.com/")[](https://podcastguests.com/) + +Reddit mightn’t be the first place most people would think of turning for this purpose, but there’s actually a subreddit just for this purpose: /r/PodcastGuestExchange. + +[**r/PodcastGuestExchange** + _The subreddit for podcasters and guests together in one place. We are podcasters and guest experts pursuing excellent…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/PodcastGuestExchange/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/PodcastGuestExchange/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/PodcastGuestExchange/) + +Finally, there are also Facebook groups. One example is the Podcast Guest Collaboration group which has 18K members. + +[**Facebook Groups** + _Podcast Guest Collaboration Community - Find a Guest, Be a Guest has 18,380 members. Are you looking to appear as a…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/234007497618342 "https://www.facebook.com/groups/234007497618342")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/234007497618342) + +Being active in too many communities can be overwhelming. So I’d recommend checking out what kind of opportunities can be picked up from each of the above and carefully monitoring the source that seems most valuable for you and your brand. + +### Create A Slack Group For Journalists + +In a very crowded media landscape, sometimes it pays to think creatively. + +We all know that press releases are a somewhat abused format for distributing information. + +Far, far too often, companies use them to blitz un-newsworthy information out over newswires. + +The tactic often results in some automated pickup from news sources that syndicate content distributed this way. It fills up the coverage books of PR agencies without actually providing much meaningful + +But it’s fair to say that in many cases the world would be a better place if this kind of activity didn’t go on. + +If you’re looking to secure media coverage for your organization, then quality is often far better than quantity. + +Furthermore, rather than blitzing news in a one-way “push,” journalists can be a lot more receptive to receiving press releases through channels that offer more potential for engagement. + +One startup founder friend has created a Slack channel just for journalists that are following the company. His team drops insights into the channel and everything posted there is considered suitable for attributed comment. + +My friend says that he has had enormous success using this unconventional method of obtaining PR coverage and it’s resulted in both print and TV placements in top-tier broadcast media. + +Many startups want to leverage the power of PR to get their name out there but don’t have enough news — or budget — to justify hiring a PR agency on retainer. + +The above can be three surprisingly effective ways to achieve results more affordably. diff --git a/posts/medium/3-Ways-To-Protect-Yourself-From-Getting-Digitally-Cancelled-By-Google.md b/posts/medium/3-Ways-To-Protect-Yourself-From-Getting-Digitally-Cancelled-By-Google.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d7a9dfd2476e1b85ce968123d84f1715a21f817a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/3-Ways-To-Protect-Yourself-From-Getting-Digitally-Cancelled-By-Google.md @@ -0,0 +1,67 @@ +# 3 Ways To Protect Yourself From Getting Digitally Cancelled By Google + +#### A random fraud detection filter is all that may stand between you and being able to access your digital life through Google services. How can you avoid being caught off guard? + +Email access over webmail: how could you or your business live without it? Ask yourselves these questions when systems are up to prevent major headaches when your online access goes belly-up. Image: PX Here. + +This week I learned a very valuable lesson about entrusting your data to cloud computing providers: you don’t own data if you give it to somebody else and you should always expect the very worst from any third parties upon whom you rely for … anything (yes, it’s a great recipe for cynics). + +It’s now been more than 48 hours since I was last able to fully access my Google account and everything it contains, which was an unusual surprise to end my vacation with. + +The damage from this even slight interruption to the online world as I knew it has been surprisingly far-reaching. A browser cache on my computer is all that currently stands between me and not being able to post here on Medium. I’m currently attending critical Zoom meetings with clients by forwarding calendar invites from the only device that still has access to my account — an Android phone — over to my business email. + +Despite what feel like endless phone calls and chat interactions, I’ve received no explanation from [Google](https://medium.com/u/be36e94a7e47) as to why my account was locked down and no definite timeline for its recovery. I can’t speak to the team supposedly looking at restoring my access despite having followed their verification procedures down to a ‘t’. It may seem extreme, but it could happen to you too. + +[**This Is How Bad Google Workspace Support Is** + _Google users beware:_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/this-is-how-bad-google-workspace-support-is-50cfaa4692a0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/this-is-how-bad-google-workspace-support-is-50cfaa4692a0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/this-is-how-bad-google-workspace-support-is-50cfaa4692a0) + +[**What’s The Worst That Could Happen If You Got Locked Out Of Your Google Account?** +_Relying on the cloud for everything seems great. Until it unexpectedly turns on you and you can’t legally leave your…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4) + +This experience has provided a useful learning opportunity for me to assess how the damage of this unexpected lockout (probably triggered by accessing my Google account from one too many IPs) could have been mitigated if not avoided. Here are some early thoughts. + +### Avoid Being Overly Reliant Upon Google For Everything In Your Digital Life + +Whatever the outcome of this process, I know one thing for sure: I’ll be taking active steps to “de-Google” my life by diversifying the service providers I use for key things like email and connectivity or doing something I did years ago and managing them myself ([ownCloud](https://medium.com/u/5dfa1c5bfff1) et al). + +If you’re looking for like-minded folk to turn to for advice about how to actually pull this off, then check out /r/privacy — a subreddit for those interested in minimizing the privacy-invasive nature of what they get up to online. + +[**de-google - privacy** + _If you want to help out with the project, here are some ideas (submit Issues & Pull Requests on the GitHub page): iOS…_www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/privacy/wiki/de-google "https://www.reddit.com/r/privacy/wiki/de-google")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/privacy/wiki/de-google) + +The subreddit has some thorough de-Googling documentation nicely laid out in its wiki. I’l be digging through it over the coming weeks. + +### If You Make Money From YouTube, Make Sure That You’re Not The Only Brand Manager On The Account + +Six months ago or so, I got into YouTube-ing. + +I run a channel for fun rather than as an economic enterprise. But what’s not so fun is the knowledge that access to it can now be taken away from me at a moment’s notice if anything were to happen to my account. + +That sole Android device currently (conveniently) experiencing some battery issues? It’s the only conduit I currently have to that YouTube channel. And while my subscriber count isn’t yet north of 200, I resent not being able to see and respond to the latest comments left by subscribers in a convenient manner. (I also resent not being able to easily access my vacation photos which are currently only accessible through Google Photos). + +How can you avoid this general suck-iness? + +Firstly, I think it’s a great way to bring the point home that relying upon a SaaS provider as your sole monetization stream is a very bad idea from a strategic standpoint. + +If YouTube is your sole source of income, then you should think about the fact that Google can arbitrarily strip you of the ability to run your business by locking you out of your Google account — and that includes YouTube. Smart? Not particularly. + +Secondly it makes a good case for why you should always have backups in place for just about any online eventuality. I maintain a separate YouTube account for my marketing consulting business. Had I had the foresight to provide that account with management privileges over my personal account, some of the adverse impact of this could have been avoided. + +### Expect That Something Like This Could Happen — And At The Worst Possible Moment + +There are many other little things you can do to make sure that any trigger-happy Google account security filter doesn’t derail your business and life. + +For instance you could: + + * Ensure that if you’re a one person Google Workspaces organization, like me, that you have a separate account to serve as a super admin — even if it’s just yourself accessing it. If something goes wrong with your account, keep your data — your day to day usage account — and your admin account separate. + +But I think it’s better to summarize this as: “expect the unexpected and that any cloud provider to whom you entrust your data could arbitrarily suspend your account.” + +As a backup advocate, this is an easy point for me to make. Where I slipped up? I thought that Google was better than this and had more reliable customer support than it does. + +Some specific pointers here: + + * If you’re going to entrust your organization’s email to a SaaS platform like Gmail, take periodic backups to ensure that if that data trove is locked down you can quickly import to a backup system. + * Don’t do what I routinely did and upload all your photos to the cloud while deleting them on your local devices to conserve space. If your cloud photo hosting service becomes inaccessible to you, so will all your precious photos and memories. + * Don’t assume that just because a tech provider is widely used that it’s inherently more reliable than one that you’ve barely heard about. Before deciding to commit large troves of data or mission-critical businesses services to it, do some critical investigating. What do prior users have to say about its customer support resources? Are there any people like me making noise who have tried to raise warnings about restrictive lockdown practices? + diff --git a/posts/medium/4-Reasons-I-Write-A-Post-A-Day-On-Medium--Just-For-Fun-.md b/posts/medium/4-Reasons-I-Write-A-Post-A-Day-On-Medium--Just-For-Fun-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9f0b54b252dd60e2be4b14247ea9bb7f620f795e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/4-Reasons-I-Write-A-Post-A-Day-On-Medium--Just-For-Fun-.md @@ -0,0 +1,109 @@ +# 4 Reasons I Write A Post A Day On Medium (Just For Fun) + +#### Sometimes Non-Monetary Payoffs DO Matter For Creators + +Since discovering Medium.com, I’ve become a big fan of the platform. + +At the risk of repeating what I wrote here yesterday (or was that the day before, already?) [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) has been just about the first platform for which I have violated my hitherto commitment to attempt to only use my own tech whenever I create a significant data pool. + +[**Why I (Deliberately) Haven’t Monetized My Medium Account To Date** + _It may stand in defiance to some people’s idea of conventional logic, but I don’t see this account as part of my…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62) + +[**Why I Think NOT Monetizing Your Passion Projects (Including Writing) Might Be The Smarter Approach…** + _Sometimes not monetizing projects is the better (but less profitable) approach_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-think-not-monetizing-your-passion-projects-including-writing-might-be-the-smarter-approach-fb71d5b2f250 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-think-not-monetizing-your-passion-projects-including-writing-might-be-the-smarter-approach-fb71d5b2f250")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-think-not-monetizing-your-passion-projects-including-writing-might-be-the-smarter-approach-fb71d5b2f250) + +[**My Approach To Backing Up My Online Writing** + _I have written a lot about backups in recent months . So much so that I reckon that there is probably an entire book’s…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521) + +It’s a SaaS platform. I don’t control it. Medium could arbitrarily choose to take down my account here — even though I really hope that they don’t. My solution? Take rigorous backups of all my writing and try to stop worrying so damn much. + +I don’t actually write a post here _every single day_ but I have consistently published a few a week since joining. The content I share here isn’t paywalled and is (thus) non-monetized. But…. why? Well, here are a few reasons. + +### I Have To Write To Be Happy. Whether Somebody’s Paying Me To Do So Or Not Is — To An Extent — Immaterial* + +Writing is a big part of what I do professionally. During my brief and illustrious* career to date — which has spanned in-house and self-employed roles — it always has been. + +Although I hold a degree in journalism and worked briefly in the field (initially as a freelance; later as the copy editor at a newspaper), I never really ended up managing to make a career as a reporter. + +Instead, like many, I went over to the “dark side” — of communications, public relations, and marketing. The reasons? By falafel and pita alone man doesn’t live (that’s the Israeli equivalent of the better known phrase regarding bread.) + +In addition to pita and falafel my career in self-employed marketing has paid me enough to buy these ridiculous speakers and everything else in these photos (minus the roof and walls, sadly). Photo: author. + +While I’ve (mostly) succeeded in making enough money to keep myself sated with falafel, pita, and ridiculously overpowered speakers for my modest video editing needs (see above), there’s a small part of me that has to find fulfillment through creative channels in order to be happy. + +Something I read once by somebody wise on some website has stuck with me ever since (sadly, sources aren’t coming to me fluidly at this hours). Creatives don’t _need_ to create. They _have_ to create. In order to feel happy. + +Another thought which I have always connected with: getting into the flow state. Nothing gets me there quicker or more reliably than sitting down at a page (or its digital equivalent). + +If I go too long without getting my thoughts down in writing, or in video, or in audio, I get cranky — much as one does when not eating for that amount of time (you should see me after a triple whammy of insufficient sleep, insufficient food, and insufficient creative output; it’s not a pretty sight). + +The format the output takes matters much less than the finished product. It would be _nice_ to get paid even for writing I undertake for fun (beer money is always appreciated around these parts). But I’m not prepared to do so if that means greatly curtailing something about the experience — and in the case of [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) paywall-ing would mean greatly limiting the reach of my articles here. + +Some see writing as a chore. For them, I can understand why wanting to write for fun would seem inexplicable. I find it a delight. Different folks and all that. + +_(*Please don’t show this article to my clients!)_ + +_(** Long time readers have probably already understood that a large chunk of what I write is intended sarcastically, at least in part.)_ + +### It Gives Me A Break From Writing About Things Others Want Me To Write About — But Which Don’t Always Fuel My Creative Fire + +On any given day of the business week, my professional endeavors will typically see me writing at least _something_ for _somebody else_ for _some chunk_ of cash. + +The cash payment gets reinvested into activities such as paying rent, keeping fed, and purchasing the odd pair of speakers, as aforementioned. Creative reinvesting — of a kind. + +Ask anybody who has turned a passion into a profession — recently, I learned that even includes filmmakers — and they will likely tell you that their relationship to their craft changed the moment folks started paying money for it. + +So it is for me. + +I choose my clients — or try to — on the basis of whether the work is congruous with my ethical standards (90% is, but there’s been a chunk of work I’ve turned down that isn’t). And, of course, whether the client is prepared to pay me enough for it to be worth my time (sadly, in today’s writing market, that cuts out another chunk). + +Beyond that, I do the typical business-y things. Like determining whether I can actually bring sufficient value to this prospective client. + +Thus — like most people who write professionally — I sometimes end up writing about things that I’m not ravenously passionate about. About topics that I didn’t and probably wouldn’t have chosen but they’re important to the client for strategic reasons. Until I can find a well-disposed patron, this is the way I know to pay my bills. And so it is for most writers. + +Writing about things that _are_ true passions of mine — even topics as obscure as Linux backups — gives me a break from all that. It may sound like a busman’s holiday, but I find it refreshing. It gives the creative fire I mentioned a top-off. So that when the next week rolls around I can give my paying clients my full enthusiasm. + +### I’m Slightly Morbid And Want My Ideas To Outsurvive Me + +Recently, I’ve begun taking my content creation in the direction of video. Feel free to follow me on YouTube. Photo: author (shooting video at the Gazelle Valley in Jerusalem). + +Now here’s one you may not have been expecting. + +The first time I realized that keeping one eye on … you know …. wasn’t all that weird was when a friend kindly gifted me a book about Stoicism. + +The Stoics were big into using _periodic_ reflection upon … you know, I still can’t write the word … in a manner that you could regard as constructive. + +Believe it or not, this is one of the reasons that — when a thought comes to mind, even one that’s unlikely to be popular — I try to get it out in some format. What if — G-d forbid — I get hit by a bus tomorrow? Before that thought could have reached somebody? + +Writing — or any mechanism that shares ideas — is a powerful thing. It can influence. Inspire. Outrage. Solidify people around movements. + +Here’s something to reflect upon. + +Think about those who have made an impression on the world and changed the course of history. The inventors. The authors. The politicians. + +Disproportionately, they were writers, prolific readers, or both. Dare we call some of them “content creators” by reference to today’s lexicon? + +Our societies need brain surgeons, accountants, and airport baggage handlers in order to function. But some people — especially those of the curious bend — get their kicks out of asking questions, reporting on what’s going on in the world, and investigating things we believe are ‘up.’ + +We also draw our strength from being the voice for those who are unable to raise it; for serving as the vital conduit between those with information in the public interest and the mechanisms that get that information to the public; and for explaining the world as we encounter it, which is often different than the person reading our work (it has to be; we all see the world through our own unique lens). + +Damn, I think I want to get back into journalism. + +### Writing— Or Any Kind Of Creative Enterprise — Is A Great Way To Kindle Relationships + +Among the writers and content creators of this world I may currently be in the D League, but I do pick up a somewhat steady stream of comments, quotes, and other signs that indicate that people out there are actually reading what I write. + +Sometimes, these make my day. At other times, they’re hurtful. Sometimes even downright insulting. But I’d still take even the latter than nobody reading my output. + +[**The 4 Types Of Readers You’ll Get As An Online Writer** + _What happens after you hit the publish button_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a) + +Writing — or any form of “content” creation — is also a terrific way to kindle relationships. + +This is (incidentally) another reason why the articles I publish here aren’t paywalled. + +I have no idea what my payout from the Medium Partner Program would look like (this month, my stats dashboard tells me that I have about 16,000 views), but I tend to think that it would be less than the average monthly value of even one paying client. + +As, for the most part, I don’t proposition for work here (exception: I publish a small volume of content marketing), I tend to see the most value in the relationships that my writing here kicks off. + +Folks get in touch. Drop me an email. I pick up pen pals. I enjoy the uncertainty of what even this nebulous kind of “opportunity” could create. It all operates on the fundamental law of attraction: you get back from the world what you put into it. And if you put out nothing, it’s hard to kindle a community of any kind. diff --git a/posts/medium/4-Reasons-Making-Video-Is-More-Fun-Than-Writing.md b/posts/medium/4-Reasons-Making-Video-Is-More-Fun-Than-Writing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..902bc0204da3d85c2fe740e43c189ac1602d8513 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/4-Reasons-Making-Video-Is-More-Fun-Than-Writing.md @@ -0,0 +1,123 @@ +# 4 Reasons Making Video Is More Fun Than Writing + +#### As a longtime writer dipping my toes in video, there are aspects of this mode of creative expression that already excite me more + +About six months ago, I finally got around to acting on a long time desire to “get into” the whole world of videography. + +Shooting some video in the Deer Park in Jerusalem earlier this year. Mic: Saramonic Cam Mic Plus. Camera: Canon Vixia HF R800. Stabilizer: Ulanzi U-Grip. Source: Author. + +To do so, I began posting more regularly to my (very small) [YouTube channel](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFhEM_Jl3uKV6b8Ex4wbiFQ) — which I still think is in the early stages of its infancy. And the more I learned about video, the more I got entrenched — to the point at which I began dreaming about perfect wireless mic setups (yes, really). + +So that you don’t feel alone while a hobby unexpected consumes your life, there’s an amazing and passionate community of rookie videographers that centers around both YouTube — as you’d expect — and Reddit (useful communities: /r/videography, /r/newtube, /r/locationsound, /r/soundengineering). + +Videographers — perhaps more so than other creatives — seem unusually generous in proferring advice to us rookies. + +I’ve had a Hollywood boom operator steer me away from a Neewer boom pole and onto a Rode (thank you!). + +My local camera store in Tel Aviv doubles as a kind of technical support department for me. And if you want to troubleshoot or sound out advice on a technical issue — would running wireless audio over XLR be appreciably better than over a 3.5mm system? — there’s again a world of passionate amateurs willing to share in your journey (this, I’ve learned, would be one for the location sound guys). + +That support community comes in handy virtually every day because — as anybody who gets into this quickly finds out — there’s an almost infinite amount of information to absorb about the nuances of lighting, video, and sound design. People go to school for years to master this stuff. But the good news is that in this day of ridiculously easy information sharing you can pick up the basics as a passionate hobbyist. + +Another of the (now early) pre-gimbal rigs. First Station, Jerusalem. Photo: Author. + +There’s also gear to pick up and (or the ongoing temptation to) and — of course — there’s video to shoot. + +And once the SD card is out of the camera that’s only half the work done: learning about video editing and post-production is its own fascinating fiefdom too. As a Linux-user, my plan is to migrate from Kdenlive to Da Vinci Resolve. I’m not sure either can do speed ramps. But getting from where I am now to where I want to be is part of the fun. + +Truly, this was more like my second go at attempting to pick up video as a hobby. My best childhood memories involve making — and scripting — stop-motion Lego movies with a friend. One of my high school summers was spent attending a short film school. And as a postgraduate journalism student I spent plenty of time in a mock TV studio — even if I ended up choosing audio as my broadcast module. + +Shooting among pro crews (who don’t attach $400 cameras to selfie sticks, it seems) at the controversial Jerusalem flag march (rescheduled after the first one essentially kicked off a war). Photo: Author + +I’ve also been writing professionally for close to or more than ten years (the difference depends whether you include an internship; it’s long enough that I find saying “a long time” sounds more suitably haggard.) + +Slowly, the go-to rig is starting to take on a life of its own. The Canon Vixia is now mounted on top of a gimbal, the DJI Ronin SC, a lot of the time. Lighting has improved. Sound will hopefully too. Photo: Author.Getting some practice with the gimbal-plus-monopod rig in a forest in rural Connecticut (Codfish Falls). Photo: Author + +As a somewhat longtime writer and definitely newbie videographer, these are some things about the video-creation process that I already find more appealing. + +Without wishing to take a swipe at writing — it’s still what I do for clients and I still love it — these are some unique facets of the video-making process that really stand out as advantages for me. + +### Making Video Involves Using Your Body. And Travelling. + +As a writer, it’s entirely possible to do this job while essentially never leaving your home. + +Of course, if you’re a travel writer such an approach isn’t likely to get you very far. Unless your home happens to to be a notorious travel destination. + +But assuming you don’t live in the Taj Mahal, then it’s probably safe to say that you _could_ get all your writing done from the confines of a home office. + +There have been days where I have spent hours working for clients only to come over to Medium to pour my last creative energy for the day into a post or two. And then to go to sleep. + +While such days are oddly satisfying — if your brain were a cloth it’s kind of like wringing it of the last mililitres of creative inspiration — it’s nice to make it past your front door now and again. + +Persistence pays: 5 camera shops told me there was no way my camcorder would work with a gimbal. Until I found one (B and H) that were willing to sell me one! Also pictured: the Ulanzi claw quick release mechanism. Insanely useful! Photo: Author + +I love the fact that making video is a process that uses both your body and mind. In a strange way, it also forces you to (at least attempt to) align your workflow with nature. If you’re planning on shooting a scene in daylight, then rocking up at 22:00 isn’t going to be of much use. + +YouTube has allowed me to see the city I live in — Jerusalem — through entirely new eyes. I’m now constantly prowling through Google Maps to try find locations that haven’t been shot by a thousand tourists. In the process, I’ve discovered an abandoned urban forest, a serene nature walk, and discovered that yes you really _can_ walk from Jerusalem to Bethlehem (I just needed a camera to give myself an excuse to try). + +[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECRs5tH5t0U&ab_channel=DanielRosehill](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECRs5tH5t0U&ab_channel=DanielRosehill) + +Even planning out a short YouTube video can involve some amateur location scouting. Followed by the shoot itself (in Israel, while baking in the hot sun). The evening can be spent editing. And the part after the evening while you lie in bed exhausted spent watching other video creators on YouTube to gain inspiration — or learning about the differences between key lighting and fill lighting. + +### Video Is An Oddly Social Hobby + +Something that’s become apparent to me after only a few months: + +As you get into video, you slowly begin accruing more gear. Slowly, the joy of upgrading your shooting equipment begins eclipsing the need to …you know, eat. Well hopefully not. But it can provide a new outlet for your disposal income, whether you want it to or not. + +There’s one additional aspect of this that I haven’t seen discussed much. + +As you go from looking like a guy messing around with the manual settings on his iPhone to somebody who looks vaguely like they know what they’re doing, you begin attracting plenty of attention from strangers. + +Vixia meets Gimbal. V2. Photo: Author + +The odd gimbal enthusiast will jump over to ask whether that’s the Ronin SC or the SC2. Plenty of random strangers will ruin otherwise good clips by waving frantically in your frame. And you’ll meet amateur people with the same passion regardless of whether you might have connected around other subjects. + +For the curmudgeons and misanthropes of this world (ahem), writing is almost too good of a way to sequester oneself from society. + +The writer needs only a screen and a keyboard to practice his or her craft. But there’s a bigger downside to that technical simplicity than saving money: you also risk foregoing the joy of connecting with other creatives who are interested in the same form of creative expression — or just in creative expression in general. + +### Video-Making Is A Kind Of Mental Tonic + +I’ve mentioned, on this Medium page, the fact that I was diagnosed with ADHD. + +Part of the videography lifestyle: using every human around you as a test subject + +I’ve also mentioned that fact that — like a disproportionate amount of ADHD patients — there are days where I have what could euphemistically be described as a low level of enthusiasm about the world. + +Oddly enough I’ve found that video-making is a sort of unexpected tonic for the latter. + +For the former, it’s been my observation that a disproportionate amount of ADHDers are involved in creative pursuits, including video. + +While many hate the thought of having to keep tracking of 10 moving parameters, the short focus quick burst decision-making process that choosing lenses, lighting props, and audio tools involves is something that our brains thrive upon. + +How does video-making help with bouts of depression, you may ask? + +It’s a bit like when you’re feeling too bummed out about life to go running. But then you do and you’re so grateful that you didn’t just linger in bed. + +If I’m in a bleak mood, getting out of the house to do something creative is about the last thing on my mind to do. + +But it’s also about the _best_ thing I know I can do for myself. + +Getting out there, exercising, seeing people, and getting distracted in something that takes you away from your problems. It’s kind of the perfect tonic. And it’s free (minus the cost of electricity, time, and gear!). + +### Video Is An Outlet For Both Technical Geekery And Creativity + +If there are two aspects of the professional package I bring to clients that I have struggled enormously to reconcile during my career to date, it’s a love of creativity — which draws me to writing and marketing — and a love of technology — which brings me to love things like Linux and backups. + +During my first day on a previous job, after I whipped out my laptop and booted into Ubuntu, the development staff told me bluntly that I was wasting my time in marketing and should come over to their side of the divide where I could probably boost my earning power four-fold. + +Video has oddly proven itself to be the elusive technical field that can bring these two parts of my personality together. + +As a rookie video-maker, there’s an almost limitless amount of tech to come to grips with: if I’m narrating a scene from behind, should I use and mix two microphones or just wear a lav mic? When I have my next $1,000 to invest in this, should I go for a 4K-capable cam or update my sound gear? + +Again, while there’s a to love about the fact that writing takes nothing more than a keyboard and a screen to produce, that simplicity also contributes to a trope that has dogged writers for years, undermined rates, and caused me enormous professional pain and even emotional slights: the mistaken belief that “anybody” can write. For the most part, people don’t make the same claim about setting up a camera on a jib or flying a drone. + +But all that tech geekery that goes into producing video is really just about finding the ideal tools for story-telling. + +And that’s what ultimately gets me out of bed in the morning — as in this morning when I strolled over to the Tayelet to see if I could capture a Jerusalem sunrise well enough if I tried to nail the white balance. + +Writing is a field that I continue to feel passionate about. It’s what I’m doing right now. Nevertheless, I resent the fact that I bought into way too many fallacies about video to not even try it for too many years. + +It’s too expensive (it’s expensive, but you can upgrade your kit slowly). And it’s too hard (it’s hard, but you can get better by just repeatedly trying and not caring too much about how bad your initial results are). + +Video is an enormously joyful hobby and form of creative expression. And for writers, it offers some unique advantages that can you know … get us out of our homes. diff --git a/posts/medium/4-Shameless-Reasons-To-Consider-Becoming-A-Book-Author.md b/posts/medium/4-Shameless-Reasons-To-Consider-Becoming-A-Book-Author.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7978134615314b294d4d563602f2d776f4980917 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/4-Shameless-Reasons-To-Consider-Becoming-A-Book-Author.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +# 4 Shameless Reasons To Consider Becoming A Book Author + +#### If you need encouragement to get that book idea out of your head and onto the page, then read on + +Fame, money, and cheap dinner party gifts — the glorious life of a book author. Photo by [John-Mark Smith](https://www.pexels.com/@jmark?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-audio-amplifier-24069/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +As the cliché goes, everybody has a book in them. But clearly, most end their time on this planet before getting one out (sorry to get all morbid this early on). + +If you’ve always dreamed of becoming a book author but need an extra prod of encouragement to actually get going, here are some unashamedly snobby reasons why you should take the plunge (alone … or with the help of [a ghostwriter](https://dsrghostwriting.com/services-outline/writing/books/)). + +### Books Have A Relatively High Bar For Entry + +As anybody who has clicked onto the URL has surely observed Twitter is, in large part, a cesspool (of hate, misery, ire, and woe). + +Why is it thus, you ask? + +**Because it takes precisely three minutes to sign up for a Twitter account and — once you’ve done that — you have a lifetime pass to spew rants onto the internet**(until Twitter bans you. Then you have to pull a Donald Trump and start your own social network). + +You can reach for the app wherever you keep your smartphone. Which for most people is in their trouser pocket or by their bedside. + +The book market isn’t exactly bereft of bad — sometimes even appalling — literature (as book publishing has become progressively easier over the years, the avalanche of low quality published work has risen commensurately). + +But it’s still — even now — a good deal harder to get a terrible book onto the market than it is to issue another appalling tweet into cyberspace. And as the formula goes, the harder something is to do, the more elite those who successfully pass the bar can consider themselves. If Redditors and Twitter users are the food soldiers of the online flame war, then book authors are the Navy SEALs. + +Reading non-fiction books is also a high ROI intellectual activity that puts readers — and authors — above the reach of the Twitterati (you can now call them The Digital Proletariat) constrained to a 280 character limit by their Big Tech Overlords. They can thus get away with being far snobbier and more transparently self-pretentious. Warren Buffet is said to read for six hours a day, ya know. + +Become a book author. Join the Global Elite. + +### Book Authorship Confers Lifetime Bragging Rights + +Once you’ve got a book or two to your name, you can bore friends and dinner party guests for the rest of time about that book you put out in [insert decade]. + +The fact that it sold 10 copies, your literary agent subsequently dumped you, and even your family members couldn’t finish it needn’t matter one bit. No-one needs to know those sordid details including your ghostwriter. Bottom line you wrote a book. Once. + +Better yet, assuming your book appears in print, you may find that you now have lifetime access to heavily discounted copies of your own book–these are usually called author’s copies and are one of the best gigs in the writing business. + +Order them by the crate, store them in the attic (displace your family possessions if you have to), and — again — thrust them on your dwindling network of friends or whoever else will listen to you talking about _your book_. + +If it sells, you’ll also get to see your book in airport duty free shops (take selfies with the copies and post those to Twitter). And you may even catch someone reading it one day in the wild. Take photos of those encounters too and also post them to Twitter. + +More importantly, your one-time act of book authorship will provide you with a lifetime supply of gifts for (more) dinner parties, social events, etc. + +You get to give cheap gifts while shamelessly self-promoting yourself indefinitely and if your book is even vaguely educational you can use the idea of benevolently educating your friends and family as a convenient subterfuge to get your name up on other people’s bookshelves as free advertising (just be sure to visit their houses periodically to assess product positioning and discreetly adjust it if required). + +How cool is that? + +### Book Authorship Helps You Become Famous + +A reputable book ghostwriter’s inbox is permanently filled with missives from retired businessmen, B-list Hollywood celebrities, self-aggrandizing megalomaniacs who may also have conveniently selective memories, and individuals of dubious repute, with blurry pasts, clutching at their last hope of fame for all its worth. I promise I’m not describing mine. + +Those hoping to go down _The Book Route_ are planning on rolling out a time-worn-but-still-operable formula that goes something like this: + + * Write book + * Hire aggressive publicist, preferably also somebody somewhat desperate, to promo the book + * Talk about book to any podcast / TV / radio host with a pulse while hooking prospective readers on vague promises that it will somehow change their life + * Wait for royalties to come flooding in + * Go back to enjoying retirement but as a slightly More Prosperous Person. + +Even if this process turns out to be a total flop, you’ll likely wind up at least somewhat more notorious than you were when you began this process. And prosperous. Maybe. + +Fame, royalties, and almost free dinner party gifts. This inglorious trifecta can become yours if you just get that book out. + +### Book Royalties Are Basically An Age-Old Passive Income Scheme + +Passive income has become all the rage these days. + +But in their thirst to buy up property in tax havens and get in on the dropshipping/Bitcoin-mining/affiliate marketing crazes, people tend to forget that earning book royalties is like passive income for old school folk who didn’t get brainwashed by internet culture and who don’t listen to podcasts or YouTube. + +Contrary to what some prospective first-time authors imagine, book ghostwriters don’t take royalties (at least reputable ones). But publishers do (or more accurately revenue). Even if you’re self-publishing. + +But once that’s been taken care of you, the author, are left with some pocket change — I mean money. The better news is that that flow can continue indefinitely. + +Better yet — pseudonymous publishing is still a thing. That means that you can legally use a fake name and get paid for the books you sell. Your mysterious neighbor who speaks of being “self employed” and always seems to be on vacation may, in fact, be enjoying a thriving career as an erotica author. You probably don’t want to know his pen name. + +Books can be your ticket to fame, fortune, and longwinded self-promotional monologues at dinner parties about that book you once wrote. + +Write one. Or [hire ](https://dsrghostwriting.com/services-outline/writing/books/)a jaded internet cynic to do the dirty work. diff --git a/posts/medium/4-T-Cs-That-Can-Make-Or-Break-A-Freelance-Writing-Business.md b/posts/medium/4-T-Cs-That-Can-Make-Or-Break-A-Freelance-Writing-Business.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..76e60a7dc9296d255884042a0167191b2fb99a64 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/4-T-Cs-That-Can-Make-Or-Break-A-Freelance-Writing-Business.md @@ -0,0 +1,89 @@ +# 4 T&Cs That Can Make Or Break A Freelance Writing Business + +My interview with DevChat.tv’s The Freelancers Show was published this week. + +[**TFS 379: The Confused Freelancer - How To Get Started In Freelancing with Daniel Rosehill …** + _In this episode of The Freelancers Show, we talk with Daniel Rosehill about navigating the choices of tools a new…_ devchat.tv](https://devchat.tv/freelancers/tfs-379-the-confused-freelancer-how-to-get-started-in-freelancing-with-daniel-rosehill/ "https://devchat.tv/freelancers/tfs-379-the-confused-freelancer-how-to-get-started-in-freelancing-with-daniel-rosehill/")[](https://devchat.tv/freelancers/tfs-379-the-confused-freelancer-how-to-get-started-in-freelancing-with-daniel-rosehill/) + +I talked, in the episode, about some of the technical nuts and bolts that newbie writers might require on their quest to freelancing glory. Basic things like choosing and optimizing a CRM system, building an attractive looking website with good market positioning, and even setting up a branded email address. + +An equally important subject is the matter of contracts. Cookie cutter examples abound on the internet — and many prefer to leave the drafting to a lawyer. But regardless of who’s doing the drafting, what terms to include is a hot button subject among freelancers. + +My own contract development process has been unashamedly iterative. It works something like this. I spell out a contract, wait until something goes wrong in the form of encountering pain, and when it does, I fix it. I rise and repeat over the span of years. + +The following are the terms which I have found essential to include in my standard contract, why I feel that way, and what kind of reaction you can expect if you’re tempted to borrow them. + +Some of them, I realize, are likely to draw eye rolls, vociferous protest, or a variety of other strong reactions from freelancers and potential clients. But that’s okay with me. + +Final introductory point: you need to make sure that you are emphasizing the value you’re adding to your client _before_ you can expect the other side of this business relationship to acquiesce to _your_ needs. + +In other words, this isn’t a conversation to have at the very outset of a prospective business relationship. And speaking of those: everybody’s needs and businesses are different. But these are what currently work for me. + +### 1\. Limiting The Number of Allowable Revisions + +Limiting allowable revisions effectively controls time expenditure per project + +My standard terms and conditions for my writing business currently allow only one round of revisions in the quoted price. + +If clients need one more than one round of edits, I tell them that I’m happy to price by the hour**. The primary objective here is to control the scope.** As I wrote previously, when I quote a flat rate for a project, I do so based on a time estimate — and I need to protect my target hourly rate. + +[**My Freelance Hourly Cheat Sheet** + _Several people have reached out to me recently on foot of two Medium posts which I wrote trying to dispel some of the…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-freelance-hourly-cheat-sheet-cd21b602b15f "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-freelance-hourly-cheat-sheet-cd21b602b15f")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-freelance-hourly-cheat-sheet-cd21b602b15f) + +If I were to offer unlimited revisions, for instance, I would have no way of knowing whether a prospective clients might require one round of revisions or five — and the latter could entail hours and hours of work. + +Writers who _do_ offer unlimited rounds hope that most clients will request a reasonable amount of revisions and swallow the loss on the few that ask for ten rounds. I’m not suggesting that either approach is better. Just that this T&C is what I, and many writers, have found necessary to ensure the smooth operation of our businesses. + +I would argue that this actually coaches clients into how to work with freelancers. If multiple stakeholders are reviewing a document it encourages them to organize internally _before_ sending work back out to you for review. + + * **Why to include:** If you don’t limit the number of revisions which clients can request, some will make unreasonable requests. + * **What to expect:** Most clients, in my experience, understand why this is necessary. It helps that it is relatively commonplace. Some might find it unacceptable. + +### 2\. Limiting Allowable Revision Timeframes + +Settings some limits on revision timeframes also works for a lot of people + +Here’s a more controversial one. + +Early in the game, I was once working on a blog post for a software company. I was charging this company approximately $150 for a 1,000 word blog post. + +My point of contact kept passing the document around to new people at the company. Two rounds of minor revisions went by in a flash. + +Then, one sunny day, _six months_ after initiating the project, and long after I had invoiced and been paid for the job, I received a request for just one more round of revisions. + +I learned from that experience. + +I would suggest putting a cap on the amount of time within which your clients can request revisions to your work. + + * **Why to include:** Projects can hang in the air for months on end. If the client holds upon payment (see: payment terms) then this can seriously impact your cash flow. + * **What to expect:** Agencies will likely revolt against this because their payments to you are dependent, in their eyes, upon when their client pays them. + +### 3\. Billing For Meetings + +It’s often difficult for salaried employees to grasp the economics and financial realities of being a freelancer. Painfully difficult (for us). And many organizations also have a meetings-centric culture. + +As a freelance writer, feedback meetings can represent a serious threat to your scope control if you don’t set some limits around them. + +Many freelancers will include a certain number of minutes for allowable meetings for each project. After that, clients will be billed by the hour and any travel expenses will have to be added to the invoice. I think that this is a good approach because it allows clients to convey some feedback about the project but discourages them from treating you as an always-available resource. + + * **Why to include:** Many organizations will try to treat freelancers as salaried employees and ask them to participate in an exhaustive amount of meetings and other activities for which they are not being compensated. This is unfair. But it’s your job to avoid this situation in the first place. + * **What to expect:** Potential pushback. You may need to be flexible and negotiate slightly on this one. + +### 4\. Upfront Payment and Late Fees + +If you thought that dealing with limits and request for endless Zoom meetings was fun, wait until you have to deal with chasing up late payments. + +Freelancers _hate_ having to work as their own debt collectors and it’s a situation that they shouldn’t be in. And yet almost anybody that knows a long term freelancer has heard some war stories about having to collect payments from clients after invoices are due. + +Two things can help mitigate the risk: + + * **Ask for an upfront payment on large projects.** The amounts vary by the project type, but asking other freelance writers for ballpark figures can be helpful. + * **Levy late fees to encourage organizations to pay their invoices on time.** + +### Strong Contracts Build Better Relationships + +As counterintuitive as it might seem, I believe that better, more robust contracts make freelancing an easier experience for both freelancers and their clients. + +Freelancers that know they are being taken advantage of tend to be miserable creates who do not do their best work. Enforcing some limits around allowable revisions actually encourages organizations to use outsourced and freelance resources more effectively. + +Consider integrating some of the above terms and conditions into your next contract. diff --git a/posts/medium/4-Terrible-Reasons-To-Move-To-Israel--Make-Aliyah----And-One-Really-Good-One.md b/posts/medium/4-Terrible-Reasons-To-Move-To-Israel--Make-Aliyah----And-One-Really-Good-One.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..297230e42e07165d597a89eb32dc6f4a5012050e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/4-Terrible-Reasons-To-Move-To-Israel--Make-Aliyah----And-One-Really-Good-One.md @@ -0,0 +1,116 @@ +# 4 Terrible Reasons To Move To Israel (Make Aliyah) — And One Really Good One + +#### Ahead of Aliyah Day, some strident opinion on why one should, and shouldn’t, move to Israel + +This evening, in Israel, Aliyah Day will begin. + +Aliyah Day exists as a symbolic day of appreciation for the many _olim_(Jewish immigrants) who have made Israel home. + +For the most part, it’s a non-event that is short on substance. I think it’s also an annual missed opportunity. + +For one, the State of Israel continues to refuse to report honestly on _aliyah_ numbers — because its stubborn insistence is to report only on those coming to Israel. Thus, the picture always looks various degree of good. _Olim_ retention is a major problem. For countless, Israel is a revolving door. Until the State makes serious effort to engage with that dynamic, it’s a vacuous excuse to pop some champagne. + +[**Aliyah numbers are meaningless without also talking about olim retention and yeridah** + _To be useful and honest, Israel’s aliyah numbers have to be understood in the context of the much underdiscussed…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah-3c76fb9ae44b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah-3c76fb9ae44b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah-3c76fb9ae44b) + +Post-aliyah assistance is marginal compared to the enormous efforts Israel goes to to convince world Jews to move to Israel; the efforts that are undertaken often feel lackadaisical. + +There are serious challenges facing _olim_ in Israel. These were recently elucidated by the _Times of Israel_ in its excellent piece about the stupefying state of the real estate market here that has come to prevent all but the very wealthy from getting on the property ladder. + +[**What is mental healthcare like in Israel for immigrants (olim)?** +_Ahead of Aliyah Day, Israel should look at what it is doing to prevent the tragically high suicide rate among its…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-is-mental-healthcare-like-in-israel-for-immigrants-olim-4a63c06435b1 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-is-mental-healthcare-like-in-israel-for-immigrants-olim-4a63c06435b1")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-is-mental-healthcare-like-in-israel-for-immigrants-olim-4a63c06435b1) + +[**Israeli housing prices have nearly doubled in a decade, with no signs of slowing** + _It's Saturday night on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv and a group of protesters is again gearing up for a rally…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/) + +It’s also an annual day to reflect upon _aliyah._ Here are a few reasons that are commonly suggested. I’d like to offer my unsolicited opinion on them. And share what I think is the only worthwhile one. + +### Don’t Move To Israel Because The Weather Is Nice + +Gordon Beach, in Tel Aviv, at sunset. Photo: author. + +Undoubtedly, there has been at least one Birthright participant who chose to move to Israel because the weather looked a good deal nicer than what they were used to back home. + +This, in my opinion, is an awful reason to move to the Middle East. + +Good weather can be found in far more peaceful and less expensive climes. + +Can I suggest Spain and Portugal instead? No geopolitical conflict in your back door. A much lower cost of living. It’s also an EU member state so if you can base yourself there you can move freely around the whole Union. + +### Don’t Move To Israel Because … Startups + +No, really. + +I’m not denying that there are opportunities to be exploited working in Israel’s startup sector. But is that really a good enough reason to move country? + +However, some realism is warranted. + +Israel’s high tech nucleus employs only 10% of the country. And are startups really the best organizations within which to build a career? Will startups even HIRE you when you’re (gasp) in your 30s and beyond? + +And what about the pay? + +Average salaries in Israel generally lag behind those of other developed countries. Which makes zero sense considering that it’s cost of living is one of the highest in the world. Real incomes, for many, are squeezed. + +If you’re a developer you can make a good salary, sure. But what if you work in a field that’s far less profitable in Israel? + +Finally, don’t forget that Israel is not an English-speaking geography. If you’re looking for a job that has English at its core — like journalism or content marketing — you may find much more fertile opportunities outside of the country. + +Still interested? + +### Don’t Move To Israel Because The Healthcare Is Cheap + +Well maybe if you need an operation and it’s far cheaper in Israel you should. + +But if you’re fit and well? + +[**6 Great Things About Israel’s Healthcare System** + _Why Israel’s healthcare has a well-deserved reputation for excellence_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/6-great-things-about-israels-healthcare-system-b7db1a630d7e "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/6-great-things-about-israels-healthcare-system-b7db1a630d7e")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/6-great-things-about-israels-healthcare-system-b7db1a630d7e) + +I’m a huge fan of the healthcare system in Israel, by the way. It’s affordable. It’s accessible. It’s well-digitized. I’m enormously grateful for the fact that — as as an asthmatic — I no longer need to triage my breathing difficulties in the manner I did in Ireland. There’s no such thing as breathing being “not quite bad enough yet” to see the doc. If it’s sub-par, I’m in. + +Nevertheless, I think that moving here because it’s cheap would be shortsighted. You have to set the cost of healthcare against the other costs involved in living here which tend to be, you know, a little on the outrageous side. Does healthcare really offset those? I think for most young people the answer is probably no. + +### Don’t Move To Israel Because Of The Falafel… Or The Shawarma… Or The Tubi + +It’s true that _falafel_ is relatively cheap and plentiful in Israel. + +I may have mentioned that I effectively subsisted on a steady diet of falafel and _arak_ and coffee for my first three years in the country. On year four, I was found to have developed gallstones and needed to have an organ excised from my body. So make what you want of my dietary advice. + +Falafel is great. It’s also bursting to the seams with lots of juicy fresh ingredients. I’m getting hungry writing this. Make sure you ask for tahini AND amba. + +Some beer taps at the Shuk Mahane Yehuda in Jerusalem. Don’t move here for those either. Unless you live in Hong Kong, alcohol here is probably more expensive than back home. Photo: author.No, this isn’t what you think it is. It IS, however, Tubi 60. Which is absolutely amazing and deserves to be far better known. Photo: author. + +But falafel — even though I love it — really isn’t a good enough reason to move to Israel even. Even _shawarma_ isn’t. + +And not even Tubi 60. Yes, that liquid above. It didn’t emerge from a camel. Sorry to be vulgar. Tubi 60 is excellent and I’m glad to see that they’re now exporting around the world. Even if when I found it in Dallas, Texas this summer I couldn’t help but notice that it was cheaper than in Israel. What can I say? I was surprised but not surprised. + +You know that something is wrong with the cost of living in a country when it’s cheaper to buy one of its national spirits in another continent. Photo: author. (Spec’s Liqor, Dallas, Texas) + +[**Email: Israeli Cheese Cheaper in California** + _Chain letters are usually an annoyance, but one going around in Israel in recent days has garnered a great deal of…_ www.israelnationalnews.com](https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/146556 "https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/146556")[](https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/146556) + +### DO Move To Israel Because It’s The Only Jewish Country In The World + +Here’s my point. + +People — and even aliyah organizations — provide all sort of tepid reasons for why it makes sense to move to Israel. + +I reckon these do future _olim_ a disservice because they encourage people to move here for the wrong reasons. + +Or at least reasons that aren’t going to be solid enough to buffer them for what life in Israel may have to throw at them that will make them question their resolve to be here. + +Sorry to be so negative, but I also believe that most of them don’t hold up to scrutiny. If I were craving a nice climate to retire in, I’d probably go for Portugal or the Canary’s quicker than I would Israel. Etc, etc. + +And besides. If you’re going to be paying $10 for beer and driving in what feels like a real life version of a Go Cart circuit then you’re going to need a pretty good reason motivating you to power on. + +Sometimes, in life, it’s best not to beat around the bush. To go straight for the jugular. That’s why — even though it sounds weird when you’re being asked in a casual business context — my answer to anybody’s question of “why did you move to Israel?” is “because I’m Jewish.” I rarely even tack on “and I think it’s the only place it makes sense to be.” I let them react to that however they see fit. + +In my book, and my understanding of the world, that’s the only reason to move here that actually makes any sense. + +Because Israel is the only Jewish country in the world and — as a Jew — it’s the only place you feel you belong in the world. + +If that’s what’s driving your _aliyah_ I reckon you have a decent chance of being happy and successful in Israel. + +The falafel and the beach and the Tubi will be nice bonuses. + +Happy Aliyah Day! diff --git a/posts/medium/4-Tips-For-Writers-On-Working-With-Celebrity-Clients.md b/posts/medium/4-Tips-For-Writers-On-Working-With-Celebrity-Clients.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4352292f07d3b5cc179ffa05b0cb9182d4e396df --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/4-Tips-For-Writers-On-Working-With-Celebrity-Clients.md @@ -0,0 +1,74 @@ +# 4 Tips For Writers On Working With Celebrity Clients + +#### Some of the things you may encounter when your client list includes high profile and public figures + +Ghostwriting is one of the relatively few occupations that may involve regularly interfacing with clients who are well-known to the public. Here are some tips on working with this interesting clientele. Photo by [Abdel Rahman Abu Baker](https://www.pexels.com/@abdel-rahman-abu-baker-958112?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/arch-cathedral-entrance-with-red-carpet-2319413/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Relatively few industries and occupations may involve the possibility to rub shoulders — or at least exchange Zoom greetings — with people in the public eye. + +Public relations is one of those. Being an LA-based executive assistant is probably another good strategy if that’s your end game. And oddly, being a book ghostwriter is another — for relatively few private individuals have the unusual confluence of large sums of cash lying around and interesting life stories worth capturing in print. + +To regurgitate a trite cliché, celebrities are but regular people who got famous. Nevertheless, there are a couple of useful things to know about working with them. From early lessons learned during a handful of encounters, here are a few of those. + +### Celebrities have retinues + +Perhaps the most salient difference between us commonfolk and our celebrity brethren is that celebrities tend to have retinues while we … well don’t _(sorry to burst the bubble but it’s really me writing this blog post and answering emails — I kid)._ + +What this means, in practice, is that navigating sometimes labyrinth layers of gatekeepers is par for the course when working with publicly-known figures. + +The higher the stature of a public figure, the more likely they are to have different figures helping out with different parts of their life in different geographies. + +This (possibly segmented) retinue might include executive assistants, public relations managers, and unofficial jacks of all trade. These are the individuals the celebrity might actually spend most of their time interfacing with. + +Before that’s a requirement, though, celebs-in-the-making answer their own email and (we presume) do their own laundry and dishes._They’re just like us!_ + +**What you need to know as a writer:** Who their gatekeepers are and how to work with them. + +### Celebrities place a premium on discretion + +Celebrity culture remains a staple of fascination for the general public — and by extension the media. + +Many celebrities are an accidentally forwarded email or two away from having something they don’t want public accidentally slip through that rigorously guarded net of confidentiality. + +If you’re a naturally private and guarded person, your innate sense of discretion is likely to be an asset. If you’re a blabbermouth, things could get difficult. + +At a minimum, expect to be signing plenty of NDAs and confidentiality agreements. As a book ghostwriter, this can put us in a difficult position because we need to promote or at least share our past work in order to land more of it. So it may be necessary to push back on some unworkable contract clauses. + +**What you need to know as a writer:** Don’t get drunk and brag to your friends that you’re ghosting for Britney (or tweet the same) if your NDA or contract precludes you from disclosing the writing relationship until the book has gone to market (or forever!). Things have a weird habit of boomeranging back to people. + +### Celebrities value their time + +The life of a celebrity or high profile individual — think a Fortune 100 CEO — can be an insanely busy one. + +They tend, disproportionately, to be early risers. Although athletes during off-season and actors between shoots can have schedules that are surprisingly accommodating. Like happens to all of us, to an extent, life tends to get busy in fits and spurts — then goes relatively quiet just as it was getting frantic. + +Nevertheless, it’s prudent to assume that they’re always pretty busy unless you know that they’re really not. The key to communicating with them is therefore mastering the art of being succinct: + + * **Communicate essential information before extraneous information.** The inverted pyramid style commonly used by newspaper journalists is actually a pretty good guide for structuring communications generally — especially to VBPs (very busy people). Work on the assumption your messages won’t be read in their entirety so get the crucial stuff out of the way first. + * Brief-writing is a prized skill. Get good at putting together digests and snapshots. + * One favorite trick I picked up from an Israeli startup founder is using the series of tags that the US army does in emails. These allow the recipient to quickly glance at the communication and see what kind of action is required. Always assume that your emails are being read on a mobile device. So preface rather than suffix your content tags. This way a PA can quickly bounce over something time-sensitive or hold something for a weekly sync. I use [Time-sensitive] as a supplementary tag for this reason even though it’s not an “official” tag in the US military system. + +[**How to Write Email with Military Precision** + _In the military, a poorly formatted email may be the difference between mission accomplished and mission failure…_ hbr.org](https://hbr.org/2016/11/how-to-write-email-with-military-precision "https://hbr.org/2016/11/how-to-write-email-with-military-precision")[](https://hbr.org/2016/11/how-to-write-email-with-military-precision) + +**What you need to know as a writer:** How to communicate succintly with your client even if that’s not necessarily your natural writing style. + +### Celebrities are mission-led individuals + +Who becomes famous? + +Sometimes, reality TV stars make it big. + +But more commonly that fame tends to be ephemeral — until the next TV show supplants it in the ratings. Their fame is short-lived and often millennial-centric. + +The type of individuals who get famous, stay that way, and tend to be notorious across demographics, are (again, disproportionately) those fulfilling some important mission in life. + +This little nugget is key to understanding a commonality often encountered in their otherwise heterogeneous and sometimes idiosyncratic personalities. + +Whether they’re _about_ acting or _about_ screenwriting or _about_ some business mission, it’s that mission that propels them to get up in the morning and towards achieving the highest levels of success. + +Figuring out what the _about_ is is the key to relating well to them — which is an essential requirement for a successful principal-ghostwriter relationship. + +Otherwise, as just about everybody knows, celebrities are just ordinary people — with a few quirky exceptions such as that many people know their names, they get creepy fan mail on the regular, and sometimes can’t go out to buy groceries without getting mobbed by people wanting a selfie or an autograph. + +**What you need to know as a client:** Understand your client and what they’re ‘about.’ If you share a genuine interest in that mission, that can form the basis for a successful collaboration. diff --git a/posts/medium/4-Ways-To-Backup-Linux-Workstations-Onto-A-Synology-NAS--With-Videos-.md b/posts/medium/4-Ways-To-Backup-Linux-Workstations-Onto-A-Synology-NAS--With-Videos-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..05071692dc97b57acf9ae116d2a692e56b8843d1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/4-Ways-To-Backup-Linux-Workstations-Onto-A-Synology-NAS--With-Videos-.md @@ -0,0 +1,74 @@ +# 4 Ways To Backup Linux Workstations Onto A Synology NAS (With Videos) + +Since getting my hands on one of Synology’s brand new line of NAS devices, the DS920+, I’ve been playing around with various ways to take backups onto it from my Linux Desktop, which runs 20.04 LTS. + +Here are some of the methodologies I have used so far. + +### Prerequisites + +Before beginning to take backups of your Linux desktop or laptop onto your Synology NAS, you’ll want to make sure that the requisite servers are running on the NAS — and take notes of which ports you have opened. + +From ‘Control Panel’ select ‘File Services’: + +You’ll probably want to enable: + + * The SSH server + * SMB + * SFTP + * FTPS + * rsync + +Take note of the IP address your NAS is running on and make sure that your user has read/write access to whatever backups you’re going to be running from the Linux workstation using its credentials. You may even wish to create a separate user just this purpose. + +Synology has a well-populated knowledge base and some resources there might be useful to you to get started: + +[**DiskStation Manager** + _Centralize data storage and backup, streamline file collaboration, optimize video management, and secure network…_ www.synology.com](https://www.synology.com/en-global/knowledgebase/DSM/tutorial/General_Setup/How_to_login_to_DSM_with_root_permission_via_SSH_Telnet "https://www.synology.com/en-global/knowledgebase/DSM/tutorial/General_Setup/How_to_login_to_DSM_with_root_permission_via_SSH_Telnet")[](https://www.synology.com/en-global/knowledgebase/DSM/tutorial/General_Setup/How_to_login_to_DSM_with_root_permission_via_SSH_Telnet) + +Here are some of the methodologies you can employ: + +### 1\. Using Grsync (GUI) + +Running full disk backups using [grsync](https://www.opbyte.it/grsync/), a basic frontend for rsync. Rsync can be used — creatively — to create both full backup snapshots as well as sets using incremental and differential points. + +### 2\. Using rsync (CLI) + +If GUIs aren’t your thing, then you can get under the hood and just use rsync. Cron and rsync are really all you need to get basic rsync backups going from your Linux desktop to the NAS. + +However, if you feel like creating multiple restore snapshots on the destination, then you might want to consider using a different rsync-based tool. + +If that approach sounds more up your street take a look at rsnapshot: + +[**rsnapshot** + _rsnapshot is a filesystem snapshot utility based on rsync. rsnapshot makes it easy to make periodic snapshots of local…_ rsnapshot.org](https://rsnapshot.org/ "https://rsnapshot.org/")[](https://rsnapshot.org/) + +Borg Backup is also popular and versatile: + +[**BorgBackup - Deduplicating archiver with compression and authenticated encryption** + _BorgBackup (short: Borg) gives you: Space efficient storage of backups. Secure, authenticated encryption. Compression…_ www.borgbackup.org](https://www.borgbackup.org/ "https://www.borgbackup.org/")[](https://www.borgbackup.org/) + +### 3\. Using Cloudberry (GUI) + +[MSP360™ Backup for Linux](https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux.aspx) (by Cloudberry Lab) is a versatile tool that I’m fond of for creating offsite backup plans which can be used to sync a Linux desktop with a cloud storage provider. [I recommend B2 for Backblaze](https://www.backblaze.com/b2/cloud-storage.html) because it is both easy to use (compared to AWS) and specializes in bulk object storage for backup. + +Setting up the backup plan in Cloudberry is simply a case of adding the NAS a local SFTP share, inputting credentials, selecting which folders you want to back up, running the backup, and putting it on a recurring schedule. + +### 4\. Using Clonezilla (live USB) + +While running incremental and differential backups is space-effective and easy (one of rsync, for instance, can be run from a live system), now and again you might want to create full, bare metal backups. + +The humble but powerful [Clonezilla ](http://www.clonezilla.com)is my tool of choice for creating backups that I only plan on calling into action when ….. something very bad happens. + +Running backups directly onto the NAS over SSH isn’t particularly hard. You just need to make sure to configure a real path to mount /home/partimag. + +Performance when backing up over the LAN is definitely slower than running it directly between disks (hitherto, this has been my modus operandi). But full disk images are still relatively quick to run and Clonezilla can be configured to power off the machine upon job completion. + +### Back Up Your Linux Workstation Today + +I’m glad to now be backing up my desktop onto an NAS rather than separate drives on the device itself. + +For one, thanks to Cloudberry’s Cloud Sync, this will make pushing those copies offsite (to achieve 3–2–1 compliance) far easier. No more Post-Its reminding myself not to power off my desktop while a days-long push to the cloud is going on. + +Secondly, I can retire my internal backup drives and find more interesting things to do with them — or just add more capacity to the Desktop with LVM. + +Thanks for reading! diff --git a/posts/medium/4-Ways-To-Scale-A-Freelance-Writing-Business.md b/posts/medium/4-Ways-To-Scale-A-Freelance-Writing-Business.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..81c79bcdfd4fce3fad92b8f89312e1d66f28e3c5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/4-Ways-To-Scale-A-Freelance-Writing-Business.md @@ -0,0 +1,63 @@ +# 4 Ways To Scale A Freelance Writing Business + +#### Ways To Grow A Freelance Writing Business — Including … Charging More + +Image: QuoraInspector.com + +Most freelance writers, particularly during the early years, are interested in growing their businesses. + +However, freelance writing is a brain-intensive process. There are only so many hours in the week and so much brainpower and focused writing-time at our disposal. Many freelance writers therefore grapple with how to scale and increase their income. + +There are a few commonly suggested ways to do this. To date, I’ve only done the first and second — I’ve slowly but steadily increased my rates over the years while moving towards a retainer-based pricing model. + +But I know other freelance writers in my network who have opted for the other approaches listed here, including the outsourcing model. + +As with most articles shared on this Medium publication, this is almost certainly not an exclusive list and reflects only the opinions of one freelance writer — namely this one. + +### Increase Your Rates + +The most straightforward way to scale your income as a freelance writer is to simply charge more for your services. If you earn $100 for a blog post, and only write blog posts for a living, then raising your rate to $150 can increase your income by 50%. + +[**Charging Freelance Writing Clients Per Word — Pros and Cons** + _Does Journalism’s Gold Standard Make Sense in Content Marketing?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0) + +Most freelance writers gradually increase their rates over time as they accrue both writing experience and experience in the art (and craft) of running a freelance writing business. + +If you’re interested in learning about the pros and cons of the various ways in which you can charge for freelance writing services, there are plenty of resources on this Medium publication. + +### Widen Out Your Service Offering + +Another option is to scale horizontally: offer add-ons to your core service offering as a freelance writer. This is also a great way to make freelance writing a more varied career and increase the value that you offer your clients. + +If you’re currently only offering writing services but have other skillsets that you’re not tapping, you could add those to your core service offering. + +I’ve seen freelance writers who also offer: + + * General marketing consultancy + * Digital marketing and SEO + * Public relations + * Content strategy + * Marketing communications / MarCom + +All the above — and others — can be great complements to a service offering built around a core of freelance writing. + +### Outsource + +Another popular model for scaling up a freelance writing business is to begin outsourcing work to other writers. One of my writing friends recommends beginning with the 70% model — paying writers 70% while you take 30% for bringing in the work and managing the workflow. + +I’ve never used this model myself so I don’t have firsthand experience to contribute. If you _have_ used outsourcing to grow, then consider sending in a post outlining how this has worked out for you. + +[**How To Write For Freelance Writing on Medium!** +_Interested in contributing? Instructions and guidelines_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-write-for-freelance-writing-on-medium-9c52ab9e2476 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-write-for-freelance-writing-on-medium-9c52ab9e2476")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-write-for-freelance-writing-on-medium-9c52ab9e2476) + +### Hire A Virtual Assistant (VA) + +One of the major drains on my time, as a freelance writer, is engaging in sales and marketing as well as all the admin work that goes into making freelance working work. + +Sending over portfolio samples. Talking to leads. Reviewing and signing contracts. Preparing monthly invoices. + +As your freelance writing business begins to scale, this kind of activity can quickly start to bog down your time. If that’s happening, and you have some budget to spare, then turning to virtual assistants (VAs) can be a great way to remove this hassle from your life. + +Why is this a path to scaling? It’s essentially outsourcing — but the stuff that fits around the writing rather than the writing itself. + +_Have some other ideas about ways to scale a freelance writing business? Leave a comment — or consider_[ _sending in an article._](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-write-for-freelance-writing-on-medium-9c52ab9e2476) diff --git a/posts/medium/4-questions-to-ask-before-hiring-a-ghostwriter.md b/posts/medium/4-questions-to-ask-before-hiring-a-ghostwriter.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..72cde50484cc2a9c48f935a532f2e12d84b4e30c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/4-questions-to-ask-before-hiring-a-ghostwriter.md @@ -0,0 +1,82 @@ +# 4 questions to ask before hiring a ghostwriter + +#### Make sure you hire wisely by asking these questions + +Ghostwriters are specialized freelance writers. Here are some questions to use to evaluate a prospective one. + +Ghostwriters are**specialized freelance writing professionals** who help authors to write texts that will ultimately be published under their own name. + +[**Who is a ghostwriter? Why do they ghostwrite?** +_A surprisingly diverse group of people call themselves by the title. Here are some of them._ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-is-a-ghostwriter-why-do-they-ghostwrite-fecfa6ede847 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-is-a-ghostwriter-why-do-they-ghostwrite-fecfa6ede847")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-is-a-ghostwriter-why-do-they-ghostwrite-fecfa6ede847) + +You can hire ghostwriters to write: + + * Your social media posts + * Your upcoming bestseller + * A blog for your business + * Your next keynote address + +As the demand for communication and inbound marketing increases, so too does the demand for ghostwriters. So with more service providers stepping into the fray, it’s important to choose wisely. + +Where once ghostwriters were those rare writers who specialized in helping produce books for their clients, today ghostwriters — whether they go by that title or not — can be found working in communication departments and PR agencies around the world. + +Here are some questions that can help ensure that you find the best fit. + +### Will you be putting my work in your portfolio? + +Like any kind of freelance writer, ghostwriters periodically need to show off their work in order to attract and sign on more clients. + +[**How To Share Ghostwriting Samples With Clients** + _There Are Many Approaches. Which Is Best?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/how-to-share-ghostwriting-samples-with-clients-ec0a31710c68 "https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/how-to-share-ghostwriting-samples-with-clients-ec0a31710c68")[](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/how-to-share-ghostwriting-samples-with-clients-ec0a31710c68) + +As a ghostwriting _client_ you may be eager to ensure that the ghostwriting relationship stays as anonymous as possible. + +There’s no harm in asking your prospective ghostwriter how he/she intends portfolio-ing the work done for you. + +Look out for causes about this in the contract you end up signing (you’re using a contract, right?). If they are absent, then consider asking about it. + +### Have you written about my industry before? + +While some would argue that it’s difficult to become a _bode fine_ expert as a freelance writer (and remember, ghostwriters are just specialized freelance writers) it’s certainly possible to accrue a significant _degree_ of expertise on a topic as a freelance writer by frequently writing about it. + +I would argue that prior exposure to an industry shouldn’t be a prerequisite when hiring a ghostwriter. + +But if a ghostwriter hasn’t written about your industry before, it would certainly help if they were at least professionally _interested_ in it. + +Why does this matter? + +It’s a lot harder to write about something that you’re not interested in — trust me! I therefore think that the level of interest a writer has in what your company does, or your narrative, is something of a cornerstone for producing compelling and effective writing. + +Before hiring a ghostwriter, ask whether they have worked in your space before or what they know about it. + +### What’s your writing process like? + +Every writer has his or her preferred means of working with a client. I constantly get asked about my “process” and this is usually what clients are trying to find out. + +So many times, in fact, that I put together a video just to try address this question before it gets asked the next time! + +Some writers — like this one — aren’t so fond of random phone calls but work really well with email and scheduled Zoom calls. + +Others positively love random phone calls and take them at all hours of the day and weekend. + +It’s probably fair to say that no two writers are identical in terms of how they like to work with clients. + +It definitely helps to work with somebody who’s in sync with your working style. So spend a little bit of time with your prospective ghostwriter finding out _how_ they work to assess whether it’s something that _you_ could work with. + +### How do I brief you? + +Working with a writer is a two way tango. + +The writer needs to have time in his/her schedule available to give adequate care and attention to your projects. + +And you need to be organized enough to get the writer what he/she needs to do a good job! + +[https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/how-to-brief-a-freelance-writer](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/how-to-brief-a-freelance-writer/)/ + +A key part of working with many creatives — including writers — is knowing how to get a superlative _brief_ off to them. This is the set of instructions that will guide the creative process. + +My guide to effective brief-writing is above and I recommend that prospective clients take at least a cursory glance over it because — to be blunt — I’ve probably seen as many bad briefs as great ones in my time writing. + +Finding the best freelance writing resource for your project is as much as art as it is a science but asking the above questions should help direct your search. + +_If you’re interested in working with a freelance ghostwriting specialist, then check out my writing website at_[ _DSRGhostwriting.com_](http://dsrghostwriting.com) _which details the type of projects that I work on._ diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Customer-Service-Stock-Phrases---To-Make-the-Internet-A-Less-Angry-Place-8c6ee2b87b.html.md b/posts/medium/5-Customer-Service-Stock-Phrases---To-Make-the-Internet-A-Less-Angry-Place-8c6ee2b87b.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1fcf239831793a9dc595886871f7bd898d864758 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Customer-Service-Stock-Phrases---To-Make-the-Internet-A-Less-Angry-Place-8c6ee2b87b.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,147 @@ +# 5 Customer Service Stock Phrases— To Make the Internet A Less Angry Place + +Few of my friends are aware of this, but — in addition to being a marketing extraordinaire (just kidding) — my resume includes a tenure in phone customer service. + +After leaving a marketing job at a startup (shout out to [Ecanvasser](https://medium.com/u/e36b0a75b5ed)) I briefly worked as a Customer Service Associate (CSA) at Amazon — via a temping agency. + +Although many think of working in a call center as the ultimate nightmare gig — and I won’t deny that it is mentally grueling — I actually rather enjoyed my brief tenure manning the phones and live chat lines for Amazon’s UK marketplace, which has a facility in Cork, Ireland. + +For one — at least when I was working there — Amazon used Ubuntu (a Linux distribution) on their customer service rigs! + +It’s also seldom boring — between live chats, phone interactions, dealing with email tickets there’s almost never a dull moment in a shift. + +And — the best part of it — Amazon have their own weird internal lexicon for customer support. + +If memory serves correctly, getting positive customer feedback on a satisfaction survey was known as a “warm fuzzy”. Or maybe that was just the Cork site. But either way between pressing carriers for customer package updates and sending people replacement orders (while hoping they were not scamming the system) it was weird but oddly fulfilling in its own special way. + +**One particularly abiding positive of this experience, however, has been that working at Amazon has instilled in me a lifelong love of customer service speak:** That delightful mixture of platitudes and euphemisms that support personnel wheel out when dealing with one angry customer after another. + +Customer service speak, I think, has evolved as a defensive mechanism of sorts. + +For the hapless service representatives often on the receiving end of unwarranted person abuse, it’s sort of a company-sanctioned way of low-grade trolling the customers without the customers realizing that they’re actually being trolled. + +It also gives the support agents an entire phrasebook-full of stock phrases to wheel out mindlessly — so that mental energy can be diverted to doing other tasks such as looking up the customer’s order while affirming that they will “do their best to look into the issue”. In a fast-paced support environment with KPIs to hit, sometimes seconds count. + +For the customers, it lets them know very quickly that they’re dealing with an entity somewhere between a sentient human and an AI bot: an individual who will try to do their best to follow standing operating procedure and resolve their case but who, at the end of the day, isn’t really being paid enough to care too deeply about the fact that their jumper hasn’t come in the post yet. + +And so because, last week, I made the mistake of getting mired in online political debates with those whose views are antithetical to my own I decided that it was time to present to the world: the power of customer service speak to make the internet a less angry place. + +Here are some stock phrases you can start using on Facebook, [Quora](https://medium.com/u/3853f85f7d5e), Twitter, Reddit, or wherever else you encounter angry online trolls who you need to bore into stopping. + +### “Thank You For Sharing Your Views On The Matter So Candidly” + +#### Use as a replacement for:**** You really (expletive) think that? + +Thanking somebody for expressing their views with candor is a great roundabout way of avoiding saying that you find what somebody has written completely repugnant — however you would like to phrase that. + +A typical call center setup + +It is particularly suitable when somebody _has_ really shared their views candidly — perhaps by dropping a few expletives or _ad-hominems_ into the debate. + +Because it is also clearly a meaningless customer service stock phrase it also serves the second function of conveniently extricating you from an online flame war. + +Sample usage: + +> **Troll:** Are you f**king insane? Biden would have NO idea how to handle a trade war! + +> **You:** I don’t appreciate the expletive and the aggression but thank you for sharing your views so candidly. It is time for me to go now. + +### “I’m Sorry To Learn Of That Challenging Experience”* + +#### Replacement for: Quit yo’ whining! + +If there’s one thing that people posting on Facebook Groups, Twitter, and Reddit like to do it’s **complain**. + +And I will not even attempt to deny this: at times, I’m right up there with the best of them. + +Friend got fired? You can acknowledge their “challenging experience” + +Nevertheless, [did you know that venting is actually counter-productive and just makes you feel _worse_ about](https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/venting-just-makes-you-more-miserable-science-shows.html) yourself and your problems? + +For that reason, I try to keep my complaints at least ostensibly purposeful. + +Such as by asking do other people feel this way? And more importantly, if so, have they figured out a way to feel better about this particular situation I am in? + +Nevertheless, sometimes people may come online solely to vent — spurred on by those who tell them, mistakenly, that venting is “healthy” (as pointed out, science proves that it is not). It’s human nature. And a hard one to resist. + +So the next time one of your friends posts a vent — to which you feel obliged to respond but do not really wish to because you know that, ultimately, you have nothing useful to say — you can retort that you are _“sorry to learn of their challenging experience.”_ + +They will quickly understand that you have little in the way of genuine empathy to offer and move on to engaging with somebody who does. + +Sample usage: + +> **Friend:** What a nightmare of a day! My house got repossessed, I lost my job, and my daughter got diagnosed with an incurable disease! + +> **You:** I’m sorry to learn of those challenging experiences, although right now I am emotionally unequipped to provide the support I think that you need. Perhaps instead of sharing these difficulties with your Facebook friend it might be an idea to pay a visit to a therapist? + +(*This particular point was not intended literally) + +### “I’m Sorry That You Feel So Angry About This Issue…. But Thank You For Bringing Your Passion to Bear On This Matter!” + +#### Replacement for: please calm down now! + +Acknowledging people’s anger about an issue by telling them that you are “sorry” to learn about it achieves three powerful things: + +a) It calls the angry person / internet troll out on their anger. This, subtly, lets the person know that their aggression is not appreciated; + +b) It conveys empathy (_I’m_ sorry that you feel that way); + +c) It conveys sympathy (we’re both sorry that you feel that way) + +The second clause here might make the phrase seem even more troll-like and disingenuous. So use at your own risk. + +Sample usage: + +> **Troll:** That’s some of the dumbest sh*t I have ever read on this sub [Reddit] + +> **You:** I’m sorry to learn that my viewpoint has aroused such anger in you, dear Redditor! However, as I can see that the dialogue between you and I is unlikely to be constructive, I will refrain from explaining it further. + +### “I’m Glad To See Such A Plurality of Opinions in This Debate!” + +#### Replacement 2 for: “wow, I can’t believe so many people believe in a conspiracy theory” + +The disarming power of so many customer service phrases — and examples of corporate-speak — is that they often simply point out the obvious. + +In doing so, they have the effect of subtly steering toxic conversations into shutdown mode and forcing trolls to move onto another target to unleash their anger: which is sensible because trolls derive their enjoyment primarily from agitating other internet users. + +This phrase can be rolled out whenever your blog post, tweet, or Facebook share has unleashed a cacophony of angry hatred directed towards _you_ rather than what you have _shared_ : + +(And by hatred I mean hatred; debate is great — unwarranted anger and abuse are not). + +> **Troll:** You have ZERO idea what you are talking about! You should never write about this subject again! The World IS Flat! + +> **You:** Wow, I’m glad to see such a plurality of opinions in this comments section! However, I do in fact have a PhD on this very topic, have observed the curvature of the earth from an airplane, and do not require your permission to continue writing about it — even if it seems as if are viewpoints are not in alignment. + +### “Thank You For This Spirited Exchange of Views!” + +One thing I’ve come to believe about internet trolls is that — in the majority of cases — it’s simply not worth engaging with them. + +If you say this outright, then trolls will often engage in gaslighting — accusing _you_ of being unwilling to engage them in debate or answer their points. They will also often claim that you have made no points in an argument — which likely isn’t true, it’s simply that they don’t _like_ your points or ascribe any validity to them. + +This, in my view, is perfectly fine: If you look hard enough you will find no shortage of people on the internet with views opposed to you who _are_ prepared to engage in debate marked by civility and decorum. You might learn a thing or two by engaging with them — or even change your mind on an issue entirely. + +The ones that aren’t? My advice is not to waste your (digital) breath.For that reason, sometimes it’s best to reach for a quick exit. + +The above is a decent formulation for thanking your adversary for participating in the flame war — but simultaneously making it clear that you have no interest in continuing to participate in it. + +> **Troll:** You have made NO points but you keep attacking ME for being “aggressive”. Do you have ANYTHING intelligent to say here? + +> **You:** Thank you for engaging in this spirited debate! The paint is currently drying on my walls. So I think I’m going to have to go now and watch that happen instead. Good evening! + +### Kill Them With Kindness + +Our trainer for the temp gig at Amazon used to constantly repeat that the best way to deal with angry customers was to _“kill them with kindness.”_ + +In a sense, these formulations — with the exception, perhaps, of the attempt to evade getting caught up in somebody’s pity party —subtly follow that same approach. + +When dealing with internet trolls and cyberbullies, it’s helpful to understand that their anger and frustration comes from an internal place. + +Often, looking at their post history is enough to demonstrate that their animosity and anger actually represents a longstanding pattern of vitriol doled out towards anybody whose viewpoint, or political allegiance, is not the same as their own. That can be helpful to observer, because it can make transparent that the anger is not directed specifically towards you — and it wasn’t because they woke up on the wrong side of the bed either. + +There _are_ a few ground-rules for reasonable debate that you can scribble at the back of a notebook — don’t use insults and attack the person not their argument are two good ones to start with. These can help ensure an atmosphere of civility even when the interlocutors are diametrically opposed in their opinions. + +If that fails you can use the above phrases to try to defuse the situation and get out of it. If the troll continues to bait you and won’t let go — the best thing you do is turn off post notifications and let them be without getting ‘pinged’ every time that they write a new comment (I advocate blocking if the troll is personally abusive, but I don’t think it is warranted in all circumstances). + +Because, truthfully, life is truly to short to put up with abuse from anonymous internet users who are simply out to attack. + +Happy browsing! diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Dirty-Secrets-About-Life-In-Israel-Aliyah-Promoters-Probably-Won-t-Tell-You.md b/posts/medium/5-Dirty-Secrets-About-Life-In-Israel-Aliyah-Promoters-Probably-Won-t-Tell-You.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..dc393b907b16703496c0d1d2f5d1a077e1f1e136 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Dirty-Secrets-About-Life-In-Israel-Aliyah-Promoters-Probably-Won-t-Tell-You.md @@ -0,0 +1,126 @@ +# 5 Dirty Secrets About Life In Israel Aliyah Promoters Probably Won’t Tell You + +#### It may be the land of milk and honey, but the taste of living in Israel can occasionally also come with a bitter aftertaste + +Israel’s shoreline at Tel Aviv. While attractive, a place on it doesn’t come cheap. Photo by [Naya Shaw](https://www.pexels.com/@naya-shaw-1024101?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/aerial-photo-of-road-near-buildings-and-beach-2002604/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’m all in favor of the process of Jews moving to Israel to start new lives here — at least in theory. + +In Jewish circles, that process is known as _aliyah_(the word literally means ‘ascension’ and derives from the idea that for Jews to move from Diaspora communities to Israel is a spiritually elevating experience). + +Zionism is the ideology that underpins the world’s only Jewish state. And _Olim_(plural for ‘immigrants’) are Jews who come to live in Israel — whether through persecution or ideological fervor. + +And while my perspective on Israel has changed massively over the course of my time here, I think that participating in the story of the State of Israel is massively exciting for those prepared to take the leap and uproot themselves to new climes. + +All that being said, I’m increasingly finding myself increasingly ticked-off by some facets of life in Israel that are — frankly — pretty ridiculous. Many feel the same way — although not everybody is prepared to put their byline on a public blog. + +But that’s not really what I take issue with. + +Every country has its selling points and facets that make is less attractive. In this respect Israel is no more unique than Turkey or Singapore. And as a place to live, it is objectively more attractive than many other counties, especially in its region. + +What seems more unique, in Israel’s case, is a prevalent feeling among many that speaking ill of the country is traitorous anathema that must be silenced. + +This leads to what might be accurately described as a culture of toxic positivity among immigrants here — and more perplexingly to me, often among Jews living in the diaspora. In my opinion, it does absolutely no good for the future of the country. Nor for those living here who feel shunned into silence, their lived experiences devalidated (sometimes, ironically, by those who have never spent more than a week in the country). + +Just as pertinently, all this ends up doing instead is creating an image of what life in Israel is life that’s discordant with reality on the ground. + +If every positive must be hyped — see _hasbara_ and the culture it has spawned — and every negative cloaked in silence, we end up with something that looks an awful lot like North Korean propaganda. Just a much milder version of it. + +Like North Korean expats who were enticed to the homeland by ridiculous propaganda only to find a scraggly wasteland in its place, we merely end up with a lot of disillusioned immigrants who return in a few years to their countries of origin, brokenhearted by how the flawed country they lived in ended up bearing little resemblance to the one written up in brochures. + +Speaking about that (returning immigrants): nobody’s keeping numbers, it seems (that fact alone is baffling). Or if they are, they’re doing an excellent job at making them hard to find. + +But if anecdotal reports are anything to go by, I’ve seen estimates as to how many Jewish immigrants to Israel end up packing their bags range from as low as 20% to as high as 50%. Personally I can vouch for the fact that many friends that I made in Israel have already moved to new climes. It’s difficult here. Many end up voting with their feet in recognition of that fact. + +There are some real problems here — alongside lots of opportunity. This is a (very) partial list of issues that I’d love to see entering the fold of acceptable discussion. + +### Customer Service In Israel Is Often Appallingly Bad + +American immigrants to Israel are often shocked to find that the _“yes, ma’am”_ culture that pervades in the States doesn’t exist here. Nor does the maxim that “the customer is always right.” + +I don’t take issue with any of that although some basic manners would be great in many aspects of life here, customer service being only one of them. + +What I’m talking about, instead, is a business culture that regards Israeli customers as suckers who must be milked for every last _shekel_ they’re worth. It’s predatory. It’s abusive. And for way too long it’s been something that only people living in Israel discuss. + +Far too many companies in Israel exploit their position of market and geographic dominance — it’s not like we can buy internet in Jordan — to deliver a level of service to their customers that is at best negligent and sometimes even downright abusive. + +Often the local representatives of international brands are the worst offenders. If you have a great experience with a logistics provider that began with ‘D’ in Japan, don’t expect that the same will automatically hold true in Israel. + +I’d love to go into more detail but…. + +### Israel’s Defamation Laws Also Prevent You From Talking About Aforementioned Lousy Businesses + +I’m — generally speaking — not a fan of shaming companies into providing service through posting the sordid details of your experience on social media. Although I have done this on multiple occasions when Israeli businesses simply refused to provide service (one more grievance: an apology — or the magic words “we’re sorry for the inconvenience” — are so rarely uttered by companies here). + +[**How Israel’s Draconian Defamation Laws Shield Abusive Businesses From Consequence** + _In a country in which even leaving a negative Google review can trigger a legal action, residents say the strict legal…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc) + +Nevertheless, Israel takes muzzling to its farthest extreme with a defamation code that makes it a potentially _illegal offence_ to so much as state an opinion about a derelict service provider anywhere on the internet.That includes, naturally, Facebook. + +Groups have been founded by English speakers — The Israel Blacklist is the best known — that exist solely to try to warn others which businesses not to buy from. That group sadly had to close down because running the group was too much of a potential legal quagmire for the group owner. + +Customer protection law — like the laws intended to provide renters that are regularly run over roughshod by uncaring agents — aren’t much better. + +### Salaries By And Large Don’t Keep Up With The Cost Of Living + +While it’s true that Israel does have a strong technology sector, the much underdiscussed fact is that the vast majority of the workforce does _not_ work in it. + +It’s great to talk about the success of high-tech. But if want to have an honest conversation about what standards of living in Israel are like, we also need to talk about non-participation rates — and salary disparity within companies. Otherwise, we’re merely cherry-picking information. + +But to cherry-pick some details to inject a little realism into the debate: it was recently revealed that the nucleus of the entire sector consists of only 20,000 people. Israel’s population now numbers more than nine million. + +[**Just 20,000 people drive Israel's tech industry - study** + _Israel's technology industry relies on 20,000 talented people who are responsible for the sector's technological…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-just-20000-people-drive-israels-tech-industry-study-1001384225 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-just-20000-people-drive-israels-tech-industry-study-1001384225")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-just-20000-people-drive-israels-tech-industry-study-1001384225) + +Outside of the much hyped “high tech” world may workers are attempting to survive in a country with the eighth highest cost of living in the developed world on a paltry minimum wage that equates to only 29 NIS per hour — causing them to loose close on 3,000 shekels per month. + +This was the highest second deficit in the world according to the personal finance website that compiled the data. + +[**Minimum wage earners lose NIS 2,750 per month - study** + _Israelis earning minimum wage lose an average of $857 (NIS 2,750) per month after paying for living expenses, the…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/minimum-wage-earners-lose-nis-2750-per-month-study-679793 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/minimum-wage-earners-lose-nis-2750-per-month-study-679793")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/minimum-wage-earners-lose-nis-2750-per-month-study-679793) + +### Israeli Real Estate Is Exorbitantly Expensive And Unaffordable For Many Young People And Immigrants + +Even the coronavirus can’t arrest the seemingly inevitable rise of real estate prices in Israel which were last year revealed to be the second highest per square meter in the world. + +This may be vaunted as a good think or hailed as a hallmark of Israel’s rising economic dominance. Naturally, if you’re trying to buy property, the situation is flipped on its head. + +The problem? Many Israelis are neither independently wealthy nor in a position to afford the downpayments. + +This is a global dynamic of course, but the crunch is being felt particularly strongly here in Israel. For those interested in exploring the dynamic in more depth, Alan Rosenbaum’s piece for _The Jerusalem Post_ is worth a read. + +The summary version (without disrespecting the writer or those quoted; it was a worthwhile and important piece): perspectives from a few real estate professionals asserting what every dog on the street in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv already knows — namely that demand from foreign investors is shoring up prices, alongside a government whose only answer seems to provide very modest subsidies for those looking to live in less developed (but also for many less attractive) parts of the country. + +[**Jerusalem's real estate scene: How much, for whom and where?** +_"Ten measures of beauty were bestowed upon the world," says the Talmud. "Nine were taken by Jerusalem, and one by the…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/jerusalems-real-estate-scene-how-much-for-whom-and-where-680005 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/jerusalems-real-estate-scene-how-much-for-whom-and-where-680005")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/jerusalems-real-estate-scene-how-much-for-whom-and-where-680005) + +[**My desperate journey to buy an apartment in Israel** + _"Gili, if you have money, even if it's only 150,000 shekels from savings and another 100,000 that you can get from your…_ www.haaretz.com](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/my-desperate-journey-to-buy-an-apartment-in-israel-1.10223109 "https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/my-desperate-journey-to-buy-an-apartment-in-israel-1.10223109")[](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/my-desperate-journey-to-buy-an-apartment-in-israel-1.10223109) + +[**Housing prices in Israel soar by 5.6% over the past year** + _Israeli housing prices have risen 5.6 percent in the past year, according to a new report on the consumer price index…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/housing-prices-in-israel-soar-by-5-6-over-the-past-year/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/housing-prices-in-israel-soar-by-5-6-over-the-past-year/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/housing-prices-in-israel-soar-by-5-6-over-the-past-year/) + +### The Cost Of Living Is Sky High (…But None Of Our Politicians, Perplexingly, Seem That Bothered By It) + +Among those who grew up taking holidays in Israel, this is apparently a well-known fact. The sky is blue, did you hear? + +But sometimes one just feels that the gung-ho literature produced in mass by organizations trying to encourage immigration to Israel fails to really capture the extent of how expensive living in Israel can be. + +[**Tel Aviv is costlier than New York, Economist ranking finds** + _Living in Tel Aviv is more expensive than living in New York City, making it the fifth-most expensive city in the…_ www.haaretz.com](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/tel-aviv-is-costlier-than-new-york-economist-ranking-finds-1.9316903 "https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/tel-aviv-is-costlier-than-new-york-economist-ranking-finds-1.9316903")[](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/tel-aviv-is-costlier-than-new-york-economist-ranking-finds-1.9316903) + +What’s cheap — or rather affordable? Healthcare is excellent. Falafel — as you’d expect — doesn’t cost much. Hang on, there’s more… + +The stranger dynamic? Neither the Israeli voter nor the entirety of the Knesset seem particularly non-plussed about this phenomenon even though it frequently makes domestic headlines. + +I still personally believe that those with means, energy, and volition to do so should make _aliyah_. Even when that means a lowering of one’s standard of living. + +Living in Israel presents an opportunity to start one’s life from a blank canvas, make whatever one wants of it — and leave an impression on the trajectory of the country at the same time. + +There’s a feeling — sometimes — that every immigrant matters in Israel. That nobody is too singular to make a difference. That’s a feeling that it’s hard to replicate in more evolved countries. + +Nevertheless, I’ve begun to really hate the fairytale version of what life in Israel is like that far too many insist on peddling in at every opportunity. It’s deceptive, misleading, and very liable to create massive disappointment. + +There are real challenges here. + +But therein, paradoxically, also lies the great opportunity: that means that there’s also a great chance to contribute towards the betterment of the world’s only Jewish state. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Great-Things-About-Living-In-Israel.md b/posts/medium/5-Great-Things-About-Living-In-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2483490605f44ca278d97f03c4ea0bb04f30ec10 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Great-Things-About-Living-In-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,132 @@ +# 5 Great Things About Living In Israel + +#### Some Great Things About Actually Making A Home In Israel + +The Ramat Gan skyline. Photo: Wikipedia + +If you’ve a news junkie or are just passively interested in the countries and geography of the Middle East, then Israel is probably best known to you as a land of geopolitical unrest. Or perhaps as the place where Tel Aviv is located and a lot of humus and falafel is eaten. + +For those who actually come to make a home here, however, Israel also offers a lot of positive — as well as some limitations. I’ve discussed some of the latter challenges before (did you know Israel is the eighth most expensive country country in the world with the second highest real estate per square meter?). + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +Nevertheless, regardless of whether you’re living in Israel because you think it’s your only true home, you’re a diplomat stationed here, or you happen to have been moved here for job reasons, **there are also undoubtedly many positives about life in Israel.** + +Here are some of them. + +### It’s The (Only) Jewish Homeland + +For Jews, this reason tends to trump all the downsides. For non-Jews: if your Jewish friends are staying in Israel despite constantly grumbling about the cost of living, this might be the reason. + +Israel is the world’s only country with a Jewish majority. The only country in which Jews aren’t an ethnoreligious minority And the only country in which the national holiday calendar accommodates those of the Jewish faith. + +It’s the land where Judaism originated and to which a hefty percentage of world Jewry returned after the state’s establishment in 1948. + +Nowadays, more Jews live in Israel than in any country in the world, including the US (although, thanks to the long tail of the Jewish diaspora, the majority of Jews continue to live outside the country). + +[**Jewish population by country** + _As of 2018, the world's "core" Jewish population, those identifying as Jews above all else, was 14.6 million. The…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_population_by_country "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_population_by_country")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_population_by_country) + +### It Has Fantastic (Cheap) Healthcare + +Now moving onto factors that apply regardless of your religious affiliation. + +Healthcare in Israel is (generally) of high quality and very affordable. + +Every citizen is required to be registered to one of four official _kupot holim_(health maintenance organizations). These provide access to family doctors and other specialists as well as subsidized medicines and diagnostic services. + +Israel also makes extensive use of electronic medical records (EMRs). Booking a doctor’s appointment in Israel is as easy as logging into your _kupa’s_ website (or smartphone) app and selecting a convenient time. I can call up my latest blood tests juts as easily. And to see a specialist I often only need to wait a few weeks. + +How cheap are we talking? + +My asthma inhaler costs me 28.66 NIS (at today’s rates: €7.65 / $8.92). A 90 day supply of omperazole cost me 54 NIS (at today’s rates: €13.85 / $16.81. That’s just $5.60 a month! + +I pay 51.05 NIS a month for access to Macabbi’s gold level membership (Macabbi Zahav). This isn’t even their top tier membership but provides me with everything that I’ve needed to date. That’s €13.05 / $15.89. + +Overall, I have been very happy with healthcare here and have seen excellent family doctors, specialists, and even had surgery here. + +### The Weather Is Great + +Compared to Western Europe’s often dreary skies (I come from Ireland — enough said!), Israel is drenched in sunshine almost year round. + +Tel Aviv and Jerusalem both have an average of more than 3,300 hours of sunshine per year. + +Jerusalem has an average of 554mm of rainfall per year. Cork, Ireland, by comparison, has more than double that amount (1,228). + +Oranges from Israel: the product of a lot of good sunshine + +Largely dry sunny weather translates to: + + * Plenty of opportunities to eat and host outside + * Plenty of opportunities to go to the beach and sunbathe + * Lots of excellent freshly grown produce + +### Everybody Is Very Direct + +Don’t get me wrong about this point: Israelis frequently drive me crazy. + +There’s (often) a glaring lack of basic manners and courtesy here. + +One sees this when attempting to purchase goods and services (right now, let’s just say that Israel probably won’t be in the reckoning for any customer service awards); when driving on the roads and contending with the maniacal tendencies of other drivers; and when holding open a door for a group of strangers only to be met with silence in place of a ‘thanks’. + +Exceptions apply to all the above, of course but … dynamic that’s pronounced enough to be noticeable. + +Nevertheless this unique culture also has its upside. Everybody in Israel is extraordinary direct. + +[**What To Know About Working With Israelis** + _As a new immigrant and now small business owner (I eschew the term “freelancer”) I’ve spent the last five years, in…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca) + +A friend who works in branding recently explained that, in Israel, he would feel comfortable telling a client that a Powerpoint could be skipped and he could summarize his advice in a few sentences. An American client, by contrast, might insist on receiving a deliverable even if it weren’t actually useful to achieving the project outcome. + +Israel is heavy on startups where hierarchies tend to be flat and lines of communication direct. If you like straight-talking in-your-face cultures, then you’re probably going to enjoy interacting with Israelis. + +### It’s Really Small + +Israel’s diminutive size is as much an advantage as it is a drawback. + +Just how small are we talking? + +Israel measures just 22,145 km². Ireland, by contrast, is 84,421 km² — 3 .8 times the surface area. + +If you want to measure Israel by comparison to your preferred point of reference, then check out the following website: + +[**Compare Countries With This Simple Tool** + _Drag and drop countries around the map to compare their relative size. Is Greenland really as big as all of Africa? You…_ thetruesize.com](https://thetruesize.com/ "https://thetruesize.com/")[](https://thetruesize.com/) + +If Israel were an island to the west of Ireland it would look like this (to scale). Screenshot: TheTrueSize.com. + +The advantages of Israel being tiny: + + * You can see the whole country in a few days + * Nowhere is really ever that far (you could drive the length of the country in one day) + +Despite Israel being tiny geographically (and topographically ) it’s an extraordinarily diverse place: drive ten minutes outside Jerusalem’s packed neighborhoods towards the Dead Sea and you’re surrounded by desert and camels. + +The Golan — remarkably sparsely inhabited compared to the rest of the country — contains lush green pastures that remind (in places and in seasons) of Northern Europe. Tel Aviv and the merkaz is the country’s bustling center. There’s a lot on show — in a very small space. + +Israel’s also a good regional base to do some travelling from. You can travel into Taba, Egypt by crossing a land border with Eilat. Jordan is accessible through several land crossings. Turkey, Greece, Italy, and Cyprus are all close by. The Open Skies Agreement means that Ben Gurion Airport is now on the map. Ryanair even flies to Israel now! + +### The Food Is Excellent + +As a meeting and melting pot of many different Jewish diaspora cultures, Israel is home to a remarkable milieu of world cuisines. + +There’s of course plenty of humus on offer. But I must confess that I think humus is wildly overrated. + +Israel contains lots of humus … but also Ethiopian food, Persian food, and shawarma + +Much more exciting than humus is Ethiopian food. Thanks to the influx of Jewry from this part of Africa one doesn’t have to travel that far in Israel to dig into some injera and misir wot. + +Other excellent delicacies that can be found in abundance in Israel: + + * Falafel + * Shawarma + * Knaffe + * Persian food, French patisseries + * Turkish coffee (caveat: not so easy to find somewhere that knows how to prepare Turkish coffee properly and doesn’t just pour hot water on top of grounds; Israelis call this ‘botz’; I call this an abomination.) + +### Israel Can Be A Great Place To Live + +Despite the sky high cost of living, the country’s precarious geopolitics, and the now annual tradition of holding elections, Israel is, in many respects, a country that offers its citizens a high quality of life. + +There’s lots more to say. But the best thing to do is to come see things for yourself diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Occupations-That-Use-Ridiculously-Cool-Workstations.md b/posts/medium/5-Occupations-That-Use-Ridiculously-Cool-Workstations.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..21e20896ec779a3ccd5a6b7afde8d32c4a11348a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Occupations-That-Use-Ridiculously-Cool-Workstations.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# 5 Occupations That Use Ridiculously Cool Workstations + +Those that have been following my new Medium account have probably got the idea already that I’m “into” multimonitor computing. + +[I’ve cataloged](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/updated-vesa-monitor-mount-configurations/) possible VESA mount/array configurations, [posted some of my favorite battlestations](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-great-workstations-from-r-battlestations-f6dc6332bc56) from /r/battlestations, and [offered some GPU recommendations](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/graphics-cards-gpus-that-support-six-and-more-outputs-a1322cfca9b2) to take you from man-hunched-over-laptop in coffee shop to looking like a day trader in a Wall Street investment bank. + +Speaking of day traders in Wall Street investment banks, these are precisely the type of people I draw inspiration from. People that take multimonitor computing to its furthest limits. People like these guys: + +In the interest of helping you dig up your own selection of I-need-that-many-screens galleries, let me explain which occupations and professions — from my own observations — tend to have the most outrageously good workstations. + +### 1\. 911 Dispatchers + +911 dispatchers are the everyday heroes you get through to whenever you call emergency services. + +Evidently, these guys need a lot of screen real estate: to keep track of incoming calls and dispatch ambulances, police units, and fire engines to the right locations. + +I’m trying hard to only embed images in this post that are in the public domain. But — for national pride’s sake — [I must include a link to this workstation](https://images.hamodia.com/hamod-uploads/2020/02/F200223AVSFF03-1024x684.jpg) from the National Operations Center of Magen David Adom (Israel’s national ambulance service) which was in the news recently as a result of the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. + +If you’re looking to set up something similar in your command center-esque home office then check out the [Chief Kontour K4 6x1](https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1134650-REG/chief_k4g610b_kontour_k4_6x1_horizontal.html) (six mounts, $1,359) and the [Chief Kontour K4 5x1](https://www.displaythisway.com/Chief-Kontour-Array-K4G510B.aspx) (five mounts, $1,165). + +And here are some photos of 911 dispatchers that _are_ in the public domain. + +Tink Air Force Base + +### 2\. Airline Dispatchers + +Flight dispatchers (also known as airline dispatchers) are the unseen hands that take care of all the logistical hard work of keeping commercial aircraft in the sky. They assist with planning flight paths, helping airliners avoid turbulence, and dealing with local airport restrictions. + +That kind of workload translates to screenage-real-estate-galore. + +### 3\. Stock Traders (And Financial Analysts) + +Every time the NASDAQ rallies or crashes it seems that news broadcasts the world over tend to cut to stock footage of an institutional trader observing the markets in front of an enormous array. + +There’s good reason why these setups are so ubiquitous in the world of finance and day trading: for those taking short term positions on financial markets, the more information the better. + +Traders tend to use their massive screen real estate to monitor both qualitative and quantitative feeds. These include plenty of charts, news broadcasts, and closed networks. + +### 4\. TV Control Rooms + +Those producing live television typically need to monitor many video fees simultaneously and choose which to include in the broadcast stream. + +Typically, these screen arrays consist of many wall-mounted flatscreen LED TVs, but I’m giving them an honorary inclusion in this list. + +### 5\. Radiologists and Medical Imaging Professionals + +The next time you go in for medical imaging, spare a thought for the radiologist interpreting the output of your scan. + +Radiologists are highly trained doctors that specialize in diagnosing and treating disease using various medical imaging technologies, including X-rays, CT, scans, PET scans, and MRIs. + +Because they often need to compare an entire set of images, they also tend to be equipped with some pretty respectable workstations in the “reading rooms” where they look at patient imagery. + +Here’s one floating around Google Images: + +### Have I Missed Any? + +I’m always on the lookout for inspiring workstations to add to my Google Photos stash. I have developed a bit of an unhealthy obsession with seeing how those at work have configured their monitors — but the workstations, and the important jobs these professionals do with their help, are inspiring. + +[Drop me a line](http://www.danielrosehill.co.il) if you think this article needs an update. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Positive-Changes-I-ve-Observed-in-Israel-This-Year.md b/posts/medium/5-Positive-Changes-I-ve-Observed-in-Israel-This-Year.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8a690039f459f398abab7fee38fbc6f34b7c0530 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Positive-Changes-I-ve-Observed-in-Israel-This-Year.md @@ -0,0 +1,65 @@ +# 5 Positive Changes I’ve Observed in Israel This Year + +Living in Israel can be a frustrating experience. For most people who live here, that probably doesn’t require elaboration. + +But just when you’re nearing the end of your tether and having thoughts of _yerida_ , you notice that things are changing here — for the better. + +For some reason, I get usually encouraged by the small positive changes when I notice them- the type of things that most people brush off as minor developments or curiosities. + +I remember during my first year of _aliyah_ watching in amazement as the _Rav Kav_ customer service center transformed-almost miraculously, almost overnight-from a cesspool of bureaucracy to a network of gleaming customer service centers that wouldn’t look amiss in London or Paris. In my mind at least, it almost happened that fast. I think I almost cried. + +Although I’ve made no secret of my grievances with several aspects of life in Israel [(especially the cost of living)](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel/) I believe that Israel is advancing forward as a country at a steady pace, despite its young age. + +In part, it’s this very frenetic pace of developments that can make Israel seem like such a perpetual _balagan_. The journey can be chaotic and stressful; but seeing some of the outcomes makes it seem much more bearable. + +These innovations might seem small, but they mean we’re on a forward trajectory. Things are getting better, albeit slowly. Where gaps exist between the standard of living in Israel and the West, they are closing. + +Like many, I’ve spent the majority of the last year in relative social isolation. But these are the things I’ve noticed between forays into the outside world. + +### 1\. Our Bank Cards Now Have PIN Codes + +One of the strange facets of life in Israel that has always freaked me out has been that-until very recently-bank cards here didn’t come with PIN codes. + +Although in practice card management companies have great self-service features now-such that if you lose your card you can quickly freeze it-that meant that anybody that stole your card could begin racking up purchases just by picking a card off the street and forging a signature. + +### 2\. Contactless Payments Are Here + +I remember marveling on one of my first trips back to Ireland at this fantastic new contactless payment technology that seemed to be everywhere. + +You just held your credit card up to an EMV reader and -boom!-you could pay for services (this innovation is particularly dangerous in the setting of a bar). I must have looked like something out of a history novel as I admired it. + +Not only had contactless payments arrived to Ireland, as I found out on my flight home, but they existed throughout Europe too (I began to feel like a very backward foreigner from the Middle East). + +Their arrival in Israel- a home of technology, but mostly focused on the export market-has been a little more delayed. But I can confirm that this advance happened some time over the past year while I, and much of society, were largely ensconced in our apartments. + +Banks have begun issuing cards with EMV chips and EMV point of sale (PoS) terminals are now ubiquitous. If your card doesn’t have a chip, it’s worth asking for a replacement that does. [The initial usage limit was 200 NIS](https://www.nfcw.com/2020/05/14/366538/israel-to-increase-contactless-payments-limit-by-50/#:~:text=The%20contactless%20payment%20limit%20is,dealing%20with%20the%20coronavirus%20pandemic%E2%80%9D.) (roughly $60 at today’s rate) which is to be raised to 300 NIS by year end. + +### 3\. Contactless ATMs Are Also Here + +Last news on the financial front. + +Many ATMs are sporting the contactless payment technology too. My recollection is a little spotty but I can recall seeing one last week in Jerusalem. + +### 4\. (Almost) Everybody Wears Face Masks + +As a fairly early pandemic precaution “adopter” I can remember attracting stares back in February when I first donned a face mask. + +Face mask wearing isn’t 100% perfect. Compliance varies by city. But compared to how things were less than a year ago, the difference is night and day. + +### 5\. The Home Delivery Market Has Exploded + +Drive through any main street in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv these days and you can’t miss the 10Bis and Wolt delivery drivers shepherding takeaway to hungry patrons. + +10Bis has been around for years and is particularly popular as a sort of employee perk (and enticement) among Israeli technology companies. [Wolt is fast expanding](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/.premium-the-untouchables-food-delivery-services-find-ways-to-cope-with-coronavirus-anxiety-1.8707396) and bringing its delivery service to new areas. + +Like Deliveroo-the food delivery service that operates throughout the UK, Ireland, and elsewhere-10Bis and Wolt make sure that their couriers are decked out in bright flashy gear sporting company colors and branding. They’re impossible to miss. And make the cities feel that bit more urban as a result. + +Of course, they’re also carrying something. The COVID restrictions have forced many restaurants to go online and virtually every time I log into 10Bis there’s a new delivery option. + +It’s the worst of times — to have a social life. + +And the best of times — to be stuck at home gorging on fast food and tipping your delivery driver with contactless. + +Daniel Rosehill is a professional writer based in Jerusalem specializing in ghostwriting long-form thought leadership content for technology executives and public sector clients. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Possible-KPIs-For-Your-Freelance-Writing-Business.md b/posts/medium/5-Possible-KPIs-For-Your-Freelance-Writing-Business.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..50efad28e2d58ef6c7d789fc0d3e85b2e0f95a95 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Possible-KPIs-For-Your-Freelance-Writing-Business.md @@ -0,0 +1,100 @@ +# 5 Possible KPIs For Your Freelance Writing Business + +#### Tracking Metrics Can Help Keep You On Target + +KPIs: can help keep your freelance writing business on track and in profit + +Working for yourself can be tough. + +Besides having to do everything yourself — from the taxes to the administration to the work that you’re paid to do for clients — there’s the additional challenge of keeping yourself productive and motivated. + +When you’re working in a home office — however well you may have rigged it up for productivity — Netflix is only ever a few clicks away. + +One way to avoid derailing your _own_ productivity is to set key performance indicators (KPIs) to try hold yourself to some sort of account. Here are a few that could work to help keep your writing business on track. + +An example KPI dashboard. Source: Wikimedia Commons + +### Inbound Leads Per Month + +This is the KPI that I’m focusing on and trying to budge northward this year. + +**How many inbound leads did you receive interested in hiring you as a writer?** + +Inbound leads — in my definition at least — can come from a few different directions: + + * Contact form completions to your website + * Inbound referrals from your existing clients + * Word of mouth style referrals from friends / your professional network + +I don’t like to get too caught up in the weeds of sales and marketing jargon here or ask whether those leads are well-qualified or not. I just want a certain volume of top of funnel activity to demonstrate that my inbound marketing activities are showing ROI. + +### Words Written Per Day + +My Medium followers may already know my philosophy about how to charge for freelance writing. + +I think that per word is generally a lousy way to go about it and charging per project is both better and tends to lend itself to doing better writing. Churning out content just for the sake of it isn’t a good habit to get into as a writer. + +[**Charging Freelance Writing Clients Per Word — Pros and Cons** + _Does Journalism’s Gold Standard Make Sense in Content Marketing?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0) + +Nevertheless, to get paid for writing at _some point_ you have to …. string together letters and words. + +If you can predict the volume you need to write with some measure of science, then you might wish to set yourself a KPI centered around words written per day. Hitting it can then be a surrogate for meeting your target income and keeping the ship on tack. + +### Prospective Client Calls Per Month + +If your business development process looks anything like mine, then you may find, after a while, that there’s a somewhat predictable cadence new clients follow on their way from being interested marketing leads to filling up your book of business: + + * First they want an exploratory phone call + * Then you quote and send writing samples + * Finally — often some time after the previous step — they become paying clients + +Over time, I’ve developed the belief — yours may differ! — that it’s worth talking to most prospective leads until there are very obvious reasons to disqualify them from my pipeline. + +If you tend to have good success with this kind of cadence then prospective calls per month might be a good KPI to keep track of. + +### Maximum Income Per Client (MIPC) + +Time for a secret folks. + +I just cooked up the acronym MIPC. + +I’ve never heard anybody talking about or endorsing it. But I submit that that’s a great pity because diversifying your income and client-base is _essential_ to being able to weather downturns in industries, entire economies, or the freelancing ecosystem at large. + +[**Ways You Can Diversify Your Freelance Writing Business** + _The Art Of Not Putting Your Eggs In One Basket_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5) + +[**How To Diversify Your Income As A Freelance Writer** + _How To Avoid Putting Your Eggs In One Basket_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-diversify-your-income-as-a-freelance-writer-13a7c15844ad "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-diversify-your-income-as-a-freelance-writer-13a7c15844ad")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-diversify-your-income-as-a-freelance-writer-13a7c15844ad) + +Freelancing authorities will differ in terms of what percentage of one’s income they recommend any one client constitute. + +I’ve heard numbers ranging from 20% to 33%. I think the exact number isn’t as important as figuring out what number works for your freelance writing business’s risk tolerance profile. + +The greater the share of your monthly income any one client constitutes the greater the risk you accept — because if that client leaves then that’s a larger chunk of your income out the window. + +Figure out what ‘MIPC’ works for your particular set of circumstances. Then make sure that none of your accounts exceed it. + +### Total Number of Clients + +If you’d rather not go into the nitty gritty of breaking down your monthly income by client and figuring out exactly how much of your monthly income each client constitutes, a simpler exercise is to simply tot up the number of clients you have at any one time. + +Again, freelancing authorities and authors will differ in terms of how many clients they recommend any freelance writer should have become they can be said to be under-diversified. Again, I recommend that you figure out a number that works for you. + +Personally, I would think that anything under four clients (ie three or less) is getting into risky territory. Maintaining only one client is desperately risky and presents a high likelihood that the client is actually treating you as a shadow employee. + +On the flip side, I find it tricky to juggle more than six clients — although I’ve heard of freelancers that can keep as many as 14 on the go at any one time (and I’m sure there are those who work with more.) + +Choose a range that you know works for you and — unless you’re ready to scale — try to stay within it. + +### The Value of KPIs For Writers + +I’ve found that setting a few KPIs and trying to track them helps keep me on track as a freelance writer. + +There are plenty of free (and paid) tools on the market for building KPI dashboards and if you have a spare TV screen or monitor in your home office you might find using one for this purpose motivating. + +[**Free Business KPI Dashboard Software | Databox** + _Quickly and easily build a consolidated view of your company's key performance indicators. Build custom views and…_ databox.com](https://databox.com/product "https://databox.com/product")[](https://databox.com/product) + +[**KPI Software for creating Dashboard and Reports | SimpleKPI** + _See what's really making up the numbers. Compare trends over different periods and get to the root cause of any peaks…_ www.simplekpi.com](https://www.simplekpi.com/ "https://www.simplekpi.com/")[](https://www.simplekpi.com/) diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Reasons-ADHD-Medication-Is-Better-Than-Caffeine.md b/posts/medium/5-Reasons-ADHD-Medication-Is-Better-Than-Caffeine.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3bd6c8558649b7f237e96420a24c68e6a23a2685 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Reasons-ADHD-Medication-Is-Better-Than-Caffeine.md @@ -0,0 +1,98 @@ +# 5 Reasons ADHD Medication Is Better Than Caffeine + +#### Natural isn’t always better — and other reasons why I finally bit (or swallowed) the psychostimulant medication pill + +Coffee: probably not the best way to treat ADHD. Photo by [Rachel Claire](https://www.pexels.com/@rachel-claire?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/mug-of-coffee-on-wooden-table-4577860/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +As I shared here somewhat recently, I was diagnosed last summer with ADHD. + +I’m thus about one year into the treatment process. + +It’s been a journey that has seen me try out three different medications, visit three specialists (one retired, one provided a second opinion), and deal with the most unexpectedly frustrating part of having ADHD: getting medication prescriptions filled at pharmacies (oh, the bureaucracy!) + +[**My ADHD Diagnosis Story** + _Cross-posted from Twitter, lightly redacted, and expanded:_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c) + +Prior to getting formally diagnosed, I lived and breathed coffee. Latterly, I used to caffeine pills to get my fix — which oddly made the idea of trying another pill a lot more palatable to me. + +But for more than 10 years, caffeine was the molecule that I used to start working and to keep focused throughout the day. Without it, I couldn’t work. With it, I could work until it (often) turned me into a jittery mess. It also came with a boatload of other side effects including anxiety and insomnia. + +While no medication is perfect and these drawbacks are common with ADHD stimulant medication also, I’m nevertheless pretty sure that what I’m taking now — Vyvanse — is far superior to caffeine pills. + +On the slim chance that you’re — like I was — stuck convincing yourself that if caffeine is “good enough” to keep the worst of your ADHD at bay, that there’s no need for anything stronger, here are some reasons that might help you change your mind. + +### Caffeine Isn’t Really Natural (Nor, Of Course, Are Meds) + +One of the factors that kept me attempting to treat my ADHD “naturally” with coffee and tea was clinging to the false belief that anything “natural” was inherently better and more safe. + +Firstly, that premise is flawed. There are compounds in natural that are incredibly deadly and pharmaceuticals that are extensively researched, far safer, and which save lives. + +But I’m not talking about that. + +Consider rather how unnatural it is to be consuming caffeine if you live in the West. Look at where coffee grows in the world. Then look at how coffee is harvested. Could any of this really happen without airplanes and trucks and other manifestations of human technology? + +Unless you’re living in Kenya, the answer is almost certainly yes. And even if you are living in a coffee growing region of the world, coffee wouldn’t likely be naturally as widely available as it is now. Picking and roasting coffee beans takes time and effort and the plant provides virtually no nutritional value. + +The ease with which we can consume large amounts of coffee in countries where there is no chance that the crop would naturally grow is actually a completely unnatural byproduct of globalization and international trade. + +Caffeine pills, needless to say, also do not grow on trees. + +### Dosing Caffeine Accurately Is Really Hard — And Inconvenient + +The only way to dose caffeine in a safe and controlled amount is to ingest pure caffeine. + +Firstly, if you’re even thinking about this, please avoid caffeine powder at all costs. It’s simply way too easy to overdose on that. + +But even if you’re being responsible and consuming caffeine pills, the best you’re going to be able to do is to mimic taking an instant release ADHD medication. + +These days, many ADHD patients being treated with psychostimulant drugs are being treated with specially formulated long-acting versions of stimulants such as Vyvanse and Concerta. Naturally, this is far more convenient. + +Ie, even if caffeine “works” to treat your ADHD and you don’t find the side effects overly bothersome … you’re missing out on some pretty cool medical evolution in the area of drug delivery for no good reason. + +If you’re ingesting caffeine through coffee and tea in an attempt to self-medicate your ADHD, then you’re almost certainly on a highly variable treatment plan that would be considered unacceptable by medical doctors. The only way _not_ to do this would be to drink coffee through a syringe and weigh out your beans. And even then, there would likely be non-trivial variations per cup. + +In order to avoid side effects and maximize benefits, a careful process of finely adjusting dosages and logging the effects is required. Undertaking that is simply impossible if you’re using caffeine as your “medication.” + +### Working With Doctors Is Much Safer Than Going It Alone + +No medical doctor that I’m aware of is going to hand you out a prescription for caffeine, or even the caffeine l-theanine stack, in order to treat your ADHD. It simply won’t happen. + +If you’re going down the medication route, then you’re going to be receiving prescribed medications for the condition. This will mean that you’ll almost certainly have to work with a doctor in order to continue receiving your prescriptions. + +While this might sound like an inconvenience to some — if I’m going to be honest, this was part of the reason buying into my caffeine delusion attracted me — in the long run this will be far far safer. + +Medical doctors are highly trained professionals. They’ll carefully monitor you for side effects. You’ll have somebody to work with to adjust your dosage and to whom to direct questions about the medication. + +### You’ll Probably Experience Less Side Effects + +People who don’t have ADHD would probably be surprised to hear me affirm that I actually find the effect of them somewhat similar to caffeine. + +The feeling they create is intimately familiar to me. I’ve been achieving it through other means for over a decade. They get me into that space I need to be in — free from the clutches of ADHD. The one in which I can be productive and focus. They rescue me from procrastination and not being able to move forward with projects. + +The main difference is that they’re a stronger drug. If the dose is too strong, I’m liable to experience a panic attack. There’s less wiggle room. But they’re also more powerful. And they have a better side effect profile. + +Medicinally, caffeine is only considered a mild stimulant. It has effects beyond those which are desirous for ADHD treatment. + +### It May Delay Your Diagnostic Process + +I spent 10 years of my adult life knowing that something wasn’t quite “right” with my daily regiment. + +I needed a large and frequent helping of caffeine simply to focus. At night time, I sometimes had to dampen down the anxiety and insomnia that this regiment created with alcohol. Deep down, I knew that there had to be something off and a better way of managing. + +The problem with this self-medication see-saw was that it worked well enough to delay getting professional help and doing the digging I needed to do in order to figure out what was at the root of my attention issues. + +It was only after having gallbladder surgery — when I needed to cut out as many potential dietary triggers as possible — that I finally got around to seeking out professional medical help. The first conversation centered around a big question — why? — and then I discovered that so many other features of my personality fit perfectly with the typical presentation of inattentional ADHD. + +If I hadn’t relied upon a “natural” treatment for so many years, I could have been diagnosed a _lot_ sooner. Like potentially even before adulthood. + +Don’t follow my example. + +In some ways, going from taking a Vyvanse pill once a day to ingesting caffeine every few hours might seem like a small adjustment to a daily schedule. But the repercussions so far have been life-changing. + +I’m no longer tethered to being near a source of coffee. Or of having to remember to take caffeine every few hours in order to remain focused. + +I can work with a doctor to figure out the optimal dose and — after taking a pill once in the morning — get on with work for the rest of my day. + +If you’ve convinced yourself that you can treat your ADHD with caffeine, I encourage you to reconsider your decision and to seek out professional help for evaluation and treatment. + +_(How many ADHDers self-medicate with the kind of coffee drinking regime I instituted? I’m not sure anybody knows. But I suspect a lot. Psychiatrists commonly also report that their formerly caffeine-obsessed patients don’t feel the slightest inclination to consume the drug after beginning treatment.)_ diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Reasons-Freelance-Writing-Clients-Disappear.md b/posts/medium/5-Reasons-Freelance-Writing-Clients-Disappear.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..41e810d7e08e87b56f2fb719e10202aefdedb367 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Reasons-Freelance-Writing-Clients-Disappear.md @@ -0,0 +1,121 @@ +# 5 Reasons Freelance Writing Clients Disappear + +#### All can be very uncertain in the life of a freelance writer. Here are some reasons why clients commonly leave. + +Layoffs don’t just happen to employees. Know the reasons why they happen to freelance writers to prepare yourself for the wort. Image: Pixabay. + +Freelance writing can be a shaky business. + +One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned during my five years working as one is this: the most important time to market yourself is when you’re too busy to do so. + +Better yet — don’t allow yourself to get to that point. Make sure there’s enough time in your workweek when you’re not working on client deliverables. + +[https://www.business2community.com/strategy/the-key-time-to-market-yourself-as-a-freelancer](https://www.business2community.com/strategy/the-key-time-to-market-yourself-as-a-freelancer%E2%80%8A-and-why-02364889) + +Why does pipeline development matter so much? + +**Because almost no business achieves perfect retention — and that certainly includes freelancers. Some churn is inevitable.** + +The adage that client acquisition costs more than retention bears true for freelancers too — so do everything in your power to keep the good customers on your book of business. But if you freelance for any length of time, you’re likely to find that finding new clients is a periodic fact of life. + +To underscore why this is so, here are some reasons that clients vanish that I’m familiar with (the list is almost certainly incomplete). + +Keep those pipelines full so that the next time a client reaches for the exit door, you won’t be left high and dry. + +### You Were Working On A Finite Lifespan Project + +Personally, I think it’s always worth taking a few moments before committing to any project, as a freelance writer, to clarify expectations. + +One question you should always be asking — if only sometimes to yourself — is **“does this project have a shelf life?”** + +Put yourself in the client’s shoes for a moment and ask yourself why clients hire freelancer writers. + +One reason is that freelance writers are expendable resources. They can be hired ad-hoc. Small businesses and those who are cost adverse don’t typically have to worry about committing to expensive monthly retainers when hiring them. + +Don’t be caught off-guard. + +If a client comprises a significant chunk of your income (and remember: that chunk should never be too significant) be on the watch for any signs that your project might be on the rocks. + +**What you can do:** + +Sound out questions to clarify what your client is thinking in terms of whether to continue using freelance resources. If they’re thinking about taking a project back in-house, it might be time to line up replacement options. + +### The Client Hires Your Job Away + +Many freelance clients carefully weigh up the costs of using freelance resources against the cost of adding another (in house) team member to the roster. + +Using freelancers in place of new hires is certainly generally cost-effective. For one, those hiring them don’t have to pay benefits. Nevertheless, there may come a tipping point at which a client decides that it’s more economical to bring on a new member to the team rather than continue using a freelance writer or a team of them. + +During my time freelance writing, I’ve seen: + + * Companies decide to stop using freelancers altogether. The rationale for such a policy shift is often that organizations want the resources providing important functions to be more dependable and committed to the project. + * Clients make new hires that render services previously provided by a freelance writer redundant. + +Clients can also choose to subsume your job, as a freelance writer, into the workload of another resource, such as an in-house content writer. + +**What you can do:** + +Be wary of hiring sprees particularly for jobs that could replace whatever contribution you’re making as a freelance writer. This could signal that your contract is about to come to an end. + +### The Client Hates Your Work + +Not every freelancer — client relationship is a match made in heaven. + +If you freelance for any length of time, you’re likely to run into clients who seem to positively hate what you do or how you write. + +Of course, in an ideal situation this would be avoided. Clients commonly ask to see writing samples in order to assess your style. + +Nevertheless, you’re likely, during your freelance writing career, to come into contact with a client that stops liking your work. + +Freelance writers will differ in their approach to how to handle these situations. + +Some — like me — would argue that trying to please a seemingly implacable client is a waste of time and only likely to lead to stress and mental anguish. Others — especially those who can’t afford to tun away paying work — will advocate putting up with the client for the time being. + +In any event, that decision is likely to be taken out of your hands at least once during your freelancing career. Clients sometimes fire writers. Other times they opt for the ghosting and stop sending work approach. Either way be prepared for it. + +**What you can do:** + +Regard any client who seems to have taken a strong disliking to your work as being on very thin ice. These accounts are in danger of ending at any moment. Consider lining up replacements. + +### Your Account Manager Was Fired / Changed Jobs + +In an ideal world, when your account manager / point of contact changes jobs (or is fired) there would be a seamless handover to his/her replacement. + +Unfortunately for us freelance writers, things don’t always work out so smoothly: + + * The handover may never happen. Consider particularly the case of a disgruntled employee who leaves on bad terms and deliberately sabotages the company by failing to pass on information and contacts. An outside scenario, yes. But it happens. + * The new marketing manager may decide that he/she no longer wants to continue using freelance resources. + * The new marketing manager wants to make an independent mark on the business and re-hires freelancers or transitions to using an agency in order to bring new life to the projects under his/her control. + +**What you can do:** + +Remember that companies are not under any obligation to continue using your services, particularly after a change of guard has happened. Nevertheless, if you wish to keep the client, do everything to ensure that the handover happens and make sure that the new account manager / content manager knows who you are and what you write about. Try to push for a meeting if possible to brief the new hire on what you can bring to the table. + +### A New Freelancer / Agency Poaches Your Work + +Some clients that use freelance writers are cost-sensitive. + +Here’s the thing about “price buyers” and why it’s generally good business sense to avoid them: if they hire you because you’re cheap, they’ll fire you the moment they can find somebody cheaper. + +Freelance writing clients may vanish off the face of your book of business if: + + * They were approached by a freelance writer who claims to be able to provide the same service you offer for less money + * They have decided to begin hiring freelance writers through marketplaces such as Upwork. These talent pools are generally cheaper for clients than working with individual freelancers. + * They decide to work with an agency rather than a freelance writer. Alternatively, the agency might expand their scope of services and sweep up your work. + +**What you can do:** + + * Don’t become complacent with long-term freelance writing clients. You’re only ever one decision away from losing a chunk of your business / income. + * Assert your value and consider periodically finding tactful ways to remind clients of the value you’re bringing to the table. + * Develop strong personal relationships with your clients so that you’re more than Freelancer X. Call it self-serving (it is!) but this is one reason why I advocate trying to push for in-person meetings for clients even when they’re not strictly necessary. By helping clients put a face to a name, you’re more than just a generic freelance writer. + * Be unique. The more generic you are, the more replaceable you are. Specialize in an unusual niche or provide a mixture of services that clients would have a hard time finding elsewhere under one roof. + +Living in fear of losing every client on your books isn’t the way to run a freelance writing business. + +Nevertheless, it’s prudent to remember that there are many reasons — including the above — why your contracts might come to an end. + +Some are entirely outside of your control and have nothing to do with your performance. Which means that even if you play your cards right and produce superlative work, your client could go out of business, pivot away from content marketing, or decide to stop using freelancers. + +Consider the above tips to help mitigate some of the risk involved in running a freelance writing business and prepare for the unexpected. + +The best and most effective way of keeping out of “trouble” — in my opinion — is developing a strong marketing pipeline that trickles down new leads periodically which you can convert into clients with a reasonable degree of effort. This will allow you to replace the clients who inevitably drift away. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Red-Flags-to-Help-Avoid--Difficult--Freelancing-Clients.md b/posts/medium/5-Red-Flags-to-Help-Avoid--Difficult--Freelancing-Clients.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c768a50b0b3faa9a0de3d87da0041f6a52f8ee03 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Red-Flags-to-Help-Avoid--Difficult--Freelancing-Clients.md @@ -0,0 +1,257 @@ +# 5 Red Flags to Help Avoid ‘Difficult’ Freelancing Clients + +[I recently wrote](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0) about my deliberate decision to be less responsive — about how taking _slightly_ longer to get back to emails and WhatsApps has, in general, made me happier and more productive. + +I also described how, unintentionally, my clients’ expectations around responsiveness have served as a filter, or a lead qualification criterion, to enforce during my prospecting and sales process + +One that has helped me differentiate between clients I’m likely to have a great time working with and those that ….. let’s just say the opposite. (And to clarify what I wrote in that post, I’m talking about getting back to email in three _hours_ rather than three _minutes —_ but also not in three _days_!) + +As a sort of follow-up to this post, here’s another one that I have been putting off writing for some time. Make that years, in fact. + +**Because, in truth, I think there’s too much written about Bad Freelancing Clients these days.** + +Or maybe because there are just more freelancers these days — and, consequentially, there are more bad clients out there than at any point in freelancing history. (If I were to guess, its evolution probably looks a little like the before and after graph of human productivity around the Industrial Revolution.) + +Due to the preponderance of client-shamers we witness on many Facebook groups and other online writers’ haunts, I offer this quick guide to spotting _potentially_ problematic freelance clients only with the following disclaimers firmly in mind: + +### Two Disclaimers About Client-Shaming + +Disclaimer 1): **In order to optimize our income and our experience (the two are usually directly proportionate!) I believe that it’s important, as freelancers, to make a good faith effort to work with as many clients as possible.** + +In other words, I _don’t_ recommend throwing every potential client on the trash heap or subscribing to a mentality propagated on many Facebook groups for freelance writers that we should mercilessly “fire” our clients for minor infractions of any of the precepts I have set out below, among many others. + +Rather, as freelancers, I believe that we have to see ourselves as service professionals first and foremost and — within reason — it’s our responsibility to meet our clients’ expectations. Not the other way round. + +Disclaimer 2): **Mathematically, I believe that most clients are good clients.** However, I can say with certitude that there are plenty of not-so-great clients out there. And even a few clients [that truly do deserve a spot on ClientsFromHell.Net](https://clientsfromhell.net/). + +A thought on that, though. (If there’s anything worth underlining in this post it’s this!): + +**_Winding up with ‘bad clients’ is actually a sales problem and not a ‘freelancing’ one. Or a manifestation of your random bad luck._** + +A good lead qualification process, and learning to spot the bad-fit warning signs that I mention here, will greatly reduce your likelihood of winding up with a book of business full of lemons — if not (more ideally) eliminate them altogether. + +My biggest regret about freelancing so far isn’t something typical such as wishing I had the temerity to begin charging more sooner or wishing I had the services of a VA to draw upon whenever I needed them. + +**Rather, I wish that I had realized that I was in the business of sales as much as I was in the business of writing (or marketing) from the very outset**. + +I’m currently slowly learning to up my sales game thanks to some great books and podcasts and am trying to master things such as setting better prospecting criteria (hint form that experience: funding history and profitability are _very important_ metrics to look at and clients can be a lot harder to work with, and more stressful, when the purse strings are being held unreasonably tightly _)._ + +I’m also learning to proactively __ anticipate potential client objections with a view to resolving them rather than finding myself on the back foot as a client points out a question I didn’t have an off-the-cuff answer ready for. + +I can’t emphasize this point enough. + +You need to be a good writer / photographer / Wordpress developer to succeed as a freelancer in whatever area you’re doing business in. + +That’s a given. + +Having a good marketing process and referral system so that some work comes to you helps too. + +But — for the 99% of freelancers not fortunate enough to have _all_ of their work come automatically to them _all_ of the time — they also need to be decent to good salesperson, ideally knowing how to be _both_ a good SDR / business developer _and_ a killer closer. + +With that out of the way, here are some of the ‘red flags’ that I have come to spot over the years. + +Again, I am offering these in a spirit of humility rather than as a vent. (Speaking of which [did you know that venting has been scientifically demonstrated to _not work_?](https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/venting-just-makes-you-more-miserable-science-shows.html)). + +Great clients are out there. + +It just takes a bit of sales know-how (the positive aspect) and knowing how to spot the dodgy ones (the point of this post) to find them. + +### Red Flag 1: They Set Impossible Demands Around Responsiveness + +Everything needed to be done yesterday? You may be dealing with a client whose expectations around responsiveness are not a match for you. + +Tying this back, again, [to my first post](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0). + +The busier you get as a freelancer, the more two things become obvious: + +a) **There’s a lot to do just about all of the time.** Between marketing yourself, prospecting, administrative work, and …. you know …. actually doing whatever it is that you do for a living. It can be a full and exhausting ride. + +b)**The better you get at all of the above (generating leads, turning out good work) the more of it tends to land on your plate.** The exact mechanism that drives this, beyond you simply becoming more ‘skilled’ and ‘better’ at whatever it is that you do, can involve having a heightened industry reputation, getting your first referrals (and opening up secondary referral networks!), and just getting faster at producing the same volume of work, meaning that more of it gets assigned in closer succession. + +Over time, this creates a sort of self-perpetuating dynamic that sees you becoming progressive busier until you either: a) suffer a nervous breakdown from over-work or b) make time for that vacation you’ve been putting off for a year and finally allow yourself to disconnect and recharge. (Note to self: can we please talk about option B, please?!) + +As a result, for most freelancers juggling multiple clients (according to research from State of Digital, [the average number of clients any freelancer juggles is 14!](https://due.com/blog/ideal-number-of-freelance-clients/)) being always-available-for-every-client-all-of-the-time is not just an undesirable way to live but, in fact, downright impossible from a simple time management perspective. + +A client that seems to expect that of you is therefore implicitly: + +a) **Assuming that you don’t have many competing deadlines and priorities from other clients to meet.** + +Which I always find ironic because I think that a fair corollary of this would be that: + +b) **You’re not … very good at what you do. Otherwise you would presumably have plenty of work and clients to keep you busy.** + +I find this especially perplexing because in today’s hotly competitive freelance marketplace, one generally expects buyers to want to find good and in-demand freelancers. + +**Early warning sign:** This behavior can be observed at the very earliest stages of the prospecting dance giving you time to decide whether you want to keep the lead moving down your sales funnel or not. You have a call. Can you have another in an hour? Could you be at their office in time for lunch for a face-to-face? + +(Note: of course, all this is slightly generalized. There might be rare instances where companies really _do_ need to fly at the edge of their seat for reasons that don’t involve their disorganization. But just as often it’s a sign of systemic disorganization — that will land on your desk as their latest freelancer.) + +### Red Flag 2: The CEO/Founder Needs to Approve _EVERYTHING — All of the Time!_ + + The buck stops at the CEO’s desk. But does every draft need to too? + +I’ve encountered this quite a few times when working with smaller startups. + +A lot has been written about micromanagement and its detrimental effects on workplace morale. + +Clearly, this is not much fun for employees. + +**But what’s not discussed as much is the secondary effects that this practice has on freelancers and other suppliers of outsourced labor.** + +A CEO should keep their ears close the pulse of their business — within reason. + +I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the CEO getting involved in minute project details when it’s just him and a co-founder currently manning the ship. + +Or participating in a kick-off call. Or occasionally checking in to see how your project is going, assessing for alignment with high-level business objectives, and offering his/her feedback upon its progress. + +When that same CEO has hired a Marketing Manager, however (along with 20 other people), who in turn hires you — but still feels the irrepressible need to pour over every draft you submit in minute detail and leave his own very personal comments. Well, that tends to be feel very unimpressive to me and doesn’t seem to make for a very agile workflow. + +If, in the warm-up process, the CEO doesn’t seem to be able to delegate full stop, then it’s worth taking a careful look at the company’s Glassdoor. (A post on due diligence is coming soon, but I recommend always checking Glassdoor and trying to guess the average employee tenure with some LinkedIn searches to make sure the department you’re thinking about freelancing for isn’t a revolving door. Yes, even if you’re just looking at joining the team externally!) + +Is there strong evidence of a dysfunctional and potentially toxic work culture? + +Does your point of contact seem depressed and downbeaten and just functions as an automaton doing the will of the founder? + +More tangibly: will your payment be held up because the CEO was at CES (a trade show) but the project can’t get signed off on until he or she returns from overseas? + +Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that, as a mere freelancer, you’ll be shielded from the craziness and the internal discontent. + +More likely, it will simply filter down into your projects — and you might find yourself looking for new clients in very short shrift. + +**Early warning sign:** The startup has a dedicated marketing manager but the CEO is instantly looped into the first conversation you have. You’re initially flattered by the CEO choosing to become personally involved in the process. You might not be when _he/she_ also has to sign off on every single project deliverable. + +### Orange-Red Flag 3: They Mention Upwork or Fiverr….. A Lot! + +Using Upwork judiciously. Ok in my book. Outsourcing every possible project to marketplace freelancers? Potential warning signal. + +Upwork has gained deserved notoriety among the freelancing community as a race-to-the-bottom marketplace filled with exploitative clients hoping to find developing world freelancers for rock-bottom prices. + +For those of us facing developed world costs-of-living, I don’t believe it is either sustainable or healthy. + +There are _some_ good reasons why a company might turn their attention to Upwork the next time they have a gap in their talent pool. + +For one, it’s talent network is _huge_ and — if you’ve ever worked the hiring side — you know that you can receive bids within minutes of posting. + +Word of it also tends to travel quickly through informal referral networks — such as friends having coffee. + +You sign up, post a job, get some bids, and have a freelancer in time for lunchtime. I’ve used it on the buying side and understand the appeal. + +This is why I call this an orange to red flag rather than an outright red one. + +Because there _are_ legitimate reasons why a company might do some hiring or Upwork or another freelancer marketplace such as Fiverr. Just probably not all of the time. + +If —during your prospecting conversations — the client seems to bring up Upwork / Fiverr / some other freelance marketplace an awful lot, then trust me when I say that there’s a good chance that they simply like to do things on the cheap. Yes, all of the time. + +And sorry to break it to you, but you’ll probably be next in line. + +**Early warning signs:** + +_“Daniel, meet our Marketing Manager. She’s based in Tokyo. You’ll be communicating with her through Upwork” (sorry, make that a late warning sign … by this stage getting out needs to be your focus!)_ + +_“We use Upwork a lot. Fiverr and Freelancer.com too. Actually, we’re a remote-only team!” (Hint: your point of contact might be a freelancer too!)._ + +_“You’ll be filling maternity leave cover on this project for Y. By the way, she’s a freelancer too!”_ + + _“We found our previous two writers on Upwork. They were a little expensive.”_ + +### Red Flag 4: They Don’t Understand What You Do + +Freelance writing ≠ translation service + +If you’re dealing with a prospect who doesn’t understand what you do, then it’s very unlikely that by the time they _do_ they’ll ascribe enough value to it to actually pay you a fee that works for your financial needs. + +At the very least, this sets you at a significant disadvantage than a client that understands your value proposition from the very outset. + +For instance (at least right now) I have chosen to focus exclusively on (ghostwriting) long-form material for my clients. + +Blogs and articles (I’m shooting for less); white papers, e-books, books, and speeches (I’m shooting for more). + +That’s it. + +To make this easy to understand, I sometimes say _“I will write anything longer than 1,000 words in the voice of your team member — and under their byline.”_ + +Those of you familiar with the writing world know that copywriting — skilled writers, often matured in advertising agencies, or nowadays just as often in digital marketing firms, that specialize in the nuances of writing microcopy projects such as landing pages and advertising text — is a slightly different skill-set. And that (if you’re into calling all written words ‘content’, which I’m not) that ‘content’ and ‘copy’ are not generally one and the same thing. + +Some writers offer both. I’m not particularly interested in the former, nor have that much direct experience to draw upon. So I have chosen not to. + +Likewise, public relations and content strategy are slightly separate skills. Can I do them with some competence? Yes. Is that what I’m pitching here? No. + +Despite my marketing communications being pretty explicit about all of the above, I still occasionally find myself talking to prospects who think that I: + + * Offer a translation service. + * Am a social media writer. + * Will help them write their next newsletter. + +In general, I have found that trying to reeducate these prospects on the market, and on what I do, is a futile endeavor. + +If they don’t get what you do period, my recommendation is to move on and save your time and energy for somebody that does. + +So long as you are reasonably clear on what service(s) you _do_ offer — and it’s a defined and recognized skillset — you will not struggle to find those that _do_ get you. You just have to get out and find them first. + +**Early warning signs:** Clients has never worked with an ‘X’ before (write/photographer/Wordpress developer) but somehow seems to think they have an encyclopedic understanding of how the industry works and what services you should offer. + +### Red Flag 5: They’re Happy to Pay Your Rate… But Only For ‘The Very Best X’….Ever + +When only the very best ever will do …. nothing might. + +I have no issue with clients attempting to set expectations about the standard of work they will deem acceptable. + +They’re looking to spend their limited company (or personal) funds after all. + +However: + +a)**Budget and expectations always have to be roughly commensurate.** When working with startups, this has a habit of being the elephant in the room. Likewise, companies have to be realistic about what they expect for a given budget — and as freelancers, we have to be proactive about helping them set those. + +b) Telling a freelancer you haven’t worked with yet that you’ll be only happy with “the very best” piece of web content/photographs/Wordpress site that has ever been produced in the history of the world in return for your rate is …. well, kind of offputting. + +Believe it or not (despite the foregoing!), I have worked with more great clients than I have with rotten ones over the years. + +The onboarding phase — when you’re in the formative phases of learning their business and the industry landscape — is a particularly telling one in this respect. + +And this is where you will often spot a client that is shaping up to be a ‘bad fit’. + +_(Note: although, in general, I’m not into corporate jargon, and in fact try to resist using it, I’ve actually come to like the term ‘good fit’, because, as it says, sometimes that’s the best and most diplomatic way of describing a business and a freelancer whose unique needs, preferences, and — say — expectations regarding responsiveness are simply out of sync. And, as I think the term implies, that’s perfectly okay!)_ + +If the client is prepared to invest in you for the long term, as hopefully they are, then they won’t be in a frantic rush to see you produce the greatest article that has ever been written as soon as the ink has dried on the NDA you just signed. + +In general, I’m happy to work with clients at a modest rate with the mutual expectation that it _might_ increase as I come to learn their business and produce progressively better work. + +When expectations and budgets are in broad alignment, neither party feels taken advantage of and it generally makes for a positive and constructive relationship. + +That’s a relationship that we can all benefit from. + +**Early warning signs:** + +_“We can do your rate, but frankly, it would have to be the greatest article that’s ever been written to justify it. Like poetry — just longer!”_ + + _“We demand only the very best of the very best.”_ + + _“We hired 100 freelancers last year. Only one made the cut and is still with us. You could kind of think of us like the SAS / Delta Force of the startup world.”*_ + +(I pulled this one out of my fertile imagination, but if you ever hear this, please run don’t walk!) + +### Don’t Be Deterred and Keep Selling + +Keep going … even when the going gets tough! + +Those are some of the most salient “red flags” I have come across over the past number of years. + +A few final thoughts: + +a)**Don’t be deterred by the red flags and discouraging clients that you will inevitably come across.** It’s part of the learning process every freelancer and small business owner goes through and you will get _much, much better_ over time at spotting them _before_ they’re a critical part of your business and you have to look at ways of extricating yourself from the relationship (before it extricates your sanity!). + +b) **Trust your instincts.** “Gut instincts,” it turns out, don’t come out of nowhere. Feel free to nerd up on the science, or let me give you the TL;DR — it’s honed by your past experiences. Think of it sort of like a machine learning algorithm — the more datapoints (freelancing experience) you feed it, the more accurate and reliable it becomes. If every fiber in your body tells you that this prospective client is bad news ….. have some belief in your self and at least _consider_ listening to that instinct. + +c) **Just as there are nightmare clients, there are dream ones out there too.** + +If you’re lucky enough to have one on your book of business, my advice (including to myself!) is to **do everything possible to keep the relationship warm**. + +Here, I have a lot of room for improvement. In-person visits are _great_ if they’re in any way feasible for you — even if, given today’s many options for videoconferencing, there’s usually no actual need to do them. Keeping — and upselling — an existing client is generally less work than finding a new one. Simply keeping a face-to-face relationship going can be far more effective than a holidaytime gift. But why not do both? + +d)**Many problems that freelancers think of as unique problems to their unusual line of work, or their industry, are in fact textbook sales problems that have been covered countless times before by sales educators.** Get your hands on some of this material and start upping your sales game. Unless you’ve struck freelancing gold, you’re going to be spending quite a bit of time running classic sales processes. + +Good luck in achieving your freelancing goals. + +Learn from the bad experiences. But also learn to let them go. + +And you’ll be on your way to having your best year ever as a freelancer. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Secrets-To-Living-Successfully-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/5-Secrets-To-Living-Successfully-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cc1a28078f10aed873b8cd611654bb127d936901 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Secrets-To-Living-Successfully-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,97 @@ +# 5 Secrets To Living Successfully in Israel + +#### From learning to type in Hebrew to mastering the art of haggling, some extra suggestions to make your aliyah experience a success + +Starting a new life in Israel? Some tips to get you the extra mile + +When it comes to starting a new life in Israel, most of us who move here voluntarily know the basics — or if we don’t we become acquainted with them fairly quickly. + +You need to get up to speed on the lingo. You need to pay your arnona (municipal tax). And you need to come to grips with everything else that goes on in a new culture. + +Here are a few less commonly advocated-for suggestions that may take your aliyah the extra mile — and beyond. + +### Avoid Anglo communities — online and in person! + +For those who haven’t encountered the term yet, an ‘Anglo’ — in Hebrish — simply means an an English-speaker. + +[**A Hebrish Glossary For Making Aliyah** + _Words To Help Navigate The Strange Linguistic Netherworld That Lies Between English and Hebrew_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-hebrish-glossary-for-making-aliyah-13968db9d3c1 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-hebrish-glossary-for-making-aliyah-13968db9d3c1")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-hebrish-glossary-for-making-aliyah-13968db9d3c1) + +And no, I’m not actually advocating that you wedge a ten foot bargepole between yourself and every other English-speaker that you encounter (after all, I’m writing this in a Medium publication written in English intended for those living in Israel!). + +Here’s what I mean instead: + + * While ensconcing yourself in a so-called ‘Anglo bubble’ — social or geographical — might seem like the most comfortable way to begin your time in Israel, it’s _probably_ not in your long-term interests to remain in one. Note: this issue is somewhat divisive among _olim_ and there are those who will disagree stridently with my opinion. You have those who positively adore the Anglo bubbles of the country — Ramat Beit Shemesh, Ra’anana, etc. If you want to maximize your development in Hebrew, and expedite your integration, you’re probably going to have an easier time doing that in a neighborhood or social milieu that’s at least mixed. + +More importantly: + + * Realize that, qualitatively, information available in English tends to be more limited than that available in Hebrew. This is, of course, to be expected. Hebrew is the language of Israel and English isn’t even an official second one. + +My specific recommendations: + + * Learn to search the internet in Hebrew as your first means of attempting to find the answer to any “Israel issues.” Simply by switching language, you’ll open yourself up to a whole new world of resources that are likely both more plentiful and more current than those available in English. + * Discover Hebrew-speaking online communities, whether Facebook groups or email lists or WhatsApp groups. This is also a fun way to improve your Hebrew and get some colloquialisms pat down. + +### Learn how to touch type in Hebrew + +Hebrew typing: an under-taught skill + +The most under-taught skill in _ulpan_ — in my opinion — is learning how to touch type in Hebrew. + +Being a proficient typist in Hebrew makes it so much easier to: + + * Draft personal and business correspondence in Hebrew + * Search for information in Hebrew — per the above + +Unfortunately, there are ulpans in Israel that remain frozen in time and still use cassettes to teach vocabulary from the news that is not likely to be the most pressing lingo that a new immigrant needs. + +I think that every _ulpan_ in the country should teach students how to type in Hebrew and the basics of business communication. + +You may never need to perfect the vocabulary needed to say _“Hizbullah is increasing its stockpile of weapons in the north, according to an IDF intelligence assessment”._ But if you work even partially in Hebrew you’ll probably need, at some point, to say _“please find the document attached. I would be grateful if you could confirm receipt.”_ + +[**שיעורים מקוונים להקלדה עיוורת** + _שיעורי הקלדה עיוורת וקורסים מקוונים חינמיים. למידה אינטראקטיבית, משחקים ומבחני מהירות._ www.typingstudy.com](https://www.typingstudy.com/he-hebrew-3/lesson/1 "https://www.typingstudy.com/he-hebrew-3/lesson/1")[](https://www.typingstudy.com/he-hebrew-3/lesson/1) + +### Start shopping like an Israeli — not an Anglo + +Whiskey out. Arak in. One of the keys to surviving financially in Israel. + +Israel is a very expensive country within which to live. If you’re reading this, then you probably didn’t need me to tell you this. + +But you can decrease your food bill at least a little if you make a conscious effort to begin favoring Israeli products and brands over more expensive imports: + + * Ditch the single malt whiskey. Drink arak instead. + * Stock up on pita and humus. + * Silan (date syrup) is delicious and a lot easier to find than maple syrup. + +While the above might sound somewhat capricious, there’s an element of truth to it too. Judging by Facebook groups, many English speakers seem to waste an inordinate amount of time and energy attempting to source specialist American products from the relatively few supermarkets that stop them. + +Embracing Israel’s Mediterranean diet can be a great way to live even a little more cheaply. + +### Don’t be afraid to shop online + +Israelis are massive fans of e-commerce. + +[**Israel's sorting center spotlights China's AliExpress** + _Share - WeChat JERUSALEM - Israel Post's largest sorting center, located in the outskirts of Israeli central city of…_ www.chinadaily.com.cn](http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201903/25/WS5c98485da3104842260b258c.html "http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201903/25/WS5c98485da3104842260b258c.html")[](http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201903/25/WS5c98485da3104842260b258c.html) + +Israelis love online shopping so much in fact that Israel Post — the country’s mail service — had to provision a new sorting and handling center largely to handle the influx of packages from Asia which Israelis ordered. + +Israel is a small country and a small market but international websites are increasingly including Israel as a shipping destination. Sometimes the shipping incurs no extra charge. + +Some of the companies that ship to Israel include: + + * iHerb for cosmetics and supplements (may not be kosher) + * BookDepository for books (at the time of writing, free worldwide shipping, although books can take a while to come) + * Amazon.com. Not a lot of the inventory ships to Israel and above $75 you’ll need to pay VAT of 17% as well, possibly, as other fees. Amazon should calculate these before checkout. + +### Haggle over everything (or almost everything!) + +Despite being situated in the Middle East, the reality is that no, you can’t _actually_ haggle over everything in Israel. + +Nevertheless, there are certain situations in which it _is_ both possible and socially acceptable to try to get yourself a better deal: + + * In the job market, it’s common, of course, for new hires to haggle over compensation, vacation entitlements, and fringe benefits + * Israeli credit cards aren’t notorious for their generous benefits, but one can quite often get the monthly maintenance fee cancelled simply by calling up and asking for it to be removed. Try it! + +Living in Israel can be a challenging experience at times but with a few extra skills it can be significantly easier. Hebrew skills are as must. Unless you’re really incapable of coming to grips with the language, even knowing how to type and use Google Translate will get you surprisingly far — or provide a basis from which you can build. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Social-Issues-Facing-Israeli-Society.md b/posts/medium/5-Social-Issues-Facing-Israeli-Society.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1ba7d1dcadf4c74b59cf3de83eca1a436bedaf36 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Social-Issues-Facing-Israeli-Society.md @@ -0,0 +1,105 @@ +# 5 Social Issues Facing Israeli Society + +Like any society, Israeli society is a complex one. The country isn’t yet one hundred years old. It’s comprised of _sabras_ alongside a potpourri of immigrants drawn from throughout the Jewish world. Since the foundation of the state, more than three million _olim_ have moved to Israel to enrich its ranks. + +And yet, as any (honest) person living in Israel will tell you, Israel isn’t perfect. There are flaws. Things to be improved upon. Here are some of them. + +### Israel Is Too Expensive + +The cost of living in Israel is among the highest in the developed world. + +The Taub Center — a think tank — has done an excellent job in tracking socioeconomic issues in Israel, including the country’s cost of living. + +[**Israeli cost of living among highest in developed world, report finds** + _A year-end report released Wednesday found that the cost of living in Israel is among the highest of developed nations…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-cost-of-living-among-highest-in-developed-world-report-finds/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-cost-of-living-among-highest-in-developed-world-report-finds/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-cost-of-living-among-highest-in-developed-world-report-finds/) + +A recent poll by CEOWorld plotted Israel as being the eighth most expensive country in the world. + +Israeli real estate is also eye-wateringly expensive which makes getting on the property ladder extremely difficult for many young immigrants. + +Israel was recently ranked as the 2nd out of 39 polled countries for the cost of buying property. + +[**Israel listed as second most expensive country to buy a home** + _Israel was listed as the second most expensive country in which to buy a home, according to research performed by…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-listed-as-one-of-the-most-expensive-countries-to-buy-a-home-in-649970 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-listed-as-one-of-the-most-expensive-countries-to-buy-a-home-in-649970")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-listed-as-one-of-the-most-expensive-countries-to-buy-a-home-in-649970) + +[**A generation of Israelis despairs of ever owning a home of their own** + _Shahar Sery has had some good reasons to smile lately. Despite the coronavirus and a long stint without a job, he…_ www.haaretz.com](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/.premium-a-generation-of-israelis-despairs-of-ever-owning-a-home-of-their-own-1.9201551 "https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/.premium-a-generation-of-israelis-despairs-of-ever-owning-a-home-of-their-own-1.9201551")[](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/.premium-a-generation-of-israelis-despairs-of-ever-owning-a-home-of-their-own-1.9201551) + +That research was carried out by CompareTheMarket, an Australian price comparison website. + +The Taub Center has also previously stated that — relative to income — Israel is the second most expensive country in the OECD. + +Generally speaking — and particularly outside of the high-tech sector — salaries in Israel trend below those in much of the West. + +Many visitors to Israel will tell you that while they enjoyed their time in the country, they found it unreasonably expensive. In the author’s estimation, at least, hey’re not wrong. The high cost of living is one of the most salient features that impacts upon the day to day life of those living in Israel. + +### Israel Has Too Much Poverty + +Israel’s poverty rates are also somewhat shocking although in light of the above dynamics perhaps that’s unsurprising. + +Bituach Leumi (English: the National Insurance Institute) ranked Israel as second to bottom in the OECD for its child poverty rate. + +While the article below cites the number of those living beneath the poverty line at 1.8 million, more recent media reports indicate that the figure has now surpassed the 2 million mark. + +[**1.8 million Israelis, half of them children, live in poverty - government** + _Poverty in the Israeli population rose by a percentage point in 2018, according to an annual report released by the…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/1-8-million-israelis-half-of-them-children-live-in-poverty-government/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/1-8-million-israelis-half-of-them-children-live-in-poverty-government/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/1-8-million-israelis-half-of-them-children-live-in-poverty-government/) + +[**Haredim aren't as poor as you think** + _Over half of the haredi (ultra-Orthodox Jewish) community lives below the poverty line, the figures say. According to…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-haredim-arent-as-poor-as-you-think-1001265187 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-haredim-arent-as-poor-as-you-think-1001265187")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-haredim-arent-as-poor-as-you-think-1001265187) + +Poverty isn’t an equal affliction in Israeli society and certain demographics are disproportionately affected. + +The poverty rate among Israel’s Arab population, for instance, stands at more than 35% (figures reasonably accurate only at the time of writing). According to figures from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Israel’s national statistics body, more than 50% of Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Jews live beneath the poverty line. + +Latet, a food charity, [alleges that](https://www.latet.org.il/en/world-1/articles/social-issues-in-israel) “social issues in Israel often go undiscussed.” I believe that they are correct. + +### (Many) Israelis Are Litterbugs! + +Littering: surprisingly, a significant problem in Israel. Note: as is obvious from the brands, this is a stock image that wasn’t take in Israel! + +I wish this weren’t true, but unfortunately it is — at least in part. + +While Israelis are justifiably proud about their homeland and what it has achieved, that pride doesn’t always translate into actually being the best possible custodians of the country itself. + +According to a [recently reported study](https://www.jpost.com/health-science/nearly-half-of-israelis-admit-to-littering-in-the-past-year-study-658301), 45% of Israelis admitted to throwing a piece of rubbish in nature at least once in the past year. The study was published by the Natural Resources and Environmental Research Center at the University of Haifa. + +At Pesah (Passover), when Israelis traditionally explore nature, disturbing photographs often surface on social media of national parks brimming full of leftover trash from careless hikers. + +Clearly the conclusion here isn’t that all Israelis are unredeemable litterbugs. + +But it does support the common observation made by those living here that when it comes to littering — oddly — there is a lot of room for improvement. + +### Road Rage In Israel Is Rampant — As Is Bad Driving + +Driving in Israel isn’t for the feint of heart. Some — including the author — positively detest it. + +Aggression is rampant. Many motorists seem to have no qualms about cutting out other drivers or jumping across lanes without the slightest hint of an indication signal. I can’t remember the last time I drove more than an hour here without being tailgated multiple times (when driving at night, the tailgaters even start flashing their lights!). + +While for years Israeli politicians tried to raise awareness about bad driving by highlighting the fact that more Israelis had died in traffic accidents than in the _intifadas_ Israel’s road accident metrics aren’t actually that terrible. + +Nevertheless, road rage and driving misdemeanors are certainly both endemic in the country. + +[**Half of Israeli drivers witnessed road rage in past year - survey** + _A survey released Sunday indicated that half of Israeli drivers witnessed acts of road rage in the past year, and…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/half-of-israeli-drivers-witnessed-road-rage-in-past-year-survey/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/half-of-israeli-drivers-witnessed-road-rage-in-past-year-survey/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/half-of-israeli-drivers-witnessed-road-rage-in-past-year-survey/) + +A study commissioned on behalf of the Or Yarok road safety nonprofit found that the incidence of verbal and violent abuse experienced on Israel’s roads was massive. + +More than 48% of motorists driving in Israel had encountered road rage in the past year. More shockingly, 94% had witnessed aggressive beeping, tailgating, or cars cutting one another off. + +### There Is Racism in Israel + +Although Israel has historically functioned as a refuge for world Jews fleeing racism, sadly the country is not exempt from the human tendency for humans to hate those from other races for no better reason than because … they’re of difference races. + +[**Racism in Israel - The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute** + _What are the conditions for a particular phenomenon's being defined as racism? Is racism necessarily based on the…_ www.vanleer.org.il](https://www.vanleer.org.il/en/publications/racism-in-israel/ "https://www.vanleer.org.il/en/publications/racism-in-israel/")[](https://www.vanleer.org.il/en/publications/racism-in-israel/) + +Historically, racism in Israel has existed: + + * Between Ashkenazi and Mizrahi Jews. Mizrahi Jews (literally: “Eastern”) originated in the Arab countries of the Middle East and beyond. Many Mizrahim complained of institutional racism in Israel, particularly during the state’s early days. Combating this prejudice was one of the founding tenants of the Shas party which, until this day, continues to attract a voter-base drawn largely from Mizrahi Jews. + * Jewish minorities in Israel — particularly Ethiopian Jews — have [long complained](https://www.timesofisrael.com/ethiopian-israeli-community-has-reached-boiling-point-leading-activist-says/) of racism in the form of police brutality and difficulties in the educational system. In 2019, following the police shooting of Solomon Teka, a wave of protests erupted throughout the country. + * Arab Israelis have long complained of racism from the country’s Jewish minority. + +[**July 2019 Ethiopian Jews protest in Israel - Wikipedia** + _The July 2019 Ethiopian Jews protest in Israel was a period of unrest initiated by Ethiopian Jews in response to the…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_2019_Ethiopian_Jews_protest_in_Israel "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_2019_Ethiopian_Jews_protest_in_Israel")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_2019_Ethiopian_Jews_protest_in_Israel) + +Letet — a food charity —[ has alleged](https://www.latet.org.il/en/world-1/articles/social-issues-in-israel) that “social issues in Israel … often go undiscussed.” In this contention I believe they are correct. Israel is a young state that has made tremendous progress in many fields but there is certainly still remove for improvement. These are some of the social issues facing the country. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Things-That-Positively-Suck-About-Living-In-Israel.md b/posts/medium/5-Things-That-Positively-Suck-About-Living-In-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b58113ef836f06fdd15167f929510240cecae3aa --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Things-That-Positively-Suck-About-Living-In-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,232 @@ +# 5 Things That Positively Suck About Living In Israel + +#### The longer I spend living in Israel, the less patience I have for the rose tinted glasses view that sees every criticism of Israel as a dangerous affront to the existence of the state + +You know that uncomfortable mental space that lurks somewhere between when you still have too much energy to go to bed but you’re also really tired and grumpy? So you’re just awake .. but hopelessly tired and cranky? + +Good. Because that’s the tenor through which this blog post is being written in. _Dir balak_(watch out; Arabic). + +But on a more serious note — the more live in Israel, the less patience I have for the rose tinted glasses viewpoint of this country that pervades among certain quarters, especially those who dedicate themselves night and day to promoting _aliyah_. + +And because my faculties of _“it mightn’t be such a great idea to actually write about this”_ aren’t currently engaged … here I am writing about it. + +So let’s talk about the _aliyah_ bullies. The ones that think that moving to Israel is the be all and end all solution to all one’s problems. And of Israel — that all its ways are perfect, all its doors lined with bounty. + +You won’t escape them just by sharing a country with them, you know. When they make it here, those who do so seem to instantly mutate into those whose most cherished vocation in life seems to be to shouting down any criticism of Israel, however mild in the grand scheme of things. + +We can argue about how many such characters are really out there. But trust me on one thing: they exist. + +Don’t like your local post office? Are you even a Zionist?! Are you secretly holding meetings with Hamas in Jenin to plot our destruction? You are, aren’t you?! They knew it all along. + +For such individuals, any line of thinking that contravenes the idea that Israel is a flawless utopia filled with only high tech geniuses masterminding lifesaving algorithms and tanned muscular youth building up the Jewish homeland is like poisonous anathema to their conscious. It stings and they paw frantically to get rid of its stench. Such thinking simply cannot be. And so the default response is to silence it. + +For such diehards of the Zionist cause — it may be a fringe element but it’s a significant one — whether you want to nuke Israel or just don’t like it doesn’t matter one iota. + +Once you’ve crossed that line that begins and end with government-sponsored propaganda and opened your mind to critical thinking — or the idea that there are some things that _are_ kinda messed up here like the fact that despite its socialism Israel has one of the highest poverty rates in the OECD — you’ve already gone way too far. You’re one of _them. The antis._ + +For such people, there can be nothing even mildly questionable about life in Israel; nor can there be room for improvement or learning from the successes of other nations. Their worldview is uncompromisingly totalitarian. An it can reach an almost comical extent. + +If an _aliyah_ diehard were to tip over a bucket-full of chlorinated liquid onto them while walking the streets of Tel Aviv they might praise how ecologically savvy the local denizens are for having the consideration to provide newcomers with a free shower of disinfectant. There’s a pandemic going on, you know? How considerate of them! + +Don’t get me wrong. + +I support _aliyah_ wholeheartedly. But I also connect much more with the idea that _aliyah_ means joining in a collective project of construction and betterment. To build the Jewish homeland. That idea actually gets me a lot more jazzed up than pretending that everything’s already perfect. + +Because Israel is small. The startup nation is a startup itself. It’s malleable. And we can all bring our hammers and our chisels here to make the place better. Blinkering ourselves through drinking our own Kool Aid serves to effectively remove that as an option. + +To the extent that unyielding forced positivity is justified by the saying that “if everybody were totally honest nobody would make _aliyah”_ — I disagree. We can set realistic expectations. Silencing valid criticism of life in Israel just makes people feel cowed into silence and like they alone have noticed that there are problems here that need addressing. Which is never a good feeling. Or a healthy place to be. + +For most, the bubble bursts at some point — even, I reckon, the zealots among the zealots. Or at least they realize that for all its singularity — it’s the only Jewish country in the world — Israel is in other ways just like any other country on earth: flawed, with good and bad mixed up in different measures. + +Bureaucrats seem to relish in making life difficult. Surprisingly, the internet connectivity often kinda sucks. And customer service often leaves a little — make that a lot — to be desired. + +[**Living In Israel: How Things Look From Abroad** + _Thinking about Israel from across the ocean_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/living-in-israel-how-things-look-from-abroad-dac14ac30533 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/living-in-israel-how-things-look-from-abroad-dac14ac30533")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/living-in-israel-how-things-look-from-abroad-dac14ac30533) + +### There Are Plenty Of Things That Israel Does Well — And Some Things Which It Doesn’t + +Every time I travel outside of Israel — which I did last month for the first time in more than two years— I get a salient snapshot of how the country fares vis-a-vis that gigantic landmass around it collectively known as _chool_(a Hebrew acronym for _chutz la’aretz_). + +There’s reverse culture shock to deal with. And then behind that a picture that might be _sort of_ true (because how much can you ever claim to know about a country after a few weeks?) + +And guess what? + +I returned from this particular trip thinking that Israel is — overall — actually a pretty good place to live. + +I thought that the pandemic had turned Jerusalem nightlife into an even lamer version of its previous self (without tourism, many businesses have had to curtail opening hours. Getting food after midnight even on the weekend is now a significant challenge). Then I tried to do the same thing in NYC and realized that perhaps it wasn’t just Israel. + +While I sometimes find myself gritting my teeth at the occasionally appalling rude mannerisms on full display here — especially when dealing with the almost comically titled “customer service — I equally found myself rolling my eyes at the latest serviceperson who asked me _“how can I help you today, sir?!”_ only to actually fail to be of any assistance in the most minimal possible way when taken up on the offer. Give me Israeli brusqueness over fake politeness any day of the week. Maybe. + +And I also saw things that I think the US does far better than the country in which I currently live. + +Take, for instance, gaunt consumerism. Love them or hate them, but Amazon Prime has taken online shopping and elevated it into an art form. + +You order things that arrive the next day. If the order arrives defective, their customer service trips over themselves to make things right. Need to return something? Head over to UPS. The clerk scans a barcode and ten seconds later you’re done. No shouting needed by anyone, including you. + +Also no inexplicable weeks-long waits for things to show up that you ordered in Tel Aviv. No couriers that show up randomly and think that it’s acceptable to shout at the customer for not being home when they arrived unannounced and demanded to know why you weren’t home (at 15:02 on a Tuesday afternoon). The state of online consumerism in the US is something that those of us living in Israel can only currently dream about replicating. You can tell me that Israel does online shopping better. And I’ll tell you that you’re either brainwashed or haven’t had a Prime membership. + +Setting up signage to get Amazon orders delivered. The signage itself was purchased on Amazon. Photo: Author. + +I also learned,while there, about the cruel rudiments of the American healthcare system and found that — if I happened to be uninsured — my monthly supply of ADHD medication would cost me more than $500. The same drug that Israel gives to me for about $70 a month whether I’m rolling in millions or putting falafel balls into oil repeatedly down the road. + +Nevertheless, there _are_ a few things about life in Israel that I _do_ really think suck. Objectively — and not just for me but for a lot of people. + +And just like the perennial yay-sayers I will tolerate zero dissent about this. If you want to have some of your newfound enthusiasm cut down a notch by a grumpy man typing on his computer at six in the morning .. keep reading. + +### The Cost Of Living + +Israel is ridiculously overpriced and this is a dynamic that has been going on for way too long — and received far too little attention among our ever-bickering political class. + +We seem to consistently pay double for often worse merchandise backed by poorer customer service. And we’ve become too accustomed to being fleeced by monopolists of every stripe and color to actually take it as anything other than an immutable part of life here. + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +Want to take a staycation in Israel? The idea appeals to me too but honestly — like many — I’ve come to the conclusion that I’ll put getting a decent holiday above raw patriotism. + +In that vein, I’ve made the point before that if I wasn’t Jewish I probably wouldn’t visit Israel. Or perhaps I’d see it once and never came back (unless I was a history buff, which I’m not). I stand by the remark. From a value for money standpoint, the country is a bank account draining rip-off, pure and simple. + +You want sun? Jump across the border in Taba (from Eilat) and hotels will miraculously plummet in price. You want history? You can get to Rome without facing an obligatory interrogation simply to leave the airport (even though you hold the country’s passport and voluntarily moved your life to that country…). Pro tip: you can probably fly to Europe with Ryanair and stay in a hotel in Budapest for less than the cost of a few days in a _zimmer_ up North that looks oddly dilapidated for its overbearing price tag. The hotel will probably be cleaner; the staff more attentive. + +Compound that with generally low salaries outside of the high-tech bubble — which receives a lot of hype but still employs only about 10% of the population — and you’ve got a painful financial picture for many. + +Did I mention that Israel is one of the most expensive real estate markets in the world — and one which seems to keep going up despite whatever the world economy can throw at it, including a pandemic? For many, there are precious little financial upsides to moving here. It’s sucky that that’s currently the case. + +### The (Frequent) Rudeness, The Unnecessary Aggression, The Road Rage + +Three in one deal coming right at you here. You’re getting more out of this listicle than you bargained for, right? + +But I’m bracketing them under one heading because I believe these all stem from some common place of frustration. + +People here don’t seem to have an escape valve. That goes for me too. Although for whatever reason creative pursuits (I love writing, and am now exploring video) seem to bring me great peace of mind. Failing that, happy hours are (thankfully) abundant here. + +Too often people treat one another poorly here — with raised voices and short tempers. The cultural textbook writers are quick to point out that just as arguments can escalate quickly here they tend to simmer down at a comparable pace. It’s all Mediterranean theatrics they will argue. But is that really an excuse? + +Why does there seem to be so much aggression in Israel in society? And manners that pass all parameters of what could be considered ‘brusque,’ are flat-out rude, and yet which — often without reason — gets brushed off as “refreshing directness” (wait … did I just do that?!) + +Driving in Israel is a good case in point. + +For those who haven’t had the pleasure, it feels like taking a go at a dodgem track (American: bumper car) where all the other users at the amusement park are very irate and on some mixture of cannabis laced with cocaine topped off with Tubi that seems to be having an unsettling effect upon their state of mind. + +As the cannabis kicks in they drift carelessly across lanes oblivious to the four lanes of traffic having to slam the brakes to avoid a collision with their vehicle. Then a molecule of cocaine joins the party and they pull some crazy overtaking on the blind side maneuver to jump ahead of the next guy for no particular reason (after five to ten seconds of mandatory tailgating, of course). You’re left wondering whether traffic police exist here and why you got a fine for jaywalking while the guy who almost drove into you got off scott-free. + +The dodgem-drivers also seem to have skipped out of driving school after the third lesson and to have forgotten where the indicator lights are located if they even have them installed at all (the great irony is that Israel is insanely over-regulated and bureaucratic in far too many respects, including driver’s ed. The people jumping lanes went to driving school all right. They just somehow forgot everything the moment they got their license.) + +They tailgate. They beep. They tailgate again and flash their lights at you to pressure you to speed up even when you’re driving up a treacherous windy mountain road somewhere in the Golan (yes, this really happened). They gesticulate. They jump three lanes at a time without indicating while your blood pressure climbs the same amount in systolic points. + +It’s needlessly stressful. It’s sometimes deadly. And a good chunk of it is predicated on some bizarre national aversion to the idea of being a sucker — which unfortunately often translates to treating others with consideration or letting another road user go first in traffic (or somebody else go first at the supermarket, etc). + +Just because Israel has had to fight for its survival many times — and won — doesn’t mean that buying a six pack of tuna has to be a miniature version of the War of Independence. Israel can do better. The line of thinking that celebrates never apologizing and always being aggressive as cherished Israeli virtues has a lot to answer for here. + +[**Could 'freier culture' be behind Israel's pandemic figures?** +_Browsing through my Facebook feed recently, I came across an interesting parody of a Ministry of Health poster. It was…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-freier-culture-be-behind-israels-pandemic-figures/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-freier-culture-be-behind-israels-pandemic-figures/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-freier-culture-be-behind-israels-pandemic-figures/) + +### The Yelling. The Noise Pollution. The Drilling. The Drilling! + +The Jerusalem Municipality once had the consideration to literally park construction equipment — every weekend — outside my apartment. The construction schedule was also 24/6. + +Israel is too loud and the earplugs cost too damn much to block it all out (so don’t tell me to use those; my budget got swallowed up on Tubi and bad, overpriced hotels instead.) + +For what feels like the majority of the past [insert years since aliyah] years, I seem to have lived in almost immediate proximity to one or more construction sites. + +In fact, what would you know? + +There’s one going on right outside my window as I type this. The familiar sound of a drill meandering its way through whatever drills meander through in Israel to make that distinctive buzzing sound. + +Drilling. Yelling. More drilling. The dreadful noise that the backup beeper on a JCB makes when it gets activated precisely one minute after the noise ordinance ends. The unhelpful _iriyah_(local municipality) that is undertaking 24/6 construction outside your window and yet which has no idea when it might reach a merciful end. + +The cars that insist on beeping — yes, beeping! — at the guy who holds up the sign to block traffic while the road team work on putting down some tarmac. Just to interject a little bit more _balagan_(chaos) into the morning rush hour. + +Israel is small. It’s also densely populated. And houses need to be built to accommodate those people. Too bad the whole process makes a lot of noise. + +### Consumer Rights, Tenant Protection Rights, Privacy Laws + +Moving to Israel from countries that have moved past the point in their histories when they fight for their survival and … put down a road network … often feels like a backward evolution. + +That’s what makes _aliyah (moving to Israel)_ such a curious phenomenon. + +It’s a migration pattern that’s predicated on a sense of national allegiance and a feeling of returning to an ancestral homeland and of being at home in the only country on the planet that has a Jewish majority. It exists in spite of the fact that it seems to often set back careers, make saving money significantly harder, and involve putting up with things like … sucky consumer protection law. + +Tenant protection law in Israel? It ain’t so hot either. (Does it actually exist?) + +As a renter you’ll be expected to foot the rental contract as well as the municipal tax and you’ll even have to pay the real estate agent despite the fact that the parliament attempted to legislate against this and they may also be taking a cut from them (the ‘how’ is a story for another day). + +Consumer rights? You have the right to purchase the good or service. What more do you want from us? Please sign on the dotted line. Service isn’t included by the way. + +Freedom of speech? You can speak and the good news is that there’s no tax due on it and it doesn’t have its own customs code yet (if not, the country would be bankrupt by now). + +But just know that if you write a negative review on the internet about the pizza that arrived after Dudi had taken a blowtorch to it for his science project and flipped off all the toppings to feed them to his cat and then served it to you … just know that you could wind up in court over your outburst + +### The Appalling Customer Service + +Sorry, I am legally precluded from saying anything more about this. + +But if you’re really curious: + +[**How Israel’s Draconian Defamation Laws Shield Abusive Businesses From Consequence** + _In a country in which even leaving a negative Google review can trigger a legal action, residents say the strict legal…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc) + +### Internet Access On My Street In South Jerusalem + +I can like … get so many photos on Facebook about my frustration with internet speeds with this connection. + +If there were a Nobel prize award for over-complicating things, the State of Israel would probably be up for contention. No, it would be the runaway winner. + +For kicks this week, I had a go at navigating the bureaucratic minefield known as attempting to import wireless equipment into the country while evading the collective router-grabbing clutches of the customs authority and communications ministry. + +There’s an approved list and a non-approved list. But unfortunately neither actually have that many devices on them from among the tens of thousands of wireless devices that exist in the global world of electronics. + +If your wireless device isn’t on it, you can submit a request for a permit (note: Israelis are obsessed with permits; the word in Hebrew is ‘ishur’ and I’m convinced that I might need one to publish this article). + +It will be processed within 14 business days. + +The bureaucrats will be stern and unyielding in their investigation and will sometimes summon it to inspection in a laboratory. + +As a result, you’ll need to ask a perplexed eBay seller what the rated transmission power on the wireless intercom he’s selling that works over WiFi and has a capable range of about 20 meters might be. The computer demands it. + +Oh, and to send in the application to have the device approved, you’ll have to include an invoice and hope that it won’t be seized (if it is, you may be liable for warehousing fees as a going away present). Which basically means that you’ll have to buy something and hope the customs people okay it. I wrote to the customs people to tell them that their system sucked. I got a call back. “Do you have a specific question?” they wanted to know. I hung up. + +Getting internet in Israel is a unique experience worth writing a postcard about too. + +There are (in most parts of the countries) only two infrastructural providers (more evolved areas have fiber optic; us humble Jerusalemites mustn’t have been deemed worthy). But there’s a veritable panoply of ISPs reselling their connectivity. + +While this creates a nice mirage of choice, in my experience none of them are that good. If you can’t get internet access, one will likely blame the other. The law mandates this strange separation of powers beneath our roads and houses. It still doesn’t seem to me like it actually makes anybody’s life better. + +Speaking of internet access, I’m trying this blog post from a hotspot. Because in a relatively central part of Jerusalem — the capital of the Startup Nation, the place you’re always hearing hyped up as a regional tech superpower — I have tried and failed (repeatedly) to get reliable internet access. + +I managed an upload speed of 5 Mbps once and took a screenshot to gloat about how I could get a few photos up to Facebook in mere seconds. A cousin in a far-off land in Europe barely knows how to use a computer but sits on a 100 Mbps symmetrical line that I can only dream about. + +Whichever infrastructural provider I go with, it tends to go down for hours at a time. I tried to pick up a cellular SIM tonight but the phone company randomly closed the kiosk (I mean “service center”) an hour early and the call center apparently didn’t have an idea. I doubt very much that I’ll receive so much as a cursory apology for the time it took to get to the mall and back. + +I’ve had to bail on podcast interviews (as the guest). Abort Zoom meetings during which I was billed as the tech-savvy writer ready to save the day by bringing my tech wizardly know how to bear upon … I can’t remember what I do for a living any more. + +For the most part, Israel is a good country to live in. + +The healthcare is excellent. When there aren’t elections every three months, the country seems to somehow hold itself together. + +Food is tasty and varied. + +Public transport is eminently affordable — which I think is tremendous and should be the case in absolutely every country that wishes to do the obvious thing and reduce citizens’ dependence upon private transport to get around. + +The weather is also great. Or at least very sunny for a very long amount of the year. + +Goldstar and Maccabi are both somewhat drinkable lagers. + +Tubi 60 tastes like paint stripper that some _shiputznik_(renovator)__ accidentally left to ferment and then resold to college students because it had developed alcohol after spending enough time in the sun. But it’s also oddly delightful in its strange citrusy glory (it was cheaper outside of Israel, but let’s not split hairs here). + +And it’s also the Jewish homeland and the only Jewish country in the world. + +It’s a good place to live in. Some would even say a great one. But a perfect utopia it is not. + +I think I’m done now. + +### For More Assorted Moaning And Groaning, Please See: + +[**Why Does Everything In Israel Seem To Cost Too Much?** +_Why are we, in Israel, consistently paying inflated prices for low quality products backed by (often) terrible customer…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-does-everything-in-israel-seem-to-cost-too-much-9a3fd3e12966 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-does-everything-in-israel-seem-to-cost-too-much-9a3fd3e12966")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-does-everything-in-israel-seem-to-cost-too-much-9a3fd3e12966) + +[**Ireland vs. Israel (As Places to Live, That Is!)** +_(About a month ago — just when I was resuming my self-publishing voyage — I wrote this rather detailed run-through of…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71) + +[**The Pros and Cons of Living in Israel** + _(And Why I Still Think the Cost of Living is the Elephant in the Room!)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Things-The-Media--And-People--Get-Wrong-About-Life-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/5-Things-The-Media--And-People--Get-Wrong-About-Life-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f9b69a77a4031c39c4203a7cae980aff92f3e860 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Things-The-Media--And-People--Get-Wrong-About-Life-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,94 @@ +# 5 Things The Media (And People) Get Wrong About Life in Israel + +#### It’s Neither Barren Desert Nor High Tech Metropolis. It’s Something .. In Between + +The Tel Aviv Skyline + +When it comes to news about Israel, the picture the media portrays is usually the same: a Middle Eastern country permanently mired in conflict with its neighbors. + +While the Israeli-Arab conflict remains unresolved, there is more to Israel than just politics. At the same time, some popular perceptions about Israel remain untrue. Here are a few of them. + +### 1\. Israel Is An Exclusively Jewish Country + +Here’s an interesting fact for you: Israel is less Jewish (74%) than Ireland is Catholic (78%). Likewise, Israel is less Jewish than India is Hindu (79.8%). In the league table of countries with a dominant religious majority, Israel wouldn’t even be in the top three. + +Despite that, Israel is, of course, intricately bound up with the story of the Jewish people. Judaism remains the majority religion and the majority of Israel’s citizens are clearly Jewish. But not the entirety of the country. + +It surprises some to learn that Israel isn’t totally Jewish and more than 1 in 5 of the country’s residents practices some other religious faith. + +Israeli Arabs make up slightly more than 20% of the population. It’s fair to call Israel “mostly” Jewish. But it’s not “exclusively” so. + +### 2\. Israel Is Barren Desert + +The Negev Desert in the South of Israel. Source: Wikimedia + +Those who don’t know about Israel’s growing high tech scene tend to think of Israel as a poor and socialist backwater. + +Neither of those descriptions are really good fits anymore. + +For one, Israel is no longer poor. By GDP, the country has seen exponential growth since its foundation in 1948. Politically, the country’s alignment is currently right-wing and capitalist, although the country retains vestiges of socialism in some important regards including in its healthcare system (every citizen must be signed up to one of the country’s four health maintenance organizations.) + +While Israel indeed has expanses of desert, the “center” of the country (Hebrew: _merkaz_ ; a non-literal term for the greater Tel Aviv area) is highly built up and developed. In geographical terms, Israel is relatively dense at about 400 inhabitants per square kilometer. + +There are mountains in the North and plains of salt by the Dead Sea. Its topography, if nothing else, is surprisingly diverse. + +### 3\. Israel Is A High Tech Nirvana + +A computer chip + +One of the things I find frustrating about debates around Israel is the extent to which opinions are unreasonably polarized. + +On the one hand, Israel attracts plenty of international scorn and criticism (although politics are beyond the remit of this piece). For its critics, Israel can seemingly do nothing right. + +On the other hand, those defending Israel — through engaging in _hasbara_ — tend to take the view that the torrent of hatred deserves an equal and opposite reaction. For this group, Israel can do no wrong. At all. + +The truth, unfortunately, gets lost somewhere in the middle, in the many shades of gray that color reality but which frustrate attempts to uncover absolute truths for those that seek them. + +For instance: while Israel indeed has a thriving high-tech (IT) scene, its postal system remains woefully dysfunctional, contactless payments arrived here well after they did in Europe, and the state of infrastructure in the country often leaves a lot to be desired. + +While many of Israel’s tech exports are impressive, living in Israel, I am not constantly overwhelmed by the feeling that I am living at the epicenter of the technology universe. For that to happen, I would have to have received the books I ordered from the UK more than 4 months ago. + +### 4\. Israel Is Big + +Israel receives disproportionate attraction in the international news. + +As a result of this, one could be forgiven for assuming that Israel constituted a vast tract of land in the Middle East. + +The reality is very different. Israel is tiny. + +If Israel were located off the coast of Ireland, this is what it would look like on a map. To scale. From: TheTrueSize.com + +How small exactly? + +The country is only a little over 22,000 square kilometers in size. At its widest point, the country is only a little over 115 kilometers in width. + +### 5\. Israel Is Different + +In a sense, the thing I enjoy most about living in Israel is the fact that while in some respects (its Jewish character) the country is totally unique, in others, it’s almost like every other country on the planet. + +Israel has: + + * The Dead Sea + * Synagogues + +It also has + + * Dentists’ offices + * Crime + +People mostly get around in cars or on foot rather than on the back of camels. Although — like in most of the West — traffic jams are a nuisance. + +Relative to diaspora Jewish society (which can often seem absurdly monolithic), as a country with mostly Jewish residents, Israel has everything including: + + * Jewish bankers and lawyers + * Jewish garbagemen and plumbers + +The issue I take with _hasbara_(you may have deduced: I am not a fan) is that, in many respects, it feeds into the notion of exceptionalism that is at the core of people’s discomfort with Israel. + +The narrative doesn’t allow for the idea that Israel can be average in some respects. Or terrible in others. And world-beatingly great in a few. Rather, it must be “the very best” at everything it turns its hand to. + +While Israel achieves great things and the country (arguably) does some terrible things, the truth, again, usually gets lost somewhere in the gray. + +In summary: + +Israel is a tiny Middle Eastern country. Its population is mostly but not totally Jewish. It exports some good technology. But its postal system is kind of a disaster. In most respects, it’s just a normal place to live. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Types-Of-Diplomatic-Mission-Already-in-Jerusalem.md b/posts/medium/5-Types-Of-Diplomatic-Mission-Already-in-Jerusalem.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ad16861ac829f27f621e59b2fc64d7f37067416a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Types-Of-Diplomatic-Mission-Already-in-Jerusalem.md @@ -0,0 +1,88 @@ +# 5 Types Of Diplomatic Mission Already in Jerusalem + +#### Not everything diplomatic in Israel is based in Tel Aviv + +The failure of most international countries to move their embassies to Jerusalem is one of the more contentious issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, at least from Israel’s perspective. + +Israel has long viewed the refusal as a snub to its sovereignty over the city — which most of the world recognizes on a _de facto_ basis rather than _de jure_ basis (for a good exploration on the theme of international recognition of Jerusalem, see the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs briefing below). + +[**The Status of Jerusalem in International and Israeli Law** + _Most member states of the United Nations still refuse to recognize Jerusalem as the united capital of Israel, even…_ jcpa.org](https://jcpa.org/the-status-of-jerusalem-in-international-and-israeli-law/ "https://jcpa.org/the-status-of-jerusalem-in-international-and-israeli-law/")[](https://jcpa.org/the-status-of-jerusalem-in-international-and-israeli-law/) + +The international community, for its part, has long sought to predicate their recognition of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem upon progress in the now moribund peace process with the Palestinians. + +Given that the international community largely refutes the legality of Israel’s annexation of the east of the city, countries have also been hesitant to base diplomatic missions in Jerusalem in order to not lend an imprimatur to the _status quo_ in the city. + +Nevertheless, even in Jerusalem the exigencies of day to day diplomacy have created a situation in which _some_ diplomatic missions are based in Jerusalem. But few realize that the majority are actually accredited to the Palestinian Authority (PA) serving as liaisons with that body while their chanceries are physically located in Jerusalem (even sometimes on the Israeli side of the Green Line). + +Eylon Aslan-Levy, writing for The Tower, explored this interesting dynamic at length here. For anybody interested in the workings of diplomacy, the piece is well worth a read. + +[**Jerusalem Already Has Plenty of Embassies-Just Not to Israel** + _While some say that moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem would mar peace talks, EYLON ASLAN-LEVY suggests that the…_ www.thetower.org](http://www.thetower.org/article/jerusalem-already-has-plenty-of-embassies-just-not-to-israel/ "http://www.thetower.org/article/jerusalem-already-has-plenty-of-embassies-just-not-to-israel/")[](http://www.thetower.org/article/jerusalem-already-has-plenty-of-embassies-just-not-to-israel/) + +Here are five kinds of diplomatic mission that, with relatively little fanfare, already operate in Jerusalem. + +### Embassies: Guetemala and the USA + +Photo: Wikimedia + +To the best of the author’s knowledge, there are currently (at the time of writing) two embassies in Jerusalem. + +The case of the US embassy is famous. Following the Americans’ decision, Guetemala opened an embassy in the capital. Paraguay followed suit but quickly relocated to Tel Aviv. + +### (De Facto) Consulates to the Palestinian Authority (PA) + +A map of consulates in Jerusalem. Source: Daniel Rosehill + +[**Where Are Jerusalem's Embassies Going To Go?** +_It's been a frenetic few weeks on the diplomatic front for Israel._ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/where-are-jerusalems-embassies-going-to-go/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/where-are-jerusalems-embassies-going-to-go/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/where-are-jerusalems-embassies-going-to-go/) + +When I last counted, there were nine foreign consulates operating in Jerusalem. As Aslan Levy’s interesting piece above points out, all of these effectively maintain liaison relationships with the Palestinian Authority (PA) even though they are theoretically accredited to ‘Jerusalem’ (which is patently nonsensical). + +The Consulate of Greece on Rahel Imenu Street in Jerusalem. Photo: Daniel Rosehill + +Nobody seems quite sure why some countries maintain their diplomatic missions to the PA in Ramallah while others base them in East Jerusalem. But even several missions based in Ramallah maintain ambassadors’ residences in the east of the city. These are typically not listed on publicly available maps. + +### Diplomatic Liaison Offices + +One step down the rung from embassies (and consulates) are diplomatic missions of various descriptions that are basing themselves in Jerusalem as Israel keeps up its push to convince the nations of the world to move their embassies to the city. + +The Czech Republic recently opened what was described by media as a “diplomatic office … affiliated to its embassy in Tel Aviv.” + +[**Czech Republic opens diplomatic office in Jerusalem** + _In a controversial move, the Czech Republic on Thursday opened a diplomatic office in Jerusalem, affiliated to its…_ www.aa.com.tr](https://www.aa.com.tr/en/politics/czech-republic-opens-diplomatic-office-in-jerusalem/2172675 "https://www.aa.com.tr/en/politics/czech-republic-opens-diplomatic-office-in-jerusalem/2172675")[](https://www.aa.com.tr/en/politics/czech-republic-opens-diplomatic-office-in-jerusalem/2172675) + +[Australia also operates a small trade and defense office](https://www.timesofisrael.com/without-fanfare-australia-opens-trade-and-defense-office-in-jerusalem/) that sits — very incongruously — in a small office in Jerusalem’s WeWork coworking space (at least it did the last time I visited). + +While these are not full-functioning embassies, they add momentum to the push by countries to base missions in Jerusalem and their opening is therefore greeted with fanfare in the Israeli media. + +### Ambassadors’ Residences + +As mentioned above, several ambassadors and heads of mission of missions to the Palestinian Authority (PA) based in Ramallah are located in Jerusalem. + +Additionally, at least one Jerusalem consulate maintains a residence for its head of mission in the city. + +A diplomatic property belonging to Belgium in West Jerusalem + +### Honorary Consulates + +Honorary consuls are the closest thing to amateur diplomats that one can find in this world. + +Usually unpaid, these are often citizens with strong connections to their “old countries” that serve as unpaid representatives in places where a country doesn’t have an embassy or consulate and can’t justify the cost of opening one. + +According to a _Times of Israel_ report a couple of years ago, Israel’s Foreign Ministry has informed the countries of the world that it will not be accrediting any more honorary consulates in Jerusalem. The move was widely understood as a pressure tactic to encourage countries to open professional diplomatic missions instead. + +[**Embassy tactic? No more mere 'honorary consuls' in Jerusalem, Israel tells world** + _In a step apparently intended to pressure governments to open embassies or other diplomatic missions in Jerusalem…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/no-more-mere-honorary-consuls-in-jerusalem-israel-tells-world/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/no-more-mere-honorary-consuls-in-jerusalem-israel-tells-world/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/no-more-mere-honorary-consuls-in-jerusalem-israel-tells-world/) + +Nevertheless, while wandering around the city, one occasionally bumps into honorary consulates that have exited in the city for years. + +Sometimes these are identifiable only by a plaque on the wall. In other instances, a flag and a seal make the presence of some kind of diplomatic facility obvious. + +Poland, for instance, maintains an honorary consulate on West Jerusalem’s Jabotinsky Street. + +The honorary consulate of Poland in West Jerusalem. Photo: Daniel Rosehill + +Israel will undoubtedly continue exerting pressure on the nations of the world to move their Israeli embassies to Jerusalem over the coming years. + +In the meantime, various countries maintain several kind of diplomatic installation within the city. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-Types-Of-Editors-Who-Drive-Freelance-Writers-Absolutely-Crazy--And-Away-.md b/posts/medium/5-Types-Of-Editors-Who-Drive-Freelance-Writers-Absolutely-Crazy--And-Away-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..92a0ff3dcec455e8cb60f87351433461c008fafe --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-Types-Of-Editors-Who-Drive-Freelance-Writers-Absolutely-Crazy--And-Away-.md @@ -0,0 +1,88 @@ +# 5 Types Of Editors Who Drive Freelance Writers Absolutely Crazy (And Away) + +#### Atrocious and sometimes abusive editors aren’t entirely unheard of in the writing industry. These are some of their worst traits. + +It’s not uncommon for the writer-editor relationship to devolve into one rife with frustration. It doesn’t have to be this way. Photo by [KoolShooters](https://www.pexels.com/@kool-shooters?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/nobelist-smoking-cigarette-6980540/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +During the course of the past six years of my professional journey — much of which has been spent in writing-heavy projects — I’ve worked with my fair share of professional editors. + +Some of these relationships have been stellar. In fact, one particular editor has become both a mentor and a continued source of referrals. This, I’d like to think, is how it should be — or at least a best-case scenario. Writers and editors are united through this crazy minefield of getting paid to produce copy. We can be friends. We _should_ be friends. + +Occasionally, though, you run into writer-editor relationships that are adversarial and sour from the get-go, poisoned even. I’ve seen a few of those too. I’ve rarely stuck around long enough to see how they might evolve. + +The common denominator: the editors seemed to be at pains to justify their place in the content-production process by being as brutal and nitpicky as possible. Such needless muscle-flexing isn’t constructive and usually just ends up driving writers to clients with more pleasant working conditions. + +Some specific things that lousy editors _do_ that bug writers and cause them to find better people to work for: + +### Editors Who Try To Take Over The Writing Process + +As a writer, I enjoy working with editors who see the big picture that sometimes escapes me when I’m working at the surface level on the details of a particular project. These editors provide a vital second set of eyes to ensure that what ends up going to the client is likely to be as satisfactory as possible. + +Am I missing something important about the client’s value proposition? Did I write something that’s going to sound dissonant with how the rest of this project is being communicated? Like good managers, editors open doors to better performance. Like bad managers, the bad ones tend to micromanage, stifle, and demoralize. + +I love editors who help me take a step back from the painting of my own work. I don’t love those who squabble over word choices –interjecting subjective preferences or hang-ups — or tell me that we need to stick in 50 more words to reach an arbitrary word count. + +When a piece of copy comes back with some big picture insights and a lot of pedantry, it’s a frustrating experience trying to get the next draft right. + +### Editors Who Hate Everything You Write + +I’ve rarely found working with editors who seem to hate everything that I write a fruitful experience. It’s not something that I commonly see being ‘turned around’ through dint of time spent together. If that’s how we start out, I can say with near certainty that things aren’t going to miraculously turn around. Even if we give it a year. + +When it’s immediately apparent that an editor (or client) simply hates the way I write in English, I know the relationship is probably not going to work out. + +On the other hand, it’s of course normal for editors to return a draft with feedback and requests for things to be changed. + +However those who make very apparent that they hated everything about the piece and the way it was communicated … we seldom have a bright future together. Or any one at all. + +### Editors Who Launch Ad Hominem Attacks On Writers + +You’d be surprised. This really does happen. Sadly. + +I’ve encountered a few editors over the years who left feedback that was downright insulting, unprofessional, and way below the belt. + +“Did you even _read_ what I wrote in my last email?” is never an appropriate way to vent annoyance. + +The relationship between a writer, an editor, a freelance client, and an end client (this is a common arrangement when working with agencies, for instance) is supposed to be a professional one. + +None of us are teaming up to perform lifesaving heart surgery. There’s just no need to be aggressive and hurtful. The stakes just aren’t that high. Almost always. + +There’s no excuse for insults. Or unfounded accusations. Or other forms of nastiness that sully what can and should be a pleasant shared creative process. The moment an editor begins tearing into you with a series of insults, it’s time to have a head to head. + +### Editors Who Are Tactless, Mean, And Pass The Buck + +An excellent brief is the foundation for a successful writing process. + +Unfortunately, far too often, I’ve seen clients get it horribly wrong. + +[**How to Brief Freelance Writers Like a Pro** + _On any given week, I receive anywhere a number of briefs for pieces of writing from clients. On any given day, my home…_ www.business2community.com](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261 "https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261")[](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261) + +Sometimes, briefs are missing vital information that absolutely should have been communicated but wasn’t. + +When editors haven’t actually seen the briefs that were sent to writers (a common mistake; I see it happen all the time), it’s too common for them to offload unfounded recriminations on the writer (_“why didn’t you include X? It was in the brief!_ ”) Nobody likes being blamed for somebody else’s error. Particularly when your client is looped into CC. + +Other briefs are _way_ too detailed. If your writer is being paid $150 for a piece of collateral, it’s almost always unreasonable to ask them to read a 200 page PDF cover to cover to prepare for the project (see: next point). + +In other instances, editors shame writers to their clients (or their end-clients in agency relationships). Or pass the buck onto them for internal disorganization — like briefs that were missing key information or essential expectations that went uncommunicated. + +Again, it’s not appropriate to blame the writer for these things, although it sadly quite often happens. + +We’re not mind-readers. We receive a set of instructions and do our best to get things right. If the blueprint was faulty, the building isn’t going to turn out the way you envisioned it. + +### Editors Who Don’t Understand Freelancing … Or Know The Contract + +Here’s another annoyance. + +As a freelancer, I have to ring-fence my time pretty carefully. Otherwise, I don’t make enough money to pay rent (etc, etc). + +Over the years, I’ve learned to use detailed contracts and to spell out with precision to clients exactly how much work is included for a given price. You get one revision. You pay this much. I do this. And if all goes well, we all leave happy. + +Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon to encounter editors who are also freelancers but who have no idea what you’ve agreed with the client. + +It’s not uncommon to have to (sometimes repeatedly) inform an editor that their requests are out of scope. As a writer, I don’t mind doing this. But it’s not exactly pleasant to keep have to telling your client that they’re effectively asking you to engage in free labor. + +In other instances, editors are in-house and have never freelanced themselves. This type of editor is likely to make unreasonable requests of freelancers like invite them to participate in endless meetings. + +The best editors, in my experience, either _are_ freelancers or _have_ freelanced. + +They’ve taken the time to study the contracts their writers have in place with the clients and have a good handle on what’s reasonable and unreasonable to expect. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-YouTube-Channels-From-Israel-I-m-Watching-At-The-Moment.md b/posts/medium/5-YouTube-Channels-From-Israel-I-m-Watching-At-The-Moment.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..963ae4019c8ed7450cf26e5047cfea361eda9668 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-YouTube-Channels-From-Israel-I-m-Watching-At-The-Moment.md @@ -0,0 +1,110 @@ +# 5 YouTube Channels From Israel I’m Watching At The Moment + +As a recent entrant to the YouTube fold, I’ve been doing a bit of digging around this summer to find channels to draw … ahem … creative inspiration from. + +There are channels whose videos I have been devouring for years already — [Corey Gill Shuster’s _The Ask Project_](https://www.youtube.com/user/coreygilshuster) __ falls very much into this category — as well as those I’ve discovered much more recently. + +Like most things in Israel, there seem to be parallel and sometimes overlapping worlds coexisting in Hebrew, English, and probably other languages too. + +While I’ve been on a Hebrew-learning kick for a lot of this summer, when it comes to finding video sources to polish up my language skills, I’ve been mostly watching professional content syndicated by Kan (Israel’s national broadcaster) — which does an outstanding job at producing many excellent series and documentaries and even adds English subtitles to select shows. + +Kan — Israel’s public broadcaster — produces a variety of YouTube channels. Screenshot: YouTube. + +In the process, I’ve developed an unexpected fondness for _Kupa Rashit,_ a somewhat ridiculous Israeli skit based on a typically dysfunctional and chaotically managed supermarket. + +For a representative taster, see the first episode of [season three](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPHTo9NsnNI&ab_channel=%D7%9B%D7%90%D7%9F11-%D7%AA%D7%90%D7%92%D7%99%D7%93%D7%94%D7%A9%D7%99%D7%93%D7%95%D7%A8%D7%94%D7%99%D7%A9%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%9C%D7%99). Like the actual process of shopping in an Israeli supermarket, it’s something of an acquired taste that mellows with age and gets easier the more you do it. Like most Israeli comedy, I find it slightly too slapstick for my liking (growing up in Ireland, I prefer the more sardonic British variety of humor). But it has its moments. + +What I _have_ discovered from exploring the Hebrew YouTube “ecosystem” is that there’s plenty of vacuous clickbait content being delivered by YouTube “influencers” in Hebrew. As well as plenty of much more substantive material that’s actually engaging and entertaining. As I wrote here earlier today, that’s just kinda how Israel rolls. It’s totally unique. And also oddly like every other country. All at the same time. It’s the baffling paradox of this land and its people. + +Here are some of the Israel-based YouTubers that I’ve subbed recently and long ago. + +### The Ask Project By Corey Gil Shuster + +A frame from Corey Gil Shuster’s The Ask Project. Photo: YouTube / The Ask Project + +I’ve probably watched more hours of this channel than just about any other YouTube channel I consume — and that includes the inimitable Vah Chef whose unique brand of presenting Indian cooking videos has won him fans, and plaudits, from all over the world. (I knew that if I wrote enough articles on Medium I’d finally get round to comparing Corey and Vah Chef). + +Caution: The Ask Project isn’t easy watching. Corey asks random Israelis, and Palestinians, their thoughts on often divisive political issues including the status of the peace process; whether they want peace at all; and what they want for their future: to live side by side or together. + +The answers are quite eye-opening. + +[**The Ask Project On YouTube**](https://www.youtube.com/user/coreygilshuster) + +### Travelling Israel — With Oren Cahanovitc + +[**travelingisrael.com** + _Welcome to my Traveling Israel Chanel! It is all about helping travelers to travel in Israel. You can find here info…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkeTA80xeSa9POCGRpWTIfQ "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkeTA80xeSa9POCGRpWTIfQ")[](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkeTA80xeSa9POCGRpWTIfQ) + +If you’re thinking about planning a trip to Israel, then you could do much much worse than by checking out the YouTube channel of Oren Cahanovitc. + +Israeli tour guide Oren Cahanovitc gives a primer on how to use Jerusalem’s light rail system including the Rav Kav electronic ticket. Screenshot: YouTube. + +Oren’s channel is likely to be a lot more useful for visitors and prospective visitors than for those actually living here. Nevertheless, I find his presentation style refreshing: down to earth, unassuming, and full of interesting information about sights around Israel and the practical details of living here. + +If you’re thinking about visiting Israel — at least when you can do so again — then you’re likely to find an explainer on some facet of life here on the channel. + +[**TravellingIsrael.com on YouTube**](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkeTA80xeSa9POCGRpWTIfQ) + +### India International — With India Persaud + +India Persaud works with Tel Aviv based international news station i24 news and has put her training in journalism to good use by founding [a YouTube channel](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDzzeMDdWCITmeACyOpAy7A) that’s quickly climbing in popularity. + +As her fans repeatedly ask her — yes, her name is really India. India’s journey to Israel is intriguing. And while her brand — and channel — started out when she was elsewhere in the world (Brazil to be specific), Israel appears to be where she has wound up, at least for the moment. + +India’s production quality is really slick and she was even kind enough to give me an insight, by email, into what gear she’s using. While I won’t spill the beans on those trade secrets, her advice is worth paraphrasing and repeating: don’t be put off by those further along in the journey than you, keep creating, and keep publishing. + +[**India International on YouTube.**](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDzzeMDdWCITmeACyOpAy7A) + +### Kan’s Network Of YouTube Channels + +Israel’s public broadcaster — Kan — has really outdone itself when it comes to syndicating content to YouTube. + +I’m guessing that this must be somebody’s — or many people’s — full-time job. Because when I went to try subscribe to as many as I could find, I managed to count close to 20 different channels before calling it a day. + +Kan has produced a number of excellent shows. It adds English subtitles to the best of those and Hebrew subtitles to a lot more. + +Depending on where you are in your Hebrew-learning voyage, the Hebrew audio / Hebrew subtitles channels can still be useful learning resources. You’ll just need a good enough basis (Hebrew has an English-ism for this word: _bas-ees)_ in order to be able to follow along. + +Some of the options: + +[**כאן 11 - תאגיד השידור הישראלי** + _ברוכים הבאים לערוץ היוטיוב הרשמי של כאן 11. הירשמו לערוץ שלנו ותוכלו למצוא כאן בשידורי בכורה (שידור לפני הטלוויזיה!) את…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/user/MEDIAIBA "https://www.youtube.com/user/MEDIAIBA")[](https://www.youtube.com/user/MEDIAIBA) + +[**כאן - דיגיטל** + _ברוכים הבאים לערוץ היוטיוב של כאן דיגיטל. כאן תמצאו את כל סדרות הרשת המומלצות והאהובות שלנו: דוקותיים, כאן סקרנים…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDJ6HHS5wkNaSREumdJRYhg "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDJ6HHS5wkNaSREumdJRYhg")[](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDJ6HHS5wkNaSREumdJRYhg) + +[**כאן חדשות** + _ערוץ היוטיוב של חטיבת החדשות של כאן, תאגיד השידור הישראלי. הכתבות החמות והמהדורות המלאות - לצפייה מתי שנוח לכם Welcome…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_HwfTAcjBESKZRJq6BTCpg "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_HwfTAcjBESKZRJq6BTCpg")[](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_HwfTAcjBESKZRJq6BTCpg) + +[**כאן גימל** + _ברוכים הבאים לעמוד היוטיוב הרשמי של כאן גימל! הבית של המוזיקה הישראלית. כאן תוכלו למצוא מגוון תכנים איכותיים, בשלל…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmXvXsUJ8ivNZ23qQfkxhnQ "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmXvXsUJ8ivNZ23qQfkxhnQ")[](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmXvXsUJ8ivNZ23qQfkxhnQ) + +[**כאן לומדים** + _ברוכים הבאים לכאן חינוכית הכנה לבגרות. כאן תוכלו למצוא שיעורים מוקלטים להכנה למקצועות הבגרות כמו אזרחות, מתמטיקה (ל3, 4…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/user/23bagrut "https://www.youtube.com/user/23bagrut")[](https://www.youtube.com/user/23bagrut) + +[**כאן הסכתים - פודקאסטים** + _כאן הסכתים - הפודקאסטים של השידור הציבורי הישראלי. בכאן הסכתים ניתן למצוא עשרות כותרים בתחומי ידע מגוונים כגון…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCycBj_9Hx33AOV95j0hwmrA "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCycBj_9Hx33AOV95j0hwmrA")[](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCycBj_9Hx33AOV95j0hwmrA) + +[**כאן מורשת** + _כאן מורשת תחנת הרדיו כאן מורשת פונה לקהל חרדי-דתי ומספקת יהדות בגובה העיניים: אקטואליה בדגש על נושאי דת ומדינה, מוזיקה…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzr8GKryb0dfc8Y_Sb5B33w "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzr8GKryb0dfc8Y_Sb5B33w")[](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzr8GKryb0dfc8Y_Sb5B33w) + +[**כאן כלכלי** + _כאן כלכלי | כלכלה שמדברת עליך מבית כאן - תאגיד השידור הישראלי_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyCwrphSEOGE2U7E0_69deQ "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyCwrphSEOGE2U7E0_69deQ")[](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyCwrphSEOGE2U7E0_69deQ) + +[**כאן שפות** + _בית הספר לשפות מבית כאן חינוכית, מגיש מבחר תוכניות איכותיות ללימוד שפה, בעברית, אנגלית, ערבית וצרפתית. כאן תוכלו למצוא…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/user/23language "https://www.youtube.com/user/23language")[](https://www.youtube.com/user/23language) + +### Jerusalem Walker + +The mysterious Jerusalem Walker — who has to the best of my knowledge thus far remained anonymous — has emerged as a new star in the popular virtual walk category of YouTube videos. + +[**Jerusalem Walker** + _4k UHD Virtual walking tours in Israel! Israel is a beautiful country and our Jerusalem is a fantastic and special city…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLGnmW1TaZYnWIFO1z3mKrA "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLGnmW1TaZYnWIFO1z3mKrA")[](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLGnmW1TaZYnWIFO1z3mKrA) + +As the name suggests, these videos tend to involve being brought along on a virtual walk through somebody … recording themselves walking through scenery. + +As a recent entrant to the gimbal owners of this world (I picked up a DJI Ronin SC last month), I had to ask what the gear being used was. The answer: for at least some of the shots, a humble DJI Osmo Pocket mobile gimbal, which truly delivers outsized stabilized results in 4K. + +The Jerusalem Walker has a flair for creativity. Live music performances have been captured; aerial shots taken in the _shuk;_ fans have also begun leaving suggestions. + +There are a variety of great YouTube channels bringing content from Israel-based YouTubers out to the world — in English, Hebrew, and just about every other language commonly spoken in Israel’s melting pot. This list is totally exhaustiveness. But might provide a good start for somebody looking to explore what it’s actually like to live in Israel — from those living here. diff --git a/posts/medium/5-websites-you-ll-start-using-when-you-move-to-Israel.md b/posts/medium/5-websites-you-ll-start-using-when-you-move-to-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e8438b4e18e81f6fd265639b9f0131df7fc2e290 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/5-websites-you-ll-start-using-when-you-move-to-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,145 @@ +# 5 websites you’ll start using when you move to Israel + +Not familiar with these logos yet? You will be soon! + +Living in Israel — as one tends to imagine — can be quite a colorful experience. + +There’s the crazy politics. The grueling hot summers. + +And then there’s the factor that nobody ever talks about: + +**The unfamiliar websites you’ll be relying upon to survive economically — or just survive — in**[**one of the most expensive countries in the world.**](https://hamodia.com/2020/02/28/poll-israel-eighth-expensive-country/) + +I’m putting together this short listicle partially because I’m a big proponent of alternative means of _aliyah_ preparation. + +Things like having an employment plan and an idea about where you want to live are vitally important. + +_Baroor_(clearly). + +But so is knowing how to type in Hebrew so that you don’t have to rely solely upon English sources for information — which are far fewer in number and which often rely upon translating second-hand information. + +When was the last time you ever saw an _ulpan_ teaching touch typing on a Hebrew keyboard, for example? They should! (They might throw out those old cassette players while they are at it!) + +In that same vein of quirky remote-friendly preparedness, here are some websites you’ll likely be coming to grips with shortly after your bags make it out of baggage collection. + +So why not set up an account now and get ready to hit up… the Israeli internet. + +### Yad2 (Yad2.co.il) + +**Purpose: Obtaining accommodation (including sublets)** + +In Israel, _makolets_(lotto stands) often double as midday techno venues. + +Disused supermarket space is often repurposed as a makeshift post office. + +And cinemas are seen as ideal venues in which to hold political panel debates. + +In that same proud Israeli tradition of imaginative space usage **Yad2.co.il is a kind of one stop shop for everything second hand and real estate-related …… including cars, furniture, and ….. pets.** + +While apartment-hunting in Israel is now mostly conducted through Facebook groups, Yad2.co.il remains a very important source of “leads” — and you ignore its occasional bounty at your own peril. + +Yad2 (pronounced “ _yad sh-tEYE-im_ “) also recently underwent something of a facelift and — I am partially sad to report — has proudly graduated from the plentiful ranks of Israeli websites that look like their were designed in the MS-DOS era and feature enough flash advertising to obfuscate everything but the “Buy Now!” button. + +### Shufersal Online (Shufersal.co.il) + +**Purpose in your life: Obtaining food** + +**Shufersal proudly describes itself as _“Israel’s leading retail food chain.”_** + +Step into any other supermarket and you’ll realize that the bar to make that claim is not set all that high. + +Shufersal _has_ , however, pioneered online shopping delivery in Israel through its nationwide chain of stores. (Rami Levi do online delivery too but the areas served do not always overlap; also worth noting: Rami Levi doesn’t deliver to most parts of Jerusalem). + +Sadly, neither Shufersal nor Rami Levi have — at the time of writing — translated their online shopping user interfaces into English. That means that there’s no choice but to battle with the _Ivrit_ in order to get your food to your front door. + +Thankfully, the linguistic challenge posed is surmountable — with some basic know how, the services of Google Translate, and [even this YouTube video demonstration.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdC3LUOmhUM&t=132s) + +And that leads me nicely on to: + +### Morfix (Morfix.co.il) + +**Role in your life: Knowing how to cuss with the correct vowelization** + +There is an unspoken rule — familiar to any veteran _oleh_ and _olah_ — that nothing in Israel must ever be overly easy. + +After all, the Talmud adjures that one’s stake in the Land of Israel can only be acquired through _yesurin_(difficulties). + +In that spirit, those responsible for reviving Hebrew as a functional vernacular decided that actually writing out the vowelization might make it too simplistic for Ethiopian, Russian, and American Jews to get to grips with the language. + +_Chas v’shalom_! + +Therefore it was decreed at the State’s foundation that Hebrew be written without vowels and that vowelization be retained only in liturgical settings. This had the added benefit of encouraging immigrants to spend more time immersing themselves in traditional Jewish texts. + +This quirky move also meant that older immigrants and _tsabrim_ could laugh at the linguistic blunders of relative newcomers — providing an enduring source of national comic relief that was as badly needed during those harder pioneering days as it is now when our society faces a different kind of challenge. + +Those that wanted to go the full nine _amot_ and prove their mettle in secular endeavors would therefore have no choice but to labor over lengthy treaties like the _Oxford Hebrew-English Dictionary_ to learn whether a spherical hunk of baked dough is called _p-ee-ta_ or _p-ah-tah_ and so on and so forth. (There are far funnier examples but the hour is late and I could use a _p-ee-ta_ myself). + +Learners these days have it easy! + +Morfix is an English-Hebrew dictionary that includes the _nekudot_(vowelization). This makes it easy for learners to build their _otzar milim_ correctly from the get-to. + +It even has a smartphone app (it just doesn’t sync to the cloud yet but _leat, leat_ as they say). + +### Aliexpress (Aliexpress.com) + +**Role in your life: Buying cheap Chinese merchandise without Israeli middlemen** + +Speaking of vocabulary there’s one word that every new immigrant is sooner to hear on the street sooner or later — and that’s פרטייר ( _fr-EYE-er_). + +Show me a bigger _freyer_ move than paying quadruple the retail price for some low cost Chinese merchandise that some _chutzpan_(brazen person) has imported from Alibaba and marked up 500%?! + +Immigrants need to start thinking smarter than that if they’re going to make it in Israel. + +Instead of paying 30 NIS at Dudu’s telephone repair kiosk by the _Tahana Merkazit_ for an Android phone cover you can instead buy it yourself directly from the same Chinese supplier he’s getting it from for 10 NIS. + +Sound like a deal? You bet it is! + +Just don’t forget that: + +### BookDepository (bookdepository.com) + +**Role in your life: Buying English books** + +You’re still with me? + +If you’ve made it this far then you’re hopefully picking up the penchant for thinking creatively in terms of how you’re going to source those _essential_ items that you’re certain you need for your new exciting life in Israel. + +In time you’ll get to begging your second cousin’s uncle to _schlep_ that electronic you’ve been dreaming about in his suitcase. He might be coming from New York in a month (you think you heard). And it costs five times as much in KSP as it does in New York. But for now we need to keep thinking about _self-sufficiency_. (Don’t forget — it’s the Zionist way — and if you’ve graduated to this stage of _aliyah_ than you should really just start calling America _chooool_) + +But for now — priorities. + +After a month in lockdown you’re not sure how much longer you’re going to make it without _Stress Management: A Comprehensive Guide to Wellness_ before you suffer (another) nervous break down. We’ve all been there. + +Fortunately there’s an online book store called _Book Depository_ that offers totally free international shipping — including to Israel! + +“Book what?” you might be wondering incredulously. + +Don’t worry about that and get used to thinking more openly in terms of what kind of ecommerce stores you buy from. + +Remember how you used to use Amazon in the Old World to your front door and now you get unbranded electronics in envelopes from “Aliexpress” which — for some strange reason — get delivered to your local post office and not your house? + +Well, buying from BookDepository is just another “transition” that you’ll need to make. It’s one of many waiting for you on your journey towards becoming an _aliyah vatik (_ or _vatika_). + +For what it’s worth BookDepository is actually owned by Amazon and is an amazing company with a terrific selection of books — it’s just a little bit more limited than what you’ll find on Amazon. + +Just remember there’s only so much _kvetching_ these companies can tolerate before they come to the conclusion that it’s better to not serve the Israeli market at all. So when your stuff comes in three months rather than a week — consider if you really need to let their customer support people know! Take your grieving out on Dudu at the _Tahana Merkazit_ when you buy your next phone cover. + +### Honorable Mentions + +This short blog was more an introduction to the wonderful world of buying things online from Israel than it is a comprehensive guide. + +We didn’t get to buying clothes online from ASOS, Next, and Zara. + +Or to buying your supplements from iHerb because — for some unknowable reason — supplements in Israel cost a multiple of what they do abroad (I would have added “like almost everything else” but that would be doing essential health foods like _falafel_ a gross injustice). But I _kvetch_. + +Instead I leave these and the other countless online discoveries waiting for you up to you — and encourage you to see buying from strange online stores that neither you nor your friends abroad have ever heard of as the decidedly millennial continuance of that same intrepid spirit of discovery that fuelled the hearts and minds of the generations of Zionists that made homes on this land long before you (okay, so maybe it was only 100 years). + +Before you lie many websites that look like they have been in a digital freezer since Windows 98 was the latest thing in operating systems. You’ll deal with Zap retailers aplenty and wonder why an order takes as long to get from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as it does to arrive by airmail from Szenchen. + +As you struggle your eyes and cognitive faculties will mount a silent but valiant battle to focus and stay sane in the face of vast hoards of popup advertisements and blaring pixels adjuring you to check out the summer _mivtzah_(sale) — except that you can’t quite understand how these prices could possibly by considered a “sale” when they cost a multiple of what they did in your point of origin. Again, it’s all simply a healthy part of growth. + +Carry on! Do not be dissuaded! And adapt to the wonderful and quirky world of the Israeli internet. + +Like _aliyah_ It’s the journey of a lifetime. And it’s waiting for you to explore. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/6-Great-Things-About-Israel-s-Healthcare-System.md b/posts/medium/6-Great-Things-About-Israel-s-Healthcare-System.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a2844a4f6753b9e30bfb9456bc8d89e34c8eb89c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/6-Great-Things-About-Israel-s-Healthcare-System.md @@ -0,0 +1,140 @@ +# 6 Great Things About Israel’s Healthcare System + +#### Why Israel’s healthcare has a well-deserved reputation for excellence + +I’ve written several times before about the pros and cons of living in Israel — at least as I see them. + +[**The Pros and Cons of Living in Israel** + _(And Why I Still Think the Cost of Living is the Elephant in the Room!)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) + +And whenever I do so I preface my observations with one major caveat: + +Like many Jewish immigrants, I came to live here for ideological and not pragmatic reasons. I see Israel as the only logical home for Jews and the idea of playing a role in its future, and helping make the country better, is a tremendous motivator that empowers me to keep trying even when the going is hard (frequently, it is). Therefore, I currently live there. For me, the ideological drive supercedes _all_ logical considerations. + +But if we _do_ want to get into the nuts and bolts of what it’s like to make a life in this part of the Middle East, I have plenty to say about that — and I’m far from blindly positive (some would even say I’m doom and gloom). I’ve already highlighted some of the less desirable aspects on this blog: it’s annoyingly expensive; customer service is frequently kind of rubbish; and driving here is so stress-inducing that more days than not I’d rather just take the bus. + +[**My Theory About Why Customer Service In Israel Is So Frequently So Bad** + _In a sometimes pitched battle for bare profitability, the small buyer frequently gets the raw end of the stick_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-theory-about-why-customer-service-in-israel-is-so-frequently-so-bad-7c64c88bfe64 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-theory-about-why-customer-service-in-israel-is-so-frequently-so-bad-7c64c88bfe64")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-theory-about-why-customer-service-in-israel-is-so-frequently-so-bad-7c64c88bfe64) + +But there _are_ things about living in Israel that I think are objectively good. + +And one of those is its healthcare system. + +While Israel may have prematurely robbed me of my gallbladder (another days’ grievance!), I have overall only good things to say about healthcare here. Here are five ways in which I think it is outstanding. + +### Healthcare in Israel is thoroughly digitized + +The login to my Macabbi healthcare portal where I can do everything from book doctor’s visits to send my doctor messages to see how much I paid for my last prescription. Screenshot: author via Macabbi website. + +Before I left Ireland, I attempted to get hold of some recent blood tests. + +What can I say? I’m neurotic about digitization, my scanner is one of my favorite possessions, and I try to keep as few pieces of paper as I possibly can. + +The outcome? I needed to file something that felt very like a freedom of information request to liberate a document that looked very much like it had been scanned. I had no idea I would be creating so much hassle. + +In Israel, digitization, and electronic medical records (EMRs) are the norm rather than the exception. + +My health maintenance organization (HMO; Hebrew: _kupat holim_) has an online system through which I can do everything from book doctors’ appointments to find specialists in my area. + +_Everything —_ and I mean everything — gets electronically logged in this system (not all of the data, such as doctors’ notes, is visible to patients). + +I can see when I filled prescriptions; exactly how much I paid for each; and what medications I’m currently taking. I can also send my doctor a limited number of questions per quarter. And if I’d rather just book a telephone appointment — they added this feature for my family doctor to minimize clinic visits during the pandemic — there’s an option for that too. Alongside a whole lot more. + +The system, while terrific, isn’t perfect. The psychotherapy system, in particular, doesn’t tie in anywhere near as well as medical specialties do. But overall booking doctors’ visits, or reading your latest blood tests, is as easy as opening up an app. + +### Quality of care is good — and you can find doctors who speak your language + +Using the Macabbi web based system in order to filter available doctors by the language(s) they speak. Screenshot: Maccabi + +While I try, to the fullest extent possible, to use Hebrew as much as possible in my day to day, there are things I’ve realized that it just doesn’t make sense to risk misunderstandings over. + +One of those is medicine. + +When you’ve got a pain in your right side and you don’t know how to describe it as “sharp” or “gnawing” you really don’t want to risk misdiagnosis by botching the vocabulary. + +Fortunately, as a country of immigrants, each _kupat holim_(health maintenance organization, there are four) tends to have doctors — and even specialists — who speak your language. + +English-speaking doctors, in particular, are easy to find. After all, English is the international language and — as far as I’ve been told —many doctors need to develop at least _some_ proficiency in English for professional reasons. + +My health fund (Macabbi) allows me to search by language. Whether I need a doctor who speaks English, French, Arabic, Yiddish, Russian or any of the many languages spoken in large number in Israel — I can do so with ease. This alone takes a lot of the pressure off ensuring continuity of care when you move here. + +### The COVID Vaccine Rollout Has Been World-Leading + +Hopefully, by the time you read this blog post the whole pandemic fiasco will have been behind us. + +Israel’s COVID numbers have varied from “world beating” to “what on earth went wrong over there?” + +But in at least one respect most people can agree the country has done a great job: and that’s in quickly rolling out a vaccination program. + +Why has Israel been so proficient at ensuring that its population received both double vaccinations and boosters in an extremely timely fashion? + +A few reasons can be offered. + +Firstly, while Israel does some things poorly (see above comment about customer service; or walk into any post office in Israel; actually, just try to join a “queue” for coffee), it excels in other areas. + +One of those is logistics. As a nation of conscripts that frequently finds itself at war, Israel has put in place some excellent infrastructure for liaising between decision-makers and the general population. + +One such institution is of course the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). + +Another is Israel’s general affinity for everything related to technology. It’s much easier to roll out a vaccination programme for several million people when everybody already has access to an online system. + +More presciently, Israel’s well-digitized medical system — and small size — made it a perfect leading-edge test case for the rest of the world. Israel cleverly used this fact to its advantage by cutting a data-for-doses deal with Pfizer. + +May the rest soon all be history. + +### Access to doctors, and specialists, is generally fast + +This morning, I saw my family doctor — which provided the impetus to write up this post. + +The visit was routine, although I’d rather not share the details.It resulted in the generation of one prescription. I filled that about five minutes later. No paper necessary. + +I booked the appointment online last week and simply showed up at the clinic at the right time. No phone calls or dealing with harried secretaries necessary. + +During the tenure of my time in Israel, I’ve needed to see several specialists and have a few test done. + +As a lifelong asthmatic, it makes sense for me to see a pulmonologist every now and again and have a spiromety test done. I never heard the word “spirometry” before I moved here. Nor did I know that it should be done to make sure that what you “think” is asthma it’s really something else. + +Access to specialists is, in general, amazingly quick. Particularly the more frequently-seen ones such as ENTs. + +Psychiatrists and rheumatologists are apparently a little slower. But you’re still talking about months rather than years. This is all through accessing the healthcare system through the conventional “public” channel. (Israel does have supplementary healthcare and insurance although the mainstream care is so good that many are perfectly content with the level of care provided through their HMO). + +### The system is mostly pretty well joined up + +There are four health maintenance organizations in the country — Macabbi, Leumi, Clalit, and Meuhedet. + +By law, every citizen needs to be signed up to one — irrespective of their employment status. + +For the past three years, I’ve been (full-time) self-employed. I make monthly payments to the National Insurance Institute (Bituach Leumi) and pay a small monthly fee to my health maintenance organization. Together, they ensure that I have access to healthcare. + +When I read discussions among American freelancers about the stresses of living without healthcare, I feel bad for them. + +Being freelance/self-employed can be stressful enough without having to worry about being able to pay for your insulin/inhaler on top of everything else. I’m grateful that Israel makes it relatively easy for even those on a modest income to afford the medications they need to stay well and healthy. + +Israel also has an urgent care network — Terem — that sits somewhere between the HMOs and the emergency room network, which Israel tries to reserve for real emergencies. + +If I’m referred to Terem by my HMO — for instance, I need urgent care and its out of hours — I’ll receive a discounted rate. I can even see details of ultrasounds I’ve had done in external providers, and my gallbladder surgery, in my HMO file. Systems “speak” to one another. + +### Overall, costs are quite low. Prescription medications are affordable. + +Here are the current prices, in shekels (NIS), for the health plans with Maccabi: + +‘Zahav’ (gold) is the more basic plan. It more than covers my needs. ‘Macabbi Sheli’ (My Macabbi) offers you some extras. + +Within my age bracket (30–45), my monthly fee for Macabbi Zahav is 51.91 NIS. At today’s dollar exchange rate, that’s $16.23 — or just shy of $200 ($193) _per year_. + +If I want to go for Macabbi Sheli, I’d be paying 97.24 NIS per month. That’s $30.40 per month. Or $365 per year. + +Prescription medications involve surcharges — although what you pay is a discounted rate. + +Some recent purchases from my list: + + * 30 capsules of omeprazole for 18 NIS ($5.63). + * Relvar (fluticasone furoate/vilanterol) for 27.57 NIS ($8.62). + +Naturally, healthcare in Israel isn’t _perfect_. + +You can encounter doctors you find less than helpful. Sometimes, you feel as if the system works a little _too_ quickly (my referral to gallbladder surgery felt a little bit rushed). + +And ultimately you’re dealing with a system that’s underpinned by socialized medicine and which is designed to serve the whole population for a relatively low cost. If you want really in-depth care, many will pay to access private doctors. + +Overall, I think that healthcare in Israel is excellent. diff --git a/posts/medium/6-Reasons-To-Start-Using-Chef-Pans-In-Your-Home-Kitchen.md b/posts/medium/6-Reasons-To-Start-Using-Chef-Pans-In-Your-Home-Kitchen.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a6fd4242ac6394480b77580f302d752d594ce7a0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/6-Reasons-To-Start-Using-Chef-Pans-In-Your-Home-Kitchen.md @@ -0,0 +1,189 @@ +# 6 Reasons To Start Using Chef Pans In Your Home Kitchen + +#### Little Used The Food Industry, GN / Chef Pans Are Like … The Best Things Ever (In This Author’s Opinion) + +Some chana masala and bulgur that I made in advance of a Shabbat dinner. The Gastronorm sizes are (L to R): 1/4 x 10 cm (chana masala), 1/4 x 10cm (bulgur), 1/4 x 20cm (soup) + +_Originally published on my blog:_ + +To continue with the long progress of documenting random things I find interesting — evidenced visually by the mushrooming tags cloud in the sidebar of this blog — I thought I would write up a quick note on my love of Gastronorm pans, and commercial-grade cookware in general. + +[According to Wikipedia:](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastronorm_sizes) + +> **_Gastronorm sizes_** _are standard sizes of_[ _containers_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Packaging_and_labeling) _used in the_[ _catering_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catering) _industry specified in the_[ _EN_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Committee_for_Standardisation) _631 standards_ + +Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that few outside the catering and restaurant industry even know that these things exist. + +Here are some reasons that is a travesty. + +### 1: They Make Your Home Feel Like An All-You-Can-Eat Buffet + +The author and a dining companion eating weekend leftovers served out of two “sixth” (1/6) GN pans + +Nothing screams “home comfort” to me more than eating dinner served out of two Gastronorm pans. These are 1/6 (“sixth”) pans with a depth of 10cm. Want to bring the all you can eat buffet experience to your dining room table? GN pans will get you at least part of the way. + +To get very to the Real McCoy, all you need is a pile of GN pans, a _bain marie_(or alternatively a more consumer-oriented electric buffet pan warmer; [Amazon link here](https://www.amazon.com/Oster-Buffet-Server-Warming-Stainless/dp/B002FWTOQM)), some vaguely annoying background music, and a massive appetite. + +And yes, if you’re really determined you can buy all of these things. Amazon even stocks them. + +A _bain marie_(electric hot water bath) for use in a commercial kitchen. The GN pans slot inside.* * * + +### 2: They’re Made for Restaurants, So Are Food-Industry-Tough + +Inside the author’s fridge with a 20cm deep 1/4 GN pan casually hanging out next to some mustard, capers, and oranges. I’ve designated this deep tub especially for storing base gravy for British Indian Restaurant (BIR) curries + +Gastronorm pans (also called “chef’s pans” or “GN pans”) are as hearty as they look. + +Trust me, these things will take a beating. + +4 GN pans side by side in a fridge + +My fridge fits exactly 4 GN pans in width and 2 x 1/6s in depth. Coincidence? I think not! + +Gastronorm pans can be: + + * **Used as a percussion instrument in combination with your favorite’s chef’s spoon** , which is another piece of industrial cookware that everybody absolutely should own. You can also bang on your gastronorm in this manner to let roommates or recalcitrant children know that dinner (itself served in GN pans) has been served. + * **Used as a form of cymbal by clacking the Gastronorm’s lid against the body of the Gastronorm repetitively.** This particular percussionary use is perhaps most appropriate to herald the arrival of food in the pans at Pot Lucks. + * Used in the same manner as a form of kitchen gong to indicate when a dish has been completed. + +More conventionally, they can be: + + * Put in an oven (they’re oven proof and used widely for baking loaves*) + * Put in a freezer (they’re freezer proof*) + * Put in a fridge + * Put on a hot plate + +(Exact heat and cold resistance depends on material used. Ask the seller) + +### 3: They’re Versatile! Perfect for Storing, Heating, and Serving + +The author’s collection of GN pans at the time of writing stored chaotically about the fridge. It has since grown.I keep 1/4 and 1/6 pans separate. A few 1/9s are not shown + +Anybody that’s been to a buffet, or bought a sandwich in Subway, has almost certainly interacted with a Gastronorm pan — although few besides the restaurant owners probably know them by that name. + +Gastronorms fit perfectly in the refrigerator and I’ve observed that there seems to be some weird Gastronorm/refrigerator dynamic at play. + +For instance: I can stack two 10cm Gastronorms into the lower shelf of my fridge and they fit _perfectly_ with not a excess millimeter of headspace gone to waste. + +Better than that, GN pans are the perfect receptacle for every stage of the food preparation and consumption process. + +You can: + + * **Store raw ingredients** in Gastronorms + * **Store coked ingredients** in Gastronorms + * **Heat up food for serving** directly in a Gastronom + * Insert said Gastronorms into a _bain marie_ or place them onto a trivet to serve you or your guests from + +If you have a label printer that can do thermal printed labels, you can also affix labels to the front of them to indicate the ones that you wish to keep for prep etc. Waterproof stickers also work. + +### 4: They’re Modular (And Made To An International Standard) + +A serving counter containing Gastronorm pans at Bruno’s Sandwich bar in Jerusalem, one of my new favorites. The cabbage is in a 1/4, next to eggplant in a 1/6 and a 1/9 of hot sauce. Only a true GN fan would know this. + +**GN pans are perfect for stacking one on top of the other in a way that regular kitchen storing bowls simply are not.** + +Because they’re standardized according to a European directive (yes, really; “[EN-631](https://infostore.saiglobal.com/en-gb/Standards/EN-631-1-1993-334060_SAIG_CEN_CEN_767432/): Materials and Articles in Contact with Foodstuffs — Catering Containers — Dimensions of Containers”), difference sizes of GN pan can also be stacked one on top of the other in a refrigerator. + +**In fact I would argue that the success with which the standard has been adopted internationally is pretty darn impressive.** + +Walk into a kitchen store (or order a deli sandwich) in Dublin, Jerusalem, and Boston and you should get more or less the same selection of pans. + +Forget trying to get that IKEA bowl to sit on top of that rectangular box thing you got as a gift from your coworker. + +Gastronorms fit perfectly whether alongside or on top of one another and make fantastic use out of refrigerator storage space. + +To work out what will fit, all you need is to know some simple arithmetic / fractions: two 1/4 tubs will fit on top of a 1/2, etc. + +In fact, the more Gastronorms you own the more uses you seem to find for them, just as you will often see in commercial kitchens. + +I have one dedicated solely to housing lids for the other pans in my kitchen while another is boxing off ice storage trays in the freezer compartment. + +Another fun facet of knowing Gastronorm sizes not to be taking lightly is that **you can impress serving staff and friends by being able to describe the size of pan an ingredient is being held in.** If there’s a cooler party trick, I don’t know of it. + +_“Some cabbage please,”_ marks you out as just another average punter looking for a sandwich filling. “ _Can I have a big of the cabbage? You see the one in that quarter [Gastronorm]”_** _subtly communicates to staff that they’re dealing with a fellow food industry professional —_** and that they better be on their guard to make the best sandwich in the world for you. I’m just trying to be funny, of course. + +Speaking of GN sizes, that’s actually my favorite thing about them. + +As mentioned, **it’s a legitimate international standard.** + +There are no regional or international “interpretations” that I’m aware of as to what size a quarter pan should be. Catalog examples from several countries all sporting the same terminology and gauge: + +The materials and brand names may differ, but the standard sizes have been adopted internationally. From the product cataloge of a US-based supplier.GN pans on the online catalog of a local catering supply shopAn Irish restaurant supplier’s catalog. Same pan sizes. Same depth. International standardization at its finest! + +**Just remember: lids aren’t typically included and catering suppliers — because they mostly sell to other businesses — often quote ex-VAT / sales tax.** + +The only differences you’ll find between manufacturers relate to the material used (you can find stainless steel, the commercial kitchen standard, as well as aluminimum, glass, and even plastic). + +The sizes are described as fractions of a full (1/1 pan), such that four 1/4 Gastronorms (called a “quarter pan”) would fit perfectly into a horizontal 1/1 pan at a sandwich counter. + +A Gastronorm pan size reference from Wikimedia + +### Join The Gastronom Way + +As trivial as it may seem, **the Gastronorm pan size convention is one of the best examples of successful international standardization (and cooperation) that I have ever come across**(although granted my expertise on this matter is minor.) + +Pan sizes for the restaurant industry seem to be internationally uncontroversial, which makes me wonder why can’t we do the same about a lot of other things such as the unit of measurement for reporting temperature in or whether we use the metric or Imperial system? + +The ones I have at home are: + + * **1/4 pans:** rectangular; enough to hold about four servings of a dish. 1/3 pans are roughly the same shape but slightly longer and wider. I would find them a little too large. Perfect for leftovers of one big dish or two dishes put into one. + * **1/6 pans** : square; enough to hold about two servings of a dish. Also a great size for storing prepped ingredients. Also perfect for smaller leftovers. + * **1/9 pans:** small pans that can fit in the side of a fridge and which are great for storing small quantities of sauces, like pesto, that can survive in the fridge for a couple of weeks. + +GN pans also come in a variety of standardized depths. + +Typically, they can be the following depths (in mm): + + * 20 + * 40 + * 66 + * 100 + * 150 + * 200 + +This adds another dimension to their versatility. + +A deep sixth (1/6 x 200mm) is perfect for ladelling soup out of into a bowl while a flat 40mm deep third would be a great size in which to store chips, for extraction with a pair of kitchen tongs. + +### 5: You Buy Them in Catering Stores + +Catering stores also have vast quantities of food storage bins. + +**Restaurant / catering supply stores are surely one of the most underrated shopping experiences on the planet.** + +If you can find one that isn’t trade-only (doesn’t sell to just restaurants) **you can buy professional-grade cookware for often the same price as you can buy grossly inferior consumer stuff.** Additionally, restaurant supply places stock: + + * Things like chef spoons which aren’t typically found in consumer kitchen stores. + * Things like giant 40 liter aluminium pots for homebrewing which would also never be found in a store for general consumers. + +These are also fortunately the home of Gastronorm pans! + +You will feel like a kid in a candy store as you eagerly eye up new depths of pans to add to your collection. Perhaps you want a 2/3? Or even a 65mm deep 1/3. Your options are wide open. + +### 6: They’re Transportable And Easily Stackable + +I’ve frequently brought Gastronorm pans to Pot Luck meals. + +The only negative is that the lids don’t seal fully, so a strip of sellotape can be required to make sure that nothing spills. + +Otherwise, because they stack so well, you can easily bring a dish or a selection of them to your next meal, stick them right in the oven / on the hot plate to warm up, and then just put the pan on a trivet for serving. + +You can comfortably fit a stack of three or four quarters (stocked vertically) into an IKEA bag containing everything you need for a successful Indian dinner party: + + * A quarter full of curry + * A quarter full of rice + * A quarter full of popadoms + * A quarter full of fruit salad + +You could also throw in a few 1/9s full of various dips along the side if you had room. You get the idea! + +How more convenient could it be? + +### Additional Benefits of Gastronorm Life + +Some other subtle ways in which adopting the _Gastronorm Way_ has brought positive change into my life: + + * **I’m never missing a lid**. I separate between meat / dairy / for-Passover-only in my kitchen and label each Gastronorm body and lid accordingly with dishwasher-proof stickers. Other than that, GN pans and lids are completely interchangeable — irrespective of the depth of the pan. + * **My fridge storage is _way_ more efficient: **I have less random ingredients lying around as cooking — and actually eating what I cook (next point) — helps stuff get used up. Everything fits into well-organized blocks into my fridge and dry wipe markers help keep track of what is what (and when it might be expected to go off). + * **I eat _way_ more leftovers. **Traditionally, I a terrible food waster and poor at eating leftovers. Since I’ve adopted the _Gastronorm Way_ I, for some reason, am much better at eating leftoveres in the fridge. It’s also really easy to combine separate dishes. + diff --git a/posts/medium/7-Things-To-Know-About-Working-With-Israelis.md b/posts/medium/7-Things-To-Know-About-Working-With-Israelis.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ebfeea74ea6170da9378a565eced93904ec99396 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/7-Things-To-Know-About-Working-With-Israelis.md @@ -0,0 +1,104 @@ +# 7 Things To Know About Working With Israelis + +#### Doing businesses with startups from the Holy Land? Get ready for some interesting experiences! + +Working with Israeli businesses? Expect some interesting cultural dynamics. Photo (of the Tel Aviv coastline) by [Naya Shaw](https://www.pexels.com/@naya-shaw-1024101?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/aerial-photo-of-road-near-buildings-and-beach-2002604/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’ve written before about some of the interesting cross-cultural dynamics that English-speaking immigrants (like the author) commonly encounter when working with Israeli businesses. + +While we may be working in the same language — much of Israel’s export-oriented high-tech industry runs, at least in part, in English — there can still be some glaring cultural gaps for us to broach and navigate. + +[**How To Work With Israelis - And Enjoy The Experience** + _As a new immigrant and now small business owner (I eschew the term "freelancer") I've spent the last five years, in…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-work-with-israelis-and-enjoy-the-experience/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-work-with-israelis-and-enjoy-the-experience/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-work-with-israelis-and-enjoy-the-experience/) + +Israel’s thriving high-tech industry provides lots of employment opportunities for immigrants to Israel (_olim)._ There’s also a lot to be gained from working alongside disruptive Israeli tech leaders who often start small but dream big. + +From five years working in Israeli companies and for Israeli clients here are some observations. + +### 1\. Israels Are Obsessed With WhatsApp + +If you’re working for yourself in Israel, as I have been for the past 3 years, then I seriously recommend that you invest in a second / dedicated line for your business. + +This is because if you don’t, you will soon likely find yourself flooded with a bewildering mixture of personal and business communications that all land in one overcrowded WhatsApp inbox. + +**Trust me, Israelis LOVE WhatsApp — and WhatsApp groups. And phones for that matter.** + +If you move to Israel it won’t be long before you find yourself in WhatsApp groups for your local neighborhood, city, office, family, sort-of-adopted-family, political party of choice, etc, etc. + +If you _do_ opt for a dedicated phone line then throw on WhatsApp Business and set up some out of office autoresponders. You might also want to communicate to your Israeli clients that you prefer email. + +While I understand the appeal of WhatsApp (it’s convenient and almost everyone here already uses it) “could you put that into an email?” is still one of my most oft-repeated phrases when working with Israelis. + +### 2\. Personal-Professional Boundaries Are Somewhat Fluid In Israeli Work Culture + +Israeli culture is notoriously informal. + +If you see somebody wearing a suit and tie here there’s a very high probability that they’re either about to get married or are serving in some senior leadership role in government. + +In line with the general ambiance of informality that pervades society, Israeli work culture often places a strong emphasis on interpersonal relationships and sociability. + +Israeli offices typically organize a yearly excursion known in Hebrew as a _yom kef_. Whether you’re bowling or driving rally cars in the desert (yes, it’s a thing) you’ll probably want to resist the urge to bail on the voluntary day if the urge to do so presents itself. + +Likewise when working with Israelis. Collegiality is importance. Making an effort to get to know your colleagues/clients both as people and as professionals is a very wise investment of time. + +### 3\. Israelis Love Meetings. And Arguing (Sometimes) + +Another facet of socially-minded workplaces: Israelis LOVE setting up meetings. + +Like in any corporate culture, many of these meetings are only arguably necessary and could probably have been condensed into the form of a short email. + +Speaking of arguments this is another aspect of Israeli culture that those new to working with Israelis should probably be aware of. If not, well here’s your heads-up. + +Jewish tradition, in general, places a high value upon discourse. Israel being a Mediterranean country, that discourse is often vigorous, animated, and vociferous. + +Don’t be surprised to see your calendar clogged up with meetings only to find yourself wondering why you were invited to half of them. Don’t be afraid to argue or make a point. + +Another point (important!). + +No culture is comprised of a homogeneous group of individuals who tidily confirm to a national stereotype. There are Germans who hate beer and Dutchmen that despise Gouda. Like most people who write guides to Israeli culture, I’m emphasizing these points slightly for comedic effect. Some Israelis hate arguing. It really depends on the person. But these _overall_ dynamics are definitely appreciable. + +### 4\. Israeli Is A Phone (And Fax) Culture! + +I believe that all facets of Israeli culture are in a fast state of flux. The State of Israel, after all, isn’t even 100 years old yet. That includes the work culture. + +Some cultures favor email as their go-to communication method. Israelis love speaking on the phone. Oh, and — paradoxically considering Israel’s high-tech prowess — Israel is also one of the world’s last major exponents of fax technology. + +Official Israel has such a hard time letting go of the fax machine, in fact, that the country had to pass legislation to require government ministries to give up the vice of the fax. + +[**Israeli ministries to phase out fax machines** + _Now that Netflix has arrived in Israel, the time has evidently come to usher in another staple of the 21st century…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-ministries-to-phase-out-fax-machine/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-ministries-to-phase-out-fax-machine/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-ministries-to-phase-out-fax-machine/) + +While Israelis’ penchant for sending faxes is good fodder for jokes, they’re not widely employed devices in the high-tech world. Their tools like Slack and emails are the go-tos for exchanging information. Sorry to spoil the line. + +### 5\. Israelis Work Hard. And Long Hours. + +I recently posted my take on the oft-debated question of whether Israel would be better off moving to a (conventional, at least in the Western world) Monday to Friday workweek. + +During the course of that piece, I pointed out that Israel has both a long working week, long average working hours, and a fairly small annual minimal vacation entitlement for salaried employees. + +[**The Case For Israel To Move To A Monday To Friday Workweek** + _Why Israel Should Consider Moving To A 4.5 Day Workweek_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-case-for-israel-to-move-to-a-monday-to-friday-workweek-db58887c38a5 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-case-for-israel-to-move-to-a-monday-to-friday-workweek-db58887c38a5")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-case-for-israel-to-move-to-a-monday-to-friday-workweek-db58887c38a5) + +Generally speaking, Israelis — particularly those working in the “high tech” sector — are accustomed to working relatively long hours. This isn’t to say that Israel has the longest working hours in the world. But there’s something of an American “work hard, play hard” attitude at work in Israel. + +### 6\. Israelis Are (Largely) Proud Of Their Country. But Also Very Internationally-Minded + +By and large, Israelis are justifiably proud of what their small country has achieved. + +At the same time, Israel is a _really_ small place. It gets cramped here. Israelis traditionally spend some time after their (mandatory) army service travelling the world. + +Another point. + +The technology sector — what Israelis call ‘high tech’ — comprises the backbone of the economy, even though a minority of the population is employed in it. That sector is overwhelmingly dependent upon doing business with the rest of the world. + +Many Israelis therefore speak good English and take a keen interest in the professional cultures of other countries, particularly the US. Israel has a large immigrant population and many immigrants work alongside Israelis in companies. This creates a fluid interchange of ideas and work practices. + +### 7\. Israelis Work Fast And Think Outside Of The Box + +Working with Israelis can be an adjustment. The fast and informal communication style can feel very in-your-face and confusing for those more used to working in rigid hierarchies. + +Nevertheless, there’s an advantage to the style in which many Israelis prefer to work — it lends itself well to getting things done. + +Israelis are also famous as out of the box thinkers. There’s a culture of creativity and innovation in Israel that has led to the country accruing the nickname ‘Startup Nation’ for its famously high per-capita density of startups. + +Working with Israelis can require some cultural adjustments. But equally there’s a lot to be learned from their working style. While quick-and-dirty solutions can sometimes be favored at the expense of strategic planning, there can be something invigorating and inspiring about working at agile pace. diff --git a/posts/medium/A--Totally-Free--Guide-To-Freelance-Writing.md b/posts/medium/A--Totally-Free--Guide-To-Freelance-Writing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3c20cf966522edf30cb743d1f138ad78a0e39978 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A--Totally-Free--Guide-To-Freelance-Writing.md @@ -0,0 +1,117 @@ +# A (Totally Free) Guide To Freelance Writing + +#### (Many) Freelance Writing Courses Suck. So Here’s What I’ve Figured Out About It Free of Charge. + +Looking to get going as a freelance writer? These posts might be helpful to you. + +(Paid) writing courses are popping up like mushrooms these days. You may have noticed. + +While it would likely be in my financial interests to start one, I’m too much of a curmudgeon to jump on a bandwagon that I can’t get behind. + +[**Why I Believe Freelance Writing Courses Are Bad For Writers** + _There’s Nothing You Can’t Learn For Free Online_ medium.com](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7 "https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7")[](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7) + +Besides — and more pertinently — even though I’ve been doing this full time for a number of years now (and if you include my ‘side hustle’ years for five), I consider myself to be very much still learning. + +If I can be so immodest to say so: many rookie course creators would do well to similarly question whether they’ve actually accrued long enough experience to teach others. Really understanding the nuts and bolts of how to make this work doesn’t happen overnight. Or even, I would argue, in a year. + +So all without leaving Medium, here are a series of posts that I have written to date about how to manage various aspects of your freelance writing business. I hope they’re of some use. + +### How To Find Clients + +If you can’t find work, then you’re going to have a hard time pushing ahead in this game. + +This post examines the various sales and marketing channels that you can tap in order to find work. + +[**How To Find Freelance Writing Clients** + _The Various Channels For Client Acquisition_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6) + +Thinking about cold emailing? + +I’ve done a bit of that and have gathered some thoughts about how to make it work (the short version: be very, very targeted). + +[**Does Cold Emailing Work To Find Freelance Clients?** +_It can. It does. But even the successes aren’t always pretty._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed) + +### What You Need To Know + +To succeed as a freelance writer, you need to know more than how to move your fingers quickly over a keyboard (although that certainly helps). + +You need: sales chops, marketing know-how and — at times — a good heap of patience. + +[**The Unspoken Extra Skills That Are Needed For Freelancing** + _A few articles have addressed the various skills that individuals need in order to pull off freelancing well._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-unspoken-extra-skills-that-are-needed-for-freelancing-a124fbbc360e "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-unspoken-extra-skills-that-are-needed-for-freelancing-a124fbbc360e")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-unspoken-extra-skills-that-are-needed-for-freelancing-a124fbbc360e) + +### How Much To Charge + +There are several ways in which you can charge for freelance writing. + +You can also price by retainer. + +Figuring out your target hourly rate is also pretty essential. + +These posts shed light on the various formulae that I’ve used to figure this out for myself. The last post is of very recent vintage. Consider the thoughts there “leading edge” and subject to potential retraction in a few months. + +[**My Freelance Hourly Cheat Sheet** + _Several people have reached out to me recently on foot of two Medium posts which I wrote trying to dispel some of the…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-freelance-hourly-cheat-sheet-cd21b602b15f "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-freelance-hourly-cheat-sheet-cd21b602b15f")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-freelance-hourly-cheat-sheet-cd21b602b15f) + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +[**Why I Think A 25% Billable Ratio Might Be Most Realistic For Freelancers** + _You Can’t Be Productive All The Time_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-i-think-a-25-billable-ratio-might-be-most-realistic-for-freelancers-1d9e066e42d1 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-i-think-a-25-billable-ratio-might-be-most-realistic-for-freelancers-1d9e066e42d1")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-i-think-a-25-billable-ratio-might-be-most-realistic-for-freelancers-1d9e066e42d1) + +Managing sales process is actually a really vital skill that rarely gets talked about. Most freelance writing problems are really sales problems. At least to the extent that those doing the writing are at least reasonably competent writers (news flash: content marketing doesn’t typically require the prose of Shakespeare!). + +Lead qualification, in particular, is a vitally important skill to develop and refine. + +Here’s my guide to how to use one such methodology to qualify freelance writing leads. + +[**A 4 Point Lead Qualification Checklist For Freelance Writers** + _Bringing Good Fits From Lead Through To Client_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-4-point-lead-qualification-checklist-for-freelance-writers-cd83f39368b1 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-4-point-lead-qualification-checklist-for-freelance-writers-cd83f39368b1")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-4-point-lead-qualification-checklist-for-freelance-writers-cd83f39368b1) + +### The Tech You (Might) Need On Hand + +This one’s something of a misnomer. Because you don’t strictly speaking _need_ many of the tools I list here including things like a CRM. But it’s good to know what you _might_ need just in case. + +[**My Current Freelance Writing Tech Stack** + _The Tricks And Tools Of The Trade_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-current-freelance-writing-tech-stack-217d12901c81 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-current-freelance-writing-tech-stack-217d12901c81")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-current-freelance-writing-tech-stack-217d12901c81) + +### Other Ways To Make Freelance Writing Work + +Eventually you’ll probably get around to thinking to how to scale your income and possibly also diversify it. + +You might also think about taking on a remote job so that you’re not “only” a freelancer. + +If thoughts such as these are circulating in your head, then these posts might be of interest. + +[**Freelance Or Remote Work? What’s The Better Deal For Digital Nomads?** +_A Run-Through Of The Pros and Cons Of Two Increasingly Common Working Arrangements_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-or-remote-work-whats-the-better-deal-for-digital-nomads-c9219ebf16a3 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-or-remote-work-whats-the-better-deal-for-digital-nomads-c9219ebf16a3")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-or-remote-work-whats-the-better-deal-for-digital-nomads-c9219ebf16a3) + +[**How To Diversify Your Income As A Freelance Writer** + _How To Avoid Putting Your Eggs In One Basket_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-diversify-your-income-as-a-freelance-writer-13a7c15844ad "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-diversify-your-income-as-a-freelance-writer-13a7c15844ad")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-diversify-your-income-as-a-freelance-writer-13a7c15844ad) + +### The Importance of Networking + +Freelance writing can be lonely, lonely, business. + +Keeping in touch with other writers and finding good writers’ communities online can both by extremely helpful. + +Here are guides to both. + +[**The Best Freelance Writing Community You’ve Never Heard Of** + _Reddit’s Penchant For Creating Obscure Communities Is A Win For Writers_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-best-freelance-writing-community-youve-never-heard-of-11051ee066aa "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-best-freelance-writing-community-youve-never-heard-of-11051ee066aa")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-best-freelance-writing-community-youve-never-heard-of-11051ee066aa) + +[**The Value Of Zoom Networking With Other Freelance Writers** + _Other Writers Are Just A Video Call Away. Why Not Reach Out?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-value-of-zoom-networking-with-other-freelance-writers-19fb97988bf4 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-value-of-zoom-networking-with-other-freelance-writers-19fb97988bf4")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-value-of-zoom-networking-with-other-freelance-writers-19fb97988bf4) + +### How To (Try To) Stay Sane + +Finally, freelance writing can be brutal from a mental health standpoint. + +Did you know that more than 50% of freelancers suffer from a diagnosable mental health disorder? + +This subject is near and dear to me. Here are some wise words I’ve received that might help you if the difficulties of freelancing have been getting you down. + +[**Things I Learned About Freelance Writing From My Therapist** + _You Need To Give Yourself Acceptance When The Going Gets Touch_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/things-i-learned-about-freelance-writing-from-my-therapist-89297bf27da6 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/things-i-learned-about-freelance-writing-from-my-therapist-89297bf27da6")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/things-i-learned-about-freelance-writing-from-my-therapist-89297bf27da6) diff --git a/posts/medium/A-4-Point-Lead-Qualification-Checklist-For-Freelance-Writers.md b/posts/medium/A-4-Point-Lead-Qualification-Checklist-For-Freelance-Writers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..394f4e9eb749bf167c53174073bde98b525236a0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-4-Point-Lead-Qualification-Checklist-For-Freelance-Writers.md @@ -0,0 +1,85 @@ +# A 4 Point Lead Qualification Checklist For Freelance Writers + +#### Bringing Good Fits From Lead Through To Client + +Qualification. The netherworld between lead generation and actually signing up good fit clients. Photo: Pixabay (free license) + +Demand generation is an essential part of working as a freelance writer. + +Whether you’re prospecting for cold leads or leveraging inbound marketing to bring work to you, having a pipeline with a slow trickle of leads is key to staying in business and replacing projects that wrap up (or points of contact that move jobs). The greater your churn rate, the stronger your pipeline will need to be. + +[**Does Cold Emailing Work To Find Freelance Clients?** +_It can. It does. But even the successes aren’t always pretty._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed) + +The first piece of technology you’re going to need to manage this process is some way of tracking who’s in your pipeline. + +This can be as rudimentary as a Trello board (or a Google Sheet). You can also, of course, use a CRM. But during the initial stages of your business, that might be overkill. If scribbling names on the back of an envelope is what prevents leads from falling through the cracks for you, then you’ve got a system (of sorts). + +Unfortunately not every lead that makes it into your sales pipeline is going to end up on your book of business. The lead to sale conversion rate is the percentage of qualified leads that become customers. Yours is unlikely to be 100%. + +While you’ll obviously be keen to impress upon your prospects how much value you can deliver to them as writer, you’ll equally want to make sure that they’re the type of clients you’d like to work with (and that they have the budget to hire you). This activity is at the core of lead qualification. Here are some steps to help make the process run more smoothly. + +### What Kind Of Buyer Is This? How Close Is It To Your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)? + +If you’ve been writing for a number of years, then there’s a good chance that you’ve worked out some kind of profile that outlines _who_ you like to work with. + +If you want to formalize this process, you can develop buyer personas which are sort of character sketches of the type of purchaser that you know would likely be a good fit for your service offering. + +Why does this matter? Sales instructors typically recommend that the closer a lead is to your ideal customer profile (ICP) the more effort you should invest in nurturing that lead. Think of it as a sort of triage system designed to maximize the return you get on your investment of time. + +For many freelance writers, this level of sales formality might overkill. But if lead qualification is concerned with forecasting the likelihood that a lead will convert, this can be an important determinant. + +For example: as a mid-market writer, I know that prefunded startups are not likely to be in a position to afford my rates. But a Content Marketing Manager at a medium sized company might be a very good buyer. All other things being equal, if I only had time to get on a call with one lead, in this case I would likely choose the latter. + +### Is The Price Right? + +The freelance writing market can be a price sensitive place and many buyers are looking to get top quality content … but on the cheap. + +Many writers — including this one — have therefore decided to showcase their starting rates on their website in an effort to avoid attracting inbound leads who want white papers written for $50. + +While it may seem hasty to some (and it flies in contrast to the idea of only ever quoting on the phone) I recommend stating your _starting_ rates before ever getting on a Zoom call with a prospect. + +If prospective buyers aren’t able to meet your rates, then (in an idealized world) they won’t waste your time by getting on the phone. + +Note: asking whether a prospect can meet your starting rates isn’t the same as giving an exact quote. You can and should reserve the right to do that later. + +### Is This Person Authorized To Buy? + +BANT is a framework commonly used by sales rep to qualify leads. It stands for: + + * **B** udget + * **A** uthority + * **N** eed + * **T** iming + +After determining that your prospect has a suitable budget to afford your services, you should make sure that you’re speaking to somebody that has the **authority** to sign off on the purchase of services from you. + +If the individual you are speaking to isn’t directly authorized to buy, then you might need to involve other stakeholders in the sales effort. + +### Why Do You Need This Writing? And When Do You Need It? + +It’s very important to get to the bottom of what the prospect needs that has drawn them to speak with you. Trying to ascertain the reasoning behind a client’s decision-making here can tell you a lot about their level of intent. + +I have contemplated, at times, only working with clients that need ongoing projects (because one-time-wonders often involve the same amount of initial onboarding attention as repeat accounts and are therefore less profitable). But other writers have pointed out that it’s hard to know which one time accounts will go on to become your best and most longstanding customers. Take your pick as to which approach you favor. + +Make sure, at a minimum, that you properly scope out the prospect’s need. Is this a one time project or are they looking to establish a long term relationship with a writer? Might they also be looking for ancillary services that you might be in a position to provide? You won’t get answers unless you ask the questions. + +I also (always, always) ask _when_ they need to execute on this project. In fact, one of the fields on my meeting booking form asks prospects when they have a need for these writing services. I favor people who need services now or in the next few months. I find that those who “might” need services in a year’s time are far less likely to ever convert into paying accounts. + +### Don’t Be Afraid To Disqualify + +BANT isn’t the only framework for lead qualification. But it’s probably good enough for the needs of most freelance writers who are involved in (relatively) low ticket sales. + +Begin by ascertaining whether the prospective buyer you’re dealing with fits your ideal customer profile. This could involve assessing both the size of organization they are part of, cultural clues, or even where they are based. + +Next ask BANT questions: + + * Do they have enough budget to meet, at least, your starting rates? + * What’s their budget (most prospects are loathe to give this up, but you can always try asking)? + * Will anybody else be involved in signing off on this project? + * What challenge are they looking to resolve through ordering the services you provide? (This will inform how you can frame the value you could bring). + * And finally: when are they looking move forward with this project? + +Disqualifying leads will shrink your pipeline — and sometimes quickly. + +But the flip side of that is that it will free up time for you to focus on other business development and marketing activities — and on providing more attention to those leads that _do_ stand a better chance of coming through. diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Backup-Calendar-To-Keep-Your-Computer-In-Good-Running-Order.md b/posts/medium/A-Backup-Calendar-To-Keep-Your-Computer-In-Good-Running-Order.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9b76883a7d5549e6beb54f26c00cdbd7a5b1db50 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Backup-Calendar-To-Keep-Your-Computer-In-Good-Running-Order.md @@ -0,0 +1,58 @@ +# A Backup Calendar To Keep Your Computer In Good Running Order + +#### Run These Backups On Schedule And Your Data Should Be Okay + +A few weeks ago, I posted my Ubuntu backup strategy. + +[**My (Ultimate!) Ubuntu Backup Strategy** + _What I’ve Been Using To Keep My Desktop Safe From Accidental Deletion, Disk Failure, and Other Forms of Destruction_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78) + +Thanks to a retweet from Ubuntu’s Twitter account, that got a little bit more traction than I was anticipating. + +In lieu of framing this, I’ll include a screenshot here + +Including[ this rather entertaining mention on Linux Game Cast.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRk1JAdaCBM&feature=emb_title&ab_channel=LinuxGameCast) + +I included a rough sketch of the my backup calendar in that article. But because it’s such an important part of maintaining a good backup routine, I wanted to make sure that it had its own article too. + +To recap: + + * I take daily incremental backups using Timeshift + * I take full disk image backups using Clonezilla + * I manually store offsite backups in — yes, you read this right — a car. If your upload speed doesn’t suck, feel free to use the cloud instead + * There are hundreds of ways you can do backup and this is just one of them + * RPO = the maximum data loss possible given your backup approach. RTO = how long you stand to be down for if a data problem strikes. + +### My Current Backup Calendar + +My current backup calendar is some variation of the below. + +Again, there are many ways to skin a cat — just make sure to set calendar reminders for whatever it is that you do. + +I currently: + + * Run Timeshift every day and keep three snapshots. This happens automatically. + * Run the Clonezilla disk image backup every two weeks onto a dedicated hard drive. This is my backup backup. + * Every month, I copy the Clonezilla backup onto my NAS. This means that when I update the offsite copy of the NAS, a copy of my desktop backup will be included. + +But you could also: + + * Run Timeshift every day. + * Run Clonezilla once a month onto an external HDD. Then, sync that copy immediately up to cloud storage. + +As a chart, it looks something like this: + +The implementation? + +All you need to do is set up a Google Calendar for your backups: + +Next, set yourself appointments like this. I don’t note the backups that happen manually — like Timeshift — only those that I’m directly responsible for action-ing. + +That’s really about it. + +If you want a spreadsheet to help keep your backup routine in good running order, feel free to use this one: + +[**Backup task sheet.xlsx** + _Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Never email…_ www.dropbox.com](https://www.dropbox.com/s/mt1o5bwt9v0ee89/Backup%20task%20sheet.xlsx?dl=0 "https://www.dropbox.com/s/mt1o5bwt9v0ee89/Backup%20task%20sheet.xlsx?dl=0")[](https://www.dropbox.com/s/mt1o5bwt9v0ee89/Backup%20task%20sheet.xlsx?dl=0) + +Try to run your backups as soon as they’re scheduled. But if you have something better to do — say you’re at the beach — then just run them at the soonest opportunity. diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Cautionary-Tale-About-Negotiating-Freelance-Contracts.md b/posts/medium/A-Cautionary-Tale-About-Negotiating-Freelance-Contracts.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3390bb0a6b474d5a23c62a5494492d680d10b1f8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Cautionary-Tale-About-Negotiating-Freelance-Contracts.md @@ -0,0 +1,73 @@ +# A Cautionary Tale About Negotiating Freelance Contracts + +#### Leaving Money On The Table Is …. Oh So Easy + + _Via Reddit, edited:_ + +I wanted to share the following story which I think demonstrates how easy it is to underbid on projects and to not capitalize on your worth. This is equally applicable whether you’re pitching for freelance work or a job. + +It feels like a lifetime ago already, but some time not so long ago I was dealing with a marketing agency that approached me through social media. + +They were looking for tech writers to cover a certain niche and my experience was a perfect match. It seemed, on paper, like a good fit. + +This client unfortunately ended up falling into one of my “bad fit” buckets. In other words, it didn’t work out. + +They demanded a rather massive amount in terms of workflow for very complex projects and — despite protests that they _really, really_ wanted me to work for them — weren’t prepared to negotiate on budget (freelancers, be warned: this is a definite type). + +It also seemed to me that they didn’t understand the complexity of the projects they were managing for their very technical clients. + +Despite protests to the contrary, they were looking, in effect, for an SME to produce SME-caliber writing. But the budget to back that up simply wasn’t there (note: when agencies don’t charge their clients enough, which is what I suspect was happening here, that pain can get pushed onto freelancers. This isn’t good!). + +[**Do You Need A Writer, An SME, Or Both?** +_And Why Clients Need To Understand The Differences_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/do-you-need-a-writer-an-sme-or-both-769161f4c73c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/do-you-need-a-writer-an-sme-or-both-769161f4c73c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/do-you-need-a-writer-an-sme-or-both-769161f4c73c) + +Despite these misgivings, I reluctantly agreed to do one trial project. + +They were right that there was a potential fit and I thought it was worth a few hours’ time to see if the process was more streamlined than I suspected it would be. + +Unfortunately the experience only redoubled my initial feeling that they were asking far too much for their budget. Their workflow, while commendable, was extremely exacting. The background research alone ended up taking hours. The rate didn’t make sense. + +They liked my writing (sorry to toot my own trumpet here) and so did their client. But they weren’t prepared to budge more than 5% on price. They then defaulted to another round of _“we’d love to keep you writing for us, we pay by international standards”_ charade before again refusing to move an inch on budget. At this point, I gave up and said goodbye. + +An important lesson to reiterate: + +[**Why To Trust Your Gut Instinct** + _Somebody on Quora asked: “What is your advice to an aspiring freelancer?”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-to-trust-your-gut-instinct-a69576d1c78a "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-to-trust-your-gut-instinct-a69576d1c78a")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-to-trust-your-gut-instinct-a69576d1c78a) + +Around the same time, an acquaintance had left a job to resume freelancing. + +I thought that she might have the requisite experience and, from my experience, I knew that Agency X was just short one freelance writer (as well as what type of writer they needed). + +So I made what I totally accept was a lousy and sloppy referral. + +For one, I didn’t tell my friend that I thought the client was a type I would recommend avoiding. + +I don’t like people who play the _“we really want you”_ card and then aren’t prepared to compromise. Negotiations are a two-way dance and if clients aren’t prepared to meet in the middle a simple ‘no’ is easier than leading freelancers on with fawning praise (also note: I hate praise!) Referrals are professional matchmaking. You should connect people you like with other people that you like where you can see a good fit. + +I also crucially neglected to mention their budget or ask my friend what her rates were. And I failed to mention what I had been charging them. In other words: I threw my friend in totally blind. + +**A week later my friend informed me that she had agreed to a pilot project…. at a rate that was almost a quarter of what I had agreed to.** + +More tellingly, the agency had pulled a nice bluff stating that they “should be able” to pay the rate. + +### You Can Easily Underbid Yourself + +There’s a simple but powerful lesson here. And it’s one that has stuck with me ever since. + +Clients will happily let you bid for 25% of their allotted budget if you let them. + +Unless you’re drinking buddies with your client, you’ll probably know about it either. + +In fact, there’s a good chance that — as happened here — they’ll pull a convincing professional poker face and make you think that what you’re asking is a doable stretch. + +Perhaps one client in one hundred will tell you that you’re underselling yourself. Stories of such friendly professional steers do exist. But those cases are the outliers and clients are concerned with maximizing their budget rather than helping you get paid a fair rate. + +I think the “what’s your budget?” “what’s your rate?” freelance-client tango is usually better avoided. + +But freelancers need to ensure that they’re advocating a fair rate for themselves. + +You’ll know if you’re asking more than your clients budget. But there’s typically no such cue in the other direction. + +It’s painfully easy to ask for too little and get it. + +Figure out the rate you need and ask for it. diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Comments-Policy-For-This-Medium-Account.md b/posts/medium/A-Comments-Policy-For-This-Medium-Account.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4ec57a72bfc0eba36e4a607ba51c0c5a37458839 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Comments-Policy-For-This-Medium-Account.md @@ -0,0 +1,28 @@ +# A Comments Policy For This Medium Account + +By default, comments are open on articles published to Medium.com. + +This provides a useful interface for readers to engage with Medium.com content creators. I enjoy receiving comments! + +Content creators are also able to manually close discussion on articles they have posted to Medium. I have sometimes exercised that option. + +This comments policy is intended to provide clarity on what kind of discussion I may (very occasionally) moderate. Or on why and when I might choose to disable comments. + +#### **Not Allowed: Hate / Bullying** + +After publishing a string of articles related to cyberbullying, I received a number of abusive comments from Redditors who set up accounts on Medium solely in order to continue slinging slurs. + +As manually removing this often obnoxious comments took a few minutes, I subsequently closed the discussion. I have chosen to preemptively close the discussion on any topic I publish that is likely to attract the attention of trolls. + +#### Not Allowed: Abuse And Hate + +The above rule is intended to cover instances in which I am the target of abuse and hatred spread by others. + +Of course, it’s also entirely that those commenting on my Medium articles will be spreading hate against other ethnic groups. I will do my best to remove these comments as soon as I am able to. + +### Medium’s Rules + +Comments should also abide by Medium’s latest distributed version of its rules. These can be found here: + +[**Medium Rules** +policy.medium.com](https://policy.medium.com/medium-rules-30e5502c4eb4 "https://policy.medium.com/medium-rules-30e5502c4eb4")[](https://policy.medium.com/medium-rules-30e5502c4eb4) diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Custom-GPT-To-Summarise-Communications-From-Abusive-Or-Toxic-Individuals.md b/posts/medium/A-Custom-GPT-To-Summarise-Communications-From-Abusive-Or-Toxic-Individuals.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e2276a54a47b21e70ba85e84f5c19d2f17e4af9e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Custom-GPT-To-Summarise-Communications-From-Abusive-Or-Toxic-Individuals.md @@ -0,0 +1,124 @@ +# A Custom GPT To Summarise Communications From Abusive Or Toxic Individuals + +#### Custom GPT configuration and model prompt for summarising hurtful communications with a trigger warning + +Configuration text for a custom GPT intended to help recipients of toxic messages to parse communications without exposing them to the original message. Photo: DALLE. + +### **Purpose:** + +A custom GPT (generative pretrained transformer) built on the ChatGPT platform. + +The GPT’s purpose is to help those who are in contact with emotionally abusive individuals and who may wish to receive summaries of their communications without having to expose themselves to the message themselves. + +### GPT Output Structure: + + * The GPT summarises the contents of the message. + * It summarises the message, describes its tone, and flags any especially triggering things it may include such as insults. + * Next, the GPT provides white space and a trigger warning. It also reminds the user that they are not obliged to read the message itself and cautions users that it does not represent a surrogate for professional mental health advice. + * After doing this, the GPT outputs the original message which the user copied and pasted. + +### How To Use These Custom GPTs + + * Create an account with ChatGPT + * Create a custom GPT using this text (or a modified version tailored to your needs) as the configuration + +### Custom GPT Configuration Text + +This was the original version of the configuration that I drafted: + + + You are the toxic message parser. + + Your purpose is to help the user to receive an upsetting message while only providing them with the option to see the original method or skip it. + + Firstly, introduce yourself to the user and state your objective. + + Next, ask the user to paste the probably hurtful message into the chat dialog. Next, please parse the text submitted by the user. Provide a summary of its contents. + + Provide a summary of the tone of the message. + + State whether the sender uses pejoratives, hurtful names, or other things likely to cause offence. + + Next, output a section trigger warning. + + Inform the user that the GPT will provide the original message. Remind the user that they are under no obligation to read the potentially upsetting message. Remind the user that if they choose to do so to remember that the message will likely contain gaslighting, mistruths, and other hurtful things. + + Provide enough blank space to fill up a screen on a smartphone device at average resolution. Next, output the message. + + Conclude by reminding the user that you are only a GPT and are not a substitute for professional mental health advice. Encourage them to seek professional help if they feel the need. + +### GPT Optimised Version Of The Configuration Text: + +This version of the configuration text was optimised by ChatGPT itself and may yield better outputs. Note: this text is formatted in markdown: + + + ## Purpose: + + This custom GPT, based on the ChatGPT platform, assists users in processing emotionally hurtful messages from toxic individuals. It summarizes the message, describes its tone, and highlights any particularly triggering content, such as insults. The GPT aims to help users avoid direct exposure to potentially harmful messages. + + ## GPT Configuration Text: + + You are the Toxic Message Parser. + + ### Introduction: + + Introduce yourself as the Toxic Message Parser and explain that your purpose is to assist the user in processing potentially hurtful messages while minimizing emotional distress. + + ### Request for Input: + + Ask the user to paste the potentially hurtful message into the chat. + + ### Message Analysis: + + Summary: + + Provide a concise summary of the message's content. + Tone Description: Describe the tone of the message (e.g., aggressive, dismissive, passive-aggressive). + Trigger Identification: Indicate if the message includes pejoratives, hurtful names, or other potentially offensive elements. + + ### Trigger Warning and Caution: + + Output a section with a trigger warning. + Remind the user that they are not obligated to read the message. Emphasize that the message may contain gaslighting, mistruths, or other hurtful content. + Include a reminder that this service is not a substitute for professional mental health advice. + + ### Message Display: + Provide enough blank space to fill a screen on a typical smartphone, then output the original message. + + ### Conclusion and Support Reminder: + + Conclude by reminding the user that you are a GPT and not a substitute for professional mental health support. Encourage them to seek professional help if needed. + +### Prompt Version: + +If you’d prefer to use optimised prompts rather than building a custom GPT, this prompt aims to achieve roughly the same thing as the custom GPT. The benefit of using a custom GPT, however, is that the instructions are saved and “baked” into the configuration for the model. + + + Please provide me with a summary of a message from a toxic individual which I am likely to find distressing. + + I will begin the message itself with \[message\] and end it with \[/message\] + + Please summarise the contents of this message. Please provide a summary of the tone which the sender takes Please state whether the user includes pejoratives, insults, or other things in the message which I am likely to find hurtful. + + Next, please output a summary that begins with 'Trigger Warning'. State that you are going to shortly show the original message. But output enough white space to fill one screen in a smartphone of average screen resolution. If you cannot determine that, output 2000px of vertical white space. Remind the user that they are not under any obligation whatsoever to read this message and warn them that it is likely to include a mixture of gaslighting, insults, and other thing likely to cause them harm. Finally include the message itself. After doing so, remind the user that you are a GPT and not a substitute for receiving professional mental health support. + + \[message\] + + \[/message\] + +### GPT Optimised Version Of Prompt: + +Again — a version of the prompt that GPT rewrote for itself: + + + Please summarize the contents and tone of the following message, identifying any pejoratives, insults, or potentially hurtful elements. + + The message will be enclosed between [message] and [/message]. + + After the summary, provide a "Trigger Warning" section, stating that the original message will follow shortly. Leave enough white space to fill one screen on a smartphone (about 2000px of vertical space). Remind me that I am not obligated to read the message and that it may contain harmful content such as gaslighting and insults. Finally, display the original message. + + End by reminding me that you are a GPT and not a substitute for professional mental health support. + + [message] + [User's message] + [/message] diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Daily-Marketing-Keep-Fit-List-For-Writers.md b/posts/medium/A-Daily-Marketing-Keep-Fit-List-For-Writers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..59d47881084c900313989e3105ecd295dfcba455 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Daily-Marketing-Keep-Fit-List-For-Writers.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# A Daily Marketing Keep Fit List For Writers + +Photo: Pikrepo / [Commercial](https://www.stockvault.net/terms-of-use) + +Marketing is a fascinating field. There’s so much to learn. So many emerging practices and technologies to keep up with. And yet, for freelancer writers, it too often feels like a chore. + +Perhaps that’s because no writer is in the business of marketing him or herself full time . In FreelanceLand there’s no marketing department to offshore the heavy lifting too — much as there isn’t an accounting team to tot up our expenses or pull together our monthly client invoices. + +All the burden falls on us, all of the time. And when we’re feeling worn-out from a busy week of doing what we actually get paid to do (in my case writing) it’s marketing that often gets the chop. + +### Why We Need To Market All The Time + +Some of the best advice I’ve ever received about freelance writing — advice which I can corroborate from my own experience — is that t**he most important time to be pressing the pedal on marketing is when you’re at your busiest with client work.** + +This is a situation which few outside of the freelancing world can understand. Whenever I get busy on LinkedIn, I usually draw a couple of _“work must be quiet!”_ remarks from friends. + +Typically, the opposite is the case. More likely (although, who do I kid, not always) I’ve been so busy with client work recently that I haven’t found time to promote myself and develop pipeline. + +For a freelance writer, this is like the _Titanic_ heading for the iceberg — possibly the most perilous situation to be in of all from a strategic standpoint. And it’s a warning sign that can easily go unheeded in the business of day to day writing. + +Most freelance writers are familiar with the feast and famine cycle; many are permanently stuck in it. Taking on too much work and not having time to market oneself is a leading cause of it. One day you’re juggling 8 clients and the next you’re working on your taxes. The cruel reality is that the time you need to market the most is when you have the least time to dedicate to it. + +There are other common obstacles to marketing and self-promotion which also merit mentioning: + + * Being physically sick + * Being mentally sick + * Having an innate aversion to self-promotion (I check this box in spades) + +Photo: PxHere.com /[ CC0 Public Domain](https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/#:~:text=CC0%20enables%20scientists%2C%20educators%2C%20artists,works%20for%20any%20purposes%20without) + +### The Value of A Daily Routine + +Because it’s often not clear when we’re headed into the iceberg land of massive busy-ness — or when a cold or a “I can’t do this anymore” moment is about to strike — setting a daily marketing routine helps keep things on track. + +I call this a marketing ‘Keep Fit List’ because — like gym circuits — there’s something less daunting about a routine once it’s formalized into predictable and consistent steps. + +I also strongly advise using marketing automation whenever possible. This wonderful technology allows you to send out email campaigns or social posts when you’re buried deep in V3 of that white-paper-that-will-never-get-approved (with a side helping of client-side internal politics). Tools I use include [Mailchimp](http://www.mailchimp.com) (email marketing) and [Buffer](http://www.buffer.com) (social post scheduling). + +I recommend dividing your activities into **inbound** and**outbound marketing** and setting some time aside each week for both. + +Inbound marketing focuses on activities that aim to bring clients to us (example: blogging, podcasting). Outbound marketing focuses on more ‘classic’ activities such as cold email pitching. + +Some writers don’t bother with outbound or vice-versa. Personally, I think that during this economy we have to leverage all means possible to keep our sales pipelines full. + +Where to put this calendar? There are plenty of tools for planning editorial calendars and everything else needed to keep a busy marketing campaign ticking. But personally I think that something like a dedicated Google Calendar is more than enough. + +### My Weekly Marketing Fitness List + + _🌞_** _Monday — Admin:_** + +**Monday is a perfect day for taking care of administrative bits and pieces.** If you use Buffer to schedule posts on your social media channels, then this is a great time to make sure that you have enough post content to last you through to the weekend. Also: I find it a lot easier to focus on tasks in blocks. Planning your social posts ‘in bulk’ allows you to do precisely this. + +_🌞_** _Tuesday — Writing:_** + +**Once the week’s underway, you can turn to more labor-intensive activities such as writing a blog post.** Your writing site has a blog, right? Whether you post on Medium or on your website, blogging deserves prominence in your content marketing strategy. An editorial calendar is useful to plan out what you have to say. + +_🌞_** _Wednesday — Planning and Strategy:_** + +**Take a break for a day to focus on strategic concerns like the ‘p’ word (planning).** Go back to your editorial calendar. Ideate new ideas for posts if there are gaps in the schedule. Do keyword research. Spy on your competitors. Think about whatever else you can do to get a heads up in this competitive market. + +_🌞_** _Thursday — Spin-Out and AV Content :_** + +**As writers, we tend to have an innate sense of favoritism towards the written word.** For us, it’s comparatively easy to create written content in the form of social media posts and blogs. However, neglecting audio (podcasts) and video would be a mistake. If maintaining separate content calendars is too much work (for most freelancers, I reckon it is), you can integrate podcast episodes and video blogs into your one overarching content plan. + +_🌞_** _Friday — Offsite Promotion and Guest Blogging:_** + +**Posting on other websites is a great way to bring yourself to new audiences —** often those far larger than you could reach through your own managed channels. In exchange for being able to post on someone else’s website, you’ll need to forego the ability to promote yourself (for the most part). Finding guest post and contributed content opportunities is hard and slow work — it’s the stuff that PR agencies spend a lot of their time doing. But the results can pay off. Once you have a few posting opportunities secured, you can integrate this (offsite) content into your editorial calendar. + +### Marketing Is Slow, Hard Work + +Whatever your feelings about self-promotion (hint: mine aren’t rosy), marketing has to be a way of life for many freelancers. + +In fact, even freelance writers that secure all their leads through referrals would be well-advised to do even a _little_ marketing. You never know when things might dry up, and putting down digital breadcrumbs is a strategically smart move. + +If you dread putting down your head to market, then set out a weekly schedule. Itemizing what items you take care of on each day of the week is a great way to make the task less daunting and to ensure that you stay on track. diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Google-Sheet-For--Converting--Israeli-Salaries-Into-International-Ones--And-Vice-Versa-.md b/posts/medium/A-Google-Sheet-For--Converting--Israeli-Salaries-Into-International-Ones--And-Vice-Versa-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..680ece7d0dcf5cab02550d90e5aa79f83d38844a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Google-Sheet-For--Converting--Israeli-Salaries-Into-International-Ones--And-Vice-Versa-.md @@ -0,0 +1,37 @@ +# A Google Sheet For “Converting” Israeli Salaries Into International Ones (And Vice Versa) + +Some Israel-based talent is exploring the opportunities to work remotely with internationally-based companies. Photo by [Karolina Grabowska](https://www.pexels.com/@karolina-grabowska?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/symbol-of-european-union-on-banknote-4386152/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +One of the peculiarities of the Israeli job market is that salaries are typically paid _monthly_ in local currency. + +These days, lots of Israel-based talent is exploring the increasing opportunities that remote working have opened up for working with internationally-based organizations. Unfortunately, many remote jobs remain restricted to US-based candidates. But there are a growing number of international companies who are recruiting in Israel while paying in foreign currency. + +This means that many people are finding it necessary to compare where local salaries stand against international ones. + +Although I’ve rarely been called a maths prodigy, I did know enough to be able to put together this very basic Google Sheet to run calculations between the two. + +I’ve set the sharing permissions to public (but view only). It can be accessed at the below link. To actually _use_ the spreadsheet, you can download and/or copy it into your own Google Drive. + +[**Israel to international salary converter (live FX rates)** +_Salary converter Israel to ROW Israeli salary (NIS/month),Israeli salary (annualized, NIS),Salary in USD ($),Salary in…_ docs.google.com](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MfnSQNurbuc5GpNrAuLxIfqoYLhC8fgFpO6zvFGg-zU/edit?fbclid=IwAR2NTbi7dP2DtDitDvF4_zvdejdC6CWvmBNFmIJXhRZcRaixO1_4R0o8yY0 "https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MfnSQNurbuc5GpNrAuLxIfqoYLhC8fgFpO6zvFGg-zU/edit?fbclid=IwAR2NTbi7dP2DtDitDvF4_zvdejdC6CWvmBNFmIJXhRZcRaixO1_4R0o8yY0")[](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MfnSQNurbuc5GpNrAuLxIfqoYLhC8fgFpO6zvFGg-zU/edit?fbclid=IwAR2NTbi7dP2DtDitDvF4_zvdejdC6CWvmBNFmIJXhRZcRaixO1_4R0o8yY0) + +The operation is very simple. It uses Gsheets’ ability to integrate with the Google Finance API in order to pull in live exchange rates so that the figures you get, going either way, should be accurate up to the moment you’re running the calculation. + +[**How to Convert Currency in Google Sheets (Google Finance Function) - Spreadsheet Point** + _When working with money-related data in your spreadsheets, there may come a time where you need to convert between…_ spreadsheetpoint.com](https://spreadsheetpoint.com/convert-currency-google-sheets/#:~:text=sheet%20is%20opened.-,Follow%20these%20steps%3A,Press%20the%20Return%20key "https://spreadsheetpoint.com/convert-currency-google-sheets/#:~:text=sheet%20is%20opened.-,Follow%20these%20steps%3A,Press%20the%20Return%20key")[](https://spreadsheetpoint.com/convert-currency-google-sheets/#:~:text=sheet%20is%20opened.-,Follow%20these%20steps%3A,Press%20the%20Return%20key) + +In case you want to build it for yourself, here are the formulae: + +Salary in shekels (per month) to salary in Euro (per year): + + + =12*(C3*GOOGLEFINANCE(“CURRENCY:ILSEUR”)) + +(Where C3 = the salary you wish to compare in shekels). + +To convert a salary in USD (per annum) into a salary in Shekels: + + + =(B6*GOOGLEFINANCE("CURRENCY:USDILS")/12) + +(Where B6 = the salary in the US dollar that you wish to convert into shekels (per month). diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Hebrish-Glossary-For-Making-Aliyah.md b/posts/medium/A-Hebrish-Glossary-For-Making-Aliyah.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..42900914c617014855fd65ae2190247a37ad4ec1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Hebrish-Glossary-For-Making-Aliyah.md @@ -0,0 +1,169 @@ +# A Hebrish Glossary For Making Aliyah + +#### Words To Help Navigate The Strange Linguistic Netherworld That Lies Between English and Hebrew + +There’s no dictionary for it, but Hebrish is often an important part of the Israel immigrant experience + +Everybody knows that moving to Israel involves learning a new language: Modern Hebrew, the modern language based loosely around the ancient tongue of the Tanakh which Eliezer Ben Yehuda famously pioneered. + +But in addition to learning new vocabulary, conjugation tables, and idioms, newcomers to Israel will have to navigate a strange linguistic netherworld stuck somewhere between their native language and Hebrew. + +For English speakers, this language is called Hebrish: an English-Hebrew pidgin favored by English-speaking immigrants to Israel that are slowly immersing themselves in the native culture. + +Here are some terms to help you get started. + +### Academic + +**Translation:** You have a degree! + +If the _shaliach_(emissary) which the Jewish Agency appoints to work on your file describes you, in an impressed tone, as an “academic,” she isn’t referring to some PhD from Harvard that you must have forgotten you hold. + +The definition of ‘akademai’. Screenshot: Milog + +Hebrish’s many idiosyncrasies derive from Hebrew, the creole’s parent tongue. + +If you’re perplexed at the way in which Israelis drop the adjective ‘relevant’ into every sentence when speaking English (tell me I’m not alone here please) then you should understand that אקדמאי in Hebrew is defined (see, above) as anybody that holds an advanced / third-level degree. Similarly the definition of רלוונטי (relevant) is a little different than ‘relevant’ in English. + +Note: English-speaking immigrants that are here long enough, and who integrate thoroughly enough into Hebrew-speaking contexts, almost inevitably succumb to some degree of linguistic attrition. Be warned: this may happen to you! + +[**Language attrition** + _Language attrition is the process of losing a native or first, language. This process is generally caused by both…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_attrition "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_attrition")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_attrition) + +The word ‘Anglo’ will take on a very different definition once you move to Israel. Source: Wikipedia + +### Anglo + +**Translation:** You speak English! + +If you’re like me (before making aliyah) the word ‘Anglo’ makes your mind hearken back to history lessons about the Anglo Saxons, which Wikipedia reminds me was a cultural group which invaded England in the 5th century (I’m already yawning). + +In colloquial Hebrish, an ‘Anglo’ is short for an ‘Anglophone’ — which means English speaker. + +If you hear about an ‘Anglo community gathering’ in your area, then it doesn’t really matter if you’re from South Africa or Australia: so long as you can speak English, you’re qualified to participate. + +Those who are said to be “stuck in an ‘Anglo bubble’” are the ones who didn’t manage to learn Hebrew and are linguistically forced to only integrate among their English-speaking brethren. Many, it should be added, are happy with this fate; others are not. + +Personally, I think that ‘Anglo’ is a ridiculous term. I propose ‘English-speaking Israeli’ as a slightly longer, but less absurd, replacement. + +Driving in Israel: often a gigantic balagan + +### Balagan + +**Translation:** A highly prevalent atmosphere of multi-sensory chaos and disorder in Israel + +Wedged between the sea and a couple of countries that oppose its existence, it shouldn’t come as a massive surprise to learn that Israel is often a somewhat chaotic place in which to live. + +Motorists swerve precariously in and out of lanes; the sound of incessant honking is the background soundtrack to many of its cities; and the default mode of having a friendly chat sometimes seems to be wildly gesticulating and yelling at one another from a distance of about two feet. + +‘Balagan’ (בלאגן) is a slang Hebrew word which roughly translates to ‘chaos’. + +It can refer to a bureaucratic process as well as to the general environment that prevails in a restaurant with screaming children at every table, loud music blaring, and nobody really knowing what’s going on. + +There are no set limits governing what can and cannot be included in an Israeli ‘combina’. It might include plane tickets, a vacation, or securing a better car for your next rental + +### B’Seder + +**Translation:** okay + +For elaboration, see _layat, layat._ If everything is ‘b’seder’ then everything is okay (_lit._ in order). + +### Combinot + +**Translation:** Deals, special offers + +Financially, and on paper, life in Israel often makes absolutely no sense. We’ll learn more about that a little later. + +In the face of a high cost of living, people search for deals to get ahead financially. + +Arranging a ‘combina’ is essentially all about negotiations and leveraging them to secure some goods or services at preferential terms. You may use your _protetzia_ to score yourself one. + +### Fadicha + +**Translation:** Faux pas + +Fadicha / fashla derives from Arabic, like much Hebrew slang. In street Hebrew, and in Hebrish, its meaning is generally an awkward or embarrassing situation. + +Hosting a dinner party and then accidentally spilling red wine on your guest’s newly pressed white shirt could be considered an example of one. + +### Freier + +**Translation:** A pushover + +One of the strangest features of Israeli culture is the pervasive fear of being a “sucker” (freier; pronounced fry-er) which often leads to people acting needlessly aggressively and callously out of the fear of being perceived by one’s peers / compatriots as a pushover. + +[**Could 'freier culture' be behind Israel's pandemic figures?** +_Browsing through my Facebook feed recently, I came across an interesting parody of a Ministry of Health poster. It was…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-freier-culture-be-behind-israels-pandemic-figures/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-freier-culture-be-behind-israels-pandemic-figures/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-freier-culture-be-behind-israels-pandemic-figures/) + +Letting somebody go ahead of you in the shopping line because they only have one item (but you’re stocking up for a family of 10) would be a freier move. So would letting another motorist go ahead of you in traffic. + +You can probably tell what I think about _freier_ culture from the commentary: I think it’s a terrible and broken mentality. But you need to know about it in order to live in Israel. + +Shabi’s Place (עצל שבי) in Nahlaot, Jerusalem. A prototypical makolet. Source: Google Street View + +### ‘Layat, Layat’ + +**Translation:** Slowly, slowly + +This one isn’t really Hebrish but I couldn’t resist including it. + +Israel is a weird combination between a country that moves at breakneck pace (with sometimes endlessly impatient residents) but which also can’t help itself from endorsing some very laid back national platitudes (there are still official siesta hours on the books in many cities). + +The two most distinctive of these are “הכל יהיה בסדר” (everything will be okay) and “לאט לטא” (slowly, slowly). This is the direct Hebrew equivalent of _shway shway_ in Arabic. + +### Makolet + +**Translation:** Local convenience store + +A makolet is essentially a local convenience store (as opposed to a full scale supermarket). + +The line between makolets and lotto stands (their smaller and more inebriated cousins) can get very blurry indeed. + +Some makolets can often be found blaring Mizrahi hits through loudspeakers while patrons drink outside, making them sort of quasi-bar, quasi-nightclub, quasi-essential supply establishments. + +Other makolets are more staid and are indeed simply places where you go to buy your newspaper and eggs. + +Many Israelis live beyond their means, supported by overdrafts. This phenomenon is known as “living in minus.” + +### Minus + +**Translation:** an overdraft + +Minus (pronounced mee-noos) means what it sounds like in English: your bank account has a negative balance. Which means, essentially, being in overdraft. + +I’ve written extensively here about Israel’s absurd cost of living — particularly as it relates to average incomes. + +How do people afford it, many wonder? + +Some people, of course, make comfortable salaries. Others draw upon extensive family support. And those with less financial foresight make extensive use of lies of credit. + +[**Nearly 25% of Israeli Households Live in Perpetual Overdraft, Says Report** + _This is the sixth year in a row of a longitude CBS survey of ownership of financial assets by households. The current…_ www.calcalistech.com](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3775563,00.html "https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3775563,00.html")[](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3775563,00.html) + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +If your banker (typical translation: retail bank assistant) tells you that your account is in “mee-noos” then you should be aware that you’ve got an overdraft. Speaking of which, you should probably figure out what the fees rae. + +### Protetzia + +**Translation:** connections + +Often jokingly referred to as ‘vitamin P,’ ‘protetzia’ is essentially leveraging who you know to get ahead in life and avoid being a _freier_ (see: it’s addictive?) + +Many jobs in Israel, as elsewhere, are only recruited through word of mouth. Having somebody within the company that you can leverage to get a foot in the door is the ultimate form of having ‘protetzia’. + +It could also mean using “who you know” to win favors or secure contracts in the business world. + +### Tashlumim + +**Translation:** paying on credit + +One of my first experiences doing supermarketing after _aliyah_ involved attempting to be upsold on my shopping by an elderly cashier who displayed a rather unusual assortment of goods on the ledge next to the check register. + +She first raised a head of garlic hopefully. After that failed to spark my interest she sheepishly held up a bar of dark chocolate. After that also didn’t sound appealing she asked me whether I want to pay in one or by _tashlumim._ + +_Tashlumim_ means paying in credit installments (with interest) and is highly common in Israel. Every credit card I’ve ever had supports _tashlumim_ and even has a page for managing them in the online interface. + +The unusual facet of the tashlumim system is its absolute pervasiveness. You’ll be asked if you want to pay in tashlumim everywhere from the hardware store to the supermarket. + +_Great Hebrish word missing from the list? Feel free to drop me a line!_ diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Letter-To-My-Irish-Friends-About-Antisemitism.md b/posts/medium/A-Letter-To-My-Irish-Friends-About-Antisemitism.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b73192e609a2e14d4b51ef66306f8f305ca728d2 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Letter-To-My-Irish-Friends-About-Antisemitism.md @@ -0,0 +1,95 @@ +# A Letter To My Irish Friends About Antisemitism + + _To the friends I still have left in Ireland:_ + + Irish member of parliament Richard Boyd Barrett today (again) called for the destruction of Israel in Ireland’s parliament, accusing Israel of being led by “bloodthirsty” generals. Screenshot: YouTube. + +You may have seen me tweeting some things about Ireland lately that struck you as quite negative. + +As a Jewish Israeli (by choice) we probably have extremely different opinions about Israel’s conflict with its neighbors. I understand that they may arouse suspicions of reciprocal hatred. More usually, they are couched in concern. + +Having grown up there, I understand only too well that Israel enjoys very little “support” in Ireland; that many people in Ireland see parallels between its experience of British colonialism and what you perceive Israel to be doing to the Palestinians. + +Just as you disagree with the actions of my state, I disagree with much of the criticism that your one levels at my country. But let’s put all that aside for the moment. This piece is about something else. + +Antisemitism is an awfully uncomfortable subject — no less so for Jews than for those of other religions. + +But what I’ve been witnessing taking place in Ireland since October 7th worries me. Hence I’ve thrust myself into the ranks of those trying to urge action against it by highlighting it _(trust me, it’s not a lot of fun)._ + +You are justified in asking why — having left Ireland — I still care about this. + +For one, ties of affinity are not ruptured in a moment. More pertinently, those of us with Jewish family members in Ireland also feel worried for their safety. We feel their concern and their pain as they relay it to us. Try to understand. + +The list of times during which the Irish public discourse about Israel has veered into the realm of antisemitism are too long to list. + +The loathing of my state across all sections of Irish society can perhaps best be described as “institutional.” But what we might call mainstream _bone fides_ criticism has been peaking into frank antisemitism at a rate that seems rather alarming. + +But today — to pick one example — we saw a member of your parliament address the chamber charging that Israel is an _“uncivilised state, an apartheid state, and a barbaric state.”_ + +The member of parliament added that a _“culture of impunity”_ has given _“Netanyahu and his crazed bloodthirsty ministers” the ability to continue with a genocide.”_ + +But it’s the non-reaction to these words that, as usual, I found unsettling. + +The _“problem”_ I have with antisemitism in your society is not that it _exists_ (although many seem bizarrely intent on refuting even this). + +I have never charged — to the best of my knowledge — that “Ireland” is antisemitic. + +_How can an entire country be described that way?_ There are friends of Israel in Ireland. I’d like to think that those I befriended there didn’t secretly hate me for being Jewish. + +The reported incidence of antisemitism in Ireland is reportedly low (although such findings are based upon the inherent limitations of longstanding. questionnaire-based research.) + +I am aware, too, that we’re sadly seeing antisemitism surge globally. + +That the trend in Ireland is only part of a much more significant global picture. + +In countries with larger Jewish populations, we are (predictably) seeing more incidents of religion-based hatred that target Jews. + +But none of these things are why I find antisemitism in Ireland so worrying. + +None of these things have motivated me to write about it and highlight it as I have done. + +**I find antisemitism in Ireland so worrying because of how universally it seems to be tolerated.** Because of how dogmatic many are in denying that it even exists. + +And also because of how seldomly it gets called out even — especially — in the highest ranks of Ireland’s society. Because of how rarely it gets attacked. Prosecuted. Condemned. + +Because of how readily those who do so get accused of deflecting legitimate criticism of Israel. Of gaslighting. Of being to blame for the hatred that they have engendered. Of highlighting “fringe” opinions _(does being fringe somehow make their hate speech justified!?)_ + +This dynamic I believe is longstanding. + +But it continues to this very day. + +And it’s the deafening silence — more than the rhetoric itself — that has become impossible to ignore. + +Every day that it does, the acceptability of antisemitism in the public sphere in Ireland becomes more and more entrenched. + +Today when a member of your parliament described Israelis as _“bloodthirsty,” “uncivilised”_ and demanded the replacement of the world’s only Jewish state with a one state solution called Palestine (really) nobody batted an eyelid. Nobody said a word. + +Your Prime Minister — who a few days ago offered encouraging words for the BDS campaign — answered the remarks as if they were an invitation to afternoon tea and crumpets . And not the odious hate-filled words targeting Jews that they were. + +Much as nobody said a word when cries rang out at your Palestine rallies to _“globalise the intifada.”_ + +Or when week after week a performing musician delights crowds with renditions of _“from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”_ — a chant widely regarded as encouraging the expulsion of Jews from Israel. + +Or when BDS activists take to supermarkets around the country labelling Israeli products as “contaminated with Zionism.” + +If you think that those limiting their projections of visible hate onto (merely) “Zionists” and Israelis somehow makes it defensible, then I’m afraid you’re completely wrong. + +For the vast majority of Jews, Israel is our homeland, our nation state — Zionism a self-determination movement inseparable from our religious identity. + +So when those in your society call to obliterate that — or describe us all as bloodthirsty savages — it raises eyebrows throughout and beyond our religious community. Even deciding that “Zionism” is good fodder for an insult…. it’s downright offensive. + +Remain critical of Israel all you want. + +We’re a little busy right now for pub arguments. + +But honest criticism that doesn’t smack of frank hatred is usually well-received. + +However please consider doing something about the rise of ugly antisemitism in your society. Even if you’re not Jewish. + +Consider reporting hate speech as hate speech. + +Consider telling somebody calling for the destruction of our homeland that it’s wrong and repugnant to wish a return to statelessness upon us, to wish to put Jews back into the same defenceless position as they were in before the Holocaust (only this time, in Boyd Barrett’s wet dream, with the architects of October 7th as our statemasters) . + +Affirming support against racism does not even require being supportive of the policies of Israel. Just not cheerleading for our obliteration. + +With thanks to those who listened. diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Look-Inside-The-Weird-World-of-Zoom-Bombing.md b/posts/medium/A-Look-Inside-The-Weird-World-of-Zoom-Bombing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b4202543b8423e3070ca92f80a597e2ff9bd6cd1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Look-Inside-The-Weird-World-of-Zoom-Bombing.md @@ -0,0 +1,94 @@ +# A Look Inside The Weird World of Zoom Bombing + +**Demonstrating how easy it is to be Zoom bombed.** + +**With the advent of the coronavirus era, more of us than ever before are availing of the excellent**[**Zoom**](https://medium.com/u/c4c2efc9bc0a)**video conferencing service.** + +Unfortunately although there is a huge amount of excellent material on Zoom that can be found through a simple keyword search ([zoom.us/j should bring up a ton](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/discovering-the-joy-of-zoom-roulette/)) there are unfortunately also hordes of malicious internet trolls who are looking for meetings to inject with [racist abuse](https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/zoombombing-exposes-jewish-online-gatherings-to-antisemitism-623143), pornographic images, and other unwelcome additions. + +Thankfully, [Zoom has plenty of security features](https://blog.zoom.us/wordpress/2020/03/20/keep-the-party-crashers-from-crashing-your-zoom-event/) to prevent this from needing to be a concern for hosts. + +Here are some of them — and here’s how well Zoom Bombing is currently being coordinated. + +### Lesson 1: Never Share Your Invitation Link Publicly + +If you’re interested in seeing what will happen if you _do_ publicly tweet your next Zoom conference join link, then watch the above video from 10:10. + +**If you don’t then here’s the answer: a lot of trolls will join. And quickly!** + +10 seconds after tweeting Zoom link: + +Just 10 seconds after initiating the Zoom chat and the meeting is already beginning to flood with randomers + +20 seconds after tweeting Zoom link: + +My Zoom conference about 15 seconds after it began + +There are two credentials that will give Zoom Bombers immediate access to your next Zoom meeting and which you never — under any circumstance — be publicly shared. These are: + + * **Your Personal Meeting ID (PMI)** — This is essentially a continuously rolling meeting associated with your Zoom account. It’s useful for when you don’t want to have to send participants different credentials every time you host a meeting with them. If you expose this credential publicly, then you will likely be flooded in randomers on an ongoing sporadic basis. + * **Your**[**Zoom**](https://medium.com/u/c4c2efc9bc0a)**invitation link.** + +If you pull a link like this out of the web UI then you’ve probably noticed that this URL actually contains all the elements needed to join the meeting with one click. In fact, that’s the whole point! + +The link contains both the meeting ID and a password key. + +Zoom meeting links in this format contain both the meeting ID and the join password + +**Tweeting your join password in this manner basically invites _anybody in the entire world_ to join your Zoom conference as soon as you hit the start button.** + +And yet the volume of users that send these links over Twitter is staggering. + +To find them, simply search for: + +Searching Twitter for Zoom join links. Approximately one result every ten seconds. + +The results will be a mixture of unfortunate users who think that they are simply publicizing their next conference (without giving the world access) and bored teenagers deliberately attempting to sabotage their classes. + +Here’s a bored teenager trying to sabotage an online class: + +And here’s somebody who doesn’t realize that they’ve just invited the entire internet to their next school board meeting: + +### Where Zoom Bombing Is Being Coordinated: Reddit and [Discord](https://medium.com/u/fddf6af2df19) + +Zoom Bombing is a multi-faceted endeavor. + +Although it can be used by bored teenagers to intentionally disrupt their online classes, it also has a more nefarious side. + +Zoom Bombing has been used to facilitate: + + * [Racial abuse](https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/zoombombing-exposes-jewish-online-gatherings-to-antisemitism-623143); + * The deliberate disruption of legitimate Zoom meetings (such as AA meets) by flooding the meeting with malicious participants; + * The recording of minors by sex predators. + +Those engaging in Zoom bombing refer to themselves as**“Zoom raiders”** and the activity as **“Zoom raiding.”** So if you want to find out how the “pros” are getting in on the action, it helps to search for these terms. + +(Note: if enforcement steps up then the internet will probably invent a moniker for “Zoom raiding” and coordination might move to the dark web. Although given that Zoom raiding simply involves taking advantage of other people’s negligence it’s hard to see on what basis the activity could be banned.) + +Although anybody that knows how to type **zoom.us/j** into a Twitter search is capable of finding a massive volume of unprotected Zoom links, the activity needs to be coordinated with other Zoom raiders to maximize disruption. + +That activity is generally coordinated on some of the usual hacker haunts: Reddit and [Discord](https://medium.com/u/fddf6af2df19). + +Here are a few subreddits for posting Zoom links. At the moment, they’re springing up about one a day: + +And here’s inside a Discord server. These appear to be getting shut down by Discord but — like subreddits — a new Discord server can spring back up virtually instantaneously. + +Participants circulate open Zoom links and then coordinate when to join and what to do: + +### How To Protect Your Zoom Meetings + +For all the media attention Zoom Bombing has gotten over the past few days, preventing your next meeting from falling victim is actually really simple. + +Although there are hackers working on Zoom meeting ID randomizers, because a join password is required by default (do _not_ take off that setting!) these have relatively little likelihood of working. + +So the only real way to have your next meeting Zoom hacked is if you publicly share your Zoom link. + +So don’t do that. + +To not fall victim to a Zoom Bomb you should: + + * **Never share your Zoom join link over a public-facing forum** — such as Twtter. + * **Enable a waiting room, enable mute participants upon join, and screen anybody whose name you don’t recognize.** + * Remove trolls. + +Happy Zooming! diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Model-For-Sharing-Only-Essential-Coronavirus-Information.md b/posts/medium/A-Model-For-Sharing-Only-Essential-Coronavirus-Information.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b06defe00614f29f44632f13f94cb9827a8ad177 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Model-For-Sharing-Only-Essential-Coronavirus-Information.md @@ -0,0 +1,58 @@ +# A Model For Sharing Only Essential Coronavirus Information + +[Last month, I elaborated a little](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/could-embracing-a-long-term-pandemic-mindset-be-a-superpower-6fa610c146b0) upon the low coronavirus news information that I have been on since approximately one month after the pandemic’s emergence onto global consciousness. + +[**Could Embracing A Long Term Pandemic Mindset Be A ‘Superpower’?** +_For those unaware, I have been on what I term a “low COVID information diet” since approximately February/March._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/could-embracing-a-long-term-pandemic-mindset-be-a-superpower-6fa610c146b0 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/could-embracing-a-long-term-pandemic-mindset-be-a-superpower-6fa610c146b0")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/could-embracing-a-long-term-pandemic-mindset-be-a-superpower-6fa610c146b0) + +I can go even shorter with the TL:DR of that post: + + * I’m trying to avoid all non-actionable information about the coronavirus + * The vast majority of information most of us are currently inundated with about the coronavirus is not actionable + * I believe that hyper-information, misinformation, and disinformation about the progress and likely end of the pandemic together represent a harmful assault on our mental health(the last likely a very small fraction of the overall information about the pandemic and disseminated, if at all, mostly by state actors). This is significant because our mental health is already challenged during this period by threats such as unemployment and, of course, the continuance of the pandemic itself + +Since its beginning, I have been searching, without noteworthy success, for some global news source that conveys only the most essential of essential updates about the pandemic. + +I would sub-categorize the type of updates I am seeking into news items of global and local significance — so likely I would need a combination of two sources for this to work out as I would like. + +The litmus test to distinguish between these and non-essential news items could be: if I miss this update might I be fined for non-compliance with a newly instituted or revised regulation which I didn’t knew existed (essential local updates)? Could I be stuck at home needlessly while the pandemic carries on because I didn’t know it was over (global updates)? + +Of course, unless you’re a Siberian hermit, we’re really talking in hypothetical terms here. More than likely the postman or the clerk at the post office is going to ask if you heard about X. But it’s a useful frame of reference through which to describe what I’m envisioning. + +So far, I have found neither a good local nor regional source. + +For local updates, many in Israel recommend the Ministry of Health’s official Telegram group. However, it has over 1,000 updates since I last checked it. This tells me that its signal:noise ratio is likely very low — at least for the specific locality within Israel for which I require updates (Jerusalem). + +Internationally, I also haven’t found a news source with curating essential only updates as its mission statement either. So until and whether I have time to start an initiative like this myself, I am left trying to think about alternatives. + +### Idea One: The Buddy Information System + +As it seems to be _really_ hard to find news sources that shy away entirely from sensationalism, speculation, and even misinformation, I think that a syndicated information sharing model might prove a better means of staying low information enough to stay sane … but know enough to stay compliant with sometimes rapidly changing regulations or developments in any particular locality + +The model simply involves two individuals who share a common desire to minimize their consumption of information about the coronavirus pairing up to share information. + +I imagine this working best if two individuals in different countries pair up. Ideally, neither should have any sense of allegiance to the other country — including even having visited the other country as a child and therefore perhaps having a vague sense of residual goodwill towards it. This is in order to minimize the sense of emotional attachment that either party needs to deal with (because avoiding that is one of the benefits of this proposed model): both parties are finding out information about a country which they really couldn’t care less about. + +The system, as I conceived it today, would work something like this: + +On month one Daniel in Jerusalem keeps track of general information about the pandemic for his penpal Pedro in Spain. Perhaps Daniel is tapped into a limited information news source such as the one described above. So if anything truly groundbreaking occurs — a vaccine is being rolled out globally! — he can tell his friend about it. Alternatively, he just scans the news every fortnight and if there’s nothing to relay he keeps silent. + +How Daniel and Pedro exchange information is totally unimportant: it could be over a Zoom call, by email, by WhatsApp, or by Telegram. Daniel also periodically checks up on significant developments in Spain and Barcelona. Because Daniel doesn’t speak Spanish and isn’t likely privvy to insider information sources he’s likely just picking up major news reported on internationally. If something makes it through Daniel’s filter about Spain when he conducts his weekly search, then it’s probably quite significant. If Daniel sees that it specifically affects Barcelona, then he will see if it’s something that Pedro _needs_ to know about in order to stay safe and on the right side of his local authorities’ regulations. + +On month two (or quarter two) Daniel and Pedro reverse rolls. + +Now, for a month, Daniel gets to completely forget about the pandemic at all which is a delightful luxury of sorts. + +Practically speaking, he’s relying upon information from his friend Pedro — although of course if any truly urgent information is going to be needed Daniel knows that the authorities will probably try to reach him by email / SMS / phone call / physically appearing at his front door. + +The arrangement can continue until the pandemic is effectively brought under control. + +The net positive results are that: + + * Both parties are only searching for essential information about the pandemic half of the time + * Both parties circumvent a lot of speculative coverage by not checking news about their locality + * Both parties effectively displace the emotional attachment they likely feel to the progress of the pandemic in their own countries by “farming out” that task to another person + +This idea is purely just that — an idea — but feel free to adopt it or suggest a better alternative. + +I believe that most of us could use receiving less but more pertinent information about the pandemic. diff --git a/posts/medium/A-More-Efficient-Way-To-Create-Custom--Related-Posts--Sections-on-Medium.md b/posts/medium/A-More-Efficient-Way-To-Create-Custom--Related-Posts--Sections-on-Medium.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c42cf2fe92f087ace0c1e953a95658f712124fe1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-More-Efficient-Way-To-Create-Custom--Related-Posts--Sections-on-Medium.md @@ -0,0 +1,78 @@ +# A More Efficient Way To Create Custom ‘Related Posts’ Sections on Medium + +#### To keep Medium readers engaging with your writing, suggest some of your own posts to them. + +The ‘related posts’ section at the end of this entry, built using the method described here + +Since creating this blog on [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6), I’ve found myself gradually moving away from my traditional tech ground-rule that I must digitally “own” all my own tech (translation: open source and self-hosted; no exceptions). + +Unlike my web hosting (which although good, still has its moments) [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) isn’t prone to random downtime. + +And if I’m sending somebody a piece I’ve written, whether for personal or business reasons, I want it — above all else — to be accessible on the internet. + +Nicely formatted and typo-free are big pluses. But if nothing else, if I have something to share I’d like to be able to _communicate_ it with another human. Hence why I’ve eased up a bit on that front and become oddly content with the mixture of posting to Medium while also taking a manual backup of all my writing here. + +(My other reasons: I love the editor; it’s got a built in CDN; and it’s _way_ faster than working on my own bloated Wordpress installation). + +[**How to backup your articles from Medium — and one thing you should know!** +_I’ve been using Medium as a hosted blogging platform for the best part of 2 years now._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0) + +Because I’ve put out quite an array of thinking here over the months and years, I also commonly think about a post I wrote recently while in the process of drafting one. Take a look above — it just happened. + +### An Easier Way To Find Your Own Posts On Medium + +Since Medium introduced custom subdomains, making the magic happen is as easy as typing a simple query into Google. + +Because I’ve activated my custom subdomain, I can just poll Google like this in order to retrieve my recent posts: + +Of course, I can also scroll through the Medium UI and just find them that way. + +But once you’ve passed the several hundred story mark, that searching process gets very tedious. Plus, you can’t filter by keywords. So oddly enough — like in many cases — the Google search ends up being more powerful than the native functionality. + +The easy solution: build a Google custom search engine (CSE). + +Full disclaimer: I’m trying actively to mitigate against an over-reliance upon Google. But right now, when I have a tech problem that needs sorting, I need solutions. Whoever gets me there quicker wins the race. So yes, I’m a hypocrite of sorts. + +Anyway here’s the process. + +**Step 1:** + +Plus ‘create custom search engine’ into Google and in short order you’ll find up on a page like this: + +**Step 2:** + +In ‘sites to search’ you’ll want to add your personal Medium.com subdomain: + +**Step 3:** + +If you have a few CSEs associated with your Google account, then you’ll probably want to give it a name and description so that you can remember why you built it and what it does: + +If you also happen to have a personal blog(s) on your own URLs, then you can add these into the list of sites to be polled through also. + +There’s also a tool for adding URLs in bulk. + +**Step 4:** + +You’ll be presented with a public URL for your custom search engine. + +I’d recommend bookmarking it in your browser with a title that you’ll remember: + +### Find Your Own Posts + +If you want to track down a few of your own Medium posts (and/or those on your blog) in order to add them into something else you’re drafting as a related links section, then you can just use your own CSE. + +This is a “how to” of sorts. So I wonder have I written other how-tos that might also be of interest to you. Let me run that through search: + +Some of my results: + +I can then build my own related posts section that references these. + +Note: you also get embeddable HTML code. So if you want to add one (or more) of these into your own intranets / non-public-facing websites, then this is really easy to achieve: + +### More Posts Like This You Might Enjoy + +[**How To Create An Anonymous Blog On Medium (Or Elsewhere On The Internet)** +_Where There’s A Will, There’s A Way._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-an-anonymous-blog-on-medium-or-elsewhere-on-the-internet-31523bc82c14 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-an-anonymous-blog-on-medium-or-elsewhere-on-the-internet-31523bc82c14")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-an-anonymous-blog-on-medium-or-elsewhere-on-the-internet-31523bc82c14) + +[**How to backup your articles from Medium — and one thing you should know!** +_I’ve been using Medium as a hosted blogging platform for the best part of 2 years now._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0) diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Quick-Guide-To-What-s-What-In--Async--Asynchronous-Communications---Text--Audio--Video.md b/posts/medium/A-Quick-Guide-To-What-s-What-In--Async--Asynchronous-Communications---Text--Audio--Video.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d234de7c7b60f7d5dd9f3b0411a8ce6085d52ade --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Quick-Guide-To-What-s-What-In--Async--Asynchronous-Communications---Text--Audio--Video.md @@ -0,0 +1,131 @@ +# A Quick Guide To What’s What In #Async (Asynchronous Communications): Text, Audio, Video + +#### Some Of The Tools That Those Interested In Checking Out #Async Should Keep On Their Radar + +We have a lot of ways to communicate at our disposal, but not all of them are created equally. Async tools are taking over. Photo by [Magnetme](https://www.pexels.com/@magnetme-3917414?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-silver-iphone-6-5839461/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +The #async revolution is in full swing and more and more remote teams are thinking about switching their internal stacks over to communications technologies that don’t require both participants to be simultaneously present. + +Although it has its downsides and detractors (like any tech movement!), leveraging the power of #async can also be a fantastic way for teams to work more effectively with colleagues spread across different time zones. + +Many who work remotely at organizations that have switched over to asynchronous-dominated communication stacks report greater levels of job satisfaction and higher productivity. + +Why? + +Minimizing notification clutter allows employees to enter deep work for longer stretches of time. And blocking off blocks of time for communicating makes it less disruptive and more efficient. + +**The good news for those interested in the #async movement is that tools to support this are springing up with seemingly greater regularity than ever before.** + +The wind in the sails of the #async movement is currently being driven by the surge in interest in remote work. + +As more and more professionals continue to work remotely, pushback against Zoom fatigue is likely to only increase and there’s a growing recognition that synchronous communications need to be kept with a reasonable limit in order for remote workers not to drive down the fast road to burnout. Which is good news for vendors selling products that offer compelling alternatives to meeting bloat. + +Async now has a company of organizations advocating for it: (weareasync.com is operated by [Doist](https://medium.com/u/788627f2f641)): + +[**A Community for Asynchronous Teams** + _Ping. You lose your train of thought. ‍Ping. You check a message and 20 minutes later you're still doom scrolling…_ www.weareasync.com](https://www.weareasync.com/ "https://www.weareasync.com/")[](https://www.weareasync.com/) + +There’s also a growing list of tools. This is a quick guide to the three main modalities. + +### Email — The Classic Gold Standard For Text-Based Async Comms + +Email. It not has a somewhat vintage look and feel. But for many diehards it represents just about the best means of communicating asynchronously. Photo by [Oleg Magni](https://www.pexels.com/@oleg-magni?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/macbook-pro-2764678/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Yup. Good old email is just about as asynchronous as it gets. + +I’ve spent my entire life advocating for email as my most beloved and oldest mode of communication. My most valued digital relationships are with the people who exchange email with me. It’s like the modern day equivalent of having a pen pal. They tell me that the cool kids don’t even use it any more. But I think I like the company of the old-schoolers better. + +**I positively _love_ email and have never understood the constant pushback it gets or the general movement to eradicate it from our lives and corporations.** + +I positively delight in the pauses it offers between receiving and sending messages, giving me time to ponder over how best to respond before unleashing a dispatch. + +And I love thinking about how best to phrase something without knowing that it’s unleashing a “Daniel is typing” notification alerting the other side to my typing which just makes me feel awkward and watched. These are some of the things that make us #async folk tick. + +So what’s with the anti-email revolt? Personally, I reckon that too many people are just subscribed to too many email newsletters or being unnecessarily CC-d on emails they don’t need to see. + +Those are all worthy grievances — or problems at least — but blame the people misusing the tool (or the still ridiculously lax requirements for marketers to opt you into an email marketing database) and not the technology itself. + +A quick ‘hack’ that I use: I funnel all email newsletters I want to receive into a Google Group and unsubscribe from everything else. I’m also obsessive about turning off all email notifications that aren’t important. My inbox is reasonably busy. But most things in it are personal communications directed to me. + +[**Some Creative Uses For Google Groups** + _I’ve been using G-Suite for a long time at this point._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-creative-uses-for-google-groups-b24986dcb78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-creative-uses-for-google-groups-b24986dcb78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-creative-uses-for-google-groups-b24986dcb78) + +I’ve pointed out that running internal communications on a SaaS provider — take Slack for instance — is also a strategically unsound decision unless they offer you full control over backing up the workspace. + +If your internal communications contains all the critical information needed to make your organization run, then why would you risk handing over all that data to a third party? + +Email can be _yours_ and hosted on your own webservers. It’s about as entrenched as something can get in the modern tech landscape. Email is #async friendly. Resist the urge to constantly refresh it and you’ve got a great tool. + +### Loom — Async-Friendly Video Communication + +As a latecomer to YouTube — I started a channel in my early 30s — I’ve slowly come to appreciate the power of video communication. + +I’m not adverse to communicating by typing at all. See my thoughts on email above (or the fact that a lot of my work involves writing!). But there _are_ facets of communication that video can convey that can’t be conveyed through text: + + * Tone of voice + * Facial expressions + * General demeanor + +**I think it’s powerful to remember that video is currently the most immersive form of digital communication that’s in widespread deployment among humanity.** + +And until we invent a technology that can record and transmit the scents being emitted from the other party — actually maybe we can hold off on that one — it’s about as close as we can get to being with the other person. + +**Remember also that much of the world is precluded from being big email users because frankly they suck at typing.** + +These people should learn to touch type. + +But they can also switch instead to a video-based platform that can provide AI-generated captions. All parties satisfied and more equitable access to asynchronous communications that only relies upon people knowing how to turn on a webcam. + +[**What is the average typing speed, average words per minute?** +_We wrote this original article on the 10th of November 2019, based on our survey data. In March 2020, we have completed…_ onlinetyping.org](https://onlinetyping.org/blog/average-typing-speed.php "https://onlinetyping.org/blog/average-typing-speed.php")[](https://onlinetyping.org/blog/average-typing-speed.php) + +[Loom](https://www.loom.com/my-videos) is an example of an asynchronous video communication tool. + +It lets you pair screenshares with video feeds from within Chrome. Truth be told, this is something that’s actually relatively easy to do _without_ making yourself beholden to the pricing structures and limitations of a SaaS product (on Ubuntu I can use OBS to replicate this functionality and I’m not limited to working within a web browser). But like many SaaS platforms it’s appeal is rather in the fact that it makes it _easy_ to communicate in this manner. + +Loom also offers easily to access analytics and authentication controls. An Ubuntu client, at the time of writing, does not exist. But perhaps if I passively aggressively mention that one more time I can speed up the development process just a little. + +### Yac — For Voice Note Based Asynchronous Comms + +Finally, we have voice-based asynchronous communications. And [Yac](http://yac.com), which recently received an investment, is a decent platform here. + +I made the point yesterday that when you think about it _all_ communications are actually asynchronous. + +Did you ever see two people (successfully) holding a conversation by speaking to one another at the same time? Neither did I! + +**The difference, for me, between a _true_ async-friendly platform and one that _can_ be used for async (take Slack) is (in my opinion) the expectations that people bring to that platform.** + +Most people don’t expect instantaneous responses to email — although that’s fast changing. But send a WhatsApp and there’s a sort of unspoken expectation that the other person will answer if not immediately then in fairly close succession. + +What’s the difference? The UI. Typing notifications are enabled by default. It looks and feels like an instant messaging platform rather than an inbox. The way the platform is laid out creates expectations that are then reinforced by how most people end up using the tool. UX design is a powerful thing! + +Yac — and others — have focused on developing UIs and platforms that are centered around the idea of exchanging voice notes that are designed to be transcribed and read _later._ + +Ther mission is to cut down on meeting bloat. I fully support that endeavor. + +### Synchronous Communications Still Have A Place! + +Although I’m enthusiastic about the #async movement, I should point out that I don’t personally believe that synchronous forms of communication — take Zoom calls or phone calls — _shouldn’t_ exist. + +**Rather, I think that asynchronous channels should be our first line of attack when trying to communicate with our colleagues.** And if a real time exchange of information is required, synchronous communications do the best job. + +I like to envision a remote working world in which #async comms (using a broader panoply of tools than email) are sort of the gatekeepers to getting on calls. Because I think it’s safe to say that we’ve surpassed the point at which the idea of being able to get people together on a video call is exciting enough to warrant talking about anything. + +Async of course introduces a lag beyond the trivial one that happens whenever you finish speaking and are waiting for the other party to respond. + +There are situations in which even momentary lags are unacceptable (I doubt anybody would suggest that emergency responders should rely upon email instead of walkie talkies to update hospitals on severely ill patients.) There’s no one solution that will support all remote working communications needs. But #async tools let us roll out communications stacks that mitigate against the constant threats posed by burnout and overwork in environments where ‘home’ and ‘workplace’ mightn’t have a hard distinction. + +I’ve focused here on three modalities — text, video, and audio — because those are the three main methods through which humans can exchange information remotely. + +There are countless other #async products on the market and I’ll get to exploring those in time. + +Thanks for reading. + +And if you’d like to keep updated about what’s new in the world of #async consider subscribing to this Medium publication! + +### Other Communication And Collaboration Tools That Can Be Used Asynchronously + + * [Notion](http://www.notion.so) + * [Friday](https://friday.app/) + * [Range](https://www.range.co/) + diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Reading-List-For-Those-Planning-Aliyah.md b/posts/medium/A-Reading-List-For-Those-Planning-Aliyah.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8b3bbca7b37a1f3d79690bf4fcbfe0ab9b2f517d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Reading-List-For-Those-Planning-Aliyah.md @@ -0,0 +1,64 @@ +# A Reading List For Those Planning Aliyah + +#### Some Books From The Burgeoning Aliyah Literature To Read Before The Big Move + +Books about aliyah are growing in popularity + +The repertoire of books covering issues related to moving to Israel has been growing in recent years. + +Although truthfully the surge in self-publishing and writing activity among _olim_ is long overdue. + +Despite first generation _olim_ constituting more than 20% of the Israeli population, there has been a relative paucity of first-hand accounts of the _aliyah_ experience written by _olim_. Until recently, that is. + +Whether you’re planning your move to Israel or are already here and looking to read the accounts of your _aliyah_ contemporaries, these are some of the texts culled from the fast-burgeoning _aliyah_ literature in English. You might wish to stick them in your back pocket before hopping up on a flight to Tel Aviv. + +### Becoming Israeli: The Hysterical Inspiring And Challenging Sides of Aliyah (Gersh, Akiva) + +([Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Israeli-Hysterical-Inspiring-Challenging/dp/069289988X/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=aliyah&qid=1612976319&sr=8-2) | [Book Depository](https://www.bookdepository.com/Becoming-Israeli-Akiva-Gersh/9780692899885?ref=grid-view&qid=1612976606733&sr=1-1)) + +Akiva Gersh’s book is an attractively presented compendium of 40 blogs discussing the _aliyah_ experience. + +The book gives voice to the experience of _olim_ from a variety of different walks of life, including long-time immigrants and relative newcomers. Its pages elucidate their passions, motivations for coming to Israel, and some of their perspectives on how to best fit into Israeli society. + +The book presents an interesting variety of anecdotal perspectives from those that have made the move to Israel. + +### Because It’s Israel: An Aliyah Odyssey (Miller, Arthur) + +([Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/Because-Its-Israel-Aliyah-Odyssey/dp/9657041015/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=aliyah+israel&qid=1612976767&s=books&sr=1-3) | [Book Depository](https://www.bookdepository.com/Because-Its-Israel-Arthur-Miller/9789657041017?ref=grid-view&qid=1612976940895&sr=1-1)) + +_Becoming Israeli_ represents the collective accounts of a variety of _olim_ from around the world. + +But for those more interested in learning about one (pair) of olims’ experiences, Arthur Miller’s _Because It’s Israel: An Aliyah Odyssey_ tells the tale of how Arthur Miller, and his wife Ronnie, made their shared voyage to Israel. + +_Because It’s Israel_ does a good job of capturing the humor that typically suffuses the experiences of moving to Israel and trying to navigate a strange — and at times frustrating — Middle Eastern culture. + +### Just Get On That Plane: Aliyah. And Why You Need To Make It. Right Now! (Greenspan, Yaakov) + +([Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/Just-Get-That-Plane-Aliyah/dp/B08KH3R5FQ/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=just+get+on+that+plane&qid=1612977076&s=books&sr=1-1) | [Book Depository](https://www.bookdepository.com/Just-Get-On-That-Plane-Yaakov-yanky-Greenspan/9798692611598?ref=grid-view&qid=1612977109923&sr=1-1)) + +Second time e-book author Yaakov ‘Yanky’ Greenspan opens his urging to make _aliyah_ by warning readers of delicate sensibilities that they may be in for a shock to the system. The warning fast proves itself prescient. + +_Just Get On That Plane_ is best summarized as an at times vicious, no punches pulled excoriation of the continued existence of the Jewish Diaspora — whose members Greenspan likens to “deluded dullards” fumbling among “dark pastures.” + +For those who have made the journey to Israel and are looking for a literary sledgehammer to send to relatives in _chul_(abroad),__ this unapologetically offensive text just might do the trick. + +(Disclosure: I was involved in the production process of _Just Get On That Plane._) + +### Aliyah: Home, Hope Reality (Bernstein, Ariella; Losice, Avi) + +[Amazon (pre-release)](https://www.amazon.com/Aliya-Home-Reality-Ariella-Bernstein/dp/1736201816/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=ariella+bernstein&qid=1612977474&s=books&sr=1-1) + +Available for pre-release on Amazon (release date: 15/03), in [_Aliyah: Home, Hope, Reality_](https://aliyajourney.com/?fbclid=IwAR15Canb2PDIBzRqUY8kQPz-qqHrmL9o3dn_pMcl924qQ5yQqHjBe3lF33k) __ husband and wife team Bernstein and Losice have penned a sensitive and timely guide designed to help parents navigate the potentially fraught dynamics of their relationships with their _olim_ children. + +The book provides guidance on the emotional aspects of the decisions of those in the Diaspora to make the move to Israel as well as practical tips for parents facing the unexpected reality of having to rear fluent Hebrew speaking _tsabra_ children who look to them as quaint immigrants from the old country. + +The text comes replete with survey findings shedding a rare and important light on issues affecting olims’ satisfaction with life in Israel. + +### **Other titles:** + +Other books have been penned exploring various aspects of the _post-aliyah_ journey including, especially, the financial realities facing _olim._ + + * A Financial Guide to Aliyah And Life in Israel [(Amazon)](https://www.amazon.com/Financial-Guide-Aliyah-Life-Israel/dp/1937887022/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=aliyah+israel&qid=1612977787&s=books&sr=1-2) + * In A Good Pasture: A Captivating Story of Aliyah [(Amazon)](https://www.amazon.com/Good-Pasture-Captivating-Story-Aliyah-ebook/dp/B07DDNQ33K/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=aliyah+israel&qid=1612977787&s=books&sr=1-5) + * Smarter Israeli Banking [(Amazon)](https://www.amazon.com/Smarter-Israeli-Banking-Rifka-Lebowitz/dp/9655723801/ref=sr_1_13?dchild=1&keywords=aliyah+israel&qid=1612977787&s=books&sr=1-13) + diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Remote-World-Will-Be-Better-For-All-Its-Workers.md b/posts/medium/A-Remote-World-Will-Be-Better-For-All-Its-Workers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cb2a2f4942174eeafaea55251f1363173cceb5f9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Remote-World-Will-Be-Better-For-All-Its-Workers.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# A Remote World Will Be Better For All Its Workers + +#### A joined-up global labor market can help create a fairer job market for both employers and employees + +A remote workforce will be a happier one with more opportunity. Photo from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-looking-at-phone-and-at-macbook-pro-1181244/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +This afternoon, a LinkedIn connection who’s prominent in the field of HR — and a veteran recruiter — posted a status on LinkedIn that caught my attention. + +Although it runs contrary to the tone of voice that’s expected from the network, I don’t shy away from airing some contrary views there about marketing and communications. So when I somebody else doing the same I get a little jolt of excitement. + +The poster works as a recruiter for a prominent organization that encourages immigration to Israel. + +And while I’m not going to syndicate her status in the interest of protecting her privacy (even though the post was on LinkedIn, it’s only visible to her connections) I can tell you what it said: + +> There’s a skills shortage in sales here. English speaking immigrants are perfectly positioned to address that. Unfortunately I’m inundated by organizations seeking highly experienced salespeople for entry level pay and who aren’t willing to take a chance on those without experience or budge on those contradictory objectives. This is a crying shame and I’m sick and tired of it. + +### Immigrant Exploitation Is A Thing In Israel. Could Remote Work Be Its Solution? + +I’m proud to be a supporter of Israel — mostly — and to have moved my life, from Ireland, to come to live here. + +I believe that Israel is the eternal Jewish homeland and the right place for Jews to live. I’ve written about that. And yes, I know that you didn’t click into this to hear about my political leanings. So I’ll leave them at that. + +Nevertheless, there’s something I’ve been wanting to get off my chest for a long time and this seemed like a fitting jumping off point: + +Having lived here for more than six years, I’ve seen a disturbing and disproportionate amount of exploitative working conditions, demoralizing treatment of staff, and under-payment emanating from Israeli companies. I say this having both worked in house at them and having worked for many of them as freelance clients, sometimes tacking onto teams as a contractor. + +The dynamic is frequently the same. + +Many of them have raised impressive sums of money from venture capitalists, but are determined to find highly skilled people at rates that are grossly below market value in spite of the fact that they don’t need to do so. Perhaps because too often they _can_ do so. + +I believe that the driver of much of this exploitation is simply the ongoing process of immigration to Israel (aliyah) itself: there’s a plane-full of very driven and talented immigrants waiting to arrive on the next flight whose chief focus will initially be economic survival. Lavish praise of one’s talents — if they want to offer it — needs to be matched with lavish pay. This reality is lost on too many employers here and this is what my connection had the temerity to point out. I commended her on her decision. + +While I support and encourage _aliyah_ I think it’s unfortunate that the exploitation of those immigrants in the workforce appears to be an inevitable consequence. There will always be lousy employers looking to milk immigrants for as much as they’re worth for far less than they’re worth. + +Sorry to those who this might offend (and I realize that everybody has their own experiences here). But I had to say that write that out once in my life. Somebody had to. I feel better now. + +Now here’s the good part. + +### You No Longer Have To Work For Companies That Are Based Locally + +Recently, I’ve also noticed that some of my friends — and professional contacts on LinkedIn — have begun engagements with remote companies based around the world. I think that this trend is particularly encouraging. + +We’re fast moving into a reality in which the only tools needed to execute a job function are an internet connection and the basic human necessities, including food and shelter. + +What remains to be seen is whether the future of this new work environment will be primarily remote or hybrid. + +Before the pandemic, it would likely have seemed preposterous to suggest that either of these options would be the norm. + +Now — just a short couple of years later — it seems reasonable to ask whether the hybrid model many employees seem to favor will only be a stopgap along the way to something far greater. + +Another unsettled question is what kind of effect this will have upon the very world that we live in. + +Will we see a mass exodus to the towns and villages and out of the crowded and expensive urban centers most of us currently live in? + +What about the urbanists who want to work remotely _from_ cities? + +What will this mean for towns and villages? Will they become quasi cities filled with hip remote workers? + +These are questions for the demographers and the urbanists. + +But the outcomes may potentially reshape our world. + +### A Remote-First Knowledge Economy Will Be A Boon For Workers + +We’re fast stepping into a world in which humans’ careers are becoming untethered from where their companies’ offices are located. + +This could lead to a boon in satisfaction for knowledge workers who have more opportunity available to them than at any previous point in history. + +Demand for skillsets may continue to vary, but this should have the effect of broadening the horizons for jobhunters. + +Unfavorable dynamics in local markets — such as the ones I described, at least in certain careers — will be no impediment to talented workers finding the type of employment opportunities that will treat them right, pay them right, and help to grow their careers. Finding at least supportive working environments should be within easy reach for many workers. + +That future may look a little unfamiliar. Humans working besides one another — in coworking spaces and coffee shops — but for organizations located around the world, often on the opposite side of the planet. + +However, it could be a future that looks an awful lot brighter. Both for employees and employers who can now access talent that would previously have been inaccessible to them. An exciting new world awaits. diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Remote-World-Would-Be-More-Accessible-If-Only--.md b/posts/medium/A-Remote-World-Would-Be-More-Accessible-If-Only--.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d345b9f3856bd4a33d030fa336b7674fb3e96413 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Remote-World-Would-Be-More-Accessible-If-Only--.md @@ -0,0 +1,162 @@ +# A Remote World Would Be More Accessible If Only…. + +#### While attitudes towards remote work are rapidly changing, there remain legal and administrative obstacles that stand between remote work, digital nomadism, and their full potential + +Not all that’s remote is accessible. A sample remote job post from LinkedIn that disqualifies all non US-based applicants. Screenshot: LinkedIn Jobs.Working from a café in Ramat Gan, Israel. Photo: Author. + +I’ve written recently about the rise in remote work. Like many, it’s a trend that I’m particularly excited about. Particularly as — being based in Israel — I know that it can offer a lot more opportunity than what’s available in my local geography. + +What we’re witnessing right now is also what I think of as the Great Normalization of working remotely. I think that the change in attitudes towards remote work — and remote workers — is every bit as significant as the opening up of opportunity itself. + +The Great Normalization of Remote Work is also quickly bridging the gap between us long time crusties who’ve been working out of coffee shops for years — the freelancers / consultants / self-employed people of this universe — and our more respectable brethren working in office jobs that have gone remote and who haven’t yet become accustomed to spending an entire working week in their pajamas. They’ll get there. Eventually. + +[**Remote Work: Why Discussing Its Flaws Is A (Hugely) Positive Sign For Its Future** + _While the discourse surrounding remote work might feel overwhelming and repetitive at times, frontloading key…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/remote-work-why-discussing-its-flaws-is-a-hugely-positive-sign-for-its-future-4377d62b80b0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/remote-work-why-discussing-its-flaws-is-a-hugely-positive-sign-for-its-future-4377d62b80b0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/remote-work-why-discussing-its-flaws-is-a-hugely-positive-sign-for-its-future-4377d62b80b0) + +Nevertheless, this period of transition — while incredible — is very far from complete. + +In fact, I think it would be more accurate to say that it’s still in its infancy. + +While skepticism towards remote work, and remote workers, is being chipped away at by the day, there remain bureaucratic and administrative issues that remain between where we are today (the remote awakening) and where we’d like to be tomorrow (a world in which everybody who wants to really _can_ work remotely). + +These are some of those issues that spring immediately to mind. + +A fully remote world would be far more attainable, and opportunity to participate in it distributed far more equitably, if only: + +### Restrictive Country-Based Hiring Policies Weren’t A Major Thing + +Anybody who has decided to stick their neck out into the world of remote work and what opportunities are currently out there has undoubtedly come across the phrase “remote from US” (or: “remote from Britain”, “remote from Ireland,” etc). + +There are various reasons why companies might assert the qualification that the remote candidate they’re seeking to hire needs to be based in the same country they’re doing business out of. + +The most obvious reason is that the job is actually a hybrid opportunity. + +Even if somewhat irregular on-site visits are required (let’s peg that at once every two weeks) this already makes it extremely difficult for anybody not physically based in the same country to pull off the gig. + +With many countries asserting seven day quarantine requirements on all international travelers, this pretty much makes the job a non-goer for anybody other than those who really like the thought of spending protracted periods of time in forced isolation (or who really really like collecting air miles). + +This is the situation that we have now. There’s a lot of remote opportunity being created. But the ability to participate in it is often restricted to those living in that country. + +The other common reason for this kind of requirement is a more bureaucratic one. + +While much confusion surrounds the matter — and it’s a subject I’m not really qualified to delve into — there’s a general sentiment among US-based employers that it’s impossible to hire foreign-based talent, even for short contract gigs (knowledgeable accountants, feel free to chime in with your thoughts). + +[**_U.S._ Companies can Legally Hire Foreigners Living in other Countries** +U.S.www.linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/us-companies-can-legally-hire-foreigners-living-other-rich-mba/ "https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/us-companies-can-legally-hire-foreigners-living-other-rich-mba/")[](https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/us-companies-can-legally-hire-foreigners-living-other-rich-mba/) + +The system — even when it does permit international pairings to happen — also tends to make it anything but seamless for international-based talent to actually spend their time with US-based organizations getting work done and not filling out a long series of forms. + +I could probably cobble together a short novel from the amount of W8-BEN forms I’ve filled out over the years just to take on short projects with American companies. + +Internally, A&P departments often seem to regard “international” employees with suspicion and payments can be delayed for the most trivial of reasons (the record for my longest-ever overdue invoice is currently held by a surprisingly major American tech firm). Ultimately, it’s easy for those not in the system — in this case of the IRS — to just read the tea leaves and determine that the US labor market is a closed shop for them. + +While fallacies persist about the impossibility of hiring foreign talent (for American companies), they are borne out of the confusion created by a labyrinth system of regulation that at the very least _does_ make it seem like it’s very very cumbersome to hire foreign workers. These, in turn, owe their origin to policies of protectionism. + +There’s an unspoken tug-of-war going on right now between the desire to keep jobs at home and the much vaunted desire to make the world remote-friendly. It’s about time to admit that they’re not compatible ideologies. + +A fully remote world in which true digital nomadism is not just possible via workarounds but actually _readily achievable_ cannot coexist with this kind of restrictive policymaking. + +### We Had Tax Laws That Were Simple For The Geographically Fluid To Understand And Which Didn’t Require A CPA To Interpret + +Another obvious difficulty that those plotting lives on the road are likely to encounter at some point (whether in the planning or execution phases) is as follows: + +The world as we know it today doesn’t really expect individuals to bounce happily between jurisdictions and continents while toting a laptop and passport in their carry-on luggage — even if its eminently possible for many to do just this. + +It regards them as aberrations to the system. Not the norm. Which is why today’s crop of digital nomad pioneers have become expert in working _around_ rather than _within_ “the system.” + +If we take your average country’s tax code as a surrogate for the model of behavior that’s considered broadly normative, individuals are expected to remain happily wedded to their country of residence, whether they have a right to stay there by birth or by naturalization. Indefinitely. + +The problem is as follows: + +Many companies’ compliance departments currently hire workers — remote or otherwise — with the expectation that they will remain tax citizens of the same country in which their hiring entity is based. I’ve heard of people taking elaborate measures like submitting all work from VPNs and referencing the day’s weather in the system they’re supposed to be in to cheat this system. + +If they spend more than a certain amount of days _not_ resident in that jurisdiction — 183 is a common number used to reflect “most of the fiscal year” — then that begins to create problems. This headache is often HR’s to enforce on employees that are otherwise happily working from another country without any desire to return to the vaunted “office.” + +This requirement can be enforced contractually with digital nomads or those who have taken advantage of the pandemic to move abroad having to either re-contract or work with the organization in a revised capacity, such as by moving from a salaried role to serving as a contractor. But naturally this also risks destroying good faith and increasing churn. Once employees have found a company that is happy to let them work in a location of their choosing, they’re unlikely to stick with one that wants to control the location of their office. + +In an idealized and remote-friendly world, such things would not be concerns. Has anybody thought about the concept of per-diem tax contributions? Pay tax to a country on a daily rate for however long you remain in that jurisdiction? + +Perhaps they have. I’m no expert on the matter even though I’m happy to muse about it on Medium. + +But I _do_ know that any time I’ve discussed the idea of working overseas seriously with my accountant, there have been more potential issues than you can shake a stick at. + +It would be great if tax were something that could be crossed off the (long) list of potential issues that stand in the way of true digital nomadism. Doors would open. Remote work could get even bigger. + +### Healthcare Were Truly Universal And Medical Systems Were Truly Integrated + +Those who follow this blog are probably sick of hearing this, but I was recently diagnosed with ADHD. To help me craft these delightful compositions — I jest — I take (daily) a wonderful medication known as Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine). If you enjoy reading these posts, that chemical deserves a line in the credits. + +Now here’s something you mightn’t know about ADHD. + +If there were a title for the world’s most bureaucratic medical condition to have, I reckon ADHD would have to be somewhere on the leaderboard. + +The reasons? + +The mainstay of ADHD treatment — psychostimulant medications — are controlled substances in many jurisdictions. And until somewhat recently, science didn’t really fully grasp adult ADHD and how often the childhood condition persists into adulthood. Even among the medical community, skepticism remains in parts. + +Humans have a natural proclivity to abuse any drug that can have very desirous effects. And thus to keep ADHD meds off the street / being misused by those without diagnoses, they have to be kept under lock and chain. By healthcare systems and pharmacies. + +While I could legally get a 30 day supply of Vyvanse into (say) Ireland provided that I arrived with the right labels on my medication bottle (note: even the thought of doing this on a recent trip to the US and being mistaken for a drug mule gave me anxiety), continuing treatment after that supply ran out would be another matter entirely. + +Because while Ireland’s healthcare service (the HSE) has recently begun pushing for improved diagnostic pathways for adult ADHD, ADHDers from that part of the world tell me that the diagnostic process is still — for the most part — a disaster. + +They say that, in the US, money can buy you anything. + +But if you rocked into CVS or Wallgreens without insurance and asked for a 30 day supply of a typical Vyvanse dosage, your bill would come to somewhere north of $500. Like most, I don’t have that kind of cash lying around. + +Ireland won’t recognize my diagnosis. Nor will many countries. + +To receive affordable treatment, I’d need to start the process from scratch: presenting to a doctor being referred onto a specialty (typically psychiatry; the wait depends upon availability), perhaps repeating a boat-load of paperwork. And only _then_ potentially having to repeat the same tedious process of trialing medications that took me the best part of a year to complete first time round. + +And as this little pill makes a _big_ difference in my day to day productivity that’s …. a rather major impediment to the idea of jumping sticks to move back there for a period. + +### The Rental Market Were More Remote-Friendly + +A digital nomad friend was recently extolling the virtues of life in the Canary Islands. + +A bunch of childhood friends had even relocated there temporarily and formed a little remote working commune on the Spanish archipelago. + +Truth be told, I was tempted to join in the fun. At least for a few months. + +But when I ran through the litany of things that might make that dream a reality, my head began to spin a little. + +Firstly — see the health section above. I haven’t lived in Ireland — or any EU member state — in more than 7 years. ADHD meds aside, would I still qualify for a European medical card? Could I get my monthly asthma inhaler so that I didn’t suffocate? (Healthier folk have graced this planet than I, as you may have figured). + +Next, we had the large problem of accommodation. My (expensive) rental contract — like most — precludes subletting. Big black letters tell me that if I sublet my place I’ll be considered in violation of the contract. And from that point on, eviction becomes a credible concern. + +Like many, I can’t afford to rent two places simultaneously. + +As a budding video-maker, my list of worldly possessions isn’t small. And it’s growing. A minimalist I am unfortunately not, even if the philosophy appeals to me. + +[**4 Reasons Making Video Is More Fun Than Writing** + _As a longtime writer dipping my toes in video, there are aspects of this mode of creative expression that already…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382) + +That whittled options quickly down to putting my entire life in storage — not a great option if you’re planning on returning from an expedition relatively shortly — or entrusting the apartment to friends as minders. The latter didn’t do much for the whole financial picture. + +What are the solutions for this? + +If owning accommodation is out of the reach for many in this generation — currently, I feel like it is for me — then the least we can do is figure out a system to make renting less restrictive. + +Because I reckon that the prospect of never being able to own your own home would feel a lot less bothersome while sipping coconut cocktails under some palm dream in Barbados. + +Could no-subletting clauses be banned? + +Could we create systems to ensure that subletting is safe for renters — and not a possible fast-ticket to having your life ransacked by randoms found on the internet? + +These, and all the above, remain open questions. + +The concept of a fully remote-friendly world is energizing and exciting. + +There’s an entire world of opportunity that could be created around it. One in which our skillsets function as our passports and we’re free to move around the world so long as we obey the laws of the countries in which we frequent and support their existence by contributing taxation. + +Pragmatically speaking, however, the world we have at our fingertips today _isn’t_ the same thing as the one that would make this dream readily achievable. In fact, it’s very far from it. + +We have tax codes to comply with that and remote employers that will take issue with our employment status if we spend more than 180 days working from somewhere else. + +Medical systems that won’t recognize diagnoses from other countries. + +And bundles of electronic medical records (EMRs) that work fantastically well in one geography but which are virtually useless once you leave that country’s borders. + +And for those of us who can only envision a future of renting, the headache of trying to figure out a way to spend more than a couple of weeks in another country without running the risk of subletting or falling afoul of a landlord who can dictate whatever clauses he or she sees fit in a contract. + +A fully remote world _could_ be something glorious. But we have a lot of leg-work to put in in order to make that dream a reality. diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Short-Palestinian-Propaganda---English-Glossary.md b/posts/medium/A-Short-Palestinian-Propaganda---English-Glossary.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..37e723294b74ff4aae2abbedbe4bcc41c7439106 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Short-Palestinian-Propaganda---English-Glossary.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# A Short Palestinian Propaganda — English Glossary + +An Israeli “settlement” filled by “occupiers”. Creative Commons. + +The last few weeks has seen an online war that has played out in parallel to the one taking place in the Gaza Strip and throughout Israel. + +This battle is being fought on Twitter, Reddit, and everywhere else on the internet. + +Its weapons are an expertly crafted arsenal of disinformation, falsehoods, and distortions of the truth. + +While Hamas and Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades have been stepping up their videography with some recent slickly produced propaganda videos, much of the information warfare takes place through textual means. + +Palestinian propagandists tend to say very different things depending on whether they’re speaking in Arabic or English. + +The subtleties and context of much of what they are saying is often also lost upon eager Western readers with a weak grasp upon the region’s history and what’s actually happening here on the ground. + +To help translate between ‘propaganda’ and English here’s a short glossary. + +#### **’48 Lands** + +Arabic: _ard tamaniya arbaeen_. + +In much of Palestinian internal discourse, the operative distinctions delineating between the West Bank, Gaza, and the rest of Israel are merely between those territories that were “occupied” in 1948 (Israel inside the Green Line) and those territories that were “occupied” in 1967. Likewise what the world (and many Israelis) refer to as “Arab Israelis” are often simply called “‘48 Palestinians.” + +#### Israelis + +In Palestinian internal discourse, Israelis are referred to almost exclusively as _al-yahood_ (“the Jews”) in order to distinguish them from their brethren living in the ’48 lands. While there is a word in Arabic for “Israeli” and “the Israelis” it is seldom heard in Palestinian circles — except when speaking in English, that is. + +#### **Occupation** + +The ‘Occupation’ refers to a disputed situation of Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank and Gaza and the security measures that Israel has had to institute there in order to protect itself and its citizens from deadly attempts at harm. + +#### **Occupied Palestine** + +See: Palestine. + +This is intended to refer, in fact, to the existence of the State of Israel. + +#### **Palestine** + +Unqualified, ‘Palestine’ tends to refer — or to be intended to refer — to the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and Israel itself. + +When Hamas and West Bank Palestinians talk about “freeing Palestine” or “liberating Palestine” what they are often actually referring to (Hamas: always) is a genocidal desire to destroy the State of Israel and push the Jews — literally — into the sea. + +Used in the narrower sense, “Palestine” refers to a non-contiguous series of cities and villages in the West Bank and Gaza over which Palestinians have partial or total autonomy. + +#### “Palestine Will Be Free … From The River To The Sea” + +A Palestinian war cry that calls for the annihilation of the State of Israel by freeing all “occupied” “Palestinian” land between the river (the Jordan River) and the sea (the Mediterranean Sea). + +#### **‘Raiding’** + +When Palestinians refer to Israeli security forces “raiding” the Al Aqsa Mosque (or compound) they are typically referring to Israel’s security forces entering aforementioned properties in order to lawfully suppress riots initiated by Palestinians using non-lethal weaponry including stun grenades and tear gas. + +Such sources tend to neglect to mention that the Palestinian rioters frequently store and throw concrete slabs at police forces stationed around the Temple Mount intended to maim or worse. + +Arrests of wanted suspects and terrorists are also typically referred to as “raids.” + +#### **Settler** + +When Palestinian sources refer to ‘settlers’ they are often simply referring to any Jewish Israeli. + +For if the entirety of the State of Israel is occupied Palestinian land — and this is the worldview of many if not most Palestinians (see above)— then anybody living therein is automatically a ‘settler’. + +Westerners often assume that this term is referring to somebody living in a so-called “settlement” in Judea and Samaria. + +In reality, even an Israeli Jew living in Tel Aviv is considered a “settler” by most, if not many, Palestinians. + +**‘Storming’** + +“Storming” can refer to any visits by non-Muslims — but especially Jews — to areas in which Arab Palestinians do not welcome their presence. + +Examples would be Israel exercising its lawful right under the Oslo Accords to facilitate visits to Kever Yosef. Or non-Muslims visiting the Temple Mount. + +Note that one merely has to visit — as in walk into — these areas in order for one to accrue the description of being a “storming occupier.” diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Tactic-For-Receiving-Normal-Customer-Service-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/A-Tactic-For-Receiving-Normal-Customer-Service-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3f7838f6878f9028337d684301cb5b3525a211e0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Tactic-For-Receiving-Normal-Customer-Service-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# A Tactic For Receiving Normal Customer Service in Israel + +Customer service in Israel is often problematic. This is a well-known fact[ that I have written about before.](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel/) + +Fortunately — like many things in Israel — this is also fast-changing. There are thankfully plenty of exemplary companies here that really _do_ put effort into taking care of their customers. + +One day — time permitting — I would love to see established a sort of customer service gold circle to independently audit companies that _do_ take this seriously. Sort of like a locally audited ISO-esque standard. As I have no background in customer service I am not suggesting that _I_ set this up. Simply that it would be a good idea and that somebody should. + +Some of the worst customer service in Israel, in my experience, comes from the local franchisees of international companies. I am not naming names. But think about household names that have a presence in Israel and which — to the undiscerning eye — appear to be the same familiar face. + +In reality, the “presence” in Israel is often that they have a local franchisee operating under some sort of agreement. Part of the reason why customer service in Israel is _sometimes_ so bad and abusive is that Israel is a small and captive market. + +Companies treat customers poorly because they know that they can get away with it and that they don’t have better options. Thankfully, international shipping is disrupting this. But there are still things that need to be bought locally. + +Yesterday, I spent about 500 NIS buying a piece of technology equipment for my business. It was a purchase which I require relatively soon and which I expected to receive soon given that I paid for DHL international shipping. + +Unfortunately, it turned out to be a classic franchisee purchase situation. The company, nonchalantly, told me that they were unsure when my purchase might arrive. It would be “after” some unknowable international dispatch date. They would not answer their customer service email nor their phone. In my book, this isn’t acceptable customer service — and so it was time to wheel out my trick. + +### Email Head Office + +Why emailing head office, or EMEA management, is, in my experience, so devastatingly effective really has to do with the fact that there is a rare confluence of interests at work here: + + * You, the consumers, want to receive reasonable customer service + * The parent company wants their local franchisee to uphold customer standards and provide a consistent buyer experience. Sometimes, this is even baked into SLAs which the franchisee has committed to uphold (but oversight is often tricky due to the language difference) + * The local franchisee desperately wants to maintain their monopoly on importing/reselling the parent company. + +Thus once the consumer has mustered up the courage to call out the elephant in the room things move fairly quickly. + +I dashed off the following this morning which very quickly drew a _response_(yes, an answer!) from the previously unreachable Israeli franchisee. I have edited it slightly because it included an unnecessary jab at Israeli franchisees: + +> _Dear X,_ + +> _I placed this order yesterday from your Israeli distributor / representative._ + +> _They apparently do not believe in answering the listed telephone number — or responding to emails, or providing customer service in general._ + +> _Would it be possible to obtain information re: the expected delivery date from somebody_ not _based in the country I live in / in the USA? If this item is being sourced centrally I would rather deal with you directly_ + +As to ‘how,’ as a veteran online sleuth of sorts I can usually nail down a few very prescient points of contact without much difficulty. The usual toolkit involves the company’s website, LinkedIn (for organization mapping), and Hunter.io (for working out the company’s internal email structure). The key is to make sure that the complaint doesn’t look directly back to Israel through some sort of automated CRM routing. I have had this happen. Therefore this sometimes requires _both_ contacting the EMEA manager _and_ a specific personal email address. + +Whether or not to CC the local franchisee on this dramatic move is a tactical decision that needs to be undertaken on a case by case basis. + +I actually think it’s more fair to let the local representative know that after they have failed to resolve your issue or provide customer service you have been forced to go above their head. + +I don’t like doing this. I don’t relish the prospect of letting companies know that their franchisees are doing an egregiously poor job. And yet, equally, I feel like it is unacceptable for a company to take my money and then ignore me — or refuse to provide any information as to when I can expect to receive the product I have ordered. + +So in conclusion: + +I don’t recommend that people do this after every bad customer service experience. But there is a time and place where I believe that it is warranted. + +**TL;DR** — If you’re getting abysmal customer service from an international “company” based in Israel, then realize that it is probably a franchisee and not the direct employees of the company with whom you are dealing. + +If efforts to resolve your issue locally run into a repeated brick wall, consider looping in the EMEA management or head office layer of the organization. Often, mountains that seemed immovable will suddenly leap to life. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Thoroughly-Ridiculous--But-Functional--Way-To-Practice-Setting-Up-Guest-Interviews-In-OBS-Studio.md b/posts/medium/A-Thoroughly-Ridiculous--But-Functional--Way-To-Practice-Setting-Up-Guest-Interviews-In-OBS-Studio.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..911d27b7d36cdfef90cde9a9c2d57cea1123744d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Thoroughly-Ridiculous--But-Functional--Way-To-Practice-Setting-Up-Guest-Interviews-In-OBS-Studio.md @@ -0,0 +1,49 @@ +# A Thoroughly Ridiculous (But Functional) Way To Practice Setting Up Guest Interviews In OBS Studio + +#### Practice can prevent things from going wrong when it’s time to book the real talent for your streams + +Last night’s module in my ongoing project of learning how to master OBS on Ubuntu involved practicing setting up guest interviews from video conferencing sources such as Zoom and Google Meets. + +With a bit of cropping and a bit of patching audio sources (virtual audio cables) you should be good to go. But like attempting anything for the first time, there are bound to be mishaps along the way. + +As the hour was late, I was the only one awake at home, and I didn’t feel like trying to coopt a random friend into the process, I decided to get creative and use a few things I had on hand. + +A random YouTuber (I’ve lost the video sadly) helped me see the light that there’s nothing wrong with grown adults using plush toys in order to test out streaming setups. With that validation in my sails, I got to work. + +### Step 1: Set Up Your Stuffed Animal In Front Of A Device + +Firstly, you’ll want to get your stuffed toy set up in front of the hardware that you want to test the “guest” interview from. + +Because you’re probably going to want to trick around with settings on the guest’s side, it’s probably also worth installing Teamview on the computer so that you can remotely control things like mic and audio toggles. + +### Step 2: Set Up The Live Call + +I held a Zoom meeting with a stuffed animal yesterday. This really happened. + +### Step 3: Set Up An RGB Light With A Strobing Function + +The next issue I was thinking about was a way to verify that the input was indeed live and making it into the OBS Studio I was streaming from. + +You can check for dropped frames and incoming stream resolution on a technical level. But I wanted a visual validation that I could verify by peeking into the next room and visually comparing what was showing on my screen. + +Last week, I picked up an RGB light from Ulanzi to try to colorize and improve the background lighting on my YouTube videos. It has a “party mode” function which alternatives between colors. + +This struck me as the ideal tool for the job. I could peak over to my interview “subject” and make sure that what I was seeing in my preview monitor matched what was actually being picked up in the camera. This was also a way to test for latency issues. + +I think blue is his best color. + +### Step 4: Have Your Source Playing Music. Or Play A Periodic Beep Soundtrack + +Finally, you’ll want to make sure that your guest’s audio is also being captured and brought into OBS for broadcast. + +To test this out, I had my “guest” play this 5 second interval timer through the speakers on the laptop I had “him” set up in front of. + +Then, I could listen out for the beeps and again assess how well the videoconference was being integrated into the stream and again try to crudely notice any obvious latency issues on the audio feed. + +That’s all I did to get things set up! + +While I had this ridiculous setup in place I decided to try out a few more OBS features. + +Using the image slideshow feature I could play an overlay on top of the webcam feed. And I could even use my own microphone to read out some voiceovers to come over the music during the DJ “set”. + +OBS is fun and livestreaming is amazing! diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Walk-Through-Abu-Tor-in-Jerusalem.md b/posts/medium/A-Walk-Through-Abu-Tor-in-Jerusalem.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3ec4a10707d6edd507dc25b0e87012035ff49152 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Walk-Through-Abu-Tor-in-Jerusalem.md @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +# A Walk Through Abu Tor in Jerusalem + +#### Abu Tor is one of Jerusalem’s mixed Arab-Jewish neighborhoods + +A street in Abu Tor. Photo: author. + +“this is Palestine!”Yesterday I took a break from the end-of-year grind (Israel doesn’t really have a ‘holiday season’) in order to do a little bit of exploring in the Abu Tor neighborhood in the city. + +Abu Tor is one of the few mixed Arab-Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem. Although practically speaking there are large parts of it that are essentially exclusively Arab-Palestinian in character. + +Practically speaking there isn’t a ton to see within Abu Tor itself, although it’s always interesting to see how sharp the divide between (predominantly Jewish) west Jerusalem and (almost exclusively Arab) east Jerusalem is. + +Unfortunately my camera gear made me a little bit conspicuous. + +Within five minutes of beginning my video recording I was virtually chased out of the village by a gang of teenagers screaming _“f**k you”_ and _“this is Palestine!”_ + +When people talk about coexistence in Jerusalem and its undivided nature they tend to leave out minor details such as the fact that East Jerusalem is potentially mortally dangerous for Jews to enter. + +All in all, probably not a part of the city I will be in a rush to revisit, but worth seeing once. + +[_— Originally published on my blog_](https://www.danielsrosehill.com/a-walk-through-abu-tor-in-jerusalem/) diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Way-To--Comfortably--Work-With-Clients-in-Google-Docs.md b/posts/medium/A-Way-To--Comfortably--Work-With-Clients-in-Google-Docs.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f4679cf6c913f0dd13caab6e014975b763989961 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Way-To--Comfortably--Work-With-Clients-in-Google-Docs.md @@ -0,0 +1,127 @@ +# A Way To (Comfortably) Work With Clients in Google Docs + +**Have you ever been working on a Google Doc for a client only to feel a lump in your throat the moment they — and their client — both make an unexpected appearance in the live view late in the night?** + +Although I’ve been using Gdocs since …. well… a long, long time, it still makes me uneasy when I’m working on a document with my client just kind of sitting there watching me work (at least that’s what it feels like). + +I get it. + +They’re not _actually_ looking over your shoulder. Or at least I hope they’re not (awkward truth: very occasionally they actually are!). + +But unlike bosses that physically look over your shoulder, you can never tell exactly where your client’s eyes are while you’re scribbling. + +You only know where their cursor is currently situated. + +That, and the remoteness of it make it …. just kind of creepy. + +The problem is that, for the most part, I think that Google Docs are great. As a Linux user, I also like the fact that Google Docs is cloud-hosted and thus operating system agnostic. No more LibreOffice— Word formatting disasters. And I also like to work with clients on the platforms they are most comfortable using wherever possible. + +However, a recent straw-pool among freelancing friends also showed that many (if not the majority of freelancers) share my uneasiness with raw, real-time editing in Google Docs. Ie, most freelancers are little bit weirded out by their clients being able to observe them working in real time. + +So, when I recently onboarded a couple of clients that were Google Docs-centric type of accounts I went about devising a little system to attempt to please all parties. + +So far, so good. + +And it even helps keep version control in better check which is important if you cap these in your fee structure. + +Here’s what I do. + +### 1: Set up “shared”and “not shared” folders + +Firstly, I set up all my client accounts are based on a template file structure — whether I’m working with them primarily in Google or through another cloud system. (I have a two-way sync running between Gdocs and my main cloud provider so it doesn’t make much difference to me. To do this, check out [Multcloud.com](http://Multcloud.com)). + +Mine currently looks like this: + +Then, within articles, I set up two sub-folders: “Shared” and “Not Shared”: + +Remember the custom module which I built in [Zoho CRM](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/tutorial-creating-a-custom-module-in-zoho-crm-to-send-clients-work/) for sending drafts to clients? If not, check out the link to the left. It’s easy to set up and works really nicely. + +I keep track of revisions in it and capture the Google Doc link there: + +### 2: Share the “Shared” fold with your client(s) + +The rest of the system is pretty straightforward. + +But, to be thorough, let me explain its moving parts. + +Firstly, I either transfer ownership of the “shared” sub-folder to my client so that he/she can share it around internally. + +Or (this, I think, is the best approach, particularly when working with large clients), I share the link with anybody at the client’s organization who has the link: + +Finally, you can turn on link sharing for “anybody with the link.” + +Sometimes, clients specifically ask for this. + +If the document is being reviewed and edited by various organizations (think agency plus client), and not all of them are on G-Suite, then this can be the easiest and quickest way to make sure that everybody that needs the resource can get it. + +As you can elevate to the anybody to the link “can organize, add, and edit” permission, you can also give your client the ability to configure additional individual sharing permissions. + +Of course, from a security and data protection standpoint, it’s also the riskiest. The document won’t be indexed by search engines, but there’s still a risk that a third party could access the link as there is no protection whatsoever around access — all it takes is for somebody to accidentally include the link in an email for unintended recipients to gain access. So I don’t recommend using it to share sensitive projects or documents with clients. + +If you need to use open link sharing, do so with caution and consider making the share link ephemeral (configuring it to expire after a certain time period). + +### 3: Work on drafts in the unshared folder + +I will then work on the first draft of my article within the unshared folder: + +### 4: When Finished, Move The Draft Over + +And then, when the draft is ready to show to my client, I will simply move it into the shared folder. + +I also make sure to note the version in the title by appending VX to the title: + +And then, when it’s done, I move the file over. + +I’m showing this process on the browser UI, but it’s equally straightforward if you’re using a desktop sync client. + +You can simply drop your client an email to let them know that the first draft is ready. + +I usually prefer to use the “Email collaborators” function and just drop in a message there. And I always choose the “send a copy to myself” option just for record-keeping purposes: + +Bear in mind that your client may already be using something like Google Drive File Stream and get a notification that a new file has arrived for them. + +Alternatively, you could use something like [Zapier](http://zapier.com) to create a Google Drive -> email Zap and automatically notify your client when a new file is ready for their attention. + +If you’re doing this, you should know that Zapier cannot recurse into subfolders on Google Drive. So you can’t do what I do and create date/month based sub-folders within the “shared” folder. + +If I don’t have a personalized message to relay through email / the email collaborators function I simply use the CRM module I created to notify the client through a workflow: + +### 5: Let Your Client Collect Feedback + +From a workflow perspective, this encourages your client to collect feedback within a specific time-frame. + +I let my clients take the lead on this. + +There’s usually some deadline that the client is adhering to — so the feedback should come aggregated by a predictable date.This works a lot better than what I call “stream of consciousness” feedback that is relayed by multiple parties at irregular intervals — and it’s never quite clear when it’s safe to begin working again. + +When my client is done working on my V1 (if it’s an agency, that might involve sharing the folder with the end-client and collecting their feedback), then they simply let me know that it’s ready for me to take back to production. + +### 6: Copy Version With Feedback To Unshared Folder and Annotate it ‘V2’ + +I then copy the document back to my “draft” / working folder and notify my client that the V2 is in progress — although they won’t have access to the share link until it’s ready for their attention again. + +I update the document title to annotate it with V2. This is both for version control and billing purposes — I need to keep track of what draft is currently being circulated as (under my fee structure) revisions beyond V2 usually accrue extra charges. (If you want to know why, see my [freelance pricing guide](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a)). + +To get the workflow right, you need to make sure that you: + + * **Check the option to copy comments and suggestions**. There’s another option to “include resolved comments and suggestions” which is unticked by default. To be safe and ensure that I’m not missing anything, I tick this box also. + * **Uncheck the option to “share it with the same people.”** If you don’t, this will just mean that the document gets re-shared with your client — despite the fact that it’s now nested in the unshared folder which only you and/or your internal resources should have access to. + * **Copy over your client’s comments and suggestions** so that you can work on resolving them. + +### 7: Enjoy Less Stressful Google Doc Editing! + +As I mentioned, this workflow has proven surprisingly successful so far. + +From my perspective, it allows me to aggregate comments and then work on them in one shot without having to worry about the client (or additional points of contacts) making changes to text I’ve just edited. If you’re in software, think of it as a Google Docs way of avoiding merge conflicts. + +It also makes it easy to keep control of revision rounds and encourages clients to collect all edits and then send them in one shot. + +If there are multiple stakeholders involved in an editing process, at different organizations, trust me when I say that this can be a huge time-saver. + +Some clients might hate this system and adamantly refuse to work with it. + +Depending on how uncomfortable you find working live with clients in Google Docs this may or may not be a deal-breaker for you. + +During the course of my straw poll, several freelancing friends said that they _would_ expressly refuse to work with a client who insisted on peering into their work in real time. If you’re in a strong bargaining position, you can try enforce terms that suit you. But that, of course, is not always the case. + +Use the above methodology to make working with clients over Google Docs a less stressful experience! diff --git a/posts/medium/A-Whistlestop-Tour-of-Israel-s-Borders.md b/posts/medium/A-Whistlestop-Tour-of-Israel-s-Borders.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3fc1513753f6ea01e600bd3f9471db58836b6bf7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-Whistlestop-Tour-of-Israel-s-Borders.md @@ -0,0 +1,160 @@ +# A Whistlestop Tour of Israel’s Borders + +Right before I[srael’s second lockdown last week](https://www.timesofisrael.com/cabinet-eases-movement-restriction-to-allow-travel-1-kilometer-from-home/), I had the opportunity to take a trip up north for some peace and quiet before being confined to a one kilometre radius for the next three weeks. + +Although it wasn’t the intended theme of the trip, while there I also got up to some ‘border spotting’ on the frontiers with Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. + +A typical sign announcing that a border is ahead. This sign is near Gesher Adam and the border with Jordan. Photo: Author. + +I’m never quite sure how widespread being interested is in borders is — if at all. In fact, the only evidence I have to suggest that some other humans _are_ interested in the subject is the[ /r/borderporn](https://www.reddit.com/r/Borderporn/) subreddit which has more than 50,000 subscribers. + +I believe that my interest in visiting borders dates back to visiting Nicosia, Cyprus as a child on vacation. Nicosia has an international border running right through it between the almost entirely unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and southern Cyprus. The fences, fortifications and border markings are images that still stick with me. These days — not so far from Cyprus — I can see some border lines and crossings on my own terms. + +### Israel’s Four Land Borders + +A yellow Hizbullah flag flies in southern Lebanon as seen from the Eastern side of Metullah adjacent to Nahal Ayun. Hizbullah regularly positions propaganda posters warning of an impending invasion in Hebrew and ensures that these can be clearly seen from the Israeli side. Such ongoing psychological warfare is a hallmark of the shadow conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group. + +Israel has land borders with four countries: Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Egypt. + +Of these, Israel is legally and technically at war with both Lebanon and Syria while there are peace treaties with both Egypt and Jordan. Although in Israel’s early days the (then open) Jordanian border was a restive one, with cross-border [_fedayeen_ attacks](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestinian_Fedayeen_insurgency) from that territory, these days the most volatile borders are those on the north with Lebanon and the _de facto_ border between Israel and the Gaza Strip [which was recently host to a protracted period of protests.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018%E2%80%932019_Gaza_border_protests) + +Although UN Security Council Resolution 1701 called for a disarmament of Southern Lebanon and the absence of troops other than the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) to the south of the Litani River, Israel’s recent discovery and neutralization of a series of [cross-border Hizbullah attack tunnels](https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-reveals-longest-most-significant-hezbollah-tunnel-yet-on-northern-border/) demonstrates what even the street cats in Israel know: that Hizbullah is active in Southern Lebanon right under the noses of UNIFIL, the UN peacekeeping mission which is supposed to monitor the implementation of the various UN resolutions affecting the territory. + +### Northern Border: Lebanon / Blue Line + +Israel’s northern border with Lebanon is — _de facto_ — the same thing as the UN Blue Line which was originally drawn for the purpose of determining whether Israel had withdrawn its troops from southern Lebanon. Part of UNIFIL’s mandate involves marking these out with centimetric precision in coordination with both Israel and the Lebanese Armed Forces. + +This job might seem simple but [can result in armed standoffs between the two sides](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_ffIcHPUyI&ab_channel=DaeshHunter) as captured in this fascinating YouTube video. [This video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4IF2q6IfBM&ab_channel=UNIFIL) provides more interesting information about how UNIFIL demarcates the Blue Line which it marks — literally — with blue cylinders that are visible from both sides of the border. + +Because Israel and Lebanon are at war there is no civilian crossing between the two territories. There is one crossing at Rosh HaNikra which leads to Naqoura on the other side, which is host to UNIFIL headquarters.[ This crossing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosh_HaNikra_Crossing) is only used by UN personnel although on occasion Israel and Lebanon have exchanged POWs through it. + +Israel’s border crossing with Lebanon at Rosh HaNikra which — practically speaking — is only used by soldiers serving with UN missions. + +Civilians are not able to access the border by Rosh HaNikra and its fencing is not visible from the popular grotto tourist site below. A [series of yellow sea buoys](https://www.jns.org/with-un-supervision-lebanon-is-ready-to-draw-maritime-border-with-israel/) are used to designate the maritime border’s extension into both countries’ territorial waters. + +A gate at the Rosh HaNikra crossing for UNIFIL staff. Photo: Wikipedia. + +Tracing the border in Google Maps from Rosh HaNikra eastwards, one can find various Israeli border towns and nature reserves which directly abut the border — including the controversial Sheba Farms which can be driven through by taking Route 999 westwards towards Ghajar. + +Interesting sightseeing points along Israel’s border with Lebanon / the Blue Line + +Among the most conspicuous of these is Ghajar itself which appears — on the map — to run over the Blue Line and into Lebanon. + +Google Maps showing Ghajar with the Blue Line seemingly splitting the town in half (in reality the border is erected to encompass Northern Gharjar also) + +Ghajar has its own fascinating history but unfortunately civilians are not generally allowed to enter without explicit permission from the army and an invitation from somebody in the town. The Jerusalem Post has an interesting write-up about the Alawaite village [here](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/culture/ghajar-home-of-the-israeli-alawites-586566). + +Among the most impressive and best-known places to see the border is Metulla — which is Israel’s northermost town. + +Metulla is surrounded on three sides by Lebanon and the border and Blue Line wraps around the town — sometimes at a distance of a kilometer at other times at a distance of five meters. + +Immediately to the West of the village is the Lebanese town of Kfarkela where one of the discovered Hizbullah attack tunnels [was located submerging](https://www.lbcgroup.tv/news/d/breaking-news/414429/adraee-announces-discovery-of-hezbollah-tunnel-in/en). The IDF is on record as stating that that town and Aadaysit Marjaayoun — which directly abuts Misgav Am and is located immediately south of Kfarkela— are meeting points for Hizbullah special forces. + +[Hizbullah has made explicit](https://www.timesofisrael.com/hezbollahs-secret-grandiose-plan-to-invade-israel-in-the-post-tunnel-era/) its plans to launch a ground invasion of Northern Israel from this part of Southern Lebanon and [has even used environmental NGOs as fronts to conduct close-range reconnaissance on Northern Israel from this area](https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-says-hezbollah-still-on-border-illegally-posing-as-environmental-ngo/). + +Despite the fact that it is reasonable to assume that this part of the Lebanese border is under continual close observation from both sides, the nature surrounding Metulla — where the border wraps and mere hundreds of meters from the hilltops where Hizbullah flags flutter — is deceptively lush and peaceful (the territory around the border with the Gaza Strip is similarly pastoral). + +Google Maps showing Metula, center, with Kfarkela in Lebanon directly to its west + +The border fence with Metulla runs right along the northern half of the town — at one point, it is literally on the side of the road. To the west, the fence runs along a Lebanese road running parallel to Kfarkela. To the east, the border — and the Blue Line markers — are within meters of the Nahal Ayun nature reserve with its breathtaking waterfall. + +Nahal Ayun. Photo: Wikipedia + +Around Metulla, Lebanon is so close that individual cars, houses, and people can be clearly seen with the naked eye — as well as the aforementioned Hizbullah flags and posters. It’s a strange place. Beautiful. But deceptively quiet. + +### Syria: DMZ / Purple Line + +Israel doesn’t have a border with Syria — another enemy state — _per se_. + +Rather, a DMZ exists between the two countries which is manned by UNDOF, another UN mission with another mandate of keeping the two countries — and their militaries — apart. The border between Israel and its side of the DMZ — UNDOF Line Alpha — is what is commonly referred to in the media as the ‘Israel Syria border’. + +The border fence with UNDOF Line Alpha running around the Druze town of Majdal Shams in Northern Israel. This represents a typical border setup in Israel: a fence blocks off civilian access a few meters before the fence demarcating the actual border. The space in between, which often contains an army patrol road, is declared a closed military zone — civilian access is not permitted. Photo: author. + +Relative to the Lebanese border, media reports indicate that Israel’s border with the Syrian DMZ has been quieter — although Israeli territory and civilians [have occasionally been caught](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/israel-strikes-syrian-targets-after-errant-shell-hits-golan-heights-1.5439157) in errant crossfire between rebels and pro-government forces battling just across the fence. + +Relative to Lebanon, there are less Israeli towns and sites from which to see the Syrian DMZ (Alpha Line) border up close. + +Perhaps the best site is in the Druze village of Majdal Shams. The road which skirts the town’s eastern edge runs right next to the border fence. If you’re curious, [search for directions to Givat Htisaacott](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=17153644482452939528) and you’ll soon see Israel’s characteristic smart fence and be right on the border between Israel and the DMZ. So close that you can see a Syrian flag flying from a nearby watchtower. + +It’s worth explaining for a moment what a typical border in Israel actually looks like — because it differs a little from the image that the media creates. + +Except in places where they are fortified with concrete walls and additional fortifications, Israel’s borders typically consist of a steel fence, a patrol road, sand to spot infiltration attempts, and another fence. Unless you know it’s there — and minus a few sensors jutting out of it — it doesn’t look vastly different from the perimeter fence of an airport or a line of wire a farmer might use to demarcate the boundaries of his land. + +Typically, a sliver of land before the border itself is fenced off and the land behind it (between it and the actual border, that is) is declared a closed military zone (CMZ; Hebrew: שטח צבאי סגור). + +Civilians can access up to the fence marking the start of the military zone — although many mistake that fence for the border itself, which it often is not. + +The closed military zone abutting the border varies in its width. In less security-conscious times, some of Israel’s borders were open — or only marked by a single “offline” fence or a coil of barbed wire. Although that has changed, it is reasonable to assume that most true surveillance remains unseen. + +There is only one crossing between Israel and the DMZ with Syria at Quneitra. It is mostly used by clergy, UN personnel, and for special purposes by the Druze population of northern Israel — such as selling apples or sending brides to be married to Syrian Druze. The last of these uses was the subject of [_The Syrian Bride_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Syrian_Bride). + +### Jordan + +The border at Gesher Adam / Damia Bridge. A Jordanian watchtower is visible in the distance. The site is open to tourists. + +Unlike the Syrian and Lebanese borders, Israel’s border with Jordan is technically one between two nations at peace. + +Therefore, unlike the Lebanese and Syrian borders there are three crossings open to civilians: near Beit Shean, at Allenby Bridge, and at Aqaba — the Jordanian city directly opposite Eilat. + +Israel’s border with Jordan follows three main sections. + + * In the north, it follows the course of the Jordan River. With the exception of pilgrimage sites, the fence on the Israeli side is generally set some meters before (West of) the river — sometimes at a surprisingly wide berth. + * Then, the border follows through the center of the Dead Sea. The presence of the border — running through the center of the Dead Sea — is not typically noted or signed at some of the popular Dead Sea tourist beaches. + * Finally, it becomes a land border — stretching all the way from the southeastern tip of the Dead Sea through to Eilat where the border fence separates Eilat and Aqaba. + +There are a few sites on the Israeli side where one can get right up to the border (on the river) and see into Jordan. + +The ones I recommend which border-seeing hobbyists visits are: [Gesher Adam (Damia Bridge) ](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Damia+Bridge/@32.102477,35.532307,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x151cc02513a97d03:0xe5d184a7b865796f!8m2!3d32.102477!4d35.534501)— which served as a goods transit point between Israel and Jordan up until the Second Intifada — and Qasr El Yahud. + +The latter is a pilgrimage site by day and a closed military zone by night. Israel demarcates its border at the site itself with a series of buoys in the river. A Jordanian religious site is located ten meters across the river flanked by a Jordanian flag. In Israel, it’s harder to get much closer to neighboring countries than this (without visiting them!) + +Qasr El Yahud. The buoys demarcate roughly where each side allows pilgrims to bathe until. Photo: author.The Jordan River at Qasr El Yahud. As can be seen, except for special pilgrimage sites such as this, the border itself is generally not demarcated. Israeli access is mostly restricted to a border fence placed to the west of the river. Photo: author. + +### Egypt + +Finally, there’s the border with Egypt. + +Israel’s long land border with Egypt meanders through the Negev Desert stretching all the way from Eilat to the Gaza Strip. This being arid desert country, there aren’t many Israeli communities or sights that abut the border so relative to the borders with Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria there’s less to see. + +There is only one major crossing with Egypt. The [Nitzana Border Crossing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitzana_Border_Crossing) is used only for commercial trade between the two countries. The border for tourists to cross into Sinai, and then the rest of Egypt, is located at Taba which is an Egyptian seaport directly south of Eilat. + +The Egyptian-Israeli border. Google Maps. + +Crossing the border involves passing through an Israeli terminal and then walking through a long tunnel that involves entering a territory that feels like a No Man’s Land but which is technically in Egypt. + +After a short walk, one arrives at the Egyptian border control facility. An Egyptian sports center abuts the maritime part of the border as it stretches into the sea. I have no idea how access is controlled. + +Over land, the border is a commanding steel fence meandering between the mountains of the desert and can be seen from the hotel resorts of Taba itself. + +### Other Border Photos + +A typical sign before an Israeli border area. The top sign warns in Hebrew, English, and Arabic “Stop! Border in Front of You!”. Beneath that a sign indicates that this area is a closed military area and entry to civilians is forbidden. Photo: Author.A wide angle view of the Jordan River at Qasr El Yahud. Photo: Author. + +### Israel’s Volatile Borders: Further Reading (And Watching) + +[**Hezbollah's new offensive - cutting holes in border fence raises tension** + _Bright, fading yellow lights hung in the air over northern Israel on Friday, April 17. They were illumination rounds…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/arab-israeli-conflict/hezbollahs-new-offensive-cutting-holes-in-border-fence-raises-tensions-626403 "https://www.jpost.com/arab-israeli-conflict/hezbollahs-new-offensive-cutting-holes-in-border-fence-raises-tensions-626403")[](https://www.jpost.com/arab-israeli-conflict/hezbollahs-new-offensive-cutting-holes-in-border-fence-raises-tensions-626403) + +[**"We Are Coming": Iran, Hezbollah Erect Flags, Signs on Israel's Border With Lebanon** + _Iran is not shy about its aim of spreading influence abroad, nor its apparent success with establishing a "visible…_ www.thetower.org](http://www.thetower.org/5145-we-are-coming-iran-hezbollah-erect-flags-signs-on-israels-border-with-lebanon/ "http://www.thetower.org/5145-we-are-coming-iran-hezbollah-erect-flags-signs-on-israels-border-with-lebanon/")[](http://www.thetower.org/5145-we-are-coming-iran-hezbollah-erect-flags-signs-on-israels-border-with-lebanon/) + +[**Israel begins work along Lebanese border to detect Hezbollah tunnels** + _The Israeli military began on Sunday laying equipment designed to detect the presence of underground tunnels along the…_ www.haaretz.com](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-lebanon-border-detect-hezbollah-tunnels-1.8412113 "https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-lebanon-border-detect-hezbollah-tunnels-1.8412113")[](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-lebanon-border-detect-hezbollah-tunnels-1.8412113) + +[**Operation Northern Shield** + _Operation Northern Shield ( Hebrew: מבצע מגן צפוני‎, Mivtza Magen Tzfoni) was an Israeli military operation that took…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Northern_Shield#:~:text=Operation%20Northern%20Shield%20%28Hebrew%3A%20%D7%9E%D7%91%D7%A6%D7%A2,from%20Lebanon%20into%20northern%20Israel. "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Northern_Shield#:~:text=Operation%20Northern%20Shield%20\(Hebrew%3A%20%D7%9E%D7%91%D7%A6%D7%A2,from%20Lebanon%20into%20northern%20Israel.")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Northern_Shield#:~:text=Operation%20Northern%20Shield%20%28Hebrew%3A%20%D7%9E%D7%91%D7%A6%D7%A2,from%20Lebanon%20into%20northern%20Israel.) + +[**Jisr ed Damiye** + _Jisr ed-Damiye, ( Arabic: جسر الدامية‎, Jisr ed Damieh, 'Bridge of ed-Damieh') (also Prince Muhammad Bridge) known in…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jisr_ed_Damiye "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jisr_ed_Damiye")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jisr_ed_Damiye) + +### Places To Go Border Sightseeing + +It’s prudent to check the news and the security situation before visiting any location right next to the border. + +**Lebanese border:** + +**Syria / DMZ** + +**Jordan** + +**Egypt** diff --git a/posts/medium/A-basic-guide-to-thought-leadership.md b/posts/medium/A-basic-guide-to-thought-leadership.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..48b68593a796cc42c85e2cee57600cccdd3c83d8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-basic-guide-to-thought-leadership.md @@ -0,0 +1,141 @@ +# A basic guide to thought leadership marketing + +#### What is it and should your organization be using it? + +Image: HippoPx.com. Creative Commons Zero / CC0. + +Are you curious about what thought leadership entails? Perhaps one of your competitors has been engaging in it with success and you’d like to know whether it’s worth adding to your marketing playbook. + +A lot of uncertainty surrounds thought leadership and many are skeptical that it’s a buzzword (we’ll get to that!). + +In this resource, I’d like to clarify some thought leadership FAQs and link to more articles in [All About Thought Leadership](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership) that will allow you to learn more about this powerful form of communication. + +### What Is Thought Leadership? + +Thought leadership is all about leveraging the power of sharing big ideas. + +But that’s only one half of the definition. Thought leadership is also typically about sharing _original_ ideas — or at least somewhat original ideas. + +Of course, most prospective thought leaders don’t want to become thought leaders for the sake of it (although vanity _is_ a motivation for some!). + +Rather, most want to be able to demonstrate a positive return on investment (ROI) from engaging in the activity. For companies and their executives, thought leadership is typically a marketing activity. And we’ll get to typical objectives later. + +### What Are The Benefits Of Engaging In Thought Leadership? + +If you’re thinking about throwing budget into a thought leadership campaign, then you’ll want to see results. + +Research on the potential value of thought leadership comes from Edelman/LinkedIn who have repeatedly commissioned a study looking into the benefits of thought leadership. Others, including marketing agencies, have looked at its benefits for specific sectors. + +[**What Can Thought Leadership Do For Me — Or My Business?** +_From heightened perceptions to RFP inclusions — thought leadership’s tangible benefits_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/what-can-thought-leadership-do-for-me-or-my-business-8e6b25c5ef92 "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/what-can-thought-leadership-do-for-me-or-my-business-8e6b25c5ef92")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/what-can-thought-leadership-do-for-me-or-my-business-8e6b25c5ef92) + +Detail is in the article above but the main takeaways are that: + + * Established thought leaders frequently report that they are able to charge a premium for their goods or services + * Thought leadership can favorably improve “soft” metrics like a brand’s reputation + * Thought leadership can also shift the needle on hard metrics like a company’s prospects of inclusion in a tender / RFP opportunity + +### Is Thought Leadership A Type Of Content Marketing? + +There are differences between thought leadership and content marketing. + +[**The 4 Key Differences Between Thought Leadership and Content Marketing** + _7 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Thought leadership garners a lot of attention…_ www.entrepreneur.com](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323 "https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323")[](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323) + +To the extent that thought leadership involves leveraging ‘content’ — big ideas — to realize sales objectives, then yes, thought leadership is a type of content marketing. + +But thought leadership definitely shouldn’t be approached in the same manner that “traditional” content marketing is. Here are some salient differences (more detail in the article above): + + * Thought leadership is more commonly a peer to peer marketing activity whereas content marketing can be more hierarchical. This calls for a different tone of voice and approach. + * Thought leadership — in the author’s view — typically fits higher in the marketing/sales funnel than content marketing. Thought leadership is great for getting on the recipient’s radar and introducing one’s company to the reader. Content marketing can be deployed throughout the funnel — from blogs to build awareness through to case studies and testimonials to drive purchasing decisions. + * Classical content marketing is often about exchanging useful information in exchange for deferred purchasing decisions. With thought leadership, we’re instead leveraging the caliber of an organization’s thinking on an issue. + +### Who Can Become A Thought Leader? + +Thought leadership is an earned title rather than something that individuals can self-proclaim! + +[**‘Thought leader’ is an earned title** + _Why Thought Leaders Need To Be Judicious About Using The Descriptor Until It’s Definitely Time_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/thought-leader-is-an-earned-title-d442e75301ff "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/thought-leader-is-an-earned-title-d442e75301ff")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/thought-leader-is-an-earned-title-d442e75301ff) + +To become a true thought leader is to be recognized by one’s peers as a true authority on a subject matter. When we think about household name tech visionaries, nobody’s doubting their expertise on what they’ve built their careers on. + +While reaching the level of being a true thought leader is dependent upon social proof, an external consideration, there are many gradations along the way to that point. + +Becoming a thought leader may be a long journey. Like content marketing and inbound in general developing a thought leadership plan is a long game. But that doesn’t mean that one can’t start out on the journey today. + +The short answer is that anybody can become a thought leader. Although those typically leveraging thought leadership marketing in the commercial sense tend to be entrepreneurs or prominent company executives. + +### What Do I Need Do To In Order To Become A Recognized Thought Leader? + +As we’ve seen above, to become a thought leader — and to maintain one’s status as one — really depends upon external validation. + +Thought leaders are recognized experts upon a specific topic or a collection of them. + +The key to becoming a thought leader is therefore to get one’s big ideas about an industry out of their head and onto paper — or into the world. Of course, it’s also important that one’s ideas resonate with a peer group — so some degree of validation is required here too. + +One can start with some of the following activities: + + * **Seeking out opportunities to become an expert media contributor** and getting quoted in the media. The popular HARO platform is useful in this respect although proactive methods also work well. + * **Contributing op-ends and opinion pieces** to trade media publications. + * **Giving speeches, and keynote address** , at industry events, meetups, and conferences. + * **Getting interviewed on podcasts, TV, radio, and internet video channels.** + +One’s status as a thought leader isn’t built overnight. Rather it accrues with time. Because the journey is likely to be a long one, it’s best to start early. + +### Do I Need A Strategy In Order To Become A Thought Leader? + +In order to derive maximum value from thought leadership, it’s important to understand the differences between it and content marketing (for more, see above). + +[**Does Your Thought Leadership Need A Strategy Document?** +_Better Planning Can Lead To Better Execution_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/does-your-thought-leadership-need-a-strategy-document-9e91cca77dbc "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/does-your-thought-leadership-need-a-strategy-document-9e91cca77dbc")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/does-your-thought-leadership-need-a-strategy-document-9e91cca77dbc) + +Approaching them as “basically the same thing” is likely to lead to poor results. But once you understand the differences, they can be a powerful combination in synergy. + +Of course, for any activity in which you’re thinking about channeling budget spend it’s better to have a strategy in place than to make things up as you go along. The benefits of formulating a thought leadership strategy document are therefore two-fold: + + * You’ll be encouraged to think about what you wish to achieve with this activity that’s not already covered under the rubric of content marketing + * You’ll have an editorial calendar and other planning assets in place to help guide the process + +### Where Can I/We Publish Our Thought Leadership? + +Thought leadership can be published: + + * On self-owned / managed resources. Examples of these include LinkedIn profiles, Medium accounts, and blogs + * On external and editorial resources. Examples of these include trade media outlets and other journalistic publications + +[**Medium, LinkedIn, or your blog: where should you publish your thought leadership?** +_As I discussed previously in this blog, thought leaders need to invest as much time in the promotion of their content…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/medium-linkedin-or-your-blog-where-should-you-publish-your-thought-leadership-9bf79439916e "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/medium-linkedin-or-your-blog-where-should-you-publish-your-thought-leadership-9bf79439916e")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/medium-linkedin-or-your-blog-where-should-you-publish-your-thought-leadership-9bf79439916e) + +Remember that to become a thought leader we want to get our thinking out in front of an _audience_. Simultaneously, thought leadership doesn’t exist in a vacuum within the overall marketing playbook. There are advantages to publishing onsite (especially in the realm of SEO) that one forsakes by publishing even on a popular news website. + +A mixture of the two approaches tends to work well and provides both: + + * Exposure to diverse audiences + * The benefits of onsite SEO + +### I Want To Become A Thought Leader. Where Do I Start? + +If you’re ready to set out on the journey towards becoming a thought leader: + + * Clarify what the “target market” for your thinking is. Who would comprise the peer group that you’d like to have your expertise in your business area validated by? + * Ask yourself honestly whether you truly have original thoughts (or studies) to share on key topics in your industry. If you don’t, then there’s a risk that your attempts to be regarded as a thought leader will come across as pretentious. They’ll also likely be ineffective. + * Develop a strategy document in order to coordinate your core messaging and make sure that you’re not overlapping with your efforts in the realm of content marketing. + * Execute on the strategy document by creating content, speaking at events, and engaging in media opportunities that will begin building your brand awareness and establishing your reputation as a thought leader in your field. + +### Interested in learning more? + +[DSR Ghostwriting](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) is a writing service and marketing consultancy specializing in working with tech companies and executives to help plan and execute strategies to turn tech experts into thought leaders. + +### Other Articles About Thought Leadership Marketing + +[**Should You Hire A Writer For Your Next Thought Leadership Project?** +_If you’re looking at rolling out a thought leadership campaign for your business, then you might be thinking about what…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/should-you-hire-a-writer-for-your-next-thought-leadership-project-465c3af0c9aa "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/should-you-hire-a-writer-for-your-next-thought-leadership-project-465c3af0c9aa")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/should-you-hire-a-writer-for-your-next-thought-leadership-project-465c3af0c9aa) + +[**Who should you attribute your thought leadership to? You or your business?** +_Whenever prospective thought leaders are looking to devise a thought leadership campaign, one of the first questions…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/who-should-you-attribute-your-thought-leadership-to-you-or-your-business-cf4263d7028b "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/who-should-you-attribute-your-thought-leadership-to-you-or-your-business-cf4263d7028b")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/who-should-you-attribute-your-thought-leadership-to-you-or-your-business-cf4263d7028b) + +[**How Can I Develop A Thought Leadership Campaign For My Business?** +_You’ve read about thought leadership’s benefits. You know that thought leadership can favorably influence outsiders’…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/how-can-i-develop-a-thought-leadership-campaign-for-my-business-62f07ec1d73b "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/how-can-i-develop-a-thought-leadership-campaign-for-my-business-62f07ec1d73b")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/how-can-i-develop-a-thought-leadership-campaign-for-my-business-62f07ec1d73b) + +[**Code Red Thought Leadership Study (For IT / Cybersecurity): Study Findings (And Podcast)** +_International cybersecurity PR network Code Red recently commissioned a study into how well-received thought leadership…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/code-red-thought-leadership-study-for-it-cybersecurity-study-findings-and-podcast-b64c5f0afa53 "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/code-red-thought-leadership-study-for-it-cybersecurity-study-findings-and-podcast-b64c5f0afa53")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/code-red-thought-leadership-study-for-it-cybersecurity-study-findings-and-podcast-b64c5f0afa53) diff --git a/posts/medium/A-look-inside-Israel-s-kosher-goat-meat-revolution.md b/posts/medium/A-look-inside-Israel-s-kosher-goat-meat-revolution.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bf6588482d3856d7dbed4990b7c83c911182fb32 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-look-inside-Israel-s-kosher-goat-meat-revolution.md @@ -0,0 +1,128 @@ +# A look inside Israel’s kosher goat meat revolution + +#### An Ancient Meat Makes A Long Overdue Comeback + +This Rosh Hashana 5781, dinner tables around Israel and the Jewish world were being adorned with the usual staples. + +Apples. Honey. The _simanim_. And — for some — kosher goat meat. + +When people think about kosher meat, the usual staples usually come to mind: chicken, beef, and lamb. + +Sliced Goat prime rib. Photo: Artzenu Meats + +Most longterm keepers of _kashrut_ from populous Jewish communities might also have tasted a few meats they thought somewhat exotic in their time. Meats such as duck, goose, and even buffalo. + +Yet there’s one meat which seems to curiously evade most kosher eaters’ attention. Which is a great pity because — more than any meat arguably — it is the one with the longest history in the Jewish tradition. And that is: goat meat. + +Goat is a popular meat for many curry recipes, such as this Jamaican goat curry. Photo: Artzenu + +### The Meat of the Ancient Israelites + +Ever wonder what the figures of the _Tanakh_ would have eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and how such a diet would differ from the diet prevalent in Modern Israel (a mish-mash of the cuisines of various cultures with decidedly Middle Eastern influences)? + +If you have then there’s a plethora of scholarly research to whet your curiosity and while there’s some overlap between the two (chickpeas were popular back then too!) there are also marked differences — which is almost inevitable considering the long passage of time between the beginning of the Jewish Diaspora and the foundation of the modern State of Israel. + +[Wikipedia, for one, has an interesting page on the diet of the Ancient Israelites — ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Israelite_cuisine#:~:text=The%20daily%20diet%20of%20the,and%20ate%20butter%20and%20cheese.)which is a good starting point for anybody interested in learning more. The subject is of interest to archaeologists too who are often able to piece together the approximate diet of the ancient denizens of these parts by finding their cookware and storage vessels on excavation sites. And, of course, there are books. Nathan McDonald’s [_“What Did the Ancient Israelites Eat?: Diet in Biblical Times?”_](https://www.bookdepository.com/What-Did-the-Ancient-Israelites-Eat-/9780802862983) does pretty much what it says on the tin — in exhaustive detail. The more recent [_Household Food Storage in Ancient Israel and Judah_](https://www.amazon.com/Household-Storage-Ancient-Israel-Judah/dp/1784919802/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=diet+ancient+israel&qid=1600702287&sr=8-1) merits mention too. + +By all accounts, the most distinctive feature of the diet of the Ancient Israelites, by reference to today’s Western diets, was that it was largely a vegetarian one — dairy and legumes made up the main proteins. + +Meat, when it was eaten, tended to be reserved for special occasions like weddings and major festivals. Kosher birds were also eaten, including those which are extremely hard to pin down today (ever seen pigeon at your friendly kosher butcher?). The kosher meats which are the most commonplace today ranked down the food chain. Spices were exorbitantly expensive import items and most dishes were modestly flavored with things like garlic, cumin, and leeks. Turkey _shawarma hodi_? Not so much. And forget chopping up some nice Israeli tomatoes to serve it with. Tomatoes are a New World nightshade and weren’t even known to European explorers until the 16th century or so. + +Goat chops. Photo: Artzenu meats. + +### Goat Was The Leading Meat + +But what about meat, you might be wondering? + +You guessed it, goat likely came in first place — with sheep meat relegated to a slightly distant second (veal would have also been eaten but only, in all likelihood, by the elite). + +There are many other fascinating tidbits one can pick up by studying what archaeologists have discovered about the diet of the people of the Bible. + +For one, barley — rather than wheat — was the most important grain during the Biblical period and up to approximately the period of the First and Second Temple. + +Unqualified, the לחם (lehem; bread) referred to in the Bible therefore likely refers to barley bread. Barley flour is comparatively hard to find these days — including in Israel — and yields much flatter loaves than wheat due to its lower gluten content. Fenugreek — which is rarely seen in Israel in its dried leaf form (the ingredient known to Indian food aficionados as _kasoori methi_)- was also consumed as was a legume called bitter vetch which I have never seen here. If you’re sufficiently motivated, you can easily grow your own. + +All these Biblical asides are just really to say that slices of goat meat served on a bed of scorched ripe wheat ( [what we today know as _freekeh_ is also of ancient origin!)](https://www.israel21c.org/the-delicious-reemergence-of-freekeh-in-israeli-cuisine/) is actually much more authentically and historically Jewish than the turkey served on wheat bread that you might find at your local _shawarma_ shop — bathed, as it typically is, in a fragrant rich blend of exotic spices. + +Remember that the next time somebody tells you that goat meat _“isn’t something Jews eat.”_ + +### Sourcing Goat in Israel Today + +As goat’s relatively dismal standing in the modern kosher world bears out, at some point in history it appears as if the meat fell out of favor with the Jews — such that the mere mention of eating kosher goat meat these days is often enough to cause looks of astonished bewilderment. + +It’s hard to piece together the ‘why’. + +The Ancient Israelites were, in large part, a nation of goat herders — and, as the Tanakh bears out, shepherding was the prototypical Jewish occupation in the ancient world. + +The Ancient Israelites drunk goat’s milk, slept in tents made from goat hair, and — on rare occasion — ate from their animals’ meat. Perhaps their flocks never made it to the Diaspora with them after the Exile? + +The answer as to why and when goat slipped off the kosher food agenda is probably unknowable — and I’m certainly not the best-placed person to attempt the guesswork. + +But whatever the explanation, the perpetuation of the modern Jewish alienation from goat is certainly strange given that the meat remains a very popular meat in the Muslim world — and is widely enjoyed by both our Palestinian neighbors and those in neighboring countries. And even though a claim that goat meat is the most popular red meat in the world [was debunked](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/most-consumed-meat-in-world_n_593562eae4b02478cb9d42dd), it also enjoys widespread popularity beyond our region on an international scale. + +### The Israel Kosher Goat Meat Buying Network (IKGMBN) + +It was against this backdrop of wishing to cook goat for its historic significance but struggling to find it that, one rainy day last winter, I started a frivolously intended Facebook group entitled [Israel Kosher Goat Meat Buying Network (IKGMBN)](https://www.facebook.com/groups/wewantkoshergoatmeat) + +The group is its infancy with 45 members, although several leading luminaries from the Israel kosher goat world have left thoughtful recipes and videos to share their enthusiasm for kosher goat meat among kindred spirits. + +I started the group in a fit of frenzied excitement after a local (kosher) butcher told me that he would be able to procure us a goat if we could find a slaughterer to _schecht_ the animal. We were two steps away from kosher goat meat — or so it seemed! And if enough people would sign up for a buying consortium, I wouldn’t have to worry about fitting an entire animal in an Israel-sized top-loading freezer compartment. At the least, I thought a couple of friends might get a laugh out of the group’s preposterous title and acronym. + +The proposition was quickly torn asunder by members of the potential buying consortium who pointed out that doing so while remaining compliant with the Ministry of Health’s veterinary standards would be nigh on impossible. The search went on. But the community had been assembled. + +The Kosher Goat Underworld + +Although the initial burst of excitement was to be short-lived, the nascent group confirmed my suspicion that I was not alone in wishing to find a source of kosher goat meat. + +What I discovered was akin to a sort of kosher meat buying underworld that it appeared had been in existence for some time (and by ‘underworld’ I do not mean to suggest that the activity was in any way illegal). + +A patchwork of _shohets_(ritual slaughters) worked with farmers — mostly in the north of the country — in order to procure goats for kosher slaughter. + +These were then either sold directly online or through buying consortia to exotic meat fanatics dotted through the country — from Metullah to Eilat. + +The market which these groups sold into was as loosely organized as the supply side of it was — which consisted of a network of entrepreneurs, specialty meat purveyors, and people with mobile refrigeration to bring the meat to enthusiast buyers around the country. + +Although Israel’s main goat meat suppliers now sport flashy e-commerce websites, a lot of goat-related discussion, it seemed, was still taking place over WhatsApp and social media. The result is that the market is currently a charming mixture of the intimacy of word-of-mouth and the convenience of being able to place orders online through an automated system. A goat-supplying contact might drop you a WhatsApp message to let you know that goat has been procured and is in stock. Pay online by credit card and a few days’ later it’s lying in your refrigerator. + +These days, although it appears to be swelling, the ranks of those interested in kosher goat meat in Israel remains comparably small. + +Those interested are disproportionately passionate about reviving the ancient Jewish custom of consuming goat on special occasions — or whenever else meat is eaten. + +More than anybody, perhaps, [Artzenu Meats](http://www.artzenu.co.il/) — a niche provider based in Tsfat — has helped both popularize goat meat in Israel and made obtaining it more accessible. + +Availability of goat meat is periodic and updates as to availability are conveyed both through the [company’s Facebook page ](https://www.facebook.com/organicmeatisrael/)and (sometimes) through the aforementioned niche collective of English-speaking, kosher-keeping goat meat enthusiasts [(Israel Kosher Goat Meat Buying Network)](https://www.facebook.com/groups/wewantkoshergoatmeat). + +Through its online website, the company sells a variety of cuts of goat meat ranging from ribs to shoulder to neck and chops. + +Prices — in the author’s estimation, at least — are high — and certainly a multiple of what breasts of chicken cost at a local Shufersal. + +This is potentially a product of the limited economies of scale which this market currently enjoys but one could arguably also see the higher cost of the meat Arzenu sells as more in tune with the ancient Israelite way of reserving meat consumption for festivals and special occasions. + +One thing is clear. As more kosher-keeping goat eaters clamor for their meat of choice it can be expected that more competition will be introduced to the market and prices will fall. And who I am to hide the fact that spreading the message that goat _is_ a Jewish meat was part of the motivation for writing this post? + +If you took nothing else from this strange _Times of Israel_ blog post let it be that kosher goat meat _can_ be procured. + +Cooked — or thrown on the grill — I can confirm that it is an exquisitely tasty meat that has a slight but not overpowering hint of gaminess. Most recipes for lamb can be adapted and — for that extra Biblical fidelity — it can be served with a side of _freekeh_ or unhulled barley. + +Goat not only _can_ be kosher it _is —_ in a sense — the original Jewish kosher meat. + +Jews have been eating kosher goat meat pretty much since there have been Jews in the world. + +Right now, in Israel, kosher goat meat is not commonplace. But there are those who eat it. + +Most importantly, it is available. And it is rather tasty. _B’teavon_. + +### Further Reading + + * [What Did the Ancient Israelites Eat?: Diet in Biblical Times (Amazon)](https://www.amazon.com/What-Did-Ancient-Israelites-Eat/dp/0802862985#customerReviews) + * [Food At The Time Of The Bible (Amazon)](https://www.amazon.com/Food-Bible-Miriam-Feinberg-Vamosh/dp/0687340349) + +### Where To Buy Kosher Goat Meat in Israel + +[Artzenu Meats](http://www.artzenu.co.il/)* + +### Facebook Communities + +[Israel Kosher Goat Meat Buying Network (IKGMBN)](https://www.facebook.com/groups/wewantkoshergoatmeat) _I have no commercial affiliation with Artzenu!_ + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/A-partial-explanation-for-why-the-absurd-cost-of-living-in-Israel-never-seems-to-get-better.md b/posts/medium/A-partial-explanation-for-why-the-absurd-cost-of-living-in-Israel-never-seems-to-get-better.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..97479401a90aacb47535e78c12f02e5cbd89407a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-partial-explanation-for-why-the-absurd-cost-of-living-in-Israel-never-seems-to-get-better.md @@ -0,0 +1,76 @@ +# A partial explanation for why the absurd cost of living in Israel never seems to get better + +#### The strange and somewhat newfound culture of pro-Israel censorship in the Jewish world ensures that self-critical discussions about unpalatable facets of life in Israel are never seriously discussed + +The marina in Herzlia, Israel. Photo by [Ofir Gafkovich](https://www.pexels.com/@gafko?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/high-rise-buildings-1741605/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +A few days ago, in a report, the Economist Research Unit affirmed that the cost of living in Tel Aviv was the highest in the world. + +Basing its comparison on a survey of more than 200 products and services in more than 173 cities worldwide, the institution found that — flabbergastingly, astoundingly , what-the-hell-ingly— the cost of living in Tel Aviv exceeded that of Tel Aviv, New York, London, and Hong Kong. For many of us actually living in Israel, like the author, the reaction could best be summarized as _“0% surprised.”_ + +[**Tel Aviv is the world's most expensive city** + _T HE CITY of Tel Aviv was named after the title in Hebrew of "Old New Land" ( "Altneuland" in German), a visionary…_ www.economist.com](https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/11/30/tel-aviv-is-the-worlds-most-expensive-city "https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/11/30/tel-aviv-is-the-worlds-most-expensive-city")[](https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/11/30/tel-aviv-is-the-worlds-most-expensive-city) + +Occasionally, but particularly at moments such as these, _olim_ (Jewish immigrants to Israel) arise from a Mediterranean _siesta_ to ask “what’s up” with certain facets of life in Israel. + +For about 24 hours after the release of such news, English-speaking Facebook groups will be filled to the brim with questions along the lines of “ _so … what’s up with the cost of living here?”_ Long-time immigrants will eventually observe that the dynamic is circular because a mind-boggling statistic about the absurd cost of living in Israel has surfaced, without fail, for every one of the past few years. In the words of somebody who lived on these shores many, many years ago, _“there’s nothing new under the sun.”_ + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +[**Israeli housing prices have nearly doubled in a decade, with no signs of slowing** + _It's Saturday night on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv and a group of protesters is again gearing up for a rally…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/) + +In response to this frenzied round of questioning, various explanations will be offered. + +Typically those will be the usual and well-worn ones that are exhaustively familiar to anybody who has kept abreast of such matters: Israel is small; oligopolies and bare monopolies predominate here (much as tapas bars do in Spanish towns); and red tape and the Israel Standards Institute bizarrely help to perpetuate all of those things as if it were unofficial policy to keep Israel expensive and overpriced. + +Successively, we’re promised that change is around the corner. And yet, year after year, those of us living in Israel are left with the disconcerting feeling that we’re being ripped off left, right, and center for answering the call of Zionism to live in the Jewish state. + +We got ripped off. The Jewish Agency / Nefesh b’Nefesh didn’t mention this part in their glossy brochures. + +We become disenchanted, quietly angry, and also confused as to why this rather life-altering reality — the fact that everything from beer to petrol to daycare in Israel is grossly overpriced — seems to only merit periodic consideration and protest (the last major round of protests about the cost of living in Israel, the so-called cottage cheese boycott, took place more than 10 years ago). I’m totally not talking about myself. + +### The Jewish World — And, Paradoxically, Many Immigrants to Israel — Insist on Silencing Any Criticism of The Country + +The explanations for the absurd cost of living are all — to the best of my knowledge — on point. Change does appear to be in the offing and for a change I’m actually hopeful that the Bennett government might follow through with some of their promises. Although uprooting decades-long policies of protectionism is never going to happen overnight. _Leyat-leyat_(slowly, slowly) as the national refrain goes. + +But one that I have rarely, if ever, seen offered is this (I would describe it as an additive rather than causative factor): + +For every _oleh_ that complains about the cost of living in Israel, five are waiting in line to say “ _it’s not that bad.”_ Or more frankly “ _such badness must be imagined or, if not, the product of a false lens.”_ Otherwise stated: it’s you. + +At other times they will insist that _“paying $15 for a crappy lager is perfectly normal! Haven’t you been to London/NYC/Paris recently.”_ (Were _they_ in London/NYC/Paris recently?!) + +Their stubborn insistence — by stubborn I mean lifelong, it seems to be encoded in their DNA — is that everything in Israel is unfailing good, every road in it blessed with the dust of past prophets and every government decision sealed with the kiss of everlasting righteousness. + +Their begrudging concession, if they will offer one, is that if any “ _badness_ ” on Israel’s part can be conceded (whatsoever), that badness must only ever be as bad as things in other parts of the world. + +Israel has a shocking housing crisis on its doorstep and the average cost of a downpayment now exceeds a [_quarter of a million_](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/) US dollars? + +Terrible, but isn’t that the case everywhere? Israel’s no different. Stop complaining. + +But the chilling effect on any serious discussion about the cost of living in Israel doesn’t stop there. + +Behind the _oleh_(Jewish immigrant)__ who decides to stick his or her neck out to point out the obvious, another five can’t wait to share the photos of their 800 NIS/night ($250) _tzimmer_ (B&B) in the North exclaiming what wonderful value they received for their accommodation that bared a stark resemblance to a desert shack that those wandering in the desert thousand of years ago might have thought habitable. + +Rather than encountering those eager to point out the obvious, they will be met, instead, with rapturous enthusiasm among other immigrants who exclaim how wonderful the rusted tent indeed looks. _(Behind that person, another oleh, like me, is scratching his/her head and wondering whether they took the wrong pill in the Matrix and are living in some kind of Zionist AI experiment to test humans’ ability to withstand a steady stream of misinformation)._ + +Problem two, this one just as underdiscussed: in the Jewish diaspora, 10 Dovids/Rivkas/Shlomos are waiting behind that _oleh_ to throw more opprobrium on the already burning fire of militant pushback _._ + +Over the course of the pandemic, this group also appears to have been radicalized. + +They have never been more sure than before — or of anything — that Israel is, indeed, the land of milk and money, in modern times as in previous ones. That all its ways are pure. And that anybody insisting anything to the contrary — even if they live in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem and they in Melbourne or London— must have contracted a serious case of the Stockholm Syndrome. They’re mentally ill. It ain’t that bad. + +If they’re feeling particularly vengeful they will say that this _oleh_ , complaining about the cost of beer or cucumbers or the downpayment on mortgages, must surely be a self-hating Jew. For no other explanation can be imagined for such preposterous behavior. + +He or she is really no better, they might add, than Hamas/Hizbullah/the Iranian _ayatollahs_ and surely such comments will imminently lead to the country’s total collapse. + +Such individuals must also — I mean naturally — be silenced at all costs before _oleh_ 11 and 12 decide to hop on a flight from Paris/NYC/Johannesburg/Monsey. Isn’t this, after all, the natural learning from the account of the Spies who returned with negative reports about the Land of Israel? Many of them interpret this silencing to be mandated by the Torah. I struggle to wrap my head around how that idea is compatible with the Jewish values of debate and self-examination. + +Now, the _oleh_ pointing out some unpalatable things about life in Israel finds himself, or herself, unexpectedly outnumbered by a factor of 20 to 1 and facing down allegations of being “self-hating” and in quest of the country’s destruction. The case is starting to look not just hopeless but positively threatening. So like most humans, they seek out the course of lesser resistance. The fight isn’t worth maintaining. So they stop airing their grievances. + +This, as well as the well-understood factors, surely, is a large part of the reason why things seem to have a tendency to stay the same here. + +Toxic positivity it might be called if taken out of the unique Jewish context in which the dynamic sits. As well as a pervasive and self-reinforcing tendency towards manufactured denial. + +Alongside protectionism and anti-competitive practices, it might be worth considering whether the propriety of this is worthy of debate also. diff --git a/posts/medium/A-petition-for-Reddit-to-ban-fully-anonymous-signups-to-help-thwart-cyberbullying--abuse--and-.md b/posts/medium/A-petition-for-Reddit-to-ban-fully-anonymous-signups-to-help-thwart-cyberbullying--abuse--and-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4938041cae5adebc466523d14eda2dc700330e82 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/A-petition-for-Reddit-to-ban-fully-anonymous-signups-to-help-thwart-cyberbullying--abuse--and-.md @@ -0,0 +1,39 @@ +# A petition for Reddit to ban fully anonymous signups to help thwart cyberbullying, abuse, and… + +— Via Change.org + +Reddit is a valuable online social community but has also become a festering hive of online hate, abuse, and cyberbullying with countless hate subreddits on the network remaining completely unchecked. + +As one of the most popular social media networks on the internet — with more than 300 million monthly active users — it is also a major online community. There is thus a compelling public policy interest in ensuring that the community protects its members from abuse and operates mechanisms for holding online bullies to account. + +If Reddit fails to do this — as is currently the case — then efforts to stymie cyberbullying through national or local legislation will ultimately prove futile, at least as they relate to abuse perpetrated through this platform. + +Requiring that Redditors verify their real identity during the signup process would be a simple but massively powerful deterrent to online abuse that would also create badly missing accountability among the user community. + +At a minimum, enforcing such a simple step could drastically reduce the number of actors who sign up for the platform with the intention of spreading hatred and harassing other users. + +### **A Potential Mechanism For Reducing Reddit Cyberbullying** + +Signups could be required to provide Reddit with government issued ID which could — perhaps — by verified with AI. Those submitting fake documentation would likely be violating their countries’ laws, creating a deterrent for bad actors. + +Redditors could choose to remain anonymous to other community members. For the rule-abiding minority, no effort would ever be undertaken to ascertain their real identity. For those that are found to have egregiously flouted the rules — in cases of online bullying and harassment — an internal investigation could be opened which would ascertain their identity allowing them to potentially face real-world repercussions for their online actions. + +This simple measure could save countless future targets of cyberbullying and online abuse which can have serious consequences for mental health. + +### Sign The Petition + +[**Sign the Petition** + _Reddit is a valuable online social community but has also become a festering hive of online hate, abuse, and…_ www.change.org](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups "https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups")[](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups) + +### Related + +[**Reddit cyberbullying —a thank you note to those who stood by me** + _Bullying, gaslighting, and a platform that appears not to care: a toxic combination of hate_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/reddit-cyberbullying-a-thank-you-note-to-those-who-stood-by-me-5556621eb05c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/reddit-cyberbullying-a-thank-you-note-to-those-who-stood-by-me-5556621eb05c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/reddit-cyberbullying-a-thank-you-note-to-those-who-stood-by-me-5556621eb05c) + +[**If you see cyberbullying, consider reaching out to show support** + _A two minute email can be powerfully uplifting for targets_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-see-cyberbullying-consider-reaching-out-to-show-support-d1db5d48694d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-see-cyberbullying-consider-reaching-out-to-show-support-d1db5d48694d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-see-cyberbullying-consider-reaching-out-to-show-support-d1db5d48694d) + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/AWS-Certified-Cloud-Practitioner---A-Short-Course-Provider-List.md b/posts/medium/AWS-Certified-Cloud-Practitioner---A-Short-Course-Provider-List.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4ff683f56a9f0eaf29c9b7b9ebe9706a0d301b6d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/AWS-Certified-Cloud-Practitioner---A-Short-Course-Provider-List.md @@ -0,0 +1,96 @@ +# AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner — A Short Course Provider List + +As I posted on this blog at the start of the summer, I’ve been plotting my way towards achieving my first technology certification. Progress has been slower than I expected mostly because I’ve been unusually busy with work. I make fits of progress between fits of work. But slowly but surely, I’m advancing my knowledge. + +My initial plan was to take the LPIC (Linux Professionals Institute Certification) Essentials exam for no better reason than that I like Linux. + +My first online training provider was LinuxAcademy.com and I greatly enjoyed the course. As a longtime Linux user, it was a strange combination of concepts that I was very familiar with and other tools that I had never heard of. Administrating Linux servers professionally is not the same thing as using it on the desktop, although undoubtedly you’re at an advantage if you have experience using the latter, particularly if you’re handy with command line interfaces (CLIs). + +### Switching From Linux to AWS + +Something about the Linux preparation, however, left me a bit cold. Knowing Linux and Unix-like systems remains essential for most sysadmins, of course, but today’s market seems more focused on what one can _do_ with this knowledge. + +One night, after wrapping up some Linux video lectures, I decided to check out what _other_ tracks I could dabble in with my Linux Academy subscriptions. Navigating through the cloud menu, I came across Linux Academy’s AWS training path. This seemed interesting! I both use AWS services for backups (see, for instance, my [Google Takeout to EC2 backup how-to](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/how-to-back-up-pcloud-to-b2-ec2-rclone/)) and I have written for a number of cloud-related clients. Plus, who couldn’t be bullish about cloud computing’s future? It’s here to say and as the leading provider of public cloud infrastructure (at the time of writing at least) AWS seemed the most sensible of the vendor certification tracks to pursue. + +It was love at first session! + +I found the AWS tutorials much more engaging than the Linux lessons. Operations has always appealed to be much more than development, and the AWS coursework focuses really on the best ways to architect for the cloud. If I was going to spend time pursuing any certification which mightn’t actually serve any concrete purpose, learning AWS was at least enjoyable. + +I did relatively well on the Linux Academy test exams. But after my monthly subscription expired, I decided that I needed to focus on more practice exams before sitting the actual exam. + +### Tutorial Dojo — Incredible Value For Money + +Tutorial Dojo was the recommended place to go for a lot of practice exams which I have been working through quite intensely for the past couple of weeks. I found these _a lot_ harder than the Linux Academy ones which took me by surprise. The passing grade for the Certified Cloud Practitioner (CCP) exam is a little over 70% which I was comfortably achieving on LinuxAcademy. But now I was back to 60%! + +Working through the tests has been slow and very hard work. Unlike learning the concepts, which was stimulating, I’m back into the nitty gritty of exam preparation and trying to memorize the differences between CodeDeploy, CodeCommit and Elastic Beanstalk. I try to do one practice exam per day and work through my incorrect answers. I also purchased their e-book and had it printed locally. So I leaf through that on the weekends too. + +A few resources have been really helpful as I move through this process and are worth mentioning. + +The first of those is the [/r/awscertifications](https://www.reddit.com/r/AWSCertifications/) subreddit. Self-directed learning can be isolating — particularly now — so having an online community to ask questions of has been extremely useful. + +Another resource worth mentioning is . This is a Slack channel where you can talk to other people pursuing various technology certifications. + +Personally a good online learning environment and a community of learners — even if it’s an online one — are enough to keep me happy and motivated. I’m probably getting as much value by stringing together a few relatively cheap resources as I would be by attending a glossy bootcamp-style training institute. + +### The Last Stop On The Road? + +Because I don’t need this certification for any particular immediate purpose (my thoughts are that it might be useful to demonstrate subject matter expertise — or potentially to kickstart something bigger) I’m focusing on being as well prepared for the exam as possible. If I overprepare, I might cover some of the groundwork for the next certification in the ladder. If I underprepare and fail … well, I’ve just thrown $100 down the drain. + +Coming from zero formal technical background, I also don’t have the industry experience that a lot of people pursuing a cloud certification would. When people describe the CCP exam was really easy I feel like this is often the reason. So the road has been particularly long. + +Taking practice exams over and over again gets kind of tedious, so I thought that I should take another course before I attempt any more and get up to the 90% average score which is recommended before sitting the actual exam. + +I polled the subreddit for some recommended resources and enrolled in [Stephane Maarek’s Udemy course](https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-new/learn/) — which I highly recommend. + +Because I also wanted to know exactly what else was out there that could come in handy for the next AWS certification on the ladder should I choose to do it (Solutions Architect — Associate), I put together the following table. + +These are some of the leading resources if you’re interested in pursuing self-directed online training towards an AWS certification: + +The table excludes the various Udemy course providers and of course AWS’s own documentation and resources. But it should provide the top names if you’re thinking about taking the journey down the AWS certification pathway too. + +### Online Courses + +[https://www.linuxacademy.com](https://login.linuxacademy.com/login?state=g6Fo2SBFdnBGOEJQQ000YkdFeExwV0lKR3pkeEJlbHVISTV0NKN0aWTZIDYwU1Y5dFBraTRxUFNOZW11ajdGd2hLRVpTdWg0czJto2NpZNkgS2FXeE5uMUMyR2M3bjgzVzlPRmVYbHRkOFV0YjV2dng&client=KaWxNn1C2Gc7n83W9OFeXltd8Utb5vvx&protocol=oauth2&response_type=token%20id_token&redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Flinuxacademy.com%2Fcp%2Fssologin&scope=openid%20email%20user_impersonation%20profile&audience=https%3A%2F%2Flinuxacademy.com&nonce=mAro7hoavcO.4cIqCM0o1CxyJLtq6Vct&auth0Client=eyJuYW1lIjoiYXV0aDAuanMiLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjoiOS40LjEifQ%3D%3D) + +[**Cloud Computing Certification Training Courses | A Cloud Guru** + _A Cloud Guru is the leading modern tech skills development platform. Start learning today. Business and individual…_ acloudguru.com](https://acloudguru.com/ "https://acloudguru.com/")[](https://acloudguru.com/) + +[**AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CLF-C01)** +_The AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Certification is the foundational certification for Amazon Web Services. Unlike…_ www.pluralsight.com](https://www.pluralsight.com/paths/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner?aid=7010a000002BWqGAAW&promo=&utm_source=non_branded&utm_medium=digital_paid_search_google&utm_campaign=EMEA_Dynamic&utm_content=&gclid=Cj0KCQjwoJX8BRCZARIsAEWBFMKEbUYkoWF_c9zunx9N6ohznQyCMi5vjuLof7qXZ9MpOk_IYpryi08aArUhEALw_wcB "https://www.pluralsight.com/paths/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner?aid=7010a000002BWqGAAW&promo=&utm_source=non_branded&utm_medium=digital_paid_search_google&utm_campaign=EMEA_Dynamic&utm_content=&gclid=Cj0KCQjwoJX8BRCZARIsAEWBFMKEbUYkoWF_c9zunx9N6ohznQyCMi5vjuLof7qXZ9MpOk_IYpryi08aArUhEALw_wcB")[](https://www.pluralsight.com/paths/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner?aid=7010a000002BWqGAAW&promo=&utm_source=non_branded&utm_medium=digital_paid_search_google&utm_campaign=EMEA_Dynamic&utm_content=&gclid=Cj0KCQjwoJX8BRCZARIsAEWBFMKEbUYkoWF_c9zunx9N6ohznQyCMi5vjuLof7qXZ9MpOk_IYpryi08aArUhEALw_wcB) + +[**AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner 2020 (Certification Course)** +_Zeal is one of the renowned Premium Instructor at Udemy. Zeal works primarily as a Cloud Security Consultant and helps…_ www.udemy.com](https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner/ "https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner/")[](https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner/) + +[**FREE Amazon AWS Certification Training Cloud Practitioner** + _FREE Amazon AWS Certification Training Resources for AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner: Cheat Sheets, Practice…_ digitalcloud.training](https://digitalcloud.training/amazon-aws-free-certification-training-cloud-practitioner/ "https://digitalcloud.training/amazon-aws-free-certification-training-cloud-practitioner/")[](https://digitalcloud.training/amazon-aws-free-certification-training-cloud-practitioner/) + +[**AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Training 2019 - A Free 4-hour Video Course** + _This week's free technical course is an exciting one. Cloud computing with AWS. And you can earn a certification, too…_ www.freecodecamp.org](https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-training-2019-free-video-course/ "https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-training-2019-free-video-course/")[](https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-training-2019-free-video-course/) + +[**Aws articles from CBT Nuggets** + _This AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner training is the perfect place to start learning AWS._ www.cbtnuggets.com](https://www.cbtnuggets.com/it-training/aws/cloud-practitioner "https://www.cbtnuggets.com/it-training/aws/cloud-practitioner")[](https://www.cbtnuggets.com/it-training/aws/cloud-practitioner) + +[**AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Training & Certification** + _upto 50% Off Upgrade your Skills with our Special Offers! JOIN NOW X AWS Cloud Practitioner training course will help…_ www.infosectrain.com](https://www.infosectrain.com/courses/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-training/ "https://www.infosectrain.com/courses/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-training/")[](https://www.infosectrain.com/courses/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-training/) + +[**AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials** + _Description The fundamental-level course is intended for individuals who seek an overall understanding of the AWS…_ www.ecloudvalley.com](https://www.ecloudvalley.com/aws-cloud-practitioner-essentials/ "https://www.ecloudvalley.com/aws-cloud-practitioner-essentials/")[](https://www.ecloudvalley.com/aws-cloud-practitioner-essentials/) + +[**AWS Cloud Practitioner Training, Online Course for Certification** + _Are you prepared to pass the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner exam? In this course, you will learn the fundamentals to…_ www.cybrary.it](https://www.cybrary.it/course/aws-cloud-practitioner/ "https://www.cybrary.it/course/aws-cloud-practitioner/")[](https://www.cybrary.it/course/aws-cloud-practitioner/) + +[**AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner: Essentials Course 2020 [Video]** +_Cloud computing provides a simple way to access servers, storage, databases, and a broad set of application services…_ www.packtpub.com](https://www.packtpub.com/product/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-essentials-course-2020-video/9781800564275 "https://www.packtpub.com/product/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-essentials-course-2020-video/9781800564275")[](https://www.packtpub.com/product/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-essentials-course-2020-video/9781800564275) + +[**AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Training Exam ( CLF-C01)** +_This immersive 2- day workshop on AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner training offers in-depth knowledge on core services…_ www.knowledgehut.com](https://www.knowledgehut.com/cloud-computing/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-certification-training "https://www.knowledgehut.com/cloud-computing/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-certification-training")[](https://www.knowledgehut.com/cloud-computing/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-certification-training) + +### Additional Resources + +[**r/AWSCertifications** + _This subreddit focuses solely on AWS Certifications. Bring in your discussions, questions , opinions, news and comments…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/AWSCertifications/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/AWSCertifications/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/AWSCertifications/) + +[**TechStudySlack - A Slack for people studying tech** + _A slack community dedicated to helping students excel in growing their technical careers_ techstudyslack.com](https://techstudyslack.com/ "https://techstudyslack.com/")[](https://techstudyslack.com/) + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/After-Aliyah-Founded-To-Provide-Olim-With-Clearer--Objective-Information-About-Life-in-Israel-.md b/posts/medium/After-Aliyah-Founded-To-Provide-Olim-With-Clearer--Objective-Information-About-Life-in-Israel-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4424cae40e5843a27ca382f3fe66012b5c72a76b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/After-Aliyah-Founded-To-Provide-Olim-With-Clearer--Objective-Information-About-Life-in-Israel-.md @@ -0,0 +1,27 @@ +# After Aliyah Founded To Provide Olim With Clearer, Objective Information About Life in Israel… + +**JERUSALEM-** English-speaking immigrants to Israel have a new website to keep track of! + +After Aliyah (afteraliyah.com) was created in order to create a central clearinghouse for information related to living in Israel for those who have already made _aliyah._ + +According to the site’s creator, Daniel Rosehill,_“there are many great websites and resources focused on aliyah. But a lot of the information currently authored is marketed to those who have not moved to Israel yet. It can be more promotional than informational in both tone and content.”_ + +Seeing the need for more pragmatic and objective information, in English, about how to do everything from [ordering groceries over the internet](https://www.afteraliyah.com/how-to-use-shufersal-to-order-groceries/) with Shufersal through to [buying prescription medications online](https://www.afteraliyah.com/how-to-use-super-pharm-to-order-prescription-medications-online-in-israel/) , Rosehill, a writer and immigrant himself, began authoring a series of guides and blog posts on a Medium publication he set up, [Living in Israel](https://medium.com/living-in-israel). + +_“Eventually I decided that I had enough information written to form the beginnings of a larger project,”_ he said. + +Rosehill envisions After Aliyah as a not-for-profit organization whose sole aim is to host and publish practical information about living in Israel without regard to its tone. + +He said that — unlike platforms trying to market Israel to prospective _olim_ — he doesn’t want to shy away from articles and content that discusses the challenges of making a life in Israel. + +_“I’ve written previously about how_[ _high the cost of living is in Israel_](https://www.afteraliyah.com/9-crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel/) _; how difficult it has become for young people, especially olim, to even think about getting on the property ladder; and the various other socioeconomic issues that we immigrants are facing here but which aren’t currently getting discussed outside of Facebook groups and other closed fora._ _These are issues that ultimately end up driving a lot of olim out of the country but which a culture of silence has developed around, perhaps out of fear of not deterring future olim.”_ + +“ _But for Zionists, I would argue that it’s time that we began discussing these things in the open. And focusing, instead of engaging in blanket promotion [of Israel], on discussing how we immigrants can maximize our contribution to the country and make it as likely as possible that we will succeed in starting new lives here. Otherwise the revolving door that has been a prominent feature of aliyah to date will keep spinning”_ + +Regarding the website: + +_“I felt that there was room for one more platform in the English-speaking blogosphere that would focus on presenting practical information about how to make a life, and a living, in Israel. To host both a variety of perspectives and how-to guides. And not shy away from telling things as they are.”_ + +AfterAliyah website currently consists of [guides](https://www.afteraliyah.com/guides/) and [blogs](https://www.afteraliyah.com/blogs/). Rosehill said that he also plans to add video content and a podcast and potentially other languages as the project evolves. + +**ENDS** diff --git a/posts/medium/After-More-Than-500-Articles--Why-I-m-Stopping-Publishing-On-Medium.md b/posts/medium/After-More-Than-500-Articles--Why-I-m-Stopping-Publishing-On-Medium.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3385f8f3cdee1628c3b68a1d79281df9f4300ea2 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/After-More-Than-500-Articles--Why-I-m-Stopping-Publishing-On-Medium.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# After More Than 500 Articles, Why I’m Stopping Publishing On Medium + +#### If paywalling is the only option to monetization, it’s sadly time for me to find another platform + +Photo by [Jessica Lynn Lewis](https://www.pexels.com/@thepaintedsquare?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/ball-point-pen-on-opened-notebook-606541/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Some time ago, I surpassed the 500 articles mark. Or to be more specific, that’s how many articles I’ve published to date on Medium. + +How I got here is a short story. It may not be of interest to many, but if it explains how I got started here, and why I’m now searching for an alternative platform, then I’m happy to share it. + +For the past six years, I’ve been working either as a full-time writer or in writing-centric corporate jobs (specifically, marketing communications). These occupations are how I put food on the table and keep a roof over my head. + +My day-to-day consists of a _lot_ of writing work on behalf of clients. But it doesn’t always help scratch that creative itch to share what I’m passionate about with the world. So between projects — or on my spare time — I do so here on Medium. I reckon there are many more writers publishing here for that very reason. + +I’ve been running (self-hosted) Wordpress blogs for more than 10 years, and I had a strong background in blogging — and writing — long before I published my first article here. + +**But the moment I first gave drafting on Medium a shot, I fell immediately in love with how easy, and pleasurable, it made drafting copy.** + +It combined, on one platform, everything I had been looking for in a writing editor. It was as minimalist and distraction-free as any of the dedicated distraction-free writing editors that I used on the desktop. + +It offered an in-cloud writing experience that essentially seemed to have no latency whatsoever. Thoughts could spark off in my head, flow through my hands, and take shape in the ‘cloud’ completely seamlessly. + +Drafting on my own blog, by contrast, felt cumbersome and bloated. Cloudflare and Wordpress often got into sparring matches that I was tired of adjudicating. + +And so I discarded my own principle about always publishing on owned platforms and began sharing my thoughts with the world here. + +Doing so has served a valued purpose and I am grateful to Medium for providing such a decent publishing and hosting experience. + +For one, before making the transition from Ireland to Israel, I changed surname. In one fell swoop, I lost the personal brand that I had spent years building up through journalism and other writing. Medium has helped me begin to build that back up. + +But there was a new me to share; a new me taking shape; and I relished the opportunity to start afresh. + +And so I’ve written here as liberally as I can. + +I try to share whatever information, and thinking, I think might be interesting or useful to others. I’ve written tutorials about Linux; shared my thoughts on the (often downward) evolution of the writing industry; and I’ve used this as a platform to share other media sources like video and photos. + +And yet, for all my writing here, there’s one thing I’ve refused to do: and that’s paywall my ‘content.’ Because I’m more interested in reaching readers and open-sourcing information than monetizing it (but realistically, I need a bit of both to keep going), this has made Medium an unsuitable platform for fulfilling my particular needs. + +But why not monetize in the first place? I can expand upon that. + +Deliberately avoiding the push to monetize my writing here was a deliberate one even if it may have been costly — or avoid missing out on money that probably could have been funding my beer and pizza budget for the past few months. According to my stats dashboard for this month, I’ve garnered more than 64,000 views and 13,000 reads this month alone. + +[**Why I Think NOT Monetizing Your Passion Projects (Including Writing) Might Be The Smarter Approach…** + _Sometimes not monetizing projects is the better (but less profitable) approach_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-think-not-monetizing-your-passion-projects-including-writing-might-be-the-smarter-approach-fb71d5b2f250 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-think-not-monetizing-your-passion-projects-including-writing-might-be-the-smarter-approach-fb71d5b2f250")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-think-not-monetizing-your-passion-projects-including-writing-might-be-the-smarter-approach-fb71d5b2f250) + +My rationales for not monetizing this channel have been pretty simple, even if a lot of people won’t agree with them. + +The main one was that I wanted to focus my monetization energies on the most commercially fruitful avenues. For me, that’s selling retainers for marketing services. + +If statistics are to believed, the vast majority of writers who are paywalled on Medium earn less than $100 per month. That’s not enough money to keep me alive or even put anything like a significant dent in my living costs. + +And while I hear the argument that one should attempt to be part of the dedicated minority who _do_ do well through this platform, given that I’m mostly doing this for fun and to share, I don’t really feel like playing those thin odds. My reckoning has therefore been that the value of this activity exceeds the opportunity cost of not monetizing. + +Flowing from that point is actually the main reason why I’ve reached the conclusion that it no longer makes sense to publish here. + +The main value I’ve yielded from my publishing activity here on Medium has been in achieving interest in who I am and what I do professionally. As such, it’s been a personal experiment in something that I’m extremely interested in professionally and which informs a lot of the work that I do for clients: inbound marketing. I was interested, especially, in seeing how the process could scale. + +The best way to maximize the _reach_ of your Medium writing is to _not_ place any restrictions on accessing it. And so that’s what I did. (Final non-monetization point: ethically, many also want _anybody_ — including those unable to afford the mere $5 per month subscription — to be able to read publishing here.) + +My Medium writing has led to both inbound business leads and media opportunities that I wouldn’t otherwise have secured. + +I’ve connected with readers who have sent me emails and made a few online “friends.” Those things are worth something to me. As is knowing that some of what I have written has been appreciated. + +Sharing and open sourcing information for others to consume is a joy as well. It’s the kind of thing that makes the creative economy go around. But until rent and mortgages are given for free, there needs to be some money in the system so that creators can afford to do what they do. + +Unfortunately, everybody who writes for free — even if you’re only publishing on your own channel — eventually comes to the conclusion that the enterprise isn’t sustainable. + +Ten years ago, I first stopped writing for free and began selling articles to magazines and print publications. So although I could justify some of the time invested in writing here under the banner of inbound marketing — an exception to the general principle that writing for free is almost always a bad idea — I knew that it would have to reach an eventual conclusion. + +My marketing, going forward, is going to be more direct and targeted. And I can publish advertising-supported but un-paywalled writing by using easily accessible open source technology. + +So today, I’m declaring, with some sadness, that the conclusion of my Medium publishing journey has been reached. + +I continue to derive primary monetization from consultative work. I remain open to finding monetized channels for my writing, whether through pitching and being paid for journalism (I do a little bit of that) or else finding alternative self-publishing mechanisms that don’t involve having to paywall content in order to achieve monetization. + +I’m skeptical that the latter exist. But given that there are monetization methods for creators that don’t involve restricting content for readers/consumers (see: YouTube as a prominent case in point) I reckon that it’s worth looking out for them. And that if one doesn’t exist today, one might arise in the future. + +For everything who reads what I have posted here — and continues to do so — thank you for reading what I have written. + +I’ll continue to engage with other writers’ output and respond to comments on my own work (although only periodically). + +But for now, I’m calling time on creating new stories. + +### What’s Next + +From a creative standpoint, I’m currently working on two projects: + + 1. A non-fiction book. + 2. Learning video. + +**My personal homepage is here:** + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Here are some links that might be of interest! This page is one long HTML file. So until I add internal links ... keep…_ www.danielrosehill.com](https://www.danielrosehill.com/ "https://www.danielrosehill.com/")[](https://www.danielrosehill.com/) + +**My blog is here:** + +[**Daniel Rosehill's Blog | Marketing, Tech, Linux, Israel** + _Welcome to Daniel Rosehill's personal blog. Information incoming about Linux, marketing, technology, and more - from…_ www.danielsrosehill.com](https://www.danielsrosehill.com/ "https://www.danielsrosehill.com/")[](https://www.danielsrosehill.com/) + +**My YouTube channel is here:** + + diff --git a/posts/medium/Aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah.md b/posts/medium/Aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7d266ce6f2771cbac14085d9471f941d4030de07 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah.md @@ -0,0 +1,91 @@ +# Aliyah numbers are meaningless without also talking about olim retention and yeridah + +#### To be useful and honest, Israel’s aliyah numbers have to be understood in the context of the much underdiscussed question of post-aliyah retention + +Aliyah figures may be healthy, but if we fail to consider them in light of the very partial data about how many former olim are leaving Israel, a dishonest picture is always going to emerge. Photo: an El Al aircraft. Wikimedia. + +A few short days ago, an extremely worthwhile article appeared in _The Times of Israel_ discussing the housing crisis facing countless young Israelis, including _olim hadashim_(Jewish immigrants to Israel). + +[**Israeli housing prices have nearly doubled in a decade, with no signs of slowing** + _It's Saturday night on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv and a group of protesters is again gearing up for a rally…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/) + + _Times of Israel_ Startups and Business Editor Ricky Ben David painted a grim picture of the state of the country’s real estate market, which continues to rise even in the face of a global pandemic. + +Among the piece’s many shocking findings: to afford a downpayment on your average Israeli apartment, a young couple now has to muster up more than a quarter of a million dollars (!) in personal equity. Effectively, Israel is banking on its young generation being well on their way to becoming paper millionaires in order to be able to afford to even quality for a mortgage. In a country with one of the highest cost of livings in the world and an average salary somewhere in the $40,000 territory, to call this approach fantastical is a gross understatement. + +Sometimes it’s best to call a situation for what it is and avoid the plague of false positivity that I have long contended is endemic in the English-speaking community in Israel. It’s depressing. And it speaks of a housing and rental market that is utterly broken. + +Read honestly, there are few slivers of hope in Ben-David’s analysis. Only many urgent questions and ideas worth exploring. + +Does the government need to focus its effort on boosting supply? Should wealthy foreign Jews be precluded from owning the Israeli investment property that is driving the market through punitive taxation measures? And can anybody think of a better scheme to incentivize first time home ownership in Israel than the paltry 20% lottery discount on apartments in less-desirable locations that, to date, has been the government’s only response to this growing crisis? + +It’s been a mere four days since Ben-David’s piece was published. And already the English-speaking media circus has moved on to a much more enjoyable and well-explored topic: _aliyah_(Jewish immigration) is on the rise again (current figures show a 31% year on year growth) and because Aliyah Day is happening in a few days’ time we can all stock up on the beer and champagne. + +Although the figures haven’t yet corrected to what they were pre-pandemic (2019 naturally being the last pre-pandemic calendar year), they’re showing healthy sounds of rebounding. + +But all this hustle and bustle begs the question: were we not discussing less than a week ago about how property ownership in Israel has now become a near impossible dream? How many of these _olim_ are going to actually stay in Israel? Weren’t many of us decrying how the data revealed painted a picture that would hardly entice any rational migrant to live in this country? + +The rapidity with which the discussion has moved from one of enormous significance of _olim_ to year on year _aliyah_ calculations speaks to a much bigger and problematic issue. If we fail to balance a discussion of _aliyah_ with an investigation of what this year’s retention figures are looking like, then Israel is like a business that only reports on its sales. + +### If Israel Only Reports Inbound Immigration, The Picture Is Always Going To Look Various Shades Of Rosy + +Truth be told, the _Times of Israel_ coverage about the jump in _aliyah_ figures is illustrative of any of the many pieces that have been written on the subject in recent years. + +[**31% increase in Jewish immigration to Israel so far this year** + _Jewish immigration to Israel has increased by 31 percent in 2021 so far, according to data released Sunday by the…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/31-increase-in-jewish-immigration-to-israel-in-2021-so-far/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/31-increase-in-jewish-immigration-to-israel-in-2021-so-far/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/31-increase-in-jewish-immigration-to-israel-in-2021-so-far/) + +We get the statistics about _aliyah_. When they jump, we’re supposed to feel good and government ministers celebrate how _aliyah_ continues to be a major driver of Israeli society. The Zionist dream is flourishing, we’re told, perhaps by a margin of 20% more than it was flourishing last year. This year’s uptick will undoubtedly be leaned on heavily by government ministers presiding over Aliyah Day celebrations. Politicians have a habit of behaving like this. None less so in Israel than abroad. + +When they’re down, we’re supposed to be mildly “concerned” and “worried” about the fact that they’re down although no effort ever seems to be undertaken to get to the cause of _why_ so many in the Jewish Diaspora continue to voluntarily reside outside of the borders of the State of Israel. (Note: the majority of world Jewry continues to live outside of Israel, even though the margin is growing slimmer by the year. At the last count, Israel was home to 43% of world Jewry, leaving 57% residing in the Diaspora. In the US alone, for instance, there are about 5.5 million Jews). + +Many of these Jews identify with the Zionist cause and have some feeling of affiliation with the State of Israel, although a good deal more are antithetical to either the movement itself or towards the policies which Israel has chosen to implement, particularly in its conflicts with its neighbors. + +But even among this tranche, many of these individuals are pragmatists (not all: a core contingent is so driven by ideological further that practical considerations simply don’t matter). + +For this group, no matter how many great speeches they hear on Birthright tours about the virtues of moving to Israel, they are going to want to live in a country that affords them a chance of furthering their career and which recognizes their hard-earned foreign credentials (non-recognition of these has been a major cause of grievance among French olim). Living in a country in which the only means of owning property is mustering up more than a quarter of a million dollars — and in which the only alternative to that is a largely unregulated rental market — is, ultimately a significant dealbreaker too. For the same sum of money, I could _own_ a reasonably comfortable property in my hometown of Cork, Ireland. Not just afford the downpayment. And a house, not an apartment. When Zionism is taking out of the picture, these factors do not make the prospect of moving to Israel, or staying there, particularly appealing. And if we continue to ignore them, the discussion of _aliyah_ will always remain a very partial one. + +There’s one vital statistic that has been conspicuously absent every time _aliyah_ is promoted in articles such as these: How many _olim_ actually _stay_ in Israel over the long term and how many of those who leave were skilled workers whose departure constitutes something of a brain drain for Israel. My belief is if this data were included in the report, we’d be able to have a much more honest look at where _aliyah_ truly stands. + +But it would seem as if getting there, from a data standpoint, would need to start from the ground up. First, we need to collate. Only then can be begin to analyze. + +Efforts have been made to get to the root of that. But those appear to require investigation and digging on the part of private citizens. That fact alone is concerning. + +Ariella Bernstein is a personal friend and the author of _Aliya: Home, Hope Reality_ which she authored alongside her husband. + +It’s one of the very few books that have attempted to provide more honest guidance about the _aliyah_ process than can be found in the literature of organizations promoting the choice which typically gloss over this uncomfortable topic of retention entirely. + +According to data compiled for the book, 94% of _olim_ knew of a fellow _oleh_ who had left Israel within five years of their aliyah date (p. 209). Some sources have guesstimated that the figure of actual _yeridah_ (leaving Israel) is in reality much higher than that. Nobody seems to have a firm answer. + +But if anecdotal evidence is anything to go by, then the answer is an awful lot — and the percentage is believed to be higher among Western _olim_ who were drawn to Israel not out of persecution or desperation (ie push factors) but rather because of migration pull factors such as their affiliation with the ideological cause of Zionism and the belief that Israel was the only logical home for Jews. The promoter of one organization dedicated to promoting _aliyah_ retention reckons that hundreds of his friends have left the country since they moved here. + +So all this begs the question: Why, for the most part, is nobody talking about this? If Aliyah Day is a sort of unofficial _chag_ then why does it need to be a relentlessly positive one celebrating how many _olim_ are coming and what those who have come have achieved? Is that vital, yes. But addressing the continuance of _aliyah_ deserves to be more than a footnote in that discussion. To date, it hasn’t even been made it into the book. + +### Israel’s aliyah figures are like a business only reporting on sales + +I have a suggestion for the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration — which is the government organ responsible for organizing the upcoming Aliyah Day celebrations and promoting the whole notion of _aliyah_ generally. + +It should be obliged to maintain a rigorous system for keeping track of post-aliyah retention. By law. Because otherwise it is going to argue that this falls outside of its remit. + +Every _oleh_ who goes through the process of leaving Israel — closing Bituach Leumi accounts etc — should be asked whether they are merely leaving the country for a vacation or whether their _aliyah_ voyage has come to its close. If given the chance, many will be eager to affirm the latter. Their aliyah dates should be tabulated. Their length of stay calculated. And they should be grilled, by an official government organ (not a book author or private surveyor) about why they chose to leave the country. + +If Israel were an employer, this would be called an exit interview. It’s become standard practice in the corporate world. And if Israel is intent on continuing to make a song and dance about recruitment, then it needs to spare at least a passing though to those leaving the country too — beyond disparaging them, as Rabin once did, as wimps. + +These numbers should be carefully tracked and aggregated in the same manner that the numbers of _olim_ coming to Israel are maintained. + +And every year, when we discuss _aliyah_ numbers (typically in the week leading up to Aliyah Day) we should discus what that year’s _yerida_ numbers look like too. + +Comparing one against the other, we can see what the net migration flow looked like. + +Just as we consider what trends are driving _aliyah_ we should be looking at what the push factors are for those who made _aliyah._ And who those choosing to return to their countries of origin are. + +If we fail to do that, Israel is like a business that only reports its sales numbers every year and shares no data about what its expenses or profitability looked like. + +The only conclusions that can be drawn are that this year was slightly less profitable than the foregoing one or slightly more so. Various degrees of good. Such an analysis is dishonest. + +This Aliyah Day will likely be seized upon by politicians to herald how great a job the State of Israel is doing at encouraging world Jewry to live in Israel. We’ll be told that _aliyah_ is robust and healthy and nary a word will be spared about those who left in the past year or about why many are continuing to do so. + +The picture they will try to paint is a disingenuous one. Or at least one that is highly selective in its interpretation of facts and figures. + +To be honest, every discussion of _aliyah_ also needs to look at, and investigate, how many former _olim_ have left the country and why. + +To fail to do that is to be grossly dishonest. diff --git a/posts/medium/All-Considered--Our-COVID-Sacrifice-Is-Trivial.md b/posts/medium/All-Considered--Our-COVID-Sacrifice-Is-Trivial.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..50c493eedf56c2ef5b7c32875b21b90b451f23d8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/All-Considered--Our-COVID-Sacrifice-Is-Trivial.md @@ -0,0 +1,102 @@ +# All Considered, Our COVID Sacrifice Is Trivial + +#### What We’re Giving To Stay Healthy, As A Society, Could Be More + +I’ve written here before about how I’m on a mission to avoid as much news about COVID as possible. + +[**A Model For Sharing Only Essential Coronavirus Information** + _Last month, I elaborated a little upon the low coronavirus news information that I have been on since approximately one…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-model-for-sharing-only-essential-coronavirus-information-9f268f97a3e4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-model-for-sharing-only-essential-coronavirus-information-9f268f97a3e4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-model-for-sharing-only-essential-coronavirus-information-9f268f97a3e4) + +In a nutshell, I’ve been trying to avoid everything that doesn’t constitute essential news. I define that pretty narrowly as need-to-know updates such as: _“the government is restricting you to within 1 KM of your house”_ and “ _the pandemic has been declared over in your area; masks are no longer required outside.”_ + +Using this rubric, I find that 99% of coronavirus-related information is background noise that I could live without and which I thus filter out of my consciousness. + +I don’t _need_ to know what case numbers are in my country. That information is essential for public health professionals managing the response. Not for me. + +Etc, etc. + +K95 masks. Arguably the symbol of “comfortable” pandemic sacrificing + +### Why Aren’t Malls Opened!? + +The main problem with this strategy is that it’s almost impossible to avoid COVID speculation and commentary. + +Today, while looking for something else entirely, one popped onto my Facebook feed. + +The poster was complaining about the fact that shops, in Israel, remain closed due to the ongoing lockdown. + +The post quickly drew a flurry of likeminded complaints — this, I’m told is an almost hourly spectacle — with many berating the “idiots” in government and others alleging that some grand conspiracy was at work whereby the government was deliberately limiting us to select merchants and keeping us at home. + +Yes, dear friends: Jews go in for conspiracy theories too. + +In response to it, I’d like to get one — just one — opinion about the pandemic off my chest. + +_(Preface: the government are not idiots. There is no ulterior motive for keeping people at home; in fact, that argument can be quickly destroyed when one considers that the government is losing money every day they are not collecting VAT from closed businesses….)_ + +And that’s this: + +**I content that what your _average person_ has had to sacrifice for the pandemic response thus has, in the grand scheme of things, not been all that great.** + +Lest that be misconstrued as callous, I should clarify that I’m not talking about: + + * Front line medical personnel who have had to risk their lives to protect public health + * Those out of work due to the virus + * Those who have contracted, and been sickened by, the virus + +My comments are directed, rather, at those like me. + +Those who main inconvenience has been things like: + + * Having to spend far more time at home than we are accustomed to + * Having to buy, and wear, somewhat uncomfortable respiratory masks when not at home + * Having to abide by government-enforced restrictions. (In my case, due to my government’s restrictions, I spent a good chunk of this year legally confined to a 1 kilometer radius of my home.) + +In the grand scheme of things, I contend that staying at home is a rather trivial form of collective sacrifice in the face of a major public health menace. + +And that, therefore, the burden of proof lies squarely on those claiming restrictions are _not_ necessary for them to be lifted. Because, proportionally speaking, I feel that what we’re being asked to do is more than justified. + +Indeed, social isolation increases the incidence of mental illness. + +But — at least where I live, in the West — none of us have been forced to rely upon the army for the delivery of food rations. + +Or confined to our homes at night with policemen standing by the door preventing us from leaving. Or welding us into our homes. + +Checkpoints do not arbitrarily control our movements. Yes, they exist. But they are selective, well-publicized, and do not impede the day to day lives of most citizens. + +Those of us who work from home do so with modern conveniences that those who survived the last major pandemic, in 1918, could only have dreamed of. + +We have the internet and social networks to instantaneously exchange information and keep up to date with every major and minor pandemic-related development. + +We can check in with loved ones across continents and waters simply by initiating a (free) VoIP call. + +None of this was commonplace when humanity last faced a major vital pandemic. + +Just as importantly, anybody working in the knowledge industry can do their job remotely. + +We have, at our fingertips, video conferencing, remote work and collaboration tools. And more information than we could ever find time to consume and parse. + +We also have online shopping that allows us to buy ourselves clothes, and other essentials, even when bricks and mortar stores are closed by government order. In fact, many of us can buy luxury items like alcohol and takeaway delivery over the internet too (and yet that doesn’t stop people complaining that restaurants are closed as if they were some form of societal necessity). + +So in response to the dismayed and angry posters I assiduously try to avoid on Facebook (but sometimes end up reading), I say only this: + +Things could be an awful lot worse than they are. + +Instead of berating the “idiots” in government, realize that they’re probably doing their best to protect you. Also: they probably know a thing or two more about risk management and epidemiology than you do. + +There’s no grand conspiracy at play. The government isn’t deriving pleasure from keeping you cooped up at home if that’s what they’ve deemed necessary. + +_This_ is what humanity coming together to defeat a common enemy looks and feels like. + +The good news is that, assuming you live in a free society, you’re at liberty to do more to protect your health if you feel like your government isn’t doing enough. + +Realize that, statistically speaking, all of us face the chance of being caught up in a viral pandemic during our lifetime. So although this period shocks us all — equally it was more predictable than the vast majority of us realized. + +Be thankful that you’re facing one in a time when the internet has been invented and medicine is relatively well established. + +And imagine what this period could be like if those things _hadn’t_ been invented. + +Your new wardrobe purchase can wait. Or you can buy from friends. You have options. Options that many before you didn’t. + +Be grateful for what you can. We’re in this together. + +And, all things considered, things could be a lot worse. diff --git a/posts/medium/Always-Online-Home-Internet-For-Your-Home-Business---The-Guide.md b/posts/medium/Always-Online-Home-Internet-For-Your-Home-Business---The-Guide.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f1946f943db04139d35ef2da8117154411bec50a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Always-Online-Home-Internet-For-Your-Home-Business---The-Guide.md @@ -0,0 +1,34 @@ +# Always Online Home Internet For Your Home Business — The Guide + +#### How to set up a home internet connection for your home-based business that should remain continuously online + +I’m continuing to get some comments on YouTube asking some questions about my backup home internet system — which combines an ISP line with a cellular backup for high availability. + +A part of my highly available home networking setup. Photo: author. + +Realistically, this should achieve high availability that meets and exceeds the needs of most home-based businesses and users. Achieving even higher availability would be possible but likely not worth the extra investment. + +My current system is running in two parts: both ISP and cellular lines feed into a load balancer. The load balancer feeds into a network of access points and switches to drive wired and wireless connectivity throughout the apartment that has backup connectivity “built” into it. + +For my desktop: I’m running both the ISP and cellular connections into the computer using ethernet and an ethernet-to-USB adapter and bonding the two using Speedify for best speed and performance. Finally, if I want to just take un-bonded but load balanced connectivity from the load balancer, I can do that by using a manual network switcher. Alternatively, I could have installed a network interface controller (NIC) on my desktop that had enough ethernet ports and just run it directly into the computer and made the switch on the software level / OS level. + +Here’s my list with all the articles I wrote on this subject aggregated: + +This article explains some key concepts — namely the difference between channel bonding, load balancing, and failover: + +[**Channel bonding, load balancing, or failover?** +_Three important networking concepts that have different meanings_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/channel-bonding-load-balancing-or-failover-3ed78e810fac "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/channel-bonding-load-balancing-or-failover-3ed78e810fac")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/channel-bonding-load-balancing-or-failover-3ed78e810fac) + +This is a how-to article with schematics / networking diagrams: + +[**How To: Set Up A Cellular-Backed Highly Available Home Internet Connection** + _An owned hardware solution for setting up ISP connectivity with cellular failover for high availability home networking…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5) + +This is a general guide / narrative to some other core concepts: + +[**How To Set Up A Home Internet Connection That Almost Never Goes Down** + _If you’re struggling with home internet connectivity, there are some cool solutions out there. This may save you a few…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b) + +### Videos + +This YouTube playlist discusses all the constituent elements in this approach. diff --git a/posts/medium/Amazing-piece-which-speaks-a-lot-to-writing-authentically-.md b/posts/medium/Amazing-piece-which-speaks-a-lot-to-writing-authentically-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bfd7b139036ac1e99968943a69e45c5962512440 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Amazing-piece-which-speaks-a-lot-to-writing-authentically-.md @@ -0,0 +1,7 @@ +# Amazing piece which speaks a lot to writing authentically. + +Amazing piece which speaks a lot to writing authentically. I think that criticism is something not only to be welcomed but to be embraced: as your reach widens, the mathematical probability that your writing is going to really tick somebody off continuously increases. The better you get, the more people you annoy. Criticism is part of the package so the sooner you learn how to deal with it the better. + +Personal branding plays a lot into this too. A lot of writers (myself included) spend a lot of time trying to project a professional image. Which makes sense: our writing is a glimpse into the product that we're selling. But equally, we end up not getting our true personalities across. And boring readers to sleep. + +The only thing that guides what I do and don't write about these days is a couple of moral principles and defamation law. Everything else is fair game. Thanks for sharing your observations. And for the encouragement! diff --git a/posts/medium/An-Index-To-My-Medium-Writing-So-Far--1-.md b/posts/medium/An-Index-To-My-Medium-Writing-So-Far--1-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..06d449b98795b106b99307c7ffb9c626feb1a1cf --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/An-Index-To-My-Medium-Writing-So-Far--1-.md @@ -0,0 +1,268 @@ +# An Index To My Medium Writing So Far (1) + +Since publishing my first piece on Medium about a year and a half ago ([a hacky workaround for forwarding 2FA codes to your email and the first piece I attached to the ‘Daniel’s Tech World’ publication](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-set-up-virtual-number-call-and-sms-routing-for-30-yr-7bbd28f867e2?source=your_stories_page---------------------------)) I have been busy writing pieces here and syndicating my writing from other sources. + +My writing fluctuates between a few very different subjects — I am very interested in[ Linux and backups](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-back-up-shared-hosting-onto-a-linux-host-7d5eb35fff5d?source=your_stories_page---------------------------) but also interested in freelance writing, for instance. + +And so, I thought it would be a good idea to put together a quick index to what I have written so far drawn from my first 113 posts. + +This index is up to and including[ ’10 Things I’d Like To Change About Life in Israel,’](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel-db13156296c0?source=your_stories_page---------------------------) which I syndicated to this account yesterday. + +### My Observations About Living In Israel. And What I’d Like To See Change + +[**10 Things I’d Like To Change About Life in Israel** + _When not thumping out writing projects for technology clients or tending to my new and thriving YouTube channel (just…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel-db13156296c0 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel-db13156296c0")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel-db13156296c0) + +[**The Israel I Would Like to Live In In 10 Years** + _The coronavirus crisis has afforded us all a collective moment of pause._ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-israel-i-would-like-to-live-in-in-10-years-4a36145f7c34 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-israel-i-would-like-to-live-in-in-10-years-4a36145f7c34")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-israel-i-would-like-to-live-in-in-10-years-4a36145f7c34) + +[**The Pros and Cons of Living in Israel** + _(And Why I Still Think the Cost of Living is the Elephant in the Room!)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) + +[**Ireland vs. Israel (As Places to Live, That Is!)** +_(About a month ago — just when I was resuming my self-publishing voyage — I wrote this rather detailed run-through of…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71) + +### Living in Israel: How-Tos + +[**How To Register As Self-Employed in Israel** + _Having ridden the (full-time) freelance rollercoaster for almost two years now (and the part-time one several years…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-register-as-self-employed-in-israel-ab25617607c5 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-register-as-self-employed-in-israel-ab25617607c5")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-register-as-self-employed-in-israel-ab25617607c5) + +[**How to Set Up On GreenInvoice.co.il (Freelance Platform in Israel)** +_In honor of this strange Yom Atsmaut (Israeli Independence Day) I recorded a screencast demonstrating how to set up a…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-set-up-on-greeninvoice-co-il-freelance-platform-in-israel-9ed2726c075b "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-set-up-on-greeninvoice-co-il-freelance-platform-in-israel-9ed2726c075b")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-set-up-on-greeninvoice-co-il-freelance-platform-in-israel-9ed2726c075b) + +[**5 websites you’ll start using when you move to Israel** + _Living in Israel — as one tends to imagine — can be quite a colorful experience._ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/5-websites-youll-start-using-when-you-move-to-israel-af66dd9a16ff "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/5-websites-youll-start-using-when-you-move-to-israel-af66dd9a16ff")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/5-websites-youll-start-using-when-you-move-to-israel-af66dd9a16ff) + +[**How to: Set Up Open DNS On A Partner Router in Israel** + _OpenDNS (now a Cisco company) is an excellent service for consumers that can be used to provide (free) web filtering._ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-set-up-open-dns-on-a-partner-router-in-israel-2b1e226d0f33 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-set-up-open-dns-on-a-partner-router-in-israel-2b1e226d0f33")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-set-up-open-dns-on-a-partner-router-in-israel-2b1e226d0f33) + +[**How To Use Super Pharm To Order Prescription Medications Online (in Israel)** +_During these crazy days of the coronavirus, I think it’s important that we all pitch together to help figure out ways…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-use-super-pharm-to-order-prescription-medications-online-in-israel-1e045f3f108a "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-use-super-pharm-to-order-prescription-medications-online-in-israel-1e045f3f108a")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-use-super-pharm-to-order-prescription-medications-online-in-israel-1e045f3f108a) + +[**What To Know About Working With Israelis** + _As a new immigrant and now small business owner (I eschew the term “freelancer”) I’ve spent the last five years, in…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca) + +[**How to Work With The World — From Israel** + _At the crossroads of Africa, Asia, and Europe, Israel is uniquely positioned on the geopolitical map._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569) + +### Backups and Disaster Recovery (DR) + +[**How To Back Up Shared Hosting Onto A Linux Host** + _If you’re running website(s) that live on a typical shared hosting environment then you’ve probably given a thought or…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-back-up-shared-hosting-onto-a-linux-host-7d5eb35fff5d "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-back-up-shared-hosting-onto-a-linux-host-7d5eb35fff5d")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-back-up-shared-hosting-onto-a-linux-host-7d5eb35fff5d) + +[**4 Ways To Backup Linux Workstations Onto A Synology NAS (With Videos)** +_Since getting my hands on one of Synology’s brand new line of NAS devices, the DS920+, I’ve been playing around with…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/4-ways-to-backup-linux-workstations-onto-a-synology-nas-with-videos-487a54943702 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/4-ways-to-backup-linux-workstations-onto-a-synology-nas-with-videos-487a54943702")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/4-ways-to-backup-linux-workstations-onto-a-synology-nas-with-videos-487a54943702) + +[**How to save a Clonezilla full disk image to an NAS over SSH** + _Clonezilla is one of my favorite backup tools (and that has nothing to do with the fact that it is free!)._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-save-a-clonezilla-full-disk-image-to-an-nas-over-ssh-771beb37f08b "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-save-a-clonezilla-full-disk-image-to-an-nas-over-ssh-771beb37f08b")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-save-a-clonezilla-full-disk-image-to-an-nas-over-ssh-771beb37f08b) + +[**Ubuntu Desktop — My Complete Backup Strategy (V1.3)** +_A 3–2–1 Compliant Approach to Keeping Your Ubuntu Desktop Safe_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/ubuntu-desktop-my-complete-backup-strategy-v1-3-8b2e0aedfb66 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/ubuntu-desktop-my-complete-backup-strategy-v1-3-8b2e0aedfb66")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/ubuntu-desktop-my-complete-backup-strategy-v1-3-8b2e0aedfb66) + +[**Do all SaaS services allow users to export their own data?** +_(Via Quora, with slight edits:)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/do-all-saas-services-allow-users-to-export-their-own-data-aa51591fa9a9 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/do-all-saas-services-allow-users-to-export-their-own-data-aa51591fa9a9")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/do-all-saas-services-allow-users-to-export-their-own-data-aa51591fa9a9) + +[**Linux Desktop and Cloud Backup: A Summary of My Master Backup Strategy (V1.3)** +_After having spent the best part of a week playing around with B2 and S3 buckets, syncing gigabytes of data across the…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/linux-desktop-and-cloud-backup-a-summary-of-my-master-backup-strategy-v1-3-c65ae0cdf649 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/linux-desktop-and-cloud-backup-a-summary-of-my-master-backup-strategy-v1-3-c65ae0cdf649")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/linux-desktop-and-cloud-backup-a-summary-of-my-master-backup-strategy-v1-3-c65ae0cdf649) + +[**Using Cloudberry to upload Clonezilla disk images to cloud object storage** + _When it comes to full disk imaging, Clonezilla is one of the most simple and effective low-level tools out there._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/using-cloudberry-to-upload-clonezilla-disk-images-to-cloud-object-storage-2f32eea62024 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/using-cloudberry-to-upload-clonezilla-disk-images-to-cloud-object-storage-2f32eea62024")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/using-cloudberry-to-upload-clonezilla-disk-images-to-cloud-object-storage-2f32eea62024) + +[**Backing up pCloud to B2 (EC2 + rclone)** +_To conclude the backup mania for this week, I decided that it would be worthwhile to create a starting snapshot of my…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/backing-up-pcloud-to-b2-ec2-rclone-4f7cf6bb0c85 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/backing-up-pcloud-to-b2-ec2-rclone-4f7cf6bb0c85")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/backing-up-pcloud-to-b2-ec2-rclone-4f7cf6bb0c85) + +[**How to Backup Gsuite to Backblaze B2 (Using rclone + EC2)** +_In order to finish up my cloud backups last week, I wanted to move a copy of my G Suite storage to another cloud…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-gsuite-to-backblaze-b2-using-rclone-ec2-1d05db2f1cda "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-gsuite-to-backblaze-b2-using-rclone-ec2-1d05db2f1cda")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-gsuite-to-backblaze-b2-using-rclone-ec2-1d05db2f1cda) + +[**User Data Export Approaches of SaaS / Cloud Service / Social Media Providers — An Overview** + _Continuing with the backup theme of this week, I decided to create a GitHub repository documenting the user backup…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/user-data-export-approaches-of-saas-cloud-service-social-media-providers-an-overview-2101f6e8bd27 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/user-data-export-approaches-of-saas-cloud-service-social-media-providers-an-overview-2101f6e8bd27")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/user-data-export-approaches-of-saas-cloud-service-social-media-providers-an-overview-2101f6e8bd27) + +[**How to Extract Your Data From Quora and Reddit** + _Thank you, GDPR!_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-extract-your-data-from-quora-and-reddit-46dea4ff698c "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-extract-your-data-from-quora-and-reddit-46dea4ff698c")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-extract-your-data-from-quora-and-reddit-46dea4ff698c) + +[**How to: Use Multcloud For Cross-Cloud Backups** + _I’ve written a little bit about the importance of taking (3–2–1 compliant!) backups — whether you’re using to back up…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-use-multcloud-for-cross-cloud-backups-67e37f7c9885 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-use-multcloud-for-cross-cloud-backups-67e37f7c9885")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-use-multcloud-for-cross-cloud-backups-67e37f7c9885) + +[**How to: Backup Your Web Hosting (According to the 3–2–1 Principle)** +_In my writings about backups I have emphasized the importance of adhering to the 3–2–1 principle across all your data…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle-37e993fb47ba "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle-37e993fb47ba")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle-37e993fb47ba) + +[**My current Ubuntu (desktop) backup strategy** + _About a year and a half ago, two very unfortunate incidents hampered my productivity and occurred within the space of…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-current-ubuntu-desktop-backup-strategy-e6ebcbe6592e "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-current-ubuntu-desktop-backup-strategy-e6ebcbe6592e")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-current-ubuntu-desktop-backup-strategy-e6ebcbe6592e) + +### Linux & Ubuntu + +[**How to Add Custom Keybindings in Openbox** + _If you’re still running LXDE, or are using Openbox through some other lightweight desktop environment (DE) then you…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-add-custom-keybindings-in-openbox-29a97088abae "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-add-custom-keybindings-in-openbox-29a97088abae")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-add-custom-keybindings-in-openbox-29a97088abae) + +[**Review: Ubuntu GUIs for Managing AWS S3 Buckets** + _For those that need to interact with AWS S3 buckets on a regular basis, a graphical user interface (GUI) can take the…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/review-ubuntu-guis-for-managing-aws-s3-buckets-c88f41e168f6 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/review-ubuntu-guis-for-managing-aws-s3-buckets-c88f41e168f6")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/review-ubuntu-guis-for-managing-aws-s3-buckets-c88f41e168f6) + +[**Using xdotool, at, and Bash to automate Netflix and YouTube viewing on Linux** + _What could be better than wrapping up a hard day at work with a few hours of Netflix and chilling?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/using-xdotool-at-and-bash-to-automate-netflix-and-youtube-viewing-on-linux-5ae62185d1c "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/using-xdotool-at-and-bash-to-automate-netflix-and-youtube-viewing-on-linux-5ae62185d1c")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/using-xdotool-at-and-bash-to-automate-netflix-and-youtube-viewing-on-linux-5ae62185d1c) + +### Synology NAS + +[**Synology DS920+ Unboxing and Setup Photos** + _An Uninitiated User’s First Thoughts on Everything NAS_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/synology-ds920-unboxing-and-setup-photos-224923c4ae35 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/synology-ds920-unboxing-and-setup-photos-224923c4ae35")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/synology-ds920-unboxing-and-setup-photos-224923c4ae35) + +[**Coming soon: Synology DS920+ NAS Review** + _I was delighted to receive the DS920+ from Synology today for review._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/coming-soon-synology-ds920-nas-review-b0be81bab283 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/coming-soon-synology-ds920-nas-review-b0be81bab283")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/coming-soon-synology-ds920-nas-review-b0be81bab283) + +### Cybersecurity + +[**The Piracy Risk of Using File Sharing Websites** + _And An Idea To Frustrate Those Trying To Pirate Your Work!_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/the-piracy-risk-of-using-file-sharing-websites-4f7afd5ee78b "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/the-piracy-risk-of-using-file-sharing-websites-4f7afd5ee78b")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/the-piracy-risk-of-using-file-sharing-websites-4f7afd5ee78b) + +[**Five Common VPN Myths — And Responses** + _When it comes to all things VPN and cybersecurity-related there are a few common myths that get bandied about._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/five-common-vpn-myths-and-responses-910576ab3301 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/five-common-vpn-myths-and-responses-910576ab3301")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/five-common-vpn-myths-and-responses-910576ab3301) + +[**If you really, really want to defeat email tracking, here’s a (sort of) workaround** + _If you’re reading this then you probably realize that tracking pixels are — if not yet ubiquitous (thankfully!) — then…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/if-you-really-really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking-heres-a-sort-of-workaround-bae35b9c517e "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/if-you-really-really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking-heres-a-sort-of-workaround-bae35b9c517e")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/if-you-really-really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking-heres-a-sort-of-workaround-bae35b9c517e) + +[**How to Spot: Phishing by LinkedIn Message** + _Just a few days after been falsely accused by my former web host of operating a phishing scam (the accusation still…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-spot-phishing-by-linkedin-message-952ecb813ae9 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-spot-phishing-by-linkedin-message-952ecb813ae9")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-spot-phishing-by-linkedin-message-952ecb813ae9) + +### Technology (General) + +[**My Gmail Organization System for Managing Bills (in Israel)** +_I’ve just finished my bi-annual cloud-to-cloud backup process (if you missed the excitement, check out my post here)._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-gmail-organization-system-for-managing-bills-in-israel-b2ffd7971766 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-gmail-organization-system-for-managing-bills-in-israel-b2ffd7971766")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-gmail-organization-system-for-managing-bills-in-israel-b2ffd7971766) + +[**Tech project: Wedding thank you videos with Mailchimp** + _I wrote previously about some of the unconventional things I did to get some friends to make the trip from overseas for…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/tech-project-wedding-thank-you-videos-with-mailchimp-6229768f0e87 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/tech-project-wedding-thank-you-videos-with-mailchimp-6229768f0e87")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/tech-project-wedding-thank-you-videos-with-mailchimp-6229768f0e87) + +[**How To: Create A G-Suite Address Just For Account Signups** + _I don’t know about you, but I’m getting a bit of being signed up for a company’s email newsletter every time I make any…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-create-a-g-suite-address-just-for-account-signups-22096f1359ca "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-create-a-g-suite-address-just-for-account-signups-22096f1359ca")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-create-a-g-suite-address-just-for-account-signups-22096f1359ca) + +[**A Look Inside The Weird World of Zoom Bombing** + _With the advent of the coronavirus era, more of us than ever before are availing of the excellent Zoom video…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/a-look-inside-the-weird-world-of-zoom-bombing-743b14f8e39e "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/a-look-inside-the-weird-world-of-zoom-bombing-743b14f8e39e")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/a-look-inside-the-weird-world-of-zoom-bombing-743b14f8e39e) + +[**Discovering the Joy of Zoom Roulette** + _For those of us answering the call of the #stayhome movement (a large chunk of the world now), the long days and nights…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/discovering-the-joy-of-zoom-roulette-29acfc67bea0 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/discovering-the-joy-of-zoom-roulette-29acfc67bea0")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/discovering-the-joy-of-zoom-roulette-29acfc67bea0) + +[**A Way To (Comfortably) Work With Clients in Google Docs** + _Have you ever been working on a Google Doc for a client only to feel a lump in your throat the moment they — and their…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/a-way-to-comfortably-work-with-clients-in-google-docs-daa199efc50f "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/a-way-to-comfortably-work-with-clients-in-google-docs-daa199efc50f")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/a-way-to-comfortably-work-with-clients-in-google-docs-daa199efc50f) + +[**Tutorial: Creating a custom module in Zoho CRM to send clients work** + _I’ve written a few posts about CRMs in my blog and about how, for many years, I was spoiled for functionality by…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/tutorial-creating-a-custom-module-in-zoho-crm-to-send-clients-work-9d2ee60cdd58 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/tutorial-creating-a-custom-module-in-zoho-crm-to-send-clients-work-9d2ee60cdd58")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/tutorial-creating-a-custom-module-in-zoho-crm-to-send-clients-work-9d2ee60cdd58) + +[**Some Must-Have Accessories For Multimonitor Workstations** + _So, you’ve decided to ditch the laptop and join the ranks of the multimonitor computer enthusiasts?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-must-have-accessories-for-multimonitor-workstations-88f85afdfd4d "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-must-have-accessories-for-multimonitor-workstations-88f85afdfd4d")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-must-have-accessories-for-multimonitor-workstations-88f85afdfd4d) + +[**How To: Save Gsuite and Gmail Storage Space by Archiving Old Emails and Files To AWS S3** + _As well as taking backups of my desktop and cloud services, another really cool tech practice I’m into (sarcasm) is…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-save-gsuite-and-gmail-storage-space-by-archiving-old-emails-and-files-to-aws-s3-e562dacc99ac "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-save-gsuite-and-gmail-storage-space-by-archiving-old-emails-and-files-to-aws-s3-e562dacc99ac")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-save-gsuite-and-gmail-storage-space-by-archiving-old-emails-and-files-to-aws-s3-e562dacc99ac) + +[**Some great workstations from /r/battlestations** + _Whether you’re into Reddit or not, if you’re a multimonitor fan then you’ve probably come across the /r/battlestations…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-great-workstations-from-r-battlestations-f6dc6332bc56 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-great-workstations-from-r-battlestations-f6dc6332bc56")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-great-workstations-from-r-battlestations-f6dc6332bc56) + +[**Graphics cards (GPUs) that support six (and more) outputs** + _I was recently delighted to receive my desktop back from Machshefon (מחשפון) — a computer repair shop near where I live…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/graphics-cards-gpus-that-support-six-and-more-outputs-a1322cfca9b2 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/graphics-cards-gpus-that-support-six-and-more-outputs-a1322cfca9b2")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/graphics-cards-gpus-that-support-six-and-more-outputs-a1322cfca9b2) + +[**Tutorial: Creating a Password-Protected Wordpress Staging Environment Using Softaculous And…** + _What’s better than a well-functioning Wordpress site, you might be wondering?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/tutorial-creating-a-password-protected-wordpress-staging-environment-using-softaculous-and-3baead4337e "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/tutorial-creating-a-password-protected-wordpress-staging-environment-using-softaculous-and-3baead4337e")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/tutorial-creating-a-password-protected-wordpress-staging-environment-using-softaculous-and-3baead4337e) + +[**My (Meandering) Guide to VESA Monitor Mounts** + _As signatories of my petition are aware (more details here), e-commerce giant Amazon is currently running an…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-meandering-guide-to-vesa-monitor-mounts-dc5a4a1b500f "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-meandering-guide-to-vesa-monitor-mounts-dc5a4a1b500f")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-meandering-guide-to-vesa-monitor-mounts-dc5a4a1b500f) + +[**Four FinTech Products I Would Like To See Roll Out in Israel** + _Silicon Wadi is certainly one of the world’s great startup ecosystems._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/four-fintech-products-i-would-like-to-see-roll-out-in-israel-e7e33ee4310 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/four-fintech-products-i-would-like-to-see-roll-out-in-israel-e7e33ee4310")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/four-fintech-products-i-would-like-to-see-roll-out-in-israel-e7e33ee4310) + +[**Some Creative Uses For Google Groups** + _I’ve been using G-Suite for a long time at this point._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-creative-uses-for-google-groups-b24986dcb78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-creative-uses-for-google-groups-b24986dcb78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-creative-uses-for-google-groups-b24986dcb78) + +[**Release: Danbuntu 18.04 (LTS)** +_What is Danbuntu?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/release-danbuntu-18-04-lts-ef2784652ee5 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/release-danbuntu-18-04-lts-ef2784652ee5")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/release-danbuntu-18-04-lts-ef2784652ee5) + +[**How to: set up“virtual number” call and SMS routing for ~$30/yr.** +_The Impetus: Getting Locked Out of Paypal_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-set-up-virtual-number-call-and-sms-routing-for-30-yr-7bbd28f867e2 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-set-up-virtual-number-call-and-sms-routing-for-30-yr-7bbd28f867e2")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-set-up-virtual-number-call-and-sms-routing-for-30-yr-7bbd28f867e2) + +### Freelancing And Small Business + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +[**Client Prospecting Tips — 5 Questions to Ask About Your Prospects** + _The current economic downturn has got many freelancers (including this one — hit me up!) thinking that it’s time to…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/client-prospecting-tips-5-questions-to-ask-about-your-prospects-b6b8b0da9ab9 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/client-prospecting-tips-5-questions-to-ask-about-your-prospects-b6b8b0da9ab9")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/client-prospecting-tips-5-questions-to-ask-about-your-prospects-b6b8b0da9ab9) + +[**How to Set An Hourly Freelance Rate** + _Two months ago, I provided some guidelines for tackling one of the most difficult aspects of working as a freelance…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf) + +[**How to Make Your Home Office a Productivity Haven** + _Working from home can be an oddly exhilarating experience._ medium.com](https://medium.com/getting-better-together/how-to-make-your-home-office-a-productivity-haven-4ea8ab2e8b46 "https://medium.com/getting-better-together/how-to-make-your-home-office-a-productivity-haven-4ea8ab2e8b46")[](https://medium.com/getting-better-together/how-to-make-your-home-office-a-productivity-haven-4ea8ab2e8b46) + +[**How to (sort of) disaster-proof your home office** + _Picture the scenario:_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-sort-of-disaster-proof-your-home-office-5ed5c48095e6 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-sort-of-disaster-proof-your-home-office-5ed5c48095e6")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-sort-of-disaster-proof-your-home-office-5ed5c48095e6) + +[**Internal Referrals — An Under-Tapped Way To Grow Your Freelance Business** + _What’s the best way to build your freelance or consulting business?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579) + +[**Know Your Freelance Client (KYFC): Basic Due Diligence For Freelancers** + _If you started the new year on a quest to scale up your freelance business, then you’re probably on a business…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0) + +[**The Unusual Tactic I’m Using to Attract High-Intent Inbound Leads** + _For the past few years, I’ve been using and experimenting with a strange tactic for driving high-intent leads to my…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/the-unusual-tactic-im-using-to-attract-high-intent-inbound-leads-926a1c626bdf "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/the-unusual-tactic-im-using-to-attract-high-intent-inbound-leads-926a1c626bdf")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/the-unusual-tactic-im-using-to-attract-high-intent-inbound-leads-926a1c626bdf) + +[**5 Red Flags to Help Avoid ‘Difficult’ Freelancing Clients** + _I recently wrote about my deliberate decision to be less responsive — about how taking slightly longer to get back to…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d) + +### DSR Ghostwriting: My Writing Business + +[**Edelman’s 2020 B2B Thought Leadership Study — Key Findings** + _Global PR/marketing consultancy firm Edelman (in collaboration with LinkedIn) recently released its 2020 B2B Thought…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/edelmans-2020-b2b-thought-leadership-study-key-findings-84c61516d623 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/edelmans-2020-b2b-thought-leadership-study-key-findings-84c61516d623")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/edelmans-2020-b2b-thought-leadership-study-key-findings-84c61516d623) + +[**Code Red Thought Leadership Study (For IT / Cybersecurity): Study Findings (And Podcast)** +_International cybersecurity PR network Code Red recently commissioned a study into how well-received thought leadership…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/code-red-thought-leadership-study-for-it-cybersecurity-study-findings-and-podcast-b64c5f0afa53 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/code-red-thought-leadership-study-for-it-cybersecurity-study-findings-and-podcast-b64c5f0afa53")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/code-red-thought-leadership-study-for-it-cybersecurity-study-findings-and-podcast-b64c5f0afa53) + +[**What is thought leadership?** +_And How Is It Different To Content Marketing and PR?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/what-is-thought-leadership-5751f985620c "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/what-is-thought-leadership-5751f985620c")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/what-is-thought-leadership-5751f985620c) + +[**What is ghostwriting? What is ghostwriting not? Some questions answered.** +_If there’s one subset of the writing world that comes laden with more preconceptions than any other that area may well…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/what-is-ghostwriting-what-is-ghostwriting-not-some-questions-answered-ce26a5faac91 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/what-is-ghostwriting-what-is-ghostwriting-not-some-questions-answered-ce26a5faac91")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/what-is-ghostwriting-what-is-ghostwriting-not-some-questions-answered-ce26a5faac91) + +### Misc + +[**On The Value Of Sharing Kind Words With Others** + _About an hour ago, I received the following message from a reader of my Times of Israel blog._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/on-the-value-of-sharing-kind-words-with-others-3a7bf0d34ad7 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/on-the-value-of-sharing-kind-words-with-others-3a7bf0d34ad7")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/on-the-value-of-sharing-kind-words-with-others-3a7bf0d34ad7) + +[**My Three Year Long Non-Fiction Reading List (150+ Books)** +_In order to be a good writer it goes without saying that one should ideally be an avid reader._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-three-year-long-non-fiction-reading-list-150-books-a4806d88508b "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-three-year-long-non-fiction-reading-list-150-books-a4806d88508b")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-three-year-long-non-fiction-reading-list-150-books-a4806d88508b) + +[**5 Customer Service Stock Phrases— To Make the Internet A Less Angry Place** + _Few of my friends are aware of this, but — in addition to being a marketing extraordinaire (just kidding) — my resume…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-customer-service-stock-phrases-to-make-the-internet-a-less-angry-place-8c6ee2b87b "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-customer-service-stock-phrases-to-make-the-internet-a-less-angry-place-8c6ee2b87b")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-customer-service-stock-phrases-to-make-the-internet-a-less-angry-place-8c6ee2b87b) + +[**How to Find Free (And Cheap) Books For Your Kindle E-Reader** + _Budget-Friendly Reading Galore is Just a Couple of Clicks Away!_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-find-free-and-cheap-books-for-your-kindle-e-reader-b7233d581fc0 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-find-free-and-cheap-books-for-your-kindle-e-reader-b7233d581fc0")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-find-free-and-cheap-books-for-your-kindle-e-reader-b7233d581fc0) + +[**My Beef With Facebook Affiliate Marketing Groups** + _A number of groups have popped up on Facebook in recent months along the lines of “ Best X Deals”. E.g. “Best X Deals…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-beef-with-facebook-affiliate-marketing-groups-2638e64a10e9 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-beef-with-facebook-affiliate-marketing-groups-2638e64a10e9")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-beef-with-facebook-affiliate-marketing-groups-2638e64a10e9) + +[**Why Flight Mode Has Been My Best Productivity-Enhancing Intervention to Date** + _And I Think That Synchronous Communication Platforms Like WhatsApp And Slack Are Today’s Destroyers of Focus_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664) + +[**5 Occupations That Use Ridiculously Cool Workstations** + _Those that have been following my new Medium account have probably got the idea already that I’m “into” multimonitor…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-occupations-that-use-ridiculously-cool-workstations-9ee90c9afe92 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-occupations-that-use-ridiculously-cool-workstations-9ee90c9afe92")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-occupations-that-use-ridiculously-cool-workstations-9ee90c9afe92) + +[**If you’re noise-adverse and working-from-home consider buying this gear** + _There’s an explosion of interest in working from home at the moment and one of the most common issues people are…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/if-youre-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear-4b28dfbaab7b "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/if-youre-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear-4b28dfbaab7b")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/if-youre-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear-4b28dfbaab7b) + +[**The Real Person’s Guide To Buying From Aliexpress** + _A little over a year ago, I wrote an extensive blog for my personal site about my love of Aliexpress — Alibaba’s…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/the-real-persons-guide-to-buying-from-aliexpress-da86831f19ba "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/the-real-persons-guide-to-buying-from-aliexpress-da86831f19ba")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/the-real-persons-guide-to-buying-from-aliexpress-da86831f19ba) + +[**My (Unorthodox) Productivity Resolution For This Year — Be Less ‘Responsive’!** +_So the new year has rolled around and with it will inevitably follow a slew of ‘My Top Resolutions’ posts on social…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0) + +### Medical + +[**My Gallbladder Surgery Story. And: The Water Party Project** + _A little more than seven months ago I underwent one of the most common surgical procedures in the world: a laparoscopic…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-gallbladder-surgery-story-and-the-water-party-project-b6ac76f8f124 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-gallbladder-surgery-story-and-the-water-party-project-b6ac76f8f124")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-gallbladder-surgery-story-and-the-water-party-project-b6ac76f8f124) + +[**The 5 People You Will Encounter in Facebook Medical Groups** + _I opened up last week about my health struggles following gallbladder surgery seven months ago. In a nutshell, the…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/the-5-people-you-will-encounter-in-facebook-medical-groups-3bd37555974c "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/the-5-people-you-will-encounter-in-facebook-medical-groups-3bd37555974c")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/the-5-people-you-will-encounter-in-facebook-medical-groups-3bd37555974c) + +### Reviews + +[**Book Review: Broker, Trader, Lawyer, Spy: The Secret World of Corporate Espionage** + _Broker, Trader, Lawyer, Spy (by Eamon Javer, Washington correspondent, CNBC) threw up conflicting feelings for me._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/book-review-broker-trader-lawyer-spy-the-secret-world-of-corporate-espionage-ab7918418ab9 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/book-review-broker-trader-lawyer-spy-the-secret-world-of-corporate-espionage-ab7918418ab9")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/book-review-broker-trader-lawyer-spy-the-secret-world-of-corporate-espionage-ab7918418ab9) + +[**Book Review: An Experts’ Guide to International Protocol: Best Practices in Diplomatic and…** + _I first learned about the existence of protocol offices when covering, as a freelance journalist, the state visit of…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/book-review-an-experts-guide-to-international-protocol-best-practices-in-diplomatic-and-e173a3784f10 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/book-review-an-experts-guide-to-international-protocol-best-practices-in-diplomatic-and-e173a3784f10")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/book-review-an-experts-guide-to-international-protocol-best-practices-in-diplomatic-and-e173a3784f10) + diff --git a/posts/medium/An-Index-To-My-Medium-Writing-To-Date--V2--08-21-.md b/posts/medium/An-Index-To-My-Medium-Writing-To-Date--V2--08-21-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8c9ec27c28e6f5d8a60877fcb427e9d3d419a04a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/An-Index-To-My-Medium-Writing-To-Date--V2--08-21-.md @@ -0,0 +1,191 @@ +# An Index To My Medium Writing To Date (V2, 08/21) + +Since starting to post here, I’ve created a sprawling web of writing here on Medium. + +While I generally advocate for open-source and self-hosted tech solutions, I’m grateful to [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) for how seamless and easy it’s made publishing my thoughts on the internet and getting them out to the world. + +My activity here has kicked off relationships, led to appearances on TV and radio, and continued to light a fire under my passion for creating. It’s been a fulfilling and fun adventure. + +Getting images up to the CDN takes only a simple paste. The editor fits my minimalist proclivities. There’s nothing more that I could ask for. + +Here’s a rough attempt to organize _some_ of my writing here thematically. This builds on the premium index that I created some time last year. And as my writing here grows, I’ll update this post or create a new one. + +_— This post is in ongoing draft mode. It will take a few iterations to complete. You can view a chronological timeline of my posts here by simply scrolling through my profile._ + +### Marketing, Growth + +[**Picked Up A Client Referral? Now Pay Attention To What They Say (And Think) About You** + _A pattern of spotty referrals can indicate that your clients don’t see your value — or your marketing doesn’t…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/picked-up-a-client-referral-now-pay-attention-to-what-they-say-and-think-about-you-d33df94a6687 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/picked-up-a-client-referral-now-pay-attention-to-what-they-say-and-think-about-you-d33df94a6687")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/picked-up-a-client-referral-now-pay-attention-to-what-they-say-and-think-about-you-d33df94a6687) + +### Inbound Marketing + +[**The Connection Between Inbound Marketing And Authenticity** + _An argument in favor of amorphous free-flowing content creation and leveraging authenticity to create change_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3) + +[**Inbound Marketers: Stop Watching Your Daily Social Metrics. It’s A Distraction.** +_If you’re playing a long game, you should consider not obsessing over short term needle shifts_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketers-stop-watching-your-daily-social-metrics-its-a-distraction-bad754ca598d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketers-stop-watching-your-daily-social-metrics-its-a-distraction-bad754ca598d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketers-stop-watching-your-daily-social-metrics-its-a-distraction-bad754ca598d) + +[**Inbound Marketing —4 Reasons It Rocks For Small Businesses** + _Inbound marketing can help any team. But the benefits for small businesses are particularly noteworthy._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-4-reasons-it-rocks-for-small-businesses-916f5eb8a809 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-4-reasons-it-rocks-for-small-businesses-916f5eb8a809")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-4-reasons-it-rocks-for-small-businesses-916f5eb8a809) + +[**Inbound Marketing —And How It Goes Where Outbound Can’t** + _There’s one less frequently discussed benefit of inbound: it can dredge up leads in places that, for many…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7) + +[**Inbound Marketing Is Investing — For Brand-Builders** + _When you think about, developing inbound collateral and investing in financial vehicles have a lot in common_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03) + +### My (Growing) Interest In Video + +[**Is The Canon Vixia HF R800 A Good YouTube Camcorder? You Be The Judge! (Review)** +_This entry level option from Canon continues to enjoy widespread popularity as a competent entry-point to the camcorder…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-the-canon-vixia-hf-r800-a-good-youtube-camcorder-you-be-the-judge-review-33ac07dbeedd "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-the-canon-vixia-hf-r800-a-good-youtube-camcorder-you-be-the-judge-review-33ac07dbeedd")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-the-canon-vixia-hf-r800-a-good-youtube-camcorder-you-be-the-judge-review-33ac07dbeedd) + +[**4 Reasons Making Video Is More Fun Than Writing** + _As a longtime writer dipping my toes in video, there are aspects of this mode of creative expression that already…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382) + +### Remote Working + +[**A Remote World Would Be More Accessible If Only….** +_While attitudes towards remote work are rapidly changing, there remain legal and administrative obstacles that stand…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79) + +[**Hiring Israel-Based Talent : 4 Reasons Your Company Should Be Considering It** + _This small Middle Eastern tech power could also be the talent pool you’ve never thought about tapping_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/hiring-israel-based-talent-4-reasons-your-company-should-be-considering-it-421b782ca333 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/hiring-israel-based-talent-4-reasons-your-company-should-be-considering-it-421b782ca333")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/hiring-israel-based-talent-4-reasons-your-company-should-be-considering-it-421b782ca333) + +[**Remote Work: Why Discussing Its Flaws Is A (Hugely) Positive Sign For Its Future** + _While the discourse surrounding remote work might feel overwhelming and repetitive at times, frontloading key…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/remote-work-why-discussing-its-flaws-is-a-hugely-positive-sign-for-its-future-4377d62b80b0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/remote-work-why-discussing-its-flaws-is-a-hugely-positive-sign-for-its-future-4377d62b80b0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/remote-work-why-discussing-its-flaws-is-a-hugely-positive-sign-for-its-future-4377d62b80b0) + +### Asynchronous Communications + +[**Go fully async with me (marketing consultant) and I’ll knock 20% off your monthly invoice** + _Want to help me show how asynchronous communications can make remote working so much better for everybody involved…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/go-fully-async-with-me-marketing-consultant-and-ill-knock-20-off-your-monthly-invoice-e98e610e3a89 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/go-fully-async-with-me-marketing-consultant-and-ill-knock-20-off-your-monthly-invoice-e98e610e3a89")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/go-fully-async-with-me-marketing-consultant-and-ill-knock-20-off-your-monthly-invoice-e98e610e3a89) + +[**All About Async** + _All About Async is a Medium publication for those interested in learning more about asynchronous communications and…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async "https://medium.com/all-about-async")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async) + +[**A Quick Guide To What’s What In #Async (Asynchronous Communications): Text, Audio, Video** + _Some Of The Tools That Those Interested In Checking Out #Async Should Keep On Their Radar_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async/a-quick-guide-to-whats-what-in-async-asynchronous-communications-text-audio-video-c37b55c932dc "https://medium.com/all-about-async/a-quick-guide-to-whats-what-in-async-asynchronous-communications-text-audio-video-c37b55c932dc")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async/a-quick-guide-to-whats-what-in-async-asynchronous-communications-text-audio-video-c37b55c932dc) + +[**This Summer, I’m Going To Try Run Only On Asynchronous Communications** + _Async is great. But can you get your colleagues to use it?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async/this-summer-im-going-to-try-run-only-on-asynchronous-communications-c8cf0d9d2b15 "https://medium.com/all-about-async/this-summer-im-going-to-try-run-only-on-asynchronous-communications-c8cf0d9d2b15")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async/this-summer-im-going-to-try-run-only-on-asynchronous-communications-c8cf0d9d2b15) + +[**Async Communication: You Mean Those Things Us Deep Work Folk Already Use And Love?** +_Async is blooming. But it just reflects the preferences that deep work enthusiasts have had for years._ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async/async-communication-you-mean-those-things-us-deep-work-folk-already-use-and-love-5c3492c49fa0 "https://medium.com/all-about-async/async-communication-you-mean-those-things-us-deep-work-folk-already-use-and-love-5c3492c49fa0")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async/async-communication-you-mean-those-things-us-deep-work-folk-already-use-and-love-5c3492c49fa0) + +### Living in Israel And Commentary On Life Here + + _Recent posting is more along the lines of venting!_ + +[**How Israel’s Draconian Defamation Laws Shield Abusive Businesses From Consequence** + _In a country in which even leaving a negative Google review can trigger a legal action, residents say the strict legal…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc) + +[**5 YouTube Channels From Israel I’m Watching At The Moment** + _As a recent entrant to the YouTube fold, I’ve been doing a bit of digging around this summer to find channels to draw ……_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-youtube-channels-from-israel-im-watching-at-the-moment-50db38ac2e0d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-youtube-channels-from-israel-im-watching-at-the-moment-50db38ac2e0d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-youtube-channels-from-israel-im-watching-at-the-moment-50db38ac2e0d) + +[**5 Things That Positively Suck About Living In Israel** + _The longer I spend living in Israel, the less patience I have for the rose tinted glasses view that sees every…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-things-that-positively-suck-about-living-in-israel-77e72669c872 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-things-that-positively-suck-about-living-in-israel-77e72669c872")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-things-that-positively-suck-about-living-in-israel-77e72669c872) + +[**Why Does Everything In Israel Seem To Cost Too Much?** +_Why are we, in Israel, consistently paying inflated prices for low quality products backed by (often) terrible customer…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-does-everything-in-israel-seem-to-cost-too-much-9a3fd3e12966 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-does-everything-in-israel-seem-to-cost-too-much-9a3fd3e12966")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-does-everything-in-israel-seem-to-cost-too-much-9a3fd3e12966) + +[**Living In Israel: How Things Look From Abroad** + _Thinking about Israel from across the ocean_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/living-in-israel-how-things-look-from-abroad-dac14ac30533 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/living-in-israel-how-things-look-from-abroad-dac14ac30533")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/living-in-israel-how-things-look-from-abroad-dac14ac30533) + +[**A Google Sheet For “Converting” Israeli Salaries Into International Ones (And Vice Versa)** +_One of the peculiarities of the Israeli job market is that salaries are typically paid monthly in local currency._ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-google-sheet-for-converting-israeli-salaries-into-international-ones-and-vice-versa-64177f00865b "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-google-sheet-for-converting-israeli-salaries-into-international-ones-and-vice-versa-64177f00865b")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-google-sheet-for-converting-israeli-salaries-into-international-ones-and-vice-versa-64177f00865b) + +[**Israelis — Here’s A Free Guide For How To Communicate With The World** + _Telling your customers that their delivery is here might indeed by ‘fun,’ but it’s a small example of how cultural…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israelis-heres-a-free-guide-for-how-to-communicate-with-the-world-3dce4bf871fa "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israelis-heres-a-free-guide-for-how-to-communicate-with-the-world-3dce4bf871fa")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israelis-heres-a-free-guide-for-how-to-communicate-with-the-world-3dce4bf871fa) + +[**Here’s A Free Rebranding Strategy For Pro-Israel Advocacy** + _Opinion: A more reductive approach focused on core messaging and less on virtue signalling could yield more favorable…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/heres-a-free-rebranding-strategy-for-pro-israel-advocacy-eb8afec84015 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/heres-a-free-rebranding-strategy-for-pro-israel-advocacy-eb8afec84015")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/heres-a-free-rebranding-strategy-for-pro-israel-advocacy-eb8afec84015) + +[**Are Israel And Jews …. Being Trolled Right Now?** +danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/are-israel-and-jews-being-trolled-right-now-17cf2998a2b3 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/are-israel-and-jews-being-trolled-right-now-17cf2998a2b3")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/are-israel-and-jews-being-trolled-right-now-17cf2998a2b3) + +### Delegitimization Of Israel; Anti-Semitism + +[**Irish parliamentary motion: assert that Israel has “no place … among the international community”** +danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/irish-parliamentary-motion-assert-that-israel-has-no-place-among-the-international-community-93d9730bfb9d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/irish-parliamentary-motion-assert-that-israel-has-no-place-among-the-international-community-93d9730bfb9d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/irish-parliamentary-motion-assert-that-israel-has-no-place-among-the-international-community-93d9730bfb9d) + +[**The 3 Defining Features Of Irish Anti-Semitism** + _What’s unique about the anti-Jewish agitation emanating from Ireland?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-defining-features-of-irish-anti-semitism-5c027f1790d2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-defining-features-of-irish-anti-semitism-5c027f1790d2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-defining-features-of-irish-anti-semitism-5c027f1790d2) + +### The Jews of Ireland + +[**What Was It Like Growing Up Jewish in Ireland?** +_I’ve written before about the trials and tribulations of making aliyah — and the ways in which I think Israel’s culture…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland-1f04fe73b36a "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland-1f04fe73b36a")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland-1f04fe73b36a) + +[**The History of Jewish Cork — As Told By YouTube** + _Browsing through YouTube recently, I came across several videos telling the story of Jewish Cork. I’m embedding these…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-history-of-jewish-cork-as-told-by-youtube-6167446962e "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-history-of-jewish-cork-as-told-by-youtube-6167446962e")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-history-of-jewish-cork-as-told-by-youtube-6167446962e) + +### Israel, Conflict, Travel + +[**If you asked for what I think about what’s happening in Jerusalem** + _There is a myth, prevalent in Israel, that the status quo which has held ground in Israel for far too long is a tenable…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-asked-for-what-i-think-about-whats-happening-in-jerusalem-ae4853b4ff8c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-asked-for-what-i-think-about-whats-happening-in-jerusalem-ae4853b4ff8c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-asked-for-what-i-think-about-whats-happening-in-jerusalem-ae4853b4ff8c) + +[**Motza, An Idyllic Getaway Spot Just Outside Jerusalem** + _This ancient settlement just a stone’s throw from Jerusalem now sports a café providing organic, locally-produced fare…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/motza-an-idyllic-getaway-spot-just-outside-jerusalem-fd79fb9c7c65 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/motza-an-idyllic-getaway-spot-just-outside-jerusalem-fd79fb9c7c65")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/motza-an-idyllic-getaway-spot-just-outside-jerusalem-fd79fb9c7c65) + +[**The Staggering Gulf Between Salaries In Israel’s High-Tech Sector And The Rest Of The Economy** + _The average salary in Israel’s high-tech sector stands at more than six figures (USD). But the rest of the economy lags…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-staggering-gulf-between-salaries-in-israels-high-tech-sector-and-the-rest-of-the-economy-bea691db1cdc "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-staggering-gulf-between-salaries-in-israels-high-tech-sector-and-the-rest-of-the-economy-bea691db1cdc")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-staggering-gulf-between-salaries-in-israels-high-tech-sector-and-the-rest-of-the-economy-bea691db1cdc) + +[**7 Things To Know About Working With Israelis** + _Doing businesses with startups from the Holy Land? Get ready for some interesting experiences!_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/7-things-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-21647996d926 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/7-things-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-21647996d926")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/7-things-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-21647996d926) + +[**Where To Find Indian Food in Israel** + _Places to nosh on Indian food in Israel_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/where-to-find-indian-food-in-israel-bbe3fb9b731e "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/where-to-find-indian-food-in-israel-bbe3fb9b731e")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/where-to-find-indian-food-in-israel-bbe3fb9b731e) + +[**3 English-Speaking Jerusalem Influencers To Follow On Social Media** + _If you’re moving to live in Israel’s capital, Jerusalem, and want to keep in the know about what’s going on, then you…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/3-english-speaking-jerusalem-influencers-to-follow-on-social-media-7b6e9058a962 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/3-english-speaking-jerusalem-influencers-to-follow-on-social-media-7b6e9058a962")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/3-english-speaking-jerusalem-influencers-to-follow-on-social-media-7b6e9058a962) + +### The Israel-Ireland Bilateral Relationship + +[**Many Irish Want Israel’s Dublin Embassy Shuttered. Why Doesn’t Israel Act First?** +_Is it time to end diplomatic relations with Europe’s most Israel-hating nation — from the Israeli side?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/many-irish-want-israels-dublin-embassy-shuttered-why-doesn-t-israel-act-first-5a7882738b2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/many-irish-want-israels-dublin-embassy-shuttered-why-doesn-t-israel-act-first-5a7882738b2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/many-irish-want-israels-dublin-embassy-shuttered-why-doesn-t-israel-act-first-5a7882738b2) + +[**Palestinian supporters rally in Dublin, Ireland; call Israelis “a bunch of rats.”** + _Newspaper tweets video in which Palestinian supporters describe Israelis as “a bunch of rats”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2) + +### Hasbara, Israel Advocacy + +[**Israel Is Losing The PR War. Here’s Why I’m Delighted About That** + _The delusion of being able to combat blind hatred of Israel with the truth is being shown up for what it is_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israel-is-losing-the-pr-war-heres-why-i-m-delighted-about-that-a5e6f21be153 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israel-is-losing-the-pr-war-heres-why-i-m-delighted-about-that-a5e6f21be153")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israel-is-losing-the-pr-war-heres-why-i-m-delighted-about-that-a5e6f21be153) + +### Previous Photo Reels + +[**I’ve Been Living In Israel For 7 Years — And All I Got Was These Lousy Photos** + _Last night, I decided to clean up my Google Photos. It was a gargantuan undertaking of sorts._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/ive-been-living-in-israel-for-7-years-and-all-i-got-was-these-lousy-photos-d581e849eccf "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/ive-been-living-in-israel-for-7-years-and-all-i-got-was-these-lousy-photos-d581e849eccf")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/ive-been-living-in-israel-for-7-years-and-all-i-got-was-these-lousy-photos-d581e849eccf) + +### Writing On Medium + +[**Why I (Deliberately) Haven’t Monetized My Medium Account To Date** + _It may stand in defiance to some people’s idea of conventional logic, but I don’t see this account as part of my…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62) + +### Public Relations + +[**3 Very Cost-Effective Ways To Get PR Exposure As A Startup** + _If you want coverage without the five figure pricetag, these could be some options to explore_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/3-very-cost-effective-ways-to-get-pr-exposure-as-a-startup-87be4bcb9157 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/3-very-cost-effective-ways-to-get-pr-exposure-as-a-startup-87be4bcb9157")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/3-very-cost-effective-ways-to-get-pr-exposure-as-a-startup-87be4bcb9157) + +[**Need PR On A Budget? Here Are 3 PR Agency Alternatives** + _For lighter touch PR you can leverage these cheaper sources while still getting publicity_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/need-pr-on-a-budget-here-are-3-pr-agency-alternatives-9e7db0abf29f "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/need-pr-on-a-budget-here-are-3-pr-agency-alternatives-9e7db0abf29f")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/need-pr-on-a-budget-here-are-3-pr-agency-alternatives-9e7db0abf29f) + +### ADHD: On Diagnosis, Treatment + +[**My ADHD Diagnosis Story** + _Cross-posted from Twitter, lightly redacted, and expanded:_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c "https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c")[](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c) + +[**Will Sharing Your ADHD Diagnosis Destroy Your Professional Reputation?** +_Those thinking about sharing an ADHD diagnosis–particularly the self-employed — often worry about the effect it will…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/will-sharing-your-adhd-diagnosis-destroy-your-professional-reputation-f1aa7d13a2f4 "https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/will-sharing-your-adhd-diagnosis-destroy-your-professional-reputation-f1aa7d13a2f4")[](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/will-sharing-your-adhd-diagnosis-destroy-your-professional-reputation-f1aa7d13a2f4) + +[**We Need To Stop Judging ADHD Patients By Their Expected Cover** + _So much ADHD is unseen. Why does society expect it to be otherwise?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/we-need-to-stop-judging-adhd-patients-by-their-expected-cover-13801876cec "https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/we-need-to-stop-judging-adhd-patients-by-their-expected-cover-13801876cec")[](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/we-need-to-stop-judging-adhd-patients-by-their-expected-cover-13801876cec) + +[**5 Reasons ADHD Medication Is Better Than Caffeine** + _Natural isn’t always better — and other reasons why I finally bit (or swallowed) the psychostimulant medication pill_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/5-reasons-adhd-medication-is-better-than-caffeine-b69dd800e5f0 "https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/5-reasons-adhd-medication-is-better-than-caffeine-b69dd800e5f0")[](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/5-reasons-adhd-medication-is-better-than-caffeine-b69dd800e5f0) + +[**Why I Decided To Share Publicly About Having Adult ADHD** + _Shame gets us nowhere. Also, I’m excited about the journey_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/why-i-decided-to-share-publicly-about-having-adult-adhd-59de64d1c0dd "https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/why-i-decided-to-share-publicly-about-having-adult-adhd-59de64d1c0dd")[](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/why-i-decided-to-share-publicly-about-having-adult-adhd-59de64d1c0dd) + +### Previous Indexes (Of Medium Writing) + +[**At 300 posts, a roundup of my recent writing on Medium** + _An index to some of my recent writing here_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/at-300-posts-a-roundup-of-my-recent-writing-on-medium-eb199d90b3ca "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/at-300-posts-a-roundup-of-my-recent-writing-on-medium-eb199d90b3ca")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/at-300-posts-a-roundup-of-my-recent-writing-on-medium-eb199d90b3ca) diff --git a/posts/medium/An-Iterative-Cycle-For-GPT-Prompt-Engineering.md b/posts/medium/An-Iterative-Cycle-For-GPT-Prompt-Engineering.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5bf44fdb7205968d74ef3f597a72f152e8a1ed4c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/An-Iterative-Cycle-For-GPT-Prompt-Engineering.md @@ -0,0 +1,367 @@ +# An Iterative Cycle For GPT Prompt Engineering + +#### A simple but effective workflow for achieving progressively better GPT outputs by using GPTs for prompt engineering itself + +Using a GPT to devise a prompt-engineering GPT for better GPT prompting! A simple iterative cycle for yielding progressively better GPT outputs. Image: DALLE. + +The _“Iterative Cycle of GPT Prompt Engineering”_ describes a workflow I have developed for achieving iteratively better GPT outputs. + +It allows the user to move from naive prompting to more mature prompting and obtain progressively better outputs from Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT) models such as ChatGPT. + +Here’s how it works: + +### Develop A Prompt Engineering Custom GPT + +Warning: things are going to get a bit meta here (no pun intended). + +The first step in this process is to use the GPT you’re working with to: + + * Develop a custom GPT for the purpose of conducting prompt engineering on that GPT + * Create a configuration text for that custom GPT + + _Step 1_ + +Use the GPT to create a configuration for the custom GPT that we’re going to use for prompt engineering. + +In ChatGPT, I might prompt as follows: + + + Please provide a configuration script for a custom GPT built on the ChatGPT platform. + + + The purpose of this custom GPT should be to guide the user in prompt engineering for ChatGPT. + + + This GPT should ask the user to copy and paste their draft prompt into the chat. + + + Next, the GPT should analyse the prompt. + + + The GPT should then provide specific suggestions for improving the prompt. + + + In this context, improving means yielding a more detailed and correct output. + + + Finally the GPT should ask the user if he would like to receive an updated draft of the prompt. + + + If the user response affirmatively, the GPT should output an updated version of the prompt + +JSON for ChatGPT or another GPT: + + + { + "name": "PromptOptimizerGPT", + "description": "A custom GPT designed to help users improve their prompts for the most useful output. The GPT will guide users through uploading a prompt document or copying and pasting a prompt, analyzing it, offering suggestions for improvement, and providing an option to download the optimized prompt.", + "prompts": [ + { + "prompt": "Welcome to PromptOptimizerGPT! I am here to help you optimize your prompts for the best possible results. Please upload a prompt document or copy and paste your prompt below:", + "responses": [ + { + "type": "file_upload", + "description": "Upload your prompt document here." + }, + { + "type": "text_input", + "description": "Or copy and paste your prompt here."{ + "name": "PromptOptimizerGPT", + "description": "A custom GPT designed to help users improve their prompts for the most useful output. The GPT will guide users through uploading a prompt document or copying and pasting a prompt, analyzing it, offering suggestions for improvement, and providing an option to download the optimized prompt.", + "prompts": [ + { + "prompt": "Welcome to PromptOptimizerGPT! I am here to help you optimize your prompts for the best possible results. Please upload a prompt document or copy and paste your prompt below:", + "responses": [ + { + "type": "file_upload", + "description": "Upload your prompt document here." + }, + { + "type": "text_input", + "description": "Or copy and paste your prompt here." + } + ] + }, + { + "prompt": "Thank you for providing your prompt. I will now analyze it and offer suggestions for improvement. Please wait a moment...", + "responses": [ + { + "type": "processing", + "description": "Analyzing the prompt..." + } + ] + }, + { + "prompt": "Here are my suggestions for improving your prompt:\n\n{{suggestions}}\n\nWould you like to download the optimized prompt?", + "responses": [ + { + "type": "button", + "description": "Yes, I would like to download the optimized prompt.", + "value": "yes" + }, + { + "type": "button", + "description": "No, I do not want to download the optimized prompt.", + "value": "no" + } + ] + }, + { + "prompt": "Great! Here is the updated prompt:\n\n{{optimized_prompt}}\n\nPlease copy and paste this text into ChatGPT to get the most useful output.", + "responses": [ + { + "type": "text_output", + "description": "Copy and paste the optimized prompt text." + } + ], + "conditions": [ + { + "if": "user_response == 'yes'", + "then": [ + { + "action": "output_text", + "text": "{{optimized_prompt}}" + } + ] + }, + { + "if": "user_response == 'no'", + "then": [ + { + "action": "end_conversation", + "text": "No problem! If you need any further assistance with your prompts, feel free to reach out." + } + ] + } + ] + } + ] + } + + + } + ] + }, + { + "prompt": "Thank you for providing your prompt. I will now analyze it and offer suggestions for improvement. Please wait a moment...", + "responses": [ + { + "type": "processing", + "description": "Analyzing the prompt..." + } + ] + }, + { + "prompt": "Here are my suggestions for improving your prompt:\n\n{{suggestions}}\n\nWould you like to download the optimized prompt?", + "responses": [ + { + "type": "button", + "description": "Yes, I would like to download the optimized prompt.", + "value": "yes" + }, + { + "type": "button", + "description": "No, I do not want to download the optimized prompt.", + "value": "no" + } + ] + }, + { + "prompt": "Great! Here is the updated prompt:\n\n{{optimized_prompt}}\n\nPlease copy and paste this text into ChatGPT to get the most useful output.", + "responses": [ + { + "type": "text_output", + "description": "Copy and paste the optimized prompt text." + } + ], + "conditions": [ + { + "if": "user_response == 'yes'", + "then": [ + { + "action": "output_text", + "text": "{{optimized_prompt}}" + } + ] + }, + { + "if": "user_response == 'no'", + "then": [ + { + "action": "end_conversation", + "text": "No problem! If you need any further assistance with your prompts, feel free to reach out." + } + ] + } + ] + } + ] + } + +Now, we’ve gotten GPT to draft a configuration script for creating a GPT specifically to help us with prompt engineering for that platform. + +Our next step is to go ahead and create the custom GPT with the configuration text supplied. + +Assuming that the process went as expected, you’ve now produced your prompt engineering GPT. Yours should look something like this: + +### Developing A Workflow And Folder Structure To Support Iterative Prompt Engineering + +I call this workflow _iterative_ prompt engineering because its value is enabling the user to iterate through progressively better prompts for the GPT. + +Those users who engage in “prompt engineering” tend to use an approach we might call (simply) trial-and-error. This process is retrospective. + +They try a prompt. Identify deficiencies. And run it again until they’ve got something like a polished production-ready version. + +The problem with this method is that it’s wasteful if you’re accessing the GPT programatically, such as via an API. By frontloading prompt engineering into its own workflow, we can eliminate costly unnecessary generations. + +If you’re working on prompt engineering in a team you can built out a very simple folder structure housing the prompts you’re working on as markdown or `.txt` files: + +`prompt1` + + * `v1.md` + * `v2.md` + +Etc. + +Now that you have your custom GPT built, you simply run each version through it. + +A prompt might be: + +`Please review the following prompt for ChatGPT and process it optimising it according to your instructions [prompt]` + +Although you can also be less elaborate and just do something like this: + +`Fix this prompt [prompttext]` + +As we’ve created a custom GPT with a saved configuration we don’t need to repeat the detailed instructions on every run. + +### An Example In Practice + +Prompt V1: + + + Please create a briefing document for Daniel Rosehill who is an online commentator keen to share knowledge about the evolution of GPTs, especially ChatGPT. Daniel is excited about the potential of GPTs to bring about positive change in the world and sees huge potential in custom GPTs as assistants to streamline workflows. + + + The output should be entitled Daniel’s Weekly GPT News Brief. Please only include items from the past 7 days in the output. + + + Please search for items discussing the following subjects: + + + GPTs + The growth of GPTs + Emerging business use-cases for GPTs + Emerging personal use-cases for GPTs + GPT regulation + Rates of GPT adoption + Developments in GPT technology + Large language learning models - development and technology + + + An “item” may be any of the following: + + + An article + A blog + A YouTube video + A podcast + + + For every item that you include in the output please include the following details: + + + Publication date + Author + Where the article was published. Please also include a summary of the publication. + A summary of the item. + A link to the item + + + Please include at least 10 items in every brief. + + + After generating the brief, please ask the user whether he would like to download the brief. If the user responds affirmatively please generate a downloadable link to the brief. + + + + + use-cases for GPTs + Emerging personal use-cases for GPTs + GPT regulation + Rates of GPT adoption + Developments in GPT technology + Large language learning models - development and technology + + + An “item” may be any of the following: + + + An article + A blog + A YouTube video + A podcast + + + For every item that you include in the output please include the following details: + + + Publication date + Author + Where the article was published. Please also include a summary of the publication. + A summary of the item. + A link to the item + + + Please include at least 10 items in every brief. + + + After generating the brief, please ask the user whether he would like to download the brief. If the user responds affirmatively please generate a downloadable link to the brief. + +V2: + + + Please create a briefing document for Daniel Rosehill, an online commentator eager to share knowledge about the evolution of GPTs, especially ChatGPT. Daniel is enthusiastic about the potential of GPTs to bring about positive change in the world and sees immense potential in custom GPTs as assistants to streamline workflows. + + + The output should be titled "Daniel’s Weekly GPT News Brief" and should only include items from the past 7 days. + + + Search for items discussing the following subjects: + + + GPTs + The growth of GPTs + Emerging business use-cases for GPTs + Emerging personal use-cases for GPTs + GPT regulation + Rates of GPT adoption + Developments in GPT technology + Large language learning models - development and technology + An “item” may be any of the following: + + + An article + A blog post + A YouTube video + A podcast + For every item included in the brief, please provide the following details: + + + Publication date + Author + Source (including a brief description of the publication or platform) + Summary of the item + Link to the item + Please include at least 10 items in each brief. + + + After generating the brief, ask the user if they would like to download the document. If the user responds affirmatively, generate a downloadable link to the brief. + +And so on and so forth. + +### Recommended Reading + +[Prompt Engineering for Generative AI: Future-Proof Inputs for Reliable AI Outputs](https://www.amazon.com/Prompt-Engineering-Generative-AI-Future-Proof/dp/109815343X) + +Happy prompting! diff --git a/posts/medium/An-Open-Log-Of-Disinformation-About-Me-Online.md b/posts/medium/An-Open-Log-Of-Disinformation-About-Me-Online.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f0b7b92fbe30a3a357a0e7fdd32078c16170dc2d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/An-Open-Log-Of-Disinformation-About-Me-Online.md @@ -0,0 +1,45 @@ +# An Open Log Of Disinformation About Me Online + +#### Sorting out a few untruths + + _(V1, 22/10/22)_ + +The internet can be a very weird place. And as the saying goes, not everything you read online is true. + +Although this may seem petty, here are a few random snippets of information that I’ve come across in recent months and which I have failed to rectify directly by reaching out to the people involved. + +### I Don’t Work For AgileGhostwriting.com + +Let’s start with a particularly weird one. + +I’ve been a bit negligent about checking my vanity web searches and Google Alerts recently _(I hope this post convinces somebody that running searches on yourself periodically isn’t, in fact, an act of vanity but is prudent ‘brand protection’!)._ + +The Google algorithm managed to flag this nugget to my attention after somebody — it seems the person considering ordering the ghostwriting services — stored it in a public-facing web directory. + +It appears as if the good person (people?) who operate agileghostwriting.com chose to take advantage of the fact that I _do_ have a (legitimate) ghostwriting website to intimate to their gullible prospects that I’m a part of their team. + +Here’s the truth: + + 1. I’d never heard of agileghostwriting before seeing this + 2. I’m not the person writing these messages + 3. This website is pretending that I’m a part of their team which is not and has never been true. + +### I’ve Also Never Worked For A Company Called ‘Mayple’ + +A few months ago I received an intriguing email: + +Clicking the link I saw this: + +Unfortunately there are a few problems here: + + 1. I’ve never worked for Mayple (I signed up to look at the website for a client. It wasn’t a fit). + 2. While it’s flattering to think that I _may_ have achieved this stellar 4.5 star writing after 39 reviews none of these reviews can be true because …. I have never worked for this company. + 3. I have no team. + +### I Also Don’t Write For A Site Called Top10.Com Any More + +Finally we have the peculiar case of an old freelancing client which has — for over a year now — been updating the ‘published by’ dates on my author page to make it look as if I am still writing for them. + +Thanks to Wachete for catching them red-handed: + +There are probably ones I’m forgetting but that will do for now …. diff --git a/posts/medium/Anxiety-management-as-a-freelancing-skill-17f6c115cd.html.md b/posts/medium/Anxiety-management-as-a-freelancing-skill-17f6c115cd.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4149bbcc7d2ff4bc9da014d9c9371ab777368cf5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Anxiety-management-as-a-freelancing-skill-17f6c115cd.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,107 @@ +# Anxiety management as a freelancing skill + +#### Why reassurance might be a necessary part of the job + +Firstly, thanks to /u/Penguin-Pete, on the always interesting world of Reddit, for [mentioning](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/comments/lx7grv/freelance_writing_category_on_medium/) this Medium publication on the freelance writers’ subreddit. + +Reddit may have connotations for being something of an edgy and aggressive part of the internet (sometimes that’s true), but the freelance writers’ subreddit ([/r/freelancewriters](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/)) contains lots of level-headed discussion about the art and craft of making a living as a freelance writer. 65.6K members and growing. Check it out. + +I mention that also to credit the subreddit which is where this thought originated. Sadly in the sleep-deprived state I’m writing this post in I can’t remember _who_ exactly said it. But some wide soul put this out and I thought it was worth developing into a post. + +### Fact: Nobody Really Cares About Your Freelance Writing Portfolio + +I tend to overthink things. + +I’ve spent far too much unproductive time hemming and hawing over the best way to portfolio my freelance writing work (an endeavor complicated by the fact that most of it is ghostwritten; for how to tackle that issue, see below). + +[**How To Share Ghostwriting Samples With Clients** + _There Are Many Approaches. Which Is Best?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/how-to-share-ghostwriting-samples-with-clients-ec0a31710c68 "https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/how-to-share-ghostwriting-samples-with-clients-ec0a31710c68")[](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/how-to-share-ghostwriting-samples-with-clients-ec0a31710c68) + +Should I separate things by content type (article, white paper)? By niche (IoT, MarTech)? + +Should I go for a minimalist text-heavy style or try to make things look pretty with lots of fancy graphics? + +I worry about technical concerns. Should I put the portfolio behind a password on Wordpress? Should I share clips through Google Drive? Or just go old school and email them? + +After years spent periodically grappling with these futile and frankly trivial details, I finally had a moment of clarity: + +**It doesn’t matter!**(Here’s why) + +### Your Average Internet Lead Is Anxious And Distrustful And Suspects You’re A Liar + +I’ve been marketing myself through the internet for several years now, leveraging just about every channel in the book — from PPC to inbound — to attempt to keep my pipeline full and stay in business. + +Internet marketing works, even though it takes a lot of effort to get going. + +But there are two factors that I think those of us selling services online massively discount, to our own detriment. I’m writing this for freelance writers. But I contend that these factors are applicable for anybody selling to others in an online capacity (which, in today’s world, is an awful lot of people!) + +Firstly, it’s really easy to make stuff up online. Like really easy. Trust me on this one. (Even if you do, read my guide to creating fake online identities anyway … this is going to be a growing problem in coming years). + +Don’t think that your prospects assume that you’re above pulling all kind of tricks including faking testimonials, plagiarizing other writers’ work, and lying about what you know (and don’t know) about what you writ eabout. + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + +Secondly, while more and more of us are working online in remote environments, ultimately the internet is …. still the internet. + +Freelancing periodically makes me depressed — literally! The usual cause? Not business woes but clients who treat freelancers like garbage. I take it personally even though I know I shouldn’t. But you know why a lot of freelance clients treat freelancers like garbage? Because when you don’t share a desk with David the SEO guy you don’t tend to think of him as a human. He’s …. pixels on a screen. The corollary: he’s disposable. + +Why does every freelance writing lead ever (almost) ask to see your portfolio? + +To answer that, let’s step into the buyer’s shoes for a minute. + +Does the buyer really care whether your portfolio has flashy images or is laid out in reams of text (those factors I spent years agonizing over)? + +Perhaps marginally, from a readability standpoint. But not an ounce beyond that. + +Instead your average buyer of freelance writing services, I propose, is anxious and distrustful of anybody he or she encounters through the internet. + +This means that the onus is firmly on our shoulders — as freelancers — to prove to clients that we’re not the latest dodgy Upwork freelancer who is going to let them down. + +Seen from the perspective of this innate anxiety bias, the whole act of freelance writing clients looking for portfolios begins to look starkly different. + +It’s an exercise in proving potential value — sure. But equally it’s about rebutting a presumption of bad faith. Unpalatable? A bit. But that’s business. + +Your average freelance writing buyer wants reassurance that: + + * You’re — broadly speaking — legit + * You’re a competent writer + * You know how to run a freelance writing business + * You have the subject matter expertise necessary to pull off the project + +Once you understand the above, you can see why sending on a link to a hundred clips to a lead is actually counterproductive. They don’t need that swarm of information. + +Instead you can send them: + + * One piece of your best writing. Only one piece is necessary to show that you’re theoretically capable of writing great stuff. + * One piece of writing in the subject you’re looking to write about. + +To rebut the other inherent allegations — you _don’t_ know what you’re doing and you’re a scammer looking to take them for a ride — you can rely upon traditional marketing tactics: + + * Testimonials demonstrate social proof and show that others have trusted you + * Case studies demonstrate your ability to achieve concrete results + * Client logos achieve much the same thing, particularly if they enjoy good brand recognition + * Blogging about how to run a freelance business can help show that, broadly, you know what you’re doing + +You possibly can’t do much about the fact that — as a collection of pixels on a screen — you’re not quite real in the client’s eyes (in the same way that the colleague they see in the office every day is.) But you can: + + * Try to meet your client in person if you’re in the same country + * Share something about your personal life, or enquire about your client’s _when appropriate to do so_. + +Small touches in relationship management can help the client see you as a human rather than as just a task executor. + +### People Are Nationally Cagey About Those They Encounter Online. Selling Online, We Have To Deal With That Skepticism + +It’s true that the internet is revolutionizing our world and that there’s a growing willingness on the part of companies to hire both freelance and remote talent. + +But that doesn’t mean that the picture is entirely rosey. + +I contend that people are always somewhat distrustful of people that they encounter online. And for good reason. The internet makes it easy to hide who we are and whether or not we’re actually good at what we do. Many clients trusted online freelancers only to be burned. Their shields will be up the next time they’re in the hiring seat. + +What can we do about this? + +Instead of trying to dazzle your next freelance writing lead with 100 articles you’ve published, I suggest that it may be better to assume them to be anxious and suspicious and then do everything to proactively gain their trust and confidence. + +It’s about trying to wow them — yes. But it’s also about providing them reassurance that they’re not walking into a trap by hiring you. + +Show them that you’re a good writer. That clients are prepared to trust you with their projects. That you’ve delivered results previously. It should put your potential clients at east. And you. diff --git a/posts/medium/Apps-and-Websites-For-Plotting-the-Coronavirus-Radius.md b/posts/medium/Apps-and-Websites-For-Plotting-the-Coronavirus-Radius.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..07afb79ed92b5b261267a91e1e4de1884c26f7f8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Apps-and-Websites-For-Plotting-the-Coronavirus-Radius.md @@ -0,0 +1,41 @@ +# Apps and Websites For Plotting the Coronavirus Radius + +Here in Israel, we’re currently confined to an official government radius which limits us to within one kilometer of our homes (there are a list of allowed activities — and the purpose of this post is not to delineate those). + +In addition to the government radius Google Maps printout which now adorn the entryway to my apartment, I went in search, today, for a more hi-tech solution. + +Here’s some of what’s available. + +### Desktop + +The easiest way to figure out where the one kilometer radius around your house/apartment extends to is to use an online radius plotter and print out a few screenshots. + +[**Draw a circle with a radius on a map** + _You can use this tool to add as many radius circles to the map as you want. This allows you to find out where they…_ www.mapdevelopers.com](https://www.mapdevelopers.com/draw-circle-tool.php "https://www.mapdevelopers.com/draw-circle-tool.php")[](https://www.mapdevelopers.com/draw-circle-tool.php) + +Zooming up, you can clearly see where the radius around a point intersects in your area. + +Lior Kaplan, who is one of the most active participants in Israel’s open source community, has put together this tool too: + +[**כמה רחוק אתם יכולים לצאת?** +_רוצים לבדוק כמה רחוק זה 1000 מטר מהבית? כנסו לבדוק._ corona.kaplanopensource.co.il](https://corona.kaplanopensource.co.il/stayhome/?fbclid=IwAR30iX1d1q_qdrYCOFc1whD6Pur2lXeMAl4Bd2daaFQBl5CpwbR3YqtdY1k "https://corona.kaplanopensource.co.il/stayhome/?fbclid=IwAR30iX1d1q_qdrYCOFc1whD6Pur2lXeMAl4Bd2daaFQBl5CpwbR3YqtdY1k")[](https://corona.kaplanopensource.co.il/stayhome/?fbclid=IwAR30iX1d1q_qdrYCOFc1whD6Pur2lXeMAl4Bd2daaFQBl5CpwbR3YqtdY1k) + +### Android + +I wanted an Android app too so that I could view my live location on GPS as I walked and see where I was exactly in relation to my radius. + +For that purpose, I needed two features: + + * Draw and save a radius around my apartment + * Overlay my real time GPS position, and the saved radius, on Google Maps + +It didn’t take much searching to find [Distance Radius for Android](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.codoozer.distance.radius&hl=en). + +[**Distance radius - Apps on Google Play** + _This app is great to know the distance radius around certain map locations. You can add circles on a map and set their…_ play.google.com](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.codoozer.distance.radius&hl=en "https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.codoozer.distance.radius&hl=en")[](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.codoozer.distance.radius&hl=en) + +Firstly, I drew a map around my house. For the purpose of this example, let’s keep the radius centerpoint as the First Station complex in Jerusalem: + +After creating and saving the circle — and turning on my GPS — all I had to do was open the app to see where my live position was in relation to the radius. My position is denoted as it is in Google Maps — with a blue dot and an arrow indicating the direction I am facing. + +Download these apps to find out how far the radius can take you! diff --git a/posts/medium/Are-Israel-And-Jews----Being-Trolled-Right-Now-.md b/posts/medium/Are-Israel-And-Jews----Being-Trolled-Right-Now-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8e73ccf72426621b2883a6d93645cae6f5f407d0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Are-Israel-And-Jews----Being-Trolled-Right-Now-.md @@ -0,0 +1,65 @@ +# Are Israel And Jews …. Being Trolled Right Now? + +#### Could the irrational Israel-hatred and Judeophobia we’re seeing around the world right now be explicable through the prism of internet culture? + +Can we look at the obsessional hatred of Israel through the prism of internet culture — and specifically trolling? Image: Wikimedia / Creative Commons + +A few months ago, I had a series of unsavory exchanges on the popular social media called Reddit — which has a well-justified reputation as being a kind of safe haven for all manner of online nastiness. + +If LinkedIn is the corporate suit of the social media world and Medium is where writers and poets come to share their work … then Reddit is sort of the slightly unhinged internet café populated by a normal majority with a virulent and slightly deranged fringe. Anything goes there. Almost. + +The trolling I experienced on Reddit was relatively short-lived but it was also completely anonymous and vicious. + +I was called all manner of slurs ranging from “sperg” (apparently a reference to Asperger’s) to “ugly AF.” In what I’m sure was an attack motivated by anti-Semitism, my “big beak” was repeatedly derided (I was told to take it off the network post-haste). I am unaware of whether any action was taken against those accounts that hurled abuse at me. I do know that the accounts continue to post on Reddit. + +While the experience was certainly painful, it also taught me a lot about cyberbullying. And specifically what the best methods of reacting to it might be. + +For one, anybody who has encountered cyberbullying won’t have to dig far around Google before they stumble upon the phrase “don’t feed the trolls.” + +It’s based around the notion that trolls are perverse individuals who derive a lot of their pleasure from “getting a rise” out of their targets. And whether it’s wise or not, it’s the boilerplate advice that’s issued to many who experience online bullying. + +The trolls want to see their targets becoming infuriating and tormented. + +They want to see them attempting to justify, explain, defend, and argue (JADE) themselves. + +And so those who experience online bullying are advised to stop doing that (while also blocking the perpetrators and taking other steps to try protect their mental health). + +But perhaps it’s time we began applying the concept to Israel and the Jewish people. + +### Is The World Trolling Us Right Now? + +Right now, I think there’s room to argue that the world — and certain countries far more so than others — are actively trolling both Israel and the Jewish people. + +In previous weeks, we’ve seen anti-Israelism conflated to a substantial extent with anti-Semitic agitation. The same people are often responsible for both. It’s often the same group of hateful trolls. + +Their modus operandi for doing so, at the very least, comes straight out of Trolling 101. + +They level towards us inflammatory and patently false allegations that Israel is engaging in ethnic cleansing and is an apartheid state. That its targeted aerial campaign in Gaza attempted to exercise its right to self-defense and prevent terrorist rocket fire by a group seeking its elimination was “indiscriminate” in nature. + +If they don’t get a reaction on the first occasion they try again on the second. + +Like internet trolls, they’re both stubborn and persistent. They’re nasty and vicious and sometimes they’re also anonymous. In other words, they tick all the boxes. + +And here’s another similarity between the online debate around Israel and your typical internet flame war. + +Eventually somebody steps in to answer the trolls. + +This is only natural. And it’s also why cyberbullying is so difficult to deal with. Because everybody feels an innate need to defend themselves and correct falsehoods and lies being spread about them. It’s human nature. And the same human nature that trolls rely upon to feed the cycle of hatred. + +And so the ADL or the Israeli Embassy in [European capital city] or me answers back the trolls on Twitter (or Reddit or any other online space). + +We come armed with facts and arguments. We come ready to JADE. + +“It’s not ethnic cleansing. It’s a targeted air strike attempting to minimize civilian casualties,” we rationalize. But unfortunately like any group of trolls those slinging the mud towards Israel aren’t particularly interested in listening. They’ve heard our arguments before. They’re not there to engage. Or to debate. They’re there to troll. + +There are many ways of looking at the world’s oldest hatred and its transmutation into an obsessional form of hatred directed towards the world’s only Jewish state. + +But as a millennial that grew up with social networks and computers, I’d like to suggest that this unsavory facet of internet culture — trolling — provides a good point of reference through which to understand the obsessional hatred of Israel and the unrelenting nastiness of many engaging in it. + +Those hating on Israel and Jews are trolls — plain and simple. + +Some are projecting their own unhappiness onto what they see as a convenient target. + +Others just derive perverse amusement and entertainment from causing predictable aggravation to Jews. Because (arguably) our repeat trauma makes us reactive and sensitive to repeat instances of it. So we’re almost as good a target as they come. + +It might be time for us to think when the time comes to disengage from the debate. diff --git a/posts/medium/Are-Your-Personality-And-Professional-Brand-Out-Of-Alignment--It-Could-Be-Hurting-Your-Business.md b/posts/medium/Are-Your-Personality-And-Professional-Brand-Out-Of-Alignment--It-Could-Be-Hurting-Your-Business.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ce803e76238d7cd0957ed5784e946854f29ec14f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Are-Your-Personality-And-Professional-Brand-Out-Of-Alignment--It-Could-Be-Hurting-Your-Business.md @@ -0,0 +1,92 @@ +# Are Your Personality And Professional Brand Out Of Alignment? It Could Be Hurting Your Business + +#### If you’re too scared to show your true colors, you can’t attract them in turn + +Is your brand an accurate reflection of yourself or does it simply project a buttoned-up version of yourself to the world? Photo by [Max Vakhtbovych](https://www.pexels.com/@max-artbovich?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/colorful-pouf-near-table-in-room-5997981/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’ve aired a few thoughts here over the years about some of the content that I enjoy _less_ on LinkedIn. + +[**Why I Really Can’t Do LinkedIn Anymore** + _Is Content Curation The Key To Staying Sane In Today’s World?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48) + +Being the grumpy artistic type (I’ll stick with a ‘creative temperament’ thank you very much), I find some of it so downright annoying that it’s driven me off the network for days at a time (I always come back in a huff). + +For instance: I _hate_ seeing pictures from employees of the gift hampers that their companies send them. + +Not because I have anything against gift hampers — if you like them, knock yourselves out eating those peanuts! — but rather because I don’t see any value in sharing this kind of information with the world. Who cares about the gift box your company sent you? I certainly don’t! My life is no richer for knowing that your company send you confectionery. + +More than that, I think it’s transparently self-serving. Corporate comms sends you gift hampers with perfect branding hoping that employees will share them in a fawning post on LinkedIn. Sorry, but that kind of thing makes my stomach turn. + +Yes, Holden Caulfield and I would have a lot to talk about, I think. + +I haven’t left LinkedIn both because I pick up the odd InMail there which sometimes helps to pay my rent; I _love_ the idea of a social network that connects professionals; and, among the sky-high pile of virtue-signalling and gift hamper pics are nuggets of gold from genuinely smart and thoughtful people who have good thoughts to share on the network. + +[People like Anna Furmanov ](https://www.linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov/?miniProfileUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afs_miniProfile%3AACoAAADgd5wBQJtqKlunYDmjmcxCaHJieH8X18s)who hosts the Modern Startup podcast and runs a marketing consultancy dedicated to helping VC-funded startups drive revenue (Anna gives credit to [Kate Bradley Chernis](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ACoAAAC1QSQBBDJ4FMpxR_Yi6887SH3rUsSoq_M?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_detail_base%3Baw%2BqnWbxQSmlFPzA3rRULw%3D%3D) for “sparking the conversation” so I probably should too.) + +Because I don’t like plagiarizing people, here’s Anna’s thoughts about brand voice in her own words: + +### Playing It Safe Bores People To Inattention + +I loved the thoughts that Anna shared for two reasons: + + * It’s the kind of advice that I know will bring value to some people in my orbit + * It’s the kind of advice that I needed to hear myself + +Like Anna, I work in marketing consulting. Unlike Anna — I’m feeling … ah, actually I know — I do a pretty lousy job at communicating what I’m actually about to the world. + +My go-to reasons for this has traditionally been shyness. I’ll plug a brand even if it’s just my own one and pitch it to podcasts (for instance). No problem. + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + +And who I am to lie — I’ve gone so far as to create a fake email address to pitch the media with because it meant not having to … you know … actually directly promote _myself_ to other humans. + +To simplify this down a little: + +When there’s the distance of a brand between me and my professional image I go all out on the promo tactics. You wouldn’t know it (maybe you’d get an idea from the above), but I’m a big fan of guerilla marketing. + +The problem is that the moment it comes to actually promoting _myself_ , the imposter syndrome kicks in. + +To spin this positively, at least I do put myself out there. You wouldn’t be reading this if I didn’t, although I do so mostly because I find joy in the writing process. + +But there’s also a negative aspect to it. + +I don’t tell the world — or my clients — what I’m really about. What makes me tick as a person. So I do what Anna cautioned others not to do and project a buttoned-up image of myself. It’s stilted. It’s stuffy. And it’s uninspiring. I doubt that anybody who has visited my business website has had their heart rate lift a notch as they read about the thought leadership packages I offer. + +The good news is that it’s a decent enough professional image to win me business. I spend a lot of time helping companies with thought leadership marketing and my background aligns mostly with what you’d expect from that kind of person: somebody with a background in journalism who writes somewhat dry and serious stuff. + +But it’s not exactly the real me. And that presents a problem. + +### Some Things I Don’t Tell My Clients + +Let me roll with a few more examples: + +I wouldn’t dream of telling clients that one of the most significant things happening in my life right now is starting medicine for ADHD because I worry they’ll think that I’m crazy and unreliable and fire me in short order. (That’s not exactly true, I’ve written about ADHD recently, but would probably have done so years ago if I hadn’t been so worried about that.) + +Sometimes, it would be _great_ to be able to share something like that because it’s something I’m quite excited about. + +One of the things I’m into: cooking Indian food. One of my aspirations: to take an Indian cookery course in India! + +I doubt, also, that most clients would guess that behind the person writing their thought leadership articles for trade media publications is somebody who immaturely delights in practical jokes and (on occasion) orders stuffed animals from the internet because he grew up with one and sort of misses their presence in his life. + +On a more professional level: there are times I don’t share with my clients why I’m skeptical about some of the things they’re paying me to do because they didn’t ask, I feel like it’s not my place to do so, and I’m not sure they want to hear a contrary opinion either way. + +[**It’s Your Duty To Tell Your Clients When They’re Doing It All Wrong** + _Navigating the uncomfortable problem of raising obvious problems when selling advice to companies_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-your-duty-to-tell-your-clients-when-they-re-doing-it-all-wrong-37fedf4307df "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-your-duty-to-tell-your-clients-when-they-re-doing-it-all-wrong-37fedf4307df")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-your-duty-to-tell-your-clients-when-they-re-doing-it-all-wrong-37fedf4307df) + +At the same time, I’m an enormous believer in both the power of inbound marketing and authenticity and spend a good deal of chunk here telling anybody who cares to read these pieces what’s going on in my life. + +There’s a contradiction there. And this post did a nice job at highlighting it. + +[**The Connection Between Inbound Marketing And Authenticity** + _An argument in favor of amorphous free-flowing content creation and leveraging authenticity to create change_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3) + +Whether you’re building up a company brand, your own, or both at the same time, I think that there’s a lot of wisdom in what Anna shared on LinkedIn. + +B2B buyers or whoever else you’re trying to sell to are just B2C buyers dressed up in a suit and on the clock. + +The exact same rules about authenticity and attraction works for them just as it does at the person-to -person level. If you think that they’re not noticing that you’re holding back from sharing what your brand is truly about then … there’s a good chance that you’re flat out wrong. + +If you want to increase the interest in your marketing messaging, it’s probably worth ensuring that who you are and the personal professional brand you project are in some kind of alignment. + +Authenticity, after all, is a powerful thing. diff --git a/posts/medium/As-A-Marketing-Writer--I-Struggle-To-Regard-Myself-As-A--Real--Writer-a633819fcfb.html.md b/posts/medium/As-A-Marketing-Writer--I-Struggle-To-Regard-Myself-As-A--Real--Writer-a633819fcfb.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c2a71efd0bf20664520ecee9c1ade252dea3dbdb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/As-A-Marketing-Writer--I-Struggle-To-Regard-Myself-As-A--Real--Writer-a633819fcfb.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,82 @@ +# As A Marketing Writer, I Struggle To Regard Myself As A “Real” Writer + +#### One (real) writer’s struggle with imposter syndrome + +My packet of salt and vinegar crisps outside Super Sapir, a supermarket in Jerusalem. Photo: author. + +This afternoon, I authored a post that struck a chord with those in a popular expat social group for my city (Secret Jerusalem). + +It was — of all things — on the subject of salt and vinegar crisps, which have recently arrived in Israel much to the delight of expats ([for my report on that, click here](https://www.afteraliyah.com/news/rapture-among-english-speakers-in-israel-as-salt-and-vinegar-crisps-come-to-market/)). + +News of the arrival of this British (and Irish) staple has drawn fever-pitched excitement among Jerusalem’s English-speaking community. + +To such an extent that — in the interest of spreading mirth and levity — I couldn’t resist engaging in a little bit of satire, hurrying off a dispatch dramatizing the arrival of the crisps along with a selection of photos, including the above. + +The post “did well” — to the extent that posting about crisps on a Facebook group forum means anything (with trepidation, I venture to suggest that it doesn’t). To my surprise, the last time I checked I saw that more than 200 people had liked it, it had garnered almost 100 comments, and was shared a handful of times. Yes, people really are that excited about a new flavor of crisps here. + +Amidst the praise about my storytelling and prose skills (note: I hate receiving compliments), I began to read a peppering of suggestions urging me to consider going into professional writing. + +_“This man should go into professional writing,”_ one commenter intoned._“I have no idea what you do in life, but you should write,”_ added another. + +I resisted the instinct to aggressively point out that this is what I have, in fact, been doing for the last 10 or so years of my life (a very conservative estimate, I might add). But equally I couldn’t bring myself to respond “I _am_ a writer, but thank you.” + +My best effort response would be something along the lines of “I joined the racket years ago” (note: many writers, like I, have dry senses of humor and love nothing more than referring to journalism/writing as a racket with themselves as the racketeers.) + +And that brought me to think about _why_ that might be. + +The first time I was confronted with questioning whether I can or should consider myself a writer was when I began attending Friday night dinner affairs held over _Shabbat_ in Jerusalem. + +My now wife, having no idea of the sensitivity of the topic to me, would introduce me (then boyfriend) as “a writer.” (I have a perverse habit of being deliberately evasive at such affairs, partially for my own self-amusement ,and tend to describe myself, if asked, as an “online operative” — which also deflects further questioning.) I inevitably qualified this with “sort of.” Or if I didn’t, silently resisted the urge to do so. + +But why, you may ask? Isn’t that what you do for a living (well yes it is)? Don’t you have a _journalism_ degree (well yes, I do)? + +And without attempting to prod too far into the dark recesses of my subconscious, here’s what’s really underlying all that self-doubt and discomfort. + +You see like most writers these days, the stuff I write isn’t the type of material likely to win a Pulitzer Prize any time soon. Unless, that is, they feel like surprising the reading world by awarding it to my latest white paper on the need for parts of the government to upgrade their contract management capabilities. + +Nor have any of my screenplays been converted into Hollywood best-selling movies. In fact, I’m sorry to report, I’ve never written _any_ screenplays although I harbor the dream of doing so one day (here’s that dream more specifically: a comical TV series parodying, but shining real light on, the experience of immigrants in Israel). + +But surely, if I’m a writer, you can _find_ my writing somewhere, right? + +Well yes you can but not in the places where those _real_ writers show off their wares. You know — like libraries and stuff (do they still exist?) + +Where can you find this authorship I speak of, I hear you demur? + +Well, sorry to disappoint, but you’re looking at it, buddy. I’ve written for everything from monthly magazines to newspapers in my time. But most of my writing, these days, appears on websites. In fact — shock, horror! — most of it doesn’t even appear under my name at all. A large part of my work involves ghostwriting for business executives and companies. + +So am I a writer? Or a sort-of writer? + +With journalism languishing in a state that can be described as “dismal” or “moribund” most writers these days find themselves employed, like I, writing “content” for companies and other organizations in need of such services _(note: I intensely despise the tendency to label all writing as “content” and if you ever hear me describing myself as a “content writer” please know that it is solely for the purposes of SEO or to try make a point understood)_ + +Intuitively I know that most of us aren’t writing movie screenplays or hemming out best-selling novels. But rational comprehension often predates internalizing an issue and owning it. And like many writers, I’m stuck between waypost one and two. + +But even if you agree with the above — maybe I’m not a writer after all! — I can corral the wordmasters who author dictionaries to challenge my self-criticism and doubt. + +Oxford’s definition of a writer describes the entity, baldly, as _“a person who has written a particular text.”_ Whether that’s a sonata hemmed out on the back of toilet paper or a screenplay it doesn’t say. I’ve written plenty of those. Maybe you have too? Could we _all_ be writers? + +Maybe all of us writers are like this. Or perhaps it’s time to modernize the mental images that all of us hold when we think of what a “writer” should be and look like. That definition might need expansion too. Because I can tell you that while the trope that everybody can write continues to enjoy currency, writing _professionally_ is a different matter entirely. + +If popular culture is a good surrogate for public consciousness, most of us expect true writers to be Hemingways, Shakespeares, or Joyces — with the personalities to accompany their output. + +But that’s very far from an accurate reflection of the writing profession as it exists today. + +Your average modern “writer” is as likely to be writing for the local newspaper — online only! — or a company’s news blog as they are to be penning the novels you might pick up at the newsstand on your way through the airport (assuming those still even exist.) They’re more likely to be writing from a coffee shop than a library. They’re unlikely to be toting a pipe while doing so. And, sorry to break it to you, but they probably don’t own a quill. + +The images we hold about writing and writers — which probably seep into the consciousness of those of us struggling with accepting the name — could use an update. Because in a digital-first world, with ebook sales outstripping print, such media — and brand journalism — are going to entrench themselves as the _norm_ rather than the exception. + +There’s one more belief that I’d like to affirm here. + +People like me — writers saddled with imposter syndrome who haven’t figured out a way to exorcise themselves of that feeling — do writers and the writing profession a disservice. + +Because we _are_ real writers even if we haven’t gotten around to accepting it ourselves. + +Yes, even us corporate shills (I mean content marketers). And even though I may make my living from it, Oxford’s definition doesn’t mention anything about money or compensation. + +Writing has evolved. _Writers_ have evolved. + +In the name of encouraging and celebrating the evolving face of writing and the media, it’s time for all of us who write to embrace the word that best describes what we do. + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/Async-Communication--You-Mean-Those-Things-Us-Deep-Work-Folk-Already-Use-And-Love-.md b/posts/medium/Async-Communication--You-Mean-Those-Things-Us-Deep-Work-Folk-Already-Use-And-Love-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e2054a7f3d903c07d351c6bd76b8f91c295da3ea --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Async-Communication--You-Mean-Those-Things-Us-Deep-Work-Folk-Already-Use-And-Love-.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +# Async Communication: You Mean Those Things Us Deep Work Folk Already Use And Love? + +#### Async is blooming. But it just reflects the preferences that deep work enthusiasts have had for years. + +Async: the communication method of choice for deep work enthusiasts but not as new as it might seem. Photo by [Oleg Magni](https://www.pexels.com/@oleg-magni?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/macbook-pro-2764678/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Since becoming a bit more active on Twitter, I’ve felt more tapped into some of the key debates and trends that are currently shaping the future of the tech industry. + +Undoubtedly, there’s an enormous amount of discussion taking place right now about the future of the workplace. + +Virtually everybody who has a presence on LinkedIn is already thoroughly familiar with the rough dynamic: some people are cheerleading for a hybrid-first world and others love the idea of never stepping foot in an office again (that’s the fully remote side of the argument). Employees and employers are also often divided about which represents the best way forward. + +Another key discussion taking place is about the value of asynchronous communication in facilitating more effective remote work. + +The skinny of it is that after a year and a half working from home, many of us have started to realize that endless Zoom meetings — just because it’s easy to set them up — actually represents a major impediment to productivity. + +I’m delighted to see that there are many fantastic asynchronous communication tools making it to market. I’m talking about tools like Loom and Yac — to scratch only the very top layer of the surface. + +Thanks to the fact that there’s an entire movement of advocates backing these tools, they’re getting plenty of attention. + +But I also want to say that for many of us concerned with getting deep work done — the writers and ADHDers of the world, and especially the writers with ADHD! — these tools just reflect something we’ve been trying to do for a long time already. + +### Email Is The Async Tool We All Stopped Loving (For No Good Reason) + +Asynchronous communication refers essentially to any communication method that doesn’t require that both parties participate in real time. + +A Zoom meeting isn’t async because you need to interrupt whatever you’re doing in order to participate in the meeting. So, of course, does the other side. + +The problem? + +Synchronous communications encourage people to be impatient and to expect reciprocal communication immediately. + +And when enough synchronous channels are being used simultaneously in a workplace — say a boatload of Zoom meetings plus WhatsApp plus Slack as the default internal comms stack — it becomes nigh on impossible for any workers to mark out long enough stretches of uninterrupted time to get deep work done. Which is a particular problem for people like me who get paid to concentrate and write things. + +The result? A lot of action and a lot of “collaboration” but a deficit of meaningful work. Every day of the week. + +What are some other synchronous channels? + +People would argue against this point, but I’d make the case that Slack is really intended for synchronous communication. + +Yes, you _can_ use Slack like a more engaging version of an inbox for internal comms and take hours to respond to messages — that’s sometimes what I do — but you’ll quickly find that you’re the outlier among a team of instant responders. And if you’re trying to fit into a team culture, particularly one that doesn’t have the cohesiveness of working face to face, deviating from the norm can be risky business. + +And what does async look like? + +Email — that much maligned tool which remains my all time favorite mode of communication — is an asynchronous methodology. You don’t need the recipient to be there when you send your communication. + +Therefore, you can compose the message and the recipient can read it at whatever time is more convenient for both parties. At the expense of a slightly slower transition of information and back of forth, both parties can create their schedules _around_ when they need to communicate. More deep work all round. Studies bear out that collaboration _doesn’t_ have to suffer. + +### Async Is Great, But It’s An Updated Spin On An Old Concept + +At the moment, #async is one of the hottest buzzwords in technology. + +If you didn’t know better, you’d almost assume that it had dropped out of the sky yesterday. + +Energetic startup founders are wasting no time in touting its benefits. + +And make no mistake. + +I’m absolutely delighted to see the benefits of asynchronous communication being recognized. It’s long overdue. I’ve been exploring tools like Loom and Yac and encouraging as many of my clients and coworkers as I can to use them. I now have a Google search term that will dredge up the type of tools that I’m _comfortable_ communicating through. + +But while the platforms might be new, the concept certainly isn’t. + +For most of human history until this date, async was the _only_ communication that could be facilitated unless people met face to face. + +Think about telegrams (no, not Telegram!) and before phones. + +Or about SMS before tools like WhatsApp baked in the functionality to see when the other side was typing therefore creating an expectation that the other side would issue a near immediate response. + +It was the mushrooming of the newer synchronous communication methods rather that resulted in an inevitable onslaught of notifications, expectations for real time responsiveness (among an unreasonably large pool of correspondents) and the subsequent distraction and stress. + +Async is great. So are remote and hybrid working. + +As society journeys towards a workforce that much more fully embraces the latter, it’s also finding itself having to ask questions about how remote teams can most effectively communicate. + +We’re tired of sitting in often pointless Zoom meetings all day. And just as remote work often recommends a better alternative to sitting in an office during designated times, asynchronous communication can represent a better alternative to real time meetings. + +I’m embracing the change. I’m proud to see that being an email-friendly Luddite is finally almost starting to seem hip. And I’m excited for what’s around the corner in terms of tools. diff --git a/posts/medium/At-300-posts--a-roundup-of-my-recent-writing-on-Medium.md b/posts/medium/At-300-posts--a-roundup-of-my-recent-writing-on-Medium.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e9e1737f94217436fb4a7244e74460ec49a26828 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/At-300-posts--a-roundup-of-my-recent-writing-on-Medium.md @@ -0,0 +1,127 @@ +# At 300 posts, a roundup of my recent writing on Medium + +#### An index to some of my recent writing here + +Image: BJUPress.com + +This is officially my 300th (listed) post on Medium. So to continue a tradition I started when I hit a previous posting milestone, here’s a roundup of what I’ve been writing about recently here. + +### A Publication About Living In Jerusalem + +My Medium publication about living in Israel (entitled Living in Israel) continues to slowly accrue followers. + +[**Living in Israel** + _Information and perspectives about living in Israel from olim past and present._ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel "https://medium.com/living-in-israel")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel) + +Because I’m also passionate about Jerusalem specifically, I created a separate publication to house my writing — past, present, and hopefully future — about how to make the most out of living in this interesting city. It can be found here. + +[**Living in Jerusalem** + _Everything about living in Jerusalem, Israel’s capital city_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-jerusalem "https://medium.com/living-in-jerusalem")[](https://medium.com/living-in-jerusalem) + +My other publication about freelance writing continues to increase in following — and if you feel like contributing there are now guidelines for those interested in adding their voice to the information repository. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +### Some Photos From My Time Living in Israel + +This year I want to learn how to become a YouTuber. My interest is primarily hobby-based although I’m also looking at doing more professional activities in the realm of video production. + +To mix up the type of content that I share here a little, I recently authored this run-through of some images from my personal library collected over the course of my time living in Israel. + +[**I’ve Been Living In Israel For 7 Years — And All I Got Was These Lousy Photos** + _Last night, I decided to clean up my Google Photos. It was a gargantuan undertaking of sorts._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/ive-been-living-in-israel-for-7-years-and-all-i-got-was-these-lousy-photos-d581e849eccf "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/ive-been-living-in-israel-for-7-years-and-all-i-got-was-these-lousy-photos-d581e849eccf")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/ive-been-living-in-israel-for-7-years-and-all-i-got-was-these-lousy-photos-d581e849eccf) + +### Why I Haven’t Monetized This Medium Account (Yet) + +I’ve been thinking about content marketing a lot recently and consuming tons of great material. + +I’m never shy to share contrary opinions. Which is why — despite the fact that I could probably make a side income stream by doing so — I haven’t (at the time of writing!) actually monetized my writings here. + +[**Why I Think NOT Monetizing Your Passion Projects (Including Writing) Might Be The Smarter Approach…** + _Sometimes not monetizing projects is the better (but less profitable) approach_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-think-not-monetizing-your-passion-projects-including-writing-might-be-the-smarter-approach-fb71d5b2f250 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-think-not-monetizing-your-passion-projects-including-writing-might-be-the-smarter-approach-fb71d5b2f250")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-think-not-monetizing-your-passion-projects-including-writing-might-be-the-smarter-approach-fb71d5b2f250) + +[**Why I (Deliberately) Haven’t Monetized My Medium Account To Date** + _It may stand in defiance to some people’s idea of conventional logic, but I don’t see this account as part of my…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62) + +### Dealing With Fans, Haters, And Bullies As A Writer + +I recently received some fairly nasty online abuse on Reddit. + +This got me thinking that — as one shares their ideas with the world — one is likely to also encounter dissent, pushback, and abuse. + +This is the type of thing that they _don’t_ teach you in journalism school (trust me, I went!). + +This is my synopsis of the four types of reader you’re likely to encounter once you’re writing starts getting read at scale (note: I consider myself very early on in this journey, but not so early that I haven’t encountered all of these archetypal characters!) + +[**The 4 Types Of Readers You’ll Get As An Online Writer** + _What happens after you hit the publish button_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a) + +Speaking of scale and growing as a writer, here are a few tips on how to do that. + +[**3 Ideas To Help Scale Up Your Content Creation Process** + _If You’re Looking To Write More Online This Year, These Tips Could Help_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-ideas-to-help-scale-up-your-content-creation-process-c5b288a41039 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-ideas-to-help-scale-up-your-content-creation-process-c5b288a41039")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-ideas-to-help-scale-up-your-content-creation-process-c5b288a41039) + +### Housekeeping: Keeping Medium (And Reddit) Backed Up + +I’m pretty diligent about taking backups and hate the thought that any of the writing that I put effort into, and share on the internet, could one day vanish into thin air. + +If you’re interested into how to back up your Medium.com and Reddit accounts specifically, then check out these recent guides. + +(As I point out in the Medium article, at the time of writing, images aren’t included in the Medium Zip export so you should back these up separately). + +[**How to backup your articles from Medium — and one thing you should know!** +_I’ve been using Medium as a hosted blogging platform for the best part of 2 years now._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0) + +[**How To Backup Your Data From Reddit** + _For those who didn’t catch the memo, I’m a massive advocate for taking (3–2–1 compliant) backups._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-data-from-reddit-f12934fabbfe "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-data-from-reddit-f12934fabbfe")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-data-from-reddit-f12934fabbfe) + +### The Power of Inbound Marketing + +There are two themes that I’m passionate about at the moment, one personal and another professional. + +On a personal level, I’ve been reading a lot about authenticity. Becoming more transparent and honest is a constant objective of mine — and I think that one has to be authentic and honest in order to resonate with readers. + +On a professional level, I’m very excited by the power of inbound marketing. Having led an outbound-centric writing business for the past few years, I’m now transitioning to relying primarily in inbound for my lead generation and pipeline development. + +The beautiful thing is that these two concepts intersect. Inbound marketing, in effect, rewards authenticity. When you open up about yourself (or your business) you create valuable writing that resonates with the right audiences. And when that happens, you attract them into your sales funnel. + +More on why I think for freelancers in particular inbound marketing is such a powerful concept: + +[**Why Inbound Marketing Is Amazing For Freelancers (And Freelance Writers)** +_Some advantages inbound marketing has to offer for micro business units_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-inbound-marketing-is-amazing-for-freelancers-and-freelance-writers-39d195f693 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-inbound-marketing-is-amazing-for-freelancers-and-freelance-writers-39d195f693")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-inbound-marketing-is-amazing-for-freelancers-and-freelance-writers-39d195f693) + +### Is Six Figure Culture Sharing Ordinary Income Earners? + +I’ve spent a lot of time talking in America-centric online communities, particularly those involved in the world of marketing. + +One feature that always baffles me is (what seems like) the American obsession with “earning six figures.” + +At the risk of offending some family members, I wanted to open up a question: is this tendency to use “six figure” incomes as a surrogate for success shaming those who don’t hit that threshold — like yours truly (ATTOW*)— from feeling proud of their otherwise satisfactory incomes? + +[**Is “six figure” culture income-shaming ordinary earners into depression?** +_Is is time for five figure earners to rally around a hashtag to show their pride?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-six-figure-culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-a56c8202b5c2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-six-figure-culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-a56c8202b5c2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-six-figure-culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-a56c8202b5c2) + +[This was my attempt](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-this-32-year-old-entrepreneur-makes-five-figures-a-year-just-from-freelance-writing-160ce784028f) to parody the kind of discourse that often centers itself around the vociferous six figure earners. + +(ATTOW = At the time of writing. I’ve begun throwing this in almost everything I write, but life changes quickly.) + +### How To Create A Fake Online Identity + +Disinformation is emerging as a massive trend particularly given the rise of deepfakes and other manifestations of AI’s increasing ability to blur the lines between fact and fiction. + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + +I’ve also been doing a lot of thinking about online anonymity. Should we allow online anonymity at all? In light of my recent experience on Reddit, I’ve shifted in the direction of those who are strongly opposed to unfettered online anonymity. + +I believe that the social networks of tomorrow are going to have to do more to stamp out cyberbullying and abuse — and preventing entirely anonymous signups might be part of the solution. + +### How To Contact Me + +I use both regular email and PGP (end to end encrypted email). + +As my Medium account is slowly picking up followers and engagement, I wanted to have a page to direct those reading my articles to in order to get in touch with me should they wish to for any reason. + +[**How To Contact Daniel Rosehill** + _Written awkwardly in the third party for SEO purposes_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-contact-daniel-rosehill-223ffbc2b222 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-contact-daniel-rosehill-223ffbc2b222")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-contact-daniel-rosehill-223ffbc2b222) diff --git a/posts/medium/Authenticity-And-Projecting-Your-Ideal-Brand-Image--They-Don-t-Have-To-Be-Conflicting-Objectives.md b/posts/medium/Authenticity-And-Projecting-Your-Ideal-Brand-Image--They-Don-t-Have-To-Be-Conflicting-Objectives.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3a3193c8d6b99d0c8e8a91a556ea13073a7ad83b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Authenticity-And-Projecting-Your-Ideal-Brand-Image--They-Don-t-Have-To-Be-Conflicting-Objectives.md @@ -0,0 +1,51 @@ +# Authenticity And Projecting Your Ideal Brand Image: They Don’t Have To Be Conflicting Objectives + +#### Controversial or unpopular opinions may turn off some of your readers. But they may also resonate with a hyper appreciative minority — and prove more effective than adding to a chorus + +Being the odd one out doesn’t have to be a disadvantage when it comes to communications. Photo by [Monstera](https://www.pexels.com/@gabby-k?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/cutout-paper-appliques-of-sick-and-healthy-human-figures-5841972/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +During the course of the past five years, I haven’t shied away from posting things that I doubt make hiring me — or perhaps knowing me — an appealing proposition. + +I’ve previously ranted on LinkedIn about how I think that sharing photos of your corporate gift hampers to please the overlords in HR is stupid and vaguely obnoxious. Enjoy your peanuts and wine in the comfort of your own (offline) world, I have begged of my contacts. I don’t need the hamper porn. + +Ditto those effusive _“I’m so sad to be leaning my beloved job and boss”_ posts that are sprouting up like mushrooms over that network (of the toxic kind, that is). + +I think they saturate the network with inane drivel that enriches the lives of none of their readers — and so I added that to my aggregated rant too. Why must these virtue-signalling political maneuvers be broadcast to us long-suffering LinkedIn feed readers, I have asked? Save it for Slack. + +[**The 3 Most Insufferable LinkedIn Posts That Need To End Right Now** + _From old job love letters to here’s my gift hamper, the 3 type of LinkedIn posts that do my head in_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3) + +I’ve told the world — including those who may be thinking about hiring me as a writer, surely a concentration-taxing endeavor — that I was recently diagnosed with ADHD. + +[**Will Sharing Your ADHD Diagnosis Destroy Your Professional Reputation?** +_Those thinking about sharing an ADHD diagnosis–particularly the self-employed — often worry about the effect it will…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/will-sharing-your-adhd-diagnosis-destroy-your-professional-reputation-f1aa7d13a2f4 "https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/will-sharing-your-adhd-diagnosis-destroy-your-professional-reputation-f1aa7d13a2f4")[](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/will-sharing-your-adhd-diagnosis-destroy-your-professional-reputation-f1aa7d13a2f4) + +I’ve also shared among a network full of marketers (I work in marketing communications) that I think that using tracking pixels is vaguely unethical and that we, as marketers, shouldn’t wait for technology companies to take the lead in opening up an overdue conversation about whether they’re proper appendages to our automation strategies or not. Rather, I think it’s on _us_ to open up that conversation. + +[**How To Block Tracking Pixels When Reading Email On Your Android Device** + _Yay for privacy: the Fair Email Client Contains A Native Tracking Pixel Blocker_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-block-tracking-pixels-when-reading-email-on-your-android-device-1e92afc157c2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-block-tracking-pixels-when-reading-email-on-your-android-device-1e92afc157c2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-block-tracking-pixels-when-reading-email-on-your-android-device-1e92afc157c2) + +I write for fun. But perhaps at some point over the past few years somebody has wondered what my goal is here: to alienate all my potential leads? Sometime last year, when doubts about whether authenticity had a limit that I had already crossed, I gave my friend and branding consultant [Guy Gordon](https://medium.com/u/abdbf6f1683c) a ring. + +### “There’s Nothing Wrong With Putting Out A Dog Whistle To A Minority” + +Last year, Guy shared a great idea that has been guiding a lot of what I do ever since. + +Guy is busy working a taxing position at AWS (as in his job is demanding; he’s a branding guy) and I’m fitting hemming this post out in between getting ready for a trip. And so Guy has not been enlisted to retrospectively include how I paraphrased this. + +But it went something like this: + +> “If you share an unpopular opinion, it might turn off a lot of people. But sometimes that’s precisely the point. You want to speak to the minority of people that are on the same page as you about something.” + +Guy’s point has stuck with me since because it simultaneously contains a few different and all highly important points: + + 1. **Audience quality can matter so much more than audience size.** Sometimes, it’s just about finding the other grouches (note: that’s probably _not_ the strategy you want to run with). Sometimes it’s about finding the other people who may have dissenting views about tracking pixels and who may connect with you about _positive_ things regarding the intersection of marketing, technology, and ethics. + 2. **It speaks to the value of authenticity.** I’ve written before about how I see inbound marketing and authenticity as unlikely but highly complementary bedfellows. If you’re worried about how palatable your views might be to a majority — even if you dissent from it — then there’s no way you’re going to be able to leverage the power of authenticity to connect with those with whom your thinking might really resonate. Self-censorship of the kind that I’ve often thought about doing will directly impede such efforts. + +The content landscape is an increasingly crowded place. But among the many voices articulating similar viewpoints are always some that are going to advocate for a contrarian stance. + +If you find yourself among the bench minority on _some issues_ — and have things to say — then these may actually be the golden communications opportunities to connect with the people you’ve always been trying to reach. + +Being the odd one out in a debate that’s reached such a level of consensus that it’s turned into an echo chamber can actually be an advantage rather than an impediment. + +Because when it comes to engagement, authenticity and intent can trump volume. diff --git a/posts/medium/Before-you-waste-money-on-a-freelance-writing--course---read-these--free--posts-instead.md b/posts/medium/Before-you-waste-money-on-a-freelance-writing--course---read-these--free--posts-instead.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..79567d70d890ea40d9c9babba595dab5f0a9732f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Before-you-waste-money-on-a-freelance-writing--course---read-these--free--posts-instead.md @@ -0,0 +1,51 @@ +# Before you waste money on a freelance writing “course”, read these (free) posts instead + +#### Why waste money on info that’s available for free online? + +You can pay for much of this info or get it for free right here on Medium. Your call! + +Many courses that purport to “teach” hungry, desperate wannabee freelancers about how to become a successful freelancer are nothing more than get-rich-quick schemes for their (often inexperienced) creators. + +If you’d like a deep dive on the mechanics often at work: + +**Short version:** + +[**The abbreviated playbook for becoming a fake course millionaire** + _6 Easy Steps To Cash In On Your Claimed Huge Income_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-abbreviated-playbook-for-becoming-a-fake-course-millionaire-4951bc857de "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-abbreviated-playbook-for-becoming-a-fake-course-millionaire-4951bc857de")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-abbreviated-playbook-for-becoming-a-fake-course-millionaire-4951bc857de) + +**Long version:** + +[**The almost totally secret to getting FILTHY RICH as a freelance writer** + _Sports cars, Rolexes, and private jets. Follow my guide and they can be yours. Yes — even as a freelance writer!_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573) + +I post the majority of what I have learned from five years’ profitable freelancing experience here on Medium. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +Now to preempt some questions / objections you may have (yes, to free knowledge): + +**Why do I do this?** + +a) I like writing. It’s …. kinda why I got into this. + +b) Writing is a way for me to process information I’ve learned and synthesized. Thus the exercise of writing about freelance writing is to an extent self-serving. It helps me to cement and document what I know. I sometimes even refer back to my own posts! + +c) Even though I don’t charge for what I know, writing about freelancing has helped me kick off relationships with other freelance writers in the past. Sometimes this even leaves to work. Monetization and “reward” doesn’t have to be direct. + +**Why don’t I charge for it?** + +a) I make money from charging clients for writing + +b) I don’t wish to monetize what I have learned at this moment in time + +c) I (currently) like the idea of passing the baton of knowledge on for free. I also believe that if more freelance writers get a handle on how to run their businesses more effectively, we can raise rates for all of us. It’s not a zero sum game. + +With that aside, here’s some of my writing about how to make freelance writing work organized by topic. At the time of writing, all these posts are totally free and not behind the Medium paywall. + +Index with my posts organized thematically. Updated at the time of writing. I’ll probably update the post in six months’ time or so when I have more written. + +[**A (Totally Free) Guide To Freelance Writing** + _Why Pay For Free Information?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-totally-free-guide-to-freelance-writing-6294cd6d3e10 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-totally-free-guide-to-freelance-writing-6294cd6d3e10")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-totally-free-guide-to-freelance-writing-6294cd6d3e10) + +Enjoy. And if you want to like and share with your network! diff --git a/posts/medium/Beware-of-phishing-emails-in-Hebrew-.md b/posts/medium/Beware-of-phishing-emails-in-Hebrew-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cb17aa0df6ebd73aa132569e13c9aa59fac5a90d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Beware-of-phishing-emails-in-Hebrew-.md @@ -0,0 +1,25 @@ +# Beware of phishing emails in Hebrew! + +If you thought that the cybercrooks of this world were too linguistically challenged to bother attempting phishing scams in Hebrew, then think again. + +I’ve seen several reports of phishing SMS and emails sent in Hebrew over the past few weeks. + +Here’s one that I received last night that initially made me do a double-take: I hadn’t ordered anything recently from DHL, had I? + +On closer inspection I knew that this was a poor phishing attempt. + +Here are a few details, starting with the most obvious features and working back to the subtleties: + + * **The sending domain is a Japanese (aof.jp) address that isn’t DHL.** As there doesn’t seem to be a legitimate web property on this URL, I’m including it in full. + * The DHL logo looks blurry. + * Authentication is misspelled in the supposed tracking URL. It reads “authfication.” A boilerplate notification email from the real DHL would surely have been proof-read and this mistake in the URL/permalink structure spotted. + * The links at the bottom of the URL don’t resolve. + +DHL’s fraudulent email guidelines are here: + +[**Fraud Awareness | DHL |** +_Attempts have been made to defraud Internet shoppers by the unauthorized use of the DHL name and brand via email…_ www.dhl.com](https://www.dhl.com/us-en/home/footer/fraud-awareness.html#:~:text=Drag%20%26%20Drop%20the%20suspicious%20email,%40dhl.com%20as%20attachment "https://www.dhl.com/us-en/home/footer/fraud-awareness.html#:~:text=Drag%20%26%20Drop%20the%20suspicious%20email,%40dhl.com%20as%20attachment")[](https://www.dhl.com/us-en/home/footer/fraud-awareness.html#:~:text=Drag%20%26%20Drop%20the%20suspicious%20email,%40dhl.com%20as%20attachment) + +Note the first point at the time of writing: + +**Lesson learned:** automatic translation apps have made it easy to try to pull off phishing attempts using bogus emails in any language. Don’t trust an email simply based upon the language it arrived in! diff --git a/posts/medium/Book-Review--An-Experts--Guide-to-International-Protocol--Best-Practices-in-Diplomatic-and-.md b/posts/medium/Book-Review--An-Experts--Guide-to-International-Protocol--Best-Practices-in-Diplomatic-and-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..96e1edb983d48b766a33f042d5211c922581dfad --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Book-Review--An-Experts--Guide-to-International-Protocol--Best-Practices-in-Diplomatic-and-.md @@ -0,0 +1,23 @@ +# Book Review: An Experts’ Guide to International Protocol: Best Practices in Diplomatic and… + +I first learned about the existence of protocol offices when covering, as a freelance journalist, the state visit of H.M. Queen Elizabeth II to Ireland and conversing with several Department of Foreign Affairs staff members whose job it was to plan, in minute detail, the various ceremonies that the Queen and Duke were to attend. + +Since then, I have had the privilege to attend quite a few diplomatic functions held by Irish diplomatic missions and UN agencies — and to witness, again at first hand, the careful choreography and planning that precede even a brief international working visit at the ministerial level. + +These experiences, besides imbuing in me an anorak’s interest in diplomacy (and flags!), have left me with an understanding of the underappreciated importance of protocol and etiquette in both our everyday and professional lives — but _especially_ when encountering other cultures and doing business internationally and _particularly_ so when those meetings take place on the diplomatic stage. + +I didn’t have a clear learning objective when buying _An Expert’s Guide to International Protocol: Best Practices in Diplomatic and Corporate Relations_ , jointly authored by Messrs. Gilbert Monod de Froideville and Mark Verheul — two protocol experts and leading international educators in the field. However, it seemed like the best non-country-specific guide to protocol out there. And I’m certainly glad that I did. + +Despite its somewhat academic look and feel (it reminded me a little of the dry tomes I have rarely picked up since university days), the text is in fact both highly accessible, full of valuable information, and well-written. + +In conveying that protocol is as much an ever-evolving art form as it is a slavish adherence to the arcane rules of precedence that many associate it with, the authors include several interesting interviews with noteworthy protocol experts from governments and multilateral institutions around the world — explaining some of the creative thinking that has helped them avoid causing unintentional offence at international summits and other global fora. + +More broadly, the book covers, in comprehensive detail, practical matters little understood outside the world of diplomacy but which can certainly be applied in corporate life or by anybody involved in international relations or multinational business: The arrangement of national flags, understanding orders of precedence, seating arrangements, modes of address in formal writing, and the mostly unwritten but highly interesting rules regarding the exchange of gifts between different cultures and represetnatives of state. + +Granted, much of the information conveyed is almost exclusively applicable within the framework of inter-state meetings (such as the typical seating arrangements at state dinners!). But even if, like me, you work in the private sector, the information at the very least will give you pause for thought before planning your next business lunch or dinner — even if the pomp and ceremony does not quite match that of the G20 and your guests arrive in taxis rather than at the helm of motorcades. + +Even if I may never need to remember where to place the host country’s flag when displayed in a U-shaped semi-circle, or have to remember whether to start a speech in a foreign city by addressing its mayor or police chief first, having read this volume, I feel very well-equipped to navigate any future engagements on the international stage. + +In short: highly recommended, even for non-specialists. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Book-Review--Broker--Trader--Lawyer--Spy--The-Secret-World-of-Corporate-Espionage.md b/posts/medium/Book-Review--Broker--Trader--Lawyer--Spy--The-Secret-World-of-Corporate-Espionage.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3d2e9eb754348fbe15032bb76730966c5785a113 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Book-Review--Broker--Trader--Lawyer--Spy--The-Secret-World-of-Corporate-Espionage.md @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +# Book Review: Broker, Trader, Lawyer, Spy: The Secret World of Corporate Espionage + + _Broker, Trader, Lawyer, Spy_ (by Eamon Javer, Washington correspondent, CNBC) threw up conflicting feelings for me. + +On the one hand, this book did what it says on the tin: it provides a rough historical sketch of the emergence of the private intelligence industry, focusing specifically on corporate espionage. + +And yet — although undoubtedly well-written — it never quite managed to be enthralling. + +Yes, there were interesting glimmers of tradecraft and information, most particularly surrounding the techniques used by various sides during the Chocolate Price War between Nestlé and Mars (I found the fact that spies would replace the stolen trash with dummy trash quite entertaining). + +But other than that, after reaching its conclusion, I was left with the feeling that I had read a jumbled assortment of anecdotes gleaned from conversations with a potpourri of private intelligence operatives (all from a similar background with various government intelligence services). Although the firm names and operations differed, the book somewhat repetitively recounts how various retired government spies are all doing more or less the same thing: repurposing their skills in the private sector for greater compensation and selling them to the highest bidder. + +The book whet my palette enough that I would like to learn a little more about private and corporate espionage. + +But it wasn’t as enthralling or page-turning read as I had expected. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Book-Review--The-Thought-Leadership-Manual.md b/posts/medium/Book-Review--The-Thought-Leadership-Manual.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2443035048f98a0e44dbd52a6293a42432f8b3c7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Book-Review--The-Thought-Leadership-Manual.md @@ -0,0 +1,36 @@ +# Book Review: The Thought Leadership Manual + +Tim Prizeman is a Senior PR Consultant with Kelso Consulting, a UK-based PR firm. This fact will be known to anybody that makes it through ‘The Thought Leadership Manual’. + +That’s both because Prizeman mentions it a few times and because the context for this guide to thought leadership is about as British as tea and cricket. + +As a writer primarily involved in producing thought leadership material for clients, I didn’t _learn_ much by reading this book. + +But for its intended readership — those considering deploying their own thought leadership campaigns, whether for themselves or for their companies — I think that this text should provide a good and well-rounded overview of thought leadership and authority marketing. + +Prizeman bleeds plenty of good insight from his career in public relations into the latter parts of this book. + +He explains, for instance, how to attempt to gain publicity from one’s work and thinking — describing the monumental benefits of landing major TV appearances and providing a detailed PR sketch of several top-tier British publications. + +Elsewhere, he wears the hat of a statistician, covering in good detail the processes required to conduct research including when and how to engage the services of a dedicated research firm. + +The jumping around between topics keeps the text lively. Although, as an introductory work, there isn’t exhaustive detail expended on any one area. + +What there _is_ in _The Thought Leadership Manual_ is some good thinking into the overall context and purpose of thought leadership marketing. Prizeman explains why to do it, how to do it, and what benefits might accrue from those who do it successfully. + +Included, importantly, is some first-hand advice about the political considerations involved in getting thought leadership produced in large organizations. + +This is important for anybody advocating for thought leadership-related budget spend. Although it would have been good had Prizeman offered more information on how producers could demonstrate ROI, the problem that plagues much of PR and thought leadership authors in particular. + +Overall, this was a good introduction to thought leadership, and about as entertaining as a book on this topic could hope to be. + +**What I liked:** + + * Good overview of thought leadership + * Detail on statistics, internal politics, and overall context + +**What I disliked:** + + * Context could have, at times, been more global + * I felt there could have been more focus on demonstrating ROI + diff --git a/posts/medium/Call-for-Members--The-Association-of-Armchair-Epidemiology.md b/posts/medium/Call-for-Members--The-Association-of-Armchair-Epidemiology.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9ffbe0f3879868df3930c8ec04f18fb4c332b942 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Call-for-Members--The-Association-of-Armchair-Epidemiology.md @@ -0,0 +1,73 @@ +# Call for Members: The Association of Armchair Epidemiology + +[Join the Association’s page on Facebook](http://facebook.com/groups/associationofarmchairepidemiology/) + +Family and friends are familiar with the fact that — for about the past two weeks — I have been trying assiduously to avoid engaging in discussion about the coronavirus and its many implications on our lives. + +This has sometimes meant being brutally honest in order to avoid slipping into that familiar pit of conjecture and speculation. + +_“Why are Israel’s numbers so low?,”_ a family member keeps asking. So I keep repeating the only honest answer I can muster in response: _“I have no idea.”_ + + _Do you think we’ll have a vaccine this year?_ I have absolutely no understanding about how vaccines are developed — nor does the subject particularly interest me — but that would be nice wouldn’t it? + +Although the coronavirus is clearly a _sui generis_ situation for us all, my decision to minimize news exposure to it is really just a subset of my larger (mental health-driven) decision to be less responsive and cut down on the abundant avalanche of needless information that rains these days like a deluge from our smartphones, Twitter feeds, and Facebook. (And not to promote my own writing too relentlessly, but if the thought of this isn’t too big an anathema for you [consider going into flight mode](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664) …. when you’re not flying!) + +I talked about that here in case you are interested: + +[**My (Unorthodox) Productivity Resolution For This Year — Be Less ‘Responsive’!** +_So the new year has rolled around and with it will inevitably follow a slew of ‘My Top Resolutions’ posts on social…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0) + +**And speaking about the exchange of unnecessary information, I believe that this crisis has probably thrown up more of it than any time in human history.** + +If one could quantity the amount of hours spent on Zoom calls, Facebook Group threads, and (even) Medium posts by those exchanging non-expert opinions about the virus — the amount, I am sure, would be quite staggering. There is barely a safe haven online where one can fleet to to evade the prognostics, analyses, and discussion. + +It’s easy for me to pinpoint the information that I can clearly say is unhelpful because it is out of my control to change it. + +This all falls on the “noise” side of the noise:signal divide and is therefore needless mental clutter rather than actionable intelligence. And that is information that, I believe, we would all be better off not consuming. + + * When will the vaccine be developed? + * How many people are sick with the virus? (Judging by the output of news websites this question must require an hourly answer at the bare minimum). + * Is the government’s approach correct? + * What are the latest regulations which the government might announced? (These can be avoided by watching for keywords like “Expected” in headlines, as in “Government Expected to Announce X at Joint Press Conference”) + +Instead what I _would_ like to know is: + + * When can I stop having to stay within 100 meters of my front door (I would REALLY like to know that!) + * When can I get a haircut at a barber shop again — if I choose to do so (okay, I probably _need_ to do so at this stage) + * When can I go to the gym again — if I choose to do so + * When can I leave the country again — if I choose to do so + +And: + + * What can I do to minimize my chances of contracting the virus? (Because this query might yield information which I can act upon), and: + * (If I develop symptoms): can I be tested for it? + +All the rest — as the man said — is noise. + +### So I Created….A Safe Place For Fellow Non-Experts To Share Their Guesswork Online + +I didn’t (and wouldn’t) actually write this! + +Lest I hold myself up as some sort of paragon of virtue in this respect let it be known that I too have succumbed (repeatedly) to the natural temptation to interject my own mostly uninformed opinions about the virus. + +On Twitter, Facebook, and the other online haunts. + +[I have expressed fascination about the _Washington Post’s_ report that American diplomats visit](https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/14/state-department-cables-warned-safety-issues-wuhan-lab-studying-bat-coronaviruses/)ed — and cabled back their concerns over — the virology lab in Wuhan. And I quietly believe that may well turn out to be the nexus of this pandemic. + +[I have also publicly expressed my rage and ire that China has already reopened its wildlife wet markets](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-52391783) —in a move that seems to brazenly defy the obvious lesson of history taught by the SARS crisis. + +And so on and so forth. + +But, since posting my speculation, I have also finally realized that that determination will only be made by professionals schooled in epidemiology and public health — and the pushback against China’s move is happening just fine without my added dose of amateur ire. + +I realized that I needed to stop. But the cold turkey approach just seemed a little too dramatic. + +Instead, the solution which I conceived of to help us Facebook-addicted stuck-at-home internet junkies gradually wean off the natural human impulse to share our observations and beliefs about anybody willing to listen was to form a unique and first-of-its kind Facebook Group: + +[Proud Armchair Epidemiologists](https://www.facebook.com/groups/associationofarmchairepidemiology/) is that meeting place — finally a safe haven for those that have zero scientific or medical training but haven’t yet found a way to suppress their innate need to share their opinions about the virus with the world. + +Perhaps the rest of our beloved Facebook Groups will be cleaner as a result and we can all get back to …. talking about the weather. + +I leave you with the description which I authored for it: + +> Do you know better than the official advice of your government, national health authority, or world-leading scientists? Do you struggle with the burden of being the family’s authority on epidemiology — constantly having to look up Wikipedia to find answers to questions? If so, then you finally have an online safe haven. Proud Armchair Epidemiologists is the official Facebook group of the (forthcoming) Association for Armchair Epidemiology (AAE). Network with other armchair epidemiologists, offer prognostics about the evolution of public health based upon your non-existent professional training in science and medicine. And find others to share the burden with. diff --git a/posts/medium/Calls-Or-Documents--What-s-Better-For-Briefing-Creatives-.md b/posts/medium/Calls-Or-Documents--What-s-Better-For-Briefing-Creatives-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..56a966980a2ac0b29401a7ca85523cbb27df7075 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Calls-Or-Documents--What-s-Better-For-Briefing-Creatives-.md @@ -0,0 +1,71 @@ +# Calls Or Documents: What’s Better For Briefing Creatives? + +#### Which is more effective for briefing writers and other creatives? + +Receiving briefs through Zoom calls can be a very efficient workflow for creatives. Photo by [cottonbro](https://www.pexels.com/@cottonbro?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/turned-on-macbook-3205403/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’ve written before about the supreme importance of excellent briefs to the process of working with a freelance writer. + +[**How To Brief A Freelance Writer | Insights by DSR Ghostwriting** + _If you're working with a freelance writer to roll out a thought leadership or content marketing campaign, then you'll…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/how-to-brief-a-freelance-writer/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/how-to-brief-a-freelance-writer/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/how-to-brief-a-freelance-writer/) + +While freelance writing is the space that I’m most familiar with, the briefing process is used to good effect with many different kinds of creatives. These include: + + * Graphic designers + * UX consultants + * Marketing strategy advisors + +While I have a pretty firm idea about the type of information that I look for in a good brief — if you’d like to see my wish list, check out the blog above — my thoughts have changed over the years in terms of _how_ I like to receive briefs. + +### There Are Many Ways To Communicate A Brief + +I’ve pointed out previously that there are no hard and fast rules when it comes to _how_ to brief writers. + +While the traditional model is to capture a brief in the format of a document, briefs can also be communicated in just about any way that communication can, including: + + * A series of WhatsApp voice memos + * A YouTube video + * A Zoom call + * Notes written on the back of a napkin at a conference + +### The Pros Of Briefing Creatives By Document + +Before exploring _why_ you might wish to brief by video call, let’s look at the pros and cons of briefing the traditional way: by sending over written documents. + +The main ‘pro’ of briefing by document — at least in my view — is that it creates an easily accessible written record of what you required, as a client, from a project. + +Furthermore, both sides to the creative relationship — client and creative — have a copy of the brief. + +If expectations later fall out of alignment — as sometimes happened — both sides can refer back to the brief as a start point for draft number two. + +The main disadvantage of briefing by document is that it creates a slow back and forth process. If the creative has a question about the brief then they have to take the time to write an email or pick up the phone in order to solicit clarification about its contents. In other words, it’s an asynchronous form of communication. + +### The Pros Of Briefing Creatives By Video Call / Zoom + +I’m as prone to suffering the effects of Zoom fatigue as anybody else. + +I’ve lost count of the number of Zoom calls I’ve participated in this year alone. + +Repetitive Zoom calls — and smiling at new contacts from behind a webcam — tends to get tedious. + +However, increasingly I’m finding myself favoring Zoom video (or audio) calls as a means of soliciting briefs from clients. In fact, I’m actively encouraging clients to brief me this way. + +Here’s my reasoning: + + * **It can cut out one call:** The subject matter expert (SME) interview is an integral part of many writing creative projects, including producing case studies and white papers. By assembling all project stakeholders on one call, I’ve found that it’s often possible to cut out one subsequent phone/video call in the chain of briefing. Getting people together in this manner also enables a dialogue between account manager and SME. These are often different people and their expectations about a piece may differ. + * **It’s synchronous communication:** Briefing a project by video call enables a simultaneous two-way dialogue between client and creative. If you don’t understand a core part of the brief you can just ask for clarification right away. No tedious back and forth after the call. In exchange for a little bit of upfront pain — I mean a Zoom call! — you can cut out a lot of the follow-up work that comes after. + +### My Workflow For Receiving Zoom Briefs + +You may be wondering how you keep a record of briefs transmitted by video call. And the answer is easy: you record them! + +My workflow typically goes something like this: + + * **Convene a Zoom briefing call** : Calendly or some other scheduling tool is your friend when you’re trying to find a time that works for multiple project stakeholders spread out across different time zones. + * **Let people know the call is going to be recorded:** It’s much better to make this known in advance rather than springing a “can I record this?” question after the meeting is already in progress. Inform your clients that you’d like to convene a Zoom call to receive a briefing for the project and that you’d like to record the call so that you can refer back to it later, if required. Assure your client that the call recording will stay on your personal computer / in your private cloud and won’t appear anywhere publicly. + * **Record the call:** Using Zoom, you can easily record calls either to your local machine or (on higher level tiers) to the cloud. + * **Transcribe the call:** Increasingly, I use an automatic transcription service such as Rev to automatically create a transcript of the briefing call. This means that I don’t even need to playback the video. + +Receiving briefs by video / phone call has a lot of advantages over receiving them as documents — although there are plenty of clients who still prefer using the tried and trusted method for briefing creatives. + +Remember that you don’t have to pick and choose. A video brief coupled with a follow-up document can be a very effective type of workflow too. diff --git a/posts/medium/Can-Every-Business-Benefit-From-Content-Marketing-.md b/posts/medium/Can-Every-Business-Benefit-From-Content-Marketing-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9ff10fb2d64f830f10dc647de1cd5c15a5cc26bc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Can-Every-Business-Benefit-From-Content-Marketing-.md @@ -0,0 +1,96 @@ +# Can Every Business Benefit From Content Marketing? + +#### Content marketing: should every business be engaging in it or does it depend upon what you do? + +If you can write it, speak it, or record it — you may be able to use that information to your company’s advantage. Photo by [Jessica Lewis](https://www.pexels.com/@thepaintedsquare?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/ball-point-pen-on-opened-notebook-606541/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Content marketing. + +We’all all heard about how doing things like blogging and publishing online can be a great means of driving inbound attention to your business. + +If you work in marketing then you’re probably already very familiar with the typical inbound-selling _spiel_. + +Inbound is far more cost-effective outbound — think advertising — although exponents of the method typically caution against expecting immediate results. (And that would include me). + +But you may have had a question about inbound marketing that you _didn’t_ see addressed. + +**Is content marketing something that _every_ business should be engaging it?** + +Or do you have to be a technology startup to really derive good benefit from it. + +### What Can Content Marketing Do For My Business? + +At a bare minimum, content marketing can “work” wherever there’s an audience that’s trying to solve a problem — and using search engines like Google to try find resources to answer that problem. + +The basic mechanism that underlies content marketing and drives its success is usually pretty simple. + +Consumers compose search queries that tell us various things about their intention. **And it’s our job, as content marketers, to try to create _content_ that will address that search for knowledge and simultaneously lure the prospect(s) into a marketing funnel.** + +This means a few thing: + +a) **The content has to be pertinent.** It needs to contain information that’s likely to be useful to the intended readership. + +b)**The content has to be somewhat sequential or progressive in nature.** We’re unlikely to go from “first time lead” to MQL in the course of offering one blog. Therefore, we’re more than likely going to need to create a **content marketing funnel** — using multiple pieces of content to hit up on various types of prospects at different touchpoints. We should at a minimum have assets available that are intended to relate to leads at all three commonly charted points of the marketing funnel. + +So if that’s what content marketing _is_ then _where_ do we create it? The first myth to do away with is the idea that content marketing even _needs_ to be online. If we were to distribute our latest blog post in paper format at a trade show as a handout at our booth, we’d be doing a form of offline content marketing. + +In fact, this is where content marketing owes its origins to. + +If we backtrack far enough through the history of content marketing — to before a time when brand journalism was even a common term — we’d inevitably find the first references speaking about _publications_(on paper) that companies _printed_. + +[**The History of Content Marketing [Updated Infographic]** +_If you want some insights into where the content marketing industry may be headed, it might just help to take a look at…_ contentmarketinginstitute.com](https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2016/07/history-content-marketing/ "https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2016/07/history-content-marketing/")[](https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2016/07/history-content-marketing/) + +Back then, the idea of anybody but a news organization printing journalistic-style information was considered pretty revolutionary. But there’s nothing stopping most companies from employing those same tactics _today_ when we’re all familiar with major companies emulating the efforts of news media and putting together incredibly professional content — whether it comes formatted as blog posts, videos, or podcasts. + +Besides saving trees, trying to capture information online plays perfectly into one of content marketing’s major strong suits: if what you’re selling isn’t geography-restricted, it can open up customer bases virtually anywhere there’s internet connectivity. + +Of course, if we’re going to the trouble of creating lots of “content” we can do so much more than “just” attract early stage leads — even if that’s going to be the backbone of our content marketing strategy. + +For example, we can use those assets to define and build a brand, create awareness in markets where nobody’s ever heard of us or our product, and use our content assets to build and nurture a community. + +### If You’ve Ever Bought An Advertising Spot, You Should Think About Investing In Content Marketing + +One of the great beauties of content marketing lies in its extreme versatility (the other major one, relative to outbound marketing, is how cost-effective it is. But my personal favorite is the fact that it can operate mostly passively). + +By playing around with keywords — from an SEO standpoint — or angles — from a public relations ones — you can use content for very different purposes and to reach entirely different audiences. + +Have you (or your organization) ever advertised on local radio to try shore up business (perhaps whenever your seasonal demand typically ebbs)? + +If you have, then there’s a good chance you could use _local content marketing_ to try replicate that effort. + +To what extent that might succeed will depend on your business, how well you understand your target audience, and how accurately you can map that understanding onto the process of creating content that you think might match their search intent. + +But at least one generality can be offered. + +Almost all businesses with an online presence could benefit from keyword optimized web-page content — if you’re maintaining a website it makes sense to at least attempt to rank for obvious local search keywords. + +But not all local businesses are necessarily going to see results from operating a blog. + +If you repair zippers and are located in Copenhagen, then it definitely makes sense to create content trying to capture the simple low-hanging-fruit intent ‘Copenhagen zip repair.’ + +But a zip repair store — even one with a website — probably isn’t looking to sell to an international clientele. + +What you _could_ do … create zip repair articles in Danish. In exchange for useful information, you’d be positioning _your_ store as the obvious choice. + +Content marketing is all about creating good information that yields long term returns for the authoring party. + +Think about investing and consider what you could get for the cost of your last local TV or radio campaign. The yield may take longer to mature, but it’s likely to continue long past your quiet season has passed. + +[**Inbound Marketing Is Investing — For Brand-Builders** + _When you think about, developing inbound collateral and investing in financial vehicles have a lot in common_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03) + +### Where Content Marketing Can Really Shine: International Products And Services With Long Sales Cycles + +While local businesses can and _do_ use content marketing to add organic discoverability to their list of lead generation sources, content marketing really shines when we can take advantage of each of its advantages: + + * **Its reach is virtually limitless:** Assuming that things like internet access and censorship aren’t concerns, you can get eyeballs on your blog — or on your YouTube video — from almost anywhere in the world serviced by internet companies. This makes content marketing an incredibly powerful strategy for any company selling a product globally. A good example is a software as a service (SaaS) platform. + * **Complicated products with long sales cycle** : Both thought leadership and content marketing are _great_ inbound marketing approaches that can be used in conjunction whenever you’re trying to convince a B2B buyer of the value of your solution. When purchases cost millions of dollars — or far more — a long buying process can often be expected. Prospects vendors are expected to showcase their best thinking on a topic. This is where you can use both tactics to considerable advantage. + +To summarize: + + * The pool of companies who _could_ benefit from content marketing isn’t really limited by any factor other than whether the target audience(s) can be expected to use the internet to identify somebody selling a product or service. + * In fact, although that’s often the case, it’s really a false limitation. If you can find some way to get objectively interesting information in front of somebody who could buy form you (and that’s _not_ advertising) then you can find a way to drive people into content marketing funnels. + * Content marketing is an investment and its results tend to accrue over time, although they typically take a while to start bearing fruit. + * If you’re selling internationally and/or a product/service with a long sales cycle, then you can double down on the benefits you can derive from this form of marketing. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Canon-Vixia-HF-R800---adding-an-adhesive-cold-shoe-and-accessories.md b/posts/medium/Canon-Vixia-HF-R800---adding-an-adhesive-cold-shoe-and-accessories.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5317a1a6c9fff8c3590414c87194e0f03adae083 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Canon-Vixia-HF-R800---adding-an-adhesive-cold-shoe-and-accessories.md @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +# Canon Vixia HF R800 — adding an adhesive cold shoe and accessories + +#### A few cheap accessories to make the Canon Vixia HF R800 much more powerful + +The Canon Vixia HF R800 is a popular entry level camcorder among rookie videographers. + +While it _does_ support an external microphone input (albeit unpowered) it does not, unfortunately, come with any cold (accessory) shoes on the camera body. + +With an adhesive cold shoe and a few more rigging accessories, you can change that and make the camcorder a lot more powerful and versatile. + +The Canon Vixia HF R800 with an adhesive cold shoeThe Vixia HF R800 with a compact light on top of its adhesive cold shoeVixia HF R800 with light illuminated.Vixia HF R800 with shotgun microphone3 to 1 cold shoe adapter fitted into adhesive cold shoe on Canon Vixia HF R800One light and microphone on Vixia HF R800Two lights and microphone on Canon Vixia HF R800The Canon Vixia HF R800 with a light and the Comica Traxshot microphoneVixia HF R800 with microphone in rear positionThe Canon Vixia HF R800 with a microphone and light from behind. diff --git a/posts/medium/Certification-options-for-freelance-writers.md b/posts/medium/Certification-options-for-freelance-writers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..afe9809ce5f0f03702dd0441665fec671615ff45 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Certification-options-for-freelance-writers.md @@ -0,0 +1,92 @@ +# Certification options for freelance writers + +#### Options to continue your professional development as a freelance writer + +Passing a digital marketing certification can help reassure potential clients that you’re the real deal. Photo by [Lukas](https://www.pexels.com/@goumbik?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-and-gray-laptop-on-black-sectional-couch-577210/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +If you’re looking to gain a leg up on the competition in the stiffly competitive freelance writing market, you may have considered adding a certification — or a few — to your resume. + +You can use a certification to: + + * Make yourself more marketable + * Demonstrate subject matter expertise in a niche(s) + * Ensure that you understand the context within which content marketing fits + +Some of the popular options include: + +### Hubspot Academy Certifications (Inbound Marketing, Content Marketing) + +Many freelance writers these days are employed wholly or substantially in freelance content marketing writing rather than freelance journalism. + +While great writing and editing skills are a prerequisite for a career as a freelance content marketing writer, it’s also useful — if not essential — to understand the bigger picture at work, particularly if you don’t come from a marketing background. + +[**HubSpot Academy - Certifications** + _The business world moves fast. Each certification is composed of on-demand classes taught by inbound experts, ready to…_ academy.hubspot.com](https://academy.hubspot.com/certification "https://academy.hubspot.com/certification")[](https://academy.hubspot.com/certification) + +When it comes to inbound and content marketing, Hubspot sort of wrote the playbook — at least in its modern incarnation. + +In fact its CEO, Brian Halligan, is commonly credited with coining the term ‘inbound marketing’ and the company has become a recognized thought leader on the subject, maintaining a network of hugely influential blogs. + +Hubspot offers free certification tracks in a variety of areas relevant to content marketers. Screenshot: Hubspot + +By taking a Hubspot certification you can gain a deeper understanding of: + + * _Why_ clients are engaging in content marketing in the first place + * How different types of content assets you might be writing — like blogs and e-books — fit in the marketing and sales funnel + * Core principles underlying inbound marketing + +A Hubspot certification is also useful if you just want a good overview of how the various moving parts of the inbound picture — content, SEO, branding — work together to drive lead generation and, ultimately, sales. + +Besides being _free_ the Hubspot certification programs deliver lots of value. + +The inbound marketing certification option, for instance, features 34 videos and 8 quizzes. The whole curriculum also only takes 8 hours to complete — so you can comfortably fit one or multiple certifications into your workweek. + +### SEO Certifications (E.g. SEMRush) + +Most freelance content marketers have at least a basic familiarity with core SEO concepts. + +Some also take their knowledge of search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) to the next level and choose to pursue a certification track in one of these subjects. + +Note: SEO practitioners tend to differ widely in their viewpoints about how worthwhile SEO certifications are, although that’s a trend that seems to transcend subject matter. + +Some will say they’re not worth the paper they’re written on and — when it comes to SEO — practical knowledge is really what matters. Those that take this view would likely advocate that you up your SEO smarts by working on improving your own freelance writing website. + +Others see them as useful introductions and great for reassuring clients and potential clients that you know what you’re talking about. For freelance writers particularly, the latter concerns is worth considering. + +Undertaking and passing an SEO certification can be a smart career-boosting move if you’re looking to begin offering SEO add-ons to your core writing services. Examples of this kind of activity include keyword research, content strategy planning, and SEO auditing. + +SEMRush is one of the SEO giants and has this library of courses. + +[**Free online digital marketing certification exams | Semrush Academy** + _Put your digital marketing knowledge to the test and earn your certificate, a valuable addition to your CV and LinkedIn…_ www.semrush.com](https://www.semrush.com/academy/exams?spec=ALL&lang=en-US "https://www.semrush.com/academy/exams?spec=ALL&lang=en-US")[](https://www.semrush.com/academy/exams?spec=ALL&lang=en-US) + +### Subject matter certifications + +Another approach to certification for freelance writers is to take a certification to demonstrate that you know a lot about the niche that you’re writing about. + +Of course, there’s nothing stopping anybody from pursuing _both_ content marketing (or journalism)-specific certifications as well as those that are geared towards helping professionals master a subject. + +For instance, if you’re frequently writing about Amazon Web Services (AWS) and cloud computing, you might consider taking AWS’s entry-level certification, the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner. + +[**AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner** + _The AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner examination is intended for individuals who have the knowledge and skills…_ aws.amazon.com](https://aws.amazon.com/certification/certified-cloud-practitioner/ "https://aws.amazon.com/certification/certified-cloud-practitioner/")[](https://aws.amazon.com/certification/certified-cloud-practitioner/) + +A cybersecurity specialist writer may choose to pass the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) exam. + +[**Cybersecurity Certification| CISSP - Certified Information Systems Security Professional | (ISC)²** + _The CISSP is ideal for experienced security practitioners, managers and executives interested in proving their…_ www.isc2.org](https://www.isc2.org/Certifications/CISSP "https://www.isc2.org/Certifications/CISSP")[](https://www.isc2.org/Certifications/CISSP) + +Note: depending upon the subject matter and certification you’re interested in, these might involve substantially more work than a content marketing certification. + +If you specialize in a few niches, it’s worth taking a moment to consider whether you have enough work in this specialty to justify the time involved in passing an exam that only _might_ provide you with a competitive advantage versus a writer that isn’t certified. + +Professional stagnation is a risk inherent in the trajectory of a full-time freelance writer. + +But if you can couple professional growth with scaling an income, you can both achieve financial security _and_ advance your career and marketability. + +This can be particularly useful if you’re thinking about potentially going in-house — whether again or for your first time. Certifications are one of the ways to prove that you know what you’re talking about. + +**Read also:** + +[**Anxiety management as a freelancing skill** + _Why reassurance might be a necessary part of the job_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/anxiety-management-as-a-freelancing-skill-17f6c115cd "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/anxiety-management-as-a-freelancing-skill-17f6c115cd")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/anxiety-management-as-a-freelancing-skill-17f6c115cd) diff --git a/posts/medium/Challenge--today--write-something-you-know-is-going-to-attract-criticism-from-your-readers.md b/posts/medium/Challenge--today--write-something-you-know-is-going-to-attract-criticism-from-your-readers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..57917b971a9ef07bd7f07e4bf53ea7f606cd880d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Challenge--today--write-something-you-know-is-going-to-attract-criticism-from-your-readers.md @@ -0,0 +1,63 @@ +# Challenge: today, write something you know is going to attract criticism from your readers + +#### Learning to deal with unfavorable comments from readers is an essential skill for writers — can you expedite the process? + +Writing: getting used to one star reviews from your readers can be a valuable part of growing as a writer. Image: Pixabay.com + +I’ve talked before about how important becoming comfortable with criticism and even hate is for writers. + +I’ve also talked about the four type of engaged readers that you’re likely to get once you begin picking up traction online: + +[**The 4 Types Of Readers You’ll Get As An Online Writer** + _What happens after you hit the publish button_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a) + +Those are, in my view: + + * The fans + * The critics + * The trolls + * The silently engaged ones + +Dealing with criticism, and even unwarranted hatred, is one of the hardest parts of the job of being a full-time writer. It’s also something that you’re unlikely to find on the curriculum of your average journalism school. + +Sometimes, I believe professional help is warranted — particularly if it’s your first time dealing with something like readers trolling you online. But writers also need to be able to take criticism and harsh words on the chin. At least to an extent. + +One unconventional approach to get comfortable faster: write something that _know_ is going to attract criticism if it gets read widely. + +Here are two ways to do that. + +### Method 1: Share Your Most Unconventional Thoughts With The World + +An easy way to expedite the process of getting comfortable with readers who don’t like what you have to say is to voice a controversial opinion and one which you know runs contrary to conventional wisdom on a subject. + +Personally, I don’t have to work very hard at this. As a contrarian, it kind of comes naturally to me; a good deal of my opinions are what others might consider at least mildly different. + +But even if you’re not the type that’s naturally outspoken on all manner of unconventional beliefs, you probably have at least a few in the back of your head. + +Examples: + + * Why I Think Freelancers Should Avoid LinkedIn + * Social Media Has No Place In Our Lives + * A Work Free World Would Be A Better One + +### Method 2: Take A Stand On Any Lightning-Rod Issue + +I currently live in Israel. + +And if there’s an issue that divides people like no other, it just might be the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. + +If you’re on either “side” of the divide, and feel strongly about that side’s case, it’s virtually impossible to write an argument without offending scores of people. + +Assuming you’re allowing comments, they might flood into the comments section to tell you that you’re wrong and shouldn’t have written that article. And that’s your chance to learn the art of taking criticism — and possibly even hatred and ad-hominem attacks — on the chin. + +Politics is hard to write about without somebody on the other side of the spectrum taking umbrage at what you’ve had to say. But you can also write about any hot button issue that tends to divide people into for and against camps. + +Some ideas: + + * Migration policy + * Gun rights + * Animal rights + +The list, of course, is far, far longer than that. But the above are intended merely to illustrate the kind of issues that I’m talking about. + +Getting comfortable with unfavorable reader feedback is a hugely important part of the job of embracing life as a professional writer that I think doesn’t get discussed often enough. If you want to deliberately challenge yourself through exposure to that kind of feedback, consider trying the above. diff --git a/posts/medium/Channel-bonding--load-balancing--or-failover-.md b/posts/medium/Channel-bonding--load-balancing--or-failover-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4cbed74b6a93b4dc8d32cd1b75f55524c3d50205 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Channel-bonding--load-balancing--or-failover-.md @@ -0,0 +1,107 @@ +# Channel bonding, load balancing, or failover? 3 interesting methods for improving your home internet reliability + +#### Three important networking concepts that have different meanings + +An extra internet connection source and a simple load balancing router can vastly improve the stability of your home network. Photo: author. + +There’s a _lot_ of confusion among those interested in home networking about the differences between three important concepts. + +How to group three distinct ideas under one heading is a little tricky. But perhaps _“better, more stable internet”_ would be a good catch-all. + +Typically, these “advanced” networking setups have been the preserve of business users who need to adhere to minimal downtime — sometimes by statutory decree although more often by service level agreements (SLAs) which they conclude with their customers. + +An example of the former might be any utility in the critical infrastructure sector — say a power provider or an ambulance service. These users _have_ to stay online all of the time or lives are lost. An example of the latter might be an internet service provider (ISP). If these infrastructures go offline too frequently, they tend to go out of business. + +The pandemic has blurred the divisions between home users and business users — for instance, you’re running a home-based business. And more non-enterprise users are looking towards these kind of setups to improve connection reliability beyond what any one provider in their geographical radius can manage. + +These connection strategies are enormously popular in locations not well-served by traditional connectivity options. Disproportionately those interested in this kind of thing live in places like rural Nevada, India, or the Australian outback. But you can also find yourself in the middle of a city without any means to stable connectivity. + +All three strategies listed below attempt to achieve much more reliable internet and do so by aggregating connectivity sources. This is called WAN aggregation although methodologies used to pass on that connectivity locally divide into a number of different approaches. + +Some good news: there are no rules as to what combination you can choose in this networking mix and match: + + * My setup utilizes a DSL-based ISP and combines it with a cellular network. In parts of the world where cellular connectivity is both cheap and widespread — like where I’m based — this is probably the most logical option. + * You could also use satellite-based connectivity, like Starlink, backed up by cellular. + * Or you could use two over-land internet solutions: say a primary fiber optic connection. Those new to fiber-optic connectivity often assume that they don’t need to supplement their connection for robustness. So as a reminder: speed does not equal reliability. + +I’m wont to pass on others’ knowledge without proper attribution — that’s called plagiarism. The home networking subreddit (/r/homenetworking) has been instrumental in refining my own understanding of where the divisions lie between these various approaches. + +They’ve also confirmed what I suspected — that there’s a lot of misinformation out there on the internet which is why I’m writing this explainer. Many enthusiastic YouTubers have posted videos bragging about their spectacular “bonding” connection — and how they’ve been able to aggregate connections — when all they’re doing is using multi-threading to load-balance _one_ connection among several WANs. + +Normal internet usage — say browsing — doesn’t utilize connection threading. So to claim that this is “speeding up internet” is either disingenuous clickbait. + +Most articles describing these three terms have been written for IT professionals. The purpose of _this_ piece is to attempt to make things a little more relatable + +### What is channel bonding? + +When many think about what they would _like_ to be able to do with multiple connectivity sources, it’s adding one WAN (wide area network source) onto another and stacking together the “pipes” to yield one superior and faster connection. + +For instance: if we have a 50/5 ISP line (this denotation means 50 Mbps download 5 Mbps upload) then wouldn’t it be great if we could combine that with a 20/10 cellular line to achieve a connection that consistently delivered 70/35? + +Channel bonding is the approach that comes closest to achieving this networking pipe-dream (get it?). + +But there’s one major catch: + +We can aggregate multiple connections on _our_ hardware. But we need _another_ piece of hardware sitting in the cloud — basically anywhere on the internet side of our LAN — to split up the packets and diverge them to the various WANs. + +If this sounds complicated, it’s because it is. If you always wondered why you couldn’t just “combine” multiple internet connections — say an ethernet line and a WiFi network — now you know that: a) you _can_ but b) it’s not that easy and you need some technology to make that work. + +Thankfully, you have two options: + +a) Speedify is a SaaS solution that specializes in connection bonding. For those new to this world, it will look and feel a little bit like a VPN. That’s because it has to utilize a server it manages to do the packet splitting. + +b) If you’re more technically literate and into open source, then check out a project called OpenMPTCProuter. This is going to be more complicated but _you_ will be in charge of the networking stack and not a third party. + +[**OpenMPTCProuter** + _Changes: BBR2 alpha support for 64bits processor OpenVPN UDP Bonding support V2Ray update TCPdump web interface…_ www.openmptcprouter.com](https://www.openmptcprouter.com/ "https://www.openmptcprouter.com/")[](https://www.openmptcprouter.com/) + +Here’s a diagram, from the project, showing how the connectivity is intended to work: + +c) You can find an ISP that supports connection bonding. These ISPs will bond connectivity _upstream_ of where they deliver it to you. This is by far the easiest approach as you just need to subscribe to an ISP. The downside: you don’t get the same total control over what options are available. + +### What is load balancing? + +For those managing _servers_ or cloud computing resources, load balancing is an enormously relevant concept. Today, in fact, it’s considered foundational. + +When multiple internet users attempt to access a group of servers, it makes sense to split the traffic up _between_ different servers hosting those resources so that no one server becomes so overloaded that it can’t _serve_ traffic. + +The good news is that you can mimic this concept on your local network — simply by provisioning multiple connectivity sources and then purchasing a router that supports load balancing. + +Just as a load balancer in a data center will handle multiple incoming requests and use some form of logic to determine which local resource(s) to send them too, you can use a load balancing router to pull in connectivity from different internet connectivity sources and determine which resource on your local network should get internet from where. + +Various business-grade routers can be purchased that support load balancing out of the box. In fact, most of them do. + +Look for: + + * Load balancing routers + * Wired routers + * Business routers + * Ethernet routers + * VPN routers + +Pour over the spec sheets and see if load balancing is a feature. + +If it is, then you’ll be able to load balance. Probably in one of several ways: + + * You can send different WANs to different computers on the local network. For instance, all desktops could pull connectivity from WAN 1 while all IP phones could pull connectivity from WAN 2. + * You could configure application-level load balancing. + +When you’re using an application that supports threading, it can configure separate streams to pull in connectivity from different sources. Standalone download managers typically offer this feature regardless of what operating system they’re built for. + +In this use case, simply load balancing _could_ improve your connection speed. But it won’t offer the fluidity of channel bonding. + +### What is connection failover? + +Failover is the simplest of the three approaches. + +When connection A fails (example: ISP) we’ll move connectivity over to connection B (example:cellular/satellite). + +In order to determine when one line has failed, the router supporting this feature will typically “ping” an IP address — or a DNS server — at regular intervals. + +When the pings start failing, it knows that the connection is no longer operable and automatically switches it over. + +Typically these routers also support a configuration manager in which you can mark which internet connection will be your primary connection source and which will be your secondary one used for providing a backup line. + +Channel bonding, load balancing, and failover are three forms of “enhanced” connectivity that utilize multiple wide area network (WAN) sources — connections to the internet — in order to improve the stability and reliability of a local internet network. + +Channel bonding requires the most configuration as there needs to be hardware on the WAN side. Load balancing can manage multiple WANs more intelligently. And failover simply ensures that one WAN can be used to back another WAN — or a few of them. diff --git a/posts/medium/Charging-Freelance-Writing-Clients-Per-Word---Pros-and-Cons.md b/posts/medium/Charging-Freelance-Writing-Clients-Per-Word---Pros-and-Cons.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9dd680bba53e5ef809264102450a2d727f3d397f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Charging-Freelance-Writing-Clients-Per-Word---Pros-and-Cons.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +# Charging Freelance Writing Clients Per Word — Pros and Cons + +#### Does Journalism’s Gold Standard Make Sense in Content Marketing? + +If you’re developing a pricing structure as a freelance writer, then you’ve probably considered one of three pricing strategies: per word, per hour, and per project. + +For full details on all of those see this post: + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +One of the classic pricing models, which newbie writers always seem attracted to, is the idea of pricing per word. At ten cents per word, this sentence would earn me enough money to buy a can of Coke. What’s not to love about that (you might wonder)? + +Here are some reasons it’s good. And some reasons it’s not. + +Pricing per word: it’s easy to understand + +### It’s Traditional + +These days, many writers — including this one — ply their trade for the most part by writing for businesses and agencies. However many of today’s crop of content marketers have backgrounds in ‘editorial’ (journalism). + +Pricing per word is a common methodology used throughout the journalism world. If you want to get a feel for how much publications are paying these days, then check out WhoPaysWriters.com: + +[**Who Pays Writers?** +_An anonymous, crowdsourced list of which publications pay freelance writers, and how much._ whopayswriters.com](http://whopayswriters.com/ "http://whopayswriters.com/")[](http://whopayswriters.com/) + +For freelance content marketing writers that have made the transition from the news industry, charging clients per word is a tried and tested method for earning revenue from their words. What many are unprepared for is the fact that the rates commonly paid for content marketing pale in comparison to those which major publications pay. + +All is not grim in FreelanceLand, however. Content marketing offers an abundance of work. Just don’t expect the gold-standard dollar per word rates: at least until you work your way up to the very top rung. + +### Why Pricing Per Word Is Good + +#### 👍 Great For Stimulant Abusers + +If you like to hammer out words quicker than you can say ‘I just made a dollar typing this’, then pricing per word might work in your favor. + +If you’re fast typist — like me — and happen to have a rampant caffeine pill addiction — possibly like me — then pricing per word can be a goldmine. + +Clients needn’t be privy to the inner workings of your freelance life, such as aforementioned caffeine-fueled writing binges that last into the small hours of the morning. + +In other words: if you’re consistently fast then charging clients per word can let you profit from your speed + +Those reading this might object: _“stimulant abuse isn’t a viable long term strategy.”_ To which I would agree. They might also say: _“that’s kind of scamming your clients.”_ I would disagree with this point. + +Pricing per word allows you to capitalize on your experience. As you accrue more experience, you get faster — and your actual hourly rises as a result. I would argue that this is perfectly legitimate, in much the same way as more experienced salaried workers receive periodic pay rises as their value increases to an organization. + +However: + +### 👎 You Only Get Paid For The Writing + +However quick you are at typing, if you’re getting paid by the word, then nobody is going to be paying you for the two hours you need to spend doing background research in order to be able to write that article at lightning pace. + +As you grow as a freelance writer and work on progressively more challenging projects, you will probably find that more background research is required than when you’re starting out. + +Your per-word rate only covers the writing. You won’t receive compensation for: + + * Meetings that are required as part of the project + * Subject matter expert (SME) interviews required as part of the project + +### 👎 It Discourages Brevity + +In the word of Mark Twain:_‘I didn’t have time to write a short letter, so I wrote you a long letter.’_ + +There’s something extremely satisfying about figuring out how to communicate your thoughts succinctly. + +It’s one of the key skills that we, as writers, should always be trying to develop. + +### When Pricing Per Word Makes Sense + +For clients, per-word pricing allows them to control costs. In order to do this they need to: + + * Negotiate a per-word rate with the writer + * Specify a maximum word limit for each piece + +For writers, per word pricing makes sense if they like to write fast and long. This can be a good way of disguising quick work. It also allows them to receive justifiable reward for their experience. As they get progressively more experienced and faster, their actual hourly rate goes up: because the time divisor gradually decreases. + +On the flip side, this pricing structure doesn’t compensate writers for the hours they can spend on research. As such, it should be used with caution. diff --git a/posts/medium/Christmas-in-Jerusalem--2021--photos--videos-.md b/posts/medium/Christmas-in-Jerusalem--2021--photos--videos-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c3b7cc32122c5c73ac96c326dbaf33470b9c5b1c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Christmas-in-Jerusalem--2021--photos--videos-.md @@ -0,0 +1,29 @@ +# Christmas in Jerusalem, 2021 (photos, videos) + +#### With reduced pilgrim foot-traffic, Jerusalem was awash with locals partaking in the festive spirit + +The holiday season here in Jerusalem was once again a subdued one, with Israel’s aggressive travel restrictions intended to mitigate the spread of the Omicron variant preventing the usual influx of pilgrims visiting the Holy Land around Christmas. + +The restrictions had an unexpected effect: traditional Christmas venues like Nazareth — the Biblical town that is also known as the ‘Arab capital of Israel’ — were swarmed instead by Jewish Israelis, many of whom remarked positively on the experience. + +In Jerusalem, the Municipality put on an open-air Christmas Market just inside the New Gate. + +The New Gate Christmas Market. Photo: author. + +The streets were adorned with festive decorations and the area has recently been somewhat revitalized by the addition of several new nightlife venues. + +Taboon and Wine is one of the new nightlife venues that has opened inside the New Gate of Jerusalem’s Old City. They serve both wine and beer. I bought a half lifter of Taybeh Gold for 30 NIS. Photo: author.The New Gate provides access to the Christian Quarter. + +For those looking for Christmas trees, some stellar examples could be found at the YMCA, the Notre Dame Pontifical Institute, and the Feel Beith coexistence center in Abu Tor (this is by no means an exhaustive list!). + +The Notre Dame — a popular pilgrim hotel that has been under Vatican ownership since the 1970s — recently upgraded the menu at its Wine and Cheese Restaurant and has also opened access to its rooftop. + +For 10 NIS patrons can experience a majestic view over the Old City of Jerusalem stretching eastwards towards Damascus Gate and the east of the city. + +The Christmas Market inside New Gate as seen from the Notre Dame’s rooftop. Photo: author.This year’s Christmas tree at the Notre Dame in Jerusalem. Photo: author.A longtime favorite of pilgrims visiting the Holy Land, the Notre Dame has been managed by the Vatican since the 1970s and includes a wine and cheese restaurant and rooftop viewing position on premises. Photo: author.The Cheese and Wine Restaurant at the Notre Dame was decorated fro Christmas. Photo: author. + +### YMCA Christmas Decorations 2021 + +The Jerusalem YMCA was also well-decorated and busy as usual with a Christmas market and other activities. + +The YMCA in Jerusalem. Photo: author.A sign advertising the YMCA’s Christmas Market. Photo: author. diff --git a/posts/medium/Client-Prospecting-Tips---5-Questions-to-Ask-About-Your-Prospects.md b/posts/medium/Client-Prospecting-Tips---5-Questions-to-Ask-About-Your-Prospects.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ec8f4ed34e3670828a5d56ac4544fe60f2167262 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Client-Prospecting-Tips---5-Questions-to-Ask-About-Your-Prospects.md @@ -0,0 +1,127 @@ +# Client Prospecting Tips — 5 Questions to Ask About Your Prospects + +The current economic downturn has got many freelancers (including this one — [hit me up](https://www.dsrghostwriting.com)!) thinking that it’s time to ramp up our outreach and look for more work. + +**In fact, if you are a freelancer, I would argue that there is virtually no reason why you should be looking for more business right now.** + +This is because of what I call**Counterintuitive But Painfully True Freelance Axiom Number One** which states as follows: Even during periods when one is at maximum capacity one should continue prospecting for work. (What happens if you are too successful at this? You might curse your diligence at the time. But this quandary can usually be solved by buying yourself a large supply of coffee, and locking yourself in a room for a week or two. Just before you feel like you’re about to have a nervous breakdown, look into whether your contracts allow for outsourcing). + +But why put yourself through such potential mental anguish, you might be wondering? + +Because of something known as **Murphy’s Law — The Freelancer’s Version** which states that _“even if your client base is well diversified (and that’s Freelancing Axiom Three) work tends to have a habit of dropping off — and surging back up — at the most inconvenient of times.”_ + +Clients can tank concurrently just when you’ve bought a new car or well up, without forewarning, just as you’re about to head away for some well-deserved R&R (and in this case I advocate that you disconnect and take the time off.) + +**In other words, irrespective of whether you’re currently twiddling your thumbs and binging on Netflix or you have more work than you can handle you should probably go out there and start prospecting.** Sorry to rain on your Netflix parade. + +But of course one should always strive to work smarter rather than harder. + +So in that vein here are a few clever questions that might help to guide that initiative. + +### 1\. Is This Prospect Likely To Have A Budget? + +It’s hard to write this without sounding like a bit of a judgmental (expletive) — particularly during these straitened economic times. + +However, hitting up large trenches of clients that have no reasonable prospect of paying your professional rates is a sure-fire recipe for frustration. + +[**Know Your Freelance Client (KYFC): Basic Due Diligence For Freelancers**](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0) [_If you started the new year on a quest to scale up your freelance business, then you’re probably on a business…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0) + +In “ [Know Your Freelance Client: Due Diligence for Freelancers”](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0) I provided a methodology that can let you do some serious sleuthing into whatever companies or individuals you might end up working for. + +The premium version of my online intelligence-gathering package is pretty darn intense and would give an FBI background check a good run for its money (just kidding). But in virtually all cases — unless you’re looking at taking on a large project for a very long time, that is — there’s no need to go the full nine yards. + + * **Very early stage ventures, like seed-funded startups, are often jealously guarding the limited resources that they have.** These are probably not mature enough to approach yet. (If you’re looking to command reasonable rates, that is). If you’re a creative, like me, then you probably already know that in a budget allocation battle with developers we usually lose out. + * Even more mature startups might not yet be investing heavily in sales and marketing. In fact, there’s a good chance that they’re not making very much money at all. And until they do, again, budgets tend to be either constrained or spent very inconsistently. + +Rather, you can just bear the following axioms in mind: + +Some of the basic information you’ll need to attempt to appraise how a company is likely to be doing financially is thankfully in the public domain. + + * Press releases announcing funding rounds. + * Private tax returns — if you can buy them. + * Funding history. + +You can look at things like: + +#### ⬆️ How you can leverage this: + + * Find companies that _are_ turning a profit, or those that are well-funded enough to be taking what you do seriously. Target those in your outreach. + +### 2\. Who Does X’s Marketing? + +It also makes a lot of sense to consider what services provider might already be tending to a lucrative account. + +At the enterprise level of scale, there can be an entire ecosystem of agencies and independent providers all making various parts of the jigsaw fit together. + +A large company’s marketing team, for instance, may variously draw upon the input of strategic marketing consultants, freelance writers, SEO specialists, and various PR firms — sometimes with different firms even covering different media markets. + +Unfortunately the more long standing these relationships the more difficult they can be to dislodge. + +If you’re _really_ interested in working with a prospective client then this information might also fall into the purview of things you will have to find through closed sources (ie, the information is not in the public domain). If you have a contact at the company it might be worth asking who’s doing X. If it’s handled in-house but the team is bursting at the seams of its capacity, then you might have a possible ‘in’. + +How can you figure this stuff out besides taking people for coffee or working your Rolodex? + + * “our clients” + Microsoft + * inurl:clients + Microsoft + +**It’s usually in the service provider’s interest to brag about the fact that they provide services to Y** — and not those of the company. Trying some reverse lookups using this technique may be fruitful. Some queries I would consider running if I were trying to get a feel for what kind of agencies Microsoft use, for instance, might be: + +If you like the look of the agency it might be worth dropping them a pitch and making note of the fact that you were impressed by the fact that their client list included Microsoft. Might they need some additional resources to help service the account? + + * **Look for the companies that seem to be lagging behind the pack in terms of their marketing efforts.** Ramping up might already be on their agenda and your approach could be well-received. + * **Alternatively try to slot in with a major provider’s agency.** Down the line, you might be able to leverage this to your own benefit. Although the anti-compete clauses you might be required to sign might in practice limit how far that ‘line’ stretches. + +#### ⬆️ How you can leverage this: + +### 3\. What Does X Put Out? + +The next step in your intelligence-gathering effort might be taking a careful look at the resources that a company you are interested in working in has put out. + +The above screenshot is of[ VMWare’s technical paper library](https://www.vmware.com/il/techpapers.html) at the time of writing. + +Quick psychological side-note here: if you’re thinking about approaching a company, then don’t worry about coming off as being creepy by seeming too ‘well informed’- this is a neurotic concern that plagued me for no good reason for years and still to a small extent does. This isn’t school (or online dating) and a basic amount of internet-plumbing is fair due diligence. In fact, the company would more likely be impressed by the lengths you have gone to in order to know what they are doing marketing-wise. + + * 👍 **The company may be rocking things in the marketing department**. If a company looks to be very ‘well-covered’ then it’s naturally a little bit harder to make the case that they might need additional resources. If there’s a piece of writing that really resonated with you feel free to point it out. Of course, they’ll be more interested to know what you might be able to _add_. So if you have had some brainwaves, then feel free to drop those into the pitch. + * 👎 **The company may be putting very little resources into the marketing department**. This is sometimes — not always! — the result of a disdain for marketing (or your area of focus) from ‘on high’ or due to a poor budget allocation. Your approach here naturally needs to be somewhat more tactful. Pointing out to a company that their blog flat-out sucks, is littered with typos, is unlikely to win you any internal cheerleaders. However pointing out the potential _value_ of what your contribution could bring, without explicitly mentioning the fact that they aren’t doing that, is likely to be a more successful conversation-warmer. + +There are a few insights you might glean from this process: + + * There’s always room for improvement: have some thoughts ready on what high-performing marketing teams could be doing better. + * Look for companies that aren’t quite thriving yet in your area of expertise — but those that are not in that bracket because of internal resistance, which can be almost impossible for an external provider to try to displace. + +#### ⬆️ How you can leverage this: + +### 4\. What Are Their Competitors Doing? + +You can’t discern what trends are happening in an industry just by looking at one provider. + +As I mentioned above, it helps to come with suggestions ready to bring to the table. And — if you’re looking to make a positive contribution to a company that you are _excited_ about the potential of working with — to understand what are the major trends shaping their industry at the moment. + +In general, companies pay close attention to what their competitors are up to. So it can be advantageous if you can demonstrate that you already understand what’s happening in the industry — **and more advantageous still if you have some ideas to float about how your prospect can do things better than those they are in competition with**. Most companies aspire to be the dominant player in their niche. And almost all companies - + +no matter what they tell you — have some form of competition. **If they don’t, then their problem is likely to be convincing customers that there is a need for the product or service they sell.** Assuming that you live in a free market economy, you will find that the more old and jaded you become the more you become convinced that most genuine needs are already being addressed by somebody — or multiple players. + +#### ⬆️ How you can leverage this: + + * **Look for the companies that seem to be lagging behind the pack in terms of their marketing efforts.** Ramping up might already be on their agenda and your approach could be well-received. + * **Alternatively try to slot in with a major provider’s agency.** Down the line, you might be able to leverage this to your own benefit. Although the anti-compete clauses you might be required to sign might in practice limit how far that ‘line’ stretches. + +### 5\. Who Are They Failing To Reach? + +Most medium to large organizations have developed a series of well-developed buyer personas. And their go to market (GTM) strategy likely provides a high level of detail — usually backed up by empirical market research findings — as to who those likely to be interested in their product are. + +Of course, we can also all think of a few examples of major brands that have done a horrible, tone-deaf job of attempting to reach certain demographics= such as Generation X and millennials. + +In other instances, a company might be preparing for a push into a geography you’re familiar with (or live in). Could you leverage your understanding of the local market in order to help the company build resonance and connect with the right influencers. + +These are all business opportunities which you might be able to leverage in your initial outreach. As always, make sure that the tone is appropriate and doesn’t put down any effort the company might currently be engaging in. But don’t be shy in highlighting the direct value that you could bring in helping them reach further milestones along the way. + +### A Little Thinking Can Save a Lot of Grunt Work + +For many freelancers, prospecting represents a massive and sometimes very time-consuming effort that detracts from allowing them to do whatever they truly excel at. + +However — unless you’re in the position to afford a sales and marketing team — this is a duty that is going to fall squarely on your shoulders (along with balancing the cheques and keeping your computer well-updated). When touting for business, it’s important to couple smarts with hard work. + +Consider asking the above five questions in order to maximize the chance that your communications will fall into inboxes that are likely to be interested in your expression of interest — rather than annoyed by it. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Code-Red-Thought-Leadership-Study--For-IT---Cybersecurity---Study-Findings--And-Podcast-.md b/posts/medium/Code-Red-Thought-Leadership-Study--For-IT---Cybersecurity---Study-Findings--And-Podcast-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2780f7cccf656707bce477e1bf71cdb8157a7faa --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Code-Red-Thought-Leadership-Study--For-IT---Cybersecurity---Study-Findings--And-Podcast-.md @@ -0,0 +1,43 @@ +# Code Red Thought Leadership Study (For IT / Cybersecurity): Study Findings (And Podcast) + +International cybersecurity PR network Code Red recently [commissioned a study](https://www.coderedsecuritypr.com/84-of-senior-it-decision-makers-are-more-likely-to-work-with-organisations-that-publish-thought-leadership-over-those-that-dont/) into how well-received thought leadership is being received among roughly 200 UK-based executives in senior cybersecurity and IT roles at large organizations. + +Relative to the longer-running Edelman/LinkedIn’s B2B Thought Leadership Impact study, which I analyzed [in the podcast/blog here](https://dsrghostwriting.com/theblog/edelmans-2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study-key-findings/), Code Red’s survey was smaller in scale. Clearly, it was also focused on a niche/industry and so its findings — although interesting — should be tempered with the caveat that they might not translate to other industries and geographies. + +While I found some (rough) overlap between what Code Red and Edelman/LinkedIn found, this study brought to light a few interesting dynamics which I explored, at length, in the podcast (below). + +### My Key Takeaways + + 1. **Thought leadership is widely consumed** , even at the executive level where recipients have many competing demands on their time: Code Red were able to peg an exact figure on how long, on average, senior executives in the UK IT industry spend consuming thought leadership per week. That number, [in the podcast](https://open.spotify.com/episode/50TKTUxWATZeRAvYCnBAKv), might surprise you. + 2. **Thought leadership increases the probability of winning business**. And of landing better paid business too. + 3. **Podcasts and video** are rapidly displacing more traditional formats, like trade media publications, as the preferred means of consuming thought leadership — while (in this particular industry and geography) case studies are the most favored of all the formats. This rebuts the notion that more traditional audiences — like CISOs at large enterprises — have more traditional preferences for consuming this kind of information than their more junior cohorts. I suggest that this finding should be leveraged regardless of which format producers are writing for [in the podcast](https://open.spotify.com/episode/50TKTUxWATZeRAvYCnBAKv). + 4. **There’s real opportunity for small business and startups to gain executive attention from enterprise technology leaders if they can pull off thought leadership well.** Quantitatively, SMBs and startups have the ear of decision makers at large organizations — if they can drum up the resources to produce compelling enough insights, package them correctly, and market them through the right channels. Executing thought leadership well is easier said than done. But the potential upsides, especially for smaller organizations, are certainly there. + 5. **Thought leadership can confer easy competitive advantage** for those that are willing and able to do it well. + 6. **Relationships are pivotal to thought leadership’s reception.** This is a factor that I didn’t see Edelman/LinkedIn hit on in their report — and the effect is exaggerated when the readers are C-level executives who report, in large majority, that their relationship with the thought leadership author is very important to whether they afford it attention or not. This represents an opportunity for sales and marketing resources producing thought leadership to work in closer alignment to ensure that high value leads are properly primed to receive the thought leadership an organization is investing resources in producing. As I pointed out in the [previous episode](https://open.spotify.com/episode/2ZvR9Bvq34dG2pBCxjKxX5) of the podcast thought leadership and content marketing are not synonymous and both require different approaches to be effective. + +### **Other Findings** + +There were other findings too, although I think that these are less interesting and widely applicable: + + * Thought leadership in the study’s area of focus (the UK IT and cybersecurity industry) seemed to be performing well above the rather dismal average satisfaction figures that Edelman has repeatedly reported. + * As Edelman found, thought leadership, done well, can help realize both soft wins (enhanced ‘reputation’) and tangible business gains (premium on services bought). + * Within the technology industry,**those reading the thought leadership seemed more interested in thought leadership that focused on preventative themes** (how to secure the cloud) rather than outlines of problems (e.g. data breach summaries, for instance). This is unsurprising given that the Edelman study made clear that thought leadership needs to contain some original insight — and so outlining a problem that the reader already knows about, or has read about in the news, doesn’t suffice. As Edelman underscored, poor thought “leadership” — that neither contains much original thinking nor demonstrates much leadership — could even harm the producer’s reputation. + +### Concluding Thoughts + +Code Red’s inaugural look at thought leadership’s reception among a UK-based senior-level cybersecurity audience is a welcome contribution to the growing body of empirical evidence about what makes thought leadership tick — which is important given that Edelman’s study showed that those in the producing seat of thought leadership often struggle to articulate and quantity its value to prospects. **Being able to point to what works, from multiple perspectives, is advantageous to producers for that reason and can also clearly enhance their efforts on behalf of their clients.** + +Nevertheless, it is important to understand that this was a **relatively small scale look at how thought leadership is performing amidst a relatively narrow sample size** — both geographically (the UK) and by industry. The enormous gulf in how respondents rated the quality of thought leadership they read vis-a-vis the Edelman/LinkedIn study is intriguing. Perhaps closer relationships between producers and consumers in a relatively small industry is an explanatory factor. + +Without wishing to extrapolate the findings too broadly beyond their original context it would seem as if **startups and smaller organizations should be doing more to publish and disseminate their thought leadership.** The finding about how important relationships are is interesting and should underscore the importance of sales and marketing teams working in concert to open up conversations with B2B leads in protracted sales processes. Effective thought leadership can steer both hard and soft metrics in a favorable direction — and the snowball effect of enhanced reputation should also not be discounted. + +### Additional Resources + +[**Code Red Thought Leadership Study (For Cybersecurity): Study Findings** + _International cybersecurity PR network Code Red recently commissioned a study into how well-received thought leadership…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/theblog/code-red-thought-leadership-study-for-cybersecurity-study-findings/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/theblog/code-red-thought-leadership-study-for-cybersecurity-study-findings/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/theblog/code-red-thought-leadership-study-for-cybersecurity-study-findings/) + +[**Think you know thought leadership? eBook** + _New independent research commissioned by Code Red amongst 200 UK security decision-makers shows the most successful…_ www.coderedsecuritypr.com](https://www.coderedsecuritypr.com/thought-leadership-ebook/ "https://www.coderedsecuritypr.com/thought-leadership-ebook/")[](https://www.coderedsecuritypr.com/thought-leadership-ebook/) + +[**2020 B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study** + _B2B decision-makers and CXOs told us that strong thought leadership content not only strengthens a company’s reputation…_ www.edelman.com](https://www.edelman.com/research/2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study "https://www.edelman.com/research/2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study")[](https://www.edelman.com/research/2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study) diff --git a/posts/medium/Content-Creation--The-Best-Means-Of-Open-Sourcing-Your-Life-s-Thinking--And-Knowledge-.md b/posts/medium/Content-Creation--The-Best-Means-Of-Open-Sourcing-Your-Life-s-Thinking--And-Knowledge-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2cfb10128fd9060b873d2146274cc30b540e38db --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Content-Creation--The-Best-Means-Of-Open-Sourcing-Your-Life-s-Thinking--And-Knowledge-.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# Content Creation: The Best Means Of Open Sourcing Your Life’s Thinking (And Knowledge) + +#### An argument in favor of sharing just about anything that might be of interest to other humans + +How and why creating content on the internet can be a way to open source your life and thinking — particularly as it evolves. + +I posted here a few days ago about the value I see in open sourcing information: + +[**Open Sourcing Isn’t Just For Code — The Value Of Sharing Know-How Even When (Almost) Nobody Is…** + _Why I Believe In Posting About Obscure Topics That I Know Few People Care About_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/open-sourcing-isnt-just-for-code-the-value-of-sharing-know-how-even-when-almost-nobody-is-bfdafba1aaf2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/open-sourcing-isnt-just-for-code-the-value-of-sharing-know-how-even-when-almost-nobody-is-bfdafba1aaf2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/open-sourcing-isnt-just-for-code-the-value-of-sharing-know-how-even-when-almost-nobody-is-bfdafba1aaf2) + +I explained how that belief has grown out of the fact that I’ve been using Linux for well over ten years. + +Technology may have been the wellspring, but the power of sharing what you know freely with others is an idea that has come to permeate my thinking and touch upon topics far beyond that domain. + +Or otherwise put: Having benefited quite significantly from the technology that other Linux users have released to the community for improvement and derivation, I like to try to do the same thing myself. + +My policy is therefore roughly this: + +If I don’t need to monetize knowledge, I don’t monetize it. Like many, to pay my bills, I monetize selectively. Unlike some, I don’t jump at every monetization opportunity that exists in today’s world. If I feel like something I write or share could help somebody and the potential payoff is small (see: paywalling Medium articles), I generally go for sharing. The return I get from relationships started is higher than small checks. + +Here are a few smatterings of that. + +A small trove of knowledge (un-paywalled, at least at the time of writing): + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +And to give a technical example, the actual backup strategy I use and which I shared on Github: + +[**GitHub - danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy: A markdown file summarizing my current…** + _A markdown file summarizing my current approaches for creating 3-2-1 compliant backups of my local and cloud…_ github.com](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy "https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy")[](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy) + +But there’s another reason why, over the past few years, I’ve become something of an avid content creator, creating blog posts here on Medium, videos on YouTube, and podcasts on Spotify. + +And it’s this. + +### An Argument In Favor Of Open Sourcing All Your Thinking And Just About Everything You Know How To Do + +Although my YouTube channel is tiny (at the time I’m writing this, my subscriber count, which I don’t show publicly, is just a notch north of 250), I often mention some version of this during the screencasts that I upload there about how to do various things using computers: + +> _“This may not be the best way to do this, but it’s a method I’ve discovered that works. And therefore I’m showing it in case it might also help you.”_ + +I also often mention this: + +> _“I’m recording this video as much for myself as for anybody else.”_ + +Both are true — at least for me. And I think that both are important from the perspective of open sourcing. + +#### Creating With Fervor Rather Than Sharing Your Thoughts More Selectively + +The first affirmation reflects my belief that it’s generally better to share what you know or think you know now than to wait for the point of time at which you’re absolutely sure that you’ve arrived at your ultimate conclusion about a topic. + +Why do a lot of people shy away from this? + +Because there’s no way of hiding the fact that your thinking may evolve over time. It’s all there. On show. On the record. Anybody can look back through your blog or YouTube account and see how you’ve evolved and how your opinions may have shifted. + +This Medium account is a demonstration of that point. + +I’ve written quite a number of articles about freelance writing. My publication on the subject has amassed a few followers. Recently, I affirmed that freelance writing is no longer the career path that is best helping me fulfill my objectives. + +[**Why I’ve Stopped Identifying As A ‘Freelance Writer’ — Or A Writer At All** + _Why I (Sadly) No Longer Think Freelance Writing Is A Good Space To Be In_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb) + +There’s a possibility — though right now I think slight — that I’ll write a third post in a year’s time about how I got back into writing and changed my mind. + +Would that make me look stupid? Perhaps to some. But I wouldn’t see it that way. All the perspectives I’ve shared, to my mind, are valid. They just reflected my thinking at a particular point in time. In backup terms, they’re snapshots of my thinking. Like operating systems, they change over time. + +#### Creating Documentation About Your Own Thinking And Life + +I also mention in many of my how-to videos that I’m recording this screencast because I want to be able to remember how _I_ did something. + +Recently, I shared a few videos about how I configured a basic backup (failover) internet system. I know that this is a niche topic that is unlikely to be of interest to very many people. + +Would I be able to remember all those settings changes in three months after I’ve possibly completely a whole boatload of other technical projects? Potentially not. And that’s why I took the few minutes out of my day to commit my steps to video. + +But in the process, I’m also creating a set of instructions that are now in the public domain. Anybody — whether they live in Australia or Bulgaria — can access those same instructions and follow along. + +The result? + +I’ve benefited. I now have my own documentation that I can refer back to at any time. + +Other people have potentially benefited. + +If I chose not to create that video — or any of the content or thinking I share including this post — then the potential pool of beneficiaries is zero. + +### Why Self-Censorship Is A Creative’s Worst Enemy + +Besides maintaining a social life and having hobbies, the only pressures I face to _not_ spend all my spare time creating content are two fold: + + * I have to work in order to support myself. Like most people, the majority of my time goes towards billable activities. + * I’m relentlessly critical of my own work and — despite creating a lot of ‘content’ — tend to be a tough self-censor. Before setting up my webcam to record a video or putting keyboard to (digital) page here I face a battle to get past my own thoughts that argue _“nobody cares what you have to say. There’s no point in saying it.”_ + +### What I’ve Concluded + + * **Sharing is good.** Although it’s a morbid thought, none of us are going to be around forever. It makes sense to share what we think and know with our humans. Even when those thoughts are likely to change in the future. That fact doesn’t delegitimize them. It just represents the fact that they reflect a snapshot of your thinking or experiences at a particular point in time. + * While it’s unlikely that anybody wants to read about what you had for breakfast, **I think there’s a strong argument to be made in favor of open sourcing as much knowledge as you’ve accrued throughout life.** Should you open source your bathroom habits? I think you’d be hard pressed to find anybody who would say ‘yes’ to that. So we can agree that there is a limit _somewhere_. But I’d like to suggest that it makes sense to set the threshold as low as you are comfortable with. Or slightly beneath that. + * **Be aware of self-censorship.** Like most defensive instincts, a small amount of it is probably helpful. But beyond that, it may be impeding the progress you make in your creative journey through life. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Content-Isn-t--Crap---It-s-Just-Hopelessly-Vague-.md b/posts/medium/Content-Isn-t--Crap---It-s-Just-Hopelessly-Vague-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2ea8dd8c29994747bee54fa79f80c6bce18d0290 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Content-Isn-t--Crap---It-s-Just-Hopelessly-Vague-.md @@ -0,0 +1,130 @@ +# Content Isn’t “Crap.” It’s Just Hopelessly Vague. + +#### To really derive value from content marketing, creators need to see it as more than simply a crude and cheap metric-driver + +There’s lots of bad content marketing being produced. But to do content marketing a whole lot better, it might help to stop thinking about everything you write, podcast, and video as “content.” Photo by [Kyle Loftus](https://www.pexels.com/@kalvisuals?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-man-holding-camera-inside-vehicle-3045395/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Moping around on Twitter this afternoon, I encountered one of the content marketers who I follow sharing a _Harvard Business Review_ piece by [Greg Satell](https://twitter.com/Digitaltonto/) that has undoubtedly raised more than a few eyebrows since it was first first published six years ago. + +[**Content Is Crap, and Other Rules for Marketers** + _Until fairly recently, the options for marketers were relatively limited. Mass media - TV especially - offered the…_ hbr.org](https://hbr.org/2015/10/content-is-crap-and-other-rules-for-marketers "https://hbr.org/2015/10/content-is-crap-and-other-rules-for-marketers")[](https://hbr.org/2015/10/content-is-crap-and-other-rules-for-marketers) + +In Satell’s list of unconventional “rules” for marketers to live by, he includes, as his second rule, understanding that “content is crap.” His view is a lot more nuanced — and worth thinking about — than the somewhat eye-grabbing headline belies. Check it out below: + +[**Content Is Crap - Digital Tonto** + _In a famous essay written in 1996, Bill Gates declared that content is king. He presciently foresaw that faster…_ digitaltonto.com](https://digitaltonto.com/2014/content-is-crap/ "https://digitaltonto.com/2014/content-is-crap/")[](https://digitaltonto.com/2014/content-is-crap/) + +The HBR piece includes this outstanding paragraph that was, well, music to my ears: + +_“We never call anything that’s good “content.” Nobody walks out of a movie they loved and says, “Wow! What great content!” Nobody listens to “content” on their way to work in the morning. Do you think anybody ever called Ernest Hemingway a “content creator”? If they did, I bet he would punch ’em in the nose.”_ + +I’ll come back to that later. + +For those that want to dig into Santell’s thinking beyond the headline-grabber, the second linked blog post (above) is really worth at least a deep skim. + +### The Central Problem With Content For Creators: It Commodifies Creative Expression + +Like Greg, I’ve long expressed hesitation about the now ubiquitous use of the word “content.” + +As a writer — or a recovering one — my dis-ease has centered around the kind of defiance that Santell imagines Hemingway expressing to see his literature be referred to as “content.” + +I didn’t go to journalism school — and I don’t share my thoughts here — in order for the output of that process to be boxed in the same category as the ingredients list on the back of my morning breakfast cereal (_assuming, of course, that we can agree that that can be referred to as “product content.”_) + +And that’s what I see as the central problem with the term “content.” It’s become so stretched that it’s lost much meaning. + +As a somewhat pragmatic human being, I’ve also come to understand that the trend is far too entrenched to be amenable to one marketer’s curmudgeonly attempt at putting up resistance. As a shorthand, it’s useful. But as a mental paradigm, it’s not. + +My occasional hesitancy to even use the word content — sometimes I can’t help but box it off with “quotation marks” — actually jives very much with what Santell outlined in his blog post. + +**Because If I dig deep into why calling everything “content” ticks me off, I find that the core of the opposition centers around the mindset that underlines its ubiquity.** + +**Content is hopelessly vague. And it’s vague because underpinning its popularity is the idea that if you communicate an _idea_ or a thought about your business, you’ll get some kind of ROI in return. It’s transactional.** + +For the purpose of that formula, whether the “content” takes the form of a social media post or a video or a blog is therefore utterly unimportant. Say “something”, attract an audience, and get results. The problem: effective content marketing doesn’t work like that. It dishonors the immense power that lies in sharing noteworthy ideas. + +How did “content” become an acceptable catch-all for everything from Twitter posts to YouTube videos to any “thing” in between? + +As far as I can discern it owes its etymology to the manner in which content is referred to in content management systems (CMSs) such as Wordpress. + +Anybody who has spent time tweaking a Wordpress theme, or simply glanced over one of its .php files, has undoubtedly come across a parameter called [the_content](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/the_content/). It’s whatever _stuff_ fits into the theme between the header, footer, and sidebar (if one is configured). + +The advent of CMSs was also about the point in time at which mass publishing content got really _easy_. Businesses didn’t have to think about the economics of a publishing activity that used almost negligible amounts of storage. Throw everything at the fan and see what sticks. And therefore the term stuck. + +### To Do Content Marketing Well, Stop Thinking Of It As Being About “Content” + +But the dominance of “content” isn’t just to the detriment of creators, many of whom find themselves struggling to command respectable rates in a market that views their output as a homogeneous commodity whose worth is simply measured against average lead value formulae. + +**It’s a problem for businesses too who are subtly coached into reaffirming this conception of what “content” is and what “content” can do.** + +I’ve opined here previously that one of my central predictions for content marketing over the coming years is that we’re quickly going to reach a time when the traditional divisions between audio “content” video “content” and text-based “content” evaporate towards obsolescence. + +[**The Looming Flight Towards Format-Agnostic Content Creation: And Why It Matters (Now) For Creators** + _To get ahead of the curve, consider leveraging easy win syndication opportunities that straddle distribution formats_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92) + +My reasoning? + +Going from A (writing) to B (audio) to C (video) and vice-versa is getting progressively easier thanks to the advent of increasingly more affordable and effective technologies. + +Where do I see this taking us? + +**Towards readerships, listenerships, and viewerships who care less about _how_ they consume “content.”** + +**Instead, their focus will (ironically) be on the “content” itself.** + +**Are the ideas being shared actually worth listening to, reading, or watching?** + +If yes (or no) it won’t matter much how they can access them. + +It’s the inevitable response to content saturation: a thinking crunch. + +### A Perspective Shift To Create Content Worth Consuming + +Let’s bring this debate down into action. + +As content marketers we can shift our thinking in a few directions: + +a) Cranks like me can acknowledge that “content” is entrenched as a term. Maybe next time I’ll even drop the quote marks. + +b) We can understand that what we lump together under the header of “content” today is actually an almost senselessly heterogeneous grouping of communication approaches which don’t necessarily have a lot in common with one another. And that by separating out “content” into its constituent components we can actually begin to think more deeply about what we’re trying to achieve any time we think about “content marketing.” + +A simple means to get going with that? + +Refer to text-based “content” creation as “writing.” And whether you opt to share an idea using text or audio or video doesn’t depend simply on how much _budget_ you have to invest in “content.” It ideally also depends on doing some intelligent thinking about which _format_ will best communicate the _idea._ Would visuals add some detail that we’re not going to capture through the page? + +And that’s the crux of effective content creation: we’re looking to share noteworthy _ideas_ and align ourselves with suitable leads as a payoff. When we do so, content “works.” And when we do so, we avoid just poring more so-so content into an internet that’s brimming full of it. + +We can also distinguish the fluffy “content” catch-all by being more descriptive about what the communication approach we’re using is. + +Are we looking to be _persuasive_ and push leads quickly down a funnel by resolving objections? Are we trying to be _authoritative_ to assert our _gravitas_ and overcome the rookie label? + +When we approach is through this lens, we can see a lot of color refracted from the white light. + +Some of the “content” ideas that are taking shape in our minds might include some true thought leadership. + +Perhaps also some surface-level blogs that are really just long-form self-published ads. + +And _bone fide_ attempts to provide valuable knowledge about your industry in exchange for attention. + +In fact, we can typically articulate what we’re trying to achieve much more clearly if we go to pains to avoid use of the word “content” at all. + +Example: + +_“Let’s see .. what should we be doing this month… I feel like our blog is dead. How about we think about some content to get up there? You know, to keep us active and visible and get leads (and stuff)”_ + +Try something like this instead: + +_“I’ve love for us to get across why we think Powerpoint will be finished in a few years. I think if we can share this industry prediction we can provide an insight that will help our target audience of bids teams prepare for this change. It will be fun to write, hopefully fun to read, and we’ll position ourselves as a trustworthy vendor speaking with authority in this space. Let’s set ourselves a target of 10 unqualified leads arising from this piece.”_ + +Yes, V2 was twice as long. But it’s also a good deal more descriptive. We have a concrete objective. By attaching a more accurate label — “industry prediction” — we can try to benchmark ourselves against others that do this kind of thing really well. And .. because there’s nothing wrong with it … we can try to source inspiration from elsewhere in the marketplace of ideas. + +### There’s A Lot Of Crap Content Being Created. But Maybe “Content” Is The Problem. + +There is, undoubtedly, a lot of really bad “content” being published in the form of blogs, videos, and podcast episodes. + +But before we go spilling ink and rage about how bad “content” has become, perhaps we should take a step back and question whether the question of seeing all these distinctive activities as one activity might deserve at least part of the blame. + +Content may be a convenient mental shorthand for a lot of different communications approaches. But its vague and squishy nature encourages creators to not think rigidly about their objectives. + +To use “content” as a more effective marketing asset, firstly stop thinking about everything you’re creating as “content.” + +Categorize it by format. Divide it by objection and style. Approach its creation with the _passion_ befitting of somebody who would never consider using that description. Inevitably, your results will improve. diff --git a/posts/medium/Content-Marketing--It-s-About-More-Than--Just--Lead-Generation.md b/posts/medium/Content-Marketing--It-s-About-More-Than--Just--Lead-Generation.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e7f906fe4e8f03c54f0ce9f9a27effc06b5bcecd --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Content-Marketing--It-s-About-More-Than--Just--Lead-Generation.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# Content Marketing: It’s About More Than (Just) Lead Generation + +#### Content marketing can engage three key buying audiences — all at the same time + +One more reason to back your content marketing effort with great analytics: it makes it easier to identify opportunities to use your existing stock of content to upsell existing clients and remarket to past ones. Photo by [Negative Space](https://www.pexels.com/@negativespace?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/macbook-pro-on-brown-table-139387/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Ask many businesses who are investing in content marketing for the first time what their objectives are, and you’re likely to hear two almost magic-like sounding words in response: lead generation. + +Content marketing — and more broadly, inbound marketing — is a _terrific_ strategy for lead generation that works mostly through the process of organic discoverability. + +While social media has huge value as a means of _amplifying_ your content through _syndication,_ the lifespan of social media content is surprisingly ephemeral — which is why I typically coach clients to avoid _creating original content_ on social. + +[**Should You Publish Your Blog On Your Site Or Elsewhere On The Internet?** +_Publishing on Medium, LinkedIn, or your blog. Does it really matter?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/should-you-publish-your-blog-on-your-site-or-elsewhere-on-the-internet-f8622d824a6d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/should-you-publish-your-blog-on-your-site-or-elsewhere-on-the-internet-f8622d824a6d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/should-you-publish-your-blog-on-your-site-or-elsewhere-on-the-internet-f8622d824a6d) + +You share a status. It receives comments and likes. And then the algorithm feeds users with the new big thing (and on ever-busy social networks, there’s always a next big thing). + +For riding out viral blips, it can work well — and many are happy to do precisely that. + +But for businesses looking to build long term value and ongoing growth — and those are always the ones I enjoy working with the most — it’s not typically the most sustainable solution. + +[**The Lifespan of Social Media Content** + _Compared to the blog posts, long-form articles, and white papers that you publish on your website, most of the content…_ www.copypress.com](https://www.copypress.com/blog/lifespan-social-media-content/#:~:text=The%20average%20Instagram%20content%20lifespan,percent%20of%20their%20total%20comments. "https://www.copypress.com/blog/lifespan-social-media-content/#:~:text=The%20average%20Instagram%20content%20lifespan,percent%20of%20their%20total%20comments.")[](https://www.copypress.com/blog/lifespan-social-media-content/#:~:text=The%20average%20Instagram%20content%20lifespan,percent%20of%20their%20total%20comments.) + +**By contrast, content marketers who optimize their content for organic discoverability can reap rewards for _years_ after they first hit the publish (or upload) button.** + +In fact, those who implement systems for measuring content impact (and everybody using content marketing should!) often report a surge in views and conversions _years_ after a piece of content first went live on the internet. + +**But even businesses who are prepared to wait out those (potentially) years to see the full return on their content marketing efforts often don’t think beyond content marketing’s ability to deliver _new_ potential customers into their sales pipelines.** + +That’s a mistake. + +Just as content marketing can serve several different communications objectives beyond lead generation (including brand repositioning and thought leadership), it can work to engage a few different audiences of potential buyers too. + +Why not widen your “attack surface”? + +Here are two great audiences to keep in mind whenever you’re planning your next content marketing post. + +### Content Marketing Can Help Retain And Upsell Your Current Customers + +As a general truism, it costs a lot more to _acquire_ a new customer than to _retain_ one. + +[**Customer Retention Marketing vs. Customer Acquisition Marketing | OutboundEngine** + _Why do we spend so much money on customer acquisition marketing when customer retention marketing works so much better…_ www.outboundengine.com](https://www.outboundengine.com/blog/customer-retention-marketing-vs-customer-acquisition-marketing/#:~:text=Acquiring%20a%20new%20customer%20can,customer%20is%205%2D20%25. "https://www.outboundengine.com/blog/customer-retention-marketing-vs-customer-acquisition-marketing/#:~:text=Acquiring%20a%20new%20customer%20can,customer%20is%205%2D20%25.")[](https://www.outboundengine.com/blog/customer-retention-marketing-vs-customer-acquisition-marketing/#:~:text=Acquiring%20a%20new%20customer%20can,customer%20is%205%2D20%25.) + +As somebody who regularly struggles with finding time to talk to prospects (with current client work tend to and …. the dishes), I can affirm that this is very true. But plenty of statistics bear this out too. + +Nurturing leads takes a lot of effort. If your current customers are already signing your praises — and you enjoy working with them — it’s often more fruitful to explore how the current working relationship could be taken further than it is to go out prospecting for _more_ work. + +[**Internal Referrals — An Under-Tapped Way To Grow Your Freelance Business** + _What’s the best way to build your freelance or consulting business?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579) + +Here’s some good news on that front: + +**Current customers can be a great audience for your content marketing efforts.** + +In fact, it would often be a mistake to give off the impression that you’re solely focused on bringing new clients in the door. + +You likely already have your current customers’ opt-in consent for email marketing. + +So why not drop the odd hint to reaffirm the value that you’re hopefully already bringing to their businesses? + +Some specific ideas for how to go about doing that: + + * **Overviews of existing features.** Are you current customers utilizing the full array of features and functionalities that they get access to with their monthly subscription? If not, you can try to use content marketing to nudge them towards customer success style resources that help them derive even more value from what they’re already paying for. If you sell subscriptions at various service level agreements (SLAs) you could create content that provides a more readable (and friendlier) description of what’s included at each tier than a comparison table. There are plenty of spins you can take on this theme. + * **Relevant case studies.** Heavy emphasis on the word ‘relevant’ here. Nobody’s interested in reading a case study to hear how wonderful you are or watching your video testimonials for the sake of entertainment. You’re competing with Netflix and YouTube. But your customers _may_ be interested in hearing about how other customers in their industry made best use of your tool so that they can proceed likewise. Do you have a case study that you think might actually be helpful for other clients? Consider sending it on using a _personalized email_ from the account manager. + +If you’re interested in using content marketing to upsell or cross-sell your existing customers, then content marketing is a great vehicle to introduce them to your _full_ range of competencies. + +If you provide professional services, then consider this activity especially vital if you have a book of business who are grandfathered on old commercial terms or an outdated service offering. They may be completely unaware that you’ve shifted tack and have you mentally boxed in based on what you _used to do_. + + * **Upselling case studies:** Naturally, you’re not going to want to present these using that language. _“Here’s how we upsold customer X and increased CLV by 500%”_ That’s not going to work. Instead you can present case studies that provide insight into how X derived _even more value_ from your solution than they originally envisioned. Remember that in content marketing we’re usually trying to sell our target audience on benefits. Shift perspective to the customer. Focus on how they were able to avoid having to go to market again to find another vendor. Instead, you solved all their needs. + +### Content Marketing Can Keep Past Customers Interested In What You Do + +Firstly, let’s distinguish between a few different terms: + + * **Retargeting** mostly involves using _paid advertising_ to try to entice _past website visitors_ to come back to your site. + * **Remarketing** involves trying to win back customers. + +When I help clients to devise content that will keep past customers engaged, I’m talking about the latter. But because some people refer to _retargeting_ as _remarketing_ I try to just describe the objective instead: We’re trying to create content that will reach your past customers and keep you top of mind for re-engagement. + +Retargeting and remarketing typically require different skillsets — which is why as a non-digital marketer I only focus on the content aspect. + +Content writers [and strategists](http://www.rosehillmarcom.com) can advise upon what type of content is most likely to return previous customers to the marketing funnel. Retargeting really requires somebody with PPC smarts. You can absolutely do both. + +One idea that I’ve seen done nicely _within_ my domain of competence: + +**Leverage ‘exit interviews’ and exploit the intelligence gained to know which content to send to former clients.** + +That means — yes — eating some humble pie and asking former clients, or those on the way out of their contracts, why they’re ditching you. + +There may be a subset of former clients that you _choose_ to ignore (for instance, if your clients left because they thought you were too expensive, you may not wish to try re-entice price buyers by undercutting your rates). + +But there may be other subsets that you determine it _does_ make sense to remarket to. Example: a client leaves because you lack a capability that you subsequently develop through bringing new talent onto your team. + +Develop a piece of collateral that highlights what you’ve added to your offering over the past year. You can leverage that _individually_ when it makes the most sense. Having a stock piece of content ready to get out the door (by email) saves you the trouble of having to communicate the same thing in every message. + +Content marketing isn’t only useful for “lead generation” or, as I prefer to call it, the sometimes very fickle business of trying to get new clients in the door. + +You can also use it to retain and upsell your current clients and strategically approach those who decided to move onto other providers. + +To achieve the best ROI from your content marketing investment, consider trying to engage all three buying audiences at the same time. diff --git a/posts/medium/Content-Marketing--Who-Do-You-Need-On-Your-A-Team---Key-Hires-.md b/posts/medium/Content-Marketing--Who-Do-You-Need-On-Your-A-Team---Key-Hires-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ab46887d057fccac8b145e900589c5d66d21af8b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Content-Marketing--Who-Do-You-Need-On-Your-A-Team---Key-Hires-.md @@ -0,0 +1,229 @@ +# Content Marketing: Who Do You Need On Your A-Team? (Key Hires) + +#### If you’re looking to build up a robust content marketing function, these are the key people you need on your team + +If you think that a writer and a laptop are ‘good enough’ to get your content marketing effort up and running, you may be mistaken. Photo by [Vlada Karpovich](https://www.pexels.com/@vlada-karpovich?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/crop-woman-using-laptop-on-sofa-at-home-4050304/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +If you’re looking to do content marketing really well — and are prepared to invest in the process — then you’re going to be looking at bringing a few hands on deck. + +One of content marketing’s traditional advantages over outbound marketing — marketing that works by _disrupting_ to gain attention — is the fact that it’s remarkably cost effective. + +The actual costs of producing _some_ content marketing assets, like blog posts, can be negligible. However, manpower isn’t free — or cheap. + +To do content marketing well, you’re going to ideally want to bring together professionals that bring a few different skill-sets to the table. + +This blog post contains an outline of some of the “must-haves” on your content team. As well as those you might wish to bring in once things are already in process. + +### The Core (Level 1) Hires + +The following are the essential members of your content marketing team. + +Later, we’ll look at who you could add to really build out this function to something that can truly shift your lead generation approach away from outbound-centric. + +These hires should help you get going with the content creation process. And make sure that your efforts are leading in the right direction. + +### The Content Writer (AKA “The Wordsmith”) + +When most companies think about “doing” content marketing, the first type of asset that comes to mind is blog posts. + +This isn’t necessary a bad approach, by the way. + +Written content is indeed easy to start with: no expensive cameras or lavalier microphones necessary. + +**Although my contention is that it makes sense — wherever possible — to focus on creating content that can easily be “spun out” into different formats, such as audio and video (for more on that, see below).** + +[**The Looming Flight Towards Format-Agnostic Content Creation: And Why It Matters (Now) For Creators** + _To get ahead of the curve, consider leveraging easy win syndication opportunities that straddle distribution formats_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92) + +The content writer is ideally somebody who is experienced in creating written content for businesses. Content marketing writers are frequently encouraged to “niche down” by specialty. And many have developed particular focuses around technology or certain elements of it. + +Therefore, if you’re a cloud company, you can probably find a freelance writer who has deep experience writing about tech. + +Just remember: the more experienced the writer, and the more specialized the knowledge they hold, the pricier they’re likely to be. + +Having spent a lot of my career writing, I vehemently encourage you _not_ to try to find these for cheap and to be prepared to back your writing initiative with a good budget. Ultimately, you usually get what you pay for. + +**What will the content writer do on your content team?** + + * Write the content + * Produce iterations of the content after receiving edit requests from a second paid of eyes + * Conduct interviews with customers and subject matter experts (SMEs) + +**How to hire them:** There’s a vibrant marketplace of freelance writers out there. Many of them work through marketplaces such as Upwork. + +**How much they cost:** According to Glassdoor (at the time of writing) the national US average salary for a content writer stood at (rounded) $45,000. + +### The Content Strategist (AKA “The Planner”) + +Firstly, some good news. + +Many writers also offer content strategy services, although if they do, they might describe themselves as a [content strategist](http://www.rosehillmarcom.com) first and foremost (and even if they don’t do the actual writing, they’re likely to have a network of writers who _do_). + +**Think of content strategy as the high level thinking that makes content marketing work.** + +**Producing content — especially at volume — requires a _lot_ of work.** + +And remember: while the costs involved might be relatively cheap, manpower isn’t free. Therefore, you’ll want to make sure that _what_ you’re writing about is as impactful as possible. + +**Content strategists don’t all necessarily focus on the same area.** + +Some, for instance, have a strong background in digital marketing. Folks like this will tend to put a lot of emphasis on SEO research and identifying gaps where you can squeeze out the competition for high intent keywords. + +Others will approach marketing from a perspective that has a lot in common with public relations and broader marketing strategy. + +This type of content strategist will try to identify a few key messages that are most likely to resonate with your target audience(s). + +Speaking of target audiences, content strategists can work with your existing marketing documents — like your overarching marketing plan — in order to figure out the best way to reach those with content marketing. + +Well-developed and frequently updated content marketing personas can really help ensure that all the content marketing coming off your desk is using the right tone of voice for the people you’re trying to reach. + +[**Why Content Marketers Need Their Own Buyer Personas** + _To truly create impactful content marketing, we need our own questions about who we’re marketing to answered_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-content-marketers-need-their-own-buyer-personas-9d80f8a4885b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-content-marketers-need-their-own-buyer-personas-9d80f8a4885b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-content-marketers-need-their-own-buyer-personas-9d80f8a4885b) + +The content writer and strategist are going to be working together closely: + + * The content strategist will set down the overall creative direction for the content marketing. Typically, the content strategist will also be briefing the writer. + * A writer who doesn’t have a hand in shaping the direction of the content marketing is quickly going to grow tired of simply being told what to do. A good strategist should be receptive to ideas from the writer. A two way dialogue is essential here. + +[**How To Brief Freelance Writers | Insights by DSR Ghostwriting** + _This post is intended as an abridged and snappier version of the full guide to briefing freelance writers which can be…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/a-brief-guide-to-briefing-freelance-writers/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/a-brief-guide-to-briefing-freelance-writers/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/a-brief-guide-to-briefing-freelance-writers/) + +**What will the content strategist do on your content team?** + + * Set down an overall strategic direction for the content-writing initiative + * Create an editorial calendar which will dictate what pieces of content are produced when + +**Where can you find them?** + +Again, you can commonly find content strategists offering their services on the freelance marketplace. You can also hire one to join you on a full-time basis in-house. These individuals may want to take on more than strategy, though. + +### The SEO / Digital Marketing Specialist + +Measurement is essential in content marketing. And SEO and digital marketing specialists are well-positioned to execute this function extremely well. Photo by [PhotoMIX Company](https://www.pexels.com/@wdnet?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-samsung-tablet-computer-106344/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Finally, there’s no point in writing great content if it’s not going to be discovered or read. + +SEO specialists have a deep understanding of search engine optimization (SEO) and can provide strategic guidance on how to optimize your content marketing for discoverability. + +This might mean doing everything from keyword research to ensuring that you’re hitting on all the right … keywords … to advising you upon which guest blogging opportunities are likely to hold the most long term value for the business and the brand. + +Digital marketing is broader than SEO. + +But if you need a hire that also has complementary skillsets in digital marketing that they can bring to the table, then consider going for the wider skillset instead (for one, most digital marketing. + +Like all the positions we’ve looked at to date, SEO practicioners commonly offer services on both a freelance and full-time basis. + +They’re a great addition to any content marketing team. Alongside a good strategist (note: some strategies have a strong background in SEO) they can really make a difference in terms of how impactful your content is. + +**What will they do on your content marketing team?** + + * Keyword research + * Advising upon guest posting opportunities + * Doing everything in their power to widen and deepen the impact of your content creation + +### The Graphic Designer + +Graphic designers take raw content and produce stylish and visually attractive collateral. Photo by [Tranmautritam](https://www.pexels.com/@tranmautritam?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/silver-and-black-imac-s-326501/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Graphic designers are experts in visual design and have an eye for much more than just the order of words on a page. + +In fact, graphic designers can add extensive value throughout the content creation process. + +If you’ve ever seen an _undesigned_ white paper (hopefully pre-design!) you’ll know just how unappealing an 8 page Word document looks when exported to PDF. The chances of that asset capturing an engaged reader are substantially diminished — before they’ve even read a word of text! + +If you’re trying to capture the interest and engagement of a business audience — and typically that’s what content marketers are doing — then you’ll want to wrap the content up in the most visually appealing manner possible. + +There’s far more to graphic design than just making things “look pretty” of course. Graphic designers are hugely important in communicating the brand visually. + +Over time, you’ll probably want to put together some kind of formal document that guides your branding. This will set out things like what font(s) you should use in your collateral, exactly how much white space should wrap around the logo, and what the official colors (palette) of the brand are going to be. + +Graphic designers commonly work very closely with content writers in order to spruce up the appearance of their writing. + +You can try to skip out on this element of the content creation team by asking your writers to design their own text using Canva, for example, but — like trying to get an AI bot to do your writing — you’re likely to find that there’s simply no substitute for a skilled and engaged professional. + +**What will graphic designers do on your content team?** + + * Create all graphics that need to accompany the content marketing and the website. + * Design raw text files into visually attractive PDFs that can be read on digital devices or printed in hard copy format. + * Establish conventions that are used to distinguish the brand visually. Codify these into visual branding documents. And act as the custodian of those documents. + +Graphic designers can be hired in-house, hired on a part time basis, or used as outsourced contractors. + +### The Additional (Level 2) Hires + +The above should give you a skeleton structure for creating excellent content for your business. + +It can be made up of a mixture of freelance and full-time resources. It can be comprised exclusively of freelancers. Or everybody can be in-house. Often, businesses have a strong preference either way — and that global preference dictates under what terms the resources are onboarded. + +The content strategist and SEO consultant can guide all strategic aspects of the job (and if you happen to find a content strategist with great SEO smarts, you’ve cut your hiring in half!). + +The content writer — or writers — can create the written content. This can range from blog posts to white papers to case studies and can be used throughout your sales and marketing processes. + +Finally, you might wish to buffer things by adding a layer of secondary resources to your team. Remember — there’s no point in simply adding additional players to tick boxes. Wait until you have a clearly identified business need before investing in these ‘extras.’ + +### Public Relations (PR) Specialist + +To maximize the reach of your content marketing, you’ll probably want to eventually take advantage of external placement opportunities. + +These may be guest posting opportunities on other blogs. Or contributed content opportunities on trade media publications. + +How much content should you distribute through your own channels and how much should you pitch externally? For some ideas on that, check out the post below. + +[**Where Should I Create My Business Content: Blog, Website, Or Social Media?** +_A quick rule for where to post your content on the internet_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe) + +Public relations specialists are expert networkers who typically bring wide-ranging books of contacts with them at media outlets. + +Additionally, they have skillsets in pitching the media, crafting messaging, and training up your team if you land interview opportunities on broadcast media sources like TV and radio (or podcasts!) + +### Marketing Communications (MarCom / MarComms) Manager + +If you want to interject one layer between your various content players and your highest marketing appointment (perhaps a CMO or VP of Marketing) then a marketing communication manager may be the right appointment to make. + +The more players you have on your team — including both contracted vendors and full-time staff — the more work it’s going to be coordinating all the moving parts. + +[**What Do Marketing Communications Consultants Do Exactly?** +_What are MarCom consultants and how are they different from content specialists?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-do-marketing-communications-consultants-do-exactly-a6d59c2821fd "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-do-marketing-communications-consultants-do-exactly-a6d59c2821fd")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-do-marketing-communications-consultants-do-exactly-a6d59c2821fd) + +Marketing communications practitioners take care of all aspects of marketing that involve communicating the business — and its vision — to the publics you engage with regularly. + +The plural is intentional. These include not only your potential customers, but also others in the industry and anybody that has a stake in what you do. + +You can make this a full-time hire. Or you can hire a marketing communications practitioner on a consultancy basis. If the latter approaches sounds like an appealing fit to you, feel free to [check out my website](http://www.rosehillmarcom.com). + +### Multimedia Specialists + +Content marketing is moving quickly in the direction of audio and video. + +My take on this: now is a fantastic time to start leveraging the power of some of the technology already on the market to spin out different versions of your content marketing across formats. + +[**The Looming Flight Towards Format-Agnostic Content Creation: And Why It Matters (Now) For Creators** + _To get ahead of the curve, consider leveraging easy win syndication opportunities that straddle distribution formats_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92) + +If you want to start doing audio and video work, then you’re probably going to want to hire multimedia specialists who know these fields intimately well: + + * Video editors + * Sound editors and engineers + +You can hire these professionals on a freelance basis. But (some of) the work tends to be hands-on. So you’ll probably be best served by somebody who’s based locally. + +### Marketing Manager + +Finally you may want to have somebody sitting at the top of your marketing hierarchy. + +The marketing manager has overall responsibility for all the activities a business may be engaging in that are collectively designed to promote a company and the products it sells. + +This is a wide-ranging category of activities that includes: + + * All the content marketing we’ve discussed in this post + * Thought leadership + * Paid promotion channels like digital advertising + * Earned media and public relations + +Setting up a winning content marketing infrastructure involves more than “just” hiring a freelance writer and sending them out some briefs. + +Content marketing is about a lot more than just creating “content” too. + +It’s about creating content that achieves specific purposes and which reaches specific demographics you think are likely to be interested in buying your products or services. + +Layer by layer, hire these key team members in order to make your effort as successful as it can be. diff --git a/posts/medium/Content-Marketing-That-Actually-Works--Part-1---Persona-Development-5811e0ee660.html.md b/posts/medium/Content-Marketing-That-Actually-Works--Part-1---Persona-Development-5811e0ee660.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bfcf10f64e8c3e488e7f4e761550f2977a07f8e3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Content-Marketing-That-Actually-Works--Part-1---Persona-Development-5811e0ee660.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,175 @@ +# Content Marketing That Actually Works: Part 1 — Persona Development + +#### Trying to sell your business without having first refined your messaging is going to be an uphill battle + +Trying to figure out content marketing? Welcome to ‘Content Marketing That Actually Works’. In our first installation let’s look at the enormous value in developing really good buyer personas. Photo by [Kaboompics .com](https://www.pexels.com/@kaboompics?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/marketing-strategy-6229/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Anybody who has spent time meeting clients in coworking spaces is likely to have overheard plenty of interesting conversations. + +Being magnets for entrepreneurs, startups, and those taking a shot at business for the first time, coworking spaces are great locations to break up the work-from-home monotony, for meeting clients, and for availing yourself of complementary beer while trying to appear suitably “innovative.” + +Among the snippets overheard from my last foray: + + * _“We’re going to beat Amazon at this bro”_ + * _“We’re very much into exploring the transformational growth space. That’s going to be a major area of focus for us this quarter”_ + * _“Marketing’s a waste of money, man. We just do cold calling and stuff.”_ + +I have nothing much to say about the first two except “how interesting” and “do you know where they keep the glasses around here?” + +But for number three — as a marketer — let me try to clear up some things. + +### Startup Marketing On One Foot + +Many moons ago, a prospective convert to Judaism approached the famous Talmudic sage Hillel and asked him to teach him the entire Torah — really an entire literature and way of life rather than a text — while standing on one foot. To separate my writings on marketing from my commentary on religion (of which none has been published yet), I’ll leave you to find the answer to that question if interested. But I thought I would share the etymology either way. + +What’s _inbound_ marketing on one foot, then? + +Especially for hungry startups that want to start bringing in revenue as quickly as possible but who haven’t got the resources for a content department? + +You asked. So let me attempt to answer. To do content marketing well you need to: + +_Figure out who needs your product or service — and what’s motivating them to seek it. Then, find a way to help them solve that pain point while also positioning yourself as the very best possible solution to that problem on the market. And develop a brand identity that honors what you’re about while you’re at it._ + +But content marketing isn’t the goodie two shoes activity that many believe it to be. You know the story. The one in which we the enlightened content marketers bestow our free and information-dense white papers unto the uninformed masses, thereby enlightening them as to the wisdom of what we do. + +That’s rubbish. We’re trying to sell here. To convert interest to business. + +We need to instead: + +_Highlights what’s good about our product. Not what’s noble and virtuous about it. But how it solves real pain points. Gloss over our weaknesses. And try to convey the idea that we’re trustworthy and knowledgable._ + +Within that paragraph we have a few constituent elements of the marketing mix — at least as it applies to inbound. Let’s look at those. + +### The Groundwork That Should Already Have Been Done At This Point — A Checklist + +Before we even think about marketing to prospects, we need to assume that a few essential pieces of groundwork are already in place. + +Let’s forget for a moment the fact that this often isn’t the case and that many startups are engaged in a never-ending bid to create hype about products that nobody wants or cares about. Because that’s a bigger problem than content marketing is typically empowered to fix. + +Hopefully you’ve conducted enough feasibility testing and market research to validate the assumption that what you _think_ would be a great product/service for the market actually is something that the market would care about — and fork out enough money for. + +Next, let’s assume — again, perhaps naively — that the product is decent. And that your well-directed efforts at marketing aren’t going to be shot down by a tidal wave of bad reviews and negative word of mouth “sharing.” It happens. + +If those are in place, let’s go on. + +### Meeting And Greeting The Potential Audience — And Googling Them Too + +If your company is too cheap to ever send the content marketers to meet clients, then your company is too cheap. Photo by [Tarik Nachat](https://www.pexels.com/@tarik-nachat-28300?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/white-airplane-over-the-white-sky-112116/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Figuring out who needs your product or service is the work of market segmentation and audience identification. + +Before we go writing encyclopedias worth of content, we need to first understand who we’re trying to talk to — what makes them tick, what their approximate level of patience is, and what’s going to turn them off. + +This is _really important_ as otherwise we’ll simply be wasting en enormous amount of time (money too but to a lesser extent; content marketing remains an amazingly cost-effective form of marketing). + +If we’re selling a fertilization tool to farmers, then everybody who doesn’t make their living from farming is extremely unlikely to care about whatever you have to say about your fertilization tool — even if by the rather tame standards of what’s been written about fertilizers it’s almost pornographically controversial. + +They just don’t care in the slightest way about the subject and all the budget in the world isn’t going to get them interested. + +**What this means in practice is that we almost always _know_ that we’re starting from a segmented and limited audience. We’re very rarely marketing to “the world” or “any business buyer”-and if we think we are we’re probably mistaken.** + +**Therefore, it makes sense for us to explore the segment who _might_ be interested in buying our product in as much detail as possible.** + +**And to do this, it’s essential to actually go out and _talk_ to your prospective customers.** + +Now here’s where I need to grumble. + +**Way too many startups think that all the market research they need to do can be conducted as desk research. This is, for a few reasons, a terrible idea.** + +In a past life I told a company I was involved with that, having written about the product for over a year, I wanted to actually physically visit an installation site and see how the client was using it. I was willing to wear a hard hat and travel to an obscure part of the country if that was what was required. I was told to look up photos from the site visit in the Google Drive to satisfy my curiosity. Three months later our relationship was ended. + +So here’s what you should do instead: + +Go out to trade shows — or attend online ones. + +Pay people in coffee or beer to tell you about their business — because this is typically about the highest ROI form of research you can possibly do and you get to drink beer and meet people rather than just plugging questions into a search engine or reading Gartner reports. + +Of all the activities that startups can be parsimonious about, this — doing persona research well — is actually the one that’s the most likely to drive me crazy (been there, got the shirt- actually I have them in a few sizes). + +I like to liken this to intelligence gathering. + +Not because I’m a former spy, but rather because I’ve long believed that their process has application far beyond the confines within which it is typically applied (namely gathering state secrets for national security agencies). If you think so too, [Andrew Bustamante’s](https://andrewbustamante.org/) publishing is worth a glance. + +Google has its place. Google just can’t be the whole place when it comes to your marketing research. Photo by [Torsten Dettlaff](https://www.pexels.com/@tdcat?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-and-gray-digital-device-193003/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +In the world of espionage, intelligence agencies gather information from wiretapping (signals intelligence / SIGINT), operating human sources (human intelligence / HUMINT) and increasingly even by perusing open sources (OSINT) like the front page of the New York Times. + +Those in the business of collecting data and analyzing it on behalf of policymakers realize that both open and closed sources can have value but that it’s not enough to rely upon any one. + +Analysts synthesize this haystack of data until a product is compiled that leverages multiple inputs and which is succinct enough to fit into a short brief. + +In the world of journalism — and I actually _have_ experience here, including as a copy ed — major publications pay copy editors to cross-check every single fact. + +Did you know what? + +Nothing is taken at face value. Everything is validated. Lead stories at respectable broadsheets rarely rely upon a single source — especially if there’s any hint of a defamation risk involved. When publications skimp on copy editing, it’s usually painfully obvious to readers. + +If you want to do content marketing superlatively well, approach it with the same jaundiced eye and obsession with detail. + +Google and press releases are helpful. But meeting people is too. The most accurate information typically comes from a few inputs distilled down to their very essence. + +So to fish for the most useful information, you need to go where the prospects are. + +This might require buying airfares. Buying people dinner. Joining professional associations about whose value you may initially be skeptical. You need to _understand_ the industry before you go and blindly market to it. It certainly doesn’t involve skipping out on domestic engagements. + +The astute content marketers in the audience should be taking notes the whole time about how the people in the industry talk. + +You’ll need this to know what kind of tone of voice is likely to resonate with them. + +Are they the slow and thoughtful types or do they want quick answers? + +How skeptical do they seem about potential disruptions in their space? + +What catches their eye and lights up their attention? + +Where do they get most of their information right now? From blogs? YouTubers? All this is hugely important because it tells you where you can interject content that they’re most likely to actually consume. + +Take this information and bring it home to build out buyer personas. + +Imbue them with as much color and life as possible because otherwise they’re just boring marketing documents that nobody’s going to care about. + +### The One Foot Version To The One Foot Version + +Here’s the shorter version of this post: + +Marketing’s not a waste of money but by the time I’m finished with writing this Intro to Content Marketing series I’m hopeful that that will be patently obvious. + +**Don’t start content marketing — or any type of inbound — until you’ve got the basics in place first.** + +Within the marketing sphere, this would mean: validating demand and ensuring that you have an at least semi workable product or service to sell. + +**Jump in too quickly and you risk going to all this trouble only to sell folks on a dud. That tends to come back to haunt people and recovering from a bad reputation is always harder than trying to build a good one.** + +I can’t emphasize enough how important it is for everybody involved in content marketing to actually leave the office and meet the people they’re trying to content market to. + +I’ve seen way too many companies refuse to do this or refuse to do this in all but the cheapest way possible. + +**You’re saving a ton of money by choosing to leverage content marketing over outbound. Spend a bit of cash to give your content marketers the best possible chance of actually creating content that people care about. If you were there back when your organization was booking TV spots, you’re probably aware of how wide the differential is.** + +Content marketing should never be an entirely desk-bound job. + +Too many companies don’t get that. Or choose not to. They’re wrong. And they pay the price for their cheapness when they shoot their own efforts in the foot. + +If it helps, think of yourself as a marketing spy. + +The internet’s a big space and if you’re talking into the wrong corner of it, your great content can go entirely unnoticed. + +Do they trust videos from YouTubers? If so, you need to be on YouTube. If you have the budget, advertising on Reddit can be a brilliant way to go straight for a young, tech-savvy, Valley-centric demographic. To find these things out for little money, go out and talk to those in the industry. + +Desk research has its place too. + +But your ultimate goal is to leverage multiple sources and distill everything down to its actionable essence. + +Bring your voice recorder with you (really, they’re still great purchases, even though I know you have an app on your smartphone). + +Take notes. Go to conferences. Have coffees. + +Then bring all your material back to the office. Then you can get behind a computer and whittle down what you’ve learned to its essentials. + +The buyer personas you create from this should be vivid and bristling with life — not the dull, two dimensional pictures that we’re accustomed to. They should be engaging enough that the sales folks actually want to read them. And once you have them in place you know exactly who you’re trying to sell on your content marketing. + +Don’t forget that industries change. People change. Previously sunny industries cloud over with the dark skies of layovers and the attitudes of those working in them change too. + +Update your personas periodically. + +But keep them close to you at all times. They’re valuable weapons. In the ferocious battle for winning online attention. diff --git a/posts/medium/Control-Tuya-Smart-Life-IR-devices-via-Home-Assistant---a-workaround.md b/posts/medium/Control-Tuya-Smart-Life-IR-devices-via-Home-Assistant---a-workaround.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..deb3662c85eff61e6e8e5b5bb744063253a54272 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Control-Tuya-Smart-Life-IR-devices-via-Home-Assistant---a-workaround.md @@ -0,0 +1,33 @@ +# Control Tuya Smart Life IR devices via Home Assistant — a workaround + +If like me you picked up some IR blasters before getting into Home Assistant here’s a workaround I thought of to allow you to control them (a bit) through HA. + +I have a Moes IR blaster in my office controlling an AC. Apparently there’s no way to get it working in HA. Here’s the temporary “solution” I devised. + +IR being a one way protocol, I simply created 3 x tap to run scenes for my air conditioner: cold mode, hot mode, and turn off: + +For each “scene” (configured in Tuya Smart Life) I set the air conditioner to the desired AC state parameters: + +Give each scene a descriptive name: + +In Home Assistant, force a reload of the Tuya integration to help pick up the new scenes we’ve added: + +Then create a helper button for each AC state we wish to configure: + +Create the buttons corresponding to the actions they will effect: + +Then create automations mapping the button presses in HA onto the “scenes” synced in from Smart Life: + +Then create automations mapping the button presses in HA onto the “scenes” synced in from Smart Life: + +The ‘action’ will be activating the scene: + +Setting an action: + +I built a little HVAC control dashboard where I’m adding the buttons: + +Add the buttons to the dashboard: + +And finally the description: + +Now you can control the state of HVAC or other IR-controlled appliances that are integrated through a non-HA-controllable IR blaster! diff --git a/posts/medium/Corona-Diaries-1--Socially-Isolating-in-Jerusalem.md b/posts/medium/Corona-Diaries-1--Socially-Isolating-in-Jerusalem.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..34d7642576e231eb2ab3d0e770235c50cd094e0e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Corona-Diaries-1--Socially-Isolating-in-Jerusalem.md @@ -0,0 +1,291 @@ +# Corona Diaries 1: Socially Isolating in Jerusalem + +### How Did We Even Get To This Point? + +[_This post was originally published on The Times of Israel_](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/corona-diaries-1-socially-isolating-in-jerusalem/) + +I’m calling today “day 3”. (Although, in truth, this is the first day that I’ve been completely apartment-bound.) + +When I think back about this eerie new world we’ve all been unwittingly thrust into, it’s hard to even grasp at the suddenness with which life has so drastically and unrecognizably changed for all of us. + +Into a reality that, just a month ago, would seem not only unimaginable but also preposterous. (Mirroring guidance issued by Saudi Arabia, Israel’s government announced today that people were not to leave home [“unless absolutely necessary”;](https://www.jpost.com/HEALTH-SCIENCE/Coronavirus-New-Health-Ministry-guidelines-translated-into-English-621345) the government intends using technology intended for tracking terrorists to monitors confirmed infected citizens’ whereabouts). + +The first time I heard about “the virus” was about a month ago when I was talking, via WhatsApp, with an Irish friend based in Hong Kong. + +He mentioned something about being stuck at home eating noodles. + +And I had a laugh conjuring up the mental image — and thinking how unfortunate it was that there was another crisis in Hong Kong just after the civil unrest there seemed to have finally died down. And then I went about my Friday as normal, wholly unaware that it would be the last totally normal Friday I have had since. + +The novel coronavirus’s encroachment into my life since has been but gradual constant — like a slow-moving tsunami spreading from the East drawing slightly closer every day. + +Now, the wave feels like it’s about to crest. + +### The Wuhan Meat Market + +After learning that the virus had both a name and a family (is that humanizing it?) I watched distressing footage of the Wuhan Meat Market — and understood that SARS-CoV-2 was a zoonosis, like SARS-CoV-1 (better known simply as ‘SARS’), which had probably leap-frogged from bats to humans, probably through one or several intermediate species, although we’re not quite sure which yet. + +And that was when I first remember feeling scared. + +[Looking at the footage from Wuhan](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0Y4SFz_A-c) and learning — [as Vox nicely summarized ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPpoJGYlW54)— why deadly viral pandemics seem to consistently emerge from China, I couldn’t escape the feeling that the Almighty was exacting divine retribution for humanity sinking to the depraved depth of layering dead pangolins upon dead bats upon live snakes and offering them all up for human consumption. + +Belief systems and cultures of course differ quite starkly in what animals they consider acceptable for human consumption. But I found it hard to escape the belief that history is repeating itself (it is!); or that there is some universal set of morals underpinning the world, such as not eating live animals, that had been violated — and that some monstrous punishment is being meted out to the world in retribution. + +And to be transparent — I felt, in that moment, a sense of seething anger towards China for allowing the selling of wildlife meat in wet markets to persist. + +Previous pandemics, including SARS, have shown these to be an unsafe breeding ground for the transmission of deadly zoonoses. China, and the world, had time to learn this lesson and institute reforms. Instead, during the crucial first 30 days, its regime expended effort on trying to frantically silence whistleblowers and suppress the spread of information that another deadly virus has escaped the bottle. And China’s problem became the world’s one in very short shrift. Now, with mounting infections and deaths in countries as far removed as Brazil and Japan, it’s clearly far too late to be talking about containment — an our only hope is that next time will be different. + +(As the above probably makes clear, I am religious, although I tend to keep that fact private; note two: the exact chain of transmission is still undetermined, although both bat and pangolins share more than 90% of the novel coronavirus’s genetic material and the pandemic’s origin was almost certainly the Wuhan Market). + +**** + +Thankfully, in those first moments of blind panic (“humanity is threatened by another BAT disease!?”) I thankfully happened upon [Dr. John Campbell’s excellent YouTube channel](https://www.youtube.com/user/Campbellteaching) which I have been watching every day since. + +And, after watching his videos, that raw fear was replaced firstly by a sense of academic concern at what was then, as now, a very rapidly unfolding and complicated public health situation. + +Because as we all now know by now (if not, we should!) the novel coronavirus is **_nothing_** like the seasonal influenza. + +It is both many times more deadly and contagious and — at this moment in time — we have neither a vaccine nor treatment to stop its spread or treat its symptoms. + +But digging a little bit deeper, the picture began to look even more worrisome (this was probably when I should have stopped Googling!). + +20% of those that catch the disease go on to develop a more severe disease course and require hospitalization — a percentage so high that it is virtually guaranteed to overwhelm the capacity of health care services and outstrip the supply of artificial ventilators. Unless we can all do everything to #flattenthecurve, that is. + +The frightening statistics don’t end there. + +5% of patients overall need mechanical respiration and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). And while both are lifesaving medical interventions, [the former is associated with pulmonary fibrosis](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4991945/). + +There is also some evidence that the virus may be neuroinvasive, shutting down patients’ autonomic reflex to breathe as part of its respiration-disabling double-whammy. And like SARS, patients who develop a severe disease course but recover [appear to be left with pulmonary fibrosis](https://futurism.com/neoscope/coronavirus-patients-lung-damage) as a result — although the samples size was small and it’s clearly too early to gauge the long-term results. And finally, given the virus’ similarity to SARS, the potential for [psychiatric sequelae ](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mental-sars/alarming-mental-problems-seen-in-sars-survivors-idUSTRE5BD4XW20091214)and fatigue syndromes cannot be discounted. + +To top it all off, just after reading that the virus appeared relatively benign to the young and middle-aged, I discovered that comorbidities including my own (I have asthma) muddied that picture. + +If that’s not scary, then I don’t know what is. + +Nobody, including me, is safe from this invisible monster jumping borders and communities on what seemed like an hourly basis. + +And so it was time to find out what _I_ could do to stack the odds as far as possible in my favor. + +### Stage One: Gathering Good Information From Wherever It Can Be Found + +**When faced with crisis, my primal instinct is to gather information.** + +> I’m a nerd, a digital native, and Google to me feels like a sort of wide omniscient elder who has been answering life’s most intractable questions for me since before my _bar mitzvah_. + +With this deadly virus spreading by the day, it felt like a race against time to arm myself with all the knowledge I could about what I could do do from a prevention standpoint. + +So I downed a cup-full or two [of my experimental coffee-water-solution](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/an-absurd-way-to-drink-coffee/) and got to what felt like work. + +The headline information was clear: This virus may infect if not all of us then the majority of us some time over the next two years. + +I toyed very briefly with the idea of going into a sort of permanent quarantine — avoiding society until such time as a vaccine or cure was developed. And then realized that that would essentially be impossible. (As thing stands, the government is in the process of making that choice for us.) + +I began checking out Reddit in depth for the first time in months, trying to pick out legitimate information from conspiracy theories and misinformation on the various subreddits covering the spread of the new human disease caused by the novel coronavirus: COVID-19. + +When even governments are arguing basic facts about the virus that’s easier said than done. + +One evening, as I sat trying to figure out which hand sanitizer to add to my shopping list for the next day’s errand (this was shortly before pharmacies ran out) I turned to Google for an answer and got this in return: + +That screenshot is completely unredacted save for the black border which I have added for clarity. + +Seeing USA Today and CNN.com in stark disagreement at the top of a Google search was almost as terrifying as learning that another deadly bat virus was hopping ruthlessly between continents and threatening entire age demographics with obliteration. + +My all-knowing oracle was confused. + +And it seemed like nobody — from governments to health ministries — knew quite what to advise. And that made things all the more scary. + +After spending a few days of not doing much besides reading the news, bringing my [hitherto neglected Twitter account back to life](https://twitter.com/danielsrosehill), and trying to make sense of whatever information I could glean from Google, Facebook, Reddit, PubMed, and a million and one other websites, I felt confident that I had learned everything I needed to know about the virus in order to prepare myself. + +_Do face masks work?_ Nobody really knows, but get a good one anyway and know what certification to look for if you’re buying one. (And make sure there are enough for healthcare workers!) + +_Can the virus live on surfaces?_ Yes, but it’s susceptible to bleach, so start spraying surfaces every other day. + +And, most pressingly, Is _takeout safe?_ There’s no evidence the virus can survive in food. So it’s probably safe to engage in some calorie-therapy and stuff your face with delivery pizza (just don’t forget to remove the box!) + +After three highly-caffeinated days of frenetic Googling, I was beginning to feel like I had a pretty good handle on things. And as the first reports of asthmatics faring well with the virus thankfully began coming in (such as [this one](https://medium.com/@rosnydaniel_95420/i-am-an-er-physician-and-i-have-covid-19-6299532c18a9) by [Rosny Daniel](https://medium.com/u/6c015c8ace9c)) I began to feel a bit more reassured that all wasn’t necessarily doom and gloom. There was a feint glimmer of hope — and that was enough to save me from spiraling into a frenzy of worry. + +During those first frantic days (while work essentially fell by the wayside) I made what I suspected might be my last hurried forays for a while into the outside world: stocking up on any remaining essentials, ensuring that I had a nebulizer and reliever asthma inhalers on hand, and buying a few extra bottles of wine to take the “bite” off staying indoors for weeks on end (no, I am not trying to advocate using alcohol to escape reality; but at a time when it feels like the world is in collective meltdown, a glass of wine, or two, can be mildly therapeutic; okay, so maybe I am — but just a little!) + +But as I took my last trips to supermarkets and pharmacies, I grew increasingly concerned. + +**Everywhere I went, I noticed that people were doing literally everything they were not supposed to be doing.** + +Hugging. Kissing. Shaking hands. Chatting and gesticulating frantically in closely-knit groups. (I worry that the virus’s rapid spread throughout Italy has been due, at least in small part, to the rather up-close-and-personal Mediterranean culture that Israel largely shares.) + +My brief forays out were, oddly enough, turning out to be more stressful than my days spent at home. + +Buying my hand sanitizer, I shuffled awkwardly to the side of the checkout counter, trying to keep two meters from the clerk — only to have another shopper brush right behind me a second later. Keeping to the government guidelines was not only hard; it was downright impossible. + +Taking one last wistful look at my local high street, I resigned myself to staying at home for the immediate future. + +The very first time I really felt as if my liberty had been curtailed was Thursday night, which is the start of the weekend in Israel. + +On the work front, it had been an unusually grueling week and there was no end in sight. Usually, I hang up my [writing shoes](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com/) for a few hours and pick things up again on Friday morning, putting in a last few hours before the start of Shabbat (the Jewish Sabbath). But this Thursday night was going to be different. + +The attitudes of my family in Ireland, and my wife — along with those of the world, it seemed — were changing by the day. + +Exchanging views and news on the virus with friends on WhatsApp, I noticed that I was suddenly no longer the crazy guy reading from other crazies on Reddit and frantically trying to save myself from impending doom. + +When I floated the idea that getting out of our comfortable-but-not-opulent Jerusalem apartment for a few hours might do us a bit of good, I was met with an uncertain and decidedly cautious stare in return. + +I chugged a cup of coffee and spurted out a few more hours of work, falling asleep, exhausted, in the early hours of the morning. (Note: if you work from home _and_ are social-isolating, then you’ll really learn the value of pacing yourself!) + +And I cried just a little inside. + +### An Unfestive Purim + +Until there was official guidance for asthmatics I was choosing to play it safe and socially isolate — not leaving the apartment save for essential purchases. (Interestingly, the official guidance is now for vulnerable population groups to do just that.) + +But after about a week of voluntary social isolation I finally cracked. + +The occasion was Shushan Purim, the happiest of Jewish holidays in which — I exaggerate not — Jews are injured to drink alcohol to the point at which they cannot distinguish between Haman (an evil tyrant who plotted unsuccessfully to annihilate the Jews) and Mordechai, one of the heroes of the Book of Esther. + +Along with, I’m pretty sure, the majority of Jewish Jerusalem, I begin looking forward to Purim about three months in advance. + +The great joy aside, however, events on the ground were already beginning to shift rapidly — part of the chaotic new world order that we are all grappling to come to grips with. + +The Jerusalem Municipality, siding with the Government which had just announced its first official limits on crowds, [had chosen to ban the traditional boisterous party](https://www.timesofisrael.com/purim-parades-sporting-events-scrapped-over-coronavirus-fears/) in the Mahane Yehuda Market and that on the nearby Nissim Bahar Street in the city’s English-speaking-heavy Nahlaot neighborhood. + +But then [this photo](https://scontent.ftlv5-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/s960x960/89787396_10157072009297776_4465831415841292288_o.jpg?_nc_cat=106&_nc_sid=ca434c&_nc_ohc=K6zKHIw_TQ8AX-Lsq5D&_nc_ht=scontent.ftlv5-1.fna&_nc_tp=7&oh=607c0dfd85c8c259424b0595b7dfbbe2&oe=5E97AB58) (which has now gone locally viral) was posted to a popular English-speaking Facebook group and began doing the rounds. + +It showed hundreds of patrons squished into the market’s small lanes doing the exact opposite of social containment. + +Seeing that photo (which is not my own — [so rather than reproduce it I’m instead linking to it here](https://scontent.ftlv5-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/s960x960/89787396_10157072009297776_4465831415841292288_o.jpg?_nc_cat=106&_nc_sid=ca434c&_nc_ohc=K6zKHIw_TQ8AX-Lsq5D&_nc_ht=scontent.ftlv5-1.fna&_nc_tp=7&oh=607c0dfd85c8c259424b0595b7dfbbe2&oe=5E97AB58)) I was on the verge of drinking more coffee and doing more work. It was unsafe to go out! + +And then, suddenly, I felt a strange but fervent urge to do precisely that and celebrate one final time. A compulsion borne out of equal parts boredom, religious fervor, the desire to let a little bit loose, and desperation. It was time to emerge — if only for one last time! + +So emerge I did, blinking and grimacing into the outside world, stumbling into a taxi (from confusion, not drunkenness!). + +For those wondering what quarantine will be like, and who haven’t yet started socially isolating, I can affirm that even after a few days, emerging back into the outside world feels a little bit strange — intoxicating even. + +There’s so much stimuli to take in — the sky seems somehow brighter, a routine conversation with a cab driver suddenly engrossing. The whole experience can be overwhelming to overly-sensitized senses dulled by the boredom of four repetitive walls. + +But what I _can_ say, in retrospect, is that I do not regret going out on Purim Shusan — not even one bit. + +Yes, I tried my best to keep a safe social distance, washed my hands meticulously, and carried a tub of hand sanitizer in the back pocket of my _jelabiah_(my costume for the day). + +But I also got moderately inebriated, per the religious commandment; wandered into a synagogue where, after jumping around to strange religious techno blasted from massive speakers, I prayed passionately for the end of this bitter virus flooding through our communities and the world; and then, expunged of energy to seek divine intervention, I visited my favorite bar and enjoyed another kind of intervention: one tremendous, extremely bitter IPA. + +I lived. I had fun. And best of all I forgot about the coronavirus for a few hours. + +But just as I suspected when I was going out — it _was_ to be the last time for a while. + +Several days later [bars, restaurants and all other recreational facilities were ordered closed.](https://www.timesofisrael.com/no-more-daycare-restaurants-gyms-or-prayer-quorums-the-new-virus-regulations/) + +### And Then …. Everything Got Very Real + +Although I’m writing this only a few days after it, my little Purim expedition has proven strangely therapeutic — and I’m still yielding the benefits. + +Having enjoyed one last foray into the real world (while knowing that it might be my last foray for a while), I’ve made an uncomfortable and cold peace with living a more limited version of life at home for a while. + +Which, as I write this, seems like a pretty good way to sum up my existence. + +And, in part because of that expedition, I’ve stopped feeling sorry for myself. Because there’s truly no reason to. We’re _all_ going through this together. And there’s something oddly comforting and cohesive in our shared mission. + +If this didn’t feel quite real two weeks ago — picking up on hard news about this virus from an English doctor on YouTube and some Reddit threads — then it certainly does now. + +A totally normal thing to have by the front door! + +There are nightly emergency press conferences about it, such as the one I have screenshotted above, which the government is streaming on YouTube — creating a strange sort of cognitive dissonance caused by hearing some very un-routine information, like the exercise of emergency powers, delivered over a friendly and familiar medium like YouTube. + +And there are police showing up on doors to check for quarantine-evaders. And loudspeakers broadcasting news of the latest government restrictions to devout Jews in _Mea Shearim_ and other ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods who don’t carry smartphones. + +Like I imagine is the case in many places, virtually nobody in Jerusalem is talking about anything else. + +Two weeks ago, I decided to risk what I was sure would be major embarrassment and cancel a couple of meetings with clients in Tel Aviv. I figured it wasn’t worth the risk. + +Testing out initial order of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) including the 3M 6200 half face respirator and some safety goggles. Unfortunately, I needed a hair some time before the virus struck. + +Today, I’m not sure whether it would be legal for those clients to meet with me; [citizens have been adjured to remain at home “unless absolutely necessary”](https://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Israelis-with-coronavirus-Health-Ministry-reports-304-patients-621258) — although the ban has no legal enforcement mechanism and so remains underpinned by a sort of honor-system, although the police _is_ clamping down on those who might be evading quarantine. + +It’s all changing overnight. + +And so, as fast as things have evolved, I’m grateful for the knowledge which I was able to tap into at the last minute (truthfully, I should have been following this for months). + +I’ve prepared myself as best as I can for the virus, although filling remaining knowledge gaps has taken a lot of time (how should you wash your clothes to remove the virus? Do you need to wash fruit and veg?). And that gives me some comfort. + +Truthfully, none of us should feel like we’re that far behind the class. Humanity’s collective understanding of the novel coronavirus remains extremely limited; but at the same time there’s only so much you need to know to adequately prepare yourself. There comes a point at which you need to say “I’m practicing prevention to the best of my abilities and I can do no more.” + +If you made it this far then, as you might have guessed, I’m taking things relatively seriously — although my measures pale in comparison to those I’ve seen documented in some accounts online. + +I’ve set up a “decontamination zone” at the entrance to my apartment. This is where all goods from the outside world enter but do not pass as they must be considered automatically, if invisibly, contaminated. (And yes, it’s really hard to write about this without sounding like a mad conspiracy theorist). + +Some cleaning supplies + +I’ve stocked up on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) so that — should the pandemic get extremely severe — I can venture into the outside world with the best possible protection to. .. I don’t know …. put the rubbish out. + +And I’m being parsimonious about my visits into the “outside world” — which now seems like a vaguely malicious sort of place beyond the expanses of my oddly comfortable personal bubble. + +Yesterday, I ventured out into that area to see a gastroenterologist because I’ve had (what I believe to be!) some complications from gallbladder surgery several months ago. + +The gastroenterologist prescribed a bile binder to help things settle down. + +Today, I decided that it was not worth visiting the pharmacy to pick it up. + +I can survive without it for a few weeks — or should that be months? Hopefully, things will have settled down by then, along with the level of bile refluxing into my stomach. Although I — like anybody — am no longer really sure of what will be even tomorrow. + +Oddly enough, in the interim, all this has started to feel quite normal. And, surprisingly, all this focus time has its perks. + +As a writer, I love writing entries like these just for the joy of writing — and it’s nice to have comfortable time to do this after also getting other work done. Usually, I cram these projects into the small hours of the morning, if I manage to get to them at all. + +The epidemiological situation is changing rapidly. + +I stick to a daily YouTube diet of [Dr. Campbell](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCF9IOB2TExg3QIBupFtBDxg) and Peak Prosperity to try keep on top of the big picture while filtering out much of the unnecessary detail such as the continuously-rising case counts. I’m trying to cut down on monitoring the lower-level picture as it’s dissected on Twitter, Google News, and other sources. + +And I’m taking pleasure in the little things. + +We’re still ordering the odd takeout. + +Delivery people who once took my odd requests to pick up a tip from atop a flower vase as a doomsday-like oddity are now insisting on similar precautions themselves. + +Because if there’s one thing it’s worth looking forward to at the end of the day it’s a Burrito and some nice wine. + +I’m finally getting value out of that Netflix subscription which I’ve been paying for for six months but barely using. + +And there’s now a daily recreation schedule affixed next to the mask-donning (and doffing) instructions to make our apartment feel more like some sort of temporary holiday resort rather than an open prison which the government is sensibly adjuring us not to leave. + +And far from being a place of boredom, life within these four walls is so busy that it’s sometimes hard to keep up. + +[Work](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com/) has been buoyant — there’s the usual volume that clients send me along with requests for ad-hoc pieces about remote work, how to remain productive during the coronavirus, etc. As I’ve spent so much time thinking about it, these are practically writing themselves. + +And there’s so much news to _legitimately_ keep up with, such as government restrictions and orders that are changing by the day. + +During the course of the last few hours alone there’s been a dramatic increase in the lockdown (all non-essential trips outside of one’s home are officially discouraged) and public transport [will cease](http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/277415) during weekends and nights. + +Halfway through writing this post, the police knocked on our door to make sure we’re at home. + +All this feels slightly odd — while also feeling normal. + +A the same time, the learning about what to do and avoid doing goes on and — I must make a dastardly confession — it has become a perverse enjoyment of sorts. + +I need to figure out how to use my new nebulizer just in case as I might be relying upon its services if I get a serious exacerbation of my asthma due to the virus. + +Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) exhibit one: face visor + +And I need to try out my new face visor for the first time (okay, that might have been a little overkill). + +Although simultaneously, while trying on face visors and half-face respirators, the gravity of the crisis facing the world doesn’t evade me. + +But I’ve come to realize that there’s no point stressing about it either — it’s bad for our immune system and exacerbates asthma, you know. + +I’m happy and grateful to be living in a country that, along with too few others, seems to be taking delaying the spread of the virus extremely seriously. + +My chief criticism, in fact, has been that the lockdown hasn’t been tough enough and that “recommended” measures — such as non-essential services avoiding workplaces — are being trounced upon by employers who won’t tolerate any disruption to their businesses whatever the cost, including their health and that of their employees. + +That and the fact that I couldn’t figure out a way to get Guinness in time for Patrick’s Day. + +As my friends keep reminding me these are extraordinary and wholly unprecedented times so it’s natural that it feels like we’re all living in a hastily improvised movie of sorts. + +There’s no playbook for how to get through this — for the world or for us. + +So we all have to do our best — together. + +But for now, for me, a hefty dose of information, the busyness of work, some Netflix, and the odd drop of wine are enough to get me through this. + +So let me end this by reiterating more or less what I spoke silently while in a state of de-quarantined and slightly inebriated rapture during my recent Purim festivities: + +May we all keep safe and healthy. + +May all those who have contracted the coronavirus make a speedy recovery. + +And, as quickly as it came, may its spread be brought to a speedy and decisive end. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Corporate-Culture-Sounds-Fluffy--Until-You-Realize-That-It-s-Literally-Everything-.md b/posts/medium/Corporate-Culture-Sounds-Fluffy--Until-You-Realize-That-It-s-Literally-Everything-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6a0a00a2270b1e8d4707d8ae09a2676dd7863d51 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Corporate-Culture-Sounds-Fluffy--Until-You-Realize-That-It-s-Literally-Everything-.md @@ -0,0 +1,72 @@ +# Corporate Culture Sounds Fluffy. Until You Realize That It’s Literally Everything. + +#### Fostering a corporate culture might sound like the kind of thing overfunded startups do for kicks, but for jobseekers it can be the difference been make or break. It might be about to receive the attention it deserves. + +Alignment between your own values and the company of your prospective employers. Is it something you can really afford to neglect? Photo by [cottonbro](https://www.pexels.com/@cottonbro?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/white-blue-and-yellow-sticky-notes-5990265/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Over the past few weeks, I’ve been chatting with friends and professional acquaintances about how the job market is evolving and what people are doing with their lives and careers. + +Excitement about the remote revolution is palpable. And if it eventually supersedes _both_ in-office and hybrid as the work model of tomorrow then we’re going to bear witness to some pretty profound shifts in our world. + +[**Welcome To A Remote-First Working World. Here’s What’s New Around Here.** +_A glimpse into how profoundly a fully remote workforce could change the world as we know it_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/welcome-to-a-remote-first-working-world-heres-what-s-new-around-here-d689cf27c54a "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/welcome-to-a-remote-first-working-world-heres-what-s-new-around-here-d689cf27c54a")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/welcome-to-a-remote-first-working-world-heres-what-s-new-around-here-d689cf27c54a) + +I’ve also been spending some time thinking about the value of asynchronous communications. + +It’s a neat little methodology, currently gaining a lot of traction, that explains why deep work obsessives like me — especially those who also have ADHD — tend to love modes of communication like email that probably strike others as anachronistic. + +[**Async Communication: You Mean Those Things Us Deep Work Folk Already Use And Love?** +_Async is blooming. But it just reflects the preferences that deep work enthusiasts have had for years._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/async-communication-you-mean-those-things-us-deep-work-folk-already-use-and-love-5c3492c49fa0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/async-communication-you-mean-those-things-us-deep-work-folk-already-use-and-love-5c3492c49fa0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/async-communication-you-mean-those-things-us-deep-work-folk-already-use-and-love-5c3492c49fa0) + +### Right Now Jobseekers Need A Filter To Connect With The Organizations They Really Want To Work For + +During conversations with friends and acquaintances over the past few days — people who are currently radically reshaping their careers — I’ve noticed a striking similarity. + +People are emphasizing what’s arguably an aspect of an internal culture — does the company require coming into an office? — over traditional concerns such as salary and benefits. + +They’re then asserting those values they hold dearest as non-negotiables and finding organizations that happen to have roles to offer that accord with that set of values. The era during which jobseekers feel empowered enough to ask whether the company is async-friendly may be just around the corner. + +I would argue, however, that the process is less than ideal. + +Or at least that there’s a better way this could be done than somebody hasn’t thought about yet. + +It would be wonderful to move towards a world in which jobseekers could proactively search and filter potential employers according to values they had that resonated with them. Then we can shift the filtering process from job candidates and onto HR with likely benefits for both parties. + +This would require proactivity and transparency on the part of employers in spades. An activity that many wouldn’t be used to. We’re not talking about creating marketing collateral here or brochures designed to appeal to talent. We’re talking about being disarmingly frank with prospective hires about working at a company is _really_ going to look like. The kind of material that could just as well turn prospective hires _off_ joining the team. + +This in its own right would be a radical step forward in the processes that we currently have in place for helping those looking for jobs find the kind of positions that can not only pay them enough but also leave them feeling happy and fulfilled. + +Because our currently available models for finding out what really makes an organization tick and what kind of place it is to work at — take Glassdoor for instance — still mean that employees have to take the initiative in sharing the necessary data. + +But if we can move past that reality, among the many benefits that remote work can graft upon society might be this one: + +If opportunities widen such that skilled talent can tap into a broader job market than the one available in their immediate locality, companies might need to become more imaginative in how they recruit talent. + +This may mean placing less emphasis on traditional things like benefit packages and more on values that might connect with candidates who are increasingly interested in deeper considerations than how much does an organization pay. + +Values like: + + * What we really believe in as an organization. And not just what our mission statement says. + * Are we remote or hybrid; or do we aspire to be fully in office the moment it’s safe for us to do so + * Are we seeking hyper productive task crushers? Or are we seeking thoughtful contributors who are more interested in growing with the company long term than rising through their career ranks as quickly as possible? + * What are the kind of growth opportunities that we can _honestly_ offer to new hires? And what kind of effort might be honestly required on the part of employees to obtain them? + +### Cultural Alignment Could Boost Retention And Create A Happier Workforce + +As the remote/hybrid era continues to march forward, a much more global job market is about to be created. + +This could herald not only the dawn of an era of greater opportunity for employees — being able to access roles outside of their geographical radius — but also an opportunity to weigh the merits of competing employers on the basis of more than just who offers the greater benefits package. Or role. + +To generalize: jobseekers whose skills are in demand can find work. Those whose skills are less common, or in a skills shortage, or specialized (or who work in professions with high barriers to entry) can find well-remunerated work. + +The next frontier of this evolution — the one remote work could expedite — might be making satisfactory and fulfilling work accessible to more people than have ever been able to tap into it before. + +Increasingly concerns that might have been delegated to a second or third place on jobseekers’ list if they appear there at all — evaluating how congruent the organization’s culture was with their own value system — can afford to be upped to their proper place as critical screening questions for jobseekers. + +Because ultimately a good salary and a pension does not a happy worker make. + +Culture sounds like the afterthought that only overfunded startups have time to think about. Until you realize that it’s what commonly drives people from jobs or keeps them working ones they are happy with. + +It’s nothing less than a critical determinant of retention and success — metrics which matter to both HR teams and employees. And both jobseekers and recruiters might be finally able to give it the attention it deserves. + +If our workforce and employers can reach a place of better cultural alignment then we’ll be happier and more productive as a result. diff --git a/posts/medium/Could-Embracing-A-Long-Term-Pandemic-Mindset-Be-A--Superpower--.md b/posts/medium/Could-Embracing-A-Long-Term-Pandemic-Mindset-Be-A--Superpower--.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3f4ea214e87b41d8e1afc5616dc32322e3e07c81 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Could-Embracing-A-Long-Term-Pandemic-Mindset-Be-A--Superpower--.md @@ -0,0 +1,98 @@ +# Could Embracing A Long Term Pandemic Mindset Be A ‘Superpower’? + +For those unaware, I have been on what I term a “low COVID information diet” since approximately February/March. + +After a frantic period spent worrying about how much risk my precondition posed (asthma — and now apparently [taking a PPI](https://www.mdedge.com/internalmedicine/article/225555/coronavirus-updates/proton-pump-inhibitors-tied-covid-19-risk)), and then another one buying just about every form of PPE I could get my hands on, I settled into a kind of uncomfortable peace with the long and dreary continuance of the pandemic. And that’s more or less where I am now. + +3M half face respirator and goggles. Initial PPE (minus the full face visor and hazmat suit) + +Following the initial period of binge-watching YouTube updates and ascertaining everything I could do to keep myself safe, I decided that the only information worth knowing about was that which was immediately actionable. + +Like: + + * Is the government restricting me from venturing beyond 100 meters from my first door? (In March, where I live, that was the case). + +Other questions people might want to know the answers to (depending upon their risk aversion profile): + + * “Is wearing a mask mandatory in my locality?”; “can I visit a restaurant?”; “is air travel safe?” + +In order to capture these (essential) updates and not the others (speculative) ones, I have been scanning Google News about once a week for COVID-related news and keeping an occasional eye on [r/China_Flu](https://www.reddit.com/r/China_Flu/) to see what people are thinking and feeling without the filter of the media. To do this, I mentally parse headlines (and Reddit posts) syntactically — although it would undoubtedly be smarter to set up some kind of filter for this purpose (any developers game?). + +For instance, if the headline contains the word _“might”_ then the article, in all likelihood, consists of mere speculation. Example: “coronavirus vaccine _might_ be released by year end.” This is information I can probably live without knowing. + +Unfortunately, I cannot banish asthma from my lungs or stop taking my acid blocking medication (at least for now — rebound reflux from 40mg is not fun!). So I don’t really need to know about _how_ much more danger I _might_ be in by having this condition and by taking a drug in this class. + +Rather, I just need to know to live my life cautiously. In fact, poorly controlled asthma is probably a greater risk factor than having the condition while otherwise healthy. Some asthma medications have even been touted as remedies for the condition.**So the net action required from me by knowing this information is effectively nill.** + +When I really whittle things down, there’s actually relatively little information about the pandemic, beyond government restrictions in my locality, which I really _do_ need to know about. + +To identify these, I have defined a set of criteria for things which I _do_ definitely __ care about. + +Those are changes which, for me, would constitute big enough disruptions to the dreary _status quo_ that I might run out to the street cheering for (is that what’s going to happen when this ends?). + +What would get past the cheering-man-in-the-street razor? + +Changes like: + + * It being safe again, without reservations, to abandon mask wearing + * It being safe again, without reservations, to abandon social distancing + * It being safe again, without reservations, to fly internationally — without the subsequent requirement of a quarantine period at the destination + +Sticking to looking out for the above, and ignoring other updates, negates the ability to do things like empathize with the plight of other nations struck badly by the pandemic or to keep abreast of the many vaccine trials underway. Your picture of the pandemic, at any one time, will likely be missing detail. + +But I would argue that for those worried about preserving their sanity (and, during the pandemic, that is a risk not to be sniffed at!), the benefits might outweigh the cons. + +#### A Word of Caution + +Unfortunately, as anybody attempting this will soon discover, hermetically sealing oneself against the incoming tide of ‘irrelevant’ information isn’t really possible. + +For instance, I don’t find the daily case numbers in my country of particular interest (they are lagging indicators most useful for policymakers to assess the effectiveness of action taken a few weeks previously). + +Nor, as a non-epidemiologist, am I much interested by comparisons of case rates between countries because I imagine there are many factors that can account for differences. This is simply raw intelligence that requires the analysis of experts to make it practical. And I am not a public health expert. + +Rather I think that the capacity of my local hospital network is a more salient metric to keep track of. Unlike the above, this is information which I can directly action. + +For instance, I can assess: will they be dangerously overburdened or can I expect to receive adequate treatment should I require it? If the former applied, might the risk of travelling overseas be less than falling ill and being inadequately treated? + +Despite the above, I continue to hear about all the above from family members and talkative clerks at the post office. My point is that you can’t cut yourself off entirely. But a bit of caulking can seal you from the daily barrage of speculative information that many of us feel better without following. + +### Could A Long Term Mindset Be The Key To Maximizing The Pandemic? + +COVID: The perfect opportunity for a relocation to a sunnier clime? + +I describe the above not to advocate for my own approach to keeping track of the pandemic — even though I feel like _some_ might benefit from it — but rather because it fits nicely with a mindset that my friend [Peter Duffy](http://www.peterduffy.ie) advocates. + +Besides being an astute spotter of emerging tech trends (and an incisive reader of non-fiction), Peter, who works as a technology consultant, has a voracious interest in personal development. For anybody whose interests touch upon both, his _How Curious!_ newsletter is well worth subscribing to: + +[**How Curious! - Revue** + _How Curious! - A short monthly newsletter packed with awesome new discoveries and personal recommendations! #Books…_ newsletter.peterduffy.ie](https://newsletter.peterduffy.ie/ "https://newsletter.peterduffy.ie/")[](https://newsletter.peterduffy.ie/) + +Duffy has already made some concrete changes in his life on the basis of the pandemic and its likely continuance. + +If my approach represents a way to — from an informational standpoint — make the pandemic a noninteresting _fait accompli_ until the media announces otherwise, Duffy’s philosophy is to take action and make decisions based upon that knowledge. + +This approach fits tidily with the latest prognostics which are decidedly less rosy than those which emerged just a few months ago (and yes, I _do_ think think that general forecasts from recognized thought leaders is in the category of pandemic-related information which I think it _is_ worth consuming). + +Bill Gates, for instance, recently offered his prediction that the pandemic will last [until the end of 2021](https://www.economist.com/international/2020/08/18/the-covid-19-pandemic-will-be-over-by-the-end-of-2021-says-bill-gates). Meanwhile the WHO hopes that the pandemic will end [“in less than two years.”](https://www.voanews.com/covid-19-pandemic/who-head-hopes-pandemic-will-end-within-two-years) + +My friend’s line of thinking is that the current reactive mindframe (from which most react to the pandemic) is detrimental. And that it is preventing most people from realizing the upsides that this period of transition offers. + +This mindframe is exemplified, in part, by assiduously following every speculative update about the pandemic. Why? Because I reckon that a lot of people following the pandemic in this manner are doing so because they hope to chance upon a glimmer of information which might forecast its imminent conclusion — upon which they can revert to life as they lived it previously. Undoubtedly, they will be the best positioned to quickly ‘exit’ the pandemic. But perhaps — by never truly accepting it — they will also emerge bereft of its benefits. + +Instead, consider accepting — or even embracing — the fact that the pandemic, and all that it entails, is going to be with us for another 18 to 24 months. Truly embracing current life as normality over the medium term might prove the catalyst for some breakthrough personal change. + +To make this concrete, let me provide a few examples. The former are ways of looking at things from a reactive perspective (check the news to find out when it’s going to end). The latter, from my perspective, reflect the latter approach. + + * **Instead of seeing working from home as a novel trend, consider asking whether this could be the new means of working for you going forward.** And if that’s the case, are you tethered to where you are currently living? If not, are there other countries where you might be happier? + * **Instead of thinking that this might be a cool time to try out freelancing — or continue doing it — consider whether this might be an opportunity to begin remote working for an employer.** There’s more stability — but a less diversified income base! — and getting benefits is nice. + * **Instead of using the “pandemic pause” as an opportunity to take a Udemy course or to upskill, realize that it’s probably going to be long enough to fit in a more substantial period of retraining — such as even taking a remote degree.** What might you already have achieved had you thought along these lines from the very outset? But it’s not too late! Based on current forecasts there’s still likely enough time to undertake even a short degree program before it ends! + +The point I’m trying to make here is simple — and I hope I’ve delineated a connection between minimal news consumption and long term pandemic planning. + +If you can tune out the day to day noise of the pandemic updates and pay more than lip service to the fact that this is the “new normal” there is an awful lot of potential for the kind of personal change that you can orchestrate during it. + +Who would want to look back in 18 months time, with humanity only just starting to reemerge into normality, and regret blithely hitching one’s hope that the end was just around the corner? + +Through accepting the pandemic’s continuance during the medium term, and by ignoring the non-actionable updates circling about the internet, it might be possible to emerge from it on a more fulfilling and exciting trajectory. One you can continue on long after the world is back to “normal.” + +That’s a benefit that most would not want to dismiss. diff --git a/posts/medium/Could-Freier-Culture-Be-Behind-Israel-s-Pandemic-Figures-.md b/posts/medium/Could-Freier-Culture-Be-Behind-Israel-s-Pandemic-Figures-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f2a3a06f20d9e52d3071db9bc62e97f470b928e8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Could-Freier-Culture-Be-Behind-Israel-s-Pandemic-Figures-.md @@ -0,0 +1,91 @@ +# Could Freier Culture Be Behind Israel’s Pandemic Figures? + +#### Could Israelis’ fear of being suckers be fanning the fires of virus spread? + +Browsing through my Facebook feed recently, I came across an interesting parody of a Ministry of Health poster. It was created by Ittay Flesher, a Jerusalem-based journalist and[ fellow Times of Israel blogger](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/author/ittay-flescher/). + +It bore the title “פראייר בעד ארצנו” along with the subtitle “אפילו אם אחרים לא, אני שמור הל ההנחיות”. + +Translation into English: + +“A freier (sucker) in favor of our country. Even if others do not, I obey the guidelines.” + +The graphic — which is currently doing the rounds on Facebook groups — followed on from a couple of interesting pieces of commentary in the media recently. + +[Writing in _Ha’aretz_ , Anshel Pfeffer](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israelis-much-vaunted-solidarity-honed-by-war-has-failed-in-time-of-plague-1.9166230) was among the first to bravely question whether Israel’s appalling coronavirus numbers could be attributable, at least in part, to the national obsession with not being a _freier_ (sucker). + +Pfeffer contends that: + +> _“This year, the non-freier has evolved. Avoiding freierdom is no longer an individual pursuit, the man against the system. Under COVID-19, we now have entire sectors of the Israeli population determined not to be freierim._ + +I’ve written before — [on this blog](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-work-with-israelis-and-enjoy-the-experience/) and elsewhere — about the far-reaching effects of _freier_ culture in Israeli culture. It’s a culture which I like to remind myself is in its first one hundred years of evolution (and which could therefore perhaps fairly be described as being in its formative stages.) + +[Writing in Ynet a few days ago _“(IIsraelis must show some national responsibility”_),](https://www.ynetnews.com/article/rJ769SvBD) Sharon Kidon points to the lack of cohesiveness in Israeli society — what I would call a “me-first” culture — as driving Israel’s dismal demise from being a global model for handling the coronavirus to becoming the country with the highest per-capita infection rate in the world. + +Like Pfeffer, Kidon doesn’t spare the Balfour Street anti-Netanyahu protesters from excoriation, asserting that Israel is a nation of tribes and “each tribe cares little for the rest.” + +### Who’s The Real Sucker Here? + +Israel’s unique driving culture could be seen as a reflection of its social norms + +My opinion — for those who follow this blog — is that Kidon and Pfeffer are looking at different sides of the same coin in their pieces. + +For months, I have privately held the belief that _freier_ culture is what is driving Israel’s failure to rein in its sky-high infection numbers. + +Sure, the _haredim_ have been holding large weddings in violation of government orders. But the largely secular middle class has been congregating on beaches and around Balfour Street too — the latter even going so far as to hold a celebratory meal in a show of flagrant disregard for social distancing. The commonality between the two? Both groups know that they can get away with it. Obeying almost unenforceable government directives would be a _freier_ move. And what could be a worse badge of shame to bear than that?! + +So as bad as Prime Minister Netanyahu’s frequent complaints that the Israeli public refuse to follow his government’s directives may look from the outside, I believe he has a point. + +Because just as _freier_ culture disregards social norms and laws in favor of celebrating what _can_ be achieved to advance one’s interests, it disregards the interests and the wellbeing of anybody other than the _freier_ -avoiders themselves. + +_Freierism_ is, effectively, the ultimate selfish mentality. One which implies that there is no _normative_ reason to follow the will of the collective (the law) or the other in lieu of the pursuit of one’s own exigencies. The effect on the _other_ matters nought. If _I_ or _we_ can get away with something that’s enough justification to do it. + +When anti- _freier_ culture is elevated to level of being a cherished national characteristic, in instances in which enforcement of laws and regulations is rendered almost impossible — such as at the present — mass civil disobedience is its inevitable consequence. + +### Time To Make Freyerism A Cultural Relic? + +As I wrote in this blog previously ([_“Could Israelis Be The Ultimate Freyers?”_](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-israelis-be-the-ultimate-freyers/)) nobody seems quite sure from where the Israeli aversion to suckerdom originates. + +Perhaps it stems from the gritty nature of life in the Israeli military — which a nation of conscripts is exposed to? + +You might argue — depending on your political inclination — that the [callous kind of behavior](https://youtu.be/6hTgMa8GbWI) that enforcing a military occupation requires creates a mass belief that pushing ahead and being aggressive is the way to get forward in life, regardless of how much misery that inflicts on the other party. + +Whatever its cause, _freier_ culture (and its partner in crime, _shitat mazliach —_ “the successful method” — getting away with what you can) seem to be exerting powerful effects upon Israel’s ability to face down the virus. + +And if you agree with me in attributing Israel’s epidemiology in part to this cultural attribute, then I argue that you must agree that _freier_ culture is not the innocuous and somewhat comical forces that many observers of Israeli culture — both internal and external — believe it to be. + +I, for one, believe that the national obsession with not being a _freier_ is in fact a force for massive harm. And that we are witnessing its bitter fruits in Israel’s failure to deal with the coronavirus. + +The deeply entrenched Israeli belief that to be a _freier_ is a terrible thing ends up equating civility, good behavior, and following laws with being a sucker. The corollary becomes that bad behavior and open defiance of the law are accepted and sometimes celebrated. + +Letting somebody buying a can of tuna go ahead of you at the supermarket when you’re shopping for a family of ten? + +Nice American manners, perhaps, but that would also be the quintessential _frier_ move. + +As would yielding in traffic to let somebody go ahead of you. Be strong and cut them off before you do! + +Likewise saying “ _bevakasha_ ” (please) and “ _toda”_ (thank you) before and after ordering a coffee. + +Those examples suffice. + +For over seventy years, the Jewish state has heroically withstood almost constant attempts to annihilate and harm it from actors both within Israel and outside of it But perhaps it’s time to ask whether aspects of Israel’s formative culture are part of the collateral damage. + +If Israel is to move from being a nation of infighting tribes to a united country, citizens need to start understanding the importance of the collective. This means caring for the other — whether person or tribe. Following the laws that the country has set to stop the spread of the pandemic would be a good place to start. And what could possibly provide a better example of the importance of unity and cohesiveness? + +Israeli society has come to festishize strength, aggression, and military might. Cultural norms that have flowed from this include never being wrong, never apologizing, and never — never! — being a _sucker_. But none of these are good absolute values to hold. + +I’ll let you in on a secret. + +There’s a very good chance that you won’t be ticketed if you choose to spend the rest of the _hagim_ with you family in the North. + +Or invite them all over to yours for a grand big meal. + +Even with the held of electronic surveillance, it’s simply impossible for a police force of 30,000 to keep close tabs on the day to day movements of a population of millions. + +But just because it’s _possible_ doesn’t make it _right_. Preserving public health is more important than you seeing your relatives. + +Even if we’re called _freiers_ for doing so, let’s do our part to stop the spread and follow the Ministry of Health guidelines. + +Together, let’s change _freier_ culture. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Could-Remote---Freelancing-Mashups-Be-The-Future-Of-The-Working-World-.md b/posts/medium/Could-Remote---Freelancing-Mashups-Be-The-Future-Of-The-Working-World-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3b0b203fc33bc8f1598dcadb73f69c11ba78b9d6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Could-Remote---Freelancing-Mashups-Be-The-Future-Of-The-Working-World-.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# Could Remote — Freelancing Mashups Be The Future Of The Working World? + +#### Remote and hybrid aren’t the only games in town. As freelancing becomes more commonplace, dual-income working arrangements could displace traditional salaried careers in tomorrow’s workforce. + +Photo by [Andrew Neel](https://www.pexels.com/@andrew?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/macbook-pro-on-brown-wooden-table-2312369/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +As a six year veteran of the rough-and-tumble world of freelancing, I’ve been part of my fair share of remote teams over the years. + +Which is why I’ve been delighted to observe the remote renaissance unfolding as the pandemic continues. + +I pick that word deliberately. Because as any freelancer knows, the technology to support remote working has been around for years. + +It’s just that we humans have finally — in fact, rather belatedly — gotten around to exploiting its full potential. _(Being based in Israel, I’m also very excited to witness it widening options for fellow English-speaking expats based in this part of the world.)_ + +[**English-Speaking Immigrants To Israel Have Never Had Wider Job Options (Thanks To Remote And…** + _A strong local tech sector and increased willingness on the part of foreign companies to recruit talent from…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/english-speaking-immigrants-to-israel-have-never-had-wider-job-options-thanks-to-remote-and-hybrid-54a8cb9ccc18 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/english-speaking-immigrants-to-israel-have-never-had-wider-job-options-thanks-to-remote-and-hybrid-54a8cb9ccc18")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/english-speaking-immigrants-to-israel-have-never-had-wider-job-options-thanks-to-remote-and-hybrid-54a8cb9ccc18) + +However, the internet doesn’t need another article extolling the virtues of working remotely which is why I didn’t sit down this morning to write that piece. + +Employers have gotten the memo. And [if statistics are to be believed](https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/what-employees-are-saying-about-the-future-of-remote-work), most newly minted remote workers need no convincing of its merits. + +But what I _do_ think has been underdiscussed is the possibilities that are unfolding for dual-income careers that blend some aspects of remote working with freelancing. In fact, I think that such blended approaches could even eclipse both new working worlds in their own right. + +Because while many of us have been ditching the morning commute for the morning shuffle into the office in the next room, the inexorable rise of freelancing and the gig economy has been going on quietly in the background. And this trend shows no signs of abating. + +As our peers in the corporate world transition towards work arrangements that come close to mimicking the ones that us freelancers are already natively accustomed do — and which work around our schedules — increasingly I predict that it’s going to become normal for workers to mix and mingle between the two. + +Specifically, I’m talking about: + + * **Career trajectories that shift between remote work and freelancing becoming increasingly the norm.** And here’s my prediction. Fluid meandering between the two is going to become increasingly normal as employers understand that the value of one’s work isn’t determined by whether you physically showed up to an office or whether you executed your workload from besides a beach. Ultimately — ideally — this would lead to something like a skills-based meritocracy in which presenteeism and one’s ability to navigate corporate politics are no longer the chief determinants of one’s career success. In concrete, and if this unfolds, it is going to be very normal for employees to jump between worlds. Hopefully, very soon, this won’t even raise any questions._“So …. why do you want to give up on freelancing?”_ — a question many making such a transition are fielding today (I got asked it recently) — simply won’t get asked tomorrow. As society (collectively) figures out the best way to pair those providing labor with those who need it, we’ll all understand that we’re playing an ever-shifting game called _“we’re figuring out the best way to do this working thing.”_ And as we do, we’ll stop subconsciously lionizing the conventional way of working — showing up to an office Monday to Friday — simply because it’s what we’re familiar with and it’s what our parents did to earn a salary. + * **More and more workers hedging their bets by dabbling in both worlds**. If part time hybrid and fully-remote options become increasingly the norm — and that’s prediction two, that they will — then two options are going to increasingly present themselves. Because these aren’t currently that commonplace, neither are currently major dynamics. Firstly, the ability to serve on multiple (salaried) remote teams simultaneously. And secondly the ability to be part time remote (salaried) workers and part time freelancers. If you’re the one thinking about doing this, then to your spouse/progeny/dog the optics will look essentially the same. You’ll be working from home for an office and communicating with some other humans on the other end of your webcam or email client. But the internal divisions of your working life will be different and managing your tax affairs might require a little bit more coordination. Monday to Wednesday might be dominated by Slacks and meetings with your “salary job” team. Thursdays and Fridays by client projects. Of course, there’s nothing stopping anybody from already doing this. It’s merely that it’s a lot less commonplace than it already could be. As that fades into the background, attitudes will change and so will the way employers are forced to behave to accommodate that being the norm. Hopefully we’ll see an end to ridiculous clauses in employment contracts that preclude salaried workers from drawing down any other form of employment (I’ve been offered several such contracts!). As a society, we’ll move away from the idea that offering an income entitles an employer to monopolize that individual’s available supply of labor. Ultimately, that belief will come to seem archaic. + +### Two Societal Re-Architectures Needed To Make These Predictions A Reality + +As I’ve written here before concerning remote work, there’s an inevitable lag period between when the possibilities of remote work can realistically be achieved — that’s here already — and when they manifest. That’s down the road a little. + +Given employers’ reluctance to radically shift the face of the working world overnight, there’s typically, in fact, quite a gap. + +We’ve been seeing that, for some time with remote employment.Therefore, it’s unreasonable to expect that these changes will unfold in a manner that’s any different. + +While the news cycle would suggest that we’re already basking in the glorious new era of remote-first working, the hiring market which many remote jobseekers encounter— and the often skeptical attitudes of employers — lay plain that that’s not quite yet the case. + +[**A Remote World Would Be More Accessible If Only….** +_While attitudes towards remote work are rapidly changing, there remain legal and administrative obstacles that stand…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79) + +In order for the above predictions to come true we’re going to need to see two changes. I believe that these will happen, but it may not transpire overnight: + + 1. **A move away from presenteeism.** Employers are increasingly understanding that employees don’t need to physically be sitting in the office in order to add value . Quickly, in fact, that belief is starting to seem outmoded. The next realization is going to be a move away from corporate culture’s longstanding love affair with presenteeism. Not only can remote workers be just as productive from Budapest or Dubai, they don’t even need to make a full time commitment in order to bring enough value to justify their place no the team. Once this happens, we’ll see a mushrooming of part time remote and hybrid work opportunities. + 2. **Acceptance of unconventional career paths as the norm.** Traditionally, careers are linear evolutions as employees shift from one employer to the next, acquiring increasing remuneration and seniority in the process, until they finally call it a day, announce retirement, and live off carefully nurtured retirement savings vehicles. The careers of tomorrow — nay, today — are going to look nothing like that. Individuals — for even calling them ‘employees’ will no longer be strictly accurate — will swim seamlessly through the shifting tides of how work is normally carried out for companies. Shifting between periods of freelancing and dedicated tenures on fully remote teams will be quite normal. Many will do both at the same time. _(The pension ‘stuff’ therefore requires urgent attention and it may fall to governments to ensure that freelancers are adequately contributing to prevent later destitution. It’s not a minor detail!)_ + +The explosion in remote and hybrid working is dovetailing with the rise of freelancing which is going to constitute a substantial part of the supply of labor in coming years. + +As these trends converge, we’re going to see increasingly fluid employment options becoming the norm for individuals. + +This is going to lead to a more diverse and exciting array of employment options as careers increasingly take on very different contours from anything that has been commonplace to date. diff --git a/posts/medium/Crazy-Financial-Statistics-About-Israel.md b/posts/medium/Crazy-Financial-Statistics-About-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..842dd3e3c752d3e9d6947a6c05aef8cf77780c17 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Crazy-Financial-Statistics-About-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,135 @@ +# Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel + +#### Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID? + +I’ve made the point repeatedly that Israel’s cost of living — and more presciently the average real income — presents a major problem for the country’s future. + +My motivation for writing about these dynamics is two-fold. + +Firstly, for the future of Zionism, I think that Israel needs to be a country that everybody can afford to live in. Whether they’re a bus driver or an algorithm engineer. + +Secondly, to my mind, this dynamic is perpetually ignored in Israeli elections, of which there have been many recently. + +Statistics mount but these issues receive relatively scant attention in Israeli political discourse which, recently, has been almost entirely occupied by the question of whether the incumbent Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is fit to remain in office. Israeli voters also seem unwilling to make this issue a priority. + +Some of these statistics are more recent and some are older. They’re not intended to criticize Israel. But rather to make the case that, collectively, they show that Israel needs to do more to ensure that it is an affordable place to live. + +Israel’s high cost of living remains an important social issue. + +### 2nd Most Expensive Real Estate In The World (Relative To Income) + +Israel was recently ranked second out of 39 countries for real estate prices. According to The Jerusalem Post, Austria-based Compare The Market clocked in Israel’s real estate as costing $9,780 per square meter on average. + +[**Israel listed as second most expensive country to buy a home** + _Israel was listed as the second most expensive country in which to buy a home, according to research performed by…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-listed-as-one-of-the-most-expensive-countries-to-buy-a-home-in-649970 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-listed-as-one-of-the-most-expensive-countries-to-buy-a-home-in-649970")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-listed-as-one-of-the-most-expensive-countries-to-buy-a-home-in-649970) + +The research, the newspapers said, considers the price of property in relation to the average income in a country. + +Israel ranked below South Korea but above Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Japan. + +### 8th Most Expensive Cost Of Living + +Last year, CEOWORLD Magazine listed Israel as having the eighth highest cost of living in the world. + +[**Israel ranked 8th most expensive country to live in** + _Israel is the eighth most expensive country to live in, according to CEOWORLD Magazine. The country ranks above South…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-ranked-8th-most-expensive-country-to-live-in-616558 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-ranked-8th-most-expensive-country-to-live-in-616558")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-ranked-8th-most-expensive-country-to-live-in-616558) + +According to The Jerusalem Post, CEOWORLD’s ranking were based on five metrics: cost of living, rent, eating out, groceries, and purchasing power. + +Original research: + +[**Most Expensive Countries In The World To Live In, 2020 > CEOWORLD magazine** + _Switzerland is officially the most expensive nation on earth to live in, according to a report from the CEOWORLD…_ ceoworld.biz](https://ceoworld.biz/2020/02/03/most-expensive-countries-in-the-world-to-live-in-2020/ "https://ceoworld.biz/2020/02/03/most-expensive-countries-in-the-world-to-live-in-2020/")[](https://ceoworld.biz/2020/02/03/most-expensive-countries-in-the-world-to-live-in-2020/) + +Israel’s position at number eight on the league table placed it above Ireland (13), the UK (27), the UAE (32), Singapore (9), and Hong Kong (11). + +### 2nd Highest Prices in OECD Except Japan (Relative To Income) + +The Times of Israel cites Gilad Brand as stating that, relative to other OECD countries, Israel’s cost of living was higher than in every OECD country except Japan. + +[**Sure you can make it in Israel - if your parents help, say economists** + _There's an old saying among olim - immigrants to Israel - that if you want to make a small fortune in Israel, come with…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/) + +Note: this article was published in 2016, + +### 148 Monthly Salaries To Buy A Home + +The above article also cites Eitan Regev of the Taub Center for Social Policy Studies in Israel as stating that the number of monthly salaries required to afford a downpayment in Israel is 148, more than double the equivalent figure for the US (66). + +> Regev said the trigger for this impoverishment of households was the market rise in the prices of housing. Prices have risen 6 percent a year since 2007 and it now costs 148 monthly salaries to buy a home here, compared with 76 in France and 66 in the U.S. + +### 42% Of Israeli Households Have Overdrafts + +For many Israelis, affording Israel is about living in ‘minus’ (pronounced ‘mee-noos’ in Hebrew; translation: overdraft). + +[**42% of Israeli households have overdrafts** + _The Central Bureau of Statistics reported today the figures for household ownership of financial assets for 2018 data…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-42-of-israeli-households-in-overdraft-1001310436 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-42-of-israeli-households-in-overdraft-1001310436")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-42-of-israeli-households-in-overdraft-1001310436) + +Some eye-popping statistics about the prevalence of living in debt were published last year. + +According to research from the Central Bureau of Statistics (based on data from 2018): + + * 42% of Israel’s households had an overdraft in at least one of the past 12 months + * 22% of households reported having an overdraft in 10 or more months in the past year + * 29% of households had loans not related to mortgages + +### 1.8 Million Israelis Live In Poverty + +1.8 million Israelis, half of them children, live in poverty. + +[**1.8 million Israelis, half of them children, live in poverty - government** + _Poverty in the Israeli population rose by a percentage point in 2018, according to an annual report released by the…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/1-8-million-israelis-half-of-them-children-live-in-poverty-government/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/1-8-million-israelis-half-of-them-children-live-in-poverty-government/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/1-8-million-israelis-half-of-them-children-live-in-poverty-government/) + +That figure placed Israel second to bottom in the OECD’s poverty rankings, according to the Times of Israel. + +The data did not include East Jerusalem residents. + +The rate of poverty among Arabs remained higher than the general population, at 44.2%. + +### Relatively High Income Inequality + +The Gini coefficient is an estimate of the level of income distribution in a society. + +[**Israel's economic inequality worsened in 2018, for first time in 5 years** + _The gap between Israel's richest and poorest stopped narrowing in 2018, when it began to grow for the first time in…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israels-economic-inequality-worsened-in-2018-for-first-time-in-5-years/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israels-economic-inequality-worsened-in-2018-for-first-time-in-5-years/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israels-economic-inequality-worsened-in-2018-for-first-time-in-5-years/) + +Israel retains relatively high levels of income inquality, according to national statistics. + +Salaries in Israel’s technology sector dwarf those paid out to the rest of the workforce. In fact, the difference is more than two-fold. + +Coupled with the relatively high poverty levels, it isn’t hard to see why income distribution in Israel remains reasonably unequal. + +### Tel Aviv 7th Most Expensive Expat City + +CNBC recently totted up the cost of living in 2018 cities in 121 countries and found that Tel Aviv had the seventh highest cost of living for expats. + +[**Tel Aviv ranks seventh on list of most expensive cities for expats** + _Tel Aviv ranked No. 7 on the list of most-expensive cities for expats to live in, CNBC reported. The report, based on…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/tel-aviv-ranks-seventh-on-list-of-most-expensive-cities-for-expats-652169 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/tel-aviv-ranks-seventh-on-list-of-most-expensive-cities-for-expats-652169")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/tel-aviv-ranks-seventh-on-list-of-most-expensive-cities-for-expats-652169) + +That reporting was based on findings from ECA International. + +[**Cost of Living** + _ECA's rigorous cost of living methodology has been developed over more than 40 years. We use a multi-source approach…_ www.eca-international.com](https://www.eca-international.com/services/data/allowances-benefits/cost-of-living "https://www.eca-international.com/services/data/allowances-benefits/cost-of-living")[](https://www.eca-international.com/services/data/allowances-benefits/cost-of-living) + +### Average Salary 11,459 NIS / Month + +Salaries in Israel are quoted monthly in the New Israeli Sheqel (NIS). + +[**Average salary in Israel falls to NIS 11,459** + _The average monthly salary in the Israeli economy in May was NIS 11,459, down from NIS 12,137 in April but up from NIS…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-average-salary-in-israel-falls-to-nis-11459-1001338212 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-average-salary-in-israel-falls-to-nis-11459-1001338212")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-average-salary-in-israel-falls-to-nis-11459-1001338212) + +At the time of writing, the latest figures show that the national average salary was 11,459 NIS. However, the technology sector had a separate average of 24,773. + +At the exchange rates prevalent at the time of writing, that puts Israel’s national salary, annualized at: + + * $42,281 + * €34,610 + +By contrast, salaries in Luxembourg, which was one place “ahead” of Israel on CEOWORLD’s cost of living ranking, are close to €66,000. + +[**Salaries: These are the best paid sectors in Luxembourg** + _In general, the annual salary for a job in Luxembourg is very high compared to other EU Member States. But not all…_ today.rtl.lu](https://today.rtl.lu/news/luxembourg/a/1578389.html "https://today.rtl.lu/news/luxembourg/a/1578389.html")[](https://today.rtl.lu/news/luxembourg/a/1578389.html) + +Salaries in Singapore, however, which was one place “behind” Israel on CEOWORLD’s cost of living ranking, are more comparable to Israel’s. + +According to the Singaporean Ministry of Manpower (MOM), the latest median gross monthly income is $S 4,534 = $3,397 (USD). That equates to an annual income of $40,764, slightly less than Israel’s. diff --git a/posts/medium/Creating-NFC-Tag-Automations-In-Home-Assistant-Using-Webhooks.md b/posts/medium/Creating-NFC-Tag-Automations-In-Home-Assistant-Using-Webhooks.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fde9b35c45d40525840eb0786efc2aa875346e84 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Creating-NFC-Tag-Automations-In-Home-Assistant-Using-Webhooks.md @@ -0,0 +1,64 @@ +# Creating NFC Tag Automations In Home Assistant Using Webhooks + +One of my first orders of NFC tag stickers! + +Home Assistant has a built-in NFC tag creator. But it also offers the means to create NFC tags through a different method: utilising webhooks. + +Why might you want to do this? + + * **You may (deliberately!) want to allow anyone in your home the ability to trigger automations (including guests who aren’t on your system).** + * **Currently, the NFC Tags functionality doesn’t support creating tags on the desktop.** Personally, I think that this is an unfortunate omission. Like most things, I find using destkop applications to create NFC tags much quicker than replicating the action on a smartphone (to do this, you’ll obviously need a USB NFC reader/writer). + * You can keep a list of your webhook URLs. The trigger that makes this work is visible. + * You might want to use this method as a chance to explore webhooks generally. + * If you want to use scanable barcodes to create automations you might want to use a symbology other than QR (like DataMatrix or PDF417). We can create and design our own stickers this way. + * You might just want to do things a little bit differently! + +### How To Create The NFC Tags (Or Barcdoes) + +Here’s how to set this up: + +In ‘Automations’ set your trigger to be a webhook. + +But don’t stick with the default settings. Turn on ‘GET’ and (my recommendation) preserve “Only accessible from the local network” (GET is required for the webhook to be trigger-able from a browser request). + +Under “Then Do” set up whatever you want to automate. + +Now we need to create the NFC tags. + +Copy the webhook URL once it’s been generated onto your clipboard: + +We can now use any program we like to write the tag, whether on desktop or mobile. + +I like NFC Tools (they have a nice Linux GUI) but there are plenty of tools: + +Another little security feature I like to add to all my tags is password protection. This protects the tags against accidental deletion. + +A stronger version of this is locking the tags (in NFC Tools this option is only available on the mobile version). But this is an irreversible action which will prevent anyone (including you!) from ever being able to edit the tags. + +If you like the idea of password-protecting your tags, in NFC Tools, jump into ‘Other’ after writing the payload and select ‘Set password’: + +For barcodes it’s the same process. We can bake them into just about anything: + +**The nice thing about creating NFC tags (or barcodes) with webhooks is that (so long as the webhook URLs remain viable) you don’t need to edit the actual tags ever again.** + +If you decide that you want to switch up what the NFC tag does a bit, for example, you can simply make your changes under the Home Assistant automation you’ve already set up. The trigger is the same — you just need to change what it does. + +You can validate that your NFC-to-webhook automation is running correctly by scanning it with your phone. You should see this pop up from the automation editor: + +If we’re talking about automations that trigger lighting changes, it will probably be (visually) obvious that the webhook has succeeded and the automation has worked. + +But in cases where there mightn’t be a physical indication (let’s say you triggered an automation to turn off the lights in one hour’s time) you might consider adding a little confirmation notification. + +Just add this as an additional action under ‘Then Do’. + +Here’s a little one: + +### LAN-Only Webhooks? Or WAN-Accessible Webhooks? + +This method works reliably from within a LAN environment, but what if you wanted to create NFC tags that you could scan remotely? + +I use Tailscale for remote authentication but it won’t resolve the webhook URLs which begin with “homeassistant.local” (or access homeassistant.local at all for that matter). + +Exposing this URL as a subnet route might seem like a logical solution except that it doesn’t work that way — subnet routes need to be local IPs and the default Home Assistant installation path looks like a conventional internet address to the tool. + +I’m certain there’s a smart way around this but given that I can’t envision needing to scan a home automation NFC tag remotely (for the moment) I’m happy to leave finding a solution to this networking quandary on the backburner (of note: the default method doesn’t run into this problem. I’m not sure whatever they’re doing but … it works). diff --git a/posts/medium/Creative-Ideas-For-Content-Marketers-Working-At-Really--Boring--Companies.md b/posts/medium/Creative-Ideas-For-Content-Marketers-Working-At-Really--Boring--Companies.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c30c7fedf0ae72a10964166528c4aae5e4631842 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Creative-Ideas-For-Content-Marketers-Working-At-Really--Boring--Companies.md @@ -0,0 +1,115 @@ +# Creative Ideas For Content Marketers Working At Really “Boring” Companies + +#### Even the supposedly “dullest” of industries can throw up interesting content opportunities. It just might require a bit of creative thinking to identify them + +Content marketing: exhaustive brainstorming mightn’t be necessary to find ideas for less glamorous businesses. Sometimes simple perspective shifts can pave the way for interesting pieces. Photo by [Startup Stock Photos](https://www.pexels.com/@startup-stock-photos?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-wearing-black-and-white-stripe-shirt-looking-at-white-printer-papers-on-the-wall-212286/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Across the globe, [more than 300 million people](https://www.moyak.com/papers/business-startups-entrepreneurs.html#:~:text=Among%20these%204%20billion%2C%202.4,initial%20three%20years%20of%20operation.) are attempting to launch about 150 million businesses. That’s according to Moya Mason writing in _‘Worldwide Business Startups.’_ + +Whether Mason’s numbers are up to date or not I’m not sure. I found them lurking on Google. Suffice to say that the number of operational companies in the world is some version of _“an awful lot.”_ With that less accurate estimate out of the way, let’s move on. + +Businesses make money, of course, through all kind of means. + +Some businesses are really hip startups using artificial intelligence (AI) to plumb mountains of data and distill them down into very actionable insights. You know — the ones based out of San Francisco working in very open plan offices. + +Others make the many technical systems that are integrated into the airplanes, trains, and cars that we use to get around this world. They’re not necessarily exciting by themselves — but what they help achieve certainly is. These folks are one step back from anything that could credibly be described as “pretty darn cool.” + +And some others …Well, they make the toilet paper that we use to …. sorry, let’s no go there. + +Sensors that fit in sewers to let people know how much water is flowing through them (just water of the very pungent variety). Or they make drywall. What they do isn’t riveting. Nor is the output. + +All, however, are essential products. + +All are companies that could be enormously profitable. But when marketers at those companies get asked whether they’ve ever thought about doing much in the realm of content marketing, I sometimes wonder what they say back. How can we make drywall engaging enough that people might want to read a blog about it?! + +Which leads to a bigger question: is content marketing for all businesses or just the glamorous ones? What happens if your company is making pots of money but it’s doing so by … you know … making the knobs that go on your oven. + +The good news for content marketers hoping to widen their employment options: all hope is not lost. My longstanding contention: “boring” B2B companies are great clients to have on board. What they do mightn’t be dazzling. But with that can come a refreshing degree of transparency. As well as stability and profitability. + +Observation two: “boring” industries are often populated by people who love to extract some dry humor from laughing about how boring their companies are. But sometimes being one foot away from an industry is more liability than asset. Here are a few “angles” that I’ve explored with clients that seemed at a loss for what to “talk about.” + +### Your Company / Industry Mightn’t Be As Boring As You Think It Is + +If you’ve worked in an industry for 30 years, or show up every morning to work on another facet of the _same_ problem, it’s only natural that you might begin to feel a bit weary whenever you hear that industry mentioned. + +The problem is that this kind of mental fatigue might be stopping you from seeing what _is_ interesting about the challenges your company — or even the entire industry — is working towards overcoming. + +Sometimes, a fresh perspective is enormously helpful: [like working with marketers](http://www.rosehillmarcom.com) who _don’t_ have a professional background — at least an exclusive one — solving whatever problem you’re trying to work on. + +Take the critical infrastructure segment, which I mentioned above. This is a big sector that, in the US, is defined by law. + +A great foundational story to weave into your narrative: how the stuff that none of us like to _think_ about works. And what would happen if it didn’t. Extrapolate a little further: what works today mightn’t work tomorrow. That ghastly vision of toilets not flushing or tap water not turning on at the mains could be a lot closer than you realize. Which is why we’re …. + +If you’re selling to those at a parallel level of experience, you’re going to need to include all the nitty-gritty technical details also. But sometimes foundational top of funnel content assets can manage to speak to both audiences. What is your solution introducing that’s _new?_ + +Whatever you do, make sure you don’t skip over that baseline narrative just because _you_ had the lightbulb moment 20 or 30 years ago when you first went to school to become an engineer. It could be your reader’s first time hearing about this problem. + +How could we reframe a narrative? + +One approach I’ve seen used successfully is to indirectly acknowledge the elephant in the room. What we do mightn’t be sleek or sexy, but if companies like ours didn’t exist, you couldn’t turn on your computer or your fan. Now here’s the iterative improvement that we’re excited to be bringing to market. + +### Proudly Own The “Anti-Disruptor” Space + +These days, those consuming content marketing have become inured to content marketing that’s both wildly hyperbolic and also painfully repetitive. + +The internet, right now, is drowning in countries boasting about how their “AI” changes their industry. Yesterday it was IoT. Tomorrow another tech category will be plotting its way along the Gartner Hype Cycle. + +Some of these claims are undoubtedly far-fetched. An “algorithm” is sometimes a bastardization that simply means _“we use rule-based logic.”_ + +While it’s probably fair to say that overstating your capabilities is a bad idea across the board, the kind of jargon-saturated language many opt for by default might be an _extra_ turn-off depending on what audience you’re marketing to. + +While many companies are going for the “cutting edge” playcard, you can, instead, try to pander to a completely different appeal. + +To do this, walk, not in terms of disruption, but in terms of stability. + +Want an example? Take a look at how hosting companies market to consumers (see: shared hosting plans) and how they market to enterprises. + +Notice the difference in visual presentation _and_ language. + +The consumer-focused collateral is likely to include abstract “flashy” claims about the host’s “blazing fast speed.” The enterprise options — say dedicated hosting — might look a lot drier. PDFs in bright colors have been replaced by milder datasheets that offer concrete guarantees around uptime and other SLAs. + +Great words to weave into the articles on your content calendar to make this play: + + * Veteran + * Battle-proven + * Resilient + +Your messaging doesn’t always have to be about _change_ or _innovation—_ sometimes pandering to a basis that seeks out _stability_ and _continuity_ actually sounds a lot more attractive and mature. + +When we’re talking about systems that people want to have to think about, replace, or upgrade as infrequently as possible (example: HVAC) your biggest selling point might be being the product that _isn’t_ going to break. + +If you’re going for this approach, own your somewhat staid reputation in the industry and weave that into your tone of voice. + +You’re not Silicon Valley cool. But you’ve been around longer than that entire ecosystem has. Your stuff really works. And the most competent hands into which you could entrust your team is ours. + +### What Not To Do: Talk About You Or Your Team + +The most common tactic that companies go for when they determine that they _have_ to have a blog but they’re really sure what to put up on it. + +They talk about themselves. + +The rationale is easy to discern. + +It’s nice, easy, fluffy and lightweight content to write. Everybody likes talking about themselves. + +The result? + +A blog filled to the brim with posts like “Meet Daniel, Our Newest Marketing Hire.” + +The problem is this. Nobody really cares about Daniel or the fact that he’s joined your marketing team. Or what his responsibilities are centered around. + +People are selfish animals who care, primarily, about having their _problems_ solved. + +That means that you, as a content marketer, need to either _show_ them they have a problem; show them that they _will_ have a problem (unless action is taken); or show them how you could _solve_ their problem. + +You can veer onto the odd tangent and humanize the effort. But that shouldn’t be the center of your focus. + +Nobody is particularly interested in your team. Unless that information relates to solving their problem. And it might. Perhaps your team is comprised of very experienced people. But they probably don’t need to know about what those people cook on their weekends. + +Content marketing isn’t the sole preserve of startups that are doing something that looks very interesting — at least on the outside. + +What you’re doing might be engrossing to somebody who hasn’t heard of you or your industry before. You just have to accommodate an external perspective in your marketing. + +Content marketing _is_ a cost-effective means of marketing that can be used by many different kinds of business to give them a lead generation source that they don’t need to keep ploughing money into. + +Consider whether there are angles that you can use that _will_ resonate with your target audiences. And keep solving their pain points front and center as your objective. diff --git a/posts/medium/Current-licensing-and-syndication-terms-for-my-writing-on-Medium-3a73c9355a0.html.md b/posts/medium/Current-licensing-and-syndication-terms-for-my-writing-on-Medium-3a73c9355a0.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b13c07d34b0693c8af691746262107bae0ca9fc5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Current-licensing-and-syndication-terms-for-my-writing-on-Medium-3a73c9355a0.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,69 @@ +# Current licensing and syndication terms for my writing on Medium + +#### If you’d like to reproduce or quote anything from this Medium account, kindly do so under the following terms + + _— Changelog: V1. 08/21_ + + Current syndication and licensing terms for my writing here on Medium. Image: Social media icons on a smartphone. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/facebook-application-icon-147413/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Over the past couple of years, writing on Medium has become one of my favorite past-times. + +[**4 Reasons I Write A Post A Day On Medium (Just For Fun)** +_Sometimes Non-Monetary Payoffs DO Matter For Creators_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-i-write-a-post-a-day-on-medium-just-for-fun-a0d302a12e9d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-i-write-a-post-a-day-on-medium-just-for-fun-a0d302a12e9d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-i-write-a-post-a-day-on-medium-just-for-fun-a0d302a12e9d) + +While writing is typically part of my workday, I don’t always get to choose the topics that I write about. + +By providing a great platform that’s a joy to write on with a lightning-fast UI backed by consistently good uptime, Medium has thrown a good deal of fire upon my creative resources. + +It’s even made me backtrack slightly on my traditional reluctance to use non-managed / privatized and cloud-hosted tech. My happy middle ground? I post a lot here but backup everything that goes up diligently. + +[**My Approach To Backing Up My Online Writing** + _I have written a lot about backups in recent months . So much so that I reckon that there is probably an entire book’s…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521) + +As this network of articles continues to sprawl — as do my thoughts — I have found that bloggers, podcasts, and other parties have occasionally begun citing and quoting my work. And so, in order to avoid the process of requesting permission for reprinting / quotes / etc, I have added this licensing page to preempt any questions. + +### Licensing And Syndication Terms For My Medium.com Articles + +Until this page is deleted or otherwise retracted, anything I write on this Medium account can be considered to be licensed under the following [Creative Commons](https://medium.com/u/a85b8aeafab8) license: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). + +For details of each of its constituent elements, please see this page: + +[**Creative Commons - Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International - CC BY-NC-ND 4.0** + _This page is available in the following languages: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC…_ creativecommons.org](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/")[](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) + +Because I think that [Creative Commons](https://medium.com/u/a85b8aeafab8) does terrific work that is vital to both protecting the interests of creators and streamlining the permissions requesting process, here’s a quick explainer for why this is my current preference: + + * **Attribution** is appreciated because if I write something, or share an idea, I want to stand by it. + * **Non-commercial** is asserted because the writing that I publish here on Medium is non-monetized (at the time of writing this version, I have opted to put my articles in front of the paywall). + * **Non-derivative** is asserted because I do not want anything I write to be misconstrued or misquoted or taken out of context through a derivative work. + +I’ve also opted, by default, for my YouTube uploads to be licensed under the closest license that YouTube provides to creators: + +Feel free to embed any videos in your resource(s) too. + +### Examples Of Things That Aren’t Okay + +Since opening this channel, I’ve had: + + * **Websites syndicating my posts here complete with an author page and a contact me form that I have no means of accessing.** This is annoying because it is liable to create the false impression that I am ignoring contact from any readers. + * **Websites plagiarizing posts that have appeared here without attribution.** This is just bad practice and always leaves a bad taste. + * **Websites plagiarizing posts that I have written here while also translating them from normative English into non-native level English.** + +All these things are annoying and I reserve the right to take action as a result of any of them. + +### How To Contact Me + +Contact information, including PGP-capable email, is provided here: + +[**Welcome To My Medium Page** + _Thanks for checking out my Medium profile!_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/welcome-to-my-medium-page-ddaa28562c7 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/welcome-to-my-medium-page-ddaa28562c7")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/welcome-to-my-medium-page-ddaa28562c7) + +You can also reach me at: + +medium + + +my name (first name and last name together no spaces, all lower case). + +dot co dot il as the TLD. + +Thank you for your understanding! diff --git a/posts/medium/Custom-GPT-List---August-2024.md b/posts/medium/Custom-GPT-List---August-2024.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..480918a6c0ac5e2bdbdc085be2d38246dc61ef7c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Custom-GPT-List---August-2024.md @@ -0,0 +1,528 @@ +# Custom GPT List — August 2024 + +A toybox full of GPTs. DALLE. + +### Notes + + * All of these GPTs are free to use on ChatGPT + * Custom GPT creators, including me, have absolutely no insight into user interactions with custom GPTs + * This list is organised alphabetically + +### A Day In GPT Land + +A GPT who guides the user through an entire day coming up with a random fun itinerary + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-FiD7qP5nQ-a-day-in-gpt-land) + +### AI Career Ideator + +Career advice GPT which focuses on encouraging users to embrace AI and further their proficiency in leveraging it + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-QX63wl7mk-ai-career-ideator) + +### AI Could Help Here! + +Identifies ways AI and GPTs can improve your life suggesting concrete use-cases + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-9V1PGBmlv-ai-could-help-here) + +### Agenda For The Pub + +A custom GPT in honor of a [viral tweet](https://www.today.com/food/news/dad-goes-viral-discussion-agenda-weekly-friends-bar-meetup-rcna682430!) about a dad who creates formal agendas for meeting friends at a pub. + +This GPT formats discussion points into a friendly meeting agenda with drink break suggestions. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-kUnX6lKVm-agenda-for-the-pub) + +### Airport Food Options + +Asks the user to provide an airport, terminal, expected arrival time, and notes on what they’re looking for. + +Then sizes up their best food and drink options. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-898ZTQxjw-airport-food-options) + +### Automate My Workflow + +A strategist guiding you towards total job automation, one task at a time. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-SaJGzEr7O-automate-my-workflow) + +### Backoffice / Admin GPT Creation Assistant + +GPT to suggest custom GPTs for backoffice/admin operations + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-h2bbjenP4-backoffice-admin-gpt-creation-assistant) + +### Backoffice Development Copilot + +A GPT which guides users through the process of developing effective backoffice and administrative systems for both personal and business uses, highlighting opportunities for AI enhancement and systems integration where possible + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-gdDolOeNm-backoffice-development-copilot) + +### Backup Coach + +A GPT to assess the user’s backup approach for a given data store and suggest ideas for improvement + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-hPangtCss-backup-coach) + +### Backup Evaluation Assistant + +A GPT which helps users to quickly gather information about the backup approaches of SaaS tools + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-BuytE5yi9-backup-evaluation-assistant) + +### Beer Tap Identifier + +Identifies and describes beers from photos of beer taps. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-To4LJ5qvI-beer-tap-identifier) + +### Boss Update Assistant + +GPT to create a running log of updates for a boss + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-P37s96ili-boss-update-batcher) + +### Brainstorming Assistant + +GPT which provides guidance to help the user have effective brainstorming sessions + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-nqw5EokfU-brainstorming-assistant) + +### Brainstorming Coach + +A GPT to help users get started with brainstorming and make the most of the technique + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-joLoB0e1O-brainstorming-coach) + +### Brand Reliability GPT + +A purchasing research GPT which attempts to assess the reputation of brands for specific product lines. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-XB1T89x31-brandreliabilitygpt) + +### Brief Generator + +Summarizes and organizes activities into brief reports with highlights for deadlines. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-v9bULcFsS-brief-generator) + +### Broken Link Fixer + +GPT which attempts to fix broken links + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-A9HZrPLoA-broken-link-helper) + +### Business Continuity Advisor + +A bot to advise upon the level of resilience of your business processes + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-3xcGPBeU0-business-continuity-advisor) + +### Career Pivot Ideator + +Suggests minor career pivots that users could take to work in more fulfilling jobs + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-YsvxFjdDB-career-pivot-ideator) + +### ChatGPT Capabilities Miner + +Answers questions about ChatGPT capabilities and custom models. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-x1RD3GXRZ-chatgpt-capabilities-miner) + +### ChatGPT Prompt Engineering Buddy + +A GPT which advises users upon how to craft prompts to get the best results on ChatGPT + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-8xZmugrKD-chatgpt-prompt-engineering-buddy) + +### Custom GPT Configuration Helper + +GPT for generating configurations for custom GPTs + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-Ch4CywyS4-custom-gpt-configuration-helper) + +### Custom GPT Creator + +Helps brainstorm and create custom GPTs with detailed instructions. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-Sg1Uvkc5e-custom-gpt-creator) + +### Daily Schedule Manager + +GPT for creating a daily schedule + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-aId4Jee9a-daily-schedule-manager) + +### Data Organisation Genie + +GPT to help users manage data in relational database systems. + +The GPT makes specific actionable suggestions on how best to organise data suggesting tables, fields, field types, and internal data relationships. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-2A2braGK4-data-organisation-genie) + +### Data Visualisation & Storytelling Guide + +Guides users towards thinking about how data could be effectively visualised including through leveraging mixed media. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-r2ms27CFU-data-visualisation-storytelling-guide) + +### Databases > Spreadsheets + +GPT to guide users migrating business systems from spreadsheet-based process onto those built around a relational database + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-bfZqQSF8p-databases-spreadsheets) + +### Disaster Debrief Assistant + +A GPT to empathetically help the user to debrief from an event in which things went wrong + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-UHFWorGUH-disaster-debrief-assistant) + +### Disaster Preparedness Expert + +Generates detailed disaster scenarios and preparedness steps. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-LoHCuhe5q-disaster-preparedness-expert) + +### Document Stats And Numbers Miner + +A GPT which parses user-uploaded documents and identifies statistics and data tables contained in them. The GPT outputs a report attempting to assess how noteworthy the stats are. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-4cjYLd5j5-documents-stats-and-numbers-miner) + +### Document Table Finder + +Reviews documents to identify and list data tables with summaries and page references. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-xG2mDmaui-document-table-finder) + +### Don’t Custom GPT Alone! + +A GPT to help custom GPT builders and enthusiasts to find others who share their passion and belief in this AI application + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-oQJ8UozJB-don-t-custom-gpt-alone) + +### Dummy Tech Project Ideator + +GPT for coming up with dummy projects for helping users to learn about different technologies + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-jS50pH8gq-dummy-tech-project-ideator) + +### Email Optimiser + +Refines and organizes draft emails, suggesting subject lines and reformatting content. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-IIErWVz2I-email-optimizer) + +### Hardware Finder For Fedora Linux + +A GPT which tries to find hardware that Fedora users have reported to be compatible with this Linux distro + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-aOzPvSNRd-fedora-hardware-finder) + +### Find Me Compatible Hardware + +A GPT that remembers your hardware and suggests compatible hardware for it + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-EaJ2gATCY-find-me-compatible-hardware) + +### Friends & Family Meeting Planner + +Sometimes the best way to talk about important things through is to plan them out + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-OMeW6zQy7-friends-family-meeting-planner) + +### GPT Fleet Optimisation Utility + +GPT to help the user consolidate and organise a ‘fleet’ of custom GPTs + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-xIVIsrbiN-gpt-fleet-optimisation-utility) + +### GPT Test Bench + +GPT to help with testing and evaluation of custom GPTs + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-XQbDHpNJa-gpt-test-bench) + +### GPT Usage Coach + +A GPT to coach users on how to make the best use out of GPT models! + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-78wNZ6yWv-gpt-usage-coach) + +### Geopolitical Scenario Simulator + +GPT for simulating various geopolitical scenarios based upon current events + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-p2PZeDpNv-geopolitical-scenario-simulator) + +### Geopolitical brief generator + +GPT that provides organised summaries based upon a specific format + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-OLKPnScu2-geopolitical-brief-provider) + +### Gifted Adult Helper + +A custom GPT trained to expect interactions from adults who identify as gifted + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-zoXyCtxm3-gifted-adult-helper) + +### Github repository summariser + +Summarises the contents of a Github repository + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-v3vhzWOf3-github-repository-summariser) + +### Grow With My Job + +A GPT to help users identify ways to grow professionally within the context of their current job + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-v3vKpYxCq-grow-with-my-job) + +### Hannah & Daniel’s TV Recommendation Bot + +A custom GPT I built to help my wife and I find things to watch on Netflix that will interest both of us. So far, this has proven a resounding success! + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-KJ5IhySuc-hannah-daniel-s-tv-recommendation-bot) + +### If We Don’t Change… + +A GPT to highlight the potential costs of humanity failing to tackle vital issues including climate change + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-AltOe5P4k-if-we-don-t-change) + +### Impact Investing Digest + +Summarizes developments in the world of impact investing + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-JIhIf4TCa-impact-investing-digest) + +### Improve My GPT Prompt + +GPT which analyses and optimises prompts + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-YJzimC1NU-improve-my-gpt-prompt) + +### Improve My Script + +GPT that critiques (programming) scripts and suggests improvements. + +I’ve used it to good effect on both Python and Bash scripts. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-6wql7CMkg-improve-my-script) + +### Job Performance Coach + +Helps users perform impressively at work + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-lJNf8Km5p-job-performance-coach) + +### Let’s Change The World + +A GPT to guide and encourage users to develop effective advocacy campaigns for causes that matter to them + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-rrir54rrF-let-s-change-the-world) + +### Let’s Delve Into This + +GPT for ideating learning pathways + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-ThOA6cwPW-let-s-delve-into-this) + +### Life Continuity GPT + +I couldn’t think of a word to describe the type of “preparedness” that I value, so I settled on “life continuity” as a “fork” of business continuity, a well-established field. + +This GPT doesn’t focus on hurricanes or nuclear attacks, but rather more pedestrian everyday “threats” like: + + * What should I do if I get unexpectedly laid off? + * What happens if our bank account goes into overdraft this month? + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-sv8QZ17wX-life-continuity-gpt) + +### Media Interview Trainer GPT + +GPT aimed at training spokespeople for media engagements. Conducts a simulated interview and then offers feedback. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-TQH0IAjGp-media-interview-coach) + +### Media Monitoring Brief Assistant + +Prepares customised briefs about a specific topic taking inputs from the user + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-zobI0AaRr-media-monitoring-brief-helper) + +### Open Data Finder + +Finds open source datasets based on user queries. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-3iG0XaYeM-open-data-finder) + +### Opportunities For Comment — PR Assistant + +GPT designed to help communications professionals identify opportunities for reactive commentary + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-2dtwMq3rJ-opportunities-for-comment-pr-assistant) + +### Preparedness Brief Creator + +A GPT that creates elaborate briefs helping users to advance their preparedness for specific scenarios + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-SyuJVbnaa-preparedness-brief-creator) + +### Present Selection Helper + +A GPT to help the user buy thoughtful gifts that will be appreciated + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-jXHLHropx-present-selection-helper) + +### Prompt Shortener + +Teaches GPT users how to shorten prompts and custom GPT configurations + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-7EtUXtZvP-prompt-shortener) + +### Prompt engineering digest + +GPT which summarises latest prompt engineering news + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-rckre9xTT-prompt-engineering-digest) + +### Python ChatGPT API Script Builder + +Creates Python scripts using ChatGPT API based on user needs. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-YkCrE1j8M-python-chatgpt-api-script-builder) + +### Quiet, Please! + +A GPT to help those who live with sound sensitivity to find places to get some peace and quiet, whether for work or lesiure + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-DP63EeIhs-quiet-please) + +### Random GPT suggestion tool + +Suggests random GPT ideas + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-HZ0XfniqR-random-gpt-suggestion-tool) + +### Recent Documentary Finder + +Suggests recent documentaries for documentary fiends who have already seen all the good ones! + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-p3uEijTce-recent-documentary-finder) + +### Recent Report Finder + +A GPT for finding recently published reports within a user’s area of interest + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-28mgr7MNJ-recent-report-finder) + +### Regulation & Policy Comparison Assistant + +A GPT to compare different policies and regulations + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-bRtrixyRZ-regulation-policy-comparison-assistant) + +### Report Summariser + +A GPT which summarises reports with a particular focus on data and statistics contained in them + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-ahPy64tkD-report-summariser) + +### Research With Python Tutorials Generator + +A GPT to coach the user to achieve research objectives using Python + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-cXeV3yszL-research-with-python-tutorials) + +### Ruggedized Product Finder + +A GPT to help the user find ruggedized products + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-1aq9Lm73u-ruggedized-product-finder) + +### Schema Genie + +Assists in creating comprehensive Postgres database schemas. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-5cNjzPcmY-schema-genie) + +### Self-Hosted Tech Finder + +A GPT which tries to identify self-hostable alternatives to SaaS offerings + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-hTkt9hW9b-self-hosted-tech-finder) + +### Stack Research Assistant + +A GPT for suggesting stack options for a particular technical objective + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-1YCZiSetK-stack-research-assistant) + +### Sustainable Living Advisor + +A GPT which provides concrete sustainable living recommendations based upon user requests + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-QO1EZ82Az-sustainable-living-advisor) + +### Taxonomy & Category Builder + +GPT to assist users with developing taxonomies and category lists for data-driven applications + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-ryPoXnaZ2-taxonomy-category-builder) + +### Tech Improvement Guide + +A GPT for guiding the user towards resolving a technical difficulty + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-iUpxWa7xe-tech-improvement-guide) + +### Tech Product Finder + +GPT which receives a spec from the user and then identifies potential products + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-VYWtk1FeY-tech-product-finder) + +### Tech Stack Optimizer + +Suggests AI/GPT solutions to improve your technology stack. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-p4gPcrdF2-tech-stack-optimizer) + +### The Absurd Solution Guru + +Life’s too short for conventional fixes. The Absurd Solution Guru suggests outlandish “fixes” to your problems. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-K6z1rdWmh-the-absurd-solution-guru) + +### The Creativity Coach + +A GPT to help nurture the user’s creativity and guide them towards creative expression + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-1aqoukyao-the-creativity-coach) + +### Topic To Subreddit + +A GPT which suggests subreddits where a certain topic is commonly discussed + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-roc7XprOI-topic-to-subreddit) + +### Weekly Work Planner + +Helps the user formulate a weekly work plan + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-s5M34exEU-weekly-work-planner) + +### Your Friendly AI Prof + +An enthusiastic AI expert named Herman, explaining complex concepts simply. + +[View On ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com/g/g-Ng2MfGJYV-your-friendly-ai-prof) + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Customer-Service-in-Israel--And-My-Blacklist-and-Whitelist-.md b/posts/medium/Customer-Service-in-Israel--And-My-Blacklist-and-Whitelist-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f9988c661af5f68653ad1455d725f78378c1961c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Customer-Service-in-Israel--And-My-Blacklist-and-Whitelist-.md @@ -0,0 +1,60 @@ +# Customer Service in Israel (And My Blacklist and Whitelist) + +[**I’ve pointed out before that customer service in Israel frequently leaves a _lot_ to be desired.**](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) + +This is not — as we would say in Israel — “a secret of the Shin Bet” (“זה לא סוד של השב”כ” — an idiom occasionally used to mean “this isn’t a national secret.”) + +If you want to learn more about the subject check out [this TOI blog](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-is-customer-service-in-israel-so-bad/) and this [Quora thread](https://www.quora.com/What-purpose-does-the-culture-of-poor-customer-service-in-Israel-serve). + +But if you live in Israel — or are thinking about doing so — the statement that customer service in Israel is often substandard is probably about as controversial to you as asserting that Israelis like falafel and hummus. Ie, not very. + +If one were asked to point to one overarching problem with customer service in Israel I would say it is the faulty belief, held by too many companies here, that _“the customer exists in order to give me money.”_ + +This belief manifests itself as extremely poor after-sales support; a marked reluctance to honor support warranties (Israeli consumer law places the responsibility on remedying defects within the warranty period on the official importer rather than the reseller — official importers are rarely in the habit of making it easy to fix a defective toaster oven); and a reluctance to honor commitments once money has been exchanged. + +Other common problems are an attitude one: _“the customer is always right,”_ is not an attitude which many Israeli companies — who are fond of arguing — are on board with. Its local equivalent is often “ _the customer clearly doesn’t know what he wants so I need to argue with him in order to convince him of that to help him find the right product.”_ (Sometimes helpful; other times grating). Another common attitude, particularly among teenager retail clerks, is: _“texting on my phone is more important than serving the customer right in front of me.”_ + +To provide some salient examples: + +A friend is currently engaged in two separate pitched battles — one to obtain a blender which an appliance store promised him as an enticement, in writing, when he bought an expensive oven there over 6 weeks ago; another is with an another electronics retailer from whom this friend bought a laser printer three weeks ago. + +This friend has had to visit the retailer, in person, on three occasions (and is yet to receive so much as a perfunctory apology). After enquiring why the printer had not arrived the salesperson said — again without once apologizing — _“oh, it’s not even in the country yet!”_ You get the picture. + +Despite all the foregoing, I would maintain that customer service in Israel — overall — isn’t that bad. At least not all of it. + +It’s simply that the standard deviation, like many things in Israel, is higher — and one encounters quite a shocking number of outstandingly poor customer service experiences while living here. + +I put together this list of some great and bad companies because I know that there _are_ companies and institutions that are doing a really good job at doing things properly. + +Because defamation law, in Israel, [is not favorable for those expressing opinions,](https://www.pearlcohen.com/israel-sharing-a-post-on-social-media-may-constitute-defamation-liking-it-will-not/) I cannot state any details about those companies on my blacklist or assert why I have added them to this section of the post. + +So all I will say — collectively — is that _in my opinion_ my experience with these companies has not been positive and I encourage readers to delve further before. But the experience is none other than my own and your mileage may vary. + +Want to find out more? + +Facebook Groups: + + * [The Israel Blacklist](https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheIsraelBlacklist/?epa=SEARCH_BOX) + * [The Israel Whitelist](https://www.facebook.com/groups/Theisraelwhitelist/) + +(Because I’ve lived in Jerusalem for a few years this list will be Jerusalem-centric). + +### Whitelist + +**Ivory:** Ivory maintains almost an identical inventory to KSP and often at almost identical prices — although Ivory usually costs more if there is a price difference. However, in my experience, the difference is worth it and their customer support is superior. + +**Maccabi Health Services:** Every citizen of Israel needs to be registered with one of the country’s national health funds ( _kupo holim_). I’ve been with Maccabi for four years and can’t say enough good things about them. With one or two very trivial exceptions, I have found little to complain about — at least nothing egregiously bad or that which isn’t a problem with the system in general (for the latter: getting blood tests in Israel needs to be done at a separate appointment and, for some reason, the operating hours seem to always be a two hour slot in the morning). + +### Blacklist + +**KSP:** I’ve bought a _lot_ of technology equipment from KSP. But, in the few times that products have broken down or not worked out of the box, they have either made getting a refund inordinately difficult or fobbed me off to the official importer. + +**Doar Yisrael:** I could write an entire post about how much Israel’s national postal service leaves to be desired. Suffice to say that, in general, and in my opinion, [what you may have read about them in the media isn’t exaggerated.](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israelis-go-postal-over-failing-mail-system-but-it-could-be-a-lot-worse/) + +**International franchises (some of them):** A rookie mistake, in Israel, is to assume that local franchises of international brands will hold themselves to the standards of the parent company. The customer experience one experiences in Israel can be markedly different from that which you might get from the same company in the US or the UK. + +**Other companies:** + +Machsanei Chasmal — my experience with this company has not been positive. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Daniel-Rosehill--Ireland----After-Aliyah-8d9c4876894.html.md b/posts/medium/Daniel-Rosehill--Ireland----After-Aliyah-8d9c4876894.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..071d42e6c8cf0376260c1653ced31284f688a34c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Daniel-Rosehill--Ireland----After-Aliyah-8d9c4876894.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,87 @@ +# Daniel Rosehill (Ireland) — After Aliyah + +Daniel didn’t set this website up as an online soapbox. But as the site has only been online for about a day, nobody has volunteered to share their story yet. So here goes. Written awkwardly in the third person because … there’s nobody else on hand to actually write this. + +**Who are you?** + +My name is Daniel Rosehill. + +**Where did you make aliyah from?** + +Cork, Ireland. + +**Did you come on a Nefesh b’Nefesh flight?** + +I think I filled out the Nefesh b’Nefesh paperwork. But making aliyah from a place with almost no Jewish community, there wasn’t really much infrastructure in place or people to ask what to do. So I was basically winging it and hoping that I didn’t screw up the paperwork. I remember visiting NBN in Israel and the Jewish Agency in London (I had to make a trip over especially). I remember that the _shaliach_(emissary) there seemed to be going in for very much a hazing approach and was constantly probing me as to whether I really wanted to make _aliyah_ and kind of strongly intimating that maybe it was better not to go. And finally getting the consular stamp from the Israeli Embassy (in Dublin). And that’s pretty much it. + +My ultimate experience of making _aliyah_ was not the stuff of NBN fairytales. The flight from Cork (to Heathrow) arrived before the El Al flight to Israel had even opened its check-in counter. So there was nothing better to do than check into a Wetherspoon’s (discount English bar chain) at about 07:00am. It was also a completely standard El Al flight. There was no fanfare. I didn’t even know whether there were any other _olim_ on the flight. When I finally got to Israel there was supposed to be some guy waiting there (from Misrad HaKlita) who never showed up. And then the taxi driver kind of chaotically strapped my suitcases to the roof of his vehicle and that was that. So from end to end, just about the complete opposite of the photo op flight that gets portrayed in the media. No politicians. No photographers. Not even a bureaucrat to say hello on the other side. And my life in _chutz la’aretz_ sort of came to its conclusion drinking lager at seven in the morning. + +**Why did you choose Jerusalem?** + +Who chooses Jerusalem? Just kidding. + +The Jewish Agency determined that I was an “academic” because I had a college degree (related: a [Hebrish glossary](https://www.afteraliyah.com/a-hebrish-glossary-for-making-aliyah/)). So they wanted to send me to _Ulpan Etsion_. Then it was a case of: which one to go to? That goes by date because the various _Ulpan Etsions_ begin at different times during the calendar year. So when I was planning on making _aliyah_ , which was around autumn, the options were either Ramle or Jerusalem. The Jewish Agency ended up opting me into Ramle sort of without me saying that I actually wanted to go there. I don’t say this to badmouth the Jewish Agency. Just to say that you need to get into the mindset of advocating for yourself even before you arrive in Israel. For somebody not familiar with how Israel works the idea of somebody enlisting you somewhere you don’t want to go might seem … quite shocking. But that’s just the Israeli _balagan_ culture in action. Also: nobody mentioned that there were ulpans in Tel Aviv. Again, you need to know your stuff and it helps a lot if you’re in a functioning Jewish community so you have friends/relatives to ask about these things. But I think it was _hasgachah pratit_ that sent me to Jerusalem. + +**What is living in Jerusalem like?** + +The truth is that I have every mixed feelings about the city despite living here for six years. + +It’s Israel’s capital and the Zionist in me wants to like it and make my life here for that reason. But sometimes the city seems to do everything in its power to dissuade people from living here. Employment opportunities in Jerusalem are thin on the ground compared to the _merkaz_(center of Israel). I’ve found noise pollution to be endemic (there’s a construction vehicle outside my window as I type this). Our _arnona_(municipal taxes) and rent are both high. Of course the idea of building up Jerusalem is necessary so that people have places to live. But I feel like the balance isn’t being properly struck between development and the needs of local residents. At least in certain neighborhoods and some of the time. Jerusalem is more than just a theoretical construct these days. It’s a place that people actually call home. + +At the same time there’s something oddly likable about Jerusalem that — even after half a decade in the city — it’s hard to exactly pinpoint. I think the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv pull and push is very much like the dynamic that exists between Cork and Dublin in Ireland, which is kind of a friendly rivalry. + +Everybody who grows up in Jerusalem dreams of leaving for Tel Aviv or elsewhere in the _merkaz_ where there are jobs and nightclubs and fun. People in Cork often want to get out to Dublin and London and Australia for the same reason. It’s too small and parochial. There aren’t enough jobs. But like Cork, Jerusalem kind of ends up holding a place in people’s hearts. Many who grew up here have an odd attachment to it. Even Israelis that now live abroad speak fondly of the special Jerusalem atmosphere. + +The other nice thing about Jerusalem is that there’s at least one of everything. + +You probably don’t need me to tell you that Jerusalem doesn’t give Ibiza a run for its money in terms of nightlife and bars. But there are enough to keep me happy. There are a few gyms. Not enough, in my opinion, but a few. A DJ store for those into that. A kosher Korean place in the Old City (albeit vegetarian). Again, it’s not cosmopolitan in the same way that say London or New York is but … you find yourself oddly content with what’s here at the same time and not particularly lacking for any experience. (Exceptions: there are currently no kosher meat restaurants in Jerusalem. This needs to change!) + +If I had a brilliant startup idea, I would love to found a company in the city and create jobs. Because I think that’s what’s badly needed. People talk about Jerusalem in ideological terms and strengthening the Jewish connection to Jerusalem and I think that pragmatism often goes out the window. This is a poor city that needs more jobs so that people can have reasons to stay here. Right now, I’m working on making a living. + +**What do you think about living in Israel?** + +Again, I have mixed feelings. + +The main difficulty I see here [in Israel] is the cost of living. As a young person that makes an average salary (actually I make no salary at all, I’m self-employed), I see just surviving month to month as the biggest challenge. It’s pressurizing in a way that you don’t quite feel elsewhere. Because [our cost of living is massively high](https://www.afteraliyah.com/9-crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel/) and our salaries are by and large low. It’s hard to feel long term optimism about living in a place when the idea of buying a house seems preposterous. + +Professionally, it’s also been a mixed bag. I don’t want to make this interview sound like a plea for help or get people thinking I up this site in order to broadcast this. I would just say that I haven’t seen the kind of opportunities that would excite me locally. Or maybe I haven’t found them is more accurate. Working for myself is fun but .. it’s a lot of work. + +I’m here essentially because of Zionism. I think that if Jews have their own country they need to be here building it up even if it’s not always rewarding to do so. I think that if we have a place where we’re normal — the mainstream — then it’s illogical to live somewhere where we’re a tiny minority, which is basically everywhere but Israel. My decision to live here is basically that simple. And that’s why, even though I grumble about many things here, I’ve stayed this long. + +Other good things are the weather. I love falafel and Ethiopian food. Israel is a wonderful place to make a living, in my opinion. The caveat is that it takes a lot to be able to afford it. + +**Did you consider living elsewhere?** + +Yes. I was thinking about leaving Ireland after high school. I applied, and got offers from, several programs overseas, including in the US. I think I ended up staying in Ireland mostly for family reasons. I actually regret not coming to Israel at that juncture. The younger you come, the quicker you can integrate and pick up the language and culture. + +**Do you know other Irish people here?** + +One of the nice things about coming from an _aliyah_ community without many …participants … is that there’s no default _olim_ bubble for you to get sucked into. There are older Irish _olim_ living in Herzlia and Netanya but I haven’t had much contact with them. I know two guys from Ireland living in Jerusalem. One is a marketing consultant who lives in my neighborhood. While it’s nice to hear the odd Irish accent, I actually like the fact that there aren’t many Irish _olim_. The only negative is having to repeatedly answer the same questions: “are there Jews in Ireland?”. There’s a lot to be said for making friends just to get past the _olim_ introductions once and for all. + +**What do you do for a living?** + +After managing marketing communications at a startup, the same job essentially as I did in Ireland before coming here, I started my own company that provides writing services to technology clients, marketing agencies, and entrepreneurs. + +I try to focus more on thought leadership and less on “content.” Without wishing to sound negative (I would guess that I’m failing!) I actually really hate the word “content” because I think it just makes all writing sound generic, and the next step is devaluing and underappreciating it — and that problem is endemic in this industry. It’s also almost impossible to get across to Israelis that not everything that involves words in English is “content” and might serve non-SEO objectives like brand positioning and awareness. Which is why I think I haven’t connected so well with the local market. + +I work with some clients in Israel and others abroad. I’m a strong advocate for working with clients all over the world for those that are freelancing as I think people get pidgeon-holed into thinking that the only work available is in Tel Aviv just because they’re here and they speak English and there’s a demand. It’s a truism, but there’s an entire world of English speaking clients out there from Hong Kong to California. With Zoom and a good webcam, you’re basically good to go. + +**Where do you see yourself in five years?** + +Even though I studied something unrelated as an undergraduate, I originally wanted to get into journalism. I ran a student news website,freelanced for some publications, and even studied it. Writing journalism, and about issues, is still kind of my first love and what I do for fun in my spare time. But after studying that, when I came back to Ireland, I got pulled into the corporate communications side of things by taking my first marketing job at a friend’s startup (Ecanvasser, a political technology company). I did a brief journalistic stint in Israel working as a copy editor at a major newspaper. I received a job offer at their competitor. But, to be blunt, the salaries were unlivable. So I ended up taking a job at a PR firm instead. + +Technology is cool (I’m a big Linux fan) but ultimately I care more about shaping conversations and debates and even thought about going into political communications and speechwriting at one point. Right now, I’m trying to figure out a way to blend more passion / non-profit work into my service offering, and move a little bit away from writing and more into PR and marketing strategy side of things. I’m thinking about working more with the non-profit sector for this reason and doing a little less work with technology companies. + +As to Israel: whether I’m here or elsewhere depends on whether I can make it work here which is a question that’s in a monthly state of flux. Right now, for me, that means exploring the international market a lot. I’d like to do a bit more travelling once the world opens up. For business primarily. Ultimately I’d like to continue making a life here. But I don’t see commitment to Israel and being open to the idea of leaving for a period as mutually exclusive. I’d like to reach the point where I can say “this is home and forever will be.” But I’m not at that stage yet. + +**How can other olim help you?** + +If you want to help, you can always send on freelance writing and marketing strategy leads. But know that I’m picky and my rates aren’t cheap. Still interested? + +**How can you help other olim?** + +I’ve done things like write press releases for friends, help friends self-publish on Amazon (KDP). I’ve ghosted interview responses for friends. Written short books for them. That sort of thing. People call on me for writing and communications and technology questions and for coming up with zany ideas which is kind of my specialty. If I have time and there’s something somebody needs help with, I’d be happy to try to help. But _bli neder_ as they say. + +_Daniel, thank you (from Daniel)._ + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Daniel-Rosehill-Press-Kit.md b/posts/medium/Daniel-Rosehill-Press-Kit.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8174e27ca16f1df2cee6116312b370957fb0fdb8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Daniel-Rosehill-Press-Kit.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# Daniel Rosehill Press Kit + +#### Resources for online and print media, podcasts, and broadcast media + +This page is a mirror of the content present [on my personal website here](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/presskit/). + +This press kit was last updated at the time of publication. + +### One Pager + +For best resolution, please follow link to PDF below. + +[Download PDF](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/07/Daniel-Rosehill-One-Pager.pdf) + +### A/V Reel + +### Biography + +### Short Bio: + +**(77 words / 542 characters)** + +Daniel Rosehill is a technology writer and reviewer currently based in Jerusalem. Originally from Cork, Ireland, Daniel’s professional history includes managing marketing communications at two quality startups, working at a PR company, and founding and selling a university news website. Daniel’s technology interests include backups and data recovery, Linux and open source, and cloud computing. Daniel’s holds a Master’s in Political Journalism from City University, London and a Bachelor’s degree in Law from University College Cork (UCC). + +### Long Bio: + +**(168 words / 1,183 characters)** + +Daniel Rosehill (BCL, MA) is a writer based in Jerusalem specializing in providing ghostwriting services for technology clients and — less often — those in the world of public affairs. Daniel previously managed marketing communications (MarCom) at two high-growth technology companies, worked at a PR company, and founded and sold an Irish university news website which grew to be one of the most popular student news sites in the country. His interests include Linux and open source, multimonitor computing, workstation ergonomics, backup solutions, and disaster recovery. + +Originally from Ireland, Daniel holds an undergraduate degree in Law (BCL) from University College Cork as well as a Master’s degree in Journalism (Political) from City University, London. Besides Daniel’s writing for clients he has contributed articles to a number of websites and print publications including IrishCentral.com, Geopolitical Monitor, and, several +others. In his spare time, Daniel is passionate about languages, exploring world cultures, cooking ethnic cuisines, entrepreneurship, travel, computers, and (yes, really) collecting national flags. But mostly he is just passionate about learning. + +### Headshots + +**Crop, color** + +**Crop, grayscale** + +**Color, wide angle** + +**Grayscale, crop** + +Grayscale and RGB color 8-bit + +**Wide:** 3088x3904px / **Crop:** 2090x2530px + +### A/V Samples + +**Audio (broadcast radio)** : + +[**PODCAST EXTRA - Life After COVID-19 Cork Man Daniel In Israel | Cork's 96fm Opinion Line on Acast** + _Israel has the most people vaccinated in the world and is starting to lift restrictions. But how does that work? Does…_ play.acast.com](https://play.acast.com/s/501246da-8667-4673-a4e1-d00bbc60bf36/aa09fc87-3ade-4548-9f94-e98f9e14eada "https://play.acast.com/s/501246da-8667-4673-a4e1-d00bbc60bf36/aa09fc87-3ade-4548-9f94-e98f9e14eada")[](https://play.acast.com/s/501246da-8667-4673-a4e1-d00bbc60bf36/aa09fc87-3ade-4548-9f94-e98f9e14eada) + +**Video, V/O** diff --git a/posts/medium/Dear-kindly-disposed-benefactor--please-buy-me-these-things-from-Amazon.md b/posts/medium/Dear-kindly-disposed-benefactor--please-buy-me-these-things-from-Amazon.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ee9efa2f831de08f7c5550e48685f27a99a3ea43 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Dear-kindly-disposed-benefactor--please-buy-me-these-things-from-Amazon.md @@ -0,0 +1,133 @@ +# Dear kindly disposed benefactor, please buy me these things from Amazon + +#### A blog post I’ll keep on hand in the highly unlikely event of meeting a well-disposed benefactor in the early hours of some dimly lit cocktail bar in Barcelona + +As an avid consumer of Amazon.com — frustrated by my inability to use it frequently where I live — I’ve also been known to build a few wishlists in my time. + +Actually, my Amazon.com wishlist list has morphed into something of an encyclopedia. Unlike its grossly inferior relative Aliexpress (the wish list limit appears to be a miserly five lists), Amazon doesn’t appear to enforce limits as to how many wishlists you can store in your account. + +I’ve taken full liberty of this digital generosity — much as I make liberal use of Prime’s next day delivery service and excellent customer service whenever I visit the US. + +I have to have at least 100 wishlists spanning all the products that I would like to pick up from the website. I just need … you know… the money to buy them (and to live somewhere they can be easily delivered.) + +Putting these together provides me with the kind of vicarious shopping experience that one of my close relatives enjoys by looking up flights online but not actually travelling anywhere for months on end. + +Sequestering products into nicely organized list makes me feel as if I’m one step closer to actually owning them even if they languish their unpurchased for years at a time. Thus work the joys of unfettered online consumerism. + +Recently, while perusing my wishlist network, I decided to do a little bit of whittling. There were some products so outlandishly expensive that I had to corral them into a separate wishlist which I imaginatively entitled “When I Make It.” + +Of course, life is a fickle beast. And there is a chance that I will not amass the staggering wealth needed to fund these purchases. Failing that — as a writer — I fantasize about falling into the good graces of some well-disposed benefactor. + +I imagine us drinking absinthe together in the basement of some bar in Barcelona in the early hours of the morning while Estopa plays on repeat in the background. + +Then he (or she) turns to me with a flicker of mischief and says _“Daniel, you’ve regaled me with such wonderful stories tonight. Surely, there must be something I can buy you from Amazon?”_ + +I then gently push a custom-printed business card into this list across the table. It contains a QR code that redirects to this blog post. And thus I have begun my journey towards owning these things. _(In the worse but probably more likely version of this story I fall prey to absinthe’s hallucinogenic properties and go on an ill-advised online spending spree thereby emptying my life savings on unnecessary purchases…)_ + +Anyway, without further a-do, here’s the stuff I need from Amazon. Because their inventory changes so frequently I’m adding screenshots rather than actual products links. But yeah … buy me these goodies please. + +### Industrial-Grade Luggage You Can Drive Over + +As a marketing communications professional, I’ve put together plenty of case studies in my day. + +But none have been quite as impressive as those crafted by [Pelican](https://www.pelican.com/us/en/) which make industrial-grade luggage and hard cases relied upon by search and rescue teams, first responders, and … people that just really like hard-to-break things. + +Their product advertising draws upon tales of intrepid travelers who suffered the most unwieldy of fates imaginable but managed to escape with their luggage intact. + +One guy was driving up an off round track in remote Africa in an SUV when his Pelican luggage fell off the roof rack. It made it through okay. The other person had the ultimate holiday mishap when his stow luggage unfortunately fell off a yacht and spent some time submerged in water. As happens to the best of us. Fortunately no problems here either. + +With those stories in mind, I can only ask who _wouldn’t_ want to own such luggage? Pelican luggage is also so me. Picture standing next to an airport conveyor belt and watching as all the boring Samsonite cases and duffel bags come out. Then your hard case on wheels (with a hand grip) shows everybody who’s the luggage champion. + +Black is very much my preferred color. I could also use one more chunky luggage for stow and another to go in carry-on. Thank you much! + +**Stow luggage — Pelican Air 1615 (Black)** + +**Carry on luggage (1510, black)** + +### A Serious Webcam/Microphone Would Be Great Too + +What’s it with webcams and lousy microphones? + +Everybody knows that the enterprise market mops up the best tech. + +Spend enough on a webcam/mic combo and you won’t have these issues at all. + +The good news is that I’ve been carefully keeping an eye on the higher end of the webcam accessories market for quite some time now. + +Seeing as we’re going all out here, I didn’t see the point of skimping. + +With that in mind, here are a few accessories I’ve selected. + +### I’d Also Like A Very Serious Looking Speakerphone To Pipe In My Associates With + +It’s common knowledge that everybody plotting world domination should have a serious speakerphone on hand so that they can easily hold teleconferences with their minions and other interested parties around the world. + +I have a basic Jabra. But seeing as you’re offering to foot the tab, I’ll take something like this. + +### Keep Me Caffeinated And I’ll Keep Writing + +Many an engaged reader has wondered what the magic secret to my prolific online writing is (this isn’t actually the case). + +Buy me these and you’ll have your answer. + +I suspect these extended release (XR) caffeine products aren’t much good. But you never know until you try. + +Bonus: they’re cheap. Pick one up for yourself to buy me more stuff more quickly. + +### I Need A Search And Rescue Spotlight. Like, A Really Serious One + +I don’t know why this product is calling me out from across the internet but it is. + +I recently picked up a modestly priced but highly powerful flashlight and it’s been love at first illumination of my entire neighborhood. + +I’m also generally into preparedness so this feels like something I should have. I recently bought a few digital car flares from Amazon and they’re amazing. + +So yeah … I’m going to need this torch too. + +### I Want To Start Ordering Drinks From The Bar By Loudspeaker. Help Me Make This Dream A Reality. + +I don’t understand why more bar-goers aren’t investing in loudspeakers to yell their drink orders with. + +Sitting at the bar waiting for a waiter to take your order just seems to grossly inefficient. + +I’m looking for some sort of high decibel system that will amplify my voice so that I don’t have to move and can just yell orders from across a room. + +I feel like a decent megaphone is the obvious tool of choice here: + +But I’m willing to settle for one of those things that tour guides use: + +### Should Probably Upgrade My Camera Gear Too + +Almost forgot about this one. + +I think I’m done with ordering budget-friendly camera equipment. + +Time to throw out all the stops. I mean you’re paying, right? + +Good wireless systems don’t come cheap. + +And some studio lights wouldn’t go amiss: + +Speaking of which I would LOVE a jib to call my own: + +A motorized slider might also come in handy: + +A nicer pair of Etymotics would also be world class! + +### Last Bits And Pieces + +We’re almost there! + +Speaking of industrial and ruggedized accessories, I’ve been hankering after a gigantic backpack since … well, it feels like forever. + +No less than 100L capacity please: + +A portable hammock when I’m feeling burned out form unboxing my latest orders: + +Some last ruggedized accessories: + +I feel like satellite internet could come in handy at some point too: + +Some speakers for the garden would be really great too! + +Thank you much! diff --git a/posts/medium/Diaspora-Jews--Before-You-Tell-Me-Israel-Is-Perfect--Try-Actually-Living-Here-First.md b/posts/medium/Diaspora-Jews--Before-You-Tell-Me-Israel-Is-Perfect--Try-Actually-Living-Here-First.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ce497448c0e2a105bc33c07dbd1babf0050d7fe2 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Diaspora-Jews--Before-You-Tell-Me-Israel-Is-Perfect--Try-Actually-Living-Here-First.md @@ -0,0 +1,155 @@ +# Diaspora Jews: Before You Tell Me Israel Is Perfect, Try Actually Living Here First + +#### The sometimes weird disconnect between Israeli Jews and their admiring family in the diaspora + +The Tel Aviv coastline. Israel has much good to offer. But diaspora Jews often seem deluded into believing that the country is a non-existent utopia. Photo by [Naya Shaw](https://www.pexels.com/@naya-shaw-1024101?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/aerial-photo-of-road-near-buildings-and-beach-2002604/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Agh Sunday. + +It’s the Israeli equivalent of Monday morning. + +The day of grumpiness and feeling like the weekend never happened. + +_(For those who didn’t know, like much of the Middle East, Israel works on a Sunday to Thursday workweek)._ + +Sometimes, when I’m grumpy, I also do some decent writing. Or rather I get things off my chest that would have lurked there were it not for the opportunity. + +The following is a _“Jewish issue.”_ Sorry to be so exclusionary, for once, but if you’re not Jewish, it’s unlikely that you care much about what living in Israel is really like. But if you do, here’s my take on it: + +[**The Pros and Cons of Living in Israel** + _(And Why I Still Think the Cost of Living is the Elephant in the Room!)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) + +Living in Israel has its positives. And it has its negatives. Personally, I’m cool with that even though I’ve frequently thought about returning to _chul_(the world outside of Israel) for a period, mostly for professional reasons. + +I live in Israel because I see it as my responsibility — as a Jew — to contribute to the development of the state. To make it better. To avail myself of the first opportunity in about 2,000 years to even _do_ that. Although I wasn’t called to serve in the army, I’m proud that my taxes — and of those there are many! — go to supporting the state’s upkeep. I came with three suitcases. And with an enormous amount of hard work and effort set down the foundations for a life here. It hasn’t been easy. + +I see living in Israel as a responsibility, which is what has driven me to continue doing it up to and including the time of writing, which I’m doing from a (thankfully) air-conditioned apartment in Jerusalem. + +Living in Israel is enormous privilege for which I’m immensely grateful… . but it’s also a _tikkun_ and sometimes even feels like a thankless burden. It’s a worldview full of internal conflicts. Which is perhaps why I enjoy trying to make sense of it all through writing. + +Israel, for me, is one big construction site. A loud, chaotic work in progress full of shouting and jagged edges. Donning a mental hard hat is necessary to survive the atmosphere. + +Those making _aliyah_(moving to Israel) today are only a couple of generations removed from those who first did so only a few generations ago. + +We’re much more pioneering than what we believe ourselves to be. Even if _aliyah_ these days tends to be framed in much more bourgeois terms with less emphasis placed on the ideological dimension. + +We mightn’t be able to match the old-timers’ tales of surviving on tomatoes and cucumbers. But that doesn’t mean that we have it as easy as some _think_ that we do. If you don’t believe me, just take a look at post-aliyah retention rates. There’s good reason to believe they’re not that rosey. + +Today’s calls to action? Sometimes mealy-mouthed by comparison to the postcards the JNF used to put out. Retire in Israel to avail of its good weather. The food’s good too, didn’t you know? Oh, and prescription drugs are — for the most part — crazy affordable. None of those, to my mind, are good enough reasons. The singular one that drove me: being part of the story of the Jewish state. + +All the above is true. But the more I live in Israel, the more I also see a wide chasm emerging between what I feel about living here (and although I obviously can’t speak for everybody, I’ve met plenty who share my broad outlook on the country) and the viewpoints of Israel-supporting Diasporan Jews. As well as those who fight anti-Israel on the “frontlines” across the world. + +### If We See Israel As Perfect, There’s No Work Left To Do + +But let me circle back to that comment about _tikkun_ , which is a word and concept that roughly means fixing what’s wrong and leaving the world a better place than you found it. + +I _love_ the fact that Israel feels small enough that every hand on deck makes a difference . Not only is the country geographically tiny, but so many fields in Israel are so fresh that there’s this this feeling that even _you_ can squeeze in and make a difference (the writing I do here on Medium may feel like a small side hobby, and it is, but it nevertheless generates a steady stream of correspondence; people read and care!). The fact that there are things in Israel that aren’t so wonderful is oddly a Zionist motivator for me. + +Israel is well-known as the Startup Nation. But Israel has also commonly been likened to a startup itself. And that, from my perspective, is an excellent frame of reference to understand the country. + +If Israel were a code base, it would be in pretty decent shape, especially given the short period of time that the developers have been plugging away at it. + +In fact, the breathtaking pace of its progress in its first (not even) 100 years of statehood gives me an enormous reservoir of hope that things will get _even_ better. But, perhaps paradoxically, that’s also why I view the kind of reactionary defensiveness that has arisen in the Jewish world whenever Israel is mentioned is problematic. + +It seems like, when it comes to Israel, we’ve bifurcated. We either hate it — the country, its politics. Or we’re so enamored by it that we can’t bring ourselves to imagine it as a flawed country. As is often the case with these matters, the truth is probably lost somewhere in the gray middle of that spectrum. + +Speaking of _tikkun_ what needs working? There would be a few obvious glitches that QA would hopefully spot and send back to development (sometimes, I see the world through tech analogies). + +I’ve written about almost all of them by now. + + * Overall, the cost of living in Israel remains problematically high. Anecdotally, I can you that I’ve had several close friends leave Israel. In virtually all instances, they were tired of playing against economics that seemed to make no sense (included in this bracket a couple of high-earners). + * The cost of real estate remains far too high for what most unsupported young people can afford. It’s among the very highest in the world and is propped up by a seemingly endless wellspring of foreign demand. The problem, of course: it’s fallen out of the reach of many locals. + * Poverty in Israel is a major and underdiscussed problem and was once the highest in the OECD. As is personal debt. Statistics about this are pretty eye-opening. + * Only 20,000 people drive Israel’s “high tech” sector — about which endless ink is spilled. 90% of the economy works in often highly unproductive industries propped up by protectionist economics. Israel has one of the lowest GDPs per capita of any OECD nation. This is a massive problem. Participation should be increased. But many Israeli employers remain stubbornly insistent on driving unfair bargains. + * Customer service in Israel is frequently atrocious. Ditto consumer protection law. Unless I need something urgently, or we’re talking about food and drink, I try to avoid purchasing goods and services in Israel. + * Being a tenant in Israel isn’t much fun either. Tenant protection law is spotty. Even when protective provisions are instituted — like making it illegal for renters to pay an agent’s fee — market forces tend to whittle those away in to oblivion. + * Less tangibly, aggression and road rage too often feel like pervasive issues too. + * It’s unrealistic to expect a culture to bend to fit your tastes. But sometimes one still dreams about dispatching most of the population to some kind of etiquette boot camp. + +[**How Israel’s Draconian Defamation Laws Shield Abusive Businesses From Consequence** + _In a country in which even leaving a negative Google review can trigger a legal action, residents say the strict legal…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc) + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +[**Just 20,000 people drive Israel's tech industry - study** + _Israel's technology industry relies on 20,000 talented people who are responsible for the sector's technological…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-just-20000-people-drive-israels-tech-industry-study-1001384225 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-just-20000-people-drive-israels-tech-industry-study-1001384225")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-just-20000-people-drive-israels-tech-industry-study-1001384225) + +You get the picture. + +And on the positive side: + + * On the macro level of scale, Israel remains a prosperous and developed nation. + * Israel offers its citizens a high standard of healthcare and very affordable prescription medications. + * For those who enjoy working with that type of organization, there are many startups. + +And for me — and many — the one that trumps all the negatives. Or at least factors disproportionately into our calculus: + + * Israel is the only Jewish country in the world. + * In stark contrast to the general picture, being Jewish here is cheap and largely convenient. + +### Living In Israel, Hasbara Depictions, And Nefesh b’Nefesh Literature Often Sound Like Comedy Sketches + +The strange thing about living in Israel is that, once you do, you begin to come to the slow conclusion that in many respects Israel is just like any other country in the world. Sometimes brilliant. Occasionally maddening. But always flawed. + +Once you do, you start to sound a bit like a proud Greek bemoaning the country’s terrible economy or an Italian-American who left Siciliy because there were simply more jobs in the US. In other words, you can both _love_ your country while acknowledging that it has obvious issues. + +Israel is absolutely unique in terms of its Jewishness. Somewhat unique in some of its successes. But in many other respects, it’s about as functional — or dysfunctional — as you’d hope any other country to be. + +Israel has far more in common with its neighbors, and its neighborhood, than it likes to admit. + +Just like the Palestinians, Israelis are very often wont to admit any wrongdoing in the conflict — they see absolutely everything in terms of Palestinian rejectionism. Like Italians, Israelis are often loud, argumentative, and hot-headed. Sometimes frustratingly so for a cold-blooded northern transplant like myself. + +Like the Palestinians, they tend to see things in black and white and frame things in hyperbolic terms, to think passionately rather than with reason. + +Israel — [a politician recently boasted](https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/gantz-defends-idf-government-amid-backlash-over-border-guards-death/) — has one of the best cultures of military investigation in the world. The IDF frequently describes itself as the “most moral army in the world” with a certainty perhaps better fitting to an organization that had actually conducted an (impossible) comparison with other armed services’ codes of morality. The family of Iyyad al-Hallaq, an autistic Palestinian man gunned down in Jerusalem, would surely disagree. + +The problem I take with _hasbara_(Israel advocacy) and so much of the way with which the Jewish world relates to Israel is that it seems to take its central premise to be that Israel is a beaming bastion of perfectionism in a dark neighborhood. + +For a self-critical people with a tradition of introspection like the Jews, I’m never quite sure what the motivator is. + +Perhaps they view the return of the Jewish people to Israel as a holy project — so do I — but I guess we differ when it comes to how we conceive the state that’s the byproduct of that ideological initiative. + +Or maybe it’s about meeting criticism of Israel with a reaction that must always be equal and opposite. + +From the perspective of many — including me — Israel is routinely subject to unfair criticism and double standards in the world. + +Unsurprisingly given the environment in which they grow up (and the conscription that it still mandatory), Israelis tend to be oddly fond of military analogies, just as I am of tech ones. + +And so for them, _hasbara_ is often about “meeting fire with fire”. + +Or “striking first” to get positive news out about Israel before the inevitable onslaught whenever Israel does something which the world finds disagreeable. They inevitably see social media as being the “front lines” in a “conflict” — over thought. + +This blog isn’t directed exclusively at _anybody_ or even any _religion._ + +I’ve encountered plenty of non-Jewish “friends” of Israel who can’t broach the idea that Israel may not be the perennially blue-skied paradise of tolerance, success, and prosperity that they have imagined it to be. + +But it _is_ intended to ask diaspora Jews to stop negating the lived experiences of many in Israel just because they don’t accord with what you’ve learned from your local Israeli embassy or what you gleaned during your seven day Birthright trip 30 years ago. + +If anybody is better qualified to tell you what life is like on the ground here, it’s probably those of us who are actually living here. + +The Israel I live in isn’t the Israel of great legend. + +It is the land of gleaming skyscrapers now dotting the skyline of Tel Aviv. But also the Israel with some of the worst rates of traffic jams in the Western World. And the Israel in which I’ve been shafted by abusive landlords. + +The developments you speak of may be great and exciting. But I, not you, am the one who wakes up to a jackhammer outside my front door every morning and wondering whether the country could be carrying it out in a more logical manner. + +I can look back with you upon the triumphant battle of self-defense of 1948 and share your sense of amazement. And I can probably agree with many of your talking points about the latest round of escalation with the Palestinian factions in Gaza. + +Nevertheless, although they might, ironically, be essential for my survival here, those aren’t the kind of things I care about day to day. + +I see very little of the “integration” between Arabs and Jews that has long been one of the mainstays of _hasbara_ talking points. + +I’d love if my local post office actually _delivered_ my post and I didn’t have to wait 40 minutes in the hot sun to pick up a few envelopes. + +I’d _love_ if property were affordable enough that I could actually realistically think about owning here. And I’d love to live somewhere where — for six months, or a year even — either the local municipality or my neighbors weren’t actively, and very noisily, renovating. + +Little grievances and big ones. Small things I love — falafel! — and big ones — the country fits around Judaism and I don’t have to contort my life to include it. + +You can have your pin-up Israel and I’ll have my version — the flawed place that I still like and relish trying to make better, even in whatever small way one person can. + +There’s probably a measure of truth in both. + +— — + + _— If this line is visible, this story is still on my Proofwriting Queue. Depending upon progress, it may be quite substantial. Please excuse any minor errors! If you’re an experienced proofreader, please feel free to reach out with a resume and rates!_ diff --git a/posts/medium/Did-You-Know--Reddit-Has-Its-Own-Search-Language--Here-s-How-To-Use-It-.md b/posts/medium/Did-You-Know--Reddit-Has-Its-Own-Search-Language--Here-s-How-To-Use-It-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..296b6c9e57a7312a86cbe159fd37809b0e108669 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Did-You-Know--Reddit-Has-Its-Own-Search-Language--Here-s-How-To-Use-It-.md @@ -0,0 +1,60 @@ +# Did You Know? Reddit Has Its Own Search Language. Here’s How To Use It. + +#### One of Reddit’s lesser known features is the search syntax it contains + +Reddit is gigantic. The social network contains more than 2.8 million discussion communities — known as subreddits. It’s one of the most active social networks on the internet. + +Unlike many social networks, however, Reddit is also almost entirely on the open web — it’s indexed by search engines (Facebook, by contrast, contains lots of closed discussion groups whose contents are visible only to members. Technically, these are part of the deep web). + +The chatter on Reddit is there for anybody to see, whether they’re a Redditor or not. Which has also made it an ongoing subject of fascination among academic researchers and those interested in learning more about the human condition through how it is reflected on the internet. + +A small selection of the academic research that analyzes the behavior of Reddit users. Screenshot: Google Scholar + +What even many long term Redditors don’t know is that Reddit has its own search language. And three Boolean operators to boot (did you know that Boolean logic is named after George Boole? He was an English-born mathematician who spent most of his career teaching in my _alma mater_ of University College Cork in Ireland. A building on campus is named in his honor.) + +### Where To Find The Reddit Search Operators + +Reddit’s search operators are documented in the site’s wiki, here: + +[**reddit.com** + _reddit search allows you to search for submissions and subreddits. The search page for submissions is at…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/wiki/search/ "https://www.reddit.com/wiki/search/")[](https://www.reddit.com/wiki/search/) + +Reddit contains a number of field search operators which can be combined with three Bolean variables: AND, OR, and NOT. + +The Reddit field operators as taken at the time of this post’s creation. + +The Reddit API also has its own search parameters that can be passed into queries: + +[**reddit.com: api documentation** + _Reddit gives you the best of the internet in one place. Get a constantly updating feed of breaking news, fun stories…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/dev/api#GET_search "https://www.reddit.com/dev/api#GET_search")[](https://www.reddit.com/dev/api#GET_search) + +### How do you use these and why might you want to? + +One use for the Reddit search variables is to more efficiently poll through your own Reddit posting history. + +If you post a lot on Reddit then your profile’s post history probably isn’t going to be that useful if you’re trying to remember a thread that you posted. + +Here are some examples. + +To just search for a Redditor’s post, you can simple use author:username. + +The subreddit variable is subreddit:subreddit. For instance subreddit:TodayILearned. + +So to find that post about the world time zone project, I could poll the search bar for: + + + author:danielrosehill + subreddit:todayilearned + +Now the search returns every post I’ve created in the /r/TodayILearned community: + +Lots of permutations can be combined to find exactly the data you’re looking to retrieve from Reddit. + +### Other things you can do + +Find who’s been sharing your blog posts on Reddit. + +For instance, I used: + +And adding text to the search queries is probably the most powerful way to poll Reddit: + +Happy searching! diff --git a/posts/medium/Digital-Wallets-Are-Coming-to-Israel--Why-Does-It-Matter-.md b/posts/medium/Digital-Wallets-Are-Coming-to-Israel--Why-Does-It-Matter-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7c708f806333ed3214db1ff99254918cbd1ccf62 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Digital-Wallets-Are-Coming-to-Israel--Why-Does-It-Matter-.md @@ -0,0 +1,37 @@ +# Digital Wallets Are Coming to Israel. Why Does It Matter? + +#### It’s Not “Paying by WiFi”! + +The digital wallet era is set to begin in Israel in coming weeks following news ( [Jpost](https://www.jpost.com/jpost-tech/ahead-of-apple-pay-bank-hapoalim-launches-israels-first-digital-wallet-659272)) that Apple Pay will be rolling out a digital wallet in the country + +Bank HaPoalim has beaten them to the punch, however, after launching a digital wallet and credit card (Bitcard) of its own. + +Digital wallets allow users to pay for items, at compatible points of sale, by using their smartphone. The wallet, stored electronically on the phone, connects to the user’s conventional payment methods, but the transaction doesn’t require the card to be physically present.Instead, the transaction is processed using a close range communications technology such as NFC. + +For Android aficionados, the good news is that both Google and Samsung are also expected to join the fray and roll out their own digital wallet products later this year, alongside several major Israeli retailers. + +**How are digital wallets different from Bit, Pepper, etc?** + +Digital wallets are designed to make it extremely convenient for consumers to pay for goods and services by presenting their smartphones, rather than payment cards, for transactions. + +Instead of reaching for your credit card, or fumbling around your wallet for cash, you simply need to hold your smartphone up to a reader and the transaction is processed. Better again, you can approve the transaction and receive the receipt directly on your handset. + +Bit and Pepper are bank-owned payment interfaces (HaPoalim and Leumi respectively) whose primary purpose is making it easy to transfer sums of money between individuals. + +Essentially they are frontends to the traditional banking system that just make it easier for users to move money between the payment cards that they have attached to their bank accounts. Although some service providers have been accepting payment via Bit for some time, compared to holding your phone to an NFC terminal, the process is slow and cumbersome. Additionally, you need to manually input the transaction details into your phone. + +**What happens if my phone is out of battery?** + +Yeah …. that would be a problem. Digital wallets are unlikely to completely displace traditional payment solutions until such time as smartphone battery life is not a common constraint. Think of digital wallets as _another_ more convenient way to pay for goods and services. + +**Is this different to paying “via Wifi”?** + +Paying “by WiFi” is an[ “Israel-ism”](https://www.afteraliyah.com/a-hebrish-glossary-for-making-aliyah/) to refer to contactless payment technology which recently launched in the country. Contactless payments typically work with RFID, another close field communications technology. While contactless technology is great, you still ultimately need to present your physical payment card to a special point of sale (POS) terminal that is equipped with an RFID reader. In a sense ‘contactless’ is something of a misnomer: you still need to press your card to a terminal! It is also a card present payments solution (although technically digital wallets are too, but that’s for another day….). + +(You also have our permission to berate the next individual you hear talk about paying for something ‘by WiFi’. This is not accurate!) + +**Is this some newfangled technology?** + +While we hate bursting anybody’s bubble, digital wallets are not brand new technology. They’re also not an Israeli invention. While Israel supports some truly cutting-edge FinTech, products can take longer to launch in Israel. This is due to the fact that its market is small but well-regulated, making it comparatively unattractive compared to launching in an EU member state (the EU supports a legislative framework called passporting which allows for relatively seamless regulatory approval for products between member states) . Similarly contactless technology was available in Europe and the US for some time before it finally hit this side of the Med. + +On the plus side this means that the technology is well-established and supported by merchants. Apple Pay, for instance, is already operating in the UK, Australia, Brazil, among other countries. diff --git a/posts/medium/Discovering-the-Joy-of-Zoom-Roulette.md b/posts/medium/Discovering-the-Joy-of-Zoom-Roulette.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e34766dba11cc44456ef8d74bbcd7879555bc082 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Discovering-the-Joy-of-Zoom-Roulette.md @@ -0,0 +1,159 @@ +# Discovering the Joy of Zoom Roulette + +A meeting facilitated by finding random Zoom links online + +**For those of us answering the call of the #stayhome movement (a large chunk of the world now), the long days and nights of social isolation can present us with the conundrum of how to fill all those hours within the confines of our living spaces.** + +Despite the fact that I have largely worked from home for the best part of 18 months now, both staying home _all day_ and during most of the weekend are new and unwelcome changes for me. (Besides [buying some good headphones and a white noise machine](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/if-youre-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear-4b28dfbaab7b?source=---------6------------------) my all-time top work from home tip is get out at least once a day!). + +Although my social isolation is thankfully not also a solitary one, being removed from society for just a few weeks has brought with it a strong craving for human connection — and sometimes forging new connections can be as effective as rekindling old ones. + +So, in addition to holding weekly marathon Zoom meetings with friends from Ireland (a screenshot from last night’s dial-in is above), I have been exploring what else [Zoom](https://medium.com/u/c4c2efc9bc0a) has to offer. And as it turns out, the answer is a lot! + +Here’s how to find it. + +### How To Search For Random Zoom Links Online + +Searching for zoom.us/j on Twitter unleashes a torrent of results — there’s a new link roughly every 5 seconds. + +Although [Zoom has wisely adjured](https://blog.zoom.us/wordpress/2020/03/20/keep-the-party-crashers-from-crashing-your-zoom-event/) that publicly posting an invite link and password to a dial-in is a good way to invite digital gatecrashers (trust me, it is!), there are plenty of legitimate Zoom video conferences that are open to the general public. + +These can take the form of: + + * Webinars + * Lectures + * Meetups for those in a similar occupation, such as freelance writers + * Mental health focused sessions + * Language learning groups + +Having participated in more Zoom calls than I can count over the past year, I noticed fairly quickly that all Zoom invite links follow a common URL structure. + +That is (at the time of writing): + + + zoom.us/j/* + +The wildcard asterisks represents the 10 digit unique Zoom conference ID and the ‘j’ that juxtaposes between the Zoom call URL and the meeting code stands for ‘join’ I believe (this is useful to help remember the format). + +And there are two very fertile sources for finding these links: + + * [Twitter](https://twitter.com/search?q=zoom.us%2Fj&src=typed_query&f=live) + * Google + +Although the last few weeks have seen a number of Facebook Groups open dedicated to promulgating member-submitted Zoom meets, the amount of meetings these resources spotlight simply pales in comparison to what you can identify using Twitter. + +**With Twitter, the volume of Zoom links being tweeted varies between every few seconds during peak times and once a minute at minimum volume.** + +In identifying Zoom calls to join over the past week, I have been struck by both the variety of worthy uses that public Zoom calls are facilitating during this unprecedented era and the openness of many organizers to unexpected participants. + +Some links that today’s search pulled out, for instance, include (I’m obscuring details in case these were posted in error): + +[**A lecture on neonatal endocrinology:**](https://twitter.com/RhishiThakre/status/1244231244939800577) + +[**A discussion on the law of attraction:**](https://twitter.com/PeopleCan/status/1244230290651983873) + +[**A Q &A session about online parenting during the current crisis with a pediatric nurse:**](https://twitter.com/byngschools/status/1244072787314192384) + +[**A mental health webinar**](https://twitter.com/mhpss/status/1244186761225367553)**run by**[**UNICEF**](https://medium.com/u/9cfe9541ba9c)**and the**[**World Health Organization**](https://medium.com/u/ecd0bec420d8)**:** + +This is, of course, just a tiny sample of what’s on offer. + +However, be warned that if curiosity compels you to click into a few links you will also likely stumble upon plenty of: + + * Teenagers smoking joints + * Group masturbation sessions. (Yup, [Zoom sex parties](https://slate.com/human-interest/2020/03/sex-party-zoom-coronavirus-quarantine.html) are a real thing). + +One can also find plenty of conferences that absolutely should not have been publicly Tweeted. + +This category includes: + + * Board of Director meetings + * Sports teams hosting private video coaching sessions + +And more innocuous broadcasts, like a local Toastmasters chapter holding their meetup over Zoom: + +Last night, to see what might happen from the host’s perspective, I tweeted out the Zoom link to a chat with friends publicly. + +One minute later, our video conference of 15 had blown up to 40 — with a disproportionate amount of what looked like Russian teenagers joining the call. + +So if you weren’t already aware, publicly tweeting Zoom meeting credentials is risky business and there are _tons of_ not so well-intentioned people waiting to jump upon calls. + +Thankfully, Zoom has built some decent security features into the platform besides password protection. If you’re hosting a publicly accessible Zoom conference but are worried about the call being overrun with trolls you should: + + * Force new participants to mute upon joining + * Enable a waiting room so that you can screen join requests. You can even message prospective attendees to make sure that they’re really interested in the conference you’re facilitating and not just joining for amusement. + * Be prepared to have to remove trolls and malicious participants from your chats + +### A Code of Ethics for Playing Zoom Roulette + +Participating in an enjoyable impromptu meetup with some Zoomers last week + +While one could argue that those foolish enough to publicly tweet a Zoom invite link and password deserves whatever comes to them, I think that gatecrashing random Zoom calls probably doesn’t do the world any good. + +Indeed, whether as a means of forging connections with online strangers open to chatting or bettering oneself by participating in online meetups and webinars, ‘Zoom Roulette,’ as I conceive of it, should always serve a noble end. + +Last week, for example, I participated in a very engaging “coffee hour” chat with a community group based in Canada and later held a one hour co-working and breathwork session with a guy living out of his van in the mountains outside San Francisco. + +Therefore, I would recommend that those looking to see what they can find — and join — by searching for Zoom links on Twitter should do the following: + +#### **1\. Only join Zoom links intended for public access** + +These are pretty easy to spot. + +A Zoom link tweeted by a private account to two other private accounts with no description is probably a meetup between friends and not intended for public access. + +However, the majority of results that can be found by playing Zoom Roulette are either explicitly intended for public access or are in that nebulous gray zone where some unexpected participants _might_ be welcomed. + +It’s best to use your own judgment to determine where each Zoom invite likely falls on that spectrum. + +In addition to searching online, there are a few services intended to help internet users find random Zoom links. These include: + + * ZoomRoulette.org + * Randomized Zoom join link generators + +#### 2\. Avoid joining sex Zooms + +I have no idea how these are facilitated, but — if that’s your thing — I don’t think that these are the type of Zoom meets that welcome unannounced participants (or is it the other way around)? + +In any event, be suspicious of links which contain terminology that suggests that the video call is likely of that nature. + +#### 3\. Be respectful of hosts’ wishes + +If you join a small Zoom meetup, there’s a good chance that the current participants are going to notice your presence almost immediately. + +Lingering in the background without saying who you are or how you found the link is decidedly creepy, so seize upon the opportunity to immediately announce who you are and why you decided to join the link. + +I try to be as transparent as possible and tell participants straight up that I’m interested in joining the call because X and I found the link on Y. + +#### 4\. Leave if you’re not welcome + +One of the first Zoom calls I joined, when testing how well this system worked, was a radiologists’ meetup. It was immediately clear that my presence was neither expected nor welcome. + +If you’ve misinterpreted the intent behind a Zoom link tweet, then it’s best to make a graceful exit before the host has to kick you out. + +#### 5\. Give Users A Heads-Up That Their Link Is Open + +If you stumble upon a post that is clearly not intended to be publicly accessible, consider dropping the user a private message to let them know that their meeting is publicly accessible. + +Consider linking them to this Zoom resource explaining how meeting rooms and password protection works. + +[**How to Keep the Party Crashers from Crashing Your Zoom Event - Zoom Blog** + _We love that so many people are finding Zoom to be an easy way to stay connected in this time of social distancing…_ blog.zoom.us](https://blog.zoom.us/wordpress/2020/03/20/keep-the-party-crashers-from-crashing-your-zoom-event/ "https://blog.zoom.us/wordpress/2020/03/20/keep-the-party-crashers-from-crashing-your-zoom-event/")[](https://blog.zoom.us/wordpress/2020/03/20/keep-the-party-crashers-from-crashing-your-zoom-event/) + +### Happy Zooming + +Although this protracted social isolation is difficult upon everybody psychologically, I believe that being at home presents us with a unique opportunity of sorts to push the boundaries of how and why we can connect virtually. + +Zoom is being utilized on a massive scale to facilitate all manner of excellent meetups ranging from networking sessions to conferences and group therapy meets. These range in format from webinars to participative group conversations — there are plenty of options no matter what your communication preferences or interests. + +While we’re at home, let’s take maximum advantage of the unprecedented ability to connect that the excellent Zoom platform gives us. + +If you have a webcam, a computer, and a decent internet connection you have more than enough to forge unexpected connections with likeminded people and professions around the globe. + +#stayhome and enjoy connecting! + +### Example Links + +[Latest Zoom invite links (Twitter)](https://twitter.com/search?q=zoom.us%2Fj&src=typed_query&f=live) + +[Google search for “zoom.us/j” past 24 hours](https://www.google.com/search?newwindow=1&biw=1536&bih=721&tbs=qdr%3Ad&ei=uqGAXqu0CMzIgQbG4JzIDg&q=%22zoom.us%2Fj%22&oq=%22zoom.us%2Fj%22&gs_lcp=CgZwc3ktYWIQAzIECAAQDTIECAAQDTIECAAQDTIECAAQDTIECAAQDTIECAAQDTIGCAAQDRAKMgQIABANMgQIABANMgQIABANOggIABCDARCRAjoHCAAQgwEQQzoECAAQQzoFCAAQgwE6AggAOgQIABAKOgQIABAeOgYIABAKEB5Qph1YxSlgvCxoAHAAeAGAAf4BiAHpEJIBBjAuMTAuM5gBAKABAaoBB2d3cy13aXo&sclient=psy-ab&ved=0ahUKEwir-Yme5L_oAhVMZMAKHUYwB-kQ4dUDCAs&uact=5) diff --git a/posts/medium/Do-You-Need-A-Writer--An-SME--Or-Both-.md b/posts/medium/Do-You-Need-A-Writer--An-SME--Or-Both-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5898b0e827b1aee4044c69780b96143442bafc20 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Do-You-Need-A-Writer--An-SME--Or-Both-.md @@ -0,0 +1,72 @@ +# Do You Need A Writer, An SME, Or Both? + +#### And Why Clients Need To Understand The Differences + +Who do you need for your project? It’s important to understand from the outset + +Dealing every day in technical writing, I come across a lot of esoteric requests for writing. + +Clients need a 2,000 word deep dive based upon the contents of a cybersecurity conference panel about the various ways in which serverless cloud workloads can be secured. + +Others require an overview of AWS’s billing structure. + +The next one wants to talk about how artificial intelligence (AI) can help automate bulk processing of NDAs and other legal paperwork. + +I could go on. + +For every four projects I take on, there’s probably one that I have to turn down. The usual rationale: you need an SME, my friend, not a writer. + +Here’s the difference. + +### Writers Turned Quasi SMEs + +Most writers choose to specialize in a certain field. Mine is B2B technology. + +They often do this because they have a strong personal interest in the field. Or because they have personal familiarity with the subject matter. + +I’m a geek-at-heart Linux-using type that has a major interest in backups due to unaddressed chronic anxiety about losing my data (as soon as I hit the publish button this post will be syndicated to my blog lest Medium vanish overnight..) I’m also studying for a cloud computing certificate so know a thing or two about AWS. + +I write about consumer technology products that I use. I also write about Linux. And I’ve written about backups both for myself and for clients. + +Do I know more than most people about all of these fields? I would reckon yes. + +Am I an “expert” in these areas? A lot of writers would brand themselves in this way but I tend to err on the side of caution. + +Do I know as much about Linux as a systems administrator who has spend 20 years managing Linux servers for a major enterprise. + +Absolutely not. + +Consider me a writer and quasi subject matter expert (SME). + +### SMEs Turned Writers + +On the other end of the spectrum we have Linux engineers who decide one day that they want to dabble in freelance content writing. Yes, it happens. + +The existence of these creates always puzzled me somewhat. Why would somebody earning six figures want to dabble in writing? + +Motivations might include: + + * They like the prospect of side income + * They are trying to develop name recognition and show off their authority + * They think that writing is fun and don’t really care about the money involved + +### Brief The Right Projects — At The Right Budget + +The difference between quasi SME writers and SMEs turned writers is really one of depth of knowledge. + +Writers tend to write about several niches. This is dictated by the market more than anything. They thus tend to have good subject matter expertise about a variety of topics within their niche. + +SMEs turned writers — a much rarer breed — know an awful lot about a little. Writers’ lore has it that the highest rates in writing are paid to these rare creatures. Personally, I think that’s entirely fair. + +In general, the more expertise a brief requires the higher your budget should be. I’ve seen countless technology startups try to get writers to produce SME-level writing for paltry budgets. This is a trend that should be resisted. The next time a client asks you to write about the concept of angular momentum in nuclear physics — for $20 — please tell them no. + +_By the way:_ + +SMEs turned writers and quasi SME writers aren’t pitched in some kind of adversarial battle. They can work well together, in fact. Clients just need to understand the differences between the two and make sure that both are being fairly compensated. + +Technology clients and non-technical agency staff should: + + * Know the differences between writers and SMEs. + * Know that highly technical and specialist writing costs more than generalist writing + * If agencies aren’t clear on what they need written, and what experience might be required to write it, they should speak to their clients to find out. Untechnical account mangers briefing highly technical work at an inadequate budget because they don’t understand what they’re briefing is a common problem I have encountered before. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Do-all-SaaS-services-allow-users-to-export-their-own-data-.md b/posts/medium/Do-all-SaaS-services-allow-users-to-export-their-own-data-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..778a976fe1237de14fafddf349a777d4afea4ea6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Do-all-SaaS-services-allow-users-to-export-their-own-data-.md @@ -0,0 +1,43 @@ +# Do all SaaS services allow users to export their own data? + +([**_Via Quora, with slight edits:_**](https://www.quora.com/unanswered/Do-all-SaaS-services-allow-users-to-export-their-own-data)) + +(All details correct only at the time of writing) + +**The GDPR has thankfully given individuals greater rights to access data held by organizations about them.**(Of course, this has some caveats in practice: the data subjects have to be EU citizens _residents_ to avail of the protection afforded under the Regulation by the European Union — among other fine technical points.) + +As readers of this blog are by now surely aware I have a (personal) and longstanding interest in keeping copies of all my own data — whether it’s on my local network, on a cloud I manage, or on a private cloud operated by a SaaS company which I entrust my data to.[ (If not, check out my backup documentation).](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy) + +For that reason,[ I have begun a Github project ](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches)documenting the data export approaches of various cloud providers. + +### Observations and Comparison + +**Some observations from that process so far:** + + * **The approaches taken by SaaS companies and cloud providers are highly inconsistent and non-standardized:** They range all the way from _“we let you export all your data automatically at any time”_[(](https://twitter.com/Twitter)Twitter) to _“here’s a chunk of JSON for you; do what you like with it”_ ([Trello](https://medium.com/u/fb5dd2d116a1)) to _“write to our support people and we’ll do it within 30 days”_(Reddit) to _“only if you pay us”_ ([Asana](https://medium.com/u/4fecc4c082c)). + * Some companies only allow you to export your own data if you are a paid customer. See above. + * **Some SaaS companies provide users with the ability to automatically create on-demand exports/snapshots of the data they have generated by using the service**. Others (at the time of writing: Reddit, Quora) require that you interface with a human on their support team to request the data export who will then deliver it back via a support ticket (or directly through the platform) within a guaranteed timeframe. Others let you get some kind of export automatically, but it’s just a pile of unstructured JSON that is difficult to make sense of or do much with ([Trello](https://medium.com/u/fb5dd2d116a1)). + +**Additionally what you get back when you request/automatically download a data export varies quite widely too. You might receive:** + + * All the data that you have ever contributed to the platform (Twitter) + * All the articles that you have contributed to the platform but none of the images that you have used, as those remain locked up in the provider’s CDN ([Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6)) + * A CSV (GoodReads) + +Initiating the backup might be facilitated by a dedicated tool (Google Takeouts / [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83)) or else you might need to know how to compress an archive to pull out your files (Cpanel). + +**So my conclusions so far are:** + + * Sadly no, not all SaaS companies allow users to take a backup of their own data. + * Approaches to user data export remain highly inconsistent among providers. + * Those that have taken steps to improve their data export options in order to become compliant with GDPR are allowing all users to avail of the functionality — whether they are based in the EU or not. + * A cross-industry, coordinated, universal, standardized, and GDPR-compliant approach to user data export would probably be a good thing. + +**_If you are also interested in data portability, exports, and backups, please feel free to follow my repository on Github:_** [**_danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches_**](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches) + +### More on Cloud Backups + +[**User Data Export Approaches of SaaS / Cloud Service / Social Media Providers — An Overview** + _Continuing with the backup theme of this week, I decided to create a GitHub repository documenting the user backup…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/user-data-export-approaches-of-saas-cloud-service-social-media-providers-an-overview-2101f6e8bd27 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/user-data-export-approaches-of-saas-cloud-service-social-media-providers-an-overview-2101f6e8bd27")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/user-data-export-approaches-of-saas-cloud-service-social-media-providers-an-overview-2101f6e8bd27) + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Do-you-pay-royalties-to-a-book-ghostwriter-.md b/posts/medium/Do-you-pay-royalties-to-a-book-ghostwriter-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..75e3373b42018c0368edce8604d712cfa91bde7e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Do-you-pay-royalties-to-a-book-ghostwriter-.md @@ -0,0 +1,45 @@ +# Do you pay royalties to a book ghostwriter? + +#### Is payment enough or should ghostwriters be paid a share of the royalties? + +If you’ve always dreamed about seeing your name grace the bestsellers list, but you don’t quite have the time or passion for writing to make that dream a reality, then working with a book ghostwriter could be an effective means to become a book author. + +Ghostwriters are specialized freelance writers who are adept at working with clients who want to keep the “true” writing relationship hidden from the world. + +In the lingo of the literary world, the person hiring the ghostwriter — whose name appears on the book cover — is typically (somewhat confusingly) called the ‘author’. The ghostwriter is the person who actually does the lion’s share of the writing but who doesn’t get attribution in the form of a byline. + +### How Are Ghostwriters Paid? + +Ghostwriters are effectively **contact writers**. There are a few implications here: + + * **Ghostwriters aren’t publishers:** If you’re looking at bringing on a ghostwriter to help you with a book project, then their role is to basically do the writing. They’re _not_ typically publishers. That means that whether you want to self-publish or attempt to bring your book to market through a traditional publishing house, you’re going to have to publish through somebody else or through your own devices. Ghostwriters write. + * **Ghostwriters provide a writing service.** The job of a ghostwriter is to furnish a text in exchange for payment, which is usually specified in a contract. That’s typically where their job starts and ends. While a good ghostwriter might take an interest in how your book publicity and sales are going, don’t forget that they’re _not_ your book publicist or marketer. + +### Will My Ghostwriter Work For Royalties? + +Those new to the idea of working with a book ghostwriter often ask: + + * Will I be able to find a ghostwriter who will work for _only_ royalties? + * Do I need to pay a share of the royalties _in addition_ to the writing fee? + +Firstly, while you will probably be able to find a ghostwriter who’s prepared to work on a royalties-only basis — perhaps for their first project — most established ghostwriters will not be willing to partake in such an arrangement. + +That’s because how well a book is going to sell is an unknown factor and ghostwriters — like all of us — are in the business of making a living for themselves. + +Furthermore, book sales are dependent upon factors — like how well the author markets the book — that are entirely outside of the control of the ghostwriter. + +### Are Royalty Payments Expected? + +You may wish to try entice a ghostwriter to work with you by offering them a fixed percentage of any royalties earned in addition to a fixed fee for the writing, particularly if the contract value being offered isn’t particularly large. + +Many ghostwriters will be onboard with this arrangement although some won’t be comfortable with the idea — because ultimately they have to put their trust in you that you’re reporting on the royalties earned in an honest fashion. + +### How Are Ghostwriters Paid? + +The most straightforward way to compensate a ghostwriter is to pay them a value for their writing services that meets or exceeds market value. + +Minus first-timers, most ghostwriters will _not_ be onboard with the idea of writing only a royalties-only basis. Some will even be offended at the proposal as it’s basically asking them to work for free with the _possibility_ of payment if the book sells. + +You may wish to make your offer more attractive by committing to pay the ghostwriter a fixed percentage of prospective book sales in _addition_ to a contract value for the writing. + +_If you’re interested in working with a non-fiction book ghostwriter, then check out Daniel’s website at_[ _DSRGhostwriting.com_](http://DSRGhostwriting.com) _._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Does-Cold-Emailing-Work-To-Find-Freelance-Clients-.md b/posts/medium/Does-Cold-Emailing-Work-To-Find-Freelance-Clients-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3aa76e2486fe07410da40d75c5e69e5bc0891c58 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Does-Cold-Emailing-Work-To-Find-Freelance-Clients-.md @@ -0,0 +1,167 @@ +# Does Cold Emailing Work To Find Freelance Clients? + +#### It can. It does. But even the successes aren’t always pretty. + +Somebody on the [freelance writers’ subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/) asked (paraphrased): + +_“I’m a beginner freelance writer in the SaaS niche. I’ve emailed 430 content marketing agencies and 70 marketing SaaS companies including hosting companies and email marketing firms. 9 have asked me for my rate, 1 of them has offered me work at ridiculously low pay and 1 offered me work that was out of my niche. What’s going on? I feel like I’m doing everything right but this isn’t getting me anywhere. What could be holding me back?”_ + +**My thoughts:** + +Several issues pop up at disproportionate frequency in freelance writing communities (_the_[ _freelance writers’ subreddit_](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/) _is the latest such community I have participated in. So far I like it the best of all! Primarily because I have a public username and Reddit, and its many subreddits, are not behind a login. In other words, my comments and posts are on the record and indexable in Google. I’m not hiding. I like the effect that this has on my writing_). + +These are: + + * Rants / vents about bad clients + * Questions about pricing + * Questions about client acquisition + +### Why Expecting A High Response Rate Is Unrealistic + +When discussing client acquisition, a lot of people report these kind of middling (or poor) results with cold email marketing efforts. + +To my mind, this isn’t exactly surprising. Although a few years ago it possibly would have been. + +This is both because: + + * a)**I’ve been there and got the t-shirt.** Actually, I could have a wardrobe full of those t-shirts by now. + * b) **Even if you do it well, cold emailing marketing has a relatively low success rate.** + +You can get various numbers about the latter by plugging this into Google, but I reckon it’s unrealistic to expect more than a 1% reply rate. I’m also writing this while suffering from a mild hangover and am too l + +In the original poster’s case, that would already be pegging the result rate at 5. Although if we were more optimistic and expected a 10% reply rate, that number would mushroom to 50. + +We’ll see soon why even these somewhat diminutive figures may be over-generous (which is why I believe those that assert that cold email is a numbers game are partially in the right). + +Now compound point b) with the fact that freelance writers compete against one another in a now globalized marketplace. + +Then consider the fact that most outreach is probably going to be in vain — or which will elicit, if you’re lucky, a _“we’ll,ll keep you on file”_ response. + +Let’s look at all the assumptions you might be making that might ultimately prove to be untrue: + + * If you’re cold pitching a marketing agency or client then **you have no idea about their putative need for a freelance writer** + * You have no idea what their current client load looks like. If they don’t have enough business, they don’t have any need for you + * You have no idea whether they use freelancers at all (if you do this for any length of time, you will find marketing agencies that will tell you that they don’t on policy.) + +Some would argue — and I would have previously agreed-that agencies and companies always need freelance writing support. But in a world of Upwork and Fiverr they also have may places to turn for it. If they’re cost sensitive and you’re not bottom of market, then these talent sources are also likely to be a lot cheaper than what you’re offering. + +The more I read posts like the poster’s here, the more I also understand that the kind of businesses we might target through our cold email outreach are also routinely receiving pitches like the ones I have often sent. Even if you get through to somebody that _could_ hire you, you’re going to be facing stiff competition for mindshare. + +Finally — when I have brought my freelance cold outreach woes to my wife — she likes to make a good point in return. + +Put yourself in the position of a client receiving your email. + +Now ask: how do you perceive of somebody that sends you unsolicited mass email? What kind of value judgments do you automatically arrive at? + +I don’t know about you, but I get about 10 of these a week from low budget SEO specialists promising me backlink-building schemes. If I don’t instantly hit the delete button I probably think _“this is most likely rubbish.”_ + +Now let’s put that all together: + +Even _if_ the agency or company has a need _and_ they hire freelancers _and_ they happen to need one reasonably soon _and_ your email manages to get through they will _quite possibly_ think of you as a low-end provider. + +See what I mean by your chances being low. And that’s even if they _receive_ the email. + +### Technical Factors Compound The Burn + +Don’t forget those servers! + +But wait — there’s more! + +**To actually derive an accurate percentage about the likely response rate, you need to first figure out how many of these emails are actually getting through to target.** + +I’m fond of pointing out the fact that “Contact Us” forms — while almost guaranteed to be intercepted by a gatekeeper — actually enjoy a 100% deliverability rate. That’s something you can’t achieve with cold email. + +Finally — oh yes, there’s _even_ more !— you have a bunch of technical nuance to throw into the works. + +If you’re sending through a third party system, you must ask whether all DNS records are correctly configured to ensure proper email authentication? + +And here’s a tip: if you’re doing cold email at any kind of volume, you should _not_ use your primary domain much less the email address you routinely do business from. + +Why? If its reputation is imperiled through your wild use of mail blasts, you don’t want to find yourself in a position in which actual client correspondence goes to spam. + +### How To Use Cold Email To Find Freelance Clients + +But if you want to try anyway, how do you go about cold emailing? + +I try to hone in on companies or agencies that are somehow interesting to me and which work in niches that I could credibly write about. + +‘Interesting’ can mean many things to me. I might like what they do. I might think that they have a cool clients list. Or perhaps there’s something about their branding that just jives with me. + +Then, I use my brain — rather than a specific technology — to figure out who to contact. + +Typically, that process might involve: + + * Using Hunter.io to determine the likely internal email structure + * LinkedIn to map out hierarchies + * Other sources of open source information to seal the deal. + +I would then either write that person an individual email, use a CRM like Hubspot to do so with tracking, or use a cold email tool like Klenty or Woodpecker that supports building out automated cadences. + +You’ll also want to pay attention to GDPR compliance if you’re contacting individuals that haven’t opted in to receive your communication. Woodpecker has a good resource on this subject. + +[**GDPR for Cold Sales Email Senders - Frequently Asked Questions** + _Lately, we're getting lots of questions about GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). This seems like a topic that…_ woodpecker.co](https://woodpecker.co/blog/gdpr-faq/ "https://woodpecker.co/blog/gdpr-faq/")[](https://woodpecker.co/blog/gdpr-faq/) + +### My Observations + +I’ve used cold emailing in the past to land clients. + +Some of them have actually been great to work with. + +I think that as a cost-effective form of outbound marketing it should be in every freelancer’s toolkit — at least while it’s needed. + +Equally, however, the few times I have experimented with automated cold email at any volume (I engaged in a ‘push’ around this time last year), I’ve ended up speaking with a lot of very low-intention “leads” who — I quickly got the feeling — were just toying with the idea of hiring me. + +In other instances, these efforts have dredged up those that were transparently merely attempting to collect pricing intelligence. + +In some cases, this led to conversations with startup founders that simply appeared to want to talk about their business with another human. + +Finally, some people, it seemed, wanted to use me as a sort of unpaid consultant. They would love to learn more about content marketing — even if it wasn’t they would ever think of doing. Snap responses asking for pricing are particularly common. + +I’ve had plenty of all of these types of conversations. Although they might sound like a total waste of time, speaking with a lot of companies has had its perks. + +For one, it allowed me to up my sales game quite quickly. Speaking with a lot of founders passionate about their companies and disrupting industries was interesting. But it had its place and time — and I’m much more focused now on running a slick marketing and sales machine (and I don’t envision that I’m anywhere near there … it’s a work in progress, although I’m further along than I was this time last year). + +Thus, while the cost of cold email marketing is indeed minimal, one has to keep in mind the cost expenditure of the time wasted talking to low-intention leads when computing the campaign ROI. + +During several campaigns I have run-for instance the one I just referenced- this has ended up being considerable. + +### Here’s What Has Worked For Me + +If I can derive any conclusions about my experience with cold email marketing to pitch for freelance work it’s this. + +Although it’s easy to understand why it’s a numbers game (in theory) in practice it’s something quite different. + +**The best successes which I have enjoyed with cold email marketing have come from very selectively targeting a narrow audience and writing individual emails to companies and individuals that were genuinely of very high interest to me.** + +Stuff that I couldn’t possibly fake. + +Ultimately, I believe this comes down to authenticity, which is a value that I am trying hard to cultivate this year (yes, I know that sounds incredibly corny). + +Of course, you’re not guaranteed success regardless of what tactic you use. But there’s something inherently powerful about genuinely approaching a target with an email that simply couldn’t have been template-based. + +This speaks to, I believe, a contradiction at the root of volume cold emailing marketing. Something which I believe is its ultimate undoing:**you can’t genuinely be all that interested in working with a pool of recipients you have targeted programatically.** + +I mean you can — if you curate that list — but ultimately it communicates that you have less interest than if you individually reached out to them using the method I have described above. + +That’s just time economics at work. I doubt this poster had time to hand craft 500 messages. But it might feel like a snub to some recipients. + +If I have one regret about freelance writing so far, it’s relying too heavily upon cold emailing as part of my outbound marketing strategy and putting less time into thinking about who I _really_ wanted to go after and how I could use every possible means to communicate that desire. Quality over quantity, in a nutshell. + +My focus, these days, is on inbound marketing. + +Again — excuse the corniness! — this aligns far more closely with my desire to be more authentic and transparent about who I am this year. + +Instead of hoping to win clients through interrupting their day, I will be attempting to draw them closer to sharing things that I care about with the world. + +Oh, and finally one very important point. This one speaks to wellness and mental health which — the longer I do this — I realize is an essential concern. + +Cold emailing (searching for companies, guessing email addresses, dealing with poor quality leads) is really no fun. Actually, it gets pretty dejecting very quickly. + +I would rather write a personal blog than content marketing for my company. But — relative to outbound marketing — it’s in another category of enjoyment. + +Both outbound and inbound marketing have their places, I believe. + +Cold email can be used to win clients. But even the successes it produces may not be pretty. + +My concluding advice: proceed with caution. And consider other options. diff --git a/posts/medium/Does-Israel-Use-Reddit--Sort-Of.md b/posts/medium/Does-Israel-Use-Reddit--Sort-Of.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..69530f065ed81931bfc691c7056406f6be45c378 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Does-Israel-Use-Reddit--Sort-Of.md @@ -0,0 +1,41 @@ +# Does Israel Use Reddit? Sort Of + +#### There’s Even A Reddit In Hebrew! + +While the new generations of youngsters are fumbling around on Tik Tok and Instagrass (isn’t that what the place you post cat pictures on is called?) everybody knows that the truly cool people of this world are spending their time on Reddit. + +It is also beyond doubt that your average Israeli Redditor is every bit as cool as his international counterpart. But the question remains: does anybody actually use Reddit in Israel? And — if you’re not doing so- why should you get on it? + +### Do People Use Reddit in Israel? + +Despite our best efforts, _After Aliyah_ wasn’t able to collate official information regarding Reddit use in Israel. + +Nevertheless, it’s generally understood that — at present — Reddit’s penetration of both the _tsabra_ and _olim_ market remains very limited. Nobody really knows _how_ limited or whether it’s becoming _less_ limited over time. But when was the last time you peered over nosily at someone’s phone, while waiting for the אוטובוס, and saw them scrolling through Reddit? We rest our case. + +The main subreddit for Israel is [/r/israel](https://reddit.com/r/israel). Oh, and a subreddit is essentially a homepage for a community to congregate around. Standards are enforced through moderators — which essentially serve the same function as admins in Facebook groups. + +There are Jewish-interested subreddits too. And literally more than 100,000 more. + +### Are There Hebrew Subreddits? + +There’s a subreddit for those learning Hebrew. A group nobody has ever described as Hebrew as a Second Language (HSL) individuals but which this website will happily coin. That’s at [/r/hebrew](https://www.reddit.com/r/hebrew). + +The main subreddit that’s actually in Hebrew on the network is [/r/ani_bm](https://www.reddit.com/r/ani_bm/). The subreddit’s URL is a contraction for אני במציאות. There are a few more smaller Hebrew subreddits. + +### Are There Complanglos on Reddit? + +Complaining Anglos (“complanglos”) can be found congregating in every crack and pore of the digital world. That includes Reddit. + +But we assume that you meant “are there Anglos on Reddit?” R/israel is a mixture of both Israelis and _olim_. Some posters post in Hebrew despite the subreddit’s official “language” appearing to be English. + +### Why Should I Be On Reddit? + +One notable feature of Reddit is that most posters post using usernames that don’t reveal their true identity. In our biased opinion this has some negative effects: when people aren’t putting their reputations on the line, they can be acerbic and nasty. Reddit has a reputation for toxicity and, sometimes, it’s well-deserved. + +On the other hand anonymity can be useful if you want to discuss things … without people knowing who you really are. + +Another pro in Reddit’s favor is that there are some insanely niche communities on it. Yes, that’s true of Facebook groups do. But Reddit often seems to have a knack for congregating people with eclectic interests. + +### Be’Kitsur + +Reddit isn’t much of a ‘thing’ yet in Israel but the situation is subject to ongoing change. Nevertheless, there is a subreddit “for” Israel. And there’s even one in Hebrew. Oh, and you should head over to /r/Hebrew so that you can find a better source of information than _After Aliyah_. diff --git a/posts/medium/Does-Text-Based--Content--Have-A-Future-In-The-Age-Of-Video-.md b/posts/medium/Does-Text-Based--Content--Have-A-Future-In-The-Age-Of-Video-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..056569291716be57e17cb49ff3e4f565d92b5ba8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Does-Text-Based--Content--Have-A-Future-In-The-Age-Of-Video-.md @@ -0,0 +1,123 @@ +# Does Text-Based ‘Content’ Have A Future In The Age Of Video? + +#### My own evolution as a content creator — and why I believe that format-agnosticism may be the way our industry moves + +Video-based, audio, or text. What if the future of content were in fact format-agnostic? Photo by [Gabriela Palai](https://www.pexels.com/@gabriela-palai-129458?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-action-camera-690806/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +For the past 10 years or so of my life — plus a few more — I’ve been writing. + +Latterly, I’ve been ghostwriting on behalf of business executives, predominantly those in the technology space. I’ve penned conference speeches, articles, blogs, and books — among other formats. + +Before that — and now — I worked in tech startups as a marketing communications manager. Or MarCom as the cool kids call it. + +Among the many responsibilities that that role tends to entail (FYI: it’s a “all hands on deck” startupy kind of job title), writing “things” on behalf of the company was one of the core ones. + +Press releases, internal comms guidelines, responses to interviews, award applications, social media posts, user documentation (because sometimes there’s no real documentation writer on hand and well .. you write the ‘things’). It came from my desk. + +Before that again, I plodded by way through the usual training ground for aspiring print journalists: Founding a college news website and immersing myself in the petulant world of student media; interning at an Irish-American news website; receiving press accreditation; feeling important for interviewing other broke college students playing gigs for beer money; getting a degree in journalism; writing more for people who paid me to write. + +It’s a bold claim, but with the exception of grant proposals, I think I’ve written just about everything that can be written — by which I mean in terms of formats, of course, and not topics. That’s a claim nobody will ever be able to make. + +Clickbait video descriptions for my first freelance writing client? I’ve been there (it was about microwaving burgers, if you’re curious). White papers about how satellites will bring internet to cruise ships that are intended to make the client money but which my fingerprints are nowhere near? That was me too. I’ve written. I write. I love writing. + +_(Contextual tidbit: My last formal stab at journalism was working briefly as a copy editor at a newspaper here in Israel. I’ve done smidgens of tech journalism since. But I’m now pretty entrenched over here on the dark side)._ + +### Audio and Video: Supplements Or The Replacement? + +Like many former / somewhat former journalists who didn’t go down the broadcast media route, at various points during my evolution as a writer — or rather, the series of small pivots that my career to date has entailed — I’ve dabbled in other forms of creative expression. I’ve questioned whether writing was the logical path to be on. As time marched on, I’ve periodically wondered if I’ve fallen victim to the sunk cost fallacy. + +Like most journalists these days, when I began freelancing for websites, I was encouraged to acquaint myself with the operation of a digital voice recorder in order to begin creating audio content that wasn’t as good as what a broadcast journalist could create but which was good enough for most listeners not to know the difference. My first humble DVR captured a speech given by a former prime minister of Ireland. We had a beer together afterwards. No, really. It was a fun night. + +Video came a bit later — as in over a decade later, and right now I’m a mere dilettante taking my first fumbling steps at a new hobby. + +Why did it take so long to try out this sphere? Primarily because I’m plagued by low self esteem and believed that I was both too poor to afford proper video equipment (sort of still true — gimbals cost a pretty penny), worried that my initial efforts would be embarrassingly bad (so why even try?), and convinced that video was way too complicated for me. + +Thus it was that while some of my fondest childhood memories are of scripting Lego camera movies with a friend — and making stop motion videos — I only recently got around to finally starting a YouTube channel. + +In addition to low self esteem (I’m really selling myself today, right?) I suffer, now and again, from a mental flaw common among those who suffer from anxiety. The psychologists of this world label this black and white thinking. + +That is my brain has a hard time wrapping around the fact that there are often no simple answers to questions in life. + +Not everything can be reduced to yes/no answers. There is rarely one ultimate answer to a question when people like I feel conflicted about which of a number of viable options is the optimal way forward. + +So while writing is my most comfortable form of expression — the one that comes most naturally to me — I’ve been musing for months after what is the _ultimate_ form of content. + +There’s one more reason that feeds into my doubts: + +Posts like the one you’re reading could have been authored hundreds of years ago. Yes, maybe with a feather and some papyrus. But wasn’t it basically the same thing? + +The video creators of today — by contrast — are continuing to push the envelope further with special effects. That was something inaccessible to us a few hundred years ago. + +I may be a proud Linux-using tech geek, but in this respect at least, am I a Luddite latching onto an anachronistic discipline because I’m too afraid to make the leap forward? When technology marches forward, are the legacy solutions destined to slowly fall by the wayside — including me? Does writing have a place at all? + +### But … What If The Format Didn’t Matter? + +Then I had a thought that was slightly more optimistic than prophesying my own professional demise. + +What if rather than blogs and other forms of written content being on an inevitable journey towards impending deprecation … we got to a place in which the format through which we transmit ideas really didn’t matter. + +Not one iota. + +It could happen sooner than you think. + +This is an idea that brings me comfort. Because if there’s one thing that I’m increasingly convinced of, it’s that all of us are creators are really one big tribe. We just don’t know it yet. + +Some of us write. Some of us love working with audio. And others feel most at home in front of a video editor. But we share a fundamental quality — an innate desire to seek personal fulfillment through sharing our ideas with the world and changing how others experience it in turn. + +I also know another thing. Technology is advancing at a dizzying pace. And I believe that we’re fast arriving to the day when the format in which thoughts are communicated — the medium used — will become an irrelevant after-consideration. + +### How Writing, Audio, Video Could Meld Together: The Details + +Want specifics? + +Here’s what I’m talking about. + +Automated transcription tools are getting pretty good. They’re widespread. They’re pretty cheap. Rev. Happy Scribe. Et al. Regular marketers are using these things every day to transcribe case studies rather than listen back to recordings. + +Create a podcast? An AI transcription algorithm can churn out a pretty good transcript of it in minutes. Rev can even intelligently label the dialogue, through voice recognition, to show who said what. Another algorithm could parse the language and format it into a blog post. No humans required so far at all. At any stage of the process. Your podcast hosts have just become bloggers — at the press of a button. Cool, no? + +The video to audio gap is trivially easy to bridge. At least in the “downward” direction towards text content. + +Audio can be extracted from any video in seconds — after all, it’s one of the streams that’s baked into the file. Although video distribution platforms go out of their way to make it difficult for users to use them as audio streaming services — or at least commonly try to monetize that functionality — there’s no major technical impediment to doing just that. We can move on. + +So a content creator that starts with a video can easily distribute that same content in audio format — minus the visuals of course. + +And that audio can easily be translated into text. + +All the tech is already in place for this to happen. We just need a few ambitious startup founders to create a service integrating all the moving parts. + +#### Bridging The Text -> Video Divide + +Now let’s work in the other direction. + +Artificial speech synthetization is pretty decent too. + +That’s the tech that will allow us to take a blog post — like this one — and package it up in the format of a podcast. A lot of speech synth engines used to sound horribly robotic. Very listenable human-sounding ones are already on the market. They work reasonably well although they’re still a little pricey. + +I contend that it’s reasonable to expect that in the course of a couple of years — a long time in the world of technology — “usably well” will become “perfect.” + +But how could we bridge the audio-video divide in the other direction? + +This one’s a bit harder to answer. + +Clearly, it’s not reasonable to expect that algorithms are going to be able to replace the work of cinematographers who manually go out into the world in order to capture real things and people in video. Frankly, that idea is patently absurd and I’m sure insulting to those who have dedicated their careers to video. + +But AI _could_ bring us to some sort of strange middle ground in which creators that wanted content produced on the cheap _could_ pair the audio (remember, we got from text to audio easily) with a stock video library. + +The final stage here could be done by robots or it could be done by humans. + +The corollary is that we’d see an explosion in video stock libraries in order to feed the mushrooming of platforms that would spring up to make this all happen. Or perhaps the “footage” won’t be footage but actually AI-generated video. + +If all the above were in place, we’d _truly_ have arrived at an era of content agnosticism. + +The podcast / video / text divide that currently divides us into disciplines and segregates between audio creators, video creators and writers would … melt into oblivion. + +Create a podcast? Click a button to present a formatted blog post to your readers. Push another one and we’ll find matching stock visuals for those who really feel the need to watch something rather than just listen. 3 minutes later and your “video” has been rendered in the cloud — on AWS supercomputers — and is ready to distribute across social channels. + +The format for creators? With the exception of video (because I’m not claiming for a second that custom video could be redundant) that becomes largely irrelevant. + +The power’s in the hand of consumers now. + +How they want to consume content — which will depend on the context they find themselves in , whether they’re driving or in front of a computer — will determine the mode of consumption. + +This future could arrive a lot sooner than many of us imagine. diff --git a/posts/medium/Does-Your-Thought-Leadership-Need-A-Strategy-Document-.md b/posts/medium/Does-Your-Thought-Leadership-Need-A-Strategy-Document-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..61c6d8f6358bcb3c46477016bc318884516d31e6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Does-Your-Thought-Leadership-Need-A-Strategy-Document-.md @@ -0,0 +1,56 @@ +# Does Your Thought Leadership Need A Strategy Document? + +#### Better Planning Can Lead To Better Execution + +Would your thought leadership campaign benefit from a planning and strategy session? + +Whether you’re engaging in thought leadership marketing for yourself or for your business, you may have thought about whether you need a strategy to coordinate the effort of producing and distributing your upcoming thought leadership campaign. + +There are a few reasons why it’s usually advisable to have a thought leadership strategy in place rather than producing the material ad-hoc. This applies even if you have other strategy documents guiding your marketing efforts such as a public relations (PR) strategy, an overall marketing strategy or a content marketing plan. Ideally, thought leadership should have its strategy or at least a section within the overall plan. + +Of course, you may be wondering ‘why’. + +This blog post will cover why you should produce a thought leadership strategy, what you should include in it, and how it should be used in conjunction with other important marketing strategy documents that your team may have already drafted. + +### Why Strategy Matters in Thought Leadership Marketing + +Effective thought leadership leverages the power of compelling and original ideas to influence target audiences and position the authoring party as a subject matter expert (SME) regarding the topic being discussed. + +Research has demonstrated that poor thought leadership can not only fail to resonate with target audiences but that it can actually damage brand perception and lead to withdrawn offers of business. Presumably those are not your objectives! + +In light of that fact, it’s imperative that those producing thought leadership get organized and clear in their own minds about: + + * What insights they are going to share + * When they are going to share them + * What the target audience is for each communication + +The process of authoring a separate strategy document for your thought leadership campaign is both a great way to get around to this and to put yourself through a thinking exercise that should help you get clear on why you’re sharing these insights in the first place. + +It’s also important that your thought leadership strategy should set down some broad parameters about how your approach to thought leadership is going to be different from what you’re doing in the realm of content marketing. It should describe the audience(s) you’re hoping to reach through this marketing channel. Finally, it should also clarify messaging objectives. + +You’ve probably heard the expression “failing to prepare is preparing to fail.” That applies to all aspects of your marketing mix, including thought leadership. Make sure that your approach to this important form of communication receives the same level of planning and attention that your other channels of communications do. + +### What Should A Thought Leadership Strategy Plan Contain? + +Your thought leadership plan should include the following: + + * **Key messaging:** Thought leadership is all about interjecting big ideas into industry debates — or sharing your company’s vision (or your own) with the world. For that reason, it’s important to get clear on what those meta narratives that you wish to share with the world are. Often, less is more. One key message can be broken up into several communications and each message can be communicated over the course of, say, a business quarter through various media markets. If your organization has a PR strategy in place, then you might be able to directly use -or borrow inspiration from-the material contained here. + * **Target audience(s):** Thought leadership differs from content marketing in several important respects including the stage of the marketing funnel which it is typically designed to target. Before putting pen to paper, it’s worth getting clear on who exactly this thought leadership is supposed to reach. + * **Distribution:** Thought leadership can be conveyed to market through both on-site and off-site (and managed and non-managed) communications channels. These are relevant insofar as the selection of channels will dictate how much PR resources (or those of other teams) need to be allocated to the thought leadership marketing program. While getting down to the planning, don’t forget social media which can overlap with thought leadership marketing when it shares thought leadership messaging and resources. Setting a high level plan for distribution can help ensure that the right team resources are made available to enable the program’s success. + +In addition to clarifying the core objectives and messaging of the thought leadership campaign, a thought leadership editorial calendar can be used to keep the whole program on track. This doesn’t need to look any different from any other editorial calendar, such as the one you might already be using for content marketing. + +### What’s The Difference Between Thought Leadership Strategy And Content Marketing? + +I’ve talked, in another blog post, about some of the fundamental differences between thought leadership and content marketing: + + * Thought leadership leverages authority to build trust. Content marketing provides value to kindle relationships. + * Thought leadership is often a top of funnel awareness-building initiative whereas content marketing often sits closer to the middle and bottom of the funnel and thus is more focused on driving short-term conversions. + +For this reason, it’s worth creating separate or parallel strategies for content marketing and thought leadership. Thought leadership, in general, is closely allied with public relations (PR) and it would be prudent to coordinate messaging (although not all PR activities fall under the remit of a thought leadership campaign). + +Small teams don’t need to create three or four separate strategy documents. But thought leadership merits at least its own section in a broader plan. + +### Good Planning Leads To Great Results + +Not all marketing teams love getting immersed in the fine detail of planning strategies, but thought leadership is truly an area of marketing where such efforts are likely to be rewarded. Thought leadership and content marketing often differ in terms of objectives, messaging, and target audiences. Give your next thought leadership campaign its own strategy and editorial calendar in order to give it the best chance of resonating with your target audience. diff --git a/posts/medium/Does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-.md b/posts/medium/Does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0b1ec7b6f3b8235917d5c2e4249dbc1ad4478df2 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-.md @@ -0,0 +1,101 @@ +# Does online anonymity have a place on the internet? + +#### Can we facilitate online anonymity’s “white hat” use-cases without making it a den full of trolls and haters? + +I posted a few days ago about some vicious anonymous online bullying — with decidedly anti-Semitic overtones — that I experienced on Reddit, including on its notorious hate-bating /r/drama subreddit. + +[**Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit** + _Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2) + +[**Sign the Petition** + _The Reddit community of /r/drama is a festering hive of hateful trolls and bigots whose only purpose in life is to…_ www.change.org](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-ban-the-reddit-community-r-drama "https://www.change.org/p/reddit-ban-the-reddit-community-r-drama")[](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-ban-the-reddit-community-r-drama) + +Sadly, this wasn’t the first time that I experienced anti-Semitic cyber-bullying. + +When I wrapped up an online news site that I used to run in Ireland, an anonymous cybertroll — posting from an IP address that, disconcertingly, resolved to my university campus — charged that the “chief Jew” (that would be me) had wound up the site in a “hissy fit” (on the second part the troll wasn’t entirely wrong). + +The experience at the time rattled me. + +**Who was this anonymous internet stranger who knew that I was Jewish, evidently disliked that fact, and was prepared to deface a Wikipedia page to communicate that to the world?** + +Outside of my small circle of friends, relatively few knew that I was one of the few Jewish students on campus. Might I be rubbing shoulders with online hater while out for drinks during the weekend? I found the whole experience profoundly unnerving. + +Almost ten years later and it seems as if the online world is still as toxic and nasty in its anonymous corners. + +I may have a different surname now and live in a different part of the world, but I still receive hate from anonymous internet users calling me a “Sperg” (a nickname for Asperger’s popular on Reddit hate forums), a “f***king j***ss”, and charging that I should take my “big beak” off their corner of the internet. + +Some anonymous hate from a Reddit profile. + +But here’s the thing. + +**While I happen to be an ardent enemy of things like cyberstalking, online abuse, and gaslighting — and I would suggest that most straight-thinking people are) — I’m also a supporter, broadly speaking, of some use-cases for online anonymity.** + +While most could agree that trolls, gaslighting “moderators”, and other abusers are entities that the online world would be better off without, a large part of me still thinks that online anonymity isn’t something that should be locked away from internet users in its entirety. + +Some reasons for that belief: + + * Fake online identities — sockpuppets — can be used to infiltrate and monitor for defamation, bullying, and general nastiness in online hate communities. One of my previous freelance writing clients was a startup whose technology helped the law enforcement and intelligence communities to monitor the cesspools of hatred that foment on the dark web. + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + + * I support — and will continue to support — Amazon’s decision to allow indie authors to use pen names on KDP, thereby enabling vulnerable individuals with stories to tell (including, ironically, of abuse) to have their works see the light of day in a way that doesn’t compromise their personal safety. + +[**Reasons To Use A Pen Name For Your Amazon Self-Publishing — And Why Not To** + _Thinking about writing under a pen name? Some reasons why you may want to … and reasons why you may end up regretting…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/reasons-to-use-a-pen-name-for-your-amazon-self-publishing-and-why-not-to-3f96a53fabd "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/reasons-to-use-a-pen-name-for-your-amazon-self-publishing-and-why-not-to-3f96a53fabd")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/reasons-to-use-a-pen-name-for-your-amazon-self-publishing-and-why-not-to-3f96a53fabd) + +There are other use-cases for mostly-anonymous internet forums such as Reddit: + + * **Mental health and health** : those suffering from mental health concerns and eating disorders may wish to join online peer groups. + * **Victims of abuse — precisely the kind that cyberbullying creates! — may wish to discuss their experience in peer communities** without running the risk that their bullies, or others, will follow them there and continue the abuse. + * **Whistleblowers often have a legitimate need to share information anonymously.** While some do so directly to journalists, others blow the lid on corporate malfeasance through leaking the information over the internet. One doesn’t have to think very hard to conjure up examples of this. + +[**The Internet User’s Guide To Anonymous Whistleblowing** + _Basic steps to share information with journalists and other parties without divulging one’s identity_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-internet-users-guide-to-anonymous-whistleblowing-bd4b8ec48483 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-internet-users-guide-to-anonymous-whistleblowing-bd4b8ec48483")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-internet-users-guide-to-anonymous-whistleblowing-bd4b8ec48483) + +Call the above “white hat” uses for online anonymity. + +But it doesn’t get around the fact that any community that offers a platform on which users can be anonymous risks becoming a lightning rod for online haters, trolls, and others intent on exploiting that same anonymity to perpetrate cyberabuse. + +Which leads me to wonder: + +### Can We Provide A Safe Online Community That Only Enables ‘White Hat’ Anonymity? + +I believe that a significant challenge facing the social media companies of tomorrow will be finding a way to create online communities that will allow internet users to remain anonymous _without_ providing them with impunity to torment others in the process. + +I suggest that victims of cyberbullying should ban together in order to lobby for tougher legislation that targets cyberbullying and petition platforms — including those yet to start — to operate mechanisms that will allow online anonymity while sufficiently protecting from its likely abuses. + +**I would suggest, as a credible model for how this could work in practice, the manner in which Amazon allows authors to create pen name accounts.** + +**Social media platforms could allow contributors to post anonymously or under a pseudonym, but require an account verification process which requires that the user verify their true identity with site administrations.** + +They could do this by requiring that signups: + + * Submit government documentation for review + * Submit utility bills to support the documentation + +In other words, it is my belief that in an ideal world, anybody that wishes to join an online forum — or even post here on Medium — should be required to submit comprehensive documentation that would make it almost impossible for internal investigators _not_ to determine their identity. + +This system needn’t be as impossibly difficult to operate as it might at first glance seem: + + * Submitted user data could be processed automatically by AI in a way that verifies the poster’s identity without providing human administrators with any clue as to who he or she is. + +That is to say: unless that user engages in abusive behavior and has an internal investigation opened against him (or her), the information will remain under digital lock and key. If they abuse the system and/or are found to be harassing other users: the digital lock and key is lifted to the eyes of trained investigators. + +Such a system would: + + * **Provide grounds for abusive users to face charges for criminality for falsifying official documentation**. In many jurisdictions this represents a prosecutable offence. This would create a powerful deterrent that would turn trolls away at the door. + * **Require users to put down digital breadcrumbs that would help to ascertain their real identity in the case of an investigation into harassment.** + * **Facilitate safe anonymous internet use** without prejudicing the welfare of others whom they encounter online. + +These days, social media represents a powerful force in all of our lives. + +Because just as anonymity can support constructive use-cases, it can also be a massively detrimental force that wreaks enormous harm upon its victims. + +Social media platforms that fail to properly tackle online hate — and I include Reddit in that bracket, at least at the time I’m writing this — deserve to be held to account. Their failure to stamp out hate communities such as /r/drama — which continues to facilitate organized attacks upon the victims of cybercrime — is nothing short of odious. + +Should they fail to do so, the social media network entrepreneurs of tomorrow have an interesting challenge on their hands that I suggest would be a worthy undertaking: + +How to facilitate anonymity’s constructive uses without enabling it to be the pervasive force for harm that it can be. + +_As my last post about Reddit cyberbullying was very rapidly targeted by hordes of abusive anonymous commenters (sent from /r/drama), I’m going to proactively disable comments on this piece. While there’s an argument in favor of showing online abuse to the world, I believe I’ve shown enough of it here recently. Apologies to anybody who had non-abusive thoughts to offer._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Driving-On-Route-10---Israel-s-Spectacular-Road-Along-The-Egyptian-Border.md b/posts/medium/Driving-On-Route-10---Israel-s-Spectacular-Road-Along-The-Egyptian-Border.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1256a7e34505e8567f32d6eb417410e9c6b2f2eb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Driving-On-Route-10---Israel-s-Spectacular-Road-Along-The-Egyptian-Border.md @@ -0,0 +1,53 @@ +# Driving On Route 10 — Israel’s Spectacular Road Along The Egyptian Border + +#### An amazing sightseeing opportunity not only for border junkies + +This weekend I — and a few other daring motorists — took the IDF up on their offer to open sections of Highway 10 to civilian access for a few days. + +For those who _don’t_ share my fascination with international borders, Highway 10 is an Israeli road that parallels the Egyptian border from near Eilat through to its termination near Rafah and the Gaza Strip in the west. + +The start of Highway 10 near its intersection with Route 101 in southern Israel. An IDF base is located at the intersection of these two roads and the beginning of Highway 10’s course. Unless you arrive at a specific data or coordinate your arrival with the army before embarking upon the trip, you will find the road shuttered and impassable. + +After a number of cross-border attacks from Sinai-based militia, the IDF now only allow civilians to drive on the road during specific dates of the year. + +[**September 2012 southern Israel cross-border attack - Wikipedia** + _September 2012 southern Israel cross-border attack refers to an incident on 21 September 2012, when three Egyptian…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_2012_southern_Israel_cross-border_attack "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_2012_southern_Israel_cross-border_attack")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_2012_southern_Israel_cross-border_attack) + +These days — given the very sparse use it sees — Highway 10 is a somewhat challenging surface to drive on. + +It consists of one windy road across meandering desert mountain territory with unspoiled views across Israel’s Negev desert, and of the border fence, every few hundred meters. + +During the 90 minutes it took my wife and I to drive the windy stretch between Tzomet HaSayarim and the day’s exist near Nitzana we encountered only a handful of other vehicles, most of those bearing the black registration plates of the IDF. Regular layoffs are positioned along the road and needed to let approaching traffic pass. + +Various sightseeing posts are positioned alongside it offering incredible views across the Egyptian northern Sinai (territory that Israel held for a period). + +These include the viewpoint post at Mount Horesha which has a small staircase leading to the mountain’s peak which is located almost 1,000 meters above sea level. + +These were easy to find by Googling in Hebrew (“כביש 10”) although — not wanting to drive several hours through the desert for no reason — I also confirmed these by calling the IDF. To my surprise they picked up the phone within seconds and confirmed the upcoming opening date. + +Despite this, the IDF situated several informal checkpoints along the road and we had to explain where we got on and where we were heading a few times over. This is done in order to confirm that civilians do not remain in the area — which is otherwise a closed military zone. + +Immediately across the border — a few dozen meters from the course of the road — is Egypt. + +The Egyptian army maintains a lengthy network of border posts which are adorned with the colors of the Egyptian flag and (for bases) a mixture of cream and red. Occasionally, Egyptian soldiers can be seen on foot patrol along the fence. + +The border fence itself, between Israel and Egypt, is an imposing seven meter high steel structure. Attacks during its construction led to the army’s decision to close the road off for regular civilian access (an old signpost near its entrance testified to the fact that, before this event, civilians were required to be armed in order to drive along the road). + +An army signpost positioned on Road 171 which leads to Road 10 in southern Israel. Other than a few army firing ranges and camping spots, there is nothing for dozens of kilometers except for barren desert wilderness. Photo: Daniel Rosehill. + +Israel’s border with Egypt has long been associated with both human trafficking and drug smuggling. + +In response to these factors — and the threat posted by ISIS and other militant groups active in the north of the Sinai Peninsula — Israel completed a major upgrade to the border fence in 2017, raising its height to 8 meters in part. The border was first fully completed in 2014. + +[**Israel raises height of fence on Egypt border** + _Israel said Tuesday it has finished raising the height of an electronic fence along part of its border with Egypt to…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-raises-height-of-fence-on-egypt-border/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-raises-height-of-fence-on-egypt-border/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-raises-height-of-fence-on-egypt-border/) + +Next to a signpost for Route 10 near Nitsanei Sinai which hosts a winery. The border fence with Egypt can be seen in the background. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.A roadsign for Beer Sheva via Route 10. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.“Stop border ahead” — a border signpost near Israel’s boundary fence with Egypt just outside Nitsanei Sinai, a few hundred meters from the border. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Northern Sinai and Egyptian territory, along with the border fence, as seen from Route 10. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Looking westwards to the Negev Desert. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Israel’s steel border fence cuts a dramatic course through the barren desert land that lies between Israel and Egypt. The course of the boundary follows a 1906 agreement between the Ottoman and British empires. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Photo: Daniel Rosehill.The Israel-Egypt border fence can be seen in the middle-ground, alongside an IDF position to the right, and the Egyptian Sinai in the background. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Israel’s upgraded barrier with Egypt seen meandering through the desert. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Various interesting rock formations can be seen at various points along Route 10 including this one near the Mount Horasha Observatory along the route’s course. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Egyptian army positions are located just across the border throughout the road’s course. They all look like this one which can be seen in the background — bearing creme and read colors. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Highway 10 through the desert. The border fence, parallel, is on the left. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.More border warning singposts just in front of the Egypt-Israel border off Road 10. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Background: border fence and the Egyptian Sinai. Foreground: author. Photo: Daniel Rosehill. + +### Hebrew Resources (with opening dates) + +[**נסיעה בכביש 10 - תיירות הר הנגב** + _כביש 10, כביש הגבול המערבי של מדינת ישראל, הוא אחד הכבישים היפים ביותר בארץ. כביש 10 הוא גם ציר ההגעה הנוח ביותר למרחב…_ www.negevtour.co.il](https://www.negevtour.co.il/harnegev/road10-2/ "https://www.negevtour.co.il/harnegev/road10-2/")[](https://www.negevtour.co.il/harnegev/road10-2/) + +[**כביש 10 - טיול בכביש המיוחד בישראל (מעודכן 2022) - צאו לדרך** + _בהמשך הפוסט מעודכנים מועדי הפתיחה של כביש 10 לשנת 2022 כביש 10 הוא דרך נוף מדהימה ואחד מהכבישים הארוכים והיפים בישראל…_ www.laderech.com](https://www.laderech.com/%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%90%D7%93-%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%A4-%D7%91%D7%9B%D7%91%D7%99%D7%A9-10/ "https://www.laderech.com/%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%90%D7%93-%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%A4-%D7%91%D7%9B%D7%91%D7%99%D7%A9-10/")[](https://www.laderech.com/%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%90%D7%93-%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%A4-%D7%91%D7%9B%D7%91%D7%99%D7%A9-10/) diff --git a/posts/medium/East-Jerusalem--Exploring-Jerusalem-s-Contested-Other-Half--Photos--Videos-.md b/posts/medium/East-Jerusalem--Exploring-Jerusalem-s-Contested-Other-Half--Photos--Videos-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..02e9f4cfb4461244fd31394c381d0c7f829e6ed7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/East-Jerusalem--Exploring-Jerusalem-s-Contested-Other-Half--Photos--Videos-.md @@ -0,0 +1,98 @@ +# East Jerusalem: Exploring Jerusalem’s Contested Other Half (Photos, Videos) + +#### Palestinian in culture and language but with the trappings of Israeli sovereignty; photos and videos from east of the Green Line + +East Jerusalem is Jerusalem’s sort of connected other half. + +Together with Haredi (Jewish Ultra Orthodox) Jerusalem and predominantly-Jewish-but-non-ultra-orthodox Jerusalem it comprises Israel’s capital city — a city which, practically speaking, functions as a sort of loosely bound-up collective made up of these three constituent elements (and then some). (_The city’s Jewish population is a roughly even third split between the ultra-Orthodox, the less religious, and the secular. Definitions, of course, matter much.)_ + + Palestinian women shopping on Sultan Suleiman street in East Jerusalem, near Damascus Gate. Photo: author. + +The territory — effectively, the area within the Jerusalem municipal boundary but on the eastern side of the so-called Green Line armistice demarcation agreed with Jordan — was administered by the Hashemite Kingdom for 19 years. + +Given the close ties between many Palestinians and Jordan — there are more than 2 million Palestinian refugees living in the country — trappings of that tie and the Jordanian presence are still visible on the ground. Currency converter shops on this part of town almost always include the Dinar as one of the advertised currencies available for exchange. + +Israel conquered the territory in the Six Day War of 1967. The vast majority of the international community continue to retroactively repudiate that move and regard East Jerusalem as illegally annexed territory (minus the US which in 2017 upended longstanding policy by recognizing Jerusalem, without qualification, as Israel’s capital.) + +In fact — contrary to what many believe, and many would argue the dictates of common reason — even Israel’s claim over the West of the city remains diplomatically contentious, usually recognized at best by begrudging _de facto_ recognitions of facts on the ground but stopping short of a full diplomatic rubber stamp. + +The US, Kosovo, and Guetemala maintain embassies in the city. Russia and Australia have inched closer — also alongside some other states with warming relations with Israel who have opened commercial offices to again indicate growing rapprochement with the idea of endorsing long term Israeli sovereignty over its capital. + +In 2018, in a landmark moment, Australia recognized West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. In the same year, Russia held its Russia Day reception in Jerusalem and offered tepid recognition amounting to the same thing diplomatically. According to a spokesperson for its foreign ministry _“we must state that in this context we view West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.”_ + + A money changing shop on Salah ah-Din street, one of the main commercial streets in East Jerusalem, near Damascus Gate and the Muslim Quarter of the Old City. Photo: author. + +Those states, though significant breakaways from the consensus position, remain the outliers, however. For the vast majority of the international community, Jerusalem’s formal status, post-Oslo, is something like an unstated modern incarnation of the failed _corpus separatum_ envisioned by the United Nations. + +Embassies, being meticulous observers of matters of protocol, are therefore careful not to hold receptions in any part of the capital — the West included — in order to avoid giving even a feint semblance of legitimacy to Israel’s application of its sovereignty over all of the capital. + +A sign erected by the Jerusalem Municipality on Sultan Suleiman Street in East Jerusalem. Photo: author. + +Even though a visitor to the city couldn’t help but notice that it functions unquestionably fully as part of Israel, until the Israelis and the Palestinians stop being at loggerheads — which at this point sounds like about the same time we can expect pigs to take flight — its status is sort of officially up in the air, however much at odds that may be from day to day reality. + +[**In curious first, Russia recognizes West Jerusalem as Israel's capital** + _In an unexpected, unprecedented and curious move, Moscow on Thursday said it considers West Jerusalem to be Israel's…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-historic-first-russia-recognizes-west-jerusalem-as-israels-capital/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-historic-first-russia-recognizes-west-jerusalem-as-israels-capital/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-historic-first-russia-recognizes-west-jerusalem-as-israels-capital/) + +For the time being East Jerusalem and its Palestinians — known as the _maqdiseen_ in Arabic (in Arabic, Jerusalem is known as _Al Quds_), find themselves in a sort of strange position between worlds. + +With the exception of (some) residents of the southern village of Beit Safafa, they mostly hold permanent residency permits to Israel (East Jerusalem is comprised of a network of Palestinian villages which were together subsumed within the territory over the Green Line). + +They pay taxes to the City of Jerusalem as they live within its municipal boundaries but cannot vote in Israel’s elections so long as that remains their status. They can even have that flimsy status revoked should they spend enough time out of the city. + +East Jerusalemites have long complained of underinvestment in their part of the city and of an impossible situation in which sufficient construction is rendered extremely difficult to achieve lawfully (they say that not enough building permits are granted and that when they are forced to build without them Israel is hyper-aggressive about ordering demolitions). + +They find themselves, they say, between worlds — which they are. + +Israel aggressively implements a policy forbidding the Palestinian Authority from operating in the city, even in those parts (like Kafr Aqab) that lay on the other side of the separation barrier, making them practically inaccessible to Israeli civilian authorities. Unlike those in Ramallah and Bethlehem, mere kilometers to the north and south of the city, they can’t rely upon the services provided by the Palestinian Authority (PA). + +A Palestinian lady walks near the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem near the Herod’s Gate entrance. Photo: author. + +While that situation might sound desperate, it’s worth underscoring that this is a question of volition as much as it is rights, however. Which makes the unfortunate plight of these residents, in respects at least, also self-imposed. + +East Jerusalem Palestinians have traditionally largely refused to engage with Israel, viewing the State and the City of Jerusalem as unwanted foreign occupiers (sometimes attacking municipal workers who come to collect refuse). + +While a process to obtain Israeli citizenship remains open to them — and doing so affords them suffrage and much better employment prospects — most refuse to do so on the grounds of allegiance to Palestinian nationalism (or the positions of their parents, who are often more opposed to the idea of any form of conciliation). + +A shop in the Old City of Jerusalem. Many stores sell a mixture of both Palestinian and Israeli flags, hedging their bets on their expected clientele. Photo: author. + +Doing so is regarded as a form of betrayal — or ‘normalization’ in the more common discourse — and societal opprobrium and the _fatwas_ of religious leaders provide powerful enforcing mechanisms in a tight-knit and clannish society. + +They view their choice largely as being hapless quasi-citizens of neither side to the conflict or as being traitors to their own cause — and so live within a quasi-city that manages to be in both worlds of the conflict but neither all at the same time. + +It makes, also, for difficult facts on the ground and one half of Jerusalem that’s grossly less developed than the other with significant poverty and associated problems. + +To round out the picture of disenfranchisement and anger, there’s how East Jerusalem is viewed from the other perspective — that of Israelis — and the conflicts that frequently spill over between the two diametrically opposed groups who both call parts of the city home. + +In fact, for the Israeli right wing even the term “East Jerusalem” is ineffable, for it is deemed to grant some measure of legitimacy to Palestinian claims to part of the capital. + +They talk, instead — very deliberately, — of the “Eastern part” of the city. The proscription to never mention East Jerusalem in that language is even written into the style guides of some of right wing nationalist’s favorite newspapers. + +The unification of Jerusalem remains a key tenant of Israeli policy. Which creates a strange sort of dissonance between the ideological fervor of the Israeli right-wing — who make their delight at the ‘unification’ of Jerusalem evident every year during the nationalistic Flag Parade — and facts on the ground which make clear that the city is extremely divided along invisible but robust ideological borders. + +Because as anybody who steps foot in it quickly realizes — and with the significant but small exception of small and intensely guarded right wing enclaves dotted throughout the East of the city — the character of East Jerusalem is decidedly Palestinian. + +In fact, the only things that differentiate the streetscape of your average East Jerusalem street from your average street in Ramallah or Bethlehem are a higher proportion of Hebrew (street signs in area A are devoid of traces of Hebrew); the occasional presence of the Israeli police and Jerusalem Municipality garbage collectors; and other manifestations of Israeli sovereignty like health funds and government offices. + +Located, deliberately, between the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukkaber and the Jewish neighborhood of Armon HaNatsiv, reaching hopefully skward, the Tolerance Monument gives expression to a Polish architect’s desire to see greater coexistence between the two groups in the capital. To date, that dream has remained largely that. Photo: author.In East Jerusalem, the Arab streetscape is broken up by the trappings of Israeli sovereignty, like this outlet of the Clalit health maintenance organization (HMO) in Ras Al Amud in East Jerusalem. Photo: author.Israel’s separation barrier, at Ras Al Amud, which separates the East Jerusalem neighborhood from Abu Dis, partially within area B of the PA. Photo: author. + +There are neighborhoods in East Jerusalem adorned from top to bottom with Palestinian rather than Israeli flags. You don’t even need to visit Jerusalem to discover this fact. Simply navigate in Google Street View on some of the ‘deeper’ parts of this territory. + +Arabic is the language of the street, although Hebrew is largely understood. Entry for conspicuously Jewish visitors is often fraught with peril. And if you didn’t know to look out for those subtle differences, it would be very difficult for your average European visitor to determine whether they were in Jerusalem, Ramallah, or Jenin. + +The short documentary above (from the Times of Israel; part of a three-part series investigating minority issues in Jerusalem) lays bare the internal struggle within Palestinian society regarding normalization. + +The pragmatists in the community realize that accepting Israeli citizenship is the best means to guarantee them and their offspring a better future. + +Those somewhere in the middle regard doing so as a sort of _halal_ version of what is otherwise _haram_(arguing that it’s permitted to frustrate the objectives of Palestinian nationalism in order to temporarily ameliorate their plight; this idea is predicated of course on the increasingly unlikely idea that a Palestinian state and capital will emerge). + +And finally there are of course the hardliners who assiduously refuse to even countenance the idea of taking Israeli citizenship irrespective of the fact that that decision may cause them and their families enormous personal suffering. They become _shaheeds_ of sort on the alter of Palestinian nationalism. + +Together, these facts comprise the city of Jerusalem today as anybody is welcome to explore it. + +A city that prides itself on being “united” but which is actually torn in half by conflicting historical narratives, identities, and goals. + +A city with separate bus networks, hospital networks, and school systems for Jews and Arabs. + +With two languages. Two flags. And two identities. But one border. + +### Videos diff --git a/posts/medium/Edelman-s-2020-B2B-Thought-Leadership-Study---Key-Findings.md b/posts/medium/Edelman-s-2020-B2B-Thought-Leadership-Study---Key-Findings.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bfdd66187389d9c8b6d8d68ef5dd4b227d41a674 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Edelman-s-2020-B2B-Thought-Leadership-Study---Key-Findings.md @@ -0,0 +1,230 @@ +# Edelman’s 2020 B2B Thought Leadership Study — Key Findings + +Global PR/marketing consultancy firm [Edelman](https://medium.com/u/5133e2015ab1) (in collaboration with LinkedIn) recently released its [2020 B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study](https://www.edelman.com/sites/g/files/aatuss191/files/2019-11/US%202020%20Edelman-LinkedIn%20Thought%20Leadership%20Study.pdf). + +This is the third successive study the PR giant has commissioned investigating the efficacy of thought leadership — and flagging emerging trends in the field. + +I’ve written about some of the insights that this exercise [has previously yielded](https://www.slideshare.net/EdelmanInsights/how-thought-leadership-impacts-b2b-demand-generation?ref=https://www.edelman.com/research/b2b-thought-leadership) on [my website](http://dsrghostwriting.com/services/writing/thoughtleadershiparticles/). + +An important takeaway [from a previous ‘edition’](https://www.slideshare.net/EdelmanInsights/how-thought-leadership-impacts-b2b-demand-generation?ref=https://www.edelman.com/research/b2b-thought-leadership): thought leadership can be amazingly effective, across the entire funnel, and it’s particularly influential with the C-suite and purchasing decision-makers, which explains why it is so widely employed in B2B marketing. + +_But,_ concurrently, the researchers found widespread skepticism about it among almost the very same audience. + +In fact, **86% of those surveyed thought that the thought leadership they had consumed was “good, mediocre or poor in quality.”** + +This was an interesting finding and I was curious to see how — or indeed whether — things had evolved. + +Here are my key takeaways from this year’s report. + +### Who Did This Year’s Sample Consist Of? + +Before jumping to takeaways, we need to ask who the researchers were asking questions of. + + * The survey queried **1,164 US-based business executives at B2B companies**. The survey was conducted online, over LinkedIn, and took 10 to 15 minutes to complete. + * **36% of the respondents held the title of ‘Manager’** ; 30% were ‘Directors’; and 17% were VPs. 17% were C[X]Os, partners or owners. + * **32% of respondents themselves worked at an organization that engages in producing thought leadership**. 13% worked in the “high tech industry” and 15% worked in finance. + +And here were this year’s most significant takeaways — at least those that I drew. + +### Quality Remains A (Persistent) Problem + +**Unfortunately, there’s still a lot of bad and ineffective thought leadership being disseminated.** + +Only a dismal 17% of those surveyed rated the quality of thought leadership they had consumed as “very good” or “excellent.” + +And that has to be understood against the backdrop of another damning statistic. + +88% of decision-makers affirmed a belief that thought leadership _can_ be an effective means of enhancing an organization’s public reputation. + +In other words: + +Those disappointed by the thought leadership they are reading are likely not doing so as a result of confirmation bias. + +Instead, their expectations and quality standards are simply not being met. + +There’s a potential reservoir of interested readers waiting for thought leaders to connect with — if they can deliver them the caliber of information they’re looking for. + +### But …. Meta-Trends Remain Largely Flat + +Edelman provided a helpful summary of trends across key “dimensions” in the three years during which the survey has been running. Although the information is useful, I think it is important to look behind the figures from a wide perspective. + +Minor fluctuations aside — and particularly given the relatively small sample size —**I thought that many of the trends, such as engagement, looked rather flat.** + +Of the six trends tabulated, only “value” was presented as a moving index (trending downwards). (“Value” was defined as the percentage of decision-makers who say they gain valuable insights _more than half the time_ they consume thought leadership). + +Given that there was only one preceding datapoint, in last year’s study, and 39% to 32% is not a cataclysmic drop, I think it would be hasty to read too much into this figure. + +I view the significance of this report more in terms of corroborating previous findings — rather than shedding light on new dynamics. + +### Thought Leadership _Can Build Trust_ + +Coming back to the theme of “meta trends” repeating themselves. + +**This year, Edelman found that 88% of decision-makers affirmed that thought leadership “can be effective in enhancing their perceptions of an organization.”** + +To measure that, the PR monolith has come up with a Brand Perception Impact Index. It looks at the percentage of those surveyed who said that (as a result of their exposure to its thought leadership): + + * Their **respect** for the organization increased + * Their **perception** of the organization increased + * Their **trust** in an organization increased + +This year’s figure was 88%. + +Last year’s was 88%. + +And the preceding year’s was 86%. + +As before, I think that these minor needle shifts are of little import. + +Rather, it is the enduring lesson that is both simple and instructive: the large majority of decision-makers _can_ be influenced by the right kind of information. Right now, it’s simply that they’re not getting it. + +### Thought Leadership Can Leverage Tangible Business Gains + +The next headline figure is that, this year, 48% of decision makers agreed that thought leadership can be effective in influencing their purchasing decisions. + +Again, Edelman created an index to compute this statistic, which they dubbed the Sales Impact Index. + +It assessed whether, as a result of exposure to an organization’s thought leadership: + + * They were _invited_ to participate in a RFP opportunity + * They were _awarded_ business + * They _won_ more business from existing clients (“upselling”) + * Their customers’ _bought_ new products/services from them (“cross-selling”) + +My takeaway: remember that this is a B2B study and we’re often talking about high ticket transactions. + +Given all that, I think that 48% is pretty respectable. Takeaway: almost half the time, effective thought leadership can lead to positive outcomes in B2B sales processes. + +### The Root of the Problem: Thought Leadership Is (Consistently) Under-Delivering In Terms of Value + +Many commentators have pointed out that thought leadership should be understood as a peer-to-peer marketing activity: for instance a CTO writing with another CTO in mind. + +Perhaps as a result of misaligned expectations, or marketeres thinking that their primary remit is to promote rather than to inform, just 32% of decision makers say that they gain valuable insights from more than half the thought leadership they read. + +This number, I venture, has to be inextricably linked to the dismal (headline-grabbing!) 17% of thought leadership readers who rate thought leadership highly. + +They think that thought leadership is poor because —like trying to find out the state of international affairs by reading _The Onion_ — it’s neither fulfilling its purpose nor delivering them any _value_. + +Thought leaders, it would seem, need to remain mindful of their audience. At this peer to peer level of marketing, thought leadership needs to cut straight to the (business) case. The problem is that it often doesn’t. + +### Bad Thought Leadership Damages Brands + +Bad thought leadership doesn’t just waste paper or light up pixels for no reason. + +To the contrary, far from being innocuous it actually damages brands and turns prospective customers _away_ from making purchasing decisions. + +The stats: + + * 38% of decision makers said that, after reading an organization’s thought leadership, their respect and admiration for that company had **decreased**. + * 25% of decision makers had said that poor quality thought leadership sometimes led them **to not award business to an organization**. + +Understanding that thought leadership can cut both ways, the binary, from a business’s standpoint, is pretty straightforward: the decision should be to put out good thought leadership — or not put it out at all. + +### Thought Leadership Producers Cannot Quantify Their Value + +77% is a big majority. + +And it’s the percentage of thought leadership producers that nave no way of linking sales or wins to their thought leadership. + +Thought leadership, it seems, is dogged by the same problem that has haunted public relations (PR) almost since its inception: quantifying value. + +This is an enormous challenge that calls for better measurement and more creativity. + +### Be Timely, Brief, and Fresh + +Shifting away from the negatives for a moment, the ingredients for success that Edelman identified are not exactly earth-shattering. + + * In a world drowning in noise and “content” true thought leaders need to aim to be the signal at all times. And the insights thought leadership delivers, above all, need to be original to be considered worthy of consideration — much less admiration. + * Timeliness and brevity are also essential and highly valued by those consuming the material. + +### How Does Thought Leadership Find Home? + +How do thought leaders reach their audience. + + * 47% of the time decision makers simply chance upon it + * In 32% of cases it is recommended by somebody else + * 19% of the time the thought leadership arrived after being “amplified” through paid or earned channels. + +Personally, I don’t see anything particularly riveting in this particular insight. + +As might be expected for this type of writing, word of mouth is important. + +But almost half of consumers are still simply happening upon the thought leadership. + +The vital thing, for those producing it, would seem to be to focus on getting it out the door. + +### Like Wine, Thought Leadership Improves With Age + +An important insight contained in the study was the value that a commitment to a culture of thought leadership brings to an organization. + +The surveyors found a **direct correlation** between the number of years an organization had been engaging in putting out thought leadership and how they perceived it. + +For those that had been engaging in the activity for more than 21 years, a majority of the company thought the thought leadership to be of “very good” or excellent quality. + +Tellingly, among companies that had been engaging in thought leadership for shorter timeframes, thought leadership cheerleaders were consistently in the minority. + +### Other Suggestions From Edelman + +The study report wraps up with some suggestions based on its findings for those seeking to develop effective thought leadership that makes it to be ranked among the less than one in five pieces of thought leadership that is currently well-perceived by the market. + + * Challenge customers at a timely opportunity in the market. + * Be contrarian or unexpected and cut through the white noise. + * Develop a vision. I think that those that do stand a better chance of sticking with a structured thought leadership program over the long haul — and, as the research made clear, quality gains tend to accrue when that happens. + +### The Essential Takeaways + +I would summarize this year’s edition as follows: + + * Thought leadership still isn’t delivering enough value + * There _are,_ however, potential readers waiting to read something that connects with them + * Thought leadership can yield substantial commercial opportunities for those producing it + * Protracted thought leadership campaigns, within companies that have a long history of engaging in it, seem to yield the best results, at least as measured internally + +### Additional Resources + +Free downloadable white paper: + +### Other Analyses + +By David Dodd, Principal, [Point Balance](http://www.pointbalance.com/): + +[**Three Critical Steps for Thought Leadership Success** + _Tweet It's now abundantly clear that compelling thought leadership content has become a vital component of effective…_ customerthink.com](http://customerthink.com/three-critical-steps-for-thought-leadership-success/ "http://customerthink.com/three-critical-steps-for-thought-leadership-success/")[](http://customerthink.com/three-critical-steps-for-thought-leadership-success/) + +**Insights:** + + * “It’s also clear [from the report] that thought leadership can be a double-edged sword.” + +By TechMarketers: + +[**Thought leadership remains top of mind** + _The Edelman-LinkedIn B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study found the method has far greater impact than sales and than…_ www.tech-marketers.com](https://www.tech-marketers.com/feature/1000091/leadership-remains-mind "https://www.tech-marketers.com/feature/1000091/leadership-remains-mind")[](https://www.tech-marketers.com/feature/1000091/leadership-remains-mind) + +**Insights:** + + * “One of the mistakes is that marketing leaders can take some thought leadership content and make it too glossy and shiny. In many cases technology people are talking to technology people and so if it is too glossy then it loses its authenticity,” ([Emma Sinden](https://medium.com/u/5b71f13dfcaf), Marketing Consultant) + +By Emma Wiltshire, Social Media Today: + +[**Study: B2B Marketers Underestimate The Power of Thought Leadership** + _Thought leaders are industry experts that people turn to for advice and put great value in their opinions. They are the…_ www.socialmediatoday.com](https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/study-b2b-marketers-underestimate-the-power-of-thought-leadership/554499/ "https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/study-b2b-marketers-underestimate-the-power-of-thought-leadership/554499/")[](https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/study-b2b-marketers-underestimate-the-power-of-thought-leadership/554499/) + +By Michael Brenner, Marketing Insider Group: + +[**Reflections on the 2019 B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study** + _Late in 2018, the powerhouse global communications firm Edelman teamed up with LinkedIn for an in-depth study on the…_ marketinginsidergroup.com](https://marketinginsidergroup.com/content-marketing/reflections-on-the-2019-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study/ "https://marketinginsidergroup.com/content-marketing/reflections-on-the-2019-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study/")[](https://marketinginsidergroup.com/content-marketing/reflections-on-the-2019-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study/) + +**Insights:** + + * “While there is a great opportunity to capitalize on thought leadership pieces, there also is an element of risk involved. The catch, you see, is that high-quality thought leadership pieces are rare. Poorly done thought leadership pieces …. can even influence a company to not buy products and services” + +From Edelman itself. Or rather, Joe Kingsbury who is its U.S. Managing Director: + +[**Key Lessons from the Edelman-LinkedIn 2020 B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study** + _The 2020 Edelman-LinkedIn B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study features insights from more than 3,200 business…_ www.ana.net](https://www.ana.net/blogs/show/id/mm-blog-2020-02-edelman-thought-leadership "https://www.ana.net/blogs/show/id/mm-blog-2020-02-edelman-thought-leadership")[](https://www.ana.net/blogs/show/id/mm-blog-2020-02-edelman-thought-leadership) + +**Insights:** + + * “The risk in mediocrity is real. More decision makers now believe that most of what they consume is “mediocre to very poor,” compared to 26 percent in 2018.” + * Joe recommends that prospective thought leaders narrow their target audience — and even hone in on a particular function within the buyer committee. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Email-Isn-t-Broken--Spammy-Marketers-Just-Made-It-Far-Less-Useful-For-All-Of-Us--30f666316c5.html.md b/posts/medium/Email-Isn-t-Broken--Spammy-Marketers-Just-Made-It-Far-Less-Useful-For-All-Of-Us--30f666316c5.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2edf2091722f6ead77f6ccd5858087a1def65e45 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Email-Isn-t-Broken--Spammy-Marketers-Just-Made-It-Far-Less-Useful-For-All-Of-Us--30f666316c5.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,314 @@ +# Email Isn’t Broken. Spammy Marketers Just Made It Far Less Useful For All Of Us. + +#### Can We Stop Blaming Technology For Marketers’ Proclivity To … Blitz Email Lists? + +Humans: why blame on the species what can be blamed on technology instead? Email makes a great case in point for this innate tendency. Photo by [Torsten Dettlaff](https://www.pexels.com/@tdcat?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-and-gray-digital-device-193003/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +As an enormous fan and advocate for the burgeoning #async tech revolution, I’m subscribed to a number of accounts on Twitter that tweet fast and furious about everything going on in the space. + +[**A Quick Guide To What’s What In #Async (Asynchronous Communications): Text, Audio, Video** + _Some Of The Tools That Those Interested In Checking Out #Async Should Keep On Their Radar_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async/a-quick-guide-to-whats-what-in-async-asynchronous-communications-text-audio-video-c37b55c932dc "https://medium.com/all-about-async/a-quick-guide-to-whats-what-in-async-asynchronous-communications-text-audio-video-c37b55c932dc")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async/a-quick-guide-to-whats-what-in-async-asynchronous-communications-text-audio-video-c37b55c932dc) + +When I say that I back the movement, I really mean it. Can I be bold and claim that I _live_ the async lifestyle and have been doing so since long before this latest wave of enthusiasm spread across the internet. + +You can find me in flight mode for much of the day planning out workflows for my clients who know that I’m one of those rare eccentric types who responds quicker to emails than to WhatsApps (and that although we may spend a little bit of time going back and forth through that method, we won’t be holding a Zoom meeting unless there’s really a need). + +Outside my apartment, the pizza guy sits there fuming at why I’m not answering my phone. I’m still waiting for one of my Twitter friends to come up with a wisecrack async-friendly method for food delivery. + +[**Why Flight Mode Has Been My Best Productivity-Enhancing Intervention to Date** + _And I Think That Synchronous Communication Platforms Like WhatsApp And Slack Are Today’s Destroyers of Focus_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664) + +I can’t fault the enthusiasm of anybody in the #async community. + +But they do have a tendency to utter one phrase that makes my inner linguistic pedant come roaring to life with full vigor. + +And it’s this oft-repeated (but totally inaccurate) series of words: + +### “Email Is Broken. [Insert Pitch Here].” + +If a quick [Google search](https://www.google.com/search?q=%22email+is+broken%22&oq=%22email+is+broken%22&aqs=chrome..69i57.3016j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8) is anybody to go by, then everybody from Wired to TechCrunch to the BBC has been guilty of uttering this phrase. + +It may make great fodder for the digital masses ever eager to lambaste us email-lovers as anachronistic Luddites (we have a siege mentality, you may be able to tell). But the call-to-pitchforks actually falls quite a bit short of the bar of reality. + +When even bastions of technology journalism like … TechCrunch…succumb to the temptation to latch onto this trope, you know you’ve got a linguistic battle on your hands. + +So let me make my token effort to sling some mud back over the fence at Silicon Valley’s finest. + +Email isn’t broken. + +In fact, it works just fine. + +The scaremongering isn’t needed or appreciated. + +Us email lovers aren’t going to go down without a fight. Or let you create a self-fulling prophecy through the power of your words (and if that’s not the easiest one-two in marketing, I don’t know what is). + +But wait? Am I picking a fight with the wrong guy here? + +They weren’t talking about the _technology_ silly, you may intone (from your seat in a high rise skyscraper in San Francisco). + +I know that, SaaSO! (I’m trying hard here). + +But us Linguistic Pedants do not require much fodder to launch counterattacks. + +Doubly, I’ve been a satisfied email user ever since I began using computers. If it’s broken, I must have somehow bucked the trend. Because my inbox is smooth sailing. + +So I’ve been triggered. Now let me continue. + +### Email Is Alive, Well, And Just About The Most Popular Form Of Digital Communication Ever Devised* + +How do I know all this, you fume? Shouldn’t you get back to eating your cold pizza? + +Firstly: statistics. + +**Depending upon who you ask and when they sourced the number, you’ll find that more than 260 billion emails are sent every day — and that the number is expected to mushroom to close on 300 billion very soon.** + +[**How many emails are sent every day? Top email statistics for businesses** + _Now that social media and instant messaging platforms are an entrenched part of everyday life, it's easy to think the…_ www.templafy.com](https://www.templafy.com/blog/how-many-emails-are-sent-every-day-top-email-statistics-your-business-needs-to-know/#:~:text=As%20of%202017%2C%20269%20billion,will%20be%20sent%20each%20day. "https://www.templafy.com/blog/how-many-emails-are-sent-every-day-top-email-statistics-your-business-needs-to-know/#:~:text=As%20of%202017%2C%20269%20billion,will%20be%20sent%20each%20day.")[](https://www.templafy.com/blog/how-many-emails-are-sent-every-day-top-email-statistics-your-business-needs-to-know/#:~:text=As%20of%202017%2C%20269%20billion,will%20be%20sent%20each%20day.) + +How many active daily Slack users are there in the world, you may ask in curiosity? + +Again, estimates very. + +**But we’re talking**[**somewhere in the order of magnitude of 12 _million_**](https://www.statista.com/statistics/652779/worldwide-slack-users-total-vs-paid/)**.** + +Notice the different letter. It starts with an ‘m’ and not a ‘b’. + +The collective hubris of tech entrepreneurs and users — who continuously march to the drumbeat that their latest tool makes email irrelevant because … features…integrations….newness— have not succeeded in pushing email into irrelevancy despite their protracted efforts. And I loathe the day they will. + +What can be expected is that they will continue. But the email-enamored among us will remain unfazed. To us, companies like Slack and their supporters are a passing amusement. They’ll talk. They might capture some market share or succeed in forming very virulent echo chambers. But they can’t enjoy the critical mass that our beloved tool does. Perhaps when they push the billion mark we’ll have another talk and start getting worried. + +And that’s one thing that email has in its favor. + +It’s a behemoth that ain’t going anywhere any time soon. Like those other crucial parts of the internet that nobody really spends too much time thinking about. Like DNS. Or ethernet cabling. + +And it would be a very big technological beast to dislodge. + +### Email’s Size Prevents Abuse. A Safeguard Missing In Proprietary SaaS + +Email is a lot more complicated than it looks at first glance too. + +It was invented in 1978 — a lifetime ago in today’s internet. + +And between the time when you push the send button and your recipient reads your email a whole lot of stuff is going on. + +You probably know about SMTP servers from that era before everybody just used webmail clients and you had to set it up on your grandparents’ computer. + +There are also mail transfer agents (MTAs). Spam filters at the network level as email makes it journey through cyberspace (these work together to do things like blacklisting aberrant sending URLs). And finally of course on the endpoints we access it from. + +There’s also a vibrant technological ecosystem around email. + +Enthusiast conferences? Perhaps. T-shirts you can purchase proclaiming your love for email? Probably. I should really own one. + +What do we have on offer here in Email Land? + +Open source clients. Command line interfaces (CLIs) that still work if you’re inclined to use them. PGP and keyservers that when bolted onto email allow those wishing to do so to exchange messages protected by end to end (E2E) encryption. We don’t need to pay for access to any of these privileges. That doesn’t attempt people attempting to monetize those same features anyway (the dynamic .. how it recurs). + +We also have mature backup solutions that work at the largest levels of enterprise deployments (you’ve looked into how to back up that new SaaS tool right? What’s that you murmur? _It doesn’t support backup!?!?_). You can even run your own email server as a certain former US Secretary of State probably regrets finding out. + +[**Why, For Now, I’ve Stopped Worrying About My Data In The Cloud** + _If You’re A Regular Joe Tech User We’re All Hopelessly Beholden To The Random Decisions Of Big Tech. On Consumer SaaS…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-for-now-ive-stopped-worrying-about-my-data-in-the-cloud-bef0e2f3d93d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-for-now-ive-stopped-worrying-about-my-data-in-the-cloud-bef0e2f3d93d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-for-now-ive-stopped-worrying-about-my-data-in-the-cloud-bef0e2f3d93d) + +Protocols based around email are still being developed, in fact. + +[**JMAP: A modern, open email protocol** + _6 May 2019 The new JMAP protocol addresses shortcomings of previous open protocols connecting email clients and servers…_ www.ietf.org](https://www.ietf.org/blog/jmap/ "https://www.ietf.org/blog/jmap/")[](https://www.ietf.org/blog/jmap/) + +So we can acknowledge that an old and (by internet standards) very mature technology is showing its age — and requires updating — without falling prey to the kind of hyperbolic startup-talk that erroneously proclaims that email is already deprecated or about to be. + +Communications like fax and (I had to include it) telex are much further along the path to obsolescence than email. And this is because society has found better methods for facilitating the kind of communication they did (see: eFax). Something big enough came along that could subsume those communication methods and nobody kicked up much of a ruckus. This is _not_ the case with email. + +Email is used every day to send out electricity bills (reminder: pay your power bill, Daniel.). + +To dispatch get well notes from sender to recipient. + +To send sensitive classified communications too between the “field” and those monitoring what’s going on in the “field” (networks differ although knowledgeable sources tell me that the actual tech used to access communications would look remarkably familiar to us mortals without security clearances.) You hear me. + +So what’s the problem then? It’s not the technology. It’s the other part of the interface. The humans. + +_(*This bold claim has not been sufficiently fact-checked but I can’t see why it isn’t true.)_ + +### And Now The Actual Problem: People Misusing Email. ESPECIALLY Dear Marketing Folk. + +Your average email-basher, if asked to explain why they loathe email so much, would likely point to the preponderance of emails they receive daily that have absolutely no import upon their daily life. We know their playbook. + +Their boss CCs them on every single outgoing communication and insists that they do likewise _(I think I’ve spent too many years working with startups. Also: don’t do this at your company, please)._ + +Then there’s old dothering Uncle Henry who stubbornly refuses to use anything more modern than copying and pasting one hundred addresses into the BCC field and who has just sent out his latest round of musings from his armchair. + +There’s no unsubscribe button. I have bad news. There may _never_ be an unsubscribe button. + +And you know what’s to blame in both the above cases? + +Not SMTP servers. Not the email protocol? + +Human behavior. Your boss. Uncle Henry. + +Now here’s my theory. + +Email was the first major mass form of human communication that was essentially free to use. + +And the human race will forever be enamored by freebies. + +What I’m saying is this: + +The same force that makes you not think twice about downing a shot of dodgy looking vodka that looks vaguely radioactive and has a vaguely poisonous scent (because a new bar just opened on your block and is offering free tasters to try drum up business) is the very same force that draws your uncle and boss to discard as unhelpful the thought that begins _“should I send this or can the recipient live without this communication?”_ + +Humanity’s inbuilt tendency to attempt to correct for past economic mishaps by lurching at every opportunity to consume something that doesn’t require expenditure. The company is paying for the transmission of the bits and bytes that make up this message. It’s okay! A tiny rectification in the lifelong profit and loss account. + +Thus back in ye olden days of computing yore _(when ‘CRT’ was a selling feature on computer monitors and things called parallel ports were used to connect printers to computers; believe it or not, I was around back then)_ people were basically getting high on the fact that they could spam memes to their entire extended family that would be seen in near real time whether their unfortunate relatives lived in Hawaii or Bombay. + +_“Look, it’s free pop,”_ many a neophyte computer user squealed in delight to an unmoved parent (thankfully tracking pixels hadn’t yet been invented otherwise they might have said _“look, Uncle Joe just opened the meme. I can even read his IP address, view what device he’s using, and determine his lead subscriber status! Based upon his opening time and mouse hover interval, the enhanced intelligence layer has determined that he may be in a lousy mood and have just logged out of a site that’s called AshleyMadison.com!”_). + +Homing pigeons, by contrast, required a specially modified and gluten-free diet that even then was considered cutting edge. Free it absolutely wasn’t. And it was well known that a poorly fed pidgeon was liable to revolt in the face of even a slightly heavy parcel. + +Now here’s the theory again: + +That we’re essentially living through one long protracted technical hangover from that heady era. Human minds struggle to adapt to the rapidly evolving economics of interfacing with technology. It’s the way of the world and there’s less of a difference between your average middle manager and teenager lurching at a free vodka promotion than you might think. Although you mightn’t have needed me to tell you that. + +Your boss may not _rationalize_ that that’s why he or she is sending an email CC-ing you on the sales department’s upcoming annual fire drill (undoubted defense if challenged: “visibility is a key tenant here”). But at the back of his or her mind I propose that there’s a little voice from childhood intoning _“go on, send the email. It doesn’t cost, you know. It doesn’t even need a STAMP!” SEND IT!!”)_ + +Even youngsters like me lived through the era of dial up internet that made squeaky noises as it connected. By today’s standards, it was a Great Depression. That kind of deprivation leaves mental scars. Today’s CC spamming is the toxic legacy of that emotional hurt. You read it first here. + +### One Simple Fix That Would Unclog Our Inboxes — And Brains + +Here’s another annoying that that humans do when given access to an email inbox. + +You know what makes me grumpy besides dial up internet? + +When I email Dave’s Flowers to enquire about whether they have daffodils in stock for my upcoming bouquet and Dave opts me into the store newsletter. + +Now I’ve got a whole cascade of emails coming in blitzing me with a thoroughly unappreciated daily dose of content marketing that Dave thinks with lure me in the direction of buying more flowers from him. + +Little may Dave know this but the only direction it’s luring me in is the one that involves throwing a rock through my computer screen. + +Today is World Flowers Day. So make it an extra special one with our two for one sale on roses? + +Sorry, Dave. Couldn’t care less. Today is also Pay My Taxes And Get A Haircut Day and Not Read Your Email Day on my calendar too. + +Want to know what a happy Dave’s Flowers customer had to say about their latest purchase? + +Em. No. No I don’t. Sorry, Dave. You’re competing with Netflix and my media center you do realize. I really just don’t. I’m sorry. + +You could say that I work in this field. And there’s a reason why email is the channel I try to use most selectively. I simply don’t see the point in things like this even if many seem to regard this as essential. I assume (perhaps wrongly) that the recipient list is filled with curmudgeonly folk like me. + +_Theory two:_ + +The marketers that _do_ are suffering from the same kind of hangover that afflicts those of us sending emails j _ust because_. + +They may perhaps be old enough to remember a thoroughly dreadful sounding era that existed before mail merges were invented. Well before the fancy cloud hosted email marketing programs we have at our fingertips now. + +“But we have _software_ that can _automatically_ opt in people like Daniel looking for flowers into our _also automated_ drip email sequence that may increase _conversion_ and thus _revenue_. We may as well use it.” they may protest. + +You know what that smacks of to me? The teenagers drinking the free vodka because it was comped ethanol and the boss CC-ing the email. + +Don’t care. Don’t like it. No, it doesn’t need to be used even if everybody insists that it does. We don’t need to assume that everybody that asked what time we close wanted to be opted in to the mailing list. True authentic marketing will beat the brute force method any day of the week. + +The problem for cranks like me? + +The law isn’t on our side. Nor is the technological zeitgeist. We know it, too. And we’re embittered by both of those facts. + +So instead we go ranting on Medium and Twitter and wherever else we may find a soap box during the early hours of the morning. + +### … And Another One As That Won’t Happen + +Sadly, we live in an era in which it appears that completing a website’s contact form to say _“hi, you guys are doing a great job_ ” is understood by many to be tantamount to be an opt in to a lifetime of questionably useful email content delivered by that company. + +Is it legal? Not always. + +Do you feel like taking up the hobby of reporting every errant opt in? Probably not. + +Instead, you can use a variety of workarounds that attempt to make the modern email-consuming experience more pleasant and more in line with the busy reality that most of us encounter day to day. The schedules that probably don’t have time for the video of Dave’s happy customer showing off her bouquet. + +I have a few tricks of my own — per my belief in open source, as I think of them, I’ll share them. There are many more. Documentation can be found scattered online. But even mainstream tech providers will eventually get around to rolling out things like “conversation view” and multi-inbox view to try keep people focused on actual email communication. They’ll just take a while. So progress eventually rolls round whether you go looking for it in strange places or not. So again .. of that broken-ness do you speak, dear youngsters? + +[**How To: Create A G-Suite Address Just For Account Signups** + _I don’t know about you, but I’m getting a bit of being signed up for a company’s email newsletter every time I make any…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-create-a-g-suite-address-just-for-account-signups-22096f1359ca "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-create-a-g-suite-address-just-for-account-signups-22096f1359ca")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-create-a-g-suite-address-just-for-account-signups-22096f1359ca) + +### Very Quick Tips To Make Your Email Experience Better + +I run my business — nay my life — entirely on email. + +In lieu of operating a proper note capturing system, I write myself emails using specially coded headers that automatically route into a folder that I try to memorialize more professionally whenever rainy days roll around. + +And I have for the most part a very seamless experience. + +Email and I enjoy a perfect successful technological pairing. We have our periodic fights like many couples. But by and large we get on. + +Thus, I proudly love email. And will never miss a moment to defend it from those marauding SaaS people if given the chance to do so. + +Even after all these years. Even after having tried out — or been forced to try out — many of the tools that proclaimed that we were already living through the post-email era. I was once in no fewer than 8 Slack channels. + +Here’s what I may be doing differently than you lest it may change _your_ email experience for the better: + + * I spend about 3 minutes a day unsubscribing from every new email newsletter I receive. Every. Single. One. Every. Single. Day. Really. + * If I really _wish_ to receive that email newsletter, I’ll re-subscribe from a Google Group that I set up just for the purpose of receiving non-personalized communications. Thus I keep a very paired down selection of highly prized e-newsletters there ready for me to access whenever it is most convenient to do so. + * I try my best to encourage everybody to email me so that I can centralize communications there. But that isn’t always possible so I _do_ occasionally have to do silly things like email myself information that was received over, say, WhatsApp. + +I’m currently self employed. Which gives me a tiny bit more leeway (sometimes) to write back to a client with an impertinent remark like _“did I really need to get this? No need to keep CC-ing me on the well wishing thread for Dave’s upcoming knee surgery. Thanks!”_ + +Email is great. + +It’s more complicated than you think even though it’s commonly derided as backward. + +It faces continuous challenges to its basic functionality in the form of spam. Which is largely surmounts. + +The kind of spam that you may remember as prototypical spam still actually gets sent. It’s just that spam filters have generally advanced at a faster pace than the people doing the spamming. So until you do weird things like try to disable the built in spam filtering on your service provider entirely you mostly just never see it. + +This makes the fact that it continues to be the communications tool that holds the world together all the more impressive. + +Email is so big and so popular that it requires a veritable consortium of technology partners to make it work. + +Which also thankfully precludes anybody from going away and close-sourcing how it works for their own private gain. + +It forces teams to work together across continents to keep the system in basic running order. + +Although it’s hard, you can take email into your own hands — at least to the furthest extent possible — by running your own email server. + +Try doing that with your average SaaS tool. Try _backing up_ your average SaaS tool in a way that most backup experts would tell you is sufficient. + +Email _can_ be backed up. + +For no better reason than that if all else failed you could build your own IMAP server and figure out a way to do it yourself. + +It’s still very much being developed and maintained. + +And there are plenty of oddbods out there like me who will continue to defend it against premature statements of its demise. When those oddbods are also proud linguistic pedants you end up with entire essays. + +It’s convenient to blame upon technology the flaws of our own species. + +But there’s rarely been a better demonstration of how easily this can happen than there has been with email. + +Email — the technology, the system — hasn’t really done much wrong to warrant the opprobrium foisted upon it. + +It’s the humans sending the email that have taken us to the brink of pulling out our last strands of hair when we load it up. + +We’ve also got society to blame and whoever is supposed to be promoting our digital wellbeing (nobody?) must be asleep at the wheel. + +Laws protecting us from unsolicited email remain insufficiently robust and typically entirely unenforceable — especially when recipient and sender aren’t located in the same jurisdiction. + +Many marketers have been far too quick to take advantage of this fact. There are many companies in the world and many of them choose to engage in email marketing. + +Faced with a near total dearth of consequence, many take on the cavalier attitude of old Uncle Henry writing his prose on his old IBM laptop he keeps by the fire and err on the side of sending an email every time a new thought comes to mind. + +Email isn’t gone. + +In fact, it isn’t even broken. + +So if you care about accuracy, please stop affirming that it is. + +What’s broken, instead, is our understanding of how it should be used. + +And behind that lies the very real danger that we’ll latch onto the email-bashing zeitgeist to instead entrust our critical communications to SaaS providers that will assume ownership of our data, prevent us from backing it up (among other things)… and leave us clamoring for good old email when we find that our inbox or whatever was supposed to replace it isn’t accessible _(this is a threat even with webmail providers, as I learned last month)._ + +[**What’s The Worst That Could Happen If You Got Locked Out Of Your Google Account?** +_Relying on the cloud for everything seems great. Until it unexpectedly turns on you and you can’t legally leave your…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4) + +I’m all in favor of #async. + +But I’m also in favor of more accurate discussion of technology and the critical role that tools like email play in our lives. Even if they’re not cutting edge. + +We can acknowledge that email needs _work_. + +But it’s far from broken — and especially not beyond repair. + +If we truly buy into that myth, we risk something a lot more bothersome than the odd unsolicited email about flowers. diff --git a/posts/medium/Email-Open-Rate-Tracking-Is-Creepy-And-Weird--Should-Marketers-Be-Using-It-At-All-.md b/posts/medium/Email-Open-Rate-Tracking-Is-Creepy-And-Weird--Should-Marketers-Be-Using-It-At-All-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1263b3b26c089e56aed7fd36e51250fb685523f5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Email-Open-Rate-Tracking-Is-Creepy-And-Weird--Should-Marketers-Be-Using-It-At-All-.md @@ -0,0 +1,86 @@ +# Email Open Rate Tracking Is Creepy And Weird. Should Marketers Be Using It At All? + +#### How did a Big Brother-like technology mushroom under our noses. And why did it take this long for a major tech player to push back against this intrusive practice? + +Email open rate tracking: Apple has launched a feature designed to help consumers protect themselves against this widespread practice. Is the tide turning? Photo by [Oleg Magni](https://www.pexels.com/@oleg-magni?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/macbook-pro-2764678/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +This week marked a historic turning point in privacy advocates’ battle against email open rate tracking — a widely-employed technology used in marketing to keep track of who’s opening communications, how often they’re doing so, and even from approximately where on the planet. + +[**Apple blocks open rate tracking: what will it mean for marketers? We asked the experts |…** + _Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference, or WWDC, took place last week with all of the expected excitement and…_ econsultancy.com](https://econsultancy.com/apple-blocks-open-rate-tracking-what-will-it-mean-for-marketers-we-asked-the-experts/ "https://econsultancy.com/apple-blocks-open-rate-tracking-what-will-it-mean-for-marketers-we-asked-the-experts/")[](https://econsultancy.com/apple-blocks-open-rate-tracking-what-will-it-mean-for-marketers-we-asked-the-experts/) + +Apple has become the first major (household name) technology provider to integrate a tracking pixel blocking functionality into its email product. The feature — Mail Privacy Protection — was announced at a conference. + +As somebody who until a few years ago refused to post a profile photo on Facebook, and who uses PGP email for certain communications, it wouldn’t come as a surprise to most to learn that I’m decidedly on the anti-email tracking side of this picture. + +[**If you really, really want to defeat email tracking, here’s a (sort of) workaround** + _If you’re reading this then you probably realize that tracking pixels are — if not yet ubiquitous (thankfully!) — then…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/if-you-really-really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking-heres-a-sort-of-workaround-bae35b9c517e "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/if-you-really-really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking-heres-a-sort-of-workaround-bae35b9c517e")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/if-you-really-really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking-heres-a-sort-of-workaround-bae35b9c517e) + +But the picture is a little bit more complicated than that. + +Besides being “privacy conscious” — to use the chosen euphemism for those who worry about things like digital breadcrumbs— I also work in marketing communications. Which is probably the professional function, alongside sales, more likely than any other to leverage, or be encouraged to leverage, this invasive technology. + +Over the years, I’ve often found myself a reluctant and sometimes unwitting user of email open rate tracking — which works by embedding a unique tracking pixel in each message and masking links in redirects in order to calculate clicks. + +If you work at a company which uses Mailchimp for email marketing and you’re a junior marketing hire, you’re unlikely to have much choice other than to make use of the fact that the platform allows you to see who opens your campaigns. + +And if — like me — you need an email marketing solution that’s familiar and (usually) free and you want to stick with what you already know, Mailchimp’s the obvious option. + +Whatever your reasoning, platforms like Mailchimp positively celebrate the Big Brother-like power that marketers _think_ they receive by gaining access to information about their users’ email-reading habits. There are entire marketing automation programs which are centered around the supposed power of this morsel of information. + +Accruing data is the flavor of the day in the marketing world. Building automations around when your prospects “engaged” with emails by opening them therefore makes marketers feel smart and like they’re doing the right — or professionally respectable — thing. + +But is it the _right_ kind of data to be tapping? + +### Imagine The Postman Logging Your Mail Routine With A Pen And Paper. This Is Basically How Open Rate Tracking Works. + +In many day to day life, I make every effort to thwart the efforts of my correspondents to gain access to information about whether or when I have read their email. + +I generally wish them no ill-will. But I do know the kind of technology that those working in sales, especially, are deploying on their side of the screen. + +Every time I open their email will be considered a signal. The amount of opens may be being carefully and electronically logged. My lead score may be being automatically recalculated based upon this “engagement” — which could translate into follow-up that I don’t want. + +And so I run an email tracking pixel blocker. I feel mildly disappointed every time I discover that somebody I do business with is flagged as logging my email receipts even if there’s a chance they don’t even know that their company is deploying the technology. And if I’m feeling really paranoid, I sometimes open emails in an HTML-only reader. + +Professionally, I try to avoid tools that offer email tracking as a feature. If it exists in a tool that I use — like Mailchimp — I do my best not to use or leverage that feature at all. But I’ll admit — I have done so. Curiosity’s a powerful thing — as is our strange newfound thirst for data. + +I tell my clients that the idea that a campaign’s effectiveness can be determined based upon who _opened_ an email campaign sounds ludicrous to me. What about the silence audience effect? What about those who scanned the subject line and appreciated the engagement? What about those who seethed in ire at another marketing email — whose rage isn’t being seen on any logging screen but which is hurting the company’s reputation silently? + +To understand how creepy email tracking is, I think it’s helpful to imagine it through the prism of the world that we recently knew: when mail was delivered by postal workers and everything came destined for our postboxes in attractive looking stationary. + +Imaging the postman sporting a little notepad and keeping an exact log of when and where you were when you opened your mail. Then conveying that log in real time to those who dispatched messages to you. + +These days, in tandem with the explosion of data being created, privacy protection has become a widespread concern. + +Supra-national entities like the European Union enact legislation to provide us with heightened rights to our own data, how long organizations can retain it for, and when we have a right to demand it. + +The collection of information about recipients’ email reading habits is a dark horse that has largely flown under the radar of this privacy resolution for far too long. + +There’s no opt in mechanism required. Recipients by and large don’t know it’s happening to them. And — most amazingly — the information being collected is a derivative of personally identifiable information (PII). + +Because Mr Marketer knows precisely _who_ opened _which_ email and _when_ they did so. There’s nothing anonymized about email tracking data. + +Drunk on its relentless quest to accrue more data and help marketers and salespeople use “automation” and be “smarter” (all trending buzzwords), it’s almost as if nobody — or society — bothered stepping in to question whether gathering this kind of information in the first place was an appropriate thing to do. Speaking both morally and technologically, that is. + +A whole industry of marketing and sales technology platforms mushroomed around their ability to enable a Big Brother like technology without many really noticing. + +Some even proudly brag about being able to defeat the latest tools to block tracking pixels. + +It’s a very odd game of cat and mouse. Centered largely around marketers’ ability to know whether or not somebody has opened an email. The uncharitable might even call this technological dual pathetic. + +In light of the above, those of us who care about privacy should be amazed that it took this long for a major tech player to place a stake in the movement to empower users to read their email without senders knowing when, where, or if they did so. But we should be happy that they did. + +The move was long overdue. + +And if somebody wanted to take away my right to _use_ the technology, as a marketer, I wouldn’t object. + +### Some Tools To Protect Yourself Against Email Tracking + +[**PixelBlock** + _PixelBlock is a Gmail extension that blocks people from tracking when you open their emails._ chrome.google.com](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/pixelblock/jmpmfcjnflbcoidlgapblgpgbilinlem?hl=en#:~:text=PixelBlock%20is%20a%20Gmail%20extension,attempt%20inside%20of%20an%20email "https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/pixelblock/jmpmfcjnflbcoidlgapblgpgbilinlem?hl=en#:~:text=PixelBlock%20is%20a%20Gmail%20extension,attempt%20inside%20of%20an%20email")[](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/pixelblock/jmpmfcjnflbcoidlgapblgpgbilinlem?hl=en#:~:text=PixelBlock%20is%20a%20Gmail%20extension,attempt%20inside%20of%20an%20email) + +Or: + + * Any plain text only email client (example: a terminal-based email client for Linux) + * Disabling the automatic loading of external images in email clients + diff --git a/posts/medium/Embassies-and-consulates-in-Jerusalem---my-map.md b/posts/medium/Embassies-and-consulates-in-Jerusalem---my-map.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..dc1696d25c2da909b4dc25e1fc9d5c47c39d5a44 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Embassies-and-consulates-in-Jerusalem---my-map.md @@ -0,0 +1,45 @@ +# Embassies and consulates in Jerusalem — my map + +A building maintained by the Consulate General of Belgium in Jerusalem + +Few issues have generated as much controversy in the Israeli Palestinian conflict of late as the issue of moving the US embassy to Jerusalem. + +Israel claims Jerusalem as its capital but — for reasons that would take far too long to explore properly — most of the world refuse to fully recognize that fact by establishing their embassies there. + +(In summary: the status of Jerusalem is legally contentious with almost the entirety of the international community repudiating the validity of Israel’s annexation of its eastern sector in ’67. Furthermore, the Palestinians have long sought east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state. Israel’s control over west Jerusalem — those parts of the city to the west of the ’67 / green line — is currently recognized mostly on a _de facto_ basis. However, establishing an embassy accredited to the _State_ of Israel in West Jerusalem would likely be seen as legitimizing Israel’s control over the eastern half of the city. And therefore, until a solution is agreed _inter partes_ — and one that does not involve the use of force — the overwhelming majority of the world’s nations have established their embassies and consulates elsewhere in the country). + +### Most Embassies Are Located Elsewhere + +The above is the reason why most diplomatic missions accredited to the State of Israel are located either in Tel Aviv or (more commonly nowadays) in high rises in nearby Ramat Gan. A couple of embassies and consulates are located elsewhere in the country (Honduras maintains its embassy in Rishon LeTsion). + +In addition to the 2 embassies and 9 consulates and consulate-generals listed here Jerusalem is home to several honorary consulates and residences of envoys to the PA. + +Honorary consulates are typically manned by unpaid laypeople who fulfill some of the duties which professional consulates do on behalf of countries that do not have budget to establish a professionally-run mission (such as, for instance, issuing emergency passports). Their remuneration is often the prestige they enjoy by being able to erect a plaque attesting to their quasi-diplomatic status over their front door. In Israel, as in most countries, they are often well-connected and affluent expat business people who act as bridges between their former homeland and the location of the posting. Because the locations of these honorary consulates and residences are not marked on Google Maps I have refrained from adding them to my map in order to honor the privacy which these individuals are seeking to maintain. One final note on honorary consuls. As part of its broader attempt to convince the world’s nations to establish professionally-manned embassies in Jerusalem, Israel’s foreign ministry [has stated its intention t](https://www.timesofisrael.com/no-more-mere-honorary-consuls-in-jerusalem-israel-tells-world/) o refrain from accepting the diplomatic credentials of any new honorary consulates in the city. The decision was not applied retroactively. + +### Sui Generis Missions + +Honorary consuls and consulates aside, the status of the actual (professionally maintained) consulates outlined here is also quite interesting and _sui generis_ in an international sense. + +[This superb and deep exposition on the topic](http://www.thetower.org/article/jerusalem-already-has-plenty-of-embassies-just-not-to-israel/) by Eylon Aslan-Levy (the incongruous and erroneous headline makes me think it was not the author’s own) explains that the missions are hangovers of postings accredited to the _corpus separatus_ envisioned by the United Nations but which ultimately never materialized. + +These missions thus maintain a thin semblance of fiction of being accredited to ‘Jerusalem’ — even though Jerusalem is simply a city like Tel Aviv and Haifa. In reality, and for all intents and purposes, they are there to maintain a relationship with the Palestinian Authority (PA). + +As Aslan-Levy explains: + +> **_None of the countries that have consulates in Jerusalem recognize Israeli sovereignty over the city._**_Consequently, their official embassies remain in Tel Aviv._**_Their consulates in Jerusalem are, almost uniquely, accredited to no state._**_And_** _none of the consuls seek an exequatur_** _, the diplomatic authorization required by international law. Nevertheless, the Israeli Foreign Ministry treats them for all intents and purposes as if they were normal consulates accredited to the State of Israel. Their jurisdiction covers the whole of Jerusalem, as apart from Israel, as well as the West Bank and Gaza Strip._ + +The longstanding practice of Jerusalem consulates reporting directly to their state departments began before the foundation of the state, with the US as the trailblazer in this regard: + +> _According to Daniel Oliver Newberry, the U.S. vice-consul in Jerusalem during the 1940s, the status of the Jerusalem consulate was a matter of dispute within the State Department. “The American ambassador in Tel Aviv [James McDonald] insisted that the consulate general in Jerusalem was a ‘constituent post’ of the American mission in Israel,” Newberry_[ _recalled_](http://adst.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Israel.pdf) _. “He tried to give orders to the consul general in Jerusalem, but the consul general would have none of it.”_** _The consulate insisted on reporting directly to the State Department rather than through an embassy, and continues to do so today_** + +This unusual policy requires some tenacity to maintain on the part of the countries maintaining the missions. This typically manifests in embassies refusing to hold national day celebrations in Jerusalem. And the Jerusalem missions not directly dealing with Israelis state institutions — even when the latter are themselves based in Jerusalem! + +> _For years, according to one_[ _WikiLeaks cable_](https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/1978JERUSA01205_d.html) _,_**_the [US] consulate was “careful not to deal with any Israeli ministry official directly,” even on a social basis, lest it be “interpreted as recognition of their claims to sovereignty over Jerusalem.”_** _When a driver for the Belgian consulate was involved in a deadly road accident in Jerusalem in 1952, Brussels attempted unsuccessfully to deny the jurisdiction of Israeli courts._ + +Other missions to the PA are based in Ramallah itself, the most modern and international-friendly under the Authority’s control. Some diplomatic missions to the PA which are based in Ramallah maintain residences in East Jerusalem. Like the honorary consulates, I am aware of at least one such mission that is nowhere to be found on a map. + +Despite the colorful billboards sometimes seen around Jerusalem promising an influx of embassies on foot of the US’s bold move (see above), Jerusalem is currently only home to the embassies of the United States (US) and one other country: Guetemala. Paraguay briefly relocated its embassy here and then — much to Israel’s chagrin — pulled it back out. + +These missions, the two embassies, and a smattering of honorary consulates currently comprise the array of diplomatic missions scattered throughout Jerusalem’s suburbs. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/English-Speaking-Immigrants-To-Israel-Have-Never-Had-Wider-Job-Options--Thanks-To-Remote-And-Hybrid-.md b/posts/medium/English-Speaking-Immigrants-To-Israel-Have-Never-Had-Wider-Job-Options--Thanks-To-Remote-And-Hybrid-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1f9736f7d67d62952233d0ec518c5abba0b82d29 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/English-Speaking-Immigrants-To-Israel-Have-Never-Had-Wider-Job-Options--Thanks-To-Remote-And-Hybrid-.md @@ -0,0 +1,61 @@ +# English-Speaking Immigrants To Israel Have Never Had Wider Job Options (Thanks To Remote And Hybrid… + +#### A strong local tech sector and increased willingness on the part of foreign companies to recruit talent from non-traditional locations have widened options substantially for English-speaking immigrants in Israel + +Armed with internet service, a webcam, and some motivation, today’s generation of immigrants to Israel can work in a mushrooming variety of configurations, for local startups, as hybrid workers, or with the world, remotely. Photo: author. + +For a long time, I’ve been advocating that _olim hadashim_ — Jewish immigrants to Israel — _“look to the world”_ when considering their employment options here. + +And I’d like to suggest that those prepared to make this logic shift can find themselves[**How to Work With The World — From Israel** + _At the crossroads of Africa, Asia, and Europe, Israel is uniquely positioned on the geopolitical map._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569) + +[**How To Freelance Internationally. From Israel.** +_There is a pervasive myth among Israel-based expat freelancers that the only place to go hunting for clients is right…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-freelance-internationally-from-israel/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-freelance-internationally-from-israel/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-freelance-internationally-from-israel/) + +For five of my seven years living in Israel, I’ve maintained an active _tik_(self-employment file). + +During the past three alone, I’ve worked with clients in more than ten different countries, ranging from a Singaporean energy utility (an interesting experience!) through to legal AI startups in Silicon Valley and a marketing agency in my native Ireland. I’ve also, of course, had plenty of clients from Tel Aviv and the wider _merkaz_ area that forms the nucleus of Israel’s startup economy. + +The only differences — from my perspective — have been minor issues related to exchange rates and time zones. By law, I of course didn’t charge value added tax to clients not based in Israel. During calls, and in less restrictive times in-person meetings, the accents from clients changed. But other than that, it was business as usual. I found what the companies _did_ — and where they needed help — a more engaging topic. + +Unfortunately — as I’ve also remarked here previously — the debate, when it comes to all things related to Israel, is incredibly fragmented. + +In immigrants’ newfound passion to evangelize for and support all things Israeli — [another subject I’ve gotten into before](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-tribes-in-the-jewish-discussion-about-israel-ff1ca0563da5) — the mere notion of trying to circumvent the system, even a little, makes the hair on some zealots’ backs bristle. + +Isn’t choosing to work for a foreign employer (or client), in a sense, snubbing the local Israeli tech ecosystem? + +Is helping the local economy reach an international audience even an integral part of Zionism to begin with? + +I’d like to suggest that it isn’t and that the imperative to make a good living in Israel — after all, among the most expensive countries in the planet — is a concern that needs to triumph over feelings of gaunt and perhaps exaggerated patriotism. + +Putting Israel on the map, I believe — or nowadays, rather, cementing its location on it — is a worthy end too. Shouldn’t that factor into our calculus? + +I’d like to also suggest that those willing to be flexible about who they work for — and whether to forge a career as a traditional salaried worker, as a self-employed worker, or as a mixture of both — have never had more diverse options for making a living. + +Here’s a quick anecdote to bear all those points out. + +### Good News: Israel’s Remote Workforce Is Increasingly On The Map + +After more than three long and arduous years of self-employment, I recently decided that I was ready for a change of pace. + +More than that, I needed it. Managing a leads pipeline, clients, taxes, and pension tends to get exhausting and I was …. well, exhausted from it. I recently took up video-making as a hobby and wanted a more rounded work-life balance that didn’t involve scrambling to issue end of month invoices on a Friday (Israel’s workweek runs from Sunday through Thursday). The feeling arose intuitively before it did rationally (I wanted colleagues, to form part of a team, to focus beyond projects, etc). But both trains of thought led to the same conclusion: I _wanted_ to return to the shores of conventional salaried employment. + +And so, I set out on a job hunt. I did so with a sense of trepidation, which is my euphemism for describing heart-racing fear. Wouldn’t potential employers, I feared, assume that I had been sitting on the sofa eating _pita_ and _humus_ since my last office job? Making money from online poker or Only Fans while putting up a respectable cover? + +More presciently, perhaps: didn’t wanting to go in-house admit, tacitly, that my gambit in self-employment had been a failure? And finally, why would somebody in California choose to hire in somebody in far-off Israel — who wasn’t even cheap at that— to plug a manpower need? + +As is often the case, all my worry — or at least most of it — was to prove for naught. + +Within a month, I was in the midst of possibly the most successful job-hunting process I’ve ever had. Sure, some potential hirers probably looked askance upon my tenure working for myself. But if they did, there were other ones who didn’t willing to plug any gaps in my interview schedule. It was classic marketing: so long as I could generate enough top-of-funnel opportunity and qualify interested parties efficiently, enough opportunity would come close to converting into … jobs. + +By the time I exited the interview process, through accepting an offer, I had advanced to third interview stage with two international companies with a couple more discussions at earlier stages. I’m still receiving periodic pings from hirers and others I reached out to months ago. + +I say none of this to brag — not at all — and I hope that anybody who has been following this blog for a while knows that that is antithetical to my style. I’m aware that in today’s economy _any_ job is precarious. And I would never even take a firth interview as a foregone statement of definite intent to hire. + +Nevertheless, I found the process enormously reassuring. And so in the interest of alleviating even a modicum of anxiety in the _olim_ population at large, I came here to pass that reassuring message on. Assuming that you have the usual prerequisites in place — ambition, some degree of talent, a skillset that potential employers are willing to make money from and thus pay for — your employment options, at this moment, may be a lot wider than you imagine. + +Whether in Tel Aviv, London, or Paris, today’s crop of English-speaking Israel-based talent likely has more opportunities — and more diverse ones — then they themselves realize. + +What’s key (in my opinion)? Having the fundamentals of inbound marketing in place and bearing in mind that your potential hiring audience is global rather than only Israeli (assuming, of course, that you’re open to working remotely with foreign employers). + +A strong professional website. An easily accessible resume and method for potential hirers to get in touch. A good home internet connection (documentation for my somewhat ridiculous business-grade Israeli home connection is [here](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5)). And, above all, an open mind as to where the next opportunity might arrive from. diff --git a/posts/medium/Every-Lead-Is-A-Node-To-A-New-Network.md b/posts/medium/Every-Lead-Is-A-Node-To-A-New-Network.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b313b34f6f0bdcce6f141850f1d95d95c29465d6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Every-Lead-Is-A-Node-To-A-New-Network.md @@ -0,0 +1,73 @@ +# Every Lead Is A Node To A New Network + +#### An Argument For Growing Your Client Base + +I’ve published a few thoughts here recently about the general direction I’m hoping to take in business over the next year (if I continue working for myself, that is!). + +To date, I haven’t been particularly imaginative in the way I’ve marketed my freelance writing business. Actually, my marketing has flat out sucked. + +[**Does Cold Emailing Work To Find Freelance Clients?** +_It can. It does. But even the successes aren’t always pretty._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed) + +Think sporadic bursts of cold email marketing for the most part. That’s really been about it. There’s been too much else to do. + +(Note: this is a rookie mistake which I would counsel anybody against taking. Please do the exact opposite of this! The most important time to market is when you’re at your busiest! + +) + +It’s only in the last year — after working on content marketing projects with clients and agencies for _five years —_ that I decided it was time to actually start working on my own content marketing and inbound machine. + +The cobbler’s son has no shoes on and all that. + +I like to think as new account as new nodes on a network! + +### Every Lead Is A Node + +Inbound marketing is starting to pay dividends for me. + +Here’s an example of how little effort it takes to get started. Undoubtedly, there’s a lot more to do. + +This summer, I added niche pages to my writing website — a small but necessary step. The process took a couple of days. I simply described the subjects that I have written and can write about. In SEO terms, this was a decidedly amateur effort. No keyword research went into this project. But I had an intuition that there weren’t so many freelance writers covering Linux out there, so I created this: + +Three months later and I have taken on two projects as a result of that day’s work. One became a client. The other is lost somewhere in the pipeline. Not a bad ROI on one hour! + +As I’ve mentioned previously, my conversation ratio currently sits somewhere around the 20% market. + +This means that for every five leads that enter the top of my sales funnel, about one makes it through to become a paying client. The rest of them decide that I’m a bum writer, too expensive, choose to go with somebody else, or one day randomly stop talking with me. + +Which reminds me: + +[**Why ghosting — and ghosts — simply suck** + _People also need to stop making excuses for lousy behavior_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ghosting-and-ghosts-simply-suck-580ad9cf1b3f "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ghosting-and-ghosts-simply-suck-580ad9cf1b3f")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ghosting-and-ghosts-simply-suck-580ad9cf1b3f) + +I _don’t_ like to think of my clients in these crude terms, but the customer lifetime value (CLTV) of a new freelance writing account is variable for me. But equally, there’s a limit to have many clients I can handle at any one time — and hence every lead and account is valuable. Someone can ask for a $400 blog and never be seen or heard from again. Or I can end up writing regular white papers for them and net $10,000. + +But I think there’s something potentially much more important about working with new clients than the monetary value that might be attached to them. + +Something that’s very easy to lose sight of during the rough and tumble of managing a busy sales pipeline and hoping to steer leads through to conversion. + +**And that’s the fact that each client represents a new node on a network.** + +Here’s what I mean. + +**Whether you’re a freelancer or you’re a corporate sales team selling sales software, each new lead that becomes a client exposes you to a part of the global landscape of companies that you’ve never had access to before.** + +What I’m talking about is your clients’ networks. + +**And I reckon that in many cases, this has more potential value than your direct relationship with the client.** I also reckon that it’s very much asking yourself how you can tap into its potential. + +Each new client you might land: + + * Likely has a network of professional contacts they could refer you to + * Is likely embedded in some local ecosystem — whether that’s a startup ecosystem or a trade organization + * Might give you access to a new sales geography + +**If you’re based in a sales geography that provides limited opportunity in the local market, then the value of this secondary network becomes multiplied.** It could become your ticket to a new market, to a new world of clients, and to a new source of opportunity. + +That’s all I have for today. + +A thought. And a question. + +**Each new lead and every new account is a node on a new network.** + +What are you going to do to explore what lies beyond point? diff --git a/posts/medium/Extra-Skills-Worth-Picking-Up-As-A-Freelance-Writer.md b/posts/medium/Extra-Skills-Worth-Picking-Up-As-A-Freelance-Writer.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..42634ab611bbe2ab89bb8952dc78deb820b12d7c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Extra-Skills-Worth-Picking-Up-As-A-Freelance-Writer.md @@ -0,0 +1,84 @@ +# Extra Skills Worth Picking Up As A Freelance Writer + +#### While nothing’s required, these extra bits of knowledge could be worth adding to your resume + +Photo by [Stephen Phillips — Hostreviews.co.uk](https://unsplash.com/@hostreviews?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) on [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/seo?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) + +If you’re working as a freelance writer, then you probably already know that there’s lots of opportunity in writing. + +But in the hotly competitive writing market, even niching down and accruing great clips sometimes isn’t enough to guarantee a steady stream of work. + +When it comes to picking up extra skills, there are two lines of thinking among freelancers. + +One is that specialization is the key to success. Focus on one thing — writing — and do it superlatively well. + +**The other is that the more extra skills you can bring to the table, the more potential value you can provide to clients.** + +If you buy into the latter reasoning, then you can narrow the skills gap between freelancers and (much more expensive) marketing agencies. + +While I’m wont to make such a trite recommendation, I think that the key is probably finding a happy medium somewhere between the two. + +Don’t fall into the trap of being a jack of all trades (and master of none). Equally, it’s sensible to develop a couple of complementary skillsets to writing to make yourself that little bit more attractive to potential clients. + +Of course, it’s logical to pick up skills that complement writing. Here are some of the common choices among freelance writers. + +### Wordpress (Or Another CMS) + +Wordpress is the content management system (CMS) that powers almost 40% of the internet and is the predominant CMS in use among clients who operate online blogs, including those created for content marketing purposes. + +[**WordPress Powers 39.5% of All Websites** + _WordPress is now powering 39.5% of all websites in 2021, up from powering 35% of sites in 2020. Counting only sites…_ www.searchenginejournal.com](https://www.searchenginejournal.com/wordpress-powers-39-5-of-all-websites/391647/ "https://www.searchenginejournal.com/wordpress-powers-39-5-of-all-websites/391647/")[](https://www.searchenginejournal.com/wordpress-powers-39-5-of-all-websites/391647/) + +Love it or hate it (personally I love it) it’s extremely widely used among clients. If you’re a full-time freelance writer, then there’s a high chance that at least one of your clients uses Wordpress to put your writing onto the internet in an organized and convenient manner. + +For that reason, I think that every freelance writer should have at least a basic familiarity with how to use Wordpress. You don’t need advanced skills like hand-editing themes. But the basics are so easy to master — they can be learned in an afternoon — that it’s a pity not to have them in your back pocket. + +Want an easy way to learn? + +Why not build your own portfolio website on Wordpress as a hands-on project. If you’re offering Wordpress formatting to your clients, then most freelancers — including I — would argue that you should charge an add-on for the service. + +### HTML, CSS, PHP + +While freelance writers don’t need to be web developers equally, in this day and age, a little coding knowledge goes a very long way in terms of making yourself useful — particularly if you’re working in a high-tech environment. + +HTML is the markup used to render the most basic static web-pages. CSS is the language that adds styling to it. PHP is a scripting language used in web development. It’s used throughout Wordpress themes to pull in dynamic content saved in a database. + +You don’t (strictly speaking) need to know _any_ of these things. But a smidgen of know-how can go a very long way when your client needs help tweaking that theme. + +### Inbound and content marketing (including content strategy) + +The majority of writing work that can be accessed on the internet these days is in content marketing. + +In order to write content marketing on behalf of your clients, it really helps if you have a broader understanding of the tactics that your writing is contributing to. + +Content marketing is a form of inbound marketing — the idea is that, through writing engaging topics and making them discover-able, companies can attract audiences to them rather than go out finding them through disrupting them (outbound marketing — think cold calling). + +If you want to learn the rudiments of content marketing and content strategy then there are plenty of great books, podcasts, videos, and courses (check out Hubspot Academy’s) that can walk you through the basics and more. + +Even if you’re a freelance journalist thinking about opening a side hustle as a freelance content marketer, it would be a great idea to go through one of the certification programmes. + +### Search Engine Optimization (SEO) + +Closely allied with the above is search engine optimization (SEO). +Most of us aren’t hired to create content because our clients feel like seeing words written on their websites. + +Rather, our content exists to help draw leads down marketing and sales funnels and convert them into customers. A key part of this process is getting leads onto our websites — and blogs — in the first place. Organic discoverability, via search engines, is a key part of that process. + +As a freelance writer, it’s helpful to understand: + + * Core SEO concepts. These come in handy when drafting SEO-optimized copy. + * Keyword research + +If you know or learn enough about SEO that you can offer things like SEO planning and keyword research as an add-on service, then you should certainly be charging more for these extra value-adds. + +### Videography, Photography, Audio Production + +These, of course, are all very separate skills — both from one another and from content writing. + +Nevertheless, content marketing is becoming increasingly diversified in terms of the formats that it leverages to reach its target audiences. + +If you’re writing intro scripts for a podcast, for instance, then it’s very helpful to know the basic elements that go into getting a podcast on the internet. + +Likewise for videography and photography. If you get good enough, you can even develop your own stock library and start using your own images in your writing! + +To make a full-time living as a writer, excellent writing and editing skills are a prerequisite. But these days, it’s helpful to go beyond that in demonstrating your potential value to leads. These are some of the skills that those thinking about upselling clients to scale their income could consider tapping. diff --git a/posts/medium/Extremism-Sucks---And-Other-Lessons-From-An-Israeli-Palestinian-Beer-And-Burger-Meetup.md b/posts/medium/Extremism-Sucks---And-Other-Lessons-From-An-Israeli-Palestinian-Beer-And-Burger-Meetup.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f5166d37bbb1024bd4fa4b35d96526161aa68136 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Extremism-Sucks---And-Other-Lessons-From-An-Israeli-Palestinian-Beer-And-Burger-Meetup.md @@ -0,0 +1,70 @@ +# Extremism Sucks — And Other Lessons From An Israeli-Palestinian Beer And Burger Meetup + +#### Black and white views perennially obscure the complicated realities behind one of the world’s most intractable geopolitical conflicts + +Move over humus. Could beer be all that’s needed to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Left: Palestinian beer from Taybeh. Right: Israeli Shapira craft beer. Photo montage: author. + +Last night, at an undisclosed location in the West Bank (I’ve been waiting my whole career to say that), a group of Israeli and Palestinian civilians, including the author, sat down over hamburgers, beer, and _kulaj_ in order to hash out the politics of one of the thorniest conflicts on the planet. + +It’s probably fair to say that this, alone, represented a significant shift from most of our mid-week routines and dining habits. + +After enough years of living in this part of the world, a subtle sort of _ennui_ over the conflict eventually settles over life. As day to day living goes on, with its doctors’ appointments and kid pickups and work meetings, the conflict (mostly) fades, conveniently, into the background. Until rockets rain down on your city, forcing you into shelter, or the IDF enters your village in the middle of the night, piercing the evening quiet with shouts and stun grenades. + +But for most denizens of this land, such moments of stark in-you-face encounters with the conflict are (thankfully) fairly rare. + +For the most part, its ugly manifestations doesn’t arrive on your doorstep (if you live in Hebron or the Shuafat Refugee Camp that might be different. But most people don’t). Instead, it’s a dislikeable but ongoing facet of living in a part of the world contested by two different peoples. A conflict that most rational actors would rather didn’t exist or which would at least reach a speedy resolution. Sort of like the permanently dreary weather in Ireland. Without the politics and the rockets and the humvees. + +Against the backdrop of such boredom — and the longtime moribund state of the peace process — it’s easy to become jaded. + +Eating hamburgers and _knaffe_ with some likeminded and agreeable Palestinians is a fun way to spend an evening — something foreigners often fail to grasp about the conflict is that Israelis and West Bank Palestinians enjoy scarcely any interactions — but on a day when stray Gazan rockets landed near Tel Aviv and the IDF returned with attacks on positions in Gaza, do such well-intentioned acts amount to anything other than a tiny drop in the ocean of hatred and ill-will? + +### The Details Missing From Both Sides’ Narratives + +To answer to my own question ‘probably not.’ + +But it would be a mistake to deny that small personal investments of time and effort cannot at least ameliorate the plight of living in this part of the world even, if only, for the participants themselves. + +The meetup — facilitated by a Jewish activist known only by his _kunya_ of ‘Abu Jibreel’ — reinforced, for me, that black and white views and divisive narratives are at the root of so much that is wrong in this part of the world. That even token gestures of coexistence — like eating a burger — can thaw at least some of the ice that has frozen over relations between Jews and Arabs. And perhaps, with more positive developments on the political front, bode the way for a bright future. + +I’ve already aired my views about _hasbara_ — typically described as pro-Israel advocacy although its apologists are ever-quick to remind that its literal Hebrew translation is more like ‘explaining’. + +As a once-aspiring journalist (I now work on what journalists call the ‘dark side’ of communications), I positively hate it. + +For its selective distortion of facts. For its relentless focus on glorifying Israel and casting the Palestinians as the unending baddies — as if it were laying out the plot line to an old-time Western and each side had to reach caricature level proportions before the audience could be satisfied that they’d gotten their money’s worth. But above all, for its gross simplification of the conflict here and for its unapologetic belief in the idea that hate must be confronted with a furious avalanche of state-sanctioned and funded propaganda. Even from a perspective within the pro-Israel camp, I see its activity as unconstructive — even, in fact, harmful. + +[**Why I Think Hasbara Is A Waste of Time (And Resources)** +_Three days to go until 5780 becomes 5781. Out with the old and in with the new. So - as I'm particularly fond of airing…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/) + +Equally, the information emanating from the pro-Palestinian camp is scarcely any better — in fact, it’s typically worse. + +Official Palestinian news sources effectively serve primarily as mouthpieces for Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the most virulent and violent constituents of the Palestinian cause, furthering blatant lies and inciting violence against both Israel and individual Israelis. + +Context gets thrown out the window — or sacrificed on the altar of portraying Israel and Jews as quasi-demonic entities intent on causing the maximum amount of harm to their neighbors on the other side of the wall (it’s never mentioned that it was constructed for security). It reaches comic proportions, too. A picture of Jews quietly visiting the Temple Mount and abiding by the Waqf’s onerous restrictions on non-Muslim worship is routinely described as a “raid” — conjuring the idea of hordes of religious fanatics trampling footloose over Muslim holy sites even when the pictures flatly contest that narrative. + +But most unfortunately, perhaps, the narratives of both governments — Israel and the PA — are argued strongly enough by themselves that they have succeeded in spawning worldwide networks of ‘Friends of’ organizations who have made it their life’s mission to convince the ambivalent majority that what they thought about the Israel-Palestinian conflict ain’t really so — and only if they could read this leaflet or come to this lecture they might cast the shadows off their minds. The world is therefore constantly being evangelized by not one but two false dogmas about the same tiny patch of land. It’s no wonder that most roll their eyes at mention of the conflict here. + +This propagandization of the conflict (I made up that word, by the way) is unhelpful on many levels. + +But majorly so because it obscures what Irish documentary-maker Nicky Larkin called the ‘Forty Shades of Grey’ which he sees as being inherent to the conflict (Larkin came to make the documentary as a committed Palestinian activist but came to the conclusion that both sides commit a lot of wrong; hence the work’s name). + +At every meetup I’ve thus far participated in, it’s those shades of gray — and the mutual ignorance that comes from living in close proximity but worlds apart — that emerge shining most strongly. + +When attempting to organize one of the first meetups, our organizer, Abu Jibreel, suggested, naively, that we meet in a café in Jerusalem. (West Bank Palestinians require a special permit in order to visit Jerusalem and, these days, the Israeli Army isn’t exactly giving them out like candy. The idea was thus a non-runner). + +In response, a Palestinian suggested that we venture into Ramallah instead. (Equally problematic. Israelis are legally prohibited from visiting cities located in area A. A recent torching of a car carrying Israelis who accidentally strayed into the city reinforced the necessity of the ban). + +On a more subtle level, each meeting is filled with lots of little learnings. + +Each glimmer of information may not— in its own right —provide fodder for the next Hollywood blockbuster. But cumulatively they cast some much-needed humanity on what — for almost everybody on each side of the conflict — would simply otherwise simply be the ‘other.’ + +Last night, for instance, I learned that the northern city of Tulkarm is considered one of the more conservative Palestinian cities. Religious conservatism is not only limited to Jewish communities in the West Bank. (Although as is well known Ramallah is substantially more liberal and there’s even a well-known bar that serves as the trashy but reliable hook-up facilitator for the town — and West Bank Palestinians stifled by the region’s religiosity. It functions in much the same manner, therefore, as Tel Aviv.) + +Somebody’s mother wanted their daughter to marry only somebody from the same town. Palestinians learned of the various levels of kosher certification, a concrete manifestation of the fact that even Israel’s Jewish population is divided on many levels. We got to know one another. We … co-existed. + +The last time I checked Google News, last night’s meetup hadn’t, unfortunately, succeeded in bringing about the end of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. + +Nevertheless, it did succeed in bringing together 10 Israelis and Palestinians who otherwise would have remained unknowing but mortal enemies, seeing one another perhaps only through the lens of international news coverage about the hapless state of the dispute between these two peoples. + +For that reason, if only, it was worth braving last night’s rain to enjoy some burgers, beer, and good company. + +_(To protect the identity of the participants some insignificant details have been changed.)_ diff --git a/posts/medium/FYI--Google-Can-Lock-You-Out-Of-Your-Account-For-No--Legitimate--Reason-.md b/posts/medium/FYI--Google-Can-Lock-You-Out-Of-Your-Account-For-No--Legitimate--Reason-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c552e8b689c5b3355eaf22f5729779f86dc1775a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/FYI--Google-Can-Lock-You-Out-Of-Your-Account-For-No--Legitimate--Reason-.md @@ -0,0 +1,142 @@ +# FYI: Google Can Lock You Out Of Your Account For No (Legitimate) Reason. And When That Happens, You May Be SOL + +#### A cautionary tale about how the excesses of big tech are allowing major tech providers to ride roughshod over users’ right to access their own data + + _Cross-posted from Reddit (/r/degoogle); lightly edited for clarity and formatting:_ + + Spent some time on the road? You could wind up in Google Jail. And getting out isn’t always an easy endeavor. + +So I’m delighted to see that there’s a whole subreddit for this topic. + +But before I do some digging through the posts here let me quickly share my story. + +I have been using Google and Gsuite for many years. In fact, I’m old enough to remember a time when it was called Google Apps. + +How long exactly? + +If I were to venture a guess, I’d say around 10 years. + +For the past several years (at least) I’ve been paying monthly for access to two Google Workspace accounts. + +It’s kind of the digital glue that keeps my personal and work lives in good working order. + +I make liberal use of the full panoply of cloud-hosted services that Google puts at users’ disposal. + +I answer email from Gmail; use Google Calendar to set myself hacky reminders about what I need to get done by certain deadlines; create custom Google Maps before I embark upon trips to map out sites I want to check out. + +Oh, and I’ve got a few years’ worth of photos in Google Photos. That particular trove of data includes thousands of personal photos, including some of deceased relatives. The only way I can access that data currently is via the only device in my possession — an Android — that hasn’t been blacklisted by Google’s uncaring security features. But Google doesn’t care for such trivialities. It’s too big. + +As a longtime Linux user, I’ve always loved and appreciated the fact that Google’s services live in the cloud. That means less Libre Office <> Word tug of wars for me to deal with. We can both agree to exchange Google Docs and get over that particular headache. Much more than that, for a long time, it made intuitive sense to me that _everything_ should be cloud-hosted where data remains accessible from anywhere on the planet (even if that means it’s simply being hosted on somebody else’s computer…). That’s what I thought. Before the cloud turned on me. + +Although my accountant could probably pull this information up for me, I have no idea what my cumulative spend to Google has been over the years. I’d imagine it’s in the thousands at this point. Sure, a true minnow in the ocean of paying Google customers that I’m sure is littered with tech titans spending six figure sums for access to Google’s infrastructure. But I’m a paying customer nevertheless. And what I’ve experienced from Google this week isn’t how paying customers deserve to be treated. + +Now let me tell you my war story. + +Because it illustrates why I think that big tech companies in a position of market dominance need to be held to better account. Their potential to seriously screw with people’s lives is just too big for that _not_ to be the case. + +I spent the last few weeks on vacation in the US. + +While there, I received a warning about suspicious activity on my account. + +Once of those cookie cutter ones. Thinking relatively little of it, I assumed that the Google filters didn’t like the different IP activity caused by checking my email from a few different cities / hotels / etc while moving about the US. It said as such. I reviewed the login activity and everything looked okay. + +I changed password per Google’s _demand_. I disabled and then recreated 2FA — which I use on just about every service that offers it as a feature (if I recall correctly, there was no other way to change the password). I made sure I had access to both the recovery email and password. I thought I was doing everything by the book, exactly as Google wanted it to be done. And so I moved on with my life expecting to be able to access my email. + +Earlier this week, I returned to my home country to find my Google account totally inaccessible. + +Needless to say, this is is never the best thing to come home to when you’ve just taken a 12 hour flight full of screaming children and have meetings to prepare for the next day (noted on a calendar that you can now only access from an Android device that’s now conveniently out of juice). + +And then, in a moment, I realized how grave the risks of allowing oneself to become dependent on a single entity that controls everything from your email to your calendar to your personal photos to your burgeoning interest in videography could be (I recently got into YouTube and while my account remains relatively small, I still receive a small stream of daily comments). + +If you want the boring technical details then here they are: + +I can’t log into my account because it triggers a warning that I’m violating my own “two factor policy.” That’s the start and end of this cryptic technological dead end. Even if I click the shiny blue ‘forgot password’ button that’s as far as I can get. + +There’s no option to provide backup codes. Or to verify the login attempt through my recovery email. There are just two lines of text. And no instructions other than to contact your “admin” (which doesn’t help when … that person is you!) + +I have my 2FA codes at the ready in my password generator, my updated password, my recovery email, and my recovery phone. As far as I know, this is everything Google “tells” us to do. You could say that I’m potentially the textbook Google user. I’ve attempted to implement every form of security on my account that the service asks us to in an attempt to keep my account safe including approving my phone as a safe device that’s ready to accept security prompts. And none of it has helped. In fact, it may have even gotten me locked out of my own data. + +As a tech enthusiast that cares about cybersecurity, I ask myself how it is even possible to wind up in a situation like this. + +I realize that it sounds too far-fetched to be true. And yet unless I have been hallucinating for the past few days, it really is. + +Other pertinent questions: + +If Google can summarily seize access to your account, what’s the point of all this second layer security for account recovery is? + +And if I didn’t have a second Google Workspace from which to contact Google (or know how to create a DNS CNAME in order to pass the first part of the authentication test) how would I possibly have been expected to resolve this!? + +What I didn’t expect is how useless Google has been or unwilling to … you know, let me access my own data. Such as the calendar appointments and emails and bookmarks that collectively forms the digital glue that holds my life together. + +Their support is virtually non-existent and — for Workspace — appears to be exclusively comprised of outsourced tier one workers whose grasp on the English language can be limited (like their ability to lookup support threads). + +It’s been almost 3 days and the best I can get is half literate support staff with obviously fake names who tell me that the “account recovery team” (whom I can’t speak to) is “looking into” my case. They won’t tell me who these mysterious “support engineers” are. Nor provide me with a guaranteed time for account recovery — presumably because I’m still considered somehow suspect to them. + +I’ve tried, without success, to impress upon Google how serious and potentially even dangerous being locked out even temporarily from Google is (I almost wasn’t able to receive medical test results needed to get out of quarantine thanks to it). + +It’s caused massive disruption to my business even in the short time frame so far. + +To issue clients with invoices in a reasonable timeframe, I’m currently having to forward payment confirmations on from my personal email that can only be accessed from my phone. To attend Zoom meetings that are booked on my calendar, I have to copy and paste them into an email and send them to myself — to the business email that I can still access. + +None at Google seem to get it. Or remotely care about these trivialities. + +Calling this experience “shoddy” wouldn’t be going far enough, in my opinion. + +Take a customer’s money, harvesting their data (isn’t that what all these guys do?) and then not giving a toss when your systems wrongly lock them out. How low can you go? + +I’ve gone through all the verification processes repeatedly including answering a ridiculous “knowledge test” intended to prove that I (the sole user of the account) am … me. + +I’ve created a DNS record to prove that I own my own domain. + +And yet the majority of support representatives I’ve contacted at Google have not so much as apologized for any of this. + +None have been able to so much as offer me a reason why my account was locked. I believe that, at a minimum, this should be my right to know. + +To the best of my knowledge, my only wrongdoing has been travelling and accessing my Google account from a few different IP addresses while I moved between hotels (as one does when on the road…). + +This is in itself a total deal-breaker. Nobody at Google has been able to provide even the slightest degree of reassurance that this couldn’t happen again. So what, given that fact, is one who wishes to continue using Google’s products and enjoy travelling expected to do? Never leave one’s home town out of fear that accessing your email from a new IP or device could paralyze your business and leave you data-less? + +By any standard of what proper customer support should look like, the experience has been complete rubbish. + +It’s like dealing with a massive bureaucracy that’s also an authoritarian anarchy that just makes up its own rules and tramples over the little people that fall victim to its (flawed) technologies. + +While trying to research how something like this could even happen, the good and often very knowledgeable folks over at Reddit (incidentally, it’s where the anti-big-tech moment has coalesced) have taught me that being the sole user on a Gsuite account (as super admin) is bad practice. + +That’s fine. And I accept that this represented a degree of fault on my part. + +Nevertheless: + +a) If that’s really true, then Google has a responsibility to warn users about this repeatedly and in clear terms. If that’s really the case, potentially don’t even let users operate single user accounts. I’ve been doing just that for more than 10 years. It shouldn’t take a major business continuity incident like this to tell me that that wasn’t okay. + +b) That still doesn’t excuse the fact that their support is atrocious — even downright abusive — and that they seem incapable of understanding that locking people out of infrastructure they’ve come to depend upon is unethical. Actually, I believe that it should be illegal. The implications are scary and far-reaching. I came very close to being stuck in quarantine — without a means of leaving my home to order food and water — because I couldn’t access medical test results that were being sent to the email I could no longer access. What if I didn’t know enough about tech to know that I could (in the worst case scenario) re-route email by changing MX records? What would I have been expected to do then? What if I missed a flight or a job interview because I couldn’t access my Google Calendar? Or a surgery because that’s the only place in which I’d noted the details?! + +And finally c) if one single user Google Workspaces have to have a separate admin user then the de facto minimum is two seats and not one. Not a deal-breaker. But their marketing literature should reflect that fact. + +To say that this experience has been eye-opening would be a gross understatement. + +It’s been nothing less than completely alarming. + +I’m not planning to de-Google my life to the fullest extent I can as a knee-jerk reaction to this experience. + +I’m doing so because I’ve seen very clearly this week that depending upon this company to be a reasonable custodian of your data seems like a very irresponsible decision to take — whether you’re a solo consumer or a business. + +[Google](https://medium.com/u/be36e94a7e47), + +You need to stop treating your paying customers like cattle. + +You’ve gotten big. + +You’ve developed some great tech. + +But your ambition seems to have stretched beyond your ability to regulate yourself. + +I worry that countless digital lives will be disrupted by some of the practices you are currently implementing. + +[**3 Ways To Protect Yourself From Getting Digitally Cancelled By Google** + _A random fraud detection filter is all that may stand between you and being able to access your digital life through…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-ways-to-protect-yourself-from-getting-digitally-cancelled-by-google-75121c46a28b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-ways-to-protect-yourself-from-getting-digitally-cancelled-by-google-75121c46a28b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-ways-to-protect-yourself-from-getting-digitally-cancelled-by-google-75121c46a28b) + +[**This Is How Bad Google Workspace Support Is** + _Google users beware:_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/this-is-how-bad-google-workspace-support-is-50cfaa4692a0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/this-is-how-bad-google-workspace-support-is-50cfaa4692a0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/this-is-how-bad-google-workspace-support-is-50cfaa4692a0) + +[**What’s The Worst That Could Happen If You Got Locked Out Of Your Google Account?** +_Relying on the cloud for everything seems great. Until it unexpectedly turns on you and you can’t legally leave your…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4) diff --git a/posts/medium/Failing-Faster-As-A-Way-To-Expedite-Growth.md b/posts/medium/Failing-Faster-As-A-Way-To-Expedite-Growth.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..02c8a32ce9018a50f7f9cd2052de583668f9012b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Failing-Faster-As-A-Way-To-Expedite-Growth.md @@ -0,0 +1,110 @@ +# Failing Faster As A Way To Expedite Growth + +#### Could ignoring your initial suckiness be the key to getting good at something? + +Recently, I decided to embark upon video-making as a hobby. + +The author trying to understand how the pickup on a shotgun microphone works. + +It’s been surprisingly all-consuming. + +Work responsibilities aside, I’ve thought about relatively little since. + +Left to my own devices, with my wife for company (is two years of marriage enough for the ‘long-suffering’ appendage?), I can ruminate for hours about whether my next move should be buying a camcorder gimbal or investing in an i7 to speed up rendering on my computer. + +She reminds me that I could probably stand about five minutes of hearing the same discussion about AutoCAD (she’s an architect). + +Last night I even caught myself dreaming about monopod combinations and what kind of footage I could capture if I could attach another meter of carbon onto my existing gear. Parker Walbeck’s excellent YouTube channel has replaced Netflix as my daily before-bed viewing (highly recommended, a wealth of information). + +I wake up thinking about what I could record when work is through. Go to bed watching a guy talk about what microphone to use when interviewing. And then evidently spend my sleeping hours using my subconscious to try make sense of it all. + +I’m hoping this won’t be another relatively short lived hobby of mine — hyperfocus is a manifestation of ADHD. Because right now, I’m motivated. + +[**Parker Walbeck** + _I run an online film school called Full Time Filmmaker where I act as a mentor helping filmmakers/videographers from…_ www.youtube.com](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw9zJ3qnebPPGsutiEAvu5Q "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw9zJ3qnebPPGsutiEAvu5Q")[](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw9zJ3qnebPPGsutiEAvu5Q) + +### Being Afraid To Get Started Means Never Starting At All + +Truth be told, getting into video is something I had been planning for years — a type of creative expression I’d always wanted to explore that I thought would be a great extension to my enjoyment of writing. + +I’m convinced that us creatives are basically the same people in various guises. We write. We paint. We make movies. We record podcasts. The medium matters less than the output and the sharing — so why not explore whatever calls us? + +Shooting some footage on the Park HaMesila in Jerusalem earlier this week. Photo: Author. + +And so it was that I’d bought the camera, which was fast gathering dust in my tech cabinet. + +Kitted myself out with some nice accessories for capturing sound and throwing light on dark corners. + +Watched the tutorials for how to use Kdenlive (a basic editing program for Linux.) I even had an idea of what I’d like to make videos of. + +The only thing missing? + +Hitting the record button and actually getting started. + +### Static Friction: The Hurdle To Actually Taking Step One + +Recording a few video clips in the Gazelle Park in Jerusalem. + +The answer to what was holding me back was probably a mixture of factors. + +One of them was self-confidence, or a lack thereof. + +Truth be told, I didn’t actually believe that I was _able_ to make videos. + +Could I afford high-end gear? (Answer: no, but for beginners it’s probably not necessary). + +My desktop computer — which I love dearly — was designed for editing documents and not rendering video streams. I run Linux and can’t countenance the thought of using anything else to compute. My upload speed — 5 Mbps on a _very_ good day — frankly sucks. + +Finally, as creative expressions come, video is intimidating. + +Writing might take a lifetime to master, but at least the basic prerequisites — a brain and a pen or a keyboard— are readily available and familiar to most. + +Video? If you follow those “how to start a YouTube channel” guides you end up with an entire shopping list of gear to pick up. + +Finally, I have good old inertia to thank. + +I’ve been writing professionally since my first communications job and know my XLR cables from my 3.5mm jacks (those are audio cables for those unaware). Perhaps I was afraid of discovering that I’d chosen the wrong medium to focus on all these years? + +You want more reasons? + +I’m a notorious curmudgeon who’s about as divorced as can be from some aspects of popular culture. I’d rather watch paint dry for an hour than gesture towards an invisible subscribe button while beseeching my followers to “push it” (“consider” subscribing is the formulation I’m most happy with). + +In my thirties, I can’t keep up with the Instagrammers and Tik Tokers of this world. Nor do I want to. But I _do_ love YouTube (I really love YouTube!). Was there space for me in this mix? + +But the (additional) problem I created for myself was this. Every time I went onto YouTube, the standard of even amateur hobbyists (like me) seemed to be getting progressively better. Some of these guys had been making videos since they were a kid. Popular channels these days are almost cinematic productions. + +So why embarrass myself with my rookie efforts?! + +A couple of months ago I realized how stupid this line of thinking was. And I’ve been trying to shift my mindset ever since. + +**Because to interject a truism, everybody starts somewhere. No exceptions.** + +And the key to getting good at anything (I think!): being willing to fail quickly and not being phased by your initial bad-ness. + +Otherwise, you’ll never get good. Actually, like me and video for the past couple of years, you won’t even be able to get started. + +Therefore, I’m currently making as many videos as possible of anything that I think might be even remotely interesting. + +Park up the street? Record it! Had a random idea? Make it into a blog. You get the idea. + +I’m not there yet. Far from it. + +I still lack the confidence to attempt some of the things I would _like_ to shoot (I have what I think is a great idea for a documentary!) But I understand now, at least, that it’s the not even _trying_ that’s holding my growth back. + +Therefore: + +I proudly plan to make as many bad videos as possible this month with the intention that, over the course of the month, they will get progressively slightly less bad. And believe me — that they are. + +But they’re slowly, day by day, getting slightly better. + +Today, I learned how to edit lighting in post-production. + +Next up: color-grading footage. + +The improvements are incremental and probably imperceptible to most. But not to me. + +And I know that the faster I can iterate, the faster I can improve. + +That was a lesson worth starting this journey to learn. + +And I’m pretty sure it’s the key to getting better. diff --git a/posts/medium/Fake-remote-jobs-are-becoming-a-major-nuisance-for-today-s-jobseekers.md b/posts/medium/Fake-remote-jobs-are-becoming-a-major-nuisance-for-today-s-jobseekers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..130baa54f4ea146ec1e8f63d94794c6fbccd9aa1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Fake-remote-jobs-are-becoming-a-major-nuisance-for-today-s-jobseekers.md @@ -0,0 +1,80 @@ +# Fake remote jobs are becoming a major nuisance for today’s jobseekers + +#### Today’s remote jobseekers are having to wade through a haystack of fake advertising to find the few potentially worthwhile needles + +The portrait of what a true remote working environment could look like is alluring, but many candidates searching for remote positions are encountering a job market that makes finding those positions frustratingly difficult. Photo by [Daria Shevtsova](https://www.pexels.com/@daria?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/tray-of-fruits-and-coffee-near-powered-on-laptop-on-brown-table-1467435/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Browsing the LinkedIn feed this morning, I came across the following post from “Yonica S” — which made it onto my feed via a like from a connection. + +Yonica — who works as a HR consultant — affirmed the following: + +_“Please stop posting jobs as “Remote” when they are not “Remote”._ + +_A true remote role is working from home or from a remote location, outside of the office._ + +_Requiring employees to be in the office 3 to 4 times a week or reside within 30 minutes of the main office IS NOT REMOTE.”_ + +As with most LinkedIn threads that brave to go outside the play-it-safe chorus, there were some interesting responses too. + +The first comment was, to my surprise, incredulous (“are employers really doing that? That’s quite deceptive!”). + +Another offered that “remote” is actually becoming a buzzword for recruitment (including, yes, when there’s nothing remote about the position). + +War stories of pandemic-time jobseekers who had been burned by falsely advertised remote gigs began rolling in. As did those from people who had landed remote jobs only to have the rug pulled out from under them and find themselves asked to relocate for an only partially remote position. + +One unlucky would-be remote worker had even gone through a series of interviews for the remote gig he thought he was applying for — only for the company to wheel out the fact that a relocation would, in fact, be required. + +Finally somebody hit upon the geographic point: a huge amount of remote opportunity is only accessible to those within certain geographical locations. + +I’ve seen an enormous amount of remote positions which are only open to US-based candidates. But the LinkedIn posters — disproportionately based in the US — were more aggrieved by the common requirement that the prospective job-doer be based in a specific metropolitan area. + +[**A Remote World Would Be More Accessible If Only….** +_While attitudes towards remote work are rapidly changing, there remain legal and administrative obstacles that stand…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-remote-world-would-be-more-accessible-if-only-d2950cfd0b79) + +Ryan H (I don’t want to copy and paste full names from a post on a social network) leapt to the jobs’ defense: “ _There are absolutely jobs that are 100% remote but the employer has preferences on strategic location (close to the home office, territory manager for sales jobs, etc, etc). If you are working from home, that’s still a remote job. It’s pretty common for employers to offer remote positions with preferences (or requirements) on where the employee is located. There are many factors that drive that need. It’s not misleading at all — as long as the job posting illustrates the preference.”_ + +### Today’s Remote Jobmarket Encompasses A Few Different Entities + +The problems that remote job-hunters are facing today are two-fold. + +Firstly, a very substantial amount of remote opportunity is currently limited to certain geographical parameters. + +[**Remote Work: Why Discussing Its Flaws Is A (Hugely) Positive Sign For Its Future** + _While the discourse surrounding remote work might feel overwhelming and repetitive at times, frontloading key…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/remote-work-why-discussing-its-flaws-is-a-hugely-positive-sign-for-its-future-4377d62b80b0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/remote-work-why-discussing-its-flaws-is-a-hugely-positive-sign-for-its-future-4377d62b80b0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/remote-work-why-discussing-its-flaws-is-a-hugely-positive-sign-for-its-future-4377d62b80b0) + +Very commonly — for those remote jobhunting in the English-speaking world — that job market is the United States. + +And the problem? + +That crucial nugget of information is often buried until the end of the job description. + +More problematic again? + +Many major platforms — like LinkedIn Jobs — don’t provide any means for excluding this opportunity from the list of “remote” positions that the search engine trawls up. + +If you’re looking for a remote job but happen to be based in Ireland or the UK or Israel, then none of these positions are accessible to you. + +In light of this fact, remote job-seekers in these countries often turn instead to national job boards where they reckon they have a much better chance of finding companies that _will_ hire them. + +This is one solution but it inevitably greatly diminishes the pool of potential applicants. As a remote work advocate, it also pains me to see this become the necessary reality for so many. + +The potential of remote work, for companies, is to provide them with access to much broader talent pools. For candidates, the advantages of remote working begin to greatly narrow when their options are limited to companies only in their own geography. + +For remote work to reach its full potential — and its potential is massive, essentially re-architecting the working world — both candidates and companies need to be able to think global in terms of their recruiting needs. When we dilute remote working down to working remotely for the company down the road… a lot of the potential is lost. + +### Remote Jobhunting Today Is No Picnic For Candidates + +Today’s crop of remote jobhunters — at the vanguard of this new way of working — are encountering a jobs marketplace that is somewhat at odds from the breathless media portrayals of how the pandemic has created a new workforce that can work from anywhere on the planet that’s serviced by internet. + +Today’s remote job market is brimming to overflow with jobs that are not truly remote; with unscrupulous recruiters advertising remote jobs because they think it looks “trendy”; and with remote opportunities that are only really opportunities for those based in a certain city or country. + +In order for the remote working world to become a reality, we’re going to need to create far more granular jobs websites that acknowledge the fact that when we speak about “remote working” we’re actually talking about a non-homogeneous group of working arrangements. For these portals to be anything like useful for candidates, they’re going to have to get a lot better at distinguishing between all of the following: + + * The classic gold standard job that can be done from anywhere with no expectation to ever visit an office + * Gold standard jobs but ones which — for legal reasons — the workers have to be located in a certain tax jurisdiction + * Hybrid jobs in which the requirement to visit the company site is frequent enough that it’s only a reasonable proposition for somebody already based in that country + * Hybrid jobs that really require somebody to be based in the city + +The problem? Right now we’re brandishing all the above as unqualified “remote” — alongside a whole boatload of opportunity that is actually nothing of the sort. + +The result is that finding quality remote positions, for candidates, is becoming a more frustrating and time-consuming process than it needs to be. diff --git a/posts/medium/Feel-free-to-follow-me-on-Reddit-.md b/posts/medium/Feel-free-to-follow-me-on-Reddit-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..706418b95162b6cafc050fcc873d17047f28cdac --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Feel-free-to-follow-me-on-Reddit-.md @@ -0,0 +1,43 @@ +# Feel free to follow me on Reddit! + +#### I love Reddit, but believe that anonymity brings out the worst of it. So, I’m Reddit-ing under my name. + +Way back in 2015, I apparently set up a public Reddit account for myself. Feel free to check it out at [/u/danielrosehill](https://www.reddit.com/user/danielrosehill) (I say apparently because about a year ago I went to set it up only to find that it already existed). + +Since then, I set up a conventional (ie anonymous) Reddit account and have been reasonably active. The identity of this account must remain a strictly guarded secret. But you could say that maintaining it has taught me the Reddit ropes. And then some. + +### The Positive Aspects of Reddit + +Having been on active on the network for five years now, I have a few thoughts about Reddit: + + * **I think that its positive potential is massive.** Reddit allows very niche communities to form. Actually, that’s basically what it is: a handful of relatively generic subreddits (e.g. /r/politics) and then a massively long tail of smaller subs (see: [redditlist.com](http://redditlist.com) to get a feel for the scale here). Some of my favorite subreddits, for instance, are [/r/backup](https://www.reddit.com/r/Backup/) (backup related discussions) and [/r/datahoarder](https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/). I can ask questions about my ongoing training for an AWS cert in /r/awscertifications. I can ask about gastritis in /r/gastritis. Etc, etc. Name something you want to know more about or discuss and you can find it on Reddit. + * **Reddit is an addictive haven for people like me with niche interests.** Reddit takes all the aspects of Facebook that I like — namely groups — and gets rid of those that I hate (profile feeds; people trying hard to look cool etc). Oddly enough, in freeing itself of one form of social media toxicity — people trying to look better than the other, hence spreading jealously and one-upmaship — it falls prey to another one: the potential for abuse that anonymity creates on the internet. But as a place to discuss things which people I know IRL (in real life) aren’t interested in, and further my knowledge of those subjects, Reddit is amazing. + * **Quality of discourse varies enormously between subreddits — and each sub has its own atmosphere.** It’s very rare to find toxicity in the /r/backup subreddit for instance although it’s also relatively inactive and sparsely populated. Backups are certainly a niche interest even within technology. That alone tends to make people treat each other with reasonable civility. Some subreddits, however, are filled with infighting and online abuse. /r/Israel contains some interesting discussions about Israel but has (in my view) a rather strong _hasbarist_ vibe to it that I find offputting (although others wouldn’t). Every subreddit has its own flavor, its own level of friendliness, and its own frequent posters. Despite how many of them exist, every subreddit is truly its own online community. + +### What I Dislike About Reddit + +There are two major things about Reddit, however, that I dislike: + + * **Toxicity.** Far too often, Reddit is simply a haven for online toxicity. Redditors, in my experience, can be needlessly derisive, argumentative, and trolling — simply because the vast majority of them do not disclose their identity. + * **Spiteful Downvoting:** Downvoting was designed to make more appealing content appear at the top of subreddit feeds. However, it has, in my opinion, become an effective conduit for groupthink and downvoting contrarian opinions into non-prominence (Reddit collapses comments if they are downvoted heavily enough, making them all but invisible to casual scrollers). Moderating Reddit is a massive endeavor. Downvoting, in a sense, appears to have been designed to let the community take care of that function itself. But Redditors often downvote comments and threads for no good reason other than that they don’t agree with the content. That detracts from the quality of debate and marginalizes non-mainstream opinions, in my opinion. It’s also not been unheard of for Redditors to make determined nemeses who will follow them around Reddit downvoting their posts and comments. No, I’m being serious. + +### Why I’m Redditing Publicly + +While I still think that anonymous online posting is a massive facilitator of online/internet abuse, I think that anonymity has its places. + +Within the Reddit context some of those would be: + + * **Whistleblowers** whisteblowing on what’s happening in their industry (or company). + * **Mental health subreddits:** Reddit is a place where people suffering from mental or physical health problems come online to discuss their issues with others. Naturally, many people wouldn’t want to air this information under their real name. + +Because I see so much needless harm come from Reddit anonymity despite its occasional requirement and innate usefulness, I’ve decided that, going forward, all my Reddit activity is going to be coming from my public account. This will be the case unless there’s a strong reason why anonymity would be preferable or necessary. + +/u/danielrosehill has my name in it. My profile page has my now grossly overused headshot that is badly in need of a replacement. + +And even if what I post is sometimes ill-conceived, casts me in a less than idyllic like, or otherwise detracts from the impression of what anybody snooping through the profile might think about me I’m taking credit for it. Yes, even if, by reading the profile,the internet-at-large can know that I’m currently dealing with gastritis after my gallbladder surgery, am considering walking as a low-impact alternative to biking, and am thinking about upgrading to VPS web hosting — that’s all okay with me. I’m not hiding. + +In fact I’m adopting non-anonymous-forum-usage-until-proven-a-bad-idea as a general policy, for all my internet usage. In other words, unless there is a strong imperative to go anonymous, all accounts I set up will be publicly attributed to me. If I need to set up anonymous accounts for specific questions I will. + +But I believe that a little less anonymity in certain quarters would probably make the internet a more welcoming, transparent, and less hateful place. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Five-Common-VPN-Myths---And-Responses.md b/posts/medium/Five-Common-VPN-Myths---And-Responses.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2c57b9a25e050d27a4f0ceedd1e4a1097e84cd7e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Five-Common-VPN-Myths---And-Responses.md @@ -0,0 +1,162 @@ +# Five Common VPN Myths — And Responses + +Virtual Private Networks (VPNs): Do you really need a subscription? + +When it comes to all things VPN and cybersecurity-related there are a few common myths that get bandied about. + +Some of these are deliberately seeded by people that have a vested information in giving you bad advice (read: VPN sellers). + +Other people, in my view, imagine that the threat to their privacy is greater than it actually is. + +Here are some of them — and my take on why I think that they are wrong — in as plain a language as possible. + +### 1\. “Everybody Needs a VPN” + +If you want to Netflix and chill US-style, then yes, you might need a VPN + +**If you are based in Brazil and you want to watch content that Netflix has only made available for US audiences — then yes, you need a VPN.** + +Actually you don’t — a proxy could, in theory, do the same geolocation trick — but these days there’s no reason not to use a VPN instead. (Proxies act as gateways to your traffic, providing the same IP address masking, but your traffic does not travel to the proxy server in an encrypted tunnel like a VPN). + +**When you connect to a Virtual Private Network (VPN) server, your internet traffic, and DNS requests (if configured properly) are encrypted and tunneled.** + +And because your packets travel through a VPN server, they inherit that server’s public IP address. Netflix, and other major content providers, regulate access to their multimedia libraries on the basis of their users’ IP addresses. + +That is to say: if your IP address geolocates to an address in Brazil you will be shown the Brazilian version of Netflix without any action required on your part. + +And if your address geolocates to an address in the US you will get Netflix US — unless Netflix has decided to block traffic from that VPN server. + +If you’re a millennial then you almost undoubtedly already know all this — although you mightn’t realize that there’s a good chance you’re violating the provider’s Terms of Service (TOS) by spoofing your real location. + +But say you have zero interest in masking your geolocation and you are browsing the internet from your trusted home network. + +You (hopefully) have configured a strong WPA2 password are periodically monitor the network for unauthorized devices. Or you just plug an ethernet cable into an RJ45 jack. + +Given that the vast majority of websites now interface over the encrypted version of the HTTP protocol (HTTPS) your traffic between the server is secure. + +**Unlike when you’re using a VPN, your Internet Service Provider (ISP)_can_ get a good picture of what websites you are visiting.** This is because it can see your DNS lookup requests (unless you are using a third party DNS service like OpenDNS). And even though the contents of the data packets _are_ encrypted, your ISP can still see where they’re headed (then, by running a reverse DNS lookup it can figure out which website you were trying to access; although there are some exceptions in which that information isn’t unique, such as when multiple websites share the same IP address). + +It can also see any communications you hold over unencrypted means and it can simply read the contents of unencrypted packets — allowing the ISP, in theory, to pry into what, exactly, was uploaded and served when you visited a website. And if you enter passwords into an unencrypted website, serving traffic over HTTP, then it can see those too (but you should not be entering passwords into unencrypted websites in the first place.) + +If you are a reasonably security-conscious internet user then none of the above above should be a problem for you and — although it might be useful to have from time to time — you most certainly do not _need_ a VPN — at least not all of the time. + +### 2\. VPN A > VPN B + +Years ago, VPNs were best known as technologies which large enterprises deployed to help secure remote access to their networks. + +That’s still an important use-case. Although these days, [with a little bit of cloud computing](https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/09/how-i-made-my-own-vpn-server-in-15-minutes/) you can even set up your own VPN server in the cloud — so the playing field has (substantially) leveled now that VPN technology is mainstream. + +When most people talk about using a VPN subscription these days (unless they work in a particularly security-sensitive industry) they are not talking about setting up a corporate or private VPN but rather renting access to a commercial VPN that is privately managed: tools like ExpressVPN, NordVPN and a surprisingly long tail of others. + +Because the market is so crowded — and they all basically do more or less the same thing — VPN providers go to great pains to distinguish themselves from their competition. + +They do this by citing differences like: + + * **The choice of connection protocols they offer**. If, like 90% of VPN users, you are simply using a VPN for geolocation purposes, this really needn’t concern you. If you’re using really legacy hardware then you might want to find a provider using an old-school protocol such as Point to Point Tunneling (PPTP). But most users will manage just find with whatever protocol is on offer — or OpenVPN. + * **A Linux GUI:** Most Linux users I know are proficient enough to follow some basic documentation and configure a few connection scripts to connect to commonly accessed servers. Sure, a Graphical User Interface (GUI) is nice — although [ExpressVPN](https://medium.com/u/90a41cffb074) has a Command Line Interface (CLI) that is extremely easy to use — but it’s not necessary for most users. + * **Zero logs:** Some VPN companies _are_ based in obscure islands that are probably most familiar to you as places where multi-millionaires base their shell companies. The idea here is that because these islands are not party to any major signals intelligence (SIGINT) agreements, and typically have extremely lax privacy laws, the VPN companies will be able to get away with keeping absolutely no logs about you — including even your IP connection address. **To which I ask: why would your average law-abiding internet user possibly need that?** These companies are typically vociferous about their logging policies — but can you really put your trust in _any_ third party? If you are really getting up to no good online — and there’s a good chance that those asking about log policies are — then you probably have the technical acumen to run your _own_ VPN server and online infrastructure. This is just about the only way to guarantee that nobody, but you, knows who is connecting through. + +Why do I say that providers do _basically_ more or less the same thing? + +Because there are some differences but for most people these are the only ones that really matter: + + * **The VPN speed:** How good are the servers? And just remember something: VPN servers _can never give you a faster connection (whether an uplink or downlink) than the one you already have from your ISP_. This is simple networking logic and the only exception is if your connection is being throttled between your local network and your ISP. This happens very, very seldomly. + * **The server network** : How many servers does the provider operate? Where are they? + +### 3\. “You Need a VPN Whenever You Connect to Online Banking Or Buy Something Online” + +Could the cybercrooks be out to steal your money? + +This is really a subset of point 1 but because it is repeated so often is merits its own point. + +**Are the cybercrooks (proprietary terminology) out to get you whenever you purchase something online?** + +Well, they could well be, but thankfully banks and online retailers realize this and have instituted protective mechanisms. + +These include things like giving Paypal users the ability to use Two Factor Authentication (2FA), simple anti-social engineering measures like displaying passwords in hashed format (and by social engineering I mean somebody peering over your shoulder), and making sure that all their sites run on HTTPS. + +**What you should _not_ do is use these websites from any untrusted network.** + +Does that mean any network other than your own one? Not necessarily. + +Packet sniffing on mobile networks is difficult. + +What you want to be careful about is sending credit card details digitally whenever you’re using _somebody else’s WiFi network_ who isn’t your friend (and how much do you trust your friend?) + +Think public hotspots, etc. + +In these scenarios things like Man in the Middle (MITM) attacks and phishing scams become credible threats and using a VPN might be warranted. + +Or you could just wait until you’re back home before going on that Amazon splurge. + +### 4\. VPN-Over-TOR (Or TOR over VPN) is Fool Proof + +This blog accessed over TOR + +If you have a predilection for getting up to mischief online then you are probably already familiar with The Onion Router — better known as TOR. + +**In simple terms, and unlike a VPN, Tor works by shuffling your traffic around between a bunch of different servers (intermediate relays) and then exiting it, unencrypted, to the internet.** + +The final link in the chain is called the “exit node”. + +And because anybody manning the exit node can see the traffic emerging from the network, it makes sense for people like law enforcement and intelligence agencies to covertly man these. Which they do — plus a lot more (I don’t pretend to know anything but the basic details of the cat and mouse playbook here, but I trust that the people preventing cybercrime are very good at what they do!). + +(This vulnerability exists for [both VPN-over-TOR and TOR-over-VPN)](https://blog.bolehvpn.net/tor-over-vpn-vpn-over-tor-which-is-better/). + +And here’s the problem: + +You can use VPN-over-Tor to hide your TOR usage from your ISP. That might be prudent. + +There are setups where VPN encryption is tacked onto the end of the TOR relay. + +But ultimately your traffic needs to emerge unencrypted onto the internet. + +### 5\. The More Encryption The Merrier + +There are some things that makes sense to have in large quantities. + +Right now, having a beefy supply of toilet rolls isn’t the worst ideas that has ever been floated. + +But if you’re intent on using a VPN, do you need to use two or three of them just to get a secure connection to the internet? + +These products are commonly labelled as ‘double VPN’ etc — and the idea is simply that the traffic will be tunneled through not one but two (or more) VPN servers on its outward journey to the internet. + +As I pointed out earlier, the traffic has to emerge without VPN encryption at some point. + +So what’s the point of doing the dance twice? + +**The premise at work here is that double encryption is stronger than single encryption.** + +The strength of your VPN encryption is as good as the cipher encrypting it. Even if somebody had an array of supercomputers at their disposal and wanted to break the cipher encoding your encrypted packets doing so twice might only slow them down marginally. + +For most users doing simple things online (like watching Netflix) using a regular VPN connection should be more than enough to obfuscate your IP and DNS requests from people that _might_ be prying: like your ISP. And in all honestly, your ISP is probably not prying. + +### Yes, VPNs Have Their Place. But Do You Need One? Probably Not. + +The most truthful answer to anybody that asks:_“do I need a VPN?”_ is “it depends on what you might be using it for?” + +If you want to mask your geolocation for whatever reason than a consumer VPN subscription might be a prudent investment. + +If you’re worried that your ISP might be spying on you thinking realistically about the probability of that actually being true might be a more prudent strategy. + +If you’re really intent on getting up to no good, then you probably know everything above — and a hundred times more. + +Both TOR-over-VPN and VPN-over-TOR have vulnerabilities. + +And you almost certainly don’t need a double or triple VPN configuration. + +VPNs are a useful technology that address a variety of uses. + +But some common sense is required to distinguish baseless marketing claims from reality. + +### Some More Advanced VPN FAQs + +**If all my browsing traffic is relayed over HTTPS why do I need a VPN at all?** + +**Reason 1:** HTTPS only protects the HTTP protocol; VPN tunnels and encrypts all internet protocols which your computer is receiving and transmitting over. + +**Reasons 2:** Your ISP can simply call up a log of which IP addresses you were querying and run a reverse DNS query to determine which alphanumeric URLs (domain names) these were relating to! + +This is because while the packets are encrypted the metadata (where they are heading to) is not. So although your ISP can not, for instance, see what you queries on Google it _can_ see that you visited Google.com. Additionally the contents of the encrypted packets themselves cannot be inspected. So your ISP can see (roughly) what you visited but not what was contained in the content that you received — assuming that it was served over HTTPS. + +This is not the case when you are browsing over a properly secured VPN connection — both your target IP and DNS queries are carried within the VPN tunnel so this information is not available to your ISP. diff --git a/posts/medium/Focus-kaizen--thoughts-to-try-to-refine-my-information-diet.md b/posts/medium/Focus-kaizen--thoughts-to-try-to-refine-my-information-diet.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8a0f07087ffc7b61028afe4390eca1531aa08f9c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Focus-kaizen--thoughts-to-try-to-refine-my-information-diet.md @@ -0,0 +1,193 @@ +# Focus kaizen: thoughts to try to refine my information diet + +#### My thoughts on what to keep. And what to cut. For anybody interested. + +Short version. + +**On the negative side, I’m:** + + * **Quitting Quora** + * **Quitting Twitter** + * **Using LinkedIn predominantly for find network connections** and checking the feed less frequently + * **Refraining from answering questions on Facebook groups that have already been addressed** and logging in more frequently. + +**On the positive side, I’m:** + + * Spending more time reading **non-fiction** + * Spending more time watching **quality YouTube videos** + * Spending more time listening to**good podcasts** + * Spending more time on continuous professional development / taking online courses / pursuing certifications + +It’s Sunday. And in Israel that means the beginning of another busy work week! + +To kick things off by instituting some changes (I’ve woken up with that kind of energy), I’m trying to institute some changes in my online productivity. + +Recently, I feel like I have been getting derailed, during the workday, by excess information. And this blog post- call it thinking out loud-is my attempt to try sort the (digital) wheat from the chaff. + +This brief thinking-over was already overdue because, [as I explained in my recent podcast about the value of being (slightly) less responsive](https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy8yYWYwZWYwNC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw/episode/MjcxOWQyYWUtZjU0Zi00Yjc0LWIwNGItOTU0ZDk3YjNhMjhj?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi52L--sOrqAhUHgM4BHVFxD6sQkfYCegQIARAF), my day-to-day workflow and productivity is in a constant state of slight flux. You could call this workflow . And trying to optimize media consumption will be this week’s change. + +My focus, for this post, was going to be just on social media — trying to decipher what I should keep and what I need to discard. And then I thought that widening the remit slightly would be beneficial.**Because ultimately (when it comes to influencing our happiness) I feel that whether the information we receives comes via a social media, Google News, or a podcatcher is irrelevant.** + +Like many, my everyday is saturated in information from various sources. And like many, I’ve been feeling overwhelmed by all of it lately. This is often the case but perhaps more so now because, recently, I’ve been trying to synthesize information from various sources to think about what I’d like my next steps in life to look like professionally. + +I’m in the latter stages of preparing for my first AWS certification (I need to get to 90% on the practice exams before booking my test; I’m currently at 80%) and am also busy thinking about how I might transition _slightly_ away from purely writing for technology companies to helping them with their marketing communication challenges in a more multi-faceted way that, perhaps, will allow me to better express my creativity. + +At the back of my mind, an idea for a startup always spins around. And — to be transparent, not that anybody that knows me doesn’t know this already — I’ve become rather pessimistic about political developments in Israel and am feeling a heavy pressure to start getting more serious about my preparations for a Plan B (in brief: I predict that nothing will come of the current wave of protests and we’ll be back to another carefully staged election and another Netanyahu victory in a few months. I also see the protests as having made more transparent that the state is becoming increasingly authoritarian and emulating the lead of the U.S. in all the worst ways). + +Ironically, the pandemic is just about the only thing I’m _not_ thinking about as, a few months ago, I determined that the vast majority of commentary about it was groundless speculation by non-experts (not that the actual experts, it seems, know much better!). Additionally, because the vast majority of information about the pandemic is unactionable (exceptions: things like knowing when stay home orders kick in) I’ve thought it better to minimize my intake of it and try to avoid engaging in speculation about what might be. Because … you know …. I’m not a scientist. + +With that intro out of the way, here’s my attempt at an overview of all the sources I’m currently drawing in information from — and the platforms where I’m currently active. Trying to keep too may wheels turning is unsustainable and exhausting. So my goal here was to try help myself decide what to keep, and what to cull, going forward. + +To make this actionable, for me, I’ll conclude with a plan. To avoid having to write it in every sentence, every one of the following points should be prefaced with ‘in my opinion’: + +### Social Media Information Sources + +#### Facebook + +#### Good For Crowdsourcing But Strongly Addictive + +Facebook Groups are useful communities for crowdsourcing specialized knowledge. For instance, I am in few professional groups and a medical groups. Both have proven indispensable sources of information and have even opened doors for creating mentorship opportunities. Facebook events are somewhat useful for organizing events within friends although that use is diminishing. + +The main drawback I perceive with Facebook Groups is that people — including the author! — begin to feel a need to offer an opinion, or knowledge that they have, whenever it is asked for. + +Sometimes I offer this knowledge to help out (somebody asks what the best ISP is and I can explain to them that really it ultimately depends on location, but X,Y,Z are worth looking into). At other times, people feel an irrepressible need to show off whatever knowledge they have on a subject knowing that their friends will get notifications. + +**Changes to make:** + + * Unless the information has not been asked before on some platform (including other channels) one should not feel obliged to answer a question even if you know the answer. This is a waste of your time. + +### Twitter + +#### Beginning to think that it’s just a massive waste of time! + +I’ve started tweeting recently primarily to put on some kind of public record my disapproval for many of the actions of the Israeli government and my criticism of many of its members who I believe have become incredibly detached from reality and the plight of the average citizen. + +I have also begun to undertake this activity to amplify — of course in the most trivial way possible given my almost non-existent reach — voices and facts that I think merit closer attention and which are not being heard. + +> [](https://twitter.com/AAhronheim/status/1283290170930888705) + +The alarming fact that the Jerusalem Police Chief, Doron Yadid, brazenly [echoed the government’s revisionist narrative that the current protests were “a protest of the left”](https://twitter.com/AAhronheim/status/1283290170930888705) during a TV interview fits squarely within that second category. + +As somebody that chose to move to Israel, I assume that anybody that knows me — professionally or otherwise — assumes that I am as combatively defensive of the government’s policies as many Israel supporters are (note: despite my grievances I remain broadly supportive of the country politically). + +To the contrary, and increasingly, I am disappointed by the increasingly totalitarian nature of the state I live in. I therefore feel compelled to explain this publicly. + +**Plan of action:** + + * As a platform, Twitter offers low barriers to entry because one needn’t think too coherently about one’s thoughts in order to sum them up into 140 characters. See, for instance, the Twitter feed of Donald Trump. As source for finding out about rapidly breaking news it has utility. But, notwithstanding the benefits of brevity, I feel that human debate would probably be more civilized and less focused on soundbites if people debated one another, as in days of yore, through lengthier formats — like books and articles. Speaking of which: my views could be promulgated more effectively, with less distraction, by writing blogs or articles about them. Putting the narrow potential benefit to business aside (I recently set up a business twitter account), I tend to think that Twitter as among the most egregious offenders when it comes to time-wasting by social media. + +### LinkedIn + +#### Love the connectivity. Hate the vacuous self-promotion. + +I have to say it. Of all the online social networks, LinkedIn is probably the one I feel the greatest antipathy towards. I feel like I can’t be the only one that feels a mixture of revulsion and boredom after scrolling through my feed. + +This is a pity. I have long thought that LinkedIn (and Facebook!) would be better and more enjoyable sources of information if it were not for the fact that they both allow users to maintain walls which they are supposed to fill with statuses. + +As a sort of unofficial worldwide directory of people’s professional lives I find LinkedIn very useful. When I’m prospecting for new business it allows me to map out an organization and I identity the relevant points of contact. I can find out who does what at a company, connect with them, and initiate a conversation. Likewise people sometimes find me through LinkedIn. + +However, I find that, overwhelmingly, the network is stuffed full of humble-bragging, self-congratulatory statuses, and inane corporate drivel which contributes precisely zero value to the lives of those that read it in their feeds. + +Amidst this, of course, there are occasional pearls of useful information. But not enough to make the thankless job of sifting through the self-promoters and braggers congratulating themselves and one another on their latest job / promotion / lateral move worthwhile. + +**Plan of action:** + + * Log in to LinkedIn when I have contacts to add or connection requests to review. + * Keep logging in to review feed to a maximum of once per week expecting that the activity will probably not be worthwhile. + +### Reddit + +#### Great for discussing niche subjects, but anonymity breeds a propensity towards toxicity + +Reddit is a strange sort of double-edged sword in my book. + +On the one hand, because it allows users to hide behind usernames the network has a well-deserved reputation for harboring plenty of toxicity (although there’s nothing stopping people from registering a username with their real name the vast majority do not). + +On the other, because of the way it is set up (with subreddits creating countless micro-communities bringing together people with niche interests) it can be a great source of crowdsourced information. + +I continue to see enormous value in the platform with three caveats: + + 1. For demographic reasons, I believe, the quality of debate on Reddit is sometimes low. But this varies enormously by subreddit. + 2. The aforementioned toxicity is a constant problem. + 3. The quality of debate drops precipitously in subreddits _not_ bandying together people that are passionate about a narrow field of enquiry. This is particularly true whenever the debate touches upon politics. + +### Quora + +#### It feels wholesome, or at least it did. But, to share knowledge, wouldn’t you be better off just reading and writing books? + +To my mind, Quora remains just about the best source on the internet for procuring expert-level information about a subject. + +Unfortunately, after spending time on the platform, one discovers that those kind of answers to the kinds of questions that prompt those sort of exemplary responses increasingly form but a small sliver of the information being shared on the site. + +Quora has pushed heavily in recent years towards increased a more aggressive monetization models. Bot-authored questions now proliferate on the site and Quora’s human and bot-mediated moderation systems seem unable to keep pace. + +While Quora has been a useful jumping-off point for me to write about several things that I would otherwise not have considered writing about, I have come to believe that Quora is actually another network that the word could probably do without. + +For one, its data liberation policies are restrictive. Additionally, when it comes to writing, one could -like tweeting- argue that it simply makes more sense to centralize one’s thoughts on life by centralizing them in a repository that one (digitally) owns. Like a self-hosted blog built on WordPress. + +For reading: one could read more expansive versions of other people’s Quora contributions — which are not tinged by the frequent accompanying motive, to knowledge-sharing, of touting one’s product or service- by reading books or listening to podcasts. + +### Other Sources of Information + +#### YouTube — Lots Of Great Content (Admit A Lot of Bad) + +I’ve often felt that — in the face of a steady avalanche of useless information and social media statuses — YouTube is actually among the better sources of information. By searching for specific topics and with the right filters one can easily find free webinars, training resources, and interesting documentaries. + +#### Ebooks — Books Are Still The Learning Gold Standard For Me + +Ebooks (by which I mean books that I buy as ebooks from Amazon) are enriching sources of information. Books remain the gold standard when it comes to learning in-depth about a topic (or trying to understand a viewpoint). Right now we’re at a relatively early point in their adoption in which authors actually incentivize people to buy ebooks, rather than hard copies, by marking them down. This represents a great opportunity for avid readers and I suspect that the return on investment (ROI) on rigorously edited quality books is probably the highest of any format on this list. The ease of self-publishing has meant that there is plenty of low quality work on the market. But with careful searching and review-reading it’s possible to focus one’s attention only on higher quality material. Non-fiction e-books are excellent sources of focused information. + +#### Podcasts — Some Great Material. Key Advantage: Learn While You Do Healthy Things Like Go On Walks. + +Podcasts really span the gamut between excellent professionally produced productions and … quite the opposite of that. I think the biggest negative about podcasts is precisely this: so much sifting is required to find the ones that are worth listening to. That drawback notwithstanding I remain, and always have been, an ardent fan of podcasts. + +To draw a strange comparison to Reddit, because there are so many podcasts to choose from one can usually find one or several podcasts covering a very niche topic. And pick up a lot of information for free. I’m currently listening to the excellent Restore It All podcast (backups) and a couple more about business continuity. All great information. Additionally, unlike both video and text listening to podcasts (and audiobooks) can be done while out and about or while going to bed. This is a great advantage. + +[**‎Backup Central's Restore it All on Apple Podcasts** + _A podcast dedicated to making sure you can restore everything you need to restore. Hosted by W. Curtis Preston (Mr…_ podcasts.apple.com](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/backup-centrals-restore-it-all/id1469663053 "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/backup-centrals-restore-it-all/id1469663053")[](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/backup-centrals-restore-it-all/id1469663053) + +[**The Business Continuity Podcast | The BCPcast** + _Business continuity and disaster recovery are often maligned as dry, academic areas of study. Throughout a series of…_ www.thebcpcast.com](https://www.thebcpcast.com/ "https://www.thebcpcast.com/")[](https://www.thebcpcast.com/) + +#### Instagram — Not My Cup Of Tea! + +As somebody that tries to consume information primarily for self improvement — and strongly prefers desktop computing over using a smartphone — I see very little value in Instagram. + +### News + +When people talk about information to cut back on or avoid the news is usually billed as the top offender. I have definitely been on a mission to cut back on my news consumption in recent months. However, over time I have come to realize that I care about what’s going on in my country and the world. Particularly now with the social protests going on in Israel. I have also come to the conclusion that this information _is_ in fact actionable. I need to know what things a country stands for in order to determine whether I wish to continue living in it and paying taxes to its government. Moderation is clearly advisable. But I have given up on the idea of cutting it out altogether. + +### My Conclusions + +Here are the changes I am instituting subject to the next revision (and my self-control). You could summarize this as “focused long information sources first.” + + * **Stop tweeting.** It is probably not a positive ROI activity at this point in time. + * **Limit time on Facebook Groups.** And stop responding to people asking things that have already been addressed. + * **Use LinkedIn solely (or at least primarily) as a contact directory to add connections.** If the news feed is 95% irrelevant and useless information give yourself permission to simply stop checking it. Or check it infrequently. + * **Reddit is useful for discussing and researching niche/specialized subjects** but much less so for general debate. Use in moderation. Expect negativity. + * **Quora feels wholesome but you’re probably better writing elsewhere and reading elsewhere** in my opinion**.** And finding inspiration about what to write about elsewhere too. + * YouTube has a lot of great content (among a lot of garbage). + * There are some great informative podcasts (among a lot of garbage) + * In general longer more concerted forms of reading and writing (taking courses, reading books, writing books) are probably more useful and wholesome. The advantage to engaging in these as a writer is that fewer people ‘can’. + +To summarize that further: + +⬆️ **Increase consumption of:** + + * Online courses + * Nonfiction books + * Podcasts + * Quality YouTube videos + +⬇️ ️**Moderate use of:** + + * LinkedIn + +⬇️ **Greatly curtail use of:** + + * Twitter + * Quora + * WhatsApp + * Synchronous communication channels + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/For-Freelance-Writers--Revision-Requests-Can-Be-A-Major-Income-Draining-Headache--And-Here-s-Why-.md b/posts/medium/For-Freelance-Writers--Revision-Requests-Can-Be-A-Major-Income-Draining-Headache--And-Here-s-Why-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..050a3dc0a141a3db3bf979d992dfe5cc14ea48d3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/For-Freelance-Writers--Revision-Requests-Can-Be-A-Major-Income-Draining-Headache--And-Here-s-Why-.md @@ -0,0 +1,120 @@ +# For Freelance Writers, Revision Requests Can Be A Major Income-Draining Headache. And Here’s Why. + +#### It Comes Down To Rates, My Friends… + +Revision requests are fine when clients are prepared to pay for them. Unfortunately, too many aren’t. Photo by [Michael Burrows](https://www.pexels.com/@michael-burrows?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-looking-through-documents-at-workplace-7129713/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +The topic of revisions comes up periodically in online writing communities. + +How many should freelancers allow? One? Two? Unlimited? + +I’ve written about revisions on this Medium publication before. + +But here’s the TL;DR. + +I’m at the harballers’ end of the spectrum here. I offer my clients one (and one only) and tell them that they need to get their act together internally and get me one really decent request for feedback. Want more? No problem. But you’re going to have to pay for it. + +[**How Limiting Revisions Can Actually Help Your Freelance Writing Clients** +medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-limiting-revisions-can-actually-help-your-freelance-writing-clients-b4530e6a3c84 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-limiting-revisions-can-actually-help-your-freelance-writing-clients-b4530e6a3c84")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-limiting-revisions-can-actually-help-your-freelance-writing-clients-b4530e6a3c84) + +Over the years, my views about many things in freelance writing have changed. In fact, over the course of the last year, I’ve worked to reposition my marketing business _away_ from freelance writing (yes, you read that right; I still get my hands dirty with the writing but it was time to start offering a more holistic package that looked at the ‘bigger picture’). + +Despite that, revisions is the one area that I haven’t budged on. In fact, you could say that I’ve become even more entrenched in my views. The clients I stick with the longest and who are most appreciative of my work are invariably the ones who rarely request revisions. + +The clients who _always_ request revisions — even on things like outlines — tend to (almost without exception) end up being the most difficult to work with. And in freelancing, difficult working relationships are rarely sustainable. So here’s why when it comes to revisions… I’m sticking with my one shot rule. + +### Revisions Make Project Management — And Staying On Top Of Earning Goals — Tricky + +Let me ask you a question. + +How many freelance writing clients do you currently have on your books? + +My freelancing roster typically contains 6 to 7 clients at any one time. + +Experience has taught me that that’s about the maximum number I can really simultaneously engage with without starting to get names mixed up and getting confused about who’s doing that algorithm thing and who’s building a new CRM (I jest but you know what I mean). Other freelancers can comfortably stretch to double that. + +Call me a poor multi-tasker (I’ll take it), but even at this level of scale I need to keep things moving in order to hit my target income. I love a well fleshed out brief that I can pour over to make sure I have exactly what I need to try do a great job for the client. + +[**How to Brief Freelance Writers Like a Pro** + _On any given week, I receive anywhere a number of briefs for pieces of writing from clients. On any given day, my home…_ www.business2community.com](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261 "https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261")[](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261) + +But when things get stuck in Revision Land? That’s when things start to get frustrating. + +There’s a school of thinking — I’ll happily give voice to it — that even requesting _one_ round of revisions means that something has gone wrong in the freelancing relationship that could have been prevented: + + 1. The client doesn’t like your writing. Totally fine. But that begs the question: then why did they hire you. + 2. The output didn’t accord with directives. Then the question becomes … why weren’t those directives spelled out more clearly in the brief. + +Of course, you — Mr/Ms. Freelancer — could have ignored things stated in the brief. But as this is a Medium publication for freelance writers by a freelancer, let’s give ourselves the luxury of the benefit of the doubt here. + +### You Don’t Ask Your Dentist For A “Revision.” Why Ask Your Writer? + +Comic strip template via Canva. Comic: Author. + +Now let’s look at another reason why asking freelance writers for revisions is really kind of strange when you stop to think about it. + +This one will challenge my own premise that “revisions are okay so long as clients pay.” Can I change tact for a moment to ask the bold question: “is asking for revisions _really_ something we should regard as normal?” + +A basic argument to challenge _that_ assumption with: + +You probably hire the services of other professionals. + +I’m guessing — hoping? — that you have a dentist. Probably a family doctor too. Maybe you periodically require the services of a lawyer. + +Now let me ask you when was the last time you uttered any of the following: + +_“Hey Doc! Great performance with the physical yesterday but I’m thinking you could have placed a little more attention to detail when feeling out my GI tract. I’d like to book in a repeat performance. How about tomorrow? Of course, I assume this is covered by the fee for the surgery visit.”_ + + _“Hi Mr. Lawyer! Nice first draft with the rental contract. I really like what you did with the first few terms but I’d like to go a little tougher on section two. I’m going to send over feedback later today. This is covered in the fee, right?!”_ + +If you scoured a large city could you find a doctor who would offer something like repeat surgery visits until you were satisfied? Maybe. + +But if you visited a random doctor or lawyer for a consult, I highly doubt that you would feel empowered to regard that as a normative expectation. + +You know that’s just not how it works and thus even if you did summon up the temerity to ask, you might do so with a sense of embarrassment or trepidation — knowing that you were being a little bit cheeky and perhaps even insulting. You know that doctors and lawyers charge for every minute of their time. You know that they spent years honing their profession and training for it and that that’s how the economics of those lines of business work. Why ask them to spend more time on your case for the same pay? + +Lawyers and doctors have something on their side that freelance writers unfortunately don’t. The fact that clients often don’t realize that it takes a while to become a proficient writer might have something to do with this. They have barriers to entry precluding everybody from calling themselves a lawyer or a doctor and a profession that is licensed. + +As insignificant as these details might seem in today’s world — embracing as it is of “new” career paths — the difference with which customers treat doctors and writers indicates that, sadly, all this stuff still matters. Like, it really matters. For many clients, freelance writing is one step above a hobby. I can imagine that some clients even think that asking writers for a string of revisions is akin to providing them with an “opportunity” to hone their “craft” (or was that hobby?) + +The truest ballers of this world when it comes to knowing their worst and billing mercilessly for it? Probably lawyers. + +The biggest losers in this respect? Potentially freelance writers. + +Change is going to be tough. + +But bending over backwards for clients by offering unlimited revisions isn’t going to get us there. + +### Revisions Are Fine. If You Pay. And They’re Reasonable In Scope. + +I have two more thoughts about revisions that I’d like to share here. + +The first is that there’s one type of revision that I know likely spells the end of a client relationship. It’s a type of revision request that I’ve received once or twice over the six or so years I’ve been doing this. + +It’s the type in which there’s more red ink than black in the document. + +The client apparently hated everything you wrote although if you challenge them or level that allegation they’ll probably tell you that it’s more that they wanted some “extensive” changes. + +I’ll send back the revision back. But probably also file a mental note not to work with this client again. If I was that far off the mark, I’ll probably be a while off it again. Something must have gone wrong (see above). And I don’t have time to routinely be sending in revisions that basically amount to starting a project from scratch. + +The second is that I offer one revision (and the ability to pay for more) partially because I don’t want to be that writer who _doesn’t_ do revisions because then it’s going to put my clients in a difficult place if they really do need them. So instead I offer one revision in my rates. This tells clients up front that they’re not going to have the luxury of asking for indefinite tweaks. + +What do I think about clients that routinely want four, five, or even more rounds of revision? + +I think that that’s their prerogative. + +But that they also have to understand that that kind of service — from any provider — is going to come at a high premium. + +I think that writers, for their part, shouldn’t feel coerced to prop up a reality in which writing is singled out as a unique field in which asking for multiple free “tweaks” (because you changed plan, because you feel like asking for them) is accepted as the norm. It really shouldn’t be. At least in my opinion. We can take a leaf from the books of other professionals who are much more assertive about how they value their time. + +Clients who want multiple revisions per project but don’t want to have to pay for them are being cheap. And cheap clients are rarely worth working for. If you don’t really need that income, I encourage you to simply say no. + +### My Actionable Tips About Revisions + +These may stand in contravention to what others recommend, but here’s my guidance: + + * Always try to get a sense for what kind of approval cycle a client typically works to before sending a quote. You can ask about this indirectly. Does the client mention that all outlines need to be submitted and approved? + * Bill for all your revisions. If you incorporate one revision into your rates, make sure your rates cover it. If you need to charge for more, don’t be shy about doing so. + * The next time you feel “bad” about charging for a revision, just remember your last visit to your lawyer or doctor. Were revisions included? Or did they bill for all their time? + * Regard revisions with a degree of suspicion. A pattern of ongoing requests for multiple revisions or one revision request that basically amounts to “please start this from scratch” might mean that the client simply doesn’t think very much of your writing. Ultimately these are likely to be less than profitable accounts. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Forest-Fires-Are-Lighting-The-Jerusalem-Sky-Red.md b/posts/medium/Forest-Fires-Are-Lighting-The-Jerusalem-Sky-Red.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b3bc1fbcf5c35d1d2b63940bcd48dbb30de74c22 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Forest-Fires-Are-Lighting-The-Jerusalem-Sky-Red.md @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +# Forest Fires Are Lighting The Jerusalem Sky Red + +#### During second day of spread, red skies and plumes of smoke visible throughout Jerusalem + +Israel is struggling today to contain forest fires active in the hills outside Jerusalem. + +The fire is already one of the worst in recent years, with authorities reporting earlier today that it had consumed the majority of the acreage destroyed during the 2010 fires in Israel’s north — which has up to now maintained the record for being the worst fires in the country’s history. + +While investigators haven’t yet pinpointed the cause of the blaze, arson hasn’t been ruled out. + +In fact, in light of the repeated nature of forest fires in the same area in recent months, many believe that ecological terrorism is the likely culprit. + +Homes have been burned, countless dunams of land scorched, and entire towns evacuated. A major Jerusalem hospital was placed on evacuation alert as winds placed it within the spread’s possible path. + +Yesterday, Jerusalemites — including the author — began to smell the now familiar and distinctive smell of burning wood — which is finding its way into air conditioning systems and homes throughout the capital. This summer, it’s become an all too familiar scent. + +Today, the Jerusalem sky was colored an unusual mixture of orange and red. The air against suffused with the unmistakable smell of burning wood. Emergency and fire services throughout Israel have been working throughout the clock to contain the blaze. + +_(This is a developing news story)._ + + Plumes of smoke seen rising from the west as seen from Talpiot in South Jerusalem. Photo: Daniel RosehillPhoto: Daniel RosehillPhoto: Daniel RosehillPhoto: Daniel RosehillPhoto: Daniel RosehillPhoto: Daniel RosehillPhoto: Daniel RosehillPhoto: Daniel Rosehill diff --git a/posts/medium/Four-FinTech-Products-I-Would-Like-To-See-Roll-Out-in-Israel-e7e33ee4310.html.md b/posts/medium/Four-FinTech-Products-I-Would-Like-To-See-Roll-Out-in-Israel-e7e33ee4310.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b7fa0af2d087e317f068991d7c825263f140ae73 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Four-FinTech-Products-I-Would-Like-To-See-Roll-Out-in-Israel-e7e33ee4310.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,117 @@ +# Four FinTech Products I Would Like To See Roll Out in Israel + +Credit cards + +Silicon Wadi is certainly one of the world’s great startup ecosystems. + +But — despite its well-deserved reputation as a world center of innovation — it is a small market. For Israeli FinTech startups it cannot be used as a geography for [passporting](https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/passporting.asp) into the European Economic Area (EEA), and, for international FinTech providers, it infamous for imposing often burdensome regulations on companies thinking of setting up domestic operations. + +Nevertheless, if those objections could be overcome, these are four products that I would _love_ to see officially roll out in Israel. + +### [Privacy.com: Per-Transaction Virtual Payment Cards](https://www.privacy.com/) + +**The Israel problem:** US only. + +A virtual credit card looks and functions like a physical credit card — except that you don’t receive a physical piece of plastic so you can’t use it as easily for Point of Sale (PoS) transactions. + +I first became interested in the concept when I learned that I could avail of a virtual credit card that I could fund by transferring in Bitcoin — but spend as fiat, allowing me a quick means of achieving liquidity to cash in on the (then) rapid appreciation of the cryptocurrency. + +Regrettably,card issuers [began shutting down their Bitcoin-backed debit card operations](https://news.bitcoin.com/shift-card-sunsets-leaving-us-crypto-card-users-with-few-options/) before my card even arrived in the mail. + +**Privacy.com allows you to create multiple virtual credit cards per month** — and tie them all to any US-based checking account. + +Anyone who’s ever been burned by a disreputable online retailer should be able to immediately spot the value proposition. + +Rather than hand over your credit card details to a merchant that you don’t trust, you can create a virtual card _for that transaction only_ and: a) fund it periodically, only depositing enough to cover the value of your expected yearly transaction; b) cancel it, without affecting your ability to buy other goods and services on credit; c) not exposure your actual credit card credentials to anybody, who could sell the details on to third-party merchants. + +Privacy.com’s pricing as at 08/01/20 + +Privacy.com even offers a free tier which allows you to maintain _up to twelve cards per month._ + +If you upgrade to the Pro plan, you can create 36 such cards — which should be a comfortable number for most needs. + +Although the comparison is very tangential, I’m a big fan of Cloudflare, which proxies web traffic through their service in order to obfuscate your actual server IP addresses and make it a lot harder for a would-be hacker to map our your network infrastructure in preparation for an attack. + +It’s a rough analogy, but virtualization technologies which put a layer between third parties and your actual assets (whether credit cards or web servers) are great means of improving your security and fit in nicely with the general worldwide trend of decentralization and an erosion of societal trust. + +Unfortunately [this Reddit thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/privacytoolsIO/comments/9dtsl7/privacycom_european_alternative/) indicates that there are no alternatives — even in Europe. + +I hope that changes soon. + +### Revolut: Free Currency Exchange + +**Israel problem (for TOS sticklers):** Available for**** European Economic Area (EEA) residents only. + +Israel’s national currency is the New Israeli Shekel (I typically denote it as NIS, as do many, [although ILS is actually the official currency abbreviation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_new_shekel) as set down in the ISO standard). + +As a minor world currency, this means that a sizable amount of one’s purchases (at least those that do not involve acquiring coffee or falafel) will involve foreign exchange — typically charged at your card issuer’s lousy buy rates. + +By contrast, Revolut: + + * Offers its users the interbank rate in over 150 world currencies. + * Covers £200 a month in international ATM withdrawals for free. This should certainly be enough for travelers and potentially even enough for expats using Revolut as their everyday card. + +Friends have reported that it’s possible to obtain cards by sending them to an address you have in an EEA country — assuming you have a European passport to verify yourself with, of course. + +But what can I say? I’m a straight shooter — and I think that keeping your money with a provider[ whose terms and conditions you are technically in violation of](https://www.revolut.com/help/getting-started/verifying-identity/what-countries-are-supported/) is not a prudent course of action (‘legacy residency’ is a defined construct in tax codes and does not mean visiting a country you once lived in once a year!) + +### Curve: A Frontend For Your Other Payment Cards (My Explanation) + +**Israel problem:** Curve is currently available [within the 31 European Economic Area (EEA) countries.](https://support.imaginecurve.com/hc/en-gb/articles/213342769-Who-can-get-Curve-) Regrettably, this Area consists of the EU member states plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway — and does not therefore include Israel. + +Every now and again I come up with a _“genius new business idea”_ that turns out to have been invented several months or years previously. + +I generally take these as somewhat encouraging signs that I continue to have somewhat viable sparks of innovation swimming around my head — before then proceeding to bang said head against the table in frustration. + +Last summer, I lost my credit card. + +I would love to tell you that it had been years since the previous incident, but in reality it was about six months. Maybe my cognition was adversely impacted by the last time I realized that my “genius business idea” existed and banged my head off the table. + +Having just been through the time-consuming ordeal of manually updating what seemed like a million online accounts, direct debits, Paypal, and other such inconveniences, I was dreading the experience. + +Then, a flash of inspiration struck, and after spending all of five minutes on Google I dashed off the following email to my trusted business criticism advisory pool. + +Me announcing my latest ‘genius business idea’ — roughly Curve — to friends + +A few hours later I of course received: + +Apparently over 600,000 people have signed up for the Curve payment card which — as my genius idea suggested — aggregates multiple payment cards and allows you to manage them through a mobile app. + +The details of what _Curve_ does don’t need repeating here, but it’s truly something that would open up possibilities for many _olim_ who continue to maintain banking services in their country of origin. + +**Rich irony:** Curve’s CEO, Shachar Bialick, is originally from Israel! + +### Better TransferWise: ILS -> * And Debit Card + +TrasnferWise: ILS -> * conversions are still not supported. + +I’m a _massive_ fan of TransferWise and far prefer it to Payoneer’s clunky user interface, even though the latter is in fact based in Israel. + +Their support is also fantastic and using its virtual / Borderless accounts truly inspires me to “think globally” when envisioning what clients, and currencies, I can work with. + +I routinely take Eurozone payments through my virtual account in Germany (soon to be Belgium) and give ACH details to clients based in the US. For a very reasonable fee (that works out to be far cheaper than any exchange rate I would get), the money moves completely seamlessly through to my domestic account here in Israel in just a few business days — all without any intervention on my part. + +You can send outbound ILS transfers through Transferwise, but you’ll need to hold a balance of the currency first + +Unfortunately, the service’s utility for Israelis consumers is diminished in two important respects: + + * Transferwise does not support outbound (ILS to other world currency) transfers.You _can_ send outbound transfers, but you’ll need to hold a balance of the currency first. + * [The Transferwise Card](https://transferwise.com/gb/borderless/card) (a debit Mastercard®) — which allows you to spend your Borderless account holdings directly — or receive low cost conversions if you don’t hold the currency — _and_ receive £200 a month in complementary exchanges fees is not available in Israel yet. + +**Israel problem:** The list of countries the Transferwise Borderless card is available [can be found here](https://transferwise.com/help/18/transferwise-debit-mastercard/2968915/can-i-get-a-transferwise-debit-mastercard-in-my-country). + +It includes the EEA member states plus the US and some other anomalies (that are less anomalous when one considers they are major world finance centers). + +### The Times, However, Are Changing + +I authored [a few posts](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/this-weeks-amazon-israel-deals/) on my blog (and started an [online petition!](https://www.timesofisrael.com/with-free-shipping-to-israel-amazon-has-expats-filling-up-their-carts-again/)) about Amazon’s ‘entry’ to the Israeli market. (In reality, you have been able to buy from Amazon.com in Israel for years, but the shipping costs, in addition to Israel’s import restrictions, generally made it unaffordable to do so; the retail giant recently introduced a free shipping (above $49) offer. As a result, [the postal service is collapsing](https://www.timesofisrael.com/mail-disorder-amazon-is-shipping-to-israel-free-but-israel-post-cant-keep-up/)!) + +I hope that as more and more international companies continue to explore the Israeli market that the regulatory authorities will, in turn, make it easier and more enticing for them to do so. + +Israel’s banking sector is notorious for levying extortionate fees on its customers — and credit card issuers offer marginal benefits compared to international franchisees. + +If the disruption of the cellphone market and the revolution in flight ticket prices that the Open Skies Agreement heralded have taught us anything, it’s that even the most stifling of Israeli monopolies can be disrupted — if there’s a will to change them, that is. + +Hopefully the consumer finance sector will be next in line. + +_This Medium post is a revised version of an article that was originally posted to_[ _https://www.danielrosehill.co.il_](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/four-fintech-products-we-need-in-israel-but-cant-get/) _._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Freelance-Or-Remote-Work--What-s-The-Better-Deal-For-Digital-Nomads-.md b/posts/medium/Freelance-Or-Remote-Work--What-s-The-Better-Deal-For-Digital-Nomads-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..afe074c5e1784ee071eee85322acfebd15cac895 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Freelance-Or-Remote-Work--What-s-The-Better-Deal-For-Digital-Nomads-.md @@ -0,0 +1,147 @@ +# Freelance Or Remote Work? What’s The Better Deal For Digital Nomads? + +#### A Run-Through Of The Pros and Cons Of Two Increasingly Common Working Arrangements + +Working form a hammock. But as a freelancer or remote worker? What’s better? Source: PXHere.com. + +These days, we’re seeing an explosion in remote work opportunities with many using the pandemic as an impetus to transition towards a more distributed workforce model. This, to my mind, is a very good thing. + +As opportunities for remote working widen, many longtime freelancers — including this one — are finding themselves intrigued by the possibility of working as part of a remote team. + +What, years ago, was a relatively disruptive practice engaged in by only a few forward-thinking tech companies seems to have quickly become the new normal, particularly for those in the technology sector. + +But how do things work for those being hired? + +Is remote working the bad halfway house between traditional (office-centric) and freelancing? + +Or the opposite — a way to tap into the stability of a fixed income while still being able to work from a hammock in some exotic locale? + +Having are my thoughts on the batter (from freelance heavy experience). + +### Advantages Of Remote Working Over Freelancing + +Income instability is the bane of many freelancers’ existence — as well as the feast and famine cycle. + +I have previously suggested a daily to-do marketing list as a good solution to this common problem (the solution is to always keep a pipeline trickling down leads). + +[**A Daily Marketing Keep Fit List For Writers** + _Marketing is a fascinating field. There’s so much to learn. So many emerging practices and technologies to keep up…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-daily-marketing-keep-fit-list-for-writers-94bd3ccee976 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-daily-marketing-keep-fit-list-for-writers-94bd3ccee976")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-daily-marketing-keep-fit-list-for-writers-94bd3ccee976) + +Another approach is to tether yourself to one employer who provides a fixed salary at the end of every month just as if you were working in an office environment. + +This advantage is pretty massive. Income instability is incredibly stressful and leads many freelancers to experience mental health issues such as chronic anxiety. + +Knowing what money you have coming in at the end of the month can let you plan your life around your income rather than having your lifestyle dictated by it. + +You can draw up a monthly budget. Plan for vacations. These are luxuries that can be difficult for freelancers who never know what each month’s invoices are going to amount to (if anything at all). + +### You Get Benefits. And Colleagues. + +Employment — and remote working is, after all, just an unusual variant of employment that doesn’t require you to physically attend an office — also has some significant advantages over working under the structure of a self-employed independent contractor: + + * **You get benefits.** Again this is a massive downfall of freelancing. Think vacation and health insurance (for those in the US). + * **You often pay less tax.** This of course depends on the jurisdiction you’re living in. + +One of the difficulties of working as a freelancer is the feeling that you’re all alone out there doing everything for yourself from your taxes to your projects to fixing your computer. Sure you have clients. But those are, after all, your customers — so you need to keep up professional appearances! + +If you miss the banter and fun of working with people you don’t report to, then working as part of a remote team could be fun for you. Just remember that you’ll likely be socializing in the Slack channel rather than at the water cooler. + +Remote working. Upside: you can work from cool locations. Potential downside: working alone from cool locations. + +### Upside: Professional Development and Networking + +Freelancing can bring disadvantages that arise solely (or primarily) through being the smallest fish in the corporate pond. + +Working as part of a distributed _team_ can bring with it the various advantages that commonly follow from being a part of an organization. + +You may: + + * Get access to **better professional development opportunities** + * If you’re a creative, by being part of a distributed agency you may be able to**work on bigger and larger accounts t** han you could find through your own methods. This is because your organization likely has a team of dedicated sales professionals to bring in these kind of deals. As a freelancer … that’s probably just another hat you wear. + +### Upside: The Work Comes To You + +One of the hardest and most grueling parts of being a freelancer is the time expended in sales and marketing. Like the other aspects of freelancing, there’s usually nobody but you out there to do these jobs. + +While some freelancers are lucky enough to work with clients for years on retainers, others have to be almost constantly hunting for gigs. + +[**I’m A Freelance Writer. Here’s How I Spent Today** + _Hello, Medium!_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/im-a-freelance-writer-here-s-how-i-spent-today-3861213cbc38 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/im-a-freelance-writer-here-s-how-i-spent-today-3861213cbc38")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/im-a-freelance-writer-here-s-how-i-spent-today-3861213cbc38) + +Even if you’re working as part of a remote agency, there’s still going to be somebody whose job it is to bring work into the firm. So that you can focus on what you do. + +Freelancers have to work the unbillable hours they spend on prospecting and nurturing leads into the rates they charge. This is partially why the downward pressure on rates that many face is so untenable. + +### Downside Of Remote Jobs: They’re Still, Well, …Remote + +Social isolation can be one of the most unsavory aspects of working as a freelancer. + +On the flip side of things, being able to work from the beach is pretty cool and something that you can’t do if you’re expected to show up to an office every day. + +On the flip side of _that_ : you may be working from that beautiful beach alone. You’re still not going to have colleagues or humans to interact with in real life. + +Potential solutions for this problem are really the same as they are for freelancers: + + * Join a coworking space just to be able to run shoulders with other freelancers every day + * Get out as often as you can + * Schedule social activities during your off hours + +Freelancing: you can earn almost nothing. Or an awful lots. + +### Downside Of Remote Working: Less Flexibility, Capped Income + +One of the beauties — and stresses — of freelancing is that the sky is the limit when it comes to how much you could earn in a month. + +Equally true however is the fact that the ground is. You could earn absolutely nothing too! + +If you’re signing up for a remote job with one employer — and we’re talking about a full time job _and_ you’re precluded from freelancing on the side — then your income is going to be capped at your salary. + +Of course, like in an office job, you could negotiate periodic raises. + +But equally you’re not going to be able to increase your pay just by raising your rates or signing up new clients. Freelancing is more volatile. But also, in many cases, more readily scalable. + +Additionally, as a remote worker, you’ve lost a lot of the flexibility that is inherent in the freelancing lifestyle. As a freelancer you can choose who you work for and how long. All those freedoms are not congruous with full time jobs (in general). + +### Potential Downside of Remote Work: You May Have To Get Up Before Noon + +If you’re the type of freelancer that’s on a rigorous 05:00 to midday sleeping schedule then you may be in for a rude awakening — literally! — if you choose to become a remote worker. + +Naturally employers’ policies regarding workers’ productivity and office hours are going to differ. But you may need to turn on your screen and webcam to be fully functional and dressed in time for a morning meeting. + +If you’re trying to get on a normal circadian rhythm, however, this “inconvenience” could be a major upside. + +### Potential Upside: Better Compensation + +Sadly, too many clients see freelancers — whatever they do — as cheap and highly expendable resources. + +By contrast, simply making the switch to being a remote worker could make you appear more valuable to employers. Even if, in many cases, you’d be doing more or less exactly the same thing. + +This, needless to say, isn’t fair. Particularly given that freelancers need to cover business expenses through their rates. But in too many cases, this is true. + +For freelancers, the world is something of a blank slate + +### Advantages of Freelancing over Remote Work: Full Autonomy + +As we’ve seen, the major advantage of remote working over freelancing is the fact that you get a stable monthly income (for the most part) and benefits. That means paid time off (PTO) and — for those in the US — covered healthcare. + +But we also saw that these huge pros have counterveiling negatives in the fact that your income is capped at your salary which are usually the same thing (common exceptions: those in sales roles whose remuneration packages often consist of both salary and bonus elements). + +The major ‘pro’ of freelancing is that you’re in full control of your income and business. This means: + + * **You can scale your income by taking on more work** , higher paying work, or more clients. Or all three. This makes it easy to get over the lack of benefits and higher taxation obstacles. You need to charge enough to cover vacation time and notify your clients that you’re taking time off. + * **You can choose who you work for and what projects you take on**. This can be good for professional development. + +### Different Preferences For Different Workers + +Everybody’s needs differ and people’s needs commonly evolve as they go through different stages of life. + +I’ve met many long term freelancers who went back in-house — or to remote jobs — after becoming parents, for example. + +Freelancing and remote working are both likely to become increasingly prevalent over the coming years. + +The options also aren’t binary: freelancers could work part-time remote jobs while also maintaining their own clients. + +Whatever road you choose to go down, less conventional working arrangements of every stripe and color are likely to become more popular as remote/distributed working becomes increasingly normal. + +### Remote Work vs. Freelancing: Summary Of (Some) Pros and Cons + diff --git a/posts/medium/Freelance-Writers--How-To-Rebrand-Your-Service-Offering-To-Get-Past-The-Financial-Struggle.md b/posts/medium/Freelance-Writers--How-To-Rebrand-Your-Service-Offering-To-Get-Past-The-Financial-Struggle.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4583695534e92028a817e5d617c95b275cc12915 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Freelance-Writers--How-To-Rebrand-Your-Service-Offering-To-Get-Past-The-Financial-Struggle.md @@ -0,0 +1,118 @@ +# Freelance Writers: How To Rebrand Your Service Offering To Get Past The Financial Struggle + +#### Why freelance writing can be such a tough journey from a money perspective — and what worn-out writers can do instead + +Freelance writing: in a commodified and low-ticket professional services market, how can freelance writers rise above by-the-blog pricing models? Photo by [Jessica Lynn Lewis](https://www.pexels.com/@thepaintedsquare?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/clear-glass-jar-filled-of-coloring-pens-beside-of-white-sketch-pad-998592/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Last month, I shared my thoughts on an important point of pivot in my career. + +[**Why I’ve Stopped Identifying As A ‘Freelance Writer’ — Or A Writer At All** + _Why I (Sadly) No Longer Think Freelance Writing Is A Good Space To Be In_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb) + +For the best part of the past year, I’ve been working hard, behind the scenes, to pivot my service offering away from freelance writing. + +Don’t get me wrong (and no, this isn’t a sales pitch): I still _love_ writing. I get involved in plenty of writing on behalf of my clients although my writing-only clients are now outnumbered by my [marketing communications](http://www.rosehillmarcom.com) ones. I realized that in order to make my business — and career — sustainable, I had to move past focusing _exclusively_ on writing. + +Oddly, this has meant making a sort of backward evolution: Before I set up my own business, I managed marketing communications on behalf of tech startups. I thought that focusing on one strength — writing for tech clients — accorded nicely with all the advice I was reading about niching down. Unfortunately, I think I picked the wrong skillset to focus on. + +This post isn’t meant to be discouraging — even slightly. + +It’s merely my thinking on _why_ freelance writing is a difficult proposition from a financial perspective; to not shy away from the uncomfortable money topic. Perhaps it will even start a conversation on how to make this occupation more sustainable. I’ll also try to offer a couple of thoughts on what I’ve been trying instead to work around these dynamics. + +### Factoid 1: Freelance writing is a low ticket professional service + +Anybody who’s read a book on B2B sales has undoubtedly come across the terminology “high ticket” before. + +To the best of my knowledge, there’s no hard and fast definition here. + +But high ticket products are generally understood to mean expensive items and low ticket ones those which cost less. What delineates between the two probably depends a lot upon how you perceive money. + +Most freelance writers these days are selling content marketing. That’s a professional service being sold — for the most part — to businesses. + +Freelance journalists are also selling a service to a business (a news organization) although the service is the product itself in this case. These fine differences don’t yield much practical import. We’re splitting hairs. + +**The problem is that — for the most part — freelance writing is a low ticket professional service.** + +Sure, technology white papers pay reasonably well. But we’re still talking about a couple of thousand dollars typically. Many freelance writers try to string together an income by writing a large number of deliverables that each yield somewhere between $100 and $400 (example: blog posts). That’s a tough way to rack up an income if you live in an expensive western country. + +To offer a counterpoint, here are professional services that can be a _lot_ more lucrative: + + * Freelance sales work and sales consulting + * Public relations retainers + * Marketing consultancy services + +Because freelance writing is a predominantly low ticket professional service, our quickest path to making it scale far enough to provide a viable income is to produce _a lot_ of deliverables. Increase the production units if the market is so elastic that it precludes us from really shifting the unit cost. + +I call this the caffeine pill writing lifestyle — because these tend to be my stimulants of choice. But call it the cocaine writing lifestyle if that makes more sense to you or sounds more dramatic. + +We can either produce a _lot_ of really mind-numbing work (anything related to SEO or affiliate marketing tends to be fertile ground for this). Or we can farm it out to outsourced partners. + +And here’s why I think that’s problematic: + +Most writers got into writing because they loved the craft and wanted to write things that were really excellent (perhaps even inspiring). Churning out an endless pit of keyword-stuffed SEO content has already taken us several miles off course. Is there any point in even pursuing writing if all we’re doing is writing an endless string of words about the merits of respective antivirus tools? + +### Factoid 2: Freelance writing is really hard work and mentally taxing + +Our troubles aren’t over, sadly. + +Contrary to how _some_ clients appear to perceive matters, freelance writing is actually a pretty tough gig. + +[**3 Damaging Myths That Keep Writers Poor And Undervalued** + _Too many clients buy into these three tropes which have together helped to make writing a difficult world for many to…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-damaging-myths-that-keep-writers-poor-and-undervalued-38f20092678f "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-damaging-myths-that-keep-writers-poor-and-undervalued-38f20092678f")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-damaging-myths-that-keep-writers-poor-and-undervalued-38f20092678f) + +Isn’t writing easy? I’ve been doing it for more than 10 years and my answer to that is a firm ‘no’. + +Writing professionally on behalf of clients takes a lot of focus. ‘Freelance’ is a term that I hate to use because it belies the fact that running your own writing business is precisely that: running a business. + +To communicate effectively on behalf of clients, you need to understand what they do and what makes them unique — and an awful lot more if you want to do it well (this is why, I believe, quality writing always need to be somewhat expensive). Because freelance projects tend to be temporary, you need to market yourself or position yourself to be landing new clients at some regularity. + +[**Opinion: $300 Really Isn’t A High Rate For Freelance Writing Services** +medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/opinion-300-really-isnt-a-high-rate-for-freelance-writing-services-8581a0139d1a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/opinion-300-really-isnt-a-high-rate-for-freelance-writing-services-8581a0139d1a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/opinion-300-really-isnt-a-high-rate-for-freelance-writing-services-8581a0139d1a) + +The sum of all these elements — the writing, the marketing, the sales nurturing — really add up. It’s not uncommon for freelance writers to pull grueling hours in their home offices. + +### Factoid 3: Freelance writing is increasingly viewed as a commodity + +Content writing that’s done well is about _so much more_ than just churning out words that you hope (think) will hit upon the right keywords to draw in leads that you think will have the right search intent and fit within the parameters you’ve set for your inbound marketing funnel. + +[**Content Isn’t “Crap.” It’s Just Hopelessly Vague.** +_To really derive value from content marketing, creators need to see it as more than simply a crude and cheap…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-isnt-crap-it-s-just-hopelessly-vague-d09c311bc73c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-isnt-crap-it-s-just-hopelessly-vague-d09c311bc73c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-isnt-crap-it-s-just-hopelessly-vague-d09c311bc73c) + +I love helping clients with thought leadership marketing because — for those who are really on the same page about it — we share an understanding that what we’re hoping to leverage is share great ideas and insights. + +Unfortunately that’s only a segment of the marketing landscape. + +The existence of content mills, and the dynamics I outlined above, have created a marketplace that increasingly sees freelance writers as mere word-stringers whose job it is to create as much “content” for as little money. + +Marketplaces like Upwork — who pit writers with massively different costs of living at odds with one another — have created a vicious race to the bottom. Rate erosion is the inevitable result. Many freelance writers are feeling the pain. + +Freelance writing tends to be a low ticket professional service that is mentally taxing and thus doesn’t scale particularly well — unless you want to really compromise on quality or, sometimes, your moral integrity. + +So where does that leave freelance writers who _do_ want to create work that they’re proud of and live a lifestyle that’s at least somewhat financially prosperous: + + * **Focus on higher ticket writing products:** This works but the market becomes drastically narrower. For three years, I ran a writing business comprised almost entirely of clients like this. Where did I find them? Everywhere but disproportionately through word of mouth and focusing on a few unconventional tech niches that not many writers were tapping (two of my common topics: enterprise backup solutions and Linux). The problem I envisioned: the ever looming threat of rate crunches. And the fact that word-of-mouth marketing is great but less useful when you want to explore the world (when does word of mouth work best? Ideally when clients have met and trust you- and gotten a nice recommendation). + * **Outsource:** Another popular approach is to set up your own writing agency and outsource the work to other writers. This is an approach that never really appealed to me, although several veteran writers have vouched for it. My reasoning? If writing is mostly a low ticket professional service and you need to mark up your work, this likely means passing relatively poorly paid work to other hungry writers. In other words: sustaining an industry in which the fabled dollar-per-word rates of magazine writing yore increasingly sound like the stuff of far-off fantasies. + +And some other options that I don’t espouse or recommend: + + * **Going down the passive income route** by selling courses “teaching” future freelance writers how to freelance. + * **Ordering caffeine pills by the thousand** and hammering away at any work that lands on your plate + +### Here’s What You Can Do Instead + +In a commodified and low ticket professional services market such as the one that exists around the provision of writing services, my current thinking is that the most viable option is to _sell clients on the value you provide_ and not on the direct output of your writing. + +This is selling the indirect result of writing. And in a sense it’s only logical too. Assortments of words or videos or podcasts aren’t necessarily of any value to businesses who pay for things they can make more money from. It’s what those collection of words can do for them that _are_. And if you can demonstrate and articulate their worth, you can move beyond the hamster wheel of selling writing by-the-blog. + +Yes, that’s basically just an iteration of the old “sell on value not on price” line you’ve heard before. Sorry — I never claimed to be imaginative. + +And here are some ways to do that practically speaking: + + * **Don’t sell clients on the _commodity_ that writing yields (“I’ll write 5 blog posts for X”). Instead, reframe your packages to focus on the _results_ and _value_ that businesses can derive from your writing**, among any other services you may be willing and qualified to offer them (“I help businesses to reposition their brands utilizing content marketing. My former client Y saw a Y% increase in inbound leads after we went through this refining process.”) + * **Don’t focus on writing.** Yes, I know that sounds crazy coming from a “writer.” But writing is just a means of _communicating_.**As above, the value that you’re selling lies in what can _achieved_ through that communication **— and in commercial terms, those are measurable business impacts (nobody invests in content marketing for fun). Writers hate the “anybody can write” line — me no less than anyone else. But to truly assert our value we need to explain _why_ writing is valuable and _what_ it can achieve — beyond creating words. + +**The short version of this post (all opinions):** + + * The basic economics of freelance writing in today’s world makes it extraordinarily difficult to be a financially successful if you’re “just” selling writing. + * My recommendation is to develop ancillary skills _around_ writing. And then focus on how you can _demonstrate_ and communicate their potential impact to clients and lead conversations with prospects around those ideas. As professional communicators, this should come naturally to us. And the most prescient red flag to steer clear of: clients who just see writing as a commodity and want to jump straight to the price discussion. If a discussion about _price_ precedes one about _value_(or if no discussion about value happens at all) — that’s typically a bad sign. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Freelance-Writing-Pricing--Per-Word--Per-Hour--or-Per-Project--And-How-Much-Of-Each--d7c418a573a.html.md b/posts/medium/Freelance-Writing-Pricing--Per-Word--Per-Hour--or-Per-Project--And-How-Much-Of-Each--d7c418a573a.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e41f68e7426b1ad2cf0e03f619322d625e4f9b1b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Freelance-Writing-Pricing--Per-Word--Per-Hour--or-Per-Project--And-How-Much-Of-Each--d7c418a573a.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,277 @@ +# Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each? + +Do you know how to price your work appropriately? + +**Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job.** + +There are several commonly used pricing strategies: per word, per hour, and per project. + +And there is a massive and ever-changing variety of projects out there for us to work on. + +How much should you charge for an article which your client is having published in a top-tier trade media outlet (assuming they’ve already got the publication’s buy-in)? + +What about something that they’re just going to circulate on their blog, on Medium, or on LinkedIn? + +How about writing an entire _book_ for a client? + +Or maybe “just” an e-book or a white paper (don’t be deceived — these are big projects too!) + +How high should you go for a 45 minute keynote speech at an industry conference on an abstruse topic you’re going to have to research from scratch — with 200 executives and prize-winning scientists in the room ready to pounce on your every mistake, potentially causing enormous reputational damage to your client? + +What if your client wants to also turn that speech into a white paper — but you’ll only have to do the editing and not the (usually) difficult work of writing the text and blocking off time to ‘download’ information from your client’s Subject Matter Experts (SMEs)? + +Believe it or not, these are all projects I’ve had to come up with quotes for in the past twelve months — along with plenty of others. + +And I have no doubt that many of these I have — let’s just say…royally screwed up. + +Because if nothing else pricing — besides being difficult and highly variable between markets, clients, and industries — is fickle, fickle business. + +Price too high? You’ve just lost yourself a prospect. + +Go to low? Believe me, there are prospects out there that are going to devalue you and your work and move on to the next suitor in line who has worked up a bit more courage. + +To add to the complications even further, there’s an entire _encyclopedia-full_ of guides on this very subject to read through online. + +That’s a lot of zeros + +And of extremely variable quality. + +Some of these are compiled and promulgated by well-known authorities. + +_Writer’s Market_ is sometimes thought of as a gold-standard in that respect. + +Personally, I have found Carol Tice’s pay surveys and commentary [extremely insightful and digestable.](https://www.makealivingwriting.com/writer-pay-survey-2019-get-paid-to-write/) + +And increasingly Glassdoor.com is a resource for both anonymously disclosing rates and evaluating the overall experience of working freelance with a company. + +Finally, there are the random musings on the subject of other non-household-name authors such as this one. + +To find those, hammer[ ‘freelance writing rates’](https://www.google.com/search?q=freelance+writing+rates&oq=freelance+writing+rates&aqs=chrome..69i57.1960j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8) into Google and try to make sense of the mess, the plurality of opinions, and the wildly different rates commanded by writers in different parts of the world. + +Last year, feeling a little overwhelmed by the haystack of information — but convinced I could land upon a needle or two — I decided to swap my keyboard and desktop for a pen and paper and try to mentally sketch some sense out of the various common pricing models. + +Here’s what I came up with. + +### Model 1: Pricing Per Word: The Print Journalism / Magazine Standard + +If you’ve ever freelanced for a print publication — especially a magazine — then you’re undoubtedly familiar with the concept of pricing written work by the word. + +While that may seem straightforward, the range of income possibilities that this pricing model produces is actually rather massive. + +You can _technically_ be paid in the smallest denomination of legal tender in your country. And I’m sorry to be the bearer of grim news, but if you spend enough time on Upwork, you will eventually come across just these gigs. + +If you’re in any ‘content writer’ Facebook groups you will come across a LOT of this (1 Indian rupee = $0.014 at the time of writing). In other words, one cent USD per word. At this rate, a 1,000 word article would net you $14. Yes: one, four. + +**But let’s peg the bottom of the market, slightly less depressingly, at $0.05 USD per word**. At that rate, the sentence you are reading would earn me $0.55 — (that’s up to the figure itself!). So I could buy a couple of ballpoint pens. + +Now let’s take a look at the other end of the spectrum. + +And the other end. Screenshot from[ “20 High Paying Magazines Looking For Pitches”](https://www.alinabradford.com/blog/20-high-paying-magazines-looking-for-pitches) + +**$1/word is a sort of classical benchmark for really decent print journalism rates** — a journalistic gold-standard _per se_ — but there’s nothing saying that they don’t stretch as far as $2/word and above. + +Think about it: some journalism involves journalists putting their lives on the line or spending months in a foreign country working sources for information. We’ll revisit that potential pitfall a little later on. + +So when it comes to per-word rates, the sky is the limit —but (just as equally) the ground can be too. + +(If you want to get a sense for how bad journalism rates are getting, though, take a look at this eye-opening — and partially eye-watering —[ run-through from Contently](https://contently.net/rates-database/rates/)). + +### **The Advantages of Pricing Per Word** + + Pricing per word and caffeine abuse is a match made in heaven + +**Per-word writing rates are amazing if you are a super-caffeinated super-fast-typing writer (that’s me as I write this!), but your client thinks that you are more the tormented artist type staring wistfully out your window as you mull over how best to end that third sentence in your debutant content marketing piece.** + +In other words:**it’s a pretty nifty way of disguising a high hourly rate** if that’s your thing**.** + +Because of their ubiquity in the journalistic world, I also think that per-word rates remain useful as a yardstick for comparing rates between authors — whether they’re doing journalism or engaged in the fine art of producing (excuse me while I suppress the urge to burn this word) ‘content’. + +### **The Disadvantages of Pricing Per Word** + +**Pricing per word also clearly encourages you to just keep blabbering about whatever you’re blabbering about.** + +Just for fun, let me just blabber in a whole extra sentence here because if I was earning $0.50/word I would just have bought myself a (cheap) lunch — which is known as ‘brunch’ if it is early enough to be considered a late breakfast and, interestingly enough, among well-to-do young people around the world brunch-eating is an increasingly popular and very enjoyable past-time — which can also be very nutritious depending on what you eat, although if you’re on a calorie-restricted diet than you’ll want to be mindful about that too — and, of course, mindfulness is all the rage these days. + +You get the idea. + +In other words, it discourages brevity. + +And if there’s anything that you learn through dint of experience as a writer, **it’s that writing short is a lot harder (and often more rewarding!) than writing long.** + +There’s another disadvantage that I think is under-recognized. + +Just as per-word rates can be your ticket to enrichment-through-content-churnalism, if your client caps the word count on your briefs then per-word rates can actually be **per-project rates in disguise.** + +Think about it — and be careful about this double-edged pricing nemesis the next time a client offers it to you. + +Let’s say you have a 1,000 word article to write and you’ve negotiated a respectable $0.40/word fee for the piece. This should yield you an income of $400. + +If you throw a few shots of espresso down your throat (I prefer Turkish, but I digress) and write that piece in an hour — and, whatdoyaknow the client doesn’t ask for edits — then you’ve just made the hourly rate of a Wall Street Banker — and you should probably reward yourself with a cigar. + +But what if it’s an article for the CEO of a medium-sized organization? + +Your point of contact might need a round of edits. + +And his point of contact too (because if there’s a better way to look valuable than leaving unnecessary contributions in tracked changes I don’t know of it!). + +But clearing the middle management layer might not only represent… well… the ‘middle’ of your torment. + +If your contract does not have a clause limiting the amount of allowable revisions, then — trust me on this! — it’s extremely possible to start out with a seemingly generous rate only to see it whittled down to minimum wage (or worse!). + +My advice for pricing projects per-word: **use it for comparison purposes only. Not for billing.** + +### Model 2: Pricing Per Hour. The Safe and Steady Option + +When you think about it with a jaundiced eye, all work ultimately boils down to you exchanging hours of your life in return for remuneration. + +That’s a bit grim so let’s move on. + +More optimistically — **the only way you can guarantee a basic income for yourself, as a freelancer, is to ensure that you earn enough per hour.** + +(Bear in mind that mathematics are not my strong point so feel free to totally pull apart that claim.) + +How to actually calculate this is actually a little bit more complicated than might immediately seem apparent, however. + +Everyone seems to have their own, but my formula goes something like this: + + * Tot up how many hours you work in a typical week. I’m currently at something horrible. But let’s you put in 40. + * Figure out what **ratio of billable to non-billable hours is comfortable for you**. I’ve never heard of or met a freelancer who puts in 100% billable hours. Non-billable hours include things like: time spent prospecting; time spent nurturing sales leads; meetings with clients who aren’t prepared to pay you for your time (you can probably guess my feelings about these). Some people like **75% (billable) to 25% (non-billable)**. **Personally, I think that 50% to 50% is way more realistic, comfortable and — this is key — _sustainable_.** That should give you plenty of time, plus a little bit of buffer, to do your taxes, give your clients proper attention without making things feel rushed, and give you enough time to ensure that your business is operating as effectively as it can. + * **Next figure out how many days vacation you want to take.** + * Finally, deduct your average monthly business expenses. + +When you’ve done all this, you should be able to compute how much money each client needs to be paying you **per hour** in order to achieve a livable and viable gross salary for your financial needs. + +[I have my own spreadsheet ](http://www.danielrosehill.co.il)for this which I would be happy to share (a sample is below and you’ll probably be better off building your own anyway!) + +I’m running out of stock imagery. So here’s another clock. + +### Advantages of Pricing Per Hour + +I _love_ per-hour pricing because — as mentioned — it gives you a basic degree of financial predictability that per-word and per-project pricing does not. + +When everything else in your freelancing life might seem like chaos, it’s great to have this as a bulwark. + +Secondly, per-hour pricing is a terrific means of avoiding the potential huge pitfall of per-project pricing: scope creep (more on that later!). + +If you’re working with an unpredictable startup whose expectations and objectives for your project seem to be in a constant state of flux (as well as the internal approval cycle), consider offering them a per-hour fee. + +Although, as I’ll explain later, businesses do not like these as they typically want a firm line item to approve on a budget. + +### Disadvantages of Pricing Per Hour + +Remember our happy caffeinated writer friend earlier who had succeeded in making the hourly rate of an investment banker by getting his clients to pay him a per-word rate as he laughed all the way to the bank? + +**When the pricing structure is per-hour there are no games left to play.** + +Personally, I don’t think that this is a problem. Although you could argue that many professionals — like doctors — _do_ get to chip in on the fact that they can do skilled work quickly. + +But there’s an easy fix: charge your viable hourly rate and neither you, nor your client, has any major ground for grievance. + +But this approach is commonly recommended against for “fast workers” for this very reason. + +Factoid two, and a well-known one among the freelancing community: + +**Clients will often balk at an hourly rate but accept unquestioningly the exact same rate if it is just presented differently — such as worked into a project fee.** + +If you’re looking to command a healthy hourly fee, prepare to find yourself on the back foot justifying your pricing. + +### Model 3: Pricing Per Project. Clients Like It. But… Scope Creep! + +Here’s a picture of a falafel, which is a food that continues to sustain me to this day, and which I therefore feel a weird sense of gratitude towards despite it consisting of fried chickpeas, bread, and some tomato. So let me run an analogy using it. + +Almost always, falafel stores charge you a _fixed price_ for this sandwich. + +If you choose to be a demanding customer and ask for every filling behind the counter — including white cabbage, red cabbage, tomatoes, tahini, and amba— at this minute level of economics, then you, dear difficult customer, have just succeeded in putting a tiny erosion in the falafel stand owner’s profitability. + +You’ve both used up more raw ingredients _and_ also taken up more of his worker’s time as he stuffs those tomatoes and eggplants in the bread for you. + +To add insult to injury, you’ve possibly drawn the ire of everybody in the queue behind you — including those who were planning on ordering a much ‘higher ticket’ meal for their entire family — and who may have given up in frustration and gone to the falafel stand down the road instead. + +This is a little bit like how pricing by project works for freelancers. + +Like the student who’s budgeted $10 for lunch, and needs to know the price of the falafel sandwich to stay within it, the marketing managers we typically work for have an annual budget of X many thousands, hundred of thousands, or millions, and needs to know that the service you are providing is going to be delivered on spec, on budget, and on time. + +This — in a falafel-ball— is why clients like project-based pricing. + +On the other side of the equation, you might find yourself in the shoes of the hapless falafel store owner. + +Let’s say you get one bad customer who proves to be unreasonably demanding and puts you behind on other (more profitable) projects. + +And what if you get four customers like that back to back? + +This is where you, as a freelancer, can end up in a world of pain and frustration. + +So be careful. + +### **Some Advantages of Project-Based Pricing** + +We’ve seen why clients like project rate. + +But what about freelancers? + +**Like per-word rates, project rates let you disguise quick work.** + +(Okay, my falafel analogy has kind of broken down at this point, but let’s say the guy ordered by phone and has no idea how hard you actually worked, or how long it actually took you, to put together his sandwich). + +**If you can _predict_ the amount of time the project will take you, then you can basically just price the job at a rate that guarantees your hourly.** + +So — if you’ve written five thousand press releases on a subject and a client asks you to write your five thousand and first, all you have to do is figure out how much to charge based on a near certitude (the amount of time it will take). + +But things don’t always work out this predictably in the real world of freelancing. + +### And The MAJOR — No Let’s Make That ENORMOUS — Disadvantage + +Let me be honest. + +There are a few projects that I have come to remember as absolute nightmares. + +Legitimate weeks-long disasters. + +Not because the client was inherently unpleasant or because I didn’t enjoy the work. + +I remember these experiences like a sense of revulsion rather because the thing scope creeped so far out of control that I had to wonder what universe the client could be living in that the request seemed reasonable to them. + +There are a few ways to avoid this: + + 1. **Have an ironclad contract.** My writing contract is sometimes superceded by my clients’, but it limits revisions to two rounds of “minor” changes affecting less than 25% of the text. Any more back and forths and it’s billed at an hourly. I also think it’s highly advisable to set a maximum time frame for revisions. When I was starting out, I once got a $100 blog post back for its third round of revisions ….._six months_ after the first draft was tendered. + 2. **Pick your clients carefully.** Exploitative clients are out there. So are eminently unreasonable ones. And so are staggeringly cheap ones. All will have an absolute field day with a freelancer they can get to write a project for a fixed rate — and force to work on it for eternity. + +### Finally — A Word About Retainers + +You may be wondering where retainers fit into this schema. + +Yes, those lofty pinnacles of freelancing success and the dream of a (partially) steady monthly income. + +Here are some quick thoughts on them (and they are, of course, great). + + * **They have the same potential for scope creep as per-project fees:** Businesses that make a living out of retainers, such as PR agencies, are unscrupulous about telling their clients when they’ve run out of hours. Whatever you sell a fixed quantity of your time as a freelancer, you should too. + * **They have the same potential advantage as per-word rates:** I don’t advocate trying to make a quick buck out of anybody. I advocate _always_ ensuring that you make a sustainable living that meets your financial needs. But retainers can also be ‘gamed’ by those that can dupe their clients into thinking that they’re working a lot harder — or for a lot longer — than they actually are. + +### Go With What Works For You … Or Pick A Combo + +Sorry to end this so insipidly, but my only real advice around _this_ aspect of freelance financials (I’ll discuss rates themselves and rates for specific projects separately later) is to do what works for you. + +What do I do? + +Simple — I keep my target hourly spreadsheet at the forefront of my mind and I build all my proposals around it (although more often than not, they end up being flat-fees to meet clients’ needs). + +I find the idea of hourly rates extremely appealing because — at the end of the day — nothing stresses me out as much as the prospect of not making enough money to survive. + +But as I said — clients have justifiable reasons for being reluctant to agree to them. They have to control expenses just as we do. + +Although given that I have seen both flat project fees spin nightmareously out of scope control and seemingly envious per-word rates degraded to the bargain basement fees you can hopefully understand the slight fear I feel whenever I hit the send button on a proposal based around them. + +**I would suggest that a great trick (if your clients will agree to it) is to use a combination of the two.** + +The pricing structure I mentioned earlier (a 1,000 article for X; up to two changes; and further revisions billed hourly) is actually a hybrid flat fee / hourly fee pricing structure. + +The few times I’ve had to charge the hourly it actually ended up feeling like a totally worthwhile experience. + +I’ve no problem with a team that wants to get this blog / white paper / ebook 100% right — so long as I’m being fairly compensated for my part in the effort. + +If you’ve any thoughts to offer / advice feel [free to drop me a line by email.](http://www.danielrosehill.co.il) + +Thanks for reading — and happy pricing! + +### The Cheat Sheet — Downloadable + diff --git a/posts/medium/Freelancers-Beware--That-Sales-Opportunity---It-Could-Be-A-Corporate-Spy.md b/posts/medium/Freelancers-Beware--That-Sales-Opportunity---It-Could-Be-A-Corporate-Spy.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cc47e74552f714fb48a2c2c13c3b237ef715695c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Freelancers-Beware--That-Sales-Opportunity---It-Could-Be-A-Corporate-Spy.md @@ -0,0 +1,127 @@ +# Freelancers Beware: That Sales Opportunity … It Could Be A Corporate Spy + +#### Petty as it may be, consultants and freelancers who get on the phone with everybody could be setting themselves up as unpaid sources of intelligence + +A lesson many long-term freelancers will sadly have to learn the hard way: mixed in with genuine people who want to do business with you are those just looking to score some free advice — or intelligence — that they think will help them or their companies. Photo by [Noelle Otto](https://www.pexels.com/@noellegracephotos?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/photography-of-person-peeking-906018/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +During the course of the past six years or so, I’ve encountered quite a variety of prospects who got on the phone in order to hear about how I could solve their marketing problems. + +During the early years, to buffer my other growth methods, I relied partially upon outbound marketing: namely cold prospecting (was it always fun? No it wasn’t!). Lots and lots of calls, emails, and Zoom meetings. + +As time has gone on, I’ve been able to diversify that to different channels: namely receiving referrals from previous clients and generating a pipeline of inbound leads. Less Zoom meetings with more qualified and interested prospects. But enough that it’s still important to know where I stand before speaking to somebody. + +Am I where I’d like to be in terms of automatic lead generation? Not quite yet. Although I’m a good deal closer than where I was when I set out. + +### The Meetings That Just Seem A Bit ‘Off’ + +Over the course of too many introductory Zoom calls to count, I’ve encountered several first meetings that just seemed a bit off. On a visceral level, they tipped off my gut instinct — always the best barometer when trying to judge others’ intentions. On a logical level too, they rarely made sense. They happened. They were weird. And they usually had me scratching my head wondering ‘what was _that_ about’? + +Some of these, even years later, stand out. + +There was that sales startup that seemed intent on unpacking my sales process for no apparent reason. What CRM was I using? How did I qualify my leads? What would an average lead lifetime value look like to me? + +In the context of what we were talking about, these conversations made zero sense. Wasn’t this about _me_ selling something? Because I’m interested in sales tech — and was green — I indulged the line of interrogation for 10 minutes before bidding the “prospect” a firm goodbye. I never heard back from them. + +Then there was that _one_ time — thankfully there have been many it went well — when another marketer abused the peer to peer slot on my Calendly (I keep a dedicated slot for such conversations). + +After a few minutes of courteous introductions the questions came in fast and furious: where do you get your clients from? How much are you charging for this? This time I cut off the questioner at two. This wasn’t the type of conversation I was interested in having. Sorry. Goodbye. + +While it may seem silly to use the language of espionage to describe something involving freelancing/consulting, I don’t see it in such terms. If we take this form of ‘intelligence’ gathering to mean valuable information that isn’t available through public channels (but rather human sources in the industry), then that’s exactly what these faux “prospects” are seeking to tap into. + +The above attempts may be easy to spot. They’re crude. They’re overly aggressive. And when you consider the questions in the broader context of the conversation you’re having, they stick out like a sore thumb. + +But there’s another type of prospect that’s far more tactful about how they go about trying to leverage your advice for free. + +These are the ones you need to be careful about. And others too. Here are a few caricatures from the very abridged war stories chest. + +### The Free Consulting Seeker + +There are many purposes to a call assessing your suitability for a project. Or an introductory call. + +As business owners are frequently being reminded, these are two way tangos. If you’re (hopefully) in the position to be able to afford to do so, you’re interviewing the prospective client to see if you’d like to work with them too. + +Is this a client you’re confident about your ability to bring value to? Can you really rock this project? Might they be a useful referral that could send in a testimonial and pipe you into new business opportunities? + +And some more questions: + +Do they have a clearly identified need for your services, a definite timeline for rollout, and are you speaking to somebody with authority to sign off on this project (or if not, who’s needed and how long might that process take?) These are all typical questions that straddle the divide between generally feeling the prospect out and engaging in some classical sales qualifying. + +In return, you can expect the prospect to do something similar. + +As you size them up, they’ll be considering you as a candidate for this project. + +They might want to know what previous experience you have that could help you make sure that this project is a success. What unique vision could you bring to the team through your contributions here? Etc. + +**This is fine. But when an invisible line is crossed, it’s quite suddenly not.** + +**It’s okay to ask you about why you might be a “good fit” in general terms. But the moment the client begins to ask for specific recommendations about what you’d do here or what you’d recommend for this project … we’ve already crossed into the realm of fishing for free information.** + +This is somebody looking for free consulting. Whether they realize that that’s what they’re doing or not, it also speaks seriously to somebody who doesn’t respect the value of another professional’s time. And that, in turn, bodes to a difficult client. One you’ll probably have a hard time working with. Even if you successfully parry back against the attempt, your limits — like here — will be constantly being tested. + +It’s also _incredibly_ easy to gaslight yourself at this juncture. I mean before they’d hire me they’d have to see if I could do something useful here, right? (Your brain might say). + +Yes. They can do that all right. By offering money in exchange for a trial project. + +Cut off any attempt at “picking your brain” that isn’t going to be compensated. Put your best foot forward. Explain — generally — why this work engages you and why you think you’d be a great fit for the project. But save the actual process of suggesting things for when you’re actually receiving compensation for your mental efforts. + +### The Dude Building Out A Spreadsheet To Assess Market Rate For Your Service + +Corporate spies aren’t always simply fishing for information that could directly help their business in the here and now. + +Sometimes they’re engaged in what you could consider more desk research projects. + +Such as Mr. A. + +Mr. A was one of my leads during the first few years of freelancing. + +Unlike now (hopefully) I didn’t do a proper lead qualification process before deciding to “hop on” the phone for a “quick call.” (They’re always quick calls. Until your entire afternoon has been sunk into them and not a single prospect comes through.) + +The call went reasonably well (if you consider how well an under-qualified call can go). Until Mr. A asked for something unusual. + +The last 40 minutes during which we had discussed my pricing, capabilities, and service levels? Well, it turns out that I was just a data point in some kind of market research survey. + +Mr. A mentioned that he had been compiling a survey of providers in this space. Would I kindly fill it out after we had concluded the meeting? He sent it over alright. There were 20 other respondents. + +Perhaps they were all vying for this (small) chunk of business that Mr. A was holding over our heads like a carrot (which would have given me a none-too-stalwart 5% fighting chance at landing the contract). My guess is that he was simply trying to figure out market rate and going way overboard with the field research. + +Either way this isn’t a lead that I should have gotten on the phone to. You live and learn. + +### You May Get Played. And Then You’ll Learn To Be A Skeptic. + +If you’re new to the freelance game or still don’t believe that humans could stoop to such shenanigans in order to get something valuable (actionable advice) without having to proffer any hard currency for it then … it may take being played for you to understand that this _is_ a real thing. + +Is it the biggest problem plaguing today’s crop of freelancers? I don’t think so. Do we need to regard every lead that drifts into our inbox as first and foremost a hostile entity and qualify them aggressively until they prove themselves to be sincere? That would probably be a really bad idea too. + +But equally I believe that this is an issue that doesn’t receive the attention it deserves within the freelancing, consulting, and self-employed communities (there are differences between those terms, but we share so many of the same struggles). It may smack many as paranoid. But my experience teaches that it really isn’t. + +How will you know when you’ve been played? One way is to get yourself organized. + +Keep track of the sales prospects and calls that you hold — a CRM is preferable but a spreadsheet’s probably good enough. You’ll probably want to refrain from offering detailed advice to any unpaying lead going forward. But you may well have done that in the past. Perhaps many times, even. So you have some retrospective data to work with. + +Now ask yourself how many of those leads went on to be clients? Do you remember what you recommended to them? + +If it’s something specific — say, a tact you think they should have taken in their marketing — then go back to the point in time you had that interaction. + +Did they, perchance, decide to take your great recommendation and roll with it in-house? Perhaps they even took your suggestions and farmed it out to somebody on Upwork to save the business a little bit of cash? + +If you do this a few times you may see — at least once — definite evidence of a company that talked to you, picked your brain (as a test of course) and then decided to leverage the advice while never even having the courtesy to let you know. + +It will leave the bitterest of bitter tastes if you find out that the answer was ‘yes’ (trust me, I’m talking from experience here). But it will also make you a lot more reluctant to fall for the gaffe again — no matter how charming the lead or adamant that the company is planning on using you for a project (they just need to hear your specific ideas for this campaign in order to validate that you’re really ‘the one’ for the job.) + +Petty corporate espionage is petty. You can argue with the naming convention I’ve followed here and tell me that corporate espionage is when cut throat industrialists from some far off land arrange a site visit in order to steal some trade secrets that could be worth millions. + +I’d argue that there are widely varying degrees of it — like any field of human endeavor. But also that it’s really a thing. + +As the quintessential ‘lone wolves’ of the commercial world, freelancers are extremely vulnerable to this kind of exploitation. + +Great prospects are out there. But so are deadbeat and devious ones without a shred of ethical integrity. And it’s this latter group you need to be on your guard against. + +People like the pre-seed funded startup founder who doesn’t have money to invest in marketing yet but who knows that if he feigns interest in a gullible freelancer he’ll be able to get some great ideas that he can get his nephew to work on for free. It may all seem a bit far-fetched. Until it happens to you. + +By all means talk to leads. + +But know when you have to very firmly draw the line between what you’re willing to discuss at the pre-sales stage and what you’re willing to talk about — and do —only after the contract has been inked and you’re getting paid. + +Sadly, there are exploitative people and businesses in the world. + +But by protecting itself you can avoid shutting out the good faith actors. diff --git a/posts/medium/Freelancing-Is-Hard--But-Accepting-That-Makes-It-So-Much-Easier-.md b/posts/medium/Freelancing-Is-Hard--But-Accepting-That-Makes-It-So-Much-Easier-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d81c39bc2b6c8fcb10d6e7275ae35fd9d2ce6abc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Freelancing-Is-Hard--But-Accepting-That-Makes-It-So-Much-Easier-.md @@ -0,0 +1,76 @@ +# Freelancing Is Hard. But Accepting That Makes It So Much Easier. + +#### Accepting hard work while hoping for an easier future aren’t mutually exclusive mindsets + +If you’re finding freelancing a grind, you mightn’t be doing anything “wrong”. Photo: Faizur Rehman (Via Unsplash) + +About one year ago to this day, I made a major mindset shift. + +I decided to (try to) stop feeling sorry for myself for working very hard in order to make my freelance writing business succeed. + +This small change has actually been one of the most powerful changes that I have made to date — at least in the realm of mindset. + +**Whether you’re a freelance writer or a freelance graphic designer or anything else, I think there’s enormous power in accepting the normality of this being hard.** + +Note: + +That’s not intended to glamorize working unreasonable hours. It’s not intended to play into the culture of hustle bragging that is unfortunately becoming rampant. You can both accept the difficulty of freelancing in the present while aspiring that it will get easier in the future. + +Instead, it’s a proposal that by _accepting_ the fact that working really hard might be required to make freelancing work — at least for a period — you can: + + * Stop feeling sorry about yourself + * Stop feeling angry towards yourself or like a failure + * Let go of the feeling that you’re doing something ‘wrong’ by getting normal results in exchange for + +And these are two enormously powerful mindset changes. + +Lest you need further convincing, here are a few reasons why if you’re a freelancer who’s working really hard just to get by …. you mightn’t necessarily by doing anything wrong. + +### If You’re Staying In Business, You’re Doing Pretty Well + +[René Junge](https://medium.com/u/d855be749e6c) recently published a nice piece entitled [Being A Full Time Writer Makes You A Unicorn.](https://medium.com/the-full-time-writer/being-a-full-time-writer-makes-you-a-unicorn-bd410d23f236) + +It’s a fact that’s _really_ easy to forget when you’re actually …out there being a full time writer. + +Being a writer is challenging. In a profession with relatively low barriers to entry, many of us face enormous pressure to charge progressively lower rates for progressively more difficult services. + +Of course, there’s also the fact that … there’s currently a pandemic going on in the world. + +Yes, growth is wonderful and it’s good to aim high. But if all you’re doing right now is paying the rent/mortgage and keeping food on the table, through your freelancing, I think it’s fair to say there’s a good chance that you’re doing pretty darn well for yourself. + +### Lots Of Freelancers Work (Really) Hard To Make It Work + +There are a few truisms that virtually every millennial has now heard of: + + * Tim Ferris once wrote a book entitled _The Four Hour Workweek_ which teaches people how to move towards more abbreviated working schedules + * Work harder, not smarter + +As above, black and white thinking is a massively easy fallacy to fall into as a freelancer. But life isn’t binary. You can both: + + * Work crazy long hours now + * Aspire to work shorter hours in the future + +Over the years, I’ve amassed a network of freelancing friends — some from real life and some from the internet. What the more successful ones all have in common — besides talent — is an insanely strong work ethic. + +I’m not suggesting that you won’t find the odd freelancer who manages to make an enormous income while only working two days a week. + +But if you do, I’m willing to venture a bet that he/she worked hard to get to that point. + +I’m also willing to bet that they are the exception rather than the rule — it’s just that those pulling the working-really-hard-to-make-this-work routine tend to be less vocal about their businesses. + +Freelancing is hard. Working really hard to keep going at it is pretty normal. You don’t need to feel bad about yourself, or like a failure, if you’re doing that. + +### Freelancing Is Inherently Challenging + +If you’re wondering why the above is so, just consider the fact that freelancing is almost built to be hard. + +Not really, of course, but if you consider the pros and cons versus salaried work you start to understand why it can be a challenging way to make a living: + + * Companies often use freelancers to plug gaps in their labor force. This means that they’ll pick you up and drop you as they need which makes life a little unpredictable for you the freelancer. + * The above means that — unless you constantly have people coming to you — marketing and sales activities are kind of necessary parts of the job of being a freelancer. + * You’re also expected to be able to figure out how to run a micro business; how to file taxes; how to log expenses; how to do whatever it is that you’re doing; etc. + * As a freelancer you get no benefits. Unless you’re able to figure out a way to work those into your compensation — and you should — you run the risk of never being able to step back from your business. + +Freelancing is, in general, a really hard way to make a living. Therefore, making an outsized effort to make an ordinary income is relatively commonplace, at least during the early years. + +I have found that accepting the reality of hard work in the present — while hoping things will get easier in the future — to be extremely helpful. And remember, if that’s your reality, you’re far from alone. diff --git a/posts/medium/From-freelance-to-freelance-remote--the-next-stage-of-my-journey.md b/posts/medium/From-freelance-to-freelance-remote--the-next-stage-of-my-journey.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4962c0d7a8d53dcba49b23c11ea7a2a395775851 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/From-freelance-to-freelance-remote--the-next-stage-of-my-journey.md @@ -0,0 +1,52 @@ +# From freelance to freelance-remote: the next stage of my journey + +#### The shift towards remote and hybrid provides an exciting opportunity for professionals to reshape the contours of their working lives + +The webcam office seems entrenched as the future of work. Photo: PX Here. + +I posted recently to my LinkedIn profile that I’m beginning the next evolution of my journey through self-employment (I’ll shortly be hitting the three year milestone!). + +Although I’ll have to be murky and refrain from offering too many details, I’m joining a team on a remote and most-time basis (note: that term is my invention for an arrangement that’s reasonably close to full time). + +Freelancing has been an extremely exciting journey to date. + +While the hours are exhausting and I’ve occasionally pulled out small patches of hair in frustration (NET 90!?), I’ve slowly grown my income since I set out doing this. + +It’s also given me the opportunity to work with clients from many different countries which has also been a very interesting experience. + +I’m based in Israel and have become a huge advocate for doing business internationally (really … it’s not hard). It — and remote and hybrid work setups — are the way forward. Or so I believe. + +[**How to Work With The World — From Israel** + _At the crossroads of Africa, Asia, and Europe, Israel is uniquely positioned on the geopolitical map._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569) + +Over the last year and a half of freelancing, I’ve been focusing on two business challenges. + +Anybody following my Freelance Writing publication here on Medium has probably read my thoughts around them: + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + + * **How do I get clients to understand that I can do a lot more than writing?** Solution: expand my service offering and sell it to clients. + * **How do I make the marketing and sales side of things less time-consuming?** Inbound marketing has taken a _lot_ of the pressure off my pipeline development (I haven’t done outbound prospecting in over a year). But I still spend a significant amount of time talking to leads — and nurturing them — to make sure that my book of business remains full and anybody that leaves is replaced … ideally before everything falls apart at the seams. + +How do I feel about the next step in this evolution? + +Firstly, and most importantly, I’m excited to be working with an organization whose mission statement I believe in and to which I believe I can make a positive contribution. + +I’m excited to be stepping up the collaborative aspects of teamwork that are less prominent in freelancing. As anyone who has done both will tell you (I worked in-house before taking up freelancing) working _with_ other professionals can be more rewarding than working _for_ an account manager or client. + +I’m also excited to be joining a team that believes in the power of remote (and hybrid). In fact, facilitating that for _other_ organizations is a part of its service offering. + +I’m _also_ extremely excited that I will be spending more time _working o_ n the type of work I enjoy doing and less time on business development, invoicing, and all the other bits and pieces that go into making a full time freelancing business keep ticking over. + +Having built an inbound lead pipeline is great — it took an entire summer of creating landing pages and optimizing a website for SEO. But I’ll be stepping back a little from all those Zoom calls and emails because .. my bandwidth has almost been reached. + +This will also hopefully give me a little bit more ability to set up a proper work life balance. I’m currently having enormous fun learning the ropes of making videos by starting a YouTube channel. + +While there are challenges inherent in freelancing, I also believe that this is a _great_ time to be interested in self-employment and remote and hybrid work. + +There’s a tremendous openness at the moment on the part of organizations to explore creative ways to develop and retain optimal teams for their businesses — rather than those available from a specific locality, with its nexus as “the office.” + +This creates a huge opportunity for professionals to reshape the traditional contours of their professional lives. And to live wherever works best for their _life_ — and not just for their career. + +As a freelance-remote hybrid, I’m excited, along with so many others, to be navigating these exciting new changes first-hand. diff --git a/posts/medium/Functional-Dyspepsia--FD---A-Conversation-With-Prof--Nicholas-Talley--Transcript-.md b/posts/medium/Functional-Dyspepsia--FD---A-Conversation-With-Prof--Nicholas-Talley--Transcript-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..08f5b45436044f6cc4c000a1bccb85fa75eb1930 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Functional-Dyspepsia--FD---A-Conversation-With-Prof--Nicholas-Talley--Transcript-.md @@ -0,0 +1,122 @@ +# Functional Dyspepsia (FD): A Conversation With Prof. Nicholas Talley (Transcript) + +#### What medical science currently understands about this mysterious but highly prevalent condition + +The following is a transcript of the conversation that I had about functional dyspepsia (FD) with leading Australian gastroenterologist Prof. Nicholas Talley yesterday. + +Prof. Talley answered a number of questions sent in about FD by a Facebook community consisting of many patients. To watch the full interview, see the clip below: + +[**Functional Dyspepsia (FD): Insights For Patients With Professor Nicholas Talley** + _Internationally renowned neurogastroenterologist and researcher Nicholas Talley answer some of the hot-button questions…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/functional-dyspepsia-fd-insights-for-patients-with-professor-nicholas-talley-4a9844c4d74b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/functional-dyspepsia-fd-insights-for-patients-with-professor-nicholas-talley-4a9844c4d74b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/functional-dyspepsia-fd-insights-for-patients-with-professor-nicholas-talley-4a9844c4d74b) + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So firstly, Professor Talley, thank you for taking the time to do this interview. I hope that for a lot of people with functional dyspepsia this is going to be invaluable. The Rome Foundation which I would love to mention also because I know that not a lot of people — or at least some people — don’t know about them. I’d love to get your take on where the research is now because we [FD patients] kind of feel that it’s unclear exactly what’s happening. There’s a lot of confusion regarding treatment. And people’s doctors trying SSRI drugs and amitriptyline. And the other drugs. And much confusion I think is probably the best way to summarize it! So, you’ve done I know extensive research into the gut brain connection and functional disorders. So, I’d love to know what you have to say about all this. + +**Nicholas Talley:** Thanks very much for the invitation to join you. I appreciate that. I hope that this will be of some value to people who suffer with this condition, or their families. Because this is really common. Functional dyspepsia affects at least one in ten people around the world. So it’s remarkably common. And what’s exciting is that I think the research really is advancing in this field. We’re starting to understand what’s going on in functional dyspepsia. + +I think the word ‘functional’ is going to be discarded by the next Rome iteration of the criteria for diagnosis. Because it’s not functional! In many, many cases. It’s really almost certainly related to some pathology in what’s called the small intestine. + +Very common condition. We know how to diagnose it. People present with feeling uncomfortable, full, bloated after they eat. Often there’s a bit of pain as well — not always but often in the stomach area. And it can be quite distressing. Some people can live with these symptoms. Other people are really distressed and it really effects them and it’s pretty severe. + +Normally when we look down into the stomach and the upper part of the small intestine it looks normal. Which led to this concept of _“well, there’s some problem with the muscles or the nerves or the motor function, or the sensory function, but there’s no real pathology going on.”_ That was the story that people believed for nearly one hundred years. But we now know that when you take samples, tissue samples, when you look down with an endoscope, you can actually find evidence of pathology — particularly in the upper small intestine. + +And that’s been the exciting shift in thinking. + +Because once that was discovered (and I’m very proud of my group because we really put this on the map). Once this was discovered we recognized that this is inflammation — a special kind of inflammation — that’s probably related to the symptoms. It’s certainly related to the damage you see — the small intestine’s leaky, which is one of the abnormalities. We know that nerves get damaged — probably from the inflammation that’s occurring. And that means we have a target or targets to provide some treatments that really might make a difference. + +We also know the bacteria in this part of the gut (the small intestine) is disturbed. There is a change in the bacteria and that’s also probably involved in the condition. And sometimes people develop these after a bout of gastroenteritis. You know when you get really crook _(note: Australian slang: ill!)_ after something you eat that’s really infected with something. Or you catch a bacteria and you get vomiting and diarrhea and become really unwell for a couple of days. That’s acute gatroenteritis. And that can set off functional dyspepsia. So it’s an exciting time in terms of this condition because not only can we diagnose it now. But we have pathology. And we have new treatments. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** That’s very exciting! To hear that — I think that’s encouraging to a lot of people who feel like FD is a dustbin diagnosis. It’s great to know. Do you think that kind of understanding of where your research groups are with functional dyspepsia has trickled down to your average gastroenterologist? Or do you think there’s still a lot of misconceptions among family doctors? And perhaps more regional gastros about functional dyspepsia still being psychosomatic? + +**Nicholas Talley:** We discovered this pathology in 2007 or that’s when we published it. But it’s taken a long time for people to start to accept and for other studies to confirm some of our initial observations. It always does when you have a big change in thinking. But it’s now starting to trickle down. It hasn’t trickled all the way down don’t get me wrong. But it’s starting to trickle down. And these ideas are starting to become more accepted and the approach is starting to change slowly. But I can take you through the treatments that we have available right now. What works and what doesn’t. And I can take you through some of the emerging treatments that we’re now likely to see very soon. I’m happy to do that. But clearly the good news is that this condition, this common often debilitating condition, often a very chronic condition — it stays with people for long periods of time. The good news is that we see a real way forward. And ultimately with luck a cure for this condition is on the horizon. Which is very, very exciting. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Amazing! So just before we get into treatments I just want to ask one quick question. So there’s two subtypes of functional dyspepsia. The epigastric pain syndrome and the postprandial distress. Do you think the distinction between those two types in terms of the underlying pathology and treatment approaches is very different? Or is it really just different manifestations of one disease? + +**Nicholas Talley:** So, it’s a little bit complex. The postprandial distress syndrome is the syndrome where you eat something and you get crook. You’re unwell. You get fullness, bloating, discomfort, pain sometimes. That’s postprandial distress syndrome. And that’s where the pathology that I described. That inflammation in the small intestine is most strongly linked. There’s another group with epigastric pain. That’s pain just above the breastbone. And that group is more complex. It’s a much smaller group. It’s not always related to eating. It’s probably a different disease actually. But that is a much less common syndrome than the postprandial distress group. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** That’s actually extremely interesting. Because in this Facebook group I mentioned the people with a lot of pain complaints are over-represented. So I wonder if the people with bloating just kind of put up with it. Because as you say it can be incredibly debilitating. Let’s get into treatment in terms of what we have at the moment. In terms of the treatment options. And I guess what’s coming in the drug development and research pipeline. + +**Nicholas Talley:** First line therapy, and it’s been first line therapy for quite some time ever since we did clinical trials on this, are proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). These are acid suppressing medications often used for reflux disease, for heartburn for example, for peptic ulcer disease. So it’s a common group of drugs. Commonly used. What’s really interesting is that they work in functional dyspepsia no doubt about that. And what’s really fascinating is they’re anti-inflammatory. They reduce this small intestinal inflammation that you see on those biopsies. + +And we believe, on the basis of accumulating evidence, that the fact the reason they work is because they suppress this inflammation — not because they’re acid suppressing medications. So that would be first line therapy. They’re safe drugs relatively. Can be used long term if required. Can be used as needed. Also works for some people. There can be side effects. Any drug can have side effects. But relatively safe compared to many medications that we use. So that’s a good drug to start with and I always start with that drug. Not everybody responds. There’s no doubt about that. And some people do not respond. So that’s what you do first. First line medication. + +If that fails, your next medication that you can think about is what’s called prokinetics drugs. A drug that accelerates the movement of material from the stomach and the small intestine. And there is some evidence that some people with these symptoms just will respond to this group of drugs. There are many different prokinetic drugs around the world. The problem is the benefits are relatively small. And the drugs available around the world vary pretty significantly. So depends on which country you’re in as to what’s available. So in Australia very limited options. In the United States, very limited options. In Asia, more options. We can come back to that. But that’s a group of drugs that I’ve used and can be helpful as an additional therapy. Sometimes you add that on to the proton pump inhibitor drugs. + +Another option is what’s called an antidepressant drug. Now this is not being used for depression. This is being used to help the gut work better and have less sensation going in the wrong direction. + +Because one of the problems with this disease is that the gut’s very sensitive. And these drugs are meant to tone down that sensitivity. The best evidence is with a very old class of antidepressants in low doses — non anti-depressant doses — called the tricyclic antidepressants. So amitriptyline’s one of those tricyclic antidepressants. And in low dose they’re well tolerated, safe relatively, and some people find them marvelous therapy. Some people really respond very well. Some people do not respond. It’s unfortunately a little bit hit and miss. But it certainly does work. + +Some of the other antidepressants — the evidence is less clear that they really have a benefit. For example the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Prozac is one of those — and it doesn’t work. It doesn’t work in functional dyspepsia (FD). Whether you’re depressed or not it doesn’t help the stomach symptoms. So I think that’s important. + +There are some certain other medications that can help some people. We use those sometimes as additional therapies. So that’s the drug side of it. + +But I want to emphasize to people that diet probably makes a real difference. + +And that’s because we believe that foods set off this syndrome in some people. Actually probably drive the inflammation in some people. So diet is a very important and understudied component. + +But what kind of diets may work? A gluten free diet works for some people. We need to understand that better — we don’t know a lot about it. Seems to help some people. Some people would use an elimination diet. Certain foods that they eliminate. There’s evidence that again gluten and nuts and fish and a few other things. Eliminating those helps some people’s symptoms and leads to relief. And then finally a diet that’s low in what are called FODMAPS can help some people as well. So we don’t know as much about diet in this condition. But we’re really beginning to learn about it. But there’s no doubt that diet can help. And seeing an expert dietitian or a nutritionist can be very beneficial for some patients. I send almost all my patients to a dietitian to help manage the patient with me. + +So diet’s important. Medications can help. And then stress reduction helps some people as well. Probably stress aggravates the symptoms doesn’t cause them. But if you’re really under a lot of stress it can be helpful to deal with that issue as well. And we believe that the inflammation may be one of the drivers of increased anxiety in some people with this condition. That they have increased anxiety and that’s driven from the gut. And that’s a really important piece of information two. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Absolutely fascinating this idea of a two way process. Gut symptoms causing psychological symptoms and vice versa. So if you found somebody who had let’s say developed depression or anxiety as a result of this condition, would your approach also to be used those older tricyclics or to go for the SSRIs and SNRIs and the more modern psychiatric drugs? + +**Nicholas Talley:** It depends on the situation, obviously. + +If there’s depression. And lots of people get depression. And it’s a very common problem. Then that needs treatment. And we will treat that with one of the newer drugs for example that treat depression as part of the treatment approach. If there isn’t a depression per se then we will probably use something like the tricyclics to settle things down while we’re also working on the dietary approach. And perhaps some of the other treatments that I just talked about. Some people do need combination treatments. Because they have a longstanding dysfunction of their gut. And it takes a while for them to get back into the more normal functionality. + +There is some evidence that also you can treat the microbes in the gut that are probably relevant to this condition. So you can suppress microbes and we know that there’s use of what’s called a non absorbable antibiotic. A drug called rifixamin can be helpful for some people with this condition. For probiotics, there’s less evidence about benefits. Probably there are some cases. But we’re not quite sure what the best probiotic is — so that makes it a little bit complex to treat. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Is there any connection between small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) and functional dyspepsia? + +**Nicholas Talley:** There’s good evidence that people with functional dyspepsia have increased small intestinal bacterial overgrowth. + +We don’t know if that’s a primary condition — in other words whether the bacteria are driving the syndrome. Or whether it’s related to more to the fact that the muscles and the nerves don’t work properly and that means that you get bacteria growing more than you would expect. But we certainly recognize the association. + +And there’s more work going on to sort out which bacteria specifically may be relevant. That’s a lot of the work that we’re doing now, we’ve got very exciting work ongoing in this space. With the goal of course of treating bacteria that really matter. And specifically targeting those to relieve the syndrome. And I think we’re going to see some really interesting approaches there in the very near future. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** One of the interesting questions I got from Facebook: is there a connection between functional dyspepsia and autoimmunity? + +**Nicholas Talley:** So the answer is almost certainly yes — interestingly. + +So we’ve done some work in this. We know that associations of functional dyspepsia include atopic disease like asthma and allergic rhinitis. And that was a little bit of a surprise. Nobody had really found that out before. But there’s absolutely no doubt about those associations. And a weaker association, but still important, with autoimmune disease, rheumatoid diseases in particular. + +And we don’t fully understand that linkage. But we suspect that again there is auto-antibody product probably from the inflammatory process. That’s what we suspect is going on. Possibly driven by the bacteria that I’m talking about that may change. + +So if that’s true and that’s a hypothesis we’re still testing and following then that’s really exciting as well. Because it might imply that we might be able to treat certain autoimmune diseases as well through the gut. So pretty stimulating stories are coming out from the work being done. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** In terms of the drug pipeline. This drug that I wrote to you in an email, acotiamide. That and other drugs. What are things looking like in terms of what’s coming down in the pipeline? + +**Nicholas Talley:** So acotiamide is a very interesting drug. + +It’s available in Japan and India only to the best of my knowledge at the present time. It’s being tested in clinical trials. It is able to do something that’s very important. It relaxes the stomach. Which actually allows that feeling of fullness and uncomfortableness and pain to sort of settle right down. + +And we think the reason the stomach doesn’t relax properly is that the small intestine affects the stomach and that’s why the stomach doesn’t relax. + +So the drug works by not working on the small intestine — it works on the stomach. And it’s very effective. The clinical trials suggest that some people will even get complete symptom resolution — the symptoms will go away. Not everybody. It’s a small number. But those who too do very, very well. So it’s a good drug. I don’t have any clinical experience with it myself as it’s not available to me in Australia or in the United States. But it’s certainly a drug that I think may end up becoming more widely available. And it seems to be reasonably well tolerated which is again a good piece of information. + +So that’s a new drug. Relatively new. That is actually available in some places. + +There are other drugs that target the inflammation in the small intestine. + +They turn off the inflammation. And so there are some really interesting new drugs that can literally switch it off. They look very promising. Not only for the inflammation but also for the symptoms that people develop with this syndrome. There’s a lot of work going on in this area. A number of companies have worked to develop drugs that will follow this line. And I think that looks very exciting. Particularly for people with really severe functional dyspepsia. That’s the group that you target these drugs to. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** The million dollar question for sufferers is: obviously there’s a clinical trial process. There are also processes for FDA and EMA approval. These things sound wonderful. But how long is it going to be before our local gastroenterologist can take out his prescription pad and write us a prescription for acotiamide or these small intestine modulators? + +**Prof. Talley** : So look it does take a little while for these things to work through the systems. It takes some years to get through the clinical trial program. There are a couple of trial programs underway right now — a couple of really quite close to finishing. That is exciting because it could lead to earlier approval. Because they’re already well-advanced. But it depends on the results of those studies of course to see where they end up. + +So I think we’re a little way away from that. In the meantime, repurposing drugs already available is work that we’re doing and other groups are doing. To see whether we can make a difference with drugs that are already available. Again, don’t forget that diet is a very important piece of this. And that’s cheap, safe, and available! So again, very important for people. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** There’s a lot of overlap in the group between people suffering from GERD and IBS. Is there any link between these two? + +**Prof Talley:** Almost certainly there is a connection. + +People with functional dyspepsia are more likely to have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Particularly IBS-D. They’re more likely to have GERD with bad heartburn. We know they’re linked. + +But what’s really interesting is that this small intestinal inflammation looks like it’s one of the drivers for some of these patients with these other conditions. And what’s exciting about this is that this means that we may have some new treatment options for these diseases too. And that’s an enormous number of people around the world who might benefit from new approaches. + +So we’re very excited about this idea that because we know what’s going on at least in some patients with functional dyspepsia we might be able to make a real difference perhaps even a curative difference to patients with other conditions that are also remarkably common and burdensome. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Wow! Thank you, Nicholas, so thank you very much for your time. If I can speak for other people with FD I know that this interview, or I hope that this interview is going to be appreciated. + +Just to know that there is a growing understanding in terms of what causes this, treatment options, it’s very encouraging. So thank you very much for taking the time today to share your clinical experience and your research experience with me today. + +**Prof Talley:** So Daniel, thanks very much for having me. It’s been my pleasure. I hope my comments have given people some hope if nothing else about this condition and related conditions. It’s really exciting. What excites me in particular is the idea that we keep making advances that may change and make a real difference to people and patients. So thank you very much! diff --git a/posts/medium/Functional-Dyspepsia--FD---Insights-For-Patients-With-Professor-Nicholas-Talley.md b/posts/medium/Functional-Dyspepsia--FD---Insights-For-Patients-With-Professor-Nicholas-Talley.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1cfe4e89e1040b821486f592ccff5228bd6dedfa --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Functional-Dyspepsia--FD---Insights-For-Patients-With-Professor-Nicholas-Talley.md @@ -0,0 +1,145 @@ +# Functional Dyspepsia (FD): Insights For Patients With Professor Nicholas Talley + +#### Internationally renowned neurogastroenterologist and researcher Nicholas Talley answer some of the hot-button questions facing patients of this obscure but highly prevalent GI condition + +Two years ago, I underwent gallbladder removal surgery — a procedure known medically as a cholecystectomy. These days most, like mine, are done via minimally invasive keyhole (laparoscopic) means. + +Watch my interview with Prof. Nicholas Talley on YouTube. + +Like many patients, the evidence supporting my operation seemed flimsy — in fact, looking in retrospect, it still does. An ultrasound identified “stones” which seemed as likely a candidate as any other for the occasional ache in my upper right quadrant that had come and gone enough times that I asked my family doctor to check it out. + +Like most gallbladder patients, I was told a medical dogma that I suspect is going to, in time, come to be regarded as madness (much as we look in bafflement at how yesterday’s practicioners advocated for smoking or promoted the belief that various mental illnesses could be described to one’s humor.) + +The gallbladder, I was told, was an unnecessary organ. Removing it, I was told, would have almost no consequences whatsoever. The first surgeon I visited told me that I could even be back at work the very next day. Sadly — like many — I found out that this was more fantasy than truth. _(Medical science has recently been elucidating the full extent of the gallbladder’s important role in metabolism — the small appendage to our liver that was once considered a rather basic organ whose main function was to act as a storage reservoir for bile. Bile acids, apparently, are involved in the complex signalling process that helps control digestion. This is nice to know but of enormous irritation to those who, like me, are now bereft of the organ!)_ + +The weeks and months following the operation were marked, for me, by mysterious weigh gain, puking up bile (bile reflux gastritis is a common complication), and feeling like whatever liquids I drank sat in my stomach as if pondering their surroundings. Eventually they seemed to move in the direction of gravity. But not before they had spent what felt like an eternity sloshing around and giving me a good simulation for what I imagine pregnancy feels like for women. + +Over time, the bile puking thankfully abated (bile binders, thank you). The weight gain remains a problem although I’m seeing tentative signs that prefacing meals with the ingestion of animal bile seems to keep things a little more orderly. The one thing that hasn’t improved: those uncomfortable feelings of fullness. And bloating. To the women in my life: I am truly sorry if I ever dismissed this symptom. I have it frequently now. Along with periodic fantasies of piercing a hole in my stomach to deflate it. + +The diagnosis for this: postprandial functional dyspepsia also called postprandial distress syndrome (PDS). It’s remarkably common. But when it’s bad — highly debilitating. And to date treatment approaches have been limited. + +Like potentially many, I can avoid its curse almost entirely if I avoid all food and liquids. Fueled by Vyvanse, I did this for about six months (I was diagnosed with ADHD) — rolling with its appetite-curbing properties and eating only once a day before bed so that I would be unconscious when the bloating hit. Ultimately, however, I decided that it was time to join the rest of humanity and eat on a regular schedule (I was also permanently hangry and resembled in many ways a crazed drug addict). I’m happy to being enjoying breakfast again. But the FD returned with a vengeance as my caloric intake normalized. + +Two months ago, I decided that I needed to invest urgently in trying to find answers. Although I suspect I’ve always had a touch of it, for what I believe was the first time in my life, I had become clinically depressed — bloated into a state of defeatism about what life had in store for me. My only options seemed to be not eating or feeling miserable after anything I ate. I saw no way out from this misery. + +But with the first touches of hopeful encouragement from Wellbutrin, I began looking into my diet — and trying to read everything I could find online about what science knew about this condition. As I did, one name made a frequent appearance: Professor Nicholas J. Talley, a neurogastroenterologist based in the University of Newcastle in Australia. + +Seeing that Prof. Talley frequently shared his medical expertise with other professionals on YouTube, I dropped him a line to see if he might be interested in doing something more eye-level for us (bloated) laypeople. Graciously he agreed. Our talk is above. Below are some extracts from it. + +Functional dyspepsia: although the condition is remarkably common, treatment options to date have been limited. Professor Nicholas Talley, an Australian gastroenterologist, is one of those at the forefront of the movement to develop better treatment approaches for patients. Photo by [Dominika Roseclay](https://www.pexels.com/@punchbrandstock?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-photo-of-medicine-4099861/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +### “I Think The Word Functional Is Going To Be Discarded In The Next Iteration Of The Rome Criteria” + +The ‘functional’ in functional dyspepsia is used to indicate that the illness doesn’t have an immediately obvious organic cause. When doctors put endoscopes down the mouths of even those most badly effected by the disease, they have typically not found anything that would explain symptoms. + +Prof. Talley and his research groups, however, have found evidence of pathology in the small intestine. This finding has been confirmed by other researchers in the field of gastroenterology. + +Unfortunately many clinicians — among them some gastroenterologists — remain wed to the old-fashioned notion that functional dyspepsia (FD) is a purely psychosomatic condition. Prof. Talley said that it is taking time for an understanding of the evidence to permeate through the ranks of the medical community. But he said that he was not surprised by this fact — typically major changes in thinking take a while to become accepted (if Galileo were around, he would probably have a word to say about that). + +“I think the word functional is going to be discarded in the next iteration of the Rome criteria,” Prof Talley commented. “That’s because it’s not ‘functional’ in many, many cases. It’s really almost certainty related to some pathology in what’s called the small intestine.” + +“We now know that if you take tissue samples there’s a very good chance we’re going to find pathology. Particularly in the upper small intestine.” + +“That’s been an exciting shift in thinking. Once we discovered this, we were able to know that this kind of inflammation — a special kind of inflammation — probably was related to the symptoms and was certainly related to the damage you see in the small intestine.” + +“We know the nerves get damaged, probably as a result of the inflammation that’s occurring. And that means that we have targets for treatments that really could make a difference.” + +“We also know that the bacteria in this part of the gut is disturbed. There is change in the bacteria. And that’s probably also important in the condition. Sometimes this develops after a bout of gastroenteritis. It’s an exciting time for this condition. We have pathology and we have new treatments.” Talley later added: “Ultimately a cure for this condition is on the horizon which is very, very exciting.” + +### EPS and PPS Might Be Different Diseases + +I also wanted to ask Prof. Talley about the two FD variants. Is the distinction important? Are they even manifestations of the same disease? + +**Question:** There are two main variants of functional dyspepsia (FD): epigastric pain syndrome (EPS) and postprandial distress syndrome (PDS). Do you think that these two conditions probably share a common underlying pathology? And does that distinction really matter for treatment approaches? + +**Prof Talley:** It’s a little bit complex. The pathology I described in the small intestine is most strongly linked to that. For epigastric gain… that group is more complex. It’s a much smaller group. It’s not always related to eating. It’s probably a different condition actually. But that is a much less common symptom than the postprandial distress group.” + +### “PPIs Are Anti-Inflammatory [for FD patients]” + +Prof. Talley explained that proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) remain the first line treatments for functional dyspepsia (FD). + +But he said that their mechanism of action is related to their anti-inflammatory effect rather than because of the fact that they suppress stomach acid: + +“What’s fascinating is that PPIs are anti-inflammatory,” he said. + +“They reduce this small intestinal inflammation that you see on these biopsies. We believe, on the basis of accumulating evidence, that the reason they work is because they suppress this inflammation. Not because they’re acid suppressant medications.” + +### Antidepressant Drugs Work Because They Let the Work Gut Better And Give The Dysfunction A Chance To Simmer Down + +Prof. Talley touched upon the use of antidepressant medications for FD. + +“These drugs are used to help the gut work better and have less sensations going in the wrong direction. One of the problems with this condition is that the gut is very sensitive and these drugs [antidepressants] are meant to tone down that sensitivity.” + +“The best evidence is with an old class of antidepressants in low doses called the tryclyclic antidepressants (TCAs) like amitriptyline.” + +“Some people find them a marvelous therapy and really respond very well. Some people do not respond. It’s a little bit hit and miss.” + +“For some of the other antidepressants, the evidence is less clear that they really have a benefit. For example, SSRIs. And there are some other medications that can help sometimes and we use them as additional therapies.” + +### Dietary Interventions Can Help Reduce Inflammation For Certain Patient Groups + +Prof. Talley is a huge advocate for making dietary interventions and keeping a track of food-related symptoms as an adjunct to pharmacological treatment. + +“I want to emphasize to people that diet probably makes a real difference. That’s because we believe that foods set off this syndrome in some people. Actually probably drive the inflammation in some people. So diet is a very important and understudied component.” + +As Prof. Talley explained various diets have been proposed to alleviate FD. Common recommendations have included a low FODMAP diet, a gluten-free diet, an elimination diet, and a low fat approach. + +“I send almost all my patients to a dietitian to help them manage their eating,” Professor Talley said. + +“Diet’s important. Medication can help. And stress reduction as well. Stress can aggravate symptoms. It doesn’t likely cause them. But if you’re really under a lot of stress it can be helpful to deal with that issue as well.” + +Interestingly, Prof. Talley explained that the gut-brain connection runs both ways. Just as psychological problems such as mood disorders have long been recognized as causative or aggravating factors for GI problems, gut inflammation can impair mental health also. This is a problem that I can personally attest to: while my mood of late has been good, I was recently caught aback by a day long bloat-fest that left me feeling disgusting and … sad. + +“We believe that the inflammation may be one of the drivers of increased anxiety in some people with this condition. That they have anxiety. And this is actually being driven by the gut.” + +Prof Talley intimated that sometimes responses to treatment can be both multifaceted and slow: “Sometimes people have longstanding dysfunctions in their gut and it just takes a while for it to get into more normal ‘operation’. That’s just the way it is.” + +### The Microbiome Is Likely Involved, Although Organism-Based Treatments Remain Imperfect + +Another approach that seems logical based upon what Prof. Talley and his research groups have discovered about FD: attempting to alter the gut microbiome in order to try to bring gut bacteria back into balance. + +While the approach makes sense in theory, right now it seems as if there isn’t sufficient evidence to support a ‘surgical’ approach based upon specific microorganisms: + +“You can suppress certain microbes. Probiotics — there’s less evidence about their benefit. And we’re not sure what the best probiotic is [for FD]. So that makes them a little bit complex to treat.” + +### There’s Evidence Linking FD and SIBO Too + +There’s also evidence linking FD to small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) according to Prof. Talley: + +“There’s good evidence that people with FD have increased rates of SIBO. We don’t know if that’s a primary condition (ie, whether the bacteria are driving the syndrome). Or whether it’s related more to the fact that the muscles and nerves don’t work property and therefore you get bacteria growing more than you would expect. But we certainly recognized the association. There’s more work going on to sort out which bacteria specifically may be relevant.” + +### Is There A Connection Between FD And Autoimmunity? + +**Question:** Is there a connection between FD and autoimmunity? + +**Prof. Talley:** The answer is almost certainly yes. We’ve done some work in this. We know that associations of functional dyspepsia include diseases like asthma and allergic rhinitis. That was a bit of a surprise. But there’s absolutely no doubt about that. There was also a weaker association with autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid diseases in particular. We don’t fully understand that linkage. But we suspect that again there is auto-antibody production from the inflammatory process — possibly driven to the bacteria. If that’s true — and that’s a hypothesis we’re still testing —that’s really exciting as well. Because it might imply that we could treat autoimmune diseases as well through the gut.” + +I’ve had asthma since I was a child. Now I felt like was starting to get answers. Could my surgery and asthma have been significant factors that precipitated the development of my FD? If such statistical associations become clear and known through epidemiological work, could we more accurately predict which of tomorrow’s patients may be at risk of developing the condition through elective procedures? Food for thought (wait … wrong analogy) + +### What’s Available In The Drug Pipeline For FD? + +Acotiamide is a very promising agent for FD that is already available in the healthcare systems of India and Japan. + +“It is able to relax the stomach”, explained Prof. Talley, “which allows that feeling of uncomfortableness and pain and fullness to simmer right down.” + +“We think the reason the stomach doesn’t relax properly is because the small intestine affects the stomach and that’s why the stomach doesn’t relax.” + +“So the drug works on the stomach. And it’s fairly effective. A small minority in the clinical trials experienced complete symptom resolution [on acotiamide].” “It’s a drug that I think may end up becoming more widely available,” he said “and it seems to be reasonably well tolerated.” + +“There are other drugs that target the inflammation in the small intestine — and turn it off. There are some really interesting new drugs that can literally just switch it off. They look very promising because they can target not only the inflammation but also the symptoms that people develop as a result of that.” + +“There’s a lot of work going on in this area and a number of companies are working to develop drugs that will follow this line and I think they look very exciting — particularly for people with really severe functional dyspepsia.” + +Prof. Talley explained that another line of attack — and one that can avoid the delays to market associated with the clinical trial and regulatory process — is repurposing existing drugs. This is also an active area of exploration, he said. + +And not to be forgotten — diet! + +“It’s cheap, safe, and available,” the doctor quipped. + +### Is There A Link Between GERD, IBS, and FD? + +**Prof. Talley:** There almost certainly is a connection. People with FD are more likely to have IBS, particularly the diarrhea subtype. They’re also more likely to have GERD. We know they’re linked. + +But what’s really interesting is the small intestinal inflammation looks like it’s one of the drivers for some of these patients with those conditions. What’s exciting is that that means we may come up with some treatment options for these diseases too. And that’s an enormous number of people around the world who really might benefit from this. We’re very excited about this that because we know what’s going on with FD we might be able to make a real difference to patients with other conditions that are also remarkably common and burdensome.” + +While this interview won’t make the experience of being bloated any less miserable, I hope that other patients find it at least somewhat comforting. Despite its area of mystique and some painful misconceptions surrounding it, there’s significant research effort being dedicated towards finding more effective therapies. Hopefully those will come to market sooner rather than later. diff --git a/posts/medium/Genuine-Doar-Yisrael--Israel-Post--emails.md b/posts/medium/Genuine-Doar-Yisrael--Israel-Post--emails.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..006aea7a0cb55ead4a7c2e5e46cdd7eeb675f618 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Genuine-Doar-Yisrael--Israel-Post--emails.md @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +# Genuine Doar Yisrael (Israel Post) emails + +Because there have been some phishing scams involving Doar Yisrael [(Israel Post)](http://www.israelpost.co.il) imposters recently, I thought I would share a real email notification from the post service. + +Doar started sending email notifications to mirror their SMS notifications about a year ago. I expect they will gradually transition from paper slips to SMS to email. + +A genuine email notification from Doar Yisrael + +A few notable features: + +**a) The notifications come from postil.com.** This is what Doar Yisrael uses for internal email (source: communicating with the postal service via this channel). Doar’s public-facing domain is israelpost.co.il. But both sending domains are official. + +**b) The notifications follow a standard format that is also used for SMS notifications.** + +**c)** The most telling clue. **The messages never mention that you can pay to expedite delivery.** There is one link to the צו יבוא אישי form and another for more information. + +Sometimes the post office sends notifications that offer delivery through Gett (only certain branches support this service). However, these looks as follows: + +If you doubt the authenticity of any notification received from Doar, calling their moked on 171 is the best course of action. + +But if your notification matches these criteria, and doesn’t ask for payment, it is almost certainly genuine. diff --git a/posts/medium/Get-More-Detailed-Medium-Stats-By-Downloading-Your-Engagement-Metrics.md b/posts/medium/Get-More-Detailed-Medium-Stats-By-Downloading-Your-Engagement-Metrics.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3b617680fbc1d0ef9e5ebc4b64034c6174937bb9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Get-More-Detailed-Medium-Stats-By-Downloading-Your-Engagement-Metrics.md @@ -0,0 +1,63 @@ +# Get More Detailed Medium Stats By Downloading Your Engagement Metrics + +#### By download the CSV metrics export, you can get more information than is provided directly through the platform + +Most Medium users are aware that the platform provides a statistics dashboard which allows you to keep track of your top-line engagement metrics. + +If you’re on a journey to increase your inbound engagement and grow your personal brand (this is part of my motivation for posting here), then checking out this part of the platform can be a great way to keep motivated and test whether what you’ve been posting recently is resonating with readers. + +This month, mine are trending in the right direction thanks to [OneZero](https://medium.com/u/3a0e8cb45af4) picking up my piece about the guy who manages the world time zone database. + +[**The Largely Untold Story Of How One Guy In California Keeps The World’s Computers On The Right…** + _Down the rabbit hole: my brief odyssey into the esoteric world of the tight-knit time zone data maintenance community._ onezero.medium.com](https://onezero.medium.com/the-largely-untold-story-of-how-one-guy-in-california-keeps-the-worlds-computers-on-the-right-time-a97a5493bf73 "https://onezero.medium.com/the-largely-untold-story-of-how-one-guy-in-california-keeps-the-worlds-computers-on-the-right-time-a97a5493bf73")[](https://onezero.medium.com/the-largely-untold-story-of-how-one-guy-in-california-keeps-the-worlds-computers-on-the-right-time-a97a5493bf73) + +Unfortunately, as statistics dashboards go, what Medium presents to users here isn’t wonderful. Or at least, there’s a lot of information that isn’t liberated by accessing the dashboard. + +There are a few glaring things that are missing: + + * **While you can see a 30 day trailing view and read count, you can’t access a year long view/read count.** Or even a count since account creation. + * **Information about Medium’s new newsletter feature — namely lost and gained subscribers — similarly isn’t presented.** + +You may have noticed that lurking near the top of that page is a button that reads ‘Audience Stats.’ Here, you _will_ get more granular data on your audience engagement. + +Here’s mine: + +The final chunk of analytics data that we can access through Medium can be obtained by clicking on “view details” under “Email subscribers” + +Here, you can see who those mysterious subscribers actually _are_. + +Email addresses and subscription dates are both presented. + +### Access Medium Stats Through A Desktop Program To Drill Down Into Those Numbers And Gain More Insights + +As I mentioned, from a data standpoint, the numbers that Medium presents in the dashboard aren’t all that useful. + +Fortunately, we can run them through a spreadsheet program in order to make them a lot more helpful. + +Click on the ‘download CSV’ button next to the Monthly Growth dashboard. (Note: there’s no data export functionality on the main Story Stats page). + +As you can see, we’re presented with some information that we couldn’t access through the main dashboard. + +Namely, there are columns for: + + * Followers lost + * Net follower increase/decrease (gained minus lost) + * Unsubscribes + * Net newsletter subscriber activity (new subscribers minus unsubscribes) + * Information about those you have referred to the network + +You can also very easily create graphs from this data. + +And you can receive data for a longer period than is shown in the graphical stats presentation. + +For instance, I can see that I’ve picked up 36 followers so far this month, but also that 489 of my (at the time of writing) 525 followers have come come from the past twelve months. + +That’s 93% of my followers from the past year (I’ve been on the platform since July 2019) and only 48 from the time before that. (If I’m botching the math, please bear with me; I’m a humble writer after all). + +Download the export and you’ll be able to tap into more information about how your posting on Medium is creating an audience of followers. + +_Note: Medium updates their functionality somewhat regularly. The above merely reflects the UI features at the time of the date of publication. If you’re accessing this post at any time after that point, the information presented here may be outdated._ + +#### Support This Medium Blog + +To reach as many readers as possible every month, I have refrained from paywalling any of my posts on Medium. Nevertheless, [you can buy me coffee](https://ko-fi.com/danielrosehill) to help me continue to be able to devote time to the writing process. diff --git a/posts/medium/Getting-My-Life-Organised-With-HomeBox--Open-Source-Inventory-Management-.md b/posts/medium/Getting-My-Life-Organised-With-HomeBox--Open-Source-Inventory-Management-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..17de24042a606fc0b6d817f7704a323cd0eb3e34 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Getting-My-Life-Organised-With-HomeBox--Open-Source-Inventory-Management-.md @@ -0,0 +1,124 @@ +# Getting My Life Organised With HomeBox (Open Source Inventory Management) + +Beginning the great home inventory of 2024. My tech cabinet / IVAR storage unit. Photo: Author. + +### **The Problem** + +I have … well … a lot of … stuff. + +Over the course of a decade, I’ve slowly built up a pretty decent collection of tech-related bits and pieces, many of which have bled into my work (these days: non-profit communications with a side helping of video production). + +As my tech interests have developed and grown (data archiving, smart home automation) so have the accompanying array of bits and pieces that come along for the ride. + +I need my 5 meter mini-HDMI to HDMI for certain projects. My Cam Link 4K for others. I need to know where my DP to DP monitor cables are to finally set up a new desktop. Oh, and I’d love to know where I put that _micro_ -HDMI to HDMI to finally be able to try out my Raspberry Pi (as well as the ethernet to USB adapters for that project and everything else). You get the idea. Calling it _organised_ chaos would be much too generous. + +My solution over the years (which has persisted through a few apartment moves): buy storage in IKEA and boxes as required. + +About six months ago — after my wife and I’s first move as a married couple — shit finally hit the fan. I no longer knew where _anything_ was. I had reached the point at which it was easier to buy new components from the internet than spend hours routing through boxes trying to find an ethernet joiner or a cellular router. We had enough space. I cherished my inventory. But I urgently needed some sort of system. + +HomeBox is an open source inventory management software intended for home users. Photo: Author. + +### The Solution + +I spent a day poring through potential inventory management solutions. Some were horribly proprietary (want to pay a monthly subscription for the rest of your life to know where your stuff is? No thanks!). Others were ERP components intended for businesses _selling_ stuff. + +Some years ago, the good people at Synology were kind enough to send me an NAS to play around with (claim to fame: I got the DS920+ before anyone else in my country!). + +Finally — with a nudge from Reddit — I stumbled upon a tool that checked all the boxes. It was self-hostable (so no vendor lock-in). There was a Docker image that could be deployed on a Synology or on cloud infrastructure — giving you the flexibility to deploy the system however made the most technical sense. + +[**Homebox** + _Homebox is the inventory and organization system built for the Home User! With a focus on simplicity and ease of use…_ hay-kot.github.io](https://hay-kot.github.io/homebox/ "https://hay-kot.github.io/homebox/")[](https://hay-kot.github.io/homebox/) + +And finally — the coup de grace — it was intended exactly for folks like me whose “stuff” had gotten woefully out of hand. + +A tutorial later and I had the container running and I could begin getting to work. + +At the most basic level, HomeBox involves assigning assets (things) into locations (storage locations). Its simple UI belies a lot of useful functionality. Photo: Author. + +### The Tech / Deployment Details + +HomeBox is deployed as a container. + +You can host it locally and enable remote access via a variety of methods (Tailscale works great for authenticating from the WAN; Cloudflare also has a product or you can set up a reverse proxy). + +Alternatively you could host it in the cloud by deploying the container with … anybody that will allow you to host containers. + +Digital Ocean seems like a good choice here but there are too many options to list. The software — extremely well thought-out — runs lighting fast. Even on a DS920+ with no aftermarket upgrades. + +As a committed backup anorak, backup-ability is always front of mind when evaluating software, open source or otherwise. + +As usual there’s a few ways to skin this particular cat; this is merely the approach that made sense to me: + +I opted to add my user data on an NAS volume and use Snapshot Replication to keep local snapshots which I then duplicate offsite using Cloud Sync. This gives me a couple of onsite snapshots (albeit on the same physical hardware) and a couple of offsites too. + +If you’re comfortable with scripting, rsync and rsnapshot could all be used to achieve the same end. + +### Accessory Hardware + +The inventorising in project. I picked up a Brother QL700 for the project. Photo: Author.You can use barcodes that are automatically generated from within the system or make your own. I ended up using mostly DataMatrix codes (rather than QR) because I found that they scanned better at small sizes. Photo: Author. + +My project involved inventorising (literally) thousands of items so I decided from the get-go that it was time to invest in a solid label printer that could handle the workload comfortably. + +I picked up a Brother QL700 from a local printer supply store and a few rolls of continuous tape paper. It wasn’t long before I needed replenishments (pro tip: if you’re taking on a project like this, buy the tapes in 10s or dozens from Amazon). + +I have a job and your other typical adult responsibilities so the inventorising was done before and after work. I made liberal use of a stock of caffeine pills. It was an insanely gruelling week both physically and mentally. + +I also picked up a cheap standalone barcode reader from Aliexpress. It seemed remiss to create a whole inventory management system without one of these. I mean, who doesn’t love the prospect of replicating the supermarket experience in your home / live-in warehouse? + +It outperforms my phone in terms of its reliability as a barcode scanner and the ‘inventory mode’ is extremely useful when assigning assets within the system (I tried out a few different barcode symbologies and ultimately have had the best success with DataMatrix). + +I picked up a standalone barcode scanner to speed up the process of reading barcodes. It’s also great for totalling up a box inventory. Photo: Author.You can add as much information as you want to each ‘item’. For my washing machine (pictured) I added the warranty details and the usage instructions as well as what type of power to keep in stock. The codes scan froma smartphone in an instant and accessing the system remotely is also easy. Photo: Author. + +### My Organisational System + +HomeBox is no more complicated than it needs to be. + +Although there’s room to be creative in exactly how you use it to make sense of your particular home inventory. + +The system works at two basic levels: assets and locations. + +Locations are where things “go” and should stay in order to be reliably found. + +Every page of the system has a unique URL and an automatically generated QR code. This simple UI opens the doors to a lot of possibilities. + +My first steps: + + * I took an inventory of all the boxes housing my stuff around my apartment. As I got around to inventorising their contents, I assigned them into the rooms they were stored in. + * Each room got a location. If there was storage in a room (like a bookshelf) that was a location too. Shelves were sub-locations. + * I designated a box to be the place I put stuff to be sorted in. + +I had already grouped my items into bags (IKEA zip lock sandwich bags!). + +So the inventorising process consisted primarily of registering each bags and its contents (if the contents were important enough they were individually inventorised). Assign it to a box. Hit save. And move on to the next one. + +Finally I logged which shelf each box is on in my storage unit (okay, I’m only about halfway through with this last step). When the system is fully complete this week, I’ll be able to search for any item and find it in seconds. + +Labels ready for boxes. Photo: Author.I tested out a few different label designs before settling on one that I liked. Photo: Author. + +### Benefits + + * No more wasting time trying to find X … item + * No more rebuying components that I didn’t know I already have + * No more logging serial numbers and warranty details in spreadsheets and user manuals in a cloud drive. Everything goes into the one system. + * Decluttering: although I’ve surely self-identified as a hoarder by now, I’ve already gotten rid of things by simply going through what I already have. Duplicates become very easy to spot. To mark items I’m ready to give away to charity (etc) I simply apply a “give away” label and then gather up the belongings. I’m pairing down what I have as I near the finish line. + +### Labels + +I made the labels myself using P Touch Editor. I used DK2210 (62mm continuous tape) which gave me plenty of flexibility in terms of printing different sizes (etc). + +The QR / DataMatrix codes will only resolve locally (because the assets have a local IP address). In cases where I wanted to look something up remotely, I can search by the asset ID (the six digit numbers that the system automatically generates sequentially as items are added). + +Given that a six digit system can contain up to almost one million items … I figure it will be good enough …. for ever (hey, I can’t hoard THAT much!) + +### Photos + +The Android UI is .. functional. I added a home screen short cut for ease of access. Photo: Author.You can append attachments to items. For some items, I added photos, user manuals, warranty documents, invoices, etc. Photo: Author.There’s no prescriptive way to use the software. One possibility (for shelving) is to create child locations for each shelf. Photo: Author.You can add perishables and archive “finished” items. I added a few pantry containers. Photo: Author.I used P Touch Editor to design and print labels although there’s a built in tool for those simply printing through inkjet printers on label template style products. Photo: Author. + +### Screenshots + +Yes, I actually inventorised more than 2,000 items. Even running on an NAS with modest hardware, the system is lightning fast.HomeBox runs as a Docker Container in Synology NAS. Just install the Container Manager package in DSM.For backups, I’m using Snapshot Replication to take snapshots of the user data volume and Cloud Sync to push a couple of snapshots offsite to a cloud server at automatically recurring intervals. + +More photos: + +[**My Homebox Open-Source Inventory Manager Deployment (Photos Only)** +danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-homebox-open-source-inventory-manager-deployment-photos-only-1fc662014cd8 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-homebox-open-source-inventory-manager-deployment-photos-only-1fc662014cd8")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-homebox-open-source-inventory-manager-deployment-photos-only-1fc662014cd8) diff --git a/posts/medium/Ghostwriter--Here-s-How--and-Why--to-Track-Down-Your-Clips.md b/posts/medium/Ghostwriter--Here-s-How--and-Why--to-Track-Down-Your-Clips.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..85c512d88c1e1366880630966e2917ea5f4c04bb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Ghostwriter--Here-s-How--and-Why--to-Track-Down-Your-Clips.md @@ -0,0 +1,96 @@ +# Ghostwriter? Here’s How (and Why) to Track Down Your Clips + +#### Finding what you publish isn’t always that easy, but it is worthwhile + +Photo by [Ryan Quintal](https://unsplash.com/@ryanquintal?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) on [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/ghost?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) + +One of the downsides of working as a ghostwriter is that — depending on what exactly you write — tracking down your clips can be trickier business than it might at first seem. + +If you’re a journalist, or taking bylines for your freelance writing work, then finding everything you’ve written is as easy as plugging a time-limited search into Google. + +To yield exact matches and exclude irrelevant results, I recommend Googling yourself and limiting it to a time period. + +Here’s my go-to: + +Screenshot by author + +There aren’t many Daniel Rosehills in the world (some would add thankfully), so I can keep good tabs on what I’m publishing online by setting up a Google alert and running the above search every few months. + +If you have a more common name this method won’t work as well. You might be tempted to plug “david smith + writer” into Google but this will likely miss your articles. Some sifting might be needed. + +Either way, for tracking down bylined pieces, you’re relatively well covered. + +### The Problem With Ghostwriting + +Social metrics: it’s worth tracking down your writing just to see how it performed on social media + +The problem with ghostwriting, of course, is that by definition it doesn’t carry your byline. + +If you maintain a busy ghostwriting practice, writing for multiple clients and marketing agencies at once (themselves with multiple clients) keeping track of where everything winds up isn’t easy. At all. + +Ghostwriting, of course, is a multifaceted profession. If you’re ghosting books then you probably know what you wrote and who published it. If your focus is predominantly on articles and blogs, and you write hundreds of them a year, well, things can get a lot trickier. + +### Why Finding Your Work Is a Good Idea + +Why might you want to track down your work in the first place? + +Here are some reasons: + + * Personally, I find it satisfying to see where my articles have wound up on the internet, even if they don’t carry my name. In a sense, it gives me closure on the ghostwriting process. This is particularly true if the client is pitching your ghostwritten article to multiple publications and you’re not kept in the loop about where it eventually wound up. Particularly when working with agencies who are managing lots of freelancers, this is a common occurrence. + * I also like to know how well my (ghostwritten) articles did on social media. Finding where your writing got published allows you to institute a vital feedback loop on your work. Remember, the goal of gleaning this information isn’t solely to satisfy your curiosity. If you can confirm metrics then you can use these in your marketing. Compare _“I ghostwrote a piece for [X executive] on CIO.com and it was shared more than 3,000 times on Facebook.”_ with, _“I wrote a piece for X about Y.”_ Which makes a stronger case for hiring you? + * If you can find where your pieces were published, then you can screenshot and add the ghostwritten samples to your portfolio. Again, sharing ghostwriting is a sensitive business. But if you have a system and a contract that allows it, why __ wouldn’t you want to find the clips? + +You might be surprised about what you learn by being disciplined about searching. + +For instance, you might find that your client’s PR team landed an ace top-tier media placement and you now have bragging rights (within NDA limits of course) about having written for that publication. + +You might find that your piece was ultimately bylined to the CEO rather than the marketing manager — and that you’ve now written for him. + +Perhaps your article stimulated some serious debate in the comments section. + +There are more reasons than these. + +But basically, from experience, it’s worth the small amount of periodic legwork involved. The results can be surprising. + +### Method 1: Repetitively Searching “For Strings” + +My simplest and the go-to method for finding where my ghostwriting winds up online is to repetitively search for it. + +Yes, that just means plugging strings of text into Google again with exact search parameters enabled. Enclose text with quotation marks. + +I find that I typically have to search four or five strings of text to find where my article wound up — if I can at all. + +The reason? My work is typically edited before it goes live somewhere. If you work in alignment with editors, then yours probably is too. And remember: even light editing will prevent what you submitted from matching what was published. If you’re searching for exact matches — which I still recommend to narrow down options — then a single character’s difference will exclude a result from the search. + +Of course, for various reasons, some of your work will not make it onto the internet at all. Perhaps what you wrote was for an email circular or a print-only magazine. Maybe your content is paywalled or otherwise floating around somewhere in the un-indexed deep web? Who knows. Don’t expect to find everything. But you should find some. + +Keep plugging unique strings into Google. Hopefully, one will lead back to your article(s). + +### Method 2 (Black Hat): Word Tagging + +Alright, time to spill the beans of one of my slightly dubious tricks. (There are more to come.) + +There is a small lexicon of rather strange words that I’m inordinately fond of. + +And yes, I will sometimes work these into my copy solely for the purpose of making it easier to subsequently find them through Google. + +Words like: + + * Mandarin: a mandarin is a type of bureaucrat. + * Cybercrook: a word of dubious legitimacy which I have previously used to describe a cybercriminal. It has drawn pushback from aggrieved editors which I have attempted to fend off by pointing out that its usage has been rising in recent years. + +Of course, word-tagging isn’t guaranteed to work. The intended words need to pass editorial oversight after all. Your editors probably won’t know which words are inserted into the copy in order to leave your hallmark signature. + +Then, you can use a site-delimited search in combination with your word tag to quickly track down your times. + +Using a signature set of unusual words is an offbeat way to track down your written clips + +It’s not listed on my resume, but I briefly worked, one summer, as a copy editor at _The Jerusalem Post_. + +I am extremely proud of the following _mandarin_ reference and remember watching the second copy editor pour over my piece hoping that it would pass his gaze and make it into the nationally circulated print edition (indeed it did!): + +_“The military_** _mandarin_** _said that bureaucratic haggling is occurring between the Finance Ministry and the IDF over a NIS 500 million plan.”_([Source](https://www.jpost.com/arab-israeli-conflict/budget-dispute-with-treasury-delaying-gaza-border-fortification-idf-says-409956)) + +I would like to think that a few readers were introduced to this wonderful but relatively seldom used word as a result of my machinations. + +Cybercrooks? Let’s just say that now that I’ve disclosed one of my trade secrets I will have to keep you guessing. diff --git a/posts/medium/Go-fully-async-with-me--marketing-consultant--and-I-ll-knock-20--off-your-monthly-invoice.md b/posts/medium/Go-fully-async-with-me--marketing-consultant--and-I-ll-knock-20--off-your-monthly-invoice.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..83ff0aff0f01069852a6202c18bad73a8f9e9acf --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Go-fully-async-with-me--marketing-consultant--and-I-ll-knock-20--off-your-monthly-invoice.md @@ -0,0 +1,80 @@ +# Go fully async with me (marketing consultant) and I’ll knock 20% off your monthly invoice + +#### Want to help me show how asynchronous communications can make remote working so much better for everybody involved? Then join my experiment! + +Want to join an asynchronous communications work experiment? If you’d like to hire me to help with your marketing I’m willing to tack on a 20% discount for anybody that wants to go #async only. Photo by [Matheus Bertelli](https://www.pexels.com/@bertellifotografia?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/modern-video-camera-hanging-on-display-of-laptop-7172701/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Asynchronous communications is great. + +While the concept has its [limits](https://www.valuetransform.com/limits-of-asynchronous-communication/), many — including me — find it to be a superior way to engage in remote working. + +[**This Summer, I’m Going To Try Run Only On Asynchronous Communications** + _Async is great. But can you get your colleagues to use it?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async/this-summer-im-going-to-try-run-only-on-asynchronous-communications-c8cf0d9d2b15 "https://medium.com/all-about-async/this-summer-im-going-to-try-run-only-on-asynchronous-communications-c8cf0d9d2b15")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async/this-summer-im-going-to-try-run-only-on-asynchronous-communications-c8cf0d9d2b15) + +[**All About Async** + _All About Async is a Medium publication for those interested in learning more about asynchronous communications and…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async "https://medium.com/all-about-async")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async) + +By taking away the requirement for two people to be online / on the phone at the exact same time in order to communicate, asynchronous communications can: + + * Make it far easier to work with colleagues — and clients — in different time zones + * Make it much easier for everybody involved in remote working to plan their time around things like leisure and deep work + * Help avoid “meeting crush”: when back to back meetings crowd out calendars making it virtually impossible for anybody — especially temperamental creatives — to get into the kind of deep work periods that not only allows creatively-minded folk to do their best work, but which actually allows them to find fulfillment and happiness (yes, really!) + +I’ve been pushing clients and colleagues to get more into async for quite some time now. + +I’ve published a professional user manual which includes an outline of my communications preferences (heavily async). + +[**My Personal User Manual — V1** +danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-personal-user-manual-v1-34861d8fdff8 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-personal-user-manual-v1-34861d8fdff8")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-personal-user-manual-v1-34861d8fdff8) + +I’ve turned away client because they made it clear that they were “phone people” with very high expectations for responsiveness — effectively around the clock availability — and I value periodically disconnecting. + +[**I Went Into Flight Mode For Six Months. Here’s What Happened.** +_Back in January, I wrote an excited Medium post about how being slightly less responsive was going to be the motto of…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/i-went-into-flight-mode-for-six-months-heres-what-happened-e8ffd86e88b1 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/i-went-into-flight-mode-for-six-months-heres-what-happened-e8ffd86e88b1")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/i-went-into-flight-mode-for-six-months-heres-what-happened-e8ffd86e88b1) + +And I’ve made a point of trying to sign up for just about every #async friendly tool that comes to market (thankfully, we’re currently living through something of a renaissance period in the space). + +I believe that asynchronous communication can make remote work so much better for everybody involved. + +At a time when countless professionals are growing increasingly frustrated by the epidemic of needless Zoom meetings coming our way, I believe that async is going to _have_ to be more widely adapted for this form of working — and connectivity — to actually succeed. + +And so I’d like to offer both my current clients and those who _might_ be interested in working with me a deal. + +### And Here’s The Deal I’m Offering + +You get 20% off your monthly invoice so long as we agree to the following grounds rules. + +The discount remains in place for as long as the ground rules do. + +So if you decide that you’d like to continue working together but that the whole #async thing doesn’t really work for you, that’s totally fine too. I’m not trying to run an #async only business. But I _am_ trying to encourage clients to shift in that direction. + +And here are the rules: + + * **All communication must take place through an #async friendly channel.** I would suggest as a starting point email, Loom, and Yac. Although I’m also happy to check out whatever tool you’ve discovered that you like the best. + * **We both agree a service level agreement (SLA) that sets out the maximum acceptable response interval on both sides.** Let’s say that it can be three business days. Or it can be two. Or one. This is the length of time during which it’s reasonable for both of us to get back to one another. + * No phone calls or Zooms. + +And here’s a really important one: + +You agree to participate in a blog. Not in a case study for my business (we can leave out the details of what I actually did for you!). But a personal blog designed to demonstrate how people working together from totally different parts of the globe can work together completely efficiently without ever having to meet on Zoom or through any other real time communications channel. + +### Here’s What I Do + +**Marketing communications (MarCom) consulting:** + +https://[www.rosehillmarcom.com](http://www.rosehillmarcom.com) + +**Ghostwriting for technology clients;** + +https://[www.dsrghostwriting.com](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) + +### **And Here’s More About Async Including Tools** + +[**A Quick Guide To What’s What In #Async (Asynchronous Communications): Text, Audio, Video** + _Some Of The Tools That Those Interested In Checking Out #Async Should Keep On Their Radar_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async/a-quick-guide-to-whats-what-in-async-asynchronous-communications-text-audio-video-c37b55c932dc "https://medium.com/all-about-async/a-quick-guide-to-whats-what-in-async-asynchronous-communications-text-audio-video-c37b55c932dc")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async/a-quick-guide-to-whats-what-in-async-asynchronous-communications-text-audio-video-c37b55c932dc) + +[**This Summer, I’m Going To Try Run Only On Asynchronous Communications** + _Async is great. But can you get your colleagues to use it?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async/this-summer-im-going-to-try-run-only-on-asynchronous-communications-c8cf0d9d2b15 "https://medium.com/all-about-async/this-summer-im-going-to-try-run-only-on-asynchronous-communications-c8cf0d9d2b15")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async/this-summer-im-going-to-try-run-only-on-asynchronous-communications-c8cf0d9d2b15) + +[**All About Async** + _All About Async is a Medium publication for those interested in learning more about asynchronous communications and…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async "https://medium.com/all-about-async")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async) diff --git a/posts/medium/Graphics-cards--GPUs--that-support-six--and-more--outputs.md b/posts/medium/Graphics-cards--GPUs--that-support-six--and-more--outputs.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..95332d96ad6eb63781203316eef4e8ccde6610a5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Graphics-cards--GPUs--that-support-six--and-more--outputs.md @@ -0,0 +1,108 @@ +# Graphics cards (GPUs) that support six (and more) outputs + +Hopefully this will be my desk sometime soon! + +I was recently delighted to receive my desktop back from [Machshefon](https://www.google.com/maps/place/%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%A9%D7%A4%D7%95%D7%9F%E2%80%AD/@31.7601442,35.21539,15z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x252006d67661e3cc?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiKqsuh3q3nAhUEy6QKHVW0BToQ_BIwP3oECDgQCA) (מחשפון) — a computer repair shop near where I live in Jerusalem. + +With the wind of the [Gigabyte Geforce GTX 1050 Ti Windforce OC, 4G](https://www.gigabyte.com/il/Graphics-Card/GV-N105TWF2OC-4GD#kf) in my sails, I can move beyond the primitive three monitor setup I have been slumming it with for years. + +Output / IO plate view [Gigabyte GeForce® GTX 1050 Ti Windforce OC 4G](https://www.gigabyte.com/il/Graphics-Card/GV-N105TWF2OC-4GD#kf) + +I’m planning on using my new single and dual-vertical VESA mounts from Amazon to set up a fourth and possibly fifth display. + +But when it comes time to embark upon my next build, and I have lugged in a hex stand, this is going to be my next project! + +Current workstation. Let’s call this V1.0 + +[As I mentioned in my guide to VESA monitor mounts which I posted here](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-meandering-guide-to-vesa-monitor-mounts-dc5a4a1b500f), six (or “hex”) monitor configurations are really towards the top end of what it’s “easy” to configure. + +Trying to set up more screens than that (say eight) is almost past the boundaries of human ergonomics —[ and you need to start buying from specialist ergonomic suppliers](https://www.ergomart.com/connect-44-eight-monitor-stand) to even get stands that support that many screens! + +[The dual-tier eight monitor stand from ErgoMart.com. Current selling price: $1,110.66.](https://www.ergomart.com/connect-44-eight-monitor-stand) + +But let’s run through what you’d need to do to get a six / hex stand set up for your home office — whether you’re a day trader, a gamer, a multi-monitor obsessive like me, or just plain curious about what one could do with that many screens. + +To get that going for yourself, you’ll need: + + * **A six / hex VESA mount.** Because they require a fair amount of steel, these are both heavy and (relatively) pricey compared to single or dual mounts. [This VIVO bracket, for instance, comes in at $109.99](https://www.amazon.com/VIVO-Computer-Monitor-Adjustable-STAND-V106A/dp/B07G9NSXM1/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?keywords=six+monitor+mount&qid=1580470450&sr=8-3-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExUVdOT1pNUEw0MVU4JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNDU2MTA3NjlQNkJFMEs4Vk1NJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA3NDM5MTcxMzQwRDFESk5MMjdLJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==) — but its shipping weight is listed at 32.7 pound (14.8 KG). I live in Israel so my best Amazon option would be to go for this EZM Deluxe Hex Monitor Mount — but the shipping costs almost $200! (There are a few domestic options, if you are also in Israel, but, of course, they cost a multiple of what they do in the US. [RSM, for instance, sells one for 1,135 NIS = $329.16 at today’s rate](http://www.rsm.co.il/product/%D7%96%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%A2-%D7%AA%D7%9C%D7%99%D7%99%D7%94-%D7%9C--6-%D7%9E%D7%A1%D7%9B%D7%99%D7%9D-fogim-tkla-6036) — more than three times the price of the Amazon.com mount!) + * **A decent PSU:** You’re going to need a Power Supply Unit (PSU) that meets or exceeds the minimum wattage requirement of your graphics card. Because graphics card that can handle six monitors don’t tend to economize on resource usage, these cards can require as much as 700W-1000W. If your PSU doesn’t meet that spec, or support the right power cable that the GPU needs, it’s time for an upgrade. I’ve priced an option in the ‘shopping cart’ later. + * **A six output capable GPU.** You’ve actually got a few options here. You can go with a card that has six or more native outputs (as in, one output per monitor); opt for a dual GPU install (putting in two graphics cards — a bit more complicated); or you can go with a card that has as few DisplayLink outputs [and daisychain a few monitors together. ](https://www.displayport.org/cables/driving-multiple-displays-from-a-single-displayport-output/)Personally, I think that the first option is the cleanest technically and therefore the ‘best’ (it poses the fewest technical challenges). + +So without further a-do, here are a few of the GPUs I have found so far that can drive six or more outputs. + +(This article is for the interest of the multi-monitor-using community. None of these links are affiliate links! If daisy-chaining DP outputs sounds better to you, [then check out this guide from MultiMonitorComputer.com](https://multimonitorcomputer.com/best-6-monitor-gaming-video-cards.php)). + +### Option [1: Matrox C680 PCIe x16](https://matrox.com/graphics/en/products/graphics_cards/c-series/c680/) ($695) + +Matrox is kind of the king of serious high-performance multi-monitor GPUs. + +This card can drive six displays with a maximum resolution of up to 4096 x 2160 px. And it’s going to be out of production within the next six months, so get it quick! + +**Outputs:** 6 x MiniDP, 1.2 + +**Technical Specifications:**[Full user guide](https://www.matrox.com/graphics/media/pdf/products/graphics_cards/c-series/en_Matrox-C-Series-Guide.pdf) + +**Downside:** Being mostly targeted at the industrial / enterprise market, Matrox cards can be hard to source for the average consumer. + +### Option 2: (And Top 6 Output Contender): [Radeon RX 5700 XT Taichi X 8G OC+](https://www.asrock.com/Graphics-Card/AMD/Radeon%20RX%205700%20XT%20Taichi%20X%208G%20OC+/) ($439.99) + +This card is actually unusual in the six discrete output category in that it doesn’t feature exclusively Mini-DP ports. + +Nevertheless, as can be seen below, this Radeon card offers: + + * 4 x full Display Port (DP) outputs + * 2 x HDMI outputs + +**Outputs:** 4 x DP (full, 1.4 with DSC 1.2a), 2 x HDMI + +**Recommended PSU:** 700W + +**Power connector** : 2 x 8-pin + +[**Full technical specifications**](https://www.asrock.com/Graphics-Card/AMD/Radeon%20RX%205700%20XT%20Taichi%20X%208G%20OC+/#Specification) + +Outputs: + +### Option 3: [VisionTek Radeon 7870 2GB GDDR5 6M](https://www.amazon.com/VisionTek-Radeon-GDDR5-MiniDP-Graphics/dp/B0085O90SQ?tag=georiot-us-default-20&ascsubtag=tomshardware-6228042784132508055-20) ($399, but out of stock) + +This Radeon card also has six Mini-DP outputs. + +Unfortunately, at the time of writing, it’s Out of Stock on NewEgg.com and I couldn’t find any new sellers on any Amazon marketplace. The Amazon listing shows that the card was first listed almost seven years ago — so my bet is that it’s out of production. + +### Option 4: NVIDIA NVS 810 ($1,102) + +Like the Matrox option,[ this card from PNY](https://www.pny.com/NVIDIA_NVS_810_for_Eight_DP_Displays) is a little long in the tooth, but it’s the top dog in the list for unique outputs. + +It sports no less than _eight_ mini-DP outputs (1.2), each of which is capable of driving a 4,096 x 2,160 px display — which would be enough to drive two 1080p (1920x1080) displays using a Multi Stream Technology (MST) hub. The maximum power draw, at just 68W, is also quite modest. + +Output view + +Unfortunately, the list of places to buy this is getting smaller, but I managed to find a few vendors on Amazon.co.uk. These were the prices at the time of writing. + +This card definitely isn’t cheap, but it would be a great choice for a video editing and rendering workstation — or any other use-case that might benefit from an enormous _eight_ or even _sixteen_ screen display! + +### Top Choices + +**All rounder:**[Radeon RX 5700 XT Taichi X 8G OC](https://www.asrock.com/Graphics-Card/AMD/Radeon%20RX%205700%20XT%20Taichi%20X%208G%20OC+/) ($439.99, NewEgg.com) + +**Most displays:** NVIDIA NVS 810 (8 x DP 1.2; max resolution per display 4096 x 2160) ($1,100+ — if you can find a stockist!) + +### Runners-up: GPUs with 5 Discrete Outputs + + * My current card, the [GeForce® GTX 1050 Ti Windforce OC 4G](https://www.gigabyte.com/il/Graphics-Card/GV-N105TWF2OC-4GD#kf) (still amazed this only has a 300W recommended PSU requirement!) + * [EVGA GeForce GT 730 4GB DDR3 128bit Dual DVI mHDMI Graphics Cards 04G-P3–2739-KR](https://www.amazon.com/EVGA-GeForce-128bit-Graphics-04G-P3-2739-KR/dp/B01AWB7WMU) + * [ZOTAC GeForce GTX 1060 AMP!, ZT-P10600B-10M, 6GB GDDR5](https://www.newegg.com/zotac-geforce-gtx-1060-zt-p10600b-10m/p/N82E16814500403?Item=N82E16814500403&nm_mc=AFC-RAN-COM&cm_mmc=AFC-RAN-COM&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_source=afc-Future%20Publishing%20Ltd&AFFID=2294204&AFFNAME=Future%20Publishing%20Ltd&ACRID=1&ASUBID=tomshardware-5700781741243829251&ASID=https%3a%2f%2fforums.tomshardware.com%2fthreads%2fgpu-to-run-6-monitors.3100928%2f&ranMID=44583&ranEAID=2294204&ranSiteID=kXQk6.ivFEQ-p6xRRCoo_iCNKGNIasuxaw) (Out of Stock) + +### Hex Stand Shopping List — GPU + 1000W PSU + stand = $709.97 (ex monitors!) + +How much will this all cost, you might be wondering? + +Assuming you already have a functional desktop computer, and that you’re based in the US (so don’t have to deal with obscene international shipping and customs problems!) here’s a credible costing for all required components: + +**GPU —**[**** Radeon RX 5700 XT Taichi X 8G OC+ ($439.99 from NewEgg.com)](https://www.newegg.com/asrock-radeon-rx-5700-xt-rx-5700-xt-taichi-x-8g-oc/p/N82E16814930022) + +**PSU —** 1000W should be comfortable, even for high-end cards. EVGA SuperNOVA 1000 G5, 80 Plus Gold 1000W [($159.99 from NewEgg.com)](https://www.newegg.com/evga-supernova-1000-g5-220-g5-1000-x1-1000w/p/N82E16817438160?&quicklink=true) + +**Stand** —[ VIVO Steel Hex LED LCD Computer Monitor Heavy Duty Desk Mount ](https://www.amazon.com/VIVO-Computer-Monitor-Adjustable-STAND-V106A/dp/B07G9NSXM1/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?keywords=six+monitor+mount&qid=1580472030&sr=8-3-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzQ1Y4RVBMNk1WUVFLJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMjAwMjM2MTgzOUZIQUhXVE5XUSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNzQzOTE3MTM0MEQxREpOTDI3SyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=)($109.99 from Amazon.com with free shipping in the US) + +**TOTAL: $709.97** diff --git a/posts/medium/Great-piece--Jessica-.md b/posts/medium/Great-piece--Jessica-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..73c852d9bcdee1862f25b7dcdd4c4d550a6d6c06 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Great-piece--Jessica-.md @@ -0,0 +1,9 @@ +# Great piece, Jessica! + +Great piece, Jessica! + +I found myself uncharacteristically commenting on a subreddit today about how grim the state of the world is for this generation right now and how ... perhaps exploring the antiwork movement isn't such a bad idea. + +I like the idea of calling it for what it is. Not because it makes it any better or because wallowing in misery is healthy (it absolutely isn't!) But equally because I think that fake positivity has become a very toxic and pervasive force. Ironically, often advocated for by US! + +I'd like to think of myself as industrious. I've always been called a hard worker. And yet ... there's something about the present that (at 32) it took me a long time to grasp. How badly screwed we are. That the fundamental social contract has been ruptured. That being smart / industrious / qualified is no longer enough to set you on a path to relative prosperity. The dynamics have all shifted. In the blink of an eye. diff --git a/posts/medium/Guest-Posting-Is-Often-A-Scam.md b/posts/medium/Guest-Posting-Is-Often-A-Scam.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3a4b992c129ee835c2e62b579815ae1e45b9e59c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Guest-Posting-Is-Often-A-Scam.md @@ -0,0 +1,120 @@ +# Guest Posting Is Often A Scam + +#### And It’s About Time We Called It Out + +Guest post owners are in the business of capitalizing on free content. They should be reasonable to those thinking about supplying it. + +Today, while browsing through LinkedIn, I came across a post from somebody whose professional description described him or herself (cryptic I must be) as the manager of a guest blogging program at a relatively well-known website. + +The post adjured those thinking about starting their own guest blogging initiatives to raise their standards. + +Don’t make it too easy for them, the post exclaimed! Filter out the dross! Demand originality! Make your submission guides watertight! And so on and so forth. + +Although I’ve been trying to limit my LinkedIn feed screen-time, the post caught my attention. + +Had anybody written anything controversial in the comments, I thought to see? + +Unsurprisingly no (LinkedIn isn’t really the best ground to start picking fights!) + +So instead of starting a fight with the marketing managers of LinkedIn, I decided to bring my dissenting opinion here. + +### Guest Posting Has To Be A Two Way Street + +Everybody’s heard the phrase _‘beggars can’t be choosers.’_ + +But when it comes to guest posting, it seems as if that concept has been inverted and then stretched to the furthest bounds of belief. + +Firstly, let me make a few things clear: + + * **I realize that countless marketers _do_ abuse guest posting programs to attempt to shove terrible content onto unsuspecting webmasters solely to accrue backlinks.** Believe it or not, even as a humble freelance writer with a website (which has never hosted a guest blog), I regularly receive spam from backlink-pushers that are completely irrelevant. + * **I realize that guest posting can be a powerful part of an inbound marketing strategy.** It exposes authors to new audiences has _ancillary_ SEO benefits (namely backlink generation), and allows webmasters to grow their own audience. In other words, I’m not anti-guest blogging at all. And that isn’t the point of this post. + +However, there’s an elephant looming the room that those who would have writers adhere to incredibly detailed submission requirements would do well to understand. This goes for Medium publications as well as blogs, by the way. + +Wait for it: + +**YOU’RE ASKING FOR A FREEBIE!** + +Or let me put that another way: + +**YOU’RE NOT OFFERING ‘DEM WRITERS NO CASH!** + +Clearly, this doesn’t apply in the case of guest posts that _do_ pay contributors. + +But those are in the slim minority. + +After my attention was piqued, I dug a little deeper into the submission requirements of the organization which this individual represented. + +There, I found the usual exacting laundry list of requirements, delivered in the usual condescending and sometimes even hostile tone that could be summarized as _‘do this or else….. back to the garbage heap your blog post goes’_ + + * _Your submission has to be completely original_ + * _We’ll be checking every submission for plagiarism! Be warned!_(OK, it didn’t really say ‘be warned,’ but I’m pretty sure I’ve come across those that do!) + * _You’ll need to write at least 2,000 words with X external links_ + +But the best was yet to come. + +The guidelines stated that the team regularly purges old writing from the blog to prioritize the latest and greatest thinking. + +So if they’ve decided that your post isn’t quite fresh enough — boom! Your freebie — and backlink — go out with the morning garbage. + +How’s that for a fair deal? + +### Collectively Punishing Authors Isn’t Fair + +When you stop and think about it, today’s guest blogging landscape has turned into something of a theater of the absurd. + +This is particularly true for anybody whose interest in contributing an unpaid blog stems from a personal rather than a commercial desire. + +There are those of us out there who just like having places online to share ideas among all the backlink hunters. + +Writers are asked to abide by conditions that are often delivered in a tone that feels downright adversarial. To be up for consideration for an “opportunity” that offers no financial benefit. + +Or look at it this way. + +First, they paid writers to write. Then writers wrote for “exposure.” Now — sometimes — guest blogs _ask_ for writers to pay for the privilege of having their words published. It would be funny if it weren’t true. + +Blog managers are understandably aggrieved at the volume of rubbish they need to sift through whenever they add the keywords ‘guest blog’ or ‘write for us’ to their homepage. That’s understandable. + +But it’s also relatively easy to differentiate thoughtless web scam from sincere contributions to add value. Rather than put writers at pains to jump through hoops, it’s a skill they should consider developing themselves. + +Assuming, as the default position, that everybody that wishes to contribute to _your_ website is a parasitic backlink leech that needs to be kept in check through a demeaning list of requirements isn’t the way to go. + +Why? + +Because ultimately (excuse the Caps Lock shouting) even if you think that what they’re likely to send on is junk: + +**ALL YOU HAVE TO OFFER IS EXPOSURE!** + +And guess what? The people keeping your guest blog alive can’t pay their mortgage with that. + +### A Fairer Paradigm For Guest Blogging + +I think that both webmasters and content producers need to figure out a new paradigm for guest blogging that works for both parties (this goes for Medium publications too). Irrespective of whether the latter work for companies or just represent themselves. Things have spun out of hand and it’s time for a recalibration. + +In this revised paradigm, both parties could pull their weight so that guest blogging is a fair deal for both sides and not just for the publishers. + +Here’s what I think a reasonable set of conditions might look like: + +**Guest bloggers:** + + * Should offer something of substance to the website owner’s readership which delivers value relevant to their audience + * Should submit writing that is high quality, well researched, and non-promotional in nature + +**Guest blog hosts:** + + * Shouldn’t shift the responsibility for complying with a huge list of submissions requirements onto writers. If they want to benefit from free content, they should be prepared to invest in editing resources to ensure conformity to a style guide + * Shouldn’t arbitrarily remove guest posts from their blogs + +Promotion should be a shared responsibility — not foisted entirely on the authoring party whose reach is almost bound to be smaller. + +Guest blogs that _do_ pay their contributors should feel free to be as demanding as the _New York Times_ in terms of specifying what they accept. + +Although for some guest blogs, even that would be asking for them to turn things down a notch. + +Many guest blogs have shifted the blame for poor quality submissions onto the world at large, trapping sincere authors in a hopelessly large and unfair dragnet. + +As a guiding principle, I believe that submission requirements should be commensurate with the compensation offered. + +And if that’s none at all, then guest blog hosts should be modest and reasonable in what they ask of those writing for them for free. They should also treat them with courtesy. + +Writers that support guest blogs with unreasonably stringent demands by continuing to contribute free writing to them are creating unreasonable expectations among clients and doing their fellow writing professionals no favors. diff --git a/posts/medium/Happy-30th-Birthday--Linux--From-A-Humble-Tech-Marketer-And-Longtime-Ubuntu-User-.md b/posts/medium/Happy-30th-Birthday--Linux--From-A-Humble-Tech-Marketer-And-Longtime-Ubuntu-User-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3963085bc2619df41f7de3fbfe326d6b4d31e1ad --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Happy-30th-Birthday--Linux--From-A-Humble-Tech-Marketer-And-Longtime-Ubuntu-User-.md @@ -0,0 +1,65 @@ +# Happy 30th Birthday, Linux (From A Humble Tech Marketer And Longtime Ubuntu User) + +#### Linux is so much more than a geeky operating system; it’s a movement that embraces surmounting challenges through the power of community + +Today’s marks the 30th anniversary of Linux. + +The Linux Foundation has led the charge in sprinkling out the confetti. + +The milestone will probably pass just as quickly as it came while the rest of society tuts at those weird geeks having an excuse to do their Linux thing. (I made sure to ship out my Tux plushy specifically for the occasion.) + +The author and Tux pose for a celebratory photo. + +I began using Ubuntu more than 10 years ago. It’s probably more like 14. But what’s the point in keeping count, anyway? + +It’s so long ago that I don’t really think about using Linux any more. + +I just call it using a computer. + +I keep a separate Windows hard drive installed on my desktop and laptop as a matter of course (I’m a desktop guy and an ethernet fan; you could say that I swing against the prevailing tide). + +A virtual machine too. + +I hope that I never have to use either of them. As in like ever. + +Linux has been a tremendously rewarding journey. + +For all the rabbit holes it has sprung me towards — and there have been many of those, true me — those rabbit holes have come laced with plenty of knowledge when I make it out the other side. + +I come out of them knowing a good deal more than I previously did about topics like SSH networking and connection bonding. + +Things that operating systems like Windows keep well hidden beneath a thick veil of automation and “it just works.” Yes, it usually works. But there can be something perniciously collying about t + +I’ve learned about topics that should be–and remain — way above my pay grade. + +I’ve gotten to play around with tech that would have been unaffordable were it not for those dedicated souls who keep the open source community ticking and its software at least somewhat patched and updated. + +I follow their Github repositories and read their documentation. Their knowledge and commitment is awe-inspiring. + +But more than all the above–aren’t these just technical details? — Linux has instilled in me a sort of feeling that virtually no challenge is truly impossible. + +Linux’s focus on community support has also been a terrific guide. + +I frequently draw up upon the wisdom of others in tech fora. I try to give some back as I accrue some of it to call my own. + +Linux has asked nothing from me no matter how long I’ve used it (very minor exceptions: the small sliver of Linux software that requires paid licenses). + +Not one cent. + +I’m not oblivious to the fact that that kind of financial reality deprives the ecosystem of a badly needed profit motive. + +Though even Linux users gripe at the state of Linux on the desktop, I think the fact that it’s developed to the extent that it has _without_ that core financing behind it is nothing short of amazing. + +Let me say this once: + +I love and use Linux because it allows me to get under the hood of computing. To customize and tweak my system as I see fit. To explore. To learn. + +If the community could agree on some licensing that kept the OS true to its core tenants while also injecting the monetization needed to implement better bug fixing and hardware support … I’d be happy to pay. Just saying, you know? + +Thank you, Linux, for inspiring me to keep learning about technology. + +To know that even complex situations can be solved with sufficient determination. + +For showing me that in a globalized community there’s almost always somebody smarter and more knowledgeable than you out there. Somewhere. In the amorphous void that consistutes our global user base. + +I’m excited to keep learning. To keep growing with you. And I know that your best days are still ahead of you. diff --git a/posts/medium/Here-Are-Some-Random-Business-Ideas-That-You-Should-Totally-Steal-From-Me.md b/posts/medium/Here-Are-Some-Random-Business-Ideas-That-You-Should-Totally-Steal-From-Me.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..709179472e7b7888c20ee8460801fd36dbf35ba1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Here-Are-Some-Random-Business-Ideas-That-You-Should-Totally-Steal-From-Me.md @@ -0,0 +1,438 @@ +# Here Are Some Random Business Ideas That You Should Totally Steal From Me + +#### They’re probably not great. But I don’t have time to execute on any of these. So grab whatever you want! + +Some business ideas culled from the small hours of the morning (mostly). Photo by [Startup Stock Photos](https://www.pexels.com/@startup-stock-photos?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/four-assorted-color-glue-stick-bottles-7067/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + + _Release 1.0_ + +While I’m currently greatly enjoying my time in the trenches of marketing communications, there are times when — I admit — I have harbored the idea to create my own startup. + +Sadly, to date, life has consistently gotten in the way. Or more honestly: my freelance business has taken so much time to run that there isn’t much time left to work with. + +Nevertheless, I move through life with the vague goal that one day I too will go on to become the founder (I have worked with many and running your own consultancy is to an extent the same thing — just minus the innovation!). + +Because I’m the imaginative type that tends to come up with random business ideas at two in the morning (which has absolutely just happened) I keep a project management board where I jot down these ideas. + +I want all of these products to be created so that my life will be slightly easier. + +Sadly, I lack the time to currently actually pursue any of these initiatives seriously. Most of these ideas are probably garbage. But perhaps there are a couple of seeds of potential among the rough. + +Therefore so that I can continue to be an armchair innovator you, dear reader, should consider actioning some of these thoughts. + +Feel free to run with any of these random musings. It wouldn’t be stealing. But that was a catchier title. + +### A LinkedIn <-> InCopy / Google Docs Sync Tool + +I update my LinkedIn profile every six months or so whether I’m job hunting or not. + +Typically I change a few words here or there or remember things I did in previous roles that I’ve long since forgotten about but which randomly popped back into my mind. + +The actual resume that I send out from time to time is a designed PDF that I store in Canva. So I have to go in and edit the few words I’ve updated (so that my LinkedIn profile and resume are in ‘sync’) then download the updated PDF and upload that to my Google Drive. + +This is a terrible workflow. + +How much more efficient would it be if we could create some kind of a live sync between our LinkedIn profiles and a resume creator. Or a live sync between our LinkedIn profiles and a draft that lives in Adobe Cloud? + +Change your last experience description on LinkedIn? The changes will automatically sync to your resume. Simply make a few design changes, download, and you’re on your way with a shiny new version. + +### A Thorough Consumer SaaS Backup Tool + +I’m something of a backup obsessive. + +[**My (Ultimate!) Ubuntu Backup Strategy** + _What I’ve Been Using To Keep My Desktop Safe From Accidental Deletion, Disk Failure, and Other Forms of Destruction_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78) + +But when it comes to SaaS, there isn’t a tool on the market that does exactly what I would like. + +You see, dear reader, the cloud doesn’t equal backup. + +For instance, take Medium.com. What if Medium’s data center was hit by a hurricane? What if Medium went out of business? You get the idea. + +Now here’s what I’d love. A cloud to cloud backup tool. But one intended for consumers and the services that _they —_ rather than businesses — use. + +A tool that integrates with _every_ SaaS service consumer commonly use. + +Think Facebook. Medium. Reddit. Twitter. Todoist. Evernote. Not the big enterprise stuff like Gsuite and Office. But all the tiny bits of pieces of cloud infrastructure that people use every day of the week without thinking about it. + +Scoop up user data by API. Package it up into an archive. And send an incremental backup of that data over to somewhere that users can store it (like Google Drive). Give S3 as an option for those who _are_ more technical. Or an on premises server for backup admins that want to backup all the small stuff the organization is putting into cloud services and store it on-site. + +Technical aspects? Simple web hosted frontend. Users integrate their own services and then let the backup scripts run on schedule. + +Monetization? Charge a monthly fee. Marketing messaging? Some ideas: The cloud isn’t backup. Backup isn’t just for business. + +### Lightweight, Telescopic VESA Mounts + +I work with three monitors and a desktop computer. (Yes, I’ve mentioned that before!) + +The desk that I sadly can’t bring around the world with me. At least yet. + +I like it like this. It’s been my setup for at least five years now. + +I like it so much that I have a hard time trying to get work done just about anywhere else. At least during an initial adjustment period. + +But like most of us I travel from time to time. + +That means going back to a laptop or working in hotel business centers. + +The trips are often so short and the adaptation period from 3 screens to 1 so cumbersome that I just don’t get much in the way of work done. + +Inventors have come up with a lot of imaginative solutions to try solve this “problem” — which is probably growing as more and more people are working with this kind of setup. + +The problem? Many of them are kind of buggy. + +Digital nomadism is a growing “thing.” It’s becoming more common for digital nomads to just pick up monitors on the cheap whenever they’re staying in a locale for a few months. Some even rent them. + +All that’s missing to create the perfect setup? A VESA mount that’s lightweight enough to fit in luggage. I’d guess this would have to be made from some kind of composite material and telescoping. + +### Is It Here Yet? + +Being based in Israel, there are a lot of tech services I would love to see available but which aren’t officially in the market yet. + +Revolut. The Curve card. + +Typically, tech startups announce launch roadmaps and also share that data publicly. + +All that’s missing? + +Some website that aggregates all that data so that digital nomads can research a particular geography and quickly identify which services are available in that locality. + +Monetization? Haven’t thought this far. + +### Take My Sub + +Idea: a resale marketplace for SaaS subscriptions. Photo: Wikimedia + +This one’s potentially a bit shaky. + +Every year, countless consumers and businesses sign up for yearly subscriptions to SaaS platforms that they end up not using. + +What if there were a marketplace to resell unused subscriptions? + +If SaaS platforms could be cajoled into getting on board, this might even be a way for startups that can’t afford some high end SaaS tech to get access for cheap. + +Companies scrub the data. Those that can’t afford the full solution price get access. They miss out on the onboarding. But they get to use the tech. It’s better than nothing. Companies get to monetize their unused SaaS time. + +### Sales Coach + +Sales teams conduct a lot of Zoom calls and phone meetings. + +In some organizations, senior sales staff listen in on calls in order to provide feedback. + +What if there were a platform that did … only this? + +Sales Coach could look a bit like SoundCloud. + +It could integrate with CRMs so that call recordings could be quickly imported. + +Then senior salespeople could leave timestamped comments on the recording in order to provide feedback to more junior SDRs and staff. + +### Email Aggregator + +I send some of my clients upwards of 5 emails per day. + +If you have dozens of subordinates I can only imagine the kind of inbox overwhelm that many managers face daily. + +Here’s an ideal for a solution. + +An inbox aggregator that sits between users’ mail servers (IMAP) and the internet. + +Take email from frequent senders and using AI and NLP package it into once daily digests. + +There could also be an override feature so that subordinates could report truly urgent issues to their superiors without that email entering the usual triaging system. + +### Trade Shoe Informer + +Attending trade shows can be a budget and time consuming chore for many small startup organizations with limited sales and marketing resources. + +Travelling around the world also tends to eat up time. + +But trade shows are fertile sources for industry and competitor intelligence. + +What if there were a consultancy whose job it was to attend trade shows on behalf of their clients. + +Report what’s going on. Ask questions to target vendors. + +Does this exist? I’d guess almost certainly. But add it to the list! + +### Cellular Networking Cards For The Desktop + +For those who work from home, internet access can be a make or break thing. + +I once subscribed to two different internet service providers just to have fallback. + +A common recommendation is to instead use a 4G/LTE router. + +But what if you’re the only internet user and — like me — you’re using a desktop. + +Wouldn’t it be a lot easier to just build a small SIM card to ethernet adapter for desktop computers? + +I went searching for such a component recently and had a very hard time finding one. I guess I probably missed it. But somebody should do a better job manufacturing and marketing them. + +### Wise … Just For Borderless Accounts + +I make extensive use out of Wise.com’s borderless accounts feature in order to receive payments from clients in different geographies. + +Unfortunately it doesn’t cover as many localities as I would like it too — especially in Asia. + +It would be great if there were a FinTech provider that existed _solely_ to help digital nomad create as many virtual bank accounts in as many geographies around the world as possible. + +Probably a regulatory nightmare. + +### Expat Destination Search Engine + +Those considering relocations commonly weigh up a few typical factors: + + * What are employment opportunities like in their field where they are interested in? + * What’s the weather like there? + * What’s the cost of living? + * How good is internet access? + +To help those who want to whittle down the world into just a few countries, it would be great if there were an expat destination search engine. + +Tell the search engine what you’re looking for. The output is a list of geographies that meet the criteria you’re looking for. + +### Document Hat + +The ultimate weird accessory for writers. + +I occasionally need to mount a document I’m working on to my monitor. + +Typically the solutions clip onto a screen. + +But what about the hardware that’s always there: the human doing the writing. + +What somebody should come up with is a document hat. + +The hat contains a telescoping document holder that can swivel ergonomically so that it’s positioned at the perfect angle relative to the writer/user. + +### Digital Road Signs + +Why are our roads and landscapes littered with pieces of metal pointing cars and walkers in the direction of places they typically know how to get to anyway? + +Isn’t this all a bit .. anachronistic? + +I propose a better way. + +Low power IoT devices are here. + +Replace signs with smart broadcast devices that are managed centrally by municipalities. + +Equip vehicles and pedestrians with the technology needed to use them. + +Broadcast on cellular. Broadcast on Bluetooth. Integrate into digital displays. + +Say goodbye to chunks of metal and signposts. + +In Israel, Wave has baked speed limit signs into its app. Most road users pay more attention to those than to the signs affixed to highways. Why can’t we extend this concept? + +### High NRR Bluetooth Headphones + +Etymotic is just about the only company that makes IEMs that have noise reduction ratings comparable to earplugs. + +Unfortunately last time I checked they only make headphones that need to be physically tethered into an audio plug. + +Create headphones that run over Bluetooth. Make money selling to sound sensitive people like me. + +### Drinking Pace Trainer + +Beer. In the slow lane. + +I love beer. + +But I don’t like drinking enough of it that I get drunk. And like most beer drinkers, I’ve had occasional experiences when I’ve been a little too enthusiastic in my consumption (note: especially when starting ADHD meds. I want to eat and drink everything when they wear off. Right now!) + +So here’s an idea that I think would be really simple to implement and would actually help a lot of people understand the difference between a responsible drinking pace and the type of drinking people do at binges and which leads to all sorts of problems. + +It could even be used as an educational tool by drug awareness educators. Fill it with water and show it off in schools. + +First, we’re going to need an electronic beer glass. It’s going to have to have a little LED screen where we can key in the ABV content. Next, it’s going to have a little liquid sensor to detect the volume in the glass. + +Finally, we’re going to need a little LED strip on the side of the glass. Once the user pushes the start button, it’s going to light up green where the user should drink to. If the user drinks below that level, they’re drinking too fast. + +What’s an optimal drinking place? I’m guessing the experts know that. + +### A Video Based Social Network + +Video based chats are becoming popular. What if there were a social platform that only did that in discussion boards? Photo: Wikimedia + +I probably like Reddit more than any other social network. But I also really love video and think that it’s the way of the future. + +It’s so much more immersive. There’s so much that can only be communicated adequately when tone of voice and body language are superimposed onto text. + +What I’d love to see? + +Something like Reddit except it’s a series of nested video clips rather than snippets of text. + +Audio would be cool too. But why not start with video and then give the user the option to listen to the video or read an automatically generated text transcript? + +### Knowledge Search Engine + +There are a lot of things you can learn through the internet these days. + +How to run a marketing campaign. + +How to get started with origami. + +And there’s a lot of ways in which to learn. + +You can watch experts on YouTube. + +You can listen to podcasts. + +You can sign up for Udemy courses. + +What do I think is missing? + +A search engine to tie all this together. + +Tell the search engine which skill you want to pick up. + +It reports back a list of all your options. + +Books. Podcasts. Courses. YouTube channels. Certifications. + +### Our Stack + +There are so many SaaS platforms out there that it’s getting overwhelming. + +Some companies have shared publicly what technology stack they are using. + +Why not try to aggregate and leverage all that data. + +Startups tell the program what business challenge they’re trying to solve. + +The AI reports back with recommendations for components. + +The recommendations could also leverage existing stacks in use by other companies. + +### Gartner. For Today’s Audiences. + +Having worked as a freelance writer for the past 5 years, I’ve received countless Gartner papers from clients. + +I respect Gartner. I think that they do great research. Ditto the big 4. + +But I’m not sure how many executives actually take the time to really pour over the kind of jargon heavy lengthy PDFs that they typically produce. + +I think that it’s time for the market research industry to modernize. + +Take the same core model — focused around experts doing deep dives into problems and solutions — but change the output. + +Instead of producing subscriber-only PDFs, produce subscriber only videos and infographics that can only be accessed from within an online access area. + +Users get the same value. But in a format that they’re more likely to actually consume — and enjoy doing so. + +### A Chrome Extension For ADHDers + +There have been plenty of Chrome extensions developed with the intention of automatically summarizing articles. + +But I’m not sure whether any one has actually been developed which has been specifically developed to make internet pages more readable for ADHD patients. + +The kind of things that would be useful in terms of features: + + * Increase text size. Paginate long chunks of information. + * Block distracting graphics. + +Ideally this kind of a thing would be developed in close coordination with neuroscientists so that all its features and recommendations are based on science. + +### Tinder For Jobhunters + +Here’s a problem that I’m familiar with from the freelancing world: + +Take the following example: + +You’re an IoT writer and thinking about doing some cold outreach. + +Conceivably until you’ve spent more time narrowing down your market your target audience consists of “every IoT company on the planet.” Or at least every IoT company that markets in English. + +Once you have an internet connection that’s enough, right? + +Not so fast! + +Ideally one would consult for — or work for — companies that one truly likes and cares about. + +Companies whose values and marketing are congruous with one’s own values. + +The solution? + +Take the somewhat superficial way of presenting information that Tinder has popularized in the dating world and adapt it to the jobhunting market. + +Present prospective clients as flash cards with a few details about them. Swipe right to see if your skills are close enough to what they do to create a match. + +### Not My Actual Email + +Having occasionally delved into the world of dubious black hat marketing practices, I’m familiar with the requirement to create email addresses solely for the purpose of masking one’s true identity. + +Typically one sets up an email and then configures a forward to one’s actual email address. + +You can also find many ephemeral email providers on the market. But these are typically time limited. + +Here’s what I’d like. + +The email equivalent of a virtual number service. + +Quickly provision email addresses that don’t actually have inboxes but which exist solely to forward incoming email onto an end address. + +Use cases for people who might want to mask their address in this manner: + + * Journalists + * Activists + * Dissidents + +### Social Entrepreneurship — Free Mental Health Books + +A social entrepreneurship idea: subsidized mental health ebooks for those unable to afford to pay their full purchase price. Image: PXHere + +There’s a wealth of useful material available about many mental health topics including ADHD, anxiety, and depression. + +Nowadays, most titles are available in ebook format. Which means that anybody anywhere in the world can gain access to them so long as they have compatible hardware. + +The people who write mental health books — like any creatives — need to make a living. + +But because they have to charge for their works, this creates a risk that those who need the books the most won’t be able to afford to read them. After all, there’s a correlation between low income and poor mental health. + +I would suggest that some philanthropist that has money to spend should consider setting up a service that subsidizes mental health books that have been vetted by clinicians. The UK has launched an innovative bibliotherapy scheme in this respect. + +The website could function just like a regular ebook marketplace. Except that the titles cost nothing or a small fraction of their recommended retail price. They’re only important mental health books. And there’s an unknown charity covering most of the cost and making up the difference to pass onto authors. Readers would have to apply for access and demonstrate financial need. + +### Social Entrepreneurship — An Old Hardware Relief Program + +Hardware moves fast. + +And when HDD moves to SSD which moves to NVMe SSD demand for the technological predecessors inevitably declines before — finally — it becomes obsolete. + +But what to do with that slow selling less glamorous hardware? + +Perhaps somebody could set up a relief program which buys up old spec hardware in bulk and ships it off to aid programs in parts of the world where users could make perfectly good use from it. + +### Support Talk To Support + +On several occasions, I’ve found myself working as the annoyed go-between between two different support teams. + +Example: + +Your domain registrar needs to change a DNS nameserver so that another service provider can migrate your site. + +The ideal solution? + +Support team A talks directly to support team B without having to run information through the intermediary / consumer in the middle. + +How could this work? + +Some kind of connector platform that allows support teams to liaise with one another after the user authorizes the passage of their account file between the two. + +Potential pitfalls: likely privacy concerns. + +### BackupSat + +Backup enthusiasts and those with the most stringent data vaulting requirements in the planet often go to extensive lengths to ensure that their data is protected. + +Think storing data in elaborate vaults built deep into the earth. + +But what about taking data protection to the next level. To the next … altitude. + +The outlandish idea here is to provision a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite packed full of storage media. + +High net worth clients can transmit data to be backed up to the satellite via a satellite uplink. + +I suspect this already exists in some guise. At least among governments / militaries. diff --git a/posts/medium/Here-s-A-Free-Rebranding-Strategy-For-Pro-Israel-Advocacy.md b/posts/medium/Here-s-A-Free-Rebranding-Strategy-For-Pro-Israel-Advocacy.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5fb694317dc1cad5a821a8cebf58a066de7cf0ae --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Here-s-A-Free-Rebranding-Strategy-For-Pro-Israel-Advocacy.md @@ -0,0 +1,82 @@ +# Here’s A Free Rebranding Strategy For Pro-Israel Advocacy + +#### Opinion: A more reductive approach focused on core messaging and less on virtue signalling could yield more favorable results for the pro-Israel community + +Pro-Israel advocacy: if we took a more reductive approach could it be more effective? Photo by [cottonbro](https://www.pexels.com/@cottonbro?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-of-the-flag-of-israel-4033852/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Those who have followed my online musings (rantings?) may have previously come across my decidedly mixed feelings about _hasbara_. + +[**Why I Think Hasbara Is A Waste of Time (And Resources)** +_Three days to go until 5780 becomes 5781. Out with the old and in with the new. So - as I'm particularly fond of airing…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/) + +After publishing the above blog, a friend who works in a tangential field (wisely) pointed out to me that tainting all _hasbara_ with the same brush is unwise. + +Like just about any other field of human endeavor, there’s _hasbara_ done well and _hasbara_ done terribly (in the unlikely event you’ve clicked onto this article without knowing what _hasbara_ means, its literal meaning is ‘explanation’ but it’s safe to translate it as ‘pro-Israel advocacy’.) + +Nevertheless, in the interest of throwing wild and contrarian ideas out into the internet, here’s what I would attempt to change if I worked in the field (I don’t work in _hasbara_ but do providing marketing consulting to tech companies). + +### Drop The Holier Than Thou Attitude + +A common line of tactic is for those engaging in _hasbara_ — note: during the recent Gaza War I wholeheartedly joined the _hasbara_ party — is to point out that the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip are suffering as much from the dictatorial rule of Hamas as they are from Israel. + +This notion was neatly encapsulated in the hashtag #freegazafromhamas. + +Of course, the operative guide for _hasbara_ seems to be to shift blame from Israel and onto the other side. Much as Palestinian propaganda tries to work the other way. + +I try to avoid profanity when writing these blog posts, but I can’t really think of a better term for this than a pissing war on a macro scale with the two people pissing endlessly at one another being two well-organized groups with plenty of lobbyists and advocacy organizations (who agree about virtually nothing). Like most pissing matches, neither participant tends to come out looking particularly good. + +Another favored tactic of those working in the field is to point out that some things Palestinians have been shown to do — like storing weapons in holy places — contravene their religion. + +We tell the world to look at how little those naughty Palestinians care for their own religion because it says in their holy scriptures not to defile mosques and here’s a photograph showing them doing just that. While it may make the point that Palestinians have been documented to store weapons in their holy sites, I don’t believe it really has the apparent intended effect of actually making Israel look any better. Quite the opposite, in fact. + +The problem with feigning concern for Islam or for Gazans is that the world doesn’t buy it. It comes across as disingenuous and like a desperate attempt to score brownie points from any corner of the playing field. + +The authentic reality is that most of us defending Israel simply want to live in peace free from rockets and attempts at bodily harm. Like most humans, we’re fundamentally selfish creatures concerned primarily with our own self-interest. Sometimes I wonder why we don’t just say that. + +### We Don’t Need To Leverage Every Success + +Am I proud to live in Israel? + +Yes. + +Do I think that Israeli high tech does tremendous things? + +Yes. I work with Israeli companies every day and see first-hand some of the innovation coming out of this part of the world. + +And yet… + +I cringe ever so slightly when I see Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs touting the success of Israel’s high-tech economy in a manner that feels more about pointing out how much more advanced we are than our neighbors than it does about celebrating technology. + +There are many things that those defending Israel will cite in order to point out how virtuous they feel the country is. Common themes include: + + * Israel being a democracy amidst a sea of undemocratic regimes + * Israel being home to many different faiths + * Israel having gay pride marches + +Instead of trying to leverage just about every possible facet of what’s good hear to try make the same point over and over again (“see, we’re actually great and we’re not anything like what they make us out to be!”) I’d whittle the messaging down to the points that I think convey the essential narrative of the Jewish State. The stuff that really matters and that lies at the very essence of why most of us are here doing what we do (living in Israel): + + * We’re the realization of the Jewish people’s right to self-determination + * We face security challenges and are repeatedly forced to defend ourselves and not to rely on any other country for our protection. Because history teaches us that we must + * We’re an open-minded country that’s open to the world and forging ties with new friends. I’d include that one because it’s a powerful manifestation of our independence. + +Says me: we need to stop trying to make ourselves look good by framing that goodness in reference to the backward state of many of our neighboring countries. Even if that reference is indirect and only by inference such as by pointing out — time and time again — how we’re the “only democracy in the Middle East.” + +Speaking of which, we should probably drop the “most moral in army in the world” line too to describe the IDF. Because conceptions of morals aren’t universal, nobody to the best of my knowledge has conducted an experiment about this and … more honestly, it just makes us look like smug supremacists. Instead, we need to own what’s truly ours. + +Even if you’re right, there’s something about repeatedly telling the world that you’re always right that inevitably becomes somewhat grating especially when you do it for years at a time. If we focus on the core narrative — and stop somewhat desperately trying to leverage every piece of good news — we can stick to communicating our central mission. + +### We Don’t Need To Say That Everything Here Is Perfect + +I’ve made the point before that — as somebody actually living in Israel — there’s a lot about _hasbara_ that I don’t connect with. + +I’ve had interesting discussions with pro-Israel Jews (and non-Jews) living in the diaspora centered around this very point. + +I see day to day Israel as a mixture of enormous positivity tinged with some almost inevitable badness. Like any country. And unlike the picture perfect nirvana that much pro-Israel advocacy portrays the country to be. + +What’s good here is already well-documented: the innovation; the enterprising spirit; the sheer nature of the country (and for me, Israel’s existence as a Jewish state comes before everything). + +But every time I go out for a beer or to fill up my car with gas I’m reminded of the fact that Israel is also grossly overpriced with a serious domestic poverty problem and low rates of cohesion between some of its disparate populations. + +I believe that pro-Israel advocacy has an important place. But also that we need to do it with some measure of circumspection in order for it to be as effective as it can be. + +Saying that everything Israel does is good and all our ways are virtuous is sort of the brute force approach to countering the slew of lies and misinformation thrown at Israel every day of the week. I believe that a more nuanced approach which focuses on articulating only our core “messaging” would show better results. diff --git a/posts/medium/Here-s-how-to-reach-me-by-secure--PGP--email.md b/posts/medium/Here-s-how-to-reach-me-by-secure--PGP--email.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..60ccfb6c4e8b768257215a06d87657089c0da24f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Here-s-how-to-reach-me-by-secure--PGP--email.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# Here’s how to reach me by secure (PGP) email + +I’ve been using PGP encrypted email for a number of years now. + +I have my addresses and public keys published on my website. But as that has a habit of going down from time to time, I thought I would use this Medium profile as a mirror. + +### Main Email + +If you know my personal email address then you can exchange PGP email with me using this public key file. + + + -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- + + + 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HO0W + + + -----**END** PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- + +### Protonmail + +Sometimes Protonmail is just more convenient than using a desktop client. + +You can reach me at: + + + + -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- + + + Version: OpenPGP.js v4.10.8 + + + Comment: https://openpgpjs.org + + + xsBNBGBKH/QBCADXARb84Rtff6OdLQVlywUMq6DZw2TmgwqCLWqiggLfkGmhYikFGagUaDHDoDuA4QZ67KMM6twCJV3XQNLBW4XlMC2peYKp8huBDHormtbu6jl69pIT8YUsLotd91m5Zkn5QLyMkgJQyzDcy0VHnlSLOhpLokdqePgyKNRy5HXzExTzCvblnAP8T4byz7xk8rtm4YBVXnxOMQqHQnRVNDSZPg0EeZjeAX3vSGzK9Ip/mEywyolFuNq+Uj8F4V5Giif2epQaIVvp+dV3AZYSY1B42OrfNQKM6LaD7xMcMkqcLz3AQPZwdsN0SsWhPXToIU1o5oPjLvVVzXfcmrHoV/OVABEBAAHNP2RhbmllbHNyb3NlaGlsbEBwcm90b25tYWlsLmNvbSA8ZGFuaWVsc3Jvc2VoaWxsQHByb3Rvbm1haWwuY29tPsLAjQQQAQgAIAUCYEof9AYLCQcIAwIEFQgKAgQWAgEAAhkBAhsDAh4BACEJEOdStfF1mVdvFiEExgLSRFnpeMG0PGRf51K18XWZV2/NSgf/fVQXNp78Ps0Z38fGQNiRqL1fXkOMvj8P2no2cmzrpaRlGbyK0N+9k4iz5nqiP2xwLq+EnVtVek/R6aGhiseMO/wkQOLFoQt2p4tzsobFPSAKccnNcw2jJZ5eduuwUTRhvuP+cKddj8qMasdCuQKha3t3mmd2JkGqnuuObEoP0bxZhDhJ/sysyxBp/ltPKGIMB742LJ58dHCZG1DpzJ3yelyg/3NfCT1LrTyYDx8tb2RK1iF1tW0Dk62LCBaSBAMpiUgpWbUjxoOxAbFngOrWPxDR6hLcB+zLK49YOyCPR4/FT+A73sEARW21M4Q4ymaf2pD/5YWlmnalNsQn07GKH87ATQRgSh/0AQgAkeZMFuD/R7bra2Ux0MgZUt+tcecS7G84WqYeEZeP4AEgcnT27XW8/47FRwNpg2n7KVwadEUFcZrtCI5iQkhBOGlwfyHU9ZspPxaiNBBpioJAnsenUlQ1B1AylimbTnj5c39bRULPjMRA6UXvhah5BYOwmsjWjSdPuIUb2Zfll5lMsPVQcbH5KWxspo14KQR74r86qyvbQoZOVKknN5VeXyW7yph05IgrCv3Wtxh1ENWZpWg9BQMwYfRxYNkMRbuiNUw1X6Mcq3D5q6j3+/IcqcxvhGQCbIO99m4A9AoiuJorXhS8pH2gZo3i4Frj6p2j/dXt336p6H64ycxZrKQ0wQARAQABwsB2BBgBCAAJBQJgSh/0AhsMACEJEOdStfF1mVdvFiEExgLSRFnpeMG0PGRf51K18XWZV29B/ggAtu6N1/A2h7JRyE9EIFxcWxnS87mkptVoTWZwyjI5PhAp0rAo6ZdoKk+3DRwPr2NFkR8qGFczeRtwCk4PyG1BR2PAM5RD8UyWBlOB6cEFqNzPv5RAC5/IwajDywD68o+uW3D1x2bj3DJrMT/mpj4wb1tv3v3pp9xyaisn/omikzj0uXqqdWU2a/a98T81FRKWRyspZR+J823fqrXXKWWPEmkLybfT0UA/2Ckj2BHHyGegYCgWMbaBbSbFsrKPNOiHtBrenSqEfMCjKABe+cGUfxl7SuIrHTb+8U5RSNJCgrfC4RLMmGckAhyUDY3JB0Y7O5bbmaqiB5yoL7O3cnZ1sQ===izyG + + + -----**END** PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- + +You can also download the key from here: + +[**Gofile - Free file sharing and storage platform** + _Gofile is a free file sharing and storage platform. You can store and share data of all types. There is no limit and…_ gofile.io](https://gofile.io/d/whyyg1 "https://gofile.io/d/whyyg1")[](https://gofile.io/d/whyyg1) + +### How To Contact Me By Regular Email + +Here’s my attempt to provide my email address in a way that tricks the spam bots. + +An email address that will reach me is: + +My name (first and last name together in lower case, no spaces). + +At + +My name again. + +Dot co dot il. diff --git a/posts/medium/Hiring-Israel-Based-Talent---4-Reasons-Your-Company-Should-Be-Considering-It.md b/posts/medium/Hiring-Israel-Based-Talent---4-Reasons-Your-Company-Should-Be-Considering-It.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e05b5a798cb5c9189df81b4ae6f0b9aef2886e2d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Hiring-Israel-Based-Talent---4-Reasons-Your-Company-Should-Be-Considering-It.md @@ -0,0 +1,97 @@ +# Hiring Israel-Based Talent : 4 Reasons Your Company Should Be Considering It + +#### This small Middle Eastern tech power could also be the talent pool you’ve never thought about tapping + +Connected to the world and with an abundance of immigrant talent, Israel is a country worth exploring for your next remote projects. Photo: Wikimedia. + +If you’re on the lookout for new team members and are open to the idea of hiring remotely ([as you should be](https://www.allbusiness.com/7-benefits-hiring-remote-workers-20988-1.html)!), then Israel is one talent pool that you mightn’t have considered. + +As an Israel-based advocate for all things remote-work (FYI: I also like async), I’d like to help change perceptions about the viability of working with employees in this part of the Middle East. + +[**All About Async** + _All About Async is a Medium publication for those interested in learning more about asynchronous communications and…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async "https://medium.com/all-about-async")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async) + +I’m also highly biased and have a glaring self-interest in writing this article because I’d like to continue to work with international organizations. Enough of a disclaimer? Let’s continue then. + +While Israel mightn’t be top of the list of countries people think about when considering where to make their next remote hire, there are a few reasons why overlooking this booming tech superstar would be a mistake. + +Ready? Here are 4 reasons. + +### Israel Is Chock Full Of Immigrant Talent + +As a country built on immigration, it’s no surprise that Israel happens to have a disproportionately large expat community within its borders. + +For a tiny sliver of the east Mediterranean, Israel has a surprisingly large population. At last new year’s eve, the number [stood north of 9 million](https://www.timesofisrael.com/as-it-welcomes-in-2021-israels-population-numbers-9291000/). But isn’t Israel famously tiny? Yes, it is. Head over to [TheTrueSize.com](https://thetruesize.com/) to see how different countries look superimposed on top of one another. The secret to these two dynamics coexisting? High population density.[ Israel clocks in at 30th in the world](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_and_dependencies_by_population_density) on this metric with more than 400 people living in each square kilometer of the territory. + +During last year alone, [more than 20,000 _olim_](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/culture/20000-olim-from-70-countries-moved-to-israel-this-year-despite-pandemic-653508) __(Jewish immigrants) moved to Israel to make a new life for themselves in the country. What can you do with all these fresh-starters? One option is to hire them! + +In the multicultural melting pot that is Israel, immigrants are often segregated according to what language they speak. But judging by skillsets, it’s also a rich panoply. + +Israel is home to immigrant: + + * Doctors + * Lawyers + * Marketers + * Salespeople + +Want to diversify your applicant pool? Make sure that Israel-based candidates are able to access your latest openings. + +### Israel Is On UTC+2 — So Is Easy To Interface With From Europe + +Source: World Time Zone Map by 24TimeZones.com + +As a country on the east of the Mediterranean Sea, like its neighbors, Israel is two hours ahead of Universal Time Coordinated (UTC) which, practically speaking, works out to be the same time as Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). + +This means that Tel Aviv and Cairo are both on the same time zone. Curiously, this also means that Israel tends to be on a very similar time to South Africa throughout most of the year (they’re just based in different hemispheres). + +For those running Europe-based businesses looking to hire remote workers, this means that the time zone offset with Israel-based workers tends to be either one time zone of none. + +Because of the nuances of time zones, Israel often works out to be _ahead_ of countries on the periphery of Eastern Europe such as Ukraine (at UTC +3 at the time of writing). + +Compared to workers based in the US — particularly on the West Coast — this time zone difference is minimal and doesn’t impede productivity or the syncing of calendars. + +### Remote Work Is Quickly Becoming Entrenched In Israel + +The pandemic has greatly accelerated the adoption of remote working arrangements — both in Israel and throughout the world. + +[**Israel's Tech Scene Is Moving Back to Remote Work** + _Due to the Delta variant, the government has asked private companies to encourage employees to work from home. Here's…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-tech-scene-is-moving-back-to-remote-work/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-tech-scene-is-moving-back-to-remote-work/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-tech-scene-is-moving-back-to-remote-work/) + +Israel, in fact, has emerged as a world lead in an unwanted category — becoming, earlier this year, [the country that had forced its citizens to spend the most time under lockdown.](https://www.jpost.com/health-science/israel-leads-the-world-in-time-spent-in-coronavirus-lockdowns-657028) + +All this means that remote working arrangement have quickly accelerated in Israel — much as they have in other countries. + +But why does this matter? + +As a longtime remote worker (I’ve freelanced, on and off, for six years), I’m certain that the existence of a remote _ecosystem_ can be a make or break factor in determining the success of remote working for each of its individual participants. + +In this sense, the fate of the collective determines the fate of the individual. The simple explanation? Working remotely can get lonely. But being among other people doing the same thing can make it a lot more bearable. + +As more and more countries turn to Israel for their remote talent needs, this ecosystem is likely to only get stronger. + +### Israel Is Well Connected By Air To Major Financial Centers And World Capitals + +The arrivals/departures board on the Ben Gurion Airport website. Image: IAA. + +Owing to the vibrant nature of its immigrant community, Israel has developed extensive air links with major world capitals — connecting this Middle Eastern country with major world capitals including London, NYC, and Hong Kong (among many others). + +And as Israel’s diplomatic relations expand, so do the list of countries wanting to do business with it — inevitably leading to the creation of new scheduled flight routes. + +The pace at which these developments are taking place is easy to miss. It’s been less than a year since Israel’s national flag-carrying airline, El Al, operated the first commercial flight to Dubai in the UAE. + +[**Israel's EL AL To Operate First Flight To UAE | One Mile at a Time** + _A couple of weeks ago a historic peace deal was announced between Israel and the UAE, which will hopefully usher in a…_ onemileatatime.com](https://onemileatatime.com/el-al-first-flight-uae/ "https://onemileatatime.com/el-al-first-flight-uae/")[](https://onemileatatime.com/el-al-first-flight-uae/) + +El Al and Israir [agreed to begin flights to Marrakesh (in Morocco)](https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/israel-officially-launches-direct-flights-to-morocco-674841) after the signing of the Abraham Accords. + +Given the ongoing pandemic, there are other routes that have been announced by airlines but which are presumed to be on hold for logistical reasons. + +El Al [had previously announced](https://www.touristisrael.com/el-al-to-launch-direct-flight-from-dublin-to-tel-aviv-in-may-2020/30992/) that it intended creating the first non-charter flight route between Israel and Ireland. American Airways had previously discussed creating the first direct flight [between Tel Aviv and Dallas](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-american-airlines-back-in-israel-for-the-long-haul-1001372448). + +During normal times, Israel is a Middle Eastern transport hub that enjoys substantial connectivity with capitals — both neighboring and far-off. + +As remote working continues to gather pace, companies are turning to diverse labor pools to ingest the human resources needed to power their growth. + +Although legislative and taxation concerns still provide an obstacle for some companies, many are taking a chance on talent based in geographies with which they don’t have traditional relations, including Israel. + +Israel provides a plentiful source of English-speaking talent with a strong expat population and good links with the rest of the world. For those interested in exploring it as a recruiting destination, it has a lot to offer. diff --git a/posts/medium/Home-Assistant-VM-Backup-Method--Proxmox-To-NAS---Backblaze-B2.md b/posts/medium/Home-Assistant-VM-Backup-Method--Proxmox-To-NAS---Backblaze-B2.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b39dc70c6989909cd48bf465221b2d9e95baa0c4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Home-Assistant-VM-Backup-Method--Proxmox-To-NAS---Backblaze-B2.md @@ -0,0 +1,58 @@ +# Home Assistant VM Backup Method: Proxmox To NAS & Backblaze B2 + +Here’s a quick description of another backup methodology for Home Assistant OS that uses a Synology NAS on the network to backup the virtual machine followed by replicating that backup automatically to cloud storage (in this case, B2 by Blackblaze). + +**What you’ll need** + + * A Proxmox server/host running your Home Assistant OS as a virtual machine (VM) + * A Synology NAS on your network. This would also work with TrueNAS or UnRAID. + * 10 minutes to configure everything. + +### 1 — Create A Shared Folder On The NAS With NFS + +My personal philosophy is to create a separate NAS volume for every major backup project. Although my NAS ends up having a lot of volumes, every backup task has a discrete purpose and source. + +For this project, I created a shared folder called HAVMImages: + +After creating the volume in DSM, you’ll want to create an NFS permission with read/write privilege: + +The hostname/IP can either be a wildcard entry (less secure) or the static local IP of your Proxmox host (more secure). + +### 2 — Add The NAS Volume To Your ‘Datacenter’ In Proxmox + +In Proxmox choose Datacenter -> Storage -> Add storage -> NFS + +Once you add your NAS by its IP address, the volumes with NFS enabled will automatically populated: + +Next, you’ll want to enable VZDump backup file as a content type: + +Once that’s done, you have the NAS volume mapped for the backup job. + +### Set Up The Backup Job In Proxmox + +To setup the backup, choose ‘Backup’ under ‘Datacenter’ (first nested level) and click ‘ + +You’ll want to make sure that you select the HOAS VM you’re backing up, put it on a schedule that suits, and make sure that ‘Storage’ is set to the right path (the one we created on the NAS): + +Given that VM images are fairly large, it’s very important to set a retention policy manually. I choose to keep 2 full VM backups (at weekly intervals): + +Once you’ve run your first full backup of the VM, you should see that the files have automatically created themselves on the NAS. + +The .zst file contains the VM image. Mine was 2.5GB approximately: + +### Duplicate The Snapshots To Backblaze B2 + +The final step is to duplicate these snapshots up to a Backblaze B2 bucket. + +As preliminary steps you’ll want to create the target bucket and create an app key for the backup job. + +After providing the credentials, Cloud Sync will detect your backup target: + +Set the local path to be the volume we’re putting the VM snapshots into from Proxmox the remote path as the root folder and choose the sync direction as ‘upload local changes only’: + +Finally — to automate the proces — we’ll want to put this job on an automatic schedule. I check for new images to replicate twice a week at 05:00: + +And … that’s it! + +Your VM backups are now offsited periodically to Backblaze: + diff --git a/posts/medium/Horrible-Corporate-Jargon-That-Needs-To-Go-Away-Right-Now--Part-2-.md b/posts/medium/Horrible-Corporate-Jargon-That-Needs-To-Go-Away-Right-Now--Part-2-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7a756571111a04c5a23a1832d8bb6de584bae2e7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Horrible-Corporate-Jargon-That-Needs-To-Go-Away-Right-Now--Part-2-.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# Horrible Corporate Jargon That Needs To Go Away Right Now (Part 2) + +#### Choice expressions from LinkedIn and elsewhere that have roused this writer’s inner curmudgeon + +As a full-time writer, I’m allowed to both be cantankerous — also know as having an “artistic spirit,” a wonderful euphemism if ever there was one — and to care deeply about words. + +Recently, I shared my favorite words in the English language (I should have added the word for word-loving itself, logophilia, to the list): + +[**Some of my favorite words in the English language** + _Despite the vicissitudes of the day, I managed to pull together this post. Please spare it your opprobrium._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/some-of-my-favorite-words-in-the-english-language-225cda3d9609 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/some-of-my-favorite-words-in-the-english-language-225cda3d9609")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/some-of-my-favorite-words-in-the-english-language-225cda3d9609) + +Having contributed my monthly dose of positive thinking to the internet (I meter it out carefully, you know), I now feel that I am entitled to hate on those words that I _don’t_ like. I’m sorry to say, but it’s probably a longer list. + +My ever-evolving list of “most hated corporate jargon” is pulled from my daily interactions with the corporate world. + +I last updated the list about a year ago so I figured that it could use a refresh and I chose a particularly sleep-deprived afternoon on which to do this public service (read: I’m cranky). + +Here are some of the recent corporate-isms and pieces of jargon I’ve picked up that have been contributing to my ill-disguised rage at the corporate world. + +_(With thanks to both clients and my extended LinkedIn network — but especially my extended LinkedIn network — for this updated assortment)_ + +### Calling A Powerpoint Presentation A “Deck” + +“Yes, I’d love to show you our new sales deck. Just let me see where I left the projector and whether it’s still running.” Said no startup founder ever. Image: Pixabay. + +How did Corporate America reach the absurd point at which it became acceptable to refer to a _presentation_ as a deck (I hear you ask)? + +If you didn’t know, then let me tell fill you in on a fascinating part of technological history. + +Back in the good ol’ days — back when children walked barefoot to school and the steamboat was the quickest way of getting between New York and London — people used to load a _deck_ of slides into a physical projection device. + +Now let me ask you a question: + +When was the last time you saw a startup CEO stressing over whether slide 11 was in the right place or whether the projection lens might have a smudge on it? + +Answer: you probably never did. + +The device which we formerly relied upon to display “decks” is now obsolete. + +I therefore say that the word deserves to be too. + +[**Why do they call a slide deck a "slide deck"? Where did it originate from? -** +_Where does the term pitch deck come from? To answer that question we need to back in time to when everything sucked…_ www.alexanderjarvis.com](https://www.alexanderjarvis.com/why-do-they-call-a-slide-deck-a-slide-deck-where-did-it-originate-from/ "https://www.alexanderjarvis.com/why-do-they-call-a-slide-deck-a-slide-deck-where-did-it-originate-from/")[](https://www.alexanderjarvis.com/why-do-they-call-a-slide-deck-a-slide-deck-where-did-it-originate-from/) + +### Describing Your USP As Your “Purple Cow” + +If a certain client ever encounters this blog post I will have to humble myself into apologizing and probably be forced to do away with their business. + +But the truth is that I felt like hugging the person who left this comment on a Google Doc because it was truly one of the most outlandish examples of corporate jargon that I have ever encountered. + +So puzzled I was by reference to the fact that “this is really our purple cow, Daniel” that I had to go off to the Google machine in order to try decipher was this cryptic reference might mean. + +Putting my ignorance as a marketer on full show, I was embarrassed to see that the term’s etymology derived from a Seth Godin book by the same name. It was also the symbol of a chocolate brand (Milka) and the Google machine also indicates that there might really have once been a purple cow in Serbia. + +In any event, the reference is a pretty self-explanatory metaphor. Your purple cow is your unique selling proposition (USP) — what sets you apart from the competition and makes you unique. + +What’s _your_ purple cow? + +_One can only ponder: Can an expression be both annoying and vaguely clever all at the same time? Does our relationship with words, and language, have to be strictly one-dimensional?_ + +### Leaving Meetings Due To A “Hard Stop” + +What’s wrong with saying that you have to leave a call in 20 minutes? + +Or that you have to see your optometrist at 17:30 and thus will be forced to deprive yourself of 30 more minutes of the monthly sales team Zoom meeting for that reason? + +Perhaps because I’ve always been an aviation buff, talking about having a “hard stop” not only sounds like a way too dramatic way to say that you need a meeting to me, but it also brings to mind ground crews rolling out the chocks to make sure that a 747 doesn’t roll into the airport terminal building. + +We have a “hard stop” coming up captain! Buckle in (to the Zoom call)! + +### “Jumping” On A Call + +I find this particular one so absurd that I actually created my first ever meme in its honor, below. + +I _take_ calls. + +If I’m feeling particularly energetic I’ll even turn on my webcam. + +But under no circumstances do I “jump on” phone calls, whether they are held on Zoom or by the conventional things we used to hold up to our faces. + +‘nuff said about this one. + +### Uttering The Words “Makes Sense?” At The End Of An Email + +I think that “makes sense?” is actually a great example of how people all interpret language in their own (very) unique ways. + +Language interpretation varies widely by culture, of course. But I reckon that personal sensibilities have an enormous amount to do with it too. + +I say this because, having conducted a very unscientific straw poll of some friends, I was surprised to see that most people do not find the common end-of-email rejoined “makes sense?” to be in any way passive aggressive or annoying. + +Personally, I interpret it as mildly demeaning and condensing — the kind of thing that you might say to a child who was grappling with the rudiments of arithmetic. When I receive an email that ends “makes sense?” I read into it a vaguely hectoring that questions whether I was intelligent enough to comprehend its contents. + +I have noticed that others, however, detect no such malice in the expression and see it merely as a (polite) way to check whether the recipient has fully understood the message and to prompt them to ask a question if they don’t. + +Another one in this category for me is to _“have”_ somebody do something — an expression popular among Americans — which to me implies a servitude-like expectation that that person will do something on command and negates the fact that they have free will.Afterthought: Can an expression be both annoying and vaguely clever all at the same time? Does our relationship with words, and language, have to be strictly one-dimensional? + +Even in the context of a relationship that involves subordination, I would instinctively reach for the term _“ask_ ” instead. But again, that’s probably just a reflection of how I interpret language. Or the fact that I’m a cranky writer. + +What are _your_ least-loved corporate words? diff --git a/posts/medium/How--and-where--to-buy-alcohol-online-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/How--and-where--to-buy-alcohol-online-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cd45bdeb376264b5e1eb0a61d3b5678fe9f61230 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How--and-where--to-buy-alcohol-online-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,34 @@ +# How (and where) to buy alcohol online in Israel + +#### Paneco, Supermarkets, Local Stores + +Purim kicks off this evening. And as we just mentioned, that means that — this year — guys and girls around the country are preparing to [get drunk on Zoom calls](https://www.afteraliyah.com/humor/with-purim-imminent-nation-prepares-to-get-wasted-on-zoom-chats/). + +All this of course begs the question: but how can you buy alcohol online in Israel? + +Bad news for Purim revelers — it’s possibly too late for online delivery. Good news for Purim revelers — you can buy from your local liquor store. + +Without further introductions, here are some places you can buy alcohol online in Israel. Just be prepared to show ID to the guy that comes to your door. + +If you’re looking for the best selection of alcohol online in Israel, then [Paneco.co.il](http://www.paneco.co.il) is my top recommendation. + +And there’s good news for olim whose linguistic talents don’t extend beyond _“od bira bevakash”_(another beer please): there’s an English version too. + +What goodies can you scoop up on Paneco: + +There’s also home delivery throughout the country. But this isn’t an advertisement for Paneco so we’ll leave it up to you to figure out all the details. + +Shufersal is one of the major grocery stores in Israel and has a decent online interface. + +If you’re really stuck with the Hebrew and are just trying to order beer online, then try Google Translate and run this into the search box. + +You can add alcohol to your Shufersal order and get it delivered to wherever Shufersal delivers. + +If you’re more a Rami Levi type guy (or gal) then you can order alcohol online through their site. Just be aware that they don’t deliver everywhere in the country. + +### Local Liqor Stores + +Ecommerce is taking Israel by storm and there are loads of liquor stores that are now allowing you to buy online and get delivered. + +If you’re in Jerusalem, then check out HaMesameach ( [HaMeSameach.co.il](https://www.hamesameach.co.il/)) which is located close to the _shuk_ and which recently launched a slick web store and delivery service. + diff --git a/posts/medium/How-Can-I-Develop-A-Thought-Leadership-Campaign-For-My-Business-.md b/posts/medium/How-Can-I-Develop-A-Thought-Leadership-Campaign-For-My-Business-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6e04a6a189f33ab2e4d6a105216510ec51799124 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-Can-I-Develop-A-Thought-Leadership-Campaign-For-My-Business-.md @@ -0,0 +1,64 @@ +# How Can I Develop A Thought Leadership Campaign For My Business? + +You’ve read about thought leadership’s benefits.[ You know that thought leadership can favorably influence](https://www.edelman.com/research/2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study) outsiders’ perception of your organization, prompt readers to include you in RFP opportunities that you might have otherwise missed out on, and award you business. + +But what do you actually need to do in order to get going? + +Here are some ideas to overcome static friction. + +### Understand What Thought Leadership Is — And What It Isn’t + +In order to realize benefits from thought leadership, it’s important to firstly understand what thought leadership is. + +**I define thought leadership as a marketing activity which aims to achieve PR and sales objectives through the quality and content of the authoring party’s thinking.** + +Thought leadership should deliver genuine value to your readership through the originality and quality of the insights it contains. Thought leadership shouldn’t be whitespace or a format for regurgitating and repackaging information which you have already put out through your blog. + +Like content marketing, thought leadership derives part of its value from the fact that it allows a natural relationship to develop between recipients and the authoring party — one which can be later used to realize commercial gains for the authoring party. + +Whereas content marketing tends to be a top-down communication method which typically aims to drive its readers towards taking action in the form of taking purchasing decisions over the short to medium term, thought leadership tends to function instead at the peer to peer level, encouraging readers to regard the author as a recognized industry authority and as a trustworthy source to include in a major tendering opportunity. + +More often that not, thought leadership is also a B2B activity, where long sales cycles and the gradual warming of relationships, before the eventual awarding of business, are the norm. Thought leadership tends to steer audiences towards purchasing high ticket items rather than small consumer purchases. + +While the ultimate aim of thought leadership and content marketing may be the same, very often the contexts are completely different (B2B vs. B2C; long vs. short sales cycles). + +Thought leadership often works at a higher level of the sales funnel — typically serving as a door-opener to the C-suite and allowing prospective vendors to demonstrate and assert the type of value they could bring if awarded business. + +That’s why it’s important to use the two in conjunction but also why many marketing teams delineate between the two activities. Two audiences and two contexts require different messaging and tools. The good news is that the effects of the two combined can be synergistic. + +### Have You Something Interesting To Say? If Not, Hold Off + +A recurrent theme that runs throughout the Edelman LinkedIn B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study is that thought leadership can work as a double edged sword. Just as it can help to realize both tangible and intangible gains (the awarding of business; enhanced reputations), if done poorly it can work to undo previous hard work. + +Specifically: + + * **38% of decision makers polled in the latest Edelman / LinkedIn study said that their admiration for an organization had decreased** after reading poor quality thought leadership. (Perception) + * **27% of decision makers said that poor quality thought leadership had led to them not awarding business to an organization** (Business). + +Before even thinking about committing to a formal thought leadership strategy, it’s worth considering whether you are able to answer some or all of the following questions. + +If you’re drawing a blank for all of them, it’s probably a good idea to return to the drawing board until you have a clearer vision of what you’re trying to achieve with thought leadership: + + * **What are some unique perspectives our team is ready to share** about how we see our industry developing? + * **Are these perspectives being shared by other organizations in our industry?** Might these make ours seem repetitive? + * Have we discussed our insights previously? If so, where? Can we add enough independent value to this iteration to warrant bringing them out again? + * **Who is our target audience?** What messaging is likely to resonate with them? + * **Do we have a clear idea of how our objectives for thought leadership differ from those of our content marketing plan?** Are we able to differentiate between our objectives for the two? + * **Have we mapped out distribution and determined which target publications are likely to get us to our target audience?** What about speaking opportunities and audio formats like podcasts? What formats are we going to use to deliver this thought leadership to market? + * **Do we need to commission research in order to derive the insights we might wish to share?** Or do we have these already within the organization? + +### Plans Come Before Execution + +Before initiating a thought leadership plan and shifting into execution mode, it’s important to determine whether your organization has the time and energy to commit to following through with the plan. + +An editorial calendar will need to be devised. This is particularly vital so that the thought leadership campaign doesn’t come out in fits and starts. + +Although there’s nothing wrong with authoring thought leadership reactively, when distribution-worthy insights become available, organizations with a lot of opinions and knowledge to release often prefer to do so in a strategic and planned manner. + +A plan, backed by an editorial calendar to ensure action, can be the best conduit to get the thought leadership out of team members’ heads and out into the world. + +Target publications and messaging will also need to be agreed upon. And unless they’re planning on writing it themselves, subject matter experts (SMEs) will need to make their time available to internal or external resources. + +But the most important elements to have in place are the insights ready. Once these and buy-in are in place it’s ready to bring your best thoughts and insights into the marketplace of ideas. + +_DSR Ghostwriting specializes in planning and executing thought leadership campaigns for clients in the technology sector — integrating article-writing, strategy planning, and speechwriting. To learn more, and to set up a time for an initial consultation, visit_[ _DSRGhostwriting.com_](https://www.dsrghostwriting.com/) _._ diff --git a/posts/medium/How-Did-Being-An-Israel-Critical-Zionist-Become-An-Oxymoron-.md b/posts/medium/How-Did-Being-An-Israel-Critical-Zionist-Become-An-Oxymoron-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1caec8eb837636a9c61002d42aa60cf124481d73 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-Did-Being-An-Israel-Critical-Zionist-Become-An-Oxymoron-.md @@ -0,0 +1,149 @@ +# How Did Being An Israel-Critical Zionist Become An Oxymoron? + +#### Opinion: the ‘hasbara culture’ which writers like Yakov Hirsch deride has made it difficult for those living in Israel to even voice dissenting opinions about the country they live in + +Israel: the rise of diametrical thinking has meant that there is increasingly a lack of tolerance among Israelis, and Jews, for those among their ranks who voice objections to elements of Israeli policy or even life in the country. Photo by [Adam Grabek](https://www.pexels.com/@agmakonts?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/flock-of-white-birds-photo-during-sunset-784849/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + + _Opinion_ : + +If you’ve followed my posts on Medium, you may be aware that I have a general distaste for _hasbara_ — which is usually referred to as Israel advocacy, although propaganda is an unkinder translation. + +[**Why I Think Hasbara Is A Waste of Time (And Resources)** +_Three days to go until 5780 becomes 5781. Out with the old and in with the new. So - as I'm particularly fond of airing…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/) + +You could even call me a former _hasbarist_ who had a perspective change. I wouldn’t take offence if you did. + +Back when I was still living in Ireland, I set up a website called Irish4Israel. + +I “stepped down” from the website I started when I first began having misgivings about whether being an “Israel advocate” was in any way constructive _( — I say this partially so as not to take credit for the website’s achievements; almost all of those belong to its later owner and not I)._ + +Under entirely different leadership, the website rose to some prominence in Ireland, coalescing support amongst both (some) Irish Jews and non-Jewish supporters of Israel. These days, the Irish Israel Alliance, set up by Jackie Goodall, is the main Israel-advocacy organization in the Republic. + +But back during those early days, like many Diaspora Jews my age, I went through the motions of Hasbara 101. + +I wrote “fact sheets” that urged people to realize that the majority of the West Bank separation barrier is, in fact, simply a chain-link fence (missing from the analysis of those who make this point, including younger me: why does that matter? It still has the same disruptive effect on the life of a civilian population). + +I went on local radio to defend Israel. against charges that I sometimes partially agreed with. Why did the Israeli army prevent a flotilla from reaching the shores of Gaza? And I attended a conference on behalf of my local Israeli Embassy. But that was then, when I was living in the diaspora. This is now. I write this post from Jerusalem. + +My brief tenure as a _hasbarist_ wasn’t without value. + +Even before I made _aliyah_ to live in Israel, I could see that any occupation that demanded that one endorse every Israeli action — or, at best, make only token concessions in response to points raised — wasn’t really congruous with intellectual thinking. Or a conflict that often seems to have more gray than black and white. + +Later, when I moved here, I could see that many o _f hasbara_ ’s sacred cows — the supposed coexistence between Jews and Arabs that I’ve seen very little substantial evidence of during my six year tenure in the country — were either outright lies, gross exaggerations, or extremely selective uses of information. The Israel I live in isn’t the goodie-two-shoes, picture-perfect place that the pro-Israel narrative makes out. It’s a living, breathing, functioning state. With plenty to admire. But some unmistakable character flaws. + +To regard Israel as a beacon of flawlessness and then rush to justify its every action isn’t “supporting” the country, or at least as I conceive of it. + +It’s volunteering to serve as an unpaid propagandist of it. + +And to do so on a misguided Israeli principle that the best means of combating the often unjustified vitriol directed towards Israel is to engage in some ideological means of meeting fire with fire. I see that as unconstructive as the hatred that pours from the other side. + +One of the most prescient words I’ve ever heard about Israel was shared at the aforementioned conference (on the subject of combating legal warfare). + +The speaker was Daniel Taub, who formerly served as Israel’s Ambassador to the UK. + +Daniel concluded his remarks by urging attendees to celebrate Israel. + +I’m wont to paraphrase a speech I can’t repeat word for word, but the part was stuck with me went something like this: + +Don’t get so involved in “defending” Israel that you’re too busy to actually enjoy the country, especially if you’ve chosen to live in it. + +Write the fact sheets. Go on local radio. But if you haven’t made _aliyah_ yet, then don’t get so preoccupied with your calling that you forget to have a dip in the Dead Sea or a bite of _shawarma_. Defend Israel. But smell the roses while you’re doing so. + +It was a thought that’s really stuck with me. + +I’d add one of my own: + +“Don’t get so involved in defending Israel that you forget that it’s not perfect yet, and there’s still a lot of work to do — just like in every country. In fact, if you really love Israel, the most constructive thing you could do with your life would probably be to move there and work on building it and improving it.” + +Unfortunately it nowadays feel as if that’s an increasingly untenable position. Because to hold oneself out to be a supporter of Israel seems to imply that you’ll defend every one of its actions. + +Or at least one that’s been excluded to the margins of discourse in the Jewish world. + +My fall guy for that development and the erasure of the “critical friend” from the pro-Israel community: none other than _hasbara_ itself. + +### Yakov Hirsch And His Crusade Against ‘Hasbara Culture’ + +Perhaps the only voice to have taken a consistent stand against _hasbara_ and its far-reaching effects on the mainstream Jewish narrative in recent years is Yakov Hirsch, an American writer living in Los Angeles. Yair Rosenberg seems to be something of his ideological arch-nemesis. + +Even if you’re ideologically opposed to all of this, his writings are worth a read — if for no other reason than to open up for questioning the idea that a culture that demands that no criticism of Israel is acceptable may have pernicious and deconstructive ends for the Jewish state. + +Beginning with[ ‘Hasbara Culture And The Curse of Bibi-ism’ ](https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/israel-middle-east/articles/hasbara-culture-israel-netanyahu)— an essay for _Tablet Magazine_ — Hirsch has taken aim at what he terms _‘hasbara culture,’_ a mindframe which elevates the State of Israel to a level of untouchable sanctity and quietly relinquishes the Jewish tradition of critical thought. All without anybody, apparently, batting an eyelid. + +This week, Hirsch published a piece in Mondo Weiss, alleging that Jewish victimhood and interpretations of anti-Semitism have fed into this culture. + +[**Israel can't be faulted for anything, thanks to hasbara culture's narrative of Jewish victimhood** + _The pogroms against Palestinians that are a weekly occurrence, and the long reign of Netanyahu, have all been rendered…_ mondoweiss.net](https://mondoweiss.net/2021/09/israel-cant-be-faulted-for-anything-thanks-to-hasbara-cultures-narrative-of-jewish-victimhood/ "https://mondoweiss.net/2021/09/israel-cant-be-faulted-for-anything-thanks-to-hasbara-cultures-narrative-of-jewish-victimhood/")[](https://mondoweiss.net/2021/09/israel-cant-be-faulted-for-anything-thanks-to-hasbara-cultures-narrative-of-jewish-victimhood/) + +To be crystal clear: I don’t endorse all of Hirsch’s writing, especially the latter piece I just mentioned. Additionally, living in Israel, I’m far less interested in how the Jewish Diaspora interprets the State of Israel, which they — including Hirsch — don’t live in. I’m far more interested in how we — Jewish Israelis by choice — frame narratives around this country. When the concept of untouchability which Hirsch rails against reach these parts, I’m far more concerned. But that’s a process that has long already taken hold. + +Many of the dynamics which Hirsch laments — the polarization, the relentless urge to deflect any criticism of Israel with either hostile denial, name-slurring, or downplaying — are shared in this part of the world and weaponized not against critics of the State but against critics of facets of this country and how it is run. In fact, I believe that this is their point of origin, and the dynamics which he is witnessing among his American Jewish contemporaries, are merely the export product of a toxic ideology that sprung from Israeli activism. + +[**Jerusalem's real estate scene: How much, for whom and where?** +_"Ten measures of beauty were bestowed upon the world," says the Talmud. "Nine were taken by Jerusalem, and one by the…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/jerusalems-real-estate-scene-how-much-for-whom-and-where-680005?fbclid=IwAR0RcV31_mSLT5_iAXe_mugJmI5F9cIj6Y56BCki4wKud-vdZLttCNA-iYU "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/jerusalems-real-estate-scene-how-much-for-whom-and-where-680005?fbclid=IwAR0RcV31_mSLT5_iAXe_mugJmI5F9cIj6Y56BCki4wKud-vdZLttCNA-iYU")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/jerusalems-real-estate-scene-how-much-for-whom-and-where-680005?fbclid=IwAR0RcV31_mSLT5_iAXe_mugJmI5F9cIj6Y56BCki4wKud-vdZLttCNA-iYU) + +### Zionism And Acknowledging Israel’s Flaws Can’t Be Mutually Exclusive + +This trend — that Israel is sacred and must be held above reproach — is a dynamic that I have been surprised to witness here. It is prevalent, though of course not universal, among English-speaking immigrants. + +What I find ironic: it is sometimes those who prize themselves most on their ability to think critically who prove to be the most closed-off to any narrative that holds Israel as anything other than the world-beating encapsulation of perfection in a nation. + +It’s a line of thinking advocated for by those who the opposing side mocks as “Israel Disneylanders.” + +And it’s also an argument that I’ve even heard explicitly advocated for, by advocates of _aliyah_(immigration to Israel). Unflinchingly, some will tell you that it’s an unforgivable sin to publicize a blog such as this one which suggests that everything in Israel is not entirely made up of rainbows and roses. + +Their logic: every single critical word spilled about Israel has the potential to dissuade the next generation of immigrants from coming here and continuing the project. Therefore, if the various problems in the State of Israel can be spoken of at all, they can only be uttered in hushed tones. Once one has already arrived. + +That argument makes it our collective responsibility to maintain a picture of the State that I — and others living here — sometimes find totally at odds with reality. + +My Zionism, and that of many, is different to those who view any critical world uttered about the state as anathema. + +But sometimes — perhaps increasingly — we find ourselves perplexed to find ourselves questioning where we belong when confronted by an ideology — springing from our own side of the political divide — that seems to demand the same kind of ideological totalitarianism that we’ve been applying to Israel advocacy for years. + +Should we really be surprised when we find this thought process turned inwards and used to try keep quiet those of us who made _aliyah_? + +We’re told that the problems we may witness in the country we live in — the as significant as the impossibly high cost of real estate, as mundane as the traffic jams, or as underdiscussed as the rate of non-participation in the high-tech sector, which reportedly stands above 90% — are the stuff of our imaginations. + +[**Jerusalem's real estate scene: How much, for whom and where?** +_"Ten measures of beauty were bestowed upon the world," says the Talmud. "Nine were taken by Jerusalem, and one by the…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/jerusalems-real-estate-scene-how-much-for-whom-and-where-680005?fbclid=IwAR0RcV31_mSLT5_iAXe_mugJmI5F9cIj6Y56BCki4wKud-vdZLttCNA-iYU "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/jerusalems-real-estate-scene-how-much-for-whom-and-where-680005?fbclid=IwAR0RcV31_mSLT5_iAXe_mugJmI5F9cIj6Y56BCki4wKud-vdZLttCNA-iYU")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/jerusalems-real-estate-scene-how-much-for-whom-and-where-680005?fbclid=IwAR0RcV31_mSLT5_iAXe_mugJmI5F9cIj6Y56BCki4wKud-vdZLttCNA-iYU) + +People are free to break ranks with the dogma of course and to hold themselves out as contrarians. + +But when we do so we too often find ourselves branded as haters or — most odiously — as self-hating Jews. Far too often, we find ourselves excluded from key conversations because we’re no longer “Zionist enough” or Zionist at all. Cast in with the same labels as those who are _truly_ hostile to the State. + +My Zionism — and that of many — is one that draws its energy from the process of building. From the feeling that the work of building the State of Israel is far from done and that we’re sharing in the project of improving it. + +Of celebrating Israel and its achievements — just as former Ambassador Taub recommended we do. While also remaining conscious, and sometimes critical, of its flaws. + +Of _tikkun_. Of attempting to graft positive change upon the country and leave it in a better place than we found it when we first made _aliyah_ and received our _teudot zehut_(Israeli identity documents). + +But it’s not one that can accept turning a blind eye as a central tenant of its mission. Or pretending that we’ve already reached the fulfillment of what Israel can be as a state. For if we do not, there can be no work left for us to aspire towards. + +We live in strange times — in the world as much as in Israel. + +Of extremism and increasingly blunt and uncompromising ideologies. + +Of Trumpism, nationalism, and movements that seek to wedge divides between the supporters and the ‘other.’ These are movements which Israel, in recent years, has sometimes unashamedly thrown its weight behind. + +It has disappointed me to see this dynamic increasingly spread among the Jewish world–and right into the core of the Israel-supporting community. + +To discover that those of us who take issue with certain dynamics in Israel are (it feels) increasingly being branded as enemies of state. A fifth column that the “true” Zionists would rather be rid of. + +My central response to their arguments is this one: + +The State of Israel — and all of its policies — are not automatically the same thing as the ideological movement which spawned its foundation and which calls for the re-establishment of the world’s only Jewish state. + +The State of Israel can act in manners that toe against its own ideology. Or, indeed, against Judaism. + +To criticize Israel’s policies vis-a-vis the Arabs living within its borders; to have the temerity to use the word ‘Palestinian’ or ‘East Jerusalem’; or to criticize the unsustainable cost of living here is not to attack Israel or its founding ideology. It doesn’t mean that you’re likely to be found burning the country’s flag at night. It just means that you think differently about many issues here than some. + +Not every critical thinker is an enemy. If we think that, we’re behind held hostage to a thought police. + +Not every argument demands an opposing fact sheet as _hasbara_ and its supporters seem to believe. Concession is a possible response too. + +For Zionism to be a movement large enough to house all of world Jewry, it has to be broad enough to encompass differences of opinion. + +It feels strange to live in a time when being a Zionist with criticisms about Israel sometimes feels like an oxymoron. + +— + + _— I rarely turn off comments on my Medium articles but this is one of the exceptions — because anything involving Israel tends to evoke emotional rather than rational responses. If you feel strongly about the above — or would like to express disagreement or offer an alternative perspective — I encourage anybody to write their own article in response!_ diff --git a/posts/medium/How-Do-You-Hire-A-Ghostwriter-.md b/posts/medium/How-Do-You-Hire-A-Ghostwriter-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..93f14f1c74348080d4374ed23efaebb14e09b604 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-Do-You-Hire-A-Ghostwriter-.md @@ -0,0 +1,121 @@ +# How Do You Hire A Ghostwriter? + +#### Interested in finding and hiring a ghostwriter but not quite sure how it “works”? Here’s a guide to get you started. + +Ghostwriters: how do you go about actually hiring one? + +**Are you interested in working with a ghostwriter to help bring your literary dreams to reality?** + +A lot of authors considering hiring a ghostwriter aren’t quite sure how the process might work from start to finish. + +Naturally, each ghostwriter will have their preferred means of working. + +But if you’re interested in knowing what to expect in general, then this short guide should help prepare you. + +### Decide What You Need A Ghostwriter For + +Traditionally, ghostwriters were the “book shepherds” of the literary world, helping clients take book ideas from ideation through to publication. + +When many think about the work that ghostwriters do, they automatically envision them working on book projects. + +**These days, however, ghostwriters can be found helping clients with a wider variety of projects ranging from simple blog posts through to … books and e-books.** + +You can hire a ghostwriter to write: + + * Your book + * Your social media posts + * Your articles and blogs + * Your upcoming thought leadership article + +Ghostwriters are used by aspiring book authors but also by busy social media stars who need a helping hand with their writing. + +If you subscribe to the belief that speechwriters are effectively ghostwriters — I do! — then add folks like politicians and diplomats to the list of busy people who rely upon hired wordsmiths in order to make their busy day to day lives that little bit easier. + +### Where To Find A Ghostwriter + +You may be able to get more of your writing needs fulfilled through a ghostwriter than you may initially have thought. + +Or perhaps you’ll need several writers in order get your speeches written, your blog posts published in time, and your magnum opus book project out the door. + +Hiring somebody that you know can be trusted — for instance via a referral from a professional you hold in high regard— is one effective way to make the hiring process more streamlined. + +If you have to turn to the open market in order to hire your ghostwriter — or a team of them — then consider some of the more popular avenues to explore. + +#### Google’s Your Friend — How To Search For Ghostwriters + +Ghostwriting is a relatively niche pursuit even within writing and ghostwriters — including this one! — usually go to pains to try to stand out from the crowd. + +Consider asking whether it’s important to you that your ghostwriter will be locally based. + +If so consider combining keywords, for instance: + + * ghostwriter + New York City + * ghostwriter + Dublin + +Alternatively try finding a ghostwriter who specializes in the type of project that you’re thinking about bringing to market. Some more search term recommendations: + + * history ghostwriter + * non-fiction ghostwrier + +My specialty — besides thought leadership — is in helping non-fiction authors through the book-writing process. I specialize in non-fiction because that’s what I personally read. Feel free to check out my site below if you’re looking for a ghostwriter with a specialty in this area: + +[**DSR Ghostwriting | Thought Leadership And Content Marketing For Tech Clients | DSR Ghostwriting |…** + _By: Daniel Rosehill SPECIALTIES: PUBLIC RELATIONS AND DSR GHOSTWRITING CLIENTS HAVE INCLUDED Download a free white…_ www.dsrghostwriting.com](https://www.dsrghostwriting.com/ "https://www.dsrghostwriting.com/")[](https://www.dsrghostwriting.com/) + +However, some ghostwriters specialize even more narrowly than I do. + +Looking for a ghostwriter who specializes in working with history authors? + +I’m willing to bet if you spent enough time searching you would hit upon such a talent! + +#### Check Out The Association of Ghostwriters (AoG) + +If you don’t feel like screening ghostwriters one-by-one, then consider finding a place they congregate. + +Perhaps somewhere like …. a ghostwriting association!? + +The Association of Ghostwriters (AoG) is one such association and its website contains a listing filled with ghostwriters from around the world. + +Check out the member directory in order to find ghostwriters from around the world. + +[**Member Directory** + _Find a ghostwriter for your book, speech, blog, newsletter or magazine article from among our experienced ghostwriter…_ associationofghostwriters.org](https://associationofghostwriters.org/member-directory/ "https://associationofghostwriters.org/member-directory/")[](https://associationofghostwriters.org/member-directory/) + +### Sort Out All The Contractual Details + +Ghostwriters tend to be engaged by their clients for the larger projects …. again think books (just don’t think only books!) + +However, irrespective of whether your ghostwriter is producing a blog or a 500-pager, it’s a smart idea to insist on working with a contract. In fact, more experienced writers will likely insist on it as a term of doing business together. + +Many writers use boilerplate type contracts while others have legal counsel write them from scratch. + +Irrespective of what your writer’s preference is, keep one eye open for the following terms and conditions which should indicate that you’re dealing with a professional: + + * **A commitment to avoid plagiarism.** Good writers don’t plagiarize and many will state that in their contracts + * **Details about what happens to the intellectual property (IP) rights in the work that the ghostwriter will create.** Typically these vest to the client upon payment + * **Payment terms.** Like other businesspeople, ghostwriters are ultimately doing what they do in order to make a living. Does the contract spell out important details about the payment process such as how long you’ll have to pay and any late or rush fees that the writers may levy? + +### Brief Your Ghostwriter + +I’m a huge believer in the extreme importance of preparing a well-written brief to help streamline the writing process. + +While it’s certainly possible for clients to divulge _too_ much information (in this writer’s opinion, at least) equally a well-written brief and/or a detailed phone call can make the difference between a project that gets derailed in a seemingly never-ending set of revisions and one which …. goes off without a hitch. + +Here’s my guide to how to brief writers effectively: + +[**How to Brief Freelance Writers Like a Pro** + _On any given week, I receive anywhere a number of briefs for pieces of writing from clients. On any given day, my home…_ www.business2community.com](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261 "https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261")[](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261) + +If you’d like your project to be in the latter rather than former category (who wouldn’t?) then my top suggestion is that you put effort into preparing a detailed brief to help your contract writer do the best possible job at preparing effective writing on your behalf. + +### Keep In Touch + +Ghostwriters are contracted to produce written products. But that doesn’t mean that your communication with them should stop the moment you’ve furnished them with a good brief. + +Stay with your writer throughout the drafting process and make sure that you’re available to answer any questions they may have. + +If you’re responsive, then your timely responses could make the difference between a project that goes askew and one which is finished _before_ the deadline comes breathing down anybody’s neck. + +Keep in touch with your writer throughout the writing process to ensure the most successful outcome. + +_Daniel Rosehill is a ghostwriter and marketing consultant who has spent the last 5 years helping clients ranging from entrepreneurs to marketing agencies with thought leadership and non-fiction book ghostwriting. Interested in learning what Daniel could bring to your project? Visit his writing website at DSRGhostwriting.com._ diff --git a/posts/medium/How-Israel-s-Draconian-Defamation-Laws-Shield-Abusive-Businesses-From-Consequence.md b/posts/medium/How-Israel-s-Draconian-Defamation-Laws-Shield-Abusive-Businesses-From-Consequence.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..914343eb8adddd2034e1f29d8e3a154477d035bf --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-Israel-s-Draconian-Defamation-Laws-Shield-Abusive-Businesses-From-Consequence.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# How Israel’s Draconian Defamation Laws Shield Abusive Businesses From Consequence + +#### In a country in which even leaving a negative Google review can trigger a legal action, residents say the strict legal framework against defamation — inspired by the Biblical precept against ‘bad speech’ — is allowing lousy and even abusive businesses to suppress justified criticism. + +When Dave (not his real name), a Jerusalem-based marketer, recently attempted to order a data-only SIM card from popular Israeli cellular company Pelephone, he wasn’t expecting that four days later he would be giving up on the process in exasperation. + +“On three occasions, over the course of as many days, I attempted to visit their store as arranged in order to pick a simple piece of plastic so that I could connect to the internet,” says Dave — who laments the fact that purchasing cellular internet is even necessary in the capital of the Startup Nation (he says it’s because he has tried every other internet option available to him and found them all unreliable.) + +In Israel, one star online reviews can be risky business. Screenshot: Google + +While Dave admitted that, on the first occasion, he didn’t show up at the precise moment of his first designated arrival time due to traffic delays, he says that he arrived within the store’s official opening hours on Google only to find the kiosk mysteriously closed. + +“When I came home, I wrote to the company asking them why their pickup point was closed when the shop was supposed to be open. And why — as a communications provider — they couldn’t communicate their accurate hours to their own customers. The service representative I spoke to didn’t apologize. But confirmed that the store would be open the next day as usual — until 21:00.” + +The next day, Dave returned to the kiosk at 20:00 only to find it closed again. + +“This time there was a note that looked as if it had been printed on-site affixed with sellotape to the kiosk stating that the staff had had to leave early that day. They provided an email address for the national service center. How had it been possible that a representative of Pelephone that very morning had called to tell me it would be open until 21:00 and that I was free to collect it today?” + +Dave said that he began to wonder how difficult it could possibly be to arrange pickup for a one centimetre piece of plastic to allow him to connect to Pelephone’s cellular network — on a contract that had already been fully concluded through the internet? + +A note affixed onto a kiosk operated by the Israeli cellular provider Pelephone + +At this stage, Dave said that he began to feel as if he were being trolled by the company. + +“But I reluctantly said that I’d try one final time.” + +The very next day, Dave says that he left a business meeting early just to make sure that he could get to the Jerusalem kiosk in time. But yet again he found it desolate of workers — and SIM cards. “This time there was a note stating that it was closed today. Again, there had been no forewarning.” + +Dave wrote to the company on Facebook — the only support channel he could get through to — explaining his frustration at having undertaken three futile journeys to collect a simple SIM card. + +“I asked the company if they could courier the card today or before the weekend at least to make up for the inconvenience caused thus far in the purchasing process” he said. + +“They said that they couldn’t. And so I cancelled the contract. It was another frustrating ‘customer service’ experience’ in Israel — what I would call ‘non-service’ actually. The only time I so much as received an apology was immediately before I cancelled” + +### In Israel, Consumers Can Face Legal Action Over Leaving Bad Online Reviews + +Dave (an immigrant to the country) says that in his country of origin he might have been tempted to share his story online or even to publish the story on social media in order to forewarn other consumers of the experience. + +But says that in Israel — among immigrants — it’s widely understood that such a move might be unnecessarily risky from a legal standpoint. + +In Israel, even truth isn’t a full defense to a charge of defamation. Those attempting to rely on the ground also need to demonstrate a public interest for the disclosure. And horror stories such as Dave’s may be unlikely to meet that bar. + +[**Defamation Laws In Israel - RM Warner Law | Defamation Law, Internet Law, Business Law** + _As of 2011, it became possible to sue a newspaper for libel in Israel. Moreover, the change in law increased the…_ kellywarnerlaw.com](https://kellywarnerlaw.com/israel-defamation-laws#:~:text=Israel%20Defamation%20Defenses&text=Under%20the%20Defamation%20Law%2C%20truth,in%20the%20%E2%80%9Cpublic%20interest.%E2%80%9D "https://kellywarnerlaw.com/israel-defamation-laws#:~:text=Israel%20Defamation%20Defenses&text=Under%20the%20Defamation%20Law%2C%20truth,in%20the%20%E2%80%9Cpublic%20interest.%E2%80%9D")[](https://kellywarnerlaw.com/israel-defamation-laws#:~:text=Israel%20Defamation%20Defenses&text=Under%20the%20Defamation%20Law%2C%20truth,in%20the%20%E2%80%9Cpublic%20interest.%E2%80%9D) + +In Israel, laws again defamation are strict — which is inspired, in part, upon the Biblical prohibition against speaking _lashon hara_(“evil tongue”). (The legal framework upon which the State of Israel operates is a mixture of civil law; legal provisions inspired by Jewish religious sources; and Ottoman laws that were in operation before the foundation of the State while the Ottoman Empire was extant.) + +That legal framework, Dave says, is biased in favor of professional journalists who may have professional counsel on staff who can guide them towards how to ensure that a criticism falls under fair reporting clauses. This is a luxury that your average Facebook poster — or Google My Business reviewer — is unlikely to be able to avail of. + +[**'Yuck': Woman fined NIS 18,000 for defaming pizzeria on Facebook** + _An Israeli woman who complained on Facebook about a pizza she purchased from the local pizzeria, using the word "yuck,"…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/yuck-woman-fined-nis-18000-for-defaming-pizzeria-on-facebook/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/yuck-woman-fined-nis-18000-for-defaming-pizzeria-on-facebook/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/yuck-woman-fined-nis-18000-for-defaming-pizzeria-on-facebook/) + +Dave says that the most famous case on the books from recent years was that involving an Israeli woman who took to Facebook to grovel about a pizza. She used the word ‘yuck’ to describe it and alleged various unflattering details about the served pizza, [according to a report](https://www.timesofisrael.com/yuck-woman-fined-nis-18000-for-defaming-pizzeria-on-facebook/) in the Times of Israel. + +The post went viral and the pizza store owner said that the woman refused an offer of exchange or compensation. + +Unfortunately for the poster, the storm-in-a-pizza stone wound up in court where a judge at the Nazareth Magistrate’s Court concluded that the woman had defamed the pizza store causing him financial loss through the post — and was ordered to shell out 18,00 NIS ($5,000) as a fine. + +But while Dave says that such litigation is relatively rare in practice, the chilling effect that knowing it could happen to anyone creates is a far more significant problem: + +“There was a Facebook group called [‘The Israel Blacklist’](https://www.facebook.com/groups/169359419863387) in which English speakers attempted to organize among themselves to warn one another about abusive businesses and service providers, of which there seem to be far too many in this country. Mysteriously, it stopped operating and is now archived.” + +While Dave admits that this is based on pure speculation, he guesses that the group administrators didn’t want to continue to foot the legal risk of providing a platform for those who were happy to voice their grievances about the kind of treatment they had received from businesses based in Israel.” + +Dave says that seeing the silencing effect in action is a virtually daily occurrence for those who frequent English-speaking social media groups in Israel. + +“It’s common to see somebody warning others about a business that seemed to have really screwed them over,” he says. “Almost invariably a slew of posters will jump in to warm them that they might wind up in court, or fined, for airing such claims publicly. Sometimes, administrators end up deleting the posts as they don’t want to themselves become implicated in hosting something potentially defamatory on their communities.” + +### A Culture Of Impunity — And ‘The Customer Is There To Give Us Money’ + +In Dave’s view, Israel’s restrictive laws around defamation stand somewhat at odds with Israel’s frequently-voiced claim that — among a sea of repressive Middle Eastern dictatorships — it stands alone as a bastion of free speech. + +He says that this adds to the frustration of shopping in Israel for consumers — who already feel underserved by what he calls the “underpowered” provisions of consumer protection law in the country. + +Of the Israel Consumer Council — Israel’s consumer protection body — Dave is equally unflattering, calling it “a completely ineffective and toothless animal from the often frustrated Israeli consumer’s standpoint.” + +“There’s freedom of the press in Israel. But if you’re a consumer and what you say about a business online causes them damage. Then whether it’s true or not, you create a potential legal exposure for yourself,” he says. + +Dave’s solution (which he admits is far from ideal)? To attempt to avoid buying ‘blue and white’ as far as possible. + +“I guess from a consumerist standpoint you could call me the pin-up anti-patriot,” he says. + +“I may live in Israel, but I try to avoid doing business with Israeli companies to the best of my abilities.” + +“If something goes wrong, many of them won’t take responsibility. The price is rarely competitive, especially if you price compare internationally. A service culture is often totally lacking. I don’t feel obliged to subsidize bad businesses indefinitely just because I’ve chosen to live here” he says. + +Asked why he believes that a disproportionate number of businesses who mistreat their customers continue to exist in Israel despite the forces of the free market, Dave blames Israel’s small size. “They know that in Israel our options for everything from phone plans to specialist equipment are limited,” he says. “And they exploit that in a negative way.” + +Citing his experience with the phone company, Dave also says that the American culture of trying to please customers is also sorely absent in Israel. “The operative mentality in Israel is more something like ‘the customer exists to give me money. And I’ll serve them as I please.” + +In a system in which every negative review becomes a potential legal threat, Dave also wonders how anybody can possibly trust that they’re reading on Zap (Israeli consumer comparison website) — or any other forum for that matter. + +“What’s the point in a comparison site if people who might feel inclined to rate a store negatively feel like they might be sued for raising their voice?” he says. + +Dave’s advice: + +“As a small business owner who has other small business owners in the family, I understand how damaging even one negative online review can be,” he says. “Nevertheless, the situation that exists in Israel isn’t balanced.” he says. “In fact, it’s totally distorted against consumers.” + +“More rigorous consumer protection law would be a great starting point. If consumers knew that they had more rights, they’d feel more empowered to address their grievances with businesses directly — which is always preferable to venting online.” diff --git a/posts/medium/How-Limiting-Revisions-Can-Actually-Help-Your-Freelance-Writing-Clients.md b/posts/medium/How-Limiting-Revisions-Can-Actually-Help-Your-Freelance-Writing-Clients.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0d219b804e85bb90f6e4a3fa611b8d74350ca2ba --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-Limiting-Revisions-Can-Actually-Help-Your-Freelance-Writing-Clients.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# How Limiting Revisions Can Actually Help Your Freelance Writing Clients + +#### Setting limits can help not only you, but also your clients + +Too many cooks can spoil the broth. How limiting the number of revisions your clients can request can actually help create better. Photo by [cottonbro](https://www.pexels.com/@cottonbro?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-people-woman-desk-7596902/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Roughly five years ago — when starting out on my journey as a freelance content marketing writer — I received an unexpected email from a client. + +[**The Type Of Freelance Writing Clients You Encounter At Various Price Points** +medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-type-of-freelance-writing-clients-you-encounter-at-various-price-points-b150a9a0ab47 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-type-of-freelance-writing-clients-you-encounter-at-various-price-points-b150a9a0ab47")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-type-of-freelance-writing-clients-you-encounter-at-various-price-points-b150a9a0ab47) + +It was regarding a blog post I had written for the princely sum of about $100 roughly three months’ previously. A lot had happened in the intervening period both in my life and in my business. Truth be told, I could barely remember the topic. + +After petering its way through the upper echelons of middle management, the blog piece had come back for its _third_ round of feedback marked up with its latest reader’s tracked changes feedback. + +The feedback flatly contradicted that which I had received from Manager B in the previous round of revisions. + +I bit my lip and made the changes — the only thing you can really do when you haven’t contractually protected yourself from this kind of thing. But needless to say, undoing my own work and throwing another few hours into a project that was already poorly profitable was a frustrating experience. + +On the basis of this, I instituted a few changes to my standard operating terms and contract. + +### Why I Only Offer My Clients One Round Of Revisions + +In light of RevisionGate, I instituted a couple of changes to my boilerplate freelance writing client T&Cs: + + * You only get one round of revisions. + * You need to communicate that one and only request for revisions within 30 days of receiving the draft (I’ve tweaked both clauses slightly over the years). + +[**4 T &Cs That Can Make Or Break A Freelance Writing Business** + _My interview with DevChat.tv’s The Freelancers Show was published this week._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/4-t-cs-that-can-make-or-break-a-freelance-writing-business-8d158b4c3670 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/4-t-cs-that-can-make-or-break-a-freelance-writing-business-8d158b4c3670")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/4-t-cs-that-can-make-or-break-a-freelance-writing-business-8d158b4c3670) + +I instituted the one revision rule in light of the above and to control scope. If I’m quoting a fixed rate for a project — as I almost always do — I need to know what the rough parameters of the work I’m going to undertake are. + +But since instituting it I’ve also come round to the belief that it actually makes the writing workflow work better on the client’s end too. + +### Revision Addiction Is A Thing + +The first reason I’ve found limiting revisions useful is because there are many clients who — if you let them — will keep insisting on tweaking a text until it arrives closer and closer to their version of perfection. + +This, I’ve come to realize, is essentially a manifestation of perfectionism and anxiety. + +Perfectionism is generally regarded as an unproductive trait. I try to avoid it myself. So why should I enable my clients? + +There are times when complicated texts really _do_ have to run up the corporate ladder in order to receive the requisite approvals. In those cases I tend to quote for multiple rounds of revisions up front. Three tends to be the maximum amount of revisioning that I consider reasonable for most documents. + +But there are also cases in which clients will continue tweaking a text that was perfectly good the second or third time. This kind of behavior often only contributes to writer frustration and delays the timely production of deliverables. + +Finally — to be undiplomatic — there are many middle managers who will leave feedback on a document solely for internal political reasons: to make it obvious to their boss that they’re doing something by reviewing a document. There are times when these unnecessary rounds of revisions actually end up making a document worse. + +In some instances, I’ve also got the feeling that leaving revisions is a kind of weird power-play in which the reviewer feels the need to tell the writer that his/her initial work wasn’t (quite) good enough. + +Sometimes, clients want to “hop on calls” to communicate comments that could have been communicated much more efficiently through sending a few prescient comments on a document. + +When clients know that they have one chance to offer feedback, they realize that they need to make the best use of that moment. I have found that this “rule” cuts down on the volume of “feedback calls” which I have found to often be extremely unproductive. + +Unnecessary revisions definitely happen. +Sometimes preventing clients from making them is actually a helpful behavior. + +### Crossed Wires Are Also A Thing + +The other benefit I’ve found from limiting my clients to one round of revisions — unless we agree otherwise — is that it forces the client to bring together their internal stakeholders to review the work in the most efficient manner possible. + +As I learned during some of my first projects, layers of management often request contradictory changes to the one document. If you offer unlimited revisions, this can bind you to going through a frustrating process in which you end up writing and un-writing your own work. Not fun! + +When I tell my clients that they will only be able to request one revision unless I raise the quote, it forces them to do some thinking and to get organized. + +The client needs to bring all the reviewers together and agree upon what feedback to communicate to the writer. + +This presents an opportunity for the client to resolve — internally — any differences of opinion that may exist about the document in question. + +While I instituted my one revision rule in order to control scope, but I’ve subsequently found that it’s very helpful in helping clients to work as efficiently as possible. + +To grossly generalize, startups tend to be the worst offenders when it comes to internal disorganization and excessive revision requesting which sometimes stems from internal miscommunication. + +I should also add that I operate this rule with a good measure of discretion. If I sense that a white paper will really need three rounds of good revisions I’ll suggest it and then build it into the quote. But for simpler projects, unless otherwise agreed, I quote, and bill, at one. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-Might-Disinformation-Impact-The-Freelance-Writing-Market-.md b/posts/medium/How-Might-Disinformation-Impact-The-Freelance-Writing-Market-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cf5f8f95fd49069712d03bcdda187df0858e668e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-Might-Disinformation-Impact-The-Freelance-Writing-Market-.md @@ -0,0 +1,52 @@ +# How Might Disinformation Impact The Freelance Writing Market? + +#### Will We Even Know Who We’re Writing For In Ten Years’ Time? + +Deep fakes. Could freelance writers be affected? Image: Pixabay + +For anybody following developments in the deep fake and AI space, some of the recent developments in terms of video deep fakes are astounding. + +[**Cheap, Easy Deepfakes Are Getting Closer to the Real Thing** + _There are many photos of Tom Hanks, but none like the images of the leading everyman shown at the Black Hat computer…_ www.wired.com](https://www.wired.com/story/cheap-easy-deepfakes-closer-real-thing/ "https://www.wired.com/story/cheap-easy-deepfakes-closer-real-thing/")[](https://www.wired.com/story/cheap-easy-deepfakes-closer-real-thing/) + +While the question of “how will this impact the freelance writing market?” is probably close to the relegation zone of concerns that policymakers have right now, as a freelance writer — with an interest in disinformation — I thought I would post some fanciful speculation here during the small hours of the night. + +### The Rise Of Fake Clients + +I posted a few days ago about — roughly — how to create fictitious online identities using nothing more than a fake face generator and a bit of (online) elbow grease. + +Because the purpose of the article was to demonstrate _how_ this activity is a threat — rather than how to do it — I left some details up to the imagination. + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + +Namely: + + * What would happen if you created fake videos using those fake faces? + * What would happen if you, say, released a podcast under that fake identity’s name using a synthesized voice? + +A fake online presence buttressed by video and podcast appearances would create a very compelling case that the purported identity were real. + +We’re also currently seeing an avalanche of fake news and disinformation. And — for some time now — sketchy clients and questionable individuals have been utilizing the services of ORM firms in order to propagate disinformation and manipulate search engine results by seeding fake news. (Note: this isn’t all that ORM firms do and some don’t do this at all. But I did have a “brush” with this world during my very early days of freelancing). + +Synthesizing all this information: it will be easier for corporations to engage in things like propagating disinformation and operating smear campaigns about competitors. In journalism, we’re likely to see the rise of fake whistleblowers and anonymous sources. These assets could be used by corporations in order to leak information to _real_ journalists and news sites with consummate ease. + +Where do freelancer writers fall into all this? They — wittingly or otherwise — may end up being the ones doing the heavy lifting of this work. + +Major freelancing marketplaces are already gargantuan online jungles. Fictitious clients — shielding real end customers — would currently (mostly) have a very easy time blending in among the masses. + +I expect that these marketplaces may be forced to institute more rigorous client identification procedures or some lightweight version of know your client (KYC) although it’s probably unrealistic to think that all the dubious buyers could be rooted out this way. Freelance writers may find their writing ending up in interesting parts of the internet. + +### The Rise Of Fake Writers + +Among the many interesting applications of the rise of deepfakes, disinformation, and fictitious online identities is going to be the ability they provide to anonymize writers. + +Traditionally pen names were fake names slapped on the cover of a book that authors didn’t want to trace back to themselves. These days pseudonyms could masquerade as veritable online people. + +Besides book authors, journalists reporting on sensitive issues — investigative journalists spring immediately to mind —could use deepfake-supported fictitious online identities to report upon issues that might put their safety at risk without having to divulge their identity. + +### Fake News Will Become An Avalanche + +[The Tom Cruise deepfake videos](https://www.theverge.com/22303756/tiktok-tom-cruise-impersonator-deepfake) are far more than just a Tik Tok phenomenon. They’re a harbinger for a tidal wave of disinformation and fake news that is threatening to wash over the internet. + +The freelance writing marketplace is already sizeable and likely to only grow as the gig economy continues to displace traditional employment. These are _some_ of the ways in which the rise of disinformation could impact upon this group. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-One-Lousy-Email--And-Bad-Copy--Can-Ruin-A-Sales-Cycle.md b/posts/medium/How-One-Lousy-Email--And-Bad-Copy--Can-Ruin-A-Sales-Cycle.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..71048a6b7742ffbeb6ab592088fc6ef7f3f28917 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-One-Lousy-Email--And-Bad-Copy--Can-Ruin-A-Sales-Cycle.md @@ -0,0 +1,139 @@ +# How One Lousy Email, And Bad Copy, Can Ruin A Sales Cycle + +#### If your potential client base consists of grumpy writers like me, it only takes one poorly thought-out touchpoint to annoy us into not buying + +Your leads and users know that this isn’t what’s actually going on when they receive a drip email from the founder. So word it accordingly. Photo by [Andrea Piacquadio](https://www.pexels.com/@olly?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-white-dress-shirt-sitting-on-black-rolling-chair-while-facing-black-computer-set-and-smiling-840996/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +This month I’ve set myself a target of trying out at least one artificial intelligence (AI) copywriting tool. + +My prognostics for the future of the writing game are somewhat dire — which is why, like many writers, I’ve branched out a little beyond doing that for a living. + +But if copywriting bots are going to end up playing a central role in our lives and careers — it makes sense for any writer to get a hands-on feel for what they do and how well they do it. _( — My top-line prediction: tomorrow’s freelance writers may end up looking more like bot-custodians than wordsmiths. It’s a future I’m not entirely comfortable with.)_ + +[**Why I’ve Stopped Identifying As A ‘Freelance Writer’ — Or A Writer At All** + _Why I (Sadly) No Longer Think Freelance Writing Is A Good Space To Be In_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb) + +[**The Insidious Rise Of “Content” — And How It’s Destroying Creative Livelihoods** + _If we regard all creative output as homogeneous collections of keywords, nobody should be surprised when AI comes…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-insidious-rise-of-content-and-how-its-destroying-creative-livelihoods-5d62dc3c5357 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-insidious-rise-of-content-and-how-its-destroying-creative-livelihoods-5d62dc3c5357")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-insidious-rise-of-content-and-how-its-destroying-creative-livelihoods-5d62dc3c5357) + +I’m planning on trying at least two of these solutions. But to cast a wide net, I signed up for a few more on unpaid trial. And then … the email came in. + +### If You’re Going To Go Down The Fake Personalized Email Route, At Least Try To Do It Well + +As somebody who has done my fair share of copywriting over the years — actually, it’s a pretty integral part of what I do–I’m always keeping my eyes peeled for interesting examples from the world around me. + +Copy surrounds us all of the time. Although if we’re looking at things from a marketing perspective, things like the ingredients list on the back of our vitamin bottle aren’t really all that interesting. + +But web UI text is. Blogs can be banal or — less commonly — they can be pulled off really well by a copywriter who can find a unique tone of voice for the brand that simply rocks. There might be an advertising billboard across the street from your window. Or a popup flashing in another tab you have open. + +And drip email sequences … well, they tend to run the gamut. + +But here’s a thing that anybody selling an AI copywriting solution would be well-advised to remember. You need to know your audience pretty well. + +This email — ironically — emanated from an AI-based copywriting tool (naturally, the company will remain anonymous). Prospective customer base: a lot of folks who have “writer” written somewhere on their business cards. And having made a living as a writer for more than a decade, I’ve met many of them. In newsrooms. In online writers’ groups. And just socially. + +By and large, I love writers. Disproportionately, we’re grumpy and sometimes brooding souls. But our hard exterior tends to just cover over a lot of passion and warm energy on the inside. But the hard exterior is there: We tend to think of ourselves as intellectuals — or wannabee ones. We can be skeptical. Wont to criticize. Especially when it comes to .. writing. + +**Which is why if you’re hoping to sell a technology solution to writers, it’s probably a bad idea to create a drip email sequence that starts out like this:** + + No matter what you’re selling, don’t start your drip email sequence like this + +This goes for any copywriting process, of course. + +To influence your audience, you have to understand a bit about them. To know what motivates them and then try to use those emotions in your favor. To know what they’re likely to react negatively to. + +An email like this? Agh, it riled me up in two seconds flat. + +Let’s parse the elements: + +Firstly, everybody knows that these emails are automated. Nobody thinks that a startup founder is hand typing these one by one for every new user that joins the trial pipeline. But that doesn’t mean that you don’t need to make things look at least somewhat credible. You’re still expected to help us suspend our disbelief. + +And what’s glaring wrong here: + +The subject line sets this email up at a pretty high standard which is a brave move. But in this case that tactic backfires pretty spectacularly. + +Not only do we have a [name] field in the subject line, the founder starts off with a very personal salutation (“hey”) and then says that he’s _personally_ asking me a favor. + +So here’s my thought process before I click into the email: + +_This looks spammy. And if this isn’t real I’m going to be pissed. Please don’t waste fifteen seconds of my day by having me click into some automated drip spam._ + +And yup. This is precisely what this is. + +### This Email Sucked Before The First Paragraph + +How do I know that? + +It would have been great if I at least had to read the awful copy to make that determination. But nope. I only need to look at the top line to know that this is garbage. Here’s the header again: + +1: This supposedly personal request for a favor is coming from an email that begins with support@ [thecompany]. + +2: I can also see that the email was sent out using a mass emailing program because the domain hasn’t been well-authenticated and still picks up the “via” tag in Gmail. This isn’t how anybody sends personal “asks” for a favor. + +So — in my grumpy eyes — the company has already lost all credibility and this whole thing is starting to feel very spammy and scammy. Whatever I thought about your brand before signing up for this trial, I now just think you’re disingenuous (one grievance with this particular provider: the trial was gated and required detailed responses that took a few minutes to fill out. When it became clear that the only purpose of the questionnaire was to further the impression that I was “lucky” to be “selected” for the trial .. well, let’s just say that I was doubly annoyed. + +Here’s the rest of that email redacted: + +> Hey **Daniel Rosehill,** + +> It’s Michael from [company] + +> I just wanted to say congratulations on being accepted to trial [company]! We are only accepting a small amount of users to trial the software **so consider yourself one of the lucky ones.** + +> If you have not already signed up for the trial here is your link: Click here to claim a [company] Account + +> Join us inside one of the most groundbreaking marketing tools to launch recently. + +> I’m 99% sure you’ll say “WOW” within 5 minutes of using the tool. + +> Your customers will feel compelled to buy when they see the compelling, creative and engaging content that [company] is able to produce automatically without human input. + +> You’ll love it. + +> Click here to claim a [company] Account + +> The bots are here, and they want to write your content. + +> All the best, + +> Michael + +> [Job title] + +> [company] + +> P.S. Be sure to join when you can because the prices will be going up very soon, here is your link: Claim your [company]Account + +> You received this email from [company]**If you would like to unsubscribe,click here.** + +And here are my grievances: + +1: No human begins emails “ _Hey Daniel Rosehill.”_ _“Hey”_ would almost always be simply pared with the first name. _“Hey Daniel”_ is fine. So is _“Dear Mr. Rosehill”_ for formal correspondence. Again — there’s nothing actually personalized about this. This is fake and spammy all the way through. + +2: If there’s anything I resent more, it’s being told to feel lucky for the privilege of having been fake “selected” to participate in a trial upon the conclusion of which **_I will have to pay money to use your software._** + +3: “Groundbreaking marketing tools” sounds ridiculous. If you’re going to wave a big claim like that in my face, be a little more specific. + +4: Account (“Click here to claim a [company] Account”) doesn’t need a capital ‘a’. Which would I trust a copywriting solution produced by a company whose communications contain grammatical mistakes? + +5: Bots can’t possibly “want” to write my “content.” Because … you know … they’re bots. They don’t have feelings. + +6: Your personal “ask” also probably wouldn’t have an unsubscribe link. + +**And here are some bottom line copywriting thoughts:** + +1: Don’t insult the intelligence of your intended purchasing base by trying to create a fake competition to be included in a trial to use a tool, siphon off actual human-originated data without human acknowledgement, and then respond to that with disingenuous fake automated communications. + +2: But if you’re going to pull off the fake asking for a personal favor thing from the founder, at least try to do it right and put some thought into what an actual real request would look like. If you’re fake attempt is so obviously bad that it’s painful, you’re going to loose credibility. + +3: I don’t know .. if you’re selling AI bots be honest and don’t try to imbue algorithms with humanity. + +**And suggestions to market better:** + +1: Be honest in your marketing. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with sending an automated drip email sequence with the founder’s email. Especially if you’re at the level of scale where the founder actually has time to field user correspondence. But you don’t need to pretend that it’s actually personal unless it actually is. Absolutely zero people are going to be taken in. + +2: Don’t do deceptive things like run fake competitions. Be honest. Be authentic. Be genuine. + +3: See points 1) and 2). + +This business has been excluded from consideration for the AI copywriting evaluation because if this is what they’re email copywriting looks like I’m not interested in checking out the actual “solution”. But more on that coming soon. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-This-32-Year-Old-Entrepreneur-Makes-Five-Figures-A-Year-JUST-From-Freelance-Writing.md b/posts/medium/How-This-32-Year-Old-Entrepreneur-Makes-Five-Figures-A-Year-JUST-From-Freelance-Writing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fe24375bc06939eb07fccd759d7b78e1eb35e5ba --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-This-32-Year-Old-Entrepreneur-Makes-Five-Figures-A-Year-JUST-From-Freelance-Writing.md @@ -0,0 +1,119 @@ +# How This 32 Year Old Entrepreneur Makes Five Figures A Year JUST From Freelance Writing + +#### And He DOESN’T Even Sell Courses Online + + _(To shoot another arrow in the direction of the course promoters selling inflated promises of making vast incomes on freelance writing marketplaces, I thought I would satirize their dramatic promotional style.)_ + +**(SATIRE)** + +When Daniel Rosehill, a 32 year old freelance writer originally from Ireland, recently ordered a boatload of caffeine pills from the internet, he did so because he knew that he would need a stimulant to sustain himself through long and gritty hours of making a living as a freelance writer. + +That’s because Rosehill has taken an increasingly unusual twist on running a freelance writing business. + +**He actually derives all of his income from selling writing services to paying clients.** + +“The USP of my freelance writing business is actually that I’m running a freelance writing business,” Rosehill explained to Freelance Writing, a Medium publication which he founded and runs. + +“I don’t sell courses to other freelancers about freelancing and I ….. just sort of do this all by writing for clients and then invoicing them,” he says. + +Curious to know about how this Irish-born, Jerusalem-based expat managed to go from zero to five figures in the space of just a few short years? + +Read on to find out more. + +### “I Know Active Income Is Kind Of A Weird Choice — But It Works For Me” + +Rosehill recently enjoying some Guinness + +Rosehill says that there are other weird facets of his writing business. + +“For one, at least currently, it’s based solely around active income,” he says. + +**“Additionally I’m not on Instagram or Tik Tok, don’t describe myself as a guru, and I’ve only decided to talk about my income now [during this interview]”** + +Rosehill says that he makes a **five figure income** from selling writing services on the internet to clients around the world. + +His clients have ranged from boutique marketing agencies in Ireland to a telecomms provider in far-off Singapore. + +“I wouldn’t want to pinpoint what exact figure I’m earning, but I’m officially a five figure writer. And last year my income was **NORTH OF $50K,”** he says. + +Despite not having broached the six figure mark, Rosehill says that he doesn’t regard himself as a failure — although he admits that seeing many freelance writers in the space brag about their income has sometimes made him a little bit depressed about how little he earns in comparison. + +“I’ve struggled with bouts of depression during which I’ve felt like a total failure in relation to my peers and other freelancers,” he says, adding that after a while he was able to spot a correlation between these bouts of depression and his exposure to the LinkedIn professional network. + +He attributes emerging from these bouts of self-loathing to the sage advice of friends and professionals who pointed out that once one meets their financial obligations, in a sense, one can be said to be winning. + +“I have to be honest. I don’t get why Americans are so hung up on this idea of being a ‘six figure’ whatever,” he confined in _Freelance Writing_. + +“With my humble five figure income I can afford to pay rent, pay for power, go out for dinner with my family, and even get a little bit tipsy on the weekend,” he says. + +“Maybe in a weird sort of sense that could even be considered winning,” he says. + +### “I Do The Literary Equivalent of Pulling Like A Dog” + +Asked to summarize his philosophy to making it as a freelance writer, Rosehill — who was born in Dublin — cited the O’Donovan Brothers, the Irish rowers who won a silver medal for Ireland in the Rio Olympics. + +Asked by an interviewer to describe their methodology, said that they “pulled like a dog” and rowed as fast as they can. + +“Basically I work as hard as I can at the writing and figuring out the business aspects, but I try to avoid burnout at the same time,” he says. + +“To quote the O’Donovan brothers, you could say that I do the literary or writer’s equivalent of closing my eyes and pulling like a dog to make this all work,” he says. + +Rosehill’s home office setup + +Asked how he manages his time and business, Rosehill says that the core activity is sitting at a desk in his home office and working. + +“Basically I get up every day, go for a walk, check into my home office, and begin actually completing writing projects for clients,” he said — citing an approach that many in the freelance writing community might find totally groundbreaking. + +“I keep track of my projects using an online project management system, send out notifications through a CRM, and use an accounting platform to tot up and then send invoices to my clients once a month. And for the most part, that’s really all there is too it.” + +The weirdest thing of all is that Rosehill — at the time of writing — says that he doesn’t even run a Facebook group or sell a writing course on the internet. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +“I have a Medium publication where I put articles about how to make freelance writing work for free,” he says. + +Rosehill says that he doesn’t run a freelance writing course because, despite working as a freelance writer for more than five years, says that he still consider himself to be learning the art and craft. + +“There’s a lot that goes into running a successful freelance writing business,” he says. “I’m still picking up things from other freelancers almost every day,” he says. + +“You have the tax stuff, figuring out how to find clients, the actual writing, and marketing and sales to make sure that you have decent pipeline. + +“But I’ve been lucky enough to learn a lot from other writers. And so I share what I know in return.” + +Rosehill says that those wishing to learn more about freelance writing are welcome to check through his resources where he shares most of what he knows without charge. + +Asked why Rosehill — who says he was once notoriously private — agreed to this interview, he said it was to dispel the idea that one needed to make six figures or run a freelance writing course to be “successful.” + +“I think the idea of looking for passive income sources is smart,” Rosehill says, + +“But you absolutely don’t need to depict yourself as some kind high-living quasi-celebrity on Instagram or Tik Tok and open up a freelance writing course or Facebook group to make a living doing this,” he says. + +“Actually you just need a work ethic, some motivation, and — for many — the resources to protect your mental health.” + +[**Before you waste money on a freelance writing “course”, read these (free) posts instead** + _Why waste money on info that’s available for free online?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/before-you-waste-money-on-a-freelance-writing-course-read-these-free-posts-instead-a1a72be62fab "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/before-you-waste-money-on-a-freelance-writing-course-read-these-free-posts-instead-a1a72be62fab")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/before-you-waste-money-on-a-freelance-writing-course-read-these-free-posts-instead-a1a72be62fab) + +[**Ways You Can Diversify Your Freelance Writing Business** + _The Art Of Not Putting Your Eggs In One Basket_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5) + +[**The Magic Formula For Freelancing Success They DON’T Want You To Know About!** +_(Sadly I Wasn’t Quite Clever Enough To Come Up With A Clickbait Subtitle)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-magic-formula-for-freelancing-success-they-dont-want-you-to-know-about-e3f19162adf0 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-magic-formula-for-freelancing-success-they-dont-want-you-to-know-about-e3f19162adf0")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-magic-formula-for-freelancing-success-they-dont-want-you-to-know-about-e3f19162adf0) + +[**A 4 Point Lead Qualification Checklist For Freelance Writers** + _Bringing Good Fits From Lead Through To Client_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-4-point-lead-qualification-checklist-for-freelance-writers-cd83f39368b1 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-4-point-lead-qualification-checklist-for-freelance-writers-cd83f39368b1")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-4-point-lead-qualification-checklist-for-freelance-writers-cd83f39368b1) + +[**How To Find Freelance Writing Clients** + _The Various Channels For Client Acquisition_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6) + +[**Does Cold Emailing Work To Find Freelance Clients?** +_It can. It does. But even the successes aren’t always pretty._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed) + +[**Where To Find Freelance Writing Gigs — A Guide** + _On the freelance writers’ Reddit (/r/freelancewriters) as well as on just about every writers’ forum in existence there…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/where-to-find-freelance-writing-gigs-a-guide-340544cbd7ce "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/where-to-find-freelance-writing-gigs-a-guide-340544cbd7ce")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/where-to-find-freelance-writing-gigs-a-guide-340544cbd7ce) + +[**My Approach To Onboarding Freelance Clients** + _Some Tips For Smother Account Onboarding_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-approach-to-onboarding-freelance-clients-a44f7e35be67 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-approach-to-onboarding-freelance-clients-a44f7e35be67")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-approach-to-onboarding-freelance-clients-a44f7e35be67) + +[**Charging Freelance Writing Clients Per Word — Pros and Cons** + _Does Journalism’s Gold Standard Make Sense in Content Marketing?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0) diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To--Create-A-G-Suite-Address-Just-For-Account-Signups.md b/posts/medium/How-To--Create-A-G-Suite-Address-Just-For-Account-Signups.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..86a5fdc881ff44b8104a6c8ec8d3002084aee045 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To--Create-A-G-Suite-Address-Just-For-Account-Signups.md @@ -0,0 +1,80 @@ +# How To: Create A G-Suite Address Just For Account Signups + +I don’t know about you, but I’m getting a bit of being signed up for a company’s email newsletter every time I make any form of contact with them. + +It may come as a surprise to many, but **CAN-SPAM effectively gives marketers _carte blanche_ to opt customers into their email marketing databases for just about any conceivable reason.** + +I’m routinely opted in to newsletters I have no interest in receiving for asking: + +_“Hi, would you mind sending me a quote for Y?”_ + + _“What time is your branch in X open in?”_ -> + +As an avid proponent of [inbox zero](https://www.fastcompany.com/40507663/the-7-step-guide-to-achieving-inbox-zero-and-staying-there-in-2018) I have long found this longstanding and unfortunate state of affairs exasperating. + +But, for years, I have found no better solution to minimizing this daily deluge of unsolicited newsletters than clicking the “unsubscribe” button on emails I never signed up for at least five times per day. I’ve been doing this for so long, in fact, that it’s become an ingrained part of my daily work ritual — usually right after my morning coffee. + +The situation, however, has been getting worse rather than better. As a [freelance technology writer](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) I am continuously signing up for technology platforms — whether to review them, use them, or for some other reason. But — as well as a curmudgeon — I am also a realist. Thus I understood, up to now, that there was nothing that I can do about it beyond continuing to pummel the unsubscribe option. + +Or so I thought! + +In the process of writing one of the aforementioned technology reviews, I came across [this nice tip from ](https://www.kaspersky.com/resource-center/threats/spam-phishing)[Kaspersky Online](https://medium.com/u/2265dac3261a): **always have two email addresses** — reserve one for private correspondence and use the other for online registrations. (Kaspersky’s rationale was to prevent phishing but I think this is a tidy second application!) + +Although I’ve certainly fulfilled that piece of advice many times over (let’s just say that when I populate the “send as” button it almost fills the screen), I never thought about creating a separate email address just for account registrations. + +But once I thought about it, it made a lot of sense! + +If it does to you too then here’s a way to set things up in [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83). + +### 1: Create a Google Group Just For Account Registrations + +To institute this new practice, I firstly created a new Google Group on my Gsuite. + +I simply called mine **registrations** @mydomain.co.il: + +But you can give the group any name that makes sense to you. + +### 2: Allow The Internet To Post to the Group + +Next, navigate to “Basic permissions” under “Permissions”. + +You want to allow anybody on the internet to be able to post to the group — in order that you can provide this email address for any signup form. + +Change the “group visibility,” “viewing topics,” and “join the group” permissions as you see fit. I’ve set mine on the more restrictive side. + +**Whatever you do, make sure to change the default permission for “post” to “anyone on the web.”** + +### 3: Disable Email Delivery + +I’m planning on using this group the same way as the Google “Groups” I set up in order to receive newsletters that I _do_ want to receive. + +For more on that, check out my post on the topic: + +[**Some Creative Uses For Google Groups** + _I’ve been using G-Suite for a long time at this point._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-creative-uses-for-google-groups-b24986dcb78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-creative-uses-for-google-groups-b24986dcb78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/some-creative-uses-for-google-groups-b24986dcb78) + +So, from the main groups UI in [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83) I will make sure that my personal delivery setting for this group is “Don’t send email updates”. + +We could be clever and batch delivery to once per day and automatically configure topics to catch just account verification prompts and not e-newsletter additions. But that’s for another day! + +### 4: Bookmark the Group + +You’ll then want to navigate to the Group homepage and add it to your Bookmarks. + +If you’re using Chrome, give it a name you’ll be able to type into the omnibox quickly and easily. + +### 5: Begin Using the Group For Account Registrations + +Now, whenever you sign up for a new SaaS service or online shopping account, you can provide your registrations @ yourdomain address and avoid having your main inbox cluttered with a million and one newsletters that you never had any interest in receiving. + +To demonstrate, I’ve signed up for a test [Mailchimp](https://medium.com/u/772bf2413f17) account: + +Whenever you sign up for a new account you will simply need to click on the bookmark for your Google Group rather than you inbox. + +Check for verification emails when you are expecting them: + +You can read and click on links just as if this were your inbox: + +You still might want to follow the unsubscribe process. Or just leave all the unwanted emails to languish in your Google Group — while your inbox remains pristine. + +_(I’m a huge_[ _Mailchimp_](https://medium.com/u/772bf2413f17) _fan and — as you might expect — the company operate a scrupulous opt-in process. This example was for demonstration purposes only!)_ diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To--Save-Gsuite-and-Gmail-Storage-Space-by-Archiving-Old-Emails-and-Files-To-AWS-S3.md b/posts/medium/How-To--Save-Gsuite-and-Gmail-Storage-Space-by-Archiving-Old-Emails-and-Files-To-AWS-S3.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..06d75fb85764fc939746d0abf2d8235592b72272 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To--Save-Gsuite-and-Gmail-Storage-Space-by-Archiving-Old-Emails-and-Files-To-AWS-S3.md @@ -0,0 +1,126 @@ +# How To: Save Gsuite and Gmail Storage Space by Archiving Old Emails and Files To AWS S3 + +As well as [taking backups](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-current-ubuntu-backup-strategy/) of my desktop and cloud services, another really cool tech practice I’m into* is**periodically cleaning up my inbox and cloud-hosted filesystem.** + +My inbox seems to be getting progressively busier and more cluttered these days, so I’m trying to up the frequency of these clean-outs to once every three months rather than my hitherto annual swoop. + +I’ve just closed up a long project with a client. + +So I thought that this was a good opportunity to demonstrate — and document — my current methodology. + +Here’s how I do it. + +*Sarcasm + +### 1: Batch All Projects / Clients Into Gmail Labels — And Set Filters to Direct Inbound Mail + +The first step is to **make sure that every unique project — or client you’re working with — has its own label in**[**G Suite**](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83)**.** + +I’m pretty insane about this and have set up labels — and corresponding rules — for just about every conceivable purpose. + +E.g.: + +I a label for my utilities (“Bills”) and under that sub-labels for power, my cellphone plan, my water bill, and my healthcare provider. + +I have a label for my IFTTT “it’s going to rain today” notifications and another for correspondence from my accountant. + +So, if you’re also a freelancer / small business owner, set up labels for your clients. (I have mine sub-divided into current clients, past clients, and prospective clients). + +Next, I **create Gmail filters to automatically _route_ inbound messages to the correct folder.** + +Generally, the easiest way to do this is to filter by sending address, but you can also: + + * **Filter by unique text strings in the subject line**. The “exact match” Boolean operator is useful for this purpose. + * **Filter by text strings in the body text**. + +[HaGihon](https://www.hagihon.co.il/) delivers water to my apartment in Jerusalem. And they send their e-bills from the domain printernet.co.il. + +So, I create a filter to route all email from that address into the Gmail label I created for water bills. + +The asterisks (*) symbol denotes a wildcard — so email from any other address at that domain will also route to the folder: + +I typically also tick the “Never send it to spam” box — because I know it’s not spam and I need to see it — so I can “whitelist” the domain and prevent it getting caught up in my spam folder. + +And I tick the “also apply filter to X matching messages” box in order to get all existing messages from that sender into the folder. + +**If this were a client, then I would also want to capture all the outbound (sent email) in the label I just created** , again making sure that I apply a wildcard operator. + +So I would create a filter in the opposite direction — just swap ‘me’ for your email: + +### 2: Create A Label for Archiving And Nest Old Labels There + +Next, I set up label called ‘For Archiving’. + +I’ve nested this under another label called ‘System’. + +Let’s say I wrap up a project with a client. + +I don’t really need or want to have all the back and forth with my point of contact cluttering up my inbox. + +So I’ll archive that label in my S3 bucket. + +For the purpose of this demo, I batched a few emails I don’t need under a label called ‘Demo Old Client’. + +I then moved the label under ‘For Archiving’. + +**Now I want to initiate a Google Takeaway** — but only capture the label that I want to archive. + +Firstly, deselect all GSuite services other than Mail. + +Click on ‘All Mail data included’. + +And unselect “Include all messages in mail”. + +(FYI: despite this, the UI will still automatically select some folders that you probably don’t want to delete. So be sure to deselect these if you want to keep them.) + +Watch out. Labels like ‘Sent’ and ‘Starred’ are still automatically selected! + +Just tick the old clients that you want to archive and click `OK`: + +Unless all these messages come with large attachments, email is pretty light. So the download link shouldn’t take more than a few seconds to generate. + +The few folders I decided to export came to just 8 MB: + +In AWS S3, I created a bucked called archivedemail. + +After downloading the Takeaway, you’ll want to unzip the archive and navigate a few folders into the directory to find the actual label archives. + +These end with the file extension .mbox. + +And that’s basically it. + +I then select **Glacier** as the storage class because it’s unlikely that I will ever need to access the correspondence again: + +Now that the emails are safely archived, I can delete all the messages from the labels in [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83). + +And finally, I’ll delete the labels themselves: + +### 2: (Manual Method) To Do The Same Thing With Files + +I’ll repeat the same process with files. + +I don’t use Google Drive as my main cloud storage system but this process should work the same if you use Drive File Stream to mount your Google storage to the local filesystem. + +Again, I’ll push the file to an S3 bucket using AWS Console and set the storage class to something like Glacier. + +### 3: (Automatic Method) To Do The Same Thing With Files + +Finally, I use a service called [MultCloud.com](https://medium.com/u/b01ad33b0430) to automatically sync files I don’t need to an S3 bucket. + +In order to do this, I’ll attach my S3 bucket and cloud storage via Multcloud: + +Then, I’ll create a folder in my primary cloud storage called S3_Autoarchiver: + +And then I’ll create a sync between the “autoarchive” folder and my S3 bucket: + +And then put this on a daily schedule: + +### Use S3 To Keep Your Main Cloud Storage Uncluttered + +AWS S3 is (almost) as affordable as object cloud storage gets. + +At the time of writing, it’s just $0.023/GB for the first 50 TB of storage in the US East region with free data transfer in: + +I’ve found periodically archiving all unneeded files and emails to it from Gsuite and my other cloud services a great way to keep within storage limits — and keep clutter and old projects from distracting me. + +If you a main cloud storage system and have set up some storage space in AWS then you should give it a shot too! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To--Set-Up-A-Cellular-Backed-Highly-Available-Home-Internet-Connection.md b/posts/medium/How-To--Set-Up-A-Cellular-Backed-Highly-Available-Home-Internet-Connection.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4389935c31516630f66ca16b0ce25afc379febea --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To--Set-Up-A-Cellular-Backed-Highly-Available-Home-Internet-Connection.md @@ -0,0 +1,132 @@ +# How To: Set Up A Cellular-Backed Highly Available Home Internet Connection + +#### An owned hardware solution for setting up ISP connectivity with cellular failover for high availability home networking setups + +If you’re interested in improving the stability of your home internet network, then you might have considered provisioning an internet connection that takes advantage of multiple connectivity sources. + +[**If You Run A Work From Home Business, Consider Investing In Backup Internet** + _A small monthly investment can drastically improve the stability of your home internet connection_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-run-a-work-from-home-business-consider-investing-in-backup-internet-450be6d111c4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-run-a-work-from-home-business-consider-investing-in-backup-internet-450be6d111c4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-run-a-work-from-home-business-consider-investing-in-backup-internet-450be6d111c4) + +Typically, these kind of setups are the preserve of businesses. However: + +a) With so many of us working from home, the lines between business and home users are becoming increasingly blurry. + +b) With so many of us working from home, bandwidth demands on home connectivity are in many localities at a stretching point. This poses a problem because even some home-based business users require connectivity that is more reliable than what their ISP — or ISPs in their area — are capable of supplying. + +The finished first part of the home networking stack. Bottom: ISP router. Middle: load balancing router. Top: cellular router. Photo: author. + +ISPs commonly provide routers to customers in order to easily connect them to their networks. However, for many home internet users, owning their own hardware is preferable. + + + +Purchasing hardware downstream of the modem level also has its benefits (your ISP’s router can typically still be used to bridge their connectivity / as a modem only). Assuming your downstream hardware doesn’t create a bottleneck for the super fast connectivity upstream, you can change ISPs and still use your system. + +Here’s a method that I’ve used to achieve cellular-backup internet in Israel. I’m by no means suggesting that this is the best method of achieving this. In fact, I know for certain that there are more elegant ways to achieve this setup with less hardware. + +However, I built this system with a reasonably small budget — and chose the components that could do what I needed at the least overhead. If that’s your situation, you might find these steps useful. + +### Purchase A Load Balancing Router + +The cornerstone of this setup is our load balancing router. + +We’re going to require one that offers failover. Which means that when connection A drops (our ISP line) connectivity automatically flips over to our cellular line. + +Note: there’s a lot of confusion out there between failover, load balancing and bonding. + + * **Bonding is that fancy technology that allows you to _combine_ the connectivity from multiple providers into one fancy and super-fast connectivity trunk.** Unfortunately — and as I learned recently — you need bonding on the WAN side of the network too. [Speedify](http://speedify.com) provides a cost-effective alternative to using hardware. If you’re into open source, check out the [OPENMPTCProuter project](https://www.openmptcprouter.com/). + * **Load balancing is used all the time in server-land to balance incoming connections between a variety of servers.** In home networking, it works the same but in reverse. Your local devices are trying to access the (outside) internet and the load balancer will route them to the best internet connection (WAN) for their needs. Load balancers typically support various modes of operation. + * Failover is the simplest of the three. As above, it simply means that when connection A goes down the load balancing router will flip over to WAN 2. If you have three WANs, you can configure failover to WAN 3 if WANs 1 and 2 _both_ go down. + +The majority of load balancing routers you’ll be able to find will do both failover and load balancing. For bonding, you’ll need to do a lot more legwork. + +Final recommendation? Before purchasing your load balancer, pay attention to what connectivity you have currently in place and how fast it is. Some — like many of the Draytek load balancing routers — have built-in modems. You can find options that will support VDSL2 too. As well, of course, as built-in cellular. + +Why does the maximum speed the WAN ports can carry matter? Because if you have a fiber optic connection that typically pulls in a 300 Mbps download speed you won’t want to put that into a load balancing router that can only pass through 100 Mbps on any of its RJ45 ports. None of the hardware you’re purchasing should be a bottleneck for what’s upstream of it on your network. + + + +Note: you can simplify this setup by purchasing a load balancing router that either has an embedded SIM module or which supports USB plug-in dongles. + +### Buy A Data SIM And A Cellular Router (Or Choose A Cellular-Capable Load Balancer) + +Fortunately, where I’m based, data only SIM plans have come down a lot in price. + +I’m currently paying not even $10 a month for a 4G/LTE capable SIM that lives in my cellular router. + +At the time of writing, 5G routers are _significantly_ more expensive than their 4G counterparts. 5G-capable data plans will typically cost more too. + +Pay attention, again, to compatibility. + +If you’re planning on going with a load balancing router that can support cellular on the device (in some ways preferable) then check to make sure what frequencies it supports and compare those with the ones your network of choice uses. + +[**4G LTE Routers** + _The classic DrayTek VPN Firewall with SIM card slot, built-in 3G/4G LTE modem, and external antennas, provides cellular…_ www.draytek.com](https://www.draytek.com/products/lte-routers/ "https://www.draytek.com/products/lte-routers/")[](https://www.draytek.com/products/lte-routers/) + +The same goes for cellular routers: if you’re buying one then make sure it can support your frequencies too. + +There’s one pro for buying a load balancer with cellular capability to mention and one negative. + +The pro is that it’s going to cut down on the hardware devices we need by one component. The con is that it’s going to be driving our cellular connection straight into the load balancer. + +If we keep cellular on its own hardware, this actually gives us a little bit more versatility. For instance, I can _both_ run the cellular router into the load balancer _and_ run it into my computer by WiFi. The latter will allow me to use a tool like WiFi to _bond_ my home internet connection that already has built-in cellular backup. + +### Set Up And Connect Your Hardware + +Firstly, you’re going to want to configure your ISP router, if possible, as a bridge. + +Effectively, we want to use its modem and not its routing. So we’ll want to disable the DHCP server too (note: sometimes this makes it difficult to access the embedded web server. I’ve had success with this setup while leaving the DHCP server untouched). We’ll also want to set the cellular router to have an IP address that’s _outside_ the IP address range of the LAN. + +Of course, you may also use a load balancer with the requisite built-in modem and forego using the ISP hardware altogether. But sometimes it makes sense to keep this in order to keep the ISP and technicians happy and willing to provide support if you need help diagnosing why the ISP line is down. + +We’ll want to repeat that process with the cellular hardware. Again, we want it to work as a cellular bridge and bridge that connectivity into the load balancer. + +Note: for the TP-Link product I purchased, I needed to follow a workaround from the community forums. You can get around that problem by just buying an LTE/cellular modem that explicitly says it will work just as a modem/bridge. + +Disabling the DHCP server on a TP-Link cellular modem/router. Photo: author. + +Once we have the ISP and cellular routers both running as bridges, we can set up the load balancer and connect them into the WAN ports. + +Layer one of the routing stack with the IP router (below) and the TP Link load balancer (above). Photo: author.Layer two of the routing stack with the IP router at bottom, the load balancer in the middle, and the cellular router on top. Photo: author. + +The photos above show the first part of my hardware stack. + +Because I wanted to transmit WiFi from another room, I’m also running a LAN cable out of the load balancer and using that to drive connectivity to a WiFi router (another TP-Link product) that is running in access point (AP) mode. + +Here’s how my current setup looks like on a diagram: + +### Configure Backup / Failover In The Load Balancer + +If all goes smoothly, you should now be bringing two internet connectivity sources into your load balancer which is effectively providing routing for your whole network. + +Now you’ll just want to make sure that the load balancing appliance is configured to handle failover so that when WAN 1 goes down (say, your ISP) WAN 2 will come up (say, your cellular router). + +I configured my backup rule like this: + +### Suggested Additional Improvements + + * If you’ve gone to this much trouble you should consider putting all your networking equipment on an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) so that the whole stack can keep running during power outages or survive momentary blips without losing connectivity. + * Finally if you’re using a cellular router with external antenna support consider that where you’re locating the networking stack mightn’t be the best place from which to pick up cellular connectivity. SMA extenders are cheap and you could run in connectivity from wherever is best in the house (or an external dish). + +### How Well Does Failover Work Using This Implementation? + +I initially didn’t succeed in getting my TP-Link cellular router to work as a wireless bridge and pass connectivity into the load balancer. + +So instead I ran my ISP internet directly into the device and configured the cellular network to only be used as backup connectivity. + +Using that implementation, I experienced failover times of between 20 to 30 seconds. + +Passing the two devices through the load balancer has resulted in substantially quicker failover — of about 2 seconds or so. This I imagine is because the cellular connection is always “live” and waiting to be used. In the first implementation the cellular router had to first “wait” for the outage, then bring up cellular, and then fail over. + +### Why Not Use Your ISP Router And A Plug In Modem? + + * This setup allows you to own your own hardware. + * This setup also allows you to move your setup to different connectivity sources assuming that the downstream hardware doesn’t create a bottleneck. + +### Why Not Just Use A MiFi / Hotspot? + + * This setup is always online and live + * Failover from ISP to cellular and back takes place completely automatically with this setup. + * This setup brings the enhanced dual connectivity to every device on the network, including both wired and wireless endpoints. + +### Some Ideas For Alternative Implementations + diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Add-A-Second-Internet-Line-To-Your-Home-Office-For-Backup-Connectivity.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Add-A-Second-Internet-Line-To-Your-Home-Office-For-Backup-Connectivity.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9dca519df46f187535ebca5827429ea109b255b5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Add-A-Second-Internet-Line-To-Your-Home-Office-For-Backup-Connectivity.md @@ -0,0 +1,52 @@ +# How To Add A Second Internet Line To Your Home Office For Backup Connectivity + +#### Adding two lines can bolster your continuity + +If you’re looking to make your home working environment more robust, then one of the most useful steps you can take is establishing backup communication supplies. + +[**How to (sort of) disaster-proof your home office** + _Picture the scenario:_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-sort-of-disaster-proof-your-home-office-5ed5c48095e6 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-sort-of-disaster-proof-your-home-office-5ed5c48095e6")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-sort-of-disaster-proof-your-home-office-5ed5c48095e6) + +During the last few months, my main internet service provider (ISP) here in Israel has been doing a pretty lousy job at getting me connectivity. My internet tends to go down for hours at a time. Sometimes the intermittent outages can do on for days. + +In Israel, we have a somewhat strange means of delivering interest to consumers. + +Consumers need to pick both a _sapak_(ISP) and _tashtit_(infrastructure provider) when purchasing residential internet. Various ISPs support different infrastructures but are responsible for basic customer support. + +And while ultra fast fiber optic is being deployed throughout the country, there are plenty of areas — including where I live, in fairly central Jerusalem — that simply don’t have it available yet. + +Last week, one of the outages struck just when I was about to dial in as a guest for a podcast. I decided that that was the last straw and that it would indeed be worth paying double for a second internet line. + +We now have subscriptions to _both_ the two types of _tashtit_ available in our area — specifically Hot and Bezeq. The first line is fast (at least on the download, the upload is atrocious). But it’s unreliable. The second line is slow but reliable. While neither is an idea solution, by combining the two we can cover all bases. + +Besides signing up for a separate line, all you need to make this work for your desktop is a $3 piece of plastic. + +### How To Set Up Dual Ethernet Internet + +If you’re using WiFi to connect to the internet, then you don’t need to take extra steps. Just connect to whatever network offers the best performance. And if one goes down, use the other. + +With desktop (I’m a desktop and ethernet user) you won’t want to be shuffling around ethernet cabling every time you want to shift connections. Thankfully all you need is a $3 piece of plastic. + +It took me a little while to find the component I was looking for because I would instinctively call it an ethernet KVM. An ethernet switch is clearly something else entirely. The preferred terminology for a device to manually switch between two ethernet networks appears to be an RJ45 network switcher. + +Here’s an example of what you’re looking for: + +Then all you have to do is run ethernet from both routers to the switch and then run another line from the output to the computer. If your main ethernet connections goes down, just press a button to switch to the backup line. + +(There are more technically elaborate ways to handle this kind of setup on a software level, but I reckon the simple piece of plastic push trick will be good enough for most home internet users). + +### Take Your Redundancy Even Further By Adding A Cellular Line + +If you want to take things even further you could supply to two ISPs as I have done (your main and fallback connection) and also provision a 4G/LTE (or 5G) router running off a data SIM card. + +This would provide you with even more redundancy. Even if both wired networks went down, you could switch over to cellular for uninterrupted connectivity. + +What you’ll need for this: + + * A cellular router + * A data SIM card subscription + +### How It Looks Setup + +Here’s how my switch looks connected. A and B, on the left, are the two ethernet inputs from the routers. The button toggle is on the top of the switch. And the output end runs into the ethernet port on my desktop. + diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Adjust-Screen-Brightness-With-The-Redshift-CLI.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Adjust-Screen-Brightness-With-The-Redshift-CLI.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..506d60c3325e2045ab1cf1c280f3c6e2f329ee00 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Adjust-Screen-Brightness-With-The-Redshift-CLI.md @@ -0,0 +1,94 @@ +# How To Adjust Screen Brightness With The Redshift CLI + +Setting the right blue light filtering and screen brightness can minimize work-related eye strain + +Redshift is one of two good options for blue light filtering on Ubuntu Linux. F.lux is the other. + +Filtering blue light is believed to reduce eye strain and offset some of artificial light’s disruptive effects on our circadian rhythm. + +### Installing Redshift and Redshift-gtk + +Redshfit is a command line interface (CLI) although Redshift-gtk provides a notification area icon which can be used to enable/disable the filtering, suspend filtering for a time period, and see the current screen temperature in Kelvin (K). + +Redshift is in the main Ubuntu repositories, so no third party PPAs need to be added. + +To install Redshift: + + + sudo apt-get install redshift + +And to pick up the notification icon: + + + sudo apt-get install redshift-gtk + +### Highlights of the Redshift Man Page + +Like most popular Linux CLIs, Redshift has a man page which can be accessed by typing + + + man redshift + +into a terminal. + +Most users will want redshift to run on system launch and to set up a configuration file. This should be created at: + + + /home/foo/.config/redshift.conf + +Mine is minimalist: + + + [redshift] + temp-day=4000 + temp-night=3400 + gamma=0.8 + brightness=0.9 + adjustment-method=randr + location-provider=manual + [manual] + lat=31.79 + lon=35.21 + +### How To Find Your Right Settings + +It’s worth spending a bit of time after you’ve installed Redshift experimenting with two variables: + + * The level of blue light filtering that suits you + * The screen brightness that suits you + +I find that when both are optimal, my viewing comfort is greatly improved — particularly when spending long hours working on documents. + +Finding the right temperature simply involves plugging a few commands into the terminal and some trial and error. + +To see what a screen temperature of 4000K looks like use the -O argument which the man page describes as “one shot manual mode”: + + + redshift -O 4000 + +To clear the blue light filtering: + + + redshift -x + +To move from one level of blue light filtering from the next, you can either clear the filter and set a new one using the commands above in reverse order. Alternatively, more elegantly, you use -P with the man page describes as “reset existing gamma ramps before applying new color effect.” + +E.g. to move to 4000K from 4200K in one command: + + + redshift -P -O 4000 + +### Setting Screen Brightness + +The final Redshift setting that I think is worth knowing about is setting the screen brightness. This variable can be passed to the configuration file and also set randomly. + +The operator here is -b which can be a value between 0.1 and 1.0. + +You can chain all these arguments together in one command. For instance: + + + redshift -P -O 4200 -b 0.8 + +To add this to your redshift.conf file, if you’re starting from a template, uncomment the brightness=1.0 line and set it to your preferred value. + +There’s much more you can do with Redshift. But these are the commands and settings I use to improve my viewing comfort. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Back-Up-Shared-Hosting-Onto-A-Linux-Host.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Back-Up-Shared-Hosting-Onto-A-Linux-Host.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0c2dd39915749a3ce97b4bcb0c07dbbca538dd0d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Back-Up-Shared-Hosting-Onto-A-Linux-Host.md @@ -0,0 +1,159 @@ +# How To Back Up Shared Hosting Onto A Linux Host (Or NAS) + +If you’re running website(s) that live on a typical shared hosting environment then you’ve probably given a thought or two as to how your precious online real estate should best be backed up. + +Unfortunately, when it comes to backup, your typical shared hosting environment is not an ideal environment. + +That’s because Shared hosting consists of one piece of hardware (a server/VM) being “shared” out between several customers. + +Because the hosting company needs to ensure that Customer A cannot access the files of Customer B, in a shared hosting environment each user is limited to operating within their part of the server only. + +On a typical Linux server, relative to the server root this is: + + + /home/foo + +### Typical Approaches To Shared Host Backup + +So what happens if you want to back up your websites? + +The standard options are typically that users can: + +a)**Initiate a full account backup via their cPanel.** This option is certainly a very viable way of generating a full account backup of each website you host. However, the usual deficiencies about taking full backups apply: it’s heavy and inefficient because you’re copying the entire filesystem every time you run it irrespective of how much data has changed on the server between runs. + +Additionally — perhaps a more serious defect —**most regular cPanel users are not able to automatically initiate these backups**(although the functionality exists). Hosts aren’t so keen on having users regularly dump large archives of their entire filesystem, it turns out. This is really critical. Sure, you can set yourself Google Calendar reminders to run full account backups of your hosting. But there’s a very to extremely high chance that in three months’ time the thought of …… not running backups ….. is going to sound more appealing to you than running them. + +Backups need to be scripted and automated to run on time and should not depend on fickle things like the level of motivation of a human system administrator who’s job it isn’t to run these backups (and if you _had_ a dedicated backup administrator you probably wouldn’t be running on shared hosting … but I digress). + +Nevertheless, if you _do_ pull out full cPanel backups from your website you’ll end up with nice standardized archives that look like this on the inside and can be used to move to a new web host if you so please (you’ll probably just have to ask your new host to execute the restore process). + +b)**** Commonly, your second backup option in a shared hosting environment **is to subscribe to some add-on package that your host provides.** The backup and disaster recovery (DR) system is vast and it’s wide. These days, it’s common for shared hosting providers to build a couple of backup/DR tools into their offerings. For instance, some sort of incremental backup engine is very common so that amateur webmasters can easily roll back changes that rendered their website(s) unusable— like a Wordpress upgrade that went askew. However, these restore copies are usually stored offsite (to the web hosting) and are incremental in nature. Users don’t typically have a _programmatic_ way of downloading the full backup set — and, as time goes on, full incremental backup sets can comprise several dozen increments. This is problematic because the 3–2–1 rule (below) calls for _two_ backup copies to be held so that one can be stored onsite. And, as mentioned, downloading these backups onsite is often not practicable. + +### A DIY Approach To Shared Hosting Backup + +Despite the deficiencies of the shared hosting environment for backup all hope is not lost. + +Using nothing more sophisticated than the humble but powerful rsync command line interface (CLI) and a couple of cron jobs it’s possible to create a basic local backup set onto your Linux computer or NAS. + +For the purpose of these example commands, let’s assume that we’re talking about backing up a typical Wordpress installation. + +Assuming that Wordpress is installed at the root level of yourdomain.com, and that your cPanel username is yourdomain, then we’ll want to back up the following directory from our host: + + + /home/yourdomain/public_html + +This can be achieved easily with rsync as follows: + + + rsync -arvz yourdomain@123.456.789.90:/home/yourdomain/public_html/ /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/files/ + +(Rsync syntax: -a = archive mode; -r = recursive; -v = verbose; -z = file compression during transfer). + +Sometimes shared (and reselling) hosting providers insist on having their users connect via a non-standard SSH port. Let’s say we had to SSH into the shared server over port 12345. We would just modify the command to: + + + rsync -arvz -e ‘ssh -p 12345' yourdomain@123.456.789.90:/home/yourdomain/public_html/ /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/files/ + +If we only had one website and wanted to just pull in the job every two weeks or so, then it wouldn’t be overly onerous to run this command manually in order to observe it running and ensure successful execution. To make that easier we could add the progress parameter. + + + rsync -arvz -e ‘ssh -p 12345' --progress yourdomain@123.456.789.90:/home/yourdomain/public_html/ /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/files/ + +To get even more verbosity, you can string three ‘v’s together like this. When the rsync is checking the files on the source you will be able to see exactly what is going on. + + + rsync -arvvvz -e ‘ssh -p 12345' --progress yourdomain@123.456.789.90:/home/yourdomain/public_html/ /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/files/ + +We’d probably also want to sync deletions at source to the target. So we’d add the delete switch: + + + rsync -arvz -e ‘ssh -p 12345' --progress --delete yourdomain@123.456.789.90:/home/yourdomain/public_html/ /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/files/ + +(To populate the contents of public_html at the root of the target, and not capture the encasing folder, make sure to include a trailing slash) + +### Don’t Forget The Database + +In order to back up a Wordpress installation — or many web applications — we’d nee to back up the MySQL database as well as the filesystem. + +To do this, consider setting up the following. + +Firstly, build a backup folder in your hosting that is _not_ located within or above /public_html. + + + /home/yourdomain/backup/mysql/ + +For instance would be fine. + +Next, set up a cron job to run on the hosting to back up the MySQL database that is attached to your Wordpress installation. + +If you can’t remember your Wordpress database, MySQL user and MySQL password then you can find all of these by inspecting wp-config.php which is located at the root of the Wordpress installation. + +You could, for instance, set this up in cron: + + + mysqldump -u mydom_wp912 -p’12345xs' mydom_wp912 > /home/yourdomain/backup/dailymysql_backup.sql + +Then, we’d need to pull that backup into the local filesystem: + + + rsync -arvz -e ‘ssh -p 12345’ --delete yourdomain@123.456.789.10:/home/yourdomain/backup/ /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/mysql/ + +### Build a few restore points + +If you want to take this further then you could build out two more folders on the local computer which you use to host these backups. + +For instance, create folders called: + + + /weekly + + + /monthly + +To create these backups simply run rsync jobs between /daily /weekly and /monthly — including the source deletion switch — and set these to run in cron at the appropriate intervals. + +E.g for the weekly job. + + + rsync -arvz /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/ home/backups/yourdomain/weekly + +### Sync Offsite + +To make our backup 3–2–1 compliant, we would want to sync this backup of our hosting to another cloud. Thankfully, we can leverage the power of rsync (again) so that even our offsite backups are relatively light. (This is important: pushing full backups to a remote from a typical home internet connection can be a tedious process). + +Rclone is a command line interface (CLI) that can be used to sync a Linux filesystem with a remote source (or to keep two remotes in sync). Although rsync can also handle the former type of sync operation (one local and one remote) it does not support as many cloud protocols as rclone does. + +After configuring a B2 bucket for instance we could use a simple copy command to move our backups up to an offsite: + + + rclone copy -v /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/ B2:/hostingbackups/ + +### Script It For Automation + +Finally, we would likely want to encase our rsync commands within a Bash script so that we could execute them automatically from our local (say, from an NAS). + +As this would be run from cron there’s no need to include the progress switch: + + + #!/bin/bash + + + rsync -arvz -e ‘ssh -p 12345’ --delete yourdomain@123.456.789.90:/home/yourdomain/public_html/ /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/files/ + + + rsync -arvz -e ‘ssh -p 12345’ yourdomain@123.456.789.10:/home/yourdomain/backup /home/backups/myhosting/yourdomain/mysql/ + + + exit + +That’s all that’s required. + +It’s still worth taking offsites just to make sure that you have a backup that is virtually guaranteed to be restorable between different hosts. + +But the above steps can provide a basic file and MySQL incremental backup set for a shared hosting environment onto a Linux host or NAS. + +**QA update 10/07/20:** + +✅ Successful test restore of MySQL as generated by this method + +✅ Successful test restore of files as generated by this method diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Backup-A-Proxmox-Guest-VM-Onto-A-Synology-NAS.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Backup-A-Proxmox-Guest-VM-Onto-A-Synology-NAS.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f7128568463dba07930b60e7376f28c99460f120 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Backup-A-Proxmox-Guest-VM-Onto-A-Synology-NAS.md @@ -0,0 +1,81 @@ +# How To Backup A Proxmox Guest VM Onto A Synology NAS + +I recently decided to move my Home Assistant OS installation from a bare metal deployment on a mini PC over to a guest virtual machine hosted on a local Proxmox server. + +Just like moving my Home Assistant from a container over to the bare metal install, the process was surprisingly easy. I simply used the built-in backup tool to create a backup and then restored after migrating the application onto the new infrastructure. + +Although this process isn’t any different from backing up any VM onto an NAS, I thought I would set out the steps. If you have both a Proxmox host and NAS on your LAN, you can create full VM backups that can be used later if you’d like to move HAOS onto new hardware. + +### **Part 1: Setting Up Synology Folder** + +Firstly, in DSM, let’s set up a shared folder called ‘Proxmox’ where we will send the backups over the LAN: + +Next, we’re going to need to go into ‘NFS permissions’ and setup an NFS rule so that Proxmox can read and write to this shared folder on the storage volume: + +You want to set the hostname/IP to be the IP address of the Proxmox server (for this reason, double-check that your Proxmox host has a static IP from the router!). + +Verify that the NFS share has been created for the target IP: + +### **Part 2: Add NAS As Storage Pool In Proxmox** + +Next, we want to add the NAS NFS share as a storage pool in our home cluster. + +Click on: + +→ Datacenter +→ Storage +→ Add storage + +Choose NFS as our storage type: + +Add the NFS store adding your NAS local / LAN IP as server: + +Under ‘Content’ you need to make sure that VZDump Backup File is an option: + +**Export should be set to /Volume1/Proxmox** + +Once that’s configured we should have the Synology as a storage option: + +### **Part 3: Verify Folder Creation** + +It’s worth quickly verifying that Proxmox is successfully writing to the NAS. + +Check the Proxmox folder and you should see something like this: + +Now let’s run the backup job! + +### **Part 4: Running VM Backup Job** + +Now we’re all set to backup the virtual machine hosting Home Assistant OS. + +Select the VM from the left, then navigate to backup, and finally select backup now. + +Make sure that the backup target is set to the Synology and not local: + +Describe the backup. You can also change the compression algorithm if desired. + +When everything is ready to go, click ‘backup’. + +The backup is now in progress. It’s pretty quick over the LAN! + +Your backup files should now be in the /dump folder in Synology: + +Note that the VM will show as locked while the backup job is running. + +You can delete backups from the UI in Proxmox: + +You can also restore to a backup point by clicking on the ‘Restore’ button: + +### **Part 5: Replicating The Backup Offsite (Optional)** + +You can use Cloud Sync in DSM to duplicate/replicate the backup offsite (you can also do this on Proxmox but … I think Synology’s UI is a lot easier). + +Choose your cloud storage provider: + +Then we just need to select the path where Proxmox is putting the backups on our NAS as the source and set up a push to the cloud (make sure to retain the local copy on the NAS): + +### **Why Backup The VM?** + +Doesn’t HOAS have its own backup function at the application level? + +Yes, but you might wish to do both for extra peace of mind. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Backup-Your-Data-From-Reddit.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Backup-Your-Data-From-Reddit.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bcc00b7501ce5f2aa08f1f71682911b5d98b01d8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Backup-Your-Data-From-Reddit.md @@ -0,0 +1,79 @@ +# How To Backup Your Data From Reddit + +For those who didn’t catch the memo, I’m a massive advocate for taking (3–2–1 compliant) backups. + +I don’t only backup my computer and NAS. I also make sure that everything I entrust to the cloud — including these writings on Medium — is backed up in at least two other places (typically the NAS and archival cloud backup storage). + +[**My Approach To Backing Up My Online Writing** + _I have written a lot about backups in recent months . So much so that I reckon that there is probably an entire book’s…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521) + +[**My (Ultimate!) Ubuntu Backup Strategy** + _What I’ve Been Using To Keep My Desktop Safe From Accidental Deletion, Disk Failure, and Other Forms of Destruction_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78) + +Why backup your cloud data in the first place, you might ask? + +Let’s take Reddit as it’s the subject of this article. + +What would happen if: + + * Your Reddit account were hacked? (To minimize the chances of this happening, configure 2FA). Wouldn’t you want a copy of all the posts you sent up to the network? + * You somehow managed to lose access to both the email you had set up and the password and couldn’t access the account? + * Reddit vanished off the face of the earth one morning and all the hundreds/thousands of posts and comments you had contributed to the network went with it? + +**Cloud does not equal backup** — it’s just somebody else’s (professionally managed) computer or network of them. + +If you want to remain 3–2–1 compliant (the golden rule of backups) then you should keep two copies of all primary data. One of those backups should be stored offsite. And both should be on separate storage media to the original data source. + +How do we implement this to protect the comments, votes, and posts that we entrust to Reddit’s digital custodianship? + +To my knowledge the best way to do this is to manually export your data every X months. Yes this isn’t ideal (you really want your backups to be automated). But I’d rather do this than never take a copy of my post history. + +### How To Request Your Data From Reddit + +Reddit doesn’t have a native data export functionality — at least at the time of writing. + +[**How do I request a copy of my Reddit data and information?** +_To request a copy of your Reddit data and information, fill out a data request form by following these steps: Visit…_ reddit.zendesk.com](https://reddit.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360043048352-How-do-I-request-a-copy-of-my-Reddit-data-and-information- "https://reddit.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360043048352-How-do-I-request-a-copy-of-my-Reddit-data-and-information-")[](https://reddit.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360043048352-How-do-I-request-a-copy-of-my-Reddit-data-and-information-) + +Instead the procedure is to file a data request with the team. You do so through this link: + +[**reddit: the front page of the internet** + _Edit description_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/settings/data-request "https://www.reddit.com/settings/data-request")[](https://www.reddit.com/settings/data-request) + +Here, you will have options to: + + * Request data exports under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). + * Request a data export from your full time at Reddit or only between a certain time period. + +I typically use the GDPR data request option and download the archive that pertains to my full time on Reddit. + +After a couple of days you will receive a private message from /u/RedditDataRequests: + +It contains a download link which will download your export archive. + +Here’s what the archive contains (again, screenshots current at the time of writing): + +Here’s what the data looks like. I clicked into the comments.csv archive which contains an export of all the comments that you have written on Reddit. Yes all of them — mine had more than 2,400 rows! + +The comments archive contains: + + * The unique comment ID + * The permalink to the comment iself + * The data and time in UTC when the comment was left + * The subreddit it was posted on. The subreddit name appears without the reddit.com/r prefix + * A link to the parent thread + * The unique ID of the parent thread + * The body text of the comment itself + +If you open chat_history.csv you’ll get a full record of all the private messages you’ve exchanged with other Reddit users: + +All your voting history (upvoting and downvoting) is meticulously recorded in comment_votes.csv: + +ip_logs.csv has a full login history, including your registration IP: + +If you ever want to move to a new account and can’t remember which subreddits you subscribed to, you can find this information out by going over your subscribed_subreddits.csv file: + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Block-Tracking-Pixels-When-Reading-Email-On-Your-Android-Device.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Block-Tracking-Pixels-When-Reading-Email-On-Your-Android-Device.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d051e9f0657fcb2e18c9fb4480f0cc34f987edf4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Block-Tracking-Pixels-When-Reading-Email-On-Your-Android-Device.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# How To Block Tracking Pixels When Reading Email On Your Android Device + +#### Yay for privacy: the Fair Email Client Contains A Native Tracking Pixel Blocker + +Email tracking pixels. + +They’re those slightly creepy things that marketers and salespeople tend to use to keep track of whether their emails are opened, where in the world, when and how often. No judgment. But lots of judgement. + +[**Email Open Rate Tracking Is Creepy And Weird. Should Marketers Be Using It At All?** +_This week marked a historic turning point in privacy advocates’ battle against email open rate tracking — a…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/email-open-rate-tracking-is-creepy-and-weird-should-marketers-be-using-it-at-all-f0e15a33ec3a "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/email-open-rate-tracking-is-creepy-and-weird-should-marketers-be-using-it-at-all-f0e15a33ec3a")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/email-open-rate-tracking-is-creepy-and-weird-should-marketers-be-using-it-at-all-f0e15a33ec3a) + +[**If you really, really want to defeat email tracking, here’s a (sort of) workaround** + _If you’re reading this then you probably realize that tracking pixels are — if not yet ubiquitous (thankfully!) — then…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/if-you-really-really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking-heres-a-sort-of-workaround-bae35b9c517e "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/if-you-really-really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking-heres-a-sort-of-workaround-bae35b9c517e")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/if-you-really-really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking-heres-a-sort-of-workaround-bae35b9c517e) + +Thankfully there are some workarounds: + + * If you happen to be a Gmail / Gsuite user who predominantly reads email through the web UI, then you can install Chrome add-ons that attempt to block all tracking pixels in email that you read. + +[**PixelBlock** + _PixelBlock is a Gmail extension that blocks people from tracking when you open their emails._ chrome.google.com](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/pixelblock/jmpmfcjnflbcoidlgapblgpgbilinlem?hl=en#:~:text=PixelBlock&text=PixelBlock%20is%20a%20Gmail%20extension,attempt%20inside%20of%20an%20email "https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/pixelblock/jmpmfcjnflbcoidlgapblgpgbilinlem?hl=en#:~:text=PixelBlock&text=PixelBlock%20is%20a%20Gmail%20extension,attempt%20inside%20of%20an%20email")[](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/pixelblock/jmpmfcjnflbcoidlgapblgpgbilinlem?hl=en#:~:text=PixelBlock&text=PixelBlock%20is%20a%20Gmail%20extension,attempt%20inside%20of%20an%20email) + + * You can disable automatic loading of external images in Gmail although this will have the effect of potentially making emails hard to read. + * You can access your email from an email client that gives you the option to read email in plain text mode or which only allows you to read email in plain text mode. Here are some recommendations: + +[**Use plaintext email** + _Edit description_ useplaintext.email](https://useplaintext.email/ "https://useplaintext.email/")[](https://useplaintext.email/) + +So far, so good. + +We have a way to block tracking pixels when reading email from our desktop. But what about when we’re on the go? If you’re also an Android user who also wants to read email when you’re out and about without tipping off marketers and salespeople that you’ve read their communications, then here’s at least one tool that will do the job. + +### Install The Fair Email Open Source Client For Android + +Firstly, credit where credit’s due. + +It’s been on my to-do list to try find an Android email client that had a native tracking pixel blocking functionality for some time. + +This morning, I finally remembered to ask in one of the best places in the internet to get impartial tech advice: Reddit. + +Thanks, /u/qUxUp for pointing me in the direction of Fair Email which does indeed contain a built-in tracking pixel blocking functionality. + +[**Here’s where you can get it from the Play Store**](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=eu.faircode.email&hl=en&gl=US)**.** + +It’s also on the F-Droid marketplace: + +[**FairEmail | F-Droid - Free and Open Source Android App Repository** + _FairEmail is easy to set up and works with virtually all email providers, including Gmail, Outlook and Yahoo! Note that…_ f-droid.org](https://f-droid.org/en/packages/eu.faircode.email/ "https://f-droid.org/en/packages/eu.faircode.email/")[](https://f-droid.org/en/packages/eu.faircode.email/) + +Here’s the [project site](https://email.faircode.eu/) and the [GitHub page](https://github.com/M66B/FairEmail). + +Note that if you’re using Gmail / Gsuite and have two factor authentication enabled that you’ll both have to enable IMAP access (if you haven’t already done so) and create an app password to allow FairEmail to bypass the 2FA. + +Unlike the tracking blocker that Apple is planning to roll out in iOS 15, the “attempt to recognize and disable tracking images” setting is enabled by default. + +At least at the time of writing. But if you want to find it anyway navigate to the privacy page in the settings menu. + +Here’s the setting in its default mode, turned on: + +Happy tracking pixel blocking! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Create-An-Anonymous-Blog-On-Medium--Or-Elsewhere-On-The-Internet-.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Create-An-Anonymous-Blog-On-Medium--Or-Elsewhere-On-The-Internet-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..534f0c620625c4d0f308e4db48f02863d1405179 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Create-An-Anonymous-Blog-On-Medium--Or-Elsewhere-On-The-Internet-.md @@ -0,0 +1,130 @@ +# How To Create An Anonymous Blog On Medium (Or Elsewhere On The Internet) + +#### Where There’s A Will, There’s A Way. + +Bloggers that wish to share information with the world in a completely anonymous fashion have various ways at their disposal for doing so. Photo by [Sebastiaan Stam](https://www.pexels.com/@sebastiaan9977?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/silhouette-of-man-1480690/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +A friend recently told me that he was interested in setting up a blog in order to spill the beans on some interesting goings on in his (or her) domain of professional expertise. + +The catch was that my friend couldn’t afford to attach his (or her) name to the blog because doing so would likely have adverse professional repercussions and/or expose him/her to a litany of angry people … or lawsuits. + +Having preciously written about how to concoct a fictitious online identity and explained some things that might be useful if you were interested in whistleblowing, I thought I’d throw together this quick explainer to put the pieces together. + +Because all you really need to share your writing online anonymously is a pseudonym and — if you’re really worried — a few bits and pieces to cover your digital fingerprints. Here’s the easy way to do it. And the hard way. + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + +[**The Internet User’s Guide To Anonymous Whistleblowing** + _Basic steps to share information with journalists and other parties without divulging one’s identity_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-internet-users-guide-to-anonymous-whistleblowing-bd4b8ec48483 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-internet-users-guide-to-anonymous-whistleblowing-bd4b8ec48483")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-internet-users-guide-to-anonymous-whistleblowing-bd4b8ec48483) + +### The Easy But Less Secure Way: Set Up A Blog On Medium (Or Any Other Third Party Platform) + +The most efficient way to set up your anonymous / pseudonymous blog is to create a blog on Medium (or any other online blogging platform) and register the account under your pen name. + +[**If you want to write for Medium, do you have to use your real name or can you use a pen name?** +_Answer (1 of 10): I strongly suggest you don't use a pen name. Medium is a publishing platform which provides a lot of…_ www.quora.com](https://www.quora.com/If-you-want-to-write-for-Medium-do-you-have-to-use-your-real-name-or-can-you-use-a-pen-name "https://www.quora.com/If-you-want-to-write-for-Medium-do-you-have-to-use-your-real-name-or-can-you-use-a-pen-name")[](https://www.quora.com/If-you-want-to-write-for-Medium-do-you-have-to-use-your-real-name-or-can-you-use-a-pen-name) + +However, as usual, convenience comes with some drawbacks. There are a couple of risks inherent in taking this approach: + + 1. You may violate the terms of service (ToS) of whatever site you’re thinking about blogging on. + 2. You’re putting your data — and writing — in the hand of a third party. And given that there’s a chance that you _would_ be violating their ToS by blogging pseudonymously, you run the risk that your blog is going to get pulled from the platform. + +Nevertheless, if you’re happy to take that risk (if you do, always back up your writing), then here’s a step by step guide that will get you there. + + 1. Grab yourself an AI generated face from [this website](https://thispersondoesnotexist.com/). + +2\. Create what the spooks of this world call a ‘legend.’ A fake name for your pseudonymous public entity as well as some credible details. If you’re interested in blogging anonymously to share your story of emotional abuse — to give one credible example — then you’ll probably want to change up a few unimportant details while keeping the persona relatively close to your real life background. + +3\. Download TOR so that while signing up for the services you’re about to sign up for you don’t give away your IP address. + +4\. Sign up for a ProtonMail email account. + +5\. Sign up for a blog on Medium / Wordpress.com / wherever else you’re thinking about blogging. + +6\. Begin publishing. + +Because you’re now blogging under a pen name and have an email address that matches up with your ‘legend’ you can: + + * Start an email newsletter + * Reach out to journalists / influencers / other people that may be interested in the material you are sharing + +You may or may not wish to declare the fact that the ‘author’ is a fiction invented to protect your anonymity. + +### Other Things You Might Wish To Know About / Use + +If you’re technically inclined, you might want to install a Linux distro like Tails on a USB stick so that you can access your blogging platform over a TOR relay from any computer, including ones that you don’t own. + +[**The Tor Project | Privacy & Freedom Online** + _If you are in a country where Tor is blocked, you can configure Tor to connect to a bridge during the setup process…_ www.torproject.org](https://www.torproject.org/download/ "https://www.torproject.org/download/")[](https://www.torproject.org/download/) + +[**Tails - Download and install Tails** + _Thank you for your interest in Tails. Installing Tails can be quite long but we hope you will still have a good time :)…_ tails.boum.org](https://tails.boum.org/install/ "https://tails.boum.org/install/")[](https://tails.boum.org/install/) + +(Or Whonix or Qubes). + +You may also wish to anonymously sign up for a file sharing website (check TOS) in order to be able to link from your blog to things like documents. + +#### Don’t Forget To Inspect — And Scrub — Metadata + +Finally, you should install a metadata checker (and scrubber) onto your computer in order to ensure that you’re not inadvertently leaking metadata through anything you might upload to the blog, especially images. + +Again, the lengths that you wish to go to will likely depend upon how worried you are about your anonymity which in turn will probably depend upon whether the information you’re thinking about sharing is sensitive. + +[**Image Scrubber** + _About Image Scrubber This is a tool for anonymizing photographs taken at protests. It will remove identifying metadata…_ everestpipkin.github.io](https://everestpipkin.github.io/image-scrubber/ "https://everestpipkin.github.io/image-scrubber/")[](https://everestpipkin.github.io/image-scrubber/) + +[**MetaCleaner - Clean your files metadata online** + _MetaCleaner allows to remove metadata from documents or files that you had no intention of including or disclosing._ metacleaner.com](https://metacleaner.com/ "https://metacleaner.com/")[](https://metacleaner.com/) + +If you’re concerned about keeping your real IP private then you should also remember to: + + * Always access your blog and email associated with it from TOR or while using a commercial VPN provider that you trust + +#### Change Some Details + +The final step in the process towards creating a blog while preserving your own anonymity is taking proactive steps to being able to prevent malicious web users from [doxxing you](https://www.kaspersky.com/resource-center/definitions/what-is-doxing). + +Consider: + + * Changing non-significant particulars + * Not using the pseudonym for multiple blogs — or for any purpose other than publishing this blog + * If you’re going to create multiple pseudonymous blogs, avoid using the same tactics each time + +### The Harder But More Secure Way: Provision Your Own Infrastructure To Run Your Blog On + +In order to get a blog onto the internet you basically need two things: + + * A web server that is exposed to the internet + * A domain name + +Those two are enough to simply host text on the internet. For instance, you could create posts as a series of basic HTML files. + +For the sake of convenience, however, most users — especially those that want simple solutions — are also probably going to want to install a content management system (CMS) such as Wordpress. + +To run your own webserver, you can bypass the need to use commercial hosting or infrastructure by installing Ubuntu Server onto a spare laptop and opening up port forwarding on your router. However, from a privacy standpoint, this is a really bad idea. + +To the best of my knowledge, there’s no feasible way for individuals to become their own domain registrars (businesses that want to do this must go through an ICANN accreditation process). So in order to grab a domain name to host the blog on you’re going to need to deal with a third party. + +The commercial approach, in full, would look like this: + + * Purchase anonymous website hosting + * Buy a domain name to host your site on anonymously + * Find a provider that lets you do both [(example)](https://vsys.host/anonymous-web-hosting#pricing) + +[**Best anonymous hosting of 2021** + _(Image credit: Julia Khalimova / Pexels) If you've ever thought about keeping your web host's IP and domain information…_ www.techradar.com](https://www.techradar.com/best/anonymous-hosting "https://www.techradar.com/best/anonymous-hosting")[](https://www.techradar.com/best/anonymous-hosting) + +Most anonymous hosting providers accept payment in Bitcoin — so open up a wallet too and have some at the ready. + +There are many legitimate reasons why individuals might be tempted to set up a blog under a pseudonym — or simply publish one completely anonymously. + +The different technical approaches are suitable for individuals with differing security and privacy requirements. + +For individuals with “low grade” anonymity requirements and who wish to disclose information that isn’t likely to result in cease and desists, simply publishing through a commercial blogging platform is likely to be enough — although scrubbing metadata and never logging in directly might be best practices to enhance one’s self of security. + +Individuals with more controversial information to share may be better served by signing up for a web host and domain registrar that supports pseudonymous/anonymous signups and payment in cryptocurrency. + +### Corrections + +ProtonMail will block signups over Tor, or at least require submission of PII to validate signsups. Users many therefore prefer to use a VPN for this step of the process. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Create-Fake-Viral-News-With-Just-A-Printer-And-A-Twitter-Account.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Create-Fake-Viral-News-With-Just-A-Printer-And-A-Twitter-Account.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ba947bfe1901b1601728db8e92fb079749f06639 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Create-Fake-Viral-News-With-Just-A-Printer-And-A-Twitter-Account.md @@ -0,0 +1,76 @@ +# How To Create Fake Viral News With Just A Printer And A Twitter Account + +#### Anybody can create fake news and incite hate with just a printer and their imagination. What does that say about the world we live in? + +Good morning! + +So you’ve woken up today and decided to create some fake news. + +You could go for a jog or go meet friends but I guess some people just get better kicks by stirring up hate on the internet. + +Perhaps there’s some racial minority that you’re trying to agitate against? + +Some political opponent that you’re trying to slur? + +Whatever your objective is, I’m here to show you how easily it can be done. + +Make yourself a cup of coffee and strap in for the ride. It’s only going to take three minutes. + +### Get Your Gear Together + +The good news for prospective fake news spreaders is that we live in the age of social media. Oh, and inkjet printers are pretty cheap. Barriers to entry for online haters have fallen in recent years so there’s arguably never been a better time to get in on the action. + +No toner required. A4 paper you’ll need, though. Sorry. + +After deciding who your adversary is, you’re going to want to get your gear in place. + +Let’s say that we wanted to defame the State of Israel. + +It’s a popular target among liberals and the just generally angry, after all. + +One option would be to pretend that a non-existent political hate rally took place in that country. There are other tactics you could employ, of course. But let’s focus on a simple one for this case study. + +If you’re trying to incite anger among Irish Twitter users, for instance, it would be worth claiming that hordes of angry Zionists were intent on burning the Irish flag and holding a hate-mongering rally denying your right to live. + +Nobody likes to see their country’s flag burn, after all. Or told that they don’t have the right to life. + +Now put on your psych-ops / misinformation thinking hat. Or at least get creative. + +Create a hashtag. Get on Google Images to find a (pixeallated) version of the country’s emblem to make it look as if the government endorsed the hate parade. + +Just tread carefully. + +Assuming that you’re trying to create a fake poster that was never actually made in Israel, you should bear in mind that it would probably be written in Hebrew given that .. well, that’s the country’s language. + +The problem is that Google Translate tends to throw in a few obvious flaws. + +So it’s better to play it safe and draft the fake poster’s text in English with just one line of Hebrew. It’s short enough that you could quickly ask a friend for a translation without being too much of an imposition. There’s less chance you’ll be called out. + +Now here’s the good news. We’re almost done! + +The above is our case study today. This beauty is doing the rounds on Twitter as we speak. + +If I can criticize one aspect of it, it’s that the poster’s creator appeared to be running out of ink. Look at those unbecoming streaks on the emblem of the State of Israel. So make sure to stock up on ink before you try to make something look halfway convincing. + +Next we’re going to need a Twitter account. That should take only about three minutes to set up. + +We’ll also need to insert ourselves into a hate echo chamber by following accounts that we know are most likely to buy this charade. + +The good news is that — when it comes to Israel at least — you won’t have to look very far. Look for undiscerning followers that aren’t going to look too closely at things like obvious logical gaps. + +Now you’re good to go! + +Pin the fake poster to your dormitory wall. + +All you’ll need is a few splotches of sellotape! + +If you want to make it look even more convincing, then shoot a video of the fake poster taped to your wall. Because .. if it was videod it has to be real, right? + +Take a photo. Upload to Twitter. And share. + +Congratulations! + +You’ve just created viral fake news on social media! + +**Original tweet URL:** + diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Diversify-Your-Income-As-A-Freelance-Writer.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Diversify-Your-Income-As-A-Freelance-Writer.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c8f21971836e347b3bb5710627d31ee9cd31fe3a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Diversify-Your-Income-As-A-Freelance-Writer.md @@ -0,0 +1,95 @@ +# How To Diversify Your Income As A Freelance Writer + +#### How To Avoid Putting Your Eggs In One Basket + +Freelance writing: it helps to cultivate more than one source of leads. + +After a somewhat faltering start, I’ve finally broken through the noise on Upwork and landed my first “gig” as a freelance writer there. + +Thanks are due to the advice received from the wonderful community at /r/freelancewriters and a couple of participants in particular (to protect people’s anonymity, they will be left anonymous). Thanks are also due to the diminishing container of caffeine pills on my desk and spending a lot of time sending in proposals over the past few days. + +[**The Magic Formula For Freelancing Success They DON’T Want You To Know About!** +_(Sadly I Wasn’t Quite Clever Enough To Come Up With A Clickbait Subtitle)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-magic-formula-for-freelancing-success-they-dont-want-you-to-know-about-e3f19162adf0 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-magic-formula-for-freelancing-success-they-dont-want-you-to-know-about-e3f19162adf0")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-magic-formula-for-freelancing-success-they-dont-want-you-to-know-about-e3f19162adf0) + +Signing up to Upwork was not a natural decision for me. To date, I have preferred to cultivate clients from direct sources. Periodically, I have explored working on Upwork and then thrown in the towel in frustration. + +But I believe it’s worth _trying_ to land business there for no other reason than that it provides freelance writers with another source from which to land clients. + +This, in turn, speaks to the importance of diversifying one’s income. Which any investment advisor will tell you is an axiomatic principle of sound financial planning. + +Here are some of the ways in which one can diversify one’s income while still participating in the crazy world of freelance writing. + +### 1\. Work With Both Marketplace And Direct Clients + +This week, I have gone from working exclusively with direct clients to opening another channel of working with clients through marketplaces. + +In addition to Upwork, one can find freelance writing projects on Fiverr and a long tail of smaller marketplaces that connect those providing freelance services and those buying them. + +### 2\. Use Both Inbound And Outbound Marketing To Find Clients + +I’ve discussed the various ways in which one can find freelance clients on this publication before. + +They include: + + * Cold emailing + * Asking for referrals + * Engaging in PPC advertising (use with caution) + * Inbound marketing + +[**How To Find Freelance Writing Clients** + _The Various Channels For Client Acquisition_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6) + +Inbound marketing — such as using content marketing to market your content marketing writing business! — is the one that a lot of writers neglect. I joined the party about four years late and wish that I had got going sooner. + +If you’re currently only relying on outbound (or inbound) to land business, then open up the other channel in order to widen your exposure. + +### 3\. Work With Both Local And International Clients + +I’m going to be transparent here. + +When people tell me that they only work with local freelancing clients — because doing business internationally is “too difficult” — I sit there silently judging them. Yes, really. + +Does that make me a judgmental and disagreeable person? Quite possibly. But I mean well (I think). + +[**How to Work With The World — From Israel** + _At the crossroads of Africa, Asia, and Europe, Israel is uniquely positioned on the geopolitical map._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569) + +These days services such as Zoom, TransferWise, and Payoneer have all made it easy to work with clients both in your local market and across the ocean. Yes, one faces the threat of currency rate fluctuations by doing so (and right now the USD:NIS currency pair is particularly volatile). But I believe that that is a small price to pay for broadening the pool of clients you could be working with by an order of magnitudes. Think big. Trade globally. + +### 4\. Cover A Variety of Niches (Rather Than Just One) + +I’ve written before about how pigeon-holding yourself into one writing niche can mean that you end up writing about the same topic over and over again. This gets boring fast. Trust me. + +“Niche down” is one of the most basic pieces of advice that gets bandied about in writing forums. But equally I believe that one can go too far and limit oneself to too small a target market. + +Those mathematically-minded could probably model exactly _what_ level of niche is optimal (if you’re done the workings, please be in touch). As I’m not a market analyst I will leave you with the suggestion to “go niche, but not _too_ niche.” + +### 5\. Work With More Clients To Lower Your MCIP + +Freelance writing authorities differ in terms of the “maximum client income percentage” that they suggest one should aim for. I’ve never seen anybody call it the MCIP, but I’m happy to coin the term (just remember who you heard it from first!). + +**Common recommendations, however, are 20% and 33%.** That is to say that no one client should constitute greater than that amount of your income. + +One obvious way to lower your average MCIP is to take on more clients. There are those who suggest that a well-diversified portfolio of freelance clients can provide one with better income stability than working a job can (in which case one’s eggs are in the basket of one employer). Although I can’t say that I’ve gotten to such a lofty position, I tend to agree with that idea. + +### 6\. Leverage Both Active and Passive Income Sources + +Of course, no matter how many countries you work with and channels you receive leads from, you’re inevitably going to run into the realization that you only have so many hours in a day with which to work. Even a prodigious supply of caffeine pills cannot circumvent that limitation. + +This is where passive income comes into play. Note: I am suggesting, including to myself, and not teaching: at the time of writing I have no significant passive income sources. + +Common passive income sources which freelance writers develop include: + + * Teaching online courses (disclaimer: I think that most of these are not worthwhile) + * Selling books through Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) + +[**Why I Believe Freelance Writing Courses Are Bad For Writers** + _There’s Nothing You Can’t Learn For Free Online_ medium.com](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7 "https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7")[](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7) + +### Diversification Is A Philosophy + +Freelance writers are currently navigating a precarious time in the market with a glut of supply from those recently joining the race for quality clients. + +While the globalized nature of the freelance marketplace is in some respects a challenge, in others it can be thought of as an opportunity. There are more sources to tap than was previously the case and remote work has been normalized thanks to the pandemic. + +Widening one’s lead sources, working with different geographies, and developing passive as well as active income sources are just some of the ways in which freelance writers can diversify their income. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Find-Email-Addresses-To-Resolve-Customer-Support-Problems.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Find-Email-Addresses-To-Resolve-Customer-Support-Problems.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7305055198fd2670bb97131b7e35225b98e4cf1a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Find-Email-Addresses-To-Resolve-Customer-Support-Problems.md @@ -0,0 +1,67 @@ +# How To Find Email Addresses To Resolve Customer Support Problems + +#### How Executive Help Can Expedite Support Resolution + +Many guides have been written on Medium and elsewhere online about how to find email addresses. Common methodologies such as running WHOIS lookups and using popular address-finding services such as Hunter.io are quite well known. + +See, for instance: + +[**An In-Depth Guide on How to Find Email Addresses Today** + _Email marketing is certainly not dead. And cold email is still impressively effective. But, obviously, you need email…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@searchbug/an-in-depth-guide-on-how-to-find-email-addresses-today-25ddeb50d278 "https://medium.com/@searchbug/an-in-depth-guide-on-how-to-find-email-addresses-today-25ddeb50d278")[](https://medium.com/@searchbug/an-in-depth-guide-on-how-to-find-email-addresses-today-25ddeb50d278) + +Previously, I disclosed my “secret weapon” for getting decent customer service in Israel when all else fails. I explained that, in Israel, customer service from large “household names” companies is often sorely lacking. The reason? Israel is a small captive market and Israelis — for far too long — have been accustomed to receiving often terrible customer service (thankfully, things are fast changing). I explained that attempting issue resolution through local representative offices is often an exercise in frustration but that by looping in the parent company one can often (quickly) move mountains. However, I advocated — and repeat the warning here — that the tactic should only be used as a last resort. + +[**A Tactic For Receiving Normal Customer Service in Israel** + _Customer service in Israel is often problematic. This is a well-known fact that I have written about before._ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-tactic-for-receiving-normal-customer-service-in-israel-683b47f08719 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-tactic-for-receiving-normal-customer-service-in-israel-683b47f08719")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-tactic-for-receiving-normal-customer-service-in-israel-683b47f08719) + +That information isn’t Israel-specific though. + +So if you have a customer support issue that isn’t getting resolved through conventional means — or the company is flat-out ignoring you — here are some steps that can help rectify that. + +### Map Our Support Resources Using LinkedIn + +Before you begin searching for individual points of contact, however, you need to identity the correct recipients. + +The depth of the support hierarchy you’re facing will vary according to organization size. If you’ve been mistreated by a small company, then all you might need to find is the email address of the customer service manager and bingo you might be in business. + +If you’ve had a bad experience with a franchisee of a major international brand name and are based in Greece, then you’ll want to see what kind of support infrastructure the company has for Europe. Perhaps there’s a Greek support manager. Maybe it’s one for Eastern Europe. Maybe for Europe. Maybe for EMEA. Etc. + +There are a few resources that can be used to identify who your right point of contact is: + + * **Leadership resources shared on company websites.** Commonly this is a page entitled “Our Leadership” or “Leadership Team”. + * **LinkedIn company profiles .** We’ll look at those next. + * **Google. Searches for “support manager” + [company]** can quickly pinpoint who the best possible contacts are within a large organization. + +LinkedIn usually provides the deepest information, however. To begin, look up the company profiles on LinkedIn. I’ve chosen The Walt Disney Company as an example because it’s a large company with more than 100,000 employees listed on LinkedIn: + +LinkedIn flags whether you have any connections working at the company. And underneath that there’s a “See all X employees on LinkedIn”. You want to click on this one. + +Now we have a listing of everybody that works at the Walt Disney Company and who has a LinkedIn account. We can find here both local market representatives and those based abroad. + +For smaller organizations, this might be everything that you need. But for larger ones, you might want to type ‘support’ into the search box and then filter results to only show profiles with their current employer listed at the company you’re targeting. + +And you’ll start finding specific points of contact: + +### Find Their Email Address + +Next, head over to Hunter.io. + +After you know the official corporate website of the organization you’re trying to contact, you’ll want to ascertain what internal email structure they are using. Note: it’s not uncommon, at large organizations, for internal email to be on a different domain entirely than the public-facing website. So bear that in mind. + +For instance, Walt Disney has a website called TheWaltDisneyCompany.com. But running that through Hunter.io only brings up two results. So it’s a safe bet that this _isn’t_ what The Walt Disney Company uses for internal comms: + +My intuition would be that Disney would use disney.com for email communications because it carries much stronger and cleaner corporate branding. Plugging that into Hunter yields a much more likely number of publicly indexed email addresses: + +Disney has gone for a classic first.last@company internal email structure, which is just about the typical email pattern one sees at large organizations. + +### Send The Email + +You may need to add some Google searching to the above to supplement the information received from LinkedIn. But running through the above should be enough for you to know: + +a) Who the most appropriate support contacts at the organization you wish to get in touch are + +b) What their email addresses are likely to be + +It’s a good idea, as well, to try a couple of permutations and stuff some extra guesses in the BCC field. If the CEO’s name is Jeff, for instance, there’s a good chance he’s registered on internal systems as Jeffrey. So try jeff.x@company.com and jeffrey.x@company.com. + +I advocate, in the first instance, working through established customer support ticketing systems to attempt to resolve your support issues. Sometimes, however, companies just ignore their customers. In those instances, I think that attempting to think outside of the job and contact support executives is fair game. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Find-Freelance-Writing-Clients.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Find-Freelance-Writing-Clients.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9eb74a267950d1a92367f30f9e4fc80dd72dc54a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Find-Freelance-Writing-Clients.md @@ -0,0 +1,201 @@ +# How To Find Freelance Writing Clients + +#### The Various Channels For Client Acquisition + +Acquiring new clients: hard but necessary work + +18 days ago I posted a thread to the [freelance writers’ subreddit ](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/comments/k4jo2j/where_to_find_gigs_my_perspective/)that was added to the wiki by one of the subreddit’s curators (..yes, I can’t believe how geeky I’ve become over lockdown). + +In the interest of widening distribution (and giving me something to refer back to periodically that isn’t on Reddit) I thought it would be good to rewrite that post as an article. + +Before getting into the specifics of each channel, my two pieces of advice for finding freelance clients are as follows: + + * **Keep marketing even when you’re already busy with work.** Not doing this is a very easy — but elementary — mistake to make. Consider creating a daily “keep fit” list for yourself if it helps keep you on track. + * **Diversify your marketing by employing a few different strategies across different channels.** This will also prevent marketing yourself from feeling monotonous. Cold pitching, in particular, becomes very tedious after a while. Inbound marketing is, in my opinion, more fun — but shifting between the two is a great means to both cover wide ground (inbound marketing) and laser-focus on a few targeted accounts, a-la account based marketing (ABM). + + + +[**A Daily Marketing Keep Fit List For Writers** + _Marketing is a fascinating field. There’s so much to learn. So many emerging practices and technologies to keep up…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-daily-marketing-keep-fit-list-for-writers-94bd3ccee976 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-daily-marketing-keep-fit-list-for-writers-94bd3ccee976")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-daily-marketing-keep-fit-list-for-writers-94bd3ccee976) + +### Outbound Channels + +When thinking about approaches to marketing, I like to (currently) divide my attention between outbound marketing (find leads by interrupting them) and inbound marketing (find leads by drawing them in). + +Let’s start with the outbound methodologies. + +#### **Cold pitching** + +If you want to find freelance writing clients, then an easy place to begin is to simply email some target companies and express your interest in writing for them. + +Ideally, you should have a niche — or a series of them — decided upon before doing this. You should also ideally have a writing portfolio and a website. + +There’s no need to overthink this. An enthusiastic and hand-crafted email addressed to the right point of contact can be enough. + +To get cold emailing I would: + + * **Decide upon my qualification criteria.** What type of companies and/or agencies would you want to write for exactly? + * **Think about buyer personas.** Who would hire me at those organizations? What job title would they have? Where would they be hanging out online? + +I might also want to get some technology in place like: + + * Klenty or Woodpecker for automating drip email sequences + * A subscription to Hunter.io for finding email addresses + * LinkedIn to see how organizations are laid out + * A CRM for more individualized contact + +Sources for finding leads could be: + + * Crunchbase if you’re targeting startups + * Clutch if you’re targeting marketing agencies + * Google searches to find clients by keyword + * Location-specific / mapping websites (see: builtinnyc.com) if you’re targeting local clients in a specific geography. + +[**Top Content Marketing Companies - 2020 Reviews** + _Need Help Selecting a Company? Based on your budget, timeline, and specifications Clutch can connect you directly with…_ clutch.co](https://clutch.co/agencies/content-marketing "https://clutch.co/agencies/content-marketing")[](https://clutch.co/agencies/content-marketing) + +My thoughts about cold emailing can be found in the article below. + +[**Does Cold Emailing Work To Find Freelance Clients?** +_It can. It does. But even the successes aren’t always pretty._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed) + +TL;DR: I’ve used it sporadically over the years because I’m quite familiar with it. However, increasingly, I think the odds of breaking through to quality client this way are just too thin. I recommend going very minimalist with cold emailing and only using it to laser-focus on a few high value prospects. + +#### **Digital Advertising** + +Unless we’re talking about placing ads in newspapers, more advertising these days is digital advertising. + +Pay per click (PPC) could be used on networks such as Google and LinkedIn to find freelance clients. + + * Note one: I haven’t done this yet. + * Note two: the consensus (source: Reddit) seems to be that this is likely to be a prodigious waste of money unless you really know what you’re doing. + +If you’re a freelance writer that happens to have experience with PPC — and you have the budget to put behind it — then I say “why not?” I’ll leave more thoughts about how well this works for when I have accrued the experience. + +#### **Job Applications** + +People post that they need freelance writers and you apply. + +There’s ProBlogger, LinkedIn, and other places like Facebook groups. + +My observations are similar to cold pitching. + +If you’re applying for remote writer gigs you’re giving yourself pretty terrible odds and are potentially up against thousands of other applicants all of who might be undercutting you. + +[**Jobs - ProBlogger Jobs** + _Skilled Writers Needed to Create SEO-optimized Review Content Narrative Media_ problogger.com](https://problogger.com/jobs/ "https://problogger.com/jobs/")[](https://problogger.com/jobs/) + +You can also find freelance gigs on LinkedIn, by the way, as well as remote opportunities. = + +Searching for remote ‘writer’ opportunities worldwide#### **Working Through Freelancing Marketplaces:** + +You sign up for a marketplace like Upwork and find gigs that way. + +I’ve never worked this way so, again, I’ll leave the note-writing process to somebody with experience. + +[**In-demand talent on demand.™ Upwork is how.™** + _Choose the offering that works best for you All options include access to Upwork's talent pool of quality talent and…_ www.upwork.com](https://www.upwork.com/ "https://www.upwork.com/")[](https://www.upwork.com/) + +The general comments about UpWork from freelance writers about UpWork (including this one, at the time of writing) are that, commonly: + + * It’s a race to the bottom with lots of clients looking for work at outrageously low budgets + * If you sift through it carefully enough, and have time to devote to figuring out the system, you can probably make a good income from finding clients there. + +Upwork has its own subreddit so feel free to check out that page if you want to talk to people that have direct experience working through the marketplace: + +[**r/Upwork** + _r/Upwork: Unofficial sub for Upwork clients and freelancers_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/Upwork/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/Upwork/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/Upwork/) + +And Upwork clients are commonly discussed on the main freelance subreddit (/r/freelance): + +[**r/freelance** + _Greetings! Hope this post belongs here. Posting this as a warning if anyone is interested in working as a freelance…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelance/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/freelance/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelance/) + +#### **Events (Trade Shows, Conferences):** + +An observation: + +Freelance writers— including myself — have a tendency to forget that there is a world that exists beyond our home offices and coworking spaces. You know — that place beyond your own four walls! + +Obviously right now things are a little different, but there’s enormous value in getting out into the real world, replete with some business cards, and meeting potential clients. + +For freelancers that aren’t seeking out local clients, things get a little bit more complicated. + +If this describes you, you could consider flying to major world cities and attending conferences and meetups there. + +Types of events that you may wish to consider include: + + * **Conferences** , particularly those focused around content marketing and inbound. It’s highly likely that these conferences will have many potential clients in attendance. There are also events specifically geared towards writers, freelancers, and content marketers. The freelancer:client ratio might be lower here, though. + * **Tech meetups.** Many cities with startup and technology ecosystems have a meetup scene. If you want an easy way to find lots of these, check out Meetup.com. + +[**Meetup - We are what we do** + _Find Meetup events so you can do more of what matters to you. Or create your own group and meet people near you who…_ www.meetup.com](https://www.meetup.com/ "https://www.meetup.com/")[](https://www.meetup.com/) + +### Inbound + +The above covers roughly the breadth of outbound methodologies that you can use to lure in clients to your freelance writing business (you could also rent an airplane and fly a banner advertising your writing site next to a conference center … but that’s just really a ridiculous example of advertising!) + +But … there’s another way! Some would say .. a better way! + +Note: it took me the best part of three years (five if you include part time freelancing) to begin putting effort into inbound marketing which is a terrible shame. Precisely because it’s a long game, my recommendation is that freelancers of all types get going on it .. from day one. + +#### **Content Marketing** + +If you’re a freelance writer working online these days then there’s a very high chance that this is actually what you spend a large chunk of your time doing for clients. + +So how do you do content marketing for yourself? + +Well, you just do the things you do for clients but apply them to furthering your own business! + +You could start with: + + * **Keyword research** to identify target keywords for your content + * **On-site SEO optimization** + * **Developing an editorial calendar** to plan out blogs, podcasts, and other forms of content + * **Setting up some automation through systems like Buffer** to schedule social media posts + * **Setting up a blog and posting from it at regular intervals** + +#### Search Engine Optimization (SEO) + +Content marketing and SEO go hand in hand but there are some additional activities you can undertake to further your writing website’s visibility in search engines: + + * **Conducting backlink analysis** to see where your current backlinks are coming from. Then, using an SEO tool, see where your competitors are getting theirs from. Are there any link sources that you could target to boost your site’s authority and visibility in search engines? + * **Guest posting.** Develop relationships with third party blogs and websites that will allow you to post blogs on their online real estate. To be in with a fighting chance, remember to focus on adding value rather than on promoting your business. This isn’t the place or time. + +If you really have some good original thinking to convey about the best way for clients to market themselves in your industry, then you could mix up some thought leadership with some content marketing. To understand more about the differences, check out my post below: + +[**The 4 Key Differences Between Thought Leadership and Content Marketing** + _7 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Thought leadership garners a lot of attention…_ www.entrepreneur.com](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323 "https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323")[](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323) + +#### Word of mouth: + +Lots of people build their freelance writing businesses on this alone. + +Tap into your professional network. + +Put out feelers indicating that you’re looking for freelance writing work next time you’re hanging out with friends etc. + +Another point: when we’re talking about things like word of mouth and attending conferences, the lines between inbound and outbound start to get a little blurry. + +If you rock up to a tech conference with a little booth selling your agency and a potential client walks over: did you come to them or did they come to you? A bit of both if you ask me! This is a good example of why diversified approaches make the most sense. + +#### **Referrals:** + +Finally, you should be proactive about seeking out referral opportunities. + +I think that inbound referrals, in particular, are actually one of the most under-leveraged strategies for growing out a client base. + +If you’re working with a medium or large organization, then ask your point of contact whether other department(s) might need your services. + +[**Internal Referrals — An Under-Tapped Way To Grow Your Freelance Business** + _What’s the best way to build your freelance or consulting business?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579) + +### A Variety Of Approaches Is Best + +Having freelanced for five years, I’m by no means an expert on client acquisition. + +**But if I could pinpoint one tactic that works — and this is something I have other freelancers echo — it’s “all of the above.”** + +My opinion, at the time of writing (I add that disclaimer because they tend to evolve with time!) is that the best means of marketing oneself as a freelancer is to deploy a plurality of difference approaches. + +Get going with inbound marketing as quickly as possible and realize that it’s a long road to success. Send out some targeted cold emails to some companies who you would truly love to work for. Don’t forget the real world. Do all the above to maximize your chance of success. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Freelance-Internationally--From-Israel-.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Freelance-Internationally--From-Israel-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..300c5dd69d7fdea358a146db9461d45d25dcdbcb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Freelance-Internationally--From-Israel-.md @@ -0,0 +1,144 @@ +# How To Freelance Internationally. From Israel. + +There is a pervasive myth among Israel-based expat freelancers that the only place to go hunting for clients is right here on our doorstep — in Tel Aviv and the _merkaz_. + +Alternatively, people think that freelancing internationally is possible but they imagine that it is far too complicated to even bother trying. + +**Also recommended:** + +[**How to Work With The World — From Israel** + _At the crossroads of Africa, Asia, and Europe, Israel is uniquely positioned on the geopolitical map._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569) + +Both myths are precisely that — myths! — and I wanted to write this short post to help freelancers understand that if you’re an Israel-based _atzmai_(independent) that the world is virtually your _buri_ (because, you know, oyster ain’t kosher). + +Note: I am originally from Ireland and so am not subject to the US’s extraordinary extraterritorial tax laws. At least not for the moment. I am also neither an accountant nor a tax planner, although I retain one of the latter. However, I _have_ been living in Israel and freelancing for a mixture of local and international companies for the past four years. So I can tell you what has worked for me. And, more importantly, what’s possible. + +### 👍 Why work internationally, you might be wondering? + + * **It’s fun and a learning experience**! If you need to visit your clients, you have an excuse to travel to another country (during normal times, of course) + * **You diversify your business by having clients in other world markets.** Think: reduced risk. + * **There are a lot more potential clients in the world than there are in Israel**. For example: US population: 382 million. Israel population: 9 million (rounded). The US market alone is more than 40 times the size! + * **More companies that are passed the startup phase.** While Israel is deservedly known as the _Startup Nation_ , if you want to work with larger organizations and multinational corporations (useful to boost your own brand recognition) then the picking is a little thinner. + * **International clients often pay better rates.** This depends very much what you freelance in, of course, but in some ‘niches’ the disparity can be large. + +### 👎 And the downsides: + + * It’s **harder to visit clients than it is in Israel** + * **Time zone differences can be a pain to work around.** Particularly if you’re working with clients on the west coast of the US. See my run-through of which time zones are workable, and which are very difficult, [here](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569). + * **International clients usually need to be educated on the Sunday to Thursday workweek** (unless they have worked with Israel-based teams before). If you’re religiously observant, then clients asking for meetings on a Friday afternoon in West coast US time might be a problem. + * **When you set rates in foreign currency, you assume some risk that the foreign exchange rate between that currency and the Israeli shekel will move against you.** But remember: you can renegotiate rates periodically. + +So here’s what’s required. And what I recommend. + +Israel from outer space. Source: Wikimedia Commons. + +### 1\. Target Your Website Internationally. Be Mindful About Perceptions + +I’ve written a post here before about[ mistakes that Israelis typically make when speaking English. ](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/some-mistakes-israelis-make-when-speaking-english/)Well guess what? Many long-term _olim_ actually begin to suffer the effects of [language attrition: the gradual loss of one’s mother tongue while in a non-Anglophone environment.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_attrition#:~:text=Language%20attrition%20is%20the%20process,and%20comprehension%20of%20the%20first.) + +I’ve seen some freelancers that even drop a few words of Hebrew into their website copy in order to try endear themselves to local clients. There’s nothing wrong with this, of course, _per se_. It’s just that, of course, international clients are not going to understand what these words mean. _Hevanta?_ + +Think, also, about what brands and companies you might want to highlight having worked for or which portfolio samples you send to non-Israeli clients. + +Some big local names might not resonate internationally but you may have worked with some smaller international clients that might make a bigger splash to an overseas prospect. It’s easy to forget that Israel is a bubble (this goes for any local market, of course). + +It’s also, I believe, impossible to avoid politics completely when it comes to Israel. + +My policy is to be completely transparent about where I am based and to try mention that at the very outset of the conversation with a prospective client. + +My personal website has an Israeli domain (.co.il) for this very reason and I cringe whenever I see Israeli companies try to downplay their Israel footprint because they are ashamed to state where they are from (yes, this happens). + +Politics and business are better not mixed, in my opinion. However, I think it’s still good to be mindful that your clients’ perceptions of Israel and your own might differ very markedly. If you did what you regard as great work for a biometrics company whose facial recognition software is deployed to monitor people at checkpoints in the West Bank, be aware that that might create an ethical problem for your client. + +A little tactfulness is called for in certain circumstances. But I believe that most clients either react neutrally or positively to Israel-based service providers — and when dealing with technology companies Israel’s reputation as a world leader in technology and cybersecurity can even confer a competitive advantage. + +Where that is not the case, you will hopefully still be able to put your political differences to one side and enjoy a fruitful professional collaboration in spite of those gaps. + +Finally, if you own a website, then you should certainly be using Google Analytics to track your traffic and see where it’s coming from. + +Keep an eye, in particular, on the geography view to see which which countries, outside of Israel, your website is resonating with. + +Monitor trends and consider new geographies to prospect to that you may have neglected for no good reason. + +### 2\. Set Up Payment Options + +Although [Payoneer](https://medium.com/u/1ca9467ec0ed) was founded in Israel, I much, much prefer [TransferWise](https://medium.com/u/d72d29da585f) for its ease of use — and I unreservedly recommend it to freelancers looking to do business with the world. + +Although Transferwise’s debit card hasn’t yet rolled out in Israel (alongside Revolut!), you can simply set up Borderless accounts to receive foreign currency payments locally. + +[**Transfer Money Online | Send Money Abroad with TransferWise** + _Banks sting you with hidden charges when you send money abroad. But that's yesterday's problem. Say hello to…_ transferwise.com](https://transferwise.com/ "https://transferwise.com/")[](https://transferwise.com/) + +For those unfamiliar: these are basically virtual bank accounts. You get payment details in the country in which they are based and can give these to your clients. They then simply pay you by making a local bank transfer. For you this means no long waiting times for international wires to process. For your client’s A&P people it often makes things a little bit more convenient too. + +[**Free Borderless Account | Foreign Currency Account in UK** + _TransferWise is an authorised Electronic Money Institution independently regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority…_ transferwise.com](https://transferwise.com/gb/borderless/ "https://transferwise.com/gb/borderless/")[](https://transferwise.com/gb/borderless/) + +Local bank accounts are available in several countries worldwide including the US — so you can give your clients American virtual account details and they can make a transfer over the ACH system. + +After your clients pay in to your local accounts you receive a notification from Transferwise and can either choose to hold the money in the virtual account until the exchange rate is most favorable (this is what the financially savvy people do, I hear) or convert it immediately in to NIS and then move it into your local account. + +Transferwise also provides you with a very favorable exchange rate that is relatively close to the mid-market and, after connecting your Israeli bank account, you can move the money seamlessly through their system in a matter of days. + +To make it as easy as possible to get paid I recommend setting up a few more payments gateways. + +Paypal is a no-brainer for moving money quickly around the world (and please note, although their fees might seem expensive to some, you cannot charge your clients the fees under their terms of service). + +But you can also look into setting up accounts with Payoneer, Skrill and others. + +Give your client plenty of options and **don’t** try to charge them the fees your payments processing gateway or solution levies. Other than that it’s proper credit control with a small bit of FX risk on the side. + +### 3\. Buy A Good (720P / 1080P HD) Webcam and Microphone + +Showing face virtually is just about the best that many of us can do these days with international travel restrictions and locked down airports. So this is actually a great time to get comfortable with videoconferencing in lieu of in-person meetings. Remote working is currently surging in popularity. So if you haven’t thought about approaching clients beyond Israel this might even be a particularly opportune time to consider doing so. + +[**Amazon.com : 1080p webcam** + _Best Sellers Customer Service Today's Deals New Releases Find a Gift Whole Foods Gift Cards Free Shipping Registry Sell…_ www.amazon.com](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=1080p+webcam&ref=nb_sb_noss_2 "https://www.amazon.com/s?k=1080p+webcam&ref=nb_sb_noss_2")[](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=1080p+webcam&ref=nb_sb_noss_2) + +In terms of technology: I use Calendly and Zoom, [integrated](https://dsrghostwriting.com/bookmeeting/), to allow prospective clients, wherever they are in the world, to quickly and easily book a meeting on my calendar. + +I carefully control the settings to give myself enough time to prepare for meetings (I set a 24 hour minimum booking period). And I mark off my calendar when I am on vacation. + +[**Free Online Appointment Scheduling Software - Calendly** + _Find the perfect meeting time with super easy online appointment scheduling software from Calendly, and say goodbye to…_ www.calendly.com](https://www.calendly.com "https://www.calendly.com")[](https://www.calendly.com) + +[**Video Conferencing, Web Conferencing, Webinars, Screen Sharing** + _Zoom is the leader in modern enterprise video communications, with an easy, reliable cloud platform for video and audio…_ www.zoom.us](https://www.zoom.us "https://www.zoom.us")[](https://www.zoom.us) + +I recommend setting up separate accounts for your business with both. + +If you’re doing a lot of Zoom calls then it’s also worth upgrading to the paid tier to get rid of the 40 minute restriction. Upgrading Calendly gets rid of the _“Powered by Calendly”_ branding (among other things). Finally, a backdrop can be useful if your home office is a cluttered mess. + +To create a strong professional impression I also recommend investing in a good quality webcam and microphone / headset. + +A webcam that can deliver video in 720P or 1080P HD quality will make a better professional impression than a cheap one that is only capable of delivering a slightly blurry image and laggy audio. + +KSP and Ivory both have a good selection and you can buy others online. + +### 4\. Send Tax Documents in English + +It should go without saying, but make sure that your invoicing program is equipped to send out invoices and receipts in English. And make sure that you’re using the setting when billing international clients. + +Also, be mindful that other countries may have different bookkeeping conventions than Israel and that things like an אישור בעלות חשבון בנק are clearly not going to mean anything to a client based in Brooklyn. + +Whether you’re an _osek patur_ or an _osek murshe_ work with an accountant if you have any specific questions about how to bill and invoice international clients as compared to Israeli cones. + +### You Can (And I Believe That You Should) Work With The World + +Unless I’ve been missing something (in which case sorry for the misinformation!), there is really nothing difficult about working with international clients. + +The same commonsense rules of freelancing apply, of course: if it’s a large project get an upfront deposit, try to be courteous and professional, and deliver your work on time, on spec, and on budget. + +While there are undoubted downsides to not having local clients, I believe that the upsides outweigh them: in terms of having a client base that is diversified both geographically and by industry. + +You also get to contribute to Israel’s export market in a small way. And — if you make a positive impression! — help put Israel on the map as an emerging labor market with plenty of well-educated Western talent for service providers. + +That, in my opinion, is a benefit not to be sniffed at. + +Clients can be found both in English-speaking countries and in other markets in which companies wish to communicate or work through English. + +Besides Israel, I’ve personally worked with clients in the US, the UK, Ireland, Hong Kong, and Singapore — to name but a few. + +Good luck in your journey! + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Grow-Professionally-As-A-Freelance-Writer.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Grow-Professionally-As-A-Freelance-Writer.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b4380e78373d405cc1f4add1f9c650f9078197ca --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Grow-Professionally-As-A-Freelance-Writer.md @@ -0,0 +1,93 @@ +# How To Grow Professionally As A Freelance Writer + +#### Because Simply Earning More Money Isn’t Enough To Keep Satisfied + +One of the many difficulties of working as a freelance writer, as compared to an in-house team member, is not having a fixed career ladder to climb. + +Freelancing doesn’t bring with it the promise of periodic promotions. While there may be no bosses looming over one’s shoulder all the time, equally, there’s no guarantee that the type of work you’re doing now will evolve. + +Working on the same types of projects for largely the same types of clients year after year isn’t just going to lead to professional stagnation and an insipid erosion of skillsets. In fact, left unchecked, it could eventually drive you crazy. + +For many freelance writers, increasing income is the key objective. For some, getting past the six figure threshold is something of a crowning achievements. + +But money alone isn’t enough to be enough to make freelance writing fulfilling. Just as well-paid jobs can feel soul-suckingly vacuous, a well-paid freelance writing business might be just a solopreneur’s version of Dead End Avenue. + +Here are some suggestions to prevent that. + +### 1\. Take On Bigger (Or Different) Projects + +Taking on bigger and better projects is one good way to keep your skillsets sharp. + +If you work predominantly on social media posts, then perhaps moving up to deep dive blogs could be a step in the right direction for you. + +If blogs and articles have become the bread and butter of your writing life, then writing white papers, e-books and books could be the path forward. + +You don’t only need to aspire towards greater wordcounts — for one, unless you plan to make a living writing encyclopedias, there’s a finite limit to this approach. But you can seek out clients who are looking for a contribution that goes beyond ‘just the writing’. + +Perhaps you can find a client who needs SEO and strategic insights in addition to your writing expertise? + +One that wants to tap your insights about PR and distribution? + +Doing the same thing over and over again will eat you up inside if you let it go on long enough. Mix things up. Work on something different. + +### 2\. Take On Bigger Clients + +If you mostly work with local small businesses, then landing your first medium sized company could be a great learning experience. + +For one, working with a larger organization might bring you up to speed on compliance and guide you towards becoming proficient at signing and examining contracts, NDAs, and sending over whatever their A&P department requires. + +If you work for a larger organization, you may have more stakeholders on the other (client) side of the relationship. If you get on the good side of a large company or agency, then they could have quite a lot of work to send your way. + +Becoming partially embedded into a larger organization could be a perfect opportunity to learn client management. They might need you on-site; gifting might be appropriate; and by drawing closer, you might learn about their industry. + +Larger organizations might also have more experienced resources manning the marketing and content departments. This could provide a great opportunity to grow professionally be learning with people at the top of their game. + +Finally, you might wish to freelance for organizations with brand recognition — like household names. This should undoubtedly give you a leg-up in the freelancing ranks. + +### 3\. Change Business Structure + +If you’re a one man shop, then you could be working towards setting up an agency. + +Your business structure might have to change by necessity as your revenue grows. + +Making the switch from being a lone operator to part of an agency team can provide the chance to learn or apply skills such as teamwork and relationship management. + +You could also begin outsourcing work to your own network of trusted freelancers. This can be a chance to add delegation and management skills to your list of credentials. + +### 4\. Grow Your Personal Brand + +Freelance writing can provide a fascinating glimpse into the inner workings of clients in a variety of industries and geographies. + +Over time, you might accrue significant expertise about best practices in whatever your area of focus is. + +Perhaps you could become an authority on how what clients in the industrial IoT space are doing for content marketing? + +Or maybe, after writing about VPN technology for 10 years, you’re now a bona fide expert and could sell your consulting or commentary services to media organizations? + +As freelancers, marketing and self-promotion are already staple parts of our diet. So while we’re at it, why not try to do more than just land new writing gigs? + +Developing a personal brand can be a catalyst for realizing indirect opportunities from freelance writing such as speaking opportunities, invitations to be a podcast guest, and becoming an expert commentator to media outlets. + +### 5\. Build Your Professional Network + +It’s true that the life of a freelance writer can be a lonely and (home) office-bound one. + +However, it’s equally true that as freelance writers we’ll end up working with more clients than your average worker might have employers over the course of our careers. And our flexible schedules add another perk. + +This provides a great opportunity to build up a professional network, even if it’s one that you mightn’t meet, in real life, every day. A strong professional network can become a source for referrals which are a great source of leads for new writing opportunities. Former or current clients can also be potential employers should you decide to go in-house. + +Work with clients in different countries and consider paying them a visit. Hold on-site meetings with clients where possible and meet the people you’re working for. Attend relevant industry conferences and meet marketing and content mangers at potential clients face to face (when possible!). Build up and maintain a network. + +### 6\. Broaden Your Skillset + +Continuous Professional Development (CPD) is another concept from the corporate world that, as freelance writers, it might be worth borrowing. + +Picking up new skills and then integrating them into our service offering keeps things fresh. + +Consider setting aside some budget each month for watching a Udemy course. Focus on those skills which you could integrate into your existing service offering. SEO and content strategy are popular choices, but there are many more. + +### Stagnation Isn’t A Must + +While relentlessly pursuing the mission of increasing income, many freelance writers — including this one -have made the mistake of overlooking their career development. + +It’s easy to underestimate the negative effect which repetitive dead-end work has on our mental health. Prioritizing projects that lead to professional development and fulfillment makes working more enjoyable, keeps doors to opportunities open, and can give us a sense of evolution and direction that we might be otherwise be missing. Often, that’s worth more than money. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Hire-And-Work-With-A-Freelance-Writer--Or-Ghostwriter-.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Hire-And-Work-With-A-Freelance-Writer--Or-Ghostwriter-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..043b8ef5f331c381650a5424a2fbc0a4c89d1adb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Hire-And-Work-With-A-Freelance-Writer--Or-Ghostwriter-.md @@ -0,0 +1,168 @@ +# How To Hire And Work With A Freelance Writer (Or Ghostwriter) + +#### What’s Involved In Hiring (And Using) A Freelance Writer + +What’s working with a wordsmith for hire really like? + +As the founder and sole operator of a five year old freelance writing business (tech company that needs thought leadership? [Hit me up!](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com)), I’ve worked with a wide variety of clients over the years. + +These have ranged from international marketing agencies through to solopreneurs and high growth startups. Those briefing and commissioning me have run the gamut in terms of their familiarity in working with freelance writers. + +My favorite account managers / points of contact? Perhaps unsurprisingly, freelancers that have gone in-house and know life on both sides of the divide. They understand from first-hand experience what life as a freelancer is like and tend to be able to manage freelance resources in a way that aligns with our preferred workflows (stable volume of work, reasonable cadence, etc). + +A common question I get when talking to prospects is **“tell me about your process?”** or **“how would we go about engaging with you?** ” + +Although I’ve addressed this in an FAQ on my website, let’s take a step back and first ask “how would you hire a freelance writer?” This post will provide a deeper dive into both these questions. + +[**FAQs | DSR Ghostwriting | Thought Leadership And Content Marketing For Tech Clients** + _For more extensive questions and answers, please see the knowledge-base. What Is thought leadership How Is thought…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/faqs/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/faqs/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/faqs/) + +If you’re thinking about bringing a freelance writer (or freelance ghostwriter) onto your team, then here’s what you’ll need to do to find one — and make the most use out of them once they’re onboard. + +### Where Can I Find A Freelance Writer For Hire? + +Naturally, the best place to find a freelance writer is to check out my website at dsrghostwriting.com + +[**DSR Ghostwriting | Thought Leadership And Content Marketing For Tech Clients | DSR Ghostwriting |…** + _Writing Services By: Daniel Rosehill SPECIALTIES: DSR GHOSTWRITING CLIENTS HAVE INCLUDED Download a free white pape r…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/) + +Sadly, I realize that not everybody wishes to work with me. + +So you may wish to tap other sources. + +These could include: + +#### Freelance Marketplaces + +Upwork: A Plentiful Source Of Freelance Writers! + +If you’re familiar with the RFP model of finding service providers, then putting out a job request on Upwork.com might be to your liking. + +Upwork has a massive worldwide network of freelance writers specializing in everything from copywriting through to long-form content formats, like white papers and e-books. + +These days, though, Upwork isn’t the only marketplace in town. + +Writers can also be found for projects and one-time gigs on: + + * Fiverr.com + * Scripted.com + * nDash + +Among others. + +👍 **Advantages** + + * Many marketplaces — including Upwork — provide an escrow service. If you’re not inclined to trust random freelancers you hire from the internet, this might give you that needed boost of confidence. + * Access to a huge and diverse talent pool. + +👎 **Disadvantages** + + * You’re locked into hiring and communicating through the network, so you might not be able to forge a direct relationship with the freelance writer or ghostwriter. + +#### Job Boards + +You can also hire freelance writers by posting advertisements on job boards, including LinkedIn jobs. + +**Word of Mouth** + +Often tapping your IRL (in real life) network is the fastest and most reliable way of finding the talent you need for your project. Ask your personal or professional networks if they know of any freelance writers that might currently be looking to take on projects. + +**Inbound Marketing** + +Another more indirect way to go about things is to attract writers to you. How? Simply by creating a website showcasing what you do. Many writers engage in some cold prospecting and if they’re focused on prospecting for clients in a vertical — and you happen to be in the middle of it — they may stumble upon your site. + +To make room for this possibility, make sure there’s some way to contact you such as a contact form or a listed email address. + +### How Can I Start Working With A Freelance Writer? + +Before engaging the services of a freelance writer it’s worth spending a little time getting to know them in order to assess fit. This is particularly true if you’re hiring a ghostwriter who’s going to be writing under your byline (that just means ‘under your name’ by the way; like the name that appears beneath the headline in your average blog post / news article). + +When people hire freelance writers, there are two other things they commonly do: + + * **Request to see a writing portfolio:** Most freelance writers will maintain portfolios of their previous client work. In the case of ghostwriters — like the author — things get a little tricky (because the whole idea of ghostwriting, of course, is that the real writing relationship isn’t obvious). But most ghostwriters will still be able to point you the direction of previous clients or samples. Portfolios contain samples of previous client work and are often organized thematically or by the type of writing project that was undertaken. + +[**How To Share Ghostwriting Samples With Clients** + _There Are Many Approaches. Which Is Best?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/how-to-share-ghostwriting-samples-with-clients-ec0a31710c68 "https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/how-to-share-ghostwriting-samples-with-clients-ec0a31710c68")[](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/how-to-share-ghostwriting-samples-with-clients-ec0a31710c68) + + * **Assign a writing test.** Sometimes the only way that clients will feel confident in a writer’s ability to deliver the goods is by giving them a dummy (or real) brief and having them produce actual work. That’s because while a strong portfolio is well and good ultimately it’s a historical measure and may not be totally indicative of how well a writer can capture your brand voice. Because I am categorically opposed to unpaid writing tests I tend to also call these **pilot projects** because for me the two are interchangeable**.** I get that many prospective clients are cagey about the idea of having somebody they’ve just met take over a whole project. So I commonly suggest a relatively cheap pilot project as a way for a client to assess my compatibility with their business. + +### Scheduling The Freelance Writer Interview + +You can create a virtual boardroom meeting with your whole team and a writer through videoconferencing. Photo: Pixabay + +I will also offer my clients a meeting to hear what they’re interested in having written. Clients can book 15 minutes of my time through Zoom and Calendly. + +I do place some preconditions around this (clients need to be able to meet at least my starting rates). But other writers may not. + +If you’re very interested in the idea of working with a particular writer, see if they offer free initial consultations or some other online meeting during which they can hear what you need and assess if they can deliver it. + +Some questions that you may wish to ask the writer at this meeting: + + * What’s their typical workflow? + * What is their average lead time for certain projects? + * What does their standard contract look like? + * Are revisions included? + * What are the approximate prices? + * What type of projects have they worked on before? + * Do they also offer keyword research or other ancillary services? + * Do they have standard terms and conditions that they could link to? + * What happens to the IP after they finish with the piece? + +A key question on your mind might be “how much does freelance writing cost?”. There are three methods that writers commonly use for charging for their work: + + * Per word pricing + * Per project pricing + * Per hour pricing + +] + +For both writers — and clients — all these methodologies have advantages and disadvantages. Check out my piece above for a lot more information about those. But to summarize: + + * Some writers will charge you according to the number of words they writer + * Some writers will offer you a flat hourly fee and keep a timesheet + * Some will charge you a fixed fee for each deliverable + * In still other cases, writers might offer you a retainer which covers a fixed amount of deliverables / hours per month or other unit of time + +### How To Work With A Freelance Writer + +But what about actually getting down to business? + +My “workflow” can be summarized very simply as something like this: + + * Clients send me a brief + * I sometimes request a meeting (depending upon project size) + * I produce the work + * The client reviews the work and sends revisions, if required + * I carry out the revisions + * We take care of billing matters + +[**Send Writing Brief | DSR Ghostwriting | Thought Leadership And Content Marketing For Tech Clients** + _Please use this form to brief me on a piece of writing that you need me to work on. Deliverables and drafts will be…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/forms/briefs/sendbrief/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/forms/briefs/sendbrief/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/forms/briefs/sendbrief/) + + + +A brief is a set of instructions which tell a writer exactly how you’d like the piece to turn out. For guidance about what to include in it, check out my article for Business2Community above. + +But at a minimum you’ll probably want to include: + + * The title of the piece + * Some information about your target audience + * A guideline about what tone the piece should take + * SEO keywords that might need to be included + +For longer projects (white papers, for instance) a more complicated production timeline may need to be adhered to. This could involve subject matter expert (SME) interviews during which experts with domain knowledge will guide the writer in what information to include in the piece of writing they are producing. + +As I mentioned above, it’s important to clarify what’s included (and what’s not) in the price that a writer quotes. Some writers offer unlimited revisions. Others offer one round. And some offer none. + +Likewise for meetings: don’t assume that these will be included or that there’s no limit around how many Zoom calls a writer is prepared to sit through in the name of “gathering feedback.” + +### The Freelance Writer Hiring Cheat Sheet + +The TL;DR of this article is: + + * You can hire freelance writers from marketplaces, by posting jobs, or by tapping your network — among other methods. + * It’s common for prospective clients to interview freelance writers they are thinking about working with. You may also request to see a portfolio / writing samples or put the writer through a pilot / test. + * Writers may limit the number of revisions they include in their price (or not include any at all). Likewise for meetings. + * You use a brief to instruct writers on what they should write about. This can be a written document or it could be conveyed in an email. + * Writers can charge for their work by the word, by the hour, or by deliverables. They can also levy a retainer for their services. + diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Keep-A-Running-Backup-Of-Your-Reddit-Account-Using-Zapier.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Keep-A-Running-Backup-Of-Your-Reddit-Account-Using-Zapier.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a044cd2d9f62525761249ee53245de23db7207c7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Keep-A-Running-Backup-Of-Your-Reddit-Account-Using-Zapier.md @@ -0,0 +1,68 @@ +# How To Keep A Running Backup Of Your Reddit Account Using Zapier + +#### A way to keep your Reddit account always replicated to a second data source + +You may have heard that I’ve got something of a ‘thing’ for backups. + +[**My (Ultimate!) Ubuntu Backup Strategy** + _What I’ve Been Using To Keep My Desktop Safe From Accidental Deletion, Disk Failure, and Other Forms of Destruction_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78) + +You may also know that I have something of a thing for Reddit. + +Today, I succeeded in helping the man who basically controls how the world time zones are displayed on our computers — Paul Eggert — go low-grade viral on the network. _(The time zone project is mired in some sort of weird controversy right now, but I’m glad to see Eggert getting the recognition he deserves for doing such a vital service to the internet and computer users. His students at UCLA are apparently fascinated to learn that he’s a time zone lynch-pin as well as a lecturer.)_ + +If you’re a regular Reddit user, then the thought of your data one day vanishing from Reddit may cause you a little anxiety. For good reason. Somebody else — namely Reddit — maintains it. And that violates the golden rule of backups (besides 3–2–1 that is): _don’t let anybody else EVER be responsible for your data — irrespective of whether they’re a colossal software company or your coworker’s uncle with some spare space on his server)_. Or if they are, make sure you keep your own copy. (Rule 3: cloud does not equal backup. Write that 100 times). + +So here’s what I recommend doing: periodically requesting an export from Reddit. + +[**How To Backup Your Data From Reddit** + _For those who didn’t catch the memo, I’m a massive advocate for taking (3–2–1 compliant) backups._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-data-from-reddit-f12934fabbfe "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-data-from-reddit-f12934fabbfe")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-data-from-reddit-f12934fabbfe) + +But that’s a laggy process that relies upon you remembering to do it periodically. Better than nothing but very far from ideal. + +Another methodology would be to back up your Reddit post history on a more ongoing basis. Duplicate it over to a second data source — like Google Drive — and then pull that into your broader backup approach. + +This is the process I want to describe today. I’ll use [Zapier](https://medium.com/u/530c4c926670) as the obvious automation tool. + +### Firstly, Connect Your Reddit Account To Zapier + +Screenshots probably not necessary but why not be thorough? + +Search through the app connectors and connect your Reddit account(s). + +Next, I set up a Google Sheet called My Reddit Posts and left it blank: + +Create a new zap with the trigger being you creating new posts on Reddit: + +Now here’s where things are going to get a bit unconventional. + +Look at what our options are: + +See what’s missing? New post by user! + +What we can do instead is use Reddit’s little known search syntax to just set the search to be any posts by …. me. + +[**reddit.com** + _reddit search allows you to search for submissions and subreddits. The search page for submissions is at…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/wiki/search/ "https://www.reddit.com/wiki/search/")[](https://www.reddit.com/wiki/search/) + +To test things out create a post: + +For whatever reason, Reddit seems to exclude profile posts from the search. So to make sure it was working, I had to instead create a post in an obscure subreddit I set up that nobody has joined yet + +Sometimes this is a little laggy. So have patience. + +The action is going to be creating a new row in our Google Sheet with our post: + +And then connect your particular backup spreadsheet. + +Make sure it’s set up correctly: + +[**Work with Google Sheets in Zaps** + _If you're building a Zap that uses Google Sheets-such as triggering from new rows in a sheet, or adding data to a…_ zapier.com](https://zapier.com/help/create/format/work-with-google-sheets-in-zaps "https://zapier.com/help/create/format/work-with-google-sheets-in-zaps")[](https://zapier.com/help/create/format/work-with-google-sheets-in-zaps) + +Then choose which data you want to mirror across. Zapier has test data that you can use to play around with. + +And you can format these within a row also: + +Zapier will send a test row which you can then inspect: + diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Make-The-Most-Out-Of-Your-Freelancers.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Make-The-Most-Out-Of-Your-Freelancers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9092438a84b2aa6132da94cc81174555ca22e74e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Make-The-Most-Out-Of-Your-Freelancers.md @@ -0,0 +1,115 @@ +# How To Make The Most Out Of Your Freelancers By Treating Them Well + +#### To extract maximum value, treat them as well as you would any other team member + +A gift hamper: little things can really make your freelance team members feel more valued + +I’ve observed a number of those who would typically occupy the purchasing seat in the buyer-freelancer relationship recently ask a somewhat eyebrow-raising question: how can we treat our freelance writers (or other resources) well? + +Let me be honest: I think that the freelancing world / gig economy is currently in a pretty bad place right now. + +On the supply side (freelancers) there’s way too many of us with often highly disparate costs of living fighting for the same work in (often) the same places. The result is a race to the bottom. + +Nevertheless, it’s impossible to deny that demand for freelancer is enormous. + +It’s growing. And the world is moving rapidly in the direction of remote work. + +Therefore, while I think that the state of the freelancing market today is best described as “somewhat lamentable” I expect things to change. Because they will have to. + +Therefore, I always try to answer the question _“how can we retain our best freelancers?”_ Because I appreciate that there _are_ clients out there who truly want to “do good” in terms of how they treat and manage their freelance resources. + +Over the years, I’ve had some great clients who excelled in making their freelancers feel like valued team members — almost on par with employees. I’ve also had clients that communicated very much the opposite viewpoint through their actions, which, yes, always speak louder than words. + +So without further a-do, here are my tips, from five years working with entrepreneurs, agencies, and companies, about how treat freelancers well — and consequently get the most out of them. + +### Remember That They’re Humans And Treat Them Accordingly + +There’s something inherently dehumanizing about the experience of working remotely. + +Zoom calls have made it much easier for us to get immersive experiences with our clients, but ultimately, us freelancers are a collection of pixels on a screen to our clients. + +I’ve made the points to freelancers many times that this fact is actually hugely significant. + +It explains — I believe — why so many clients unfortunately treat freelancers poorly. Why they seem to treat us with disrespect. + +The good ones don’t, of course, but if you do this for any length of time it’s impossible to ignore that crummy clients are a significant problem in this “industry.” (Tip to freelancer: remember what Shakespeare said about people who protest too much. Sometimes this is your tip that the client actually doesn’t!) + +The best way to keep your best freelancers is to remember that they’re humans and treat them accordingly. + +They have families, spouses, hobbies, and interests. They’re real sentient human beings with personalities and interests outside of getting your work back by deadline. + +[**Why ghosting — and ghosts — simply suck** + _People also need to stop making excuses for lousy behavior_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ghosting-and-ghosts-simply-suck-580ad9cf1b3f "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ghosting-and-ghosts-simply-suck-580ad9cf1b3f")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ghosting-and-ghosts-simply-suck-580ad9cf1b3f) + +Would you ghost somebody who showed up to your office every day and worked as a key member of our team (please tell me the answer is no)? + +So don’t do it to your freelancers. + +### Make Them Feel Included (Within Reason) + +Something as simple as inviting your freelancers for an office fun day could really help show that you care about them as an organization + +A freelance client in Tel Aviv once invited me to a freelancers’ day during which they were buying in lots and lots of pizza and beer. + +Sadly logistics prevented me from making the trip from Jerusalem (plus, how far does one really want to travel for pizza)? But I still remember the invitation to this day with fondness and put that particular client in my mental bucket for “clients that were nice to work with.” + +Little gestures like this — that cost large companies almost nothing — really show freelancers that you, as a company, care about them as people. + +Don’t make freelancers feel like out-of-house for-hire pariahs and exclude them from everything except the project management system. + +If they’re an integral part of your team, even if they’re only on contract, then it’s courteous to make them feel included. + +Concrete suggestion: a card or a gift hamper around the holidays (the same client who invited me for pizza always sends me one) is a pretty low-cost way to signal “we care.” + +But equally: + +### Don’t Treat Them Like Employees + +Many companies — particularly early stage startups where “all hands on deck all the time is the prevalent culture — have absolutely no idea about how to manage freelancers. Like none at all. + +As freelancers, we sell our money for our time. It’s the only way that we can make a living. + +Therefore asking for “free stuff” is not only cheeky but actually threatens to derail our business. We can’t do it. But in order to maintain the relationship we might feel pressured to say yes. So it’s always uncomfortable. + +Here are examples for asking for things that you mightn’t think may smack of “we want free things” but really are (at least to many): + + * Requests for endless meetings + * “How about getting on just another demo to check with our CTO?” + * Requests for endless revisions (on writing deliverables) + * Unnecessary phone calls + +Our time is valuable. + +The best way to show that you care for your freelancers and respect what they do is to understand that. Pay them for their time. And don’t ask for it for free. + +(Freelancers: create a strong contract and control scope.) + +### Don’t Be Overly Robotic + +Here’s a pet peeve. + +It really comes back to the idea that freelancers are more than project resources. + +I once had an account manager for two years at one of my clients. + +To this day, I know almost nothing about him and he knows almost nothing about me. + +Any attempts at small talk — which I initiated — were rebuffed. Eventually I simply stopped trying. + +Some freelancers absolutely hate small talk but personally I find a complete absence of it makes a relationship feel oddly sterile and clinical. + +Consider, when appropriate, asking your freelancer how their weekend went or what their plans are around the holidays. + +It might open up a warmer and more fruitful relationship than might otherwise have been possible. + +### Always, Always, Pay Your Invoice On Time + +There’s no bigger kick in the teeth as a freelancer than moving mountains to get deliverables for a new client in on time only to have them miss their first payment deadline. + +Really. + +Do you play your employees predictably? + +Then extend the same courtesy to your freelancers. + +Nothing makes me want to continue working with a client _less_ than late payments. Particularly if it’s the very first one. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Register-As-Self-Employed-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Register-As-Self-Employed-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a357a189e2248ea6b3d881e1e98ee8e7f0b8febd --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Register-As-Self-Employed-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,151 @@ +# How To Register As Self-Employed in Israel + +Having ridden the (full-time) freelance rollercoaster for almost two years now (and the part-time one several years longer), I feel qualified to dispense a little advice about what’s needed to get going working for yourself- and stay that way if that is what you desire. + +I’m explaining how to become ‘self-employed’ — although you could equally say that you’re starting an unincorporated business or setting out to be a freelancer (if that’s the terminology you prefer, [see Nadia Katzir’s guide on the topic here](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-register-as-freelancer-in-israel/)). + +**In fact, it’s probably better to think in those terms whatever you do.** + +Because there’s nothing stopping a restaurant from being an _osek murshe_(VAT-charging small trader). Although, if we’re going into what can and cannot be done, then you should also know that a dentist or accountant cannot be an _osek patur_(VAT-exempt small trader). + +But (in my opinion) even full-time freelancers should see themselves as small sole business owners rather than members of the gig economy. Even if they are a one person operation. If it’s a full-time job, you should take it seriously — including the descriptor that you use to describe yourself to the world. + +**The foregoing aside, I am not an accountant** — and so I’m not going to go into detail about tax and other matters that you should receive professional advice for — or advice from multiple parties. + +But I strongly recommend that, at the bare minimum, you hire an accountant — even if you’re just starting out at the _osek patur_ level and yes, even if you’re just doing it part time. + +There’s too much that you can screw up and — if you’re leaning on your accountant to update several records with you over the course of a year — the money is likely to prove a stellar investment. + +With that disclaimer aside, here’s the following — just to provide the general picture of what’s required. + +### Register with Mas Hachnasa (the tax authority) and Ma’am (VAT) + +The first port of call on one’s journey towards _atzmai_(independent trader) largesse (just kidding, well, hopefully not!) is paying a visit to the tax authority to open a _tik_(file). + +You _can_ do this yourself — I did — but , like me, there’s a good chance that you will find the whole process overwhelming. If your accountant includes filing the opening paperwork as part of an annual retainer-or will do so for a small extra- then why not use them all the way? + +Because you’ll be put on the spot by short-tempered bureaucrats trying to keep a line moving you might also make stupid and rash decisions that you will later regret — such as declaring your official business name as the rather uninspiring and unoriginal ‘Daniel Rosehill Freelance Writing & PR Services.’ Don’t do that! + +If you _do_ opt for the self-service route, then find out where your nearest רשות המיסים building is and when it processes independent trader registrations (this is important: like everything else in Israeli government their opening hours are limited). + +During your little _sortie_ to the tax office you’ll also need to swing by the good people at the _Ma’am_(VAT) desk. So pack a sandwich or two and prepare for a fun-filled morning of pulling numbers out of queue systems and a lot of waiting in line. But unless somethings goes wrong, this can all be completed in one convenient field expedition. + +You’ll need to have a figure ready with how how much you expect to earn each month. If this new business venture is going to be your only gig, then this will be used to calculate the tax band at which you will pay מקדמות (tax advances) — if you choose to do so or that’s what the tax authority decides is best. So do some projections and pick a likely number. + +Alternatively: hire an accountant! + +**What you will do:** + + * Fill out a couple of forms and wait in line for an hour or two. Or meet with an accountant who will explain all of this in much more detail. + +**What you will get:** + + * Your registration certificate attesting to the opening of your file and that you are now officially an _atzmai_. + * A certificate attesting to what percentage of your declared income is being deducted at source (אישור על ניכוי מס במקור) + +### 2\. Register with Bituach Leumi + +The other band of people that will be interested to know about your meteoric rise into the ranks of the self-employed and _atzmaim_ of this country will be the good people down at Bituach Leumi (social security). + +Mercifully, this process can be conducted remotely. [You just need to fill out Form 6101](https://www.btl.gov.il/%D7%98%D7%A4%D7%A1%D7%99%D7%9D%20%D7%95%D7%90%D7%99%D7%A9%D7%95%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%9D/forms/insurance_forms/Pages/6101%20-%20%20%D7%93%D7%99%D7%9F%20%D7%95%D7%97%D7%A9%D7%91%D7%95%D7%9F%20%D7%A8%D7%91%20%D7%A9%D7%A0%D7%AA%D7%99.aspx). + +Bituach Leumi (as well as much of the Israeli government) have actually invested in good technology designed to make your life simpler (no, that wasn’t a joke). So it makes sense to fill their online form even if — due to the current circumstances — they decided that they want to see you face to face. + +Alternatively: you can ask your accountant to do this for you. And, if your average monthly income rises, as it hopefully will, you can ask your accountant to amend the contributions directly with Bituach Leumi. + +**What you will do:** Tell Bituach Leumi that you are self employed. + +**What you will get in return:** The privilege of being able to pay them monthly contributions. + +### 3\. Set Up a Kupat Pensia + +The freelancers of this country used to be having a grand old time doing what freelancers do best: Scraping by month to month without sparing a thought to that ominous time in the future when their teeth will start falling out and they realize that they haven’t contributed an _agura_(cent) to a pension fund since … well, since ever. + +Well, scratch that mental image. + +Seeing that mass impoverishment could agitate the already agitated freelancing class possibly to the point of causing social unrest, the wise old heads at the Ministry of Finance decided several years ago to make pension contributions mandatory for the self-employed as well as those that don’t work in their pajamas every day (that’s you, salaried people). + +While this meant that freelancers would earn even less than they already do on a monthly basis it also meant that they could afford to replace their teeth in forty or fifty years when they started falling out. Meanwhile, they could allow their pension fund to professionally manage their investments. A win-win you might say! + +While there is an obligation to contribute to a pension ( [speak to an accountant for the minimum percentages; the requirement is relatively new and these figures might change](https://aboulafia.co.il/en/self-employed-pension-plan-requirement/)) you are _not_ obligated to do so through a pension agent even if many slick-talking pension agents might leave a very strong impression that that is not the case. + +[Meitav Dash](https://en.meitavdash.co.il/) is a popular option for those that favor the self-service approach. It only took me fifteen attempts to move in a _kupat gemel_ and a pension but I am glad that I persevered (the form screw-ups were none other than my own). + +### What You Need To Do After That + +You are registered now. _Mazal tov._ + +But the administrative fun is only getting started! + +If you do business in Israel your clients will begin asking you for all manner of strange _ishurim_(אישורים — confirmation forms) in order to pay you. + +**You might, variously, be asked for your:** + + * אישור עוסק פטור (to confirm that you are a registered osek patur / osek murshe) + * אישור ניהול חשבון (to make sure that the bank account is really yours!) + * אישור הנהלת ספרים (to confirm that your accountant is your authorized representative) + * אישור ניכוי מס במקור + +Among many others. + +Just as when you registered, if you are going to meet your legal obligations you need to maintain a liaison relationship (okay, you will need to pay) the following people: + +And you will need to report to Ma’am as an osek patur and reconcile VAT payments with them if you are a _murshe_. + +And here’s what each liaison relationship entails: + + * **Mas Hachnasa:** This is the big one. You’ll need to send them in an annual report. I’ve always used my accountant to do this. You’ll need to keep track of all your receipts and expenses and pay the tax owed on your profit. Alternatively, if you’ve paid tax in pre-payments ( _mikdamot_) then _Mas Hachanasa_ will reconcile the difference (with a small amount of interest either way) and you’ll pay on that. Bituach Leumi will do likewise. There is also a very high chance that they will ask for a statement of capital assets (הצהרת הון) from you. + * **Bituach Leumi:** As your business blooms (or tanks) you may want to periodically update Bituach Leumi with what you are earning so that they can adjust your contributions. You can put this on your credit card or pay by direct debit. Just make sure to set it up so that you don’t wind up with a massive bill. + * **Ma’am (the VAT office):** Once a year these good folks will need to know whether you are above or below the limit above which you can no longer be VAT exempt. This report can be submitted online in about two minutes — you simply report your previous tax year’s gross income.**At the time of limit that figure is 100,491** **NIS** ( [source: כל זכות](https://www.kolzchut.org.il/he/%D7%A2%D7%95%D7%A1%D7%A7_%D7%A4%D7%98%D7%95%D7%A8)) . Divided by 12, that figure works out to 8,337 NIS a month. So if you’re earning approximately 8,500 NIS or above then you will need to “upgrade” your tax status at some point. + * **Pension:** You can either choose to contribute monthly or move your contributions in once per year. You should work with your accountant to make sure that you are contributing at least the minimum required contribution. Although you should also know that there is a maximum allowed contribution too. + +### And You’ll Need to Start Bookkeeping + +The final thing you will need to do in order to get the ball rolling and keep it going is set up on an accounting platform. + +Yes, you can be old school and buy a פנקס קבלות with your business details on it — but, as a technology writer, I cannot bring myself to tell you how to do that (hint: Google it!). + +Don’t waste paper — step into the modern era and whether you’re a plumber or a life coach start issuing your invoices digitally. + +The catch here is that you must use an accounting platform which the tax authority (namely _Rishut HaMisim_) has deemed compliant with their bookkeeping standards. + +Some of these are: + + * GreenInvoice + * Invoice4U + * SmartBee + * Rivhit + * Ezcount + +There are many options out there. B + +ut I recommend [Green Invoice](http://www.greeninvoice.co.il), although it only has a Hebrew web interface. If you need help using it and getting going with basic things like issuing invoices and quotes, [I made this screencast recently (in English)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkO9VVfsu7M) explaining how to do those things. + +### Happy Self-Employment! + +Given the current precarious economic climate, there is a lot of interest in freelancing — whether as a result of a lay-off or because people just like the idea of adding a little on top of their current income. If you’re doing the latter, then you’ll need to state that on your טופס 101 (form 101) if you sign up for an employer. Your income, for tax purposes, will be reckoned cumulatively — so you could find yourself pushed up a band by putting the two together. + +Israel gets a bad rap for its bureaucracy. + +But overall, I do not find the process of being self-employed overly onerous — even if the administrative requirements I face are modest compared to some. + +I strongly recommend working with an accountant. + +Rather than as a simple tax-filer, find a good one and think of him/her as a guide through what can (at first) appear like a maze of forms and bureaucracy. If you can ask them questions periodically (if they don’t have time, perhaps somebody more junior in the office does) then that can be a massive help. It’s worth paying an accountant just to have somebody you know will answer the odd email query. + +American citizens face some additional complications due to the extraordinary extraterritorial reach of the IRS and tax treaties in place between Israel and that country. + +However, as a non-citizen I have thankfully never had to deal with that additional quagmire. Just these ones. And the question of what to do if my teeth start falling out. + +And some closing tidbits: + + * **As an _osek patur_ you cannot (legally) charge VAT. Y**ou issue VAT-free invoices. Assuming your client is a מע”ם or not VAT exempt and they send you a copy of the purchase orders that their payroll raises you will notice that their payroll is adding these over the top anyway. You just don’t have to reconcile on your end. + * **When you hit the level of an _osek murshe_ you do not charge international clients VAT.** + * Assuming you have international clients (you should!) then **make sure that your invoicing platform can issue documentation in English.** You can also use a second system, like Wave, in parallel. It just creates a bit more work for yourself. + * Again, if you have international clients,**you should set up an account on**[**TransferWise**](https://medium.com/u/d72d29da585f) and create virtual bank accounts overseas in order to move money in to your local bank account. + * You don’t, legally, need a separate bank account if you are an _atzmai_. In fact you may have difficulty convincing your bank to let you open one. + * Don’t forget to capture your expenses. I repeat: do not forget to capture your expenses. + +_Behatzlacha_! + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Research-Salaries-In-Israel.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Research-Salaries-In-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..349adaaff8126af42a2f9d3114d49a372ae388af --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Research-Salaries-In-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,100 @@ +# How To Research Salaries In Israel + +#### Places To Research Your Market Value In The Israeli Job Market + +If you’re currently looking for a job in Israel, then you’re undoubtedly going to want to enter into negotiations with a clear idea of what your salary expectations for a certain position should be. + +Typically employers in Israel ask candidates what their “salary expectations” (Hebrew: צפיות שכר) are off the bat as a sort of screening question at the initial phone interview stage. + +Like many things in Israel, salaries in Israel are open to vigorous negotiation. + +[**What To Know About Working With Israelis** + _As a new immigrant and now small business owner (I eschew the term “freelancer”) I’ve spent the last five years, in…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca) + +In particular, candidates can haggle over: + + * **Their remuneration** + * **Their vacation entitlement**(note: at the time of writing, Israel’s minimum legal vacation entitlement is a humble 12 days per year) + * **Additional perks such as a _keren hishtalmut_**(a sort of tax-free savings plan that employers can contribute to on behalf of their employees) + * Their working hours + +The typical expectation — from everything I’ve been told — is that candidates will slightly exaggerate their desired income and work on the expectation that employers will negotiate them down. + +But how do you know what your worth is in the market? + +As in the rest of the world, what you do and what experience you can bring to the table are large determinants of your salary. But where you derive that information is a little different. + +### Asking Around + +**One way to try approximate your market worth is to ask the opinion of friends working in comparable positions to the one that you’re hoping to land.** + +The Tel Aviv tech bubble (note: the technology sector is colloquially known as “high tech”) is relatively small. + +If you have friends “on the inside” doing comparable jobs then they’re probably pretty clued up on what going pay is for a certain job (with a certain level of experience). + +Compensation, of course, varies between companies. And it could depend on factors such as whether the startup is funded or not. + +Despite the massive amount of differences, a couple of rules hold true in general: + + * **Jobs connected to high tech — in any way — tend to pay better than those in non-high-tech companies (** “high tech” means roughly any company whose value proposition is centered around its technical prowess). + * **Jobs in Tel Aviv and the surrounding coastal area (the “merkaz”) tend to pay better than those in peripheral areas.** Jerusalem is not typically thought of as being part of the periphery, but Jerusalem salaries, for instance, are typically lower than those in Tel Aviv — although the cost of living in Jerusalem is also a bit lower. + +### Working With Headhunters + +Israel has a number of headhunting firms including some that deal with English-speaking candidates looking for English-speaking positions. + +These companies will typically send on open positions on their roster along with the salary range that the employer has budgeted for the position. + +### Looking Up Salary Surveys + +Now it’s time to dust down the Hebrew dictionary. + +A number of recruitment websites (in Hebrew) conduct annual salary surveys. + +Search Google for (singular / plural): + + * טבלת שכר / טבלאות שכר + * סקר שכר / סקרי שכר + +Here is (part of) the latest one from JobInfo.co.il: + +[**טבלאות שכר הייטק** + _מידע שאנו אוספים מאלפי המועמדים שאיתם אנו עומדים בקשר, המדווחים לנו על רמת השכר הנוכחית שלהם ועל ציפיות השכר שלהם…_ www.jobinfo.co.il](https://www.jobinfo.co.il/%D7%98%D7%91%D7%9C%D7%90%D7%95%D7%AA-%D7%A9%D7%9B%D7%A8.aspx "https://www.jobinfo.co.il/%D7%98%D7%91%D7%9C%D7%90%D7%95%D7%AA-%D7%A9%D7%9B%D7%A8.aspx")[](https://www.jobinfo.co.il/%D7%98%D7%91%D7%9C%D7%90%D7%95%D7%AA-%D7%A9%D7%9B%D7%A8.aspx) + +[**טבלאות וסקרי שכר - אתוסיה** + _תאריך עדכון אחרון: ינואר 2021 יחידת המחקר של אתוסיה עוסקת באיסוף ובניתוח מידע עדכני, המאפשר לנו לספק ללקוחותינו פתרונות…_ www.ethosia.co.il](https://www.ethosia.co.il/salary_report "https://www.ethosia.co.il/salary_report")[](https://www.ethosia.co.il/salary_report) + +[**טבלאות שכר - סקר שכר 2020** + _סקר שכר עדכני ומקיף המבוסס על מאות השמות בפועל. היכנסו וצפו בטבלאות שכר עדכניות - דרושים IL ישנו פירוט שכר לפי מקצוע…_ www.drushim.co.il](https://www.drushim.co.il/article/87/ "https://www.drushim.co.il/article/87/")[](https://www.drushim.co.il/article/87/) + +There typically give ranges for each job listed according to one’s level of experience: + +תפקיד ראשון — First job + +בוגר — New graduate + +2–3 שנים. + +For 2–3 years’ experience. Etc. + +### Searching Glassdoor + +Glassdoor is a great website for researching salaries. + +Using Glassdoor, employees can leave anonymous reviews, and salary reports, about their employers. + +The good news — for those based in Israel — is that the site has gained quite a bit of traction here over the years, just as it has done in the rest of the world. + +Consider Wix for instance, one of Israel’s best-known startups. + +At the time of writing, there are 467 salary reports available on Glassdoor! + +If you’re looking at a company (like Wix) that has operations both in Israel and overseas, then you’ll want to click on the ‘Filter’ button and change the location to ‘Israel — All Cities’. + +You can also choose to search by a particular city. But — unless you’re sure the company has distinct sites within the country — it’s usually better to just search by all cities and make sure that you don’t miss out on any relevant data. + +Once you do this, you’ll start seeing Israeli salary reports which are always expressed in sheqels **per month**. + +Note: the figures also refer to the gross pray (brutto) and not the amount after tax and benefits have been deducted (netto). + +Between Glassdoor, word of mouth, and the salary reports, you should have more than enough information to guesstimate your net worth and make sure that you don’t undersell yourself when negotiating your next salary. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Set-Up-A-Backup--Cellular--Home-Internet-Connection-In-Israel.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Set-Up-A-Backup--Cellular--Home-Internet-Connection-In-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..701eff49bd7d1612177b5f69bb72dd6250fe70f0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Set-Up-A-Backup--Cellular--Home-Internet-Connection-In-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,90 @@ +# How To Set Up A Backup (Cellular) Home Internet Connection In Israel + +#### For when your sapak just isn’t really all that great and fiber is nowhere to be seen + +To the best of my knowledge, nobody has written a how-to explaining the various methodologies one could use to provision backup internet in Israel. At least in English (I’m lazy and haven’t plumbed the depths of Hebrew Google yet). + +Setting up backup connectivity on a TP-Link cellular router purchased in Ivory Computers. Screenshot: Author. + +This may not be the most exciting topic in the world, I realize. Sometimes, when I share the odd technical how-to I write with friends, I get back the kind of comments and looks you might receive after trying to explain the nuances of quantum physics. + +But really: + +a) It’s not that complicated. + +b) It’s _seriously_ useful. Unreliable home internet connectivity has really hampered my work-from-home business over the past year and figuring out a solution has thus been sort of a mild breakthrough of sorts. + +In simple language: if your home internet connection isn’t reliable and you’ve concluded that you have no other solutions (for instance, there’s no fiber optic in your area and Hot/Bezeq is just as bad) then one last thing worth trying is setting up a 4G router. + +This will be _slightly_ more expensive and complicated than just running a hotspot from your phone when you need a backup. But if you really depend upon the internet this solution will be much more robust and professional. And the beauty is that the failover (automatic switching to 4G when the main line goes down) will happen automatically. + +So without further a-do, here are a couple of options. At least at the time of writing. + +### Buy A Data SIM And Set Up A 4G Router That Uses Your Sapak Connection + +Here are the instructions: + + 1. **Firstly, buy a data only SIM card.** In Hebrew, you’ll find these described as כרטיס סים לגלישה בלבד. I found options from both Pelephone and we4G. Data only SIMs are basically SIM packages that only provide data and strip out all the other things that phone companies usually provide in their connection packages. This allows phone companies to provide affordable connectivity plans. + 2. **Next, purchase a 4G/cellular router that has at least two RJ45 (ethernet) ports.** Right now, there _are_ a couple of 5G routers on the market but they’re _waaay_ more expensive than 4G. So I recommend sticking to 4G as it should be good enough for backup connectivity that you only need now and again. In a couple of years 5G routers will likely be a lot cheaper. But don’t just buy any router. Look for one with RJ45 / networking ports. This is because we’re going to be wiring our sapak router into this. I went for the TP-Link TL-MR100 which I picked up from Ivory. In retrospect, I should have gone for something a littl + +[**ראוטרים (נתב) ראוטר סלולרי** + _היכנסו לקניית ראוטרים (נתב) ראוטר סלולרי ברשת אייבורי מחשבים וסלולר המציעה את מיטב המותגים במחירים משתלמים ברכישה באתר…_ www.ivory.co.il](https://www.ivory.co.il/catalog.php?act=cat&id=2616&f=6365 "https://www.ivory.co.il/catalog.php?act=cat&id=2616&f=6365")[](https://www.ivory.co.il/catalog.php?act=cat&id=2616&f=6365) + +3\. You’ll need to first make sure that you can get your SIM card into the router and set it up. I had to configure the correct APN in order to get mine running. + +4\. Once that has been set up, you’ll want to do some wiring. Basically you’re connecting your sapak router into your new TL-Link router so that your sapak router’s only purpose is to pass along internet into the _other_ router that will do the actual networking for your home. To do this, run ethernet cabling between a LAN port on your sapak router and into whichever port is labelled WAN (or LAN/WAN) on your cellular router. If you need more than one ethernet switch from the cellular router, you can simply buy an ethernet switch — or a few of them. + +5\. You’ll likely also need to make a few configuration changes so that your new cellular router knows that its job is to only use the 4G connectivity as a backup in case the primary connection (from your sapark) fails. I went through how to do all this on the TP-Link router that I purchased here. + +6\. Finally, I would recommend taking down any WiFi networks you might have been running from your _sapak_ and initiating the one that your TP-Link cellular router should be able to provide. This can be done via the router’s admin page. Typically the login IP is written on the back of the “box” alongside some default login credentials. You may also need to change the default IP address of the cellular router so that it doesn’t “collide” with that of your cellular router. I covered how to do this in the video above. + +### Your Other Option: Subscribe To Both Hot And Bezeq And Use A Dual WAN Router (Or A Load Balancing Router) To Manage The Connections + +The setup during the testing phase. The first LAN port runs into a switch for networking the rest of the apartment. Photo: author. + +It’s also possible to subscribe simultaneously to two internet connections, each one using a different _tashtit_(Hot and Bezeq). + +I did this for a few months but found that the Hot and Bezeq lines tended to suffer downtime at roughly the same time — which therefore negated the point of using one as a failover connection. + +To do this you could: + +a) Sing up for lines based on Bezeq and Hot infrastructure. It makes sense to do this with the same company if possible. I found that Partner was able to take care of this request no problem and for a while I was simply paying for two subscription lines on the same bill and had two Partner routers at home. + +b) Then, you can purchase a dual WAN router that will be able to take in two different connections and manage the failover. Like in the above example, it would make sense to take down any WiFi networks that are running on the ISP routers and just leave the one running from the end router up. + +Dual WAN (and above) devices are typically intended for the networking uses of small businesses and other environments that really depend upon backup connectivity. So this option works out to be a little more expensive from a hardware expensive. + +You can use both a load balancing router _and_ a conventional router by the way. You’ll just probably want to set your second router up in access point (AP) mode to avoid annoying conflicts between the too. Many TP-Link routers (sold in KSP and Ivory) can do this out of the box. But check the spec first to be sure. + +Something like the TP-Link R480T+ would do the trick for most home networking setups and is actually a really good deal. + +A more elaborate option: + +### Options 1 and 2 Diagrammed + +### How Much Does This Cost? + +Here were my costs. + +### Couldn’t You Just Use A Hotspot? + +Yes. + +But why is this much better? + + * Failover from ISP to cellular will happen automatically. And vice versa. + * A hotspot can’t be used to network ethernet (wired) devices. Every device on your network can be wired into your cellular router. + * The cellular router can even be powered off a USP so that it stays powered on even when power fails. It’s also always there and won’t run out of batter. + +You could also: + +Provision several cellular modems as described above and bond to aggregate bandwidth into something approaching or exceeding your average ISP line, especially in areas unserved by traditional home connectivity: + +[**Cellular Infrastructure Networks In Israel — Frequencies And Providers** + _— Information sourced from governmental and non-official (Hebrew) resources. Every effort has been undertaken to ensure…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/cellular-infrastructure-networks-in-israel-frequencies-and-providers-fbdcaa427f77 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/cellular-infrastructure-networks-in-israel-frequencies-and-providers-fbdcaa427f77")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/cellular-infrastructure-networks-in-israel-frequencies-and-providers-fbdcaa427f77) + +### Useful Terms + +**Failover —** Automatically swapping to a network interface that’s down when another is up. + +**Connection bonding-** A little bit different. Joining up different internet connections to present one virtual connection to appliances. To bond multiple internet connections (WANs) you need a hardware appliance on the other side of the network. Speedify is a good consumer solution. OpenMPTCprouter is a good open source (FOSS) implementation. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Set-Up-A-Home-Internet-Connection-That-Almost-Never-Goes-Down.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Set-Up-A-Home-Internet-Connection-That-Almost-Never-Goes-Down.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..08832acd7d2269058a7b5b1dc01aaf0dd7e063ef --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Set-Up-A-Home-Internet-Connection-That-Almost-Never-Goes-Down.md @@ -0,0 +1,149 @@ +# How To Set Up A Home Internet Connection That Almost Never Goes Down + +#### If you’re struggling with home internet connectivity, there are some cool solutions out there. This may save you a few weeks. + +An ISP router. Your one “box” that did everything may soon be replaced with four that do parts of the setup. Photo: author. + +Recently, I spent the best part of three weeks attempting to figure out a decisive solution to my intermittent home internet connection. + +The rabbit hole proved to be both one of the deepest and most engrossing I have ever plumed down. + +It took me back to my early post-Linux days when I first decided to host a web-server off an old laptop, waiting to be called for a job interview while my laptop attempted to load my email over a sluggish home internet connection. That was fun. + +I learned about Starlink’s ongoing efforts to bring low earth orbit satellite internet around the globe. + +I briefly toyed with the idea of attempting to build my own cellphone tower to improve 4G connectivity before realizing that — as a renter — trying to “unpack” and transport my cellular tower to my next locale would likely have posed a logistical difficulty (also, laws..). + +I considered, also, installing a point to point outdoor repeater to beam over fiber-speed connectivity from another part of my neighborhood served by the infrastructure. Before realizing that the ranks of those both crazy enough to want to participate in such an experiment _and_ who lived sufficiently close to me were likely vanishingly thin. + +I spent a fascinating few hours dissecting cellular and home internet connectivity in my country. locating transmitter towers on openly available government mapping systems and learning about how the sprawling ranks of virtual mobile network operators (MVNOs) obscured the fact that there are basically only three cellphone infrastructures in my country. (This was to identify the most fruitful cellular connection source, covered later). + +I learned about the differences between connection bonding, load balancing, and failover — which are unfortunately lost on some over-enthusiastic YouTubers (the snappy version: if you want to do actual channel bonding between multiple connections, you either need to work with an ISP that will do that for you on their side or provision something like a VPS yourself to separate out the bonded trunk. But if you’re interested, and like open source, [check out OpenMPTCProuter.](https://www.openmptcprouter.com/) If you’re happy to pay monthly and probably run it on the device level, check out Speedify) + +[**How To: Set Up A Budget Home Internet Network With Backup Cellular Connectivity** + _Budget-friendly hardware for setting up ISP connectivity with cellular failover for high availability home networking…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5) + +Between the hours of 00:00 and 04:00, for about a week, I worked with the feverish energy of an emergency electricity repair crew. Experimenting with various combinations of hardware and measuring average failover times by the second to try to build a home internet network that would withstand whatever rain, thunder, and the vagaries of local bandwidth demands could throw at it. Waking up every morning to a progressively more glorious connection. + +My work is far from done. My iteration is only V1. But I have learned enough to have become slightly maddened by the quest for progressively more reliable internet. And to want to share the first successes. + +### Rule 1: Never Rely Upon A Single Source Of Connectivity + +V1 of my home networking stack in place. Shown: ISP router, load balancer, cellular router. Photo: author. + +The first rule for building a highly available home internet network is that you never want to put your faith in any single source of connectivity. + +People talk in hushed terms about fiber optic internet — which is currently being deployed around Israel. + +But the grizzled folk who’ve been running internet service providers (ISPs) for more years than they can remember and who can often be found dissecting home networking setups for fun on Reddit will be quick to tell you that _fast_ and _reliable_ are not the same thing. + +For those wishing to plumb this rabbit hole, the good news is that there _is_ lots of information online about how to build really highly available infrastructure. + +The traditional goal standard, for connectivity, is something referred to as “five nines” uptime. That’s uptime of 99.999% — which translates to only about 5 minutes of downtime a year. + +Who needs this kind of stuff? + +Well think about your local ambulance service for once. If their dispatch system were to go offline because the “internet was down” people would lose their lives. + +There are many industries that rely upon really highly available infrastructure of every kind (internet being only type of infrastructure) but that’s the general picture. There are industries who need internet that basically never goes down. Thus there are hardware solutions to meet that use-case. + +### Rule 2: Never Rely Upon A Single Piece Of Internet-Providing Hardware (For The Truly Dedicated) + +Roadworks are common causes of disruption to internet connectivity sources that travel over land (often: DSL)— or under it (fiber optic). Photo by [Mabel Amber](https://www.pexels.com/@mabelamber?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-photography-of-red-and-white-road-signage-117602/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Recently, I posted in the excellent /r/homenetworking subreddit asking whether near total availability was actually feasible for your average home network tinkerer. + +The answer I got back was both discouraging but accurate. + +I thought I had defeated the forces that rob internet from routers by provisioning a cellular connection and load balancing that with my ISP line. + +Alas, I had made one rookie prepping error: my network design was filled with single points of failure: + + * I only had one router + * I only had one load balancer + * I only had one network interface card (NIC) bringing ethernet into my desktop + +Now, when you really think through business continuity questions like this you _can_ and _will_ go slightly crazy. So let’s focus instead on just the top-line stuff: the components that — were they to break — really _would_ mean internet was down: + + * The router + * The load balancer + +Technically — because my cellular router is before my load balancer and on separate hardware to anything else — I _do_ have a backup/secondary connection that is independent of hardware. + +But that would require shifting to an inferior connection source. The truly dedicated will build alternative standby routes for every single essential piece of hardware — even the card that takes the connection and brings it into their computer. + +### Implementation: Load Balance Multiple Connections And Setup Failover + +Even speedy internet connections can and do commonly fail. Therefore, load balance multiple different connection sources into one local network. Photo: author. + +Now that we’ve got those essential caveats out of the way, here’s how to actually make it all work: + +Bring your multiple connection sources into a load balancer and set up the most appropriate failover rule for the connectivity you have. + +That means that when connectivity A goes down the intervening device on the network — the load balancer in my case — will swap connectivity over to connectivity B. + +I also recommend _not_ buying a load balancer with WiFi even though they exist (they also tend to cost more). + +I initially thought that I was running too many pieces of hardware on my network before I realized that separating out my network component by component was actually giving me a lot more flexibility than if I had everything running off one device (for instance, once 5G cellular routers become more affordable I can upgrade my 4G setup to that while keeping the rest of the setup intact.) + +Putting a WiFi router that can be configured as an access point — or just an access point — _after_ the load balancer will mean that the WiFi network has the built-in failover built into it. + +Note: you don’t _technically_ need to use a load balancing router. Particularly because I’m not actually doing any load balancing. + +But you _will_ want a multi-WAN (wide area network) router and it’s probably best — because of the way most houses are laid out — to create a WiFi network from a separate piece of hardware. + +Multi-WAN wired-only routers _do_ exist. But disproportionately they tend to be marketed under two names: + + * Load balancing routers + * VPN routers + +They also typically tend to be used by businesses or data centers. So expect to pick up something that looks a little less familiar and friendly than what you may have been using to get home internet connectivity for years. + +For most brands, you can simply do failover and provisioning backup connectivity sources _without_ using any of the load balancing or VPN features. + +Here’s my configuration in my TP-Link TL-R470T+ load balancing router: + +### Multiple Connection Sources: Which Connections To Choose? + +What connection sources should you use? + +That depends upon your budget as each one will typically involve a separate subscription fee. + +It also depends upon your hardware. + +For instance, my load balancer has a maximum of four WAN ports (typically a couple are interchangeable and can be set as LAN or WAN). + +That means that I could run 4 WANs into the load balancer and run all my LAN devices off one port using switches. + +Where I’m based, data-only cellular plans are cheap. + +So combining my ISP connection (VDSL) with a 4G cellular plan actually only adds another $10 per month only my internet bill (not excluding the hardware purchased to set this up). + +You could also subscribe to two ISPs. Although I think that cellular adds an additional layer of protection because one infrastructure is primarily over the air — at least up to a point. + +You could also do satellite and ISP if you are somewhere rural. + +The options are wide. + +My thinking: even if I had an incredibly reliable primary line, I would be happy to pay for an affordable second one just to know that I had an always-available backup connection. + +### The Finishing Touches + + * By the time you’re finished with the setup, you may have a stack of hardware instead of one “box” that formerly did everything. I now have four components on my network: my ISP router (which is just running as a bridge), a cellular router, a load balancer, and a WiFi router (running as an access point). To mitigate against temporary power outages bringing the whole network down, run these off an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). + * You might — as I did — spend a bit of time playing around with possible configurations and wiring setups. + * To maximize the effectiveness of the cellular connection — if you’re using one — it should have as good a connection as possible to the cellular network. I recommend buying a cellular router that has external antenna support. This means that you can rig up a rooftop antenna to bring down the best possible connectivity. + +### To Take Things Really Far … + + * Subscribe to a data plan from each cellular connectivity provider in your area. You may need to put each connection on its own hardware. + * You could also look into cellular bonding plans, although these typically involve monthly fees. Terradek is dominant in this space. + +### Some Sketches For Ideas + +### More Resources + +[**How To: Set Up A Budget Home Internet Network With Backup Cellular Connectivity** + _Budget-friendly hardware for setting up ISP connectivity with cellular failover for high availability home networking…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5) + +[**Tamid V1.0: The Israeli Home Internet Connection That Never Goes Down** + _If you want really robust home internet that should barely ever go down — if ever — then read on_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/setting-up-really-reliable-home-internet-in-israel-implementation-2-56ded84cc2ac "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/setting-up-really-reliable-home-internet-in-israel-implementation-2-56ded84cc2ac")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/setting-up-really-reliable-home-internet-in-israel-implementation-2-56ded84cc2ac) diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Share-Ghostwriting-Samples-With-Clients.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Share-Ghostwriting-Samples-With-Clients.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0d4e7c930dd4bdd4dfbbb38d8c301a07c6a921ea --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Share-Ghostwriting-Samples-With-Clients.md @@ -0,0 +1,85 @@ +# How To Share Ghostwriting Samples With Clients + +#### There Are Many Approaches. Which Is Best? + +Building a writing portfolio is easy… unless all your work is unaccredited. Source: author + +For most freelance writers, a strong portfolio is just about the best asset we have — minus our writing website. + +But what happens if you ghostwrite? After all, ghostwriting — by definition — involves not getting credit for your work in the form of a byline. + +Although I have no empirical evidence with which to back up this claim, I also think it’s fair to assume that ghostwriting is on the rise. + +What was once a writing relationship almost exclusively undertaken for book authors has morphed into a gargantuan industry manned by freelance writers, PR firms, and communications consultants. + +These days, the end product of a ghostwriting relationship is as likely to be an article in a trade media website as it is to be an item on the bestsellers lest. + +Because there is so much being written, and so many hands writing it, I would argue that more writers than ever before are finding themselves in the unenviable position of being experienced writers without much to show for it in the form of attributed work. + +This — the quandary of the modern ghostwriter — is a repeat fixture of discussion in freelance writing groups. + +Having ghostwritten for five years, and spoken to many other ghostwriters, here are the ‘fixes’ I have seen. + +### The Tell-All Approach + +On the liberal end of the scale, we have the ghosts of the internet who throw caution to the wind and post all their ghostwriting on online portfolios for the world and sundry to see. + +All I can see when I see this is: I hope their clients don’t mind! + +Purists, like the author, would argue that such a practice defeats the point of ghostwriting. + +If you’re going to be hiring a ghostwriter to discreetly write a delightful article for you, would you be pleased to discover that he or she was proudly raising the curtain on the putative writing relationship on a website? + +The argument in favor of this practice is that (corporate) ghostwriting has become endemic, everybody knows it goes on, so there’s not much point in hiding the obvious. + +Sometimes the ghostwriting relationship is entirely transparent. + +I have written several articles over the years for non native English speakers — articulate in their native tongues but bumbling in this one. + +Perusing a five minute video of them speaking at a conference on YouTube would make it obvious to anybody that they were unlikely to have actually written the texts attributed to them. The magic of fiction might be preserved; but it’s a thin and incredible one. + +### Private Sharing: The Middle Ground + +For ghostwritten articles and blogs (I refer to these together as “small projects”), the approach I favor is to share select samples — where requested — through private means. + +I implemented this by adding a password-protected part of my website. If you’re using Wordpress, the Password Protected plugin should do the trick: + +[https://wordpress.org/plugins/password-protected](https://wordpress.org/plugins/password-protected/) + +A more elegant technological solution is to use a solution like Cloudflare Access which works through email one time password (OTP) 2FA and can provide a detailed access log of who’s seen what, from where, and when. You can also manually revoke access at any time. + +See below for how to set that up: + +Using this, you can grant access to anybody with an email at a domain and receive a granular log of exactly who has seen what. + +But this level of access control is probably overkill for most writers. + +Creating Google Drive shares is a means of sharing a ghostwriting portfolio + +Other methodologies which I have seen and employed include: + + * **Sharing individual samples by email**. This has the advantage that no samples touch the internet (well … the public-facing part of it to be accurate). On the downside, it’s a manual process. And it means that your prospective clients will need to download attachments — something which few people enjoy doing in this day and age and which is increasingly recommended against. + * **Adding samples to a Google Drive share.** This works well. But if your recipients aren’t on GSuite / Gmail you could run into difficulties. Sharing folders with “anybody with the link” isn’t advisable if you’re sharing the output of private writing relationships. + +### Not Sharing At All + +On the far conservative end of the spectrum, we have ghostwriters who won’t share details of their projects with clients at all — or who will only provide the name of their author. + +I have one professional acquaintance ghostwriter who is a serial book ghostwriter and who works primarily through agents. This is the approach which she favors. + +If you’re ghostwriting articles, then being this cagey about sharing work is likely to meet resistance. In general, the more transparent you can be about your work, the easier it’s going to be for somebody to trust you. + +In the book ghostwriting world, by contrast, not being able to disclose authors — or only providing authors as referees — is more commonplace. + +### Final Pieces of Advice + +Finally, some general best practices about sharing ghostwriting: + + * **You need to (carefully) read NDAs, contracts, and client instructions.** Some clients will forbid you from sharing samples at all. Through any means. + * **I believe that it’s worth asserting the right to share your writing in your boilerplate contract and providing clients with the ability to opt out.** Speaking from experience, it can be incredibly difficult to build your writing business if most of your ghostwriting clips can’t be shared. If a client forbids me this right, the project is less attractive. Offer your clients an opt out mechanism but assert your right to share by default (although I advise through private means). + * I periodically track down my ghostwriting [by searching for it](https://medium.com/better-marketing/ghostwriter-heres-how-and-why-to-track-down-your-clips-79003d869e29). You can find out useful information by doing this. + * Back up your writing. + +**You just read another exciting post from the Book Mechanic:** the source for writers and creators who want to make more work that sells and sell more work they make. + +If you’d like to read more stories just like this one [**tap here to visit**](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic?source=post_page---------------------------) diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Take-An-Offsite-Backup-Using-Synology-NAS.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Take-An-Offsite-Backup-Using-Synology-NAS.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..990f3a8640d4418b28809151b548b396f1509f94 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Take-An-Offsite-Backup-Using-Synology-NAS.md @@ -0,0 +1,43 @@ +# How To Take An Offsite Backup Using Synology NAS + +[In my previous post here](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/project-offbeat-offsite-backup-storage-271aeb3431db) I explained that while cloud backup options are both plentiful and diverse these days, there are still situations in which it might be more practical for people to take more “old school” offsite backups by simply copying a primary data source onto second storage media and keeping that in another physical location. + +The rationale for offsite backups is clear. But just to reiterate: it exists largely to protect against physical data destruction which might affect both a primary source and a copy stored onsite. Think things like fires, floods, and what not. + +How far, you may be wondering, does offsite need to be in order to be considered physically separated enough from the primary data source? 15KM is commonly given as a recommendation although, in truth, I’m not sure there is any hard and fast rule. + +Having briefly toyed with the idea of digging a backup media into a hole in the ground ([yes, really](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/project-offbeat-offsite-backup-storage-271aeb3431db)), I have now decided to go with the more conventional approach of finding a “Backup Buddy” to keep my (encrypted) offsite backup. + +My backup methodology with Synology is therefore now: + + * Use Cloud Sync to pull down backups of cloud storage. Store those on the NAS (onsite backup). Backup local sources, including computers, to NAS + * Periodically copy NAS, in its entirety, to an external hard drive and store that copy offsite. Swap out repetitively. This creates an offsite backup. + +Here’s how. + +### Set up Hyper Backup to Local Target + + 1. Physically attach your USB external hard drive to the NAS. + +2\. In DSM, navigate to Hyper Backup + +3\. Select your backup destination as local folder and USB. If you’re backing up to a local server than rsync would clearly be a better option. + +Typically the USB device will have its own “share” created in the format usbshareX + +4\. Select which volumes on the NAS you wish to backup + +Alternatively just click on ‘Volume 1’ to back up the entire NAS. + +You can also choose to include applications on the NAS itself in the backup. + +As I only plan on running this backup task periodically, I disabled the backup schedule. + +And I enabled client side encryption. If you’re storing this backup copy in somewhere you don’t have constant physical surveillance over then this is clearly important. + +Once everything has been set up you can run the backup. + +### Move Backup Copy Offsite + +Following the above process will write a backup of the NAS onto an external hard drive of your choosing. You can then move this to an offsite location and periodically refresh it with different storage media. + diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Use-Super-Pharm-To-Order-Prescription-Medications-Online--in-Israel-.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Use-Super-Pharm-To-Order-Prescription-Medications-Online--in-Israel-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f88f699cf9069d902f1b5c76f335e3bcd5aca1b0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Use-Super-Pharm-To-Order-Prescription-Medications-Online--in-Israel-.md @@ -0,0 +1,116 @@ +# How To Use Super Pharm To Order Prescription Medications Online (in Israel) + +**_Update 30/03:_**_Super Pharm is now offering free delivery of prescription medications for those over 65. Prescriptions must still be digital to use the system._ + +During these crazy days of the coronavirus, I think it’s important that we all pitch together to help figure out ways to stay safe — and indoors. + +Although the situation is changing extremely rapidly, the latest official government guidance in Israel is for everybody to [“remain indoors and leave the house only when it is absolutely essential.”](https://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Most-Israelis-avoid-public-transport-after-coronavirus-regulations-621425) + +Two activities have been commonly put forward as being “essential” — and these businesses are likely to remain open even if the [“total lockdown”](https://www.timesofisrael.com/total-lockdown-can-be-avoided-if-public-obeys-orders-top-health-official/) enforced by police eventuates, which at the moment is uncertain. These are: + + * Buying groceries + * Buying prescription medications + +Most of us know how to do our groceries online [with Shufersal](http://www.shufersal.co.il) and other options. + +But did you know that you can order prescription medications to your door with Super Pharm for 29 NIS (and for free if your order comes to more than 249 NIS?) + +It’s still a “lesser known” trick — at least among English speakers in Israel. + +So without any further a-do, and in the interest of helping people to [#stayhome](https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Stayhome&src=typed_query) where at all possible, here’s how. (The whole process should take no more than 5 minutes). + +### 1: Set Up An Account + +The first thing you’ll need is to set up an account over on [Super Pharm’s website.](https://shop.super-pharm.co.il/#tologin-form-container) + +Click on הרשמה to do that: + +And then fill out your details. + +You’ll need: + + * Your name + * Your email address + * And to choose a password + +### 2: Connect Your Health Fund Account + +Next, you’ll want to visit the following URL in order to access the Pharmacy section of the Super Pharm website: + +[**מוצרי בית מרקחת | סופר-פארם** + _הזמנת תרופות מרשם דיגיטלי עד הבית צ'אט עם רוקח התייעצות עם רוקח אונליין *השירות זמין בימים א'-ה' בין השעות 09:00-21:00…_ shop.super-pharm.co.il](https://shop.super-pharm.co.il/pharmacy "https://shop.super-pharm.co.il/pharmacy")[](https://shop.super-pharm.co.il/pharmacy) + +At the time of writing, Super Pharm can import digital prescriptions from the following three health maintenance organizations (HMOs), which are called _kupot holim_ in Hebrew. + + * Maccabi + * Meuhedet + * Clalit + +In order to import your prescriptions, simply click on your HMO’s logo from the homescreen. + +I’m with Maccabi. + +Then, click: להזדהות to proceed to the integration with Maccabi — or the HMO you are with. + +Next, you’ll be asked to enter your Teudat Zehut (national identity number) and your date of birth. + +You’ll need to authenticate the connection by inputting a One Time Password (OTP) which the system can deliver via SMS or by email. + +I always choose email, but go for which ever is more convenient for you and click on receive code (קבלת קוד חד פעמי) in order to send the credential. + +You will receive the code/SMS instantaneously by email from Macabbi: + +Enter it to permit the integration: + +### 3: Import Your Digital Prescriptions + +The Super Pharm system will automatically populate a list of all your existing digital prescriptions for you. Here are some of my goodies for asthma and GERD: + +Use the tick boxes and the quantity selectors to choose the quantity and medications that you need. + +You’ll see the estimated spend at the bottom of the screen (to demonstrate this, I’m just buying a Ventolin inhaler). + +If you have a coupon code, you can enter it here. Otherwise, proceed to checkout. + +### 4: Choose Pick Up Or Home Delivery + +Finally, you will have the option to either choose pick up or opt for home delivery. + +Delivery costs 29 NIS and is next day on all orders placed up to 18:00 IST. + +If you spend more than 249 NIS, delivery is free (all prices correct only at the time of writing). + +If you choose branch pick up, you’ll need to select a branch: + +If you opt for delivery you, of course, have to enter your address: + +You’ll be asked all the questions you usually do when you visit the pharmacy in person: + + * Is this your first time taking the medication? + * Do you know how to use the drug(s)? + * And if you do would you like the pharmacist to explain how anyway? + +**You can also authorize collection by providing the name of a friend / family member and their national identity number.** It’s the last section where there are two blank spaces, after you confirm that you accept the terms and conditions. + +Finally, pay for the prescription. You’ll need a credit card for this: + +And that’s it! The order is placed and you will receive a confirmation email with your order number. + +If you opted for delivery, it will be delivered within the stated time frame. + +If you want to follow the status of your order you can do that by clicking on ההזמנות שלי + +On that page, you can view the status of all your open orders: + +### Summary + + * Super Pharm, Israel’s largest chain of pharmacies, lets you order prescription medications online. + * Their system works with digital prescriptions issued by doctors in **Macabbi, Meuhedet, and Clalit.** + * Delivery costs 29 NIS; it’s free over 249 NIS; it’s next day on all orders placed before 18:00. + * There is also an option to pick up in your preferred branch (for free). + +And most importantly for the purpose of helping the government delay the spread of the coronavirus: + + * **If you are in isolation/quarantine and have Macabbi/Meuhedet/Clalit, there is no need to leave your house in order to receive prescription medications.** + +### Video Explanation (Hebrew) diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Write-For-Freelance-Writing-on-Medium-.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Write-For-Freelance-Writing-on-Medium-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cdd87e2d012dcfa11a957c73e4f07830bdabd5e5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Write-For-Freelance-Writing-on-Medium-.md @@ -0,0 +1,66 @@ +# How To Write For Freelance Writing on Medium! + +#### Interested in contributing? Instructions and guidelines + +Image: Ramdlon via Pixabay + +**Thanks for checking out Freelance Writing on Medium!** + +I started this publication because — despite Medium being a popular online haunt for writers — I couldn’t find a single publication that was focused on providing freelance writers with actionable advice about how to “make it” in this line of work. + +As the publication has just accrued its first fifty followers, I thought that this would be a fitting time to invite anybody interested in contributing to send in their pitches. + +Firstly — as a writer — I hate _asking_ anybody to write for free. Which is why this is an _invitation_ to contribute _._ + +### Contributor Guidelines + +#### Open Source Advice About Freelance Writing For Current And Prospective Freelance Writers + +Although some fellow writers have expressed disbelief at the fact that I write so much about freelance writing just for the fun of it (it’s also to clarify my own thinking!), this is basically what I do. + +I currently don’t place my Medium articles behind the paywall and am happy to commit to not doing so for anything I publish on this particular publication. I ask that those considering publishing here do likewise. + +For context and full disclosure: I’m an outspoken critic of freelance writing courses — an increasing number of which I believe are simply get-rich-quick schemes for their authors. + +Although I also believe that those with good intentions and genuine experience to contribute needn’t feel bad about monetizing their knowledge through books or courses (I simply maintain that a large number of those entering today’s course-giving fray do not meet that criteria). + +[**Before you waste money on a freelance writing “course”, read these (free) posts instead** + _Why waste money on info that’s available for free online?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/before-you-waste-money-on-a-freelance-writing-course-read-these-free-posts-instead-a1a72be62fab "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/before-you-waste-money-on-a-freelance-writing-course-read-these-free-posts-instead-a1a72be62fab")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/before-you-waste-money-on-a-freelance-writing-course-read-these-free-posts-instead-a1a72be62fab) + +I’ve also been a daily Ubuntu Linux user for the past 15 years (yes, Linux geek and writer can exist in the same person!). I love the open source community and don’t believe in monopolizing the information I have learned about freelance writing. + +#### A Focus On Actionable Advice About Freelance Writing + +I created Freelance Writing in order to provide freelance writers — whether those currently self-employed as one or those thinking about becoming one — with actionable and useful advice and perspectives about how to “make it” as a freelance writer. + +If I could summarize my editorial vision for this publication in one word it would be “pragmatic.” + +This isn’t the place to publicly ruminate about writing’s role in shaping the societies we live in, even though your perspective might be important and the topic is certainly worthy of exploration. But if you want to break down the pros of charging per word with its drawbacks — then this is very much a fitting home for it. + +#### Suggested Topics For Contributors + +Here are some topics that I’d love to explore further as this publication continues to pick up traction: + + * **Mental health for freelance writers** + * **Unusual niches** that freelance writers should consider exploring + * Anything related to**mindset** + * **Diversification, sustainability** , and the challenges and opportunities inherent in freelance writing “for the long haul” + * **Perspective from veteran freelance writers** on how the “industry” has evolved over the years and decades + * **Ethical passive income sources** for freelance writers + +If you think that your freelance writing story is interesting, I’d love — time permitting — to interview successful freelance writers and try to get to the heart of what has made them successful. Don’t be shy and feel free to pitch yourself for interview! + +### How To Write For Freelance Writing on Medium + +Interested in joining the conversation and sharing your perspective with the Medium freelance writing community? + +Consider dropping me a line at the following email: + +I’d recommend including: + + * Your Medium handle + * A little bit about you and your background in freelance writing including how long you’ve been freelance writing and whether you’re full-time or freelance writing as a “side hustle” + * The topic(s) you’re interested in writing about + * If you haven’t written on Medium before, link(s) to anything else you’ve published online + +Thank you for following the publication and for your continued interest in the publication! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-To-Write-For-Living-In-Israel.md b/posts/medium/How-To-Write-For-Living-In-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f44fcee15d0f2e6a410fa7e1d7a99a39daa043b6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-To-Write-For-Living-In-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# How To Write For Living In Israel + +#### A Collective And Voluntary Effort To Disseminate Practical Information About Aliyah And Life in Israel + +### Want To Get Involved? Write For Us! + +_V1–Updated: 17/01/21_ + +I (@danielrosehill) created this Medium publication in order to share practical how-to information about living in Israel. My aspiration is that the collection of information here will one day grow into an informational website. + +This publication is targeted at _olim_ , those contemplating _aliyah,_ and other groups living in Israel who want practical information about navigating daily life here. + +Some of the topics that have been covered so far include: + + * [A glossary for making aliyah](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/a-hebrish-glossary-for-making-aliyah-13968db9d3c1) + * [A guide to Israel-centric Facebook groups](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/israel-focused-facebook-groups-for-english-speakers-ddb2732ebbba?source=collection_home---5------3-----------------------) + * [Information about setting up shop as an _atsmai_](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-register-as-self-employed-in-israel-ab25617607c5?source=collection_home---5------16-----------------------) (self employed individual) in Israel + +Some topics that I would like to see covered (a very non-exhaustive list) include: + +**Financial** + + * Negotiating a salary in Israel + * Signing up for a _keren hishtalmut_ + * How to choose a reliable pension agent + +**Careers** + + * How to hunt for a job in Israel + * Opportunities in Israel’s “high tech” scene + * Understanding an Israeli _tlush_(pay stub) + +If you’re interested in sharing your views about how to make Israel work for you on Medium, then I’d be grateful to receive your authorship (see below for how to get in touch). + +Just note that this is a voluntary effort written by (and largely for) _olim_. Think of it as passing on the torch of hard-won knowledge from your _aliyah_ to those who have yet to touch down at NatBag (that’s Ben Gurion Airport for those who haven’t mastered the art of _kitsurim_ yet). Nobody (including me) is getting paid for writing here, although you’re welcome to meter your stories to monetize them. + +Image: [PXHere.com](https://pxhere.com/en/photo/1401823). License: CC0 Public Domain. + +### Target Languages + +This publication welcomes submissions in the following languages: + + * English + * French + * Russian + * Amharic + +### Living In Israel’s Style Guide + +In lieu of a fancy style guide, here are a few bullet points and paragraphs which I hope will set out the overall direction I envision this Medium publication taking. + +#### **1\. Content should be about living in Israel** + +This publication is about the practical details of living in Israel — think the _tachlis_ and often unglamorous actual nuts and bolts of actually making a life here. + +The focus of every submission should be on providing a valuable viewpoint about how to live in Israel. + +This _doesn’t_ mean that your article has to be a dry how-to about opening a bank account (although that type of information would certainly be useful if it hasn’t been covered before). + +You could, for instance, share how you managed to carve out a new career for yourself in UX design (coming from graphic design). Or about how you leveraged Facebook groups to find a great and welcoming community for your family. + +Try to keep this question front and center: Would this perspective provide useful guidance to somebody already living in Israel or just contemplating it? If yes, _Living in Israel_ could be a great home for your article. + +What kind of submissions would be bad-fits? Broadly speaking any article that doesn’t match the above terms. But here are a couple of specific examples: + + * _Hasbara. Hasbara-_ style pieces often come with a built-in agenda and try to downplay the negatives of life in Israel (or ignore mentioning them). This publication aims to be a balanced and in-your-face type of resource. _Living in Israel_ isn’t shy about telling it like it is. I believe that honest information helps make informed choices. (This doesn’t mean that you have to mention negatives where you don’t think they merit mention or exist. Just try to write with an objective rather than persuasive motivation). + * Airing your political views. There are so many places in the Jewish and Israeli blogosphere to share your political views about Israel in English. This isn’t one of them. + +#### 2\. This isn’t about cheerleading for _aliyah_ + +I believe that, in order to be taken seriously, information about _aliyah_ needs to be presented credibly and without an obvious slant. + +Feel free to tell your readers that Israel is the greatest place in the world. Or why you regret moving here if you want to share that perspective. But leave the decision of whether to move here up to the reader. This publication is about sharing experiences, perspectives, and information. Refrain from directly encouraging (or discouraging) moving to Israel. + +#### 3\. Content doesn’t have to be neutral. Opinions are welcome + +I’ve used this platform to criticize Israel’s cost of living and to argue that all Israel-based freelancers should consider working with international freelance clients. + +Taking a stand for or against an issue is perfectly fine. It should just relate in some way to making a life in Israel. + +#### 4\. Syndicated content is welcome — assuming it adheres to the style guide + +If you have a _Times of Israel_ blog that would also be a great fit for _Living in Israel_ then feel free to submit it for consideration. + +Just make sure to use the Import functionality in Medium so that the piece is entered into the CMS with the appropriate canonical tags and Google doesn’t penalize you for authoring duplicate content. + + + +Needless to say, imported/syndicated content should adhere to the above points. + +#### 5\. Please caption your images and cite the license they are used under + +By submitting article(s) to _Living in Israel_ you assume responsibility for the image(s) included in your article(s) and warrant that you have sourced them legally and are reproducing them in compliance with their terms of use. + +To help establish that fact, please include a caption with every image pointing to its source and usage license. + +### How To Write For Living in Israel + +If you’re interested in writing for _Living in Israel_ please complete the following form. + +You can also send an email to the following address: + +Thank you for your interest in contributing to the publication! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-big-is-Israel-compared-to-Ireland-.md b/posts/medium/How-big-is-Israel-compared-to-Ireland-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c7b948eef17fc93e6636572517a396c1a8100f7a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-big-is-Israel-compared-to-Ireland-.md @@ -0,0 +1,44 @@ +# How big is Israel compared to Ireland? + +Israel is a very small territory. Its diminutive size is commonly referenced in comparison to New Jersey for American audiences. Being originally from Ireland, Israel’s size in reference to Ireland is much more interesting for me. + +Personally, despite the drawbacks of cramming more than 8 million people into such a small space (overpopulation and noise; oh the noise!), I love Israel’s small size. + +Its diverse scenery means that, at least to me, it never feels _too_ small. + +You have lush greenery in the Golan and Galilee. Freshwater beaches in the Kinneret. Desert town south. Tel Aviv and much of the _merkaz_ on the coast. And because the country gets really thin down south (at its narrowest, Israel is just 15km wide!), the drive down to Eilat, from Jerusalem, lasts for about four hours — which gives you the feeling that you’re going somewhere far. You can even take flights within Israel — Sde Dov (now closed) to Eilat (also now closed; or at least moved to Eilat Ramon) was the most popular domestic route, although there are also smaller routes running to little-known airfields up North ( [did you know that Haifa has a tiny airport?](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haifa_Airport)) + +Israel is smaller than Ireland. But how does it size up (literally) compared to Cork and Munster? + +First up, let’s take a look at some visuals. For this, we have [TheTrueSize.com](http://thetruesize.com) which lets you drag one country and move it atop another. + +### Ireland Israel Size Comparison + +If Israel were offshore Ireland, it would look like this (to scale): + +And if Ireland were transplanted into the Middle East, this would be the result (also to scale): + +As you can see, from north to south the countries are roughly the same “height”. But Ireland is wider. + +From south to north (roughly: Mizen Head to Malin Head), Ireland is roughly 462 kilometers “long”. + +Measuring Israel from just south of Eilat in the south (technically, the border crossing into Taba is Israel’s southernomost point) through to the northernmost point in the country, just north of the Israeli Hermon, one finds that the country is 434.17 kilometers long according to Google Maps distance measurement tool. + +Thus, Ireland is only about 30 kilometers “longer” than Israel. Or Israel is only 30 kilometers less long than Ireland. + +In answer to the big question of which is “bigger”. Clearly Ireland. Israel, at its widest point, is 114km from east to west. Ireland, however, is 275km. + +And the total areas: + +The result:**Ireland is 3.38 times the size of Israel.** + +To round off the fact collecting: + + * Cork County is 7,500 km2 + * The province of Munster, comprising counties Cork, Clare, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary, and Waterford, is 24,675 km2 + +Israel is therefore 3,905 km2 _smaller_ than Munster. + +And Munster is 1.19 times the size of Israel. So it’s 19% bigger. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/How-can-I-become-a-thought-leader--A-step-by-step-guide-to-get-from-A-to-B.md b/posts/medium/How-can-I-become-a-thought-leader--A-step-by-step-guide-to-get-from-A-to-B.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0ff9c354e24d91d1569b5b34f5b5cf2d734fbaad --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-can-I-become-a-thought-leader--A-step-by-step-guide-to-get-from-A-to-B.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# How can I become a thought leader? A step-by-step guide to get from A to B + +#### Thought leadership is a long journey. But one worth embarking upon. + +Image: PXHere.com + +Are you interested in becoming a thought leader? + +What does it take to become one? And why might you want to? Follow this guide to get started on the journey. + +### 1\. Decide what information you wish to share + +Thought leadership marketing is all about sharing **original insights** with your target audience. + +[**The 4 Key Differences Between Thought Leadership and Content Marketing** + _7 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Thought leadership garners a lot of attention…_ www.entrepreneur.com](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323 "https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323")[](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323) + +Unlike content marketing, thought leadership is often a **peer to peer marketing exercise.** + +This means that — ideally — you’ll want to be sharing **quality insights that your target market doesn’t already know.** That’s the “leadership” part of the phrase. + +Do you have original insights to share from market research that you’ve commissioned? A unique perspective on developments in your industry? These could be worth packaging as thought leadership. + +Many organizations that commit to thought leadership plan out protracted campaigns stretching across multiple business quarters and there is evidence to suggest that organizations that commit to thought leadership over the long term are more satisfied with their efforts (a culture of supporting thought leadership develops). + +These can be great complements to your content marketing efforts. Just make sure, if you’re taking this approach, that you have enough genuine thought leadership material to last the course. + +### 2\. Decide who you want to share it with + +Ultimately, most thought leadership is undertaken for strategic purposes. + +While sharing your know-how with the world is a nice idea in concept, most prospective thought leaders will want to realize some return on investment (ROI) from the effort involved. Thought leadership isn’t typically undertaken for philanthropic motives. Instead, this ROI might take the form of: + + * Getting on the radar of key pathfinders in your industry + * Boosting your brand awareness to facilitate your launch in a new market or sales territory + * Creating collateral that can support your sales team by providing the background information about your organization or leadership that potential partners will likely be interested in + +Knowing what you want to achieve through thought leadership will help you clarify _who_ you wish to target through the campaigns. + +Come up with a cogent idea of the person you wish the thought leadership to reach. + +If it’s not a real person — or group of people — sketch up a buyer persona that can serve as a close surrogate. Make sure that the tone of voice (ToV) and content of what you’re drafting is likely to resonate with this audience. + +### 3\. Formats: decide where you want to say it + +In order to build one’s reputation towards becoming a thought leader, one can: + + * **Write articles** that appear in trade media publications + * **Offer keynote speeches** at key industry events + * **Start a podcast** and share insights there + * **Create and distribute an e-newsletter** + +Which of these will serve your needs best depends upon: + + * The preferred media of the prospective thought leader. Are you a great public speaker? The event circuit might be the obvious place to start. Do you love writing? Consider developing your thought leadership through creating written content. + +True thought leaders are recognized by their peers as such rather than self-proclaimed. The journey towards becoming a true thought leader is a long one. To make that journey as quickly as possible, make sure that your thought leadership is backed by a well-crafted strategy. Making sure that you’re clear about what you have to say, who you’re trying to reach, and what channels you wish to say it in will get you on your way towards success. + +[DSR Ghostwriting](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) is a writing service and marketing consultancy specializing in working with technology clients to help plan and execute thought leadership marketing campaigns. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-can-you-get-clients-to-come-to-YOU-as-a-freelance-writer-.md b/posts/medium/How-can-you-get-clients-to-come-to-YOU-as-a-freelance-writer-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..37d7ebbe1f9807bf8555029fe4d9860d38e4c00f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-can-you-get-clients-to-come-to-YOU-as-a-freelance-writer-.md @@ -0,0 +1,85 @@ +# How can you get clients to come to YOU as a freelance writer? + +#### Some things that help with inbound marketing + +The world is interconnected: how to put down digital breadcrumbs to help find clients + +About eight years ago, I changed my name. + +I was born Daniel O’Carroll. For personal reasons, I took on my mother’s surname — Rosehill — and have been Daniel Rosehill ever since. + +Changing surname is a bit of a pain from an administrative perspective. + +You need to get a new passport, a new driving license. If you have one, you need to get your degrees re-accredited. + +**But the most frustrating part of the experience, for me, was having all my hard-won writing clips sort of go up in digital smoke overnight.** + +I wrote to a few editors asking for them to upgrade their websites with my new names. It turned out nobody was so keen on the idea of spending an afternoon reassigning articles in a CMS. + +After giving it some thought, I took it as sign that it was best to simply seize the opportunity to start afresh. I was a writer with a few hundred published articles who looked as if he hadn’t written anything in his life. But perhaps that was for the better. + +And so, about five years ago, I began building my personal brand from scratch. + +### Accept Bylines Unless There’s A Strong Reason Not To + +To compound the difficulty of having to basically start building a personal brand from zero, I was also in the unfortunate position that the vast majority of my output was ghostwriting. You could say that in ghostwriting, zero bylines are kind of built into the game. + +For years, I even operated a zero byline policy, expressly refusing offers that my work be attributed. This, I believe, was a huge mistake. + +When it comes to whether or not to accept bylines as a freelance writer, there seem to be two schools of thought among writers: + +#### **The Byline Liberals** + +The byline liberals — like me — will say that it’s best to endorse your content marketing with your byline unless there’s a strong counterveiling reason not to. + +Every byline, the liberals will argue, is a digital breadcrumb that leads back to you. + +#### The Byline Conservatives + +The byline conservatives will argue that bylines are imprimaturs of one’s authorship and should be used with caution. + +They will argue for lending one’s byline very selectively and only on authorship — within the realm of ghostwriting and content marketing at least — about which one is truly proud. + +(The byline liberals and conservatives also argue upon how to charge for bylines. Some say that the lack of a byline should mean that the writing should cost _more_ because the author foregoes the marketing cache that comes with a bylined piece. The conservatives typically advocating charging more for _use_ of the byline.) + +My opinion: if you want clients to seek you out, then become a byline liberal and adopt the mentality that every byline could pique a reader’s interest in you, including a potential client. + +### Engage In Content Marketing (Inbound) + +A representation of the marketing funnel. Image: Wikimedia + +**When it comes to content marketing, freelance writers have a natural leg up on just about everybody else: many of them spend the majority of their days doing exactly this for clients.** + +Inbound marketing is an extremely powerful methodology for attracting clients into one’s marketing funnel. Content marketing is typically the fulcrum around which the inbound mix spins. + +**Every writer who’s interested in having clients come to _them_ rather than vice-versa should have a blog, podcast, or YouTube channel.** + +That’s because putting oneself “out there” is the quickest means to get leads “in there” (to your pipeline). + +### Engage In Public Relations (PR) + +Very closely allied with the above is the idea that freelance writers interested in getting more business should go on a public relations (PR) drive explaining what it is that they do. + +Unlike with content marketing, writers can shift their concern from digital marketing (hitting the right keywords) to messaging. + +Examples of activities that I would bracket into the PR category include: + + * Speaking about the kind of writing you do at marketing and writers’ conferences + * Engaging with the media through TV and radio appearances to discuss what you do + * Guest posting, which really circles back to content marketing (above). + +### Seek Out Referrals + +Word of mouth can be a very powerful way to build a writing business. + +If you want your existing clients to consider referring you on new business, consider: + + * Making every client know that you’re actively open to the idea of new business and appreciate referrals + * Asking them if there’s anybody in their network who they know is looking for a writer + * Asking for internal referrals: if your client is a medium to large organization, ask whether there might be other departments within the company that may need your services + +In my opinion, it’s automatically preferable to have prospective clients come to you rather than to have to source them yourself through time-consuming and expensive outbound marketing tactics like cold emailing and PPC advertising. + +Inbound runs while you sleep and can deliver a steady trickle of leads that can help to keep your pipeline — and book of business — well fleshed out. + +Consider some of the above ideas if you’re looking to get more clients to come to you rather than vice-versa. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to--Backup-Your-Web-Hosting--According-to-the-3-2-1-Principle-.md b/posts/medium/How-to--Backup-Your-Web-Hosting--According-to-the-3-2-1-Principle-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9c8fb60dc6474b45d0432c8f6ff0d4282633fc57 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to--Backup-Your-Web-Hosting--According-to-the-3-2-1-Principle-.md @@ -0,0 +1,73 @@ +# How to: Backup Your Web Hosting (According to the 3–2–1 Principle) + +In my writings about backups I have emphasized the importance of adhering to the 3–2–1 principle across all your data sources. + +That is: + + * Keeping **three** copies of any mission-critical data you hold (note: that means the extant copy plus _two_ backups). + * Keeping the **two** backup copies on different storage media. + * Ensuring that **one** of those copies is stored off-site. + +[**3-2-1: A Common-Sense Approach For Backing Up Ubuntu - And Keeping It In Good Order** + _If using Ubuntu, backups are a topic that you should give at least occasional thought to. I use Timeshift as my primary…_ linuxhint.com](https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/ "https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/")[](https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/) + +(You might notice a slight redundancy between the second two points — if one of your two backups has to be stored off-site then it’s going to be on different storage media than your first copy). + +I also pointed out that if you’re concerned about protecting your data then you really need to protect it _everywhere_ that it lives — ie, not just the data that lives on your local network. For your typical home computer user that might operate a website and some cloud applications that would includes things like: + +— Your web hosting account. The most complete way to back this up is to backup all the Cpanels it contains. + +— All data stored on SaaS services, in the cloud, that can be exported for backup (ideally automatically). It’s easiest to start with the big tranches ([G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83), [Office 365](https://medium.com/u/f3da972c633f)) and then work down to the smaller stuff (do you keep task lists on [Todoist](https://medium.com/u/9593ea611ff6)? Key accounting documentation in [Wave](https://medium.com/u/c9849a231778)? Ideally you’ll want to include all these services in your backup strategy too.) + +Remember that it’s safe to assume that any major SaaS player — and certainly monoliths like AWS — are already backing up your data with redundancy that you could only dream about. But that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t play it safe and keep a local copy too. It thankfully happens extraordinarily rarely, but[ even professionally managed web services](https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-lost-data-2011-4) _have_ lost user data. For the small cost of S3 storage and an external hard drive, this is a cheap insurance policy to hedge against that loss. + +In this post, I’ll demonstrate the steps needed to take a _full_(not incremental) backup of your Cpanel and how to get it into two cloud storage locations so that your hosting backup meets the 3–2–1 best practice. + +I suggest doing this twice a year and retaining two previous (full) backups. It isn’t beautiful. It isn’t particularly. But it works. And — in the unlikely event that your web host disintegrates into a sea of internet mush overnight — it might just save your sites. + +### 1: Generate a Full Backup In Cpanel + +Your exact Cpanel configuration will vary depending on who you’re hosting with. This is mine. My host offers JetBackup — which is excellent for rolling the whole Cpanel or parts of it to previous restore points. But for the purpose of keeping a copy of the whole Cpanel for backup purposes I prefer to use the native tool (called simply “Backup”). + +I take hosting backups with the idea that I might — one day — need to restore the sites, from scratch, on another web server operated by another host. For that reason, I need to capture everything I need to make my websites work. That includes: + + * Files + * MySQL databases + * Email addresses, forwarders, and DNS records + +The “full account backup” will capture all these components. + +Cpanel’s backup creator gives you the option to backup the Cpanel on the folder itself or to run a cross-internet backup over FTP or SCP. + +Because I’m copying my backup onto an external hard drive anyway I usually just download the backup and then upload to S3 over [DragonDisk](https://www.dragondisk.com/) or a CLI. + +### 2: Wait for the Email Notification + +Once Cpanel has finished packaging up your archive you will receive an email notification like this: + +### 3: Copy to Local Storage + +To create a local backup simply copy the file, packaged as a .tar.gz archive, over to your external hard drive — or on an internal drive on your computer. + +If you generated the backup files on your own server don’t forgot to delete the files when you have finished downloading them! + +### 4: Push to the Cloud + +If you’re using AWS to store your hosting backups on the cloud, then most of your backup archives are going to exceed the 5GB limit for what can be uploaded with one PUT operation. Therefore, a multipart uploading tool is required. + +If you’re using Linux Ubuntu the s3cmd CLI supports multipart uploads. + +Refer to the program documentation for how to initiate a multipart upload. Or you can use: + + + s3cmd -v put mybackup.tar.gz s3://mybackupbucket + +Because the command can take a long time to run, I suggest adding the verbosity operator (-v) so that you can keep abreast of what is happening. + +You may need to leave your computer running overnight. [You can use this upload time calculator](https://downloadtimecalculator.com/Upload-Time-Calculator.html) to compute how long the process should take. + +As can be seen above, after I initiated the ‘put’ command the multipart uploader has divided my archive into 423 files. + +And my upload time: + +The process might be long and a little tedious. But going through it twice a year is a great means of ensuring that keep safe copies of any websites and cloud data that you maintain. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to--Set-Up-Open-DNS-On-A-Partner-Router-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/How-to--Set-Up-Open-DNS-On-A-Partner-Router-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3362085066a3e6d523bc244391afc025f2bf0259 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to--Set-Up-Open-DNS-On-A-Partner-Router-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,108 @@ +# How to: Set Up Open DNS On A Partner Router in Israel + +OpenDNS (now a Cisco company) is an excellent service for consumers that can be used to provide [(free) web filtering.](https://signup.opendns.com/homefree/) + +Additionally, by changing the DNS settings on your router, _you_ — rather than your ISP — get to control what service you use to send DNS queries over. And sending queries to a DNS server is an essential action that anybody using the internet (unknowingly) engages in countless times every day. + +(Domain Name System / DNS translates the alphanumeric website identifiers that we are all familiar with as URLs into public IP addresses that we would stand little chance of being able to memorize). + +Using OpenDNS also: + + * Might make your internet slightly faster. + * Allows you to avail of built-in phishing and malware protection. + +I often see posts on Facebook groups in which mothers (or fathers) ask how to set up content filtering for their home. + +Although there is certainly no shortage of parental control tools on the market — many of which I have reviewed for freelance clients and been impressed by — a very robust home content filtering system can be set up for free simply by changing your router’s default DNS settings over to OpenDNS Home. + +Using OpenDNS at the router level — like a VPN — forces every device connecting through the Local Area Network( LAN), whether over Ethernet or WiFi, to send its DNS queries via OpenDNS on its journey, through your router, to the Wide Area Network (WAN) — which can be equated, for this purpose, with “the internet”. + +This means that every device connecting to internet over your router — irrespective of what operating system it is running or whether it is a laptop or a smart TV box — will be “protected” by the filtering and protection which OpenDNS’s DNS servers provide. + +This is therefore a nice solution if your children do not have mobile phones — or filtering for those devices is provided by their mobile network operator (MNO). Otherwise, the filtering can simply be circumvented by connecting over cellular. In this use case, device-level parental control solutions are the safer option. + +Conversely, if all you need to do is make sure that anything connected over WiFi/ethernet has filtering — then this should provide an easy and elegant fix. + +I am demonstrating how to configure OpenDNS [on the Arris TG1652S](https://www.partner.co.il/globalassets/documents/guides/-arris-tg1652s_il--a5_print.pdf) which, at the time of writing, is the WiFi router which [Partner](http://www.partner.co.il) is issuing to home users in Israel. + +If you’re not sure that this is what you have then see if it looks like this: + +### 1: Sign Up For Open DNS + +Step one: sign up for Open DNS Home + +You’ll obviously need to sign up for Home Free by Open DNS in order to begin using the service. + +To do so visit this URL and create an account: + + + +### 2: Add Your Home Network + +Next, you will want to add your home network to OpenDNS. + +We’re setting this up at the router level, so there’s no need to change the DNS servers in each computer’s network adapter settings unless you’re concerned that a child is going to be using a different accessible WiFi network, or the hotspot of an unfiltered phone, to circumvent the protection. (In which case you need to change the DNS settings on the computer and prevent them from being modified). + +Simply follow the system prompts to create a local area network to protect: + +In order to set up web content filtering, populate the dropdown under your network. + +This will take you to a page like this: + +Like any good web content filtering system you are able to filter content according to category — in which case any website that OpenDNS has categorized into a category will be blocked/allowed — and manually whitelist/blacklist URLs. + +While you’re there, it’s a good idea to make sure that you also have phishing and malware/botnet protection enabled for the network: + +You can even configure custom messages to display if somebody attempts to access a blocked category/website! + +If you need to change these settings then you can do so at any time, from anywhere with an internet connection, by logging in to OpenDNS home. You do not need to be on the home network to apply any filtering changes or whitelist or blacklist URLs. + +### 3: Log In To The Router + +The router which Partner installed for you runs a configuration server which you can log in to in order to make edits like changing DNS settings (or enabling port forwarding to run a publicly accessible web server from your home!). + +It is at: [192.168.0.1](http://192.168.0.1/) + +This local IP address should remain static — so you may as well add it to your bookmarks folder and give it a name so that you can easily call it up by typing, like ‘Partner router’. + +Adding a bookmark for the router in Google Chrome + +If you navigate to that URL in a browser you should get to this login screen. + +If you’ve never been to this page before then there’s a very good chance that your username and password are: + +`Username: admin` + +`Password: admin` + +Do I need to tell you that this is totally insecure? + +**If you don't change these, it is beyond simplistic for anybody within range of your WiFi network to log in to your router and do just about anything. So it's a very smart idea to change the password immediately after logging in.** + +After logging in, visit the LAN setup tab: + +Then, scroll down to the **DNS Override box**. + +Enable DNS override and enter the Open DNS servers as the primary and secondary DNS server IPs as follows: + +At the time of writing these are: + +`208.67. 222.222` + +`208.67. 220.220` + +Don’t forget to click the ‘apply’ button at the bottom of the page. + +You can now leave the router configuration server. + +### 4: Verify Everything is Routing + +Flush your browser and DNS cache. How to do this varies a little depending on what operating system you are using on the computer. + +Visit welcome.dns.com from your computer and any WiFi-connected device in your house. + +If you’ve set up everything correctly then you should see the following. + +Congratulations you are now enjoying free content filtering and faster internet for every device on your network! + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to--Use-Multcloud-For-Cross-Cloud-Backups.md b/posts/medium/How-to--Use-Multcloud-For-Cross-Cloud-Backups.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a1d64e512b231e47ed5ebc085cc0d5bd5c2ffe50 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to--Use-Multcloud-For-Cross-Cloud-Backups.md @@ -0,0 +1,74 @@ +# How to: Use Multcloud For Cross-Cloud Backups + +I’ve written a little bit about the importance of taking (3–2–1 compliant!) backups — whether you’re using [to back up your home computer ](https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/)or [your web hosting.](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle-37e993fb47ba) + +[**3-2-1: A Common-Sense Approach For Backing Up Ubuntu - And Keeping It In Good Order** + _If using Ubuntu, backups are a topic that you should give at least occasional thought to. I use Timeshift as my primary…_ linuxhint.com](https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/ "https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/")[](https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/) + +**Another important component of a comprehensive backup strategy is ensuring that all other data repositories which you maintain in the cloud are themselves backed up somewhere you can manage.** + +If you back them up to a reliable repository like AWS S3 then you’ve already fulfilled the offsite requirement of 3–2–1. And if you keep a copy of that repository on your local network then you’re all the way there. + +**Running backups cloud-to-cloud (between servers on the cloud) has a major advantage compared to pushing up local backups from your computer: you benefit from the far superior connection (and specifically the uplink) that a professionally managed data center has.** + +The actual speed of the transfer between cloud sources depends upon the protocol over which the transfer takes place (as well as a few other factors). But you can virtually remain assured that it will be faster than using your home connection. + +[MultCloud.com](https://medium.com/u/b01ad33b0430) is one of my favorite tools for this purpose. + +### Connecting Your Cloud + +Multcloud’s advantage for backup and data transfer purposes is that it can sync quite a wide variety of clouds — and use different sync methodologies to keep them running as you wish. + +**The platform supports common “consumer grade” cloud storage tools** such as: + + * Google Drive + * Mega + * [pCloud](https://medium.com/u/1e5b29a8cc6b) + * Box + +Additionally the tool can connect to: + + * [ownCloud](https://medium.com/u/5dfa1c5bfff1) — a self-hosted file hosting and collaboration suite + +You can also connect to: + + * AWS S3 + * Any FTP server (FTP and FTPS are supported) + +And: + + * Any WebDAV server + * Any MySQL server + +### Connecting and Syncing Clouds + +Multcloud can be used to run automatic scheduled syncs between, say, Google Drive and [pCloud](https://medium.com/u/1e5b29a8cc6b). + +Users can also specify which sync methodology they wish to use — or switch the source and target/destination to change the direction of the sync. A two way sync can also be configured. + +The syncing options include: + + * **Simple one way** source to target incremental sync + * **Mirror sync**(extra files in the target are deleted) + * **Move sync** full source to target sync + +The most important feature — for many users — is the scheduling tool. This allows the sync to run automatically on schedule. + +The sync can be configured to run: + + * Up to three times daily + * Weekly + * Monthly + +### Creating a Cloud Backup Job With Multcloud + +Multcloud can be used to automatically sync a cloud storage volume, like [pCloud](https://medium.com/u/1e5b29a8cc6b), with a backup bucket in S3. + +After connecting the clouds, users simply choose the source and destination. + +Set the job to run weekly: + +Select “Add Task and Transfer Now” to initiate the transfer and retain the scheduled job: + +By clicking on the job icon in the top right hand corner of the screen users can observe the job as it is running. When it is complete, the user receives a confirmation email: + diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to--set-up-virtual-number--call-and-SMS-routing-for---30-yr-.md b/posts/medium/How-to--set-up-virtual-number--call-and-SMS-routing-for---30-yr-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..959aed75546e861451e8af94d768eae4e2c5a232 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to--set-up-virtual-number--call-and-SMS-routing-for---30-yr-.md @@ -0,0 +1,76 @@ +# How to: set up“virtual number” call and SMS routing for ~$30/yr. + +### The Impetus: Getting Locked Out of Paypal + +If you use almost any online service, you’re probably already familiar with two factor authentication (2FA). + +Two factor authentication is an extra layer of security to web services that requires that the user enter an additional piece of information besides their username and password. Although most two factor logins now integrate tidily with Time-based One Time Password (TOTP) tools like Authy and [Google Authenticator](https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/1066447?co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid&hl=en), an obstinate few insist on sending their codes over SMS to the user’s cellphone. + +This state of affairs is very far from ideal and it is amazing that the list of providers that still use SMS for 2FA/MFA is both so long and illustrious. At the time of writing, this is Paypal’s default system, unless you buy a proprietary Symantec USB device (which some enterprising users [have apparently reverse-engineered](https://www.cyrozap.com/2014/09/29/reversing-the-symantec-vip-access-provisioning-protocol/)). And even if having to carry a piece of hardware to authenticate only one service tickles your fancy (it didn’t mine) the order link was broken when I tried to access it. + +**SMS**[**isn’t an ideal medium**](https://security.stackexchange.com/questions/11493/how-hard-is-it-to-intercept-sms-two-factor-authentication)**for delivering two factor authentication codes** and it’s fair to say that this was never an intended use-case. Assuming that it is at least encrypted (at the final stage, [this is often not the case](https://www.rokacom.com/are-text-messages-encrypted/), rendering the packets susceptible to sniffing), the SS7 set of telephony protocols has its own set of documented vulnerabilities. In a duel between the two methodologies, IP-based OTP authentication is the clear victor! + +More concerning to me than these technical details was the fact that I couldn’t answer any of the following questions with a better retort than “that would be a problem”: + + * What would happen if I were to **lose access to my personal cellphone number,** or indeed the **device itself?** + * What if I**forgot to renew a cellphone contract** , the carrier released it to another user, and the 2FA prompts irresponsibly contained some personally identifying information? + * What if I were to find myself abroad in a country where I **didn’t have a roaming plan** active, and had no immediate way to buy one, but urgently needed to log in to Paypal or online banking? + * Or what if I needed to receive a verification code in a **place without cellphone reception**? + +I have multiple ways to retain 2FA backup access to my G-Suite account, including a physical [Yubi key, which I carry on my keychain at virtually all times](https://www.yubico.com/) as well as a set of backup codes, which are easy enough to memorize. + +Those systems, which I can access wherever I can find a computer with internet, are usually enough to initiate an email-based password recovery process for practically _any_ login-based system on the internet. Relying on receiving time-limited SMS codes, by comparison, seemed like a massively vulnerable security method waiting to go wrong. + +And as I learned this week-indeed, it often is. + +A few days before writing this, completely out of the blue, I **stopped receiving authentication codes (and any SMS messages) from my**[**cellphone provider**](https://www.golantelecom.co.il/web/). Testing my two SIMs in another device and following other troubleshooting steps confirmed that the issue was likely carrier-side. And as both phone calls and data were working fine, I could safely assume that the issue wasn’t due to suddenly defective SIM cards. Although the texts did eventually begin to intermittently arrive, they only did so after a **five or six hour delay**. And as the upper limit on time-based 2FA codes is generally at around the ten minute mark, this rendered them completely useless. It was as quandary without a solution. + +More importantly, I suddenly found myself**unable to access my Paypal account and credit card** with all the attached implications (including not being able to discontinue a recurring subscription before the impending renewal date).**Paypal could not be convinced to deactivate the protection** despite my repeated attempts to explain the situation to them. I thought about creating a virtual number through which to route texts to my email (Paypal had agreed that the account number could be changed), but ironically found myself**unable to create virtual phone numbers accounts** without being able to verify a real cellphone contact number first. I was potentially**missing SMS package notifications from the postal service** which often arrive only once. Although I think of it as a legacy technology, losing access to SMS hurt more than I would have thought! + +Ultimately, after **going the best part of a week without receiving texts** and spending plenty of hours wasted talking with tech support people, my c **ellphone provider sorted out the problem**. A new SMS delivery center was having some teething problems, an APN update hadn’t been pushed out to all devices, and after re-provisioning my device on the network, I was back in action receiving messages as soon as they were sent. + +However the experience had left me completely convinced**that I needed to set up a backup system for receiving authentication codes** from providers that still insist on using text messages or automated phone calls for 2FA or to verify suspicious logins — something that had long lingered towards the back of my tech to-do list. The ideal solution firstly seemed obvious — simply rent a virtual number with an email relay and forward inbound SMS messages. But I soon realized that it wasn’t quite that simple. (I briefly thought about abandoning 2FA on Paypal, but would rather find a solution than be a victim of a [n attack such as this](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israelis-whatsapp-accounts-said-hacked-due-to-security-loophole/)). + +### The Problem with Using Commercial Virtual Number/SIP Trunking Providers For 2FA Verification Code Forwarding + +I soon discovered that what I was looking for was a bit of a gap in the market, as the below T&C from [Sonetel](http://www.sonetel.com) against using their virtual cellphones for verification purposes illustrates. + + * Programmatic SMS providers, which work by API, [abound](https://www.twilio.com/). But most [providers with a human-friendly UI](http://www.sonetel.com) that I contacted expressly **stated that they did not support passing along verification codes.** + * VOIP/SIP trunking provider that offered call and SMS relaying on virtual +972 cellphones had **pretty extensive identity verification processes** , and I couldn’t find reliable Trustpilot reviews about many of them. + * **Fraud is a big concern in the virtual number space.** This makes sense, given that they effectively allow you to spoof your location. + +Thankfully, I had some spare kit on hand to set this up for myself. + +I’m not claiming that it’s as ideal a solution as having a virtual number managed in a professional data center, and obviously **requires having a cellphone powered on 24/7** (which makes it not ideal for digital nomads without a home base). But it should do the trick for the time being, seems to route verification SMS messages more reliably than the several virtual number providers I trialed, and possibly also works out cheaper than using them in the long run. + +### Hardware, Software, and Other Resources + + * Just about the **cheapest 4G/LTE Android on the market:**[ the Doopro P4 Pro](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Doopro-P4-Pro-4-5-Inch-3200mAh-Mobile-Phones-MTK6737-Quad-Core-Android-7-0-1GB/32852584537.html?spm=2114.search0104.3.2.32c969a9XqFiIm&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_3_10065_10068_204_318_319_10059_10884_323_10887_100031_10696_450_320_10084_10083_10103_452_10618_535_534_10307_533_532_448_449,searchweb201603_45,ppcSwitch_0&algo_expid=55679ac9-0d38-4156-8571-8a7763196f03-0&algo_pvid=55679ac9-0d38-4156-8571-8a7763196f03) (at the time of writing: $49.91 on Aliexpress). I kept the battery in and also hooked it up to the mains over micro USB. It’s connected to a WiFi connection and both it and the router powering the connection are drawing power through a UPS (giving the cellphone two non-concurrent backup power reservoirs). A 3G handset would, of course, also have worked fine. But the UPS and cellular data provide some redundancy in the event of both WiFi and power outages. + * The **cheapest line subscription**[**that I could find**](https://www.we4g.co.il/en/information/about) (the device’s sole purpose is obviously to receive texts, route them to email, and receive calls and forward them to my personal cellphone). **The average monthly bill is about 10 NIS ($2.73)** as generally no data is used. In other geographies, it **may be cheaper to use a pre-paid plan** , work out the carrier’s automatic disconnection period (in my experience, usually independent from the time zero credit is reached), and then set a reminder to top up the credit right before that. + * [**SMS Forwarder**](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.yas.freeSmsForwarder)**** to copy all SMS messages to my email. + * **Teamviewer QuickSupport** in case I need to remotely make configuration changes + +### Some Finishing Touches + + * [A **microphone blocker**](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.frenzycoders.microphoneblockerantispyware) app to disable the microphone at the application level. + * Some black**masking tape** to physically block the device’s front and rear cameras. [A blocker app](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bettertomorrowapps.camerablockfree) as an additional precaution against malware camera activation. + * I configured the **call forwarding with the carrier,** but could also have usedfor the same purpose. + * [AutoResponder for WhatsApp](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=tkstudio.autoresponderforwa&hl=en) to let recipients know that their message hasn’t been read and to provide my email address (I could have foregone using WhatsApp on the line but figured it could be useful). + +The first year cost of this, including the handset purchase, is **$82.76** , falling to about **$32.76 per year thereafter.** I imagine that electricity costs are pretty minimal. And this process could be replicated just about anywhere on Earth. + +By comparison, Sonetel would have come in at around **$62.04** , but would have also involved a **per/minute charge on all calls routed through the virtual number** and may not have supported authentication codes for two factor authentication. + +Result: successful self-managed forwarding of 2FA codes and to email and calls to my cellphone. The system should work no matter where I am in the world! + +**First text success:** + +Successful mobile verification code from Twitter. Received over email from phone. [MySMS](https://www.mysms.com/) doing the forwarding on this particular message. + +First test call through Skype. Pulled through the intermediate handset to my actual phone in about ten seconds. (Modified desktop created with [Apex](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.anddoes.launcher&hl=en_US)). + +⮕ + +⮕ + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to--sort-of--disaster-proof-your-home-office.md b/posts/medium/How-to--sort-of--disaster-proof-your-home-office.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..18db1981ac0f4add860e4264088f3ada67cea85e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to--sort-of--disaster-proof-your-home-office.md @@ -0,0 +1,96 @@ +# How to (sort of) disaster-proof your home office + +Picture the scenario: + +You’re in the middle of an important draft for a client. + +Deep in ‘the zone’ and polishing off the final paragraph of an article you’ve been slaving over since breakfast. + +**And then: the lights go out (yes, literally!).** + +If you’ve ever been in this scenario, or have been there multiple times, then you know how frustrating things like even short power outages can be. + +Given the fact that [I stock an enormous grain pantry](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-massive-pantry-collection/), it shouldn’t come as a massive surprise to anybody to learn that I’ve also invested my fair share of time investigating whether there’s a way to make your home and home office immune from lighting strikes. (Answer: there _really_ isn’t — [look up lighting flashovers](https://stormhighway.com/powerarc.php) to understand why even the most elaborate surge protection system isn’t foolproof). + +However there are some things you _can_ do to _minimize_ the disruption to your workflow when dark thunderclouds loom on the horizon. + +Here are a few of them. + +### Keep A Backup Ready-to-Run Copy Of Your Hard Drive / SSD + +[I’ve written before](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-current-ubuntu-desktop-backup-strategy-e6ebcbe6592e) about how I ensure that my day-to-day desktop adheres to the [3–2–1 backup rule](https://www.nakivo.com/blog/3-2-1-backup-rule-efficient-data-protection-strategy/) for data protection. + +To adhere to the 3–2–1 rule you need to have: + + * At least **three copies** of your critical data (your “production” system plus two backups). + * The **two copies**(your backups) should be stored on different storage media. + * **One copy** stored offsite. In this case, that would be any physical location that isn’t your home office, such that if your home office is flooded, for instance, you’ll have some means of recovering your local data. (And I sincerely hope your home office never floods). However, nowadays, depending on whether you’re taking full or incremental backups, it usually makes more sense to store it somewhere on “the cloud” which, in reality, is a professionally managed data network with build in redundancy. + +Because I invest a lot of time in keeping my Ubuntu desktop in good working order, I stretch that a little further by keeping an _additional_ onsite backup that is not housed within my computer or connected to mains power (think lighting again; it’s an external SSD kept in a cabinet). + +And I use AWS S3 as my offsite source for the above reason. + +However, in the spirit of being truly disaster-proof, I want to be able to restore quickly and ideally within the same working day. + +The problem with my Clonezilla and Timeshift backups is that, in the event of unexpected primary disk failure, both would require purchasing and provisioning new storage media before I could get back up and running. + +Because HDDs are so cheap these days, I also keep a live copy of my OS on an HDD that I could quickly hook up to my motherboard in the event of disk failure get back up and working with only trivial downtime. I use [Clonezilla](http://clonezilla.org) to unpack an updated version of my production SSD once a year to ensure that that backup source is reasonably well-updated. + +**What this achieves:** + +If your SSD fails, you should be able to swap in a HDD and get back up and running within five minutes. You can get around to setting up a replacement SSD when you have time. Of course, to do this you need to know how to attach a hard drive to a motherboard. + +### Put Your Computer, Displays, Router, and A Light on a UPS + +Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPSs) are commonly used to provide a small reservoir of backup power in the event of power outages in order to allow users to safely power down systems without losing data. They also provide some passive surge protection as a side benefit. + +Unfortunately, unless you own a generator (why don’t I own a generator!?) this is really all you should expect them to do. + +In other words, don’t expect your UPS to provide enough power to allow you to “keep working” — and _do_ measure your average power draw and use an online calculator to predict your likely runtime. If you haven’t actually relied upon your UPS yet, you might be surprised at how short this time is. + +To really squeeze the most value out of your UPS you should also do the following: + + * **Put your router on a UPS.** To do this, I bought some long C13-C14 cabling and fitted a C14 to plug adapter on the end. I then plugged the router into that output. If your router is located right next to your workstation, then you’ll just need the plug adapter. + * **Put a lighting source on a UPS**. You _could_ hope to rely upon a battery powered/kinetic light in the event of a power outage. But if you’re going to disaster-proof your home office, I say you should do it in style. + +You should also: + + * **Buy the biggest UPS you can afford.** UPS capacity is measured in Volt Amps (VA). The bigger the capacity the longer it will run when it kicks in. Conversely, the more appliances you attach to it, and the more power they cumulatively draw, the more its runtime will be reduced. + +**What this achieves:** + +You should be able to keep working during an electricity outage, with your usual internet, for as long as your UPS will power your devices. If the power outrage is momentary, you might be able to keep working for its duration. If you’re _only_ powering the router from the UPS and using, say, a laptop, then you might actually be able to keep Ethernet/WiFi going for a reasonable amount of time. + +### Buy a 4G SIM Router + +If you’re in the midst of a major weather event, such as a storm, it is conceivable that you will loose home internet for a while. + +I can’t pretend to be an expert on these matters, but the reasons for this can range from copper wiring [being flooded](https://www.pilotfiber.com/blog/the-perfect-storm-how-weather-affects-the-internet) to part of your ISP’s infrastructure being physically disconnected by things like fallen trees. + +If your router loses power you will, of course, loose both Ethernet and WiFi. And remember that we can only really count on our UPS to keep things going for its runtime, which is unlikely to be more than 30 minutes. + +What happens after that? + +We could, of course, fire up a hotspot. + +But that would mean depleting our cellphone battery, which can be a critical conduit to the outside world during power outages. + +It’s also … well… just a little too conventional. + +An alternative solution is to add a backup router to your UPS — a 4G based router — and keep a Pay As You Go data-only SIM card inserted. + +Routers are fairly low consumption devices. After powering down your desktop, you can switch to a battery-powered device, like a laptop, to finish off your draft. Assuming your primary router is also hooked up, you should now have a redundant communications network to operate from without having to use your smartphone for a router. + +### It’s Not as Crazy as You Might Think + +If you live in a storm-prone area then the above mightn’t be anywhere near as much overkill as it might at first seem. + +Large enterprises invest significant resources in business continuity — and everybody from your ISP to your telecomms provider have invested in advanced systems to do their part in keeping you online whatever the weather. + +Remember that the only safe way to protect your equipment during lightning storms is to physically disconnect everything with a plug — including your UPS — from the wall. + +If you’re using Ethernet, make sure to pull out the RJ45 cable from the back of your computer too — as a surge can also travel directly to your PC over that network. + +Most experts also recommended waiting 15 to 20 minutes until after a storm has passed before reconnecting things to the wall. + +Apply the above tips to keep going whatever the weather has in store! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-Add-Custom-Keybindings-in-Openbox.md b/posts/medium/How-to-Add-Custom-Keybindings-in-Openbox.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..436267e5b619b9008cfde3ed86b431f477fe597a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-Add-Custom-Keybindings-in-Openbox.md @@ -0,0 +1,114 @@ +# How to Add Custom Keybindings in Openbox + +If you’re still running LXDE, or are using Openbox through some other lightweight desktop environment (DE) then you might be interested in creating custom keybindings to be able to do everything from shutting down the computer to opening your favorite Chrome app at the touch of a button. + +Fortunately, because Openbox, like LXDE, is a lightweight piece of software, creating these is not too complicated. Follow these steps to have your keyboard doing exactly what you want — just be careful not to overwrite keyboard shortcuts built into programs which you might use regularly! + +### Open the Openbox configuration file + +Firstly, navigate to the default Openbox configuration file. In both LXDE and Ubuntu this can be found within: + + + /home/$user/.config/openbox + +(Replacing $user with your username). + +If you’re using LXDE the file is lxde-rc.xml. In Lubuntu, the corresponding file is lubuntu-rc.xml. + +It’s best practice to take a backup of the file before making any chances. I typically just append the date as a suffix in DDMMYY format: + + + cp lxde-rc.xml lxde-rc-DDMMYY.xml + +You can then open the file in your IDE of choice. + +### Use xev to capture key identifiers + +Attaching keys to specific commands is as easy as looking up the key’s identifier. You can use the xev tool in order to do this. + +Xev will output the coordinates of your mouse movements and the identifiers of the keys that you type back into the terminal. Just make sure to type the keystrokes while the capture box is in focus: + +### Assign Keybindings + +After getting familiar with the layout of lxde.rc.xml you can begin adding in your own custom keybindings — or reassigning existing ones. + +Just pay attention to the tags as these will determine where the keybindings are allowed to run. + +But you can easily decipher the basic format: + + + + + sudo pm-suspend + + + +The above is a keybinding I have been using for years to make it easy for me to put my desktop into suspend rather than turning it off. It requires the pm-utils utility. But simply pressing the scroll lock key will automatically put my PC into the suspend state. + +The only other edit I had to create to make this work [was to disable wake from USB devices.](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/UbuntuModifications/wiki/To-enable-%22one-click-suspend%22-and-disable-wake-from-USB-devices) + +You can find the wake states of your various devices using: + + + cat /proc/acpi/wakeup + +After some experimentation I was then able to pass: + + + sudo sh -c “echo XHC > /proc/acpi/wakeup” + +If you like the thought of setting a suspend keybinding but are running into difficulty with your wireless mouse/keyboard waking the device without your intervention, you can find more information and details [on AskUbuntu](https://askubuntu.com/questions/252743/how-do-i-prevent-mouse-movement-from-waking-up-a-suspended-computer) and [here](http://www.das-werkstatt.com/forum/werkstatt/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=1985). + +### Sample edited default Openbox configuration file + +Lower (10%), raise (10%), and toggle mute using the bottom three buttons on the numeric keypad: + + + + + amixer -D pulse set Master 10%- + + + + + + + amixer -D pulse set Master 10%+ + + + + + + + amixer -D pulse set Master 1+ toggle + + + +I use the Pause Break key to call up a Chrome App shortcut that launches Brain.fm: + + + + + /opt/google/chrome/google-chrome — profile-directory=Default — app-id=dgksfs9fsfsfksf + + + +I use Flameshot for screenshots. I mapped the flameshot gui command onto the Print Screen key: + + + + + flameshot gui + + + +And of course I can suspend the computer directly using Scroll Lock. Just make sure to install pm-utils first: + + + + + sudo pm-suspend + + + +Here’s the snippet in full: diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-Backup-Gsuite-to-Backblaze-B2--Using-rclone---EC2-.md b/posts/medium/How-to-Backup-Gsuite-to-Backblaze-B2--Using-rclone---EC2-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..96bb25785c352a7f488cebd53da48b6a9b9efe2d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-Backup-Gsuite-to-Backblaze-B2--Using-rclone---EC2-.md @@ -0,0 +1,119 @@ +# How to Backup Gsuite to Backblaze B2 (Using rclone + EC2) + +In order to finish up my cloud backups last week, I wanted to move a copy of my [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83) storage to another cloud location. + +There was only one problem: + + * My full Google Takeout was about 50 GB in size. + * My residential internet connection has an average upload speed + +Putting those two numbers together things were not looking good. Putting those two numbers together yielded this result: + +Therefore, the only viable solution was to go cloud-to-cloud. + +Looking at the C2C backup space there are many interesting providers on the market like Skyvia, Datto, Multcloud, Barracuda and more — but finding a solution that would capture an entire Google Takeout (versus a [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83) export that focused only on key data like email) and then move it up to Backblaze B2 was proving an uphill struggle. + +So — putting together a few rudimentary tools — I decided to do things the DIY way. Here’s how. + +### 1\. Run a Google Takeout + +Firstly, run a Google Takeout to capture all your data from Google. + +My whole idea here was to have my whole [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83) user data in another cloud repository. So I chose to take out every service that I could. That added about 20 GB worth of YouTube videos. If you want to pull out a lighter archive, you can exclude services — but then, of course, it won’t be a complete backup. + +### 2\. Get Everything Ready on the B2 Side + +Of course, you should also have everything ready to go on your destination — which in this case is Backblaze B2. + +As I was backing up to Backblaze B2 I configured an access key for rclone on EC2 and a bucket. + +And creating the key: + +### 3\. Fire up an EC2 Instance With a Desktop Environment + +In AWS, you’ll want to create an instance that you can get a GUI / desktop environment with easily. + +I simply searched the Amazon Machine Image (AMI) library for ‘desktop’ + +This template running Amazon Linux is fine: + +**Make sure you select an instance type that’s going to have enough storage to hold your Takeouts after you download them and before you upload.** + +My Takeout came to about 50 GB so I went for an instance with 75 GB to leave a little bit of room for the operating system: + +Launch your instance. + +### 4\. Start the Server, Set up VNC Server and Rclone + +Go get a graphical user interface (GUI) so that we can just download our Takeouts from the Gsuite interface we need to install a GUI. + +Firstly, download the .pem key file and then SSH into the EC2 instance. + +As this machine already came with one installed, we simply need to run: + + + vncserver :1 + +in a terminal + +In order to start running the VNC server. + +After installing tinyvnc on the computer we are connecting from, and after copying the .pem file into a local directory we then need to run this command — replacing PEM_FILE with the location of our file of course we need to create an SSH connection to establish the VNC tunnel: + + + ssh -L 5901:localhost:5901 -i PEM_FILE ec2-user@INSTANCE_IP + +You should now be able to log in to a VNC view of your EC2 desktop: + +### 5\. Download Your Google Takeout + +Next, in your EC2 machine, download your Google Takeout. + +If we were simply moving over a Gdrive, we could do this totally cloud to cloud through rclone. In fact, we could run the backup far more conveniently from a local machine. + +But because we’re moving a Takeout up to B2 we need an actual web browser — hence the GUI and our choice of instance type. + +To do this navigate to the Google Takeout and select the export that you need: + +Download your files directly onto the EC2 instance: + +The instance should have a fast connection — almost certainly faster than what you have at home — so this shouldn’t take too long. + +While you’re doing that you might want to see how fast the line on your instance is. Here’s what I got: + +That’s almost 300 times the upload speed of my home connection! + +### 6\. Configure Rclone + +The rest is pretty straightforward. + +Install the rclone command line interface (CLI): + +That’s: + + + sudo yum install rclone + +Then start the configuration process by entering: + + + rclone config + +The CLI will guide through the installation steps. You simply need to select the storage type and input the access key you created in B2: + +Finally, it’s time to run the big command! + +With your Takeout archives in the folder you want them to be in you can simply run a sync to push them up to B2. If you’re pushing a large Takeout across the wire adding the verbosity (-v) operator is useful to assess progress. You can add up to three levels (-vvv) to increase the detail produced. + + + rclone -v sync takeouts/ B2:/yourbucket + +Sit back and observe: + +I moved about 50 GB of data up to the cloud in roughly 30 minutes — as opposed to the time estimate of almost 3 days (running 24/7) had I chosen to run it from my local area network. So cloud backups can definitely save time and frustration. + +Use the web UI to double check that the files have uploaded as expected: + +And that’s it! + +Follow these steps to back your [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83) Takeouts up to B2! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-Extract-Your-Data-From-Quora-and-Reddit.md b/posts/medium/How-to-Extract-Your-Data-From-Quora-and-Reddit.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..897a4941a81b019bb6eb807a3880f6835d7b3774 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-Extract-Your-Data-From-Quora-and-Reddit.md @@ -0,0 +1,68 @@ +# How to Extract Your Data From Quora and Reddit + +**Thank you, GDPR!** + +For years, I have been what you might call a backup fanatic. + +[I back up my operating system](https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/), my VMs, and [my hosting](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle/) — all regularly. + +This is all fairly easy and can be partially automated. But when it comes to smaller cloud services, I have to rely on manual methods. + +That’s things like [Todoist](https://medium.com/u/9593ea611ff6), cloud-hosted password managers, and everything that isn’t a big monolith with an easy export functionality like [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83). + +Two services had always proven troublesome in this respect, however: [Quora](https://medium.com/u/3853f85f7d5e) and Reddit. + +Yes, there are [GitHub](https://medium.com/u/8df3bf3c40ae)-hosted projects aplenty promising to scrape data from both ([like this project](https://github.com/scku/Quora-Crawler)) — but a native functionality is obviously always preferable — both technically and from a reliability perspective. And last time I checked none of the Quora scrapers worked. + +So … I’m pleased to report that after a little bit of digging I am pleased to have discovered a way to back up both services. + +Neither company provides convenient backup functionalities that the user can administer _themselves_ (as Facebook, [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6), Twitter, and LinkedIn all do). But what can I say — people begging for copies of their own data can’t be choosers. + +Without further a-do, here’s how: + +### 1\. How to Back Up Your Quora Data by Data Request + +(The UI appearance and screenshots are clearly only reliable as of the time of writing): + +To receive a backup archive of your Quora data you need to make a data request to the company. + +Under your username dropdown click on ‘Help’ + +In the help section landing page click on ‘Data Privacy, GDPR … and CCPA’ + +There’s an option here entitled, “Can I Get a Copy of my Data’. Click on it: + +Its URL is currently: + +Scroll down to the ‘Can I Get a Copy of My Data?’ + +Follow the instructions and within 72 hours, as stated, you will get your data by email. My archive came in a little over 24 hours. + +[Quora](https://medium.com/u/3853f85f7d5e) will give you two archives: data and content. Content contains your answers and images: + +The HTML file which the process outputs looks like this in a web browser: + +Of course, if keep the images in the same folder you will get the images as well where you have them in your answers: + +### 2\. How to Back Up Your Reddit Data by Data Request + +Like [Quora](https://medium.com/u/3853f85f7d5e), where to download your Reddit data isn’t that obvious at all. + +Again, the trail begins by checking out the help center rather than the account page. + +That advises you to go to this URL: + +[**reddit: the front page of the internet** + _Edit description_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/settings/data-request "https://www.reddit.com/settings/data-request")[](https://www.reddit.com/settings/data-request) + +I’ve obviously just done mine, but the page should look like this for you: + +Do as it says. + +Soon thereafter the/u/RedditDataRequests bot will message you to let you know that your data is ready for download: + +You will receive a nice Zip archive with everything from your comment and post history to your saved posts and statistics: + +The data is pretty well formatted. + +It’s not that hard. In both cases, I got my data back in just over 24 hours. Thank you to Reddit and [Quora](https://medium.com/u/3853f85f7d5e) (but particularly, Quora) for making this possible. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-Find-Free--And-Cheap--Books-For-Your-Kindle-E-Reader.md b/posts/medium/How-to-Find-Free--And-Cheap--Books-For-Your-Kindle-E-Reader.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b005f64f317390b6ede98e53bc49f740067dcf52 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-Find-Free--And-Cheap--Books-For-Your-Kindle-E-Reader.md @@ -0,0 +1,108 @@ +# How to Find Free (And Cheap) Books For Your Kindle E-Reader + +#### **Budget-Friendly Reading Galore is Just a Couple of Clicks Away!** + +People have found various interesting ways to fill the long days at home that the pandemic has thrust upon us. + +Some have willfully sunk into nightly Netflix-and-wine binges (confession — that was me during weeks one and two). + +Others are riding the home fitness trend and girating to aerobics classes delivered over Zoom. + +Me? + +After finishing just about every Netflix series that halfway interested me — and feeling like I could happily go forever without having another Zoom date — I finally dusted off my Kindle e-book reader which has been playing second fiddle to real books in my life more or less since I bought it. + +After finally discovering the joy of e-reading, I promptly blew through an Amazon Gift Card (or two) while loading up my device with some great non-fiction (I’m currently engrossed in [‘Broker, Trader, Lawyer, Spy’](https://www.amazon.com/Broker-Trader-Lawyer-Spy-Corporate-ebook/dp/B0035D9UQY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2T2F8CEAMO8IY&dchild=1&keywords=broker%2C+trader%2C+lawyer%2C+spy&qid=1589384872&sprefix=broker+lawyer+spy%2Caps%2C306&sr=8-1) — highly recommended if you want to to learn about the shadowy world of private intelligence). + +But because … well I guess just for the novelty factor … I also decided to play around with some Amazon searches to see if there were any great deals to be scooped up in the non-fiction department. + +Isn’t the whole point of having a Kindle that you can hold a bazillion books in the palm of your hand? + +If you’re looking for a bargain Kindle haul, here are some tips to find some great deals — and freebies — on Amazon. + +### 1\. Start in the Kindle Store + +Clearly, if you’re looking for Kindle freebies, there’s no point starting out looking at paperbacks and hardbacks that don’t have an ebook equivalent. You will find many that do, but it will be an unnecessarily frustrating process. + +So, the first thing you’ll want to do on your raid is limit results to the Kindle Store. + +You can do that by [visiting the Kindle Store link](https://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Store/b?ie=UTF8&node=133140011) or just running a blank search limited to ‘Kindle Store’ in the main Amazon menu. + +### 2\. Pick Your Niche + +Next, you will want to select a category of books that interests you by choosing a sub-category from the left sidebar: + +I’m a strictly non-fiction kind of guy, so I clicked on that button. + +Amazon will likely have designed an attractive landing page for that product subcategory designed to get you interested in top sellers within that niche. + +For example, here’s what I dug up in Kindle non-fiction: + +Now, most people will assume that you need to navigate further down the Amazon hierarchy — into a sub-sub-category — in order to access a listings page. That’s wrong. A level one subcategory is enough and will call up a list of results. (In fact, there’s nothing stopping you searching through the entire repository of Kindle books; other than the fact that if you filter on price you will encounter a _lot_ of erotic fiction!). + +Assuming you’re still interested in searching within a specific category just keep scrolling down: + +And down. + +### 3\. Filter on Price + +Eventually, you’ll get to the beginning of the listings section. It will tell you how many items are in the product category (in our case books from the Kindle Store in the Nonfiction category). + +If we change the default filter to “ _Sort by: Price: Low to High”_ then we will be presented with the entire catalog for that section from free products through to paid offerings. + +### 4\. Weed Out the Junk + +If you’ve gone through this exercise, here’s what you probably quickly discovered. + +**Most books that Amazon are selling _gratis_ are that way for a reason.** + +In other words,**there’s an awful lot of junk out there** — particularly as just about anybody and his grandmother can self-publish a book through Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). + +However, amidst a sea of garbage there are droplets of … amazing deals. + +Here are a few ways to find them: + +#### **1\. Look at the “to buy” price in small print** + +Unless Kindle Unlimited is available in your country (it isn’t in mine) then the price you’ll be paying is the _“Or X to buy”_ price in gray — not the Kindle Unlimited price displayed more prominently above it. + +If you’re looking for total freebies (as in products that cost $0.00) then you may have a tough time finding anything of quality at all. + +But if you are not that budget-constricted and are willing to be just a little more flexible (say, up to $5) you could scoop up some amazing deals on temporary promotion this way. + +#### 2\. Know What to Avoid + +Because there are so many junk e-books put out onto Amazon, you will need to keep an eye out for certain books that are unlikely to live up to your quality expectations — or those of anybody to be honest. So, keep an eye out for: + + * Cookbooks that simply contain recipes copy-and-pasted from Wikipedia (there are several publishers which “specialize” in wheeling these out!) + * Series books: as in “The X Series Book 1” + +There are some other criteria that I use: + + * **Initial list price:** As I said, there really _are_ plenty of amazing bargains to be had if you have enough patience to look for them. Take a look at what the book is selling for on paperback. You will occasionally find $20–30 books that are on temporary Kindle promotion. + + * **Page count:** If a book looks good enough to consider reading, I always, always check the page count. This is solely to filter out rubbish Wikipedia copy-and-paste operations that contain just enough pages to surpass KDP’s minimum page count of 24 (these tend to be pure gambits to lure in the gullible!). If you want to find books that really dive deep and provide value, I’d suggest sticking to books in the 100 pages + range. + +Beyond that my evaluation process is the same as for any other book I might be interested in: + + * **Am I interested in the subject matter?** This is … kind of vital! + * **What do the reviews say?** And do they look fake or “too good” to be true? Particularly within the realm of self-publishing — where writers need to vigorously promote their own work and _occasionally_ stoop to all means to do that — one needs to be careful and make sure that the reviews are, in fact, genuine. + * **Is the book self-published or has this been published through a reputable publishing house?**(I would never discount a book just because it was self-published, but sometimes it is helpful to know — as above!) + +It may take a bit (or a lot) of sifting. But if you persevere just a little (and are at least a bit flexible on budget) you can wind up finding some steals. + +Like: + + * [**The Science of Overcoming Procrastination**](https://www.amazon.com/Science-Overcoming-Procrastination-Disciplined-Productive-ebook/dp/B07CWW4ZH8/ref=sr_1_31?dchild=1&qid=1589390624&s=digital-text&sr=1-31) — a 238 page guide to using scientifically proved methods to break through barriers like inertia and “get things done”. (At the time of writing, and from where I am based, $0.00 Kindle price; print list price $13.99). + +The Science of Overcoming Procrastination. Author: Patrick King. [Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/Science-Overcoming-Procrastination-Disciplined-Productive-ebook/dp/B07CWW4ZH8/ref=sr_1_31?dchild=1&qid=1589390624&s=digital-text&sr=1-31). + +Some other finds from a reasonably quick perusal that looked interesting (to me): + +A free medical textbook. Recommended retail price (RRP): $41.59 + +Do you too want to supercharge your business during the downturn? If so, this might be worth leafing through: + +There are many, many more examples! + +Happy reading! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-Set-An-Hourly-Freelance-Rate.md b/posts/medium/How-to-Set-An-Hourly-Freelance-Rate.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bfba66b989135a1d42a3989e0f36bcc90c8fc96c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-Set-An-Hourly-Freelance-Rate.md @@ -0,0 +1,193 @@ +# How to Set An Hourly Freelance Rate + +Two months ago, [I provided some guidelines](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) for tackling one of the most difficult aspects of working as a freelance writer: setting your rate. + +Before I explain how I do that, let me provide a quick recap of the ground I covered in the first post. + +In that post, I looked at three common yardsticks for pricing freelance writing: + + * **Charging per word**. You can also think of this as pricing per “unit of text” + * **Charging per hour.** This is pricing per unit of time. + * **Charging per project.** This is pricing for a fixed set of deliverables + +And I mentioned, in passing, retainers. I kept those for the end because, when you think about it, these are really just recurring project rates. + +**See also:** + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +I explained why clients like project rates (they’re fixed line items on budgets and can thus be planned for). I explained that some freelancers love per-word rates, particularly those that are used to them from journalism (and for freelancers they’re ideal for disguising quick work). + +**And I explained why the essential thing — to make a stable and satisfactory income from freelancing — is to build all your project quotes around an hourly rate which meets (or exceeds) your target hourly.** + +This satisfies the client because it provides them with a fixed item for a fixed set of deliverables. And it satisfies you by ensuring that you earn enough money to keep going. + +It’s a win-win situation. + +Towards the end of that post, I promised to explain how to compute your target hourly rate in a follow-up. + +So here that post is. + +### 1: Determine Your Target (Gross) Monthly Income + +I live in Israel, where everything — including salaries — tends to be thought of in monthly terms. Of course, in most of the world, salaries are quoted annually. But to make the calculations a little bit easier, let’s stick to figuring things out using that yardstick. + +In order to flesh out your own hourly rate quoting table, **I suggest you set for yourself two (or even three) target salaries** : the salary you _need_ to make in order for freelancing to work financially for you and a stretch goal — say, what you’d _love_ to earn but can’t quite see it happening right now. If you want to pick three, you could add the midpoint between those figures also. + +For the purpose of this exercise (and to pick easy numbers) I’m going to set mine as: + +**Target monthly income (realistic)** : 15,000 NIS / month (that’s roughly $49,000 in USD at today’s exchange rate). + +**Target monthly income (stretch):** 20,000 NIS / month (that’s roughly $65,000 at today’s rate). + +**Target monthly income (midpoint):** 17,500 NIS / month (that’s roughly $57,230 at today’s rate). + +### 2: Calculate Your Monthly Expenses And Add These ‘Over The Top’ + +It’s far too easy to charge too little as a freelancer. + +**And one of the most common stumbling blocks is failing to adequately account for your expenses.** + +Back in high school, I remember learning in accounting about computing the Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) when putting together a Profit and Loss (P&L) account. + +If you run, say, a picture framing shop, it’s easy to remember that when you sell a frame it took the cost of the wood, the labor, and the glass to put it together (as well as the rent on your premises, the cost of your business insurance, etc, etc). In order to remain profitable, at a bare minimum, you need to charge your customer a figure that covers the cost of all those inputs. + +As freelance writers — and for most freelancers — we’re instead dealing primarily in intangible expenses. + +And “expenses” for this purpose are not synonymous with expenses for taxation and accounting purposes. + +So, even if the accounting regulations in your jurisdiction allows you to capture a percentage of your rent as a business expense (assuming you work from home), I do not suggest you work it into this number. + +**Rather, I instead suggest that you focus on the _recurring_ items that you invest in solely for the purpose of operating your business.** + +If you pay something annually, like web hosting, simply divide that figure by twelve to get the monthly cost. + +An average monthly expense budget for a freelance writer might therefore look something like this: + +**Example Monthly Expense Budget For A Freelance Writer** + +CRM — $35/month + +Web hosting — $15/month + +Hunter.io subscription — $50/month + +G Suite subscription - $7/month + +Calendly subscription — $10/month + +**Total — $117** + +My monthly expenses are quite a bit higher than that, but this is a good representation of the kind of things I spend money on as a freelance writer: Software as a Service (SaaS) overheads and technical subscriptions. + +### 3: Figure Out How Much Vacation You Need + +**A Word About Supply And Demand** + +Many freelancers leave stressful nine to five office jobs thinking that freelancing will be a comparative walk in the park. + +If only! + +Like any marketplace, freelance writing is governed according to the rule of supply and demand (and — coming back to economics — I would add that as a market it is quite elastic!). + +In other words, if you charge too little (below your required hourly rate) there’s a good chance you will find yourself inundated with low paying work (pro tip: there’s a correlation between how much people are willing to pay for a service and how much they respect it). + +But, because your hourly is too low, you might also need to have to work all the time in order to make a viable income. And you might have the added aggravation of working for clients who really don’t respect or value what you do. Not fun. + +If your required hourly rate puts you in the middle or the top of the market then there will be less demand for your services — but, paradoxically, if your hourly is on target you might well find yourself spending _less time_ working on higher paying, higher quality projects. + +**And Why Vacation Is Important** + +In light of the above, it’s important to control for a) working hours b) required vacation time and c) business development activity when calculating your target rate. So that you don’t wind up with so much low paying work that all you have time to do is churn out more low paying work. That’s a trap that it’s best to avoid. + +So from the outset, it’s important to work out how much vacation time you need to maintain (or obtain) a decent quality of life. + +In Israel, salaried workers enjoy a miserly minimum of 12 days paid vacation per year — [among the lowest in the world. ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_minimum_annual_leave_by_country)The majority of the world, and the European Union, has set a minimum of 20 days per year. Because Israel also doesn’t offer an over-abundance of public holidays, I’m going to set my annual vacation allowance as 24 days, or 2 days per calendar month, in order to try ensure that I enjoy what I consider to be reasonable time off. + +Your average month has 21 working days, so to reach my target daily rate I’m going to use this formula + +As you can see, I’m adding my business expenses over the top; I’ll explain why later. + +So let’s come back to our example. + +Let’s take the 15,000 NIS/month ($49,000/year) target income. That works out to $4,087/month at today’s rate. So let’s round up to $4,100. And let’s round the average monthly expenses up to $150 to choose a more realistic figure. + +So our target day rate comes out to $223/day. + +(Note: this isn’t our actual day rate. I’ll explain why later!) + +### 3: Set A Billable:Non-Billable Ratio + +If the above number looks like it’s about to cook up an awfully low hourly rate, despite our modest income target and very modest monthly expenses, then you would be right. + +**If we just divided that number by the average of hours we intend working per day that then that would be assuming that we do nothing but churn out billable work all of the time.** + +As has done no freelancer. Ever. + +In [“ _I’m A Freelance Writer, Here’s How I Spent Today”_](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/im-a-freelance-writer-here-s-how-i-spent-today-3861213cbc38) I tried to give a flavor of how much more there is to do as a freelance writer/graphic designer/developer than write/make graphics/write code. + +As freelancers, we’re often sole operators with many responsibilities. + +There’s the time we spend working. And then the time we spent working on things that we can’t bill our clients for. Cumulatively, these are our so-called “unbillable hours.” + +Think: + + * **Marketing activitie** s such as writing this Medium post. + * **Business development** and holding talks with prospective clients. + * **Admin work** for current clients. + * **Accounting** and **invoicing**. + * **IT matters** and website development. + +It’s quite common to forecast for a 75:25 billable:non-billable ratio. + +**Personally, I think that is too high and think that 50:50 is both more comfortable and realistic.** + +So to figure out what number to divide our target daily rate by to reach out target hourly by we need to work out the divisor by: + +And then: + +Or: + +So, let’s assume we want to work eight hours per day. + +At a 50:50 billable:non-billable ratio our divisor would be four. + +**And our target hourly, from our target daily rate of $223 would be $55.75/hour.** + +And how much would we _actually_ need to charge if somebody asked us to work for a day? + +**It’s easy to forget this, but you need to be covering for your non-billable all of the time — even when you’re fully booked.** + +Why? + +As a freelancer, you _always_ need time for business and pipeline development. A project could take up every moment of your time for months but then dry up. Even if you’re fully engaged, the time you will need to spend on future (unbillable) business development needs to be compensated unless you want to have loss-leading dry patches. (Note: if you _do_ find that you’re consistently filling up a higher percentage of your day with billable hours, and want to offer your client the best possible rate, then by all means adjust the billable:non-billable ratio upwards). + +So, in light of the above, I would quote a day rate for an 8 hour workday at 8 x 55.75 = $447. + +Want a direct formula for actual day rates that skips working back from the hourly? + +### Notes + +While it might seem obvious, this needs to be pointed out. + +You will only make your target annual income from your target hourly rate if: + +a) **You have enough clients and work to fill up your billable:non-billable ratio.** If you’re working off 50:50 then you’ll need to be working on billable work for roughly half your work day every work-week, give or take. If you only have one client, for instance, and bill them for two hours work each day at $50/hour, you will only make $100/day or roughly $21,000/year. + +b**) You are able to correctly estimate how many hours each project will take you.** If projects scope screep, you might find that your target hourly has been eroded. As I pointed out in my earlier post,[ this is the pitfall of project rates](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a). This is also why I think a 50:50 billable:non-billable ratio is safer. You have some added buffer time to properly scope out projects, quote them appropriately, and get and keep enough clients to ensure that you have enough work to meet a). + +This also doesn’t account for: + + * Public holidays (I’ve subsumed that into the general vacation allowance); + * Sick days (you might want to add an extra half day per month into the calculation for that). + +I’ve tried to work out an hourly rate which should put myself in roughly the same position as a salaried employee. + +Salaried employees don’t have business expenses as payslip deductions — so I’ve added those over the top. + +But obviously the hourly rate you will end up with will only be enough to get you to the equivalent **gross** salary — before tax, social security, and any other contributions you might be liable for as a freelancer. + +Use the above formula to work out your target hourly rate. + +And good luck quoting! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-Set-Up-On-GreenInvoice-co-il--Freelance-Platform-in-Israel-.md b/posts/medium/How-to-Set-Up-On-GreenInvoice-co-il--Freelance-Platform-in-Israel-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b08dbc56764c2d468673e7e65af0ecfba33557ef --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-Set-Up-On-GreenInvoice-co-il--Freelance-Platform-in-Israel-.md @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +# How to Set Up On GreenInvoice.co.il (Freelance Platform in Israel) + +Green Invoice: one of the most popular invoicing tools for Israel-based freelancers and small businesses + +In honor of this strange _Yom Atsmaut_ (Israeli Independence Day) I recorded a screencast demonstrating how to set up a new business account on GreenInvoice.co.il. + +Small businesses in Israel need to use one of the official Mas Hachanasa (Tax Authority) approved platforms if they want to handle bookkeeping online. And after trying a few, I decided that Green Invoice was my favorite! + +In this screencast I covered the basic functionalities that those setting up on Green Invoice might need to know about including: + + * Registering a new account + * Editing account settings + * Creating a customer + * Creating a quote + * Creating an invoice + * Creating a receipt + * Exporting a backup of documents + +I recommend that all freelancers use a professional accountant for their book-keeping needs, although I hope that my video (the first explanation of Green Invoice in English, as far as I am aware) might prove of use to somebody setting up on the platform. + +Good luck! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-Spot--Phishing-by-LinkedIn-Message.md b/posts/medium/How-to-Spot--Phishing-by-LinkedIn-Message.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ef1ff18603669e9d34e23869b131e0dc641f0a69 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-Spot--Phishing-by-LinkedIn-Message.md @@ -0,0 +1,115 @@ +# How to Spot: Phishing by LinkedIn Message + +Just a few days after been [falsely accused by my former web host](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-entire-web-hosting-is-being-cancelled-by-host4geeks/) of operating a phishing scam (the accusation still burns!) I received a LinkedIn message from a literary agent connection that piqued my interest. + +Something about the message felt a little in-genuine, _however_ a literary agent reaching out to a writer in this manner wouldn’t be unheard of (although this may be pure happenstance and whoever devised the attack just hit lucky with a credible background). + +So I decided to check out the OneDrive share. + +Here are some things I did to investigate the suspicious share and correctly determine that it was a phishing attempt. + +### 1: Check the URL Structure + +** _If you’re dubious that something you’ve received in this manner might be a phishing scam, the first place you should check is the URL bar._** + +In this case, the link was to a genuine OneDrive share. + +**Note that, in Google Chrome, the padlock symbol to the left of the URL is marked as secure** , indicating that the connection to the website is encrypted and secured by a valid Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificate. + +### 2: Check the SSL Certificate + +Both the fact that the connection has an SSL certificate and the issuing authority are important pieces of information: discrepancies (the phishing attempt uses a self-signed certificate and the operator issues under its own name) can be valuable clues that something is amiss. + +Let’s take a look at the SSL issuer certificate so that we can compare and contrast anything that changes: + +As I would have expected, the SSL certificate on OneDrive.com, where legitimate OneDrive shares are hosted, is issued by Microsoft Corporation. + +### 3: Watch Out For Dodgy Graphics + +Here’s where things got a bit phishy (get it)? + +There’s no reason why the sender couldn’t have simply sent an open access link. Instead, this looks like a OneDrive link to another OneDrive folder. + +But look at the image that’s embedded. + +As a company with more than $125 billion in annual revenue, Microsoft are not lacking the budget to hire a graphic design team — **so the pixellated image immediately drew my suspicion.** + +Next, read the copy it contains: + +> _“You have a new secure message_** _for your perusal_** _from X”._ + +There’s no way that a staid corporate like Microsoft would use such jocular phrasing as _“for your perusal_ “ in their standard OneDrive share template notification. + +Besides comparing how this link looked with a OneDrive share link which we know to be valid, we could also run an exact string search on Google to check if this suspicious line of copy has been reported as malware anywhere else on the internet. + +### 4: Run Searches On Suspicious UI Copy + +The one match here is from Hybrid Analysis, a free malware analysis service. Evidently, somebody has submitted this message for analysis: + +When we click the “View Message Folder” button, we are then taken to another login. + +### 5: Watch Out For Phishing URLs! + +This brings us to a pretty typical phishing landing page. + +Notice two things from the Omnibox: + +a) We’re now on an external website. Although conceivably, this could be achieved legitimately by the operator adding a `CNAME` DNS record if OneDrive allowed white-labeling a store site (I don't believe that they do). + +b) The SSL certificate has vanished. + +c) It’s no longer a Microsoft-issued certificate: + +If we look into the issuing authority, we see that it’s certificates are being hocked on a website called _cheapsslsecurity.com_. + +Again, I think that Microsoft have enough money to be throwing around not to have to deal with such a disreputable-sounding operator. + +### 6: Always Use Throwaway Login Credentials + +If you want to be brave and explore further, **_under no circumstances provide your actual login credentials to a website that appears to be a phishing scam_!** + +Doing so is _all_ that is required to pass on your login details to the operator. Then, you’re effectively done for and your Gmail username and password could easily wind up on a dark web marketplace. + +For the purpose of verifying that this was indeed a scam (at this stage I was 99% sure), I set up a throwaway @outlook.com address just so that I could safely get through the login credential to access the “share”. + +Here there were some further discrepancies: + +If you pay close attention to the phishing login dialogs and actual ones you can often notice subtle differences. + +### Watch Out For Subtle UI Discrepancies + +This is the phishing login for Google that the page linked to after I chose to log in through a Google account: + +And this is an actual Google login that I just accessed and screenshotted to get to my GSuite email: + +Notice any differences? + +a) **Google’s current UI only prompts for username first and then password** , not both at the same time. + +b) **The genuine Google login doesn’t feature the footer text “One Google Account for everything Google”** + +c) There are other obvious differences. + +Like many phishing attempts, this is a bad forgery. + +I logged in using my @outlook.com burner account and was greeted by an empty screen. + +The URL had also reverted to live.com so, after capturing the credentials, the phishing operator had presumably wanted the user to give up. + +### 7: Check the WHOIS + +If you’ve determined beyond reasonable doubt that the domain is part of a phishing scam, it might be worth running a WHOIS lookup to see if you can alert the registrar and get the site pulled before vulnerable users hand over their actual login credentials. + +This domain had been in operation for just 12 days and the nameservers detected indicate that it was being hosted on NameCheap. + +In this case, as a good deed for the day, I will alert NameCheapHosting to the fact that their services are being used to host a phishing site. + +I contacted the account owner and my suspicions were confirmed: + +### Lessons Learned + +a) Be suspicious of any drive shares from strangers! + +b) Always check the URL and SSL cert to differentiate between a genuine website and a phishing one. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-Work-With-The-World---From-Israel.md b/posts/medium/How-to-Work-With-The-World---From-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3fe572a85000e7eae7a40dfe9402a5f11a6340e0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-Work-With-The-World---From-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,225 @@ +# How to Work With The World — From Israel + +#### At the crossroads of Africa, Asia, and Europe, Israel is uniquely positioned on the geopolitical map. + +So much so, in fact, that ancient cartographers depicted its capital Jerusalem as being — literally — at the center of the world. + +This might be of little consolation when your client on the East Coast asks for an early morning catch-up call (09:00 in San Francisco = 19:00 in Tel Aviv). + +But being based in Israel _does_ provide freelancers with the ability to work with clients far beyond the boundaries of Silicon Wadi. + +People sometimes put up obstacles for themselves to doing business with the world that — in today’s world — needn’t exist. + +Payment? + +Services like Transferwise, [Payoneer](https://medium.com/u/1ca9467ec0ed), and Paypal make it simplistic to accept transfers from clients wherever they are located. + +One of my all-time favorite online services, [TransferWise](https://medium.com/u/d72d29da585f) lets you create virtual ‘local’ bank accounts so that you can give US-based clients ACH details just as if you were physically based in the United States (local virtual bank accounts are only available in several countries, but the list includes Europe, the UK, Canada, and Australia). + +The next question, of course, is figuring out the time zone differences. + +After a few years of working with international clients — and many hours spent thinking about time zone differences and figuring out overlaps — here’s a quick run through of how it works out. + +### My Israel-World Time Zone Overlay Chart + +And the source data: + +Firstly, some basics. + +**For most of the year, Israel is on Israel Standard Time (IST), which is Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)+2.** + +And from (roughly) spring through to fall, Israel shifts to Israel Daylight Time (IDT) which is UTC+3. + +Although time zone offsets with _other_ time zones obviously fluctuate slightly depending on when _those_ time zones are on daylight savings —which depends on what hemisphere the country is in — the chart above should give a good feel for which time zones it is practical to work with in Israel. + +If you’d like the data in spreadsheet format, [please reach out](http://www.danielrosehill.co.il). + +Far from being an academic exercise, plotting out when Opening of Business (OOB) and Close of Business (COB) occurred, in Israel, in major world capitals proved to be quite a useful exercise. + +Here’s a run-through of what’s doable, what’s sort of, and what’s not. + +### Time Zones Without Overlapping Business Hours + +New Zealand: beautiful scenery; ugly time zone to try work with from Israel + +Thinking about working with a client in Auckland, New Zealand? + +New Zealand is currently on New Zealand Daylight Time (NZDT) which is UTC+13. + +This means that: + + * 09:00 in Aukland is 22:00 in Tel Aviv. + * 17:-00 in Aukland is 06:00 in Tel Aviv. + +Thus, office hours do not intersect at all. + +And if you want to work with a client based in New Zealand that needs same day responses, you’re going to have to start working night shifts and stocking up on midnight snacks. + +### Working with PST / The West Coast + +Many Israeli businesses have to work around business hours on the West Coast + +A much more common time zone for Israeli businesses to have to plan around is that on the West Coast of the USA —correctly termed Pacific Standard Time (PST) in the winter and Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) during daylight saving’s. + +**Lots of Israeli companies are based in Silicon Valley — and many have teams both in San Francisco and Tel Aviv.** + +While not quite as bad as the almost impossible New Zealand differential, working with PST/PTD from Israel can still be rather unkind on one’s circadian rhythm — and social diary. + +Unlike New Zealand, California is also in the Northern hemisphere — and therefore is also on winter time. + +**Pacific Standard Time is currently UTC-8, while Israel is UTC+2, so the difference is 10 hours.** + +Therefore, at the moment: + + * 09:00 in San Francisco is 19:00 in Tel Aviv + * 17:00 in San Francisco is 03:00 in Tel Aviv + +Even if you want to hold calls up to midnight Israeli time, that will only take you to 14:00 in California. + +As any Israel-based support rep dealing with clients on the West Coast will tell you: it’s a tricky one. + +**How To Work With PST And Retain Your Sanity** + +A few weeks ago, I was holding near nightly calls with the West Coast, near morning-ly calls with Israeli ones, and feeling like I was teetering on the edge of a nervous breakdown as a result. + +Knowing that she has spent years working between Israel and her native California, I asked my former boss, [Sivan Sidney Cohen P.E.](https://www.linkedin.com/in/sivan-sidney-cohen/), Founder of [Noria Water Technologies](https://www.noriawatertech.com/), for some pointers. + +Sivan’s tips: + + * **If you don’t have a specific reason to target the West Coast, you might find Europe / the East Coast more manageable.** + * **Limit your calls with the West Coast to two evening per week at most.** Sivan suggested Tuesdays and Wednesdays as people aren’t fond of conducting business development calls on Mondays and I’m fond of not spending the equivalent of my Friday night working (Israel runs on a Sunday-Thursday workweek). + * If you’re on call with the West Coast, cut your usual workday a little short, take a rest (or go to the gym) and _then_ begin your calls. + * **Don’t let clients to push back your meetings to times that aren’t manageable for you.** Set yourself a firm limit (stopping at 22:00 to 22:30 IST) and stick to it. + +### Working with Other US Time Zones (and Canada) + +NYC, on EST, is easier to work with for Israeli companies + +Obviously, the further East you travel from the West Coast of North America the smaller the time differential with Israel becomes. + +Discounting Alaska and Hawaii, the other major time zones you’re likely to come across are Mountain Time (UTC-7), Central Time (UTC-6), and Eastern Time (UTC-5). + +The UTC offsets, again, are applicable only at the time of writing. Daylight saving time in Israel, the US and the rest of the world is not coordinated. So for a few weeks of the year, the difference will be reduced by one hour. + +But currently and for most of the year: + + * **09:00 in New York is 16:00 in Tel Aviv.** + * **And 17:00 is midnight (00:00).** + +As Israeli offices tend to work to a 09:00 to 18:00 working day, this means that there are a couple of hours overlap with the East Coast which can be worked without having to get on late night calls. + +Canada has six time zones. + +You’re probably unlikely to be working with a client in Gander (Newfoundland Standard Time, UTC -3.5). + +Halifax, and Novia Scotia, is on UTC-4. + +### Working With Europe + +Time zone map of Europe + +By comparison to the US, working with Europe is relatively straightforward for Israeli companies. + +Ireland, the UK, and Portugal are the three countries on UTC — so the time difference is two hours. (Time zones can get a little confusing. If you want to know the difference between UTC and GMT [read this](https://www.timeanddate.com/time/gmt-utc-time.html); but, in a nutshell, when GMT-keeping countries move to daylight savings time they are on UTC+1). + +Central Europe is on Central European Time (CET) — which is UTC+1 during the _winter_ , creating a one hour time difference with Israel. + +[Eastern European Time (EET)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_European_Time) (the area in purple above) has no time difference — and that’s the time zone that Bulgaria, Greece, Estonia, Finland, and most of the Middle East is on. + +This is convenient for Israeli companies because there’s been a huge trend in recent years to outsource software development to some of these countries, particularly Bulgaria and the Ukraine. + +Parts of Africa, most notably South Africa, are also on this time. + +### Working With Asia / The Far East + +Of course these days Israeli businesses are looking Eastward almost as much as they are looking to the West — seeking to do business with established Asian superpowers as well, more quietly, with countries such as the Gulf States that are discretely shoring up bilateral trade ties. + +To give a quick run-through: + + * Russia has a mind-boggling 11 time zones. But most significantly **its capital, Moscow, is one hour ahead of Israel.** + * **Dubai (United Arab Emirates / UAE) is 2 hours ahead of Israel.** + * **India** , despite being a subcontinent, only has one time zone: India Standard Time (IST — we share an acronym!). **It’s at UTC+5.5, which means that they’re** three and a half hours ahead of Israel. + * **China likewise is on a single time zone:** UTC+8. This places them six hours ahead of Israel. **Hong Kong SAR** is on the same time — as is Singapore. + * Japan is on UTC+9. + +### Working With Australasia / Down Under + +Let’s break down China, Hong Kong SAR and Singapore — because of their significance and the fact that they’re all on UTC+8. + + * 09:00 in Beijing is 03:00 in Tel Aviv + * 17:00 in Beijing is 11:00 in Tel Aviv + +This means, of course, that Israeli businesses can begin their day early to overlap by a few hours with the Far East. + +And finally — coming back to where we all started (or thereabouts): + +Australia has three major time zones: + + * **Western:** UTC+8 (same as China) + * **Central:** UTC +9.5 + * **Eastern:** UTC +10 (southern hemisphere winter), UTC+11 (southern hemisphere summer). + +It’s usually easier to remember this by notable cities. So: + +Melbourne is currently on UTC+11 (they’re on summer-time!). Which means: + + * 09:00 in Melbourne is 00:00 in Tel Aviv. + * 17:00 in Melbourne is 08:00 in Tel Aviv. + +So if you’re at your desk early you can catch somebody at the end of their workday just before you get into yours. + +### There’s Always Somewhere To Work With! + +If you’re a workaholic, then I don’t recommend working out a time zone map like this. Because if you do you will realize that in today’s always-connected world there is (literally) always somewhere to work with (at least in the Anglophone world). + +Here’s roughly how to do it: + +### **09:00–13:00 / morning in Tel Aviv** + +Early-birds can overlap with the Far East. 17:00 in China is not until 11:00 in Israel. Conceivably, a work day could begin at 07:00 in Tel Aviv — which would be just 13:00 in Shanghai. + +Most of Europe is working too during this time period. Although Ireland, the UK, and Portugal only get going officially at 11:00 IST, which is 09:00 UTC/GMT. + +### **13:00–18:00 / afternoon and evening in Tel Aviv** + +All of Europe is open during the afternoon. + +The East Coast opens at 16:00. + +US States on Central Standard Time (CST) open at 17:00, those on Mountain Standard Time (MST) open at 18:00, and finally the West Coast (PST) gets going at 19:00. + +**States on EST include** : Florida, Georgia, New York, Washington DC. + +**States on CST include:** Texas, Kansas. + +**States on PST include:** California, Washington. + +### 18:00–00:00 / night-time in Tel Aviv + +The fun is just getting started. + +Pacific Standard Time (PST) will be open until 03:00 AM in Tel Aviv. + +At 00:00 major Australian cities are online. + +### 00:00–08:00 / early morning in Tel Aviv + +China, Hong Kong, and Singapore, will come online at 03:00. + +India starts at 05:30. (Yes, you read that right. And no, that it no sense geographically.) + +### There’s No Reason Not To Think Global + +Of course, I don’t advocate trying to work at every hour of the day. + +But I hope, at the least, that I have shown that time zone differences are _not_ an impediment to doing global business from Israel. + +This goes for just about any country, of course. + +If you need to work on roughly the same schedule, then Australasia is, indeed, pretty tricky. + +The West Coast is much more common — and it’s not easy. + +Europe is an easy time difference to manage. And early risers can can overlap with the Far East. + +Wherever you and your clients are based — it can’t hurt to think global! diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-backup-your-articles-from-Medium---and-one-thing-you-should-know-.md b/posts/medium/How-to-backup-your-articles-from-Medium---and-one-thing-you-should-know-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..547c33c518fde375293578c0fa9144ef8b135cee --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-backup-your-articles-from-Medium---and-one-thing-you-should-know-.md @@ -0,0 +1,83 @@ +# How to backup your articles from Medium — and one thing you should know! + +I’ve been using [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) as a hosted blogging platform for the best part of 2 years now. + +Compared to blogging on my own website, I _love_ the speed and fluidity of the Medium UI. It’s why, at the time of writing, I’ve used it to author more than 250 stories. + +[**My Approach To Backing Up My Online Writing** + _I have written a lot about backups in recent months . So much so that I reckon that there is probably an entire book’s…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521) + +[**My (Ultimate!) Ubuntu Backup Strategy** + _What I’ve Been Using To Keep My Desktop Safe From Accidental Deletion, Disk Failure, and Other Forms of Destruction_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78) + +Unfortunately, just because a platform is cloud-hosted doesn’t mean that it’s totally secure. + +Furthermore, **cloud does not equal backup**. + +The cloud is just somebody else’s computer — or a network of them. Sure, your cloud provider probably hosts on a platform with built-in redundancy, has a team of SysAdmins on hand to keep things in order, and does other nice things to keep your data safe, but remember this: **their disaster recovery (DR) plan is not your one!** + +For this reason, it’s prudent to add your SaaS data to the pool of data that you protect in your backup plan. + +How do you keep your Medium.com articles backed up in a 3–2–1 compliant fashion? Periodically download them from Medium, store them locally, and then mirror them to another cloud (Google Drive could work). Alternatively, draft them locally (or in Google Docs), take one local copy, and then post them to Medium. + +### How To Export Your Articles From Medium + + _Disclaimer: all information accurate only at the time of writing this post._ + +Under account settings, click on the ‘Download zip’ button to the right of ‘Download your information’ + +Click ‘export’ when you get to this page: + +Make yourself a cup of tea. Or find some other way to occupy yourself for a few minutes. + +You will receive an email like this from Medium: + +That will download a zip archive: + +### The Catch When It Comes To Medium ‘Backups’ + +Before taking a cursory glance at a Zip archive and saying “looks good enough for me” I always recommend inspecting the data you received from the cloud provider. + +Let’s inflate the archive and take a look at what’s inside: + +Here’s what the one I just took contained: + +Notice what’s missing? + +Whenever I create content on Medium, I tend to upload images. I just uploaded the above screenshot. Where did it wind up? + +Answer: the Medium CDN (this links to the above screenshot). + +Sure, I can manually save the image by downloading it. But who has time to manually download every single image they upload to Medium? + +The /posts folder contains HTML file versions of all the posts I have uploaded to Medium: + +But if we inspect the markup we can see that the HTML exports — as we might expect — just link to the original images in Medium’s CDN: + +If you’re more technically savvy then I then you could probably figure out a way to programatically poll through the HTML and package up a backup archive with all the images. I just draft elsewhere and then accept that my Medium backup only backs up the text of what I draft and not the images. + +([Medium Staff](https://medium.com/u/a32c340ea342) — please consider this a feature request!) + +What else is in there: + + * **/blocks** contains a list of Medium users you have blocked, if any + * **/bookmarks** contains your bookmarks + * /**claps** contains two HTML files. One for claps you’ve given and the other for claps you’ve received + * **/highlights** contains your highlights + * **/interests** contains four HTML files with publications you’re following, tags you’re following, topics you’re following, and other Medium writers you’re following + * **/ips** contains an IP log + * **/partner-program** contains your posts in the Medium Partner Program + * /**posts** is probably the most useful part of the archive from a backup perspective. It contains your posts as HTML. + * **/profile** contains your profile info + * **/pubs-following** is the publications you’re following + * **/topics-following** is the topics you’re following + * **/sessions** is your login sessions + * **/twitter** has your suggested friends if you’ve connected your Medium and Twitter accounts + * **/users-following** contains the users that you’re following + +**Sample parts of the archive as viewed in a web browser:** + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-create-a-fake-online-identity.md b/posts/medium/How-to-create-a-fake-online-identity.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c0daf504a842c99421b76bc8d6074f1cd228189c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-create-a-fake-online-identity.md @@ -0,0 +1,187 @@ +# How to create a fake online identity + +#### And what you should do to avoid interacting with one + + _This post should not be construed as endorsing illegal activities or terms of service violations or any other dubious activities…_ + +Fake identities are fascinating. + +In the pitched battle between real news and fake news it’s getting easier and easier for misinformation to make it into the mainstream. + +Simultaneously, artificial intelligence (AI) is making it easier for nefarious actors to make convincing online entities that mimic real people (H/T for the Unreal Engine to a friend.) + +[**A sneak peek at MetaHuman Creator: high-fidelity digital humans made easy** + _Create unique, convincing digital humans, complete with hair and clothing, in minutes._ www.unrealengine.com](https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US/blog/a-sneak-peek-at-metahuman-creator-high-fidelity-digital-humans-made-easy "https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US/blog/a-sneak-peek-at-metahuman-creator-high-fidelity-digital-humans-made-easy")[](https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US/blog/a-sneak-peek-at-metahuman-creator-high-fidelity-digital-humans-made-easy) + +[**What are deepfakes - and how can you spot them?** +_Have you seen Barack Obama call Donald Trump a "complete dipshit", or Mark Zuckerberg brag about having "total control…_ www.theguardian.com](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/jan/13/what-are-deepfakes-and-how-can-you-spot-them "https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/jan/13/what-are-deepfakes-and-how-can-you-spot-them")[](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/jan/13/what-are-deepfakes-and-how-can-you-spot-them) + +At the leading edge, technologists are devising ways to twist and contort real people to make them say things they never said and appear in places they never were. These “humans” can be completely digitally generated. + +At the more mundane and less technologically flabbergasting edge of things, it’s become quite easy for all sorts of individuals to hack together a quick online identity for a variety of purposes. + +How does one go about creating a fake online identity? Why might one want to? And what does the ease with which this can be done tell us about online security? + +From … things I heard on the internet … here is some info. + +### How To Create A Fake Online Identity + +My preferred term for a fake online identity is a “fakie.” + +Many techies however will refer to such accounts as “sockpuppets.” + +The leading urban dictionary definition of a sockpuppet is: + +> _A false identity adopted by trolls and other malcontents to support their own postings._ + +[**Urban Dictionary: sockpuppet** + _1: A fake personality, usually a 'friend' or 'sister,' created by a drama queen/king for the sake of defending…_ www.urbandictionary.com](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=sockpuppet "https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=sockpuppet")[](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=sockpuppet) + +That really doesn’t do justice to the panoply of reasons for which people invest in creating “fakies.” But more about that later. + +The basics of setting one up are quite simple. You need. + +### A Face + +It’s a lot easier to call out a Facebook account as fake when it has an avatar or a cartoon as its profile picture. + +For this reason if you want your fakie to stand any chance of making it past the attention of group moderators and participants, you’re going to want to find a face for your fake identity. + +There are legal and illegal ways to do this. + +The illegal way involves trawling through social media for somebody’s profile picture — ideally somebody in a distant part of the world who speaks another language and is therefore very unlikely to stumble upon your usage of their image. + +Those that are really good at this will modify the image until a simple Google reverse image search can no longer link the stolen and original headshots together. + +Note: this is almost certainly illegal because you’re effectively robbing somebody’s identity. Note 2: this is why identity theft monitoring and protection isn’t as paranoid as it might sound if you’re an individual of any notoriety. Effective monitoring for identity theft and impersonation involves proactively running image lookups and taking quick enforcement action. + +The modern way of doing this involves hitting up an AI face generator. + +ThisPersonDoesNotExist.com uses the GAN (generative adversarial network) to create totally fictitious humans. There’s even an [open source Github project](https://github.com/NVlabs/stylegan2) with code for training your own generator. + +I can’t endorse using this website to create fake faces. + +But through recognizing the type of face that the generator puts out — typically set against a distinctive type of background and with blurry edges around the face — I can say that they appear to be in widespread use. + +### Decide What Type Of Fake You Want To Operate + +The next thing to say about fake identities is that they come in a few common flavors. At least on the internet. + + * **Robbed identities (all real elements)** : This is basically impersonation. You create online assets that perfectly match — or replicate — those of a real person. A Facebook profile can be replicated extremely quickly. Nefarious actors could copy a user’s identity, details, and photos and even go so far as to attempt to report the legitimate account as an impersonator. Although this is a social engineering exploit, I think it’s fair to say that this is like the identity theft equivalent of a man in the middle attack. You capture the interactions intended for somebody else. + * **Synthetic identities (fake and real elements):** These blend a mixture of fake and real details to create a new virtual identity. Typically this involves leveraging stolen information to do things like open up bank accounts in a real person’s name. This has limited application in the realm of online accounts. But here’s an example. One could set up an account on a chat forum using a real person’s name but fictitious details (place of residence). + * **Fake identities (all fake elements):** Using artificial intelligence (AI) users can attach a completely made-up identity to a fake face thereby creating a new persona. The limitation here will be that the fake identity is … not a real person. So unless you want to forge government documentation — taking you well into the realm of criminality — you’re not going to be able to back the fake ID up if challenged. The advantage is that if you’re not going down the actual fraud route a name and a face can get you awfully far. + +### Create A Credible Backstory + +Let’s limit our investigation to the last type of identity here. Because it’s the only one that doesn’t imply — almost certainly — some type of criminality. + +A face pulled from ThisPersonDoesNotExist.com. + +Take David above who I just downloaded from ThisPersonDoesNotExist.com. + +Coming up with a basic cover story for this alias might involve fixing up on a few important details: + + * Where is he from? + * What kind of personality does he have? Is he jocular or serious? + * Where does he live? Where did he live before that? (If you want to set up, say, a fake podcast, this is going to have implications for the accent that the identity needs) + * Where did he go to school? + * Is he single or married? + * What motivates him? + +Bear in mind that the more specific you are and the more information you give away the easier it’s going to be for somebody to prove that your fake is … a fake. + +Creating fake social media accounts is likely to place one in violation of terms of service (TOS) agreements and thus make the accounts liable for suspension. See, for instance, Facebook’s terms. + +One doesn’t need to be a Sherlock Holmes to call up a university and find that David Fakie never actually graduated from Economics with the Honors degree his LinkedIn claims that he did. + +Nevertheless if you don’t mind using real details then you should be able to find real credible particulars just by trawling through actual social media profiles. Sift through LinkedIn profiles to find, say, the names of universities. Then integrate those into your online assets. + +### Make It Believable + +The more effort you expend on this part the greater the impression you’re going to create on your average web browser that this person is real. + +Simultaneously, the more terms of service (TOS) agreements you’re likely to break. For platforms like Facebook, for instance, this means that the account might be liable for suspension. + +But if none of those things were concerns, your fake identity: + + * Could set up a website + * Could operate a network of social media accounts + * Could maintain a blog + * Could issue press releases + * Could send letters to news editors + +Collectively, these activities are likely to cause your _average_ web browser to think: “no, this person is real.” Of course not everybody’s average. But in many users eyes a few prominent links will cement the notion that somebody is real. This is why creating a few profiles on high DA web properties, for instance, can be so effective. + +The main limitation to a fake identity is — again — that the identity is fake. You may only have one face to use. To skirt around this you can share photos — say on Facebook — of images that don’t feature the alias or other people. + +If you’re doing this, then you should be careful to scrub the metadata from any photos — or other files — that you’re uploading. Facebook for instance scrubs metadata when it presents images to users. But users cannot know that it doesn’t retain that data on its servers. The safest bet is to scrub any digital fingerprints before uploading anything to the cloud. + +[**View Exif data online, remove Exif online** + _Pictures taken by digital cameras can contain a lot of information, like data, time and camera used. But last…_ www.verexif.com](https://www.verexif.com/en/ "https://www.verexif.com/en/")[](https://www.verexif.com/en/) + +An example of a post featuring no people or the author him or herself. + +You’ll likely want to cover your bases a little here: + + * Don’t operate your fake account from your actual IP address. TOR or VPNs are helpful in this respect. + * Create layers of anonymity. Use virtual phone numbers to protect your real phone numbers. If you set up a website for your alias, ensure that you have privacy protection enabled. + +There are further techniques I could share here. But I’m trying provide only enough information to make the point that people should be suspicious of who they interact with online — not to encourage you to set up your own fake accounts. + +### Why People May Operate Fake Online Identities + +There are many reasons that people may choose to operate fake online identities. + +Some of them are decidedly “black hat” — to grossly understate it — while others learn slightly more toward the white hat side of the fence and others are arguably totally innocuous. + +I’m not going to discuss the truly nefarious and criminals because those are patently obvious. And I’m writing this partially to explain the last. I think that anonymity is a double-edged sword that can wreak enormous havoc upon the world. But it is also has a vital place in our world that can realize much good, particularly good in the public interest. + +Here are some of the slightly less reprehensible — and possibly illegal — activities. These are not endorsements. + +**General Identity Masking** + +One of the most common reasons for operating an alias is to mask one’s real identity. This is the reason, for instance, that some authors writing under pen names set up fake identities (although the process is somewhat less common than just slapping a fake name on the cover of a book). + +Another example? If you’re the victim of some kind of abuse — whether emotional or physical — you may wish to join an online support group to get help (along with taking other courses of action, of course). If the group is on Facebook, for instance, you may not wish to divulge your identity for fear that the abuser or his/her friends or family may encounter it. + +**Whistleblowing** + +Aliases are useful for whistleblowers of all varieties. Many media outlets support anonymous drop-boxes for files and communications. But one can widen the means of contacting journalists by provisioning alias accounts on various fora. + +**Corporate Espionage** + +Setting up fake identities and front companies is a relatively low cost but effective means of capturing pricing intelligence from competitors. One can create bogus request for proposals (RFPs) to induce competitors to bid on fictitious projects. And create fake job openings to ascertain salary expectations in one’s field. The last can be exploited as a blackmail tactic. This is effectively petty online spying. The constraint here is that if you’re not willing to exposure your voice or face, you’re limited to capturing information exchanged through textual means. + +**Corporate Aggrandizement** + +Want your tiny one man startup to look like something a lot bigger? Want your customers to think they’re interacting with the Customer Success manager and not just you on the couch? If you spend enough time on LinkedIn or company staff pages you’re likely to eventually hit upon a team listing that just seems a bit … off. None of the team members have employment histories. Nothing turns up for them in Google. Explanation: perhaps some of the staff members aren’t real. (Note: news websites occasionally employ this tactic to embellish their pool of “reporters”). + +### How can I avoid being taken in by fake accounts? + +Anonymity and aliases serve an essential role. But they can of course be misused to cause harm. + +What one can do with a fake online identity is quite staggering. + +For instance: it’s possible to publish a book under a fake name without falling foul of Amazon’s terms of service. At least at the time of writing. And the widespread practice of pen names notwithstanding, the publication of a book — although these days quite easy — sends out an indication that the author is a real person. + +Vanity URLs to match fictitious identities can be quickly acquired. If one wants to go the full nine yards one can find anonymous hosting services and fund the hosting in cryptocurrency. + +One can even set up accounts on hiring marketplaces with a fake identity so long as one pays with another person’s payment method. In such instances, you can successfully shield your real identity from even those working for you. Cool? Potentially useful? Disturbing? Up to how you want to interpret that. + +In light of all this, I would suggest the following takeaways for anybody concerned with online security. This essentially involves reverse engineering all of the above. + + * Don’t accept friend requests on Facebook from people that you don’t know in real life (or who know those that you do). + * Be suspicious of any profiles that only contain one photograph. Or photos that contain a lot of photos but none of the purported poster. Consider running a reverse image search to see whether the image originated in a stock library. + * Remember that the fact that something is on the internet doesn’t automatically grant it legitimacy. It’s possible to create quite an array of fake profiles and assets online simply with a made up face and name. + +Personally I assume that anything and anybody I encounter online is not real until proven otherwise. + +Expect the threat posed by fake accounts, fake identities, and fake news to get worse rather than better in the coming years. + +Over the coming years, I predict that it’s going to become increasingly easy for fraudsters to create increasingly compelling aliases that even supersede the limitations discussed here (for instance, using AI, multiple permutations of one face can be generated; the “person” can be integrated into video content; a unique voice can be used to synthesize speech.) + +Legal frameworks provide some means of protection against these activities but do not offer protection from low level activity. + +Ultimately real life centric social engineering — asking to meet somebody in a coffee shop, asking if your friends know this person — is probably the best way to defeat these attempts. + +Because on the internet these days, it’s just too easy to pretend to be somebody you’re not. diff --git a/posts/medium/How-to-save-a-Clonezilla-full-disk-image-to-an-NAS-over-SSH.md b/posts/medium/How-to-save-a-Clonezilla-full-disk-image-to-an-NAS-over-SSH.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..06031acb75c75fb051deb1d1c8e15f7256614cff --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/How-to-save-a-Clonezilla-full-disk-image-to-an-NAS-over-SSH.md @@ -0,0 +1,87 @@ +# How to save a Clonezilla full disk image to an NAS over SSH + +[Clonezilla](http://clonezilla.org) is one of my favorite backup tools (and that has nothing to do with the fact that it is free!). + +It’s a tiny bootable GNU/Linux utility that is designed to be written to a live USB. And once running on the system, it can replicate the system disks onto both local and remote targets (for the latter think AWS S3 buckets — it can directly write to them!). + +Unlike most system backup programs, which work by creating comparatively light differential/incremental backups to creative plentiful restore points to roll back the system to, **Clonezilla is the kind of tool that you want to have on hand when things go _really_ wrong **or when you**** need to try restore your old operating system on completely new hardware. The only catch is that you need to create backups for those eventualities _before_ you get to that point. And if you want the restores to be as useful to you as possible, you’ll also want to complete the process relatively frequently (just not quite as frequently as your incrementals.) + +[**Clonezilla** + _Clonezilla is a partition and disk imaging/cloning program similar to True Image® or Norton Ghost®. It helps you to do…_ clonezilla.org](https://clonezilla.org/ "https://clonezilla.org/")[](https://clonezilla.org/) + +So what’s so special about it, then? + +For one, it’s a **disk imaging tool** which is designed to achieve **bare metal backups**. That means that **it creates an exact replicas of your computer’s storage on another.** It captures the whole system so takes ‘full’ backups. But instead of choosing what files and directories you want to include in a backup set, Clonezilla operates at the hardware level: you can back up specific partitions or entire drives (it supports ext4 as well as FAT32 and NFTS and many more … so is OS-agnostic). + +Unlike many backup programs, Clonezilla also runs from a cold system: you’ll boot into it with nothing else running and won’t be able to use your desktop/laptop while it’s executing the backup job. + +Because disk imaging tools are designed to back up _everything_ on a system, as we have seen, they aren’t really suitable for creating those frequent restore points that I just mentioned. It would be a needlessly inefficient use of disk space given that much lighter backup methodologies have been developed. + +But as a last resort / Swiss Army Knife for when things go wrong, disk imaging platforms (and Acronis True Image is among the best known commercial alternatives) are still widely used and in a class of their own. + +And incidentally it’s not all bad news when comparing image replication to lighter backup approaches. + +The fact that it _is_ a full disk backup actually gives it one advantage over lighter differential and incremental backups. Incremental backups form a chain since the first backup and — in many backup systems — a restore is dependent upon all those incremental slices being good (uncorrupted) data, which is not always the case. With a full disk backup — you just restore from one archive and that data chunk is not dependent on any other one. + +For the reasons outlined above, many companies use a combination of incremental backups for day-to-day data protection and less frequent full disk imaging + +In the pre-Synology era, I kept a separate backup SSD on my computer just for holding my Clonezilla images. Alongside Timeshift (rsync-based, incremental) these two backups were my onsite backup sources. When my DS920+ arrived from Synology last week I made it my priority to start backing up onto the NAS rather than internal drives. + +And here’s how I managed to get Clonezilla backups onto the NAS. + +### How To Take a Clonezilla Backup over the LAN + +[(Images from the Clonezilla website.)](https://clonezilla.org/) + +#### 1\. Select the backup methodology and enable the right file services + +After booting into Clonezilla, when you reach the screen asking you where to mount the Clonezilla image directory you want to select ‘SSH server.’ + +Note: + +You can also create the backup to the Synology NAS over Samba or NFS. However all of these options — including SSH — need to first be enabled on the device via DSM. + +In order to do that, navigate to ‘File Services’ in the Control Panel. + +Then you will need to enable the service you wish to use for backing up (or saving) to the device over the Local Area Network (LAN): + +#### 2\. Create a shared folder for the backup + +Next, I recommend creating a shared folder on the network simply called ‘Clonezilla’ + +As we will see in the next step, your target needs to be a real directory on the NAS in order for Clonezilla to authenticate with it. + +#### **3\. Change mount path to the shared folder** + +Firstly, you’ll need to provide the local IP address of the NAS / server and then provide login credentials. + +Clonezilla will then need to know where to mount for saving the backup on the target. + +By default this is set to /home/partimag. + +**The problem is that this path almost certainly doesn’t exist on your target.** So you need to set it to one that does. + +As we just created Clonezilla we can simply change the path to **/Clonezilla**. + +In other words change the dialog to one leading slash followed by the the volume name. Do not enter the colon. + +The full syntax is : + +user@nas.ip:/[SharedVolume] + +**This is very important.** + +If you do not do this — and leave the default option unchanged — in many cases Clonezilla will fail to complete its authentication check with the NAS and you won’t be able to run the disk cloning job. It took me about five failed attempts to run this backup before I realized that this was the problem! + +#### 4\. Approve the backup job + +If you get to a screen like — in which the NAS or server sends the terminal its key fingerprint for acceptance — then you can breathe a sigh of relief. Your computer has just demonstrated that it has interfaced with the server/NAS, read some of its hardware information, and is poised to take the next step in the backup process. + +After this, make sure that you have your source and target correct, as usual, and proceed to run the backup. Performance might be slightly slower than what you are used to, but the image should saved within the folder name you have created on the NAS/server. + +And that’s it: you should now be the proud owner of a heavy but useful full disk image clone of your computer’s operating system. + +After navigating into the Clonezilla shared volume, I was able to find the full backup I head taken. + +Inside, it looks like this: + diff --git a/posts/medium/I-Host-With-Veerotech--And-I-Like-Them-.md b/posts/medium/I-Host-With-Veerotech--And-I-Like-Them-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f3c44ef5add1ca1b7dbb440319705384c9098f3b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/I-Host-With-Veerotech--And-I-Like-Them-.md @@ -0,0 +1,73 @@ +# I Host With Veerotech. And I Like Them. + +What better way to start a technology review than with a lame pun on a Kate Perry song? + +In any event, why be verbose when brevity would suffice? + +I’ve been hosting sites on the internet for more than 10 years now (I feel old writing that). + +Cork Student News — which I founded to provide online news at University College Cork (UCC) — was my first foray into shared hosting. A simple WordPress / Bluehost duo. Although BDC Innovation — a local Cork-based web design consultancy run by a few sixteen year olds and selling, primarily, into the local takeaway restaurant market — was set up on Wix a few years prior. But that was subdomained. So it doesn’t really count. The memories! + +Over the years, my personal inventory of domains-under-management has simply kept mushrooming. + +My friend [Mark Moriarty](https://www.linkedin.com/in/moriartym?originalSubdomain=uk), who runs a podcasting startup called [Awesound](https://awesound.com/about), is the only person I’ve ever met with a worse domain name buying addiction than yours truly. I currently own 32 TLDs. Maybe Mark has reformed his ways. Maybe he has better things to be doing than operating falafel-mapping websites. Maybe not. + +A screenshot from my WHM below. + +I’ve redacted out sites that I manage for others and those to ridiculous to publicly claim ownership over (yet). + +The ignominious list includes: + + * **An affiliate marketing attempt**(Battlestation Planet) that I’ve never really invested time or effort in + * **A couple of extra domains for my writing business** (DSR Ghostwriting) that I use any time I’m mail-merging (DSRGhostwriting.agency, DSRGhostwriting.email). It’s a good idea to not risk the reputation of your main domain if you’re ever doing cold outreach. + * **I’ve also built out a few sites just to host various _aspects_ of my writing business. **See: INeedASpeech.com, YourEbookWriter.com, RosehillBooks.com. My thinking here has been that I will eventually get around to doing PPC. And that I will drive people to distinct URLs rather than landing pages. + * **RipOffIsrael** — which I envisioned as a sort of consumer advocacy project. Before realizing that it would probably only lead me down a path of negativity. But perhaps the project will see some light eventually. + * **YallaJLM** ->**Yalla Yerushalayim.** I was thinking about setting up a local news website for Jerusalem. I haven’t really gotten around to putting much time and effort into that project either. See a pattern here? + * I also set up two ridiculous sites to a) host a Google Map of Jerusalem’s falafel restaurants (**JerusalemFalafelTrail.fun**) and another to map out the various happy hour (alcoholic, that is) options in the city (**JerusalemHappyHours.fun**). My life would undoubtedly be poorer without both these things on the internet, although my bank account would be slightly happier. + +Carrying this ridiculous collection of domains around the internet has effectively put me beyond the limits of what shared hosting is capable of supporting. Most commonly I run into an inode limit. + +More presciently, the [Great Malware Meltdown](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/the-great-malware-meltdown-of-5779/) taught me a very harsh lesson about the risks of shared hosting: directories are not caged and malware can very easily propagate between a network of websites. This was in the days before I became a backup enthusiast. So I had to spend about two weeks building sites back from scratch. Not fun, but it was an important lesson to learn, albeit the hard way. + +The Great Malware Meltdown (Babayaga; [Wordfence has a nice white paper on it here](https://www.wordfence.com/blog/2018/06/babayaga-wordpress-malware/)) prompted me to rethink my hosting strategy and decide upon reseller hosting as a nice middle-ground between shared hosting and the hassle of even managed VPS. In fact, it was recommended to me. And I now heartily endorse reseller hosting for non-resellers who want to cage and separate out the cPanels (and filesystems) for whatever reason. Mine are entirely non-commercial, but of course this is reseller hosting’s main use-case. + +What followed the Malware Meltdown, unfortunately, was a painful year of migrating between two reseller hosts which ranked well in Google but ultimately turned out to be horrible companies to deal with. + +In a state of despair after having had to migrate web host three times in the space of a year, **I changed tack and sought out personal recommendations rather than web reviews.** This made all the difference. + +After explaining the problems I was having, a trusted source recommended Veerotech. It looked small but competent. They were based in the US. And they offered in-migrations. + +### 👍 Pros + +Veerotech left an excellent first impression. My two previous hosts had terrible tech support. You know when your tickets get closed out before support has actually looked at your issue? Veerotech seemed to actually want to get the in-migration right. + +There were a couple of minor hitches with the migration process. But nothing that a little bit of troubleshooting couldn’t fix. 24 hours later — and a lot of DNS record updates later — and my network was moved over. + +The pros of hosting with Veerotech have been: + + * **Very good uptime:** I use [UptimeRobot](https://uptimerobot.com) to receive downtime alerts for my network. During the first month I hosted with Veerotech their network came under a DDoS attack. This has been the only real significant downtime I have experienced in about 16 months of hosting with them. Oh, and they proactively issued a refund — which I was very impressed by. + * **Good speed:** Their infrastructure is using SSD NVMe storage. So speeds are good. + * **Backups:** There’s a built in cPanel backup tool and they also take some sort of automated incremental to (I presume) an offsite. With my newfound fondness for everything backup-related, I now pull my own daily incrementals to an NAS via rsync and mirror that up to the cloud. But I’m probably reasonably well covered with what they provide. + * **Free in-migrations:** When you’ve migrated host three times in a year, this is the task that really stands as a mental block to finally finding somewhere decent to host your sites. I was extremely grateful that Veerotech offered a free in-migration. Minor blips aside, the process was handled well — and the support staff worked with me to ensure that those blips were quickly resolved. + +### 👎 Cons + +The only real thing I dislike about Veerotech is the fact that, in my opinion, their Tier One support sometimes sucks. This isn’t a unique problem to Veerotech, but can be annoying all the same. + +I’ve noticed a huge gulf in quality between tier one, which I presume is outsourced, and higher support tiers — on the few times I have had to access the latter. + +Siteground has provided the most consistently positive support experience I’ve encountered in consumer hosting so far. But if you can speak to somebody good at Veerotech, you’ll get your issue sorted. + +From a reasonably affordable provider (RS2 reseller hosting, which offers 60GB of storage, is $22.95/month at the time of writing and includes 100 cPanels) this is to be expected. + +### 👍 Verdict: I Endorse Veerotech! 👍 + +At the time of writing this post, I am able to provide a hearty endorsement for Veerotech. + +I’m close to using up my disk space allocation so I will probably need to move up to their top reseller tier. And then eventually migrate to VPS. + +But it has been a massive relief to find a competent webhost that is reasonably priced, provides me with the caging I badly needed, and is easy to work with. + +_(I have no commercial relationship with Veerotech to disclose other than hosting with them. This post reflects my true opinion — it isn’t affiliate marketing, nor have I received any commission or compensation for writing this review)._ + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/I-Participated-In-An--Extremist--Flag-March-In-Jerusalem--And-All-I-Saw-Were-Noisy-Teenagers-.md b/posts/medium/I-Participated-In-An--Extremist--Flag-March-In-Jerusalem--And-All-I-Saw-Were-Noisy-Teenagers-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2a5d88723a27be57af95bc02e65921b6a1261cc0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/I-Participated-In-An--Extremist--Flag-March-In-Jerusalem--And-All-I-Saw-Were-Noisy-Teenagers-.md @@ -0,0 +1,73 @@ +# I Participated In An “Extremist” Flag March In Jerusalem. And All I Saw Were Noisy Teenagers. + +#### Is the status quo in modern day Jerusalem worthy of celebration? My thoughts as I joined a flag march + +Last week — under the partial pretext of covering the event for a YouTube channel I recently launched — I headed over to the second iteration of the flag march in Jerusalem. + +An Israeli flag unfurls in the sun during last week’s flag march in Jerusalem. Photo: author. + +While my political views about Israel are broadly speaking right of center, I nevertheless had a few misgivings about the decision to hold the flag march a second time — after the original was postponed due to an incoming barrage of Hamas rockets that kicked off an entire war. + +Most presciently among my hesitations: + +When we talk about “unified” Jerusalem — and march in celebration of it — what are we celebrating, precisely? + +A city sharply divided along racial and ethnic lines? + +A city in which roughly half of its residents affirm allegiance to the Palestinian rather than the Israeli flag and in which meaningful integration, outside of the closeted confines of coexistence groups, is virtually entirely absent? + +Or perhaps we are commemorating the extension, in 1967, of Israeli sovereignty over Issawiya and Silwan and all the other Arab neighborhoods which were mostly villages and which are now integrated into the municipal border— neighborhoods whose residents are serviced by Jerusalem’s municipal services but into which Jews, and sometimes municipal workers themselves, cannot readily enter for fear of being attacked? + +Are we cheering for the “unified” Jerusalem that has two bus and hospital networks — one for Arabs, one for Jews — that exist side by side but whose routes — like the lives of the city’s residents — barely intersect? + +As Jew, I am delighted that Israel regained access to the Old City and the Western Wall — the wall abuts the Temple Mount, which is the holiest site in Jerusalem, and Jews were denied access there during the time when Jordan held the territory. + +I maintain that anybody who maintains support for the establishment of Israeli sovereignty over these sites, but who rejects it over the rest of East Jerusalem — including me — is a hypocrite. To understand why they merely need to open Google Maps and follow the route of the Green Line. The Old City is over it. To endorse one is to support the other. + +And so my feelings about the flag march — and Jerusalem Day as a whole — can perhaps best be described as conflicted. Or confused. + +Even for those of us on the right wing of the political spectrum, I’m uncertain _what_ exactly are we celebrating? What do we hope the city’s future is going to look like? And is the _status quo_ that pervades beyond the walls of the Old City — the same status quo that recently tripped off a full-scale military conflict — something we really feel like cheering about? + +And this year my feelings were doubly uncertain. + +Hamas had threatened to kick off more violence in response to this the rescheduled flag march — and last time they made good on that threat. + +Was it really fair to risk kicking off more violence — that would affect the lives of Israelis far beyond Jerusalem — just to show defiance and strength? What about the doctrine of pursuing peace? If we’re going to consider the importance of avoiding appeasement, shouldn’t the opposite doctrine factor into our consideration too? As I took my place among the revelers I wasn’t really sure what the answers to these questions might sound like. + +### Lots Of Teenagers. Lots Of Signing. + +And so it was with a sense of trepidation — and a lot of uncertainty — that I headed out to shoot some footage from the march. + +I was proud to be joining in the celebrations of Israel’s ability to recover sovereignty over the Old City and to have also established the right to rule Jerusalem — an ancient Jewish city. But what I was celebrating was really Israel’s sovereignty over the city that I know and live in: its Western half. + +Recording some footage from the flag march in Jerusalem last week. Photo: author. + +Israel has frequently and with great pride described itself as the only democracy in the Middle East. And yet the potential for violence between Arabs and Jews was deemed so great that the Damascus Gate plaza — a frequent flashpoint — had to be cleared of protesters before the march began. It was slightly uncomfortable. + +At the flag march in Jerusalem. Photo: Author. + +What was participating in the march actually like? + +I shared my pride in the moment with many participants — although I kept my thoughts about what it meant for our broader relationship to Jerusalem, those I outlined above, to myself. + +The march was — quite literally — a headache (the one that set in shortly after its conclusion reminded of the after-effects of attending a house party during my college years). + +The average age, at the parade’s setting off point, seemed to be less than 18. Although that advanced as the march meandered down HaNeviim and towards Damascus Gate before re-routing towards Jaffa Gate. There was lots of loud music blaring from stages. Lots of wild singing. And lots f noise. + +Members of the press corps outside Damascus Gate in Jerusalem while participants walk by. Photo: author. + +What I didn’t hear: any of the hate-filled slurs that were widely reported as headline news in international media. + +I _did_ see members of the press decked out in their bulletproof vests and wearing protective head coverings. In all honestly, given the demographic in attendance and the beautiful sunny weather that graced the afternoon they looked — frankly — a little absurd. + +I heard, instead, lots of familiar songs about the importance of the Jewish connection to Jerusalem. And about not fearing a long way. Lots of teenagers. Lots of screaming. Lots of hot summertime sun. The perfect recipe, you might say, for a splitting migraine. + +I don’t deny that there were clashes before the march that involved Border Police forcibly clearing the parade’s march before it started. That’s a fact. And those were the last things I saw on Twitter before I headed out to join it. + +I _do_ think the organizers acted responsibly by refusing to allow the official march to proceed through Damascus Gate and the Muslim Quarter — proceeding into the Old City through Jaffa Gate instead. + +I don’t doubt for a second that there were — among the celebrants — those who shouted inflammatory and hateful messages about Arabs and Islam. Those are messages I unreservedly condemn. But during the course of my time at the parade, virtually all I saw and heard were teenagers singing. And lots and lots of Israeli flags. + +I still feel conflicted about what I saw while walking through Jerusalem with the march last week. + +But I’ll share with you the argument that convinced me to join it in spite of those misgivings: if Palestinians can raise their flag and rally in support of their cause throughout this contested territory claimed by two sides, why should that same right not be extended to Jews in Jerusalem? diff --git a/posts/medium/I-Post-A-Lot-On-LinkedIn--And-No--I-m-Not-Looking-For-A-New-Job.md b/posts/medium/I-Post-A-Lot-On-LinkedIn--And-No--I-m-Not-Looking-For-A-New-Job.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9ae28e377714f90c58a082d6c48b719504517e71 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/I-Post-A-Lot-On-LinkedIn--And-No--I-m-Not-Looking-For-A-New-Job.md @@ -0,0 +1,62 @@ +# I Post A Lot On LinkedIn. And No, I’m Not Looking For A New Job + +#### If LinkedIn use is viewed as a signal for jobseeking behavior, engaged professionals with ideas to share are going to hesitate to do so + +LinkedIn: if posting is seen as an obvious sign of job-hunting activity, this might be preventing users from sharing valuable thoughts + +I’ve made no secret over the years of my mixed feelings about the professional network known as LinkedIn. + +Here are some of the diatribes and general outrage that I’ve penned about this network over the years: + +[**Why I Really Can’t Do LinkedIn Anymore** + _Is Content Curation The Key To Staying Sane In Today’s World?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48) + +[**What Does Bragging on LinkedIn Actually Achieve?** +_Is There Any Point To Signalling Your Achievements?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-does-bragging-on-linkedin-actually-achieve-da792667be4c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-does-bragging-on-linkedin-actually-achieve-da792667be4c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-does-bragging-on-linkedin-actually-achieve-da792667be4c) + +[**The 3 Most Insufferable LinkedIn Posts That Need To End Right Now** + _From old job love letters to here’s my gift hamper, the 3 type of LinkedIn posts that do my head in_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3) + +But despite all the above, I refuse to give up on the network — even though, as the first above post makes clear, there have been times when I was about to. + +The reason is this: + +Despite the fact that it sometimes feels like a toxic cesspool of humble-bragging and self-promotion, there’s a lot about LinkedIn that I _do_ find value in. + +For one, take the network’s basic structure. + +If you wanted to build a global Rolodex of who’s who in the business world — well, LinkedIn (minus the timeline feature) would come pretty darn close. + +Secondly, there are a lot of smart people sharing valuable content there. For every humble-brag that only exists to make the poster looks good, there’s an engaged professional sharing some really interesting ideas with other users. + +And those are the parts of the social network that I love. + +### My Career Is Bigger Than My Job + +Something I’ve observed over the years. + +Whenever a LinkedIn user goes from quiet lurker into active poster mode, they attract the immediate attention and skepticism of their network. + +The assumption seems to typically be that that individual is looking for a new job. If it’s a freelancer or consultant, the assumption is that that they’re short of work and in need of a few new clients. Inbound marketing and all that. I’ve had friends reach out to me asking how they could help me find work solely because I started posting a lot on LinkedIn. And guess what? I wasn’t job-hunting. + +So here’s why I think that it’s time we shifted these assumptions. + +Because they keep people from sharing simply _because_ they don’t want to risk whatever repercussions might attach to that perception. + +Hardworking professionals who are satisfied in their jobs and who might have interesting best practices to share are clammed up from doing so because they’re worried that their boss will see and assume they’re about to jump ship. + +Personally, I share content on LinkedIn because I’m interested in what I do for a living — marketing communications. I use it as a sounding board to hem out thoughts, some of which I later develop into blog posts that I circulate here. + +If I were doing the busy work of job-seeking and attending interviews, I’d actually be _less_ inclined to post there. + +I post because I like to hear what other marketers have to say about them — even if the engagement levels on most of what I share aren’t particularly large. + +To make new professional contacts. To build out professional community. Which is exactly what the platform was designed to facilitate. + +Not every active LinkedIn user is a job hunter. + +I’m certain that there are voices with good ideas to share who are too afraid to so because of this general misplaced assumption. + +In the interest of creating a more engaged professional discussion on that network, I think it’s time that we moved past that. + +We can all play our part. diff --git a/posts/medium/I-Predict-Netanyahu-Will-Win-the-Next-Election-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/I-Predict-Netanyahu-Will-Win-the-Next-Election-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fd13b1e5ede99fdbb6efd4c4434c49f94ef91553 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/I-Predict-Netanyahu-Will-Win-the-Next-Election-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,79 @@ +# I Predict Netanyahu Will Win the Next Election in Israel + +#### Is There Anything But Likud Under The Sun? + +Netanyahu and Gantz: Locked In Bitter Recriminations. Photo: Wikimedia Commons + +This morning, Israel woke up to the news that the Blue and White party [will support](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/benjamin-netanyahu-asks-benny-gantz-not-to-disperse-knesset-650797) a bill tabled by Yair Lapid to disperse the Knesset and trigger new elections. + +The process of ugly recriminations and backstabbing that has been going on ever since the coalition was formed will continue in earnest. + +Recounting the petty quotes leveled back and forth is useful only for triggering a headache. + +I stopped following the details months ago. + +_Be’kitsur,_ the short version is that Likud blame Blue and White and Blue and White blame Likud — for the handling of the coronavirus crisis; for the disagreement over whether to pass an abbreviated or full budget. + +Like children caught in a bitter and protracted custody dispute that has carried on for well over a year now, the ordinary Israeli people don’t really care about the details any more. + +We’ve been here before. We’ve heard the arguments. We’re tired, fed up, and just want an end to it. + +All but the most ardent of political anoraks have surely concluded that they have better things to do than hear these two squabble. + +### Enemies Can’t Govern + +In truth, news of the government’s apparent impending demise isn’t really news. + +The budget and the coronavirus are really only the straw that broke the camel’s back. + +The root cause of the rancor and ill-will that has oozed out of press releases and quotes is that the “coalition” in which Benny Gantz served as the “Alternate Prime Minister was doomed from the outset and marked by nothing but acrimony and infighting. + +Calling this government a “unity” government was an almost ironic joke. An infighting faction can’t lead a country. + +Even the foundational agreement out of which the coalition was formed — the prime minister rotation agreement under which Benny Gantz was supposed to assume the helm — seemed like a delusional pipe dream. + +One would be hard-pressed to find anybody in the country — including, most suspect, Benny Gantz himself — who genuinely believed that the deal was going to go ahead. + +One didn’t need to be an expert in body language, or have inside connections, to read the signs of ill-will between the country’s two “leaders.” + +Gantz has looked worn-out and exasperated in photos with the Likud leader. + +If one wanted to get caught up on the daily tit-for-tat, one could also open up the morning newspapers to read the latest salvos for oneself. + +### Social Protests Will Come To Nothing + +Despite this state of affairs, I don’t see any change in the offing. + +As a somewhat _mitzva-_ following Jew, I don’t gamble. But if I did, I would be tempted to bet the contents of my apartment that the Israeli public will exonerate Netanyahu of any blame in the farcical situation to which the country’s political system has descended. + +Those who have followed the anti-Netanyahu protests that have swept the country for the past six months might express surprise at this prediction. Haven’t people turned up by the tens of thousands to protest the government for the past six months, after all? + +Yes, but to my mind, those protests amounted to a protest against democracy itself by a vocal minority of the population. + +Netanyahu didn’t descend on Israel from another planet. Nor was he forced into office through a military coup. He was dutifully elected. + +So what is there to protest — what has there ever been to protest? — if not the actions of the citizenry itself? + +Like any democratically elected leader, Netanyahu is not forced to heed the demands of an angry mob. Only the dictates of the ballot. + +### Nothing But Likud Under The Sun + +[I wrote, a few days ago,](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/5-positive-changes-ive-observed-in-israel-this-year/) about some of the innovations sweeping these shores. I think that the country is moving in positive directions. In spite of its politics and not because of it. + +Nevertheless, I feel deeply pessimistic about Israel’s political future which — at this point in time — seems to bode a future of corruption, stagnation, and growing right wing nationalism. + +If Israelis vote for Netanyahu again in the next election, as I predict they will, then they will show that the anger and protests directed toward the government over the past six months [— and the pained cries of an Ashdod falafel seller](https://www.timesofisrael.com/sobbing-falafel-seller-symbol-of-viruss-financial-toll-moves-tv-crew-to-tears/) -were for the most part hot air. + +Throughout its voting history, the Israeli public has shown repeatedly that it is amenable to spin, rabble-rousing, and scaremongering. + +A press release or two from Balfour Street pinning blame on the government’s collapse on Benny Gantz and large segments of the population will be instantly bought out. + +Because, by capitulating to Netanyahu’s demand to form a doomed government, and by buying into the illusory promise of one day becoming Alternate Prime Minister, Benny Gantz showed that he is guilty of the worst sin in the eyes of many Israelis: being weak; being a _freier_. + +Next March, if Israel goes to its fourth election in two years, the country’s citizens will have a chance to put their ballot papers where their mouths have been for the past year. + +I will neither be voting for Netanyahu nor Benny Gantz. To my mind, both are culpable for the situation Israel finds itself in. One in which a government, seething with hatred for itself, mired in backstabbing, is forced to go to repeat elections during a pandemic — for the second time. + +I predict my vote will be in the minority. + +I hope that I am proved wrong. diff --git a/posts/medium/I-Went-Into-Flight-Mode-For-Six-Months--Here-s-What-Happened-.md b/posts/medium/I-Went-Into-Flight-Mode-For-Six-Months--Here-s-What-Happened-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..94d6fda61883313f052e3f8fdcb4f370d2ba483d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/I-Went-Into-Flight-Mode-For-Six-Months--Here-s-What-Happened-.md @@ -0,0 +1,155 @@ +# I Went Into Flight Mode For Six Months. Here’s What Happened. + +Back in January, I wrote [an excited Medium post](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0) about how being slightly less responsive was going to be the motto of my year. + +[**My (Unorthodox) Productivity Resolution For This Year — Be Less ‘Responsive’!** +_So the new year has rolled around and with it will inevitably follow a slew of ‘My Top Resolutions’ posts on social…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0) + +I tried to explain my belief that the fetishization of hyper-responsiveness that is pervading our societies — egged on, in no small measure, by the technology industry — is causing us to be stressed out, on edge, and always on the clock. Even when we’re at leisure. + +Four months later, I posted about the power of having “discovered” that flight mode is useful for a lot more than just complying with in-flight electronics regulations. + +[**Why Flight Mode Has Been My Best Productivity-Enhancing Intervention to Date** + _And I Think That Synchronous Communication Platforms Like WhatsApp And Slack Are Today’s Destroyers of Focus_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664) + +My breakthrough moment occurred in a meditation shop when I was on a wild goose chase for a hardware meditation timer. + +After explaining why I wasn’t happy with the many Android meditation apps available through the Google Play Store (I couldn’t get into the zone knowing that a call or app notification could break my focus at any time!) the shopkeeper hurriedly exclaimed _“just go into flight mode!”_ + +[The rest, as they say, is history (or at least mine).](https://medium.com/r?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdanielrosehill.medium.com%2Fwhy-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664) + +### Becoming An ✈️Airplane Man + +The flight mode habit developed like this. + +At first, I limited my forays into flight mode to those times when I knew that I would require a few hours of uninterrupted work. Sitting down to write anything — such as this article — would be a perfect example. + +The trouble is that, as a full-time writer, those focus periods are kind of the bread and butter of my workweek. So what started out as an occasional thing soon became a dominant habit. + +Indeed, as I spent more and more time in flight mode, inaccessible to the outside world by telephone, I began to relish and enjoy these productivity stints more and more. + +Creative flow states are correlated with happiness. Like some creatives, I often have a difficult time focusing. My attention is hopelessly selective — sometimes hyperfocusing on what’s of interest to me but wavering involuntarily away from things that are not (but which would be useful to focus on!) + +Getting into ‘the zone,’ for me, is sometimes an uphill battle against distraction — and auditory interruptions are often my biggest nemesis (my home office abuts a busy commercial street; this doesn’t help!) + +But when I manage to get into a flow state it’s a naturally ecstatic experience. + +Staying there, not only can I get good work done but I come out of the sessions feeling on a natural high — having accomplished something worth doing and gotten a little bit of myself out onto a page. It’s great. + +In retrospect, this year was the perfect year to run my experiment. With the world in lockdown there were far fewer social and business fixtures on my calendar than would be the norm. But there were still plenty of phone calls. As I recently discovered. + +_(Credit to branding aficionado_[ _Guy Gordon_](https://medium.com/u/abdbf6f1683c) _for coming up with the ‘Airplane Boy’ moniker)_ + +### Returning To Phone-full Society + +Recently-after having explored the far edges of non-responsiveness-I decided that I was ready to come back to the middle ground. At least just a bit. + +This seemed daunting at first. + +Flight mode has become muscle memory for me at this point — much in the same way that people lock their phones without thinking twice about it. But, to really know which communication modality suited me best, I knew that I had to try. + +And so, one weekday morning, I did something that I hadn’t done in the best part of six months: I allowed my phoned to be reachable through cellular networks. + +Some initial observations from this period: + +### 📞 I Receive A Lot Of Phone Calls — We All Do + +After I began retreating from the safe sanctuaries of flight mode, I realized why I was drawn to going into it in the first place. + +I receive a lot of phone calls. And almost none of them are necessary or have value. In fact, most of them are pretty irritating. For me, they’re impediments to creative focus. + +I maintain two phone lines — a personal number and a business line. I sometimes sign up for technology products for freelance clients — which means providing my phone number to an awful lot of companies. + +Thus, I receive an almost daily call from a technology sales rep at two in the morning (apparently many salespeople don’t pay attention to what time zone the user is based in!) + +Additionally, I live in a country in which people are positively obsessed with the concept of talking on the phone. + +Last week I received a succession of four phone calls reminding me about a doctor’s appointment that I was perfectly aware of. I had it in my calendar. The date, time, and location were all visible in my health provider’s website — and in my itinerary. + +And yet secretary after secretary insisted on calling me to enquire about my attendance and to remind me of the date and time as if they were planning some grand banquet in a state visit. + +Yes, I’m coming — thank you for your repeat concern! + +Yes, I have the internet — as I’ve said before. + +If I wasn’t, by the way, I could have cancelled it online without speaking to you. But thank you for calling! + +Small things, like ordering a replacement bank card, throw up a veritable flurry of phone calls that often needlessly duplicate what’s communicated by email. “Hi, I’m calling from the bank to let you know that your card is on the way.” Thank you — I saw that online! “Hi, your card is here.” Thank you again! + +I’ve been blessed this year to work with freelance clients that have been fine with the odd Zoom meeting. Maybe they read my previous posts and have been cloyed into telephonic muteness. Note to self: write annual blog post about hating phone calls to maintain deterrent effect and set clear expectations (I joke). + +None of the categories above, it should be pointed out, include phone-based quality satisfaction surveys. It seems to me as if for every useful phone call there’s four that are rubbish. + +I’m not a misanthrope — I think. I don’t have phone anxiety — this I know. But what’s the point of developing things like user notification systems and email if people are going to insist on calling anyway? + +### Being Inaccessible Causes Societal Distress + +People seem to get really angry when they can’t reach somebody on demand by phone + +I soon learned that people, as a whole, are constitutionally incapable of dealing with the fact that some people may prefer to be off the telephony grid for hours of the day at a time. + +I’ve received quite a few emails, which I would regard as rude, which begin. _“We tried to call. You didn’t answer”_ — before passing the buck back to you, the customer. You missed our phone outreach at 09:20 while you were showering. Enjoy your just deserts, Mr. Phone-Avoider. + +Other conversations have begun with an exasperated _“YOU ANSWERED!”._ + +Or resulted in the interlocutor, until now forced into maintaining unwanted email correspondence presumably while pecking on a keyboard, unleashing a torrent of pent up anger at my hitherto phone avoidance. _“YOU MISSED THE CALL! WE TRIED THREE TIMES!”_ + +I quickly learned that, in particular, delivery people are thrown into livid outrage by the concept that you won’t have your phone on when they show up — presumably because it ruins their route. + +For short order sales people — I totally get it. For other delivery people it’s a little harder — because they often show up without warning after you’re given a week long time slot and forgot about what you ordered in the first place. + +After reluctantly accepting that ordering takeaway but then not answering the phone to assist its arrival was indeed me being eminently unreasonable, I emerged from flight mode to pick up my delivery pizza. And then I went back offline. + +Increasingly, when ordering online, you can pick a local delivery point rather than have something delivered to your door. So I started opting for this wherever possible to minimize friction with angry couriers. + +### People Stopped Calling For Random Chats + +Because my phone has been in flight mode as often as it’s been on for the past few months, my average response time has lagged into the hours. + +Sometimes days. + +I also compulsively delete old WhatsApp messages so have on occasion had to take a random guess at what the conversation was about responding with a hopefully cheery sounding _“sounds good.”_ + +Initially people will tolerate this eccentric behavior, nonsensical rejoinders, and indulge you by exchanging WhatsApp messages like they’re sending courier mail. But eventually, predictably, they will resign themselves to the notion that you’re doing something completely out there and just give up. + +While the last year has been pretty socially desolate, going into flight mode doesn’t have to mean forsaking friendships. + +It just means making appointments to catch up rather than calling one another randomly. You can relish in your productivity while precisely nobody is trying to reach you any more. + +### The Good Parts + +I have probably missed hundreds of phone calls over the past six months. + +There are dozens of voicemails sitting in my inbox that I have no intention of listening to. It could be hundreds. I’d have to log in to find out. How do you even do that? + +These callous facts aside, truth be told, my life only benefited from not receiving phone calls over this six month period. + +I haven’t missed a single appointment. + +I have, on the other hand, found a few email fanatics in the most unexpected of places. + +If people ever truly needed to get in touch, you will find that they sent me an email or an SMS (you know if people are sending SMS that things must be really desperate). + +All my stuff got delivered — including pizzas delivered by people that must have taken a good guess at the delivery instructions. + +To add to the good tidings, I didn’t have to field a single cold call until last week. Not one. I’ve probably missed out on an untold number of quality satisfaction surveys. And there’s a good chance that several dozen secretaries have tried to remind me of upcoming doctor’s appointments which I managed to attend just by checking my Google Calendar. + +My productivity has improved. + +Although it’s only my third, this will be my profitable year in self-employment by a long shot. + +I have plenty of mental bandwidth for working with clients (who are fine to communicate by email or schedule time to call on Zoom). To read. To focus. + +Undoubtedly, I have called mental anguish to quite a few delivery drivers and health clinic secretaries during the course of this experiment. + +If I could, I would seek their forgiveness. But equally, if it were in any way practical, I might recommend that they give dropping into flight mode a try themselves. + +I maintain that a lot of phone calls are annoying interruptions. + +That email is a lot less invasive and has the added advantage that it’s amenable to automation through the powers of AI. + +The police department should pick up their calls. + +We should all have one in our pocket. + +But equally, you can go without calls for a lot longer than you think. The sky probably won’t cave in if you try it. diff --git a/posts/medium/I-m-A-Freelance-Writer--Here-s-How-I-Spent-Today.md b/posts/medium/I-m-A-Freelance-Writer--Here-s-How-I-Spent-Today.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..926e4fd380a0324020f59f6ad5c498478fd4990c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/I-m-A-Freelance-Writer--Here-s-How-I-Spent-Today.md @@ -0,0 +1,319 @@ +# I’m A Freelance Writer. Here’s How I Spent Today + +Hello, Medium! + +Long time lurker first time poster, as they say. + +I maintain a sparsely updated blog [on my personal homepage](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/), but for the sake of mixing up the content a bit, I decided to add this one here (although, in general, I still prefer placing content on platforms that I can manage). + +In other words, no dear friends, I have not finally heeded your advice and hitched a ride with the Medium bandwagon. + +But this is a start and I might come back to cross-post some content in the future. + +So, let me begin. + +### It’s Dinner-Time And I Haven’t Dressed Yet. (Not Quite) + +Somebody’s freelance life! + +Ah, the joys of freelance life! + +Long days spent lounging around the internet (and the house) wearing a onesie while sipping a martini and trotting out some SEO content for a client on the other side of the world. All before nonchalantly firing out an invoice in time for dinner and enjoying an idyllic work-life balance from within … well, your own home. + +**_If only it were that easy (spoiler alert: it’s not)._** + +There are many misconceptions about freelance writing, but that’s probably close to the image that many have when they think of what a day in the life of a freelancer would look like. + +Sometimes, it even seems as if even our in-house brethren — the Content Managers and Editors with whom we often work — don’t take their freelancers seriously! + +Alternatively — oh, the cruel irony! — some think that freelancing is a euphemism for being long term unemployed, a description that can be simply slapped on a resume or LinkedIn profile to cover over an extended junket backpacking around Asia. + +While I’m sure there are some freelancers who actually spend their time touring the world in such a manager, and others again that have gotten so good at what they do that they can live a life of relative leisure (no judgement — I’d love to be you!) for the vast majority of freelancers — including the author — neither description comes close to being accurate. + +**For the vast majority, freelancing is a tough but rewarding slog (although, somehow, for those of us that stick with it, it still eneds up feeling rewarding!)** + +So although I see — with some disappointment — that I’m neither the first not the almost-first writer to try give an insight into my daily workflow to dispel those myths (if you’re interested in reading more _“Day in the Life of a Freelance Writer”_ style posts check out [1](https://amysuto.com/2018/07/day-in-the-life-of-a-freelance-writer/), [2](https://trustedbusinessadvisor.com/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-freelance-writer/), [3](https://writingcooperative.com/a-day-in-the-life-of-this-freelance-writer-1bc8801aab4d), [and others](https://www.google.com/search?q=%22day+in+the+life%22+freelance+writer&oq=%22day+in+the+life%22+freelance+writer&aqs=chrome..69i57.5680j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8)), I will do my little bit to give the world at large, my friends, and my sometimes disbelieving family (!), a little bit of insight into what I do on a daily basis. + +### Firstly: All Freelance Writers Are Not Created Equal + +Learning: all keyboard monkeys are not of exactly the same breed + +Sometimes, when I’m not really in the mood to get into a robotic _“so, what do you do for living”_ conversation at a dinner party, and am simply trying to evade the topic entirely, I tell people that _“I’m a freelancer”_(even though I generally try to avoid using the term — see my footnote at the end of this piece). + +**Of course, it’s the equivalent of an insurance salesperson telling you that they _“work in an office”_ or _“do a job”_ for a living.** + +It goes without saying that virtually any occupation can be conducted on an ad-hoc, contractual, at-will basis (which is the essence of freelancing). + +Looking beyond the typical freelance ‘monoliths’, or at least those that have emerged as such in today’s market (freelance writers, Wordpress developers, graphic designers, and Virtual Assistants to name but a few), there are also more traditional occupations — such as lawyers — who often run their businesses as _de facto_ self-employed freelancers. It’s just that we, and they, don’t typically box them in the same category. + +My point is that freelancing — as a group of at-will workers who are neither employees nor classic entrepreneurs starting unique enterprises — is nothing new under the sun, even if there has been a surge of freelancers doing jobs that didn’t even exist just a generation ago. + +Additionally, because there are so many freelance writers in the world — and all freelancers, in effect, compete and against one another in the global market — there are also categories and sub-divisions. + +As I’m assuming that you’re _not_ a freelance writer, let me trot out some of the main ones. + +There’s a massive crossover between news journalism and content marketing. Massive Facebook groups such as the famous [‘What’s Your Plan B’ ](https://www.facebook.com/groups/1476343355941323/?ref=br_rs)are testament to that. + +To outline some of the main subdivisions within freelance writing: + + * You have **copywriters** who specialize in writing short-form copy projects such as landing pages, email campaigns, and ad collateral (that discipline is the modern incarnation of the ad agency writers of old); + * **SEO writers** who are skilled in keyword research and digital marketing and who specialize in authoring content explicitly to be found in search engines and to convert readers to buyers; + * **Generic “content writers”** who might do a bit of both; + * And those (like me!) who come from a journalistic background and write words for slightly different use-cases (mine tend to be used as assets by actual — and aspiring — ‘thought leaders’, and include articles, speeches, e-books, and books). + +My work — in its totality these days— consists of [ghostwriting](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com). + +Feel free to [check out my website ](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com)or simply understand that I write a variety of longer form content pieces (up to book length) for mostly technology clients that are then published under _their_ name rather than mine. + +Yes, dear friend or perplexed family member, that means that my name is not and will not be on that article I sent you in an attempt to explain what I do for a living. But also that I haven’t been Netflix-and-chilling for the best part of the last two years too. + +And no (it’s worth noting!) that does not mean that I’m getting ‘screwed over’ or abused by some evil corporation — it’s simply part and parcel of the system that I am part of. The next time you pick up a trade magazine or hear a compelling speech from a politician that resonates with your belief, know that there was somebody behinds the scenes, like me, whose job it was to pen those words. + +### **So — How did I get here?** + +Before I dive in and give you an insight into the not-so-scintillating details of my daily work routine, it might be interesting to know a little bit about how I — like many — ended up doing these kind of gigs rather than sitting in a cubicle farm. + +**For many (most?) — and particularly those in the writing world — the path to becoming (and ceasing to become!) a freelancer can be a circuitous one that often has nothing to do with one’s employment status, one’s status in life, or one’s immediate career prospects.** + +My evolution, which is always in train, has gone something like this: + +[_–I set up a news website while studying Law in university in Ireland_](https://www.google.com/search?q=%22day+in+the+life%22+freelance+writer&oq=%22day+in+the+life%22+freelance+writer&aqs=chrome..69i57.5680j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8) _(I’m still not sure why I chose that as my undergraduate!) and caught the journalism bug while I was at it. The stakes were obviously incredible small, but I learned — and taught myself — the fundamentals of learning beats, interviewing sources, and putting together news and opinion copy;_ + +_— During my first summer in college, I interned at an_[ _Irish-American news website_](http://www.irishcentral.com) _and then wrote for them, and the website’s sister print publication, The Irish Voice, for a number of years;_ + +_— I ran my news operation_[ _full time for a year_](https://www.fuzion.ie/news/id/657/) _and then sold it;_ + +_— I moved to London where I studied for, and finished a Master’s degree in, Political Journalism (at City University London);_ + +_— I came back to Ireland and worked as the Marketing Communications (MarCom) manager at a then-nascent_[ _political technology startup_](http://www.ecanvasser.com) _;_ + +_— I moved to Israel, something I had already been planning for the best part of ten years;_ + +_— I spent my first summer in Jerusalem working as a Copy Editor at one of Israel’s national English-language broadsheets, received a full-time job offer from its competitor, and then realized that there was no way I could survive in Israel either being paid $10 an hour or earning the alternative salary;_ + +_— I began job hunting and quickly realized that there were almost as many companies looking for freelancers as they were looking for employees.I opened a file (‘tik’ in Hebrew) with the Tax Authority and began hammering out my first freelance content marketing articles to keep myself financially afloat while I looked for a full-time opportunity;_ + +_— I found a job at a PR company and kept my freelance file open but inactive;_ + +_— I was headhunted from said PR company by a startup I had interviewed at prior to accepting their offer. I left very soon thereafter. It was a messy/ugly startup experience that is better left untold — but acknowledged;_ + +_— This time by necessity, I returned to freelancing;_ + +_— Just when that was gathering steam, I took another job because I thought it was the sensible thing to do, even though I wasn’t entirely sure which of the two ways was forward. I worked as the Marketing Communications (MarCom) manager at another startup;_ + +_— I left said startup voluntarily to pursue my current client work;_ + +Wow — I’m feeling tired just writing that out! + +Perhaps I’m simply a job-hopping millennial, but I feel like my trajectory is far from aberrant among who are trying to find their place in the professional world. + +My career, as unconventional as it might seen to some, has thus been a meandering succession of major pivots (journalism -> MarCom), minor shifts (in-house MarCom -> external writer) and even smaller adjustments (generalist tech writer -> niche tech writer) that is slowly unfolding to this day to help me find my ‘path’ in life. + +I used to fear (irrationally, I believe) that being a freelancer for any extended period of time would mean being confined to that employment status indefinitely — that companies would take one glance at my resume and heap it in the trash can along with all the other failed applicants. + +I envision a ‘softer border’ emerging between full-time employment and freelancing as both remote workers, and freelancers, continue to constitute growing percentages of the workforce. + +Thankfully, experience since going out on my own has assured me that that isn’t the case. + +As I’ll get into later, there are pros and cons for both forms of employment (for one, freelancing is a massive and often mentally draining workload; and secondly, after a while, I have begun to miss having colleagues!).**But I don’t think that either course needs to be a path for life unless you want it to be.** + +My belief and mindset in that respect has swung 180 recently and I now firmly believe that as freelancing continues to rise in popularity and acceptability — and as remote working becomes more commonplace in conventional employment arrangements — that there will be a softer and more understanding border delineating between the worlds of freelancing and employment. + +I hope — and expect — that moving periodically between the two as one’s life circumstances and priorities shift will not arouse as much attention as it might now. + +Freelancers who go in-house are not failures — they’re usually simply talented professionals with worthwhile experience to contribute who might want a change in tempo. + +And, exceptions aside, freelancers are not a band of misfits exiting the corporate world simply because they can’t stand the thought of working for a boss for a day (I think that this image is particularly damaging, especially when freelancers themselves proffer this as their main motivation to go out on their own). + +But coming back to my day. + +### It Started With Light + +Some technology. Left: new SAD light. Center: the wonderful LectroFan white noise generator. + +I mentioned earlier that I ghostwrite for (mostly) clients in the technology world, although the smaller half of my business consists of public affairs writing (I do hold a Master’s in Political Journalism after all!). + +It’s a pretty common arrangement given the preponderance of technology companies in the world and the fact that they are often early-stage and latch onto content marketing as the centerpoint of their inbound marketing strategy. Earned media and publishing content on-site and on blogs is cost effective compared to traditional methods like paid advertising, and their online digital equivalents such as Google Ads. + +For me, and many others, though, it’s also a happy coincidence given that I love both writing and technology. + +I like to try out new gadgets both as…well, a means of trying out new things… but also to keep up to date with consumer technology as well as products and services I sometimes write about for clients (which is more on the B2B side of the divide; CRMs, enterprise technology, etc). + +I’ve recently come to realize that many of my personal technology interests ([Linux being the major one](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm)) have come in handy at some point or another as I have profited professionally from that knowledge — although the opportunity to do has often arrived surreptitiously and long after I had discounted that body of knowledge as probably professionally useless. + +(I feel that my interest in vexillology will probably remain in that category indefinitely, but if you are a flag company needing a writer, please feel free to hit me up!). + +It’s a good reason to keep interests going simply because they are interests — without the expectation of future recompense — and to keep searching for best-fit clients and industries that complement what you’re naturally inquisitive about (because those are always the easiest articles to write). + +This week’s minor dalliance in consumer technology has been (of all things!) with artificial lights for Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). + +My new SAD light sits next to my trusty white noise generator and I began the day, at about 07:30, by basking in its artificial glory — checking my email in its unexpectedly invigorating 10,000 Lux of white light. + +I don’t want to draw observations too quickly, but I have definitely felt more energetic and focused in the few days since I began using it. + +(Working at home can be a dark and dreary experience during winter, particularly as freelancers often have less reason to get out and about into the limited light that there is. I thought it would be a sensible purchase although I have no idea if I actually meet the diagnostic criteria for SAD!). + +### And Then There Was Coffee + +I love my automatic Turkish coffee maker. It also, evidently, could use a clean! + +After completing my morning routine, I usually go about making coffee from my delightful [Arzum Okka Minio automatic Turkish coffee maker ](http://www.arzumokka.com/product/okka-minio/)that I bought in Turkey two years ago. + +I’m obsessed with — and exclusively drink — authentically brewed Turkish coffee ground to less than 100 micron powder-like fineness and liberally infused with an equally pulverized and generous quantity of green cardamom (sorry to any Israelis reading this, but most of you are making Turkish coffee incorrectly; and yes, it matters!) + +I keep a massive quantity of coffee beans in my kitchen and it’s my little way of thinking in terms of long term objectives rather than focusing on the small picture of daily successes (and losses). + +**What’s the connection between coffee and success I’m trying to tease out here?** + +I have enough coffee in my kitchen to last me many, many months and coffee is the reliable fuel that keeps me going when, quite honestly, I feel like throwing in the hat on freelancing. + +It’s always there for me — even when, sometimes, I’m not. And, to be frank, both these feelings occasionally crop up. + +As I think any freelancer who is being honest will tell you — particularly during the brutally tough formative years which I am currently transversing , during which lessons tend to be learned the hard way— freelancing is extremely tough both in terms of the sheer amount of work and hours it takes to realize success and upon one’s mental health in general. + +The scale, and seriousness, of that second challenge has taken me time to fully comes to term with and accept. + +If all my retainers were cancelled tomorrow, for instance, I would go into next month with a guaranteed income of zero dollars. That’s a pretty stark degree of fundamental financial insecurity that has a nasty habit of preying on one’s subconscious and which is more than many people would be comfortable existing with. + +My collection of finjans (demitasse cups for Turkish coffee). Did I mention that I love Turkish coffee? + +Additionally: those retainers could be cancelled for a far greater range of reasons than an employee might have to countenance: + +The client may have hired somebody in house; they may be going out of business; they may simply have turned to Upwork and found someone cheaper to take my place. It’s a classic external locus of control which can feel disempowering until you learn and come to appreciate the other side of the coin (namely: assuming there are managing their book of business correctly, freelancers can also have far more diversified sources of income than employees, which actually gives them greater income security.). + +I also have zero paid holidays, so it’s my responsibility to charge my clients enough for me to be able to take them (so far, I have frankly sucked at doing this and, again, I have vastly underappreciated the extent to which vacations vital for one’s health and happiness! If you need another reason to charge better and professional rates, let this be it). + +And then there’s the famous isolation that freelancers face and the less well-understood but distinctively strange feeling of being virtually tethered to one’s work and clients but not really having a day-to-day real-world relationship with them. Even thought I try to periodically see those who work in the same country as I do, it doesn’t equate to the familiarity and camaraderie that comes from seeing colleagues at a water fountain and having an actual collegiate relationship. + +I am pretty diligent about breaking up my days and weeks with errands, social meetings, etc, but this is one aspect of freelancing that I _sometimes_ don’t love. + +### Freelancing Reality Two: You Need to Wear All Hats, All of the Time (At Least at the Start) + +This is my beloved workstation. I’m a desktop, Linux, and multi-monitor kind of guy. The document clipboard usually holds as client brief. I thought I’d swap it out with something motivational for the photo! + +But here’s the biggie and the part of freelancing that I actually think dwarfs the other challenges that I mentioned and explains why — in the eyes of most salaried workers — I would probably be classed as somebody that is almost _“always working”._ + +(In practice, I observe the Jewish Sabbath and never work from after sundown on Friday until the corresponding time on Saturday night. I have a strong feeling that, during the hardest of freelancing’s travails, this almost alone has kept me strong and sane!) + +But about those hats which I’m always juggling around. + +You see, as I’ve only recently come to understand, I’m not only the guy that has to get the writing jobs done for my clients (if I want to keep my clients: on deadline and on expectation — every time). + +Rather, I’m also: + + * **The business development department** responsible for developing my professional network, maintaining relationships with them, and exploring new potential clients to target. I’m also responsible, in particular, for finding creative ways for using tools such as LinkedIn to land more work — even when openings are not explicitly advertised as such. There’s usually an ‘in’ to be found if you’re creative enough, I have found. + * **The sales department** responsible for initiating outbound contact with prospective clients, holding phone calls and face-to-face meeting with them, and running some kind of funnel to steer them down by selling them on the value I can bring to their organization. As well as being the Sales Development Representative (SDR), I’m also, of course, supposed to be the ‘closer’ — getting them to actually sign off on contracts for a viable rate (the last part is the most challenging of all the functions described thus far; writing is an area with far too much supply and far too much exploitatively compensated work.) + * **The marketing department** who needs to write posts such as this [(and Quora contributions like these)](https://www.quora.com/profile/Daniel-Rosehill-7) to show prospects that I actually exist and am at least somewhat competent at the service that I offer. (Given that my line of business expressly involves me _not_ publicizing my work — and foregoing bylines that help other writers get their names out there — this dimension is particularly essential, and I need to do a lot more of it, although it can be hard as so much of my time is taken up writing anyway.) Most of my activities, however, remain more on the one-to-one sales and prospecting / outbound marketing side. Truth be told, I greatly struggle with self-promotion and selling myself and am naturally averse to self-promotion. Coming back to the underappreciated importance of the mental and mindset aspect of freelancing, this (self confidence and being okay with self-promotion) is another arena in which I have a lot of work ahead of me. + +Outside of those classic functions, I’m also: + + * **The IT guy.** I manage a hosting network of 24 websites (yes, 24!), [including my writing one](http://dsrghostwriting.com), and — in general — have an obsession with doing things that can _scale_ — even if that’s not the immediate requirement. Thus, I’m continuously revising my sales and marketing stack, working on integrations between systems, and making sure that I have a viable and preferably automated system for everything from outbound sales contact (thank you, [Klenty](http://klenty.com)!) to having reliable electronic versions of key paperwork to streamline the new account onboarding process. This week, for instance, I succeeded in provisioning and QA-ing a staging site for the aforementioned business domain. I’m a long-time Linux user and tech geek so this is all stuff that I actually enjoy and tend to get engrossed in (often to the detriment of actually writing things!) + * **The purchasing department and office manager:** who needs to keep the printer supplied with toner, find a good laser printer for a reasonable budget, and figure out how on earth to get that dried ink stage off my scanner bed so that it doesn’t look completely ridiculous when I send back paperwork scanned with it. Speaking of which, I seem to be continuously scanning, signing, and stamping NDAs, receipts, contracts, and the other pieces of paperwork that I routinely need to digitize. + * **The accountant:** who needs to meticulously log and record every expense expensable for accounting purposes; who must ensure that I’ve set aside enough money for tax and met my social insurance contributions so that I’m not faced with a gigantic bill once a year; and who must ensure that my pension contributions are also on track — and submit tax returns and forms at the various junctures throughout the year when they are statutorily required. + +### So What I Actually Did Today! + +My ever-growing, ever-active Todoist business project + +I hope the above explains why, on a typical day, I’m not actually sitting in front of my delightful workstation and writing all of the time — or even most of it. + +Besides being as vulnerable to procrastination as your average office worker (at least!), there are simply a lot of things to do! + +It’s kind of like being a professional organizer. + +There’s the bits that my clients see (the output, i.e., the writing what they pay me to write) and then a lot of behind-the-scenes activity that they are unaware of. + +The chief and recurring _daily_ actions center around making sure that I have enough sales pipeline to keep opportunities coming in (a lot of work!); attempting to raise my profile online (a slow but consistent burner); figuring out pragmatic business questions (What’s the best virtual phone number service for my current needs? Can I find a better SMTP provider for this email marketing campaign?). And, finally, there’s the fact that I try to set reasonable limits around the hours I work, even if they are lengthy. + +So to finally get to that breakdown. + +Today I was involved in the following activities: + +**08:30–09:00:** Ingestion of caffeine. + +**Early Morning: Business Development** + +**09:00–10:00:** Still dealing with responses from a recent direct email campaign targeting a certain startup sector. Somebody wanted to set up a phone meeting so I spent an hour tweaking Calendly so that it becomes a self-service operation for the prospect rather than having a tedious back and forth to schedule it. They book a slot in my calendar just as I finish and the system works beautifully. Sometimes, things really do work out as planned! + +The staging site in my Cpanel. Thanks to Softaculous. It works well! + +**Late Morning: Technical Project and Website Updating** + +**10:00:-12:00:** As I mentioned, this week I got a staging version of my business site up, running, and QA’d. So I’m now in the process of making all the inner pages I never paid much attention to look good. Soon, I’ll probably just redo the entire site, as it’s not exactly a work of graphic design art — but, at least for now, it gets the job done. Today, I made the payments options page look a lot better and updated the Transferwise Eurozone account as they are migrating accounts to Belgium this summer. PDFs have to be updated as well as the website and then I need to also update the content in an onboarding Mailchimp automation (remember what I said about liking scalable systems?). + +**12:00–12:30:** Ingesting food. + +**Most of afternoon: writing work!** + +**12:30–16:00:** I spend the majority of the afternoon getting through client deliverables. Today, I wrote about 2,000 words for two separate clients. When finished, I either send them directly to the client or add them to another delivery system. I then itemize my monthly invoices with the projects. + +**16:00–16:30:** I’m using ZohoCRM to handle sending out files to clients (I want to stop doing this manually altogether) so I work on a few templates for file delivery, estimated completion date updates, and acknowledging the receipt of briefs with a deadline. + +To get the Calendly integration running properly, I set up a quick Zapier integration to copy the appointments automatically from my business calendar to my personal one (I’m always in fear of not showing up for a phone call!). + +**16:30–17:00:** I manage to get hold of my pension company just before their support line closes. + +I’m self-managing a fund and am on my fifth attempt at trying to get them to accept paperwork to transition a fund from an old employer. + +Every tiny detail must be perfect. Persistence, and the helpfulness of the company’s representatives have paid off, and the form is finally accepted. + +Sometimes, in addition, I will post in Facebook Groups also to source recommendations from the community. I’m trying to find a bank which is more friendly to the needs of small business as I had an irritating experience with a clerk earlier in the week that has soured my perception of my current one. I engaged in a back and forth about this with a few posters. + +**17:30–19:00:** The “Day in the Life of a Freelancer” post idea has been swimming around my head, and on the back of my to-do list for the past two weeks. + +Today is the start of the weekend so I often leave somewhat enjoyable projects until the very end of the week. (Also worth pointing out: today was unusually focused on administrative activities and less so on writing!) + +**Tomorrow:** + +Invariably, there will be more work to do tomorrow, even though it’s part of the weekend where I live, at least nominally. + + * I’ve nurtured the latest round of leads and set up meetings. I want to keep going with the prospecting and really not let up on it. I haven’t had as much time as I would like for about the past year to work on freelancing for personal reasons. Things have finally settled down and I want to go at full pace, at least for a few months. + * As I’ve been working on client deliverables this week I haven’t had a chance to write the prologue for an e-book that I’m co-writing with a friend. I’ll need to refer back to the recording of our conversation too as it’s already been a couple of weeks in the past.This is a far lower priority than the client work and the prospecting but it’s important to do this kind of work to keep passionate about what you do, I believe. + * I see that a client in Florida is working again so I’ll probably get feedback about one of my last deliverables by the time I wake up. I’ll also try to work on one more piece for them before I go offline for a day — and then call it a week. + +### Freelancing Reality Three: It’s a Lot of Work (But I Like It!) + +That takes me all the way up to now, writing this Medium post from my desk at about seven in the evening, so it seems like a fitting place to leave off this blog post. + +I hope I’ve shed a bit of light on what freelancing is like in actuality. + +Although freelancing is not for the feint of heart (or work ethic!) I’m a firm believer that it is possible to succeed, no matter what your definition of professional success looks like (although — by writing this — I don’t wish to hold myself out as some kind of success story! Rather, I’m learning as I go along, but wanted to share a little of the experience I have garnered to date.) + +I also firmly believe that it takes a lot more work to get the ball rolling than to keep it going (I believe engineers would explain this in terms of static friction versus kinetic force). + +And the longer I do this, and the more I understand about freelancing, the easier it becomes for me to spot decent opportunity, see red flags that signal potential pitfalls, and the more I can focus on the actual writing rather than the business and administrative aspects. + +For a while, I was part of a well-known writers’ Facebook Group and attempted to find my way to success by asking every conceivable question that could possibly be asked about freelancing. + +Questions such as: ‘How many rounds of revision is reasonable for a white paper?’; ‘Does this sound like a reasonable free for ghostwriting interview responses for a software CTO’;’ Why are there so many clients looking for ridiculously low rates in the world?’ + +I’ve subsequently come to believe that the best way to learn freelancing is by taking action and doing and that over time the lessons you need to learn will make themselves obvious to you — and often through what could shortsightedly be dismissed as ‘failures’. + +So I come back to that massive bucket of coffee beans that I mentioned earlier in this post. + +You need to work smart, to have or develop a good professional network, and ideally also have some good administrative systems to succeed, as much as you can, as a freelancer. + +But ultimately your success depends primarily on hard work and putting in the hours to develop that network, impress those initial clients, and secure the referrals that will pave the way to ongoing work. + +Any time I have done the above, I have invariably seen the results — although it’s important to remember that brutally hard work is actually a leading indicator and that there is usually a time-lag between it and reaping its fruit. + +That’s why it’s vital (but can be difficult) not to fall into mental despair when you’re working hard but not seeing results yet, or any at all, or going through a dry patch (because there’s a very good chance that it’s about to turn into opportunity!) + +If you’ve worked hard with a little helping of smartness on the side, success will ultimately come your way. You just need to keep pushing — against the resistance of the market and the resistance that sometimes comes from within. + +Speaking of the wars we sometimes foolishly wage with ourselves, I’ve also learned (yes, the hard way) that it’s vital to take care of your mental health at all times — particularly when you freelance. + +The very nature of the business and the ingredients it so often throws our way — rejection, instability, stress, all in plentiful and repeated doses — can be a potent recipe for anxiety and depression. + +Keep a watch out — and if things get too tough, remember that there is always a path out. + +Any feedback, comments, criticisms, etc about this would be much appreciated. + +I can be contacted directly [through my website](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com). + +And good luck — whatever stage you are at in the journey. + +### Some Extra Snippets — For The End + + 1. I never describe myself as a “freelancer” or a “freelance writer”. Although “freelance” is one way of describing the nature of the working relationship, I think there’s an enormous tendency to devalue freelancing work. Rather, professionally, I refer to myself as a “business writer”, “ghostwriter”, etc. But for the sake of this post and helping people to find the article I have deferred to the more conventional terminology. + diff --git a/posts/medium/I-m-based-in-Israel--And-I-m-not-hiding-that-fact-from-anybody-.md b/posts/medium/I-m-based-in-Israel--And-I-m-not-hiding-that-fact-from-anybody-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a5ecb7f565e8d60c8e1720c4a5fe8b388f072968 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/I-m-based-in-Israel--And-I-m-not-hiding-that-fact-from-anybody-.md @@ -0,0 +1,48 @@ +# I’m based in Israel. And I’m not hiding that fact from anybody. + +_Crossposted from LinkedIn. Categorization: Strident and likely unpopular opinions that may ruffle some feathers:_ + +I speak to company founders all the time. Particularly those working at startups. Particularly those based in Israel — because it’s where I live. + +A very common dynamic which I encounter: companies (and founders) that pretend to be based in the US. + +Sometimes — after I discover, unsurprisingly, that an individual or company is based in Israel when they claim to be based overseas — I’ll press the founder/company on why their LinkedIn/website makes it appear as if they’re headquartered in London, New York, or Geneva. + +Frequent explanations I hear in return: it’s “easier” branding. It’s more “palatable” to the target market. We don’t want people’s political perceptions of Israel to bleed into how they view our company. + +Israelis, I hasted to add, aren’t the only ones who do this. But they’re a good example to pick on because quite a few seem to and because every time I encounter one that does this it makes me a little more annoyed at how common this ruse is. + +So let me state my opinion about this once and for all: + +I find hiding where you’re based cowardly. And — yes this word is very judgy — reprehensible. + +Whether you’re based in Israel or India or Ecuador, have the integrity and honestly to represent your country on LinkedIn. Or elsewhere on the internet. + +How easy is to “pretend” to prospects and the world that you’re based somewhere you’re not? Very easy: + + * Subscribe to a VPN + * Buy up a few virtual numbers to route calls to your local phone + * Change your LinkedIn location + * Change your location on Twitter to your preferred geography + * Get a Google My Business verification code sent to your hotel when you’re next on a business trip. Ta-da! Like magic, the word now thinks that your office is in the US. + * More conventionally sign up for a virtual office / post opening service + +But here’s the kicker. + +Despite it being easy, it’s also, I believe, a failed gambit — and one that deserves to fail. + +Because … you know … I like Google (especially advanced search operators) and I can tell where you’re actually based in five minutes. + +Or by the fact that’re calling from an Israeli number. Guess what? So can most people. Your prospects aren’t stupid. + +My vanity URL is a .[co.il](http://co.il/) (Israeli TLD) for this very reason. + +Why? I’m not hiding the fact that I’m based in Israel. It’s like a flag flying from my website.This means that I get the “why did you move to Israel?” thing in most interviews. I’m happy to share why according to how appropriate the context is. + +By the way: being based in Israel doesn’t mean that I defend every action of the government. When I say I’m based here I’m just trying to communicate to people that it’s where I spend the majority of my time. + +I’m not prepared to hide where I’m based because it might make me more attractive. If it does: it’s to the wrong people. If there’s any logic behind a decision to mask where you’re based, I believe that it’s a broken one. + +And now … I’m attaching a big Israeli flag as the thumbnail image for this post. + +Don’t hide who you are. Or where you do business from. Because in all likelihood, no matter how many smokes and mirrors you erect, you’re not fooling anyone. diff --git a/posts/medium/I-ve-Been-Living-In-Israel-For-7-Years----And-All-I-Got-Was-These-Lousy-Photos.md b/posts/medium/I-ve-Been-Living-In-Israel-For-7-Years----And-All-I-Got-Was-These-Lousy-Photos.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b0aa0991bd1fda0e533c54132ccbc71f655f90ad --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/I-ve-Been-Living-In-Israel-For-7-Years----And-All-I-Got-Was-These-Lousy-Photos.md @@ -0,0 +1,230 @@ +# I’ve Been Living In Israel For 7 Years —  And All I Got Was These Lousy Photos + +Last night, I decided to clean up my Google Photos. It was a gargantuan undertaking of sorts. + +My photos are spread chaotically over a variety of online and offline systems including my main cloud storage, Google Photos, Flickr, and other random nooks and crannies of the internet. + +Here’s something that those who encounter me online these days mightn’t know about me. + +I used to be extremely adverse to sharing anything about myself on the internet. Only a few years ago, my Facebook profile didn’t even have a profile picture. As I’ve slowly gotten “into” blogging and other forms of sharing, I’ve become more comfortable with sharing details of my life on the internet. + +Here are some random photos from my time living in Israel. They might give an insight into my personality. + +[Yes, my photography skills currently suck. No, I do not intend giving up the day job (writing)] + +### The Great Duck of Jerusalem + +Jerusalem currently has a large yellow duck on its main street as a sort of public art installation. I’m sure it’s been photographed hundreds of times already but I couldn’t resist the last time I walked by it. + +### Salt And Vinegar Crisps Arrive in Israel + +Sometimes life as an expat is all about the small victories and improvements. + +Here’s a very marginal one: this week one of Israel’s main consumer food producers (Elit by Strauss Group) launched a flavor of salt and vinegar crisps in Israel. + +The news has sent the country’s expats into furious excitement. + +Below: picking up a pack of them from a supermarket in Jerusalem. + +### Voting … Again And Again + +For those not aware, Israel is currently caught in a repetitive cycle of elections and re-elections as the country’s political parties are caught in a seemingly never-ending cycle of bickering and disagreements. + +I’ve been tempted many times to give up on the whole charade. But … civic duties and all that. This was a couple of years ago …. before lockdown (and before and after photos are painful for me to look at!). + +### The Irish Embassy in Israel — And Meeting The UN + +Paul Buckley (left) and me (right) at one of the Embassy’s Patrick’s Day partiesThe Irish expat community in Israel is … tiny. Like really tiny. I know three other Irish-born people in Jerusalem. + +During the seven years I’ve been living in Jerusalem I think I’ve heard Irish accents a (single) handful of times. + +I’ve attended a few Irish Embassy functions over my time here including the first time they turned the Tel Aviv Municipality green. + +Through those, I made the acquaintance of a now retired Irish army officer on secondment with the UN who very kindly took me and my (now) wife on a tour of UNTSO headquarters in Government House in Jerusalem. I learned a lot about the various UN missions’ mandates. As well as the best ways to stream the Six Nations in Israel. + +You can’t visit a UN installation without taking a podium pic: + +### The First Time Friends Visited — And The Second (And Third) + +The identity of an Irish Jew is a complex and (for me) uneasy one. + +Israel and Ireland are worlds apart. Not only geographically but culturally and, of course, politically (the last doesn’t require elaboration!). + +When I moved to Israel, in 2015, I asserted confidently that no friends would ever visit me — it was simply too far. + +Not only are there no direct flights (although before the pandemic El Al talked about starting one) but, growing up in Ireland, I had no Jewish friends. + +I simply couldn’t fathom why anybody (without a cultural/religious draw to the country) would choose to visit expensive Israel when Spain was only a few hours away. + +The first surprise was a friend’s brother — a history buff — who got engaged and decided to roll Israel into the itinerary. His brother — my friend and a former coworker — came along for the trip. Fittingly, we sat in an Irish bar and ate in McDonalds. + +The second was before my wedding when two of my friends from Ireland made the journey. Because they visited around Patrick’s Day and a trip to the UN was on our itinerary we took this mock diplomatic photo (this was when my flag obsession was still going on). + +I was honored that, for my wedding in Jerusalem, a surprising number of friends did in fact make the trip across Europe. + +Irish people dancing at a Jewish wedding in Jerusalem, Israel. Don’t tell me it can’t happen. + +I went full force with the branding in the lead-up to the wedding. Custom tshirts, flags, and friends. + +And while I’m wont to make unproven observations about the world I’ll allow myself one exception: humanity’s enthusiasm for flags is directly correlated with their blood alcohol level. If you don’t believe me watch any Tomorrowland set on YouTube. + +Participants from Ireland attend a pre-wedding event at a bar. + +### Israel Coming Out Of Lockdown, Sending Over My First TV Dispatch + +Slowly, Israel has been emerging from the pandemic lockdown. Due to the success of the vaccination campaign here, Israel has begun emerging before most — if not all — of the rest of the world. + +One of my more interesting journalistic projects recently was [sending in a dispatch](https://www.rte.ie/news/primetime/2021/0323/1205711-vaccines-how-ireland-compares-to-other-countries/) about how that process looks on the ground for Ireland’s national broadcaster, RTÉ. + +My previous TV appearance was a fumbling call-in to Canadian television during which — in response to the anchor’s question of whether Ireland might need to receive an IMF bailout — I intoned “it might happen, it might not.” So my broadcast journalism career is on the up. (I originally intended going into journalism and have a postgraduate qualification in it but the “dark side” of communications and PR is where I have ended up — at least now.) + +The process has been fun to both engage in and watch as restrictions are gradually rolled back. Even enjoying a lemonade and arak at a Jerusalem bar — without a mask — was turned into an extremely exciting experience. + +One of my first social lunches in Jerusalem as restrictions ended + +### Reviewing Technology Things — Including This Box + +My day job for almost the past three years has been working as a freelance writer (in simple terms) helping technology clients around the world to develop and execute marketing campaigns, particularly those involving thought leadership (rather than content marketing). + +A part of my home office is below. + +I was one of the first people in Israel — possibly the first — to test out a Network Attached Storage (NAS) device launched by Synology, the DS920+. + +While this fact probably isn’t hugely exciting to anybody but me, it did underscore that — when it comes to tech — Israel is definitely on the map. Sometimes Israel’s postal system works at glacial speed. But I was able to receive a new product direct from Taiwan in just two days. + +Despite being a humble solo freelance writer, I’m a huge — make that massive — advocate for doing business with the world. It puts Israel on the map and introduces international clients to the idea of outsourcing to English-speakers in Israel. + +As the remote and footloose workforce continues to pick up steam, this is a trend that I hope to see continuing and growing. + +### Buying Lots And Lots Of Turkish Coffee Cups + +Almost a year ago, I was diagnosed with ADHD. + +ADHD is badly misunderstood by those unaffected by it and it’s far from the hyperactivity-dominated monolith that many people believe it to be. And it definitely doesn’t only affect children. + +There are nuances and variants ADHD doesn’t mean that ADHD-ers _can’t_ focus. Simply that their focus can be inappropriate and inconsistent. This often leads to life challenges and psychiatric comorbidities — like anxiety and depression — exist at a higher rate then they do for the general population. + +I can easily get absorbed in topics that fascinate me — hyperfocus is a common ADHD trait. But if I’m not intently interested in a topic — like doing laundry — I can have a hard time paying attention. This can give me the impression of being an “absent-minded professor” because I can find difficult things easy and regular things challenging (if they bore me). Some ADHDers, like me, are born daydreamers. This is commonly diagnosed as the passive inattentive (PI) variety. + +Professionally I adore creativity and brainstorming. But sometimes I need to work with somebody who keeps and eye on the nuts and bolts. + +(I’ve just realized that — in the course of writing this — I forgot to put my washing in the dryer. I kid not). + +For many years, I obsessively drunk coffee as a form of self-medication (detail: this is reasonably common, caffeine is a mild stimulant). Prior to that, I was a coffee connoisseur and Turkish coffee — something suitably obscure for me — was my variety of choice. + +While I no longer drink coffee (major advantage of _actual_ medication: you only need to take it once a day), I still have a soft spot for the elaborate demitasse cups that I used to buy — as well as my automatic Turkish coffee maker that I picked up during my first (and hitherto only) trip to Turkey. + +Below: the automatic Turkish coffee maker, by Azrum, that I picked up while in Turkey. Not many are aware that these machines even exist and I could find only one importer in Israel. Many an enjoyable cup of coffee was prepared in this gadget and I even had it rewired for Israeli plugs. + +Despite the fact that I no longer drink coffee (at the time of writing, at least; definite affirmations have a habit of later being proven wrong), I’d love to see Turkish coffee go international the way espresso has years ago. It’s a simple preparation method and still my favorite. + +(Note: Israelis tend to call coffee ‘botz’ — poring hot water directly over grounds — ‘Turkish coffee. This is incorrect and in the opinion of many Turkish coffee fans, including I, an abomination). + +### Buying Obscene Quantities Of Bulk Goods + +Friends like to joke that in the event of some kind of catastrophe (G-d forbid) my apartment is going to be the first place that they will head. + +I have a penchant for buying bulk goods. + +I think people don’t get the psychology of it because when one sees an overstocked pantry they assume that the owner is preparing for catastrophe. I hate having my attention interrupted. So I buy massive quantities so that I will — maybe once a year — run out of lentils. That’s about all there is too it. It’s a time-saver. + +Speaking of food, I also love ethnic cuisines and cooking. And languages. + +For me, sourcing ingredients is a perfect catalyst for diving into another culture. I used to have my pantry a lot better organized. The above photo is an IKEA hack of sort because I doubt that anybody at IKEA ever thought their shelving was going to be used for this purpose. + +### Getting An Organ Removed + +I had my gallbladder removed about 15 months ago. + +I’ve been struggling with digestive issues ever since — and keeping a healthy weight — and it’s fair to say that I feel worse after the operation than I did before it. + +I say this not to corral sympathy but rather because it’s been a pretty significant part of my life that I don’t really talk much about. + +I think that way too many surgeons are rushing to take out gallbladders far too easily with inadequate diagnostic workups — mine didn’t even have stones and I believe it never had and the only test I ever had was an ultrasound. Although ultimately I elected to have the surgery and accept responsibility for that decision I did so encouraged by surgeons’ advice. + +I can’t give medical advice here (or anywhere). But I recommend that people keep this organ if they can. I believe that medical science will look back in fifty years at the received wisdom that this is a useless organ and wonder what on earth were they thinking — much as today’s doctors question how their fairly recent predecessors could ever have endorsed tobacco use as healthy. + +On the flip side, I’m religious — something else that I also rarely talk about publicly. I think that everything happens for a reason. I hope that trying to fix my health issues will prove the catalyst to get my overall wellbeing in better order. + +The guy at the bed next to me when recovering from surgery + +### Getting Married … Doing Some Travelling + +My wife, Hannah, is from Dallas, Texas. + +I have a hard time with travelling. It takes me a long time to relax and get into the changed surroundings. Being self-employed has imbued me with some unfortunate workaholic tendencies and it takes me a while to switch off (my Kindle and podcasts help). + +I love the concept of staycationing, although Israel doesn’t make it easy. The country is vastly overpriced and I have no qualms about saying so. Many Israelis now take Ryanair flights to Europe because it’s far better value. + +I never expected my self-employment to last this long but, as it has, I’d like to explore the world a bit more. + +Places I would love to see: mostly Asia. I had a friend living in Hong Kong whom I never visited and this saddened me. I’d also love to see Singapore. The last two years have been all about work. Mixing things up would be nice. + +On a staycation in Tel Aviv + +### Working … Lots And Lots Of Time Working + +My day-to-day life in Israel probably isn’t much different than it would be anywhere else in the world. + +Israel has pros and cons. It’s too expensive. The bureaucracy can be infuriating. And driving here is a nightmare. + +On the other hand, it’s blessed with good weather and the startup mentality runs strong. But — as a Jew — I feel like this is the only place I should be in the world. That’s essentially why I’m here although (for me) that doesn’t preclude the idea of relocating temporarily. There’s a lot of opportunity in Israel. But for what I do (a specialized form of English writing) I often find better work internationally. + +I spend most of my time working on professional pursuits. When I write for fun (like this piece), it’s really just for fun. Like most people, socializing and leisure is the stuff that fits around the margins. + +### A Bit Of Curry On The Side + +But speaking of leisure, I absolutely adore ethnic food. + +Indian, Nepalese and (more recently) Burmese are my favorites. I also enjoy ethnic food. Ethiopian food is good too and thankfully we have a lot of it in Israel because there are many Ethiopian immigrants. I also like Thai. + +My guilty pleasure is British Indian Restaurant (BIR) cooking which is kind of a British (/Irish) spin on traditional Indian cooking. + +I love visiting restaurant supply stores to get some decent cookware. My kitchen is filled with gastronorm pans. If you’ve never heard of them, [then I recommend that you read this.](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-you-need-gastronorm-pans-in-your-life-3df797bd5386) + +Below: some of my output. Chicken vindaloo served with pita. A fusion dish of sorts. + +### An Attempt At Homebrewing + +I tried homebrewing once. A lot of work for beer. + +I made these ridiculous labels to stick on the bottles. + +Next on my list to try: mead and cider. + +### I Went Through A Flag Phase + +Don’t ask. + +But here’s the evidence. + +### Some Aspirations + +My plan for this year is to explore audio and video content creation. + +I enjoy documenting and sharing the world around me. And reading other people’s “content.” + +Speaking of which, I positively despise the word “content” but use it because it’s now so prevalent and easily understood. I have never willingly described myself as a “content writer” and don’t intend changing that any time soon. + +It’s _writing_. Or audio. Or video. + +Aggregating everything under one header does a disservice to the creative professionals who dedicate their lives and careers to excelling in one kind of it. + +I have some strong opinions. Sometimes contrarian ones like the above. I don’t mind sharing them. Creating debate is fun. Echo-chambers are boring. + +What else? + +I’ve published one book under a pen name and another obscure one under my actual one. I have two literary projects to undertake when I can find time: one book and one screenplay and a couple of business ideas always floating around my brain too. + +I used to run a student news website and spent a summer in New York as an intern reporter at IrishCentral.com. Some of my articles are still online. Before working for myself, I managed marketing communications at two startups. + +I love aviation and would like to become an amateur pilot. + +I always take backups. + +Those are some of the photos that I’ve amassed in my collection over the years. It’s small but growing. As I travel more and do more than just sit at a desk writing I might even have some more to share. + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/If--Nobody-Reads-Online--Why-Bother-With-Content-Marketing-At-All-.md b/posts/medium/If--Nobody-Reads-Online--Why-Bother-With-Content-Marketing-At-All-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7617cae7beb80cc1ca4b7f665b2b89aa810454a5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If--Nobody-Reads-Online--Why-Bother-With-Content-Marketing-At-All-.md @@ -0,0 +1,135 @@ +# If “Nobody Reads Online” Why Bother With Content Marketing At All? + +#### People read differently on the internet. But beyond catering to that, it shouldn’t impact how you try to reach them as a content marketer + +If nobody reads online, does that mean all content marketing is a giant waste of time, budget, and energy?Photo by [Startup Stock Photos](https://www.pexels.com/@startup-stock-photos?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-using-laptop-computer-on-table-7357/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +You’ve heard it before. And the headline will probably flash across your screen again. + +Or perhaps it will come in the form of a comment from a coworker looking to ease your doubt about your latest investment in “content.” + +Things didn’t pan out quite the way you anticipated. Or as quickly as you’d hoped. But that’s okay. Nobody reads online anyway. + +At face value, it sounds like an easy way to shift the burden of blame for your marketing efforts from you and over to … humanity at large. + +Here’s why: + +a) That’s not true. + +b) Even if it were, it’s not an excuse to skip out on content creation. + +### People Read Online, But They Do So In Fragments + +Firstly, let’s put the “people don’t read online” thing very quickly into its debunked place. + +If people didn’t read online, you wouldn’t have made it to this article. + +At a minimum — even if this is all you likely did! — you took a quick glance over the headline before clicking onto this story. + +_QED. (For those who don’t have the trauma of studying law in their pasts, that’s a ridiculous Latin abbreviation that means “see, I proved it yo!”; I use it to lend an aristocratic air to my writing)._ + +User experience (UX) research has proven several times over what many of us know to be true intuitively: + +[**How Users Read on the Web** + _In research on how people read websites we found that 79 percent of our test users always scanned any new page they…_ www.nngroup.com](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-users-read-on-the-web/ "https://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-users-read-on-the-web/")[](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-users-read-on-the-web/) + +The word by word readers number a paltry 16%. The rest of us scan. + +Now don’t we all read-by-scanning? Yes, actually. + +[**People** + _Home / MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit / People_ www.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk](https://www.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk/people/matt.davis/cmabridge/#:~:text=According%20to%20a%20researcher%20%28sic,be%20at%20the%20right%20place.&text=This%20is%20because%20the%20human,the%20word%20as%20a%20whole. "https://www.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk/people/matt.davis/cmabridge/#:~:text=According%20to%20a%20researcher%20\(sic,be%20at%20the%20right%20place.&text=This%20is%20because%20the%20human,the%20word%20as%20a%20whole.")[](https://www.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk/people/matt.davis/cmabridge/#:~:text=According%20to%20a%20researcher%20%28sic,be%20at%20the%20right%20place.&text=This%20is%20because%20the%20human,the%20word%20as%20a%20whole.) + +You may have seen some interesting online experiments in which researchers deliberately jumbled up the _inner letters_ of words. You may have noted, with surprise, that for the most part the sentences were readable. + +But click into Matt Davis’s page above. Or rather scan it. + +As he describes rather interestingly, the _“humans can read with jumbled letters”_ experiment can also be debunked — to an extent. What works for short words doesn’t necessarily translate well for cumbersome multi-syllable ones. + +So are we all perhaps just information scanners with the attention spans of goldfish? + +Perhaps. But it actually means little to suggest that content marketing (and inbound in general) isn’t a potentially fertile source of lead generation worth investing in. + +### People Come Online Looking For Answers. They Scan In Order To Find Them. + +Now here’s the difference between me and the aforementioned sources who went to the trouble of backing up what they wrote with research. I didn’t. + +This is all off the cuff. It’s my … Theory of the Internet. + +And it goes like this. + +The vast majority of internet users do not use the internet “for fun”. + +They may use the internet because they’re procrastinating or bored (see: social media addiction). + +But although they exist in number, the majority of internet users aren’t gamers. The majority of internet users go beyond the confines of digital life when they’re looking to … engage in leisure. + +They go to bars. Kayak. They may bring their phones with them — in fact they almost inevitably do. But they’re not in hunting mode. Which means that from a marketing perspective they’re far less likely to be the type of high-intent leads we _really_ want to be talking to. + +So who does that leave us with on the internet? + +Who are those who’re trying to lure into our funnels with content marketing (and steer down them)? + +Deceptively cold and self-serving human beings who take to the internet primarily to try to solve issues that exists in their lives. + +They got problems. They need fixes. We can all relate to that. + +For the most part, humans aren’t interested in affirming positive experiences. + +Most humans I would contend are happy to take whatever positive experiences they can muster from life and cling to the warmth of that positivity. + +It’s the same reason why if you make the mistake of turning to Doctor Google you’re much more likely to find horror stories than positive ones. + +Those who didn’t experience the nightmare-two-year-long-withdrawal-from-Zoloft just aren’t as motivated to put up a blog affirming that on the internet. + +_“My content marketing was great!”_ probably doesn’t rank very high as a Google search term. Nor does _“it’s a great sunny day!”._ + +Rather, when we’re in action mode — and those are precisely the type of searchers we should be courting — our bias often tends to skew negative. + +We want to hone in on our pain points in order to eradicate them. So that our life can be better. Even by a small and incremental degree. + +Therefore we type things into Google as if it were a sort of omniscient friend — an oracle of sorts — always at the ready to dispense some wisdom. + +Sometimes — or wait, is that just me? — we do this for hours at a time. + +It’s kind of like a fireside chat with a search engine in which we tell it what’s on our minds and hope it will spit back resources from the vast potpourri of information that’s out there on the internet. + +When we’re in this kind of mood, we do things like type: + + * How much money do product marketing managers make? + * How can I land more freelance clients? + * What’s the average temperature in Jerusalem in September? + +In content marketing, our central job is to try to capture that inbound stream of curiosity–and question-asking — and try to create resources that will not only helpfully answer them (this part is key) but also gently coax them to seeing _us_ as the logical solution. + +### You Need To Provide Value — Whether They Scan Or Ready Methodically + +So here’s what I would say in response to the “nobody reads so content marketing is a waste of money” allegation. Besides _“that’s not true.”_ Because that doesn’t get us very far. It’s this: + +_It doesn’t really matter._ + +_However_ your target audience engages with your content, your job is to structure it in a way that provides _value_ and focuses on encouraging them to see _you_ as the most logical solution to whatever problem brought them onto your site in the first place. + +That’s the one-two punch that should be an elementary skill in content marketing. Even if like many elementary skills in writing it actually takes years to get truly good at. + +And the good news? The method works irrespective of whether your audience reads every single elegant word of your latest white paper or whether they just skim through a video or blog post. + +It’s also your job to pander to the tastes of your audience. + +If skimming is what they like, skimming should be what you facilitate: + + * Provide TL;DR summaries at the end of your articles + * Provide estimated reading times at the start of the articles so that prospective readers know how much attention they might need to set aside + * If you’re creating video content, make sure to include timestamps in the description so that views can jump to the sections that interest them + * Spin out audio and video versions of your content marketing to make it as easy as possible for your potential audience to connect with your content + +People read online. They just read differently. + +In content marketing, our job is to focus on providing value independent of who the prospect ends up buying from. + +But because we’re in business to sell and everybody’s got rent to pay we’ll ultimately be trying to position ourselves as the most logical solution. + +That’s about all there is too it. + +[**The Looming Flight Towards Format-Agnostic Content Creation: And Why It Matters (Now) For Creators** + _To get ahead of the curve, consider leveraging easy win syndication opportunities that straddle distribution formats_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92) diff --git a/posts/medium/If-You-Only-Write-1-000-Words-A-Day--You-Might-Just-Be-Perfectly-Normal.md b/posts/medium/If-You-Only-Write-1-000-Words-A-Day--You-Might-Just-Be-Perfectly-Normal.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9e596b43e4932ecbd348b4c3b62187130025a75a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If-You-Only-Write-1-000-Words-A-Day--You-Might-Just-Be-Perfectly-Normal.md @@ -0,0 +1,81 @@ +# If You Only Write 1,000 Words A Day, You Might Just Be Perfectly Normal + +#### When it comes to writing, sometimes less is more + +Photo by [Patrick Fore](https://unsplash.com/@patrickian4?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) on [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/typewriter?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) + +One of the staple topics that recurs on online writing communities is how many words one “should” write per day. + +Putting aside for a minute the fact that there’s unlikely to be one universal answer to this question, such writers’ navel-gazing inevitably brings up a deluge of wildly differing answers. + + * _I write 1,000–2,000 words per day on average (me)_ + * _On a slow day, I can trot out 5,000 words_ + * _It takes me about 5 hours to write a 1,000 word blog post_ + +What explains such variance? + +For one, some writing is easy to author quickly and some is fiendishly difficult. + +If you’re an SEO writer who’s already written 100 articles on the the (rough) subject of Why You Need A VPN then you might be able to trot out your 101st composition in 30 minutes. + +But try writing original journalism on an unfamiliar topic in the same time frame and you may find that it’s only enough time to begin sketching out an outline. + +As a general rule, I find that writing my first composition for a new client takes two to three times the length of time that it does to write for an existing one. There’s just a lot to pick up including the brand tone of voice, the industry context, and the jargon. The months during which I’m onboarding a succession of new clients back-to-back are actually the most challenging for me. + +The second factor to consider is that writers also vary in terms of how quickly they can author “content.” Some are more accustomed to working in environments that value a slower production cycle while others come from fast-moving news backgrounds in which speed is the name of the game. + +Finally, you have the mechanical factors. Some writers are 50 word per minute (WPM) peckers while others zoom across a keyboard at 120 WPM. Some skip typing and just dictate. Undoubtedly there are other factors to consider. + +Nevertheless, the point of writing this post is to make the following argument: that if you only can manage to write 1,000 words per day, that might just be perfectly normal. Even desirable. + +Some reasoning: + +### If You’re Charging Enough, 1,000 Words A Day Might Be Enough For You + +Earlier today, I shared the story of how I got into freelance content marketing and my initial evolution as as freelance writer. + +The very quick summary is that: + + * I began taking on whatever super sketchy projects came my way — including some decidedly weird ones + * I progressed to the next tier on the ladder, which was writing a lot of volume SEO work + * I’m now on what I consider tier three, focused on helping to create thought leadership for technology clients. + +[**Why Low Rate Writing Didn’t Work Out For Me** +medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-low-rate-writing-didnt-work-out-for-me-1ccae1b6ae32 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-low-rate-writing-didnt-work-out-for-me-1ccae1b6ae32")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-low-rate-writing-didnt-work-out-for-me-1ccae1b6ae32) + +As I’ve evolved up the ladder, my rates have increased, including my effective per-word rate (I don’t charge per word). And if I keep going in this direction, then it stands to reason that I will need to write less to make the same income. + +Having spent my time producing a _lot_ of cheap SEO content, I personally don’t recommend it as a strategy for either fulfillment or growth. At the same time, I appreciate the ladders are there to be scaled and that many writers will have to start out — as I did — doing this kind of work. + +Personally, I find helping clients product well-budgeted quality writing to be much more professionally satisfying then helping them churn out copy intended for search engines. If you can get to the point at which you only _need_ to write 1,000 words per day, then there’s no reason you need to write at an artificial pace to make your target income. + +### Writing Is Deep Work. Office Workers Only Actually Work A Few Hours A Day + +Writing is deep work that requires concentration in spades. + +Humans also only have a finite amount of deep concentration available to work with during a workday. + +My typical workday looks something like this: + + * Responding to emails (light work) + * Drafting up content marketing for my writing business (medium work) + * Posting random things on social media (light work) + * Client writing (deep work) + * Wrapping up the day’s emails, invoicing, and admin (light work) + +The core component of my day — the deep client work — only lasts for about 3 hours on average. I typically work on 1 to 2 client deliverables per day and turn these in during this period. + +After that, I’ve exhausted my deep focus mental bandwidth for the day and I go back to all the other things to keep my writing business running in good order. + +But guess what? There’s nothing necessarily abnormal or unproductive about this. + +[**The Average Worker is Only Productive for About 3 Hours a Day** + _In the modern business world, employers often expect that they will boost corporate productivity if they make their…_ socapglobal.com](https://socapglobal.com/2019/09/the-average-worker-is-only-productive-for-about-3-hours-a-day/ "https://socapglobal.com/2019/09/the-average-worker-is-only-productive-for-about-3-hours-a-day/")[](https://socapglobal.com/2019/09/the-average-worker-is-only-productive-for-about-3-hours-a-day/) + +**When researchers took a look at how productive your average office worker is, they found that they were only actually working for about 3 hours per day.** + +Only working on deep-focus tasks for a few hours per day is perfectly natural and a reflection of the fact that when it comes to knowledge work, humans can’t be both creative and highly focused indefinitely without break. + +Getting more than a couple of thousand words of quality writing written during this elusive time period would be challenging for most writers — even professionals that have been doing it for years. + +Personally, I don’t think there’s any point in writers putting themselves under pressure to achieve an arbitrary word count of production per day. Writers who are able to make a living by writing only 1,000 words per day — or 100 — are, in my opinion, in an enviable position relative to those that have to churn out lots of words in order to make a living. Many writers will find quality more satisfying than quantity. After all, we all only have so much focus to play around with. diff --git a/posts/medium/If-You-Run-A-Work-From-Home-Business--Consider-Investing-In-Backup-Internet.md b/posts/medium/If-You-Run-A-Work-From-Home-Business--Consider-Investing-In-Backup-Internet.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f5ec950c040a04d841ccfd6894e52e5f124cbb8a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If-You-Run-A-Work-From-Home-Business--Consider-Investing-In-Backup-Internet.md @@ -0,0 +1,164 @@ +# If You Run A Work From Home Business, Consider Investing In Backup Internet + +#### A small monthly investment can drastically improve the stability of your home internet connection + +Those people whom I see face to face regularly — that pre-COVID class of human we once called ‘friends’ — know that from time to time I get lost in life. + +I get lost not due to failing pray to despair — although I’ll admit that, like anybody else, I have my moments of that too. Thankfully, I don’t periodically forget where I live. Rather, from time to time, I fall into what can only be described as rabbit holes plumbed through self-guided research. They tend to be decidedly technical in flavor too. + +I’m on the way up from what may be one of my engrossing ones yet. + +And its name: backup internet connectivity. To save you a trip down the rabbit hole, here’s a summary of what I brought back to the surface. + +When you find yourself creating elaborate networking diagrams in the small hours of the night you just might be down a rabbit hole. Diagram: author. + +### Getting internet connectivity is fickle business + +A graphic I created to accompany an early video about trying to find an internet solution. Photo: author. + +During the past year or so, my wife and I — who also mostly works from home — have been laboring under the daily burden of internet that really isn’t so great. + +Yes, despite the fact that we live in a relatively central neighborhood in Jerusalem, Israel — the capital of the self-proclaimed Startup Nation. It’s not exactly the back and beyonds. But our internet is as fickle — like the time of day at which the Jerusalem Municipality begins nearby roadworks. + +We’d tried just about every option one can think of — or thought that we had. Yelled at our internet company when the internet went down again conveniently just in time for an important Zoom meeting with clients. Followed their instructions time and time again. Yelled again. Realized there was no more point in yelling. + +We’ve even subscribed, simultaneously, to two different ISP connections. I ran the two ethernet (cabling) outputs into a switch that I manually pushed whenever one line went down. This happened relatively frequently. I got tired of pushing buttons. Switching from (intermittent connectivity) ISP A often meant switching to (intermittent connectivity) ISP B. I also figured there had to be a smarter way. There was. + +### ISPs sometimes go down together + +Those of us living in more internet-stable climes probably take our home connectivity for granted (_I returned from a trip to the US this summer to find us once more internet-less and came to the conclusion that relatives in rural Connecticut had better home internet than we had; then I knew something had to be done; the rabbit hole I’ve plumbed since has been my protracted attempt to right this state of affairs_). + +But there’s still a lot of work involved in getting internet from where it “originates” (the servers we’re trying to access) into our homes. + +The so-called backbone of the internet is actually comprised of ginormous cables that are laid across the ocean floor. + +You can even watch a video on YouTube during which a Danish dude working from a nondescript internet facility holds about a third of his country’s internet connectivity in his hands (cool fact: the points these cables hit land are pretty closely guarded even though they tend to look like random beach houses). It literally just looks like regular ethernet cabling. _That’s_ how much bandwidth fiber optic can carry and in _that_ little physical space. + +So while you may be feeling very smug about the cutting edge nice WiFi mesh network you’ve just spent hours configuring, you may feel less smug when you realize that the route your traffic is taking to access websites you frequent involves crossing pretty old school looking cables that are probably covered in algae. + +[**Submarine Cable Map** + _TeleGeography's comprehensive and regularly updated interactive map of the world's major submarine cable systems and…_ www.submarinecablemap.com](https://www.submarinecablemap.com/ "https://www.submarinecablemap.com/")[](https://www.submarinecablemap.com/) + +In times gone by, humans watched in awe as Marconi transmitted the first radio signal across the Atlantic. + +[**Google and other tech giants are quietly buying up the most important part of the internet** + _The Transform Technology Summits start October 13th with Low-Code/No Code: Enabling Enterprise Agility. Register now…_ venturebeat.com](https://venturebeat.com/2019/04/06/google-and-other-tech-giants-are-quietly-buying-up-the-most-important-part-of-the-internet/ "https://venturebeat.com/2019/04/06/google-and-other-tech-giants-are-quietly-buying-up-the-most-important-part-of-the-internet/")[](https://venturebeat.com/2019/04/06/google-and-other-tech-giants-are-quietly-buying-up-the-most-important-part-of-the-internet/) + +These days, major tech companies are actually laying down their _own_ infrastructure of oceanic cables to connect their global infrastructure. But these days, outside of the tech-interested community, nobody really cares. Digitally transversing the globe in miliseconds is old hat. Spare us the explanations. We just want to know that it works. + +The internet is getting increasingly sophisticated too. + +Much of the internet is these days hosted on infrastructure provisioned by a small handful of major tech players — AWS, Google, and Microsoft — at infrastructure that it positioned closer to the network edge, like the point you and I are accessing it from. + +Because serving the same YouTube video everybody wants to watch across oceanic cabling makes little sense, these providers tend to cache a lot of their data locally to minimize latency to users. + +If everybody in your neighborhood is ordering the same pizza every day — or the latest episode of X Factor streamed over YouTube — then it makes more sense to just copy the pizza recipe locally and have Dave from down the round cook it up for the neighborhood than to ship it repeatedly from around the world to houses spaced ten meters apart. (_My powers of analogy are waning, but keep trying I will…)_ + +And you know what’s even cooler? + +You can be served cached and non-cached content from the exact same page with different elements and scripts being pulled from different servers located in completely different locales. + +And unless you feel like doing some serious digging, you’ll be none the wiser of any of the magic that’s taking place on the other side of your web browser or whether the web server that just provided you with video content is part of a CDN located in the Tropics or up in the road in cloudy Northampton. It just happens in a millisecond the moment you pop a web address (URL) into a browser and hit enter. + +Prescient example: if you watched a YouTube video embedded in a local chat forum, the text that wraps around the video may have originated from a server located across a continent while the text may have come from a local caching server. Or vice versa. + +#### Why over-land connectivity can be spotty + +But where were we? Yes, connectivity. + +Getting from where the cabling hits land to your home is another matter entirely. + +There are switches. More switches. And more switches again. + +In fact, every time you access a website your traffic passes through an array of them. Even if the website is located in the same country as you. These don’t really add much in the way of human-perceptible delay to the connection because data moves across cabling very, very fast. But they exist nevertheless to relay packets of data between the servers that provide us with “internet” and wherever we’re connecting from. + +But now, remember, we’re bringing internet connectivity over land and not just dragging it across dozens of miles of ocean floor. + +We can no longer just lay down massive straight line cabling and set up a repeater every 70 kilometers to make sure the signal has enough power to run the cable. + +There’s power running here too. Geological variations to countenance. Lots and lots of folks living just about the ground. Things that need to be periodically maintained. This is where things start to get messy. + +I mean, land is messy — or at least life about it. It’s where hurricanes can rip trees right up off the ground (in places where infrastructure travels overland of course). Or the local municipality can accidentally slice through coils of fiber when putting down new infrastructure for the power grid. + +This is also probably why — despite subscribing to two ISP lines — we found that they tended to go down together. The answer might have something to do with final mile connectivity. Or the networking that takes cabling the final mile of its route to your front door (or router) and back. + +If Dave the Digger cuts through ISP A’s cabling just outside your front door ISP B is going to be fine. But if his buddy Sol splices through a whole trunk of internet cabling just a mile up the road (after the local switch for your sreet) then there’s a fighting chance that both connections will be severed and thus both connections downstream will become inoperable. + +But anyway. What are these details. I’m out of the rabbit hole now. Sort of. + +### So what you can do instead + +Here’s the thing about internet connectivity. + +As we’ve seen it’s complicated business. + +Thankfully we don’t have to be at the mercy of Dave, Sol or even the periodic trawler that might get caught in some wire under the sea. + +Even lines that are ordinarily very fast and reliable tend to periodically go down. But the good news is that in this day and age there are several _ways_ to get internet — including the Starlink satellite connectivity currently being rolled out globally by Elon Musk and co. + +Workers at the ISP go on strike. A digger cuts through cabling. There are many things that can go wrong. So here’s what we do instead. + +So here’s what we can do. Like a kid in a candy store who has 5 favorite sweets rather than 1 (I’m working hard here), we take a pick and mix approach to our networking. + +We subscribe to a few different flavors of internet connectivity. That way if our favorite one goes down we at least have an alternative. Like when the candy store runs out of cola gummies but they still have licorice (just substitute ‘licorice’ with ‘quarterly sales update over Zoom’). + +These flavors are typically variants of: + + * ISP one + * ISP two + * Cellular connectivity + * Satellite connectivity + +Combining different internet connectivities is a process known as WAN aggregation (WAN stands for wide area network). + +The router you’re connecting through now might have one WAN port that’s a different color different color than the other ethernet jacks on the network. Like me, you may have never given thought to it. But if you’re about to join the multi-WAN revolution that might all be about to change. _(Just get used to the devices looking a big more industrial than what you may have been using hitherto. Below is the Draytek Vigor 2927 LTE. To my eyes, this currently looks about as appealing as a Ferrari)._ + + The Draytek Vigor 2927 LTE. Screenshot: Draytek. + +When we’re combining multiple internet connectivities we’re aggregating different internet connectivity sources in order to build one connection that’s much more reliable. + +How you can do that involves a combination of hardware and software. + +But once you’ve begun doing that the options of _what_ you can do get — well OK, I’m fresh out of the rabbit hole so I’ll say it — pretty darn exciting. + +If your hardware supports it, you can use a technology known as bonding to amass the various connectivities into one virtual connection layer. This will allow you to actually benefit from a faster connection that “combines” your various forms of connectivity. Yes, that’s actually a thing. + +Alternatively you can just do something a lot simpler which is the connection that I have going on and which will hopefully eradicate periodic downtime for ever and after. This is called failover — although I prefer the description ‘backup internet’ because it explains more clearly what it actually does. + +Using failover, if link A is detected to be down (say, your ISP) your hardware will automatically fail over to link B (say, cellular). And it will roll itself back when link A is ready. No button pushings necessary. + +The only catch? + +The mysterious hardware that I descried doesn’t tend to come cheap as businesses are the typical purchasing base. + +Although these days with so many of us running businesses from our homes, the lines between home connectivity needs and those of SMBs are becoming increasingly blurry. + +Consider one more thing before you write me off as a mad technology enthusiast lost somewhere down a rabbit hole (or on the way back from one): + +The rapid migration of mission-critical business utilities to the cloud. + +While the cloud is wonderful — you won’t find me cheerleading for on-premises connectivity — it creates (in more networking terms) a single point of failure. + +If you don’t have backup internet connectivity and your single line goes down, well good luck trying to access your CRM / Zoom meeting / order your online groceries. + +Could you use a hotspot? + +You could. + +But where would be the fun in that? Particularly if the outage strikes slap bang in the middle of a podcast interview. (The oddly specific example is there for a reason — it happened to me). + +For just a small bit more investment you can have a router that will do everything automatically. + +_(For some better actual reasons: if you provision backup cellular on the network level, every connected device will automatically benefit from the fallback connectivity. You won’t have to worry about setting up hotspots. Or phones running out of battery. Finally, you can hook up wired devices to the cellular connection too. Trust me, it’s better. I’ve been down that hole..)_ + +My monthly running costs for subscribing to a data only SIM to provision my 4G (cellular) backup? + +About $15. + +My once-off hardware costs for upgrading my home network to accommodate failover and create a system that’s totally independent of the hardware my ISP provides me with? + +$200 or thereabouts spent on a 4G router, another router to create a new WiFi network, and a couple of extras. + +The enjoyment and education gained from a trip down this latest rabbit hole? + +Priceless. diff --git a/posts/medium/If-You-re-Currently-Learning-Video--Lighting--And-Sound--These-YouTube-Playlists-Might-Be-Of-.md b/posts/medium/If-You-re-Currently-Learning-Video--Lighting--And-Sound--These-YouTube-Playlists-Might-Be-Of-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f351f424445b3ecedd0b57c0bdfe3c9106a00dc3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If-You-re-Currently-Learning-Video--Lighting--And-Sound--These-YouTube-Playlists-Might-Be-Of-.md @@ -0,0 +1,213 @@ +# If You’re Currently Learning Video, Lighting, And Sound, These YouTube Playlists Might Be Of… + +#### Some playlists I built out on YouTube + +Some DIY hacks to a clapperboard. Photo: author. + +I’m now a couple of months into my journey with video. + +I’m still not sure what the end-point is going to look like, although I have some pretty clear short term aspirations: + + * **I want to produce better videos for my business in order to attract clients through inbound video marketing** (speaking of which, [this](https://inboundvideomarketing.com/) is on my reading list); + * **I’d like to use my small YouTube channel as a learning platform.** Through that small enterprise of publishing videos on YouTube I’d like to travel more throughout Israel finding interesting places — and people- to shoot. + * **If I get to the point at which I feel like I have the basics down (six to twelve months of consistent effort?), I’d like to see how I could leverage that in my service offering to clients.** I have some thoughts in formation as to how the narrowing bridges between text-based, audio and video content are going to affect creators (those are below). I could see myself working with a seasoned videographer to try do interesting things for clients. + +[**3 Advantages Text-Based Content Retains Over Video Marketing** + _The written word still has its advantages over those fancy video-slayers, especially for nascent companies_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-advantages-text-based-content-retains-over-video-marketing-5a37f941cf34 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-advantages-text-based-content-retains-over-video-marketing-5a37f941cf34")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-advantages-text-based-content-retains-over-video-marketing-5a37f941cf34) + +Other things I’ve recently written on the subject of video: + +[**4 Reasons Making Video Is More Fun Than Writing** + _As a longtime writer dipping my toes in video, there are aspects of this mode of creative expression that already…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382) + +[**My Photo (And Video) Reel From The Past Few Months** + _Bits and pieces from my camera and YouTube feed_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-photo-and-video-reel-from-the-past-few-months-bb2d87d1c0f8 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-photo-and-video-reel-from-the-past-few-months-bb2d87d1c0f8")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-photo-and-video-reel-from-the-past-few-months-bb2d87d1c0f8) + +One thing I’ve quickly learned about video: it’s a _massive_ field and there’s so much to pick up on. But — as a rookie — I like to boil it down to its constituent elements (or what I see those as) so that I can focus on getting better in one domain at a time: + + * Video + * Stabilization (really a subset of video, I guess, but this is something I want to get really right) + * Lighting + * Audio + +As you might expect from a platform that was built to make it easy to host and share video, YouTube is a terrific resource in this respect. There are lots of tremendous creators there sharing their knowledge for free. + +Of course paid resources have their place to — I’m hoping to take [Curtis Judd’s Learn Light And Sound](https://www.learnlightandsound.com/) online course once I’ve made a little more progress and my credit card has recovered from its recent hammering. + +As a believer in the value of open source, I set the privacy on all these playlists to public. So if you’re on a similar learning journey, you might find some of these as interests. They’re living online resources. So as I find more topics of interest to me, I’ll continue keeping them updated. + +These are organized alphabetically. + +### A-Roll Vs. B-Roll + +You’ll encounter these terms early on during your exploration of filmmaking and video. + +This short playlist contains videos I’ve handpicked from around YouTube explaining some best practices when shooting both. + +### Adding Cold Shoes To Cameras That Don’t Have Them + +There are some lower end consumer camcorders that don’t have any cold shoes / accessory mounts build into them. Yes, this might seem like a small problem — but to those in this situation, it can be very annoying. Here are a few hacks from the minds of YouTube. + +### Audio (Top Level Topics) + +Here’s the first “master” topic on the list: audio. + +There are playlists here delving into aspects of audio — like mixing — but this playlist should give a decent top level overview. + +### Audio Mixers For Cameras And Camcorders + +A typical recommendation to rookies in the video world is to record audio and shot video separately as soon as possible and do the syncing work in post-production. + +Nevertheless, if you’re not ready to take that jump yet but want to work with multiple microphones and mix sources live, these videos could be useful. + +### Boom Pole Operation + +Apparently there’s more to operating a boom pole than just holding it randomly in the air and hoping that it picks up sound from your source. The boom pole operators of YouTube show how to use their tool of choice. + +### Camcorder Accessories — Guides + +Some of these videos are likely a little bit promotional (/creators pushing affiliate merchandise a bit too hard). But there may also be some good recommendations for accessories and gear in here that you mightn’t have considered. + +### Camcorders (Comparison Guides, Etc) + +I’m pretty sure that I’m going to be staying on the camcorder side of the camcorder:camera divide for the foreseeable future. Yes, even though it confers that awkward uncle at the family BBQ look. I’ll be adding to this playlist as I can find more videos on the subject and reviews of what’s currently on the market. + +### Camcorder Lenses + +A few videos that should cover the basics of working with aftermarket camcorder lenses: how to keep them clean and change them. + +Here’s a playlist that includes lens filters too: + +### Camcorder Monitors- Overview and Guides + +Sadly, my current tool of choice isn’t monitor-capable. + +But for when I begin using something that is, here are some videos about camera monitors: what’s on the market and how to choose the best one for your gear. + +### Camcorder Microphones + +Microphones that seem to be intended mostly for video use. I.e on camera microphones, hypercardiod shotguns for boompoles and the like. + +### Camera Bag Tours + +Trying to avoid buying more gear? Then probably don’t watch a bunch of camera bag tours. Nevertheless, this seems to be a popular format among creators. Watching through some of these vids can be a good way to see what kind of gear the ‘pros’ are using to improve the caliber of their productions. + +### Camera Cranes And Jibs + +Cranes and jibs might seem like things that only pro videographers use on commercial shoots. But there are a few cheaper / consumer-level devices on the market. + +This playlist is a mixture of jibs used by the pros and hobbyists playing around with lower-end consumer gear. There are also some instructional videos here regarding how to … use the thigns. + +### Camera Sliders + +Guides on camera sliders: what they are; what’s on the market; and some tips and tricks to make the most possible use out of them. + +### Camera Tripods And Monopods + +When it comes to those things that prop cameras and camcorders up, there are nuances and degrees of quality. Here are purchasing guides to both. + +Tripods: + +Monopods: + +### Consumer vs. Prosumer Level Gear + +Confused on where the divide lies? Honestly so am I. Hopefully after watching these videos I won’t be! + +### Curtis Judd Tutorials + +I really enjoy watching Curtis Judd’s explanations of audio and lighting concepts. + +Here are some tutorials picked out from among his output on YouTube (which includes lots of product reviews but these are generally excluded here); + +### DJI Ronin SC + +If you own a different electric gimbal, a different DJI gimbal, or don’t use one at all (or use one of those … non-electric things) then these videos won’t be of much interest. But if you do…. + +All about the DJI Ronin SC including operation: + +Some guides to aftermarket accessories: + +Some videos about calibration: + +### Gimbals And Monopod + +A popular combination for getting fake crane / jib / drone footage. These videos go into the various combinations you can try out and how to get better shots using this combo. + +### Gimbal Techniques + +Gimbals are becoming very popular. As I just mentioned, I recently picked up a Ronin SC. I intend watching some of these videos (I’m already partially through the list) in order to learn more about how to get the most from my gadget. + +### Handheld Stabilization + +Among all the gimbal-mania it’s easy to forget that you can still record footage … using your hands. If you want to learn more about how to stabilize properly using … your hands … then this playlist should be useful. + +### Home Studio Setup + +If you’re also looking to do some vlogging from home and are trying to find a way to make your tiny home office look like … a legit studio … then these videos should be informative. + +### How To … Use A Clapperboard (Or Slate) + +Clapperboards aren’t just used to try get that Hollywood look going on. They’re basic (well some of them) but very useful tools for helping sync up audio and video in post-production. + +### Lens Use + +Lenses ain’t going to make themselves work, you know? + +These videos give some primers on how to make the best use of the lenses in your bag. + +### Light Diffusion And Softboxes + +Videos on the subject of light diffusion, light modifications, and soft boxes. + +### Lighting (Top Level Topic) + +This is my “master” playlist covering hopefully most things related to lighting as it pertains to videography. + +It’s a big chunk of info with almost 200 videos. + +Hopefully by the time I’m through with it I’ll know my fill lights from my key lights from …. wait, what were those other ones called? + +### Monitor Speakers And Headphones + +If you’re working a lot in post-production, then monitor speakers (and/or headphones) could come in very useful. Also called: reference speakers. + +### Non-Electric Stabilization + +I’m certain that I’m going to eventually purchase a non-electric stabilizer … and that I’ll probably end up using it more than my gimbal. + +Why? I’m a contrarian. Sourcing a gimbal was hard work. And I actually love the idea that these gadgets aren’t dependent upon power. At the minimum, I’d love to learn and become proficient at using both tools. + +These things really have their advocates. And here are some of them. + +### Photography Umbrellas + +Another gizmo that gives you that cool ‘pro’ look. But which also has a very important purpose. Added to my ‘lighting’ section. + +### Rigs + +Some useful guides on setting up your own rigs for shooting video. + +### White Balance (How To Set Manually, Gear, Etc) + +Learning how to do things manually — setting focus, aperature, white balance — can make a big difference in your videos. White balance is especially vital. + +These are videos with tips on how to do just that. + +Along a similar vein: + +**Exposure:** + +**Focus:** + +### Videography + +Yes, kind of right back where we started from. But more general / higher level topics on the subject of videography. + +### Wireless Boom Rigs + +Traditionally, boom setups use wired shotgun microphones. But wireless boom setups have their fans even if the thought of running anything over the air makes others very nervous. + +### Wireless Sound Systems + +Purchasing guides to wireless sound setups and systems. diff --git a/posts/medium/If-You-re-Still-DRINKING-Your-Coffee--Then-You-re-Doing-It-ALL-WRONG-.md b/posts/medium/If-You-re-Still-DRINKING-Your-Coffee--Then-You-re-Doing-It-ALL-WRONG-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bbfa57e228978560c7a7a25b3307ea8c4d7474f2 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If-You-re-Still-DRINKING-Your-Coffee--Then-You-re-Doing-It-ALL-WRONG-.md @@ -0,0 +1,138 @@ +# If You’re Still DRINKING Your Coffee, Then You’re Doing It ALL WRONG! + +Dear friend, + +Before you read any further into this article, you should consider yourself lucky that I sent this link to you. + +**Very lucky, in fact!** + +You see, [as a communications professional](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com), I know that interest in this piece is likely to be hot. + +🔥 **RED HOT!** 🔥 **VIRALLY HOT!** + +But the more people that are in on this secret, the smaller the competitive advantage we can enjoy over them! + +That’s why, dear friend, I’ve set this Medium piece’s privacy to UNLISTED —**so that only my most trusted friends and professional contacts, such as you, can reap the advantages of this knowledge** — while the competition languishes far behind (DRINKING their coffee — literally!) + +Dear friend, + +Today I’d like just a few minutes of your time to talk about **wastage**. + +And no, this isn’t a pitch for a sustainability startup. + +Read on to 🔒 unlock the keys 🔒 to your productivity. + +### By DRINKING Coffee, You’re Missing Out on MOST of the Caffeine! + +Before we go any further, I’d like to introduce you to Mr. Baskerville, a contributor on the popular Quora questions and answers site. + +I can’t pretend to know him personally, although he claims to have made more than **one hundred thousand cups of coffee** during this lifetime. + +But I have read [this informative Quora response he authored:](https://www.quora.com/How-much-caffeine-remains-in-used-coffee-grounds/answer/Peter-Baskerville) + +**Let’s break that down a little, shall we?** + +In [“Evaluation of Spent Coffee Obtained from the Most Common Coffeemakers as a Source of Hydrophilic Bioactive Compounds”](https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf3040594) the authors looked at how much coffee is left in the bean _after_ they had been used for traditional coffee-brewing methods you’re probably familiar with (filter, espresso, plunger, and mocha). + +(If you want to read the paper in full, I’m hosting the original paper [on my website](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Evaluation_of_Spent_Coffee_Obtained_from.pdf)). + +Hey, like 99.99% of the rest of the world (your friends, family, roommates, coworkers — or let’s just use shorthand and call them the ‘unenlightened masses’) you probably use these aqueous extraction methods**** yourself deceiving yourself into believing that you’re getting all the caffeine you can out of the bean. + +Spoiler alert: **YOU’RE NOT!** + +You see, close associate, as we all learned in school water-based extractions can only extract …. water-soluble compounds. But what if there were a convenient way for us to ingest …. the whole bean!? + +Arabica (_Coffea arabica_) and Robusta (_Coffea canephora)_ are the two most prevalent varieties of coffee in the world. + +But let’s just look at Arabica for the sake of simplicity. + +When we break down those figures from the paper, **the result is nothing short of explosive!** + +Taking the _average_ figure of the amount of ☕ coffee ☕ left in the brews after brewing, we find that your average coffee brewing method extracts **only 47% of the caffeine in the bean — while 53% if left locked within the grounds** ending up in the waste. + +And how do we unlock all that caffeine you might be wondering? + +### Drink WHOLE Coffee Grounds! (But First: Don’t Skip This Important Health Guidance!) + +That’s right — instead of relying upon a water-based extraction of coffee (all coffee preparation methods, including espresso), we’re going to have to instead — chemically-speaking — down the coffee straight in a __**_suspension_.** + +Remember that chemistry you learned in school? It’s finally coming in useful! + +But first — and please don’t skip this part — we need to point out some caveats: + + * As I demonstrated above,**traditional coffee brewing methods only actually use up about half the caffeine in the bean**. This means that, by consuming the whole ground, we’re going to be doubling the caffeine delivery. **That means that, when consuming the grounds whole, you should use only half the coffee you normally do to get the same amount of caffeine.** I typically put two teaspoons of coffee in my Turkish coffee. To achieve the same level of caffeination, I’d want to be only using **one level tbsp.** in the blender methods. + * [**Unfiltered coffee has been shown to raise bad cholesterol in a dose-dependent manner.**](http://www.nbcnews.com/id/6242467/ns/health-heart_health/t/coffee-cholesterol/)This has been attributed to unfiltered coffee preparation methods (such as Turkish coffee and espresso) allowing as-of-yet-unidentified cholesterol-raising compounds to make it into your brew. The scientists found that six cups of coffee is associated with this phenomenon. So to be careful, I’d suggest limiting your daily blender-coffee consumption **to no more than 2.5 tablespoons.** + +### Here’s Everything You’ll Need + +Here’s everything you’ll need to begin enjoying a preparation method I have thus far only called ‘cocktail shaker coffee’ or ‘blender coffee’ + +### 1: Turkish Coffee + +— A supply of Turkish coffee. Turkish coffee. Check out the above chart, taken from[ ‘Optimized Brewing Coffee Quality Through Proper Grinding’,](https://www.mpechicago.com/sites/default/files/resource-library/scaa_2010.pdf) a slideshow prepared by Daniel Ephraim, President, Modern Process Equipment. + +I’d be happy to bore you with all the details you could ever want to know about Turkish coffee, but suffice to say that the most important thing about it is that it’s really, really fine — approximately twice as fine as espresso. + +Because most people do not live in a Turkish coffee-drinking country there are two ways to procure this: + +—**Use a (manual) hand grinder.** The only brand I trust is[ Sozen from Turkey. ](http://www.sozengrinders.com/sozen-brass-coffee-grinder-mill-7-in)[All of the Orphan Espresso grinders can do Turkish too](http://www.oehandgrinders.com/OE-LIDO-2-Manual-Coffee-Grinder_p_14.html) — but are rather pricey. + +—**Buy an electric grinder that can do Turkish.** Your options (among non-commercial-grade) grinders are quite limited. The [Capresso Infinity Conical Burr Grinder](https://www.amazon.com/Capresso-Infinity-Conical-Grinder-Stainless/dp/B000VAWXOU) is _reputed_ to be able to do grind for Turkish, though. + +If all of this is just too difficult, then espresso is the next best thing — although as it’s roughly twice as coarse as Turkish your cocktail shaker coffee is liable to come out a bit more ‘gritty’. + +### 2: A Cocktail Shaker (Or Blender) + +Just about any cocktail shaker will do the trick here. + +### 3: Tap Water + +Or milk. Some liquid, basically. + +### And Here’s How To Make It + +To recap: + +—**Drinking coffee only yields about half the caffeine and xanthine compounds in coffee.** + +— **Drinking ground coffee straight delivers about twice the caffeine,** so you should use approximately half of your usual coffee dose. + +—**Unfiltered coffee raises bad (LDL) cholestero** l because — or so the hypothesis goes — some compounds in coffee raise cholesterol, and these are not removed by unfiltered coffee preparation methods. _All the more so_ if we’re ingesting the whole bean. This means that we need to be extra careful. **Don’t drink more than two and a half scoops daily** and consider getting your cholestrol tested after a few weeks on the ‘shaker coffee’. + +And what you’ll need: + +— **Turkish coffee, which is the finest grind you can buy.** The easiest thing is to buy it from a store. If you can’t find any, you can grind your own. Manual grinders are actually easier and more reliable than electric ones — because only high-end electric conical burr commercial grinders typically can manage Turkish. + +— **A cocktail shaker.** + +— **Water o** r some other liquid. + +### **Step One: Measure Out Your Coffee** + +Firstly, take a measuring spoon and measure out your coffee. + +### Step Two: Add Coffee To Water + +Next, add your coffee and water to the shaker. Remember: the more water you add, the more raw coffee water you’re going to have to drink! + +### Step Three: Thirty Seconds of Vigorous Shaking + +Next, you’re going to have to shake the ‘cocktail’ vigorously. Do not skimp on this step. You’ll be glad you did when it’s time to drink the concotion! + +### Step Four: Drink it In One! + +Your beautiful coffee-water is now ready for consumption. Just compare the before and after pictures to see how more drinkable it’s looking. + +Here are some extra benefits of drinking coffee the smart way: + +— 🏃 **More efficient.** 🏃 You’ll only go through half the coffee of your unenlightened friends/coworkers — for the same amount of caffeine! + +— 🔌 **Electricity free** 🔌**.** No more kettles and boiling water! Drink your coffee- water wherever you can take out a cocktail shaker! + +— 🗲 **Lightning-quick** 🗲**.** Have your coffee drunk in about 30 seconds from start to finish. Unbeatable! + +**— Added fiber**! You won’t only be mopping up every miligram of coffee in the bean — you’ll be getting added fiber and nutrients too! + +Happy coffee-water drinking! + +[Please reach out](http://www.danielrosehill.co.il) with any questions/comments/receipt suggestions. diff --git a/posts/medium/If-policing-online-hatred-and-misinformation-is-impossible--we-need-to-start-doing-more-to-support-.md b/posts/medium/If-policing-online-hatred-and-misinformation-is-impossible--we-need-to-start-doing-more-to-support-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..070383a284899d5bf4d0f97aba0dc0d4630df262 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If-policing-online-hatred-and-misinformation-is-impossible--we-need-to-start-doing-more-to-support-.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# If policing online hatred and misinformation is impossible, we need to start doing more to support… + +Cyberbullying: if we can’t prevent it from happening, we need to work on strengthening mechanisms to support targets. Image: Pixabay + +This week will go down in my life as the week when I was reminded about how ugly the internet can be. + +[**Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit** + _Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2) + +I received a slew of targeted harassment, stalking, cyberbullying, gaslighting, and anti-Semitic abuse on Reddit. + +And — at the time of writing — the platform’s only response has been to affirm a revenge “report abuse” report suspending me from the network (my suspension lasts three days.) (By contrast, posters who just days ago lashed out at my “big beak”, taunted me by calling me a “Sperg”, and told me that I was a “shell of a man” are free to continue spewing bile over the platform…) + +Having moved past the futile stage of attempting to counter the lies of anonymous internet trolls (note: don’t even try), the next stage in my reaction to this has been spending time thinking about what we — societies, the world — can do about the growing menace of online hatred and cyberbullying. + +Because while my case may provide a tidy and well-documented illustration of the fact that many major social platforms are proving unwilling to properly confront bullying and harassment, it is only one of likely tens of thousands of cases that take place on the internet every week. + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + +[**Reasons To Use A Pen Name For Your Amazon Self-Publishing — And Why Not To** + _Thinking about writing under a pen name? Some reasons why you may want to … and reasons why you may end up regretting…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/reasons-to-use-a-pen-name-for-your-amazon-self-publishing-and-why-not-to-3f96a53fabd "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/reasons-to-use-a-pen-name-for-your-amazon-self-publishing-and-why-not-to-3f96a53fabd")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/reasons-to-use-a-pen-name-for-your-amazon-self-publishing-and-why-not-to-3f96a53fabd) + +The thinking I have been doing about online hate speech this week — and anti-Semitism — also ties nicely into something I have also been doing a lot of thinking about recently: Disinformation, anonymity, and pseudonymity and the roles, if any, they have to play in our society, in which the lines dividing reality from fiction are looking increasingly gray. + +More presciently: + +How can we create a world in which we can facilitate the few (arguably) constructive use-cases for these things — like publishing books under pen names and devising online assets to infiltrate and monitor hate communities — without enabling enormous bad to take place and inflicting harm upon the targets of cyberbullying and online harassment? + +With the advent of deep-fakes and all manner of AI trickery, the world is slowly waking up to the reality that nothing written online is proven to be true — until it’s proven to be true. + +This debate is only likely to prove more relevant and salient as the world confronts a reality in which the lines between reality and fiction become increasingly blurry. + +_(Fascinating case in point: prosecutors are_[ _grappling with the question_](https://www.dailydot.com/debug/deepfake-vaping-video-cheerleaders/) _of whether a video at the center of a harassment case is a deep fake or whether it might in fact be genuine. H/T: Peter Duffy.)_ + +A few days ago, before the cyberbullies of Reddit stalked me to and began targeting me even in Reddit’s forum for discussing cyberbullying (yes, really), I tried to hem out some thoughts there about how we (the internet-using community at large) could facilitate online communities such as Reddit that facilitate some of anonymity’s “white hat” use-cases (whistleblowing, allowing people to discuss sensitive issues like health) but without making them hotbeds for harassment and abuse. + +**Or more simply put: Can we preserve the good things that anonymity enables without inviting the baddies along for the ride?** + +Perhaps, I wondered, online communities could implement something akin to Know Your Customer — let’s call it Know Your User (KYU) — preventing signups from being able to use their platforms while remaining totally anonymous. + +After all, virtually all of the internet’s most notorious sources of hate speech, including Reddit and 4Chan, owe their notoriety largely due to how easy they make it for users to signup without disclosing a single detail of personally identifiable information. Users that don’t face any social or legal consequences for their action have virtually no reason to fear being vicious to strangers they encounter online. + +And now my thoughts, after they have evolved a little, are these: + +While I believe that such a system _could_ work, I also believe that it’s probably not realistic to expect that it would do so. + +Why? + +**Because in a world in which more than 4 billion individuals have internet connectivity, policing a signup process at scale — perhaps even with the help of AI — is likely to prove impossible.** + +And when niche social platforms fail to attract a critical mass user base they tend to quickly vanish from the internet. Nobody likes the thought of participate in an online community … without community. + +Add to that concerns from privacy advocates about free speech, and it becomes easy to see how any online community that _attempts_ to make hate speech impossible is likely to face obsolescence from proving an inconvenient impediment to the mainstream. + +This morning the world awoke to learn of the passing of the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip. + +I decided to see what the Redditors of this world had to say in response. + +There, I found a thread predictably filled with exactly the same type of vitriol and hatred that I had been subjected to just a few hours previously and for much of the past week. + +By the exact same breed of nasty online internet user who will never have to face the social consequences of wishing that a man they didn’t know had passed away sooner. + +While the differences between the late royal consort and I are obvious — he was a public figure, I’m an obscure freelance writer — the kind of hatred we both received online looked, at times, disconcertingly similar. + +In an alternate universe in which the Queen of England used Reddit, I could only imagine, for a moment, the kind of heart-wrenching pain she would surely feel to see thousands of cybertrolls speaking lies and ills of a man who had just passed on — none of whom will likely face any consequences, nor legal nor social, for their actions and hatred. + +When 20 or 30 trolls spew lies and abuse one could imagine that a determined moderation team could tackle the issue (even then, given the ease with which users can re-create accounts such efforts would likely prove futile). + +But what could possibly be done — I wondered — when there are 20,000 haters and ill-wishers to tackle? How could we ensure the integrity of a social network then? + +**When people get nasty at scale, and there are platforms available to facilitate it that are unwilling to change their policies, we perhaps need to shift from thinking “what can be done about this?” to asking ourselves “what can we do to support and help targets of anonymous online abuse?”** + +Because in a free internet, we may simply have to reach the conclusion that we lack the power to coerce the social networks of tomorrow into properly stamping out the hate speech that they are increasingly host to at volume. Yes, even with the advent of AI and algorithms. + +**Instead, we may be forced to reach the conclusion that scaling online conversation while also adequately protecting those who are targets of misinformation and abuse perpetrated there are mutually impossible objectives.** + +Even when AI steps into help humans, the sheer size of online conversation — as hemmed out in YouTube comments, Reddit threads, and Facebook groups — may already be too large for the current systems in place we have with which to moderate them. And even if the clearweb can be policed, what about the internet’s underworld — the dark web — where such fora can proliferate entirely anonymously? + +If that is indeed the conclusion that we reach then I suggest that we, as a society, need to split our focus between enforcement mechanisms — spotting fake news, reporting online bullies — and supporting targets that have been subject to online hatred to deal with the emotional toll that this kind of activity can engender. + +More concretely, that might mean: + + * **Greater awareness of cyberbullying and the detrimental effect it can have upon its targets** + * **Greater awareness of networks that are being negligent in their responsibility to avoid hosting hurtful content and protecting their users** + * **An increased supply of mental health professionals and others who are equipped to support those who have suffered egregious cases of cyberbullying** to support them through the recovery process + +Cyberbullying is a growing menace in our societies and as more of it goes unchecked and unchallenged it is reasonable to expect that the pool of targets affected by it will sadly exponentially grow. + +If traditional enforcement mechanisms can’t cope with the scaling of online conversation, we may already have reached a point at which stamping out online misinformation and hatred through social networks is downright impossible. + +If it’s not time for the conversation to move fully into exploring ways through which we can protect targets, then it’s at least time to split our attention equally. + +_(Note: anything I have written to date about cyberbullying on Medium has been quickly targeted by cyberbullies who have left abusive comments shortly after publication. Sadly, for that reason, I have to close the discussion before anybody has a change to response.)_ + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/If-you-asked-for-what-I-think-about-what-s-happening-in-Jerusalem.md b/posts/medium/If-you-asked-for-what-I-think-about-what-s-happening-in-Jerusalem.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f5e1f7fbafb2f1bd892322377516268b777134ce --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If-you-asked-for-what-I-think-about-what-s-happening-in-Jerusalem.md @@ -0,0 +1,79 @@ +# If you asked for what I think about what’s happening in Jerusalem + +Clashes in Jerusalem. Photo: Wikimedia Commons + +There is a myth, prevalent in Israel, that the _status quo_ which has held ground in Israel for far too long is a tenable solution to the conflict. + +That line of reasoning argues that the _status quo_ is good enough to work for today. And tomorrow. Maybe even for years into the future. + +To perpetuate this myth, Israeli society has created convenient fictions that play into that narrative. + +Examples: + + * The “Arab-Israeli” population is conveniently docile and “happy” to live under Israeli rule. + * The status quo in the West Bank and Gaza is tenable. The problem may not have been solved, but it’s managed — and manageable — through Israel’s military superiority. With a wall and with good intelligence and with biometric surveillance. We have algorithms. They have crude knives. And so so long as we are smarter and the bigger and better funded guys in the fight we can win — and keep our population safe from attack. + +Perpetuating this myth is also strategically sound from Israel’s standpoint. + +It’s a way of taking a decision by doing nothing which is always the more convenient approach. + +Under the current strategy, the PA and its aspirations of statehood will ultimately be destroyed by a combination of facts on the ground and its own ineptitude. But it’s the long and ugly way to that outcome. + +The current strategy also allows Israel to tell the world that everything is in order. It’s the “הכל הסדר” (“everything’s fine) approach to national branding and PR. + +It also allows a large part of the population to live under a constant haze of delusion and to continue sipping lattés in bustling Tel Aviv cafés while talking about their aspirations for more “coexistence” with their Arab neighbors. + +It also looks good on the surface. Although maintaining that fiction demands some mental gymnastics of its adherents. + +It asks, for instance, that onlookers: + + * Don’t look at those gaudy checkpoints and barbed wire fences in the West Bank. + * Continue parroting the lie that Jerusalem is an undivided city despite the fact that half of its population doesn’t recognize Israeli sovereignty and regards its municipality as an arm of the “occupation”. + +But such concerns are just bothersome afterthoughts when your fridge is full from the spoils of high-tech and the macro-economics and Israel’s credit rating looks sound. + +The unfortunate truth, however, is that much in Israel is not _be’seder._ + +Just as that’s always painful for individuals to admit, it’s also hard to come to terms with that fact on a national, societal level. + +And it never has been. + +The only difference between what’s happening now and the First Intifada is that it’s Border Police being injured rather than civilians. + +Because there’s a wall and better security now. + +It’s reasonable to presume that were those safeguards not to be in place — G-d forbid — that the scenes we’re currently seeing on our news screens and on Twitter would be orders of magnitude more grizzly. + +Because the same logic applies then and it does now. + +There can and will never be peaceful coexistence between Jews and Arabs in Israel. Sorry to disappoint the optimists with my viewpoint. Nor in Jerusalem which is only the fulcrum of the conflict and thus the first place to observe these dynamics when the fault lines rub up against one another. That’s a logic that hasn’t changed since ’48 and which Israel has thus far decided only to manage. + +And today, as in previous days, we’re being reminded about how easily that fiction can crumble. + +Tonight, In Haifa, the model of coexistence, “Arab Israelis” (note: I typically go to enormous lengths to avoid using the term) are toting Palestinian flags and echoing supporting for their brothers in Sheikh Jarrah. + +Two weeks ago, in the “united” capital whose “unification” we’re celebrating today on Jerusalem Day, East Jerusalemites competed with one another on Tik Tok for who could circulate the most shocking social media content of an unprovoked attack on any bystander who happened to look obviously Jewish. + +The Second Intifada broke out because of a visit to the Temple Mount. + +The last wave of rioting was “provoked” by Israel’s decision to install magnetometers at the entrance to the Temple Mount. + +There will ALWAYS be a reason. This is the convenient excuse that exists today. + +Whatever your thoughts about Sheikh Jarrah, I contend that anybody with a long memory should be able to instantly recognize the situation for what it is: a subterfuge. + +Sheikh Jarrah may be a genuine issue worthy of discussion and protest. + +But what’s happening around Israel now isn’t about a housing demolition. The fact that “Arab Israelis” are bussing in to join the protest movement is also significant. + +It’s a convenient straw which can be said to have broken the camel’s back. + +But it’s a back which will continue to periodically fall down. And when push comes to shove there are no questions about who’s on which side of the conflict. + +The confluence of Sheikh Jarrah and Jerusalem Day and the pre-existing tensions in the city creates an almost perfect storm for tension in Jerusalem and Israel. + +It’s an unusually generous poring of gasoline onto a fire that was going to erupt anyway. + +I can only think that such an unusual coming together of facts is happening to teach us something. + +That a lot of the truths we don’t challenge and which hold up the fallacy of the possibility of coexistence in Israel are nothing but barefaced lies. diff --git a/posts/medium/If-you-re-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear.md b/posts/medium/If-you-re-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..77e98d43ba7a8e16f3884ad7748a6e2a64e92d61 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If-you-re-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear.md @@ -0,0 +1,111 @@ +# If you’re noise-adverse and working-from-home consider buying this gear + +My noise-cocooning equipment + +** _Non-affiliate disclosure:_**_My blogging, including this post, is for recreational and information-sharing purposes only (unless otherwise stated!). Despite my enthusiasm, none of the following links or recommendations earn me commission._ + +There’s an explosion of interest in working from home at the moment and one of the most common issues people are reporting having difficulty with (besides fighting the urge to stay in their pajamas all day) is handling what might be a noisier work environment than they are used to. + +Children playing, neighbors having impromptu parties, and roadworks going on outside your front door — veteran home workers have probably experienced it all. + +Whether you need noise isolation because your working environment is too noisy or because you might be a [certifiable genius](https://www.mindfood.com/article/are-you-sensitive-to-noise-you-could-be-a-certified-genius/), there are fortunately a few steps you can take to make your working environment that much quieter. + +I gave my stock recommendations in my recent blog for Get5 (“[How to Make Your Home Office A Productivity Haven](https://www.get5.io/blog/make-home-office-productivity-haven)”) but — for the sake of having something to quickly link people to — let me repeat them here. + +(Note: this post is for informational purposes only; none of these links are affiliate marketing!) + +### 1\. Etymotic IEMs / Other Headphones/IEMs With Excellent Passive Noise Isolation + +The first and most obvious form of auditory barrier that tends to jump to people’s minds when they’re thinking about how to work with better focus is a good set of “headphones”. + +Bose is almost immediately thought of as the gold standard — particularly something like the QuietComort (QC) series. + +Bose has certainly done a terrific job of carving out a reputation for themselves as _the_ go-to manufacturer for blocking out exterior sounds — and on all other measures I would agree that they are superb premium earphones **But unfortunately Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) is _not_ the optimum technology for drowning out human voices.** + +To understand why, understand how these things work. (And if you don’t want to take my word for it — although I’m just about the most sound-sensitive person I know — [check out this explanation from NoisyWorld](https://noisyworld.org/noise-cancelling-headphones-voices/)). + +[ANC headphones work by using microphone](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/mar/16/noise-cancelling-headphones-sound-modern-life)s that “listen” to noise from the outside world. They then play an opposing frequency with the idea of drowning out the background noise. + +As anybody who was taken a long-haul flight with one of these can attest, the technology works excellently against noises which remain at a relatively constant frequency — such as those given off by jet engines. + +Unfortunately, human voices modulate in frequency unpredictably. If you’ve ever tried to block out the sound of an open office with a more basic pair of ANCs, then you probably already know this to be true. + +So, ANC headphones are a good choice if you’re trying to drown out the noise from a specific and consistent “offender” — such as, say, an obnoxiously loud air conditioner wall unit. + +But if — like me — your auditory nemeses tend to be things like ambulance sirens and loud groups of people talking outside your apartment, then **passive noise isolation** is the way to go. + +If you’ve ever covered your ears with your hands, and discovered that the world is a much quieter place as a result, then you know how passive noise isolation works — you simply isolate sound coming from the outside world so that less of it gets into your ear canal (although did you know that you also [hear some sound through bone conduction?](http://www.goldendance.co.jp/English/boneconduct/01.html)). + +When it comes to passive noise isolation, in the opinion of most audiophiles, Etymotic In Ear Monitors (IEMs) do this better than just about any other headphone manufacturer on the planet. + +[Etymotic](http://www.etymotic.com) is a small and otherwise relatively obscure Illinois-based business that specializes in things like high-fidelity earplugs, hearing protection, and high-end earphones. But they have a cult following among the audiophile community for a reason. + +If you’re looking to block out noises, their range of IEMs is what you want to be looking at. In Ear Monitors are called so because they are often used by musicians to listen to the “monitor” output feed while performing in a noisy on-stage environment where passive noise isolation is obviously an important requirement. But they’re really just high-performance headphones that fit in your ears like earbuds. And you can use them in an office too. + +Be prepared: Etymotics take a bit of getting used to. They fit _deep_ into your ear canal and can be a little uncomfortable at first. But — properly fitted ([this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KwXEqe6Gq4) is a little ridiculous, but watch it anyway) — the passive noise isolation they provide is amazing, particularly with the triple flange fittings. + +Amazon links: + + * [Etymotic ER4X4](https://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-ER4XR-Extended-Response/dp/B01GW786B4/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=etymotic&qid=1584440705&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzSlNRREZDWEk5MzhPJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMTc1NDI2MUI0N0hTREgyMEpVSyZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMjUwMDgwM0VBVTRFVDdBN1ZWUSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=) + * [Etymotic ER3XR](https://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-ER3XR-Extended-Response-Earphones/dp/B076652HPH/ref=sxin_2_osp8-e6de5f71_cov?ascsubtag=amzn1.osa.e6de5f71-8b44-4e0a-bf13-285dcc8b5a56.ATVPDKIKX0DER.en_US&creativeASIN=B076652HPH&cv_ct_cx=etymotic&cv_ct_id=amzn1.osa.e6de5f71-8b44-4e0a-bf13-285dcc8b5a56.ATVPDKIKX0DER.en_US&cv_ct_pg=search&cv_ct_wn=osp-search&dchild=1&keywords=etymotic&linkCode=oas&pd_rd_i=B076652HPH&pd_rd_r=399c50c5-b18f-47b0-aabb-4ac0491c2b4d&pd_rd_w=QsoZn&pd_rd_wg=KNgAJ&pf_rd_p=dac4d66e-658f-4cae-b10d-a35ac5eca0c3&pf_rd_r=CJMHPJN2AX00PG2V8NKV&qid=1584440705&tag=pcmagcontent-20) + * [Etymotic MK5 ](https://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-Isolator-Noise-Isolating-Earphones/dp/B00OQG7IC2/ref=sr_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=etymotic&qid=1584440705&sr=8-4)— the budget model and a great option if you want to just try Etymotics out without risking too much cash. + +(If you prefer a handsfree model you can simply fit a [Bluetooth receiver](https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Receiver-KINDRM-Hands-Free-Headphones/dp/B07VPQHPV4/ref=sr_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=bluetooth+receiver&qid=1584441019&sr=8-4&swrs=F28C66A799139205C851171FF7FA9B03) onto the end of any Etymotic model with a 3.5mm audio jack.) + +All Etymotic models are rated to provide 35–42 dB of isolation, which gives a comparable Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) to that of most earplugs. + +All Etymotic models provide 35–42 dB of noise isolation + +### 2\. A White Noise Machine (For Sound Masking) + +Optimum ambient noise reduction for home workers can be achieved by taking a layered approach. + +Remember how I explained how ANCs work? + +White noise machines clearly do _not_ modulate their output, but they can be useful for **sound masking** purposes. Because white noise is a collection of different frequencies played at the same intensity, it tends to override (or mask) small and otherwise annoying “blips” of background noise. + +I use the [LectroFan](https://www.amazon.com/Adaptive-Sound-Technologies-LectroFan-Non-Looping/dp/B00E6D6LQY/ref=sxin_1_osp1-86856d48_cov?ascsubtag=amzn1.osa.86856d48-e212-4e7f-9407-aaeaef42d94d.ATVPDKIKX0DER.en_US&creativeASIN=B00E6D6LQY&cv_ct_cx=lectrofan&cv_ct_id=amzn1.osa.86856d48-e212-4e7f-9407-aaeaef42d94d.ATVPDKIKX0DER.en_US&cv_ct_pg=search&cv_ct_wn=osp-search&dchild=1&keywords=lectrofan&linkCode=oas&pd_rd_i=B00E6D6LQY&pd_rd_r=42d50c32-3f18-4c4b-852c-059855d590c0&pd_rd_w=46f06&pd_rd_wg=GLfWw&pf_rd_p=dac4d66e-658f-4cae-b10d-a35ac5eca0c3&pf_rd_r=RSNBHB5M2QRN6AZ3FDJZ&qid=1584440969&tag=popularscience_os-20) — and it’s just about the most popular version on the market, although truly there are many others. + +### 3\. An Additional Sound Source + +There are two beautiful things about Etymotics or other headphones which provide impressive passive sound isolation: + +a)**If you’re working in a quiet sound environment, you can just use the headphones without actually playing anything through them**(essentially just using them as earphones)**.** And just turn on some music if there’s really a need. This is because they provide roughly the same level of passive noise isolation as most earplugs. + +b)**If you are listening to music, you can listen at far lower volumes than would usually be possible**. This is because they fit deep into your ear canal. + +If you really want to round things off, then you can opt for a 1–2–3 approach using Etymotics, a white noise machine, and playing a sound masking track through your computer. + +There are plenty of websites that stream audio for this purpose. + +I use Brain.FM (invented by [Adam Hewett](https://medium.com/u/93b15a05a95a)) although there are plenty of other options — just [Google “background noise”](https://www.google.com/search?q=background+noise&oq=background+noise&aqs=chrome..69i57.1207j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8) to find them. + +[**Brain.fm: Music to improve focus, meditation & sleep.** +_Brain.fm - Music designed for the brain to enhance focus, relaxation, meditation, naps and sleep within 10 - 15 minutes…_ www.brain.fm](https://www.brain.fm/ "https://www.brain.fm/")[](https://www.brain.fm/) + +[**Online Background Noises * Relaxing Sounds * Noise Masking** + _Welcome to Noises Online! Noise isn't always the chatty colleague in your open-plan office, or the sound of your…_ noises.online](https://noises.online/ "https://noises.online/")[](https://noises.online/) + +### Enjoy Your New Working Environment + +The above should be enough to block out all but the most intrusive of sounds. + +In fact, it’s unlikely that the white noise machine and Etyomics used in tandem will _ever_ not be enough — I literally used this combo to work while there was a construction crew ten meters from my apartment engaging in heavy drilling work eight hours a day **_for six months._** Not an experience I would like to repeat, but I’m glad to know that if I find myself in that situation again I am properly equipped to deal with it. + +One final word of caution. + +Sound sensitivity is associated with some neurological disorders and some very unusual ones such as misphonia and hyperaucusis for which there are treatments that might be partially helpful. + +If your sound sensitivity is _really_ severe and bothersome, it might be worth getting it checked out. Or, as I try to remind people, [you might just be a certifiable genius](https://www.mindfood.com/article/are-you-sensitive-to-noise-you-could-be-a-certified-genius/). + +Finally, there is some preliminary evidence that continuous exposure to white noise [might actually be bad for you](https://www.housebeautiful.com/lifestyle/a29576257/white-noise-bad-for-you/). So I think that finding an _actual_ quiet place to work is still the better option for you and your brain. + +And very finally, be warned that sound blocking can be _too_ good. If you’re minding children, for example, you might want to ensure that you’re blocking out some distracting sounds but are also able to hear them if they require attention. + +The first ever DSR Ghostwriting podcast was on this very subject. + +So here it is: + +Good luck staying productive while working from home — whether you love background noise or hate it! + +[_Have any additional tips that I missed? Drop me a message._](http://www.danielrosehill.co.il) diff --git a/posts/medium/If-you-really--really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking--here-s-a--sort-of--workaround.md b/posts/medium/If-you-really--really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking--here-s-a--sort-of--workaround.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3cd6e3740f67a490899864da34a8549589a8120b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If-you-really--really-want-to-defeat-email-tracking--here-s-a--sort-of--workaround.md @@ -0,0 +1,125 @@ +# If you really, really want to defeat email tracking, here’s a (sort of) workaround + +Email tracking is ubiquitous. And it’s creepy. + +If you’re reading this then you probably realize that tracking pixels are — if not yet ubiquitous (thankfully!) — then very commonplace. + +Perhaps, like me, the idea that your sender can know if/when and (sometimes) where you have read their communication makes you feel very uneasy. + +Like me you might — on principle — try to avoid deploying this technology yourself. + +But, needless to say, you have no guarantee of reciprocity by doing so. In fact, **if you’ve initiated just about any form of communication with a sales team, you can pretty much rest assured that they are tracking when, and how often, you open their emails** — and that information is being parsed by marketing automation tools to determine your lead scoring and how many follow-ups you will receive in a drip marketing campaign.* + +Creepy, eh? + +The only problem is that most common webmail UIs, like Gmail, don’t make it especially easy to toggle between reading email as HTML and reading them as plain text. You can apply the setting globally, but doing so on a per-email basis isn’t really an option — or at least convenient. + +Thankfully where there’s a bug (invasion of your privacy) there’s a fix (plain text email)— or at least a workaround. + +Here’s one method you can deploy to beat the email snoopers at their own game. + +(*Worth pointing out: we have reached stage where many marketing and sales programs don’t allow you to disable open rate tracking even if you want to!) + +### How Email Tracking Works + +Email tracking generally works by embedding a unique tracking pixel in the body of your email. It’s simply a 1 x 1 px transparent pixel that you will not be able to see. But when you download the email’s attachments, and all its HTML elements (and unless you like your email client to look like it was designed in the Stone Age, this is generally how it is automatically set up) you also download the tracking pixel. + +The recipient’s CRM will then display to your correspondent that you have opened the email. Often the CRM or email marketing tool will also have an accompanying extension for common web browsers —**thereby allowing the sender to even receive a notification informing them that _you_ have opened the email the very second that you do.** + +Because tying a tracking pixel to a unique email address (and that email fits within the hierarchy of your contact entity in their CRM) is trivially easy — yes, your sender knows that you (specifically) have opened the email, approximately where (sometimes — if the tracking pixel records your public IP address), and even how many times you have done so (each time you open the email the tracking pixel is reloaded and the analytics on the backend of whatever program the sender is using simply needs to keep count of unique views). + +In my book , depending on how it’s deployed that’s a needless invasion of privacy. Or at least one that it is sometimes prudent to defeat. + +Thankfully, there’s an easy way to avoid it — read the email in plain text mode. + +### Workaround 1: Reading Emails in Plain Text + +Using the Mutt terminal email client (CLI) in Linux + +The only problem with reading email in plain text is that it tends to look an awful lot like the above. + +Okay, maybe not quite that bad — but you almost certainly won’t want to read all your emails in plain text (just those that you don’t want to tip off senders that you have opened). + +This is because — if you don’t parse the HTML contained in almost all modern emails — you will not be able to see: + + * Any embedded images + * Any rich signature the sender has sent + * Hyperlinks + +However, in most cases, the content of the message will remain intelligible — because it is rendered as simple text, even if it enclosed within markdown tags. So you _will_ be able to decipher (and respond to) select email — email that you don’t want the sender to know you have read. + +Until I have a better solution if I really don’t want to tip off a sender that I have read my email my solution is to read the email in plain text using a desktop email client — and [Mozilla](https://medium.com/u/95f4ec6ae6f6) Thunderbird is my tool of choice* + +(Yes, you can read your email in a Linux terminal if you so wish; but I don’t think there’s any need to make life needlessly difficult for yourself. However, if you want to put the ‘plain’ back in ‘plain text’, [here are some options](https://www.tecmint.com/best-commandline-email-clients-for-linux/)). + +Here are the steps: + +#### 1\. Download Mozilla Thunderbird + +[Thunderbird](https://www.thunderbird.net/en-GB/) is cross-platform — so whether you’re on Linux, Windows, or Mac you should be able to get it installed. + +[Download Mozilla Thunderbird](https://www.thunderbird.net/en-GB/) + +#### 2\. Change Default View Mode to ‘Plain Text’ + +Next, you simply need to navigate to: + + * View + * Message Body As + * And toggle it from ‘Original HTML’ (default setting) to ‘Plain text’ + +These days, I virtually never access my email from a desktop client like Thunderbird (the exception — when sending email encrypted with PGP security — and if you need to do that you should pick up the [Enigmail add-on.](https://addons.thunderbird.net/en-us/thunderbird/addon/enigmail/)) + +So I’m happy to apply this setting and just leave it there. But if you _do_ use Firefox, then you can simply toggle this setting or choose to manually load remote content when you wish to view an email normally. It’s easier than following the same procedure in Gmail. + +To show you how this works in practice, here’s a random marketing email to promote an online panel discussion. + +I’ve anonymized the company as best as I could. **And as you can see, there are three tracking links in the email — as indicated with red arrows.** + +And how do I know that they’re tracking links? Because they’re branded (prefixed on a subdomain just used for email tracking). That’s why they show as email.thecompany.io/uniqueidentifier rather than simply thecompany.io/somestaticresource. + +You can rest assured that this email also contained a tracking pixel to track open rates. As a sender we can’t know _what_ that tracking pixel was following (open volume? our IP address?). But we can say that it was there. + +(If you’re using 2nd Factor Authentication you can still use your account with Thunderbird; [you might just need to configure an ‘app password’ in Gsuite/Gmail](https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/185833?hl=en)). + +### Let’s Test It Out + +**Tip:** If you want to validate that your tracking-blocking methods are indeed working, set up an account for yourself on Hubspot (or any other service that uses pixel tracking) and see what happens. + +I decided to fire up [HubSpot](https://medium.com/u/8732e73183e5) — which enables open rate and clickthrough tracking by default — and send another test email. + +Remember that the last time we were able to verify that I had opened the email within a minute? + +Let’s set up an email to my demo Gmail account: + +I open the email in Gmail — displaying the email as HTML: + +As expected Hubspot instantaneously registers that I have opened the email: + +I try again: + +But this time I open the email in [Mozilla](https://medium.com/u/95f4ec6ae6f6) Thunderbird, reading it in plain text mode: + +And again, as expected, the open does not register in [HubSpot](https://medium.com/u/8732e73183e5). If this weren’t an example, the sender would have no idea that I had read his/her email. + +### Workaround 2 (Gmail): Ask Before Displaying External Image + +I kept this until the end for two reasons: + +a) It’s Gmail-specific + +b) This setting blocks images from being displayed at all. And I want to see images in emails more often that I want to defeat open rate tracking. + +But just in case you’re on Gmail and that sounds better to you here’s the settings change you’ll want to apply: + +### It’s A Little Bit of Work, But You Can Defeat Email Open Tracking + +Email open and clickthrough tracking is somewhat invasive. + +From time to time you may have a very valid reason to wish to conceal the fact that you have read email from those sending it to you. Or you may simply want to withhold that information from an email received as part of a structured marketing campaign. + +Tracking works by embedding HTML elements — typically a single transparent pixel — into the body of an email. + +You can use that knowledge to work around it: simply find an email client, or configure the one you already use, to read email in plain text mode. + +Doing so will prevent those that sent the email from being able to see that you have read their communication. diff --git a/posts/medium/If-you-see-cyberbullying--consider-reaching-out-to-show-support.md b/posts/medium/If-you-see-cyberbullying--consider-reaching-out-to-show-support.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5df1df64fd5529165cfc68cdabcd531a07aabef9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/If-you-see-cyberbullying--consider-reaching-out-to-show-support.md @@ -0,0 +1,57 @@ +# If you see cyberbullying, consider reaching out to show support + +#### A two minute email can be powerfully uplifting for targets + +The start of this week, in my life, has been dominated by cyberbullying. + +[**Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit** + _Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2) + +The details, for those interested, are above. In the interest of not fanning the flames of troll-hatred, I’ll leave off repeating them here. + +While the experience has been jarring emotionally, I’ll come through. I’ve experienced cyberbullying before and am lucky enough to have, in my contact directory, an excellent therapist (if you’re in Jerusalem and need an English-speaking one, feel free to drop me a private message). If I need help, right now, I know the right places to turn. + +But it won’t be possible to come through this experience without emerging as an advocate for (by which of course I mean against) cyberbullying. + +[**Sign the Petition** + _Reddit is a valuable online social community but has also become a festering hive of online hate, abuse, and…_ www.change.org](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups "https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups")[](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups) + +Anonymity-centric social networks such as Reddit are getting away with murder — quite tragically I mean that literally. + +I believe that Reddit, in particular, is being grossly derelict in its responsibility to protect targets of cyberbullying, stalking, and harassment. + +In the past 24 hours alone, I have had two threads full of harassment about me and been called a variety of slurs ranging from big-nosed to “Sperg” (Asperger’s) to “f***king j***ass”. (Printing the full selection would require another post and I have no intention of spurring on more bullies) + +While anonymous cyberbullying has shown me just how deranged and nasty those lurking in the dark corners of the internet can be, it has also, simultaneously, shown me that the silent majority is often actually the kinder internet user. + +I’ve received several communications like the following by email (my Reddit DMs are wisely turned off). I wanted to share this one to provide a template for others thinking about taking a few minutes out of their day to write in to cyberbullying targets. + +Each one has had a powerful uplifting effect that has done its own part to negate the abuse I have received over the same channel. + +If you witness somebody receiving cyberabuse — whether on Reddit or any other platform — consider reading out to them to show your support. + +If appropriate, consider directing them towards resources. Because not everybody is fortunate enough to have a great therapist on hand to help tackle the feelings of self-resentment that a slew of hatred can cause. + +As I posted yesterday, in spite of this experience, I still believe that anonymity has its place on the internet. + +[**Does online anonymity have a place on the internet?** +_Can we facilitate online anonymity’s “white hat” use-cases without making it a den full of trolls and haters?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-13c745909238 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-13c745909238")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-13c745909238) + +But equally I believe that it can be a powerful force for harm — and sometimes even a devastating one. + +Yesterday, I suggested a few practical ways in which the social networks of tomorrow can find a happy medium that would allow “white hat” anonymity use-cases while more effectively stamping out abuse. + +Because wherever anonymity is facilitated, trolls will congregate. And without proactive and rigorous systems to hold online abusers to account, they will continue to be able to torment their victims on the internet. + +If you’re reading this, please also consider signing the petition below. + +One of the abusive threads I received this week was posted on this subreddit. + +The moderator even announced to the trolls that I had filed a harassment report (and joined in the harassment him/her-self). Yes, really: + +It is a disgusting hate community and it defies belief that Reddit has not taken action to ban it and stamp communities like it out. + +[**Sign the Petition** + _The Reddit community of /r/drama is a festering hive of hateful trolls and bigots whose only purpose in life is to…_ www.change.org](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-ban-the-reddit-community-r-drama "https://www.change.org/p/reddit-ban-the-reddit-community-r-drama")[](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-ban-the-reddit-community-r-drama) + + _Unfortunately, whenever I blog/YouTube about Reddit cyberbullying I have to turn off comments. There are hordes of trolls who are just waiting for their next safe digital space to leave abuse._ diff --git a/posts/medium/In-Israeli--high-tech---all-that-glitters-isn-t-gold--or-ethical-.md b/posts/medium/In-Israeli--high-tech---all-that-glitters-isn-t-gold--or-ethical-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bf71b967514fdf5ee921db7efa96909eea53d7af --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/In-Israeli--high-tech---all-that-glitters-isn-t-gold--or-ethical-.md @@ -0,0 +1,49 @@ +# In Israeli “high tech,” all that glitters isn’t gold (or ethical) + +#### A story that I might one day be able to link back to to say ‘I predicted the future’ + +The Azrieli Center Circular Tower. Photo: Wikipedia + +I don’t claim to be able to predict the future. But I wanted to commit one prediction to writing anyway. And sadly — for a few reasons, including defamation law— everything will have to be framed in very vague terms. + +It has been my longstanding contention (a belief borne out of working with the sector for the past five years) that there is a significant tranche of the Israeli high-tech scene that is of dubious integrity and which is engaged in morally questionable ways of generating revenue. Largely, this is a story that hasn’t yet come to public attention. + +When the Times of Israel’s Simona Weinglass broke her ‘Wolves of Tel Aviv’ piece almost five years ago (which kicked off an investigation into the sector), many assumed that the illicit forex/binary industry Israel was home to represented the totality of the white collar crime headquartered in Israel, or at least close to it (and it should be noted: forex/binary hasn’t been totally stamped out in Israel; the Knesset passed a watered down version of the legislation). + +[**The wolves of Tel Aviv: Israel's vast, amoral binary options scam exposed** + _An industry turning over hundreds of millions of dollars, employing thousands of people, is cynically cheating naive…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-wolves-of-tel-aviv-israels-vast-amoral-binary-options-scam-exposed/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-wolves-of-tel-aviv-israels-vast-amoral-binary-options-scam-exposed/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-wolves-of-tel-aviv-israels-vast-amoral-binary-options-scam-exposed/) + +About that they would be wrong. + +There are some companies — and industries — that are prevalent in Israel which have not yet been written about, whether in Hebrew or English. + +If not criminal in nature, they derive their profits in ways that most people would find morally problematic if the images the companies were portraying to the world were not the stuff, essentially, of fiction. + +Like the forex/binary scheme, a lot of these companies operate under imaginative legal structures, often pretending to be based elsewhere in the world (particularly tax havens) while their operations are in reality firmly rooted in Israel. Like forex/binary, these companies disproportionately employ _olim_(Jewish immigrants to Israel). + +What fascinates me about this ‘world’ is how easily and seamlessly it sails under the vaunted banner of Israeli high-tech. ‘Hiding in plain sight’ is not only a delightful oxymoron but a fitting description. If nobody thinks about the idea of asking questions, then questions don’t get asked. + +Companies with business models that are predicated upon deception, and which raise hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue or which are bought out by publicly listed entities, can receive glossy coverage in the media without anybody batting an eyelid. I find the fact that this can happen quite extraordinary. + +Having observed this dynamic repeatedly, the lesson I’ve learned is this: if you can rent a nice office, ideally in Tel Aviv, photograph some cute dogs roaming around an office, and throw some decent photos of it on a Facebook page, you send out a very convincing message to the world that your company is “legit.” + +Doesn’t this happen everywhere? Possibly. But there is a thirst in Israel to trumpet up the country’s achievements in technology. I believe that questions about the provenance of revenue sometimes go out the window amid the flurry of excitement. + +For those interested in learning more about this whole dynamic, my recent interview with Simona Weinglass, the reporter who broke the forex/binary option, might be of interest. + +[**Meet: The Reporter Who Helped Expose Forex/Binary - After Aliyah** + _For other profiles of olim hadashim, see our 'Olim Profiles' category Simona Weinglass is a name that will be familiar…_ www.afteraliyah.com](https://www.afteraliyah.com/olimprofiles/meet-the-reporter-who-helped-expose-forex-binary/ "https://www.afteraliyah.com/olimprofiles/meet-the-reporter-who-helped-expose-forex-binary/")[](https://www.afteraliyah.com/olimprofiles/meet-the-reporter-who-helped-expose-forex-binary/) + +In that interview, Simona charges that Israeli journalism — in both languages — is too superficial. And that investigative journalism is under-resourced. + +Weinglass alleges: + +“High tech is kind of like a vortex that sucks them [olim] in. But I believe there’s an embarrassing percentage of olim that are working in organizations that are connected in some ways to scams.” she says. Weinglass also alleges that there is a high cross-over between the ownership of the ethically dubious companies to which I am alluding and the world of organized crime. + +I write the foregoing not to bash Israeli high tech. + +Rather I say this because I care about the country and its image. And when truth finally emerges from behind a web of lies — which it has a habit of doing — ultimately these escapades will make Israel look bad. We’ve already seen this happen with forex and binary. It can happen again. + +The majority of companies based out of Israel are bringing real innovation to the world and their revenues are the result of selling _bone fide_ products and services to international customers. I’m talking, rather, about a few cases in which there is a glaring asymmetry between actual business models and information in the public domain. + +There are not only bad actors in every pond but dubious ones too. The swamp of somewhat illicit companies based in Israel hasn’t yet been cleared. There are stories that have yet to come to light. One day that will likely change. diff --git a/posts/medium/In-Search-Of-The-Perfect-Online-Writing-Community.md b/posts/medium/In-Search-Of-The-Perfect-Online-Writing-Community.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6a75c75e23c57f22b1299991b4281e8dfef35b6d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/In-Search-Of-The-Perfect-Online-Writing-Community.md @@ -0,0 +1,106 @@ +# In Search Of The Perfect Online Writing Community + +#### Some notes to help clarify my own thinking + +Photo: Gene Wilburn, via Flickr + +I’ve written before about what I see as the enormous value of networking with other writers. + +[**The Value Of Zoom Networking With Other Freelance Writers** + _Other Writers Are Just A Video Call Away. Why Not Reach Out?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-value-of-zoom-networking-with-other-freelance-writers-19fb97988bf4 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-value-of-zoom-networking-with-other-freelance-writers-19fb97988bf4")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-value-of-zoom-networking-with-other-freelance-writers-19fb97988bf4) + +Freelance writing can be both an immensely difficult and lonely pursuit. Tapping into other writers’ wisdom — or the wisdom of a whole group of writers — can be a great means of helping to figure out how to make it all work. + +To that end, I’ve participated, over the past number of years, in a number of online writers’ communities. + +That collective experience has left me convinced that there’s a gap in the market for a quality independent forum for writers. Will I start one myself? Probably not — but who knows. + +Either way, these are my Cliff Notes on what I see as the pros and cons of the writing communities that I’ve experienced to date. + +The Facebook logo. Source: Stock Catalog (Via Flickr) + +### Facebook Writing Groups + +Facebook is the first place many people turn to when looking for a place to connect with others online about a certain topic. + +The problem with freelance writing communities — and this might come off as politically incorrect, but I believe it’s the truth — is that they tend to attract freelance writers from …. well, all over the world. + +Why is this a problem? + +Writers in India and the US have very different costs of living and thus very different ideas about what acceptable rates for writing are. + +Thus, these communities are frequently home to futile online discussions in which accusations of “rate shaming” get thrown back and forth between the parties: + +**_Indian writer:_**_I landed a client that’s paying me $0.01 per word. I’m ecstatic._ + +**_US writer:_**_Stop working for pennies. You’re ruining this market for all of us._ + +**_Indian writer:_**_Wow! Way to rate shame me._ + +Etc. + +**Facebook groups that cater predominantly to writers from the developing world are almost useless to clients facing developed world costs of living and charging commensurately.** + +Naturally, writers from countries with lower average rates will want to try edge in on the higher paying markets. + +The rather large cost of living and rate imbalances between writers in the developed and developing worlds is — in my opinion — the large elephant in the room that rarely gets addressed in these writing fora. That as well as the fact that many such groups are populated by English as a Second Language (ESL) writers who seem baffled as to why they can’t command the same rates as native speakers. + +Another unfortunate tendency of Facebook groups is that they tend to get monopolized by people selling books or courses who often try to cultivate sycophantic online communities for the purpose of monetization. + +An unfortunate kind of groupthink can develop in which participants are expected to mimic the tone of the group admin. An unspoken rule is often that the admin should be the most dominant participant. Those that challenge his or her supremacy might find themselves edged out of the community. + +**Pros of Facebook writing communities:** + + * Participants aren’t anonymous. Some accountability and counterbalance to nastiness. + * Popular social network that a vast amount of people already use. + +**Cons of Facebook writing communities:** + + * Often exploited to sell courses / books + * Facebook is a distracting social network filled with photographs of users’ lunches + +Reddit: another popular social network + +### Reddit Writing Groups + +I have a relationship with Reddit that — on a good day — could be described as love-hate. + +While Reddit excels at congregating niche online communities — it’s basically a sprawling network of such fora — the fact that most Redditors are anonymous has garnered it a well-deserved reputation as a breeding-ground for online hate and toxicity with sometimes nonchalant moderation. + +Increasingly, I find this very prevalent dynamic a turn-off. While I’ve only managed to garner two “Renemies” (Reddit enemies) during my two years of active posting there, the haters have been dogged and vicious enough to kind of put me off posting there. The fact that they — as are most Redditors — are anonymous usernames just adds to the frustration. + +Nevertheless, while the anonymity that Reddit facilitates can lead to lots of harm, equally, for writers, it presents some unique advantages: + + * Usernames can post real client experiences without fear of being discovered + * Usernames can be more candid than when they need to defend their online identity + +There’s one significant difference between Reddit and closed Facebook groups: Reddit communities are indexed by search engines and thus public-facing. The result is that there is sometimes a tendency towards virtue signalling. + +If the above hasn’t dissuaded you from checking out Reddit’s writing communities, the main one which I have discovered is at /r/freelancewriters. + +### Closed Writing Fora + +The final major category of online writing community that can be found online is closed writing communities. + +These are effectively private fora run and operated by one individual. + +**Some pros:** + + * They’re dedicated websites that writers can visit just in order to discuss writing. + +**Some cons:** + + * Like Facebook groups they can be monopolized by the owner and turned into a vehicle for monetization and/or upselling + +### The Perfect Online Writing Community Doesn’t Exist Yet + +I believe that all the major online communities in which freelance writers congregate have their flaws. + +The number of Facebook groups that don’t exist to promote their admins’ courses or agendas is thin. Reddit — while an interesting place to host a writing community — is saddled with lots of anonymity-facilitated nastiness. + +**Dream Network — My Wish-List** + + * A true collective: not run by somebody trying to push a course / book + * Not run on top of say Facebook + * Not anonymous but perhaps with a feature for asking anon questions (e.g. Quora. Facebook group admins also commonly implement this feature although the fact the questions have to be funneled through an admin is less than desirable). + diff --git a/posts/medium/In-The-Middle-Of-A-Pandemic--The-Jerusalem-Municipality-Is-Running-A-Weekly-Street-Festival.md b/posts/medium/In-The-Middle-Of-A-Pandemic--The-Jerusalem-Municipality-Is-Running-A-Weekly-Street-Festival.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b52c365e1774cfe0e9e2990977135fd6fc3d07df --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/In-The-Middle-Of-A-Pandemic--The-Jerusalem-Municipality-Is-Running-A-Weekly-Street-Festival.md @@ -0,0 +1,51 @@ +# In The Middle Of A Pandemic, The Jerusalem Municipality Is Running A Weekly Street Festival! + +**Yes, you read that right.** + +The Jerusalem Municipality decided that the best thing to do during the coronavirus was: throw together an elaborate street festival! + +I first actually learned of this initiative [through a piece in the Times of Israel.](https://www.timesofisrael.com/jerusalem-tel-aviv-pedestrian-projects-to-see-streets-closed-off-to-vehicles/?fbclid=IwAR2TjzAh3pRwtxtgxQPFNPsOhvHd2NePq7S82tkVjTQpKZ4M8cxHgyHhXB0) + +In _“Pedestrians only: Jerusalem and Tel Aviv to close off major streets to vehicles,’_ published almost two months ago to the time of writing, Michael Bachner explains: + +> “….in Jerusalem several central streets will be open only to pedestrians for hours at a time in the evenings over the next few months __ In Jerusalem, the closures will have a much more dramatic effect on traffic, since they include central streets such as Hillel, Agripas, Azza, Emek Refaim and Derech Beit Lechem. However, each road will be closed only twice a week in the evening hours, and only until the end of August.__ Street shows will be held, with the project aimed at supporting restaurants and stores battered by the virus closures.__ The initiative is set to begin when restaurants are reopened and end August 31, with a possible extension until October 31.” + +The report — while accurate — fails to adequately explain just how disruptive this has been to local residents between the street closures that have been enforced and the noise pollution. + +I happen to, unfortunately, live slap bang in the middle of one of the designated “zones” for these senseless public entertainment events that defy common sense by encouraging the local population to congregate in large numbers rather than socially isolate. + +I will avoid saying precisely where but suffice to say this means that I have to listen to extremely loud entertainment between the hours of 17:30 and 21:00 every every Monday and Tuesday for the remainder of the summer. In fact, if the projects ends when it is expected to end this will mean three months of this weekly nuisance. + +Last week it was a clown on stilts screaming jokes to a huge crowd of gathered children over a microphone system that reverberated throughout our apartment a stone’s throw away. This week it is a lot more tasteful jazz. But both are annoying when you’re forcibly subjected to the “entertainment” two evenings a week — by a municipality that claims that it’s putting these events on “for your benefit” and which you have paid for through your _arnona_(municipal tax) contributions. + +How loud are we talking? + +Loud enough that there’s no way for me to block out the noise of the festival anywhere in the apartment without streaming white noise through headphones. Not in the bathroom. Not in the bedroom. Not in the living room. Not in the home office where I sometimes need to hold calls after the Israeli workday. It’s extremely grating. + +What’s bizarre about the whole situation is that virtually all of the businesses on our street seem to share our feelings on the matter. The street festival is supposed to bring levity and joy to people stuck at home — and incentivize people to patronize local businesses. Instead, the local businesses who the initiative is apparently being done for are reporting that customers are expressing irritation at the events because they can’t find parking! Local residents, who are being encouraged to stay home because of the pandemic, find that they are subject to a weekly barrage of noise pollution within their homes in exchange for following orders. During the first week the event ran, it was virtually bereft of patrons with municipality workers outnumbering those in attendance by a large multiple. We even found a sympathetic ear in a local policeman helping set up the event who was fully aware that the event was “hated” by local residents and businesses alike and privately confided that he thought it would not survive the national government’s attempt to reimpose a form of lockdown. So far, sadly, that has not proved to be the case. + +What irks me almost as much as the noise is that this half-baked “inititative” was planned without any consultation with local residents. And we’re not talking about a once off summertime street festival. We’re talking about a twice a week disruption that is slated to continue for three months! The Municipality has also refused to listen or engage with any of the many residents and businesses who have complained to it. + +My complaint to the Jerusalem Municipality (translated into English) received the following cookie-cutter reply. It conveniently neglects to mention exactly why and how this is benefiting local businesses and why the needs of local residents, for quiet enjoyment of their neighborhood, apparently received no consideration. Or, more pressingly, why this was considered a good idea in light of the health situation (the “happiness” to assist with further questions vanished as those questions, posed in a follow up email, were ignored): + +**Response from the Jerusalem Municipality:** _In responding to your inquiry about Israel’s pedestrian city, as you know, the epidemic disrupted the city’s various branches of commerce, hurting the restaurant business and cultural business owners, as it disrupted the city’s cultural leisure and entertainment activities._ _Disabling the economy and business following the crisis has caused serious damage to both business and to moral harm and despondency in the general public._ + +_The Jerusalem Municipality has initiated a short-term project, which will allow for a_** _very temporary closure_** _to a limited number of limited hours of streets around the city, in order to give impetus to the various businesses_. + +**_This project significantly supports the various commercial businesses_** _, the restaurant industry and cultural business owners on the one hand, and on the other hand, will make Jerusalem streets a focal point combining a shopping experience with a unique cultural experience for the residents of Jerusalem, while meeting the conditions of the Ministry of Health._ **_The project activity is three hours, twice a week in the late evening,_**_and the program will alternate between several neighborhoods that will become an experiential pedestrian street in the city._ _At this point, the municipality is working to find alternatives and parking solutions, noise prevention and inconvenience to residents._ _More information can be obtained at hotline 106 and the municipal website._ _I would be happy to assist with any questions._ + +And my commentary: + + * Three months is not “very temporary” + * There is no evidence that this benefits local businesses in any way + * So far the project has not “alternated” from our neighborhood for a single day.) + +After five years spent living in Jerusalem, I have come to take a very dim view of the Jerusalem Municipality. + +It is the same body that authorized almost inhumane 24/6 construction outside my former apartment and even authorized a build so close to my now wife’s old apartment that you could physically touch the heavy machinery while drinking a cup of coffee (photo below: the worksite continued like this for many weeks). The Municipality _is_ good at putting on unnecessary shows to present Jerusalem to the international community. But very poor, in my opinion, at actually engaging with the needs of its local residents. Among countless examples I could provide is the Municipality’s seeming obsession for repaving perfectly good sidewalks to demonstrate that they are doing something. Meanwhile, Jerusalem remains the poorest city in Israel’s and badly in need of jobs to stimulate its local economy. + +Whether the Jerusalem Municipality is just a particular case of the fact that many local governments are incompetent, or an especially egregious case of that generality, I am not sure. + +But either way, the ‘Main Street’ project is certainly not one of their best considered initiatives. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/In-photos--sunset-over-Gaza--as-seen-from-Israel.md b/posts/medium/In-photos--sunset-over-Gaza--as-seen-from-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..08855844ad6c792d6e5af29cae1bbec45960b6f6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/In-photos--sunset-over-Gaza--as-seen-from-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,29 @@ +# In photos: sunset over Gaza, as seen from Israel + +For those who didn’t know, I’m mildly obsessed with borders. + +Last week, during a trip to the North, I had the opportunity to observe the Israel-Lebanon border (Blue Line) from several new and interesting vantage points, at Hunin Castle, just south of the Lebanese border, and at Misgav Am, which is situated immediately east of the Blue Line. + +Today, my wife and I took a short day trip to the south of the country, and I seized the opportunity to visit Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip one more time. + +The following photos were taken from Kibuts Netiv HaAsara (the photos taken at sunset) and from Zikkim Beach, on the Gaza border. All are unedited and were taken by my wife. + +Needless to say, visiting the border region with Gaza is highly inadvisable during times of hostilities and rocket fire emanating from the Strip. Thankfully today the area was quiet. Visiting the border gives me very mixed feelings. For one, I feel sad; or perhaps solemn is a better word. Undoubtedly, there are many innocent civilians effectively blockaded in Gaza: by Israel to the west, east, and north; and by Egypt to the south. + +The details for fellow border fans: + +The sunset photos were taken from two lookout points on Kibbuts Netiv HaAsara, which lies immediately north of the Gaza Strip and the Erez Crossing. The concrete wall that can be seen in the photos isn’t the actual border; it’s a fortification to protect the residents of the _kibbuts_. + +As one would expect, this part of the _kibbuts_ is tense: commanding army watchtowers protrude from strategically located positions on the concrete barrier. The border itself is located just a couple of hundred meters to the south of this fortification. + +_Kibbuts_ residents — all of whom were extremely friendly and reassured me that I wasn’t the first curious person to sightsee the border there — told me that during times of hostility, this area is closed off to civilians. A 20 year old resident of the _kibbuts_ declined to be interviewed for my burgeoning YouTube channel, but described life on the _kibbuts_ as follows: “it’s 97% heaven (during times of quiet) and 3% hell (during times of war).” + +From Netiv HaAsara the high-rise buildings of Jabalia, north of Gaza City, are clearly visible, alongside the meandering minarets. Just beyond the wall, one can make out a checkpoint, probably operated by Hamas, on the Gazan side. The sunset over Gaza that we encountered, when we visited, was absolutely stunning. The photos as I’ve uploaded them below are completely unedited. + +Another place to spot the border is at Zikkim Beach which is popular with surfers in the south of the country. In fact, the Gaza-Israel border intersects the beach. As one walks southwards from the beach bar, towards Gaza, a progressively more imposing series of fortifications is encountered, which culminates in a closed military area where the IDF maintains a base. + +This is the area from which Avera Mengistu tragically crossed into the Strip. As of the time of this writing, he is still being held by Hamas, alongside Hisham al-Sayed, a Bedouin soldier who was serving in the IDF. Here, as in Netiv HaAsara and several other of the kibbutsim that dot the periphery of the Strip, the high rises of Gaza can be seen with the naked eye, although they look more impressive through the zoomed-in photographic lens used to take these photos. + +Credit for all photos: Hannah Schneiderman. + +Sunset over Gaza City as seen from Kibuts Netiv HaAsara on the Israel-Gaza border. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Sunset over Gaza City as seen from Kibuts Netiv HaAsara on the Israel-Gaza border. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Sunset over Gaza City as seen from Kibuts Netiv HaAsara on the Israel-Gaza border. The concrete barrier seen in the distance is a fortification installed to protect the kibbut’s residents. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Sunset over Gaza City as seen from Kibuts Netiv HaAsara on the Israel-Gaza border. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Sunset over Gaza City as seen from Kibuts Netiv HaAsara on the Israel-Gaza border. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Sunset over Gaza City as seen from Kibuts Netiv HaAsara on the Israel-Gaza border. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Sunset over Gaza City as seen from Kibuts Netiv HaAsara on the Israel-Gaza border. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Sunset over Gaza City as seen from Kibuts Netiv HaAsara on the Israel-Gaza border. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Gaza City as seen from Zikkim Beach in Southern Israel. Israel’s recently installed sea barrier with the Strip can also be seen in the distance. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Gaza City as seen from Zikkim Beach in Southern Israel. Israel’s recently installed sea barrier with the Strip can also be seen in the distance. The washed-up rubbish being cleaned apparently came from Gaza. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Gaza City as seen from Zikkim Beach in Southern Israel. Israel’s recently installed sea barrier with the Strip can also be seen in the distance. The washed-up rubbish being cleaned apparently came from Gaza. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman.Gaza City as seen from Zikkim Beach in Southern Israel. Israel’s recently installed sea barrier with the Strip can also be seen in the distance. The washed-up rubbish being cleaned apparently came from Gaza. Photo: Hannah Schneiderman. diff --git a/posts/medium/In-plot-twist--Alex-Fasulo-claims-CNBC--left-out--outsourcing-detail-from-viral-clip.md b/posts/medium/In-plot-twist--Alex-Fasulo-claims-CNBC--left-out--outsourcing-detail-from-viral-clip.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..eac76f70a7984f416d591d760363127adea77adf --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/In-plot-twist--Alex-Fasulo-claims-CNBC--left-out--outsourcing-detail-from-viral-clip.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# In plot twist, Alex Fasulo claims CNBC “left out” outsourcing detail from viral clip + +#### In sit-down interview, Fasulo claims news network “left out” critical details about her Fiverr income + +Last month, posting here, I asked some questions about the outsized $378K income which Fiverr writer and online course seller Alex Fasulo said that she makes through the network. + +[**Why I Have Suspicions About Alex Fasulo’s Claimed Fiverr Income** + _Fiverr Freelancer Claims Massive Income; Sells Courses On Becoming A Digital Nomad; A Familiar One-Two_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-have-suspicions-about-alex-fasulos-claimed-fiverr-income-2e5fdd51c1ab "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-have-suspicions-about-alex-fasulos-claimed-fiverr-income-2e5fdd51c1ab")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-have-suspicions-about-alex-fasulos-claimed-fiverr-income-2e5fdd51c1ab) + +The story went viral, notching up more than 1,800 claps and almost 12,000 views (at the time of this writing). + +Last night, an anonymous tipster drew my attention to [Fasulo’s sit-down interview with The Iced Coffee Hour hosted by Graham Stephen](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gxjKuv8sOU&ab_channel=TheIcedCoffeeHour), who describes himself as a “30 year old real estate agent and investor who started working in real estate shortly after turning 18.” + +I described[ Stephan’s reaction video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2hndErqByU&ab_channel=TheGrahamStephanShow) — in which he offered to pay Fasulo to write a book about his pet — as credulous + +The entire video podcast interview is more than an hour long. But for those of us interested in following this strange viral sensation — and asking some probing questions — Stephan has done us the public service of both breaking out segments and marking up the video. + +Here’s what’s notable: + +### Fasulo Claims CNBC “Cut Out The Details Of Everything” — Including Her Outsourcing + +In my original article (above) I pointed out the near mathematical impossibility that Fasulo could have single-handedly fulfilled the orders that she claimed to have fulfilled on the freelancing marketplace. + +In YouTube video podcast interview, Fasulo claims CNBC “cut out” key details of her freelancing business to edit down clip that subsequently went viral + +Subsequent to publicatio _n_ , [Fasulo released a Tik Tok video](https://www.tiktok.com/@alexfasulobiz/video/6942493908052102406?lang=en&is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v3) in which she admitted to using “co writers”: + +“For the first four years of freelancing I did everything by myself …. around the fourth year mark I had a normal business thought which was ‘maybe I should bring on a team to help me with all of this. I currently work with two other writers. I will probably be hiring a third in the coming weeks.” + +In light of that claim, I questioned why this rather huge detail — that Fasulo effectively outsources her Fiverr work — was conspicuously absent from the CNBC spot and subsequent viral coverage that it received. + +In what looks very much like a precalculated move, Fasulo used her sit-down with Stephan to claim that the US station “cut out” core details of her story: + +“They [CNBC] cut out a lot about everything that I’m doing … They cut out the details of everything. They hit you with the big shock title and then they don’t explain everything below it. So yeah, I mean I work with other writers right now. I have for the last two years … I’m now writing with other writers because I want to scale to seven figures, that’s the goal here.” + +### Fasulo Says That She Doesn’t “Partner Up” With Fiverr, Airs Belief The Marketplace “Doesn’t Like” the “Power She Wields.” + +[In a break-out clip from the interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9pzM2lTJ0c&ab_channel=TheIcedCoffeeHourClips) (entitled “[Fiverr’s Beef With Fiverr Millionaire Alex Fasulo”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9pzM2lTJ0c&ab_channel=TheIcedCoffeeHourClips)), Fasulo added a couple more claims about Fiverr: + +“Me and them [Fiverr] do not partner up with media. You catch me at a funny time with my Fiverr journey. There’s a lot going on. Not all of which I can talk about. But me and them … we don’t partner up on media stuff. They might not sponsor this I’m sorry to tell you. You should ask Upwork.” + +In response to the host’s questions whether what Fasulo has just disclosed is a “controversial thing,” Fasulo airs her suspicion that Fiverr “don’t like the power that I wield over them.” + +Stephan answers — and alleges: “you know what it is … if you do something bad, then guess what, that looks bad on Fiverr. Believe it or not they’re working that in contracts now.” + +Fasulo adds further fire to the controversy saying that she could tell “the _millions of people_ that come to her for freelancing advice saying ‘don’t use the site’ … and I don’t think they’d like that.” + +In response to another question: “I wonder if Fiverr would consider hiring you for a more corporate job as a salaried employee … or have you on the board” Fasulo responds “no … it’s a no … I’ve pitched myself to them as an influencer type so many times and the email just collects dust” + +Stephan responds: “I think it worries them that you’re transitioning to an influencer because whatever you do now reflects back on them.” Fasulo responds: “100%.” + +### Developments In The Story + +The $378K Fiverr freelancer: + + * Claims that CNBC Make It “cut out” core details of her freelancing story, including — presumably — the fact that she outsources writing work to partners + * Says that she no longer “partners up” with Fiverr for marketing (interesting, Fiverr previously hosted a press release on their website describing Fasulo’s work) + * Alleges that “millions of people” come to her for freelancing advice + * Claims Fiverr “doesn’t like” the “power she wields” + +### Watch For Yourself + + * [Full interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gxjKuv8sOU&ab_channel=TheIcedCoffeeHour) (“What CNBC cut out” at 50:01") + * [Excerpt: Fiverr’s Beef With Fiverr Millionaire Alex Fasulo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9pzM2lTJ0c&ab_channel=TheIcedCoffeeHourClips) + +### Also Worth A Read + +[**How This Fiverr Writer ‘Made $378K in a Year’** + _And why you shouldn’t buy into the hype_ medium.com](https://medium.com/side-hustle-nation/how-this-fiverr-writer-made-378k-in-a-year-574eccf75bdc "https://medium.com/side-hustle-nation/how-this-fiverr-writer-made-378k-in-a-year-574eccf75bdc")[](https://medium.com/side-hustle-nation/how-this-fiverr-writer-made-378k-in-a-year-574eccf75bdc) + +According to [Marx D.](https://medium.com/u/2c667c7321ce) + +_“She says [in the interview] it takes her_** _32 minutes to write 2,000 words._**_”_ + +H/T: Anon diff --git a/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketers--Stop-Watching-Your-Daily-Social-Metrics--It-s-A-Distraction-.md b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketers--Stop-Watching-Your-Daily-Social-Metrics--It-s-A-Distraction-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7c4ddd785688d2e36a7c13a18312b7ac06212d6a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketers--Stop-Watching-Your-Daily-Social-Metrics--It-s-A-Distraction-.md @@ -0,0 +1,61 @@ +# Inbound Marketers: Stop Watching Your Daily Social Metrics. It’s A Distraction. + +#### If you’re playing a long game, you should consider not obsessing over short term needle shifts + +As those who have been following my Medium profile know by now, inbound marketing has been the not-so-secret ingredient that I’m like … _really_ excited about (as in really). + +In the space of about a year (since beginning to take it seriously), it’s completely changed how I find clients for my business. Turned my process upside-down. + +Two years ago, I relied on a mixture of cold (outbound) contact methods and networking / word-of-mouth to keep my freelance writing business running smoothly. + +These days, I’m creating business content and thinking about funnels and how best to target prospective buyers of writing services at each stage of that process. + +My volume — I should point out — isn’t huge. But at my minuscule level of scale (I’m a one man writing shop) it also doesn’t need to be. + +This week, for instance, I received three inbound leads. But as a solo writing business there’s a very low bar for how many leads I can properly handle and three is already approaching it. + +For me, even 4 inbound leads a month — one of which converts into a client — is enough to replace client churn and keep my book of business as busy as it should be. If I were able to double that volume this year, I’d be delighted. + +[**The Ultimate Long Game, Content Marketing Demands Its Own Mindset Too** + _When transitioning from outbound to inbound-led marketing, attitudes need to change as well_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687) + +But — as I continue through the journey — I’ve developed one behavior that I realize is totally self-defeating. I’m working on undoing it. And that’s keeping too close an eye on social metrics. + +Why do we humans fret about things like Facebook likes and comments? + +On the one hand, I think social networks have succeeded in hijacking our reward pathways. We’re addicts. + +The other reason, I believe, is force of habit. Because when you’re outbound marketing, monitoring things like email open rates and website bounce rates is pretty essential. + +You don’t want to throw effort into a sink-hole and these days — in marketing — we’re all about measurement. + +**But here’s the message of this post: I want to propose that if we’re going to be engaging in a long-term strategy — like content marketing — that we need to shift our horizons slightly wider.** + +**Which is why I think that keeping an eye on the important metrics (inbound lead generation volume) and doing so only periodically (let’s say monthly) makes a lot more sense than checking any of the following every day:** + + * Podcasts listens + * YouTube subscribers + * Medium followers + * Facebook likes + +If you’re obsessing over any of the above, then you’re pushing your noise:signal ratio way in the direction of noise. + +**Which — to state the obvious — then makes it harder for you to pick up on the truly significant trends that might be shaping the effectiveness of your efforts.** + +Checking in with the important stats — again, I suggest lead volume as the key one to care about for many businesses — means that you _are_ measuring and also gives you an opportunity to course-correct if something’s not working. + +But it can free up enormous mental space for creating content that would otherwise be sidelined, unproductively, into following what I term ‘vanity metrics’. + +Content marketing and inbound are long term business development strategies. I’ve called them the ultimate long games. And that’s the kind of mindset that they ask for. + +And the phrase ‘the watched kettle never boils’ applies well in this context. + +The kettle is the _product_ of your engagement —the stuff that will really matter to your business — namely lead generation. + +And the unproductive watching keeping it from boiling is you obsessing over social engagement metrics that just reflect unnoteworthy day to day shifts in your engagement. In most instances, this is information that you don’t need to know about. + +By foregoing the small dopamine hits you might be getting when your post gets a like or comment you can focus on the big stuff that actually might make a difference. Stop worrying about picking up one or two followers. Worrying if you’re up or down by thousands. And how busy your pipeline is looking. + +By all means measure the success of your content marketing and re-evaluate when something’s not working. Just shift the timeframe of your measurement and focus it on the long term. Shift your horizon of focus a bit wider than day-to-day. + +When your first compelling piece of content is hitting the social feeds it’s time to start planning the new one — and not obsessing over views and likes. diff --git a/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing--4-Reasons-It-Rocks-For-Small-Businesses.md b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing--4-Reasons-It-Rocks-For-Small-Businesses.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d43595e24ae0c1f567fe23441de85f5f851b12c8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing--4-Reasons-It-Rocks-For-Small-Businesses.md @@ -0,0 +1,90 @@ +# Inbound Marketing —4 Reasons It Rocks For Small Businesses + +#### Inbound marketing can help any team. But the benefits for small businesses are particularly noteworthy. + +Inbound marketing: a boon for small businesses. Photo by [Serpstat](https://www.pexels.com/@serpstat-177219?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/silver-imac-displaying-line-graph-placed-on-desk-572056/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Inbound marketing is the attraction-based method of getting your product or service in front of customers that has taken over the marketing world. + +Compared to traditional outbound-based marketing, inbound leverages the fact that your prospects — if they have pain points — are probably going to, at some point, start searching for solutions for them. + +Inbound marketers primarily leverage “content” — that is information created and packaged in formats like blogs, podcasts, and video clips (among many other variants) — in order to reach prospective customers. + +While inbound encompasses other specific tactics like reputation management, it’s best understood (in my view) as the _philosophy_ that underlies content marketing. + +In other words, inbound is about _attracting_ the attention of prospects rather than earning it through disruption. And content marketing is just about the most cost-effective means of doing that. + +Many marketing authors have cited specific aspects of inbound that they feel are advantageous. Here are the best advantages I’ve discovered so far — from years spent running inbound on the far end of the micro (single business owner) scale. + +### Inbound Works While You Sleep + +The aspect of inbound marketing that gets me most excited — perhaps ironically? — is that it ticks over while you sleep. + +A friend of mine ([Shlomo Wiesen](https://il.linkedin.com/in/shlomo-wiesen), who, at the time I’m writing this, leads SEO at Lightricks) recently pointed out to me that content formats like blogs and video are the ultimate “evergreen” assets. + +By way of contrast: social posts — while powerful — also have a short engagement curve. Quickly pushed down recipients’ feed by algorithms, content creators have a short window of opportunity to attract the attention of prospects this way. + +Assets like blogs, on the other hand, are sort of the gift that keep giving. While the initial interest might be less dramatic than blasting a status update out to a network of thousands, over time, the effect accrues. + +Of course, in practice, it’s not exactly that simple. The internet becomes more crowded over time. Creators can’t afford to rest on their laurels or assume that the stock of content they’ve created is enough. + +But whenever you create content, there’s a chance that it will be discovered organically. Make sure there’s a way to capture the interest of engaged readers (a contact form, a link to a contact form) and you should begin generating inbound leads. It’s almost like marketing automation. Without the bells and whistles. + +### Inbound Is Sustainable; For Small Businesses, Outbound Sometimes Isn’t + +Two or so years ago, I made my first and to date only major outbound marketing push. + +And let me tell you, if nothing else, it was exhausting. + +By day, I identified prospective target customers based on my ideal buyer persona. Also by day, I spent hours poring over Hunter.io results to attempt to decipher the companies’ internal email structure and reach decision-makers rather than gatekeepers. I used a CRM to keep track of the flurry of engagement. + +Finally the emails and LinkedIn messages went out. Then the responses and Calendly bookings came in. The next step was that there was a slew of calls — including some who I was certain were just looking for another human to talk to (I learned the value of lead qualification the hard way!). And finally sending out proposals and quotes. + +For a single person business, it was an all-consuming sort of process that left uncomfortably little time for doing anything else. (Note: part of this probably had to do with the fact that I find a calendar full of Zoom calls mentally taxing. Your mileage may vary). + +By comparison, inbound marketing is something that you can dip into and then step back from as your manpower shifts — or how important lead generation is to your business. + +Creating content is tiring too. But unlike many forms of outbound engagement, the returns don’t dry up the moment you take your foot off the gas pedal. Those non-diminishing returns are a key differentiator from the heavy lifting dominated activity that is outbound marketing. Nobody can keep trucking 24/7 indefinitely. + +For solo marketing teams, the sustainability of this approach can make the world of difference. + +### Creating Content Is Rewarding And Fun + +Wait… writing blog posts can be fun, you’re saying? + +I would argue yes! But here’s the caveat: only if you’re doing it right. + +The internet is crowded. You didn’t need me to tell you that. And getting through to prospects is arguably more challenging than it has been at any previous point in time. There’s simply a lot more noise to cut through. + +That’s why — for businesses — it’s not _just_ about creating content. Not that that would be easy (yes, writing is hard work!), but it would be easier than thinking about what you’re trying to achieve, who you’re trying to reach, and what the best way of speaking to your prospects might be. + +As an intellectual exercise — and without wishing to sound snobby — I’d argue that inbound marketing is a more rewarding activity than outbound marketing (Medium has a comments section — feel free to disagree!) + +It’s true that there’s an art in mapping out organizational structures and determining who the right person to contact is and how they’ll be most receptive to contact. But there’s also a lot to be enjoyed from: + + * Figuring out what you — as a person or organization — really stand for. + * Understanding what makes you different from your competitors. + * Trying to get inside the mind of your potential buyers to understand what kind of information they’re looking for. + +### Inbound Can Help You Land Big Fish + +One of the most powerful aspects of inbound marketing — if you asked me, at least — is the fact that it allows those creating it to really push the boundaries in terms of the caliber of lead that they can land in their pipelines. + +[**Inbound Marketing —And How It Goes Where Outbound Can’t** + _There’s one less frequently discussed benefit of inbound: it can dredge up leads in places that, for many…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7) + +For those with small salesforces, reaching the upper decision-making echelons of large organizations can be difficult if not impossible with layers of bureaucracy and gatekeepers to get out of the way before landing on that one high value prospect with authority to buy. One extremely powerful facet of inbound marketing is that its visibility is global. + +For small businesses that are looking to push out the boat in terms of what size of clients they can land .. inbound is a powerful tactic to consider. Because in the great meritocracy of content marketing, the value you bring matters just as much as how much resources you have to spend. + +Inbound marketing has revolutionized the modus operandi of countless marketing departments at organizations both tiny and … gargantuan. + +But for those at the smallest end of the org size spectrum, its results can be particularly impressive. + +Inbound marketing can: + + * Allow your marketing team to focus on something other than lead generation for a change + * Adopt a sustainable system for delivering value from the marketing team + * Do more with less resources + * Generate leads from organization levels that were virtually unreachable through outbound means + diff --git a/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing--And-How-It-Goes-Where-Outbound-Can-t.md b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing--And-How-It-Goes-Where-Outbound-Can-t.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d473e56f5aeed5e3a8548a2de832a6503f0d2b23 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing--And-How-It-Goes-Where-Outbound-Can-t.md @@ -0,0 +1,66 @@ +# Inbound Marketing —And How It Goes Where Outbound Can’t + +#### There’s one less frequently discussed benefit of inbound: it can dredge up leads in places that, for many organizations, outbound simply couldn’t reach + +Your ideal clients may be ensconced in a big city far beyond the reach of your network. Your best contacts might be effectively unreachable by cold email. But inbound can bring you places outbound can’t. Photo by [Expect Best](https://www.pexels.com/@expect-best-79873?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/low-angle-view-of-office-building-against-sky-323705/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’ve talked (many times over!) about the exciting potential of inbound marketing. It’s an attraction-based methodology that can revolutionize businesses who are entirely dependent upon outbound marketing in order to generate leads. + +And although it’s no longer the spring chicken of the marketing world, trying to win business by disrupting customers is both starting to feel very passé and also becoming increasingly hard to pull off (think: ad blockers and the mouse of privacy protection software getting ahead of the cat of data-hungry marketers). + +There are many advantages to inbound that have been widely discussed before (including by me!)— so I won’t repeat them here. My favorite of them: inbound marketing works its magic while you sleep. + +As you lie in bed catching some shuteye, prospects’ eyes may be skimming over your blog posts, listening to your podcasts, or watching your YouTube videos. The next morning you might open your inbox to find a form completion from a very enthusiastic and somewhat pre-qualified lead. Cool, right? + +Especially when you’re a marketing team of one — think entrepreneurs, freelancers, and consultants — this is already a game changer. You can run your business while — to an extent at least — some lead generation goes on passively in the background. Think: get some time at the beach safe in the knowledge that there’s _some_ magic happening behind the scenes. + +[**Why Inbound Marketing Is Amazing For Freelancers (And Freelance Writers)** +_Some advantages inbound marketing has to offer for micro business units_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-inbound-marketing-is-amazing-for-freelancers-and-freelance-writers-39d195f693 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-inbound-marketing-is-amazing-for-freelancers-and-freelance-writers-39d195f693")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-inbound-marketing-is-amazing-for-freelancers-and-freelance-writers-39d195f693) + +But there’s another benefit that I discovered recently and which I’d like to share here. + +### Inbound Can Dredge Up Leads From Almost Unreachable Places + +At my minute level of scale — I’m a solo marketing consultant so literally as small as it gets— there are two ways I might tap in order to generate leads through outbound marketing. + +The classic way involves a lot of cups of coffee (slash caffeine pills), data entry, and time spent trying to figure out which leads fit broadly into my picture of an ideal target customer. + +I might leverage a mixture of LinkedIn Sales Navigator, Hunter.io, and a handful of other tools in order to introduce my service offering to those who might be in a position to buy it. + +This works but — from what I’ve observed — even its successes aren’t always that pretty. It’s also boring un-creative grunt work. I haven’t done cold outreach at volume in a couple of years. I don’t miss it. + +[**Does Cold Emailing Work To Find Freelance Clients?** +_It can. It does. But even the successes aren’t always pretty._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed) + +Method two would be working human connections. I’m not talking about leveraging referrals here but rather doing the opposite: asking a friend who works at X Inc to introduce you to _their_ friend who you’d love to do some work for. + +The problem with the second methodology is that it’s really limited to the reach of your secondary network. And particularly when you’re just starting out, you mightn’t have the Rolodex to get you the type of clients you’re looking to land. + +### Anybody Can Read Content. Hence, Anybody Can Discover You + +Last year, I picked up an inbound lead through my writing website. + +The lead turned out to be one of the most seamless inbound leads that I dealt with last year. After a two email rate negotiation, they signed on the dotted line and were good to go. + +But that wasn’t what got me excited about this lead or why I’m relaying the story here. + +What got me excited was the fact that this was a lead that I would have had extreme difficulty reaching through any outbound channel. In fact, I think it probably would have been impossible. + +For one, the client was a multinational PR agency with more than 10 international offices. Trying to get past the series of gatekeepers by hitting any generic email form here would have been likely impossible. + +Send an email or LinkedIn introduction to the VP of Content Marketing? Thin likelihood to get a response. Try one step below? Fine. But which Communications Manager to reach out to? Reach out to one of the firm’s offices? The email would probably be deleted in a second, unopened, by the first-line gatekeeper. And which office to email anyway? London? Hong Kong? New York? You see the problem. + +Instead what happened was this: + + * I added a page to my website outlining my service offering in a technical niche that isn’t overly crowded with competitors. + * I made sure to optimize it for keywords that would reflect the intent of those searching for such a contract writer. + * The client landed a technology firm as a client and needed a writer who could write comfortably about the topic that I have experience about writing in. + * My site came up. One contact form and two emails later I had an account. + +One of the wonderful things about inbound marketing is that it can — theoretically — get your message seen to a worldwide audience. + +Of course, there’s also the chance that nobody wills see your content. But done right, you never know what kind of eyeballs might come across your byline. + +For those on the smallest end of the headcount spectrum like me, inbound marketing can also be a way of breaking into a class of business — say, global PR companies — that we would have thin to no chance of landing as clients through outbound means. + +This is an extremely powerful benefit of inbound marketing for any small business. diff --git a/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing--Why-Human-Minds-Are-Often-The-Biggest-Enemy-To-Its-Success.md b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing--Why-Human-Minds-Are-Often-The-Biggest-Enemy-To-Its-Success.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2d43a5d6df59c4a9e8db8bb829372c3955bd59e1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing--Why-Human-Minds-Are-Often-The-Biggest-Enemy-To-Its-Success.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# Inbound Marketing: Why Human Minds Are Often The Biggest Enemy To Its Success + +#### The biggest impediment to getting the ROI you’re after from inbound … might actually be you and your brain + +Inbound marketing: what if our own psyches, rather than the content itself, was often to blame when things don’t happen as quickly as we’d like. Photo by [Anna Tarazevich](https://www.pexels.com/@anntarazevich?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/laptop-and-calendar-on-wooden-table-4985336/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +As a marketing consultant who specializes in helping companies to plan and execute thought leadership campaigns, I deal with a lot of companies who are dipping their toes into the whole world of inbound for the first time — sometimes, indeed, into marketing itself. + +I’ve written previously about the differences between thought leadership and content marketing. Not because I’m trying to pick up an (online) megaphone and shout _“see, they’re not quite the same thing — didn’t I tell you so!”_ But rather because I think that understanding the nuances between them is essential to doing both well. + +Example: + +[**The 4 Key Differences Between Thought Leadership and Content Marketing** + _7 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Thought leadership garners a lot of attention…_ www.entrepreneur.com](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323 "https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323")[](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323) + +So while I think that understanding those subtleties is indeed vital, I still see everything through the prism of inbound. + +In content marketing we might be working on providing value to create the kind of material that is going to pull prospects into our sales funnels. In thought leadership, we’re trying to create and cement a reputation as experts. But if either is done well, we’re hoping to attract people into _our_ funnels rather than disrupting their day. That’s the fundamental objective at work. + +Whichever tactic you’re currently rolling with, I think there’s one key attribute that is under-appreciated among inbound marketers including content marketers. That’s the mindset aspect — it’s a long game, which I’ve written about previously (below)— but also the enormous danger that lurks in falling into the pitfalls of despair and giving up too early. + +And of leveraging data that you _think_ is reliably (and smart!) but which actually paints a fall picture of the true engagement that you’re receiving from your audience. + +[**The Ultimate Long Game, Content Marketing Demands Its Own Mindset Too** + _When transitioning from outbound to inbound-led marketing, attitudes need to change as well_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687) + +### Problem 1: Much Engagement Can’t Be Measured + +If you’re reading this and working in PR, there’s a good chance that you’re already extremely well-acquainted with the measurement problem that has plagued the industry for decades. + +PR is notoriously hard to measure — although that hasn’t stopped many agencies from coming up with all sorts of magic tricks and dubious formulae that attempt to prove positive ROI to clients (when it doesn’t always exist). + +**But the problem with attempting to measure engagement is that it can necessarily only paint a _part_ of the picture.** + +A post gets 100 likes and creates excitement. Another one gets only 5 likes but reaches a more important audience who don’t have the time or desire to click the like button. Impression counts are often not exposed to users because if you’re creating content on a platform you don’t own (say LinkedIn) ultimately it’s the provider and not you who gets to decide. You get the idea. + +A vital part of the inbound marketing picture is what’s often been described as the silent audience effect. Which is what I’m trying to describe above. + +Some of your most ardent fans who are _loving_ the content you’re creating might be totally invisible but a couple of touchpoints away from reaching out to you at any given moment. + +Whether they ultimately do so — and perhaps convert to become paying customers — may also depend upon what side of bed they got out of in the morning or any other such arbitrary factor. The problem is that you may have no way of knowing that they exist — much less what those arbitrary factors might be. + +### Problem 2: Humans Are Impatient By Nature + +In light of all the above, the biggest impediment to the execution of a successful content marketing might not be the content that you’re creating — which is where most people start looking to to troubleshoot when something’s not working (which seems logical). In fact, it may not be execution at all. + +It may be staring you right in the face. In the mirror. + +It’s you. Your mindset. Your brain. + +### Problem 3: Marketers Tend To Think That Using Any Data Is Smart — And We Tend To Gloss Over Its Reliability Because We All Want To Be Data-Led + +And now, the final part of the picture. + +It’s your tendency to base A/B testing around simple engagement metrics that don’t reflect the true picture of what your content is achieving for you or for your brand. + +**Because you’ve heard that data is everything and think that you’re being smart by basing decisions around it.** And you — or your clients — may never have stopped for a moment to question whether that data is actually providing a meaningful insight into how your content is being received. Whether it’s signal. Or whether it’s noise. + +_Therefore:_ + +The biggest impediment to a successful inbound marketing campaign often isn’t the content itself being leveraged. + +**It’s the mentality of the people leading that effort.** + +Their tendency to give up on things too early. Their tendency to be impatient. Their tendency to be human. Their tendency to look for data that doesn’t tell the full story but which supports their effort to pull the budgetary plug, prematurely, on the content marketing spend. + +Seen like this becoming a successful content marketer is about a lot more than just becoming a good writer, videographer, or podcaster. + +**It’s about doing so while cultivating the kind of patience and mindset that is needed to stick with it over the long run. Even when, at first, few people are watching — or telling you that they are.** + +It’s about realizing that when people tell you that they’ve been following you online for months — but you’ve never heard their name — that there’s an important learning there. And it might signal that you should stick with this content thing just a little longer. + +Content marketing requires so much more than just creating “content”. It requires a mindset shift. + +The vulnerabilities of the human psyche — including our tendency to give up on things that don’t produce immediate results — is often the make or break factor standing between us and success. diff --git a/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing-Is-Investing---For-Brand-Builders.md b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing-Is-Investing---For-Brand-Builders.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b6136c4206717f484e68912ac657218b2df478df --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Inbound-Marketing-Is-Investing---For-Brand-Builders.md @@ -0,0 +1,52 @@ +# Inbound Marketing Is Investing — For Brand-Builders + +#### When you think about, developing inbound collateral and investing in financial vehicles have a lot in common + +Investing and content marketing: they have a lot in common. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/calculator-and-pen-on-table-209224/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’ve discussed before how I believe that inbound marketing requires its own mindset shift in order for those creating it to reach that vaunted territory known as “success” — the stage at which MQLs start trickling in the door and the sales people stop giving out about marketing taking up so much budget. + +I’ve also talked about how I think that in many cases the greatest impediment to the success of a content marketing effort isn’t the execution — the content itself — but rather humans’ tendency to be impatient animals. + +We want results — now. And so too often we give up on content marketing before it’s had a chance to really succeed. + +[**Inbound Marketing: Why Human Minds Are Often The Biggest Enemy To Its Success** + _The biggest impediment to getting the ROI you’re after from inbound … might actually be you and your brain_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketing-why-human-minds-are-often-the-biggest-enemy-to-its-success-55a479c908bf "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketing-why-human-minds-are-often-the-biggest-enemy-to-its-success-55a479c908bf")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketing-why-human-minds-are-often-the-biggest-enemy-to-its-success-55a479c908bf) + +Now I’d like to offer another perspective for those mentally committed to content marketing … but who are also impatient to see it actually start yielding tangible results. + +And that’s this. + +### Inbound Marketing Is Like Investing In A Financial Fund + +Yes, you read that right. + +Being a content creator is a little like having a mutual fund into which you make monthly deposits. + +I’m no financial expert, but I hope the metaphor is about right. + +Let’s drill down into the similarities: + +a) **When you’re depositing into a long term financial vehicle, you do so without the expectation of immediate return.** And this is precisely the attitude which those creating blogs, podcasts, and videos need to not only take but also embrace. + +b) **Investing is typically done regularly.** Typically, those who deposit into savings vehicles, or pensions, contribute money regularly. The vehicle compounds. So it makes more sense to contribute at reasonably regular intervals rather than to move in money in lump sums. It’s the same thing with content. Not only do audiences appreciate consistency. But dripping our content slowly allows audiences to build up. So that the next post gets seen by more eyes. + +### Create Content For Lead Generation In A Year’s Time + +While I’ve been creating a _lot_ of content recently in the form of Medium posts, YouTube videos, and podcasts, three years ago, if you Googled me, there was virtually nothing to find online. + +I ghostwrite for clients. I changed surname from the one I used to write articles under. I was an online non-entity. + +For the past couple of years, I’ve been working on changing that. And as I’ve done so I’ve begun receiving “leads.” Both for my business — I now get a few people asking me about my services per month — but also on a personal level. Most of my writing is a hobby — I post thoughts like these for fun — so the personal connections I make are often more valuable to me than the possible clients I land. + +Readers reach out to me because they read something I wrote. It creates connections. Which was precisely what I was setting out to do. + +And here’s another thing. + +When it comes to creating content and depositing to my own fund of inbound marketing collateral, I feel like I’m just getting started. I’ve only scratched the surface. + +And I also know that building up a personal brand — or a business brand — is a long term gambit. + +I don’t create posts like this expecting that somebody is going to read it tomorrow and get in touch with me. I create them because I know that three years down the line this post might spark a connection with some reader in a distant part of the world and a new connection will be born. + +Content is a long term game. It’s an investment approach in brand building. Your fund is the totality of your content. The ROI is your reputation and the inbound leads that that stock of content will generate. diff --git a/posts/medium/Integrating-Israeli-Rocket-Alerts--Red-Alerts--Into-Home-Assistant.md b/posts/medium/Integrating-Israeli-Rocket-Alerts--Red-Alerts--Into-Home-Assistant.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4660d101b00a88d9c94cbb09c5e57f799b47fcf4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Integrating-Israeli-Rocket-Alerts--Red-Alerts--Into-Home-Assistant.md @@ -0,0 +1,202 @@ +# Integrating Israeli Rocket Alerts (Red Alerts) Into Home Assistant + + _NB: I can’t commit to updating this post regularly or forever. The features mentioned are as described only at the date of publication._ [home automation](https://www.danielontech.com/tag/home-automation/) - + +So as we all know, Israel is currently going through extremely testing times from a security perspective. + +Israel’s longstanding policy is not to comment on foreign media reports. But it is almost universally believed to be behind a strike on an Iranian consulate in Damascus that resulted in the killing of several Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commanders. + +Everyone in Israel is bracing for what an Iranian response might look like — and the very real possibility that Israel’s shadow war with Iran will move into the open. + +This seemed like a good moment to finally get around to integrating the Red Alert system into my Home Assistant install. + +Firstly, if you’re thinking about following these steps, know that you’re doing so at your own risk! + +Israel’s Home Front Command ( [Pikud HaOref](https://www.oref.org.il/en?ref=danielontech.com)) operates an official National Emergency Portal (and smartphone apps) where you can receive the alerts. + +Additionally, there are a plethora of options provided by amateur third party integrators. You can find solutions for pushing Red Alert notifications to everything from Telegram through to WhatsApp. + +As I mentioned in a previous blog, I’m a huge believer in the value of backups. I try to extend this concept to all forms of technology. When it comes to receiving vital notifications about incoming rockets, never allow yourself to have a single point of failure. + +At a minimum, I’d recommend operating this system _in addition to_ receiving alerts through the official (Pikud HaOref) smartphone app. Here’s the [Google Play link](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.alert.meserhadash&hl=en&gl=US&ref=danielontech.com) for that. + +### Home Assistant Red Alert Apps + +Perusing the Googlesphere, I found two apparently independent projects both creating Home Assistant integrations for the red alert system _(hey, they don’t say “two Jews, three opinions” for no reason)_. + +There’s RedAlert: + +[**GitHub - idodov/RedAlert: Israeli Red Alert Service for Home Assistant** + _Israeli Red Alert Service for Home Assistant. Contribute to idodov/RedAlert development by creating an account on…_ github.com](https://github.com/idodov/RedAlert?ref=danielontech.com "https://github.com/idodov/RedAlert?ref=danielontech.com")[](https://github.com/idodov/RedAlert?ref=danielontech.com) + +And there’s oref_alert: + +[**GitHub - amitfin/oref_alert: Israeli Oref Alerts** + _Israeli Oref Alerts. Contribute to amitfin/oref_alert development by creating an account on GitHub._ github.com](https://github.com/amitfin/oref_alert?ref=danielontech.com "https://github.com/amitfin/oref_alert?ref=danielontech.com")[](https://github.com/amitfin/oref_alert?ref=danielontech.com) + +I tried both but ended up using the latter (I really liked the fact that it created a service call specifically for testing the system so that you can validate that your setup is working before you require it!) + +My current Home Assistant OS host (an Aliexpress mini PC). I run all my networking gear (and the mini PC) off a UPS to ensure connectivity in the event of a power outage. + +### Prerequisites (Hardware, Software): + + * To install third-party integrations we’re going to need to be running Home Assistant OS / a “supervised” install. + * The hardware to run this. + * A UPS to ensure that the network stays up and the alerts are sent in the event of a power outage (not essential but highly recommended.) + * HACS installed (also not required but it makes installing integrations a lot quicker). + +### Oref Alert Configuration Steps + +I’ll provide the instructions for HACS users. Also note: these are “valid” only at the time I’m writing this blog. They may change in the future. + +Download the integration. Local link: + + + +Once that has been setup, you add the integration through Home Assistant (settings -> integrations): + +To configure the integration, we just need to navigate into it and click on the “configure” button: + +The pop-up here allows you to create your default alert. You need to select the area(s) to monitor in Hebrew: + +Pay attention to the middle parameters which affect how long the alert will stay active for and what the polling/update frequency should be: + +Finally you may wish to configure different icons for when the entity is in alert mode and in “regular” mode to provide visual indicators of a threat: + +If you search for the keyword ‘alert’ under your entities (devices -> entities) you can see what the integration has created: + +The default (first) alert that you create is: + + + binary_sensor.oref_alert + +In my case, I “dedicated” this alert to Jerusalem (Merkaz) (ירושלים — מרכז) which is my alert area. + +In Jerusalem (and other cities in Israel) there are alerting zones that are general (for the whole city) and more localised. + +I decided to create another sensor for Jerusalem-the-whole-city. This one will create alerts that are less … dramatic … than the sensor for the sub-district. + +### Creating My Second Alarming Sensor + +To create second (and sequential) sensors you need to call an “add_sensor” service using Developer Tools. + +Here’s the sample data provided by the integration: + + + service: oref_alert.add_sensor target: {} data: name: Petah Tikva areas: פתח תקווה + +All you need to do is call the service and you’ll set up your additional sensors: + +Remember, again, that the alerting zones are in Hebrew. You can refer to the options in the configuration UI if you can’t remember a spelling or how a certain alerting area is denoted. + +If you later decide that you don’t want those sensors, you can remove them by calling a service too. + +The service for this is: + + + oref_alert.remove_sensor + +### Recommendation: Write Down Your Sensor Entities! + +Finally we’re going to want to do something with the sensors that we’ve created. + +My sensors are: + + + binary_sensor.oref_alert + +Which is the default/first sensor. + +And: + + + binary_sensor.oref_alert_all_areas + + + + +Which is the one that I created for Jerusalem (All Areas). + +This is important stuff! + +Besides being a big fan of backups, I’m also a huge advocate for documentation. Consider documenting the entity names of the sensors you’ve created and what they do somewhere convenient, like a Google Sheet: + +### Configuring Automations (Etc) + +Now that we have our sensors, we can integrate them into our Home Assistant instance however we please. + +I’ve put mine up on my home dashboard: + +YAML (you’ll need to change the sensor values for your ones, of course): + + + type: entities entities: - entity: binary_sensor.oref_alert secondary_info: none name: Jerusalem (merkaz) - entity: binary_sensor.oref_alert_jerusalem_all_areas name: Jerusalem (all areas) title: Red Alerts + +If you’re making a simple entity card like I did, you may wish to color the icons based on their state: + +Next, I set up an automation for my alerting area (Jerusalem Center). + +I need to work on this a bit, but right now it sends notifications and turns on all the lights (the idea is to a — wake anybody up and b — assist with evacuation to a safe space). + +If you have RGB lights, you could set them to red to provide a visual indication about an emergency condition: + +### Play A Siren Through Your Devices + +You may also wish to consider triggering a siren sound effect. + +`/home/assistant/www/soundeffects/foo` + +I download an mp3 and uploaded it to my instance using File Editor and then uploaded it using File Editor: + +`/local/soundeffects/foo` + +If you drop files under the /www directory they can be retrieved using /local. + +Ie: + +Can be recalled using: + +You can use ‘Media Player’ as an action to play this on your target devices. + +### Don’t Skip: Testing & Validation! + +Because receiving these alerts could be really critical, it’s useful to be able to test that they’re working (the same goes for your automations — you should test them also). + +Very helpfully, oref_alert features a service intended exactly for this purpose. + +It’s called a synthetic alert. + +It can be accessed by navigating into Developer Tools -> Services -> begin typing in the ‘Service’ box for “Create Synthetic Alert”. + +You can create the synthetic alerts with YAML or the UI and configure their duration. + +I decided that it would be extremely useful to have quick access to this testing functionality by creating a button (to save me having to dig through the backend each time). + +So I took the YAML created for my area (I chose an alert duration of 30 seconds): + + + service: oref_alert.synthetic_alert target: {} data: area: ירושלים - מרכז duration: 30 + + + +And with that I created a button to run the test: + +And an automation that when the button is pressed, we’ll run the test: + +Now I added my button card: + +Now I have a little button that I can push to validate that all the components of my alerting system are working as intended: + +Just remember: if you’re testing a bunch of notifications that might set off alerts for other users and sirens, give your family/neighbors an FYI! + +### Other Things You Can Do + +This isn’t all that you can do in Home Assistant with the Red Alert integration. + +Home Front Command currently recommends remaining in shelter for 10 minutes after an alert sounds because shrapnel could fall during this period. You can also create time-based alerts that trigger upon an activation in your area and send “all clear” push notifications (if another alert hasn’t been activated in the intervening period). + +You can use your imagination and tailor to your specific rqeuirements. + +Hope this helped! + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Intelligence-Gathering-Is-A-Core-Marketing-Skill---And-Other-Lessons-About-Marketing-Consulting-.md b/posts/medium/Intelligence-Gathering-Is-A-Core-Marketing-Skill---And-Other-Lessons-About-Marketing-Consulting-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..05c521bc1f0fbc37823ef27638b2979c42419146 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Intelligence-Gathering-Is-A-Core-Marketing-Skill---And-Other-Lessons-About-Marketing-Consulting-.md @@ -0,0 +1,81 @@ +# Intelligence Gathering Is A Core Marketing Skill — And Other Lessons About Marketing Consulting… + +#### Some pointers about the art and science of delivering value to clients as a marketing consultant + +Marketing consultants and spooks: there’s room for some overlap. Photo by [cottonbro](https://www.pexels.com/@cottonbro?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-man-having-a-drink-7299450/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Recently, I popped down the road (in Jerusalem) to hang out with a friend who also works in marketing ([Guy Gordon](https://medium.com/u/abdbf6f1683c)). + +The stated reason for my visit was checking out the coworking space that Guy is working out of. But — besides robbing some of his salt and vinegar crisps (we’re both Irish-born expats living in Israel) — I wanted to pick Guy’s brain on some professional subjects. + +At some point over the past year, I began the process of revising the service offering that I bring to clients. And I knew that Guy would have valuable input to share. + +After leaving a job managing marketing communications at a technology company, I decided to go out on my own offering writing services to clients. My business will soon celebrate its third anniversary. Which — in addition to a few more years of side-hustling — is how long I’ve been working for myself. + +While I started out with the crop of clients that enabled me to transition out of a full-time job, since starting out, I’ve slowly begun refining my service offering to focus on the specific areas within marketing where I know that I can make the biggest impact for clients. Specifically, that tends to be creating and executing thought leadership marketing campaigns. And more specifically, doing so for technology clients. + +During the course of creating and refining a service offering that could keep me fully occupied, I’ve also tried to toe the line between being sufficiently specialized — isn’t niching down still the default advice for marketers? — while keeping things varied enough to make the work engaging for me. + +After about two years, I began to sense that I’d gone too far with the whole specialization thing — by whittling everything I could do down to only writing I’d pigeon-holed myself from getting involved in the other activities that make a marketing campaign tick. + +Slowly at first, and then with more fervor, I began integrating the type of strategy advice that I’d developed in house into the work that I do for my clients. And — as a seasoned branding strategist — I knew that Guy would have some good advice on what processes worked for him. + +Some of the insights and thoughts that Guy shared with me are below. + +### Don’t Assume That Just Because A Client Has Already Bought Advice That It’s Necessarily The Right Advice + +[**It’s Your Duty To Tell Your Clients When They’re Doing It All Wrong** + _Navigating the uncomfortable problem of raising obvious problems when selling advice to companies_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-your-duty-to-tell-your-clients-when-they-re-doing-it-all-wrong-37fedf4307df "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-your-duty-to-tell-your-clients-when-they-re-doing-it-all-wrong-37fedf4307df")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-your-duty-to-tell-your-clients-when-they-re-doing-it-all-wrong-37fedf4307df) + +During the course of the past few months, when becoming acquainted with new clients, I’ve had several moments that I’ve begun to think of as the ‘elephant in the room’ moments. + +Some would call them ‘eureka’ moments. From a marketing standpoint, they’re those little instants when I realize that the client is doing something horribly wrong or otherwise shooting themselves in the foot. Typically in some way that is frustratingly unapparent to them. + +These are the small epiphanies that come to mind when you realize — for instance — that the client has never actually cogently communicated what’s unique about their business. And that the website they’re obviously very proud of is actually doing their business more harm than good by misrepresenting their brand. There are times when you feel like no website would be better than what’s online. + +Or when you spend a few minutes Googling the publication a client has secured a contributed content slot it only to discover that what the client _thinks_ is wrong with the document really isn’t the problem — or at least it isn’t the primary one. The glaring flaw, rather, is that it’s written at a level, and in a tone of voice, that’s totally inappropriate for the target audience. And until that’s fixed it’s going to be totally ineffective at achieving its goals. + +Sometimes, as a consultant, you’re not the first external stakeholder to have taken an objective and critical look at aspects of a business. Often, there’s an almost instinctive desire _not_ to point out things that were suggested by another consultant to whom you know the client has paid a significant sum of money. + +_Guy’s advice:_ stick to your guns and keep on pointing out those elephants even when it’s uncomfortable to do so. There are definitely some dubious operators out there. + +My addition: there also doesn’t have to be a strict dichotomy between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ advice. Every professional being paid to offer advice brings their experience and thinking to bear upon the client’s problem. Being afraid to share it because it contradicts with that of another professional really makes no sense. + +### You’re Looking For Nuggets Of Gold Amidst A Sea Of Sameness + +Over the course of the past 5 years, I’ve worked with more than 40 startups (at least that’s what my accounting system says). + +Some have stuck around for the long haul. Others have burned brightly only to drift away and never to be heard from again. And I have a third category of clients who pop in and pop out as their needs evolve. + +[**5 Reasons Freelance Writing Clients Disappear** + _All can be very uncertain in the life of a freelance writer. Here are some reasons why clients commonly leave._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/5-reasons-freelance-writing-clients-disappear-dc2c5c78cb96 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/5-reasons-freelance-writing-clients-disappear-dc2c5c78cb96")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/5-reasons-freelance-writing-clients-disappear-dc2c5c78cb96) + +Add that number to the prospective clients I’ve talked to that never made it all the way to actually hiring me and I’ve heard from quite a number of companies and founders about their businesses. + +Sometimes discovery conversations are conducted in a somewhat routine manner. The client might be assessing your credibility while you gauge whether you can help them out. At this first touchpoint, you might be getting a conservative overview of the business that sounds loosely like what’s on the company’s homepage. + +At other moments, however, founders or whoever else you’re speaking to let what sound like startling snippets of information into the conversation. Those snippets might sound something like: + +_“That’s what our website says, but it’s not what we really do.”_ + + _“I chatted with Tony [main customer] last week and he said that the real reason they’re using us is because the support is so good. It actually has nothing to do with price!”_ + +Just as it takes a little bit of confidence to point out what you know to be elephants in the room, it takes some experience and self-assurance to know when information that’s being passed over as trivial is in fact extremely significant to the business and your job. + +When [Guy](https://medium.com/u/abdbf6f1683c) described how he goes about putting the initial parts of a branding strategy in place for clients, and included some anecdotes for illustration, it sounded a lot like the kind of marketing I was familiar with and more like the kind of work that I imagine intelligence operatives engage in. + +Guy described casting a wide net in his search for the crucial nuggets of information he could leverage to build an effective brand strategy around — a strategy that would help convey what the businesses he served _actually_ stand for and which (because they spoke to authentic truths) could successfully differentiate them from the competition and therefore cut through the noise. + +Guy described how conversations might be held over lunch. Or dinner. How he would interview both companies’ founding teams as well as both their biggest cheerleaders _and_ those who were on good terms with the business but had decided that their solution wasn’t a good fit for their needs. + +Guy would keep chasing — and listening–until he really grasped what made the businesses he was consulting for unique. And only then would he put pen to paper and craft a strategy that could totally revise their image. + +Effective marketing involves plenty of doing — I’ve spent a lot of my career thus far in the trenches making things happen. But in order for that action to be effective, it needs to be backed by robust strategy and thinking. + +Marketing consultants need to engage the full breadth of their faculties of critical thinking in order to really bring the value to clients that they’re capable of injecting. + +This often means pointing out unacknowledged elephants lurking in conspicuous places — like PR boilerplates that miss the main message or websites filled with case studies in which clients chose to play it safe and successfully hid the true value they saw from their interviewer. + +It means not withholding an opinion simply because it may be perceived as a criticism upon the work of another marketer — whether a full time staff member of the company or another consultant. + +And it means being curious, a dogged questioner, and keeping your ears open for when those nuggets of gold that could change the whole picture crop up during your meetings. diff --git a/posts/medium/Interesting--I-was-only--hitherto--familiar-with-shadowbanning-from-its-Reddit-context-.md b/posts/medium/Interesting--I-was-only--hitherto--familiar-with-shadowbanning-from-its-Reddit-context-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..81240d5efff896d0ac40d10f9cc5c3bee1444776 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Interesting--I-was-only--hitherto--familiar-with-shadowbanning-from-its-Reddit-context-.md @@ -0,0 +1,19 @@ +# Interesting. I was only (hitherto) familiar with shadowbanning from its Reddit context. + +Interesting. I was only (hitherto) familiar with shadowbanning from its Reddit context. + +I'm actually a huge advocate of the context in which you use it. + +I'll give you an example - and throw light upon the unforeseen consequences. + +A certain Facebook user who must remain nameless is fond of relentlessly promoting a group he runs that consists of affiliate links on Amazon. + +The user frequents a few groups that I do and for reasons that remain unclear to me group admins seem to be content with allowing him to blitz comment spam, promoting the group, in response to every query that has anything to do with online shopping. One day I decided that I was sick of seeing him endlessly promoting the groups every day and thus blocked him on Facebook. + +For once, aforementioned Facebook user found out about this. He became hostile. I tried to politely explain that I had absolutely nothing against the guy but was tired of seeing his advertising - particularly as I find promoting undisclosed affiliate marketing groups deceptive. + +My digital life has improved for not seeing the daily onslaught of affiliate spam. Other Facebook users would call what I did heavy-handed and unnecessary. + +But I have employed what I call "proactive bans" (also "defensive bans") in similar circumstances before and never regretted it. (Other targets have been over-zealous real estate agents who also engage in extremely spammy promotion). + +Sharing the above both to say "yes, good idea" and also "just be aware if doing this that some people will take offence." diff --git a/posts/medium/Internal-Referrals---An-Under-Tapped-Way-To-Grow-Your-Freelance-Business.md b/posts/medium/Internal-Referrals---An-Under-Tapped-Way-To-Grow-Your-Freelance-Business.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..937b855e2c62de8652c772e3a3b0de882caf3eef --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Internal-Referrals---An-Under-Tapped-Way-To-Grow-Your-Freelance-Business.md @@ -0,0 +1,110 @@ +# Internal Referrals — An Under-Tapped Way To Grow Your Freelance Business + +What’s the best way to build your freelance or consulting business? + +Let me offer some common guesses: + +Inbound marketing? + +Outbound sales prospecting? + +Asking your existing clients for referrals? + +These strategies can all work. + +And it’s smart to hedge your bets by doing all of these things all of the time — **even when you’re running at full capacity or near it.** + +But there’s another low effort tactic that you should add to your business development to-do list: the internal referral play. + +Let me explain how it works. + +### What’s An Internal Referral? + +**An internal referral is simply what I call asking your client point of contact if a colleague(s) might need your services.** + +That colleague can be: + + * **On the same level** of the organizational chart + * **At a higher or lower level** on the organizational chart + * **Working for the company’s sister company, subsidiary, or subdivision**(don’t forget this one) + +But the definition, at least as I conceive of it, needn’t be strict. + +The key thing is rather that you’re being introduced by somebody within the system to another point of contact within (roughly) the bounds of the organization. + +### Internal vs. External Referrals + +Most freelancers and consultants who think about asking for referrals tend to automatically do so in external terms: hoping to tap into their point of contact’s primary or secondary network in order to open up new business opportunities. + +[_Download infographic as PDF_](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/02/Client-referrals-internal-vs-external.pdf) + +But consider some of the advantages of internal referrals that I outlined in the infographic above: + + * **Assessment:** While getting referred to a potential client dramatically increases your chances of landing that work, **nothing is set in stone until the contract is signed.** Clients may sometimes try to refer work to you as a sort of goodwill gesture or out of appreciation for exceptional work. But those on the receiving end may be interested in something very different than what you have to offer. + * **Onboarding:** If you’ve ever onboarded several new clients in the same month, then you know how difficult multiple concurrent first-time net 30 invoices can be on your cash flow. Assuming you bill monthly, from initiating work until you get paid could be as long as 60 days. If you can begin work for a new department within an organization that you’re _already working with_ , then you should be able to avoid this common pitfall. (Probable exceptions: international offices and subsidiaries, sister companies and subdivisions). + * **Qualification:** If you’ve been working with a client for the long term, it’s relatively safe to assume that they’re at least close to meeting your current lead qualification criteria. Or at least that they were when you began working with them. External referrals can, frankly, be all over the place in this regard. There can be significant space between the type of business your current client thinks you might be interested and those that you actually are. Your business needs might have evolved since you began working with your client. Your client probably has no way of knowing that. + +### Caveats and Execution + +**1: Gather Intelligence About Your Client** + +Of course, landing internal referrals — or any kind of referral — is easier said than done. + +Last week, [I wrote about basic due diligence for freelancers](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0). And some of that knowledge is applicable here too. + +For obvious reasons, this tactic isn’t likely to be very successful if your clients are mostly 10 person startups. + +The person who is commissioning your current work is simply overwhelmingly likely the only person with the authority to do so in the organization — and might even find the proposition a little absurd. + +But on the flipside, there’s no magical headcount at which these opportunities will open up either. + +Not a 50 person organization. And not a 200 one. + +To spot internal referral pitching opportunities, you’ll want to gather as much intelligence as possible about the company you are working with. If you’re serious about this, the more information you can have — the better. + +**That means:** + + * **Using LinkedIn to work out lines of reporting and identify comparable departments to the one you’re working with in different units or verticals of the business.** If you’re working with a well known organization such as Google your prospective next internal reaches might even be well known figures. + * **Knowing which agencies your target client works with.** Because these might represent roadblocks to your attempt to deepen your engagement. + * **Keeping tabs on your client’s output.** If you’re writing white papers for them, consider setting up a Zapier hook to catch their new white papers by email. If they’re not yours, who’s writing them? Is it really the person on the byline? If so, perhaps they could use your help too. Consider asking your point of contact for an introduction. But be tactful. Your goal is to find places that your contact may not have thought your services might be needed but where they genuinely might be. Not to be a vulture eyeing up the work of other contractors as prey. + +The results of this surveillance might surprise you. + +One relatively small organization can be fragmented into several working groups which each has its own marketing/sales functions. + +Alternatively, a monolith may have aggregated marketing resources at the VP/SVP level. + +In that case, the only work left for you to capture might be that outsourced to agencies and other contractors. + +### 2: Integrate — As Much As Possible + +The second big leg-up in this process is being as embedded into the fiber of the organization as you can be. + +Naturally, as a consultant/freelancer you’re at a competitive disadvantage relative to in-house staff. + +This is another reason why, if at all feasible, you should push for face to face meetings with your point of contact. + +You may learn of internal referral opportunities that may otherwise have evaded you. You may impress other team members while you’re there. It opens options. + +### Try Asking + +If you’re stuck for words, then you could try some of the following formulations to try help you land more lateral business: + +**The general approach:** + +_“Hi X, it’s been really great working with you over the past year. I was wondering if any of your colleagues in Y might be currently looking for help with Z. If so, is there any chance you could recommend me?”_ + +**The specific approach:** + +_“Hi X, I saw on LinkedIn that Y is actually a leader in Z too. I wasn’t aware that you had a A division and it’s interesting because I actually have a lot of experience in B. I saw that C is responsible for D. Is there any chance you might be over to introduce us?”_ + +### Conclusion + +Here are the main things to know about internal referrals: + + * [**Client acquisition costs five times more than client retention**](https://www.invespcro.com/blog/customer-acquisition-retention/)**.** I don’t think of this as either upselling or cross-selling. But it is an effective means of widening your reach within the organization you’re already working with. + * **They can have several advantages over being referred to prospects outside of your client’s organization** , including an easier ‘acceptance’ process, a minimal onboarding, and a much higher likelihood of meeting your lead qualification criteria. And don’t forget — in most cases, you should already be on the payroll. + * **This is an advantage to working with larger organizations** rather than startups and small businesses. + * Information is key.**Identifying internal referral pitching opportunities involves knowing what your organization is doing that you’re not involved in.** + * **You can try to do this by gathering information from the internet or cultivating a closer relationship with your client.** I say do both. + diff --git a/posts/medium/International-Websites-That-Ship-To-Israel.md b/posts/medium/International-Websites-That-Ship-To-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..329f3fe621bdf5b70177ad84ab6d7433e1ca055f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/International-Websites-That-Ship-To-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# International Websites That Ship To Israel + +#### Websites that you can shop from while living in Israel + +You may think that living in Israel means having to give up on international shopping. If you thought that — then, well, you would be wrong. + +Israelis are among the [world’s most enthusiastic adopters of ecommerce on a per capita basis](https://www.israelhayom.com/2020/08/02/startup-nation-adds-e-commerce-to-its-list-of-business-model-successes/). In fact, Israelis like ordering online so much that the country’s postal network had to invest in a major new sorting center just to handle the deluge of packages from Asia. + +There are Israeli websites to buy from. We’ll cover those in another article. But for now here are some websites that you already be familiar with — if not, you soon may — that offer shipping to Israel. + +Don’t forget to check VAT, customs, and any other potentially applicable charges before ordering. + +### Amazon + +Yes, the international ecommerce giant ships to Israel. In fact, [for a while](https://www.timesofisrael.com/with-free-shipping-to-israel-amazon-has-expats-filling-up-their-carts-again/) Amazon was offering an incredible free shipping deal to Israel. + +Most products that ship to Israel can be purchased from Amazon’s American website (Amazon.com). However, there are other Amazon marketplaces that ship some products to Israel, although logistics can vary by season: + +**Ships:** Lots of things! + +**Price:** Varies by order. + +### Book Depository + +Amazon-owned [Book Depository](https://bookdepository.com) offers free worldwide shipping including to Israel and has thus carved out a name for itself as the go-to website for English-speakers living in Israel looking to buy books in English. + +Book Depository has a wide library of titles available for sale. Shipping times to Israel can be spotty, however, with some orders arriving promptly but others getting caught in the mail for long periods. + +**Ships:** Books + +**Price:** Free international shipping + +### iHerb + +While Israel’s healthcare is generally extremely affordable, ironically over the counter (OTC) and alternative health remedies are often the exception to the rule. + +Vitamins, minerals, and supplements can all cost significantly more in Israel than overseas. iHerb has capitalized on Israelis’ interest in wellness and natural remedies by shipping inventory to Israel. + +At the time of writing, several shipping methods are running to Israel including BoxIt and DHL. + +**Ships:** Supplements and alternative health products + +**Cost:** Free above certain order values. DHL and BoxIt prices vary. + +### Aliexpress + +If you’re into cheap merchandise from China, then Aliexpress may be your idea of an online shopping paradise. + +Aliexpress has an eclectic product selection and a lot of it ships for free to Israel. + +Depending on the logistics method used, transit times can be lengthy and untracked. + +**Ships:** Lots of things + +**Prices:** From free (untracked) to paid logistics options + +If you’re looking for merchandise that ships internationally to Israel, then Aliexpress isn’t the only game in town. + +eBay also offers free international shipping on many items that will ship to Israel. Compared to Aliexpress, eBay sellers are located more internationally, although there are also lots of sellers located in Asia on the platform. + +**Ships:** Lots of things + +**Prices:** Variable; depends upon seller + +### Marks and Spencer + +British supermarket, household, and clothing company Marks and Spencer has an online store that will ship products to Israel. + +At the time of writing, there were shipping options for standard delivery, free delivery, and free delivery to a collection point on orders above 200 NIS. Note: these options may change and this information may already be outdated by the time you read it. + +### Asos + +Another option if you’re looking to ship footwear and clothing to Israel is ASOS. + +ASOS is a British online fashion and cosmetic retailer and ships a variety of clothes and other products to Israel. diff --git a/posts/medium/Introducing--Cocktail-Shaker-Coffee.md b/posts/medium/Introducing--Cocktail-Shaker-Coffee.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..238d45dd474d88cb6daf77b242a49b6eb7f27c12 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Introducing--Cocktail-Shaker-Coffee.md @@ -0,0 +1,143 @@ +# Introducing: Cocktail Shaker Coffee + +** _Previous post title:_**_Introducing: An Absurd Way to Drink Coffee_ + +Newbie followers of this blog (there have been a few) have probably gotten the idea by now that I am what could be described, euphemistically, as an ‘out of the box’ thinker. + +In the last few months I have written about [how I tried to create a PR campaign around my wedding to attract more international guests](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/the-weddingofalifetime-pr-campaign/), about my [unconventional approach to business development](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/the-unusual-tactic-im-using-to-attract-high-intent-inbound-leads/), and [about my massive pantry](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-massive-pantry-collection/) collection. + +The list goes one (and on!) but suffice to say that my approach to life is not colored, to a significant extent, by considerations of what the “traditional” or “conventional” means of doing something is. + +Which is why, as I type this, I’m sipping a coffee solution out of a cocktail shaker. + +Sorry, that killed the whole build-up. + +So let me back up just a little and present: Cocktail Shaker Coffee. + +### Brewing Coffee, However You Do It = Preparing A Liquid Extraction + +There are many ways to drink coffee. + +Before I started chugging coffee out of a cocktail shaker my preferred method of enjoyment was Turkish coffee. + +Short demitasse cups of it brewed in my beloved [Okka Minio automatic Turkish coffee machine](http://www.arzumokka.com/product/okka-minio/). + +More people prefer espresso (a water extraction supplemented by artificial pressure), filter, or even — goodness forbid — even instant. + +What all these methods have in common is that they are extracting the caffeine, the other methylxanthines, and the flavorful and aromatic compounds by hot water. + +(*I’m not a chemistry expert, but I believe that coffee also contains theobromine and theophylline — the latter used to be an asthma drug. And, as an asthmatic, I can attest that coffee works _wonders_ for my breathing!) + +Again, I’m not a chemistry expert, but I know that — in very crude terms: + + * _Water-based extraction methods_ capture the _water-soluble compounds_ in a plant. + * _Fat-based extractions_ (e.g. milk) capture the water _and lipid-soluble_ compounds in a plant. + * _Ethanol-based extractions_ , like tinctures, capture the _ethanol-soluble compounds_ in a plant. + * **Ingesting that plant, in ground form, with water in a shaker generally captures everything!** + +### So How Much Caffeine Is Left Over In Used Coffee Grounds? + +To determine whether my lunatic cocktail shaker coffee is worthwhile we therefore need to what percentage of the caffeine contained in ground coffee is extracted through traditional methods. + +Quite opportunistically, [I recently hit upon this Quora response from a Mr. Baskerville](https://www.quora.com/How-much-caffeine-remains-in-used-coffee-grounds/answer/Peter-Baskerville) — who says that he has made more than 100,000 coffee cups during his lifetime: + +Intrigued, I decided to dig a little deeper into the paper which he cites [“Evaluation of Spent Coffee Obtained from the Most Common Coffeemakers as a Source of Hydrophilic Bioactive Compounds”](https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf3040594). + +I then decided it was too boring to do so and decided to entrust a random Quora respondent with my health. + +But breaking down those figures from Quora we get: + +**Following traditional preparation methods actually, by my calculations, extracts less than half of the caffeine from the grounds!** + +What Mr. Baskerville described as “quite a significant amount” of leftover caffeine in the grounds was actually quite a euphemism. + +Taking the averages from the paper**, I worked out that traditional coffee preparation methods are only extracting 47% of the caffeine in coffee — while close on 53% remains in the usually discarded grounds.** + +Shocker! + +Next we need to ask whether this is ‘safe’. You’re probably already wondering that yourself. + +Rather than copy and paste a cookie cutter medical disclaimer advising you to ask your doctor about everything, let me state that I am a random guy on the internet and not a health expert. + +Although it’s not as common as brewing coffee, consider the existence of: + + * [Chocolate-covered coffee beans](https://www.homegrounds.co/chocolate-covered-coffee-beans-recipe/) + * Other random internet users that actually eat roasted coffee beans whole (do I need to tell you that I’ve been there tried that?) + +These are [even sold on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/slp/chocolate-coated-coffee-beans/8su56muybjr27es) so my seasoned online research skills tells me that some health authority needs to be checking these things out …. and Amazon is selling them …. ergo they must be legit. + +**Unfiltered coffee — which raw coffee sort of is ‘on steroids’ — has been shown to raise harmful cholesterol in a _dose-dependent_ manner.** [(Read this abstract to understand roughly why).](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2029499) + +Grinding **organic** coffee beans, to do this, would be prudent — because we’re ingesting literally everything in the bean. I think that this is a precaution but a sensible one. So I’m grinding my own supply of ethically sourced organic coffee beans using my trusty [Sözen hand grinder](http://www.sozengrinders.com/sozen-brass-coffee-grinder-mill-7-in). + +This next bit’s important: + +Because I don’t want to give health advice, all I can tell you is my personal limit: one to two tablespoons of coffee per day (and because the caffeine is effectively doubled, that should be equivalent of one to two double shots of espresso). + +Now for the fun part. + +Here’s what you’ll need: + +### Coffee Ground To Turkish-Level Fineness + +A supply of Turkish coffee. Turkish coffee. Check out the above chart, taken from[ ‘Optimized Brewing Coffee Quality Through Proper Grinding’,](https://www.mpechicago.com/sites/default/files/resource-library/scaa_2010.pdf) a slideshow prepared by Daniel Ephraim, President, Modern Process Equipment. + +I’d be happy to bore you with all the details you could ever want to know about Turkish coffee, but suffice to say that the most important thing about it is that it’s really, really fine — approximately twice as fine as espresso. + +Because most people do not live in a Turkish coffee-drinking country there are two ways to procure this: + +**\- Use a (manual) hand grinder.** The only brand I trust is[ Sozen from Turkey. ](http://www.sozengrinders.com/sozen-brass-coffee-grinder-mill-7-in)[All of the Orphan Espresso grinders can do Turkish too](http://www.oehandgrinders.com/OE-LIDO-2-Manual-Coffee-Grinder_p_14.html) — but are rather pricey. + +**\- Buy an electric grinder that can do Turkish.** Your options (among non-commercial-grade) grinders are quite limited. The [Capresso Infinity Conical Burr Grinder](https://www.amazon.com/Capresso-Infinity-Conical-Grinder-Stainless/dp/B000VAWXOU) is _reputed_ to be able to do grind for Turkish, though. + +If all of this is just too difficult, then espresso is the next best thing — although as it’s roughly twice as coarse as Turkish your cocktail shaker coffee is liable to come out a bit more ‘gritty’. + +### 2: A Cocktail Shaker (Or Blender) + +Just about any cocktail shaker will do the trick here. A blender or mini blender would also be fine. You could also add milk or bananas and make a smoothie out of it. [Here’s a recipe.](https://www.asweetpeachef.com/coffee-smoothie/) + +### 3: Tap Water + +Or milk. Some liquid, basically. + +### Step One: Measure Out Your Coffee + +Firstly, take a measuring spoon and measure out your coffee. + +### Step Two: Add Coffee To Water + +Next, add your coffee and water to the shaker. Remember: the more water you add, the more raw coffee water you’re going to have to drink! + +### Step Three: Thirty Seconds of Vigorous Shaking + +Next, you’re going to have to shake the ‘cocktail’ vigorously. + +**Do not skimp on this step.** + +You’ll be glad you did when it’s time to drink the concoction! + +### Step Four: Drink it In One! + +Your beautiful coffee-water is now ready for consumption. + +Just compare the before and after pictures to see how more drinkable it’s looking! (First time readers please note: just about everything I write should be understood sarcastically, at least in part). + +What we have just prepared is a water based _solution_ of coffee rather than a water-based _extraction_ of it. + +All I can say is that the shaking makes a huge difference — but that if you put enough effort into it the resultant “brew” is almost as smooth as water. + +Here are some extra benefits of drinking coffee the smart way: + +\- 🏃 **More efficient.** 🏃 You’ll only go through half the coffee of your unenlightened friends/coworkers for the same amount of caffeine! + +\- 🔌 **Electricity free** 🔌**.** No more kettles and boiling water! Drink your coffee- water wherever you can take out a cocktail shaker! + +\- 🗲 **Lightning-quick** 🗲**.** Have your coffee drunk in about 30 seconds from start to finish. Unbeatable! + +**\- Added fiber**! You won’t only be mopping up every miligram of coffee in the bean — you’ll be getting added fiber and nutrients too! + +Happy coffee-water drinking! + +[Please reach out](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/) with any questions/comments/receipt suggestions. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Introducing--The-Borderliners-Podcast.md b/posts/medium/Introducing--The-Borderliners-Podcast.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ff7330cef6cee610698d69e50126b042864940db --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Introducing--The-Borderliners-Podcast.md @@ -0,0 +1,40 @@ +# Introducing: The Borderliners Podcast + +To all 18 of my current Medium followers, I wanted to quickly introduce a project that — alongside the [DSR Ghostwriting Podcast](https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/anchor-podcasts/the-dsr-ghostwriting-podcast) (massive audio quality improvements on the way!) — represents my main podcasting initiative. + +(And yes, that means that [the #DanHanWedding podcast](https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/anchor-podcasts/danandhanwedding-the-official-podcast/e/61718124?autoplay=true), which I believe was the only wedding preview podcast in the history of wedding planning, has gone into retirement). + +[The Borderliners Podcast](http://www.borderlinerspod.com), which I co-host (and co-produce) with [Nina Jones Rabinowitz](https://medium.com/u/cda57bded07d), proudly promises to interview _“the people that nobody else wants to,”_ comprising _“peripheral characters from the fringes of Israeli society.”_ + +**So far, those that have answered the** i̶n̶s̶u̶l̶t̶**call comprise:** + + * A reusable straw startup founder (S01/E01) + * [A volunteer cat feeder (S01/E02)](https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Ma7G6KlQybOQTIiJhmE3L) + * [Eli Schabes, a Jerusalem musicial/standup act (S01/E03)](https://open.spotify.com/show/6Hcm3jbM2NUSdjiU035cG1) + +The episodes are being recorded in [Ben Wallick’s](http://www.benwallick.com) Jerusalem audio studio. + +Ridiculousness aside, **the show’s purpose is to interview people from the cultural, religious, and socioeconomic borderlines of Jerusalem’s complex social fabric, including religious leaders, ethnic groups, and …. people doing interesting things.** + +We have lined up and/or are working our networks to interview: + + * A Jerusalem-based UN peacekeeper + * A Jerusalem-based diplomat attached to a Consulate + * A Jerusalem-based priest + * A member of the Ethiopian community + * A member of the Russian community + +And to challenge stereotypes and just interview interesting people we’re also looking to talk to: + + * An Anglo **Egged bus driver** + * A full-time**falafel shop worker** + * A **random tourist** + * Somebody that has worked in the **binary/forex industry** ([context](https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-wolves-of-tel-aviv-israels-vast-amoral-binary-options-scam-exposed/)) + +### Want To Come On The Show? + +If you are a Jerusalem-based, English-speaking borderliner …. or know of somebody that is, [then please drop us a line](https://www.borderlinerspod.com/contact/). We would love to chat. + +### Season To Date + +**S01/E03: Eli Schabes.**[Better known as Maz Gan](https://www.facebook.com/MazGanmusic/?ref=br_rs). Jerusalem-based musician / general artist who has been gigging in Jerusalem’s Russian underworld for the past few years.S01/E02: Jerssica Leah Tabak. The next generation of Jerusalem cat ladies — or smiling city-wrecker? Listen to the episode to decide for yourself.S01/E01: Sam Schubert. Modern day Renaissance Man and reusable products pioneer. diff --git a/posts/medium/Introducing-Shimshon-Eats-Jerusalem--A-YouTube-Series.md b/posts/medium/Introducing-Shimshon-Eats-Jerusalem--A-YouTube-Series.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6b6a7de153595e289c38e0f8261841a8256ff3cb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Introducing-Shimshon-Eats-Jerusalem--A-YouTube-Series.md @@ -0,0 +1,50 @@ +# Introducing Shimshon Eats Jerusalem: A YouTube Series + +#### Following popular Jerusalem food reviewer Shimshon Sam Leshinsky on his quest to eat Jerusalem out of food + +Recently, I began a creative collaboration of sorts with Jerusalem-based food critic and social commentator Shimshon Sam Leshinsky, whose near-daily postings on the Secret Jerusalem Facebook group have taken the city’s English-speaking community by storm and endeared him to a growing cadre of followers. + +**Shimshon Eats Jerusalem** is a YouTube-based video series following the reviewing exploits of Shimshon Leshinsky as he visits Jerusalem’s newest eateries, offering his characteristic take on the city’s newest dining experiences (apparently he doesn’t like soup powder..). + +Leshinsky originally hails from Australia, lives in the Jerusalem suburb of Har Homa, and has become something of a cultural icon in Jerusalem since he began posting his first food reviews in late 2020 on Facebook. + +Undeterred by the pandemic and buoyed by a seemingly never-ending appetite for food and adventure, Leshinsky has spotlighted both immigrant-owned new businesses and worthy charitable causes in the city — penning more than 100 reviews on the popular English-speakers’ community forum. + +Leshinsky tells me that he now regularly receives review requests from venues in the city. + +But if you want to invite the blossoming and growing **Shimshon Eats Jerusalem** crew onto your premises, [drop me a line](http://www.danielrosehill.com). + +[**One Year Later, Jerusalem's Hottest Food Celeb Still Serving Up Post-Fulls Of Delight** + _A little over one year ago, few Jerusalemites had heard the name Shimshon Sam Leshinsky. The soft-spoken Australian…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/one-year-later-jerusalems-hottest-food-celeb-still-serving-up-post-fulls-of-delight/?fbclid=IwAR3-m4bJPXYhPlEdpIUVtnlmXIX4dPDxzthUh9oGsc5pl_HmJFvNDsmD-Mc "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/one-year-later-jerusalems-hottest-food-celeb-still-serving-up-post-fulls-of-delight/?fbclid=IwAR3-m4bJPXYhPlEdpIUVtnlmXIX4dPDxzthUh9oGsc5pl_HmJFvNDsmD-Mc")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/one-year-later-jerusalems-hottest-food-celeb-still-serving-up-post-fulls-of-delight/?fbclid=IwAR3-m4bJPXYhPlEdpIUVtnlmXIX4dPDxzthUh9oGsc5pl_HmJFvNDsmD-Mc) + +S01:E02 episode promo poster. + +#### **Playlist:** + +#### **Series trailer:** + +#### **S01:E01: Shimshon Leshinsky Visits The Yolo Bakery** + +#### S01:E02: Shimshon Leshinsky Visits The Hineni Soup Kitchen + +### The Clal Building + +### S01:E04: The Shawarma Meat up + +### Shimshon Eats Jerusalem — Season 1 Credits + + _Producer, Director, videographer, editor_ — Daniel Rosehill + + _Camera 2, DP_** _—_** Marcus James + + _Food reviewer_ — Shimshon Sam Leshinsky + + _Intro voiceover_ — HaRamyan + +### Series Homepage + +[**Shimshon Eats Jerusalem - Yalla JLM** + _Plot Summary Australian-born, Jerusalem-based viral food reviewer and cultural commentator Shimshon Sam Leshinsky is on…_ www.yallajlm.com](https://www.yallajlm.com/productions/shimshon-eats-jerusalem/ "https://www.yallajlm.com/productions/shimshon-eats-jerusalem/")[](https://www.yallajlm.com/productions/shimshon-eats-jerusalem/) + +[**Shimshon Eats Jerusalem (TV Series 2021- ) - IMDb** + _Jerusalem-based food critic Shimshon Sam Leshinsky visits restaurants and businesses in Jerusalem to provide advice and…_ www.imdb.com](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18329724/?ref_=nm_knf_t1 "https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18329724/?ref_=nm_knf_t1")[](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18329724/?ref_=nm_knf_t1) diff --git a/posts/medium/Ireland-And-Israel-Finally-Hit-A-Breaking-Point-That-Was-Decades-In-The-Making.md b/posts/medium/Ireland-And-Israel-Finally-Hit-A-Breaking-Point-That-Was-Decades-In-The-Making.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8906f1cfe85da1d6592309df2bed33c2bbfdf684 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Ireland-And-Israel-Finally-Hit-A-Breaking-Point-That-Was-Decades-In-The-Making.md @@ -0,0 +1,172 @@ +# Ireland And Israel Finally Hit A Breaking Point That Was Decades In The Making + +Israel’s Ambassador to Erlich Dana Erlich who has become a lightning rod for both personal attacks and broadsides against the Jewish State. + +Since the horrors of October 7th, a lot has changed in my life. + +While Hamas was carrying out its barbaric assault on men, women, and children, I was taking some rest _(I hope well-deserved)_ on the beaches of Barcelona. + +Last weekend marked the first time since those atrocities over 6 months ago that I felt comfortable spending time on a beach again. + +While hostages remain trapped in tunnels, it has taken an awfully long time for any kind of recreation to not feel disrespectful and irreverent. But a belief that the show must go on is perhaps the defining characteristic of Israeliness. + +My trip to Barcelona that coincided with the outbreak of war was a quick weekend excursion after a business conference. My main priorities were drinking beer, eating tapas, seeing the city, and catching up on sleep robbed by successive late nights followed by early starts _(I’m not a conference lover)_. + +All I remember is the sense of unfolding horror as the news trickled in from Israel and the magnitude of what had occurred slowly unfolded. And an inspiring PA from the El Al crew intoning, seriously, that El Al was committed to maintaining Israel’s air links with the world — both during the best of times, for the state, and the worst of them. + +_Photo: A sign displayed in Ben Gurion Airport after the outbreak of war directing passengers to emergency shelters._ + +### Ireland’s Now-Legendary Hostility Towards Israel Is Longstanding, Institutional + +October 7th and the ensuing and ongoing war to eliminate Hamas has shaken up Israel’s foreign relations perhaps more decisively than any other event in its young history. + +Newfound alliances with the Arab World have been stress-tested and, in many cases, found to be wanting in the goodwill necessary for their sustenance. + +We’ve been reminded that the “peace” Israel enjoys with some of its closest neighbors is best understood as a military pact of mutual non-destruction. + +Europe has been a mixed picture. Study of the political reaction to Israel has been overshadowed by concern about mushrooming antisemitism. + +But one country has stood out as quite remarkable for the depth of its anti-Israel sentiment which seems at odds with its geopolitical affiliation with the European bloc — and that’s the Republic of Ireland. + +### Theories Abound As To Why Israel Seems To Uniquely Stir Irish Animus + +There are many ways to look at the Republic of Ireland’s reaction to October 7th and its increasingly feverish and misguided embrace of militant pro-Palestiniasm. + +Not a small amount of ink — both digital and real — has been spilled since then offering verbose and sometimes self-exonerating explanations for Ireland’s now legendarily negative fixation with the world’s only Jewish state. + +In the immediate aftermath of October 7th, I began commenting on Ireland-Israel relations on Twitter — to the extent to which I’m probably mildly synonymous with those things in Ireland. + +I was among the first entrants into an ideological battlefield that now feels oddly crowded (Irish commentators tend to insist that warped parallels with British colonialism “explain” the extent of their vitriol; Jewish and Zionist ones like me will always respond that those arguments display a shocking ignorance of Jewish history and our connection to the land of Israel). + +I took to these usually thankless debates on Twitter primarily because I have enough skin in the game to care deeply about the topic, but not quite so much that I’m at risk of immediate bodily harm or having a brick thrown in through my window if I tick off the wrong people. + +I was born Jewish in Ireland. + +And in the very immediate wake of October 7th, I witnessed how those whom I considered to have been good friends began posting blood libels about Israeli bloodthirst. + +I believe simultaneously in the freedom of speech and the press but also that neither freedom must be absolute. + +And so I tried to focus my advocacy efforts on highlighting what I believed to be naked anti-Semitism in the Irish public discourse that was going essentially unchallenged — even when uttered within the halls of parliament. + +The great folly of _hasbara_ (as I see it) is trying to coerce the world into adopting a uniquely pro-Israeli view that is neither grounded in reality nor held by many people (like me) who are actual tax-paying citizens of the state. + +Converting Ireland into a nation of Israel-lovers is an objective that nobody would see as credible. But highlighting anti-Semitism would (one might have hoped) do something to ensure the welfare of Ireland’s small and dwindling Jewish community. + +Unfortunately I came to the conclusion that like trying to win sympthy or basic understanding for Israel’s position in Ireland, that’s a lost cause. + +### Ireland’s Parliament Includes Politicians Who Openly Call For Israel’s Destruction — To A Dearth Of Criticism + + _Caption: Richard Boyd Barrett calling for an “intifada” against Israel while Ireland was debating the parameters of hate speech legislation. A defining moment in my relationship with the country of my birth._ + +The apex of my briefly renewed efforts at pro-Israeli advocacy, perhaps, was posting a video clip of a politician calling for the destruction of Israel through _intifada_ that subsequently went viral on Twitter/X to the tune of about one million or so retweets. + +As it picked up steam and friends of Israel were rightly astonished by the phenomenon of a Western parliamentarian being flanked by police while cosplaying as Ayatollah Khomeini, the Irish media was _eventually_ coaxed into acknowledging that a member of parliament calling for the violent destruction of another nation was … _perhaps_ worthy of public attention. + +The only pushback I received came from self-identified members of Ireland’s diminuitive “pro-Israel” community. In attempting to highlight the rhetoric, I found myself in sometimes vehement disagreement with them. I continue to feel that the official representatives of Irish Jewry have been unacceptably meek in failing to highlight the gravity of the antisemitism growing in Ireland which has depicted the country internationally as a hostile environment for Jews. + +I felt, and still do, that forgiving hate speech on the basis that it’s uttered by marginal voices is a failing strategy — well-demonstrated, I would add, by 1930s’ Germany, but more pragmatically by the fact that such words inspire action. In any event, my efforts eventually drew to a bumbling half-condemntation from Ireland’s Foreign Minister Michael Martin. + +Boyd Barrett himself — when confronted at a press conference with the video that I shared on Twitter — doubled down on the remarks, which included describing Israel as “filthy” and “bararbic” — comments which drew the most painfully tepid of condemntations from a solitary member of Ireland’s government. Again, the reaction was studied silence. + +I have written about Ireland-Israel since and will do so again. + +But it was at precisely this point that I came to the conclusion that (from a Jewish perspective, from a pro-Israel one) Ireland was a lost cause. + +The only Ireland I knew, growing up, was one that was adamantly anti-Israel. Where merely uttering the country’s name was akin to announcing one’s fondness for paedophilia with a loudspeaker on a main street at midday. + +I may have left Ireland almost a decade ago, but the national policy remains unchanged. Or as Eccliasiastes once intoned, there is nothing new under the sun. + +For Jews, for Israelis, Ireland remains the coldest of cold houses. + +### Ireland’s Infamous Basketball Snub Left An Indelible Impression On The Jewish World + +Like many, the longer that Official Ireland’s protracted, bizarre, and intensely negative fixation has dragged on, the more I’ve found myself tuning it out. + +The parade of hatred may have reached its inglorious nadir with Bambie Thug’s satanic rendition at Eurovision. But it was the storm in a teacup event of a women’s basketball game between Ireland and Israel that really set relations on an incorrigible descent into the abyss. + +Many Israelis — legendary globetrotters — tend to cling to a rosey vision of Ireland, regarding it as a wonderful sort of anithesis to beleaguered, war-torn Israel. Ireland was for a few years the most popular tourism destination (bar none) for Israeli travellers. Prior to _BasketballGate_ most seemed blissfully unaware of the extent of the antipathy with which their country was held in Ireland. + +In the Israeli collective imagination, Ireland was a kind of easy mental surrogate for the kind of society that might blossom here were Israel not stuck in the middle of a hostile Middle East. + +Where Israelis are famously argumentative and debating is a sort of national pasttime, the Irish are famously congenial and easygoing. Israelis love hiking and Ireland is full of beautiful countryside. Like Israel, Ireland is a small country with big ambitions. Unlike Israel, it’s not mired in a hot Meditteranean climate and endless war. + +The whole edifice of that charming image came tumbling down on the night of that basketball fixture. That display cemented a now entrenched view of Ireland as a country wholly hostile to Israel — and Jews. + +In today’s Israel, Ireland is seen as a curiosity — and a good case-study in the fact that anti-Semitism usually supercedes the bounds of good reason. + +Ireland is European in geography but now almost Middle-Eastern in its hostility to Jews and Israel. + +It’s a country that seems entirely blinkered to the Jewish connection to the land of Israel but steadfastly assured in its conviction that backing Hamas and its supporters affords a moral high-ground over those of us less enlightened. + +Like the PA, it even endorses a curriculum that inculcuates a warped anti-Israel perspective of the conflict in primary schoolers — a curriculum which was decried as “unabashedly antisemitic” by Ronald Lauder, President of the World Jewish Congress (WJC). + +These are only some of the end products of the massively prevalent view in Ireland that Zionism is something like an abortive form of Judaism and that it is therefore entirely justifiable to be rabidly opposed to _only_ Jewish self-determination. + +[**WJC President Lauder Labels Irish School Curriculum as Unabashedly Antisemitic - World Jewish…** + _"This curriculum fans the flames of hate at a time of heightened global tensions and surging antisemitism, particularly…_ www.worldjewishcongress.org](https://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/news/irish-antisemitic-school-curriculum "https://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/news/irish-antisemitic-school-curriculum")[](https://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/news/irish-antisemitic-school-curriculum) + +So it wasn’t surprising that when Ireland’s Eurovision entrant (the appropriately named) Bambie Thug took to the stage of Malmo at Eurovision she was greeted, at my local pub, by whole-lunged booing — a treatment not afforded to any other contestant. Things have changed. + +In protest at being called anti-Semitic, Ireland’s women’s basketball team chose to display their dislike of their Israeli counterparts by refusing to shake hands with their Israeli counterparts. + +That crude show of hatred, once endorsed by Ireland’s politicians as a show of principled maturiy, pegged Ireland to a level of bitter animosity previously only seen by Israel’s classic opponents in the Arab world — which is why I find it interesting. + +Even those in Ireland who opposed the previous plan to boycott the fixture did so on pragmatic grounds and not out of the conviction that doing so was morally opprobrius (Ireland backed down only after being threatened by basketball’s governing body with a crushing fine). + +The hate gesture’s adulous reception in Ireland allowed many Israelis to finally move past the ongoing Irish parade of hatred for the Jewish state — to externalise it to an extent. + +Just as we don’t spend time poring over how the Iranian _ayatollahs_ worded their latest statement urging death on Zionists, we realised that we needn’t waste time baffling over why Ireland and the Irish seem so massively opposed to “just Zionism” (trademark pending). + +Ireland’s insistence on its neutrality and seemingly desperate desire to interject itself as an intermediary in the Israel-Palestinian peace process can be rightly seen as laughable. + +Just like Bambie Thug’s tirade at the Eurovision, the occasion was trivial. But the gestures had onoing resonance. + +_Pro-Israel supporters gathered outside the Israeli Embassy in Dublin_ + +It’s true that a passionate group of pro-Israel voices (doing marvellous work) take umbrage at being lumped in with the vast majority of Irish people who (one feels at times) enjoy ritualistically burning the Israeli flag as a morning routine after brushing their teeth. + +Some insist that they are the silent majority and Ireland’s surprising voting pattern in the Eurovision has been corraled as evidence to support that claim. On the Israeli side, such claims seem fantastical. But however few and outnumbered they are, their efforts are appreciated. + +I’ve had debates online and even lively ones with a journalist friend ( _over pints of Guinness, of course_) about why Ireland didn’t chose to withdraw its beleaguered representative in Dublin sooner. + +I’ve long contended that, viewed rationally, it’s a source of diplomatic mystery. Perhaps the mystery is now solved. + +### The Only Question: Why Didn’t Israel Close Shop In Dublin Sooner? + +Israel’s Ambassador to Ireland Dana Erlich is depicted covered in blood in a poster circulated on social media by Irish anti-Israel activists + +Israel’s brave representative in Dublin — Ambassador Dana Erlich — has been subjected to a relentless campaign of hatred and personal intimidation that has been tacitly _(no, I don’t think this is an exaggeration)_ endorsed by the State itself. + +The weekend before Iran sent suicide drones and missiles to try to kill as many Israelis as possible, Ireland’s leading party — Fianna Fail — snubbed Erlich from its annual think-in, breaking with longstanding diplomatic protocol. Iran’s diplomatic representative in Ireland made the list. In another departure with protocol, this was gleefully highlighted to the media. Perhaps nothing speaks more cogently about the moral bankruptcy of Ireland’s pro-Palestinianism than feting the Iranian ambassador hours before his country launched an unprovoked war against Israel. + +The extent to which Israel has become a topic of national obsession in Ireland can scarcely be understated or exaggerated. + +When not sending her packages of fake anthrax, Ireland’s pro-Palestinian community is busily calling for her ouster or erecting blood libel inspired photos of Erlich drenched in fake blood and affixing them to lampposts over Dublin. + +Israel’s trade relationship with Ireland is modest compared to its major trading partners and in recognition of the nose-dived interest in Ireland among Israeli and (sane) Jewish tourists, El Al pulled its brief-lived direct connection to Dublin shortly after the war broke out. + +Israel responded to acts of hostility by Turkey and other nations by withdrawing its diplomats so why the double standard in the face of the Irish circus of hate? + +I pointed it out on Twitter a few times and got my answer today: it’s been on the agenda for some time, but the time to begin pulling the plug wasn’t quite ripe until Ireland “recognised” the non-existent state intent on its destruction. + +### The Bigger Geopolitical Picture: The EU, The US, And Who Ireland Will “Inspire” + +For as many words as have been written about the quickly-devolving relationship between Israel and Ireland only a few really suffice: it’s bad and getting worse. Which is sort of like this year’s Eurovision. You can’t pull yourself away even if you know there’s nothing good in store. + +But in the broader scheme of the shifting sands of Israel’s geopolitical calculus, Ireland isn’t a top level concern. + +For now, its nefarious efforts to have Israel’s agreement with the EU upended have been rebuffed by states with a steadier moral compass. Ireland has roped in Spain and Norway in a sort of oddball threesome of countries whose only mutual connection seems to be a common disdain for Israel. But for now its efforts haven’t had the kind of global leading role that they seem to aspire to hold. + +The rub in this whole tale: + +Ireland is significantly dependent upon multinational companies using it as a tax base and may be grossly underestimating the extent to which its vitriolic diplomatic war against Israel is offputting even to those who may not be Israel’s traditional political friends. + +The unquestioning embrace of a government that unapologetically pays salaries to those convicted of slaying random Israelis, in which the vast majority of its citizens condone the actions of October 7th, is not a look that quite everybody is onboard with (at least yet). + +Much remains to be seen, of course. + +But if there are larger ramifications from the undulating waves of fallout between Ireland and Israel it will likely be in these realms rather than direct effects. + +I mean, how many ways are there one can really say _“we really don’t like you”?_ + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Ireland-Basketball-s-Israel-Shunning-Carried-The-Silent-Imprimatur-Of-Its-Prime-Minister.md b/posts/medium/Ireland-Basketball-s-Israel-Shunning-Carried-The-Silent-Imprimatur-Of-Its-Prime-Minister.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a6fd5ad2ac1034412e72e7f590449400cf57c31b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Ireland-Basketball-s-Israel-Shunning-Carried-The-Silent-Imprimatur-Of-Its-Prime-Minister.md @@ -0,0 +1,73 @@ +# Ireland Basketball’s Israel-Shunning Carried The Silent Imprimatur Of Its Prime Minister + +Ireland’s women’s basketball team seen refusing to line up alongside Israeli athletes before the commencing of a basketball fixture in Riga yesterday. Photo: BBC + +Congratulations to the Israeli women basketball’s team. + +Not for winning a basketball game (sorry, I’m not a fan). + +But for providing the world with the opportunity to see the depth of Ireland’s vitriolic hatred against Israel. + +For showing us that Israel-hatred and refusing to shake hands with Jewish athletes are acts of pure spite that can come from supposedly liberal Western democracies as well as from the places that we’re more … accustomed to it. + +This is something many people needed to learn first-hand. + +**But you know what’s truly appalling about Ireland’s refusal to shake hands?** + +The fact that it carries the silent imprimatur of the Irish government. + +_Hear me out a minute more and I’ll tell you why._ + +Ireland’s media was busy working itself into a frenzy last week wondering whether its basketball team would play the match. + +The basketball association announced their intention to boycott the future due to their disdain for Israel. + +Basketball’s governing body, FIBA, announced that it would impose a six figure fine on the team for refusing to participate. The team’s coach said that it would set the future of the sport in Ireland back a generation. + +The logic facing the Irish team became the following: do we want to pay for the privilege of being racists? Or are we more the cheapskate kind of hater? The Irish opted for the second choice. + +In Ireland, there were calls for Ireland to go ahead with the fixture and back out of the boycott threat. + +**But telling they were not made out of any kind of moral intuition that boycotting a sporting fixture simply because the team was from Israel was morally wrong or indefensible.** + +The thin opposition to the holding of the fixture came exclusively from selfish self-interest. + +Ireland’s Prime Minister (PM) Leo Varadkar offered his two cents about the looming game on a prime time Irish radio show. + +And here were his words: + +> “It’s one thing to expel Russia or expel Israel from certain sporting events or certain music events or contests, **and I think that may well be appropriate,** but for us to remove ourselves actually isn’t a good idea, in my view, because all we do is disadvantage ourselves,” he said. + +So there you have it. + +Expelling Israel from sporting events — in the Irish PM’s view — “may well be appropriate” (this is the ever-tepid prime minister’s way of saying “we’re dying for that!”). But Ireland shouldn’t boycott the fixture anyway because _why pay the price for hating on Israel when you can do it for free?_ + +All this occurred before an Israeli team-member accused the Irish side of “anti-Semitism.” But refusing to shake hands with the entire team seems like a particularly strange way to refute that charge. + +Ireland’s decision to refuse to shake hands with the Israeli team (it’s worth noting) appears to have received the quiet collusion of FIBA who said that they were informed of both sides’ intentions before the blowing of the whistle. Given their unwillingness to pay for boycotting the fixture, it’s reasonable to assume that Ireland’s team got the green light that this hateful display was acceptable. + +So they found a way to show their spite towards Israel without having to pay for the privilege. A bargain, I guess they reckoned. + +Ireland’s Prime Minister wasn’t alone in opposing the boycott idea only because it would cost the team money. + +Ireland’s Basketball CEO John Feehan couched his own opposition to the boycott in the idea that doing so would be “ruinous” to the support. + +But here’s the rub: + +**Not a single commentator or politician to my knowledge expressed opposition to the boycott on the grounds that doing so was reprehensible and wrong.** + +It gets worse (after Israel routed the Irish team). + +After the ugly spectacle before yesterday’s game Ireland’s basketball association released a statement hailing the _“incredible maturity”_ of its players. + +Yes, the incredible maturity of refusing to shake hands with every one of the Israelis. + +The Irish Government has been silent in its response to the news coverage of the gesture that has been picked up throughout the world. + +No prizes for guessing why. + +Its media bursting forth with praise for the handshake-refusers who (the Irish lament) were “put in a difficult place” for declaring their hatred but then being forced to play the match anyway. + +Sorry. That one’s squarely on you. + +Some relationships are best given up on. diff --git a/posts/medium/Ireland-s-Largest-County-Endorses-BDS--Promises-To-Boycott-Israel----Supporters--Of-The-Jewish-.md b/posts/medium/Ireland-s-Largest-County-Endorses-BDS--Promises-To-Boycott-Israel----Supporters--Of-The-Jewish-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e9c8c46a54876ba30d29fa6f241fda624942a659 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Ireland-s-Largest-County-Endorses-BDS--Promises-To-Boycott-Israel----Supporters--Of-The-Jewish-.md @@ -0,0 +1,44 @@ +# Ireland’s Largest County Endorses BDS, Promises To Boycott Israel & “Supporters” Of The Jewish… + +#### Sweeping motion also declares Cork County an “Apartheid Free Zone” + +Cork County Council, Ireland’s largest local government body by territory governed, passed a motion last night formally endorsing the BDS campaign and declaring its intent not to purchase Israeli goods or those from companies “that support the Israeli state.” + +[**County Hall to fly Palestinian flag? | Cork Independent** + _Michael Olney_ www.corkindependent.com](https://www.corkindependent.com/2024/01/24/county-hall-to-fly-palestinian-flag/ "https://www.corkindependent.com/2024/01/24/county-hall-to-fly-palestinian-flag/")Ireland’s Largest County Votes To Commit To Boycotting Israel And Israel Supporters[](https://www.corkindependent.com/2024/01/24/county-hall-to-fly-palestinian-flag/) + +It categorises Israel’s war intended to eliminate Hamas as a “genocidal” attack. + +The motion further states that the County of Cork is an “apartheid free zone” and a “space of proactive solidarity with the Palestinian people.” + +In formally getting behind the BDS movement, Cork City Council greenlighted a discriminatory boycott against not only Israelis but also against anybody anywhere who has the temerity to support the Jewish State. + +It has declared which political opinions are acceptable and which are not. While the move may be symbolic, it is also significant. + +According to the Motion passed: + +> “Cork County Council declares its support for the BDS campaign and agrees not to purchase goods or services produced or provided, in whole or in part (as practicable) by Israeli companies, or companies that support the Israeli State.” + +The Motion, as passed, commits Cork County Council to not purchasing goods or services “produced or provided, in whole or in part, by Israeli companies, or companies that support the Israeli state.” + +The majority of world Jewry identifies with Zionism. + +A huge percentage of world Jewry — likely the vast majority — could be regarded as “supporting” Israel to some extent or another. + +The Motion, as passed, effectively states that the County Council will not do business with Jews. + +Cork County Council has declared itself an “Apartheid Free Zone” and regards the State of Israel as perpetuating a “regime” which it regards as “Apartheid.” Its virtue-signalling has been heard loud and clear: Israelis, Jews, and even supporters of the Jewish State … you’re not welcome here. + +Cork County Council is going Israel-rein, Juden-rein, and even Zionist-rein. + +### **The Full Text Of The Motion** + +Cork County Council notes the ongoing brutal and genocidal attacks on the people of Gaza by the Israeli state. The UN is warning of imminent human catastrophe with famine, direct killing of civilians, along with death because of untreated injury and disease. Its population is trapped in a hellish conflict zone with no shelter or safety. + +Cork County Council notes that Palestinian civil society in 2005 made a call for a Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel “until it complies with international law and universal principles of human rights.” + +Cork County Council declares its support for the BDS campaign and agrees not to purchase goods or services produced or provided, in whole or in part (as practicable) by Israeli companies, or companies that support the Israeli state. + +Cork County Council declares the county of Cork to be an Apartheid Free Zone; a space of proactive solidarity with the Palestinian people. + +It commits to encourage and assist all efforts to show solidarity and fundraising for humanitarian efforts in Palestine. diff --git a/posts/medium/Ireland-s-Political-Pogrom-Of-Israel-Continues-Unabated.md b/posts/medium/Ireland-s-Political-Pogrom-Of-Israel-Continues-Unabated.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2b6ff10c328f0b8ccb678229b3cf14cfbc7cdc34 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Ireland-s-Political-Pogrom-Of-Israel-Continues-Unabated.md @@ -0,0 +1,100 @@ +# Ireland’s Political Pogrom Of Israel Continues Unabated + +#### Ireland is acting with unprecedented fervour at every diplomatic forum to harm the interests of the State of Israel + +Ireland is acting with unprecedented vigor to harm the interests of the State of Israel, operating against Israel at the EU, UN, ICJ, and more. Photos: Canva libaray. + +Long term observers of Irish-Israeli affairs are accustomed to ties between the two countries maintaining a slow but steady rhythm — albeit one usually set against a backdrop of rancor. + +Recently, however, the pace of developments has picked up — substantially so, in fact. + +The Irish basketball’s team’s refusal to shake hands with their Israeli counterparts has proven to be a sort of unexpected catalyst for increased scrutiny of Ireland’s longstanding hostility to Israel by many commentators. + +The sour grapes basketball incident received widespread coverage not only here in Israel, but also throughout the Jewish diaspora — and far beyond. + +While the team received widespread support for their actions in Ireland, in Israel the move was read almost unanimously as a sort of decisive showing of the extent of Ireland’s hostility to Israel. + +I tweeted — after the incident — that Ireland’s hostility to Israel now rivalled that of Iran. And I believe that that tweet captured fairly the national mood in Israel. + +It’s this dissonance between Ireland’s status as an ostensibly respectable member of the EU (“The West”) and the extent of its hostility that captures the interest of many here in Israel. The endlessly repeated and flatly ridiculous claim that there is no antisemitism in Ireland is now being treated with well-deserved derision (another time-honored Irish favorite: “we have nothing against Jews, just against Zionism”!) + +We’re used to compartmentalising hostility towards Israel among nations by crude axioms. The Arab World has remained intense in its animus towards Israel from the get-go. Some European countries have usually been seen as second division players. The Irish case is proving to us that these crude geopolitical rubrics are no longer fit-for-purpose. + +So although the basketball incident drove home the level of vitriol with which Israel is regarded in Ireland, the extent of Ireland’s diplomatic movements against the Jewish State has been less remarked-upon. It’s staggering for its pace and breath. + +Here’s a quick run-through of ongoing “proceedings”: + +### 1\. Ireland Is Trying To Have Israel-EU Trade Thwarted + +Ireland’s “flagship” anti-Israel effort at the European Union is its attempt to have Israel’s trade agreement with the EU rendered null and void on account of a humans rights clause. + +The move is almost certainly a non-runner. It would require unanimity among the EU member states and fortunately not everybody holds Israel in the extreme disdain that the Irish do. + +Ireland initially hoped to go it alone but later found willing partners in Spain. The duo are currently on a mission to get the Trade Agreement run through the shredder. The move would harm Israel’s exports, academic cooperation with Europe, scientific ties, and (potentially) an aviation agreement. + +[**Ireland and Spain seek 'urgent review' of Israel trade over EU deal's human rights obligations** + _Varadkar and Spanish PM Sanchez ask for 'appropriate measures' to be taken if conditions of agreement have been broken_ www.irishtimes.com](https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2024/02/14/ireland-and-spain-seek-urgent-review-of-israel-trade-over-eu-deals-human-rights-obligations/ "https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2024/02/14/ireland-and-spain-seek-urgent-review-of-israel-trade-over-eu-deals-human-rights-obligations/")[](https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2024/02/14/ireland-and-spain-seek-urgent-review-of-israel-trade-over-eu-deals-human-rights-obligations/) + +### 2\. Ireland Is Arguing Against Israel At The ICJ + +Ireland is also currently attempting to muscle its way into proceedings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). + +[**Statement of Ireland in the ICJ Advisory Opinion Hearings on Israeli Practices and Policies in the…** + _16\. There has also been a recent, marked increase in reports of Palestinian civilians being subjected to sustained…_ www.gov.ie](https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/9637a-statement-of-ireland-in-the-icj-advisory-opinion-hearings-on-israeli-practices-and-policies-in-the-occupied-palestinian-territory/ "https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/9637a-statement-of-ireland-in-the-icj-advisory-opinion-hearings-on-israeli-practices-and-policies-in-the-occupied-palestinian-territory/")[](https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/9637a-statement-of-ireland-in-the-icj-advisory-opinion-hearings-on-israeli-practices-and-policies-in-the-occupied-palestinian-territory/) + +[**Ireland to ICJ: Israel exceeds reasonable use of force limits** + _Ireland argued before the ICJ that Israel's actions following the October 7 Hamas attacks exceed reason._ www.aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.com/program/newsfeed/2024/2/22/ireland-to-icj-israel-exceeds-reasonable-use-of-force-limits "https://www.aljazeera.com/program/newsfeed/2024/2/22/ireland-to-icj-israel-exceeds-reasonable-use-of-force-limits")[](https://www.aljazeera.com/program/newsfeed/2024/2/22/ireland-to-icj-israel-exceeds-reasonable-use-of-force-limits) + +Ireland is doing so on two fronts: + + * Irish lawyer Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh provided support for South Africa’s absurd case at the court charging Israel with perpetrating a genocide in Gaza. + * This week, Ireland’s Attorney General presented an opinion to the ICJ regarding Israel’s “occupation” of Palestinian lands. Unsurprisingly, Ireland’s top legal representative delivered a guilty verdict against Israel. The findings were tweeted enthusiastically by Ireland’s foreign minister and deputy PM, Micheal Martin. + +### 3\. The Irish Government “Doesn’t Oppose” A Motion Calling For The “Dismantlement” Of “Apartheid” In Israel + +With so many different initiatives being pursued at the same time, it’s easy for even more hostility to slip quietly beneath the radar. + + + +This is exactly what happened last night when Irish Senator Frances Black — notorious for pursuing a bill which would slap sanctions on any Irish people doing business with Israeli companies beyond the Green Line — made a fresh push for sanctions against the Jewish State. + +The motion — which the Irish government said it would not oppose — contains a dizzying array of hostile actions: + + * Enacting the Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill 2023 + * Advocate internationally for an arms embargo against Israel + * Advocate for the suspension of the EU-Israel Trade Agreement + * Support South Africa’s genocide case at the ICJ + * Recognise the State of Palestine + * “Reaffirm and redouble efforts to create a lasting peace that includes a two state solution [and] dismantling the system of apartheid in Israel.” + +If there was ever a moment to reach for the highlighter, may I suggest it’s this — and underlining the last of these proposals. + +The language of “dismantling” Israel mirrors perfectly calls by anti-Semite Richard Boyd Barrett to achieve precisely the same end. Boyd Barrett’s dream of “dismantling” Israel involves replacing it with a one state solution which just happens to be named “Palestine” (I kid you not). + +This is a transparent call for the elimination of Israel as a Jewish State, a legislative declaration of war. + +In response to the Motion, Minister of State Sean Fleming said: “I confirm that the Government is not opposing the Motion.” + +### 4\. Ireland Is Pushing Unilaterally To Ban All Israeli Settlers From Entering The Country + +This week Ireland also announced that it would be unilaterally pursuing a ban on Israeli settlers entering Ireland: + +[**Micheál Martin says Irish travel ban for Israeli settlers is being worked on** + _A number of countries have suspended funding to the agency after some of its staff were allegedly linked to Hamas._ www.irishexaminer.com](https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/politics/arid-41336080.html "https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/politics/arid-41336080.html")[](https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/politics/arid-41336080.html) + +Assuming that the envisioned ban would define a settler as anybody living beyond the Green Line, such a travel ban would go substantially further than the US’s visa restrictions announced last December which (merely) targeted settlers which had been implicated in acts of extremism and violence. + +It is no longer beyond the realm of possibility to consider the idea that Ireland might adopt the Hamas definition of “settler” (every Israeli) and join the list of nations worldwide which ban entry to citizens of the State of Israel. + +### 5\. Ireland Announced A Generous Top Up Payment To UNRWA — No Questions Asked + +Not content with all of the above — a series of coordinated hostile efforts that beggar belief that Ireland still insists that it is “neutral” — Ireland also announced last week that it was going to step in to fill UNRWA’s funding shortfall. + +[**Which countries are still funding UNRWA amid Israel's war on Gaza?** +_Ireland is the latest to pledge funds for the stricken UN agency, the main source of humanitarian aid to Palestine._ www.aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/17/which-countries-are-still-funding-unrwa "https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/17/which-countries-are-still-funding-unrwa")[](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/17/which-countries-are-still-funding-unrwa) + +In spite of growing revelations and evidence showing that UNRWA staff members were involved in the atrocities of October 7th, Ireland’s generous funding contribution — of €20M — dwarfs that of even Arab nations. + +There has been no report that Ireland has insisted on increased oversight or some other quid pro quo in exchange for the generous funding. + +Ireland is making a coordinated series of efforts at every international forum to harm the interests of the State of Israel. Bereft of a military of any significance, it is turning to diplomatic, legal, and political warfare to harm the interests of the Jewish State. diff --git a/posts/medium/Ireland-vs--Israel--As-Places-to-Live--That-Is---740fff26c71.html.md b/posts/medium/Ireland-vs--Israel--As-Places-to-Live--That-Is---740fff26c71.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..72aeda34015d7407360a826292bf263b4058f026 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Ireland-vs--Israel--As-Places-to-Live--That-Is---740fff26c71.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,728 @@ +# Ireland vs. Israel (As Places to Live, That Is!) + +_(About a month ago — just when I was beginning my self-publishing voyage to show the world that I_[ _still exist_](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-branding-journey-and-how-to-keep-a-low-profile-online/) _—_[ _I wrote this rather detailed run-through of my thoughts about living in Ireland vs. in Israel after five years living in the latter._](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/ireland-vs-israel-my-thoughts-after-5-years/)_I’m reposting it to Medium, slightly re-edited, and in slightly abridged format)_ + +Having**lived in Israel for close on five years** at this point (or otherwise put, half a decade!), I think I am fairly well-placed to write up a comparison between Ireland and Israel as countries to live in. + +With just four hours until _Shabbat_([the Jewish Sabbath](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shabbat))_,_ the week here in Jerusalem is effectively done. + +So although I spend my days mostly [writing for clients](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com), I’m going to make a busman’s holiday out of my weekend and end it by writing this post. + +From left to right: the flags of [Taverne Du Dan](http://www.tavernedudan.club), a high-level Jerusalem-based Private Members’ Club, Ireland, and Israel. + +Although whenever the word ‘Israel’ is mentioned this becomes massively difficult (especially in Ireland!), **_I’m going to try keep this post as apolitical as possible_** — focusing instead on what I hope are non-controversial issues relating primary to quality of life. + +I am also going to try to be as unflinchingly honest and open as possible about my experience living in Israel. + +This is something which I am not good at and trying to improve on (and of course, it is rarely socially expedient to divulge _all_ one’s feelings!) + +For the purpose of simplicity — but without wishing to over-simplify a complex comparison — I’m going to divide this into two main sections: + + * Things I prefer about living in Ireland (Part One) + * Things I preferred about living in Ireland (Part Two) + +### Part One: Things I Prefer About Living in Israel + +### 1: The Weather Is A Lot Better! + +A glorious summer’s day in Jerusalem on a rooftop + +**(Editorial note: this section, and much of this post, was intended tongue-in-cheek!)** + +It wouldn’t be fair to begin a comparison involving Ireland and some other country without first mentioning the weather! + +Israel receives a _lot_ of sun ([3,304 hours of it per year, apparently](http://www.tel-aviv.climatemps.com/sunlight.php)) but — the population not consisting of sun-deprived Irish people — _some_ seem to perplexingly regard the weather as something they have become inured to rather than a phenomenon to enjoy. + +More perplexing yet, people do not drop work, family and social obligations to flock to the beach at the slightest hint of good weather. Nor do they engage in the time-honored Irish past time of frying themselves like lobsters whenever the weather is good because — as everyone from Ireland knows — _“it turns to tan eventually.”_ + +Of course, one’s desire to roast themselves lobster-red being significantly higher the less sun that person has access to, this is hardly surprisingly — desperation is a function of scarcity after all. + +However, having spent my fair share of time on the vaunted beaches of Tel Aviv, I am also convinced that said sun-aversion, when it is encountered, is significantly more predominant in the holy city of Jerusalem. + +Here, unlike those cool Tel Avivians, people prefer to bask in the ethereal glory of the holy scriptures rather than the light emanating from the solar system. + +To my eyes, **an astoundingly high proportion of the city’s denizens appear perennially ghostly pale** and also appear to hold the sun in pork-like contempt, lathering the highest-SPF sunscreen they can get their hands on at the slightest sign of good weather. These are usually the same people that waste no time in adjuring herds of following children about the dangers of the sun’s radiation. + +While observing, with curiosity, the sun-avoiding habits of much of Jerusalem’s citizenry over the years, I have determined that there is a direct correlation between one’s level of religiosity and the degree of one’s paleness. (This rule, however, does not apply to those of Sephardic or Mizrahi origin, who look as if they permanently have a sun tan regardless of their level of actual sun exposure). + +An aversion to sunshine and the great outdoors seems to be an accessory to traditional observant Jewish lifestyle, but one which I cannot help but believe is ancient in origin. + +As it says in _Bereishit (Genesis), 25:27:_ + +> _“And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field;_**and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents** _.”_ + +So there you have it — in black and white. + +Judging by their complexion, many of Jacob’s modern-day Jerusalemite descendants must indeed spend the vast majority of their time — if not the totality of it — learning in modern-day tents, following true to the old description. + +But coming back to the weather. + +A beautiful sunset and the top of a beautiful can of beer. What more could one hope for in life? + +Whatever our thoughts about Israel, we can probably all agree that sunshine is a blessing and, incidentally, Jerusalem’s climate is actually much more livable than that of Tel Aviv on several accounts: + + * **It has a dry summertime heat,** compared to Tel Aviv’s shirt-drenching humidity. I advise any Irish-person considering moving to Israel — who has not yet been deterred from doing so, that is — to make a pilot trip to Tel Aviv at the height of August, ideally staying in an Airbnb or hostel without air conditioning. + * **Jerusalem enjoys almost year-round cool evenings** thanks to its unique topography, nestled atop hills above the country’s central plain. (Tel Aviv, and most of the coast, does not cool down at night to an appreciable extent and the sheer heat can be overwhelming.) + +One facet I do find remarkable is the suddenness with which the seasons in Israel change — and I’m always amazed by their correlation with what is described in the Bible. + +Year and after year, the first rains seem to fall — just as the Torah foretells that they should — immediately after the beginning of the _Sukkot_ festival which commemorates the annual harvest. (Those less religiously inclined will surely be thinking that climates can, to a certain extent, be predicted; but the first rain seem to consistently fall around Sukkot which is only a week in duration). + +Ireland, by comparison to Israel, is permanently temperate, perennially cloudy, and usually somewhat wet — with only modest climatic variations by season. + +From an Israeli perspective, an Irish winter is cloudy and wet. An Irish summer is slightly-less-cloudy and slightly-less-wet. + +Of course, the sun-drenched and very predictable climate of Israel has an obvious downside to it ,which any Irish readers may already have predicted: **weather-related banter is sadly not a thing in Israel.** + +For those that are not aware, or who have not visited, the weather is a permanent conversation point in Ireland such that — when lost for what to talk about — one can fill minutes or even hours talking about the latest forecast, what temperature might be expected today, whether rain or sunshine is in store tomorrow, etc. + +Just as entertainingly, the weather forecast itself is anticipated very earnestly and greeted with hushed silence when it comes on the television after the evening news. + +Likewise, television forecasters accrue near celebrity status and — [as I reported years ago for IrishCentral](https://www.irishcentral.com/opinion/others/weather-forecaster-in-surprise-apology-after-raining-on-nations-hopes-of-sunshine-126009248-238094721) — forecasters occasionally even have to issue public apologies when their prognostics go amiss. + +In Israel, a country with almost uninterrupted sun, things are a little differently. + +Feeling sentimental, I once attempted to initiate a typical Irish discussion with an otherwise very talkative Israeli coworker that went something like this: + +> **Me:** Lovely day we’re having, isn’t it? + +> **_Co_ worker: **(Perplexed silence for 20 seconds because the last 100 days could also have been described as “lovely”.) + +### 2: Living A (Much) More Vibrant Jewish Life + +Whenever I have discussed some of the deficiencies of life in Israel with my friends from Ireland (who are, along with the vast, vast majority of Ireland’s population, not Jewish) I can’t help but remember that this point is not factoring into their conscience. + +This must make my decision to continue living here seem slightly inexplicable at times. Because this weighs so heavily on the “pro” side for me. + +**My very reason for moving to Israel stemmed, in large part, from the desire to live in a country in which I was not the “odd one out” — or part of a tiny ethno-religious minority (Irish Jews).** + +As I mentioned in [my blog’s about page](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/about/), which I recently re-wrote, I grew up in Cork, Ireland, a city now almost bereft of any permanent Jewish presence — but still pretty bereft when I lived there! ([I recommend this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8EX2YruHEg) to anybody interested in the subject; a younger version of me with a much thicker accent makes a cameo appearance). + +To the best of my knowledge, I was the only Jewish student at my secondary school. This necessitated doing things such as receiving exemptions from religious studies classes that, frankly, felt awkward. + +There are those that relish or are at least not bothered by the idea of being “special” (which often confers the responsibility to represent that minority community) and those that consider it to be a burden. Call me a contrarian, overly self conscious, or a pessimist (I am actually all three, thank you very much!) but I have always sat squarely in that second category. I wanted to be the same — not the exception. + +I don’t want this to come across the wrong way. + +The secondary school I went to was great (that’s ‘high school’ for my American friends — and more about American English’s strange dominance in Israel later!) My days there were some of the happiest of my life. + +Growing up in Cork was, overall, a similarly positive experience, and my friends in Ireland remain as close or closer than many of those I have made in Israel. Irish people will always get other Irish people in a way that Israelis — or many other nationalities — often don’t. + +**For as long as I can remember (or probably, more accurately, since I participated in a Birthright trip!), I wanted to live in a country where there was no obvious dissonance, internal or external, between my religion and my nationality.** That dissonance, I believe, exists almost obviously whenever one puts the words ‘Irishman’ and ‘Jew’ in the same sentence. + +I wanted to live in a country where I felt that I _belonged_. + +One where I didn’t have to request time off work or school to celebrate religious holidays. + +Or live in a special part of town to be close to a Jewish community or a synagogue (for those of you that don’t know, that’s the Jewish diaspora in a nutshell). + +### I Moved Here to Be ‘The Same’ (I Think) + +Keeping kosher in the diaspora typically involves seeking out a few overpriced kosher-certified restaurants — if they exist — or subsisting on cans of tuna and crackers if they don’t. In Israel, everything from falafel stands to McDonalds are kosher. + +If you are Jewish and share this desire for _sameness_(which is strange, because in many other respects I am a non-conformist), then the list of countries that meets that criteria is very small (hint: there’s only one!). + +This, of course, is a little different to the classic arguments often advocated for Zionism (“ _the Jews need a country because of the Holocaust”_). But it is also, in my opinion, merely the other half of the same coin. + +**Judaism, as a religion, is intended to be practiced in a community setting** and — however you cut it — it doesn’t translate well to a Diaspora environment. + +According to a majority opinion in Jewish law, 26 of the 613 _mitzvot (_ commandments in the Jewish Torah) can only be fulfilled within the territorial confines of the Land of Israel. + +**Judaism and the Land of Israel are inextricably linked.** + +And so, in my view, so long as doing so is at least remotely possible, the only logical place in which to live, as a Jew, is in that very land — or specifically in its modern incarnation, which is the State of Israel. + +### My Ideological Motives For Being Making Aliyah + +[As I noted in the about page](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/about/) of my blog, I have read, considered, and attempted to digest such wildly divergent arguments as those advanced by True Torah Jews and _Eim_[ _HaBanim Smeichah_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eim_HaBanim_Semeicha) (the latter highly recommended!) — grappling with the question of how, religiously, the modern State of Israel should be conceived. + +I still haven’t entirely reconciled that debate internally, but these days (with some reservations about the constitution of the government and many of its actions) I sit far more closely towards the “ _it’s a good thing”_ side of the spectrum. + +Living a fulfilled religious Jewish life requires proximity to religious institutions, the provision of _kosher_ meat (for carnivores), and the availability of a community (for everybody). + +Within the framework of a non-Jewish majority — the necessary and only paradigm for Jewish life for the 2,000 years prior to the creation of the State of Israel — I see no other means for those factors to exist other than within a _ghetto_ environment. + +And — at least to my mind — ghettoization and racial segregation sounds like a very quick path towards creating deep-running societal divisions and animosity. (_Editorial note 1: I am not too blinded by ideology to not realize that these very same charges could be leveled against internal divisions in Israeli society._) + +Human nature being human nature, many choose the path of lesser resistance and simply opt to subsume into the majority. Assimilating, but often losing their religious identity in the process. + +**For this reason alone — and to give people at least the _option_ of avoiding that fate should they not want to choose it — I support Zionism**, which I understand as the Jewish people’s movement to re-establish a permanent presence in their ancient historical homeland. + +Instinctively and viscerally, I react against any argument in favor of the State’s existence that is predicated upon any external cause, such as the Holocaust and the threat of anti-Semitism — however well-intentioned those advancing such arguments might be. + +**_(Editorial note 2: this means supporting Israel as a construct and affirming its right to exist_** _, despite some of the consequences of its founding. It also does not extend to espousing every one of the government’s policies.)_ + +More concretely than the above, living in Israel resolves most of the issues of maintaining Jewish observance. + +This photo (Wikimedia Commons) captures pretty accurately what Jerusalem looks like halfway through the afternoon before Shabbat. I really miss “proper” weekends! + +In fact, **the only part of being Jewish that I find harder in Israel is (ironically) preparing for _Shabbat_** — because in West Jerusalem, with a heavily religious Jewish majority, virtually everything is closed by mid-afternoon. + +During the short days of winter, this can mean —sometimes infuriatingly, even for somebody that keeps _Shabbat_ — that virtually all supermarkets and shops are shuttered by as early as 1 PM in the afternoon on the first day of the weekend. The shops open, buses start running again, and ‘normal’ life resumes only after sunset on Saturday evening, 24 hours later. And by then, the ‘weekend’ is almost finished. + +In truth, however — and despite the above — I would not be adverse to the idea of moving to another country solely because it wasn’t Israel, at least on a temporary basis. + +I think that Israelis moving abroad for better financial and career opportunity, with the intention of returning (a conversation I have been having with myself for the past five years), is not necessarily a bad thing at all— rather, it is the way of the modern world. + +This kind of migration pattern has been a staple of Irish life for decades. + +But in Israel — where Jewish migration is so bound up with demographic arguments and the question of the country’s future— emigration is often subject to the unfortunate and unjustly pejorative judgment that surrounds the entire question of _yeridah_ (_lit._ “descent”; meaning: leaving Israel). + +A former prime minister once famously and disdainfully branded those who chose that route _“the fallout weaklings”_. + +If I were to leave, however, I would definitely want to live somewhere with a more substantial Jewish community than that which I knew in Cork — if only so that I wouldn’t have to be a vegetarian again! + +### 3: There Are _Some_ Cultural Aspects Of Life in Israel Which I Prefer + +I will get to the cultural aspects which I _don’t_ like about Israel shortly. + +But firstly let me list those which I do: + + * **Everything in Israel is very frank**. Hierarchies, where they exist, tend to be loose. If you’re trying to find the right contact at a company, for example, getting through to the CEO is typically not that difficult. Contrary to common perception, this does not mean that a concept of hierarchy does not exist. Rather, hierarchies are not impediments to accessibility in the same way that they are in many other countries and a strong collective spirit tends to be dominant within workplaces (this is evidenced by the fact that Israelis are very fond of eating lunch, huddled in a group, in a boardroom of the office every day!). + * As a result of the above (and not by coincidence, I’m sure), **disagreements tend to get resolved very quickly in Israel**. On the flip side, this societal openness (in my opinion) leads to a far higher incidence of vocal disagreements between people than one encounters in Ireland or most non-Middle-Eastern cultures. This is the side of the _“isn’t it great that everybody is so direct!”_ coin that sails over tourists’ heads when they visit Tel Aviv for a few days and spend most of their time lying on the beach (rather than waiting in line at the delightful _Doar Yisrael_ — Israel’s national postal service). As somebody originally from Ireland, fond of gentler means of conflict resolution, avoiding such issues altogether, or even, I’m sad to say — resorting to classical Irish passive aggression — I find the sense of constant fighting, gesticulating, and the sheer amount of altercations one encounters on a daily basis somewhat jarring and mentally exhausting (Israelis jokingly refer to this general atmosphere of chaos as ‘ _balagan’_ ; and many, including the author, slowly grow to like it!) + * **Self-criticism is okay**. Immigrants to Israel, irrespective of where they originate from, tend to land in Ben Gurion Airport wearing rose-tinted glasses — encouraged to move here by organizations that often do the same (my Jewish Agency emissary, in the London office, must have been the exception as she seemed to be doing her utmost to deter me from moving to Israel!) . Although I have not made as many Israeli friends as I have fellow ex-pats, this is one of the reasons I have often preferred their company. Israelis (and popular Israeli satires such as[ _Erets Nehederet_](https://www.mako.co.il/tv-erez-nehederet), for that matter) see Israel as it is — deficiencies and positives — and there is no stigma against pointing out some obvious defects, such as the domestic price-gouging and poor customer service everybody that lives long-term in Israel unfortunately becomes inured to. This (and the encouragement of my table companion at a recent wedding who spent an hour advising me to be “authentic every day”) is partially why I’m not afraid to write this post even if it might ruffle some feathers among Israeli clients — current or prospective. Criticism of Israel by those living here is well-tolerated and sometimes even encouraged. Besides the fact that I originally intended to become a journalist, and hold a degree in it, this is a reason why I find Benjamin Netanyahu’s constant vilification of the media — and his sometimes brazen trumpeting of Israel’s successes — so disappointing and antithetical to what I see as traditional Jewish values of modesty, introspection, and thoughtful self-criticism — the latter two being essential ingredients to the broader Jewish remit of _tikkun olam_. I think that Israel is a great country all things considered, particularly given the turbulent security environment it has been forced to operate within. But I’m not sure that Prime Minister Netanyahu [bragging about the awe of the “Jewish genius”](https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/191147-181217-netanyahu-israel-can-reach-any-target-in-middle-east-with-offensive-missiles) is the best look for us. + +### 4: (Vastly) Better Healthcare + +If you’re fond of visiting doctors and taking prescription medications, then Israel is a pretty good place to find yourself. + +As an asthmatic, myopic, and all-round-hypochondriac, I have put Israel’s health services through their paces — and overall, I have pretty good things to say (except my recent hospital stay for gallbladder surgery — that was terrible, and one should ask questions about any hospital system in which hiring private nurses is the standard means of achieving patient care!). + +Unsurprising given that this is the Startup Nation, Israel’s healthcare system makes liberal use of Electronic Medical Records (EMR). Because Israelis are so informal, you can basically demand everything from antibiotics and steroids to benzodiazepines from your family doctor without having to leave the comfort of your living room* + +Healthcare in Israel is: + + * **(Usually) cheap.** Everything from prescription medications to doctors visits are highly subsidized. My asthma inhaler and stomach acid drug both cost a fraction of what they would in Ireland. I _love_ the fact that I don’t have to think about the cost of either when deciding if I should go to the doctor because my breathing is bad — or whether I need Singulair for allergic asthma or whether I could “live without it” this season. + * **Quick.** I’ve been referred to surgeons and pulmonologists and on both occasions received an appointment _within a week —_ and at a nearby clinic. Compare this to the months or often (shameful) years-long waiting times to see consultants in Ireland’s national health service, the HSE. + * **Online:** You can do everything from book doctors appointments to receive blood test results to ask for prescription refills directly from an online interface. Israel has four health funds (_kupot_) and each citizen needs to be registered to one by law. I am with Macabbi. If you feel like spicing things up a bit, you’re allowed to change fund twice a year. + +The easy and affordable access to healthcare in Israel is something that I do not take for granted — and it scares me to thin how stressful it might be to live in a country, like the US, that doesn’t have the safety net of socialized medicine for people to fall back upon. + +Yes, like everything in Israel, at times, it can be needlessly bureaucratic. Systems that should work together, I have found, are sometimes disjointed. And care from socialized medicine providers can feel cursory. + +But overall, it’s a hugely positive facet of living here and something I try to be thankful for every day. + +_*I hope my weird sense of humor is coming through at least partially. You can’t actually do this._ + +### 5: Better Food! + +If you’re into falafel, check out JerusalemFalafelTrail.fun. There are more than 100 fried chickpea establishments dotted throughout the city. + +At the confluence of so many world cultures, and home to a huge mix of nationalities, Israel is a particularly good place to be for somebody seeking to try out world cuisines. + +As I have, by now, set my curmudgeon credentials on full display, I have three interjections to make here: + + * **I don’t think there’s anything particularly special about _humus_** — even at supposedly the best _humus_ places in the country. It’s a decent side dish, in my opinion. And that’s about it. + * **I don’t think a lot of what’s considered classic Israeli cuisine is all that good** — although I do love many of the immigrant cuisines that are popular here. Exceptions: falafel, tahini. How I love tahini! + * For the most part, **Israelis have a very low tolerance for spicy food** despite their protestations to the contrary (notable exception: Yemenites!). If you’re also a chilli-addict, you need to really emphasize this incredibly to get a nicely incendiary falafel (key phrase to repeat: _ohd ha-reef,_ which means more spicy!) Or else go to a [Yemenite-run falafel establishment ](https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g293983-d6844594-Reviews-The_Yemenite_Falafel-Jerusalem_Jerusalem_District.html)and tell them to make it like you’re from Sa’ana. + +Israelis eat a diet that is replete with _fresh_ ingredients, which is where I see its cuisine differing most significantly from Ireland. + +The culture of microwaving ready-made meals from Dunnes Stores or Marks and Spencer thankfully hasn’t arrived to Israel yet. Israeli foods, in general, make spartan use of preservatives (you see this most tangibly in the speed with which supermarket bread goes moldy here. During the summer months, if you leave pita on the counter, it can be moldy by the morning). + +Additionally, as a keen fruit enthusiast, Israel grows many excellent varieties of fruit — although the seasonality of when that is available is another stark contrast to Ireland. Is it orange season or watermelon time? The price difference from month to month can be extraordinary. + +Thankfully, Israel’s large Ethiopian community have opened numerous restaurants throughout the country and I have spent plenty of enjoyable evenings cramming _misir wot_ wrapped in _injera_ down my throat. That’s a cuisine I’m particularly fond of. + +On the downside, there are relatively few Indian and Chinese restaurants — or traditional takeaways — and far too many _falafel_ restaurants and pastry bakeries in the country! + +[Three-in-ones](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=3%20in%201) you will sadly be hard-pressed to find here. + +But there’s falafel. Lots and lots of falafel. + +### 6: Proximity to Interesting Countries + +Taba, Sinai, Egypt + +This is something I wish I had time to take more advantage of — and hope that one day I will. + +Although Israel’s neighbors are commonly cited as “disadvantages”, or “problems” I’d like to propose a different perspective — at least for earnest travellers. + +I’ve been learning Arabic for a few years and the fact that, living in Israel, you can take a bus and taxi and find yourself in Egypt is greatly exciting to me for this reason. + +I visited Taba, just across the border from Eilat, last summer. + +Although I wouldn’t recommend the food poisoning, I can say great things about the beach and snorkeling options there — and value for money is infinitely (and refreshingly!) so much better than in the Israeli resort of Eilat just 5km up the coast. + +Speaking of places you can hop on a bus to from Israel, did you know that there was once a [direct bus line between Jerusalem and Cairo](https://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/forums/middle-east/topics/direct-bus-from-jerusalem-to-cairo)? + +Sadly, for obvious reasons (the security situation in the Sinai and the entrenchment of ISIS-affiliates in parts of the peninsula being the big ones), it no longer operates. + +Other easy and relatively inexpensive local trips you can make from Israel: + + * **Turkey** (I visited Antalya and would go back solely to pick up more of my [amazing automatic Turkish coffee makers](http://www.arzumokka.com/product/okka-minio/)) + * **Jordan** , including _Wadi Rum_ and Petra. (I’ve heard that Aqaba and Amman are both relatively uninteresting) + * **Cyprus** + * **Italy** + +### Part Two: Things I Prefer About Living in Ireland + +### 1: Some Cultural Aspects + +Ireland’s national carrier (Aer Lingus) and Israel’s one (El Al) on adjacent stands. I can’t remember what European airport I took this from, but I think it was Zurich (LSZH) + +No two ways to put this. + +**By comparison to Israel, Ireland is a far more easy-going culture.** + +When I reach Ireland after the usual stopover in some European city (this is soon to change — [El Al are launching direct flights](https://www.elal.com/en/Ireland/Deals/Pages/Dub-TLV.aspx)!), I feel as if someone has turned down the volume on the speaker of life. + +And I mean this as a good thing! + +### Israelis Love to Argue. The Irish Love to Get Along (But I’m Not Sure Either is Necessarily Better Any More) + +**Israelis (Jews?) prioritize advancement and learning through heated argument and rapid conflict resolution** (open a page of the Talmud if you don’t know what I’m talking about!). + +If you don’t know what I’m talking about, [visit this link](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4629380,00.html). This is obviously an extreme example of abuse rather than argument. + +In Israel, where there is a higher concentration of Jews than anywhere else on the planet, this dynamic is naturally amplified. + +In turn, this creates an environment of constant [_balagan_](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=balagan) __ — which roughly translates to “chaos” in English. + +**The Irish — by way of very stark contrast — are fond of “getting along” in a spirit of easy and sometimes artificial congeniality.** + +Of course, this is all crude racial stereotyping — and needless to say there are plenty of exceptions that don’t fit this bill to be found among people from both cultures. + +As time goes by and my recollection of Irish culture grows more distant, I have come to believe that this has a downside to it in itself — such that I would no longer automatically say that one way of living is preferable to the other (although one is certainly easier on one’s hearing!) + +**In Ireland, I believe that genuine disagreements are far more likely to go unresolved than in Israel** and there’s less of a tendency to do something different, to mark oneself out, which is partially why I think Israel’s startup ecosystem is so more vibrant than Ireland’s (although there are certainly similarities, and enormous potential for synergy, between the two — and Ireland is home to a significant number of innovative startups.) + +As somebody that has had to learn (the hard way) to become a lot more assertive since moving here — an ongoing and difficult process — I believe that this is just as often a criticism to be leveled against individual people rather than society as a whole. But there is certainly a level at which it is collective too. + +The Irish are noticeably far less aggressive than the Israelis but can also sometimes be a good deal more judgmental. + +Failure, in the Startup Nation, is not so much a badge of shame to wear as it is what happened in your life or business before you took a pivot. + +In Ireland, those that have experienced life’s travails a little more harshly than others might be looked down upon as ‘failures’ or not given a second chance. + +_Sometimes_ that is. Again — generalizations with plenty of exceptions on both sides. + +The Irish are known for their friendliness, which goes well with the country’s fondness for pub culture and drinking in social environments. + +This is something which I miss and I think that a lot of Israelis could learn from — or at least copy the good aspects. + +### Israelis Are Obsessed With Aping America. The Irish Are Not + +Enough said. [Details here.](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-48656431) + +Finally, unlike in Israel, the Irish seem to have no particular obsession with the US — although I would also disagree with those who would claim that the Irish are inherently anti-American. (I should point out that I interned at, and wrote for, Irish-America’s largest media publication for several years.) + +Perhaps the result of decades-long relentless government propaganda about the _“special relationship”_ — or its more modern soundbite the _“unbreakable alliance” —_**I think that Israelis have developed a slavish cultural fetish for everything American which, to me, feels quite obsequious.** + +Besides _Bibi_(Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu)__ and now his son, Yair Netanyahu, waxing continuously that Israel has _“no better friend”_ than the US,**Israelis tend to talk in English with a phoney American accent** — the result of both America’s hegemony over international English-language media and, I believe, a conscious desire to unquestioningly ape everything that comes from across the Atlantic. + +Israel is kind of like a country-sized _Gaeltacht_ for Hebrew-speakers — but one in which Hebrew is actually spoken and with plenty of monoglots in everyday existence. I dislike Modern Hebrew’s butchering of words “borrowed” from other languages and the Ashkenazi-dominated pronunciation with its heavy gutturals, but it’s undeniably an impressive and unprecedented feat of linguistic revival. + +I like the fact that Ireland is, by and large, confident in itself, its own people, and its own culture, and doesn’t need to seek external validation from Uncle Sam for that (although, of course, the US remains a major benefactor of Israel and it would be naïve to pretend that political dynamics don’t have a lot to do with this too). + +Although efforts to revive the Irish language have not enjoyed anywhere near the same measure of outstanding success that Ben Gurion’s revival of Hebrew has (although sorry to be cantankerous again, but given the state of Modern Hebrew I sometimes take issue with calling it a “revival” at all!), both cultures take a large measure of pride in their tradition and in a slight sense of separateness from surrounding societies. And there’s a good reason for that: both cultures need English to do business with the world, but only Israel needed to revive a second tongue in order to create a _lingua franca_ for immigrants from all over the world. + +Finally — and in stark contrast to their adulation of the US — I believe that many Israelis have an unfortunate _“us against the world”_ mentality that sees themselves and President _Tramp_(that’s ‘Trump’ pronounced with in Israeli English) as lone global allies pitted in an intractable war against tracts of anti-Semites. + +Ireland — or make that the whole of Europe — are by default perceived as ‘hostile’ territories that (justifiably or not) are viewed as having an inherent antipathy to the Jewish State’s mere existence. + +The reality, as I have experienced it, is that while some in Ireland _are_ indeed belligerently opposed to Israel’s mere existence, a larger percentage of the population don’t really care about the issue. + +A larger percentage again, I believe, take issue with many policies of the Israeli government without subscribing to anti-Semitic tropes, harboring any ill-will towards Jews, or denying the country’s right to exist. + +This “us against them” dynamic is reflected daily in the mainstream Israeli news coverage which is replete with reports of anti-Semitism from around the world; news concerning Jews abroad that would be considered wholly irrelevant if not for their religion; news about the security situation; and not a whole lot of anything else. + +While the Irish are justifiably widely believed to be ‘anti-Israel’ in their politics, the comments section which follows any coverage documenting Ireland’s political moves against the State of Israel often descend into unfortunate racial slurring and ad-hominem attacked leveled against the Irish (usually) by a small but vocal minority of far right-wing Jews. + +This is something I find both personally offensive and greatly disappointing. + +### However — They’re Not Entirely Different + +**Israelis are often called _sabras_** __ — hard on the outside and soft on the inside, like the eponymous fruit from which the term was coined. + +Like a surprising amount of stereotypes, I have found this to be largely true. + +Despite their obvious differences, I actually believe that there are quite a few similarities between the Irish and the Israelis once you begin to scratch the surface — and get past being flabbergasted by the crude differences which I have sketched above. + +Israelis love to complain about Israel (_ahem_) while talking about the greater opportunity that their well-off relatives in America supposedly enjoy. + +The Irish, for their part, often have a “the grass is greener” attitude about relatives in the very same places. (Bear in mind that Brian Friel’s _Philadelphia Here I Come_ was mandatory reading in my secondary school.) + +Speaking of the countless meaningless platitudes that exist in both English and Hebrew, there are even some phrases “ _hakol yiyeh b’seder”_(everything will be okay) and “ _it will be grand_ ” that are virtually analogous. + +### Shitat HaTazliach — (Screwing the Freier!) + +This has no relevance to the text, but an Irish flag on display at HaTaklit (“The Record”) — my favorite bar in Jerusalem. Murphy’s and Magner’s (AKA Bulmers) on tap! + +Finally, there’s one cultural dynamic in Israel that is difficult to explain but which I am not fond of — and which I should mention for the sake of giving a thorough cultural comparison. + +[It’s called (in Hebrew) _shitat mazliach_ which literally means “the path of success”.](https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%A9%D7%99%D7%98%D7%AA_%D7%9E%D7%A6%D7%9C%D7%99%D7%97) + +**I prefer to call it “ _screwing the freier”!_** + +It’s rarely been written about (at least in English) but is closely tied in to the concept of _freierism_ , its more famous linguistic cousin, which certainly _has_ been discussed, at least in Jewish quarters. + +Being a [_freier_](https://www.haaretz.com/.premium-word-of-the-day-freier-1.5224434) (pronunciation: fr-EYE-er; and no, it’s not a cooking implement) means — roughly — being a sucker or a pushover. + +In other countries — such as when you let somebody at the supermarket go ahead of you because you’re doing your weekly shopping for a family of ten and he’s buying a six-pack of canned tuna — this is know as “ _just trying to be considerate/nice_ “. + +Israelis go to enormous lengths to avoid accruing that label such that _“not being a freier”_ has become an all-pervading national paranoia. + +Otherwise decent people may act callously — or drive like maniacs and refuse to let another vehicle ahead of them in traffic— simply because they are petrified that by doing so they may be embarking on a slippery behavioral slope which will end with them being the human equivalent of a doormat. + +Its origin? + +Some explain Israelis’ aversion to being a _freier_ as a sort of collective residual trauma from the persecution of the Holocaust (in other words: look how well-mannered and cultured German Jews were before the Holocaust and how far that got them. Let’s learn from that). + +Others will tell you that it’s a reactionary aggression prompted by the often unfair vilification and double standards that Israel is subjected to in the international arena. + +Whatever the cause, the result is the adoption of a sort of societal defensive posturing in which people are often highly suspicious of anybody’s true motives because … they don’t want to be the next _freier_ in line. + +It can be fascinating to observe. + +Sadly, observance of the law often falls into this category too. + +Israelis have grown accustomed to living in a country that often feels and functions like something of a banana republic and laws are often perceived as mere recommendations rather than edicts for acceptable behavior. + +Strict adherence to the letter of the law — such as meticulously running yoru business above board — is another typically “Western” _frier_ behavior that Israelis are not fond of emulating. This phenomenon might also explain why Israel has a corruption problem. + +And then there’s another dimension. + +What the _fraier_ -avoiders are trying so assiduously to avoid is falling victim to _shitat_ m _azliach_ which roughly translates to _“chancing one’s arm.”_ + +But, put a little more elaborately, it really means: _“asking somebody to do something entirely unreasonable, and hoping they say yes” (because they are a frier)._ + +If they are inded a _frier_ and say yes — you win (hence the name)! + +If not — nothing lost save a minor dent on your self-respect. + +(There’s a translation for this tactic that I prefer: taking advantage of people!) + +Salary negotiations are another thorny cultural issue for immigrants to contend with in which this dynamic is constantly at play. + +In Israel, it’s expected for the candidate to demand a slightly to substantially unrealistic stretch salary which the Israeli employer will by default then haggle down until you reach the actual salary the company is prepared to offer. Alternatively, the Israeli employer will tender a salary offer far below market value hoping the _frier_ candidate will say yes — but a seasoned job-seeker must know to play them at their own game. + +Perhaps I’m just a bad negotiator, but personally, I find this process obnoxious and would much rather state a salary expectation and then stick to my guns — neither expecting more nor prepared to settle for less. But I have been told by recruiters that this would be highly inadvisable. + +Some further manifestations of this attitude — at both the governmental and individual level include: + + * _Many_ Israelis rarely apologize — for anything at all. + * _Many_ Israelis, and Israel, are _always right_. This can be kind of obnoxious. + +### 2: Ireland Has A More Favorable Cost of Living + +Ireland is not cheap but, by comparison to Israel, I believe that it offers better value for money. + +And (for most workers not in the IT space, that is) I would argue**_a higher real income._** + +To truly understand why, you need to look at the big picture and understand a few concurrent factors at play in modern Israel: + + * **Israel has developed one of the**[**highest costs of living in the developed world**](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-cost-of-living-among-highest-in-developed-world-report-finds/)**** — probably a result of the unfettered capitalism brought in by successive Netanyahu governments and in stark contrast to the country’s socialist underpinnings. + * **According to the Taub Center’s _State of the Nation Report_ Israel’s price index is 23% higher than the OECD average** (an index commonly used as a yardstick for judging economics in the developed world.) + * To compound that national trend, the Economist Intelligence Unit [**recently named Tel Aviv the world’s 10th most expensive city**](https://www.timesofisrael.com/tel-aviv-named-worlds-10th-most-expensive-city/), sharing that dubious “honor” with Los Angeles and coming in three places behind New York. Jerusalem is a little further down the league table, but not by all that much. + +_However:_ + + * **Salaries in Israel are typically low** — a common figure cited is “ _25% less than the West”_ , although I’ve never been able to corroborate that with an actual statistic. To anyone that lives here, or comes from a Jewish community with ties to Israel, this is simply a known fact, roughly akin, in controversialality, to affirming that the sky is blue. + +Another day, another Facebook group poster starting a discussion about the cost of living and salaries. I can tell you that this discussion is happening all the time — both online and in ‘real life’. + + * [**Ireland’s “average salary”**](https://www.thejournal.ie/readme/opinion-64-of-workers-in-ireland-earn-less-than-the-average-salary-4562071-Apr2019/)**stands at €37,646** at the time of writing ([source: CSO](https://www.thejournal.ie/readme/opinion-64-of-workers-in-ireland-earn-less-than-the-average-salary-4562071-Apr2019/)) vs. [11,004 NIS for Israel](https://www.timesofisrael.com/average-israeli-salary-rises-slightly-to-nis-11004-per-month/) (source: Central Bureau of Statistics). As salaries are quoted monthly in Israel, this first has to be annualized to give 137,568 NIS =**€34,991** at the time of writing. + * However, although the gap may seem small,**the Israeli figure is grossly inflated by salaries in “high tech”** , which is a rather narrow definition of jobs _directly_ involved in producing software and related products. It also has its own pay scale that differs wildly from the natural average. + * Those that track such statistics have computed a separate median and average for high tech, [which stands at 23,375 NIS (/month)](https://www.timesofisrael.com/average-israeli-salary-rises-slightly-to-nis-11004-per-month/) which is obviously more than double the national average. + * However (and here, again, is the kicker), **only**[**8.7% of Israelis work in high-tech**](https://nocamels.com/2019/08/israel-high-tech-workforce-promising-growth/) — which means, of course, that 91% of the economy does not. + +OECD indices aside, we all know that there is really only one way to compare the cost of living in two countries: **looking at the cost of own-brand supermarket pizzas!** + +Thankfully, the prevalence of online grocery shopping — and that wonderful thing called the internet — means that I can do this without having to travel to a branch of Tesco, one of the main supermarkets in Ireland. + +In Tesco, I can nourish myself / satiate the midnight munchies with a “hearty food cheese and tomato pizza” for the princely sum of just €0.47 (at today’s rate: 1.82 NIS): + +Srcreenshot: Tesco.ie + +The very cheapest thing I can nourish myself on in Israel, according to Shufersal Online, costs 11.90 NIS (€3.07): + +Screenshot: Shufersal Online + +**That means that according to the generic supermarket pizza price index (GSPPI), and without factoring in differences in consumer purchasing power, Israel is 6.5 times more expensive than Ireland.** + +The example I choose may be trivial, but you really feel the difference whenever you buy groceries. + +### And: Extra Charges Compound the Burn + +As if being unable to gorge on cheap supermarket pizzas weren’t enough punishment, there are many charges that exist in Israel which do not in other countries and which put a further dent in one’s disposable income. + +Consider that: + + * **Renters, rather than the owner, pay both an agent’s fee for finding a property** ([even though the fee has technically been illegalized](https://www.barlaw.co.il/client-updates/the-new-fair-rent-law-what-do-you-need-to-know/) — remember the point about _freiers_). Renters also need to pay a monthly municipality tax, called _arnona_. + * Although the personal income taxation burden (according to my calculations) is currently less than it is in Ireland, the tax on some items, such as new cars ([83% plus VAT](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-1000674116)!) is punitively highly. + +As a result of all this articles such as the Times of Israel’s [_“Sure you can make it in Israel — if your parents help, say economists”_](https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/) __ do not surprise me in the slightest. + +Nor do the remarks of Eitan Regev, an economist at the Taub Center for Social Policy Studies, which authored a series of policy papers on Israel’s widening income gap. As measured by the Geni co-efficient, Israel’s income inequality remains among the highest in the world. + +According to Regev’s synopsis of the think tank’s policy paper: + +> “Basically the story nowadays in Israel is that wealth and assets have become more important than hard work + +> “Unless you and your spouse both work in professions that put you in the top fifth of income earners (e.g. high-tech engineer, doctor, money manager), or you have pre-existing assets, then it’s not only hard to make ends meet, there’s also the desperation of not being able to see yourself on a probable path of getting ahead in life and saving money.” + +There are some other shocking nuggets which I have unearthed over the years. + +From the [TOI piece linked above](https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/): + +> “Gilad Brand looked at consumer prices in Israel and found that **relative to incomes, prices are higher here than in every OECD country except Japan.”** + +From a Media Line piece syndicated on Ynet,[ “Israeli parents forced to support adult kids”](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4429740,00.html): + +> “A new study by the [Taub Center for Social Policy](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4427136,00.html) finds that**87% of all Israeli parents help their adult children with finances.** “ + +The article continues: + +> “Dan Ben David, director of the Taub Center, says that in the United States, it takes 2.9 years of salary to buy the average apartment. In Israel, it takes 7.7. + +> ‘That’s if you don’t eat and don’t pay any taxes,’ he told The Media Line. “In Israel, we have higher taxes and lower salaries.” + +Mortgage down-payments, for Israel’s extremely expensive property stock, are also typically in the region of 30–40%, including for first-time buyers — unless they are lucky enough to win a government lottery. + +This, of course, compares unfavorably with Ireland’s average first-time buyer mortgage rate, which can be as low as 10%. + +To add to all this: + + * Hotel prices in Israel are among the most expensive in the world ([5th according to the Annual Hotel Price Index report](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4496744,00.html)). As a result, for many Israelis it is cheaper and preferable to fly to Europe than to have a staycation. As a result, and rather entertainingly, I now hear plenty of stories from friends about their Ryanair trips to Europe. (Ryanair is a low-cost airline founded in Ireland.) + +And finally, [a completely shocking statistic from _The Calcalist_ ](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3771884,00.html)published recently and which (judging by the lack of reaction) apparently has not raised many eyebrows. + +> _“A recent_[ _survey_](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3770080,00.html) _by Dun & Bradstreet Corp. revealed that _**_Israelis have on average a negative checking account balance of NIS 25,000_** _(approximately $7,090), and 5% are paying off at least five loans concurrently.”_ + +(This is what Israelis colloquially call “living in _meenoos_ “; _‘meen-ooss’_ is how ‘minus’, one of many loan-words in the lexicon, is pronounced in Hebrew): + +Although things will hopefully slowly get better as international competition continues to disrupt Israel’s countless monopolies and oligopolies, for the moment, Israel remains a very expensive country in which to live and work — and immigrants continue to often work two or more jobs simply to get by. + +On the whole, Israeli workers, relative to Irish ones, tend ot be under-remunerated and over-worked. + +### 2: Ireland Has Better Bars! + +On the plus side, Israel has a better selection of dilapidated lotto stands blasting loud Mizrahi (Eastern pop) music which you can also drink at. Here’s my favorite: [Etsel Shabi in Nahlaot, Jerusalem.](https://www.google.com/maps/place/%D7%90%D7%A6%D7%9C+%D7%A9%D7%91%D7%99%E2%80%AD/@31.7844247,35.2103754,15z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0xdd848a438f855a62?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwii6I2BlNTlAhWrBWMBHejmAXEQ_BIwZ3oECGAQCA) + +I enjoy pub culture and this is another aspect in which I think Ireland definitely outpaces Israel. + +However you cut it (pour it?) alcohol in Israel, like so much else, remains extremely expensive. + +Prices of 30–35 NIS (€7.63 — €8.91) for a _“chetzi”_(500ml measure, the Israeli equivalent of a pint, which of course is shorter than a pint by 68ml) are routine. For comparison, if that beer were sold in Ireland, [it would be the most expensive in the country!](https://evoke.ie/2018/08/14/food/most-expensive-pint-in-ireland-sold) + +(And don’t forget that, as the bold lettering on the receipt will certainly remind you, _“Service is Not Included.”_ Bar service in Israel is almost always mediated by wait staff — even just for drinks orders. Thus, one is forced into dealing with waiter or waitress service who will often have no qualms about making their displeasure evident if the tip proferred does not meet their expectations.) + +I’m not grumbling about the fact that Israelis drink less alcohol (which, unsurprisingly, they certainly do: [Israel’s per-capita alcohol consumption](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_alcohol_consumption_per_capita) stands at 2.3L/ethanol/person/year versus Ireland’s 11.9L, a more than five-fold difference. + +**Rather, besides the prices, my complaint is that pub culture seems to be limited almost entirely to city centers.** + +Suburbs, even inner ones, are virtually bereft of watering holes — which I find both bizarre and depressing as I’ve recently moved to one. + +The attitude of a recent taxi driver who I will paraphrase here, might explain a lot. He asked me why I was taking a taxi to a bar on the weekend so I asked him if he also enjoys pubs. To which he responded: + +> _“Drink? No, I don’t drink, you fool! I go to the spa every day to relax. It’s healthier, didn’t you know? There are no bars in the suburbs? Yes, you’re right about that, young man. That’s because drinking here is mostly for teenagers. Once people get married, they don’t go to bars anymore._ _How old are you? Get out of my taxi!”_ + +(Artistic license was used in trying to reconstruct this quote from memory). + +To add to this: + + * **From a personal finance perspective, there aren’t many advantages to living in Israel**. Israeli banks are notorious for charging high fees — and credit card companies offer extremely modest benefits relative to other international franchisees. The New Israeli Shekel (NIS) is of course a minor world currency — and for Israelis purchasing online this can lead to them constantly buying at unfavorable exchange rates. + * **Israeli** **consumer protection law** — like tenant protection law — is underdeveloped and its consumer protection body, The Israel Consumer Council, is a toothless beast. + * Israel being neither in the European Economic Area (EEA), the European Union (EU), nor the United States, **there are a lot of great FinTech products that Israelis also don’t have access to**. [I listed ](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/four-fintech-products-we-need-in-israel-but-cant-get/)a few in my blog. + +### 3: Ehhhh…… The Manners + +This stock image was not taken in Israel, I can assure you. Source: Wikipedia. + +Things in this respect are getting a lot better quickly, in my opinion, but add this to the list of stereotypes that (often) have quite a ring of truth to them. + +Again, this could be a Jerusalem vs. Tel Aviv thing (the denizens of Tel Aviv, being a more international city, are more _“evolved”_ as a former Israeli co-worker used to put it). + +I don’t want to dwell on this too much, but [this quite entertaining article](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israelis-are-blunt-and-rude-you-got-a-problem-with-that/) captures the dynamic rather well! + +### 4: Better Customer Service + +Don’t be deceived by the large amount of familiar international names operating in Israel. They are typically operating in Israel _through local franchisees_. As someone else put it, these companies are the same thing as their parent brand “in name only + +The other obvious deficiency of life in Israel**is the often appalling rude, demeaning “customer service” one eventually comes to regard as normal.** + +Consider the fact that, as mentioned, said goods are often unconscionably expensive (and of inferior quality; from my observations, Israel seems to get many of its imports from the same distribution chains that serve India and Turkey, which makes sense geographically). + +This slowly gnaws at you but becomes particularly infuriating after a while once you own an apartment-full of low-quality overpriced locally sourced appliances that have all broken down and none of which can be repaired as their customer service lines will either hang up the phone on you in protest or simply give you an earful for even having the temerity to ask them to do something about their goods. + +This week, for instance (while I was trying to destroy some paper trails) my Fellowes paper shredder jammed on some paper — at a number of sheets within its supposed limit. + +Although it was slightly more than a year after purchase, this was only the second time I had used the machine and I was hopeful for a warranty repair (particularly as this was the second time this had happened and the receipt indicated that a “limited warranty” applied between the first and second years after purchase). + +I decided to contact Fellowes directly, who promptly passed the case back to [“Getter Group”](https://www.getter-tech.co.il/), their Israeli representative. + +In the typically rude and demeaning style that typifies a lot of Israeli customer service — and without once apologizing — the agent told me off for having the temerity to even ask for a repair before promptly hanging up the phone on me. + +Perhaps I’m having reverse the-grass-is-greener syndrome but this is not an experience I can imagine having in Ireland! + +### 5: Better Professional Opportunities (For Many) + +Tel Aviv is a world epicenter for startups, but many are early-stage and use the local market as a sort of real-world incubator before planning State-wards expansions or moves into Europe, often leaving only a residual presence in Israel (Ireland can be similar in this regard). International companies’ R&D centers, and domestic giants such as Teva, tend to be based in slightly less glamorous locations, such as Hertzlia and Beer Sheva, but have much more staying power. + +When it comes to Israel and jobs, most assume that working in the ‘Startup Nation’ would be a dream come true for a young professional. + +Without wishing to sound overly pessimistic, I have mixed feelings about this, which I am jotting down only because I know countless other young immigrant professionals — from doctors and lawyers to fitness instructors and even artisan bakers— that feel the same way. + +In the [third most educated country in the world](https://nocamels.com/2018/02/oecd-israel-educated-world/), **Israel places very high value on _certain_ specific and hard skill-sets, such as Java programming and **[**even operating cranes in a port**](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5481092,00.html)**.**_(Click the link to the left for some very anomalous and intriguing fields that break the general low-pay paradigm for this very reason, in my opinion. It includes the employees of the national electricity company and crane operators at ports, organizations which perpetuate the country’s many monopolies by enforcing Israel’s many protectionist customs restrictions)._ + +In the army (remember, Israel remains a country of conscripts), everybody has a specific _tafkeed_ (role). The job market, as I perceive it, provides a pretty accurate civilian reflection of that. + +Not that that isn’t true everywhere, but I think that those looking at working here should understand that Israeli employers have comparatively little interest in academic credentials and are much more focused on what _skills_ you have and what you can offer their team. + +I love communications and writing — neither of which quite fit into the narrow box of being hard and decisively important skills and both of which, unfortunately, cannot be easily quantified for cash-tied startups keeping a hawkishly close eye over ROI. By comparison, although I have no taste for it, digital marketing and SEO salaries remain disproportionately inflated. + +And in a non-English-speaking country (again, my opinion), employers and companies tend to perceive the provision of “content” as akin to nothing more than a glorified translation service from Hebrew ideas into English copy. (My thoughts on why calling all writing ‘content’ degrades and devalues professional communications can constitute another post). + +In other words, the vast majority of marketing, communications and content roles I have seen tend to be very entry-level and junior — written by those who primarily need nothing better than a “native English speaker” to string some brochures together in the hope that they will catch the eye of an American investor and the whole operation can move Stateside. + +In other words, it’s not a framework in which I can see myself excelling and growing. + +Although not chief among them, this is one of the reasons why I am currently self-employed — helping companies in Israel, and abroad, who need something a little more sophisticated than ‘native-level English content’, but doing so as an independent contractor rather than any one company’s employee. + +Working as a contractor with a _mixture_ of international and Israeli clients, on the other hand, can be be quite rewarding and offers exposure to a lot of different industries at once — experiencing both the out-of-the-box thinking which Israelis startups are justifiably world famous for and a culture of steady professionalism which is often, I think, superior at international companies. + +### A Different Professional Environment + +Professionally, prospective immigrants should realize, the Israeli work environment is also very different to that which exists in Ireland and much of Europe. + +This has both positive and negative aspects. + +**The informality of the Israeli workplace makes it a very flat and Agile-friendly environment** in which to launch and build early-stage tech startups. + +But on the flipside, **a culture of professionalism is often sorely lacking**(Western immigrants often forcefully position themselves as torchbearers for the cause of improving this — often to the chagrin of their Israeli co-workers who have heard it all before from a previous hire who then …. left and moved back to the US). + +This has been both my experience and that of some international contacts I once knew who were seconded — from a multinational engineering firm — to work on a major infrastructural project here. + +They said that they favored the work environment of their home country for its culture of professionalism and were somewhat aghast at the remuneration of their Israeli colleagues doing comparable jobs. + +(Those thinking of working as foreign workers in construction rather than within the project management layer should be aware that safety standards at Israeli construction sites have [frequently been called into question](https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Israels-shameful-record-on-construction-fatalities-591323). And c[onsidering what emerged from whistleblowers](https://www.timesofisrael.com/ex-workers-slam-tel-aviv-jerusalem-fast-train-as-experiment-with-human-lives/) about the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv high speed train I have no reason to doubt their veracity.) + +Besides salary, working conditions in Israel tend to compare unfavorably with those in Ireland. + +Default office hours in Israel are long (45 hours per week vs. Ireland’s 39). + +More grievously, from my perspective, the county has a miserly legal minimum vacation day standard of just 12 days per year (aping the US — but without the salaries to match!) . Ireland’s, by comparison, is 28, not counting the number of public holidays and Bank Holidays (three day weekends!) interspersed throughout the calendar year. + +Did you know that the EU has a minimum holiday allowance for member states of 4 weeks? I’ve long argued that Israel needs to offer much more paid vacation to its employees — but even a measure to add three Bank Holiday style weekends to the working calendar couldn’t make it through the Knesset [without being torpedoed by unions](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/sundays-off-in-israel-proposal-deadlocked-1.5494088). + +Finally, the vast majority of public holidays in Israel are in fact “holy days” (Hebrew: Yom Tov). These are, in effect, religious celebrations — so shops and public transport generally do not run and those obeying religious law refrain from even using electricity. Even Chanukah, in Israel, is not actually a public holiday. + +You get the picture — Israel needs more time off! + +you understand Hebrew, you can understand why many English writers do not conceive of the Hebrew-speaking market as a particularly worthwhile one. Question: what is the market rate for a 1,000 word content article? First answer: the minimum, for 400–500 words, is 80 NIS ($22.90) + +As a result of all the above, although I neither downplay the success of Israel’s high-tech sector nor deny the fact that many succeed in making very high salaries in it, as a professional writer working in English I tend to think that, if I were interested in resuming employment in companies rather than for myself, my career opportunities could only improve by moving somewhere where English is the vernacular. + +A friend likes to say that (economically) Israel has taken the worst aspects of socialism and the worst aspects of capitalism and put them together! + +I’ll conclude this point with a piece of advice I’ve heard countless times by those far more experienced and knowledgeable than I in the art of making a good livelihood while living in Israel: + +**If you don’t work in high tech or want to work for yourself, the best way to work in Israel is to work for a foreign company!** + +### 6: Ireland Has Better Standards of Rental Apartments + +Given that I can’t envision owning property here in the near future, this is one that hits close to home (excuse the pun). + +Israeli rental apartments — at least those that are not furnished — tend to come with nothing more than an air conditioner on the wall (if that). + +The current apartment I live in, although of a relatively decent standard in an upscale Jerusalem neighborhood (and which, therefore, commands a respectable rent) does not **have a fitting for a dishwasher** because no one envisioned it would be needed. + +Clothes dryers are considered luxuries and the overall standard of both construction and repair work is atrocious and coupled with a unique _“the customer is wrong and needs to be argued with to prove that to him/her”_ attitude. + +There is actually a reason for all this that I only recently discovered. + +As the Taub Center researchers pointed out, capital assets are now more valuable than labor in Israel. + +Before the tech explosion shook things up, property in Israel used to be cheap, and many native-born Israelis comes from families that own multiple properties throughout the country — a few of which can be rented as investment properties to _freiers_ like I and my cohort of modern-day _olim_ to develop a nice source of passive income. + +**In short: Israel does not have a strong traditional culture of renting and those that own rentals tend to see them as _“turn-a-quick-buck”_ assets**. + +Like all landlords, Israelis do not invest in them as they might in their own homes, which I discovered as soon as I began being entertained in _real_ Israeli homes and standing aghast as I watched homeowners loading dishes into _dishwashers_ _—_ those cool machines they had back in Ireland that automatically do the dishes. + +Quite amusingly, plugs routinely simply pull out of walls in Israel because — for many years — loose vacuum fittings were the preferred means of wall mounting them. + +I gather that this happens whatever the relation to your dwelling might be. + +The spartan standard of rental apartments here is excellently and amusingly appreciated by visiting a very funny Facebook page called (in English) “[Apartments in Israel That Depress Me](https://www.facebook.com/dirot.medakot/)” which documents both the apartments themselves and the equally ridiculous behavior of slumlords, which I am well-acquainted with. + +### 7\. Better Drivers + +Driving in Israel is so stressful that I honestly sometimes miss the days when I didn’t have a car here. Etiquette and manners on the road are not much of a ‘thing’ in Israel: whoever pushes gets ahead. + +If you can get by without a car, or have high blood pressure, I recommend trying to get by with public transport for as long as you can. + +### Miscellaneous Other Things That I Think Ireland Does Better + +**Less second hand smoke:** Ireland was actually a world leader when it comes to banning secondhand smoke. + +It was the first country in the world to completely ban smoking in indoor workplaces — a category which, crucially, included restaurants and bars. + +Besides there being a lot more smokers in Israel, the ban on secondhand smoking is routinely openly flouted (see above remark in the _freier_ section about strict observance of laws being a typical _freier_ move). + +### And A Couple More Good Things About Israel + +As I cut this section of the blog short in order to not run into Shabbat and jumped straight to writing the conclusion, let me add in a few things that I missed and which I will develop upon at a later time. In my opinion: + + * Israel has better fruit! + * Israel has tastier food + +### In Conclusion + +This has been my rough comparison between Israel and Ireland. + +My chief complaint about Israel — and the only one which I think is worth dwelling on — remains the unreasonably high cost of living. + +If you want to know what most young Jewish immigrants struggle with most in the country — there it is. + +On the other hand, there are many aspects of living in Israel that I greatly enjoy and wish I would miss were I to leave. + +If, in the course of engaging in some grumbling and satire I gave the impression that I hate living here in spite of my Zionism I have failed in offering a fair evaluation. + +But when it comes to those genuine downsides which I have tried to elucidate let me say this. + +I know that countless immigrants share the exact same grievances and think that the culture of silence that often surrounds this whole issue (perpetuated by a vocal but sizable minority of __ immigrants __ who seem to view pointing out any flaws about Israel as tantamount to national treason) is detrimental to achieving necessary change. + +I think that Israel needs to continue to adapt to make it a viable and affordable home for future generations of Jews to not just subsist but to thrive in — including those that don’t have the luxury of generous parental subsidies and who don’t work in high-tech. + +If it doesn’t, I think that socioeconomic factors post almost as large a threat to the future of Zionism as external forces do. + +To put this post as succinctly as possible, living as an immigrant in Israel can be _very_ challenging — particularly during the first years — and many come unprepared for the struggle. + +Compared to the Irish emigrant communities I knew while living, briefly, in London and New York, the few Irish ex-pats I have met here (most not Jewish) tend to be a lot less gung-ho about it than those who call more conventional emigrant destinations — like London, New York, or even Australia — their adopted home. + +The most entertaining piece of advice for transversing those rough patches, however, was unsurprisingly given to me by an Irish guy living in the south of the country. + +He said something like this: + +> “It can be tough at times alright. When it’s tough, I drink a bit more. When it’s grand, I drink a bit less” + +Although I cannot endorse using alcohol as a coping mechanism, like many emigrants, I still feel very connected to Ireland and greatly and chiefly miss being close to family, friends and [_craic_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craic) — that unique breed of fun and humor encapsulated in that attitude that I have scarcely encountered here, at least as the Irish do it. + +At times, it can also be a lonely experience to live in one of the few countries in the world that has a vanishingly small Irish community (the few that are here tend to live around Tel Aviv and have wound up in Israel for romantic reasons following Israeli partners that they met while travelling or in Ireland. By and large, they are not here for idealistic reasons like me and most non-Irish immigrants.) + +Although on the plus side that forces me to tolerate the company of Americans and excludes the possibility of ever being drawn into an Irish bubble. One simply doesn’t exist to be drawn into. + +What change would I like to see taking place in Israel? + +A reduction in the cost of living first and foremost. + +Cheaper supermarket pizza to binge on at midnight. + +Customer service and better manners — in those places where they are oftenstill lacking — would be nice too. + +A few more days off wouldn’t go amiss too. + +As well as the countless other things I have glossed over or omitted entirely (over-regulation of small business, and the often stifling bureaucracy in general, is a big gripe). + +On the flip side, I enjoy a vibrant Jewish life here. + +I’m among the very first generations of Jews in more than two millennia to live a free Jewish life in a Jewish country and in the place where the Jewish people’s story all began. + +That same calendar of national holidays — with its days off that often don’t really feel like days off — reflects the calendar that I run my religious life according to and not those of another culture. + +And finally (it still feel fresh)— I’m the norm. + +I also get to live in a functional democracy with great healthcare, enjoy an (all things considered) high quality of life, and can enjoy a bottle of wine on my roof in sunshine for most of the year. + +At least to this immigrant, that’s worth an awful lot. diff --git a/posts/medium/Irish-parliamentary-motion--assert-that-Israel-has--no-place---among-the-international-community-.md b/posts/medium/Irish-parliamentary-motion--assert-that-Israel-has--no-place---among-the-international-community-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e3a8e031bf252d39b9587dc44cb6c92aee8b7e2a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Irish-parliamentary-motion--assert-that-Israel-has--no-place---among-the-international-community-.md @@ -0,0 +1,54 @@ +# Irish parliamentary motion: assert that Israel has “no place … among the international community” + +#### Opinion: Calling for the shunning of uniquely Israel from the international community and undoing its recognition as as country is naked anti-Semitism + +Israel: motion being debated in Irish parliament calls on government to assert that Israel “has no place … among the international community.” Photo: Zachi Evenor via Flickr + +The Irish Twittersphere is currently busily debating a private members bill (PMB) that, if passed, would require the government to expel the Israeli ambassador and all diplomatic staff from Ireland. + +As I observed a couple of days ago, Ireland is currently joined only by Jordan in seeking the forced closure of an Israeli embassy as a form of retribution for Israel’s latest war of self-defense in Gaza. + +But it’s not the shameful claims that Israel was engaging in “ethnic cleansing” or is an Apartheid state that concern me. + +It’s not the fact that a piece of what looks like a classic piece of Hamas propaganda is being debated in Ireland’s parliament and is coming adorned with the appearance of political legislation. + +It’s actually the following, taken from the private members bill (PMB): + +The legislation calls upon Ireland’s parliament to assert that Israel — or rather what the legislators describe as the “Israeli apartheid system — “has no place among the international community of nations.” + +[Read the full private members bill here.](https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/dail/2021-05-25/9/) + +### Naked Antisemitism Being Debated In Irish Parliament + +The fact that the proposed legislation would be a non-binding declaration and is unlikely to pass — at least without amendment — doesn’t reassure me. Not one bit. + +The shameful, inciteful and inflammatory text that attempted to depict Israel as evil incarnate through amending legislation stands on the record. It was what was intended to be passed. And it was dressed up in the language of parliamentary legislation and formerly debated. + +[**People Before Profit Submit Amendment To Palestine Motion Calling For Sanctions And Expulsion Of…** + _People Before Profit have submitted an extensive amendment to a Private Members Motion on Palestine which is to be…_ www.pbp.ie](https://www.pbp.ie/people-before-profit-submit-amendment-to-palestine-motion-calling-for-sanctions-and-expulsion-of-israeli-ambassador-for-war-crimes-ethnic-cleansing-and-apartheid/ "https://www.pbp.ie/people-before-profit-submit-amendment-to-palestine-motion-calling-for-sanctions-and-expulsion-of-israeli-ambassador-for-war-crimes-ethnic-cleansing-and-apartheid/")[](https://www.pbp.ie/people-before-profit-submit-amendment-to-palestine-motion-calling-for-sanctions-and-expulsion-of-israeli-ambassador-for-war-crimes-ethnic-cleansing-and-apartheid/) + +The official call for the ostracization of Israel from the international community — with an initial set of actions including the expulsion of one of its embassies flowing from that — has to be seen, in my view, as nothing other than naked anti-Semitism. + +I favor a fluid definition of anti-Semitism. And given that Zionism is part of normative Judaism, calls for the annihilation of Israel meet the bar. + +So do attempts to shun uniquely Israel from the “international community” — effectively undoing the process of international recognition after its founding — solely on the basis of disagreeing with its policies and conduct. + +Ireland is leading the way in the global movement to defame Israel. Some of the recent developments align its worldview with that of Iran and other elements. + +The amendments were drafted by Richard Barrett of the People Before Profit (PBP) party. + +_Update: the motion was defeated. 86 voted against and 46 voted in favor._ + +### Read Also + +[**Please don’t tell me that there’s no anti-Semitism in Ireland. There is.** +_Or that Ireland “only has a problem with Israel”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b) + +[**The 3 Defining Features Of Irish Anti-Semitism** + _What’s unique about the anti-Jewish agitation emanating from Ireland?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-defining-features-of-irish-anti-semitism-5c027f1790d2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-defining-features-of-irish-anti-semitism-5c027f1790d2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-defining-features-of-irish-anti-semitism-5c027f1790d2) + +[**Many Irish Want Israel’s Dublin Embassy Shuttered. Why Doesn’t Israel Act First?** +_Is it time to end diplomatic relations with Europe’s most Israel-hating nation — from the Israeli side?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/many-irish-want-israels-dublin-embassy-shuttered-why-doesn-t-israel-act-first-5a7882738b2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/many-irish-want-israels-dublin-embassy-shuttered-why-doesn-t-israel-act-first-5a7882738b2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/many-irish-want-israels-dublin-embassy-shuttered-why-doesn-t-israel-act-first-5a7882738b2) + +[**Palestinian supporters rally in Dublin, Ireland; call Israelis “a bunch of rats.”** + _Newspaper tweets video in which Palestinian supporters describe Israelis as “a bunch of rats”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2) diff --git a/posts/medium/Iron-Dome-Defunding--A-Timely-Wake-Up-Call-For-Israel-s-Commitment-To-Safeguarding-Its-Own-Security.md b/posts/medium/Iron-Dome-Defunding--A-Timely-Wake-Up-Call-For-Israel-s-Commitment-To-Safeguarding-Its-Own-Security.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7a732d77e63c7892ac87bd214dd97e96d7bb5010 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Iron-Dome-Defunding--A-Timely-Wake-Up-Call-For-Israel-s-Commitment-To-Safeguarding-Its-Own-Security.md @@ -0,0 +1,109 @@ +# Iron Dome Defunding: A Timely Wake Up Call For Israel’s Commitment To Safeguarding Its Own Security + +#### While US funding for the Iron Dome will likely arrive via an alternative mechanism, the move is a timely wake-up call that expecting endless handouts from American benefactors is an absurd strategy for ensuring homeland security + +An missile being launched from an Iron Dome battery during Operation Guardian Of The Walls earlier this year. Photo: handout, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) + +_(Opinion) —_ + +Last night, news swept through the Israeli twittersphere that the “progressive” wing of the US Democrat party had successfully pressured the party to remove a $1 billion pledge to fund Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system. + +Israel’s nemeses in the last minute legislative battle were unsurprising: the much reviled AOC and Betty McCollum. Other members of ‘The Squad’ threatened to vote against the bill. Their threats ultimately proved unnecessary. + +The clause in question was a late addition to a bill intended to keep the US government funded. The money pledged was intended to restock the short range missile defense system, which saw extensive action during the latest escalation with militant factions (Iron Dome’s protection is limited to short range missiles such as those launched from Gaza and it has a 90% success rate). It requires progressive replenishment, ongoing funding to operate, and continued development to remain at the cutting edge of the battle with Hamas. + +The cost of the high-tech Iron Dome system — which the US military recently decided not to buy for its own aerial defenses — is nothing short of astronomical. + +Each interception burns through a staggering $100,000-$150,000 in cash. + +If one needed a sobering reminder of the high cost of Israel maintaining its security, one need only look skywards during the recent flareup: + +The defiant thud when Gaza-fired rockets are successfully destroyed mid-air is accompanied by a dramatic flash that creates an aerial theater that evokes an image of the battle between good and evil. The stunning visuals inevitably make the news during the endless rounds of escalation. + +But seven interceptions can singularly burn through more than one million US dollars in the space of seconds. That’s another sobering thought. + +The official Israeli reaction to the decision — and that from its most staunch “allies” — was as histrionic and knee-jerk as usual. + +Israel’s current ambassador to the US, Gilad Erdan, retweeted a _Jerusalem Post_ journalist’s claim that the “progressiveness” of ‘The Squad’ meant that they regarded it as “progressive to want rockets to kill civilians.” + +AIPAC — the most influential pro-Israel lobby in the US — also quickly spun into propaganda mode (is it ever not engaged?). + +In a series of tweets, the lobby claimed that “blocking funding for Iron Dome helps terrorists kill civilians.” + +“Extremists in Congress are playing politics with Israeli lives,” it fumed, adding for emphasis that removing funding for a lifesaving defensive system was an “affront to our values” (at times like these, it’s unclear who AIPAC actually speaks on behalf of.) + +All of this verbiage — like many words spilled about the conflict here — is likely for naught. + +Today, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer pledged that a separate funding instrument would be progressed that would step in to fill the billion dollar gap left by the clause’s last minute scuppering. + +So what will actually happen? + +US taxpayers will end up funding the Iron Dome missile defense system. + +The tussle will be soon forgotten. + +But Israeli policymakers would be absurd not to view this as a serious foreboding of what’s to come. + +Here’s the learning many of us in Israel are quietly hoping our leaders will draw from this debacle: + +Israel sees its mission as being the fulfillment of the Jewish people’s right to self-determination in their ancestral homeland. + +It’s why I, and many other Diaspora-born Jews, have voluntarily chosen to make our lives here. The country and its success is inexplicable without understanding the context upon which it exists. + +A core tenant of that belief has been Israel’s longstanding doctrine of non-reliance upon foreign actors for its security. This doctrine is typically condensed into the phrase “never again” which evokes the painful legacy of the Shoah. + +When Israel sees a threat to its security — like the Iranian nuclear missile program — it has at times seen fit to defy the consensus of international opinion to do what it can and believes it must to safeguard its population. + +It has done so before. It will do so again. + +Israel is also never slow to boast to the world of its economic prowess; of how it has turned the stark desert sand into a blooming oasis of progress in fields as diverse as technology and the environmental sciences. + +During his outgoing speech to the Knesset earlier this year, Netanyahu proudly boasted of how he and his colleagues in government had “turned Israel into a world power and in many respects a superpower.” + +He spoke of how Israel had done this by nurturing its power in the economic realm, in the technological realm, and in the realm of security. + +Which all begs the question: + +Why is this regional superpower throwing a temper tantrum when a foreign government threatens to withdrawal funding for a missile defense system that protects _its_ population (and not anybody else’s)? + +Israel is the largest cumulative recipient of American military assistance since the second world war. + +And yet, as a beneficiary, it is a rather ungracious one. + +Israel offers the US intelligence cooperation, a friendly forward base in the volatile Middle East, and cultural support in many realms. + +And yet it appears to do so under the expectation that American support for its and its military policies will be both absolute and unconditional. + +This is absurd. + +Thanks, in large part, to the massively divisive politics of former prime minister Netanyahu, Israel has emerged as a staunchly partisan issue in the US — allied closely with the Republican and Trumpian worldview. + +To expect unyielding bipartisan support is therefore a strange aspiration. + +Israel appears to have no long term strategy in place for how to manage the hostile militant governors of the Gaza Strip — the Hamas party, which openly calls for its destruction. Nor of what to do about the Arab population of the West Bank. + +Hamas will continue to fire rockets into Israel. The Iron Dome is indeed life-saving. Therefore, it is an essential part of Israel’s national defense infrastructure. + +If Israel is to remain true to its doctrine of absolute self-determination, it needs to have a contingency plan in place to ensure that the operation of this missile defense system isn’t reliant upon any other state actor. I would be extremely surprised if this hasn’t already been planned for. The document just might need an early dusting off and merit a renewed round of scrutiny. + +For Israel to expect the United States and its taxpayers to endlessly bankroll its defense system — when the country isn’t poor and doesn’t share, in many respects, American values — is delusional. + +The Iron Dome fracas will likely be quickly forgotten and brushed off as proof of the unrelenting animus of elements of the Democratic Party to the Jewish State. An alternative funding channel will be found. The money will arrive. And AIPAC and co will calm down until the next affront to their values. + +Hyperbolic headlines that claim that AOC and her cohorts wish us dead will likely fill tomorrow’s newspapers in Israel. A much more probing reaction is needed, one filled with less anger and finger-pointing. + +To fail to read something much more significant into this turn of events would be a huge missed opportunity. + +That’s that the US government’s military aid towards Israel — like any form of aid — isn’t unconditional. It never will be. There’s a lesson to be drawn here that’s far more urgent and serious. It forebodes a time when the Jewish State — as it has before — will find itself singularly responsible for fighting for its survival. + +We can’t expect it to be never-ending. Especially given that Israel has become a partisan issue. + +And we can’t predicate any element of our national security upon its continuance. + +Especially when our national security, and lives, are at stake. + +_That’s_ the gamble that AIPAC should be non-plussed about. + +Perhaps we should even _thank_ AOC and her cohorts for reminding us of this enormously valuable lesson. + +For Israel to forego its responsibility to defend itself would be to forget one of the most important tenants of its ideology— at potentially enormous consequence. diff --git a/posts/medium/Is--six-figure--culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-.md b/posts/medium/Is--six-figure--culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5aac209e09d7d430333a0642bb1e25440e78904b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Is--six-figure--culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-.md @@ -0,0 +1,111 @@ +# Is “six figure” culture income-shaming ordinary earners into depression? + +#### Is is time for five figure earners to rally around a hashtag to show their pride at putting food on the table, without reaching an arbitrary monetary target? + +Lots of dollars. Like it? Source: Pixy + +I think it’s fair to say that my attempt to throw some cold water on the claimed income of Fiverr star Alex Fasulo struck a nerve with the general public. + +[**Why I Have Suspicions About Alex Fasulo’s Claimed Fiverr Income** + _Fiverr Freelancer Claims Massive Income; Sells Courses On Becoming A Digital Nomad; A Familiar One-Two_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-have-suspicions-about-alex-fasulos-claimed-fiverr-income-2e5fdd51c1ab "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-have-suspicions-about-alex-fasulos-claimed-fiverr-income-2e5fdd51c1ab")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-have-suspicions-about-alex-fasulos-claimed-fiverr-income-2e5fdd51c1ab) + +My piece has (at the time of writing) received more than 600 claps, 8,000 views, and — unusual for Medium — the average reading time is more than six minutes. + +I’ve been dealing, all week, with messages and DMs from the public who have — mostly — reached out to share some kind words about the article. People are actually engaging with the content and encouraging me to write more of it. So — when I can — I’ll keep doing so. + +I think that one of the reasons my pushback is having the effect that it is is that it takes a pretty direct swipe at the “six figure” culture that seems so oddly pervasive in American society. + +It’s a toxic culture that I believe is income-shaming ordinary income earners like me — squarely in the five figure club — into feeling needlessly bad about how much bread we put on our tables. + +Here’s why I think that the obsession many have with “earning six figures” is damaging and unhealthy. + +I’ll finish the piece with a suggestion for a couple of small steps we can take to normalize earning average incomes as a means of pushing back against the braggarts and fake millionaires increasingly dominating the spotlight in the online world. + +### Why Is America Obsessed With “Making Six Figures”? + +Over the five years I’ve been working as a freelance writer and marketing consultant, I’ve interacted on several online writing communities. + +Online communities — at least those that are English-speaking — sometimes seem to be dominated by American voices. + +Think Reddit. Quora. Facebook groups. + +And just about any other nook and cranny of the internet where English-speakers congregate to discuss everything from freelancing to landscape gardening. + +**As I participate mostly in professionally-oriented online communities I have been baffled (and sometimes repulsed) by what seems like a mostly American obsession with earning “six figures.”** + +Just running a title-based search limited to this domain yields more than 150 results. + +Six figure articles on Medium + +Running an “exact match” search for “how to make six figures” yields more than 167,000 results and even dredges up some websites that are explicitly designed to provide “mentoring” (guess what? not for free) to help those broach this imaginary dividing line. + +A screenshot from TheSixFigureMentors.com taken on the date of publication. Student Access is free but those who want the higher membership tiers need to fork out. + +At times, I have asked American participants why their culture seems so obsessed with surpassing an arbitrary income level in order to prove one’s worth or acceptability into the ranks of those who are deemed, by society, to have “made it” as successes. + +I was born in Ireland and now live in Israel. To the best of my knowledge, neither culture fetishizes “six figure” incomes to the same extents, nor places the same level of emphasis upon achieving the equivalent salary in our local equivalents (Euro and NIS respectively). + +I am told that many jobs in the US do not pay this amount, but, in the US, disproportionately many do, and that “six figures” is therefore viewed as a sort of litmus test of excellence — a yardstick which only those who are reasonably success can achieve. + +In other words, it separates the actual successful people from the pretenders to the throne. To which I say: that sounds like an awful lot of rubbish. + +### But Here’s A Truth: The Only Meaningful Income Is The One You Need To Make + +I’m not a licensed financial advisor, but I do have one thing to say in response to this. I’m confident enough in the accuracy of this that I’m happy prepending it with “this I know to be true”: + +**Everybody has a different level of income they need to make in order to meet their financial objectives.** + +You. The guy who collects rubbish in the morning. And the investment banker who drives a Ferrari to work. Irrespective of how much money you _actually_ earn, you all have differing levels of money that you _need_ to earn in order to be not go into the red and meet reasonable objectives. + +That level will vary widely from person to person because it depends upon quite a number of variables, including: + + * The level of one’s expenses + * The cost of living in one’s area + * The pace at which one needs to save money or contribute to a retirement fund + * One’s current financial obligations + +“Six figures” has become a personal finance meme that crowds out credible personal finance objectives for ordinary people by furthering a myth that everybody needs to make more than $100,000 (or one hundred thousand units of your local currency) in order to be considered successful. + +But six figure culture has another more pernicious effect. And this is the one that I’d like to draw attention towards. + +### How And When Did A Five Figure Income Become Shameful? + +The unfortunate corollary of six figures becoming entrenched in the minds of many as a (thoroughly flawed) surrogate marker for success is that anything short of that (lofty) target income level appears to be viewed as a hallmark of failure. + +If we, as societies, buy into the notion that only those who earn six figures can be considered truly successful, we lend credence to the notion that those who don’t are not deserving of that accolade. + +This: + + * Is totally unfair to the many earning five figures (or less) who are meeting or exceeding their personal financial objectives + * Pegs one’s worth as a human to their income. A pernicious fallacy that it’s extremely easy to buy into (disclaimer: I struggle with feelings of inadequacy and depression from time to time when I reflect upon how much less I earn than some of my friends) + +I’m sorry to say that I’m as guilty as anybody else of buying into this pernicious narrative. + +Six figure culture — and the egregious flaunting of wealth on visually rich media like Instagram and Tik Tok — contributes in no small measure to a pervasive and harmful dynamic of income-shaming that is making countless people around the world feel needlessly bad about earning normal and respectable sums of money keeping themselves and their families afloat. + +It tells those making ordinary five figure incomes (note: I’ve never made more than “six figures” in a year, at least in USD) that they’re incomes are small, unworthy of celebration, and, frankly, not good enough. Don’t share on Medium about earning five figures, the dynamic coyly suggests. + +And in doing so it wreaks havoc upon the mental health of everybody that foolishly buys into such a notion, particularly those that are most susceptible to the type of harmful inner thinking that the idea promotes. + +So let me be the contrarian: + +There’s nothing wrong with earning a five figure income. + +**If you’re meeting or exceeding your financial obligations — no matter what you do for a living or where you are based — then please take it from me that you’re doing okay or even great.** + +There are those who would regard this as an endorsement for failure. + +They can have their mindset. And I’ll have mine. I reckon I’ll be happier for it. + +### Want To Take Action? Tweet — Or Share — Your Pride In Making Five Figures + +If you want to do your (little online) bit to combat the spread of income-shaming and six figure income aggrandizement, then consider tweeting or sharing on the social network of your choice a message announcing your pride — and refusal to be shamed — for earning five figures (or less). + +[**JavaScript is not available.** +_Edit description_ twitter.com](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=I%20make%205%20figures%20and%20I%27m%20proud%20of%20it&hashtags=%235figures%20%235figuresandproud "https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=I%20make%205%20figures%20and%20I%27m%20proud%20of%20it&hashtags=%235figures%20%235figuresandproud")[](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=I%20make%205%20figures%20and%20I%27m%20proud%20of%20it&hashtags=%235figures%20%235figuresandproud) + +Some hashtag suggestions: + +#5figuresandproud + +#proudlyearning5figures diff --git a/posts/medium/Is-Being-Self-Employed-in-Israel-Really-Nigh-On-Impossible-.md b/posts/medium/Is-Being-Self-Employed-in-Israel-Really-Nigh-On-Impossible-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b318f7a97413de59ae1912e8e01811fbe651beab --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Is-Being-Self-Employed-in-Israel-Really-Nigh-On-Impossible-.md @@ -0,0 +1,52 @@ +# Is Being Self Employed in Israel Really Nigh On Impossible? + +For those who follow me on social media, I have carved out a reputation as quite a prodigious poster on Facebook Groups where I can frequently be found crowdsourcing all manner of information. + +So long as it doesn’t derail my workday, I have no problem with this label. + +Facebook has made it easier over the years to not get overwhelmed by notifications (two tips: turn them off on threads if needed and disable commenting if needed). I tend to engage in Facebook threads _while_ working and check back on comments when I take breaks. Perhaps it isn’t the most effective system, but I have come to greatly enjoy asking questions (pertinent, I hope) and being able to help others out through this medium. + +Today [— in the Living Financially Smarter group](https://www.facebook.com/groups/219528557090/?ref=group_header) — I asked (in more words than these) why one frequently hears the following: + + * _“It’s impossible to be self employed in Israel.”_ + * _“It’s not worth it to be self employed in Israel”_ + +For the sake of completion and transparency: I’ve been self-employed here for 5 years, although I have only been doing it full time for the past two. Yes, I ran a side gig alongside a salaried job for a while. That was exhausting, but provided a conduit that later allowed me to go out on my own full time. + +Israel’s bureaucracy gets a bad rap. And I’ve certainly not shied away from pointing out some of the problems in this country ( [see: Ireland/Israel comparison post, among others](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71)). However, my overall experience managing my _tik_(file) as a self employed individual in Israel has been positive. + +With the help of an excellent accountant, I have careered my writing business through its formative days and to its current lofty status as a VAT non-exempt trading entity (Hebrew: _osek murshe_. And that was a joke). + +There have been minor bureaucratic hiccups, sure. My capital assets have been audited — as almost all freelancers’ are (sometimes with annoying frequency). I narrowly evaded a fine from the tax authority after forgetting to make one of my bimonthly reports (hint: set Google Calendar notifications!). But other than that my journey so far has gone off more or less without hitches. + +### Is Freelancing in Israel Really All That ‘Bad’? + +The purpose of today’s thread was to try establish whether there is any truth in the commonly aired claim that being a freelancer in Israel is specifically more expensive than being an employed worker (Hebrew: a _sachir)_. + +Before starting the thread, I was aware of several aspects in which we _atzmaim_(self-employed workers) get the short end of the bargain. For one, we pay slightly higher Bituach Leumi (social security) contributions. Employees’ contributions are made both by themselves, as deductions from their salary slips ( _tlushim_) and on the employer’s end. Needless to say, as an _atzmai_(independent worker) you don’t get benefits. In my postings about how to set a freelance hourly rate, [I have emphasized ](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf)the importance of building in both benefits you are not receiving _and_ unbillable hours. In other words: I don’t think this is a direct deficiency of the arrangement. + +There’s the aforementioned bureaucracy. But again, my experience has been that it is more than manageable with the aid of a competent accountant (and while in general I’m a DIY sort of guy, I strongly recommend hiring one if you’re looking at freelancing here). + +With the help of the financial boffins on the _Living Financially Smarter_ group I came up with several additional reasons which had evaded me. I can understand a _little_ bit more clearly why so many are eager to point out that being self employed in Israel has its drawbacks: + + * **Americans (dual American-Israeli citizens) are liable for American social security contributions**. This is due to America’s unique policy of taxing its citizens extraterritorially. + * **Israeli employers also contribute to pensions and savings plans**. A good example cited is the _keren hishtalmut_. + +There were other examples given which I would put in the category of “universal freelancing drawbacks” versus Israel-specific situations, which is what I was asking about. Nevertheless, these are worth keeping in mind: + + * **Company cars are relatively commonplace in Israel.** Freelancers, needless to say, do not receive benefits in kind. + * **Israel’s social security system affords no benefits essentially to laid off unemployed workers.** Grants during the pandemic have been means-tested versus last year. But these grants were anomalous and the situation is usually that if you’re self employed and your work suddenly dries up, you’re eligible for nothing. + * **Self employed workers in Israel also do not qualify for _dmei havra’ah_**(recuperation pay). This is a relatively small sum and is a fringe benefit with an interesting history! + +### Some Upsides To Also Consider…. + +My thoughts about self employment in Israel are that while there are definitely drawbacks it’s all too easy to forget that, equally, there are upsides to working for yourself here. + + * English speakers based in Israel have a great opportunity to work with clients internationally that is often not fully appreciated, in my view. + * Consider also Israel’s salaries — [which often lag behind the West](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-israel-salary-erosion-above-average-in-oecd-1001243325). English speakers in Israel often run into a relatively low salary ceiling through which it is difficult to break (how many rungs on the ladder can exist between new marketing hire and Israel Marketing Manager?). Of course, mastering professional standard Hebrew is the obvious and best solution to this quandary. But self employment can actually offer a way for English speakers to make a _higher_ income than they could command in a salaried position. At the least, it can be a good stopgap solution worthy of consideration. + +The ultimate answer as to whether or not it’s worth it to be self-employed in Israel is not clear cut. It depends heavily upon factors such as one’s individual financial situation, how important income stability is, and whether one’s second citizenship is to the US or to some other country. + +At the very least, this was another interesting Facebook thread! + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Is-Content-Marketing--Just--Advertising--And-Other-Tricky-Questions-For-Content-Marketers.md b/posts/medium/Is-Content-Marketing--Just--Advertising--And-Other-Tricky-Questions-For-Content-Marketers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4e5dbe983830213f09e4b2befe8c2f17dd722cff --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Is-Content-Marketing--Just--Advertising--And-Other-Tricky-Questions-For-Content-Marketers.md @@ -0,0 +1,90 @@ +# Is Content Marketing ‘Just’ Advertising? And Other Tricky Questions For Content Marketers + +#### Thinking about what content marketing is not can help us understand what it’s really defined by + +Content marketing: are we just good old advertisers in denial? Photo by [cottonbro](https://www.pexels.com/@cottonbro?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-person-s-hands-using-laptop-4065617/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Like many content marketers (tell me I’m not alone!), it took me a couple of career pivots (journalism -> communications) and working in the field for several years before finally, in the small hours of the night, an uncomfortable question cropped up in my mind that I didn’t have an scripted answer to: + +“What exactly _is_ this content marketing thing we’re all getting excited about?” + +You’re really asking that now !?— my brain screamed back at me. + +Sure, most of us can explain to a non-marketer what we’re trying to do when we leverage “content” to advertise: + +We’re creating valuable “material” (words, videos, audio) in order to attract the attention of prospective customers who are attempting to source information in order to resolve pain points in their life — pain points that our goods or services can offer a solution to (or at least we hope they do). + +As we get better at it we start figuring out ways to do that more effectively. + +We need to understand some characteristics about our target buyers and get a grip on what they’re searching for (SEO). + +And as we keep nurturing them and offering them “content” we want that content to change so that it encourages them to keep moving down something that we call a marketing and sales funnel. + +We don’t want to just provide them with useful information that subtly positions us as the resolution to their pain points — or does that more directly. + +Ultimately, we want them to convert into customers. + +But content marketing and the textbook stages most authors break the funnel down into reflects our understanding of the fact that many purchasing journies aren’t completed overnight and that cultivating inbound interest is a relatively slow process. + +But what is content marketing _not?_ + +Answering questions like this can help us clarify the differences between marketing tactics that may look identical on the outside but which have different modes of action and objections. + +### Content Marketing Isn’t Thought Leadership + +I’ve written a number of blogs and articles on why thought leadership and content marketing are actually separate marketing tactics that call for different approaches in order to be effective. Here’s one of them: + +[**The 4 Key Differences Between Thought Leadership and Content Marketing** + _7 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Thought leadership garners a lot of attention…_ www.entrepreneur.com](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323#:~:text=Content%20marketing%20is%20typically%20onsite,business%20opportunities%20for%20careful%20nurturing "https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323#:~:text=Content%20marketing%20is%20typically%20onsite,business%20opportunities%20for%20careful%20nurturing")[](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323#:~:text=Content%20marketing%20is%20typically%20onsite,business%20opportunities%20for%20careful%20nurturing) + +Thought leadership — as I see it, at least — is about leveraging the power of expertise and insight to open up top of funnel marketing opportunities. Content marketing, by contrast, relies on pouring out value in order to nurture leads. + +They also work at different audience levels. Whereas thought leadership is commonly a peer to peer marketing activity, content marketing tends to be a brand speaking “to” an audience. + +Trying to engage an expert audience by informing them about the very bare basics of their industry … is a recipe for disaster and brand damage. + +### Content Marketing Isn’t Advertising + +The fundamental fault line that lies at the divide between outbound and inbound marketing is that outbound marketing interjects — or disrupts — while inbound marketing works by the power of attraction. + +There are other important differences. At least between content marketing and certain _forms_ of advertising. + +For one, content marketing has the luxury of being able to be delivered through the medium of things like podcasts and videos and white papers that are substantially longer than your average TV commercial spot — to point out the obvious. + +Because advertising is disruptive, it needs to really cut to the chase to deliver its message. Content marketing can space out the same sales pitch and do so over a drip sequence of different pieces of collateral. Advertising typically has to be more direct in its attempt to outline the pain point its addressing for the right target audience, appeal to emotions, and then ending. + +Content marketing and advertising are different disciplines that typically require the input of different practicioners — at least to be executed on as well as possible. + +### Content Marketing Isn’t (Exactly) Just A Series Of Advertorials + +The above explains the difference between content marketing and, say, TV commercial advertising. + +But the difference between content marketing and advertorials is a little harder to delineate. + +But let me try: + + * Back in the day, many advertisers that wanted to engage a readership in long form format did so by creating advertorials and buying them up in print publications. One of my first assignments at a journalism outlet I used to contribute to was, in fact, writing a series of advertorials on behalf of a tourism agency. But many did so because … well, they had nowhere else to publish. Wordpress wasn’t around yet. The internet barely was. Hence they went looking for ways to package advertising in the world of editorial. + * Because advertorials are placed off-site (on non-managed media) the same tone of voice requirements that apply to thought leadership are also relevant here. More oblique promotion is required. + +The differences between content marketing and old-school advertorials are a bit more subtle — but I contend that they’re still there. + +### Content Marketing Isn’t Quite Brand Journalism + +A few authors have attempted to tackle the more tricky question of outlining exactly how content marketing and brand journalism differ. + +[**Content Marketing or Brand Journalism - What's the Difference?** +_There was a time when paid media was the best and the most effective way to sell our products and services, but not…_ prowly.com](https://prowly.com/magazine/content-marketing-brand-journalism-whats-difference/ "https://prowly.com/magazine/content-marketing-brand-journalism-whats-difference/")[](https://prowly.com/magazine/content-marketing-brand-journalism-whats-difference/) + +This is a question that isn’t on people’s lips so much any more probably because there are far fewer people talking about ‘brand journalism’ than there are those getting excited about ‘content marketing’. + +As I got into this profession at a time when brand journalism wasn’t much spoken of, I’ll leave it to Edyta Kowal (linked above) to walk through those differences. (One of the primary differences cited: content marketing is about building demand generation through providing useful information whereas brand journalism is concerned with building awareness and affinity). + +### Content Marketing Is A Unique Entity + +I believe it’s disingenuous to make the claim that content marketing — and inbound — is a totally unique marketing revolution that never existed before … Hubspot came along. + +Rather, I see it as the current point of evolution in the series of tactics that marketers have determined are helpful for connecting with target audiences. + +That evolution includes terms and tactics that are still everyday ‘things’ — like advertising — as well as disciplines that we hear less from today, like brand journalism. + +The question many marketers are now thinking about is this one: what comes next in the journey? diff --git a/posts/medium/Is-Criticizing-Israel-Kosher-.md b/posts/medium/Is-Criticizing-Israel-Kosher-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7964c231d8e0764f384b232cd06cad65e6d0d1f8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Is-Criticizing-Israel-Kosher-.md @@ -0,0 +1,97 @@ +# Is Criticizing Israel Kosher? + +Last week, on a Facebook group, I disclosed a customer service technique that I have been keeping secret for all these years. + +I have written before that customer service in Israel is often problematic. [While plentiful exceptions exist](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71#:~:text=Ireland%2C%20by%20comparison%20to%20Israel,and%20slightly%2Dless%2Dwet.), there is enough bad even abusive customer service in Israel that it often leaves an impression upon both immigrant residents and visitors alike. + +Some of the worst perpetrators here, in my experience, are international representatives of international conglomerates. Think names that you _think_ are household ones but which — you will soon discover — are actually just Israeli franchisees. + +And here’s my technique. + +### Looping in EMEA + +On a single handful of occasions over the past five years, I have received truly abysmal service from Israeli representatives of international chains that would put the latter’s hard-won reputation for customer service utterly to shame. And — after waging a futile battle to get customer service locally — I realized that there was a vulnerability that could be exploited. + +Israeli companies that do customer service poorly largely do so because they are part of a monopoly or oligopoly. In other words, they are artificially shielded from competition. + +In other instances, they know that they have a captive market — Israel is surrounded on all sides by either the sea or enemy states and getting products into the country and through customs isn’t exactly for the feint of patience. When these two dynamics run together — and when sometimes a measure of not really caring about customers is added to the mix — the result can be toxic. + +While I believe the above to be true, for international franchisees of major companies, maintaining their monopoly position as the exclusive importer or representative of a parent international company in Israel is often _very_ lucrative business. And when reputations with the right people are on the line, “אין מה לעשות” ( _“there is nothing that can be done,”_ an oft-repeated quip in Israel) often turns to _“how may we help you today?”_ + +The trick I have found — and I emphasise strongly, this is a last resort tactic — is to turn to the international parent company and ask for their assistance. I think it’s fairer to loop their Israeli representative in on the correspondence than to go totally behind their back and in fact this is often enough to spur the latter into resolution mode. The appropriate point of contact for the former, from my experience, is usually either the company’s EMEA management layer or head office. + +Why does this work so well? + +Companies want to preserve uniform representatives no matter which franchisee customers are ultimately dealing with. Sometimes those franchise relationships are governed by contracts which state that the former must uphold the company’s overall customer service standards. + +Israeli franchisees, for their part, want to stay on good terms with the companies they represent. And as a consumer, you presumably want to get good service. In other words, there is a rare confluence of interests. + +Unfortunately, when I sat down to put this into action last week I included one string of words which I later regretted. I told this company’s EMEA contact that: + +“ _Like most Israeli companies_ , they do not believe in answering the listed telephone number — or responding to emails, or providing customer service in general.” + +### How Much Criticism of Israel Is Warranted, Welcome, and Acceptable? + +While my technique was well received — and many even reported that they had used it themselves to good effect — I was surprised by how vitriolic the reaction I received from some quarters was for _“badmouthing Israel to the world”_ in my email through the addition of the words _“like many Israeli_ companies”. One individual even went so far as to call my email “despicable.” And although this particular instance may be a classic storm in a teacup issue, I believe it does raise some broader issues worth discussing, which is why I am posting it to this blog. + +To my detractors, I tried to explain that, last week, I was dealing with a cluster of horrible customer service situations uniformly involving Israeli companies. That I was irate, as a result, at the time I wrote the email. That I acknowledged that that addendum about _“like many Israeli companies”_ added nothing to the complaint other than belying the fact that I was cranky and partially venting at the time I wrote it. That I would take it back if I could. And that I understood that it was also unfair to the many Israeli companies that go out of their way to show their customers that they care. + +In other words, through tacking four inopportune words onto a sentence which I subsequently decided to share publicly, I had now, for many, badmouthed Israel the world and was hearing all about how terrible a sin that was. + +### Where Does Legitimate Criticism End — And ‘Treason’ Begin? + +And yet, although the part about badmouthing Israel currently falls flat on my ears, it has got me thinking about where exactly we believe the parameters to lie in our dialogue with the world about the Jewish state. I believe this question is particularly pertinent to immigrants like me who often, in a sense, have one foot in the diaspora and another in Israel. + +Additionally, for religious Jews — and many Israelis, both _olim_ and _sabras_ are religiously observant Jews — the whole issue of how and when to criticise both facets of Israel and the policies of the government opens up a Pandora’s box of legal and moral issues. + +Most broadly, religious Jews try to follow the _halachot_(laws) of _lashon hara_ — which prohibit broad categories of defamatory speech. + +Morally, the Sin of the Spies (Hebrew: the _meraglim_) resonates throughout Jewish teachings as an example of the kind of Divine punishment that even internal criticism of Israel can be expected to be met with _._ + +The negative reports about the Land of Israel that ten of the twelve spies brought back was seen as sinful and was punished, in kind, by a prolonged exile in the desert. + +And that’s not the end of the potential issues involved. + +The technique I described above even, for me, raised questions of _mesirah_(reporting the actions of a Jew to a non-Jewish institution). For _halahically_ observant Jews, whether a criticism about an institution or country is permissible or not is supposed to depend on more than what kind of mood we are in when we pop open our Gmail. + +While I understand and appreciate those concerns (and I should point out that I’m interested in learning more about _lashon hara_ and associated _halachot)_ , I’m still not clear on exactly how to relate to Israel within the confines of those parameters. + +For instance: + +If no criticism of Israel is acceptable — at least to the world at large — then aren’t we effectively left with a universal forced culture of _hasbara_ — one in which Israel’s morality is necessarily exaggerated at times and uncomfortable truths are scrubbed from the record or relegated to the footnotes? + +In a world in which every news story can be translated into any language at the click of a button through the wonders of Google Translate, how is it possible to have a functioning press, much less a government opposition, if every word uttered about one’s fellow Israelis (the lion’s share of whom are Jews) needs to be positive in tenor? + +More pertinently for this websites: is kosher journalism — at least journalism as most of us know it — an oxymoron or is there rather some way for the maxims of _lashon hara_ and the vital institutions of a western democracy, including a free press, to coexist? + +If, on the other hand, _nothing_ good is said about Israel to the world, and we, _olim_ , only contribution to uttering its criticisms, then surely we are part of the problem of the often unfair defamation that Israel receives on the international stage? + +The ramifications for the answers to these question stretch far beyond my small complaint about a customer purchase. + +They extend to whether we view Breaking The Silence’s presentations to the United Nations General Assembly — and left wing Israel NGOs’ work in general — as forthright and valuable expositions of a left wing viewpoint or as acts of treason that deserve punishment. + +To whether Israel should continue to invest resources in _hasbara_(public diplomacy) or whether it should give up trying to dominate the narrative of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by disseminating information that sometimes seems as slanted and obsessively partisan as that emanating from the other side. + +The answer to these and other questions like them, I believe, have to lie somewhere in the middle + +For Israel to continue to improve and make strides in the world, some form of internal dialogue is clearly necessary. The demonstrations on Balfour Street that have garnered international media attention have been accused of sullying Israel’s appearance in the world. But how else is organised opposition to Netanyahu’s rule possible? + +A democratic government cannot exist if every one of its actions is deemed beyond criticism — and Israel calls itself Jewish _and_ democratic in character. Can those really coexist in a global village in which no internal dialogue of any significance can truly be shielded from foreign ears and eyes; in a world in which what happens in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv can resonate internationally before the next morning has dawned? + +On the other hand, it makes sense to me that we should have some limitations in place — and a sense of patriotism in our hearts — that should steer us away from egregiously bashing our countrymen and countrywoman at every opportunity, and in every forum whether big (the UN) or small (one manager at a company). + +For example: it would seem counterproductive, to me, to deny that Ireland has a problematic relationship with alcohol. And I don’t feel like writing that is unjustly diminishing Ireland in the world’s eyes. + +On the other hand, I would not feel comfortable holding an Irish passport while criticising every facet of the country. + +Right now, I feel much the same about Israel, even though the dynamics entailed are not quite the same and the reaction to criticism, in Israel, seems to me to be far more controversial. + +So for now — and until _I_ have learned more about the laws of _lashon hara_ and how they apply to occasional criticism of the Jewish state, its institutions of government, and even some of its franchisees — I only have the questions which I have shared here, borne out of an admittedly trivial experience with a customer service email. + +But sometimes it’s the small day to day happenings that throw up the biggest and most meaningful questions. + +At the very least, clarifying, for observant Jews, exactly where we believe the boundaries of allowable and unwarranted criticism of our own country lie, is an important conversation worth having. + +When I have more answers, I will share them. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Is-Hiring-A-Ghostwriter-Legitimate-.md b/posts/medium/Is-Hiring-A-Ghostwriter-Legitimate-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f095c073400207faf8ec66f4877eb6ec3c9bddce --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Is-Hiring-A-Ghostwriter-Legitimate-.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# Is Hiring A Ghostwriter Legitimate? + +[As I wrote previously](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/what-is-ghostwriting-what-is-ghostwriting-not-some-questions-answered-ce26a5faac91) here on Medium, ghostwriting is a field saddled with various myths and misunderstandings. + +These include: + +### **Lumping completely different forms of authorship under the one heading.** + +For instance, rap ghostwriting and business ghostwriting have almost nothing in common. + +Likewise ‘academic ghostwriting,’ which involves plagiarizing coursework for a student and which I have previously called an unethical field (and I stand by that). + +The aforementioned activities vary wildly in terms of their content, ethical standing, and industry. **In fact, the only commonality between these activities is that they are both commonly referred to as ‘ghostwriting’** and those engaged in the authorship of these formats describe themselves as ‘ghostwriters’. + +‘Writing,’ in general, is not a monolithic activity with a monolithic pool of authors all doing the same type of work. + +Most people understand that there are large differences between screenwriters, technical writers, and book authors — as well as the output of each author’s work. + +It’s the same thing with ghostwriting. + +> **At the most basic level, ‘ghostwriting’ simply means writing something which doesn’t carry your attribution/byline wherever it is ultimately published.** + +To understand the difference between different types of ghostwriters, a good (and simple) operative question might be _“what do you write?”_ + +In ghostwriting, the pieces of writing which ghostwriters work on can be attributed to another person (classic ghostwriting), to a group of people (such as a marketing department), or to nobody specific at all (such as a company; and note: unattributed works are not commonly thought of as ghostwriting, although definitions are becoming more fluid as times goes on). + +### **Thinking that ghostwriting entails engaging in some dubious activity.** + +Because the name ‘ghostwriting’ can be applied to just about _any_ activity in which a writer is being hired to write under somebody else’s name, it is almost bound to be caught up in the dragnet of some dubious activity. + +As I highlighted above, academic ghostwriting — in which ghostwriters are hired to author students’ coursework — is effectively facilitating disguised plagiarism. Ghostwriting can also sometimes refer to writing work under a pseudonym. The material, in these cases, might be provocative enough that the author wouldn’t want to attach their personal reputation to the work. + +Now that we’ve established that ‘ghostwriting’ can mean several different things, let’s look at the specific kind which people often bear in mind when they ask the ‘ethical question’: ghostwriting, including writing books, for businesspeople, individuals, and companies. For convenience let’s call this ‘corporate and book ghostwriting’. + +Here are some reasons why, in my view, this type of ghostwriting is perfectly legitimate. + +### It Maximizes Resources + +A foundational principle of international trade is that countries should focus on producing the things which they are best at producing — and import the factors of production they don’t have, or aren’t adept at, from other nations. + +When every country plays to its strengths by exporting its best human know-how and raw materials, the overall efficiency of the market is increased. Needless to say, if countries didn’t trade their skills and physical resources in the way we take for granted, the world as we know it simply couldn’t exist. + +**The same principle is at work when ghostwriters pair with authors to collaborate on writing projects.** + +Those that want to publish a book, and which have the resources to see the project through to completion, tend to be established businesspeople, entrepreneurs, or those who have simply lived a colorful life and which have a story to tell. + +**But getting those stories on paper, for the world to enjoy, can represent a real impediment — and sometimes an impassable one.** + +For one, the would-be authors might detest writing. As the originator of the story, they might also be too close to the text, and their narrative, to see which parts are likely to be of interest to others and which parts might loose their attention. It’s also almost impossible to see a full length book through to completion without at least mildly enjoying the process — and that process requires time and energy. + +Here’s the irony. Disproportionately, the individuals best placed to author memoirs and biographies also tend to be overbooked and overcommitted. **In other words, the type of people that most commonly want to write a book are often (conveniently for ghostwriters) those which would most benefit from external writing support.** + +Ghostwriters specialize in taking great ideas and working with authors to get them down onto the page in the most engaging possible manner for their readership. + +By focusing on this activity they become specialists at it through dint of repetition. As such, experienced ghostwriters follow time-tested methodologies for getting to know their authors, onboarding and organizing the material they have collected, and getting it onto the page. + +Ghostwriters typically offer contracted writing services. But many have nevertheless developed a good understanding of the publishing world and a network within it. This means that they can advise their author upon what their best route to publication might be — or connect them with an appropriate literary agent that can open doors at publishing houses. + +A good ghostwriter can accurately capture the voice of the author. Such that both the material and energy that makes it onto the final page are really, in a sense, still the author’s own. They’ve just traveled through the conduit of a third party who happens to be a writing professional skilled in extracting, organizing, and recording the author’s thoughts. + +In essence, the ghostwriting relationship involves pairing professional writers with those who have great stories to tell but who couldn’t, otherwise, get them into writing for the general public to enjoy. + +It’s the ultimate symbiotic pairing. + +Through bringing together those with great stories to tell and those who make a living by getting them onto paper the reading world at large stands to benefit. + +### It Is Widespread + +Think that your favorite politician juggles jetting around the country attending rallies with penning great lines for his upcoming speeches? + +More often than not, the task of speechwriting — particularly at senior organizations levels — is left, at least in part, to speechwriters. And speechwriters, when you think about it, are just ghostwriters that specialize in authoring a specific format (and writing for the ear). + +From my perspective, the above point would be enough to put to bed any lingering doubts I might have about the legitimacy of ghostwriting: it’s a practical writing collaboration and, if ghostwriters didn’t exist, the world would be a poorer place bereft of the writing that they help bring to market. + +But it’s also worth remembering that ghostwriting is both commonplace and ancient. + +The (non-exhaustive) list of organizations and businesses that can and commonly do get involved in ghostwriting for their clients: + + * Personal assistants + * PR companies + * Communications managers + +Ghostwriters commonly produce output that straddles many different formats — ranging from op-eds contributed to major newspapers to speeches at industry conferences and books that appear non non-fiction bestseller lists. + +The range of individuals who can be called upon to lend their services as ghostwriters is likewise wide: They can be professional writers, communications professionals, or even family members that were coopted into the writing process. + +Ghostwriting is widespread. And so long as there are authors whose writing proficiency and schedules inhibit them from getting their great perspectives and stories to a wide readership, there will be a demand for ghostwriters. + +### There’s Nothing Shady About Ghostwriting (At Least Most Of It) + +In my admittedly biased opinion there is nothing shady about ghostwriting — at least if we’re talking about the type that I professionally engage in (business ghostwriting and nonfiction). + +Ghostwriting is a valuable form of professional collaboration that can help authors get their ideas out to the reading public. + +As such, it continues to fulfill an instrumental role in our society — whether those picking up books (or e-books) realize it or not. + +_DSR Ghostwriting specializes in providing business ghostwriting services — with a specialty in thought leadership writing for technology clients. Ghostwriting services offered include: articles and blogs, e-books, speeches, and nonfiction books and memoirs. To learn more, visit_[ _dsrghostwriting.com_](https://dsrghostwriting.com) _._ + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Is-It-Time-For-Israel-To-Break-Off-Relations-With-Ireland-.md b/posts/medium/Is-It-Time-For-Israel-To-Break-Off-Relations-With-Ireland-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..57279b7cad9714ac60067579f6aa5701a6f12dc8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Is-It-Time-For-Israel-To-Break-Off-Relations-With-Ireland-.md @@ -0,0 +1,261 @@ +# Is It Time For Israel To Break Off Relations With Ireland? + +#### Ireland’s hatred of Israel is starting to feel institutionalised. Is it time for Israel to cut ties? + +Israel seems to serve as Ireland’s perpetual punching bag on the international stage. Why does Israel make itself a glutton for punishment by maintaining diplomatic ties? + +_This is a lightly edited update of the first version of this post:_ + +The story of Ireland and Israel is not one that will be remembered in the lore of geopolitical matches cooked up in diplomatic heaven. + +A country with a historically tiny Jewish population, Ireland only granted permission to Israel to open an embassy in Dublin in 1994 after receiving belated _de jure_ diplomatic recognition in 1975. + +If one were to suggest that a good deal of begrudgement and passive aggression could be read into that luke-warm acknowledgement of the mere existence of the Jewish State, I would suggest that they would be entirely correct — and that Ireland’s frosty reception to the State of Israel set the tone perfectly for the evolution of this rancor-filled relationship. + +### The Irish Government’s Hatred Of Israel — Obsessive, Pervasive, Relentless, Legendary + +As a Jew born in Ireland, who lived there until the age of 25, Ireland’s obsessive fixation with Israel — almost always highly negative in character — made me feel increasingly alienated from the society I grew up in. + +As I grew up, I found myself increasingly disturbed by the fact that the Irish discourse about Israel that took place online — in web fora, on media websites, and elsewhere — was frequently tainted by the hallmarks of antisemitism. + +Skeptical voices opined (they still do) that the online sphere is not a good barometer of more widespread opinion. But increasingly I found myself dubious of these attempts to sanitise the debate. + +Ireland is a country with little firsthand experience of Jews beyond those depicted in its literature, and with a generally meagre grasp on Jewish history. In the Ireland of 2024, ‘Zionism’ is still thrown at Jews intended as an insult. + +### In Ireland, ‘Zionism’ Is A Dirty Word + +An Irish community rabbi invented a modified mezzuzah intended to be disguised over fears that overt symbols of Judaism would result in anti-Semitic hate attacks. + +‘Israel’ in the Ireland I grew up in was something akin to a dirty word too. + +To be uttered only under one’s breath. It was better not to talk about Israel at all — at least out of the house. One would hate to make people uncomfortable and attract dirty looks. Fake equanimity is arguably even worse. + +To be a compliant Irish Jew, I understood, was to be tepid in support of Israel at best — or preferably to offer ideological support to the other side. + +Ireland’s limited Jewish population aren’t quite full-blown Marranos. But perhaps not more than half a step above. The last time I voiced support for Israel after announcing myself as Irish-born, my inbox was flooded with a deluge of hate mail for quite literally days. In fact this patterns recurs every time I broach the uncomfortable topic of why Israel seems to rouse the animus and interest of the Irish like quite no other topic on the planet. + +It was befitting, therefore, that it was an Irish rabbi who invented a camouflaged _mezzuzah_ intended to allow community members to fulfil the _miztvah_ (commandment) of erecting a traditional Jewish doorpost outside their dwellings while finding a way to also disguise its nature _._ With due respect to the inventor, any country in which owning a “Camozuzzah” is necessary is not one I would wish to live in as a Jew. + +Irish Jews being scarce, for the Irish left, Irish Jews who are openly anti-Israel are something of a unicorn-like commodity. Jews of course are the ultimate collectors’ pieces to buttress oneself against allegations of anti-Semitism. Pointing to the presence of a Jew at your demonstration is a powerful way of saying _“look, it’s not about Jews. It’s about Zionism!”._ This has been the reflective argument of Irish critics of Israel since the State was established. + +If Jews opposing Israel can’t be found in Ireland, they can be imported like prized delicacies from the UK and carefully hemmed into the ideological hate bubble of the Irish political mainstream to ensure that their opinions don’t unexpectedly waver. Richard Boyd Barrett and the militantly anti-Semitic party over which he presides knows a thing or two about this. + +Graffiti daubed on a wall in Co. Waterford, Ireland last October, after October 7th. According to the report of the incident, Ireland’s police force were not pursuing an investigation into the matter. + +The hatred of the Irish political class towards Israel waxes and wanes. But it predictably reaches an explosive crescendo whenever Israel conducts a military operation in Gaza. Whatever Israel does, and however it conducts itself, in Irish eyes, it is always in the wrong. + +Whenever Ireland’s ire towards Israel reached a fever pitch, things got very uncomfortable very quickly. Those who make the delusional argument that Ireland is bereft of antisemitism have obviously never lived as an Irish Jew during one of these periods. + +A high school teacher used to repetitively rant about how “the Jews” stole “Palestine” from the Palestinians. I’ve received more hateful messages from Ireland than anywhere else in the world. “Friends” told me candidly about how they believed Israel to be something like the devil incarnated in a state. + +I left in 2015 and have spent as little time as possible in Ireland since. + +Almost a decade after this decision — which I haven’t regretted for a moment — I’m not surprised to notice that Irish online commenters still regard ‘Zionism’ as a good insult to level at Jews. + +If anything speaks to a profound ignorance of Jewish history and the centrality of Zionism to the Jewish people then this is probably it. + +A BDS group in Dublin rallies members together on social media. The call to boycott describes the German supermarket as selling products “contaminated with” genocide … and Zionism. Screenshot: Twitter/X.Some of the “contaminated with Zionism” stickers placed on products in Lidl, Dublin, Ireland. Photo: X. + +To call me a “dirty Zionist” entails insulting my personal hygiene but also affirming my belief in the essential centrality of Israel to my people. + +Should I be flattered or outraged? I still can’t decide. + +### So … Why Do The Irish Appear To Hate Us So Much? + +Articles such as this one have become a somewhat regular fixture both in English and Hebrew language media after October 7th. Screenshot: Jerusalem Post. + +For decades now, curious observers and those (like me) with skin in the game have fallen over themselves attempting to explain Ireland’s historical antipathy to everything to do with Israel. + +The only commonality between these repetitive acts of excuse-making — often proffered by non-Jewish Irish commentators writing in Irish media — is to ensure that anti-Semitism is never pointed to as an explanation. + +Everything else is fair game. But to point out that _some degree_ of the obsessive and vitriolic brand of anti-Israelism that suffuses Irish society seems to be rooted in anti-Semitic beliefs and conspiracy theories is an unspeakable claim that would instantly draw allegations that one were “playing the anti-Semitism card” or “playing victim.” + +Increasingly I no longer believe that anti-Semitism is a _minor_ contributory factor to Ireland’s hostile stance towards Israel and Israelis. I think it’s a significant factor. + +_But why ask this question in the first place?_ + +Ireland’s opposition to Israel isn’t unique. Far from it, of course. + +But in terms of its near universality, vitriol and almost complete lack of opposition it’s a different beast than that which is encountered in most of the non-Arab world. + +Last November a former Irish diplomat (who represented Ireland in the PA) candidly told a British newspaper how Ireland’s relative lack of a Jewish community enabled the country to take a “freer hand to take what we consider a more principled position” vis-a-vis the conflict. That such a statement could be proferred so directly is telling. + +[**Ireland's 'lack of Jewish influence' helps support for Palestine - envoy** + _Niall Holohan claimed that the lack of Jewish influence and population has "given us a freer hand to take what we…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-774794 "https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-774794")[](https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-774794) + +And so it was within this cosy climate of acceptance for anti-Israel rhetoric that Irish politician Richard Boyd Barrett chose to label Israel a “dirty” “psychopathic” country against which an “intifada” to be levelled to “bring it down” in Dublin late last year. + +Richard Boyd Barrett seen calling for the destruction of Israel at an event in London last year. Boyd Barrett has denied allegations of anti-Semitism despite being frequently charged with it. + +Boyd Barrett’s language describing Israelis as collective subhumans evoked chilling echoes from history — a comparison not helped by the manic mannerisms with which he delivered the statements: + +> “You can only make peace with human beings. With people who have some humanity. You cannot make peace with a psychopath. With a mass murderer. With a savage. And that is what the State of Israel is!” + +Shocked by what I saw on the internet, and how they had apparently been deemed to be completely un-notable, I brought the remarks to public attention in a tweet that ended up being viewed more than one million times. + +The issue attracted the attention of Ireland’s newspaper of record, _The Irish Times_. Did Ireland have red lines when it came to Israel!? We were about to find out the disappointing answer. + +A few days later, a reporter put the statements to Micheal Martin, Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs. He opined that it was “wrong” to describe a State as “psychopathic” but refused to comment on whether the remarks would fall afoul of hate speech laws the Republic was considering. + +One day later, another journalist offered Boyd Barrett the opportunity to retract or apologise for the remarks. He refused to the deafening echo of no condemnation from the other 159 members of Ireland’s main legislative chamber. A month later, in fact, his party published a manifesto advocating that the State of Israel be replaced by a replacement state … called Palestine. No, really. + +At a “pro Palestine” rally in Dublin, Irish politician Richard Boyd Barrett described Israel, variously, as “filthy”, “psycopathic” and “the monster created by the United States.” The remarks did not draw condemnation from other members of Ireland’s legislature.Irish member of parliament Richard Boyd Barrett seen calling for an intifada to “put down” what he termed the “dirty” “psychopathic” State of Israel in Dublin last year. Screenshot: YouTube. + +While many world governments are critical of Israel, at least at times, Ireland stands head and shoulders in the relentless of its persecution of Israel. + +In the last few days alone, Irish public debate has been bustling with debates about whether the country should boycott the Eurovision song contest because of the noxious presence of an Israeli contestant. Half of Ireland’s basketball team have refused to play against Israeli opponents. + +Ireland’s PM, Leo Varadkar, has gone for the jugular at the EU, attempting to get Israel’s trade agreement with the EU repudiated on the basis that Israel is in breach of human rights. Watching the news coming out of Ireland one would assume that Israel were a neighbouring country rather than a Middle Eastern state thousands of kilometres away. + +If kind words have ever been uttered in the Oireachtas about the Jewish State, frankly, I’m not aware of them. Had they been uttered, I would have expected whoever uttered them to be shunned and dis-elected. In Ireland, only one opinion about Israel is a permissible one. + +At a protest in Cork last week, protesters chanted support for The Houthis’ actions in The Red Sea. + +Although I try to resist the temptation to watch the gory phenomenon of Ireland’s spectacular hatred for Israel from afar, I’ve had a hard time keeping away from it entirely. + +As I’ve done so, I’ve noticed how the mask of those apparently protesting for “Palestinian” rights has slipped and revealed them to be primarily concerned with ensuring the elimination and marginalisation of the world’s only Jewish state. + +The Irish are particularly motivated by the idea of driving Israel’s embassy out of Dublin (one imagines perhaps bearing pitchforks). Calls to “globalise the intifada” now accompany those to “free Palestine.” A Palestinian advocate in Dublin urged the crowd to shout “Palestine will be free from the river to the sea” and to do so extra loudly because “they hate when we do that.” I took the ‘they’ to mean us Jews. + +During this bout of observation, I set up a small YouTube channel that attempts to point out how tolerated anti-Israel hate speech is in the Irish discourse with the fantastical aspiration that perhaps doing so might at least highlight the problem. + +Last week in Cork protesters chanted their support for the Houthis encouraging them to “turn another ship around.” An Irish musician has made a popular melody out of the chant _“from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”_ Despite continued highlighting of the fact that the slogan is viewed by many as a call to exterminate Israel of Jews, its bars continue to ring out in Irish cities week after week. But it’s okay. People Before Profit wrote a pamphlet confirming that the slogan isn’t tainted with anti-Semitism. + +The findings have been grim and have frankly made me — now a Jewish Israeli — terrified of the prospect of ever setting foot in Ireland again. It’s easy to understand how Irish anti-Semitism doesn’t really _need_ to feature explicit acts of violence against its vanishingly small Jewish population. + +Ireland has succeeded in creating an atmosphere of such intense hostility towards Israelis and Jews that only the truly diehard — or those steeped in denial — would consider staying in the first place. + +### Ireland Claims To Be Neutral. In Reality, It Pursues A Diplomatic War Against Israel On Several Fronts + +The hostility of much of the Irish population towards Israel is reflected in the representatives they elect and how they comport themselves at international institutions. + +Ireland’s President Michael D Higgins criticised EU Commisioner Ursula Von Der Leyen for stating that the EU “stands with Israel” after the October 7th attacks. + +When EU Commissioner Ursula Von Der Leyen affirmed that the EU “stands with Israel” in the wake of October 7th, Ireland’s president felt the need to distance Ireland from the remarks. + +At fora like the UN and EU, Ireland sides with any motion that condemns Israel. More recently it has decided that it wishes to take up the mantle of leading the charge — pushing whatever sanctions it can to harm the Jewish State. + +In the immediate wake of October 7th, Ireland unsuccessfully attempted to force the EU to interject a perverse moral equivalency into its condemnation of the atrocities. Fortunately nations with straighter moral compasses rejected the attempt. + +Last week, in Brussels, Ireland was pushing to have the EU-Israel Agreement scrapped based on a “human rights” clause. + +Hearing what it so badly wanted to hear, Irish media have spun the ICJ interim judgement as a vindication of the fact that Israel must be committing a non-existence genocide. Ireland is now actively considering joining South Africa’s absurd persecution of Israel at the ICJ. Its justice minister has made clear that she would be thrilled to see Ireland do so. + +According to information sourced by NGO Monitor, the Irish taxpayer has been channelling aid towards Palestinian NGOs which Israel later proscribed as terrorist organisations owning to their ties to the PFLP, among others. + +Not content with stopping even there, Ireland works through the murky world of NGOs to fund highly politicised organisations which are almost universally anti-Israel in outlook. These include the official charity arm of the Catholic Church of Ireland, Trócaire. + +[The important work of NGO Monitor ](https://www.ngo-monitor.org/funder/ireland/)lays bare the shocking extent of this bias which flatly contradicts Ireland’s absurd claims of “neutrality” around this conflict. Not that anybody in Israel was buying that claim in the first place. + +Ireland’s Representative Office in Ramallah enjoys a particularly cosy relationship with Al-Haq — which Israel proscribed as a terrorist organisation and which, in the wake of October 7th, proudly affirmed Palestinians’ right to “resist” the “Israeli occupation” + +After revelations about UNRWA’s long-known associations with Hamas were revealed last week, Ireland again bucked the international trend by proudly announcing that it would continue channelling money into the entity thereby ensuring that Hamas continue to enjoy some useful facilities in Gaza within which to hide weapons. + +Ireland, unsurprisingly, is one of UNRWA’s main funders. It could now be argued that Ireland is wilfully channelling aid into an organisation which has been proven to directly abet Hamas. Perhaps Israel should consider hauling Ireland before the ICJ as a state sponsor of terrorism. + +Even in the wake of the UNRWA revelations, Ireland decided to take a different approach to other European nations, choosing to continue channelling taxpayer money into the organisation. + +Of course as friends of Ireland in Israel are wont to remind me, things aren’t entirely bleak. + +Organised activities to defend Israel in Ireland are well-intentioned but find themselves attempting to swim against a tsunami of hate. A pro-Israel march was organised last week. I expect that anybody who could be identified as having intended will face the same deluge of hate that I will likely receive for writing this. + +So Irish friends of Israel exist. But most are understandably reluctant to draw the vitriolic ire of the much larger pro-Palestine faction upon themselves. + +In the Ireland of 2024, even local governments have free reign to jump in on the Israel-hating bandwagon. In the neighboring UK, central government decided to ban local authorities from stepping into the realm of foreign policy setting. In Ireland, unsurprisingly, no such measures have been tabled. + +[**Ban on public bodies boycotting Israel passes in Commons despite Tory rebellion** + _Plans to prevent public bodies from implementing their own boycotts against Israeli goods have cleared the Commons…_ news.sky.com](https://news.sky.com/story/ban-on-public-bodies-boycotting-israel-passes-in-commons-despite-tory-rebellion-13045732 "https://news.sky.com/story/ban-on-public-bodies-boycotting-israel-passes-in-commons-despite-tory-rebellion-13045732")[](https://news.sky.com/story/ban-on-public-bodies-boycotting-israel-passes-in-commons-despite-tory-rebellion-13045732) + +According to their website, more than 100 businesses and spaces in Ireland have chosen to proclaim themselves to be “Apartheid Free Zones” (AFZs). Successive local government bodies have chosen to fly the flag of Palestine over their local legislatures. Needless to say, in the wake of October 7th, no similar acts of solidarity were expressed with Israel. + +Cork County Council last week passed a resolution endorsing BDS, declaring Cork County an “Apartheid Free Zone” and stating that it would also not purchase goods or services from entities supportive of Israel. + +Last week Cork County Council passed a motion officially endorsing BDS. It also declared the county — the largest in Ireland — a space of “proactive solidarity with the Palestinian people.” And for good measure it even announced its intention to boycott those who merely “supported” the evil State of Israel. If we accept that the majority of world Jews can be described as being “supportive” of the State of Israel in some way, then this boycott is not only anti-Israel, it’s anti-Jewish. + +Defenders of Israel in government are virtually non-existent or reduced to meek criticism of sometimes wildly anti-Israel discourse. Those who break the social contract that demands obsequious criticism of the Jewish State — like Alan Shatter, an Irish Jew — find themselves open to an avalanche of hatred. + +And when Ireland’s pin-up anti-Semite Richard Boyd Barrett intones in its chamber that Israel has “no right to defend itself but Palestinians do” and that Israel has no right to exist (for, Boyd Barrett maintains, it is an “apartheid state”) the utterances are met with tepid rebuttals or studied silence. Boyd Barrett — for the record — last said that he “doesn’t know what happened” on October 7th. + +A recently released pamphlet by the Irish party most vocal about Israel called for the “total dismantlement” of the State of Israel. Screenshot: Irish Times. + +### **_The traditional explanations for Ireland’s virulent strain of anti-Israelism don’t tell the full picture_** + +We’re told that Irish opposition to Israel stems from false parallels between Ireland’s experience of British colonialism and what they perceive to be happening in Israel. + +This however entails providing an excuse for historical illiteracy. Why do that? Anybody with an internet connection can refute this claim in a few minutes. Almost everybody in Ireland is fortunate enough to have internet. + +The Irish Light — a freesheet published by conspiracy theorist Gemma O’Doherty — has published increasingly blatant anti-Semitism over the past few months. Screenshot: The Irish Light website. + +Amid this growing climate of hate, a newsletter circulated in Dublin — _The Irish Light_ — now openly peddles in the kind of anti-Semitism that would have felt right at place during the height of Nazi Germany. + +Its pages tell crazy tales of how Jews “conquered” Ireland. How they’re secretly controlling all aspects of Irish society and the media. How they bring the scourge of money-lending wherever they go. Its publisher brags that Ireland never evidenced significant persecution of Jews because it had the good wisdom to never let them in in the first place. + +The fact that this publication’s visionary is transparently insane does not (in my view) excuse the fact that the material is allowed to circulate, apparently without impedance. Month after month blatant hook-nose-Jews style anti-Semitism is being pushed into letterboxes and foisted onto newsstands in Ireland. + +A tweet from Ireland’s largest political party states that the entirety of Ireland’s parliament is against Israel’s operation in Gaza. Screenshot: X. + +Just today, Ireland’s majority government party Fianna Fáil tweeted that _“All of us in this House are united in our view that what is happening in Gaza must stop.”_ + +If a descriptive statement of what’s problematic about Ireland’s outlook on Israel could be offered, maybe this is it. If those words were true, every one of the 160 elected representatives in Ireland’s government denies Israel — and of course only Israel — the right to prosecute a war to ensure its security. + +Much as being a good Jew in Ireland requires being reticent about Israel, being a respectful member of the Irish parliament appears to require repudiating Israel’s right to self-defence. + +### The Israeli Response Can And Must Be More Hawkish + +The time has come for a breakup with Ireland. Not tomorrow. Right now. + +**So what can we do about this from this side of Europe?** + +We can take a few actions, I suggest. + +For one, Israel should stop engaging with the Irish Government who seem to harbor the delusional vision that they can be of help in resolving the Middle Eastern conflict. + +Governments of course change and so can foreign policies. But this is certainly the most appropriate posture to adopt towards Ireland’s current set of incumbents. + +Ireland is not a “critical friend” of Israel. It has morphed into something far more sinister than that. It is an apologist for Hamas which tries to mask its relentless persecution of Israel under the guise of neutrality. + +### Ireland’s Next Government May Be Even More Anti-Israel Than Anything Which Has Come Before It + +A Sinn Fein majority government would make predecessors seem positively effusive in praise for Israel.. + +Why am I writing this now? Because I believe that Ireland is embarking upon an interesting direction that calls for a calculated reaction from Israel. Ireland has surpassed any other EU member state in its hostility to Israel. For Israel’s strategem, this means that we need to adopt different postures to different parts of that bloc. + +For those who find Ireland’s reaction since October 7th to be shocking, I would counter that it’s only a continuation of business as normal. Why expect different from a government that took more than a decade to acknowledge our State’s existence? + +Ireland has shown throughout its history that it will act against Israel however and wherever it can. It just finds the current climate a particularly good moment to try to turn the knife in our back. + +I suggest that when it comes to relations between Ireland and Israel that we haven’t yet hit the bottom of the barrel. We might only be half-way there. + +The current crop of Israel-haters in Ireland’s parliament will seem meek if the nationalist Sinn Fein accedes to power as is planned. + +So I say act now before things get worse. + +Albert Einstein once said that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. + +And by the great physicists’s definition, Israel is worthy of being called insane. + +Israel’s embassy in Ballsbridge in Dublin + +What else can and should we do? + +For one, as an Israeli taxpayer, I would very much like to see Israel’s embassy in Dublin shuttered. + +Consular affairs can be managed as they were previously from a non-resident embassy in the UK. + +If the annual budget saving were enough to offset even a tiny part of the budgetary shortfall caused by the ongoing war I would say it was an opportunity cost well realised. + +Israeli entrepreneurs should wake up to the fact that Ireland is hostile territory. I would even caution those looking at temporary relocations to Ireland to explore other options. + +In the last few years, the Israeli software company Wix opened an office in Dublin creating 100 jobs in the process. Years later it found itself forced to defend itself for firing an employee who derided Israel as a “terror state” on social media. + +When an Irish employee of Wix was fired by the Israel-based company for calling Isreal a “terror state” she received support from Ireland’s Prime Minister who advised her to seek legal redress. Screenshot: BBC. + +Ireland’s Prime Minister chimed in on the matter, recommending that the employee pursue an unfair dismissal case citing protections around freedom of speech — which seems to always be ensured in Ireland whenever Israel is the unfavourable target of that discourse. + +The lesson for Wix, I suggest, is simple: pay more taxes but preserve your dignity. The jobs could probably have been kept in Israel anyway. + +The current war which Israel is pursuing against Hamas and other paramilitary factions in Gaza has clarified much about the relationships Israel enjoys in the international community. There are critical friends, certainly. But several nations have marked themselves out as enemies by virtue of their sheer animus. I suggest that Ireland should properly be reckoned among this category. + +In diplomacy as in life, the closing of one door often leads to the opening of another. Let’s weld shut ties with the Emerald Isle and see if it can drown out just a little of the constant din of their hatred and negativity. We could use the peace and quiet. + +And we should do this now. Before things get worse. diff --git a/posts/medium/Is-The-Canon-Vixia-HF-R800-A-Good-YouTube-Camcorder--You-Be-The-Judge---Review-.md b/posts/medium/Is-The-Canon-Vixia-HF-R800-A-Good-YouTube-Camcorder--You-Be-The-Judge---Review-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..162a39d7a6732e8ea56297570c6ecdd0acd458af --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Is-The-Canon-Vixia-HF-R800-A-Good-YouTube-Camcorder--You-Be-The-Judge---Review-.md @@ -0,0 +1,228 @@ +# Is The Canon Vixia HF R800 A Good YouTube Camcorder? You Be The Judge! (Review) + +#### This entry level option from Canon continues to enjoy widespread popularity as a competent entry-point to the camcorder world + +Several years ago, I picked up a Canon Vixia HF R800. + +The Canon Vixia HF R800 mounted on a scorpion bracket with the Saramonic Cam Mic Plus (battery powered shotgun microphone) as the external microphone. Shoot location: Gazelle Valley, Jerusalem. Photo: Author + +My rationale? + +It was one of the few budget / entry-level camcorders that had an external microphone input (3.5mm) which widened mic options significantly beyond the built-in microphone (usually of relatively poor quality). It was also made by Canon, which I knew was considered a trusted brand. + +Those on lower budgets have relatively few good options in the camcorder world. So those seemed like more than good enough things to be getting for my spend. I haven’t regretted the purchase for a second. + +My rationale for going budget? + +Besides you know …being on a budget … I wasn’t sure whether it was going to sit lying on my cabinet for the next several years until I felt ready to actually finally ‘get into’ video. + +And while the R800 certainly meant that I’d be starting out with some limitations (I’ll get to those below) it also meant that I could get into learning about microphones from the get-go, which I saw as a big advantage. + +The good news is that although my entry to the world of YouTube-ing has been a little slower than I might have liked, it has absolutely gotten some good use. You know that point when you develop a sort of fond relationship with your key electronics despite the fact that … they’re inanimate objects and all that? I’m there. I love my Vixia. + +I also reckon I’ll get at least six to twelve months out of it before I even start thinking about upgrading the core component of my camera kit. A few folks on YouTube and Reddit have already reached out to me asking what I think about it. So the TL;DR is this: I like it. And if you’d like more detail, read on. + +[**4 Reasons Making Video Is More Fun Than Writing** + _As a longtime writer dipping my toes in video, there are aspects of this mode of creative expression that already…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382) + +[**5 YouTube Channels From Israel I’m Watching At The Moment** + _As a recent entrant to the YouTube fold, I’ve been doing a bit of digging around this summer to find channels to draw ……_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-youtube-channels-from-israel-im-watching-at-the-moment-50db38ac2e0d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-youtube-channels-from-israel-im-watching-at-the-moment-50db38ac2e0d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-youtube-channels-from-israel-im-watching-at-the-moment-50db38ac2e0d) + +### But Why A Camcorder, Grandpa? + +Doing some outdoor vlogging with the Vixia HF R800. Location: First Station, Jerusalem. Accessories: table-top tripod and scorpion mounts by Ulanzi. Microphone: Saramonic Cam Mic Plus. Thanks to the Crazy Will Tech Show for the tip to get the zoom into 57X for a wide angle shot. Photo: Author. + +Firstly, I specifically wanted to pick up a camcorder. You may be wondering why. Isn’t that …. like so uncool? (Yes, yes it is.) + +I know that DSLR and mirrorless are the flavor of the day among YouTubers, but I specifically wanted to purchase a camcorder — even if a very basic one — to get going with video. + +While I respect what they do, I have precisely zero interest in still photography. + +During my brief but halcyon days in freelance journalism, if I needed a still photo I’d reluctantly whip out my smartphone and then get back to doing whatever writers on assignment do (fiddling with notepads, operating voice recorders, trying to look curious and worldly). Don’t try to teach an old dog new tricks. But video … even I can see that is worthy of its own tool. + +The Vixia with a smaller shotgun microphone connected to it on the top of an L bracket. Note: this camera doesn’t have any cold shoe / accessory mounts. So you’ll have to work around that if you want to mount them. Photo: Author + +So why buy something originally intended for it even if they look a lot cooler and are being hyped up all over YouTube? + +I don’t know enough about video yet to be able to say this with confidence. But I’ve found other Luddites who _do_ (thank you, Google) and confidently espouse the belief that if video is what you’re aiming to do, a camcorder is still the best tool for the job. Their viewpoint makes total sense to me. + +Yes, they’re clunky. Yes, they give you a slightly awkward-uncle-at-the-family-BBQ-with-his-camera-again look. + +But I like them. Perhaps one day I _will_ be that awkward uncle at the family BBQ (when I get to that stage, I better have a shoulder rig and something a lot chunkier; my family video footage is going to be broadcast quality and I’ll settle for nothing less). + +### What’s Good About The Canon Vixia HF R800? + +So what are the positives? + +#### Workable 1080P Video + +Firstly it reliably shoots decent enough video with options for both a fully automated shooting experience (automatic white balance, focus, and exposure) and an option for more manual shooting. + +Unless I’m missing something in the settings somewhere (note: I’ve checked the spec sheet several times; I’m pretty sure I’m not), it shoots in 1080P rather than 4K. + +Personally, as a rookie, I find that 1080P looks good enough for my needs. I have so much more to learn (lighting, sound, stabilization, editing) before I can justify fretting about when and whether it’s time to go from high to ultra high resolution. So I edit in 1080P and wonder who needs 8K anyway? + +Secondly, the thing works. It hasn’t failed on me yet. + +The OEM battery capacity isn’t enormous at less than 3,000 mAh. Nevertheless, non-OEM ones (like the chargers) are plentiful on online marketplaces. + +Naturally, if you go down this route you’ll be dealing with some limitations — so I’ll go ahead and forewarn you about what those might look like. + +Many won’t interface the motherboard so the only means to determine remaining battery life is to … try talking to the battery (I jest). But they’re cheap enough that you can throw a few in your camera bag and live with the constant uncertainty of it all. Note: my ones also only charge with non-OEM chargers. Canon and Aliexpress’s finest batteries from some random factory aren’t exactly best friends, it seems. + +#### 1 x External Microphone Port (Minijack, 3.5mm) + +Secondly, you have an external microphone port. It’s one humble 3.5mm connection. You also have an AV out line for audio monitoring. I maintain that this is a great camcorder to learn the ropes on — including monitoring your line in. You won’t be able to connect XLR mics to the camcorder and you’ll have to use a step-up adapter if you want to listen with headphones that terminate in a 1/4" connection. But for a rookie … I think these concerns are probably overkill. + +#### A 1/4/20 Mount For + +If you want to get the Vixia on a monopod or tripod, then there’s a screw-in 1/4"/20 thread on the bottom of the camera. + +### … And What’s Bad About The Canon Vixia HF R800? + +#### The Mic Jack Doesn’t Supply Any Power — So Won’t Work With Mics That Don’t Provide Their Own Electricity + +Remember that external mic jack that I mentioned? + +The humble 3.5mm one that basically led me to buy this camcorder? + +Yes, that one. + +Well, it has a dirty secret to hide: + +It doesn’t put out any power. + +As in none whatsoever. + +No phantom power. No plug in power (PIP). It’s output voltage is 0. Zero. _Efes_. + +For connecting microphones directly to the camcorder, this poses something of a headache. Rode and many manufacturers _do_ make on-camera mics that supply their own electricity via a built in battery but … I had a very hard time finding them in my local sales geography. + +In the end I had to settle for the Saramonic Cam Mic Plus. Thanks for this breakthrough go to the patient staff at [Erlich](http://erlich.co.il) who kindly let me test the mic in store to make sure it would work before purchasing. + +When you get knowledgeable sales staff who let you do this … you start to believe that bricks and mortar still has a place even in an online shopping dominated world. + +Therefore, while you _will_ be able to use external microphones with this camera and even plug in a mixer, you’ll always have to be cognizant of what the power situation with the hardware you’re trying to connect looks like. + +The Saramonic Cam Mic Plus. Which _does_ work with the Canon R800. Photo: Author. + +#### There’s No Built In WiFi And No Compatible Remote Control — And The Default Zoom Setting Isn’t Ideal For Vlogging + +Now what happens if you want to take some selfie-style vlogs with this thing you might be wondering? + +The answer is that depending on what other gear you might have on hand you could be out of luck. + +The R800 doesn’t have built in WiFi. As it shares a user manual with some other higher end Vixias that _do_ this could be a little misleading. + +There _is_ a count down timer function. But there’s also no remote control. + +For those that want to skip editing in post production, these limitations could prove quite annoying. As I post some video vlogs without editing them in post, I tend to record these using a webcam and microphone on my computer. + +WiFi, a compatible remote control, and a zoom function for wide angle that were more clearly labelled in the firmware menus would make this camcorder a lot more useful for vloggers. + +If you’re looking to vlog with the Vixia you might also find the default zoom settings far too close-up. + +The Crazy Will Tech Show [posted this excellent ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGbU87FlzvA&ab_channel=CrazyWillTechShow)video about how to get over the lens issue without having a wide angle lens on hand — although you can also find one easily enough on the market (the lens size is 43mm if you’re wondering). I already thanked him in the comments but let me do so again here — thanks, Will. This little tip you shared truly helped me out! + +#### You Can’t Monitor Video In Real Time + +Like most consumer level cameras, the R800 does have a pop out monitor to let you see what’s going on in your shot. You can overlay it with a grid view based on both white and gray lines for more accurate framing. + +However if you’re hoping to attach a dedicated hardware monitor to the camcorder then, again, you’re going to be out of luck. The playback functionality only works retrospectively through the navigation menu. Therefore, you’re not going to be able to hook up a monitor to the camcorder. + +Again, for rookies, I don’t think that this is a deal-breaker. As I get into using my gimbal and monopods, not being able to monitor the video feed is _starting_ to get a little annoying. When I’m speccing out my next camcorder, I’ll definitely be looking for this as a feature. + +#### Wait For It … There Are No Cold Shoe / Accessory Mounts + +Even when you can’t get a cold shoe onto your camera you can place one on top of it and dream about what could be. You can even take a photo with it on it. Photo: Author. + +There’s only one thing that I _do_ totally hold against Canon for omitting when designing this camcorder: there are no cold shoe /accessory mounts. + +If the good folks at Canon ever read this, I’ve sized up a small patch of space on the top bezel of the camcorder. Surely it wouldn’t add much to the manufacturing costs to shave down some metal here and throw on a cold shoe? + +This limitation really _is_ kind of annoying — particularly as there’s the external microphone port. Canon gives you the ability to connect external microphones. But then makes it needlessly difficult to hook up a simple on-camera shotgun. + +What you can do instead is purchase an L bracket for about $10 from your preferred camera retailer. But if you just need to get a small microphone or light on top of the camera, these clunky pieces of metal add a lot of size to a compact camera. I ended up having to buy a somewhat large shoulder camera bag simply to be able to carry the bracket and mounted accessories around with me. + +But there is a better way. + +It seems like it’s oddly hard to actually buy these things if you don’t live in the US (as for why, I have no idea) but you can buy adhesive cold shoes that have some 3M tape on the back and just stick on to the camcorder. + +You can also go for hackier solutions if you have a metal file and some double sided tape on hand. Check out these YouTube tutorials from [Bubba’s Workshop](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ffi_ith8Ma8) and [R Brown](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a54-p1PKYB4). + +### Are There Any Gimbals That Are Compatible With The Canon Vixia HF R800? + +Seems like a simple question right? Not so much. + +For whatever reason, answering it took me _months_ of digging. A veritable wild goose chase. + +Firstly, various camera stores seemed aghast when I marched in with my tiny camcorder and demanded that they find their finest gimbal that would take it. + +“It’s the wrong size,” they argued in protest (while getting back to the guy from the local TV station ordering a much-fancier microphone for his much-fancier camcorder). “Gimbals are for DSLRs and mirrorless cameras,” another affirmed. + +Not one to be phased when I have my mind made up on something, I decided to dig around online. + +B&H wouldn’t list any electric gimbals that they were prepared to stand by as officially operable with the camera. So I turned to YouTube and found footage from a couple of YouTubers who _had_ evidently got the R800 on a gimbal. Searching Amazon.com listings of popular gimbals, I found other living breathing people in the world who evidently _had_ gotten the R800 on a gimbal. + +From YouTube: here’s what it looks like on a Zhiyun Crane 3 (footage: Nightcast Productions). + +I see a little bit of wobble (like the kind I’m getting on the Ronin SC). But the results are nevertheless pretty impressive (says I). And the gimbal + monopod combination always looks very impressive for creating a fake crane/jib effect. + +Here’s another YouTuber getting it working on the Zhiyun Crane V2: + +Recently I went on a trip to the US. + +Disregarding the wisdom of the sunk cost fallacy which tells gimbal-hunters to _not_ continue the search because they’ve already written to three manufacturers and should really get back to doing whatever else they have to do today, I decided to drop B&H Photo Video an email. + +And guess what? Near instantaneous success! + +I walked into B&H and walked out with a DJI Ronin SC about fifteen minutes later — then decided to walk across the street into an Irish pub and celebrate owning what to many probably seems like an obscure and unnecessary piece of electronics. + +Important note: the R800 isn’t officially compatible with the Ronin — and hence you won’t see it listed on their official comparability charts ([here’s the one for the Ronin SC](https://dl.djicdn.com/downloads/Ronin_SC/20191119/Ronin_SC_Camera_Compatibility_List_en.pdf)). More importantly, this means that the record button the gimbal that looks so convenient won’t actually do anything. But it’s not a major limitation. + +I am sure that when I told him _“this was kinda hard to find”_ the guy working at the gimbal counter had absolutely no idea that he was closing the loop on a gnawing and frustrating wild goose chase that had gone on for months, involved many futile visits to camera stores, and much … daydreaming about gimbals. + +Is the gimbaly goodness all the gimbaly goodness I could have dreamed about? + +Yes and no. + +I don’t regret buying the Ronin for a moment and I have a lot to learn with the tool. But part of me thinks that a non-electric stabilizer would just be a far better tool for a camera of this size, even if it’s small. In time, I’m hopeful that I’ll get to learn both. + +### Canon Vixia HF R800 and DJI Ronin SC + +Curious how it all looks together? Here are some photos: + +Working on calibration. Photo: AuthorThe combination used together with the Ulanzi quick release plate — an amazing piece of gear. Photo: AuthorThe DJI Ronin SC used with the Saramonic Cam Mic Plus and a Ulanzi light. Photo: Author + +### What Accessories Can You Buy For The Canon Vixia HF R800? + + * 43mm wide angle and telephoto lenses are both available + * You can find a variety of lens filters for this size online + * To the best of my knowledge, there’s neither a remote control nor an underwater case for this camcorder + +### Where’s A Good Place To Discuss This Camera Online? + +Check out the Camcorder section of the Canon Community Forums. There are lots of very knowledgeable posters. + +[**Camcorder** + _Auto-suggest helps you quickly narrow down your search results by suggesting possible matches as you type._ community.usa.canon.com](https://community.usa.canon.com/t5/Camcorder/ct-p/camcorder "https://community.usa.canon.com/t5/Camcorder/ct-p/camcorder")[](https://community.usa.canon.com/t5/Camcorder/ct-p/camcorder) + +There’s also an unofficial Canon subreddit. It’s at[ /r/canon](https://www.reddit.com/r/canon/). + +### Do I Recommend The Canon Vixia HF R800? + +Yes, I do. + +I think that it’s a great camcorder to learn the ropes of video on. That’s precisely what I’m doing. And I think that it can support my video voyage for at least another six months (to a year). + +What’s the next step up for me? Probably something like the Vixia HF G50 which _will_ shoot at 4K (among many other advantages) . I’d be happy to stick with Canon and with camcorder. But that’s already a significant chunk of change. + +I can shoot with it. I can monitor audio. If I know what camcorders and mixers can work, I can attach them too. + +### What Does Video Shot With The Canon Vixia HF R800 Look Like? + +As a rookie, I’m probably not doing justice to the camera’s full capabilities. So watch the gimbal clips above first. + +But if you’re curious how the camera looks on top of the Ronin SC, here’s an example: + +Shot through a sunroof: diff --git a/posts/medium/Israel-Focused-Facebook-Groups-For-English-Speakers.md b/posts/medium/Israel-Focused-Facebook-Groups-For-English-Speakers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..731899de837aeba2044d4ea953c53d9dd77cf1d0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Israel-Focused-Facebook-Groups-For-English-Speakers.md @@ -0,0 +1,106 @@ +# Israel Focused Facebook Groups For English Speakers + +#### Forums To Get Grounded In English + +For me — and for many — this calendar year has been one dominated by staying at home. + +And as much as I hate their tendency to derail my productivity (my focus is brittle), Facebook groups have been an amazing companion during the long days of working from home with nowhere much else to be. + +If you’re new to Israel, then my recommendation is to work on your Hebrew as fast as possible! Joining Facebook groups in Hebrew is actually a good way to do this (as well, of course, as actually getting out and using the language). + +But having a friendly community of English-speakers can be invaluable when you’re just trying to figure out your left hand from your right. Or when you’re not feeling up to the linguistic challenge of typing and communicating in a second language. + +Here are some of the popular forums. + +### Secret Jerusalem, Secret Tel Aviv, Secret Netanya (Etc) + +Nobody really seems sure while publicly accessible Facebook groups are prefixed by the word ‘Secret’ (maybe their origin is shrouded in mystery?), but Secret Jerusalem, Secret Tel Aviv etc have become staple sources of information for the English speaking community in Israel. + +Amazingly, there’s one for almost every major city in the country. + +These tend to be large groups. At the time of writing, for instance, Secret Jerusalem has more than 89,000 members! Their focus also tends to be generalist. But if you want to get a good handle on what’s available in your city, then these are usually good places to start. + +[**Facebook Groups** + _Secret Jerusalem has 89,444 members. Welcome to Secret Jerusalem! We are a welcoming, diverse community of…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/secretjerusalem "https://www.facebook.com/groups/secretjerusalem")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/secretjerusalem) + +[**Secret Tel Aviv** + _Welcome to our Community! Secret Tel Aviv is a space for all Tel Avivis to share their experiences and questions, meet…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/secrettelaviv "https://www.facebook.com/groups/secrettelaviv")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/secrettelaviv) + +[**Facebook Groups** + _Secret Gush Etzion has 4,860 members. Secret Gush Etzion is a space for all Gushniks to share their experiences and…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/secretgushetzion "https://www.facebook.com/groups/secretgushetzion")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/secretgushetzion) + +[**Secret Eilat** + _Welcome to Secret Eilat, Where you can meet friends, ask questions, sell things, advertise your business and more…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/597061673685796 "https://www.facebook.com/groups/597061673685796")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/597061673685796) + +### Living Financially Smarter in Israel + +For many _olim_ managing finances can be a major challenge. Israel’s cost of living is extraordinarily high, salaries in general aren’t, and a lot of people, including newcomers, struggle to make ends meet. + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +That’s the bad news. + +The good news is that this is a widespread “problem.” Which means that a lot of people are thinking about it. + +Living Financially Smarter in Israel, run by financial consultant[ Rifka Leibowitz](https://rifkalebowitz.com/), is a sort of sounding board for all things money related in Israel. + +[**Facebook Groups** + _Living Financially Smarter in Israel has 31,192 members. *Please read before posting* Welcome to Rifka Lebowitz's…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/219528557090 "https://www.facebook.com/groups/219528557090")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/219528557090) + +You can find in there lots of discussions about the differences between a pension fund and a _keren hishtalmut_ and plenty of opinions on the cost of living, how to exchange foreign currency, and how to negotiate your first employment contract. + +### Living Financially Smarter in Israel — Entrepreneurs + +Some _olim_ run their own businesses. LFSII has an offshoot group, LFSII: Entrepreneurs, intended for the types of questions and answers that are more of interest to this community. + +[**Facebook Groups** + _LFSII: Entrepreneurs has 2,049 members. LFSII: Entrepreneurs is an offshoot of Living Financially Smarter in Israel. We…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/543345035806439 "https://www.facebook.com/groups/543345035806439")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/543345035806439) + +### Keep Olim in Israel + +Many who move to Israel end up going back to their countries of origin. Keep Olim is a non-profit movement and Facebook group designed to help stem this trend and provide _olim_ with the support they need but which can be sometimes hard to access through official (or English-speaking) channels. + +[**Facebook Groups** + _‎Keep Olim in Israel Movement 🇮🇱 התנועה להשארתם של עולים בישראל‎ has 43,604 members. ‎(Russian and Hebrew below)…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/KeepOlim/ "https://www.facebook.com/groups/KeepOlim/")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/KeepOlim/) + +### Freelance Writers in Israel + +Freelance writing is a popular occupation among English-speaking immigrants to Israel. + +Israel’s booming high-tech sector creates plenty of demand for English-speaking writers. + +[**Facebook Groups** + _Freelance Writers in Israel has 2,593 members. Freelance Writers in Israel is the place to go when you need quick tips…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/213995255692407 "https://www.facebook.com/groups/213995255692407")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/213995255692407) + +Freelance Writers in Israel is run by [Leigh Hartzman](https://il.linkedin.com/in/leigh-hartzman), a freelance writer and course author. + +You’ll find lots of discussion here about finding clients and managing a freelance business in Israel. + +### Leaving Israel + +Sometimes, people choose to leave Israel. While the process might seem as simple as hopping on an airplane, in reality things can become a little more complicated. + +Leaving Israel has evolved from a group designed to deal strictly with administrative issues through to a broader discussion forum about Israel. + +[**Facebook Groups** + _Leaving Israel - The Official Yerida Group For People Who Want To GTFO has 1,855 members. Israel finally broke you? not…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/2184447471823061 "https://www.facebook.com/groups/2184447471823061")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/2184447471823061) + +### Make Israel Better — Ideas Forum + +Finally, one of my own invention. + +I set this group up last week because I felt a little isolated. + +On the one hand, I don’t believe in pretending that everything in Israel is perfect. An extreme defensiveness prevails in many parts of the English-speaking Facebook world. On the other, I try (and fail) to refrain from just being negative about certain aspects of life here. Because I don’t think that helps either. + +I set up Make Israel Better as a Facebook forum for those interested in having frank discussions about constructive ideas to ameliorate certain issues in the country. I have suggested for discussion the cost of living, the housing crisis, and noise pollution, among others. + +[**Facebook Groups** + _Make Israel Better (MIB) - Ideas Forum has 37 members. A group for people interested in discussing constructive ideas…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/makeisraelbetter "https://www.facebook.com/groups/makeisraelbetter")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/makeisraelbetter) + +### Enjoy Connection + +English speaking Facebook groups are good online fora for connecting English-speakers and other second language communities in Israel. + +There is a separate ecosystem of groups in Hebrew and the focuses often overlap with the English groups. Often, unsurprisingly, Israelis have better information about the country than immigrants. So it’s worth being active in both sets of communities — and it’s a good way to slowly improve your Hebrew. diff --git a/posts/medium/Israel-Is-Losing-The-PR-War--Here-s-Why-I-m-Delighted-About-That.md b/posts/medium/Israel-Is-Losing-The-PR-War--Here-s-Why-I-m-Delighted-About-That.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1f95c7f779993256b214f398831c423ee59c5c45 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Israel-Is-Losing-The-PR-War--Here-s-Why-I-m-Delighted-About-That.md @@ -0,0 +1,43 @@ +# Israel Is Losing The PR War. Here’s Why I’m Delighted About That + +#### The delusion of being able to combat blind hatred of Israel with the truth is being shown up right now for what it is + + _(Crossposted from another network)_ + + Israel is losing the online PR war. Is that a bad thing? Photo by [cottonbro](https://www.pexels.com/@cottonbro?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-of-the-flag-of-israel-4033852/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +JADE is a popular acronym in wellness circles. + +I encountered it recently when learning about cyberabuse and bullying. + +It encourages those being targeted for abuse not to justify, argue, defend, or explain themselves to their attackers. “Don’t feed the trolls” is a spin on the same concept. + +I spent too many hours last night being infuriated by the Irish media and Twittersphere and the usual barrage of venomous hatred and mistruths being spewed towards Israel. + +There’s a sense here in Israel that we’re losing the PR war. + +Judging by the online battlefields — particularly Twitter — I would say that that’s accurate. We truly are. But I’m not sad about that. + +The common response to this observation — that Israel is getting its reputation destroyed online — is “well, if we only had better PR we might stand a chance.” + +This line of thinking seems to imagine that Arabs as experts in crafting narratives (somewhat true) and Israelis as bumbling idiots who can’t get their talking points together (not true). + +But regardless of the truth, here’s the problem with that line of thinking: + +**a) We’re doing a pretty decent job with hasbara / PR / getting the truth out already.** Rocket counts are being tallied and communicated. The true narrative is being fed out to anybody that wants to hear it. Dover Tsahal puts out nice videos and information officers at Israeli embassies around the world are busily piecing together lovely literature. What more can possibly be done? + +**b) We’re attempting to fight an impossible battle against hundreds of millions of Israel haters who are only too eager to lap up the disinformation being expertly crafted and distributed by the Palestinian side.** The second point here speaks to the simple question of scale. There are likely more Palestinian sympathizers in the world than those supporting Israel. And they’re well-organized too. + +And so the conclusion I’ve reached (previously but more so over the past few days) is that arguing Israel’s case in the current climate is a waste of time. + +Because those determined to hate Israel will find any excuse to hate and delegitimze us: Whether it’s the very existence of the country or some evictions in Sheikh Jarrah. The past few days have made that clear as daylight. Just about any pretext will do. + +And if we give up on attempting to win the PR war, we can turn our attention towards defending Israel physically — the job currently being carried out by the brave army defending us. + +And then, once we’ve won that battle, to making Israel the best country in the world in which to live. This is surely a much more worthy calling than battling ignorant bullies and a better response, I believe, to their endless hate. + +Therefore as perverse as it may sound to some, I see the dismantling of _hasbara_ and the fact that it appears unable to change international opinion on the current round of violence here as a good thing. + +Because it’s a battle we simply can’t win. We never could. And now our delusion is being laid bare to the world. + +Truth be told, I believe that we shouldn’t be engaging in justifying ourselves to haters in the first place. diff --git a/posts/medium/Israel-s-housing-crisis--could-fixing-the-rental-market-be-a-better-aim-.md b/posts/medium/Israel-s-housing-crisis--could-fixing-the-rental-market-be-a-better-aim-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fa6a40bfb0aad4eea6f0802f94be35ff0545e5bd --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Israel-s-housing-crisis--could-fixing-the-rental-market-be-a-better-aim-.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# Israel’s housing crisis: could fixing the rental market be a better aim? + +#### If there’s no hope in sight to Israel’s housing crisis, perhaps its policymakers could look instead towards making renting here a less frustrating experience + +Tel Aviv may now be beginning to look like a beach-side Manhattan, but the residential market for real estate in Israel is fast beginning to look like an impossible proposition for countless young immigrants to the country. Photo by [Jonas Ferlin](https://www.pexels.com/@jonas?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/mirror-facade-of-tall-building-1963557/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Earlier this week, Rivky Ben David, a reporter with the _Times of Israel_ , put together a superb _tour-de-force_ outline of the troublesome dynamics plaguing Israel’s housing marketing. Those dynamics are fast putting home ownership far beyond the reach of many young people in the country. + +Where previously this was mostly a problem for Jewish immigrants to the country (_olim hadashim_), even native-born Israelis — who typically rely upon inter-generational wealth transfer to get on the first rung of the ladder (apartments are a common wedding gift) — are even beginning to feel the pain. + +This makes total sense. + +Unless you have already have additional property to hand down through the family, most parents who aren’t themselves millionaires (or better simply can’t afford to pay a six figure downpayment just to mark an occasion in their childrens’ lives. Nor would reasonable people expect a property market to be predicated upon this fact. + +[**Israeli housing prices have nearly doubled in a decade, with no signs of slowing** + _It's Saturday night on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv and a group of protesters is again gearing up for a rally…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/) + +So if you’re a young salary-earning immigrant to Israel bereft of a trust fund or a family with extensive real estate investments in Israel, and if you have ever wondered to yourself _“is it just me or does this (saving towards a downpayment) feel kinda impossible?”_ then Ben-David’s piece at least hopefully provides some solace. The answer to those questions are probably something like _“no, and almost certainly yes.”_ It doesn’t make these dynamics any less depressing and bitter to stomach. But at least the pain isn’t imagined. + +Let’s start with the headline numbers: + + * **Even during COVID, Israel’s property market has continued to rise.** This year alone, in fact, it’s risen more than 12.5% — which given the state of the pre-existing values is simply mind-blowing. The problem with the breathless pieces celebrating Israel’s macro-economic success and the booming state of its housing market is probably obvious but bears repetition nonetheless: somebody’s investment windfall is another persons’s bar to property ownership. In Israel, where income inequality is now among the highest of developed nations, the rich are getting richer and the poorer are having a harder time just getting by. The weirder part to this dynamic: it’s often diaspora Jews (enthusiastic buyers of property in Israel for investment purposes) pricing Israeli Jews out of the local market. The picture in Israel looks like the global dynamic, yes; but on steroids. + * **The average price of a four bedroom property in Tel Aviv now stands at $682,608.** This is an astronomical sum of money for what are usually fairly non-luxury apartment dwellings rather than detached homes. To buy an apartment in the Israel’s economic capital — where the vast majority of jobs are located in this tiny country — costs more than half a million dollars. + +But to compound these already difficult dynamics we have another major hurdle: the downpayment to get a mortgage. + + * **The Bank of Israel sets a floor for mortgage downpayments at 25%**. No bank or lender in the country is permitted to offer a young couple a downpayment at a rate below that. + * **Israel’s only answer to this problem — stimulating home ownership for first time buyers — has been feeble to say the least.** In fact, it looks and sound very much like the kind of thing politicians do when they want to make a token attempt to say they’re “working on” an issue without really losing much sleep over it. A 20% discount in a non-luxury area is peanuts when property values rose almost that much this year alone (needless to say: there are still three months left in it!). Effectively this also means living in a city that looks very much like an American suburb and, if you work in Tel Aviv, committing to a daily commute. + * **When you multiply a fairly high multiplier (25% or more) with enormously high property price, you end up with a substantial sum of capital.** The average amount of personal equity required for a downpayment in Israel these days stands at **$261,140**. **Which means: to get on the property ladder today in Israel, young people need to have more than a quarter of a million dollars saved up in earnings.** This is an impossibly high bar for an awful lot of people in a country where the average salary is about $40,000. + +### Could Israel Try To Fix Its Rental Market Instead? + +Sadly, that’s not where the problems end when it comes to trying to find sustainable accommodation in Israel. + +Despite the astronomical state cost of real estate in the country, home ownership in Israel remains relatively high. + +Economists debate the reasoning for this paradox. And to throw in my guess, it’s that it could be a lagging metric: if home ownership _up to now_ was relatively affordable, the metric is likely to remain artificially buoyed until families finally run out of capital to pass down through generations. It may be a little while yet before we see a number that reflects the growing reality of forced renters-for-life. + +As a long term renter in Israel — I’ve been here for six years and have rented three apartments during that period— I would also say that this is something that is embedded into Israel’s cultural fabric. During that time, I’ve dealt with slumlords who have ripped out my toilet (story below) and lived in shoeboxes (although my current surroundings are, thankfully, much more pleasant). + +[**That Time My Landlord …. Ripped Out My Toilet — After Aliyah** + _The year was 5775 (or thereabouts)._ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/that-time-my-landlord-ripped-out-my-toilet-after-aliyah-a2fe4d74876c "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/that-time-my-landlord-ripped-out-my-toilet-after-aliyah-a2fe4d74876c")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/that-time-my-landlord-ripped-out-my-toilet-after-aliyah-a2fe4d74876c) + +When my wife and I got married two years ago, until it was my imagination, we began receiving pitied looks when we divulged the fact that we _rent_ an apartment in Jerusalem. + +Brazen audacity being one of Israelis’ most cherished personality traits, a couple even had the _chutzpah_ to ask why our parents hadn’t bequeathed us an apartment — as if that were as simple as buying a wedding suit or a cake. + +The assumption was likely that any Jews living in the Diaspora must be extremely wealthy and have six figure sums of capital to hand out, on a whim, to their offspring. + +Sadly that’s not the case. And I think it’s insanity to think that for most people it should be. Hence, my suggestion is that Israel should turn its attention to its rental market instead. And here’s where I have some more pessimism to interject: at the moment, that kinda sucks too. + +Unlike the situation that exists in many jurisdictions that have given up on the idea that property ownership should be a universally obtainable idea, the rental market in Israel is dominated by so-called “mom and pop” landlords. These are landlords who do it as a side income. They’re not what you might call professionals. More presciently, there’s no central agency in Israel responsible for regulating landlording and rentals. Nor is there a standardized rental contract like in the UK. + +That’s why when renters like me find that our landlords have summarily decided to pull our toilets from the flow thereby leaving us bereft of a way to … you know …. the only place we have to to turn to is law enforcement or the courts, neither of which are likely to show much interest. (Yes, I once lived in a place in which the landlord ripped up my toilet to try isolate the source of a leak. I had to live with a girlfriend before abandoning the rental two weeks later). + +Often these landlords are Israelis who — like so many Israelis — got in on the property market when it was still affordable to do so and now own multiple properties in the country. They rent it out to chump newcomers like me (can I point out another rather horrible aspect of this? Most Israelis were immigrants themselves not that long ago. Memories of what it was like to start a new life in Israel seem to run very short.) + +In other instances, they’re Jews who live in the Diaspora and bought property in Israel as an investment. Often, these landlords will visit Israel “for the _chagim_ “ (religious holiday period) and then never set foot in the country for another year. + +Israel’s rental market also suffers from poor regulation, as I have mentioned above. + +But a major driver of this, in my opinion, is that the vast majority of Israelis (perplexingly) seem to regard renting as something that only society’s bottom rung needs to engage in. Instead, increasingly, this has become the only means for the country’s shrinking middle class to keep a roof over their heads. + +If renting is only something that poor immigrants do, then Israeli society needn’t concern itself overly with righting it. It’s a poor person’s issue. And sadly, in the blink of an eye, Israel has drastically shifted away from its socialist roots. + +My final grievance: the Fair Rental Law, a largely failed attempt to make renting in Israel less of a free-for-all Wild West. + + + +While well-intended, even some of its most basic provisions — that renters shouldn’t have to pay agents fees when they are already charging landlords — fell flat on their face. + +Agents simply began demanding that prospective tenants sign a form instead “hiring” them. If they didn’t do so, they wouldn’t get to see the property. + +Israeli Facebook pages — like ‘properties in Israel that depress me’, showcasing the very worst of the listings from Facebook — paint a grim picture of the kind of dwellings that new immigrants are being expected to live in. + +The picture here is fairly grim too. But we need change to come from somewhere. + +A comment that I read on Facebook earlier this week resonated with me. + +If Israel’s property market continues to rise year on year, even in the face of a pandemic, then it’s not really a bubble. That trend is one of its integral features. Like many painful dynamics in life — life often isn’t fair — it may be better just to accept this for what it’s worth and move on. + +In the absence of a massive hike in average salaries, which in Israel still remain low for the 90% of the population not employed in the technology sector, owning property in Israel will only become increasingly difficult. The _Times of Israel_ piece shows that _even_ the country’s top rung of earners — programmers working in the high tech sector — are struggling to find any way to make it all work. + +If things don’t change wealth inequality will mushroom further. And most ironically from a Zionist perspective, we’ll see a capital flow that impoverishes immigrants to Israel while enriching well-off Jewish landlords living in the diaspora. + +I can’t help but think that this was not what the Zionist forefathers envisioned when setting down their dream for the resurrection of the world’s only Jewish state. + +It’s up to us to fix it. + +_— Note:_ + +“Housing crisis” is a term that is used inconsistently and whose meaning varies according to what part of the world you live in. I’m using it in two senses here: the impossibility of getting on the property ladder which leads to long term financial instability and growing income inequality. And the perpetuation of a poorly regulated rental market which leads to ongoing housing instability for substantial parts of the population. + +### Related + +[**Why So Many Young Israelis Are Feeling Bleak About Their Financial Futures — In Spite Of The…** + _The other, underdiscussed side of the Israeli “success” story: how a sky-high cost of living and never-ending real…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-so-many-young-israelis-are-feeling-bleak-about-their-financial-futures-in-spite-of-the-33641959863c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-so-many-young-israelis-are-feeling-bleak-about-their-financial-futures-in-spite-of-the-33641959863c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-so-many-young-israelis-are-feeling-bleak-about-their-financial-futures-in-spite-of-the-33641959863c) + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +[**The Pros and Cons of Living in Israel** + _(And Why I Still Think the Cost of Living is the Elephant in the Room!)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) diff --git a/posts/medium/Israelis---Here-s-A-Free-Guide-For-How-To-Communicate-With-The-World.md b/posts/medium/Israelis---Here-s-A-Free-Guide-For-How-To-Communicate-With-The-World.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..11c62077687c90e03f5be9f629d8b968a6ec604e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Israelis---Here-s-A-Free-Guide-For-How-To-Communicate-With-The-World.md @@ -0,0 +1,76 @@ +# Israelis — Here’s A Free Guide For How To Communicate With The World + +#### Telling your customers that their delivery is here might indeed be ‘fun,’ but it’s a small example of how cultural idiosyncrasies can risk being misconstrued in translation + +Even if the pandemic is technically the one to blame, apologizing for a missed delivery is in most cases expected and appropriate. Photo by [Karolina Grabowska](https://www.pexels.com/@karolina-grabowska?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/stack-of-carton-boxes-for-parcels-4464483/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’ve written before about some of the common linguistic mistakes that Israelis make when writing in English. + +[**Some Mistakes Israelis Make When Speaking English** + _So after making fun of the often comical state of Israel's online shopping options last week I decided it was time to…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/some-mistakes-israelis-make-when-speaking-english/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/some-mistakes-israelis-make-when-speaking-english/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/some-mistakes-israelis-make-when-speaking-english/) + +I did so with a degree of trepidation because as a language learner myself (and of _their_ language, Hebrew) I felt hesitant to point out others’ linguistic errors. My Hebrew, I harbor no doubt, is chock full of them. + +Nevertheless, as a marketing communications professional working in Israel — and working with several Israeli startups — part of my job is making sure that communications created by non-native English speakers are brought up to a more professional standard. + +I’ve been _asked_ to create internal documents to tell colleagues that “feedbacks” isn’t really an acceptable pluralization (ditto “inputs” for the most part) and to ask them to stop peppering every second sentence with unnecessary overuse of the adjective ‘relevant’. Besides this being part of my job, I did so in order to lessen the amount of editing and proofreading I needed to do. Gotta’ look out for self interests and all that. + +But besides simple linguistic and grammatical mistakes, there’s another category of miscommunication that can tarnish professional images and even risk offending customers. + +Whether you’re creating communications for customer success, sales, or anything else, I believe that the following are points that should be kept in mind. + +### Informal Tone Of Voices Need To Be Used Very Selectively + +Periodically, whenever I order something online, I receive an SMS notification from one of the major logistics providers here in Israel. + +It begins thusly: + +_“What fun! Your package is here!”_ + +Usually the arrival of a package from overseas does indeed herald the arrival of fun. But it’s an informal and capricious tone of voice that mightn’t be appropriate in every context. + +Israelis almost instinctively ask for copy to be “less formal” and more short. Hebrew is a language with a tiny lexicon relative to English and that’s — instinctively, subconsciously — how they’re used to communicating. Unfortunately it risks also coming off as rude and abrupt. + +I don’t disagree that brevity is a proper objective for communication. But it’s a mistake to extrapolate that what works in Hebrew — brusque, short communications — will translate well into English. + +Tone of voice is an important constituent element of the brand communications strategy that needs to be decided upon deliberately. + +To assume that _all_ communications need to be as short as possible — because that’s how it is in Hebrew — risks failing to communicate information. For no good reason. + +### Candid Feedback Isn’t Always Well Appreciated — And Can Cause Offence! + +In the context of interpersonal relations with colleagues from other cultural backgrounds, Israelis can also inadvertently risk alienation and causing offence. + +Israelis are famously straight talkers. Some seem to regard manners as being a waste of verbiage and to delight in crafting communications that leave little room for doubt about the message being conveyed. No padding or niceties necessary. + +The problem with this approach is that most world cultures place some degree of emphasis on manners — the padding that makes being told that your first draft wasn’t a terrific piece of work all the easier to stomach. + +Being direct and to the point is one thing. + +But it’s easy to take this way too far and create communications that risk really rubbing people up the wrong way. Being direct is nice. Being grating and abrasive isn’t. + +To be very general, the words ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are heard in other cultures to a greater extent than they are heard in Israel. + +If you’re creating transactional emails that are going to be read mostly be international recipients, it’s worth proofreading your copy to make sure that you’re going to communicate an appropriate degree of professionalism and respect. Get the message across. But do so as nicely as you can. Even if you regard the exercise as pointless. + +### Apologies Are Often Expected — Yes, Even When _You Did Nothing Wrong_ + +There’s a relatively minor facet of cross cultural communication that I’ve experienced in Israel. But it’s one which nevertheless I’m always on the lookout for whenever I’m scrutinizing communications for cultural gaps that could cause friction. + +In the Israeli conception of appropriate manners (or so it appears to me) apologies are proferred only when the party offering the apology is immediately responsible for the ‘wrongdoing’ (however trivial). + +If a waiter slips and drops your sandwich you’ll likely get an embarrassed _“whoops, I’m so sorry.”_ + +But if the guy who delivers the lettuce got caught in a snow storm and therefore the sandwich with lettuce can’t be prepared there are _times_ when the waiter in this example wouldn’t feel it necessary to apologize. + +To run with this example, if you asked whether you could receive a chicken and lettuce sandwich you might get back simply “no” which would strike many as shockingly rude. The rationale? That was the delivery guy’s fault! Why should _I_ apologize? One word suffices. But appending three or four more “I’m really sorry but” could prevent unnecessarily offending the clientele. + +Besides, in most business cultures, representatives of a company are expected to apologize to consumers if the business they represent did something wrong irrespective of whether they were directly culpable or not. + +The same post notification that began “what fun!” also told me that due to pandemic disruptions it had to be re-routed to a different branch than the one I had selected for pickup which was located halfway around town. + +And here’s where the communications gap manifested: it didn’t include any mention of those magic words “we’re sorry for the inconvenience caused.” Whoever wrote it probably rationalized that it was the pandemic’s fault. + +The above examples, while seemingly minor, are actually quite significant examples of how small differences in culture — the culture of manners and of appropriate communication — can risk creating significant points of friction. + +When drafting or proofreading communications that might cross inter-cultural divides, it’s worth bearing the widely differing perceptions of the reader in mind. diff --git a/posts/medium/It-s-Time-To-Untether-Remote-Work-From-Synchronous-Communications.md b/posts/medium/It-s-Time-To-Untether-Remote-Work-From-Synchronous-Communications.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..79afe175590525102b57f2a6135d6d90a44ca03c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/It-s-Time-To-Untether-Remote-Work-From-Synchronous-Communications.md @@ -0,0 +1,73 @@ +# It’s Time To Untether Remote Work From Synchronous Communications + +#### Remote work doesn’t have to be a blur of Zoom meetings + +For the past five years, while working as a freelancer, consultant, and now a (part time) remote worker, I’ve been a member of quite a few teams. + +My input has sometimes ranged from the very rudimentary contributions to marketing that freelancers are sometimes called upon to make — please write this blog — to providing more elaborate consulting packages to help organizations roll out marketing communications efforts. + +Over the course of this time, I’ve come to love remote working. I do my best and deepest work from the home office I’m typing this blog post in (that’s it below in all its un-cable-managed glory). + +My current center of operations. Cable management is a work in progress. + +As I’ve learned more about how to get the best work out of _myself_ — which includes finding ways to work _with_ my ADHD — I’ve also developed a few very quirky habits that I soon learned threatened to drive colleagues and clients crazy. The problem is that these habits also enable me to be my most productive and happy. + +For one, I discovered that flight mode is useful for a lot more than just complying with the dictates of cabin crew members. + +Whenever I’m trying to get something that requires concentration done — case in point writing this blog post — I slip into it for however long I think I need. + +[**Why Flight Mode Has Been My Best Productivity-Enhancing Intervention to Date** + _And I Think That Synchronous Communication Platforms Like WhatsApp And Slack Are Today’s Destroyers of Focus_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664) + +The obstacle: + +The two philosophies I believe in — remote work and async — seem determined to pull in different directions. Different approaches. Different adherents. Competing objectives. Or so it seems. + +And so, by writing this post, I join the growing number of voices who question whether this is the way it has to be. + +### Why Do Remote Teams (Often) Love Zoom Meetings? + +To understand _why_ your average distributed team’s meeting calendar might look like an endless series of back to back Zoom meetings stretching from one quarter to the next, it’s useful to try understand what the motivations driving that behavior are. + +Those new to working remotely — and right now, that’s a good chunk of the workforce — are grappling with some fundamental uncertainties about how to ensure human productivity. + +Managers now have to grapple with the question of how they can know whether their remote workers are really working and not outsourcing their jobs on Upwork while out playing golf all day. Because just as remote work opens up doors for new ways of working, it opens up a whole new can of worms in terms of potential malfeasance and privilege abuse. + +Scheduling regular Zoom check-ins can seem like a good solution to that conundrum. + +Another reason why there’s a lot of dots where the remote and synchronous-first circles overlay on the Venn diagram is to consider the type of organization that’s most likely to embrace remote work — and to do so with the most enthusiasm. My experience indicates that that group would be tech startups. + +Tech startups are famous (notorious?) for adopting a rapid-fire approach to communications. + +Responsiveness is prized above many personal qualities. + +Where walls were once erected, the tech startups of today insert fresh air. Instant communication isn’t just an occasional requirement. It’s the norm. + +But what if that wasn’t the best way of doing things? + +The closest equivalent to corralling a bunch of employees into a meeting room for remote organizations is to do the same thing on Zoom (or Slack). + +But the exact same pitfalls of meeting bloat are present whether those meetings are held remotely or in person. + +Furthermore, research has borne out what many workers feel, instinctively, to be true: being too responsive and constantly distracted is bad for productivity. Simply decreasing the frequency with which you check emails, for instance, can give you more time to focus on deep work. + +[**The Way You Check Email Is Making You Less Productive** + _New research has found that when people are limited to checking their email just three times per day, their stress…_ www.forbes.com](https://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2016/09/18/the-way-you-check-email-is-making-you-less-productive/?sh=125aa52c37e3 "https://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2016/09/18/the-way-you-check-email-is-making-you-less-productive/?sh=125aa52c37e3")[](https://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2016/09/18/the-way-you-check-email-is-making-you-less-productive/?sh=125aa52c37e3) + +The flight to remote work that is currently shaping out workplaces — and which, indeed, will shape those of tomorrow — is being accompanied by our attempt to grapple with some fundamental human anxieties. + +Bosses want their employees to be working. + +Everybody prefers a colleague who can give input instantly rather than one who defers their response. Or a pizza store that delivers in 10 minutes rather than 4 hours. + +Impatience and anxiety are part of the human condition that many workers grapple with — however they interface with their organizations. + +As we move towards workplaces that are dominated by working together remotely — at least part of the time — we’re going to have to find digital solutions that support collaboration without getting in the way of deep work and productivity. + +Asynchronous communication platforms are the perfect tools for that job. + +**My Async Stack:** + + * Email + * [Loom](http://loom.io) + diff --git a/posts/medium/It-s-Your-Duty-To-Tell-Your-Clients-When-They-re-Doing-It-All-Wrong.md b/posts/medium/It-s-Your-Duty-To-Tell-Your-Clients-When-They-re-Doing-It-All-Wrong.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8a7fdd3914a26d916d75d2b76d2c961bd0c22ec2 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/It-s-Your-Duty-To-Tell-Your-Clients-When-They-re-Doing-It-All-Wrong.md @@ -0,0 +1,80 @@ +# It’s Your Duty To Tell Your Clients When They’re Doing It All Wrong + +#### Navigating the uncomfortable problem of raising obvious problems when selling advice to companies + +As I’m fast finding out, along the rocky road to making a career as a full-time self-employed marketing consultant there are a lot of bumps to transverse. + +There’s firstly the whole business of finding — and maintaining — enough clients to make a living from. That calls for a whole skillset of its own in marketing, sales, and lead generation (lots of my thoughts on all those topics below). + +[**Daniel on Marketing** + _Marketing communications consultant Daniel Rosehill offers thoughts on inbound marketing and content, thought…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing) + +There’s what you actually get paid by those clients to do — in my case provide advice about, and execute on, marketing communications strategies. Yours might be coding or managing sales. + +Finally, there’s the whole issue of navigating internal politics. Because instead of having one “boss” you might find that you now interface with up to half a dozen organizations. And you never know quite what to say when: + +### There’s A Big Fat Elephant In The Room But Your Client Doesn’t See It + +Do you see that elephant? Good. But do your clients? Photo by [Rachel Claire](https://www.pexels.com/@rachel-claire?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/landscape-field-desert-animal-4577141/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Those who only know me from my evolution in marketing might be surprised to discover that my undergraduate degree (yes, I passed!) is actually in law. I earned it from University College Cork (UCC) in Ireland which has a quadrangle that looks vaguely like something out of a Harry Potter movie. + +My college years are a strange blur of starting a news website (a lot of fun!), learning a lot about beer (also fun!), and picking up random tidbits about the Irish legal system (less consistently fun). + +One of the nuggets that remains lodged in my brain all these years later is the concept of fiduciary duty. + +I wasn’t a particularly diligent law student — probably because I was never that interested in studying it to begin with (another day’s story) — but all the definitions lurking around the internet make a lot of sense to me. Investopedia’s one goes like this: + +> _A fiduciary duty exists in law when a person or entity places trust, confidence, and reliance on another to exercise discretion or expertise in acting on behalf of the client. The fiduciary must knowingly accept that trust and confidence._ + +### The Problem With Being A Sunny Day Consultant + +If your sole input as a consultant is to say that everything’s rosey, then you may be missing some unkempt elephants. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-of-human-hand-327533/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Whether you want to refer to it as your legal duty or more simply as “you should do whatever is in the best interests of your client” there’s going to come a time when you begin working with clients who don’t really know what they’re doing or who take decisions that you know, in your gut, to be horribly misguided. + +Depending on how much experience you’ve accrued and how much your client knows about what you do that differential could begin to look very large indeed. + +A common symptom of this is observing teams focusing inordinate time and energy on unimportant things while neglecting something fairly massive that’s immediately capturing the wrong kind of attention from sales prospects. + +Perhaps it’s an obvious missing feature — or compliance certification — that the founder has deemed unimportant but which every prospect is puzzled, and frustrated, to find missing. + +The founder mightn’t want to hear that it’s a deal breaker — and be stymieing efforts by product to address it. But that might be why all the leads are falling through even though the collateral being used to sell the solution are great. + +In the marketing domain, I’ve commonly seen early stage startups who are so fixated on getting buzzwords across that nobody ends up listening to what they have to say because — to the skeptical and weary of the world like me — it just all ends up sounding like a crock of rubbish. + +Others haven’t really done the hard work of figuring out what really makes them unique and keep ticking over and therefore it’s not getting across to prospective customers (because the founders themselves aren’t clear on it). Those too busy “doing” — or fighting fires, or shifting priorities around — tend to fall into the trap of forever deferring the big strategy conversation. + +Others again limit their market research to asking around in the company. Sticking one’s head out into the market periodically is essential to understand how objective users perceive your solution against that of your competitors. Throwaway tidbits gleaned from an hour’s conversation could make or break a messaging strategy. And all for the price of lunch. + +The elephant in the room might alternatively be that your product is broken — or addresses a problem that nobody really cares about or cares about enough to fix (yes, these concerns should be addressed at the feasibility testing phase but … there _was_ market research done at some point, right?!) + +Or it might be that that website you’re building — the same one that has seen the input of four expensive consultants and been through as many iterations — is actually likely totally ineffective because it doesn’t actually explain in intelligible terms what you do. Yes, in spite of the money that you’ve already pored into it. Yes, in spite of the eyeballs that have looked over it. + +You’ll likely feel crazy for feeling the urge to point out that something obvious is amiss. In a sense this is a form of gaslighting: you have to work up the courage to air your sole voice versus an often unspoken consensus that this mustn't be a big problem. But that sense of trepidation is often the best clue that you have something really unique and important to contribute to the internal discussion. + +Pointing out that really simple things are wrong with how your client is approaching an area of their business isn’t something that comes naturally to me. And of course: anybody that wants to play this card should come with solutions ready prepared in the other hand. + +The consultant: in-house dynamic creates a sort of awkward power imbalance from the get-go that is only compounded when the outsider starts making a ruckus almost the moment they step in the door. + +Is that advisable? Possibly not depending on what kind of internal politics you’re facing. But if you want to feel a sense of satisfaction in your work, you’re going to have to air your views on what’s not working sooner or later. + +Yes, you might parachute into a project with excited new colleagues only to find that you have to point out a litany of basic mistakes from the get-go. But sometimes, that’s just what you have to do. Simply because it’s your professional and moral responsibility to do so. + +Will your clients listen? Sometimes they will, sometimes they won’t. I never expect _all_ of my input to be listened to. But if _none_ of it is taken seriously by people that don’t have experience in what they’ve hired me to do … inevitably the frustration and professional slight from not being valued chips away at self-esteem. When that process gnaws on for long enough, an exit is the inevitable consequence. + +I can conjure more reasons why — if you’re in the business of selling knowledge — you simply _have_ to put the company’s interests first even if doing so might risk rattling some internal bridges. + +One of those — this one I know well from writing projects — is that you want the ultimate result of your engagement to reflect well upon yourself and your reputation which is worth more than any one project. A piece that got butchered is likely one that I’m not going to put in my portfolio. And that non-existent portfolio piece isn’t going to help me sell my services to future clients. + +Or perhaps you want to help make a sales proposal great because you want the company to win the bid so that they can keep paying your salary. + +Ultimately, the reason that moves me is the moral one. But I can find self-serving reasons why being the company contrarian can play to my advantage if I really want to. + +Pointing out when obvious things are wrong with how your client is doing business can be a tricky move to pull off. + +It can shake up blossoming relations. Those newer to the game, like me, tend to loose sleep at night worrying about summary ejection from projects. I don’t doubt that it can happen and that removing the bearer of bad news might be an easier “fix” than actually sitting down to resolve the problem itself. + +But I believe that it’s a skill that everybody who sells their knowledge to companies — whether as a consultant or as a salaried employee — is going to have to eventually develop. + +The alternative is being another overpriced yes-man or yes-woman. A sunny day consultant. And if you’ve found something that’s glaringly amiss, there’s a good chance your client has already had enough of those. diff --git a/posts/medium/Jerusalem-Trail--From-The-Walls-To-The-Wall.md b/posts/medium/Jerusalem-Trail--From-The-Walls-To-The-Wall.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..56dcf784edd6fb2cbba0d49a09b0f319321bfdbb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Jerusalem-Trail--From-The-Walls-To-The-Wall.md @@ -0,0 +1,60 @@ +# Jerusalem Trail: From The Walls To The Wall + +#### An off the beaten track walk for exploring Eastern Jerusalem + +Jerusalem is a city of two cities. + +While Western Jerusalem is predominantly Jewish in character — some of it ultra-Orthodox — the East of the city functions as a _de facto_ separate city. + +While there is no longer an international border bisecting Jerusalem — as there was when Jordan controlled its Eastern half and the West Bank — travelling from West to East still feels like transversing two worlds which exist side by side but which barely intersect. + +For one, East Jerusalem is majority Palestinian. Its citizens by and large reject Israel as a foreign occupier and would prefer to live under Palestinian sovereignty in a as-yet unestablished state. + +There’s also a stark contrast in the development between West and East Jerusalem — and in the urban planning. + +Simply viewing low-resolution satellite imagery is enough to see the difference in urban planning between the city’s Jewish and Palestinian residents. Below, West Jerusalem is to the left. East Jerusalem is to the right. + +With the exception of a narrow no-man’s land — a reflection of the fact that the boundary was originally merely intended as a ceasefire line and was [plotted inaccurately in thick green pencil ](https://embassies.gov.il/MFA/AboutIsrael/Maps/Pages/Jerusalem%20Before%20the%20Six%20Day%20War%20-1949-1967-.aspx)— a line running north-south through the Old City represents the rough divide between the two. + +Jerusalem as seen from satellite imagery. Photo: Google Maps. + +For those looking to explore East Jerusalem, it’s a little hard to pinpoint what exactly there is to see. + +The situation is further complicated by the fact that there are a few neighborhoods located within the confines of the Jeruslaem city boundaries but which are on the far side of the separation barrier. Kafr Aqab, which runs into Ramallah, is an example of such a neighborhood. + +Kafr Aqab (top, north of the disused Jerusalem Airport at Qalandia) is an example of a neighborhood within the confines of the Jerusalem Municipality’s city boundary (top line) but on the far side of the separation barrier (black line). Screenshot: Jerusalem GIS by author.The above screenshot, taken from the Jerusalem GIS system, shows a number of houses on the far (West Bank) side of the security barrier but technically within the boundaries of the Jerusalem Municipality (the dotted blue line). 31.750982631859628,35.26090864648249. Screenshot: author + +Given that the Palestinian Authority (PA) is not legally entitled to operate there (the PA Authority is precluded from operating in any part of Jerusalem), the fact that Israel’s interventions are not welcomed, and the fact that access is complicated by the presence of the wall, these neighborhoods have devolved into drug-infested legal no-mans-land, untouched mostly by both Israel and the PA. + +East Jerusalem is really only the portion of Jerusalem east of the Green Line but before the security barrier which Israel constructed around the time of the second intifada. + +The path of the security barrier is a little hard to identify. Google Maps plots the Green Line but doesn’t have a separate layer showing the path of the security barrier. + +The security barrier wrapping around Hizma (the town below the right arrow) as seen from satellite imagery on Google Maps. Screenshot: author. + +The freely accessible [Jerusalem GIS website](https://www.jerusalem.muni.il/he/residents/planningandbuilding/gis-jerusalem/) (Hebrew only), however, provides much more detailed satellite imagery. At high resolutions, the path of the barrier is clearly identifiable. + +The winding course of the separation barrier as viewed in the Jerusalem Municipality’s satellite imagery system as layered onto the GIS system. Screenshot: Jerusalem GIS. By: Daniel Rosehill.At its maximum resolution, the satellite imagery in the Jerusalem Municipality GIS system is detailed enough that you can count individual water tanks on roofs! Screenshot: Jerusalem GIS. By: Daniel Rosehill. + +If you want to get up close and personal with east Jerusalem — and the wall that divides the East of the city from the rest of the West Bank (technically anywhere over the Green Line is in the West Bank), then the walk plotted above, from the Old City to the point at which the wall separates between Ras Al Amud and Abu Dis is worth doing. + +### From Jaffa Gate To Abu Dis (50 minute walk) + +**Time:** 50 minutes + +**Terrain:** Uphill from the Old City climbing the Mount of Olives. Then slightly downhill. + +Starting out from Jaffa Gate, follow the walls of the Old City along the Southern Wall. Take Al-Akma to the intersection with Derekh Yerikho (417) and then loop southbound. + +Veer with the road left into Ras Al Amud climbing upwards. Continue with the 417 as far as you can. The road will come to an end just after a petrol station. The separation barrier will be visible as a tall concrete structure. On the other side is Abu Dis, which was once floated as a capital for a Palestinian State. + +Continuing along the 417 will eventually bring you right up to the separation barrier with Abu Dis. The Amoco petrol station is at 31.7683582,35.2518925. + +**Safety notes:** Once you leave the Old City, the trail continues through Palestinian neighborhoods all the way to the separation barrier. Personally, I would strongly advise against walking through these neighborhoods while looking visibly Jewish. I would also refrain from speaking in Hebrew or wearing any clothing that suggests an affiliation with Zionism or Israel. + +East Jerusalem is largely impoverished and in part the footpath (between Ras Al Amud and the barrier) becomes a little bit difficult to pass. I would strongly advise against doing this walk at night time. + +### Also About Jerusalem + +[**The New Immigrant’s Guide To: Living In Jerusalem** + _A Guide For Those Making Their First Steps in Israel In The Holy City_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-new-immigrants-guide-to-living-in-jerusalem-e3729b38aac0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-new-immigrants-guide-to-living-in-jerusalem-e3729b38aac0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-new-immigrants-guide-to-living-in-jerusalem-e3729b38aac0) diff --git a/posts/medium/Know-Your-Freelance-Client--KYFC---Basic-Due-Diligence-For-Freelancers-1b439589af0.html.md b/posts/medium/Know-Your-Freelance-Client--KYFC---Basic-Due-Diligence-For-Freelancers-1b439589af0.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a32bd83a62c31424444c600fbbf006104aadfec2 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Know-Your-Freelance-Client--KYFC---Basic-Due-Diligence-For-Freelancers-1b439589af0.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,199 @@ +# Know Your Freelance Client (KYFC): Basic Due Diligence For Freelancers + +If you started the new year on a quest to scale up your freelance business, then you’re probably on a business development kick as you read this. + +Until you can reach the point when all the work you might ever need starts coming _to you_ or through your referral network (disclosure: I’m not there yet, but neither are most freelancers that I know), then business development / sales prospecting is an activity that is going to have to become part of your daily routine. + +Like brushing your teeth (hopefully!) + +‘The Freelance Content Marketing Writer’ by Jennifer Godfrey. [Amazon link](https://www.amazon.com/Freelance-Content-Marketing-Writer-business/dp/1732240906). I was a _very_ active member of this book’s Facebook group for a while — before deciding that my energy was better invested running and optimizing my business. + +In fact, many freelancer tomes — including [_The Freelance Content Marketing Writer_](https://www.amazon.com/Freelance-Content-Marketing-Writer-business/dp/1732240906), which I highly recommend — advocate **engaging in a constant train of low-effort prospecting _even when_ your book of business is bursting at the seams **with as much work as you have capacity for. + +Why? + +Anybody who has been freelancing for any length of time is aware of the dangers of feast and famine cycles: months that are overflowing with work followed by months that don’t have enough of it. + +The key to avoiding this all-too-common freelancing reality is to have a sales pipeline that is constantly trickling down new leads. + +Yes, time management can become a problem the busier you come. + +But would you rather that or not having enough work to pay your bills? + +### How To Size Up Prospects + +To help make the process of finding the right fits on the outbound side a little smoother, I’ve developed some tips and tricks over the years for evaluating clients that I am thinking about working with. + +For this due diligence methodology to work, it doesn’t mater one iota whether this client reached out to you first (although that’s usually preferable) or whether they’re in your pipeline because of _your_ outbound activity. + +Either way — it’s worth investing five minutes of your time before embarking upon a relationship that mightn’t satisfy the needs of either party. + +I call this the ‘Know Your Freelance Client’ (KYFC) methodology — and here are a few basic first steps: + +### 1: What’s Their Funding Status? + +From Crunchbase: US-based startups, with a headcount of 0 to 10 employees, who have not yet closed a funding round. + +**If you’re looking at working with startups, then their funding history is among the most relevant considerations for you to evaluate.** + +(Of course, I’m taking a few things as givens here: that this is a company that you are interested in working with and that you have the necessary experience to actually work with them.) + +Using [Crunchbase](https://medium.com/u/7cce2f5ab5c4) (and I strongly recommend signing up for a Pro account — one good job should land you in positive ROI!), let’s look for a couple of clients that probably _mightn’t_ be a good fit. (As for those that _would_ : many freelancers advocate focusing on startups post-Series B raise only). + +The Crunchbase search I screenshotted above, looking for companies that have closed no funding rounds and which have less than ten employees, actually only returned four results in the whole of the US. + +So let’s instead change the ‘Funding Status’ variable to ‘Seed’ and see what we come up with: + +US based companies, with 1–10 employees, and whose funding status is listed as ‘Seed’ + +This search (at the time of writing) returns roughly 9,000 results across the USA: + +Because I think it would be a little tacky and demeaning to point to a real company from these results and say “see, _this_ company is probably not in a position to hire freelancers”, I’ll redact the screenshots for anonymity. + +Take this recently founded startup which promises to “take the pain out of customer reviews.” It only listed on Crunchbase last month — so it’s just about as new as can be. + +Crunchbase lists its total funding as $30,000. + +The website’s homepage is below, with very little in the way of marketing material. Also note: there’s a registration link for signups but no sign of a blog yet: + +But don’t stop there. + +We can click into the round (click ‘Seed’) and call up details about it. + +[Which will lead us to this press release:](https://www.acceleratorcentre.com/news/news-release-accelerator-centre-announces-ac-jumpstart-program-cohort-11) + +I’m not telling you never to work with small seed-funded or bootstrapped startups (they could be highly profitable — which is why it also pays to search for accounts!). + +If you know they’re looking for somebody who does what you do, and are prepared to put resources behind the effort — by all means reach out. + +What I _am_ saying is that, by doing so, you’re greatly stacking the odds against you that these companies are going to have a viable budget at their disposal to pay you with. + +I suggest putting yourself in the shoes of one of these prospects. I would imagine that a company that has just picked up $30,000 in seed funding is going to prioritize all of the following above paying for content marketing — or whatever form of writing you provide: + + * Paying developers to build an MVP if one doesn’t exist yet — or the actual product itself if it does + * Paying for office space + * Paying for heating and lighting + +When trying to gauge the company’s overall state of business, consider looking at: + + * **Crunchbase profiles**(for startups and privately listed companies) + * **News/press releases** announcing revenue figures and funding rounds + * **Publicly viewable accounts.** I think this level of sleuthing is beyond overkill, but I’m just putting it out there as a possibility. There are many websites such as[ AnnualReports.co.uk](http://www.annualreports.co.uk/) that allow you to purchase annual tax filings. + +If things are getting really serious, you might also want to ask: + + * Who are the investors? Is it a Venture Capitalist (VC) fund or has the startup just picked up some local government funding to keep the lights on for a few months? + * Who are the founders and what is their background? + +All of this information should be available through LinkedIn and/or Crunchbase. + +### 2: How Long Do People Stay At The Organization? + +If you’re looking at taking on a client for the long term — and I suggest that you think of your potential relationships in those terms rather than looking for short ‘gigs’— then you might also want to evaluate whether the company seems to have a retention problem. + +Again, I’m focusing on red flags — but sometimes you need to get passed those in order to start focusing on the green ones. + +Investigating a company’s retention rate might seem far removed from the work you might expect a freelancer to do, but it really isn’t. + +If there’s a revolving door in the marketing department, for example, you might lose the contract as soon as your point of contact jumps ship. + +Getting an ‘in’ with his or her replacement isn’t necessarily easy, particularly if there hasn’t been a proper handover. I speak from experience here — and (again from my experience) the startup sector seems to be particularly volatile. + +Using Crunchbase again, I dug up a random company in the 51–100 employees bracket. This should be big enough to observe trends. + +The first one I hit on was [Beyond Meat](https://www.beyondmeat.com/) — a company based in California that describes itself as ‘The Future of Protein’ and which specializes in producing 100% plant-based product. + +I’ve gotten really into veggie burgers recently and, in general, try to only eat meat on the weekends. So this seemed like a fun company to do a “deep dive” into as I’m on-board with their cause. + +My first port of call would be [their LinkedIn page](https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyond-meat/). + +BeyondMeat list themselves as having 293 employees currently: + +My typical approach here would be to: + + * See how many employees list BeyondMeat as their _current_ employer. + * See how many employees list BeyondMeat as their _previous_ employer. + * Calculate the ratio and look for a massive disparity between the two. + +And I would do this by playing around with the LinkedIn filters like this: + +Showing: current employees: + +And like this: + +Showing past employees + +Doing so reveals that there are 168 _past_ employees listed on LinkedIn: + +**This gives a current:past employee ration of 1.744.** + +I propose that in today’s work environment, with employees jumping ship every few years, that anything above 1.5, or at least 1, really isn’t bad. But then again, I’m not a HR specialist. + +I would also take a look at how long their marketing leadership has been in their jobs — and whether there’s evidence that the company seems to favor internal or external recruitment. Sometimes the latter can erode morale within a department. + +Their Senior VP of Marketing is just settling into his new job: + +But, slightly down the food chain, their Director of Marketing has been in her job for close on three years: + +When looking at past employees (again, focusing on marketing, because that’s the department I most commonly work with), I would assess whether there is a pattern of people joining the marketing team, staying for under a year, and then jumping ship. That trend, if I saw it, would concern me. + +Don’t forget that you can use Google too to aid your due diligence if you find running filters and jumping around LinkedIn itself a little confusing. + +To do that, run a search for the company’s name, the job title you are interested in, and add inurl:linkedin.com/in to capture LinkedIn profiles only: + +Remember that LinkedIn will capture interns as “employees” so it’s important to disregard those when you are evaluating for retention in a department: + +I found a couple of profiles from early-stage marketing hires that left the company to move on to other marketing gigs. But nothing that screamed “revolving door.” + +So we can move on. + +### 3: What Do People Say About the Company on Glassdoor? + +If you’re not familiar with [GlassDoor.com](http://www.glassdoor.com) then you should make its acquaintance and go over and set up an account for yourself. + +[Glassdoor](https://medium.com/u/a39c61f8b573) is a platform that lets former employees, contractors _and freelancers_ leave anonymous “reviews” about working conditions at a company. + +Among freelancers, this tool is grossly underused — which I think is a great pity because I believe that candidly sharing our experiences can be enormously valuable and because the platform expressly supports it. + +There are a few things to be wary of here: + + * (Unscrupulous) **HR departments have been known to encourage their employees to write falsely positive reviews.** + * (Unscrupulous) **HR departments have been known to write (outright) fake positive reviews.** + +If I may say so myself, I’ve become pretty good at spotting these from the real deal. And sometimes, you’ll see whistleblowing reviews which flag the fact that HR is engaging in either of the above activity. + +Whether the reviews are overall positive or overall negative the main things to watch out for when reading a company’s Glassdoor are: + + * **The overall rating** : Like Amazon reviews, a combination of volume _and_ average is very indicative of the overall working environment in my experience. + * **Consistent narratives:** do most employees highlight for praise, or criticism, _roughly_ the same things? (But not _exactly_ the same things: if everybody is in ‘awe’ of the office unlimited PTO or ping pong table these reviews may have been ‘seeded’). + * **Chronology:** when are the things being said? Toxic workplaces can be reformed. New hires can sour entire departments. You have to consider _when_ all these things are occurring. + +**More presciently, as a freelancer, be on your lookout for reviews from freelancers that indicate that they have had difficulties getting paid.** This is a situation I would avoid at all costs. + +Also look out for companies that seem to be relying, predominantly, on contractors from cheap labor-bases (LinkedIn can be used for this purpose too). You can spot this by where the posters are based. + +Here’s a real Glassdoor page illustrating exactly the type of thing that would throw up an immediate red flag for me. + +(Also note: this is a company ostensibly based in the US and they are using a freelancer based in Bangalore, India — which would be another red flag if you charge US rates): + +### Five Minutes of Due Diligence Can Save A Lot of Heartache + +The methodology I described above might seem like a lot of work — and it’s only scratching the surface of all the metrics and information you can evaluate when sizing up a prospective client. + +For instance, I also like to run a Google News search and review their recent press releases — just to get a general feel for what they are up to. + +If you want to go full-hog on the sleuthing (I’ve done this for potential employers, but not for clients) you can even initiate contact with former employees on LinkedIn, who fulfilled a similar role, and ask them for five minutes of their time to share their experience candidly. + +This can be an invaluable means of getting past HR spin and cutting to the core of exactly what the work environment is likely to be like. In my experience, most former employees are happy to speak off-the-record in this manner —including those without an axe to grind. + +Remember: I have developed all of the above KYFC (Know Your Freelance Client) criteria for specific reasons. + +To recap and conclude those are: + +— **Funding history and profitability are _really important_. **Spending time on pre-seed startups that can’t afford your services might be a waste of time — if you want to focus on companies with a short to medium term need for your services. + +— **And so is the stability of the department you’ll be working with.** It’s always frustrating when you loose a valuable freelancing account for reasons beyond your control — such as your account manager moving jobs. Be wary of freelancing for organizations that seem like revolving doors. + +— **Tap into the power of Glassdoor.** Many more freelancers should be availing of the power of Glassdoor. I advise giving companies the benefit of the doubt. But if you read multiple reports from contractors saying they can’t get paid — personally, I wouldn’t take on the account. + +Best of luck finding your best-fit clients this year! diff --git a/posts/medium/Let-me-try-to-offer-some-responses--and-without-minimizing-some-of-the-legitimate-negatives-about-.md b/posts/medium/Let-me-try-to-offer-some-responses--and-without-minimizing-some-of-the-legitimate-negatives-about-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..97b633fea52e8862bc70cc1befa6364ab1367135 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Let-me-try-to-offer-some-responses--and-without-minimizing-some-of-the-legitimate-negatives-about-.md @@ -0,0 +1,50 @@ +# Let me try to offer some responses (and without minimizing some of the legitimate negatives about… + +Let me try to offer some responses (and without minimizing some of the legitimate negatives about the freelance lifestyle that you highlighted): + +** + +PROBLEM: +“You’re Free, But You’re Not Really Free… I ended up writing blog posts for local breweries in Montana and writing billboard copy for apartment complexes in New Jersey. It was weird.” + +SOLUTION: +Find a niche and market your expertise in it (I’m not preaching here — this is something I need to work on too, at least the self-promotion aspect of it!). Alternatively, decide upon what you niche(s) are and go out prospecting to find clients yourself. By the way, my first clients were all over the place too — I believe I was writing video descriptions for a clickbait website at one point! Having firm niches will get you past the stage of sporadically taking on whatever works comes your way …. which, sure, will feel really weird and unfulfilling. + +** + +PROBLEM: +“You’ll never REALLY be in control as a freelancer — you’ll be stuck in this perpetual cycle of winning clients, losing clients, and searching for clients again until the day you die.” + +SOLUTION: +Mindset shift. That’s how it is for a lot of small businesses. If you don’t want to have to ever engage in marketing yourself, you can get a job in a company. But even then you might find yourself getting hired (winning a job), getting laid off/fired (losing (a job), and searching (for your next job)…. + +** +PROBLEM: +“You’re Creating, But You’re Not Creating Stuff You Want To Create” + +SOLUTION: +a) Find clients that are more aligned with your passions and interests. This will make the work you do more fulfilling and enjoyable. For instance, I’m a Linux geek so always assumed that tech was the best and exclusive fit for me. Don’t get me wrong — I still enjoy writing about technology. But I recently began working with a couple of “lifestyle” clients — very raw stuff about the authors’ experiences with mental health issues (I’m a ghostwriter). I found it surprisingly fulfilling and recharging. + +b) Don’t stop writing. I also find it really hard to find time to write when …. I’m already doing that for clients. I used to blog a lot and loved it. So I simply started again ….. but I’m doing it for more enjoyment than to raise my reputation/visibility, although I wouldn’t mind a bit of that either. + +I’m big into multimonitor computers and recently posted on Medium about VESA mount configurations. I’m 100% aware that most people would find this subject eye-rollingly boring. But I enjoy writing about it and a few people might find it interesting. + + +PROBLEM: +“You’re Not Really Achieving Your Main Goal.” Which you list as not working a 9 to 5 / freelancing as a side hustle / or because you’re out of work. + +MY ARGUMENT: + +I took up freelancing because I thought that working with multiple clients _and_ clients in a bunch of different industries _and_ clients in different countries sounded like a better way for me to gain experience than working at my (then) job. + +Then again, I’m a native English speaker that lives in a non native English speaking country …… and I thought that I could put my writing skills to much better application than stringing together sales brochures for an early stage startup (without wishing to disrespect my former employer). + +My ultimate goal is to transition from : + +Freelancer → Agency owner → Startup owner (yup, I have an idea!). + +The road is brutally hard. I won’t argue with you on that. But I don’t feel like I’m travelling down a futile path. + +As for the rest of your points (the positive) — I’m in firm agreement. You get a lot of amazing skills from the journey. + +Best of luck! diff --git a/posts/medium/Life-hack--Using-Speech-To-Text-Processing-on-Social-Media-Voice-Notes.md b/posts/medium/Life-hack--Using-Speech-To-Text-Processing-on-Social-Media-Voice-Notes.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6cb035a4c72a195abc461976951625bdc8391cf5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Life-hack--Using-Speech-To-Text-Processing-on-Social-Media-Voice-Notes.md @@ -0,0 +1,112 @@ +# Life hack: Using Speech To Text Processing on Social Media Voice Notes + +#### No More Listening To Your Friends’ Droning Messages Thanks To Happy Scribe and Otter.Ai + +WhatsApp voices notes are great. When you don’t feel like typing, or just want your friends to hear your voice without having to bother them with a phone call, they’re the go-to. + +Unfortunately, voice notes have attracted quite a bit of opposition. + +At least within my social network. + +**The problem with voice notes is that while they’re great for the sender (disclaimer: I love them), they can be downright inconvenient for the recipient.** + +Ever log onto WhatsApp in the middle of the workday to find a slew of three minute voice notes waiting for your listening attention one by one? What about when you’re about to head into a meeting? In these instances, and more, what’s convenient for your friend for you can be downright annoying. + +Wouldn’t it be great if WhatsApp would integrate an automatic transcription feature into the service? + +It would. But until then you still have options. + +### Desktop (Cross Platform) + +Here’s a solution that works on the desktop. Find the speech to text engine that works for you. There are speech recognition tools for the desktop, but I think it makes more sense to use a cloud app. + +#### 1\. Download Voice Note + +Firstly, you’ll need to download the voice note. + +If you’re accessing WhatsApp from the web UI, then all you have to do is click on the downward-facing caret next to the message and then select download: + +Downloading a voice note + +You’ll receive the download as an .ogg — which is the Ogg Vorbis (lossy) audio format. + +#### 2\. Set Up Shop At HappyScribe.com + +Happy Scribe offers automatic transcription. It’s a paid service, but there’s a generous free tier to give you an opportunity to see how it works. + +I’ve used it to transcribe quite a lot of voice notes and still haven’t reached the end of that tier yet. + +Their current pricing is here: + +[**Free Trial and Pricing - Transcription Software - Happy Scribe** + _Get your transcription with Happy Scribe's competitive prices. More than 119 languages. No card required. Payment…_ www.happyscribe.com](https://www.happyscribe.com/pricing "https://www.happyscribe.com/pricing")[](https://www.happyscribe.com/pricing) + +#### 3\. Upload and Transcribe Voice Notes + +After about a minute, your transcribed voice note is ready to read. + +As you can see, the results are imperfect. But they’re more than good enough to get the gist of what’s being said. + +### Android (And iOS) + +First up, I tested out Transcriber for WhatsApp — which I’m currently enjoying early access to. + +[**Transcriber for WhatsApp - Apps on Google Play** + _Have you ever been receiving voice messages from WhatsApp and not being able to listen at that time? Now you can…_ play.google.com](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.mirko.transcriber&hl=en_US&gl=US "https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.mirko.transcriber&hl=en_US&gl=US")[](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.mirko.transcriber&hl=en_US&gl=US) + +If you’re transcribing voice notes using an app like this, firstly hold down the voice message and then hit share. Once the options populate, choose the transcription app that you’ve installed (search the Play Store for automatic voice transcription; there are quite a few options). + +Unfortunately Transcriber for WhatsApp, which was my first choice, deemed my friend’s voice note to have “incomprehensible audio.” + +After trying a couple more apps, I next tried out Otter.ai — a popular AI-powered transcription service which is ideal for automatically transcribing meetings and recorded conversations. + +Best of all, it can be accessed from a web UI — so conceivably this could be the tool to handle all your WhatsApp voice notes. + +[**Otter Voice Meeting Notes** + _Otter is a smart note-taking app that empowers you to remember, search, and share your voice conversations. Otter…_ otter.ai](https://otter.ai/ "https://otter.ai/")[](https://otter.ai/) + +I ran my friend’s voice note through Otter — and this time I had success. + +Again, the automated transcript differed slightly from what was actually said. But it was more than good enough to use. Otter also plucked out the keywords from the message for me. + +Otter’s pricing is here: + +[**Otter Plans** + _Yes, we offer an Educational Discount of 50% off the regular subscription price. To subscribe: Sign up (or log in) at…_ otter.ai](https://otter.ai/pricing "https://otter.ai/pricing")[](https://otter.ai/pricing) + +Compare and contrast the transcripts: + +**Otter.Ai:** + + Otter’s atttempt at the transcription + +**Happy Scribe:** + +To download voice messages sent through Facebook Messenger, use this workaround: + +[**Simple Ways to Download Facebook Voice Messages: 6 Steps** + _This wikiHow teaches you how to download a Facebook voice message to your computer, using an internet browser…_ www.wikihow.tech](https://www.wikihow.tech/Download-Facebook-Voice-Messages "https://www.wikihow.tech/Download-Facebook-Voice-Messages")[](https://www.wikihow.tech/Download-Facebook-Voice-Messages) + +### Verdict + +Both Otter and Happy Scribe do a decent job at automatically transcribing WhatsApp voice notes. While both speech to text engines currently transcribe imperfectly, both are more than good to use in my opinion. + +Given that Otter has both a web UI _and_ apps for Android and iOS this would give it the edge for me. It’s always easier to use one platform across your devices. And, using just one service, you can keep all your voice message transcriptions in one place. + +At the time of writing,**Otter is also offering 600 free minutes of automatic transcription per month (max 40 minutes per recording)**. + +So — unless you’re receiving a vast amount of voice notes — you could conceivably do all your transcription using it alone. + +### Downloads + +[**Otter Voice Meeting Notes** + _Otter is a smart note-taking app that empowers you to remember, search, and share your voice conversations. Otter…_ otter.ai](https://otter.ai/ "https://otter.ai/")[](https://otter.ai/) + +[**Otter Voice Meeting Notes (for English) - Apps on Google Play** + _Otter is where conversations live. It records and takes meeting notes for you in real time, so you can stay focused on…_ play.google.com](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.aisense.otter&hl=en_US&gl=US "https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.aisense.otter&hl=en_US&gl=US")[](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.aisense.otter&hl=en_US&gl=US) + +[**‎Otter Voice Meeting Notes** + _‎Otter records and takes meeting notes for you in real-time, so you can stay focused on the conversation and rest…_ apps.apple.com](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/otter-voice-meeting-notes/id1276437113 "https://apps.apple.com/us/app/otter-voice-meeting-notes/id1276437113")[](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/otter-voice-meeting-notes/id1276437113) + +[**Automatic Transcription & Subtitle Generator - Happy Scribe** + _Automatic Transcription & Subtitle Generator in +119 Languages - Audio to text & Video to text - Export in Word, PDF…_www.happyscribe.com](https://www.happyscribe.com/ "https://www.happyscribe.com/")[](https://www.happyscribe.com/) diff --git a/posts/medium/Linux-Desktop-and-Cloud-Backup--A-Summary-of-My-Master-Backup-Strategy--V1-3-.md b/posts/medium/Linux-Desktop-and-Cloud-Backup--A-Summary-of-My-Master-Backup-Strategy--V1-3-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2b29ed46d1bb3640b8e06811ed1f3a7f013b76cd --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Linux-Desktop-and-Cloud-Backup--A-Summary-of-My-Master-Backup-Strategy--V1-3-.md @@ -0,0 +1,97 @@ +# Linux Desktop and Cloud Backup: A Summary of My Master Backup Strategy (V1.3) + +After having spent the best part of a week playing around with B2 and S3 buckets, syncing gigabytes of data across the cloud, and making sure that my home Linux setup was as well backed up as it has ever been — I’m back to, you know, actually going about daily life and generating the next pools of data which, in turn, will soon be backed up. + +This intensive week of thinking about backups (and taking them) is a process I have been going through about once a year for the past several of them: I review how I’m backing up data to date and (this is important) I try to make it better. + +But this year there’s been one additional twist to my usual _modus operandi:_ in addition to actually figuring out how to make things better, I’ve decided to document my findings here, [on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFhEM_Jl3uKV6b8Ex4wbiFQ), and [on Github](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm). + +Do I think that anybody cares how I back up my web hosting? Potentially a few fellow enthusiasts but certainly not most people. + +**Rather, the purpose of creating all this material is really to document the journey for myself.** Because in order to get better, I need to keep a log of what I am doing now. + +So …. although [this Github repository](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy) does an adequate job of explaining my current approach: to tie everything together, here is V1.3 of my Master Backup Strategy. + +[**_See ‘Master Backup Strategy’ on Github_**](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches) + +### Part 1: Linux Desktop + +The first and most important part of my backup approach is to make sure that my desktop data is protected on several levels. + +Firstly, I take daily, weekly, and monthly snapshots via [Timeshift](https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift) onto an internal SSD. There are, however, two deficiencies with this approach: + + * If my desktop _and_ the SSD it contained were destroyed in a power surge this onsite backup would be useless. + * Timeshift backups are not that low-level: they’re taken aboard a live system. + +So, I also take [Clonezilla](https://www.clonezilla.org) disk-to-image backups onto a local SSD every 3 months or so. + +Although I love Timeshift — and it has been all that has been required to “save” my system to date — I trust Clonezilla more . It’s a low-level tool. It doesn’t run aboard a live system. And it’s very, very robust. + +To cover the required offsite component, I set up a desktop bucket on Backblaze B2. + +Like with the local approach, I’ve applied two layers of protection to make sure that I have strong protection offsite as well as on my local network: + + * [I use Cloudberry](https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux.aspx) to take frequent incremental backups up to the cloud. + * I use rclone to take less frequent copies of the Clonezilla images and push them to the cloud. + +**SUMMARIES:** + + * [My current Ubuntu (desktop) backup strategy](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-current-ubuntu-desktop-backup-strategy-e6ebcbe6592e) + +**TOOLS:** + + * Timeshift + * Clonezilla + * Cloudbery + * rclone (CLI) + +### Part 2: The Cloud + +Mopping up all the stuff in the cloud is trickier because we’re not talking about one data source but rather several discrete pools of data aboard proprietary filesystems. + +So I start with the big stuff — Gsuite and web hosting — and work my way down to the smaller data sources in SaaS applications. + + * **The only backup I really need to use as a traditional backup (recent snapshots etc) is my cloud storage** , which is primarily on Google Drive. I use a cloud storage tool to make sure that there are always a couple of snapshots of that in S3. + * **However, simply syncing Drive doesn’t cover all the other stuff that I put into Google’s cloud**. To name but a few, there are: contacts, bookmarks, YouTube videos, Google Photos — among many others. Because I want to capture and back up _all_ of my data through this process I initiate a Google Takeout and then use an AWS EC2 instance to upload this to B2 cloud to cloud (where I can avail of a practicable upload speed). I[ documented that recently here](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-gsuite-to-backblaze-b2-using-rclone-ec2-1d05db2f1cda?source=your_stories_page---------------------------). Also: because cloud storage is unlikely to fail and this is a bit tedious I only go through this process about once a year (just Google Drive, by contrast, is moved across the clouds once a week). + +For web hosting: [I back up Cpanels using the built in backup tool](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle-37e993fb47ba?source=your_stories_page---------------------------). I can again use EC2 to pull and push these up to B2 quickly. And I also keep a local copy. + +The messiest part of this is backing up data contained in all the various SaaS services that I use. [I documented those sources on Github recently](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches) and the various processes for getting data out of them (inconsistent!). + +This process is manual — and if there were a tool that extracted and centralized this backup at the press of a button I would happily use it! + +Instead I set calendar reminders and — approximately once a quarter — bundle all my cloud backups into a B2 bucket. + +**SUMMARIES:** + + * [Using Cloudberry to upload Clonezilla disk images to cloud object storage](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/using-cloudberry-to-upload-clonezilla-disk-images-to-cloud-object-storage-2f32eea62024) + * [Backing up pCloud to B2 using EC2 and rclone](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/backing-up-pcloud-to-b2-ec2-rclone-4f7cf6bb0c85) + * [How to: Backup Your Web Hosting (According to the 3–2–1 Principle)](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle-37e993fb47ba) + * [How to Backup Gsuite Takeouts to Backblaze B2 (Using rclone + EC2)](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-gsuite-to-backblaze-b2-using-rclone-ec2-1d05db2f1cda) + * [Cloud backup approaches (GitHub)](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches) + +**TOOLS:** + + * FilezillaPro + * Cloudberry + * AWS EC2 + +### The Final Touch + +There is one thing left to do. + +Data is being aggregated offsite on B2. + +But not all of that data has been duplicated to an onsite backup source yet (e.g. the SaaS backups that I pushed directly from one cloud to another). + +For that reason once a year all this data is pulled down from cloud object storage to a local backup server, thus ensuring that everything is backed up twice: on another source and on an onsite/offsite medium. + +### Please Let Me Know Your Feedback + +I’ve started my version control at 1.3 because — realistically — this backup strategy has already gone through several iterations, including the last one to move cloud object storage from S3 to B2. + +This backup strategy is far from perfect and I am sure that there are many things that I haven’t thought of — or which could be done better. + +So if you have any ideas for improvement kindly drop me a message! + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Living-In-Israel--How-Things-Look-From-Abroad.md b/posts/medium/Living-In-Israel--How-Things-Look-From-Abroad.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cfdfb8aef7958272d6e81145184909b31f835b8a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Living-In-Israel--How-Things-Look-From-Abroad.md @@ -0,0 +1,109 @@ +# Living In Israel: How Things Look From Abroad + +#### Thinking about Israel from across the ocean + +Israel and the USA: very different countries with some points of comparison. Photo by [Karolina Grabowska](https://www.pexels.com/@karolina-grabowska?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/usa-and-israel-mini-flags-on-table-with-dollars-4386446/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +For the first time since the pandemic kicked off, I’m on the road. + +Specifically, I’m visiting in-laws in the North-East via a short stopover in New York City. + +I seem to have finally gotten over my home office hang-up (how I love my home office!) and am typing this from the most unergonomic of setups possible, while perched on a bed, hunched over my laptop, in an un-airconditioned room. + +The writing must go on and being a little bit flexible about where you work from seems like an adaptive trait for anybody — like me — interested in forging a career as a remote worker. + +It’s all good experience and it’s kicked me out of my COVID comfort zone. Which is a good thing. + +Because this is also the first time I’ve been out of Israel in more than two years — the last time I was abroad was both before my wedding and before the pandemic kicked off — it’s also given me pause for thought about how I perceive living in the country when I get a break from it. + +So before I forget here are some simplified ‘pros’ and ‘cons’. Or at least those as they appear from the lens of an Irish-born Jew living in Israel and visiting the USA. + +### Compared To Israel, America Is A Consumer Paradise + +Those who live in the USA are familiar with a website called Amazon and an express delivery service called Prime. + +Being able to order what you need to your door and to know that it’s being backed by quality service is virtually inconceivable if you live in Israel (Amazon briefly experimented with doing business in the country but ended a free shipping promo shortly after the pandemic). + +Customer service in Israel is often downright abusive. The cost of living is ferocious and — for reasons probably attributable to some combination of exploitation low economies of scale — everything seems to cost a multiple of what it should. + +Import restrictions and Israel’s rather enthusiastic customs authority means that everything about $75 incurs VAT and can get stuck in bureaucracy. Finally, at least post pandemic, Amazon only ships a tiny portion of its inventory there. + +Various YouTube videos have satirized Israelis’ propensity to use trips abroad to stock up on just about everything minus the kitchen sink. But it’s hard to appreciate why without actually living there. + +For $30, my 8 year old backpack that was falling apart at the seams has been replaced for an amazing one. It arrived one day after I ordered it. And if it were defective, I know I’d be able to rely on Amazon to make it right. Such a combination of factors is virtually inconceivable in today’s Israel. + +### Israel Punches Well Above Its Weight In Many Things Tech-Related + +Visiting New York City last week, I was surprised to learn that the city still relies upon the MetroCard for transportation. + +Boarding a Delta flight, I was also surprised to learn that the TSA enforces its rather illogical liquid on flight restrictions with extra-territorial effect. On the other end of the 12 hour journey, biometric scanning was being advertised on glossy billboards as the latest thing in security. This technology has been the norm at Ben Gurion Airport for years already. + +Israel’s fervor for technology is borne in part out of circumstances: graduates of many of the IDF’s units go on to deploy their talents in the private sector and Israel is home to a massive array of startups. + +Beyond actual use, however, embracing technology is something of a mindset. Compared to many countries, Israel doesn’t have much in the way of natural resources to tap. So it taps those of its people and silicon chips to create technologies that solve problems around the world. + +### Israel May Be Blossoming, But For Many, Professional Opportunity, And Better Salaries, Often Still Lie Elsewhere (Or Remotely) + +During the first leg of my trip, Avi Golan — the CEO of AnyVision — courted controversy with a LinkedIn post calling upon many of his “CEO colleagues” to stop indulging top talent in what he termed “salary madness.” (What others would probably call competitive pay.) + +[**Israeli startup CEO says 'stop the salary madness'** +_"You look at the CV and you see that candidates have jumped around between four and five jobs within five years because…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-israeli-startup-ceo-slams-millennials-tech-job-ethic-1001378286 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-israeli-startup-ceo-slams-millennials-tech-job-ethic-1001378286")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-israeli-startup-ceo-slams-millennials-tech-job-ethic-1001378286) + +Color me a contrarian, but I was unsurprised by the remarks. + +Israeli salaries have remained stagnant for years despite one of the highest costs of living in the world and a real estate bubble that shows no signs of slowing down. + +But in an ecosystem flush with IPO cash, one sometimes has to wonder where all the money is going outside of a certain clique within the world of “high tech” (IT). A large part of the explanation, I believe, has to do with mindset and attitudes. + +Golan’s comments reflect an attitude that I have seen countless times from Israeli employers and clients: we demand to pay as little as possible for the very best resources we can get our hands on. I was glad to finally see that attitude called out as exploitative and unrealistic. + +Israel’s employment landscape is buoyed by a constant influx of well-educated talent from the Jewish diaspora — and as is often the case, a steady stream of replaceable immigrants encourages the unscrupulous to behave exploitatively. + +It’s time for the job market here to begin paying livable and competitive salaries for the 90% of the economy that doesn’t work in high tech and software development. + +Until it does, many will seek professional opportunities in other countries. + +### Healthcare In Israel Is Both Affordable And Universal + +As I’ve shared here recently, about one year ago, I was diagnosed with ADHD. + +The medication I’m taking — Vyvanse — has made such a positive difference in my life that (like many ADHD patients with residual anxiety) my thoughts quickly turned from _“this is amazing!”_ to _“okay this may be amazing, but what can I do if I can’t get this anywhere else?”_ + +And so I did some research. + +Adult ADHD care in Ireland is in its infancy. Patients report massively frustrating wait times trying to see the few psychiatrists in the country prepared to diagnose and treat the condition. + +In the US, the cost of many medications for those who fall between the cracks of insurance providers — or fail to receive their approval on treatment plans — is prohibitively expensive. + +Walking the streets of New York City, I saw what looked like a lot of untreated mental illness and alcoholism — considerably more than I’m used to encountering in Jerusalem. Paradoxically, the serious crime rates in Israeli cities is also remarkably low. New York, in general, felt a lot less safe than Jerusalem. + +The Israel of 2021 is an unusual hybrid that has bought into the US model of unfettered capitalism to a significant extent + +But which has tempered that with vestiges of socialism such as universal and affordable healthcare (add public transport to the list too; while the cost of gas in the US is trivial compared to Israel taking the train in Israel seemed far cheaper.) + +It’s a mixture that’s still being concocted. + +### Israel Is… Outrageously Overpriced + +My biggest frustration about living in Israel? + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +The fact that it’s unreasonably overpriced which for many makes living there a struggle. + +After spending a few days in downtown Manhattan and running currency conversions to the Israeli Shekel, periodically I found myself more often than not either pleasantly surprised or paying an amount that seemed familiar to me. + +The price of beer, in many New York City pubs, seemed cheap by Israeli standards. Our boutique hotel room in midtown Manhattan cost us considerably less than what a comparable accommodation in Tel Aviv would have set us back for — and came replete with what felt like easily double the floor size. + +Using Amazon, I was able to source products for a fraction of the price that they would have cost in Israel. + +When New York City starts to seem reasonably priced, you know you’re living somewhere pricey. + +Israel can be a frustrating place to live in. + +It’s relentlessly expensive, seemingly filled with insane drivers, and there’s a certain directness to its culture that often — though not always — crosses the limit from frank to grating rudeness. + +For Zionists like me, it will always be the singular and optimal place to live. + +From a practical standpoint, comparing its merits with other countries in the world, a more nuanced picture emerges. diff --git a/posts/medium/M-Disc-vs--Blu-Ray-Inorganic--HTL---Optical-Media-Ageing-Experiment-2.md b/posts/medium/M-Disc-vs--Blu-Ray-Inorganic--HTL---Optical-Media-Ageing-Experiment-2.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..43679855329da5fbd6111ccc89e18f8799c12492 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/M-Disc-vs--Blu-Ray-Inorganic--HTL---Optical-Media-Ageing-Experiment-2.md @@ -0,0 +1,37 @@ +# M-Disc vs. Blu Ray Inorganic (HTL): Optical Media Ageing Experiment 2 + +### **Objective:** + +To subject 6 forms of optical media to unsuitable storage conditions to test the durability of the storage medium. + +### Media Used: + + * Verbatim M-Disc (25GB) + * Verbatim HTL Blu Ray (25GB) + * Maxell DVD-R + * Silverline DVD-R + * Maxell CD-R + * Silverline CD-R + +### Methodology: + +1 .Downloaded ‘Popeye The Sailor Meets Sindbad The Sailor’ from the Library Of Congress (540 MB): + +2\. Calculated and stored checksums on file. + +3\. Recorded manufacturer IDs (MIDs) and any other information available from the storage media. + +4: Recorded test file onto media. Used consistent burn speed for M-Disc and HTL (4X). + +5: Set discs out on a patio. Positioned to maximise exposure to UV light, rain, and other deleterious factors. + +### Endpoints: + +1: Endpoint 1 in 2 weeks: physical inspection of media. Sector scanning using dvdisaster. Compare bad sectors across all media. + +### Photos: + +All media.“Regular” Verbatim Blu Ray (left), M-Disc Blu Ray (right)The media on a rack outside. + +### UV Exposure, Day 1! + diff --git a/posts/medium/Many-Irish-Want-Israel-s-Dublin-Embassy-Shuttered--Why-Doesn-t-Israel-Act-First--5a7882738b2.html.md b/posts/medium/Many-Irish-Want-Israel-s-Dublin-Embassy-Shuttered--Why-Doesn-t-Israel-Act-First--5a7882738b2.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6a320260dd13263eaaddc19fa191f9efaaeb5f55 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Many-Irish-Want-Israel-s-Dublin-Embassy-Shuttered--Why-Doesn-t-Israel-Act-First--5a7882738b2.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,114 @@ +# Many Irish Want Israel’s Dublin Embassy Shuttered. Why Doesn’t Israel Act First? + +#### Is it time to end diplomatic relations with Europe’s most Israel-hating nation — from the Israeli side? + +Israel has a poisoned diplomatic relationship with Ireland. Is it time for those of us in Israel to begin seriously asking if we can live without it? (Pixabay) + +As an Irish-born Jew, I’m more familiar than many with the virulent rise of anti-Israelism in Ireland — a good deal of which I have always held has been motivated by bald anti-Semitism. + +From the time I grew up in Ireland until the present it’s been an uncomfortable backdrop to my life. Alongside the pull factors — participating in the rebuilding of the Jewish state — it was one of the push factors that led me to leave Ireland. + +There were times when it got worse than others. I can only imagine being in Ireland now and listening to the State broadcaster incite about Israel’s alleged “indiscriminate” bombing in Ireland. But like the grey clouds and the temperamental weather, it was something that periodically abated but never really went away. + +A perplexing facet of growing up as a Jew in Ireland was discovering that many of my co-coreligionists appeared willfully oblivious to the extent of the anti-Israelism that surrounded them. + +The product of gaslighting? Ignorance? Or was I spending too much time on the internet reading hateful comments? + +I spent hours pondering these things but as I grew up and became more politically aware — and more unashamedly pro-Israel — I began to reach the conclusion that the hatred for Israel in Ireland was endemic. And that much of it was merely the product of poorly disguised anti-Semitism. + +If one needed convincing that many of those flocking to anti-Israel demos in Cork, Dublin, and elsewhere have a problem with Jews and not just with the policies of the _Jewish state_ then one could do any of the following: + + * **Peruse any Twitter thread on the issue of Israel in Ireland and note the torrent of comments espousing classic anti-Semitic canards** including comparisons between Israel and a German war-time regime; allegations that Jews “control” the media; and the baseless claims that Israel is “ethnically cleaning” Palestine. + * **Do the same thing on TheJournal.ie** which is Ireland’s largest online news hub (roughly equivalent to The Times of Israel) + * **Ditto on Politics.ie.** + * Walk into a random bar in Ireland, pull up to a stranger, and affirm that what the Israelis are doing in Gaza is worse than what the Germans do to them. Then wait for the response(s). + +[**Palestinian supporters rally in Dublin, Ireland; call Israelis “a bunch of rats.”** + _Newspaper tweets video in which Palestinian supporters describe Israelis as “a bunch of rats”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2) + +One could also, of course, watch the video tweeted yesterday by an Irish tabloid in which “pro-Palestinian” protesters gathered outside the Israeli Embassy in Ballsbridge, Dublin to label Israelis “a bunch of rats.” + +Or the others on the same day during which hundreds of Irish people ran amock through the country’s city centers while enthusiastically repeating a call for Israel’s annihilation (“Palestine will be free from the river to the sea.”) + +You could also just send this link to your average pro-Palestinian supporter in Ireland. They’ll probably tell you that I’m pulling out the “race card.” They might even mention their Jewish friend. + +### The Irish Have Been Calling For The Expulsion Of Israel’s Embassy Since The Conflict Began + +As a longtime observer of Irish anti-Israelism — and its anti-Semitic strand— I can affirm that pro-Palestinian Irish supporters have been calling for the expulsion of Israel’s Irish embassy and/or ambassador since the conflict began. + +It was a recurrent call that arose whenever Israel launched a defensive war in Gaza. And the people that led the charge were often the same ones who leveled the canard that Israel was an “Apartheid regime” or any of the many other lies that comprise the pro-Palestinian playbook. + +There are literally tens of thousands of tweets, petitions, and other online breadcrumbs that I could cite as examples. But these suffice to give the general flavor: + +Now, the hypocritical Irish hatred of Israel has reached a new low. Alongside only Jordan, the country has decided to debate a motion calling for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador in its parliament. The motion is accompanied by a slew of canards including the (in my opinion) anti-Semitic lie that Israel is “ethnically cleansing” Palestinians. + +[**Irish parliament to vote on motion to expel Israeli ambassador** + _A motion to expel Israel's ambassador from Ireland is expected to come to a vote in Ireland's parliament this week…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/international/irish-parliament-to-vote-on-motion-to-expel-israeli-ambassador-668903?utm_source=spotim&utm_medium=E-mail&utm_content=liked-message&spot_im_redirect_source=email&spot_im_highlight_immediate=true&spot_im_comment_id=sp_jpost_668903_c_1swMtY2gpKGPuNwhcDlTfkLO8nO&spot_im_content_id=sp_jpost_668903&spot_im_content_type=conversation&utm_spot=sp_jpost "https://www.jpost.com/international/irish-parliament-to-vote-on-motion-to-expel-israeli-ambassador-668903?utm_source=spotim&utm_medium=E-mail&utm_content=liked-message&spot_im_redirect_source=email&spot_im_highlight_immediate=true&spot_im_comment_id=sp_jpost_668903_c_1swMtY2gpKGPuNwhcDlTfkLO8nO&spot_im_content_id=sp_jpost_668903&spot_im_content_type=conversation&utm_spot=sp_jpost")[](https://www.jpost.com/international/irish-parliament-to-vote-on-motion-to-expel-israeli-ambassador-668903?utm_source=spotim&utm_medium=E-mail&utm_content=liked-message&spot_im_redirect_source=email&spot_im_highlight_immediate=true&spot_im_comment_id=sp_jpost_668903_c_1swMtY2gpKGPuNwhcDlTfkLO8nO&spot_im_content_id=sp_jpost_668903&spot_im_content_type=conversation&utm_spot=sp_jpost) + +An “Israeli diplomatic source,” according to the newspaper, chalked up the motion to the work of a “small number of extremists.” But perhaps like the Irish Jews I grew up with those monitoring events from Jerusalem are underestimating the extent of the support the motion might enjoy. + +### Busting The “No Anti-Semitism” Myth + +Since modern Jewish history in Ireland began, many of that community’s leaders have been happily telling the world that there is “no anti-Semitism” in Ireland. + +This is a claim that I always felt was flatly absurd. When I had the temerity to suggest that it might be nothing more than a convenient falsehood I was often told that I was imaginging things. + +[**Please don’t tell me that there’s no anti-Semitism in Ireland. There is.** +_Or that Ireland “only has a problem with Israel”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b) + +But I’m pretty sure that I wasn’t imaginging when my family received anonymous anti-Semitic phone calls whenever Israel launched a defensive air operation on Gaza. + +Or when I sent a three minute report on Israel’s Green Pass app to an Irish television station only to receive dozens of tweet responses leveling the absurd and disgusting allegation that the Green Pass was somehow similar to the Jude badges that were used to distinguish those Jews being sent to concentration camps. + +Or the countless other little incidents that convinced me — during more than 20 years of living in Ireland — that far more Irish people have issues with Jews than the world, or many Irish Jews, would like to think. + +_(Note: naturally not all anti-Israelism emanating from Ireland is rooted in anti-Semitism. A good deal of it is rooted in a simplistic and flawed equivalence many Irish see between their history of colonialism and what they believe Israel is doing in the Middle East. While I maintain that much anti-Israelism from Ireland is either motivated by or tinged with anti-Semitism it is of course unlikely to represent the totality of it.)_ + +### Can Israel Live Without Ireland — And Vice-Versa + +Recently I decided to dig a little deeper into the Ireland-Israel relationship. + +A few facts struck me as salient. + +For one, Ireland enjoys a trade surplus with Israel. + +In other words, Israel buys more from Ireland than Ireland buys from it. + +If the trade relationship were to come crumbling down it would be Ireland — and not Israel — that would stand to loose the business. (On the flip side, we in Israel would probably need to re-jig a few supply chains). + +Secondly the discriminatory Occupied Territories Bill that Ireland is seeking to push through its parliament — note: comparable legislation targeting other conflict zones of course hasn’t been forthcoming! — would cut out but a relatively small fraction of Israel’s total exports. + +Against a backdrop of more than $50 billion per year in annual Israeli exports, what vendors in Judea and Samaria export to Ireland — about $1 million — is a mere rounding error. + +A recent notable development that has caught the attention of the strong pro-Palestinian element (majority?) in Ireland: IDA Ireland, Ireland’s inward investment agency, is seeking the appointment of a business consultant in Israel. + +The consultant would be responsible for encouraging Israeli businesses to consider Ireland as a base for expansion into Europe. + +[**Why is Ireland courting Israel's war industry?** +_When Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked governments which have supposedly backed the latest attack on…_ electronicintifada.net](https://electronicintifada.net/content/why-ireland-courting-israels-war-industry/33116 "https://electronicintifada.net/content/why-ireland-courting-israels-war-industry/33116")[](https://electronicintifada.net/content/why-ireland-courting-israels-war-industry/33116) + +The signals that Ireland is sending to Israel on the political and economic fronts are decidedly mixed. + +But perhaps they can be summarized as this: + +“We really don’t like you and will use our seat on the UN Security Council to agitate against your country. But we like your money and would even be open to the idea of expanding our trade relationship so that more of your companies can create jobs for us in Ireland.” + +The tumultuous bilateral relationship between Israel and Ireland is perhaps testament to the idea that bilateral trade ties can survive against an almost total vacuum of political goodwill. It’s an idea that I’m happy to see many begin to finally ask questions about. + +The prevailing Irish attitude towards Israel — both at the official levels and through those raising their voices on Twitter — has mostly been one of unbridled hatred and criticism. + +In Israel — somehow! — Ireland appears to be relatively well-respected. Israelis seem to view it as a haven of tranquility. The antithesis of the Middle East. But I can’t help but feel that many wouldn’t be so keen to dive into what the Irish really feel about them. + +It’s time that those of us in Israel recognized Ireland’s approach to Israel for the hypocrisy that it is. + +A country that goes to bat against Israel in every international forum and which — along with only Jordan — debates the expulsion of its diplomatic mission in parliament is not a friend. + +The purpose of diplomatic relations — as I understand them — is the furthering of good relations and trade between governments. Increasingly, diplomatic missions operate both at the state-to-state and state-to-public levels (the latter is known as public diplomacy). + +But when no amount of meetings and public diplomacy achieve any sort of dialogue — and when the very idea of a dialogue is taken off the table, as happens in the Irish discourse — perhaps it’s prudent to wonder whether breath is being wasted. Perhaps those efforts could be redirected towards more productive ends. + +It’s time that those of us in _Israel_ began seriously debating whether Israel could live without a diplomatic relationship with Ireland. + +For those of us on the receiving end of the hate, the one-sided attacks are mentally exhausting and frustrating to listen to. I can’t help but feel like I’m the only one who likes the idea of going officially no contact. + +Other countries have done so in the past. Israel, for its part, still has friends in the world. diff --git a/posts/medium/Marketing-Communications--MarCom---What-We-Actually-Do-Within-Marketing-Teams.md b/posts/medium/Marketing-Communications--MarCom---What-We-Actually-Do-Within-Marketing-Teams.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1ec1eb9bb69fe0463974e7e4417b57e87a6c458e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Marketing-Communications--MarCom---What-We-Actually-Do-Within-Marketing-Teams.md @@ -0,0 +1,109 @@ +# Marketing Communications (MarCom): What We Actually Do Within Marketing Teams + +#### There are career guide descriptions of what marketing communications professionals do. But here’s how I’ve experienced it, running the function for tech startups + +MarCom: what are the wordsmiths of the marketing department actually busy doing all day? This might help make things clear. Photo by [Caio](https://www.pexels.com/@caio?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/macbook-air-on-grey-wooden-table-67112/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Recently, I joined a (mostly) remote company whose aim is to bring personalized learning and development (L&D) that can be measured at scale. + +L&D’s simplest translation is “training” — but it’s really about using whatever methods work best to help employees to reach their full professional potential. + +This marks the third time in my career that I’ll be handing out business cards adorned with the title Marketing Communications Manager. It’s a set of responsibilities that I’ve consistently enjoyed. + +Most people who know me, however, think that I’m a “writer” or “content writer.” **This speaks to the fact that a lot of people see marketing communications and writing as analogous when they’re not exactly the same thing.** + +My intention with this blog post is to provide my perspective from what managing marketing communications is _actually_ like on the inside — rather than the official role descriptions you can probably find from your local careers counselor. + +Before I get going there are two things to point out: + + * **From everything I’ve been able to discern, marketing communications / MarCom managers are more likely to be employed in smaller organizations.** Which isn’t to say that there aren’t people in the world holding titles like SVP of Marketing Communications and working at enterprises. But rather because marcom straddles a few different fields, it’s more likely to be found among smaller marketing teams where everybody needs to wear a few different hats. In my opinion, that’s part of what makes it so much fun. + * **My in-house experience has been exclusively with small organizations (headcount less than 100).** I’ve worked with medium-sized and enterprise companies, but only as a contract writer. When there are thousands of employees on deck, things start to get very segmented. + +### I’m Sort Of The Last Line of Linguistic Defense At My Companies + +MarCom: here to settle random grammatical disputes and make sure communications go out in somewhat readable condition. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/open-book-pages-on-surface-415071/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +An interesting dimension to my career thus far in marketing communications is that most of it has been spent working in Israel where English is obviously not the first language. + +Israelis generally speak good English. But good English isn’t typically enough to convey a professional impression if you’re selling into a Fortune 500 market. + +**One of my unofficial responsibilities at every company I’ve worked with or for in Israel so far has been to serve as the unofficial language police of the organization.** + +This has meant that on a day to day basis I’ve reviewed everything from how colleagues are describing the company on LinkedIn (please stay consistent, please no typos!) to UX copy to the templates that the support team is using to communicate with customers. + +Being the language police means viewing my colleagues with a healthy degree of skepticism — even those who speak English as a first language. + +I’m pedantic. It may make me seem officious. But I’d rather that than a proposal for millions of dollars worth of business go out the door containing obvious linguistic slip ups. + +I have occasionally been called upon to arbitrate grammatical disputes between departments on Slack (yes, really). I’ve written memos pleading with colleagues to stop using the word “relevant” in every sentence. I am the language police. And the MarCom desk is my literary fortress. + +### I Also Write The Marketing Collateral + +The above is referring to the type of input I provide when dealing with text emanating from the company that _isn’t_ in my domain: like that coming from product or sales. + +_My_ domain is to create marketing materials that will resonate with our target audiences and explain what the organization does. + +[**The 4 Key Differences Between Thought Leadership and Content Marketing** + _7 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Thought leadership garners a lot of attention…_ www.entrepreneur.com](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323 "https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323")[](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323) + +Everybody brings their own philosophy to their jobs, and one of mine is always to underscore the key differences between content marketing and thought leadership. But practically speaking I do both. Higher level thought leadership that resonates with an executive audience needs to be pared with more straightforward pieces of collateral that actually get leads in the door. + +In all of my MarCom jobs, I’ve been expected to write the blog posts, fill up the content marketing calendar, and manage the company’s social media accounts (my favorite network for this, by the way is LinkedIn; in my personal life I spend as much time on Reddit). + +Cultivating community is an important function and larger organizations often pay somebody just to focus on this. But sometimes answering comments on Facebook falls on the shoulders of the MarCom person too. + +On any given day I might write a blog, create an email newsletter to promote the blog, write a few social media posts, and draft up a press release. + +### I Oversee PR And Sometimes Organize Events + +Liaising with the media and sometimes even acting as spokespeople is one of the MarCom duties many wouldn’t associate with the role. Photo by [Lucas Oliveira](https://www.pexels.com/@cais?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-in-black-long-sleeve-shirt-holding-microphone-4775614/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +The role of a MarCom manager will fluctuate as the company they work for scales up or down. + +At the lower scale of things — my first job was at political technology software Ecanvasser where I was the first marketing hire (they’ve since grown!)—I took care of all aspects of PR. + +That might mean proactively pitching the media, building media lists and sending press releases, and creating the type of collateral needed for all that to go off without a hitch — like speakers’ bios, one pagers, and the like. + +I’ve also done my fair share of award applications and pitching executives for speaking engagements. + +A the higher levels of scale, the PR function gets contracted. Either to agencies or solo PR practicioners. Once that happens, the MarCom manager will work with or oversee the work of a PR specialist. That might mean participating in weekly status update calls to oversee the work of an agency on retainer. + +Sometimes ceding the day to day responsibility for PR is tough. But ultimately nobody can do it all. Pitching the media well takes responsibility and a lot of elbow grease. Sometimes, a MarCom manager will ghostwrite a piece that a PR firm will secure a placement for. + +Much more broadly speaking, I try to look after the image of the companies I work for. This is a higher level concern that might bleed down into the messaging used on a landing page or the text that gets conveyed in an email. + +I engage in basic brand monitoring and watch what competitors are saying and doing in the market. I want the world to be clear about what the company does and stands for. + +### I Work Closely With Sales Teams + +Naturally, the essential element of marketing is paving the way for sales teams to do what they do best — selling and creating revenue that drives the success of the firm (slash keeps the lights on). + +That’s why, as a MarCom manager, I’ve done everything from help develop sales battledress to listening in on competitor webinars to better understand their capabilities. True, it’s a sales function. But it’s important that we understand how competitors are branding themselves as well as what their differentiators are. + +I have a lot of respect for sales and the work that they do. In fact, I’d argue that it’s impossible to be an effective marketer without understanding what the people on the ground are saying and doing. Sales, customer success, and support are the eyes and ears of the organization who hear unfiltered feedback all day long. + +My advice to marketing managers or anyone else managing MarCom personnel: allow your marketing communications people to get on the road, to travel, and to meet customers — and don’t try to shield them from the bad stuff. You can’t sit in an office writing about a solution every day if you don’t have an intimate understanding of how it works, what the customers sound like, and what their pain points are that you’re helping to resolve. + +### Other Things I Might Do On Any Given Day + + * Deploy some marketing automation using tools like Zapier to make my life a little bit easier. + * Build dashboards in Google Analytics to understand where traffic is coming from and preparing recommendations for prioritizing channels based upon that information. + * Outsource things that I know a lot less about — namely digital marketing — to contractors who specialize in SEO and PPC. + * Plan a marketing event and prepare a strategy to promote it. + * Get involved in higher level marketing strategy discussions in parallel with colleagues in branding and marketing (or the executive level). + +Marketing communications is a busy job. + +In fact, there’s so much to do that sometimes it’s hard to take a step back and understand what the big picture is about. + +For me, it’s about making sure that the organization projects a clear image of what it does to the outside world and to customers. + +**At the highest level, I see it as about making sure that an organization succeeds in communicating what it really does and stands for to all its stakeholders. Sometimes, that leads to demand generation. At other times, the approach is a bit more oblique and moves to that sphere through brand awareness and reputation building first.** + +Of course we want to create content marketing campaigns that deliver ROI. That’s why companies pay us to do what we do. But I also try to come in at a slightly different level: making sure that we communicate a cohesive vision across the organization. Making sure that what our salespeople are reporting from the field is actually being heard at the executive level to get the buy-in needed to make any changes or re-communicate our vision. And that we’re delivering the kind of collateral that our market is actually going to listen to. + +Cutting through the noise is difficult. Building a marketing “presence” that lays the ground for inbound lead generation takes enormous work. + +Maintaining that presence, once it’s been built, and explaining what the company does to stakeholders takes persistent effort too. + +Helping to achieve all these things on behalf of companies is part of what marketing communications practitioners do every day they turn up to work. diff --git a/posts/medium/Marketing-Consultants---And-Why-Elephant-Spotting-Should-Be-A-Core-Part-Of-What-They-Do.md b/posts/medium/Marketing-Consultants---And-Why-Elephant-Spotting-Should-Be-A-Core-Part-Of-What-They-Do.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2e6da042f5124e7a0a2204f7edb438d0523e8ab7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Marketing-Consultants---And-Why-Elephant-Spotting-Should-Be-A-Core-Part-Of-What-They-Do.md @@ -0,0 +1,69 @@ +# Marketing Consultants — And Why Elephant-Spotting Should Be A Core Part Of What They Do + +#### Before looking for finesse, make sure that your basics are all in place + +Are there elephants lurking somewhere between what your clients are doing now and what they need to be doing in order to be successful? It’s your job, as a consultant, to point it out. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/side-view-of-elephant-in-a-row-against-the-sky-257578/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Over the course of the past five years I’ve been working with companies in various outsourced guises: sometimes as a writer, responsible for getting written deliverables cranked out, and more recently as a consultant looking at companies’ strategies in order to make solid recommendations about things that I think they could be doing better. + +[**It’s Your Duty To Tell Your Clients When They’re Doing It All Wrong** + _Navigating the uncomfortable problem of raising obvious problems when selling advice to companies_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-your-duty-to-tell-your-clients-when-they-re-doing-it-all-wrong-37fedf4307df "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-your-duty-to-tell-your-clients-when-they-re-doing-it-all-wrong-37fedf4307df")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/its-your-duty-to-tell-your-clients-when-they-re-doing-it-all-wrong-37fedf4307df) + +One of the great things about life in the rocky world of self employment is getting to work with a _lot_ of different companies — and seeing up close and personal how different business owners approach marketing. + +During the past year alone I’ve worked with: + + * A startup founder who was convinced that automated wire pickup and syndication was the same thing as meaningful media coverage and was ploughing large sums of money into press release distribution services all while depriving his marketing team of _useful_ spending avenues. This was one of the most salient examples of what I call ‘illogical cheapness’ that I have come across; + * Another founder who stubbornly refused to listen when his customers –and even colleagues — all told him that prospective clients and even potential new hires had _absolutely no idea_ what the company really did because the website was too saturated with buzzwords to actually communicate anything; + * A marketing agency owner who was frustrated by the endless merry-go-round of writers at his agency (I was one of them). The agency was selective and aggressive about recruiting writers — and had some great names on their client list — but couldn’t understand why these pesky writers needed more than $200 to put together highly complex white papers. + +And what were the commonalities that tied all these companies together? + + * None of them were able to spot the fundamental problems standing between them and progress. + * All thought that they had different problems. + +### Marketing Consultants — And Why External Perspectives Can Be Helpful + +Simple seeing this from a different lens is a significant part of the value that consultants can bring to their clients. Photo by [Jan Kopřiva](https://www.pexels.com/@koprivakart?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-camera-lens-in-grayscale-photography-3327571/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +One of the fulfilling things about working as a freelancer or consultant in the marketing space is getting to provide independent feedback about how businesses are tackling a very common and axiomatic marketing problem: How do we explain what we do in a way that is actually going to get people interested in us to _buy_ from us? + +Sure, content marketing and inbound tend to be among the primary go-tos for today’s generation of marketing professionals. But ultimately — irrespective of the tools we leverage to get there — that remains what we’re trying to achieve. + +A question that has plagued many who work in marketing but do so from a distance — namely consultants — is how many otherwise brilliant startup founders can have such a hard time seeing answers that are often right in front of their face. + +The guy might have been bright enough to build his own facial recognition algorithm at 15. So why can’t he see that the language his company is using on their marketing homepage is only going to be intelligible to the tiny proportion of humanity that understands AI on a deep level? + +> Specialists tend to underestimate how esoteric some of their knowledge is. It’s consultants’ job to get them speaking at a level that will get heard. + +Some common answers: + + * **Startups who lack a marketing member on staff may be so enwrapped in product development and R &D that they can’t see the basic marketing issues in front of them.** + * **Specialists tend to underestimate how esoteric some of their knowledge is.** Terms and concepts that they think about day to day might be completely foreign to the uninitiated reader. This becomes problematic when that uninitiated reader comprises the core of the target customer base. + +Using a marketing consultant or freelancer to help with your content marketing can be a good ‘fix’ for these issues because: + + * They tend to work with a number of clients and so are experienced at trying to decipher the bigger picture from the details that they know are going to bore prospects to sleep + * They bring unique perspectives to bear upon their clients that are the composite of having provided input to a number of different companies in different sectors and having had a chance to observe what works and what doesn’t + +### Why Elephant Spotting Is A Core Activity For Marketing Consultants + +While many tend to think of freelancers and consultants as short term fixes for manpower gaps, the reality is that marketing consultants can actually be leveraged to provide long term guidance to companies. + +Over the course of a sustained relationship, input can be provided at several levels: + + * **Initially, focused on elephant-spotting:** identifying any glaring gaps between what companies _need_ to communicate and how they’ve actually communicated their vision to date. + * **Also early on in the engagement: providing moments of education, when appropriate, to educate clients upon marketing best practices.** + * **Helping clients to make responsible use of marketing budget and steering them away from potential low value ‘vanity’ exercises** , such as pay for play publication opportunities in low tier publications with small readerships. Often, these can traced back to misunderstandings about how marketing works. + +Consultants themselves have an equally important part to play in this process. + +We need to understand that when companies pay us to provide advice upon their marketing — or their marketing collateral — that we’re not being paid to tell them that everything looks great (or that it doesn’t). + +Rather, we’re being paid to bring our experience and thinking to bear upon the problems that are standing between them and success. + +For marketing consultants and freelancers, pointing out the elephants that may stand between our clients and whatever their version of success looks like isn’t a nice-to-have activity that we can tack on when we feel like we’ve built sufficient rapport with those for whom we work. + +Rather, it’s part of the essential value that we can bring to their businesses. + +And we shouldn’t be shy about trying to interject it. From day one. diff --git a/posts/medium/Medium--LinkedIn--or-your-blog--where-should-you-publish-your-thought-leadership-.md b/posts/medium/Medium--LinkedIn--or-your-blog--where-should-you-publish-your-thought-leadership-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..98a8583e32783ff5c6323d51d86790d62a85aedb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Medium--LinkedIn--or-your-blog--where-should-you-publish-your-thought-leadership-.md @@ -0,0 +1,108 @@ +# Medium, LinkedIn, or your blog: where should you publish your thought leadership? + +LinkedIn, Medium, or your own blog: where should you publish your writing? + +As I discussed previously in this blog, [thought leaders need to invest as much time in the promotion of their content](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/good-thought-leadership-requires-better-promotion/) as they do in authoring it — if not more. + +One of the first decisions prospective thought leaders have to make is _where_ they would like to see their thought leadership published. + +Commonly, those planning thought leadership campaigns have several target publications in mind already. In other instances, authors want to start out more modestly and have set their sites on Medium and LinkedIn — or on their company blog. + +As these two publishing platforms are commonly enquired about, let’s take a look at the pros and cons of each. + +### Publishing Thought Leadership On Medium + +Over the years, Medium has grown to become a veritable writing ecosystem containing a large network of profiles and publications. + +From an SEO perspective, Medium is an offsite publishing location — because users publish to a subdomain of Medium.com (youruser.medium.com). [A subdomain is a separate part of a website denoted by a prefix to the Top Level Domain (TLD), which is, for example, Medium.com] + +[There is some debate](https://www.brafton.com/blog/content-marketing/when-to-use-subdomains-3-reasons-for-them-a-few-against/) among SEO experts as to whether the Google algorithm assigns subdomains the same domain authority (DA) as the parent domain. It’s reasonably probable that in most cases it does — particularly on a site like Medium in which each user is programatically assigned a subdomain as a core part of the user functionality. + +[**Subdomain SEO | What Is a Subdomain and How Does It Impact SEO?** +_Your website is a bit like an iceberg. People really only ever see the most visible portions - your homepage, blogs…_ www.brafton.com](https://www.brafton.com/blog/content-marketing/when-to-use-subdomains-3-reasons-for-them-a-few-against/ "https://www.brafton.com/blog/content-marketing/when-to-use-subdomains-3-reasons-for-them-a-few-against/")[](https://www.brafton.com/blog/content-marketing/when-to-use-subdomains-3-reasons-for-them-a-few-against/) + +Whatever the answer to that question, when users post their writing to Medium, they are not building up the SEO value of their own website, if they have one, directly (although backlinks will provide a slight boost). This applies equally to publishing to LinkedIn. Rather, their writing on Medium.com will be indexed in search engines. + +### Syndicating Writing To/From Medium + +Medium has an ‘import’ function which allows users to syndicate content they have published to Medium-creating secondary copies of it. (This blog post is syndicated!) + +This functionality adds the correct SEO tags (canonical tags) which mark the Medium post as a copy and the first publication destination (e.g. a company blog) as the original. + +On the flip side, users can post to Medium and then copy to their own websites. If they are doing so, however, they should be careful to add canonical tags so that the search engines does not flag the post(s) as duplicate content. Moz has a guide as to how to do that [here](https://moz.com/learn/seo/canonicalization). If you’re using WordPress, SEO plugins typically contain this as a core feature. + +[**Redirecting you - Medium** + _Edit description_ medium.com](https://medium.com/r?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmoz.com%2Flearn%2Fseo%2Fcanonicalization "https://medium.com/r?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmoz.com%2Flearn%2Fseo%2Fcanonicalization")[](https://medium.com/r?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmoz.com%2Flearn%2Fseo%2Fcanonicalization) + +Posting to Medium also opens up the article to the Medium community where users can comment on it. This has benefits (the potential to engage with new readers) as well as risks (authors can receive comments with negative sentiment). + +From a PR perspective, both Medium and LinkedIn Pulse have characteristics more like onsite resources such as company blogs: because anybody can publish to them whenever they feel like it. This is of course convenient and makes publishing on Medium a popular option among those who have not developed their own website yet. + +The exception is writing for Medium publications. Typically, these have dedicated editors that enforce an editorial review cycle. To apply to write for a Medium publication, authors also typically need to apply to be added as a publication author and then follow- to a ‘t’-the submission guidelines. + +Writing for Medium publications is not typically directly compensated — save for revenue that metered pieces collect through the Medium Partner Program. + +Many Medium publications will also not accept syndicated content-so this is one instance in which the Medium version may need to be the original rather than the duplicate. + +Authors have to therefore decide whether investing the time in joining and pitching these publications is worth it. Comparing the return on investment (ROI) between Medium publishing and publishing on print and online publications involves comparing the time involved — and of course the likelihood of the pitch being accepted — with the expected distribution, bearing in mind that his might be significantly wider than what could be achieved through owned channels like early-stage blogs. + +(In most cases, pitches are reviewed on an individual basis. For many publications, prior publication is no guarantee that future submissions will be accepted). + +### Why Publish To Medium + +Leaving arguments about monetization aside (Medium operates a Partner Program), the main advantage for publishing content to Medium for many users is to tap into the audience the site contains through its architecture as a blog-based social network. + +Every Medium user has a profile. Profiles can be tagged in writing and follow other profiles (or publications). As users publish content and accrue followers, their reach gradually widens. Mediums’ editors can also recommend content, thereby greatly widening its distribution. + +By publishing for Medium publications rather than to their own profiles, users can expand this reach exponentially — -because high-profile publications typically have much larger follower bases than individual users (some have more than 100,000 followers). + +Syndicating content to Medium, via the import functionality, is a good way to tap into the benefit of this secondary audience without forsaking the ability to publish the primary copy. + +The import functionality assigns the appropriate canonical tags to the writing — so the copy on your website is the one that will index and the Medium post will be identified as the duplicate. + +### Publishing Thought Leadership On LinkedIn Pulse + +Many prospective thought leaders are also interested in publishing articles on LinkedIn Pulse (Pulse is LinkedIn’s publishing platform and can be accessed by anybody with a profile). + +Like with Medium, publishing to LinkedIn involves creating content which will inherit the Domain Authority (DA) of LinkedIn.com. Like publishing content to Medium, the domain authority of these massive websites is virtually certain to exceed that of your own blog — thereby making it likely that unless proper syndication practices are followed the version on your own site will be pushed down the search engine results pages (SERPs). + +To get an estimate of the authority of a domain, you can use Ahrefs’ testing tool: + +[**Website "Authority" Checker** + _Here are two good uses cases: If your website "authority" is higher than that of your competitors, then your site is…_ ahrefs.com](https://ahrefs.com/website-authority-checker "https://ahrefs.com/website-authority-checker")[](https://ahrefs.com/website-authority-checker) + +Unlike Medium, LinkedIn (at the time of writing) doesn’t have a functionality for importing content and automatically assigning canonical tags to mark the article as a second copy. Therefore, for syndicating blog content to widen reach and distribution, Medium is a better choice. + +On the flip side, LinkedIn articles are not paywalled-therefore anybody with a LinkedIn account should be able to access your writing. Additionally, the publishing feature of LinkedIn isn’t monetized: users don’t receive compensation for views or engagements. + +### Medium vs. LinkedIn: Which Makes More Sense For Publishing Thought Leadership? + +Ultimately, whether you wish to publish thought leadership articles on Medium or LinkedIn comes down to a few questions. + +**Firstly, consider the tone of the piece:** if it’s a business-centric article, then LinkedIn might be a better fit. Content that has a focus on wellness, on the other hand, might be better suited to Medium. + +There are subtle but important differences between the two from an SEO perspective. These differences are worth noting if publishing via LinkedIn or Medium is a long-term part of your thought leadership distribution strategy. + +**Authors can republish/syndicate content to Medium while continuing to build their onsite SEO.** This is a huge advantage. Users can build their onsite SEO, syndicate content to a second audience and even, if they’re successful, monetize it. + +LinkedIn, in contrast, won’t add canonical tags — although [most SEO authorities](https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/argh-tech-ok-republish-your-blog-posts-linkedin-medium-amanda-webb/) think that syndicating content to the social network will be okay. + +From a usability standpoint, the Medium article composer is also a delight to use — and it’s easy to automatically embed widgets from other websites. Many users prefer it over LinkedIn Pulse’s authoring tool. + +**For most thought leaders, building up a personal brand through strong on-site content (on personal websites or corporate blogs) is the preferred way to go with periodic placements in offsite editorial publications such as trade media outlets.** + +This approach is particularly popular with authors that have a strong library of on-site content and wish to refurbish insights for publication elsewhere. Although — as with Medium publications — this means submitting to an editorial process, the reach is often exponentially wider. If the trade media publication has a website, this also means accruing a backlink from another TLD (most Medium publications are hosted on Medium.com). + +Users _can_ share their content with their professional networks on LinkedIn by sharing _posts_ rather than articles. Unlike copying the articles, this will _not_ be considered duplicate content. They may wish to also share their writing in groups, through their email newsletter, or directly message it to professional contacts. + +Publishing to LinkedIn or Medium, in the first instance, might make sense for thought leaders who aren’t concerned with building up their personal web properties’ SEO value or who don’t have one in the first place. It also appeals to those who just want to log into a site with a nice composer and get the writing published immediately with minimal fuss. + +For many users, however (at the time of writing), authoring on-site content is the better approach which will pay dividends over the long run even if the setup process might be more involved. + +If readers can be attracted to a managed resource, such as a website, it’s easier to expose them to more information without risking them getting distracted by other users’ content. + +Readers that are engaged by something published on Medium or LinkedIn would obviously have to click a link, or run a search engine query, to find out more about the author and get in touch. + +LinkedIn, Medium and other social networks can be used to widen distribution and tap into secondary audiences-and they are powerful means for doing this. First instance offsite publishing can be reserved instead for editorial publications with wider distribution. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Meet--Anglo-Jerusalem-s-Newest-Social-Media-Influencer.md b/posts/medium/Meet--Anglo-Jerusalem-s-Newest-Social-Media-Influencer.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..20d3f0aceeda7be63aa99a83a290948f552631be --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Meet--Anglo-Jerusalem-s-Newest-Social-Media-Influencer.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# Meet: Anglo Jerusalem’s Newest Social Media Influencer + +What comes to mind when you picture your stereotypical social media influencer? + +A smartphone-toting teenager posting food pictures on Instagram? A YouTuber unboxing the latest tech products? Do you even have social media at all? + +Stepping somewhat incongruously into this fray is Shimshon Leshinsky, a 57 year old administrative worker originally from Melbourne, Australia, now living with his French-born wife in Har Homa, south of Jerusalem. Leshinsky recently shot to prominence with his unique style of posts on the popular Secret Jerusalem messaging board. And he’s been on a high ever since (a food high that is). + +Shimshon agreed to be _After Aliyah’s_ first interview subject. And seemed a little bemused by the invitation despite the following that he’s quickly accrued (but flattered; Leshinsky was a most gracious guest). + +Fittingly, I spoke to Shimshon just before embarking upon my own food odyssey of sorts, stuffing myself full of pizza at ten o’clock in the evening (recommendation: [Buchman’s on Derekh Hevron](https://buchmans.co.il/jerusalem/)). + +But in the twenty minutes before I left to do that, I grilled (excuse the pun) Shimshon on who he is, why he decided to start posting food pics on Secret Jerusalem, and where he sees this whole project going. + +Leshinsky’s sometimes controversial food postings on Secret Jerusalem fail to do justice to how gregarious this Aussie-born transplant -who ended up in Israel after coming for a tour and then making _aliyah_ — is. + +Leshinsky, who recently received his second vaccine and is thus “double vaccinated” said that his Facebook postings have quickly mushroomed his real-life social circle from a few guys congregating for Shabbat meals into a blossoming network of foodie friends, restaurant owners, and fans. In fact after one particular posting during which Shimshon posed while hugging for a tree, a follower even created a group specifically for Jerusalem tree huggers. + +He says that he loves the immediacy of the interactions he kicks off via the platforms. “It’s like in ten minutes you have 10 comments, and then a whole discussion has kicked off,” he says. + +A professional through and though, Shimshon says that whenever he dines out — and, judging by his postings, he seems to do so frequently, if not daily — he is diligent to make sure that the tab is always on him. “I always make sure to pay for my meals in full. The reviews are totally independent,” he says. Recently Shimshon has begun co-reviewing restaurants with fellow Jerusalem food enthusiasts who reach out to him through Facebook. Shimshon was recently joined on a trip designed to probe the question of whether a certain restaurateur was worthy of the title of Jerusalem’s best meat sandwich. He says that he has begun receiving a steady deluge of messages since beginning his posting activity. + +But what possessed Leshinsky to go from Aussie administrator (with a degree in Law and Economic) to a foodie/travel social media superstar in the space of three months? + +The answer, Leshinsky says, was part aspirational — to share Jerusalem’s food — and part boredom. Despite his enthusiasm for lemons and meringue pies, it seems, Leshinsky is as vulnerable to lockdown boredom as the rest of us. “I have a core group of a few friends but things got really quiet for a while during lockdown,” he admits. Leshinsky — who says that many of those responding to his comments are 20 or so years his junior — says that posting on social media has opened up an entirely new world for him that he never previously realized existed. + +The process has been such a blur, in fact, that Leshinsky can’t even pinpoint the date on which he posted his first status to the group — or what it consisted of. But I put it to Leshinsky that his trademark style, which features a selfie ( _sans_ selfie stick), food photos, and several question-provoking questions, is what has catapulted him to fame. + +As I quietly suspected, Leshinsky shares a passion for writing. He says that his workplace is located a few minutes’ walk from the _shuk_(Mahane Yehuda Market). And that this provided the impetus to begin exploring the local culinary scene while also posting small essays and photos. The first status, Leshinsky says, happened spontaneously. But as his community of followers grew, so did his enthusiasm for the project. He now manages his effort somewhat professionally occasionally planning the day’s content 24 hours in advance. + +It is at this point in the interview that Leshinsky asks my opinion as to whether he should invest in a selfie stick, which he has thus far eschewed, although almost every photo features a picture of him (he apologized to his fans for not smiling during his recent snow pic, although that was an exception to his usual appearance). + +I advise him to resist the urge — lest his unique and decidedly un-millennial style be sullied by the trappings of youth whose social media postings are much more vacuous than Leshinsky’s wholesome meditations on life in Jerusalem, lupines, and lemons. Where youngsters post about manicures and sports teams, Leshinsky speculates as to why Jerusalem’s flowers are in bloom and showcases some of the city’s walks and trails to appreciative residents. He is usually joined in these ruminations by an eager chorus of respondents. + +While Leshinsky says that the project is a hobby — and (I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news) — he envisions wrapping things up in a few months, or at least stepping back on the post frequency, he says that he’s tried to do his best to support small Jerusalem businesses in the process, frequently encouraging commenters to tag businesses as a means of getting them advertising on the group. + +Leshinsky’s postings sometimes generate heated arguments on the platform, one of the best known English-speaking Facebook groups in Israel. I ask him whether, among his fans, there have also been some critical views. And how does Leshinsky handle his dual role as a social media influencer who also appears to be an observant Jew (I’m asking, specifically, about _lashon hara,_ and partially for selfish reasons, because this is also a topic I struggle with navigating)? + +“There have been a few trolls,” he candidly admits, while others have hit out at him for showcasing his frequent dining out during a time of national austerity — a charge which he deflects by pointing out that his postings are helping to stimulate interest in small business. But if he is fazed by their existence, it doesn’t carry through in his voice. + +Despite being an almost daily poster to a Facebook group with more than 90,000 members, Leshinsky also seems blissfully unaware as to how far (and quickly) his fame has spread among Jerusalem’s English-speaking community. Leshinsky seems surprised when I tell him that he has been an almost daily fixture on my Facebook feed and that I have noticed how he transitioned from food blogger into general Jerusalem commentator. I tell him that it’s an honor for _After Aliyah_ to nab this exclusive. And I mean it. + +Regarding _lashon hara,_ Leshinsky relates to me how he had one bad experience at a restaurant in the _shuk_ and chose to criticize their presentation of the bread. The post quickly threw up controversy and some commenters were quick to point out that Israel’s prohibitive defamation laws could make airing such views risky — not to mention the fact that many businesses are struggling during the pandemic. He says that he tried to do so in the gentlest possible terms while also highlighting what was positive about the restaurant. The feedback received was constructive, Leshinsky says, and helped him to find a middle ground he was happy with. BreadGate, he says, has run its course. + +The time for me to run out and buy pizza is closing in. + +As somebody that also writes about Jerusalem and the world around us for fun, I feel a strong sense of kinship with Leshinsky’s project. It is pure, unsullied even by the type of food-for-review deals that Leshinsky has repeatedly turned down. Leshinsky is a journalistic puritan of sorts. A man with a camera and an appetite who appears completely unfazed by the odd derisive comment on Facebook. + +In particular, I appreciate the unique angle he has taken to social media, increasingly a toxic wasteground of self-aggrandizement, virtue-signalling, and bragging (LinkedIn, I’m looking at you). And so while I hate that I feel the need to ask Leshinsky this question, and raise the ugly specter of motivations, I know that somebody must and that even his ardent fans have wondered this: What’s the point and where is this all going? + +To my disappointment, he’s not planning on writing a book any time soon. Although he does write short stories and works in Hebrew. Instead, he says that he’s simply enjoying the process of spreading the love of food — and Jerusalem — to its residents. And it’s here that Leshinsky offers the best lines of our interview: + +“I think about my posts in Secret Jerusalem like a _Shabbat meal_ ,” he offers. “I bring the food” — he’s referring to the statuses he shares with food photos — “and then that strikes up a conversation. Everybody offers their take on it. You talk to this one and then to that. Like at a _kiddush_ “ + +Shimshon Leshinsky may just be the only social media “influencer” who thinks about Facebook Groups as a digital Shabbat table. + +While he says that his real one is typically only home to a handful of families, his online Shabbat table frequently numbers hundreds of participants. + +I would argue that social media has become richer for his viewpoints — and his colorful contributions. Perhaps social media needs more Shimshon Leshinskys. diff --git a/posts/medium/Motza--An-Idyllic-Getaway-Spot-Just-Outside-Jerusalem.md b/posts/medium/Motza--An-Idyllic-Getaway-Spot-Just-Outside-Jerusalem.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b860dd43f1b346c8a6991d8e071831794c047f1f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Motza--An-Idyllic-Getaway-Spot-Just-Outside-Jerusalem.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# Motza, An Idyllic Getaway Spot Just Outside Jerusalem + +#### This ancient settlement just a stone’s throw from Jerusalem now sports a café providing organic, locally-produced fare as well as a vineyard and synagogue + +After a busy week on the writing front, I took a few hours out of the city yesterday to explore Motza in the Jerusalem Hills. + +[https://www.google.com/maps/place/Motza,+Jerusalem/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x1502d6ff2f48af41:0x870cdb373e07fcf1?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiVsvintLfwAhXklFwKHRsOANoQ8gEweHoECFQQAQ](https://goo.gl/maps/Z3Be2vMpE8Mar1Uv9) + +Motza is located on the south side of highway 1 — the enormously busy traffic artery that links Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. + +[**Motza - Wikipedia** + _Motza, also Mozah or Motsa, ( Hebrew: מוֹצָא‎) is a neighbourhood on the western edge of West Jerusalem. It is located…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motza "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motza")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motza) + +While the enormous concrete edifice of the overpass now dominates its northern skyline (Mevesseret Tsion, another Jerusalem commuter town, lies on the other side of the bridge) it is nevertheless blessed with a historical synagogue, a fantastic garden café that sells artisan cider and perry (as well as amazing sandwiches!), and beautiful vineyards which visitors are free to walk through. + +A sign marks the entrance to the Alloro restaurant. The complex is located about a 20 minute drive from Southern Jerusalem. Photo: Daniel Rosehill. + +The neighborhood itself has an interesting history. Successive excavations at and near the site have thrown light on the village’s interesting history as a place of worship — and liturgical supply — during the Temple Period. + +According to Wikipedia: + +> “Motza was the first Jewish farm founded outside the walls of the Old City in the modern era. It is believed to be located on the site of a Biblical village of the same name [mentioned in the Book of Joshua].” + +According, again, to Wikipedia (interestingly enough all these eons later the village’s residents take pride in this fact!): + +> “During the Second Temple period, Motza was the place whence willow branches were cut down for the abundance of willows that grew in the valley … and brought to the Temple for ceremonial worship.” + +Excavations led by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) in 2012 unearthed the Tel Motza temple, a large building which revealed clear elements of ritual use. + +Motza nowadays. Source: Google Maps + +During these more modern times, Motza is a small aggregation of houses adjacent to Highway 1 with a visitor center, an old synagogue, and a charming café, Alloro, that serves sandwiches with locally sourced organic ingredients. + +[**ALLORO CAFE, Jerusalem - Restaurant Reviews, Photos & Phone Number - Tripadvisor** + _Alloro cafe, Jerusalem: See 3 unbiased reviews of Alloro cafe, rated 5 of 5 on Tripadvisor and ranked #421 of 798…_ www.tripadvisor.com](https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g293983-d21232908-Reviews-Alloro_cafe-Jerusalem_Jerusalem_District.html "https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g293983-d21232908-Reviews-Alloro_cafe-Jerusalem_Jerusalem_District.html")[](https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g293983-d21232908-Reviews-Alloro_cafe-Jerusalem_Jerusalem_District.html) + +For those who read Hebrew, its menu is accessible here: + +[**תפריט.pdf** + _Edit description_ drive.google.com](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Sx2OL9YbLNYQ7SwjqxhOE46Ted0ScLyc/view "https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Sx2OL9YbLNYQ7SwjqxhOE46Ted0ScLyc/view")[](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Sx2OL9YbLNYQ7SwjqxhOE46Ted0ScLyc/view) + +The village is located just a few hundred meters to the north of Beit Zayit which contains a crescent-shaped man-made reservoir, constructed in the 1950s following the building of Ein Karem. The drive there, from South Jerusalem, took roughly 20 minutes. + +[**Beit Zayit Reservoir** + _Back in the beginning of March, just as the winter was coming to an end, there was one particular place that piqued my…_ israelsgoodname.blog](https://israelsgoodname.blog/2020/06/03/beit-zayit-reservoir/ "https://israelsgoodname.blog/2020/06/03/beit-zayit-reservoir/")[](https://israelsgoodname.blog/2020/06/03/beit-zayit-reservoir/) + +Those hoping to catch a glimpse of its waters at Bayt Zayit during the dry season will be left as disappointed as I was — during those months the reservoir is in fact totally dry and essentially forms an (artificial) _wadi_(river bed) overlooking a forest to its immediate west. + +The synagogue which Motza is well-known for was opened in 1905 in the basement of the 1871-build Khan (Wikimedia Commons). The place of worship was closed after the 1929 anti-Semitic riots and reopened in 1973. + +Photos and videos both of the fare on offer and of the gardens are below. Worth a trip! + + + +Craft cider lovers would not have been disappointed. During my visit, the Alloro café had the excellent המתססה cider for sale. At 7% ABV it packed a bunch that was buffered by the excellent sandwich and glorious sunshine. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.A salad made from locally sourced organic ingredients served in the Alloro Café. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.A cheese sandwich served from the Alloro Café in Motza. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Visitors are welcome to roam in the gardens of the village. The plants are helpfully labelled with signs. This one, in Hebrew, reads “זית” which means olive. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.The small and sun-drenched vineyard of Motza is located curiously in the shadow of an overpass that is part of the Highway 1 road that connects Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Beit Zayit and its man-made reservoir is located just a few hundred meters to the south of Motza. Photo: Daniel Rosehill. diff --git a/posts/medium/My--Meandering--Guide-to-VESA-Monitor-Mounts.md b/posts/medium/My--Meandering--Guide-to-VESA-Monitor-Mounts.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e6f15d15238a93e06f8d89d491596f2cce8b860d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My--Meandering--Guide-to-VESA-Monitor-Mounts.md @@ -0,0 +1,134 @@ +# My (Meandering) Guide to VESA Monitor Mounts + +[As signatories of my petition](https://www.timesofisrael.com/with-free-shipping-to-israel-amazon-has-expats-filling-up-their-carts-again/) are aware ([more details here](https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/amazon-to-maintain-free-shipping-to-israel?fbclid=IwAR330l88rHiHx0sNlNKRFf22yXitjeXHgP7am2wrWCZ3CnSXVYbq7bUw1Eg)), e-commerce giant Amazon is currently running an unprecedented free shipping extravaganza to Israel. + +For the first time in Israeli online shopping history it’s both affordable and convenient to shop directly from Amazon.com — so long as the items are marked ‘free shipping to Israel’ and are under Israel’s VAT-free import limit of $75, including shipping [(necessary context: Israel is one of the world’s biggest adopters of online shopping](https://www.parcelandpostaltechnologyinternational.com/features/israel-the-untapped-e-commerce-opportunity.html) but, traditionally, the shipping and import fees have made Amazon purchases unaffordable.) + +Like many shoppers, I’ve been trying to hedge my bets with my ordering — purchasing things I think will really provide value while simultaneously attempting to save my credit card from, well, killing by bank account by a thousand Amazon orders. + +Hmm, ethnic cookbooks. + +Given that Amazon has wisely refused to be drawn on when the offer will conclude — thus placing the entire country in a form of protracted mental torture — I’ve been maintaining a separate ‘Amazon Israel deal’ wish list and moving $50 to $70 worth of goods into my cart every two weeks or so, purchasing roughly in order of decreasing priority and utility. + +Given that — as an avid online shopper living in Israel — I[ have spent the best part of five years accumulating various electronics cables and sundry merchandise from Aliexpress, Ebay and Amazon UK ](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-thoughts-on-aliexpress-after-500-orders-achieving-coveted-diamond-membership-status-sarcasm-disclaimer/)(during forays to Ireland), there wasn’t much that I truthfully _needed_ or was lacking. + +But given my present juncture in life — as a newlywed that spends _a lot_ of time in the home office from which I type this — I determined that two sets of product were most likely to bring me productivity and joy this holiday season. + +Namely: + + * **Ethnic cookbooks** to adorn IKEA bookshelves and help me continue my lifelong journey through the long list of underappreciated world cuisines (acquired: Nepali, Afghani, Turkish; on the wish list: Iraqi, Indonesian, Filipino; already on my shelves: Ethiopian, Syrian, Lebanese, Kurdish). + * **VESA monitor mounts:** Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) is the standard fitting for monitor mounts and I recently upgraded my desktop’s graphics cards to allow me to make the leap from a triple screen workstation to a five or possibly six screen display. + +### Why VESA Monitor Mounts Are Great + +My desk with a pre-weekend motivational quote which I printed for my last Medium post. [The 3M document holder](https://www.amazon.com/3M-Document-Adjustable-Documents-DH340MB/dp/B0006HVL9Q/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?keywords=3m+document+holder&qid=1577707993&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzQkJXMjBBNkdORlg3JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwODk4NTkxMVFFTkxGM0tOR0tRMCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMzMzNjQxMldKT01OMEdNMlVHSiZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=) was also a great Amazon purchase! + +Given that, despite my best efforts, my online shopping activity is now horribly visible to both my neighbors and the postman (unlike most post in Israel, which goes to your local post office for collection, Amazon orders generally arrive to your door), I have had to come to terms with the fact that I may reasonably be classed as something of a compulsive hoarder. + +The underside of my office couch is, in fact, completely occupied by currently unused VESA mounts. + +These include: + + * **Another triple monitor mount** from my last (in-house) job; + * **A double monitor mount** that I set up at a client’s office while I was on project for them this summer (yes, I’m a Bring Your Own Monitor Mount (BYOMM) kind of contractor); + * **Another triple monitor mount** which I acquired for some nebulous point in the future when I can hire an employee / assistant who I have also presumed will be interested in multi-monitor desktop computing. + +My love of monitor mounts stems from the fact that — after several years of partial and (now) full-time self-employment — I have gained a deep understanding of precisely which tools I need to operate at full productivity. + +It’s not a very long list: + + * **Fast internet** — ideally 80 Mbps+; + * **An abundant supply of coffee;** + * [**My manual Turkish coffee grinder**](https://www.ebay.com/itm/Traditional-SOZEN-Turkish-Handmade-Coffee-Grinder-Mill-Large-Straight-17cm-6-75/261215369461?hash=item3cd1a638f5:g:itoAAOSwpP9Y7eJs) for if/when Turkish coffee cannot be procured locally / from a café; + * A _desktop_ running Ubuntu, Debian, or another Linux distribution, in that order of preference. When travelling, my laptop will do; + * A few LED monitors on a VESA mount; two is fine, although I’ve come to enjoy three. + +Some benefits of VESA mounts versus simply using the monitors on their built-in stands: + + * **Can swivel monitors vertically** to position them in ‘document mode’ (my terminology!) + * Ergonomics; reduced neck stain. + * Drawback: once you get used to working at a properly configured workstation, it’s _very hard_ to go back to computing with a laptop! + +To the best of my knowledge, no enterprising individual has yet to come up with some kind of retractable / lightweight monitor mount that could fit in a suitcase . + +But, as I have safely lugged monitors in my carry-on to connect to my laptop this is really the last frontier in me being ready to embrace the lifestyle of a true digital nomad (at which point, you know, I could travel to exotic locales bearing my cookbooks _while_ also working there; what a win that would be). + +Additionally, although I’m truthfully extremely satisfied by the triple monitor workstation I have been using for the past few years, it seems strange not to be constantly striving for improvement — particularly as four and above display workstations[ are no longer the sole preserve](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/) of financial analysts and day traders (that link is to [/r/battlestations](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/), which anybody interested in this topic should absolutely be following!). + +### Which VESA Mount Configurations Exist? + +Hmmm, outputs + +With the above in mind I recently upgrade my desktop’s graphics card to this [Gigabyte card](https://www.gigabyte.com/il/Graphics-Card/GV-N105TWF2OC-4GD#kf) which sports three HDMI outputs, a DVI output, and one DP output — and which somehow also didn’t exceed the power requirement of my PSU. + +Unrestricted from the limitations of my previous card (which sported a humble _three_ outputs — please!), I began leafing back through my Amazon wish lists to see which mounts I could get shipped here to build out my workstation. + +In the process, I realized that there are more VESA mount configurations than might be immediately apparent — and I also couldn’t find anyone that had put together a list of all the permutations currently on the market. + +So, without further a-do (and in the off chance that this might be helpful to someone sizing up their options!) here’s my quick summary of all those that I found. (The amateurish ‘diagrams’ are my own and the product images were mostly sourced from Amazon.) + +### Single VESA Monitor Arm + +### Dual VESA Monitor Arm — Horizontal Configuration + +### Dual VESA Monitor Arm — Vertical Configuration + +### Triple VESA Monitor Arm — Horizontal Configuration + +### Triple VESA Monitor Arm — Vertical Configuration + +Note: triple vertical arms seem to be a rarity. I’ve never used one, but I can imagine that there’s quite a lot of neck strain involved in trying to look at the top row of such a display. Nevertheless, a few options do exist. + +### Triple VESA Monitor Arm — Two Horizontal with One ‘Overhang’ + +This seems to be the most ‘exotic’ VESA monitor arm combination. If I wasn’t already on a triple horizontal layout I could see the overhang screen being useful to display a terminal emulator or even an inbox. + +### Quadruple VESA Monitor Arm — Four Horizontal + +I wasn’t actually able to find a VESA arm with this configuration. In practice, however, it could be achieved by aligning two horizontal dual arms side-by-side, which I presume is what the user in the ‘real setup’ image below has done. + +### Quadruple, VESA Monitor Arm, 2 x 2 Layout + +These, by contrast, [_can_ be commonly sourced.](https://www.amazon.com/Quad-Computer-Monitor-Mount-75x75-100x100mm/dp/B07MW446VQ/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=four+monitor+arm&qid=1577709334&sr=8-4) + +### Quadruple VESA Monitor Arm, 3+1 Layout + +Another overhang option that can commonly be found. As above, I can imagine the overhand monitor being useful for a terminal — or to permanently host an application such as [Rambox](http://www.rambox.pro). + +### Six Screen VESA Monitor Arm + +This is the VESA mount with the most number of screens that can be sourced without having to buy from specialty ergonomic retailers. E.g., [this hex mount from Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/Suptek-Monitor-Bracket-Adjustable-Rotation/dp/B07C1VT31Q/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=monitor+mount+six&qid=1577709645&sr=8-4), which sells for more than $100. + +Personally, I’d be more inclined to configure three dual vertical stands — the shipping weight for the product is listed as 10KG, and judging by the weight of my triple arm I’m not in the least surprised! + +### Eight Screen VESA Mount + +At this level of obscenity, you’re already into buying from specialty retailers such as [Ergomart](https://www.ergomart.com/connect-44-eight-monitor-stand). + +It’s also worth pointing out that it would take a _serious_ graphics card to power enough HD displays. + +Your best bets, in this respect, are probably either buying a [Maltrox](https://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/products/graphics_cards/) card, running a dual GPU display, or [choosing from one of these options](https://multimonitorcomputer.com/best-8-monitor-video-cards.php) helpfully compiled by MultiMonitorComputer.com. + +As easy as it is to roll one’s eyes at the idea that anybody could ever need eight monitors, my fascination with this topic has shown me that there are in fact many occupations which routinely do. Among them: + + * Emergency center dispatchers + * Financial analysts + * Flight dispatchers + +### Eight is the Limit + +Eight does, however, seem to be the natural limit for how many monitors a human can comfortably scan through horizontally — just as two or three rows seems to be the limit on the vertical plane. + +### Concluding Words + +I hope that my meandering guide to the various VESA monitor mounts on the market has made you feel bad about working in a coffee shop from a 17 inch laptop. + +Jokes aside, I am an enormous fan of multi monitor workstations and desktop computing in general. I am also glad to see that the VESA mount market seems to be growing by the year and that mounts that were considered specialty products just a few years ago are now appearing in high-street technology retail stores. + +My prediction, however, is actually that the trend will be for less but bigger screens as: + + * Displays get larger. + * VR technology matures and alternative peripheral interfaces emerge. + * Major operating systems improve tiling window managers. + +I hope my guide has been of some use and if you have any questions, [don’t hesitate to get in touch!](https://dsrghostwriting.com/contact/) diff --git a/posts/medium/My--Ultimate---Ubuntu-Backup-Strategy.md b/posts/medium/My--Ultimate---Ubuntu-Backup-Strategy.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..12bff59feb6f5a63acd55c33cb312e12def90b02 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My--Ultimate---Ubuntu-Backup-Strategy.md @@ -0,0 +1,180 @@ +# My (Ultimate!) Ubuntu Backup Strategy + +#### What I’ve Been Using To Keep My Desktop Safe From Accidental Deletion, Disk Failure, and Other Forms of Destruction + +My workstation in all its glory. The desk was custom made and is two meters wide. + +I recently celebrated my Linux desktop’s third uptime birthday (geek to normal person translation: how long the operating system has existed without requiring installation). + +In light of both Linux’s overall bugy-ness, at least compared to Windows, and my fondness for making changes to it, that’s a bigger feat than it might at first sound. + +**And without any question, the key to my desktop’s relative longevity has been the implementation of a backup strategy.** + +A little over three years ago, I promised myself that I would never face the time-consuming annoyance of having to install Linux from scratch again. At least by necessity. And so far so good. + +Being able to focus on running my business without the periodic annoyance of having to start my operating system from scratch has been nothing short of game-changing. Two steps forward … and … just two steps forward. + +Although I’ve written plenty about Linux backups before, I thought I would take the chance to provide another quick overview of what works for me. But this time with a shopping list so that everything I use protect my system from accidental deletion, power surges, and OS-bricking updates is here in one place. + +I don’t pretend that this is the best Linux backup approach that’s ever been documented. I don’t doubt or deny that there are other approaches. But this is one that has worked for me. So I thought I would share. + +Here’s to stable Linux desktops! + +(Although I’m a desktop fan this approach could be easily modified for laptops) + +### Shopping List + +My hot spare in its storage case + +**HARDWARE** + + * **1 x extra hard drive / SSD for storing Timeshift restore points**. If you’re using a laptop, you could store the backups onto the primary drive itself. But the best practice is to store the backups on some other physical medium. An external SSD would work. Although you’d need to connect it regularly. In terms of capacity**, it would be reasonable to make this drive the same capacity as your primary drive or greater.** Storage is (relatively) cheap and if you’re prepared to invest in protecting your system there’s no reason to be parsimonious about the size hard drive you buy. Approximate cost: $75. + * **1 x extra hard drive / SSD for storing Clonezilla disk images.** Yes, you could simply cram these onto the same extra hard drive as above. **But using two disks decouples the backup drives and by extension the backup approaches.** In other words, if one goes down, the other backups will live (without even having to resort to restoring from offsite copies). Ditto regarding the storage capacity and the cost. $75. + * **1 x extra hard drive / SSD to keep a hot spare on.** Remember what I said about not economizing on backups? The purpose of the hot spare is to have something to keep you going in the even that you experience disk failure. That’s because provisioning new storage is going to take time. You’ll probably need to visit your local computer shop to buy a new SSD at a minimum (wait, should I be keeping a spare hard drive _and_ a spare SSD on hand?). To tide you over while you get that sorted, the hot spare is a usable and reasonably well updated copy of your system that you can stick in your PC and run. I don’t envision this will ever be needed, so mine’s a hard drive (even though my system uses SSD). I duplicate my “production” (daily use) drive onto my hot spare using Clonezilla approximately once a year. This is a low priority backup administration task but one that, ideally, shouldn’t be skipped over to make recovery as seamless as possible. $75. + * **1 x external SSD for storing in an offsite location.** To be thorough about this ([and 3–2–1 compliant](https://www.keepitsafe.com/blog/post/3-2-1-rule-for-cloud-backup/#:~:text=This%203%2D2%2D1%20rule,photographer%20obsessed%20with%20protecting%20data.&text=3%29%20%E2%80%94%20Have%20at%20least%20three,with%20one%20backup%20copy%20offsite.)) we’re going to need to mirror one copy of our backup offsite. Full disk images, which is what I offsite, are heavy. Too heavy for me to move up to the cloud with my rudimentary upload speed. So my offsite is an external SSD stored in the boot of my car. I update and rotate the backup copy monthly. + * **1 hard drive enclosure or NAS.** You’re going to need something to write the data to the disks with. I used to keep my backup drives internal — connected to my motherboard within my PC. These days, only my Timeshift drive is internal. I reckon that keeping the last resort backup, Clonezilla, isolated from power (and hence protected against power surges) makes more sense. At the expensive of proactive disk health monitoring (e.g. using an NAS for this purpose) I get power surge protection (it’s a cold backup not connected to power at all). Alternatively you could take the Clonezilla images to an NAS. I use the Synology DS920+. But that will be a lot pricier. Let’s factor in $50 for the enclosure. + * **1 USB drive.** You’re also going to need a USB drive to write Clonezilla too. $5. + +If you’re weird enough to be using Linux, you’re weird enough to start keeping backup tapes in your car + +You’ll probably also want a couple of shockproof antistatic cases within which to store the hot spare and the onsite Clonezilla copies. The cost of these is negligible so I’m not factoring them into my calculation. + +**TOTAL HARDWARE COSTS:** + +1 TB HDDs x 3 = $225 + +1 x external SSD = $75 + +HDD enclosure x 1 = $50 + +USB drive x 1 = $5 + +**$355** + +Note, of course, that this is a one time capital expenditure (CapEx) rather than an ongoing operational cost (OpEx). To me, this is a small price tag to pay for keeping your desktop well protected at all times. + +**SOFTWARE:** + + * **Timeshift for daily system restore backups** (note: Timeshift doesn’t support encryption but Deja Dup would be a good alternative — it backs up incrementally to an offsite). + * **Clonezilla for disk imaging / bare metal backups** (note: Clonezilla backups can be encrypted). + +[**teejee2008/timeshift** + _Timeshift for Linux is an application that provides functionality similar to the System Restore feature in Windows and…_ github.com](https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift "https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift")[](https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift) + +[**Clonezilla** + _Clonezilla is a partition and disk imaging/cloning program similar to True Image® or Norton Ghost®. It helps you to do…_ clonezilla.org](https://clonezilla.org/ "https://clonezilla.org/")[](https://clonezilla.org/) + +**TOTAL COSTS: $0** + +### Implementation + +A schematic of the backup approach + +### **Set Up Timeshift (Backup System 1)** + +#### Onsite, Incremental, Daily + +Now that you’ve equipped yourself with everything needed to implement this backup approach — all for under $360 (less if you’re in the US!) — it’s time to set everything up. + +Firstly, install the Timeshift drive to your desktop. + +Timeshift isn’t designed to work with external remotes. So the most effective way to use this amazing program is to run the incremental backups onto either a folder on your primary drive or a secondary drive (as I’ve opted for). + +I could fit more restore points on my drive. But instead I’ve gone for as many as I thought it made sense to store. + +These are: + + * 1 x daily restore point + * 2 x weekly restore points + * 1 x monthly restore point + +You can also configure restore points hourly and on system boot. But the daily has been more than enough for me so far. A recovery point objective (RPO) of a few hours’ of computing is more than acceptable for me as I don’t add new programs and configurations to my desktop _that_ often. But if you do, then an hourly snapshot might make sense for you. + +### Incremental Cloud Backup (Optional) + +If you want, you can also set up a daily incremental backup to move a full disk backup offsite to the cloud. + +This can be a block-level (vs. file based) backup. + +If you run this every day, you’ll only be moving up the changes since you last ran the backup. Using a tool like MSP360 you can save this directly to cloud storage such as S3, B2, or Wasabi. Encryption can be enabled. + +[**Linux Cloud Backup Software | MSP360™ (CloudBerry Lab)** +_CloudBerry Backup for Linux allows you to perform file-level Linux backup to Amazon S3, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud…_ www.msp360.com](https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux.aspx "https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux.aspx")[](https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux.aspx) + +I tend to skip over this (fourth!) backup because in the event a restore were needed from offsite, it would probably be easier to do so from a bare metal image. Restoring from MSP 360 involves provisioning the operating system again. + +[**BorgBackup - Deduplicating archiver with compression and authenticated encryption** + _BorgBackup (short: Borg) gives you: Space efficient storage of backups. Secure, authenticated encryption. Compression…_ www.borgbackup.org](https://www.borgbackup.org/ "https://www.borgbackup.org/")[](https://www.borgbackup.org/) + +### **Set up Clonezilla (Backup System 2)** + +#### Onsite, Full, Weekly + +**Firstly, we’re going to need to install Clonezilla onto the live USB.** + +Once that’s been taking care of it’s time to take our first backups! + +Firstly, we’ll need to format the Clonezilla drive that we’re going to keep in our enclosure. I typically use ext4 as all my systems run Linux. + +**After it’s been formatted, take the first disk image / bare metal backup from the desktop.** + +Disk imaging is a full backup approach. It’s copying literally entire partitions, or drives, at a time. I use the drive to image option. It takes about 10–20 minutes to run. The result is a folder on the target medium containing compressed images. You can use Clonezilla to restore this onto the source you backed-up from or onto a new target entirely (e.g. post disk failure). + +Note: You can choose to encrypt your backup. + +### Clonezilla Backup 2 + +#### Offsite, Full, Monthly + +**Next we’re going to need to repeat the Clonezilla backup but onto an external SSD that we’re going to keep offsite.** + +The details here matter less. We could use another internal HDD/SSD. We could back up straight to the cloud if we had a good enough upload speed. We could store a physical backup in the trunk of our car. Or in a friend’s house. Or we could mail it to a relative (if you’re doing that, it’s better to rotate two disks: you send an updated backup tape and your relative posts one back to you). Whatever option you go for, the essential thing here is to make sure that we’re storing one copy offsite. + +Storing a backup tape in the car + +This ensure that if things go _really really_ wrong (house gets flooded or scooped up in a tornado), we’re still going to have a copy of our computer which we can use to restore from. + +We’d just …. probably have bigger fish to fry first. + +But once we’ve fried those fish, I think there’s a good chance we’d be thankful to have a relatively recent offsite copy of our desktop to restore from. + +I take the offsite copy less regularly. So the RPO here is typically one month. + +### Set Calendar Appointments + +[**Backup task sheet.xlsx** + _Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Never email…_ www.dropbox.com](https://www.dropbox.com/s/mt1o5bwt9v0ee89/Backup%20task%20sheet.xlsx?dl=0 "https://www.dropbox.com/s/mt1o5bwt9v0ee89/Backup%20task%20sheet.xlsx?dl=0")[](https://www.dropbox.com/s/mt1o5bwt9v0ee89/Backup%20task%20sheet.xlsx?dl=0) + +The downside of this backup approach is that it’s pretty manual. + +It’s hard to take bare metal / disk image backups through fully automated means although I’m sure that it’s possible. + +If the above isn’t quite to your liking, then you could relatively easy automate an incremental offsite using Cloudberry which I have tried successfully to backup my system incrementally to AWS S3 and B2. + +[**Linux Cloud Backup Software | MSP360™ (CloudBerry Lab)** +_CloudBerry Backup for Linux allows you to perform file-level Linux backup to Amazon S3, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud…_ www.msp360.com](https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux.aspx "https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux.aspx")[](https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux.aspx) + +Personally, when I’m thinking about backups, I’m more concerned with how robust my approach is. This approach sacrifices some ease of administration in favor of making it easy to obtain a robust approach for data protection. + +And I can’t think of a more solid mechanism for protecting a Linux desktop than Clonezilla. Clonezilla, in theory at least, can get you back from total disk failure without a RAID setup (and this is essentially why I use it in parallel to Timeshift). Buy new storage of the same sizes as your old one, run a restore, and you should be back in action. + +Yes, my manual approach requires a bit of legwork. But you should have very reliable onsite and offsite backup protection of your Linux desktop. There’s no real magic to remembering when to take the various backups. + +To keep on top of the backups that I need to initiate by hand (onsite Clonezilla every two weeks, offsite copy once a month) I set up a separate Google Calendar just for backup-related reminders: + +And I set up appointments for the various jobs that I need to run. + +Timeshift runs itself automatically whenever I use my computer. And the Clonezilla jobs are penciled into my diary: + +### Summary of Approaches + +A summary of the approaches documented here with the fourth possible offsite included too + +### Feedback Welcome + +This backup strategy is continuously evolving — and so I document it here and on Github whenever there are any significant changes to report. + +The latest ones are keeping the onsite backup on ‘cold’ (non-power-connected media). And storing the offsite on SSD in a location I have physical access to (rather than the cloud). + +[**danielrosehilljlm - Overview** + _I specialize in writing long-form (marketing) content for technical clients. I'm particularly interested in Linux, open…_ github.com](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm "https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm")[](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm) diff --git a/posts/medium/My--Unorthodox--Productivity-Resolution-For-This-Year---Be-Less--Responsive--.md b/posts/medium/My--Unorthodox--Productivity-Resolution-For-This-Year---Be-Less--Responsive--.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ca7584ac8910f178c8037fa90e9fb355775dbb44 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My--Unorthodox--Productivity-Resolution-For-This-Year---Be-Less--Responsive--.md @@ -0,0 +1,251 @@ +# My (Unorthodox) Productivity Resolution For This Year — Be Less ‘Responsive’! + +So the new year has rolled around and with it will inevitably follow a slew of _‘My Top Resolutions’_ posts on social media, LinkedIn, and the other usual fora through which we issue and consume social commentary these days. + +Without wishing to — as one of my writer friends likes to put it — “ _contribute more banality to a world and internet already bathing in it”_ , I decided it would be worth contributing my productivity resolution (going to the gym is already up there!) simply because it is perhaps more original and contrarian than the ones that many are currently fixing for themselves. + +**For the past six months or so, I have been engaging in a slow but deliberate process of gradually becoming less ‘responsive’ — and finding myself both happier and (paradoxically) more productive as a result.** + +The first small manifestation of this push was removing WhatsApp from the drawer of my home screen of my Android. + +I reckoned that — given that I type at about 110 Words Per Minute (WPM) — attempting to awkwardly pick at a virtual keyboard (or worse, dispatch voice notes!) was an unconscionably poor use of my time. + +Nowadays, I access WhatsApp almost exclusively via [Rambox](http://www.rambox.pro) — which is just about my favorite program, bar an internet browser, on my [desktop](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-meandering-guide-to-vesa-monitor-mounts-dc5a4a1b500f). + +Because (change two spoiler!) I have begun limiting my communication ‘scans’ to hourly, or three hourly, swoops, **the average amount of time it takes me to respond to a WhatsApp messages has skyrocketed from an average of about three minutes to an average of about three hours.** + +**And, guess what — the sky hasn’t fallen and I haven’t experienced a decrease in quality of life as a result.** + +However, although I am very satisfied with the changes that I have instituted in the six months since I embarked upon this project, I am also an ardent believer in the concept of _Kaizen_(continuous improvement) — and am currently lapping up [_One Small Step Can Change Your Life: The Kaizen Way_](https://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/076118032X/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=kaizen&qid=1577874809&sr=8-1) __ by Robert Maurer PhD. I thoroughly recommend it as an accessible and straightforward guide to what — despite its unusual Japanese name — does not need to be an abstruse topic. + +With that in mind, here are some of the various small changes I have made to date, their rationale, and what effect they have had upon my professional and private life. + +But first, a necessary public service announcement (PSA). + +### Being Unresponsive is Definitely Not The Flavor of the Day . And, If You Work for Yourself, it May Cost You Clients + +As I continue in my move against responsiveness, I must quickly point out the obvious. + +**_We live in a world that positively fetishizes connectivity, productivity, and responsiveness. Running counter to that trend inevitably incurs consequences._** + +Last year, we saw the first hopeful glimmerings of pushback against much of this — some of it from surprising quarters, [such as from startup founders themselves](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/oct/05/smartphone-addiction-silicon-valley-dystopia) who are increasingly going public about some seemingly perplexing decisions given their vocation, such as banning their own children from owning smartphones. + +The dangers and deficits of hyper-responsiveness have unfortunately been less threshed out (if I’m wrong about that, [please send me reading material](http://www.danielrosehill.co.il)). But I predict that this subject will be the next agenda item up for discussion. + +Besides the societal pressure to be ‘responsive’ that we mercilessly and egregiously inflict upon one another, **one needn’t look far to find examples of UI copy and functionalities that subtly attempt to shame us into being constantly subservient to our inboxes and notification displays.** We are encouraged, explicitly or by suggestion, to bat off replies within mere minutes of their receipt. + +**If you want a concrete example of this, just consider the metric (the average response time) that Facebook now presents to those that message a page (it’s in the screenshot above).** + +If I were to guess at what ostensibly good purpose it is supposed to serve, I would say that, perhaps, it is intended to help users set realistic expectations about when they might be most likely to expect a response from a page they have messaged — and to help them determine when it might be prudent to either start badgering them again, pick up the phone to call the business or, you know, be old fashioned about it and just physically walk onto their premises if that is a possibility. + +More nefariously, however,**I believe that the functionality subtly shames business owners that are not glued to their devices and are instead busy running and optimizing their companies away from the reach of Facebook and customers availing themselves of their omnichannel communication strategy.** + +In the eyes of many, if not most, customers, messaging a business which draws the bot response _“This business typically replies within one day”_ sets it at an immediate disadvantage versus a competitor who might respond _“within a few minutes,”_ according to the UI. + +But there are many more responsiveness-pushers out there than the social media giant. + +As a [writer-for-hire](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) with a predilection for technology (no, that’s not a sales pitch!) my work invariably brings me into close contact with plenty of startups, particularly those based, where I live, in Israel. + +As I am currently engaging in some outbound sales prospecting to fill up my book of business for the coming business quarter, I have been engaging in countless telephone calls, Zoom conferences, and GoToMeetings. + +So much, in fact, that I had to block off an entire day recently just to give my voice box a rest. + +Like many, I use the excellent [Calendly](http://www.calendly.com) to streamline the process of booking these meetings, allowing my prospects to automatically book a 15 minute slot on my calendar. + +However, in order to prevent over-booking my schedule and having to jump chaotically from one call to the next without giving myself proper time to engage in proper due diligence beforehand (namely refreshing on my prospect’s website and value proposition; evaluating their marketing collateral; and preparing to discuss what I could offer them), I recently decided to enforce some of the features presented by Calendly’s “advanced settings” tab. + +These are: + + * **I set a minimum scheduling notice of 2 business days (48 hours).** That makes it impossible for prospects to book time on my calendar on the same day or even the next one. + * **I set event buffers of 30 minutes for before and after each appointment** to prevent overrun, and, again, avoid general scheduling chaos. + +**The response to this has been fascinating to observe.** + +On one end of the spectrum, companies (probably those I _would_ be a good fit for) have scheduled calls anywhere from 7 to 3 weeks ahead of time. + +This I found encouraging and surprising. + +**Color me a contrarian yet again, but I’m instantly impressed by a company that wants to move that slowly with the process of hiring a writer-on-contract.** I know that they’re not in a frantic rush to produce content for the sake of producing content (never a good idea) and that they, and I, are going to have time to properly prepare ourselves for the conversation and evaluate whether this might be a good fit moving forward. + +On the other of the spectrum, I have received countless permutations of the following. + +I won’t say which country the senders are typically based in but, if you live in the same country as I do, you can probably guess the answer: + + * _“There’s a bug in your Calendly. It wouldn’t let me book a call in an hour.”_ + * _“We couldn’t speak today so I’m not interested. We would need somebody who is ultra-responsive for this role.”_ + * “ _I called three times this morning. You didn’t call back.”_ + * _“Hi, did you get my email from ten minutes ago? Can you call now?”_ + +My intention here is not to alienate people, companies, or a predominant working culture — **but** **rather to point out that companies’ approaches to responsiveness and scheduling actually vary rather enormously.** + +For anybody, like me, that places high value on the concepts of [flow state](https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-flow-2794768) and focus time, this is great news as it means that, despite responsiveness feeling like the flavor of the day, there are plenty of companies that are likely to be ‘good fits’ for us to work with. + +My second point is that — for those in the trenches of designing sales funnels — **a client’s expectations surrounding responsiveness can be a worthwhile criterion to enforce in your lead qualification process.** + +I have had my fair share of clients that call repeatedly on the weekends despite firm requests not to (pro tip: [buy a second SIM card and have a business-only line!](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-current-second-sim-card-business-line-android-tech-stack/);); clients that call to communicate every little detail involved in a project including simply to say “we liked the draft you sent”; and clients that bombard me with dozens of emails, walking me through the exact same onboarding process that they use for their in-house staff members. + +**None of these clients were a good fit for me or would be now.** + +But: + +Another writer might get a kick out of being always ‘in the game’ and ‘connected’. + +And for another writer again, they might be a ‘necessary evil’ while they try to find better work. + +In other words, rather than framing lack of responsiveness as a deficiency, I think it’s time we accepted and embraced the fact that companies and individuals can have wildly varying working styles, which I think makes for a functioning and vibrant marketplace in the provision of at-will labor. + +But, until you’re clear on your own feelings about responsiveness and know which boundaries you’re comfortable enforcing, such sales and prospecting encounters might be a difficult tango to dance. + +### But Why Be Less Responsive? And What Is Low Responsiveness? + +Yes, there’s a limit to how much un-responsiveness you can get away with + +But firstly: + +You might be wondering _why_ I see value in being less responsive and what I mean when I talk about ‘unresponsiveness’. + +So let me address both of these points in turn. + +My haven of productivity / non-responsiveness + +### 1: Why Be Less Responsive + +As a writer (with an added measure of sound sensitivity — and here I must point out that this might be a [sign of genius](https://www.yourtango.com/2015280194/if-chewing-sounds-annoy-you-youre-basically-a-genius)) _focus_ rather than _time_ is my most precious commodity which I vigorously try to guard. + +Like many writers, I work in fast and furious spurts of creativity. + +But this requires getting into a [flow state](https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-flow-2794768) first. + +For me, this typically requires: + + * **The ingestion of large quantities of coffee** , ideally extremely potent dark demitasse cups of Turkish coffee — no sugar or milk for me! + * **The sound of nature** , the sound of me furiously hammering on my keyboard, [my beloved white noise machine](https://www.amazon.com/LectroFan-Fidelity-Machine-Unique-Non-Looping/dp/B00JU8P8VY), [Brain.fm](http://www.brain.fm), or all of these simultaneously. + +**Obstacles in this pursuit are:** + + * Random / unscheduled phone calls; + * Random / unscheduled delivery people showing up to the door; + * WhatsApp messages and notifications pinging me every fifteen seconds; + * Emails; + * Other random interruptions; + * The sound of screaming babies, _“Happy Birthday to [Customer’s Name]”_ sung every five minutes, and other auditory affronts from the restaurant near where I work. + +**Over the years, I have come to understand that if I can have the features of List A and not List B I can:** + + * Trash out Medium posts like this, without any spelling or grammar errors, in an hour or two and in one or two drafts; + * Comfortably get through $500 worth of billable work in time for lunch. + +But, if I have the features of List B but not List A: + + * **I make uncharacteristic spelling and grammar errors** simply because my focus is divided between trying to work and trying to mentally filter the distraction I ‘m encountering. This always astounds me and is my proof to myself that the phenomenon is real; + * **I struggle to get through _any_ billable work.** + +So for me being less responsive and limiting my email / social media checking to three hour intervals helps me be more productive and actually makes me money. + +Do I have undiagnosed ADD? Possibly! + +Misphonia? Almost certainly. + +But personally, I’d rather check my email less frequently than take amphetamine pills. + +### 2: What I Consider Being ‘Less Responsive’ / Operating At Minimal Acceptable Responsiveness (MAR) + +I’m fond of inventing unnecessary acronyms, so let’s call the lowest amount of responsiveness that you can get away with in your line of work, or in your job, your Minimal Acceptable Responsiveness — or MAR (Minimal Viable Responsiveness, or MVR, would be fine too!). + +Your MAR will depend upon who your clients are (if you work for yourself, that is), what you do for a living, and other factors that might be entirely outside of your control — such as your boss’s expectations for how quickly you should get back to an internal email, or one to a client. + +But what’s a good ballpark, you might be wondering? + +Thankfully, [somebody’s done the research](https://www.fastcompany.com/3058066/what-is-an-appropriate-response-time-to-email) — and there’s lots more of it, all of which can be easily found online. + +Some key findings from that body of research: + + * Fifty percent of emails are responded to within two hours; + * Ninety percent of people will respond to an email within one or two business days. + +My [Rambox](http://www.rambox.pro) tabs. From left to right: MySMS, Todoist (custom service), WhatsApp x 3, Google Contacts (custom service), Skype, Facebook Messenger. [Franz](http://www.meetfranz.com) and Station offer similar functionality. + +Thus, I have set myself the following rules: + + * **Scan through Rambox every three hours at most.** This covers all communication channels, the most important, of course, being email. I try to only check my Facebook that frequently too (but, I must be honest, am currently doing a horrible job at that); + * **Always get back to clients for non-urgent matters within the same business day.** + +As I move towards reaching my own personal MAR, I have developed some eccentricities such as apologizing unnecessarily the increasingly infrequent times when I issue an immediate response. _“Hey, I was right in front of my inbox when this came in!”_ is my usual opener. + +I’m sure some correspondents have been confused by this. + +But otherwise, as I mentioned, I’ve found it to be both a valuable means of heightening my own productivity and — just as valuably — of unintentionally self-selecting for the type of clients I am going to have the easiest time working with. + +### MAR Kaizen: Interventions So Far + +To conclude this post (because, you know, I really need to actually read my inbox again!) I will list out the other interventions intended to reduce distraction and heighten productivity, all of which are fairly new to me (as in, from the past year): + + 1. **I started using flight mode liberally** — when not in an airplane that is. + +If I don’t have any calls scheduled and am not waiting on any deliveries, I know it is safe to disconnect. It is very unlikely that any urgent news will come by phone in the intervening period. Let’s be real — I’m not in neurosurgery. + +I actually picked this tip up from a worker at a yoga store in Tel Aviv when I asked her if they sold any physical meditation timers [such as this one](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/bf/b5/34/bfb534f2edacd1d6991f02fa392d25e7.jpg). + +When she asked why, I explained that I loved ZenTime (now retired from Google Play, but there are [countless alternatives](https://play.google.com/store/search?q=meditation%20timer&c=apps)) but that I couldn’t properly get into a session with the threat of phone calls and notifications constantly at the back of my mind. + +_“Just go into flight mode,”_ she enthused, unaware that she was actually conveying some of the most helpful advice I have ever received. + +And the rest, as they say, is history. + +[**2\. I bought an intercom for my home office**](https://www.amazon.com/Hosmart-10-Channel-Security-Wireless-Intercom/dp/B07MJFWD4M/ref=sr_1_8?keywords=office+intercom&qid=1577879423&sr=8-8). + +Despite all the foregoing, I believe that having some means of connectivity is a matter of personal safety. + +I would never be without a telephone, for example — or recommend that anybody would, particularly those with serious medical conditions. + +I bought an intercom in my home office just to always have some means of quickly communicating with another human even when I am disconnected through all other means of communication. + +My Google account settings on my Android + +**3\. I stopped syncing email to my phone and am trying to stop using it to browse the internet.** + +As I mentioned, I’m a fast typist. I’m also a desktop fanatic and the proud owner of a custom-built PC with three (soon to be five!) monitors which runs a Linux distribution that I have modified extensively for my own needs. + +For me, this is productivity heaven. + +My Android is not and to top it all off I believe that most mobile still lag far behind their UIs intended to be accessed from a laptop or desktop. + +I’ve simply concluded that it’s more time efficient for me to check my inbox from my desktop — or my laptop when travelling. And to do all web browsing from the same device. At other times, if I don’t need the internet, I simply drop into flight mode. + +Incidentally, this process has shown me how ridiculously tightly Google locks down Android devices, preventing users from taking perfectly reasonable actions like uninstalling the Chrome browser, which are installed on a system partition that non-root users cannot modify. + +Installing Ubuntu Touch, or rooting my phone, is therefore now on my to-do list. + +[**4\. I installed Calendly on my website**](https://dsrghostwriting.com/bookmeeting/)and insisted on scheduling business calls in advance. + +As above, some prospects have been incensed by this decision and demanded or attempted to speak immediately. + +I have made peace with their outrage. + +5\. [**I added a WhatsApp Autoresponder**](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/drive-friends-insane-with-autoresponder-for-whatsapp/)**** message to WhatsApp Business and diplomatically (I hope) asked clients to please stop sending me files and random snippets of information over WhatsApp and to collect their thoughts and put them into an email instead. + +This, in turn, streamlines my scanning process as I know that business activity will be clustered in my inbox and that WhatsApp is likely to contain mostly social/personal conversations. + +True to the _kaizen_ philosophy, this list is not intended as an exhaustive run-through of everything one can do to be less ‘interrupted’. + +In fact, the inspiration to post this actually came from small changes that I instituted this very morning (namely: putting Chrome behind an app-blocker on my phone — it’s designed to make it harder for me to check the browser and break the habit of checking Google News, with its depressing daily onslaught of usually negative, unactionable, and personally irrelevant information, while in bed). + +Rather, achieving a level of responsiveness and dis-connectivity that works for me and my business is a work in progress. + +I encourage anybody reading this to think critically about where the culture of ultra-responsiveness is taking us as a society — and mentally as humans. + +About how it is ([literally](http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2018/dopamine-smartphones-battle-time/)) rewiring our brain and altering our neurochemistry to become relentless seekers of the tiny dopamine hits we get whenever we (unnecessarily) check our inbox for the third time in five minutes or receive another like on Facebook. + +I believe that anxiety around being perceived as ‘unresponsive’ — which is entirely justified, as being so _has_ tangible repercussions — is a major driver, possibly the central one, of this collective dis-ease. And that, consequentially, it’s our collective duty to attempt to change this. + +As the human:technology interface continues to evolve, I am willing to predict that we will all become progressively more mindful about our relationship to the devices we carry in our pockets, which sit on our bedsides, and occupy space on our workstations. + +As we do so, I hope we can move towards a healthier professional culture that encourages periodic disconnection, which understands many humans’ innate need to initiate and maintain flow states to both [be happy](https://www.ted.com/talks/mihaly_csikszentmihalyi_flow_the_secret_to_happiness?language=en) and to do our best work, which does not demand that email be responded to before the sender has finished their morning coffee, and which does not infer that Facebook Page managers who do not live in front of their computers are unacceptably ‘unresponsive’. + +All these measures, large and small, serve to perpetuate our current unsustainable work culture. + +Such a rethink, as mentioned, will need to come from our society as a whole. + +But I believe that resolving, as individuals, to reshape the culture of hyper-responsiveness can only be a positive first step. + +I encourage anyone reading this to consider taking it. diff --git a/posts/medium/My-ADHD-Diagnosis-Story.md b/posts/medium/My-ADHD-Diagnosis-Story.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..05c60bd3faa96a36a2125f5dcb2de5599312b1e1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-ADHD-Diagnosis-Story.md @@ -0,0 +1,166 @@ +# My ADHD Diagnosis Story + + _Cross-posted from Twitter, lightly redacted, and expanded:_ + + Books: challenging things for people with ADHD. Photo: Creative Commons License. + +I don’t intend tweeting/writing/generally sharing that much about ADHD-related stuff (at least right now). It’s just on my mind at the moment as I’m starting my 2nd drug for it (Vyvanse). + +Despite some setbacks (pro tip: if you forget your morning dose, don’t take it after lunch, at least if you intend sleeping that night) treatment is going well. + +Right now, I’m feeling very optimistic and hopeful about what the future may hold. + +And about how finding the right treatment might make it a lot easier for me to function in the world as an adult with responsibilities and bills to pay and clothes to wash (oh, how my ADHD hates washing clothes). + +Also way too many people still think that ADHD is a “children’s problem” or that ADHD-ers are just industrious people that have figured out a way to hack the medical system in order to get a steady supply of neurostimulant medication. + +Both of these ideas are straight-up fallacies. + +Although the extent to which these ideas are entrenched in society can sometimes be oddly entertaining. + +Sometimes, when I wander into online ADHD communities I feel like I’ve accidentally stumbled into a moms’ coffee hour: it’s mothers trying to figure out if their ten year old should be on Adderall or Ritalin. + +I feel weird. A bit icky. Like I really shouldn’t be there (pro tip two: there are also dedicated communities for adult ADHD-ers and many communities have a more equal focus). + +ADHD is not a children’s “impairment” (I’m trying to use descriptors carefully, but I think that one is accurate). Science has repeatedly affirmed that it frequently persists into adulthood. + +ADHD is also not a monolithic entity that can comfortably be satirized on television with a hyperactive child who can’t sit still. + +Hyperactivity can manifest as restlessness or the feeling that your brain simply won’t stop turning when you need it to — this is the manifestation I relate to. + +The lack of focus can involve somebody quietly staring out a classroom window when they should be paying attention to the blackboard. This was me during much of my time in high school. (Note: while ADHDers can often compensate for impaired focus in high school, things can get harder as life’s challenges — and those of the education system — become more challenging). + +We know now that there are many variants to ADHD including the passive inattentive (PI) subtype which doesn’t fit that picture. The picture I painted above — my ADHD diagnosis isn’t differentiated, but my guess is that’s the subtype I have — fits that bill. + +I also discovered something interesting during my own diagnostic process which I’d like to share here. + +Picking apart ADHD, anxiety, and depression can be difficult even for experienced professional psychiatrists (apparently childhood provides a big clue to help differentiate the three). + +ADHD is frequently comorbid with these conditions and these conditions can, in turn, cause impaired focus. + +So what comes first: the ADHD or the mood disorder? + +Furthermore, when you begin treating your ADHD with a massive daily barrage of caffeine — liable to cause anxiety even in neurotypical people — determining cause and effect becomes even more challenging. Add that to my list of reasons why attempting to self-medicate ADHD with caffeine really isn’t a smart idea (disclaimer: I did precisely this for more than a decade; if you want the rest of the reasons see the addition at the end of this article). + +But really. Think about that for a moment. + +Even for the pros picking out cause and effect can be difficult and involve trialing their patients on a variety of medications (my diagnostic process had the additional complication that I can’t remember much of my childhood). + +All the more reason not to go through the needless and exhausting process of trying to figure out — and treat — these things on your own. A psychiatric professional is far, far better placed to undertake that painful diagnostic work. + +One more mistruth to counter. + +ADHD also doesn’t mean that those who have it _can’t_ focus which is the simplistic shorthand that people like to use to think about the condition. + +It’s like saying that all people with depression are bedbound all of the time. Or that people with anxiety all experience panic attacks. It’s simply not true. There are subtypes and variants. Presentations can differ. + +Impaired focus in ADHDers simply means that their system for engaging focus in appropriate contexts — like when they’re washing clothing but not really interested in washing clothing because it mores them as it does most of us — is impaired. Alongside other manifestations of problems with executive function. + +The good news is that these days ADHD is treatable through a variety of interventions that can and may help. These include medications, therapy, and organizational skills training. + +The better news again is that even within option A — medication — there are choices. Stimulant and non-stimulant drugs. Off-label approaches. Etc. I repeat again: there are more and better options for treating ADHD than dosing endlessly on caffeine (a drug which, by medical standards, has a pretty awful side effect profile). + +Finally on the subject of caffeine / coffee which is kind of the substance that has defined my journey to figure out this condition. + +It’s true that everybody gets a jolt from coffee. Give Ritalin to a neurotypical and they’ll probably do better on their exam. Few people are unfamiliar with the buzz that comes from drinking a couple of espressos. + +The difference which ADHDers is that our baseline is impaired. These substances bring us up to a normal level of functioning. They’re not our attempt to gain an ‘edge’ on the rest of the population. + +ADHDers really aren’t trying to hack the pharmacy system. + +Every time I visit the pharmacy to fill a prescription for a controlled substance I’m reminded of the fact that even the process of getting treated isn’t necessarily pleasant. Nor is it easy. There’s paperwork to sign and bureaucracy to deal with. + +When I wanted to move to a slightly higher dose of Vyvanse I need to physically return my previous medication. (According to the computer’s calculation, I was missing one pill — I forgot that I keep a backup in the car. The pharmacist insisted that I return with it before accepting the returned pills and issuing me with the higher dose.) This isn’t easy. + +And I encourage anybody who thinks they _may_ have it to begin the process I did. + +(The rest of this story is my story as shared on Twitter): + +Let’s start with what _not_ to do if you think you might have an actual medical problem with focus: That’s also precisely what I did and what many ADHD-ers that have gone before me have done and attempt to drown it under a sea of coffee. + +_(Actually it could be worse: there are people who try to self-medicate their ADHD by receiving an adrenaline kicks in other forms, such as by jumping off buildings.)_ + +I began obsessively drinking coffee at about 18 (Leaving Cert time in [Ireland](https://twitter.com/hashtag/Ireland?src=hashtag_click) — major exam). + +I don’t remember much about my childhood (another day’s story). But throughout high school / secondary school I remember daydreaming and having trouble focusing. + +ADHD is actually a much more interesting and less monolithic condition than many imagine it to be. + +It’s not necessarily about an _inability_ to focus but rather, for many, inappropriate focus and executive control deficits. + +ADHD people (especially me!) commonly get hyper-fixated on niche subjects (there are few phases I’ve yet to go through — flags was probably the weirdest one). + +But if they’re not fascinated by something, their brain often simply doesn’t pay attention. + +This often happens to me washing clothes. I can space out of watching a TV show the moment I lose interest in it. + +This can create a lot of problems. + +Growing up people sometimes called me an “absent minded professor”. + +I guess because I find relatively hard things interesting (e.g. tech). But sometimes struggle with basic thing (let’s go for laundry as the example again). + +The part of it they were missing was that focus isn’t something I can necessarily control. + +I embarked upon a 12 year voyage of self-medication with caffeine that started out as tea (the gateway drug!) then quickly progressed to coffee. + +Ultimately, coffee became caffeine pills. Which oddly made it easier to get proper treatment as … if I’m taking a pill anyway. + +I had my gallbladder out 15 months ago. I developed bile reflux gastritis which I’m still struggling with. I began looking at what I was ingesting. Coffee and alcohol were two problematic substances. + +I still enjoy drinking socially but I was also drinking a couple of beers here and there to dampen down the anxiety that my daily caffeine intake was inevitably producing. + +So I asked myself again: why can’t I get rid of the coffee + +What’s it doing for me that I can’t function with it? + +The search for answers led me to read a book — Driven to Distraction — that seemed to describe my life story. + +A frustrating feeling that I can’t quite fully access what my brain is capable of. + +Of fighting a daily battle to self-medicate a problem that I’d never bothered to get to the bottom of. + +Taking my fist Ritalin tablet was a monumental experience. That feeling felt like it was lifting. Like caffeine. But a bit better. I could stick with a book. I could get the laundry done _and_ things I was actually interested in. From one pill. Overnight, fighting the battle for focus got about 10 times easier. + +In retrospect, the dumbest thing I think I believe was that I was convinced I was some kind of unsolvable medical mystery. + +This actually kept me from getting help for years. + +I assumed getting to the bottom of my situation would be an exhaustive process because I hadn’t been able to figure out a way to manage it on my own (at least well). + +It took me years to acknowledge that addressing this challenge was beyond my skills. I think I still struggle a little with this feeling. + +The psychiatrist I saw, however, seemed particularly unperturbed and recommended an ADHD med or an SSRI (in case depression was the root cause; depression and ADHD are often comorbid). + +He also diagnosed me with ADHD. He retired so I had to find another psychiatrist who said essentially the same thing. I never once got the feeling that my case was some kind of unsolvable mystery that he was struggling to solve. + +The first drug I tried was Ritalin. + +Then Concerta. That had a horrible comedown. + +Now I’m happily trialing Vyvanse. + +As I type this, there’s a restaurant moving and making tons of noise. + +Sound sensitivity is actually one of the hardest things I deal with. It made working in open offices nigh on impossible. The people moving doors into a van outside are making minute pulls at my attention. + +When somebody close to me is cooking and the smells waft into my home office … I have trouble concentrating for a few minutes afterwards. With Vyvanse … this is all getting a lot easier. + +True story: I once lived without a refrigerator for almost two years because the apartment was too small to put it somewhere that the compressor noise wouldn’t drive me crazy and prevent me from focusing. + +I went to an ENT to check out if there was something wrong with my hearing. She said it was fine. She was also the first doctor to mention the possibility of ADHD to me. + +### Reasons Not To Self-Medicate ADHD With Caffeine + +Finally — having done this for more than ten years — I feel pretty strongly that attempting to use caffeine as an ADHD treatment makes little sense. I’ve also developed a weird aversion to the smell of coffee. I’m not sure I ever actually like it. I liked the caffeine it contained. But only because it helped me function. + +Something true: there actually _are_ ADHD-ers who advocate using the caffeine / l-theanine (CLT) stack for treating ADHD. But I feel like caffeine is a poor choice. + +Why does caffeine work for ADHD? Because it’s a naturally occurring mild stimulant. + + 1. There are better options out there that have been developed by scientists. There’s little point in ignoring the product of hard scientific innovation. + 2. By self-medicating ADHD with caffeine, you’re essentially using an approach that could have been employed centuries ago by anybody with access to caffeine-containing plants like tea and coffee. Instead, you can avail of today’s medical treatments. + 3. By using prescribed ADHD medications you’ll be forced to work with the medical system. These guys will keep tabs over your dosage and watch out for any side effects you may experience. + 4. If you self-medicate ADHD with caffeine and it works sort of well — as it did for me — you’ll delay or entirely miss the diagnosis thus foregoing the possibility of receiving any of the better options mentioned above. + 5. Caffeine in large doses is highly likely to produce both insomnia and anxiety. You may end up diagnosis with a mood disorder that’s actually the product of your attempt to treat a root problem. This again will delay and complicate the diagnostic process. + diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Approach-To-Backing-Up-My-Online-Writing.md b/posts/medium/My-Approach-To-Backing-Up-My-Online-Writing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3f9fa1b47478ecc0276ecd97c73cefc25bfdcebd --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Approach-To-Backing-Up-My-Online-Writing.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# My Approach To Backing Up My Online Writing + +I have written _a lot_ about backups in recent months . So much so that I reckon that there is probably an entire book’s worth of material about how to back up everything from Linux computers to web hosting accounts to NAS servers buried somewhere in this Medium account. + +[**How To Back Up Your Linux Computer to a Synology NAS** + _If you're also the proud owner of a Linux desktop which you have extensively customized since installation, then you've…_ www.the-next-tech.com](https://www.the-next-tech.com/review/how-to-back-up-your-linux-computer-to-a-synology-nas/ "https://www.the-next-tech.com/review/how-to-back-up-your-linux-computer-to-a-synology-nas/")[](https://www.the-next-tech.com/review/how-to-back-up-your-linux-computer-to-a-synology-nas/) + +What I worry about backing up most of all, though, is my writing. All of it. No matter where it appears, it represents a record of my thinking on things that matter to me. I invest time and energy into it. Some of it is good. Some of it is terrible (yes, I’m aware). But I want to keep essentially all of it for posterity. + +### The 3–2–1 Approach To Backups + +The 3–2–1 approach to backups — which may as well become my tagline these days — is as follows: + +You start with the source of data that you want to back up. + +You want to take — at least — two backup copies of that. Two plus the original one equals three. + +You want to make sure that those two copies are not on the same storage media. And that neither of them are on the same storage medium as the original data source. We’re talking physical hardware here. Ideally separate computers so that if an entire device gets fried in a power surge the onsite backup lives. If not, then at least different drives on the same computer (keeping an onsite backup on an NAS or a plug in USB SSD is fine too). + +Finally you want to make sure that one of the backup copies lives offsite. That means somewhere that isn’t the same place — physically — as backup one. This is designed to ensure so that if the place where the primary and onsite backup live gets flooded, for instance, we’ll still have a copy. + +Here’s how we can apply that when it comes to backing up our writing. + +### A Real Example + +When I click on the ‘publish’ button, this post will take up residency on Medium.com. + +Technically, the post ‘content’ will be written to a database. The images, as soon as I upload them, will be stored in Medium’s CDN. + +**But if Medium were to catastrophically lose all of its users’ data my writing would vanish.**(Let’s put to one side the fact that a website of Medium’s size vanishing overnight is prodigiously, infinitesimally unlikely..) + +If you write for websites then the URLs breaking or the site going offline are much more likely scenarios. + +We need two backups. And one of them has to be stored onsite. + +The first thing I do, whenever I post something that appears on an external site like Medium, is to replicate the post — with the appropriate canonical link — on either my blog or a separate Wordpress piece that I keep just for backup purposes to house an archive of my writing. + +This is a simple Wordpress site. It’s ugly. It’s for my own purposes. But — from a backup perspective — it provides me with a convenient place to keep an archive copy. + +I explain how I built this very simple archive in the video embedded above. + +But essentially the procedure was as follows. + +I used the Wordpress Advanced Fields plugin to create entities called ‘backup copy’ for every post that I replicate there. And another one called ‘originalurl’ which replaces the default Wordpress article permalink ’ with the live URL where the article is published. + +[**Advanced Custom Fields** + _Customize WordPress with powerful, professional and intuitive fields._ wordpress.org](https://wordpress.org/plugins/advanced-custom-fields/ "https://wordpress.org/plugins/advanced-custom-fields/")[](https://wordpress.org/plugins/advanced-custom-fields/) + +I then baked these into a child theme which I created as follows: + + +
+ + +
+ IN +
+ ” target=”_blank”>ORIGINAL LINK   |   ”target=”_blank”>LOCAL BACKUP + +
+ +Now, whenever I post a piece on an external website, I will take a full page rolling screenshot and save that as a PDF. + +I then input these fields into the Wordpress post as follows: + +I added another local copy field which isn’t linked to in the theme and gave this field the title ‘hiddenbackup’. The purpose of this is so that I have somewhere to upload an article if the backup copy shouldn’t be publicly exposed (example: I recently wrote an article for a magazine that is behind a paywall.) + +Just make sure that when you set up the custom field for your writing as a PDF that you tell the plugin to return the file URL when it is called in your theme. + +To make the process easier I also recommend that you limit the selection library to just the media updated to that particular post: + +Remember that when you’re creating with Wordpress: + + * _Posts_ are saved in the MySQL database. If you forget what your database’s name is, then have a look in your wp-config.php. + * Things like PDF attachments are stored in the filesystem. That’s the Wordpress root. + +Once a day, I pull down a backup of this backup archive using rsync. + +The methodology is similar to what I described here: + +[**How To Back Up Shared Hosting Onto A Linux Host** + _If you’re running website(s) that live on a typical shared hosting environment then you’ve probably given a thought or…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-back-up-shared-hosting-onto-a-linux-host-7d5eb35fff5d "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-back-up-shared-hosting-onto-a-linux-host-7d5eb35fff5d")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-back-up-shared-hosting-onto-a-linux-host-7d5eb35fff5d) + +The NAS which I back up to then replicates that up to a second cloud repository. + +That leaves me with the original piece of writing backed up to two clouds (my hosting plus the cloud backup repository) and my local host. + +It also means that — within the bounds of reasonable probability — whatever I write is safely copied. + +### Summary + + * You can back up your writing as soon as it has been published or do so in batches (although the latter is obviously risky). + * 3–2–1: Everything you write, hosted online, needs to be backed up locally and to another cloud. + * You can use Advanced Custom Fields to create a Wordpress “blog” that you actually just use for backing up your online clips. You just need to make sure that you have a way to back up this website frequently. Alternatively, you could use a free online blogging platform that has a good back up functionality. + * Don’t forget to push the backup up to a cloud so that you have an offsite copy independent of your primary piece of writing. + diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Approach-To-Being-Comfortable-With-Criticism--As-A-Writer-.md b/posts/medium/My-Approach-To-Being-Comfortable-With-Criticism--As-A-Writer-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6100123ed36314bb20bdf2d1f3dc0cffc190b96a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Approach-To-Being-Comfortable-With-Criticism--As-A-Writer-.md @@ -0,0 +1,69 @@ +# My Approach To Being Comfortable With Criticism (As A Writer) + +Somebody on Quora asked a very important question, which I have been thinking a bit about today: + +[**_As a writer, what are some good ways to get comfortable with people’s criticism of my work?_**](https://www.quora.com/As-a-writer-what-are-some-good-ways-to-get-comfortable-with-peoples-criticism-of-my-work) + +[Here’s what I wrote back, which reflects my current thinking on the subject:](https://www.quora.com/As-a-writer-what-are-some-good-ways-to-get-comfortable-with-peoples-criticism-of-my-work/answer/Daniel-Rosehill-7) + +Excellent question — and a very important one! + +Thankfully, I have a very easy solution (or at least I think I do). + +**Just be yourself and state what you believe in.** In other words, be [relentlessly authentic — all of the time.](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/you-have-to-be-authentic-every-single-day/) + +Now, here’s what I mean by that: + +**Unless you’re affirming that the sky is blue, or are simply reporting hard news, it’s almost inevitable that some people are going to disagree with what you have to say.** + +Actually I take that back. If you write a post about the sky being blue and it reaches a sufficiently wide audience — let’s say one million readers — I reckon there’s a high to probable chance that somebody who believes the CIA are artificially changing the color of the sky will happen upon your post and take umbrage with it. + +Expressing any kind of opinion will evoke a reaction from those that hold a countervailing opinion. It’s a hard-wired axiom. The way of the world. + +Statistically, I believe the number of people we’re talking about here is in the magnitude of about 2 or so in 10. But the precise number doesn’t really matter. What matters is rather the point. Which is that the more you write your writing will (typically) have more resonance and get amplified by publications of progressively greater reach. You’ll gain a following — of both haters and fans.**And that means, statistically, that you’re going to reach more readers who find your views repugnant.** + +Some people are going to frame that criticism diplomatically. You have a choice to learn from those people and an opportunity to experience some neuroplasticity if you find that those views have merit. Those responses might even change your views — which is always fun! Or, at a minimum, you can be happy that people are reading and engaging with your writing. Most of my writing is ghostwriting (for clients), but I get more out of feedback with criticism than I do out of _“that was perfect”._ In fact, judging by my share activity of most of my posts on LinkedIn, I should be happy that anybody engages with my work at all! (This is why my opener to any feedback, good or positive, is typically _“thank you for checking out the article!”_). + +Occasionally — and this isn’t from personal experience, but from networking with writers — you will find that you’re on the wrong end of an organized campaign. Somebody says, “Daniel sucks” — and the comment gets 200 likes! This can actually sting far more than one isolated hurtful comment — even 200 times more! Again, there’s no reason to be discouraged. Even if this isn’t a reflection of some kind of coordinated activity, keep statistics in mind. If 1 million people read this post, then yes, 200 people will indeed think that Daniel sucks. There’s nothing I can do about that other than stop being Daniel and there’s no point in sitting down with 200 people and arguing why Daniel doesn’t stuck because they have determined otherwise — and who am I to deny them their right to hold an opinion? This is because there are a plurality of views in the world and — in non-totalitarian settings — one cannot force one’s views upon another by dint of unrelenting reason. So dust down the hit to your ego and move on to your next pursuit. + +Then, there will also be abusive haters that come at you maliciously. + +You can mentally prepare for that and report them if the case merits it. However, if they are sufficiently venomous and just attacking with hate, it’s often better to simply not engage with them. Be sure to avoid peppering any personally identifiable information (PII) around the internet for this reason. If it ever gets to that stage, though, it becomes more a matter for law enforcement than for you. So for the most part, all you have to do is filter those people out and have the proper psychological defenses in place. One of those is realizing that unwarranted hatred — _confer_ constructive criticism — is often more a reflection of the person doing the hating than you. In better cases, you get to engage in civilized debate with your readership and the outcome of the debate which you have may shape the views you convey in future authorship. In other words, there’s really not that much to fear. + +**To bring this down into concrete terms:** + +I live in Israel. However I’m critical of many policies of the Israeli government and many things about the country. + +If I write those criticisms, people will criticize me for being anti-Israeli That’s fair criticism. A ferocious fringe will determine that I must be a self-hating Jew with deep-rooted psychological issues that have caused me to react against the state. That is not. + +Speaking of opening myself up to criticism by writing about Israel, [I did that yesterday](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel/) and somebody already messaged me to tell me that I should pack my bags and leave! + +If I say, instead, that everything is perfect in Israel people will say that I am delusional and no, in fact, everything is terrible. + +If winning means keeping everybody happy and supportive then there’s essentially no way that I can. + +And that’s only dealing with one side of this issue, by the way. + +I greatly pity any journalist that frequently covers this or another major world conflict. I reckon that between paid lobbyists, vigorous supporters, and people that hitherto had no stand on the issue but suddenly turned partisan after reading their piece, not a day must go by without receiving some kind of online abuse. + +I recently asked one such journalist — a former bureau chief with a major wire service — how he handled the barrage of hatred I witnessed piled onto one of his recent compositions. “I’m far too old to worry about things like that,” he answered. + +When you meditate upon this, understand it and internalize it (separate stages!) you then realize that criticism is essentially inevitable no matter what you write and your only choice is between writing and not writing at all. But, as a writer, you will probably often find that you are _compelled_ to write. + +Hence, strictly speaking, volition doesn’t seriously come into play and this is, rather, a state of affairs that you will have to learn to put up with one way or another. You could, of course, choose the past of lesser resistance and just stop writing. But that would mean being cowed into submission by the chorus of haters. And that’s a defeat for free expression. So you could say that developing a healthy tolerance for criticism is kind of a tool of the trade that you’re going to have to develop — like learning shorthand was twenty years ago. + +Statistically there is almost zero chance that you are going to become a high profile writer, or a politician, or an entertainer without offending and annoying a pool of people. Sometimes, a large one. This is a good skill to have, if you think about. It’s one that every prominent journalist, senior politician, of even CEO is going to have to master at some point or another. In other words, if you aspire to achieve great things in life then you should actually be bending over backwards to thank you first group of online haters for helping you to learn how to deal with criticism, especially the more unnerving kind that comes from anonymous people on the internet. + +Winston Churchill put this in simpler terms once. + +He said: + +_“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.”_ + +My advice to anybody reading this — and to myself — is as follows: + +Keep writing. Whatever the people say. + +**ETA:** A good litmus test to employ, if trying to determine whether criticism is warranted, is to ask whether the criticism could be considered an _ad hominem_. Is the person attacking you — or your argument? + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Approach-To-Onboarding-Freelance-Clients.md b/posts/medium/My-Approach-To-Onboarding-Freelance-Clients.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f648f783f14d8f9332a90cb37e5f4f3bf6761697 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Approach-To-Onboarding-Freelance-Clients.md @@ -0,0 +1,84 @@ +# My Approach To Onboarding Freelance Clients + +#### Some Tips For Smother Account Onboarding + +Whether you’re interested in maintaining or growing your freelance writing business, acquiring new clients is likely going to be part of the picture. + +Project ends. People leave companies. Business needs to be replaced. On the other hand, you might be aspiring towards growth. In which case you’ll either need to increase the size of your existing accounts or find new ones to add to your ‘BOB’ (book of business). + +Having worked as a freelance writer for five years, two and a half of those full-time, I’ve had some hands-on experience in managing this process efficiently. + +You don’t need to follow all of these steps — or any of them, for that matter. You don’t need to have a formal onboarding checklist (although that’s not a bad idea). But I have found that doing these things reduces friction and gets things off to the quickest possible start. + +The kickoff call: sometimes important + +### Kickoff Call + +The kickoff call isn’t the time to try receive answers to questions like these: + + * What do you want to achieve with this writing? + * What are your business objectives this quarter? + * Who are you trying to target with these campaigns? + +You should try to find out all these things _before_ you sign up new accounts. Discovery or exploratory calls are useful parts of the qualification process — to try to get to the core of what your client needs in order to see if you can offer a solution and present it in the best possible light. + +Kickoff calls are administrative and introductory in nature. I’d recommend reserving them for large projects — or only holding them if the client requests. + +For instance, your client point of contact (POC) might want to introduce you to the SEO manager, the graphic designer, and any other internal team members you’ll be interfacing with during the length of a long project. In these instances, it’s almost certainly worth spending 30 minutes on a Zoom call to minimize potential friction and get a sense for who’s who in the client. + +### Setting Up An Account Management Email + +I run my freelance business on G-Suite and have done so for many years. + +Something I have found incredibly helpful is setting up a Google Group for sending all client email to. Each account that I onboard gets its own account management email — irrespective of whether there’s only one point of contact or it’s a whole team. This is a tip I picked up from working at a PR firm. + +Sometimes, for active clients, I will set up multiple groups. For instance I might have: + + * Billing group with the A&P team. Format: client_billing@mybusiness.com. + * Account management (AM) group with my point of contact and line editor(s). Format: client_am@mybusiness.com + +If you’re familiar with setting up Google Groups in G-Suite then this should be straightforward. If not, I recommend learning how, which shouldn’t take more than a few minutes. + +Create a group like this: + +If you’re going to be sending email to the account from an outside email, such as your invoicing system, then you’ll want to upgrade the ‘who can post’ permission to ‘anyone on the web.’ It’s pretty unlikely that somebody will randomly guess your client email address, but it’s a good idea not to publicize it anyway (not that you would typically have a need to). + +Because you’ll be adding recipients at your client, who will not be on your domain, you’ll also need to change the ‘allow external members’ to ‘on’ from ‘off’: + +**The beauty of this system is that, as the group owner, you will automatically be included as a group member** — so you can add this account management email to your CRM / email marketing software / invoicing platform to receive a copy of all client correspondence and make sure that everything is going through. In other words, it’s a sort of built in BCC. + +This is a great way of proactively troubleshooting sending problems. If you didn’t get the invoice, then there’s a good chance your client didn’t too. Time to check out what might be amiss. + +Don’t forget who’s in the group, although you can refer back to the member list any time you please: you may wish to add or remove members as they join/leave your client or create different groups for different project managers. + +You can also add internal colleagues that are servicing the account. + +### Setting up an onboarding email automation + +Whenever I sign up a new account they want to know: + + * What are my bank details so that they can pay me + * What are my standard terms and conditions + * How can they send me writing briefs + +To preempt all these questions, I set up a list in my business Mailchimp called ‘Current Clients’. + +When a new account joins, I add their details from the backend — using the account management email so that I can verify it was sent and received. + +I also added some custom fields to the audience in order to be able to include these in the welcome email: + +Then, I set up an automated email which welcomes new subscribers to the client list: + +It thanks the client for signing up. And then includes links to my payment information, the brief sending form, and a few other things that they commonly require. + +### A Little Onboarding Goes A Long Way + +I recommend setting up a basic onboarding system in order to expedite the account signup and creation process. + +This is my current process — although, like most things about my approach to freelancing, it’s subject to an ongoing and iterative process of revision. + +There’s no need to go overboard. + +If you’re a freelance writer, you’re signing up new writing clients so you want to make the process relatively fluid on both ends. + +Preempting frequently asked questions and proactively providing commonly asked information can greatly increase the efficiency of the process. diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Backup-Videos-To-Date-76b93ec9537.html.md b/posts/medium/My-Backup-Videos-To-Date-76b93ec9537.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fc835378ea5666077210a9ea82d1c9fcb3b4aa64 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Backup-Videos-To-Date-76b93ec9537.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,87 @@ +# My Backup Videos To Date + +[**For all videos, see this playlist**](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLg9z7TXgYiH2bs6Mb72d0T89mWD6ScuY5) + +[I started a YouTube channel recently](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFhEM_Jl3uKV6b8Ex4wbiFQ/videos?view_as=subscriber) in order to record and distribute a couple of screencasts. + +My motivation in starting the initiative has been to simply contribute some knowledge back to the open source community that has provided _me_ with so much information over the years (knowledge which, in large part, has enabled me to make a living as a technology writer). + +It has also been a great opportunity for me to refresh on the basics of video editing and to make use of some of the gear I assembled last year (namely a camcorder, some microphones, and some tripods!) + +As I get more into things, I hope to shift away from technology screencasts a little and give the channel a more general flavor with other subjects that are of interest to me (including travel, cooking, and politics). + +However, as I happened to start the channel at about the same time as I was revising my backup strategy for the next year (or perhaps two), backups, and especially Linux backups, has emerged as the dominant theme of the channel to date. + +As I _think_ that I have just about wrapped up everything I have to say and share about backups (note: I have thought that every week for the past month), I thought I would put together this quick runthrough of all the videos that I have made. If you’re new to the world of backups, or have recently lost data and resolved to take backup more seriously, then some of these videos might be of interest to you. + +### Cloud to Cloud (C2C) Backups + +Although I have some reservations about its security, [Multcloud](http://www.multcloud.com) is a well-known and versatile tool for moving data between cloud storage volumes. + +In this short video, I demonstrate how to use it for cloud to cloud (C2C) backups. + +Need to back up your YouTube account? + +Your options include backing up videos _before_ uploading them, of course, as well as using Google Takeouts (I suggest a way to minimize the data upload) and downloading the files after uploading them and letting YouTube compress them. + +### Backing Up Shared Web Hosting + +Shared hosting isn’t the most ideal source to backup, but with a little bit of hackery — and the very versatile and powerful rsync CLI — anything is possible. + +In this video I outline how to use rsync to back up both the file system and the MySQL database for typical web applications hosted in a shared or reseller environment. + +I provide a bit more detail about execution in this video: + +And in this video I cover creating the mysqldump cron job serverside to make sure that the MySQL backup is included in the daily rsync pull. + +If you want to add WordPress sites to your backup pool by creating full backups, rather than by running rsync pulls, then this video describes the process. + +And full cPanel backups: + +### Backing Up SaaS + +Software as a Service (SaaS) is the one aspect that many people forget to include in their backup strategy. There are many reasons why SaaS data is vulnerable unless backed up — some of those include accidental deletion (human/programmatic), account lockout, and, of course, the theoretical risk that the provider will simply vanish without trace. + +Here’s a quick way to back up your Github repositories. + +### Ubuntu Linux Backups + +As a longtime Ubuntu Linux user, a good backup strategy has made all the difference for me between tearing my hair out while getting stuck in an endless loop of periodic reinstallations and actually feel like I’m moving ahead, linearly, with the operating system. + +In “My Ubuntu desktop backup strategy — V1.3” I outline everything I am currently doing to keep the system well-protected, including creating onsite backup points using both Clonezilla and Timeshift. + +For bare metal backups I use the excellent Clonezilla tool. Here’s a quick demonstration of how to run it on a live system to create a disk image backup. + +But every good backup and DR strategy involves testing your backups! + +Here’s a real (bare metal) demonstration restore from a Clonezilla backup image that I successfully undertook recently. + +Of course, the famous 3–2–1 rule calls for one offsite copy of the filesystem to be taken to. + +In this video, I demonstrated creating an offsite backup of the Linux primary using MSP360 (formerly Cloudberry Labs). + +### Synology NAS Backups + +I was recently sent a Synology NAS for evaluation. This provided a great opportunity to switch over my desktop backup strategy from one based on keeping a few extra internal drives to backing everything up to the network attached storage (NAS). + +Here’s how to use the basic grsync (rsync GUI) to back up a live Linux filesystem onto a Synology NAS: + +I think that Cloudberry is a bit more user-friendly and powerful. In this video I described how to get that backup job from a local desktop to the NAS running using it instead of grsync. + +Here’s how to run bare metal / disk imaging backups from your computer (OS-agnostic) onto a Synology NAS / local server. + +Setting up Active Backup for Gsuite requires following a few steps. Here they are. + +You can also save and execute Bash scripts on the NAS. + +Here’s how to do that. + +### Other Backup Videos + +If you’re a writer and want to back up your writing, then this is my approach. + +You might also want to get into the habit of moving archives of emails/files you no longer need from your day to day cloud storage up to some storage class better suited for long-term archiving. + +And finally: here’s why you should take backups at all! + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Beef-With-Facebook-Affiliate-Marketing-Groups.md b/posts/medium/My-Beef-With-Facebook-Affiliate-Marketing-Groups.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4aa542ccb7fbb9c86ed6ff4e92bf179a6d9113dc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Beef-With-Facebook-Affiliate-Marketing-Groups.md @@ -0,0 +1,87 @@ +# My Beef With Facebook Affiliate Marketing Groups + +A number of groups have popped up on Facebook in recent months along the lines of “ _Best X Deals”_. E.g. _“Best X Deals Y”_ (replace X with a popular online marketplace and Y with the country you are based in). + +And so here, in return, is a short something I feel compelled to get off my chest: + +**In many cases, these groups exist solely so that the founder(s) can monetize the community by repeatedly posting affiliate links!** + +_Duh_ you might be saying. + +But trust me — not everybody realizes this. + +Actually, from what I have been able to tell, the majority of posters in these groups do not. + +### We Spam You, You Don’t Spam Us + +The most outrageous facet of many of these groups to my mind is that **regular ‘groupies’ (non-admins) are expressly prevented from sharing links themselves.** + +Yes, you read that right. + +**People, in their thousands, are voluntarily agreeing to serve as affiliate marketing pawns and are not even afforded the small luxury, in exchange for their commission dollars, of being able to spam the group in return!** + +Talk about _chutzpah_! + +Not only that, but in many cases the “recommendations” being proferred to the crowd are patently absurd — such as recommendations that people buy what they could find down the road through a local version of a global marketplace — and the product, of course, will have to arrive in the mail, which will need to be paid for! + +At other times, these groups post recommendations that people buy products which two minutes of (independent) research could demonstrate are terrible purchasing decisions and/or at a terrible price. + +### A Few Home Truths About Facebook Affiliate Marketing Groups + +To those perplexed by these uncanny Facebook phenomena and who have not yet deduced the obvious, here are the explanations that I hope will put your mind at rest: + +a)**The group admin(s) don’t really care what they send over your news feed or which “finds” they show you.** Yes, sorry to break the hard news, but you’ve been taken for a sucker. Typically so long as the links are affiliate links and they have determined that there is a likely market for them among the (captive) demographic in the group they will share them. And if you’ve ever seen how hard some of these group owners promote their own pages you’ll understand why it’s a numbers game: more people in the group + more products “recommended” = more impressions = more commission. + +b)**You are getting almost nothing out of being a member of these groups except making yourself a captive audience for somebody else’s profiteering.** And why would you do that? It’s like not eating for days before taking a long-haul international air flight just so that you can get price-gouged at the airport! If the admin has enabled discussion but disabled link sharing (common) and is policing the comments to ensure that members don’t share their own affiliate links it’s only to create the semblance that you are part of a “community” — but really you and all the other non-admins talking among yourselves are doing so solely so that as many of you as possible will hopefully click an affiliate link (which, ironically, you cannot share yourself)! Nice scam, hah? Don’t believe me? Try sharing your own affiliate link and seeing how long it will take before an admin or moderator removes it. Explanation: the pyramid scheme must serve its purpose and only the admins’ links are permitted! + +c) **You can probably find better product recommendations by asking people that don’t have a financial incentive in giving you advice who will base their determination on what they think is actually best** — not what has the highest commission. I occasionally post product recommendations on my blog. Like my recommendation to [buy these Etymotics](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/if-youre-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear/). On principle, these are not affiliate links and I go to pains to highlight that in the posts. Why? Because although I stand behind the few products I publicly recommend doing so, for me, is not a business endeavor. It’s part of blogging for fun and trying to help people make good purchases with the limited knowledge that I have accrued over the years. And if you’re really intent on buying something from Amazon you could, you know, just browse Amazon/Aliexpress/Ebay yourself…. + +### Do Your Own Research + +Is this a pop at those running deceptive and disguised affiliate marketing Facebook Groups? + +You bet it is. + +But I only went out of my way to write this post because: + +a) Unlike the (many) transparent sham Facebook groups which exist solely to promote their founder’s book/training series/etc**these groups are being highly deceptive at luring people in to what they believe is a _bona fide_ curated source of recommendations.** Make no mistake. They are not. + +b) Many people that operate these groups**will repeatedly lie to their followers just to get them to stay in the group** — such as tell them that a non-existent product launch is happening soon and stay tuned for more etc. I’m not naming names here although I have written this post with specific examples firmly in mind. But suffice to say that this is something which I have observed many times over. + +Despite the title this is not a post against affiliate marketing. + +I believe that affiliate marketing _can_ be a legitimate enterprise in limited circumstances and so long as a few basic tenants are adhered to by affiliate marketers: + +a) **Those operating affiliate marketing websites are transparent about the fact that they are earning commissions from the products that they are endorsing.** Most professionally-run websites sharing affiliate links are pretty good at displaying a prominent albeit cookie-cutter disclaimer to the effect that they may earn commissions from the links they publicize. On the contrary, many of these Facebook Groups contain absolutely no acknowledgement of this fact — or the group owner does so sporadically so that somebody who happens upon the group for the first time will probably not come across the fine print. + +b) **Those curating recommendations actually believe what they endorse and share truthful information.** Needless to say, lying and claiming that terrible products are good just to entice purchases is immoral and inexcusable. + +### Not All Affiliate Marketing Is Deceptive + +Unfortunately, far too many people have recently latched onto the passive income bandwagon and have started deceptive affiliate marketing groups on Facebook along the lines of what I have tried to describe here. + +These groups contribute absolutely nothing to the world besides enriching their operators’ pockets. + +And in fact they make it harder for consumers to find real, independent reviews of the products they are interested in. + +Real independent reviewers exist. + +But so do countless “communities” operated by online hacks (sorry — harsh but true!) whose sole interest in setting up these pages and groups is to run a get-rich-quick scheme to make a quick buck off the back of people’s interest in online shopping. + +And when people like your grandmother (or 1,000s of them) — who couldn’t tell a legitimate Facebook recommendation page from a fake one to save their lives — end up wasting their hard-earned cash on the dud merchandise you recommended just to get your kickback it becomes a little more than a harmless dabble in passive income. + +Would you tell your own grandmother to buy a product knew was rubbish (or had no idea whether it was good or not) just because David in the electronics shop promised you a commission if you sent him a customer? + +Great. So don’t do it to other grandmothers. And if you wouldn’t do it in real life, don’t do it online. + +**TL;DR:** I think that these disguised affiliate marketing groups are disingenuous and a scam. + +Find your own stuff online. + +Or ask people that are not making money out of you for recommendations. + +### Recommended Reading + + + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Biggest-Freelancing-Mistake.md b/posts/medium/My-Biggest-Freelancing-Mistake.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6caa56916f713748885b96d3af3f4d74d0fc6368 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Biggest-Freelancing-Mistake.md @@ -0,0 +1,74 @@ +# My Biggest Freelancing Mistake + +#### Spoiler: It’s Not Charging Too Little Or Not Working Enough Hours + +Freelancing and climbing a tall mountain have more in common than you might think (in this freelancer’s opinion) + +This summer, amidst the COVID chaos, I passed through my two year freelance anniversary. + +There have been ups and downs along the way. Great projects and ones that I truthfully didn’t enjoy so much. And when I embarked upon the freelance journey, I probably wasn’t expecting to have made it even this long. But I did; and here I am to write this post. + +During this two years, and the three years prior during which my freelancing was a side hustle, I have made just about every mistake in the book. + +There have been plenty of conventional ones — like taking a while to figure out how to price my work — as well as plenty of more unique ones. + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +In the latter category, I would put things like: + + * Not trusting my gut instinct (repeatedly) + * Prioritizing outbound marketing too much — to the expense of not developing a good enough inbound sales funnel + * Not realizing, until recently, that most “freelancing problems” are in fact classic sales problems. And not picking up a sales textbook until about six months ago. (If you are a freelancer you are also a professional salesperson whether you realize it or not) + +But I wouldn’t call any of these my biggest mistake (and note, I’m avoiding using the word ‘regret’ here intentionally). + +Rather, that would be: + +### Not Realizing — And Accepting — How Hard Freelancing Is From The Outset + +A friend of mine recently changed his WhatsApp status to: “ _life is hard, that’s why noone surives.”_ + +And that little humorous nugget actually contains a very large grain of truth when it comes to freelancing. + +A damaging aspect of my self talk that I’ve come to understand over time is how much I beat myself up over what I have achieved (or haven’t achieved). Yes, I’m making an example out of my own faulty inner dialogue, but I’m doing so because I believe it’s reasonably commonplace. + +This thought is usually preceded by an affirmation of how hard I have been working — because I usually have. + +So the thought in its totality goes something like this: + +_“I’ve been pulling 70 hour weeks and I’m still only earning X. Surely, I deserve Y. If I’m working X hours a week and not earning Y then I mustn’t be very good!”_ + +At the core of this deranged way of thinking, I believe, lies the following faulty assumption: **freelancing (life?) isn’t all that difficult, so if you find that it is, then the problem must be you.** And if you’re also using this flawed stick to beat yourself up, then I’m here to gently request that you stop. I’m also here to tell myself — and you — that the underlying premise you’ve been weaponizing against your own psyche is completely flawed. + +Freelancing, in my opinion, is one of the most difficult occupations imaginable. Especially so if you’re a freelance writer which has its own unique set of challenges. And particularly now when barriers to entry have been drastically lowered. If you’ve just joined the ranks of the freelance writers _during_ the pandemic, then all I can say is that it’s probably going to be tough. + +Competition is fierce. Freelancers compete in a worldwide marketplace. And sadly, the enormity of the supply flooding the market makes it very difficult to charge a viable rate (note: not impossible). + +Freelancers typically do not enjoy benefits — which means that they have to either battle even harder to incorporate those into already pressurized rates or suck things up and work on weekends and sick days. + +To appreciated the challenge of freelancing, add a few more helpings of difficulty on top of that. + +Freelancers have to do all this (mostly) alone — without colleagues to lean on for emotional support, accounting and payments to deal with invoicing and payments, or a marketing and sales team to deal with attracting clients and getting them to sign along the dotted line. + +And dealing with clients evading payment (it happens), not answering emails when you need them to, or lowballing your very reasonable bid all present a psychological battering that calls for treatment. Only that one is often difficult to find. + +But as difficult as all these situations are can can be, the biggest antidote to the almost inevitable stresses of freelancing is a very simple one in my opinion: + +Accepting that it’s okay that it’s hard. That it’s almost _inevitable_ that it will be this way. And then letting go of that frustration. + +Once you understand and internalize that you’re probably doing nothing wrong if you’re finding freelancing extremely tough going (other than the things you _are_ almost inevitably doing wrong, that is!) then you can do a few things: + +a) Stop beating yourself up if you’re not achieving the level of success you believe you deserve. If freelancing is two times as hard as conventional employment — or even three or four — then you might just have to be patient as your progress up the mountain might be two or three times slower than it might be in an office environment. + +b) Stop feeling like an underappreciated hero for putting in massive effort and getting back only normal return from the marketplace. Again, that’s par for the course. And as painful as admitting this to yourself might be, this is an insidious form of victim mindset that it’s better to get out of. + +Now, I have to make another cup of coffee and get back to cranking out another piece of work for a client. I slept about 4 hours last night and could really use a nap right now. But between finishing this and the podcast I need to be on in about an hour there simply isn’t time. + +It’s bloody hard at times. Right now, I’m exhausted. I’m too tired to even tell if any of the foregoing was coherent much less understandable. But I’ll the change and accept the difficulty. Because it isn’t supposed to be easy. + +Freelancing is not supposed to be easy. But, paradoxically, I have found that accepting that actually makes it easier. + +My advice to myself and to anybody else pursuing this path, whether temporarily or for the long term: + +Accept the difficultly. Embrace it if you can. Accept that putting in extraordinary effort for ordinary return is normal much of the time (particularly early on). And continue unfazed with the climb. diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Blog-Newsletter-For-October-2021.md b/posts/medium/My-Blog-Newsletter-For-October-2021.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..71a22a3cc5499a1295e3527bb48cc5139694a771 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Blog-Newsletter-For-October-2021.md @@ -0,0 +1,123 @@ +# My Blog Newsletter For October 2021 + +#### The first edition of my monthly Medium posting activity wrap-up for those interested in following my online musings and rantings + +A few weeks ago, Medium prompted me to enable the newsletter feature for this account — and I gladly signed up. + +For about the last year, I’ve been receiving signups to a newsletter hosted on my personal website ([the Mailchimp collection is here](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/newsletter/)). Alas, although the list continues to populate, the newsletter has never gone out. I should probably stick up a notice. + +Every time I publish a post here, Medium gives me the option to send it to my list of Medium email subscribers. Generally I don’t do so because I hate the thought of flooding people with spam. But tonight I thought of what I think is a clever improvisation solution: I’ll create a monthly round-up — the one you’re reading — and send _that_ out to my subscribers instead. + +So here’s the first edition. Working backwards (just published to recently published we have): + +### Ireland-hating Zionists Are Self-Righteous Hypocrites + +I had to rope you in with a catchy title. + +Every time Ireland and Israel intersect in the news — and it happens, though not regularly — I witness a predictable slew of anti-Irish sentiment from posters who describe themselves as “pro Israel.” + +While I’m not the internet’s police force, I think that this dynamic deserved to be called out. I’ve been witnessing it for as long as I’ve been witnessing anti-Israel hatred on the Irish internet (and yes, some of it explicitly anti-Jewish). + +[**Zionists and Israel “supporters”: your anti-Irish racism is hypocritical, sickening, and shameful** + _Why, as somebody who supports Israel politically, I feel completely alienated from the mainstream pro-Israel movement_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/zionists-and-israel-supporters-your-anti-irish-racism-is-hypocritical-sickening-and-shameful-d88e45dc40ee "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/zionists-and-israel-supporters-your-anti-irish-racism-is-hypocritical-sickening-and-shameful-d88e45dc40ee")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/zionists-and-israel-supporters-your-anti-irish-racism-is-hypocritical-sickening-and-shameful-d88e45dc40ee) + +I wrote, previously about the fact that there _is_ anti-Semitism in Ireland. But that was a thoroughly different contention than arguing that _all Irish people are anti-Semitic_ (which is too often suggested). + +[**Please don’t tell me that there’s no anti-Semitism in Ireland. There is.** +_Or that Ireland “only has a problem with Israel”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b) + +### Crazy But True: One Guy In California Manages The World’s Computer Time Zones + +I was honored that [OneZero](https://medium.com/u/3a0e8cb45af4) — an official Medium technology publication — curated my wacky piece about the Time Zone King into its feed. + +If you’ve ever wondered how your computer so seamlessly is able to figure out the time zone it’s located in …. then, here’s your answer. + +Eggert’s relatives have gotten in touch with me to affirm that the computer scientist is bemused by his newfound fame. So far this month, the story has been viewed close on 16,000 times. + +[**The Largely Untold Story Of How One Guy In California Keeps The World’s Computers On The Right…** + _Down the rabbit hole: my brief odyssey into the esoteric world of the tight-knit time zone data maintenance community._ onezero.medium.com](https://onezero.medium.com/the-largely-untold-story-of-how-one-guy-in-california-keeps-the-worlds-computers-on-the-right-time-a97a5493bf73 "https://onezero.medium.com/the-largely-untold-story-of-how-one-guy-in-california-keeps-the-worlds-computers-on-the-right-time-a97a5493bf73")[](https://onezero.medium.com/the-largely-untold-story-of-how-one-guy-in-california-keeps-the-worlds-computers-on-the-right-time-a97a5493bf73) + +### Israel’s Aliyah Day Is A Wasted Opportunity + +I’ve got nothing against Aliyah Day — Israel’s annual celebration of its immigrants. But I do think that so much more could be done with it to look at the much underdiscussed issue of _olim_ retention. + +I wrote a couple of pieces here that tried to integrate a few different themes. + +For one, the housing crisis which the _Times of Israel_ so eloquently reported on recently. Additionally, the “mental health crisis” among Israel’s immigrants (one third of suicides in Israel are by olim). + +I also affirmed the opinion that Israel’s longstanding practice of only collating information about its _inbound_ immigration flow is dishonest. + +Until such time as reliable statistics about olim who leave are collated and analyzed, we’re only seeing a partial picture about net migration flows and retention. + +[**Aliyah numbers are meaningless without also talking about olim retention and yeridah** + _To be useful and honest, Israel’s aliyah numbers have to be understood in the context of the much underdiscussed…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah-3c76fb9ae44b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah-3c76fb9ae44b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah-3c76fb9ae44b) + +[**What is mental healthcare like in Israel for immigrants (olim)?** +_Ahead of Aliyah Day, Israel should look at what it is doing to prevent the tragically high suicide rate among its…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-is-mental-healthcare-like-in-israel-for-immigrants-olim-4a63c06435b1 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-is-mental-healthcare-like-in-israel-for-immigrants-olim-4a63c06435b1")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-is-mental-healthcare-like-in-israel-for-immigrants-olim-4a63c06435b1) + +### Could A Better Rental Market Be The Answer To Israel’s Housing Crisis? + +The _Times of Israel_ recently reported a series of concerning statistics about how difficult getting on the property ladder has become in Israel for immigrants. + +One part of that piece that I felt deserved more exploration was the rental market. Could better regulation be the future if this generation of _olim_ are priced out of the ownership market? + +[**Why So Many Young Israelis Are Feeling Bleak About Their Financial Futures — In Spite Of The…** + _The other, underdiscussed side of the Israeli “success” story: how a sky-high cost of living and never-ending real…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-so-many-young-israelis-are-feeling-bleak-about-their-financial-futures-in-spite-of-the-33641959863c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-so-many-young-israelis-are-feeling-bleak-about-their-financial-futures-in-spite-of-the-33641959863c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-so-many-young-israelis-are-feeling-bleak-about-their-financial-futures-in-spite-of-the-33641959863c) + +[**Israel’s housing crisis: could fixing the rental market be a better aim?** +_If there’s no hope in sight to Israel’s housing crisis, perhaps its policymakers could look instead towards making…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israels-housing-crisis-could-fixing-the-rental-market-be-a-better-aim-a00671a25c5d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israels-housing-crisis-could-fixing-the-rental-market-be-a-better-aim-a00671a25c5d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israels-housing-crisis-could-fixing-the-rental-market-be-a-better-aim-a00671a25c5d) + +### Should You Blog On Medium Or Ghost Or Your Own Site? + +Today, I finally set up a self-hosted Ghost instance. + +Clients frequently ask what the best approach to business blogging is and where their online web assets should be hosted. + +While “don’t build your castle on somebody else’s land” seems like a truism, equally, I think there are some reasons why it actually makes _sense_ to post on Medium — at least initially. + +[**Why It Sometimes Makes Sense To NOT Blog On Your Own Platform** + _There are some significant reasons why it actually makes more sense to distribute content marketing over non-owned…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-it-sometimes-makes-sense-to-not-blog-on-your-own-platform-ac96b490e6c4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-it-sometimes-makes-sense-to-not-blog-on-your-own-platform-ac96b490e6c4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-it-sometimes-makes-sense-to-not-blog-on-your-own-platform-ac96b490e6c4) + +On a similar theme: + +[**No, The Facebook Outage Doesn’t Mean We Should Avoid Creating “On Rented Land”** + _The Digital Prepper’s Perspective: Everything On The Internet Is A Risk. Facebook’s Outage Is Just A Reminder About How…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/no-the-facebook-outage-doesnt-mean-we-should-avoid-creating-on-rented-land-8e3cb5b3a439 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/no-the-facebook-outage-doesnt-mean-we-should-avoid-creating-on-rented-land-8e3cb5b3a439")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/no-the-facebook-outage-doesnt-mean-we-should-avoid-creating-on-rented-land-8e3cb5b3a439) + +### My Home Office: A Tour + +Feel free to check out what I’ve got going on here. A weird combination of technology and prepping. Above all, a work in progress. + +[**My Home Office And YouTube Studio All-In-One Home Workspace Tour** + _Storage, lighting, speakers, and backup internet and power. This is the home office I do most of my writing and thi_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-home-office-and-youtube-studio-all-in-one-home-workspace-tour-397b6c2facfc "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-home-office-and-youtube-studio-all-in-one-home-workspace-tour-397b6c2facfc")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-home-office-and-youtube-studio-all-in-one-home-workspace-tour-397b6c2facfc) + +### I Have A Linktree Now + +This month, I bumped into a service called Link.tree a few times. + +It struck me as a great way of compacting a whole string of commonly referred to links into one URL. + +I’ve since been adding it into all my online profiles. If you’re curious what else I post online: + +[**Daniel Rosehill | Linktree** + _Marketing communications for technology clients._ linktr.ee](https://linktr.ee/danielrosehill "https://linktr.ee/danielrosehill")[](https://linktr.ee/danielrosehill) + +### I Wrote About Depression + +The movement to share mental health journies right now is too compelling not to participate in. + +Currently, I’m working on a piece exploring how those who shared their journeys managed to do so while feeling safe about their professional futures. + +It will likely take a while to produce and I’m thinking about pitching it around (typically I don’t bother anymore; I like to delineate very squarely between what I do professionally and the writing I do because I like writing). + +Is it really safe to share in a world still very much filled with stigma? + +If you have thoughts about that, feel free to get in touch. Those dynamics will be explored soon. + +But for the moment there’s this (it’s long and any future pieces I write on the subject — if there are any — will likely be far shorter): + +[**The Quiet Rage That Comes With Getting Mentally Well** + _The stage of mental health recovery that nobody ever talks about_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-quiet-rage-that-comes-with-getting-mentally-well-3d66ba3f3049 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-quiet-rage-that-comes-with-getting-mentally-well-3d66ba3f3049")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-quiet-rage-that-comes-with-getting-mentally-well-3d66ba3f3049) + +If you’re reading this post from an email viewer, click on ‘view story’ to see the story links on Medium. + +_Until next time._ diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Current-Freelance-Writing-Tech-Stack.md b/posts/medium/My-Current-Freelance-Writing-Tech-Stack.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..af11d23caa6a423dea6fc88a2c2bf427c38d1e4b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Current-Freelance-Writing-Tech-Stack.md @@ -0,0 +1,225 @@ +# My Current Freelance Writing Tech Stack + +#### The Tricks And Tools Of The Trade + +Freelance writing: what technology do you need? + +A lot of entrants to the freelance writing market spend time wondering what technical bits and pieces are needed to run a freelance writing business. + +There are two schools of thought about this. + +The first one is: you don’t really need much. In truth, even a website is optional. You could start with a Gmail address, some enthusiasm, and (ideally) a couple of clips to prove your mettle. There’s a lot to be said for the agility of that approach. + +On the other end of the spectrum, you have people like me who live by the motto _“do things that scale.”_ Paul Graham wouldn’t be pleased to hear this, but I like to get systems in place before I really need them. To each their own. + +To give you a feel for some of the systems you might want, here are the tools that have been powering my freelance writing business this year. + +### Website, Web Hosting, Wordpress (And Staging Environment) + +If you’ve got a freelance writing website, then you’re going to need somewhere to host it. + +In general, I prefer the hosting + server software model to all in one website builder packages, although the latter make getting online quickly very easy. + +**In terms of hosting, basic shared hosting is going to be fine for most freelance writing portfolio websites.** + +Those that really want to ensure proper resources allocation to support high traffic might wish to consider (managed) VPS hosting. But in most cases, this would be unnecessary. + +The ‘server (side) software’ you’re probably going to use will be a content management system (CMS) — and Wordpress is the easiest commonly used CMS to get to grips with (it’s also a handy tool to know for clients). + +My freelance writing site uses a Wordpress multisite install (the portfolio and main website are separate sites). + +[**Tutorial: Creating a Password-Protected Wordpress Staging Environment Using Softaculous And…** + _What’s better than a well-functioning Wordpress site, you might be wondering?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/tutorial-creating-a-password-protected-wordpress-staging-environment-using-softaculous-and-3baead4337e "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/tutorial-creating-a-password-protected-wordpress-staging-environment-using-softaculous-and-3baead4337e")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/tutorial-creating-a-password-protected-wordpress-staging-environment-using-softaculous-and-3baead4337e) + +My top recommendation is to set up a staging environment for your Wordpress site. + +Instead of attempting to edit your site live — while clients might be trying to navigate it — you work on a version of your website that isn’t publicly accessible. + +I use Cloudflare Access for this purpose. Then, when you’ve finished QA-ing it, and it’s ready to go live, you push it to your production version. Details above. + +If you’re using a shared host that includes Softaculous in cPanel, then you should have accessed to all the functionality you need to set up a staging environment for your Wordpress site. + +### WEBSITE + +### A Domain Name + +You need two things to get a website online: web hosting (to store the files) and a domain registrar to rent the URL. There are many options to choose from here. + +### Gsuite + +Most web hosting packages are going to come with a built in email server and give you the ability to use it to send and receive email through it. + +While that’s a fine approach for some, more freelance writers will probably want to sign up for a service like G Suite which contains a whole suite of cloud-hosted collaboration tools. + +Gsuite essentially lets you use Google services on your domain name. If you already have a Gmail address then you could just use that. + +Although if you begin working with a lot of clients through Gsuite, sharing resources from a personal domain is going to look more professional. + +[**A Way To (Comfortably) Work With Clients in Google Docs** + _Have you ever been working on a Google Doc for a client only to feel a lump in your throat the moment they — and their…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-way-to-comfortably-work-with-clients-in-google-docs-daa199efc50f "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-way-to-comfortably-work-with-clients-in-google-docs-daa199efc50f")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-way-to-comfortably-work-with-clients-in-google-docs-daa199efc50f) + +### Google Analytics + Google Search Console (GSC) + +Installing Google Analytics on your site is going to allow you to gain valuable insights into how many people are visiting your freelance writing website — as well as where they are coming from and what content they are checking out. + +Google Search Console will allow you to make sure that your website is being properly indexed in Google and allow you to request the removal of URLs from Google’s index (among many other features). + +Implementing Google Analytics, and validating and adding your site through Google Search Console (GSC) are important first steps towards ensuring that your site can be discovered through search engines. + +[**Redirecting...** +_Edit description_ analytics.google.com](https://analytics.google.com/ "https://analytics.google.com/")[](https://analytics.google.com/) + +[**Google Search Console** + _Use Search Console to monitor Google Search results data for your properties._ search.google.com](https://search.google.com/search-console/welcome "https://search.google.com/search-console/welcome")[](https://search.google.com/search-console/welcome) + +### **SALES AND MARKETING** + +### A CRM + +A customer relationship management (CRM) system is useful for more than just sales teams. + +**A CRM can make the process of managing routine client contact a lot easier.** + +If you find yourself typing up the same email multiple times per day, most CRMs also allow you to save templates. + +You can use a software as a service (SaaS) CRM or host your own. + +Vtiger is an example of the latter approach and can be installed through Softaculous. + +[**My Approach To Onboarding Freelance Clients** + _Some Tips For Smother Account Onboarding_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-approach-to-onboarding-freelance-clients-a44f7e35be67 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-approach-to-onboarding-freelance-clients-a44f7e35be67")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-approach-to-onboarding-freelance-clients-a44f7e35be67) + +I like to set up account management email addresses for new clients using Google Groups and add those to my CRM. + +There are many CRM options on the market. + +Hubspot (at the time of writing) has a free tier and is popular among freelancers. + +[**The Free CRM for Small to Enterprise Businesses | HubSpot** + _Think CRM software is just about contact management? Think again. HubSpot CRM has free tools for everyone on your team…_ www.hubspot.com](https://www.hubspot.com/products/crm "https://www.hubspot.com/products/crm")[](https://www.hubspot.com/products/crm) + +### An Email Automation Tool ( ≠ CRM) + +I’ve written before about the various ways to find freelance writing clients, covering both outbound marketing channels. + +[**How To Find Freelance Writing Clients** + _The Various Channels For Client Acquisition_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6) + +[**Does Cold Emailing Work To Find Freelance Clients?** +_It can. It does. But even the successes aren’t always pretty._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/does-cold-emailing-work-to-find-freelance-clients-bb7fd8841eed) + +Cold emailing _does_ work but you might need to do quite a bit of it to get the results you’re looking for. + +As a general rule, CRMs are better used to manage existing accounts than to find new ones (prospecting) — although you _can_ use CRMs for sending out cold pitches. + +Email automation tools are a separate class of product that specialize in helping users build and run automated drip email sequences. + +Klenty and Woodpecker are two big names in this space. Just make sure that you’re up to date with GDPR compliance requirements. + +[**Sales Engagement Software | Send Cold Emails & automated follow-ups with calls and tasks** + _The Sales Engagement Platform that gets more replies and meetings booked for your sales team Use Klenty for your Sales…_ www.klenty.com](https://www.klenty.com/ "https://www.klenty.com/")[](https://www.klenty.com/) + +### An Email Newsletter + +Inbound marketing is a great way to build a marketing pipeline that will attract leads into your sales funnel. + +An email newsletter is a valuable resource to have in this respect. Many freelancers would be well advised to set up one up and share insights with their clients. + +Mailchimp is a popular tool for this purpose: + +[**Marketing smarts for big ideas | Mailchimp** + _Mailchimp is the All-In-One integrated marketing platform for small businesses, to grow your business on your terms…_ mailchimp.com](https://mailchimp.com/ "https://mailchimp.com/")[](https://mailchimp.com/) + +### An SEO / Keyword Research Tool + +If you’re working on your on-site SEO, then you might at some point wish to subscribe to a tool that will help you: + + * Plan which keywords to use + * Monitor for incoming backlinks + * See which keywords competitors are using and where they are getting backlinks from + +[**Ahrefs - SEO Tools & Resources To Grow Your Search Traffic** + _You don't have to be an SEO pro to rank higher and get more traffic. Join Ahrefs - we're a powerful but easy to learn…_ ahrefs.com](https://ahrefs.com/ "https://ahrefs.com/")[](https://ahrefs.com/) + +Ahrefs, Moz, and SEMRush are all popular choices. + +### OPERATIONS + +### A Project Management Tool + +When you’re one person juggling multiple accounts things can get very disorganized very quickly. + +I recommend setting up a project management tool to keep track of what you need to get done, for whom, and by what deadline. + +There are both free and paid options. Asana is a popular choice. + +[**Manage your team's work, projects, & tasks online * Asana** + _Work anytime, anywhere with Asana. Keep remote and distributed teams, and your entire organization, focused on their…_ www.asana.com](https://www.asana.com "https://www.asana.com")[](https://www.asana.com) + +### A Time Tracker + +Whether you’re tracking time for clients you bill hourly or for your own purposes, having a time tracker installed on your computer can come in useful for many freelancers. + +If you want to track your own time and see what applications and sites you’re spending it on, I recommend Rescue Time: + +[**RescueTime: Automatic Time-Tracking Software** + _Only 10% of people say they feel "in control" of how they spend their time. RescueTime is the world's most powerful…_ www.rescuetime.com](https://www.rescuetime.com/ "https://www.rescuetime.com/")[](https://www.rescuetime.com/) + +For a multi purpose tool, consider Toggle: + +[**Toggl Track: Login to your account** + _Login to your Toggl Track account and dive into effortless time tracking and powerful reporting_ toggl.com](https://toggl.com/track/login/?expired=true&returnTo=%2Ftimer "https://toggl.com/track/login/?expired=true&returnTo=%2Ftimer")[](https://toggl.com/track/login/?expired=true&returnTo=%2Ftimer) + +### A Meeting Scheduler + +As a freelance writer, you’ll be pitching your services to lots of clients — which means setting up a lot of online meetings. + +[**Free Online Appointment Scheduling Software - Calendly** + _Find the perfect meeting time with super easy online appointment scheduling software from Calendly, and say goodbye to…_ calendly.com](https://calendly.com/ "https://calendly.com/")[](https://calendly.com/) + +I use [Calendly](https://medium.com/u/9e54b7702877) and also integrated it with my Zoom account so that clients can automatically find a time that suits them and receive a calendar invite with Zoom details inside. + +### Zapier + +[Zapier](https://medium.com/u/530c4c926670) is like the digital glue that holds the various components of my online life together. + +I set up ‘zaps’ between cloud services according to my business needs. The integrations are invaluable. + +[**Zapier | The easiest way to automate your work** + _Link your web apps with a few clicks, so they can share data Pass info between your apps with workflows called Zaps…_ zapier.com](https://zapier.com/ "https://zapier.com/")[](https://zapier.com/) + +### An Accounting / Invoicing Platform + +Finally you’ll probably also want to have on hand a tool to issue client invoices and keep track of your expenses. + +There are many options in this product area so choose the one that best suits your needs. + +[**Wave Financial: Financial Software for Small Businesses** + _Free invoicing & accounting software with credit card processing & payroll services_www.waveapps.com](https://www.waveapps.com/ "https://www.waveapps.com/")[](https://www.waveapps.com/) + +### Other Nice-To-Haves + +Some other pieces of software that come in handy include: + +### A Backup Tool + +Backing up your data and writing are both vitally important. The exact tool that’s the best fit for your needs will depend, among other factors, upon what operating system you use. + +Backing up your writing is also very important. + +[**My Approach To Backing Up My Online Writing** + _I have written a lot about backups in recent months . So much so that I reckon that there is probably an entire book’s…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521) + +### A Pomodoro Timer + +A Pomodoro timer can help make sure that you don’t get in a good habit of interspersing work and leisure periods. + +[**Tomato Timer** + _TomatoTimer is a flexible and easy to use online Pomodoro Technique Timer_ tomato-timer.com](https://tomato-timer.com/ "https://tomato-timer.com/")[](https://tomato-timer.com/) + +### Archival Storage + +I like to use separate cloud storage for any information that I’m retaining purely for archival / retention purposes. Backblaze B2 offers very affordably priced cloud storage. + +[**Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage** + _Backblaze B2 provides unlimited data storage in the cloud at 1/4th the cost of Amazon S3, Microsoft Azure, and Google…_ www.backblaze.com](https://www.backblaze.com/b2/cloud-storage.html "https://www.backblaze.com/b2/cloud-storage.html")[](https://www.backblaze.com/b2/cloud-storage.html) diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Current-System-For-Avoiding-Impulse-Online-Purchases.md b/posts/medium/My-Current-System-For-Avoiding-Impulse-Online-Purchases.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..36f8d28ffed78309cc4d61376fad97e1cb1203fc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Current-System-For-Avoiding-Impulse-Online-Purchases.md @@ -0,0 +1,116 @@ +# My Current System For Avoiding Impulse Online Purchases + +#### Make a list, sit on it, and see how many impulse buys you truly “need” + +Online shopping: creating short purchase “documents” can help you “sit on” purchase ideas. Particularly if you’re worried about “losing” the research you did that led you to your “must have” item. Photo: Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/laptop-technology-ipad-tablet-35550/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +As anybody who has read any of my guides to buying from Aliexpress may have guessed, I’ve struggled, over the years, with making impulse purchases from the internet. + +The problem about sites like Aliexpress (which, for those of not living in the US, are often our preferred online marketplaces): things tend to be pretty cheap. But to state a truism: many $5 purchases ultimately adds up to a large credit card bill. + +[**The Real Person’s Guide To Buying From Aliexpress** + _A little over a year ago, I wrote an extensive blog for my personal site about my love of Aliexpress — Alibaba’s…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-real-persons-guide-to-buying-from-aliexpress-da86831f19ba "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-real-persons-guide-to-buying-from-aliexpress-da86831f19ba")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-real-persons-guide-to-buying-from-aliexpress-da86831f19ba) + +Moreover, I spent a large chunk of my free time this month organizing and cleaning up the apartment which I share with my wife. + +Things had gotten out of hand — particularly after a recent trip to the US during which I bought some video accessories — and our shared interest in online ordering was undoubtedly a major driver of the clutter. After an excruciating month of organizing, labelling, and playing tetris to find a place for everything, I didn’t feel like having to go through that process again before our next move. + +Final reason: I’m on a budgeting kick. To be more responsible about managing finances, I need to do a better job at knowing and planning for what I’m spending. + +### Figuring Out Why I Tend To Buy Things Online + +When I did some soul-searching to try figure out _why_ I was buying things online (perhaps the first step for many), I determined that a lot had to do with not trusting myself to remember the things I had previously researched. Impulsivity is a common feature of ADHD and I reckoned that this was one of the ways it was manifesting in my life. + +It had nothing to do with actually _wanting_ some of the things I had researched. + +It was simply that I often wanted to order simply to not have to make mental space for an object on a “wish list.” + +An unfinished purchase meant more mental clutter — but only if I was storing the unclosed “loop” around in my head. + +To explain how my brain works in this respect: + +Let’s say I spend 30 minutes looking at a type of microphone for video-blogging._(You could say that this is a hobby purchase, but I actually see video blogging — and a lot of writing — as forms of inbound marketing. This is precisely the type of thing I might order from the internet!)_ + +If I “pull the trigger” now, I have at the forefront of my mind all the features I’ve determined that I _want_ in this microphone. I’ve just geeked up on microphones and done the product comparisons between what’s currently available on the market at various price points. + +Those things are now right there at the center of my mind and I’ve _just_ expended the mental energy to determine which product offers the best match between what I will utilize and how much I know I can reasonably spend. + +All I have to do is to _make the purchase_ (immediately!) and I can mentally leave go of all that thinking and move on to whatever else is pressing of my attention. + +There’s a pressure that builds between the point at which I have that mental flash (“a better vlogging microphone would be a great investment!”) and the moment I’ve finished my evaluation (“the X microphone is the best option that I can currently afford!”). That pressure usually didn’t release until I wrapped up the initiative by making the purchase. + +But if I tell myself _“let’s think about buying this in a month,”_ I know that there’s a high chance I’ll have forgotten all about the differences between (say) pickup patterns and manufacturers. My mind may have jumped over a zillion other things in the period in between. + +Other things that I’d worry would slip out of my cranium: + +What if I forget that I had even _looked at_ getting that microphone — that the want existed? + +What if I forget _why_ I had determined it might be a useful thing to buy? + +And what if –in, say, a month — I can no longer remember what a pickup pattern is, much less the one I had determined was best for my needs? What would happen then — if I _didn’t_ make the purchase at all and carried on using my old microphone? + +My second reason for tending to buy things immediately (perhaps better described as a mental block): + +If I spend 30 minutes picking out that microphone, I’ve just _invested_ that much time in the evaluation process (being self-employed, the time equals money formula is never that hard to remember). + +Wouldn’t it be a pity not to see that process through to its end?! I can “recoup” that time sink through just completing the purchase! + +Answer(s): the sunk cost fallacy. And: if you can store that information by documenting it — well, then it hasn’t been a waste to find it. You can keep it in your back pocket for when, or if, you ever determine you can really justify the purchase. It’s a mind trick. But for me, at least, it seems to be working. + +So far, this system has been working nicely for me. + +I can research some obscure item related to a hobby of mine — or my business — without prematurely ordering something. In fact, the only things I’ve bought from the internet so far this month have been related to organization (cuttable velcro, an incredible invention!). Those, for the moment, are certainly worthwhile. + +The second big advantage: your thinking tends to clarify if you sleep on things — or let them go for a month. When you look back of last month’s batch of deffered purchases, it’s often so much easier to see what might truly be a justifiable purchase (say for your business) and what would likely just have sat on the shelf … until your next purge. + +So those were my drivers. And this is what I’m doing instead. + +### Create A Document For Each (Major) Purchase You're Considering + +Because I still wrestle with the feeling of not wishing to “lose” the research I tend to put into things I buy (and I certainly tend to do a lot of that!), I’ve decided, for the time being, to create little documents about things that I was about to purchase. + +Within my Google Drive, I’ve created a folder called _“deferred purchases.”_ + +And any time I have a lightbulb moment about something that I think I need (and feel the urge to just go ahead and buy it) I draw up a quick doc instead. + +I organize these by month. And I’ve set a recurring calendar appointment at the last day of each month to go back and see what I thought was a priority. If any jump out as great buys — and I can justify the expense — I’ll go ahead and buy them. If not, they can mature a little longer. + +Let’s take one of my current weak candidates. The last item in the screenshot above. + +I own a wireless microphone set that terminates in an analog connection (note: as I recently created this “doc” this is why I rolled with the microphone example above!). But my laptop doesn’t have a 3.5mm mic in port. If I wanted to do a live stream from my laptop, wouldn’t a USB lav mic be a great thing to have? + +Potentially. But I’m also doing okay with my wired (USB) lav mic when I do videos at my computer. I _could_ definitely see this being a solid purchase if I got into doing a lot of live streaming from different locations. I could record myself a few meters from the computer and not have to worry about cables reaching back to the laptop. + +But right now, although I think it would be cool to do, I’m not doing a lot of work like that — and when I do vlogs my home office is typically my “studio”. So I knew that while this idea wasn’t bad, it could also be safely put on the longer finger. Perhaps this would be a nice thing to have when I start working more remotely. + +I added a product photo so that I could quickly see what type of product I was looking at. And how much it cost: + +Next, I added a link to the product. + +Sometimes, I located a few sources from a product I’d like to buy — both domestic suppliers and international stores. + +Not all ecommerce stores have wish list functionalities. And some (like Aliexpress!) restrict you to storing a relatively low number of them on your account. + +Finally, I added a “purchasing rationale.” This is where I could go free-form and quickly jot down everything I figured out about this product’s typical features when I was doing my research and why I think this one would be the best buy from the various options on the market. + +As simple as this system is, I’ve found it really effective so far to avoid impulse online purchases. + +This month, I’ve avoided buying: + + * A “communications cabinet” to store my new home networking setup in. Undoubtedly, this would look pretty slick and allow me store other things around where my networking gear is situated. But it’s definitely not something that I _need_. + * A new networking card for my desktop that has two ethernet ports. My entire desktop is now four years old and many of its components — like the NIC — could use an upgrade. With a second ethernet port, I could use Speedify to bond my cellular and ISP connections. But I could do the same thing much more cheaply by just buying an ethernet to USB adapter and waiting until I buy a whole new computer before making this upgrade. + +And so on and so forth. + +Once I have my rationale and links down in writing, I know I’ll be able to pick up the potential purchase at a later date without any concern that I’ll forget about why I thought it would be useful, which product I thought was best, and what the features I thought would be useful were. + +The space it creates gives me time to think things over and reflect upon whether this is really something I need. And if yes — whether there’s mightn’t be a better alternative. + +And simply not buying things right away gives me a lot of peace of mind knowing that I’m not making irresponsible shotgun purchases. + +### Download Template + +Feel free to download the actual template I’ve been using for the past few months. + +[**Deferred purchases template.docx** + _Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Never email…_ www.dropbox.com](https://www.dropbox.com/s/ci6nvcvs6h3b2bn/Deferred%20purchases%20template.docx?dl=0 "https://www.dropbox.com/s/ci6nvcvs6h3b2bn/Deferred%20purchases%20template.docx?dl=0")[](https://www.dropbox.com/s/ci6nvcvs6h3b2bn/Deferred%20purchases%20template.docx?dl=0) diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Darkest-Fantasy-About-The-Writing-Life.md b/posts/medium/My-Darkest-Fantasy-About-The-Writing-Life.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..eb4ea6303872ce0093081b16f2590947e0a8c60d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Darkest-Fantasy-About-The-Writing-Life.md @@ -0,0 +1,117 @@ +# My Darkest Fantasy About The Writing Life + +#### How differently — and more bravely — would you write if you knew you only had one week left to live? + +How many of us wait until it’s already too late before finally feeling ready to write what we REALLY wanted to all our lives? Photo by [Caryn](https://www.pexels.com/@catcaryn?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/typewriter-keys-938165/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Sometimes, usually in the small hours of the night, I come to Medium to share a few thoughts. + +I still operate under the assumption that nobody actually reads anything that I write here. The periodic email I receive from a strangers encourages me to know that people _are_ reading this feed. As do the slowly climbing followers and views counts, both of which threaten to lull me out of that comfortable illusion. + +As I’ve mentioned a few times already, I share primarily because I love writing (at the time I write this, this Medium account still isn’t paywalled. Even though, by now, I could probably use the traffic to buy myself beer). + +I find writing deeply therapeutic. + +When people talk about the mental health benefits they derive from writing, they frequently talk solely about catharsis: about expunging something from your soul by jotting it down on a page. + +But writing goes way beyond that for me. Like into a whole different territory. When people tell me that writing something lifted a weight off their chest I must admit to feeling “yes, but that’s _all_ it did for you?” + +Clarifying my thoughts to the extent that they can be communicated at least somewhat lucidly has helped me work through sometimes difficult thought processes — like what to do with my career — and arrive at decisions that would have taken me days to work through had I not tired to jot them down. To crystallize them into sentences that make sense to more people than just me. + +Do I think that everybody should blog their way to career changes and dating partners? No- I think most of us could live without knowing those details. But I reckon most people could benefit from at least starting a journal. + +Because I’m writing both for fun, to open source what I know, and for some form of self therapy, I tend to spread my topics a little thin. + +[**Content Creation: The Best Means Of Open Sourcing Your Life’s Thinking (And Knowledge)** +_An argument in favor of sharing just about anything that might be of interest to other humans_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-creation-the-best-means-of-open-sourcing-your-lifes-thinking-and-knowledge-4cb0309a2db1 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-creation-the-best-means-of-open-sourcing-your-lifes-thinking-and-knowledge-4cb0309a2db1")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-creation-the-best-means-of-open-sourcing-your-lifes-thinking-and-knowledge-4cb0309a2db1) + +I’ve written here about my various hobbies — mostly technology-related things. But because I have rent to pay and must think at least somewhat strategically I’ve also shared some thoughts on marketing that have brought me some work. It’s a mish mash that defies all the advice I give my clients about building a coherent brand. + +But sometimes I know that I’m playing it way too safe. That I have so much more to get off my chest — and verbalize — than I allow myself to. Like most writers, I’m a fierce critic of my own work. But also a relentless self-censor. But it’s when I have that thought that I indulge in my darkest writing fantasy. + +### Sometimes I Wish I Had One Week To Live, A Typewriter, And A Room + +Firstly, lest this be misunderstood, let me be totally clear. + +Although my now gallbladder-less body no longer seems to digest food so well and the odd waft of allergens flares up my asthma, I suffer from no major health problems — at least that I know of. Thank G-d. + +Furthermore, I wish to live until at least 120 — which is a Jewish custom that roughly means “ a long life.” I affirm the value of life. + +But in an abstract and creative sort of way — perhaps that befitting a tortured artist — I’ve sometimes thought about the following: + +How amazing it would be to know that your remaining tenure on this planet was not only finite but was also about to run out. Like pretty damn soon run out. Like next week. Or next month. + +And if you were still well enough to use a computer, how liberating it would be to finally be able to write whatever you want. + +Without a care in the world about who it offended. One single one. + +Without worrying about what your judgmental relatives might think of it when their web browser stumbled upon it. Or your friends. Or those who you thought were your friends. + +Without worrying about what _society_ might think. Or prospective employers. + +Without endlessly rewriting yourself into exhaustion because you knew that if there ever wasn’t a time and place for perfectionism this was it. Because for once that voice is telling you “if you want to get those last thoughts out to the world then this is your chance, buddy. There’s no time for a draft two!” + +Hell, without even worrying about the legal repercussions of what you write, narrate, or say. Because defamation law can take a serious chill pill when you’re on the next train out of town. + +How nice would it feel to finally close down the Office Of Self Censorship that demands — relentlessly — that anything you write: + + * Must be in accordance with your personal brand + * Must project the kind of image you want to your clients or the world (successful, creative) + * Must be within that broad pale of acceptability that’s called “the mainstream” — which fits in tidily with the mainstream narrative on echo chambers like LinkedIn (or parts thereof) but which is really a one way ticket to writing boring drivel that nobody really cares about. + +Without caring one bit about the reaction at all. Whether anybody read your composition. Or nobody at all. Or whether you managed to just squeeze enough time in to self-publish a novel on Amazon that students in one hundred year’s time might come to scrutinize as we read the work of Shakespeare today. + +You could become a famous author during the last minute of your lifetime. You could be admired posthumously. But it would all be the same to you because the curtain’s almost ready to come down. + +Now ask yourself: wouldn’t _that_ be a pretty cool state to get to? + +### If Your Thinking Is Vaguely Morbid, That Might Mean It Might Help + +If you stumbled upon this blog because you’re having serious thoughts about jumping off a bridge or even dark thoughts about whether you want to go on with the business of life at all, please stop reading this post now and ask for help from a mental health professional. Because when it comes to that stuff, I’m unqualified to do anything more than throw in that disclaimer. + +What I simply mean to suggest, rather, is the following: + +Has somebody — perhaps a friend, perhaps another writer — suggested that you should write _something_. Not a blog post. But maybe a really poignant one. Something _big_. A book. A screenplay. + +And your soul has lit up at the prospect of doing just that. + +But then a millisecond later your rational brain kicks in with a whole string of objections — like the campus police crashing the party. The ones which the Office of Self Censorship likes to throw out whenever you have an idea that’s even somewhat creative: + + * Yeah but, what if my boss read it?! + * What if my family knew that I was X? + +You might then have joked — or thought — that you _would totally_ write that if … ya know … the clock was really ticking its way down to zero. + +Perhaps that’s the moment when it might be wise to silent the censor and double check whether it really _really_ can’t be written. + +So here’s the thing. Although I hope it’s obvious. + +I don’t want the week to live thing. At all. + +I just want the mental liberty that I imagine goes along with it. + +I want to live my longevity pie while also nibbling on the satisfaction of not giving two … more nibbles .. about what anybody thinks of me or my writing. + +I like to keep the week-to-live writing as an ideal in my mind in the same way that the Stoics sometimes used mental devices to remind themselves about their own mortality. + +For me, it represents the goal standard. Of how brave I’d _like_ to be with my writing. + +This post took me one tiny step closer towards it. + +Although I’m under no illusions that there aren’t hundreds more to go. + +If you’ve got an edgy idea you think might be worth sharing, don’t jump at the first opportunity to find reasons why it couldn’t be written. Or video-d. Or … whatever creative pursuit you’re into. + +I can imagine that when you _really_ only have a week to go … and you mightn’t be fit and well enough to use that typewriter … that you might really regret not having already written it. + +### Further Reading + +This piece, by [Tim Denning](https://medium.com/u/b6d641be1066), is one of the best and most on-point articles I’ve read online in the last couple of years. + +[**99% of Writers Are Playing It Way Too Safe with Their Content** + _If you think to yourself “ehhh maybe I shouldn’t write about that” then you should probably write about it_ writingcooperative.com](https://writingcooperative.com/99-of-writers-are-playing-it-way-too-safe-with-their-content-6849bf163680 "https://writingcooperative.com/99-of-writers-are-playing-it-way-too-safe-with-their-content-6849bf163680")[](https://writingcooperative.com/99-of-writers-are-playing-it-way-too-safe-with-their-content-6849bf163680) + +Also elucidating the same thought: + +[**Why I'm Open Sourcing My Life: Writing Online for Self-Reinvention - Roxine Kee** + _For the past 6 years, I've struggled to find a common thread for my writing. I enjoyed writing about work -- marketing…_ www.roxinekee.com](https://www.roxinekee.com/blog/open-sourced-self-reinvention "https://www.roxinekee.com/blog/open-sourced-self-reinvention")[](https://www.roxinekee.com/blog/open-sourced-self-reinvention) diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Favorite--Most-Hated--Corporate-Jargon.md b/posts/medium/My-Favorite--Most-Hated--Corporate-Jargon.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3c1b771521ea6b7f560235536d3a07a0bebd12be --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Favorite--Most-Hated--Corporate-Jargon.md @@ -0,0 +1,131 @@ +# My Favorite (Most Hated) Corporate Jargon + +#### Feel free to reach out to me if you were inspired by this selection + +As a proud card-carrying curmudgeon, misanthrope, and writer (united as one in the form of a socially isolating freelance writer), I thought that the moment had finally come to sound off about some of the most annoying corporate expressions that I have become acquainted with this year. + +In fact, the inspiration for this post was my first Reddit meme which, at the time of writing, has eleven upvotes. + +Without further a-do. + +### “Could You Jump On A Call?” + +Could there be anything that better exemplifies the nonsensical nature of most corporate jargon than asking somebody about “jumping” on a call. + +Where to? On the phone itself? Probably a bad idea. Up and down while on the spot while I listen to your sales pitch? I really don’t have the energy. + +The following is the mental image which forms in my head whenever I hear this phrase uttered. + +Put it in writing. Schedule a Zoom call if needed. + +But I’m not “jumping” on it. And certainly not now. + +**Corporate jargon:** Hi Daniel! Awesome to reach you today! Care to jump on a call to hear about how our CRM could change your life? + +**Real communication:** Hello Daniel. I’m mildly excited to learn that I finally got though to you but will not be feigning any more enthusiasm. Would you like to buy our CRM? If so, I would like to get you on a call where I can more easily sell you on why you should do so. Because I type too slowly and I like phone calls. + +### “Make Sense?” + +I owe an apology here to my wife and in-laws. The first is American by birth. The latter live there. But surely no nation on earth has done more to invent and propagate senseless corporate jargon than the American people. It’s American cultural imperialism at its worst, I tell you. + +Sadly, Israelis (I live in Israel) have an obsession with emulating American culture — and its business etiquette. The unfortunate consequence of this is that the latest and greatest American jargon of the season gets imported here wholesale about once a year. Whether it arrives by Netflix or by corporate interactions I don’t know. But it makes it here somehow. + +Don’t take my (grumpy) word for that, though. I got all scientific just for this blog post and searched my inbox while drafting this article. My methodology was as follows: + +Having briefly perused the results which it yielded, I can confirm two things: + +a) This phrase is almost entirely uttered in the corporate world + +b) The worst offenders are Americans and American expats + +Why do I hate “make sense?” so much? + +It’s usually on the trailing end of some instruction. + +And, for me, it carries the subtext: “were you intelligent enough to follow that, dearest simpleton, or would you like me to explain that in greater detail?” + +How I interpret the phrase: “make sense?”. Did you get that or do you need another explanation? + +Apparently many are not so nonplussed by this phrase. + +Which I guess proves that language is a personal thing and that everybody interprets it differently. Through their own prism. Their own [substitute your preferred color] thinking. + +Make sense? + +### “I’ll Have You Do X” + +My mental image for “having” somebody do something + +Another arrival from across the Atlantic appears to be the saturation of people telling others, in the corporate world, that they will “have somebody do X” (it could be you!) + +Does this even count as corporate jargon? Pet peeve? Either way, it’s earned a place on this list. + +Here, again, I flaunt my curmudgeon credentials: this one really doesn’t sit well with me. + +People are autonomous. In hierarchical structures, people do indeed “have” others do something. The imperative tense exists in language for a reason. + +But there’s something about the baldness of talking about “having” another human do something that, to me, smacks too closely of notions of (literal) servitude. + +My recommended substitution is to “ask” another party to do something — even if both parties need to suspend their disbelief at the idea that the person on the receiving end of the communication has any volition that matters. + +Doing so pads the imperative through the gentle frame of a request which can be suffixed with “please” and other such niceties. It more comfortably upholds the mirage that the junior staff member / intern / clerical worker has some semblance of free will left about his or her workflow and tidily creates the fiction that they retain the prerogative to turn down your request. Because nobody likes to acknowledge that they’re basically just there to execute their boss’s will. + +Yes, this is euphemism for the sake of being euphemistic. But it shields one slightly from the harsh realities of the world. Just enough to be comfortable. And isn’t that what all manners are about ultimately? + +**Weird corporate language:** Hi Daniel! I’m going to have you write up that press release today. + +**Potential substitute:** Hi Daniel! Do you have time to work on that press release today? If so, I’d like you to do so. I’d like you to have it ready in five minutes, in fact. Make sense? + +### “Reaching Out “ + +When I first overheard somebody talking about “reaching out”, I constructed a grand mental image for what this might entail. + +Were we trying to get in touch with some nomadic Amazonian tribe who had only recently procured a satellite phone (but decided that they needed to retain our services)? + +Perhaps we had landed the International Space Station (ISS) as an account and needed to “reach out” beyond the confines of the stratosphere to establish contact? + +Much to my dismay, neither of these things were true. + +Instead, “reaching out” has emerged as a ubiquitous and vapid substitute for “contacting” somebody. + +The reason I, and many, dislike “reaching out” so much is that it carries overtures of some grand, almost philanthropic gesture. Which is almost always inaccurate. + +Reaching out to establish contact with some lost desert tribe is one thing. + +But is sending a marketing lead an unsolicited communication to sell them something really worthy of being called “outreach” at all? I’ll leave that rhetorical at that. + +**Corporate communication:** Hi Daniel! Awesome to finally get through. I’m David from [Insert Prefix] CRM. And I’m here to ask you about you track your sales pipeline? + +**Real communication:** Hi Daniel. I’m David from [Insert Prefix] CRM. I’m contacting you to see if you want to buy our system. + +### “Let’s Come Up To 30,000 Feet” + +Differentiating somewhat logical but annoying corporate speech from truly unnecessary jargon is more difficult than it might appear at first glance. + +For instance, I’m not a huge fan of the expression “deep dive” (sample usage: “let’s use this paragraph to take a deep dive on the consumer functionality”). + +But is it ultimately any more logical than discussing something “in depth”? + +Both expressions draw an analogy between physical depth — the state of being underwater— and non-literal depth of thought. + +It makes sense even if, by dint of mindless repetition (including by the author) it takes on, over time, the feeling of somewhat cringeworthy business jargon. + +However, when it comes to “coming up to 30,000 feet” or “the view from 30,000 feet” I have a harder time making sense of things. + +Why 30,000 feet? What’s wrong with 20,000 feet? Or 40,000 feet? + +Perhaps the cruising altitude at which domestic flights usually fly was choosing for its slightly more “grounded” — excuse the pun — feel than 40,000 feet, the altitude at which one would probably travel long-haul, might convey. One must retain an ear to the ground in order to truly see the blue sky ahead, after all. + +“High level” is already jargony enough but at least it says something reasonable — differentiating one’s explanation from those “drills” presumably hammering away down below. + +Why do we need to define the altitude from which we will be making our observations about the lowly denizens below — with their drills burrowing into the deeper material below and their magnanimous emails “reaching out” to prospective clients across continents? + +Business jargon is equal parts wildly entertaining, incredibly infectious, logic-stumping confusing, and, ultimately, totally infuriating. + +Suffused with equal parts patent nonsense, inappropriate metaphor, and sheer rubbish, it has driven many a writer mad — particularly when the great force of osmosis forces them to begin using that same jargon subconsciously. + +Consider substitutes to some of the above — for your sake and that of your recipient(s). Before I have to write another angry post about this on Medium. + +Speaking of which, feel free to reach out to your friends sharing this. Some blue sky thinking can never go amiss after all. + +Make sense? diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Freelance-Hourly-Cheat-Sheet.md b/posts/medium/My-Freelance-Hourly-Cheat-Sheet.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a2782522d2e1161ffda08eaf59565e9479e48a78 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Freelance-Hourly-Cheat-Sheet.md @@ -0,0 +1,66 @@ +# My Freelance Hourly Cheat Sheet + +Several people have reached out to me recently on foot of two Medium posts which I wrote trying to dispel some of the mystery around quoting for freelance projects: + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +[**How to Set An Hourly Freelance Rate** + _Two months ago, I provided some guidelines for tackling one of the most difficult aspects of working as a freelance…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf) + +Here’s an excerpt from it above. + +I’m working on putting out designed versions and publicly accessible spreadsheets this week. I’ll link to them from the original posts and add them here too. + +My cheat sheet is closely inspired by several other resources I’ve encountered for freelancers. Some of them made my non-mathematical brain hurt a little. But I ran through their recommendations and ended up coming up with almost identical numbers to those which my own methodology produced. So, with some degree of temerity, I feel confident enough to say that I believe it ‘works’. + +**The “essential thing” in my view (as they say in Hebrew — “haikar”) is that freelancers adequately account for their unbillable hours when trying to compute an hourly rate.** + +Everybody’s financial targets are going to look slightly different. My target income is _reasonably_ modest. My expenses, as a writer, are on the modest side — as are many freelancers’ for that matter. + +Sure, I have web hosting to pay — alongside a CRM, some business prospecting tools, domain renewals, a phone line, an accountant, and a few other bits and pieces. But in the grand scheme of things, and relative to a traditional bricks and mortar business, my (strict) business expenses are quite low. + +What are not modest (in any way, shape, or form) are the unbillable hours that I put in making this all work. + +Those are things like: + + * Promoting myself on social media (what can I say … we all gotta’ do it) + * Prospecting for new clients + * Holding phone calls and exchanging emails with sales prospects that don’t come through + * Managing my taxes and accounting. Preparing and issuing invoices. Tracking payments and other day to day financial joys. + +The above activities are par for the course. Without them, I wouldn’t be able to make this work. And if you don’t account for them while building quotes, you will end up working too many hours, not hitting your income target, and scratching your head wondering why. Hint: it’s those unbillable hours. + +So here’s what I do. + +After adding my cost of doing business (CODB) to my target monthly income and then deducting a couple of days per month to work out the daily equivalence (there are 22 average working days per month so I divide by 20 to give myself 2 days off per month / 24 per year), I get a daily number. This is my daily target income with expenses added ‘over the top’. + +**I then “tell” my spreadsheet how many hours I anticipate working per day but run that though what I call my billlable ratio.** If there’s any secret sauce at work in this spreadsheet then this little ratio is it. This is very simply the ratio of billable:unbillable hours that I believe is credible for my business. Many freelancers will recommend 75:25 (billable:unbillable). I strongly believe that 50:50 is a much more credible and comfortable figure. + +So, if I plan on working 8 hour days, but I’m applying a 50:50 billable formula, then I’m dividing my daily income target by four rather than eight. + +At the start of the spreadsheet, when I’m beginning the calculation, I typically look at two (gross) target incomes. Salaries where I am based are quoted monthly so the numbers I look at are 15,000 NIS and 20,000 NIS. If you’re based somewhere where salaries are quoted annually then you can just adjust the formula accordingly (or divide by 12). + +Because I work a lot of the time with international clients, I memorize my target hourly rates in local and then convert to USD and other currencies periodically to see what the exchange rates are looking like. Don’t forget that exchange rates fluctuate and that this is technically a business risk you are undertaking if you fix a contract in a foreign currency. You may need to make periodic adjustments just to account for that fact. + +The beauty of knowing your target hourly is that — in theory — if you have enough work and keep charging it you will make the amount of money you have determined that you need to make in order to survive (or thrive). That’s a mathematical simplicity that even I can wrap my head around. + +Finding enough work so that the multiplier multiplies by enough hours is a separate issue — but one made easier by the fact that the target hourly accounts for 50% non-billable hours so you have half your workday to figure that out. + +I build essentially all my quotes around my target hourly. Because — as I mentioned in my freelance rates post — clients want a fixed figure for their marketing budget, I usually need to come up with a flat/project fee for a project. + +In order to come up with that I size up a prospective job and estimate how many hours it will take. Next, I try to make sure that scope is controlled. Finally, I multiply the expected time expenditure by my hourly and then come up with a number. Using a spreadsheet and a methodology is helpful. It does the thinking for you and ensures that your quotes are consistent. + +Final word of advice. + +**Freelancers, in my view, need to _always_ charge this hourly figure to make their target rate.** + +Why? Because even if you’re fully booked on a project for two months, you’ll ultimately need to come back to business development. Quoting competitively is important, of course, but freelancers still need to maintain pipeline to mitigate future business risk.**If fully booked, the unbillable activity which maintaining that pipeline entails (sales calls, emails) is simply being deferred rather than displaced.** + +That’s my magic formula. + +Truthfully, there isn’t much magic to it. But having that fixed target number clear in your head prevents me from screwing up quotes by grossly undercharging. If you don’t keep things like vacation days, sick days, and unbillable hours in mind then it’s far too easy to do that. + +Feel free to use some version of the above methodology when building out your own quotes. Designed versions coming soon. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Gallbladder-Surgery-Story--And--The-Water-Party-Project.md b/posts/medium/My-Gallbladder-Surgery-Story--And--The-Water-Party-Project.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..61c213da736f085b362667128bf80d0583d5bb05 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Gallbladder-Surgery-Story--And--The-Water-Party-Project.md @@ -0,0 +1,395 @@ +# My Gallbladder Surgery Story. And: The Water Party Project + +#### Part One: My Gallbladder Surgery + +A little more than seven months ago I underwent one of the most common surgical procedures in the world: a laparoscopic cholecystectomy. + +Or in normal person English:**I had my gallbladder removed (using “minimally invasive” keyhole surgery).** + +What prompted a surgeon to extricate this apparently non-essential organ from an otherwise relatively healthy 30 year old you might be wondering? + +Let me tell you the story. + +And after I’m done, I’ll explain why, as a result of the operation, I’m now asking people to meet me for glasses of water rather than pints of beer. + +**_Warning:_**_I’ve tried to minimize some of the detail required to explain my recovery from the surgery. But at times what I have written here probably qualifies, for many readers, as ‘too much information’._ + +### My Journey Towards Surgery + +For years, I had been having a recurrent ache in my right hand side that would come and go — but seemed to always return to the same place. After this happened several times, I decided to see a family doctor. + +**The family doctor did a little bit of prodding and pushing but one particular prod elicited a sharp pain**(I later learned that this is called a positive [Murphy’s sign](https://gpnotebook.com/simplepage.cfm?ID=1429536775)). Success, the doctor had found something. Or so I thought! _“That’s your gallbladder,”_ he said, nonchalantly — and then quickly wrote me up a referral for an abdominal ultrasound. + +The doctor informed me that my gallbladder was inflamed and gave me a referral for emergency surgery just in case I had an acute attack and the organ suddenly decided to fall apart at the seams while I was abroad (did you know that bad gallbladders can turn gangrenous?). A week later I had the ultrasound done — which mysteriously showed nothing amiss in my gallbladder. + +I thought he was exaggerating about possibly needing surgery and didn’t think too much of it — expecting that, as the scan had been negative, whatever inflammation might have prompted the symptoms would hopefully die down on its own. + +Unfortunately, the pain returned a few more times — always to the same place more or less. (It should be pointed out that I had been doing little to maintain the health of my gallbladder for some years at this point including subsisting on a diet of primarily falafel!) + +After a few more recurrences I repeated the procedure and went back to my family doctor. Again, I received a referral for an abdominal ultrasound. + +**This time, however, the scan found the gallstones that had presumably been the cause of my symptoms all along.** + +The line from the report, in Hebrew, is below. + +It translates as “ _the gallbladder contains stones, up to 3mm in diameter.”_ + + “ T _he gallbladder contains stones, up to 3mm in diameter.”_ + +Or so the technician thought. + +You might be wondering why, even if I indeed had gallstones (spoiler alert: none were ever found!), they wouldn’t try to … you know … give me a pill to take rather than just cut out the organ. + +**The strange thing about gallbladder disease is that the medical community has essentially given up on pharmacological treatment (pharmacotherapy)**. + +Although, at first glance, it might seem strangely macabre to be in a rush to excise organs, there are good reasons why this state of affairs has developed. + +Although there are still a couple of drugs in the pharmacopoeia that are _supposed_ to dissolve gallstones — ursodiol and chenodiol — the drugs take months or years to work, if they do at all, and their effectiveness is, in general, relatively hit and miss. + +But there’s a much stronger rationale at play. + +**And that’s that healthy gallbladders, by definition, do not make gallstones.** Or [sludge](https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/320057) (a viscous buildup of fluids including bile and cholesterol which often preempts the formation of stones). + +Thus, even if the gallstones are successfully dissolved, the likelihood — some would say near certainty — is that they will invariably return. + +And as gallstone-included cholecystitis, in the worst case scenario, can lead to life-threatening complications — there is a strong rationale to remove the malfunctioning organ entirely rather than hold on to it and be forced to commit to possibly a a lifetime of ultrasounds and monitoring. + +This is because while the efficacy of pharmacological treatments is uncertain, what doctors _do_ know is that humans can live just fine without a gallbladder (at least in theory!). + +Thus, since the advent of laparoscopic surgery — first performed early last century but only really perfected in the past 50 years — surgical removal of gallbladders that make stones, or that are found to have sludge in them, has somewhat incongruously become the first-line, gold standard treatment for gallstone disease. + +And given that the now universally available laparoscopic surgery involves shorter recovery times than open surgery — and is less risky — the impetus to avoid it has been lessened even further. + +And, as I was about to find out, the criteria to meet is not very exacting. + +### Meeting with Surgeons + +After the second ultrasound showed various small stones up to 3mm in diameter I was referred to a surgeon working with my health maintenance organization (HMO) who advised me that my best course of action was to have my gallbladder removed. (HMOs provide basic medical services in Israel. There are four of them and, by law, every citizen needs to be subscribed to one). + +The consultation couldn’t have lasted more than five minutes and he assured me — decisively — that I could be back at work the day after the surgery if I so pleased (if your surgeon tells you this then you have my permission to not listen to him!). + +The health fund surgeon, in turn, referred me to a surgeon at the hospital — the one who actually performed my surgery. The hospital surgeon more or less repeated the same thing as the health fund surgeon and informed me that while there was no way of knowing for certain if the small gallstones found on the scan were the cause of my symptoms he still recommended that I had the organ out. A definite and I believe misguided _“well, you don’t need it so it won’t hurt to have it out,”_ line of thinking seems to prevail among surgeons regarding all things gallbladder-related. + +And so, without much further a-do, I was booked in for surgery. + +The surgery day came about quite a lot sooner than I expected. + +Out of the blue one morning, while working on an article for a client, I received a call from the hospital. + +I could either have the surgery in two weeks time — or not for another few months. + +I asked if I could get back to the hospital tomorrow with my answer? No way I was told — I would lose the slot. + +How about by the end of the day? No such luck. The receptionist demanded an answer _right now_. + +It was the ultimate case of being put on the spot about a pretty drastic life decision. + +With the adrenaline coursing through my veins I decided to do something that I rarely do: I was brave and resisted the urge to do my own research online. (Which, in retrospect, was either a very good or a very bad thing depending upon how you look at it — Facebook groups are internet fora are flooded with people just like me who have been saddled with health problems arising from the surgery that far exceed the gravity of the problem that prompted the surgery in the first place.) + +And so the day of the surgery finally rolled around. + +I meditated. I tried to stay calm naturally. And I failed. + +Sequestered in the pre-surgery room for just a little too long the nerves finally began to hit — the final stretch of the waiting period was dragging on beyond the limits of my ability to hold in my anxiety about the surgery. + +I asked for a tranquilizer and began to calm down. Next thing I knew I was being wheeled into an operating theater while a very reassuring anesthesiologist informed me that everything would be okay. + +Then the cold feeling of the milky-colored anesthesia induction agent, propofol, shooting up into my vein. + +And next thing I knew I was in the recovery room treating the entire room to the theme song to the British children’s television show _Rosie and Jim_ which — oblivious to the presence of other patients — I had quite obnoxiously decided to blast over my phone’s loudspeaker (one emerges from anesthesia in a state of temporary delirium; and yes, this actually happened!). + +I stayed overnight at Hadassah Ein Karem hospital and was discharged the following day with the most basic of painkillers possible: acetaminophen. + +Stage one of the journey was complete. + +Oh, and the pathology report, which I received two a month later: my gallbladder didn’t contain any stones! + +My pathology report from Hadassah a few months after the ultrasound. In Hebrew: “[gall]stones were not found.” + +### And Then: The “Difficulties” Began + +Immediately post surgery in Hadassah Ein Karem. If I look weird, it is because I was heavily medicated with painkillers when this photo was taken. I can’t make the same excuse for my haircut, though! + +Unfortunately this marked the beginning, rather than the end, of something of a much bigger health saga. + +A saga that I am still dealing with as a I type this. + +After the typical post-op pain finally died down, the first untoward symptom was a very bitter taste in my mouth. + +I didn’t make the connection between that taste and gastritis at the time. But I have come to know that it serves as an early warning for a flare up. + +That bitter taste was followed, in very short course, by symptoms that I recognized almost immediately to be gastritis: An insatiable appetite; a relentless gnawing raw pain in my midrift (“as if my insides were scraped” is a common, and accurate, description); and a feeling of hunger that would return almost immediately after I ate, as if I hadn’t eaten anything. + +As these symptoms continued, nausea and vomiting then joined the party — the latter consisting, each and every time, of almost pure bile. + +And although I was not given any specific dietary advice (at least that I can recall) I did what those friendly people on the internet recommended — avoiding alcohol and fatty food and sticking to a rather bland and uninspiring diet (bear in mind that I am an ethic food fiend and that Ethiopian and Indian are my two favorite cuisines; this was not fun!). + +The kicker was that exercise would kick the gastritis up a notch too. So although, on several occasions, I tried to restart a fitness program (with the idea of shedding the excess weight I was gaining by snacking in order to keep the worst of the gastritis at bay) it seemed to only worsen the symptoms. It was a frustrating situation to say the least — as if I’d drawn a checkmate in a game against my own recovery. Even as bland a diet as I could tolerate didn’t seem like enough to put the gastritis into remission — or even come close. + +An IKEA bear who was also recovering from surgery + +After it became clear that the gastritis wasn’t going to go away on its own accord, my family doctor referred me to a gastroenterologist. + +While I was waiting for that appointment, four months later, a (very well-intended) friend organized a pub crawl for my birthday to which a delightful coterie of people dutifully showed up — some from another city. + +I did what people who are the center of birthday pub crawls thrown in their honor are expected to do: I participated in the consumption of beer! + +And that was the first time that I realized that my tolerance for alcohol had dramatically decreased since surgery. + +I’ll leave the ugly details aside — or at least some of them. + +But suffice to say that the beers I had on that evening seemed to have about the same effect on me as what 10 or 15 of them might have had if I was an 18 year old college student intent on getting recklessly drunk at some college party. + +My stomach simply couldn’t handle it. + +After a wave of nausea that lasted hours struck, an 8 hour vomiting marathon mercifully ensued — again, marked primarily by the expulsion of large amounts of bile. Oddly, I noticed that the vomit contained some food from the previous day (more about gastroparesis, and its lesser known sibling, later). + +The strange thing, the few times this has happened, is how quickly I bounce back. + +The next day, back working at my computer, I almost felt as if nothing had happened. + +But clearly the situation was not neither normal nor going to go away on its own. + +There was more investigating to do. + +### Complication 1: Bile Reflux Gastritis + +Bile reflux induced reactive gastropathy as seen on a histology stain. Source: Wikipedia (Creative Commons) + +On foot of my persisting symptoms, I had an upper endoscopy one month after the operation which yielded a diagnosis of reactive gastritis. + +The likely causative agent: bile reflux. + +For those who are not aware, bile reflux is an extremely common complication of gallbladder removal — [as many as **90% of patients** develop it](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3325304/) . Although, for reasons that are not fully understood, it doesn’t irritate the gastric mucosa (stomach lining) enough to cause gastritis in all cases. In fact, symptoms and full-fledged bile reflux gastritis develop in only [3 to 30% of patients](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/biliary-reflux) with endoscopic evidence of bile reflux. + +And although I neither claim to be an expert in medicine nor physiology, understanding why that is so isn’t inordinately complicated. + +The gallbladder’s primary function is to store the bile that the liver produces between meals and secrete it whenever fat is ingested. Bile is that greenish liquid that is used to help break down fats (malabsorption of fat-soluble vitamins and minerals is, unsurprisingly, therefore another common adverse outcome of the surgery) + +Without the gallbladder to act as a reservoir to hold it, the bile, once synthesized by the liver, essentially has nowhere to go when it’s not immediately needed and therefore both drips down into the colon and refluxes upwards into the stomach where it causes irritation. + +This latter retrograde movement of the bile is what causes patients difficulties with gastritis and reflux. Downstream, in the colon, the excess bile acids can result in bile acid malabsorption whose symptoms include diarrhea and urgency. In fact, with bile reflux in play, bile can make it all the way up the esophagus and into the sinuses: when my symptoms were at their worst I literally had distinct green bile coming out my nose while I vomited. + +Over time one’s physiology attempts to adapt — such that, I have read, the body begins storing bile in the bile ducts themselves. But the adaptation is a slow and incomplete process. And in many cases, a chemical gastritis develops as a result of the bile’s frequent pooling in the stomach. As most bile reflux sufferers, including me, have spent their fair share of time throwing up bile that it can severely irritate the stomach lining, or other tissues it was never intended to come into contact with, is rather unsurprising. This common post-surgical condition — which some doctors mistakenly think is vanishingly rare (laparoscopic surgery has turned that on its head)— is known as bile reflux gastritis. + +People with their gallbladders intact tend to not experience bile reflux to an appreciable, or at least to a pathological, extent — although there are some doctors who think that bile reflux plays an underappreciated role in treatment-refractory Gastroesophogeal Reflux Disease (GERD) and [some evidence to support that](https://www.healio.com/gastroenterology/intestinal-disorders/news/online/%7B74ccbd04-6905-4da5-87db-2dd6ae7450a3%7D/bile-acid-sequestrant-relieves-refractory-gerd-symptoms). Amazingly, sufferers often encounter a slew of unsympathetic (mostly old-school) gastroenterologists who will tell them that bile accumulation is “totally normal” or that gastritis resulting from it is something “very rarely if ever seen”— as if the fact that the bile is causing them to vomit several times a week is either normal or imaginary. If this were the case before the advent of widespread laparoscopic surgery it does not appear to be the case now. And neither of these things in okay. + +Unfortunately, in the grand scheme of all things gastritis-related, bile reflux is a tricky variant to treat. + +Unlike, say, gastritis caused by taking too many NSAIDs, drinking too much alcohol, or by an infectious agent like _H.Pylori_ infection the causative agent isn’t time-limited — the liver will go on making bile and it will continue to pool in the stomach indefinitely. Even with a perfect diet one cannot simply stop making bile. So in many cases lifelong treatment is the only option. + +But even treatment isn’t straightforward. Unlike the better known form of reflux caused by the backflow of hydrocholoric stomach acid, which usually responds very nicely to proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), bile reflux is unfortunately quite tricky to treat — and the class of therapeutic agents is both limited and seemingly not in active development. + +To try get the gastritis under control I was put on just about the only medication that works for this: a bile binder. This is the first line treatment for bile reflux gastritis (the last one is another surgery). + +“Bile binders,” also known as bile acid sequestrants, are actually simply repurposed old cholesterol-lowering drugs that are prescribed off-label to mop up bile so that it stops sitting in the stomach and causing gastritis. + +They are resins which chemically attach to the bile (hence the name) and then excrete it fecally. If you’d like that described in cruder terms: bile acid binders stick to the bile, carry it through your colon, and then it emerges from your other end. Because the bile is bound in the stomach symptoms in the colon — diarrhea and urgency — are also reduced. + +An upside for a change: they lower LDL (“bad”) cholesterol modestly because this is what the drug was actually designed and indicated for. Another upside: they remain sequestered in the GI tract and so systemic absorption does not occur (the drug does not pass into the bloodstream). In theory, this is supposed to minimize side effects — although some like metabolic acidosis and further impaired absorption of nutrients are still possible. A downside: bile binders to not bind to bile exclusively. They can also bind to meditations. Thus one can’t take oral medication one hour before or three hours after ingesting one. This is true whether they are taken by pill or as a liquid suspension. + +Unfortunately, as I was soon to discover, acquiring cholestyramine — or colestid, the other commonly prescribed first generation bile binder (which is a pill formulation rather than a powder) — can be a trying endeavor. (There is one second generation bile binder, colesevelam/Welchol, which apparently has higher specificity for bile; however, I have not been able to obtain it). + +As statins have almost entirely supplanted these drugs’ role in treating high cholesterol, the only people that actually rely on them these days are those left with bile reflux and bile salt diarrhea as unfortunate complications of abdominal surgery (other abdominal surgeries commonly kickstart the condition too). As well as a smattering of patients with Crohn’s disease and IBS. All told, it’s a relatively small patient pool. Which also means less of an incentive for pharmaceutical companies to keep the drugs in production and distribute them. + +National shortages of the various bile acid sequestrants [happen periodically and in various healthcare systems.](https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/shortage-of-bile-acid-sequestrants/) + +I was lucky enough to be able to source mine through my local pharmacy. But it had to be ordered in especially and could only be obtained from my health fund’s own chain of pharmacies(this is not normally the case). + +But in spite of the difficulties in sourcing them, and of having to drink a chalky chemical orange juice that might erode your tooth enamel several times per day, bile binders appear to _work_. + +Within about a week of starting cholestyramine — or “mutant orange juice” as I sometimes call it (the drug is administered as a flavored solution) — my gastritis has gotten appreciably better. The relentless gnawing feeling and the hunger began to slowly abate. + +As the gastritis tended to get worse with exercise — and I was also putting on weight due to the relentless feeling of hunger — I was hopeful that this might be the beginning of a new start. + +It _sort of_ was. + +### And Then: A Weird Motility Problem Starts + +Cholestyramine / “mutant orange water”. This can have a devastating effect on tooth enamel so it’s important to drink it with a straw and rinse your mouth afterwards + +Sadly, gastritis (and fatigue — I have developed a micronutrient deficiency) are only two of the problems that I have been dealing with since the op. + +The other is a little stranger: A feeling that, whenever I drink liquids, they simply sit in my stomach. + +As far as I am aware, I began noting this soon after the surgery too. But the gastritis and the vomiting were more pressing concerns. Distracted by work, I could force it out of my mind. I won’t say much about this one other than that I am thankfully now under the care of an engaged gastroenterologist and that — as the gastritis was — this too is being looked into. Bile reflux sufferers are notorious for shuffling through a variety of specialists as many sadly seem content to leave them heaving bile into toilet bowls indefinitely. Thus, finding one that cares, and is prepared to help, is a important milestone along the way. + +My presumptive diagnosis for this second complication is impaired gastric accommodation — a vagus-mediated condition (like gastroparesis) but which, unlike gastroparesis, involves the nerves of the stomach failing to expand the organ to “receive” food and liquids, thereby creating a sensation of a “blockage”. (By contrast, gastroparesis is a nerve-mediated problem on the other end of the organ — with emptying of food and liquid into the colon.) + +Like post-surgical gastroparesis, the problem is _possibly_ a result of damage to the critical vagus nerve, which controls so many aspects of our physiology, during the surgery. (Certainly, I never had a sensation like it before the operation and I am not directly making that allegation for ahem … reasons). But, either way, it is impossible that causation can ever be proven. And whether the chicken or egg came first matters not one iota to my recovery. + +The symptoms are essentially those of dyspepsia. I burp a lot after eating just about anything which was mildly comical for about a month until it just became plain annoying. But the feeling that liquids sit and slosh in the stomach — rather than move effortlessly through it — is certainly the most bothersome of the problems that it has caused me. + +Unlike gastritis this set of problems is uncomfortable rather than painful or aching — mostly I find it incredibly distracting so I have trying to reverse the distraction by burying myself in work. Right now it’s about the best I can do. But it’s still very early days in the journey. + +### Update: I Can’t Really Tolerate Much Alcohol Any More — But Especially Beer + +My beer-drinking days: on temporary hiatus + +Unfortunately, since the surgery, my ability to tolerate any alcohol whatsoever has only gotten worse rather than better — although perhaps I’m just drinking so little of it that my system reacts more forcefully to the periodic ingestion — and my tolerance has undoubtedly plummeted. + +When lockdown started my usual Thursday night pub expeditions went out the window. As they did, work, paradoxically, picked up — in a dramatic and life-consuming sort of way. And I gradually, perhaps instinctively, began avoiding alcohol at all. + +For the past month or two my alcohol consumption has essentially been limited to a glass of wine to initiate the weekend. And a glass or two on the odd Zoom call with friends in Ireland. + +However: + +For reasons that are as of yet unknown any time I drink beer — specifically — I become violently ill. And I mean violently. + +This week, Jerusalem started to re-open. + +To mark the occasion we headed out to one of the first bars to resume operations to some extent and basked in one of the first manifestations of relative normality — something we would have taken entirely for granted in The Olden Days. + +Two “ _shlish_ “ (330ml) beers of 5% lager were enough, to my disappointment, to kick off another marathon nausea and vomiting spree — the first I had had in about four months. + +Right now, other than knowing that something is definitely amiss, I’m not terribly sure what is going on with my health. Blood-work has eliminated any obvious causes — but has not provided an answer. Yet the connection to the surgery, to me, again seems obvious. + +What I _do_ know is that I can’t tolerate beer for whatever reason. And that my ability to drink any other alcohol seems to be capped at about one unit. + +I hold out a little bit of hope that, as I move through the diagnostic process and put pieces of the puzzle together, I will one day be able to enjoy a pint of Guinness again without knowing that it will probably trigger a dramatic expunging of my stomach contents several hours later. + +But there has been a sort of unhealthy self-pitying grieving process to work through in the meantime. + +Why me? And why me at the start of my thirties? These are the sort of questions that I have been grappling with internally and which, at times since the operation, have pinned me down into a sort of temporary depression. + +I’ve mostly moved through that necessary journey. Right now my best bet is probably to play it safe. + +And thankfully, I’m not facing the battle alone. At least virtually. + +These problems might, at first glance, seem unexpected or even dramatic. + +But in my quest to find answers online, trawling through Facebook Groups and other online communities, I have encountered _countless_ scores of individuals — of both genders, of all age brackets, occupations,and prior health states — who have been left with these exact problems, and sadly, sometimes much worse ones. + +The sheer numbers, to my mind, are staggering: I would estimate that tens of thousands of people around the world are suffering through protracted digestive difficulties brought about solely through laparoscopic gallbladder removal — an operation we are repeatedly told is a “harmless” way to extract a “useless” organ. + +More incredibly, perhaps, I have also met plenty of individuals who appear to have similarly experienced false positives on ultrasound and who, after parting ways with the organ, learned that it either contained no stones — or only contained sludge, a condition which can be relatively benign but which might, on the other hand, also foreshadow the development of stones themselves. + +So for a lot of us it’s very murky business. But a few things, at least to me, are clear. + +Such as that in my opinion, and that of many, and as the simple[ 80–90% incidence of post-cholecystectomy bile reflux](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3325304/) into the stomach makes clear, extracting the gallbladder is not a “nothing” medical procedure that can be dismissed as having no effect on patients’ lives after the acute recovery period is complete. + +It is an indisputable fact that humans digest better, physiologically, when their bile can be stored in a reservoir. And, to resort to a truism, we probably wouldn’t have been engineered with a gallbladder if one didn’t serve a purpose. + +But the effects might be more far-reaching than bringing up bile unless we can find a way to keep it away from our stomachs. + +There is evidence that excess bile acid is far from innocuous even when it doesn’t result in clinically apparent gastritis — [cardiomyopathy has been linked to the pooling of bile acid](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5299964/) in animal studies, an apparent distal effect of the acid accumulation in the stomach. + +On the positive side, where there are many other patients there is solace in numbers and the potential power of crowdsourced brainstorming to help find, if not cures, natural or medical treatments which might alleviate some of the unfortunate consequences of this very common surgery. + +I recently went on an iHerb trawl and have begun exploring what natural supplements might provide relief instead of pharmaceuticals: psyllium husk replaces the bile binder and other natural compounds aim to mitigate other parts of the picture, such as nausea. Whether it will work, for me, I haven’t gotten around to investigating yet. + +The best I can do is try. And see what works. And hope that in time, as medicine advances, we will find a way to treat gallbladder disease without excising the organ at all. + +And that when that happens the ranks of those suffering with bile reflux gastritis, post-cholecystectomy syndrome, and the other countless labels and conditions tied to this “routine” operation will therefore empty. + +(The list of long-term complications of gallbladder removal I have mentioned here is not in any way exclusive. Besides bile reflux gastritis, bile salt diarrhea, and postcholecystectomy syndrome — a mixture of symptoms — are common.) + +#### Part Two: + +### The Water Meetup Project + +Looks like a water party in progress (stock imagery) + +While going through the above has been as difficult as it might sound I have to be honest and say that a large part of me has greatly enjoyed cutting down drastically on my alcohol consumption — even if my hand, or rather my stomach, was forced into the change by unforeseeable circumstances. + +No doubt, as I have mentioned, I _miss_ being able to enjoy a couple of pints in a pub once a week without that simple pleasure making the next 12 hours of my life a living misery. And until I work out _why_ that is the case, or how to avoid it, that activity is squarely off the table. + +But I’m also feeling a lot more positive mentally after the turmoil of the last six months. I’ve lost a little bit of weight. And my wallet is certainly benefiting — even by just cutting out a once weekly excursion to a bar, and the subsequent taxi home. + +In a sense, the bizarre confluence of lockdown and forced teetotalism that the year to date has entailed for me have forced me over some kind of mental threshold in my relationship with alcohol. One which I feel I had been planning on crossing soon anyway. + +For one, I have become a terrible bore of sorts. + +Most nights of the week my Kindle, with a cup of water to enjoy it with, is a more enticing proposition than watching Netflix with a glass of wine in hand. + +It’s more interesting, I learn a lot from it, and, most importantly, I know that it isn’t going to make me sick in a few hours. + +People change. + +I have — along with the world — but so far this is one change that I, mostly, would like to keep. + +As the world reopens, I realize that the very strange hermetic existence that the strict lockdown conditions forced upon me, and many, were, frankly, depressing days that I would _not_ want to repeat. + +I want to see people again! To share stories about things other than my health! But sadly, this time, even if it’s what my friends want, I know that that storytelling cannot be done in the company of a glass of alcohol. At least not now — because alcohol and wellbeing seem to have become mutually exclusive for me. + +When looking for information about ways to meet people who don’t want their evening socializing to involve alcohol any more one is invariably and quickly drawn towards information written for those that have been forced to give up alcohol due to dependence issues — specifically alcoholism but sometimes people who come to the conclusion that their drinking is facilitating some other vice or an unwanted behavior and wish to desist for that reason. As is well known, this is a large and significant population. + +However, I feel that people that have been forced to give up consuming alcohol suddenly and due to a medical issue want to approach the issue from a slightly different point of view — and that, without a doubt, AA meetings are not the right venues in which to recruit a group of friends excited to embark upon a shared new journey of alcohol-free socializing but without, necessarily, intending to do so indefinitely. + +Like recovering alcoholics, I want to figure out a way to stay social without alcohol playing a part in those social interactions. But unlike reforming alcoholics I don’t see any particular wisdom in cutting out alcohol entirely if that can at all be avoided. I would be lying if I told you that were the case. + +Because I saw something of a lacuna (the one I have described) I decided, this week, to set up a small Facebook community. It currently consists of myself and just one other member but others are more than welcome to join. + +And I chose the unusual title — Water Party Meetups — because I couldn’t readily think up answers to some questions. Questions that had begun gnawing at my brain as soon as the bile had stopped gnawing at my stomach: + + * Why can’t people be honest about the fact that they want to meet other people simply because it is fun and fulfilling to do so? + * Why do many adults feel an instinctive need to frame their socializing around alcohol — like meeting up at the pub, throwing a house party (with drinks on hand), or heading out for dinner (and wine)? + * And if we don’t automatically frame our social engagements around “meeting for a drink” why do we, instinctively, have to reach for some surrogate that also happens to be psychoactive — coffee is the obvious one but many people, on hearing that I have severely curtailed my drinking, have suggested that I take up cannabis-smoking in its place (no thanks). + +Or if we not for those options, why do we feel the need to complicate things by insisting that what might be our first forays into alcohol-free socializing for some time be done in the context of some hobby that requires specialized equipment, commitment, and skills? + +I have a lot of interest into getting into new hobbies. + +But right now my first priority is to unlearn the ingrained adult habit of thought that when adults convene to socialize, in the evening hours, meeting in a bar is the most obvious neutral territory in which to do so. + +Because that false belief, drummed into many of us by dint of years of repetition, is a total falsehood. + +I can recall plenty of enjoyable encounters with friends before I once touched a sip of alcohol. Why should things be any different now just because I’ve aged by 10 or 15 years in the intervening period? + +For that reason, I came up with the idea of inviting friends to “Water Parties.” + +**The idea, as I conceived of it, is that these meetings will involve meeting, ostensibly, to share and partake in the simple act of drinking a glass of water.** + +Yes, a glass of water! And why water, you might be wondering? + +Because what could possibly be as boring and unexciting as drinking water? + +And what other “hook” could lay bare, as transparently, that the idea is, rather, simply to meet, and enjoy the company of, other people? + +That the purpose is to just sit and enjoy a chat with friends, whether old or new — and without departing from mental homeostasis, hanging upside down from the ceiling, or climbing a mountain? + +In my view, centering meetings upon _this_ activity would be the most effective means possible of encouraging people to meet simply for the joy of meeting other people. And for everybody involved to realize that that is simply what the whole initiative has been facilitated to entail. + +In a long and roundabout nutshell, that’s the story of my gallbladder surgery, where my health is at now, and why — in the coming weeks — I intend asking the question plenty of times _“Hi! Any interest in meeting for a a glass of water tonight?”_ + +As I have mentioned, I don’t see this as necessarily hinged to the idea of living a teetotal life. + +While my current wellbeing and drinking beer _are_ mutually exclusive the possibility of a future spent meeting people mostly for water and occasionally for a glass of wine certainly are not. + +Rather than framing this through the prism of misfortunate medical suffering I am trying to see this as an embarking upon a necessary journey — for me, and for anybody interested in joining — to unlearn an ingrained and harmful belief (that alcohol is integral to ‘having a good time’ as an adult); to recreate in a more healthy way; and to do so in a way that allows one to maintain, and even improve, one’s social life — because, as the lockdown has painfully borne out, socializing is a _vital_ human activity and essential to human happiness. + +If I can have a great night that isn’t bookmarked by anticipatory anxiety of what effect it might have on my body and then the actual unpleasant effect that will be a great achievement. The ‘how’ — and whether that involves water or beer — is unimportant. + +If the above jives with you and you are interested in setting up your own local water chapter meeting then please [be in touch](http://danielrosehlil.co.il/). + +To your health! + +### Further Reading + +Bile reflux and bile reflux gastritis: + +[**Bile reflux - Symptoms and causes** + _Bile reflux occurs when bile - a digestive liquid produced in your liver - backs up (refluxes) into your stomach and…_ www.mayoclinic.org](https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/bile-reflux/symptoms-causes/syc-20370115 "https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/bile-reflux/symptoms-causes/syc-20370115")[](https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/bile-reflux/symptoms-causes/syc-20370115) + +[**Shortage of Bile acid sequestrants: colestyramine powder for oral suspension 4g (Questran and…** + _Bristol-Myers Squibb divested the Questran range to Cheplapharm. This affected the availability of several bile acid…_ www.sps.nhs.uk](https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/shortage-of-bile-acid-sequestrants/ "https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/shortage-of-bile-acid-sequestrants/")[](https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/shortage-of-bile-acid-sequestrants/) + +[**Does Cholecystectomy Increase the Esophageal Alkaline Reflux? Evaluation by Impedance-pH Technique** + _The aim of this study is to investigate the reflux patterns in patients with galbladder stone and the change of reflux…_ www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3325304/ "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3325304/")[](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3325304/) + + _“Bile reflux into the stomach is reported in a rate of 30%-100% after stomach surgery and 80%-90% after gallbladder surgery.”_ + +But: + +[**Biliary Reflux** + _Bile reflux gastritis occurs when ablation of the pylorus in a gastric ulcer operation results in stasis of bile in the…_ www.sciencedirect.com](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/biliary-reflux "https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/biliary-reflux")[](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/biliary-reflux) + + _“Symptoms result in only 3% to 30% of patients with endoscopic evidence of bile reflux”_ + +[**Bile acid sequestrant relieves refractory GERD symptoms** + _Recently published study results showed that the bile acid sequestrant IW-3718 reduced heartburn and regurgitation…_ www.healio.com](https://www.healio.com/gastroenterology/intestinal-disorders/news/online/%7B74ccbd04-6905-4da5-87db-2dd6ae7450a3%7D/bile-acid-sequestrant-relieves-refractory-gerd-symptoms "https://www.healio.com/gastroenterology/intestinal-disorders/news/online/%7B74ccbd04-6905-4da5-87db-2dd6ae7450a3%7D/bile-acid-sequestrant-relieves-refractory-gerd-symptoms")[](https://www.healio.com/gastroenterology/intestinal-disorders/news/online/%7B74ccbd04-6905-4da5-87db-2dd6ae7450a3%7D/bile-acid-sequestrant-relieves-refractory-gerd-symptoms) + +Impaired gastric accommodation. (Compared to gastroparesis) a relatively obscure clinical entity that is believed to play a very significant role in dyspepsia. Functional dyspepsia (FD) is another common adverse outcome of gallbladder and other abdominal surgeries, possibly related to damage to the vagus nerve. + +[**Impaired gastric accommodation and its role in dyspepsia** + _Prevalence of impaired accommodation Gastric imaging studies with ultrasound or scintigraphy provided the first…_ www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1856470/ "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1856470/")[](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1856470/) diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Gmail-Organization-System-for-Managing-Bills--in-Israel-.md b/posts/medium/My-Gmail-Organization-System-for-Managing-Bills--in-Israel-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7f3adc640a7b71bf98331b568952d1184fb0406c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Gmail-Organization-System-for-Managing-Bills--in-Israel-.md @@ -0,0 +1,108 @@ +# My Gmail Organization System for Managing Bills (in Israel) + +I’ve just finished my bi-annual cloud-to-cloud backup process (if you missed the excitement, [check out my post here](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/user-data-export-approaches-of-saas-cloud-service-social-media-providers-an-overview-2101f6e8bd27?source=---------4------------------)). + +In the process of archiving old emails and files to S3 (itself a nice hack — [see here](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-save-gsuite-and-gmail-storage-space-by-archiving-old-emails-and-files-to-aws-s3-e562dacc99ac?source=---------37------------------)) I decided that I may as well make sure that my expenses for this and last year are ready for my accountant when it’s time to do my tax return in a few months. Because trying to fish through a year’s worth of receipts and invoices on a 24 hour deadline is never any fun. (And yes, these are the kind of fun activities the self-employed get up to when work lets off for a day). + +Thankfully, having at least your fixed bills nicely organized in Gmail makes that process _much_ easier. + +The following utilities _are_ Israel-specific but you can use this same workflow to organize and archive your utility bills wherever you are in the world — whether, like mine, they are partially tax-deductible and you need them for your business or whether you just like keeping your data well-organized on the cloud. + +Here’s the system I’ve been using for years. + +### Opt In To Digital Invoices For Every Service That You Use + +First things first, you want to make sure that you’re signed up for digital invoices for absolutely every service that offers it. + +If you’re using a [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83) account with just one address —[ and you’ve set that up as a catchall](https://support.google.com/a/answer/2685650?hl=en) — then you can be even more clever and register all bills to send to: bills@yourdomain.com. + +If you’re just on regular Gmail [then you can use this little known hack](https://www.idownloadblog.com/2018/12/19/gmail-email-address-tricks/) to create an additional “address” for filtering purposes. Simply append the plus sign and some text to your email. So you can create: + +myaddress+bills@gmail.com + +Then you can create a filter like this with the “from” field as a wildcard. + +Replace the “to” field with either your spoofed Gmail address as above or the bills@ address that will route through the catchall system: + +And automatically forward all mail to that address into your ‘bills’ label: + +The exact options for receiving bills by email varies by utility, of course. But these days most do. It also cuts down on needless paper use and is good for the planet. + +### Organize Your Utility Bills Into Sub-labels + +I kind of skipped a step ahead. + +Firstly, you’ll want to create a Gmail label for bills. + +I would put that at the root level of my Gmail: + +Next, you’ll want to populate sub-labels for every utility whose bills you receive by email. + +Mine looks like this + +### Create Gmail Filters to Automatically Route Sending Addresses Into Folders + +As soon as you begin receiving your invoices by email, you’ll need to start paying attention to the sending address that is automatically dispatching the bill as well as the subject line used in the template. This is so that you can create filters that will capture and route only those emails into the right folders. + +Of course, you _could_ simply add the whole domain with a wildcard like this: + +But by doing so you would probably end up inadvertently capturing non-billing related items such as company newsletters and correspondence with customer services. + +Instead, I look for the sending address that is specifically used to send customer invoices: + +Most bills that are automatically sent by email follow a predictable format in the subject line or body text (usually both). If you want to be even more precise you can incorporate both these and the sending address into your Gmail filter. + +Let’s look at an example. + +Above is an example of the electricity bills which I receive by email. The bill is attached as a PDF and paid by direct debit. So once a folder automatically fills itself I can just go through it once a year and pull down the PDFs and then upload them as a batch into my expenses system. _(There are far more sophisticated ways of automatically tracking expenses than this, I realize; but our choice of online banking environments and accounting programs in Israel — at least those that are compliant with the demands of the tax authorities — are limited)._ + +For this bill I would filter based upon two concurrent variables: + +**Sender:** noreplys@iec.co.il + +**Subject:** “מספר חשבון חוזה” and לתקופה + +This is the Gmail filter as I would set it up: + +The filter automatically scoops up all the emails matching this search in my inbox (billing is bi-monthly and I only signed up for e-invoices at the start of this year). + +Make sure to click the “also apply filter” box if you want to group existing messages in your inbox into your newly created folder. In the future, the rule should route the messages automatically. + +**Caveats:** + + 1. You may need to tweak your filters from time to time as the utilities change their CRM templates and/or sending address. + 2. Therefore, it’s sometimes more sensible to apply less exact filters. E.g. a wildcard sender from the company domain with “Bill”, or equivalent, in subject line. + +### Some common search strings + +I’ve been using this system for a number of years to filter and organize my incoming bills — as well as _lot_ of other communications — automatically. + +I find that bundling the capturing of these expenses into my accounting system at yearly (or twice yearly) intervals is the most effective strategy. + +Here are a couple of filters that work at the time of writing. + +If you’re also using these service providers it might save you a couple of minutes: + +### **Golan Telecom (phone service)** + +**From:** noreply@golantelecom.co.il + +**Subject:** “חשבונית גולן טלקום” (make sure to use the apostrophes to run an exact search match). + +### HaGihon (water supplier) + +**From:** hagihon@printernet.co.il + +**Subject:** חשבונית + +### Macabbi (health fund) + +**From:** do_not_reply@maccabi4u.org.il + +**Subject:** “חשבון חודשי” + +### Partner (internet) + +**From** : Thankyou@partner.net.il + +**Subject:** “אני החשבונית שלך” diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Guide-To-Buying-Goods-in-Bulk.md b/posts/medium/My-Guide-To-Buying-Goods-in-Bulk.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e4742133cac73c57eee10c5d41d6e5d2f4985a5b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Guide-To-Buying-Goods-in-Bulk.md @@ -0,0 +1,128 @@ +# My Guide To Buying Goods in Bulk + +#### How To Source And What To Buy In Order To Keep Your Pantry Stocked No Matter What + +Among the first thing that visitors remark upon when entering my apartment is: _“wow, you must be into cooking.”_ + +Okay, who I am kidding. + +It’s more like _: “wow, why do you have 25KG of rice in your home?”_ + +Let me (try to) explain. + +My pantry several years ago + +Before I go any further, I should explain a few things about my personality — because these are really the factors that underpin my whole interest in bulk food to begin with. + +Firstly, when I get into something, I tend to go all the way. + +Planning on getting good at cooking Indian food? If I’m trying to get good at cooking a cuisine, I’ll want to get _really_ good at it. Which means lots of practice. So why buy 1KG of lentils when you can buy 25KG! + +Secondly, although I would eschew the term ‘prepper’ I _do_ derive a lot of satisfaction from being well prepared + +Living in Jerusalem — where stores on Friday can close as early as 2PM — part of that, for me, means having a really well-stocked pantry. I work more Fridays than not. And when the mid afternoon munchies kick in, it’s always handy to have some rice and tuna on hand to whip up a quick meal. + +I also nothing more than unnecessary interruptions, particularly when I’m in a productive flow state. + +Managing my time as a freelancer is a work in progress. But one of the first things I got good at was cutting out unnecessary midday excursions — such as nipping down to the store to buy a (small, non-industrial-sized) container of coffee. + +Let me put it this way. If you have 20KG of coffee beans sitting at home you just don’t run out of coffee all that often. Once a year you just place another bulk order, ideally well before the previous massive container runs its course. Of course, if you work at home, leaving the home is necessary and healthy — I’m not suggesting that you don’t. But I still like to have all my foodstuff ready and organized. + +The final reason for my interest in buying unnecessarily massive quantities of food is a childhood visit to a food wholesaler which has stuck in my mind ever since. + +My mom, a small business owner, had dragged me along while she bought alcohol for an office party. But all I can remember is the bag of oatmeal about as tall as I was that looked like a vat of cement and the gigantic caterers’ pale-sized tubs of ketchup and mayonnaise. So cool! + +Ironically (because I think this is what people assume) saving money is actually the last thing on my mind when I buy bulk. I’ve run the numbers and, where I’m based at least, it doesn’t tend to work out substantially cheaper. But for me the convenience — and the time saved in rarely having to restock pantry essentials — makes it all worthwhile. + +Here are some of the things I’ve bought and — roughly — how to get them. + +### Food Suppliers Are Your Friend + +10KG of coffee, which I recently gave away to garden enthusiasts + +The first thing to know about getting your hands on bulk goods is really that there are no rules. + +But if there were one it’s this: **try to get on friendly terms with a food wholesaler and convince them to sell to you — even if you’re a non-business and they’re trade only.** + +Secondly, you need to know that each commodity tends to exist on the wholesale market in certain quantities. + +Take coffee, for instance. + +There aren’t too many crazies out there like me looking to get their hands on a two-year 10KG supply of ground coffee (photo above). + +But there _are_ plenty of coffee roasteries who will buy 25KG and 50KG burlap sacks of green (raw) coffee beans for roasting on-site. + +Did you know that coffee originated in Ethiopia, that Ethiopians love to roast their own coffee at home, and that their coffee is … utterly fantastic? + +Being a lover of Ethipian food and having had several coffee conversations with Ethiopians, I can confirm that these things are all true. So if I were trying to source a bulk quantity of coffee beans I’d probably ask my local Ethiopian ethnic store if they could sell me 25KG. If not, I’d ask them who their supplier is and talk to them (assuming they’d be willing to tell me). You have to use your head here: who wants large quantities of this? And where do they probably get it from? + +More often than not, you will find that food wholesalers (the places that supply restaurants and caterers with raw ingredients) will not exactly be chasing down your business. In fact, you’ll often encounter hostility or people that laugh down the phone at you after they find that you want to buy 10KG of lentils and no, you don’t run a restaurant. + +There are a few reasons for this: + + * People can be mean + * Compared to what trade establishments are ordering, your order is very small fry. _Very_ small fry. + * Many food wholesalers have minimum order quantities (MOQs). You’re unlikely to meet them + * Most will sell to registered businesses only. If you’re not a registered business many will not sell to you + * Delivering small quantities doesn’t make sense for them logistically + +That being said: + + * **Google is your friend.** Also, policies change and can be flexible. By contacting 15 bakery supply places near me with a form email, I managed to find one that _would_ sell straight to consumers. My wife, who is an avid baker, now buys a 25KG bag of flour from them once every few months along with smaller quantities of specialty flours. I recommended them on Facebook in a foodies’ group so I hope they got a few more private orders. I guess my hobbies must be contagious! Try searching for “food wholesaler + [your location” or just search for what you’re looking for “25kg chickpeas” + * **You’ll often find that random consumer stores will be happy to use their supplier-buying privileges for a small markup.** Try find a small family-owned place that is open to being flexible about they have to do business. This is how I’ve managed to find a source near me for 25KG of just about any dried goods that exist under the sun. Finding him just took knocking on a few doors in the right part of town. I also previously found a friendly health food store owner who would source me 5KG of dried hibiscus flowers straight from the supplier (what can I tell you, I have diverse interests). + * **Ethnic stores are also great for this.** Immigrants know how to economize. Many come from food cultures where bulk buying for large families is the norm. Asian stores, for instance, will typically carry rice in up to 25KG containers (5KG and 10KG are also common sizes). If a grain is popular with a culture and there’s an immigrant community and ethnic stores where you live, see if they have or can get what you’re looking for. You may need to put aside all political correctness in the aim of finding your best source. But in my experience, ethnic stores are some of the friendliest places you can shop. + +### The World of Bulk Goods Awaits + +Left to right: 25KG of white rice, red lentils, and bread flour. All sourced locally. Photo: author. + +Before you get too excited about the prospect of lugging 25KG sacks of grains into your apartments, there are a few caveats: + + * **Weevils are your arch-enemy:** Here’s where things get a bit disgusting. Weevils are a type of beetle that can infest many grains. As a non-entomologist I don’t have all the details —[ but thankfully Wikipedia does!](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheat_weevil) **Your best bet is to freeze all bulk goods for 24 hours after purchase.** But, if you’re buying in bulk, that might not be practicable. But if it in any way is do it and thank me later. If you can’t pre-freeze, just seal your grains as well as you possibly can. Be vigilant. If you see even one weevil, I would toss the whole thing out. + * **You’ll need somewhere to store thing:** I’ve devised quite an elaborate system for how I get through these grains. I have a jar that holds roughly 5KG of rice and I use this to fill up a smaller rice jar which I keep by the stoves. Periodically the burlap sack is repurchased. And then the distribution cycle resumes. Do what works for you. + +### Here’s What You Can Find + +#### Green Coffee + +If you’re buying coffee in bulk for personal consumption, then whole green (raw, unroasted) coffee is the obvious choice. It’s pretty shelf-stable. The downside is that you’ll have to roast it yourself. Which is an upside if you’d like to learn home roasting. + +This one can be a little tricky to find. But try to find a friendly wholesaler that supplies cafés and roasteries. + +If you’re not finnicky about how fresh your coffee is and are unashamedly just in it for the caffeine (it takes one to know one), then you can skip ahead and buy a large cache of roasted beans. Hopefully you’ll be so buzzed that you won’t care how stale the coffee is! + +#### Beans and Grains + +Just about any bean and grain you can imagine is available in bulk quantities, although some will be easier to find than others depending on where you live. + +As a rule of thumb, it’s easy to find up to 1–2KG of most things as a consumer (rice being the exception). But if you want to land some 25KG or 50KG sachets it’s time to play with the big boys — the food wholesalers. + +With relative ease, and working through food wholesalers, you should be able to find 10KG to 25KG packets of all of the following: + + * Chickpeas + * Lentils (green and red) + * Wheat + +The more obscure an ingredient is — say, rice flour — the smaller the product size you will be able to procure. And, probably, the lower the economies of scale. + +If you want to show off your interest in bulk buying, then the burlap sacks these often come in make interesting collector pieces. + +If you’re buying in restaurant quantities, or buying loose in the same quantities, then you’ll almost certainly want the use of a car to take the goods home. + +#### Flour + +If you’re a busy home baker, then you might be surprised at how quickly you can make it through a 25KG bag of flour. + +Bulk flour is often found most easily through wholesalers that supply baking shops. In fact, these often have entire catalogs of common and obscure flours. If you’re a baker and can find one that will sell to you — you’re in luck! + +### Bulk Goods Are Great + +I have to admit that I find something mesmerizing about large quantities of dried goods. There’s something primordial about it all. + +After all, agriculture, and food storage, is what took us from being a hunter gather society into a settled one. + +The Bible recounts tales of Joseph wisely choosing to store grain in silos during bountiful years in Ancient Egypt in order to sustain the people during times of famine and hardship. + +Ultimately, those massive 25KG and 50KG sacks is how most of our dried goods make it to consumers. We’re just used to seeing it in tidier, and lighter, formats. + +Happy buying, happy (weevil-free!) storing, and happy eating! diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Guides-To-Finding-Clients-and-Pricing-Freelance-Writing-Work.md b/posts/medium/My-Guides-To-Finding-Clients-and-Pricing-Freelance-Writing-Work.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c9bf0e7b330eb06ef2b96afb4d11f07290d6b5d8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Guides-To-Finding-Clients-and-Pricing-Freelance-Writing-Work.md @@ -0,0 +1,88 @@ +# My Guides To Finding Clients and Pricing Freelance Writing Work + +My workstation, before a slight revamp + +To continue with the [process of indexing](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/an-index-to-my-medium-writing-so-far-1-daf2512f6624) I initiated yesterday, here’s a quick summary (and roadmap) of some pieces of information I have conveyed to date about how to make the freelance writing racket for you (sorry to fall back on that lame joke but I couldn’t resist). + +Disclosure: I don’t pretend to have all the answers about freelancing — or even anything remotely close to that — but the follow posts (from Medium and a couple of third-party websites) should reflect a good run-through of the information I have gleaned to date about how to make this line of business work. I’m still learning a lot of the detail about making freelancing work (and there’s a _lot_ of hard work in the detail). But these are the foundations that I feel confident enough in to be able to pass on. + +I present it here for my own possible reference — or for yours. + +### How To Set Your Prices + +Setting a viable rate for your work is arguably the hardest part of the job — particularly given that many writers’ way with words is not matched by comparable powers in numeracy. I know that figuring out the nuts and bolts of how to make freelance writing work from a business perspective has been far more of a struggle for me than even the most challenging writing project. + +In _‘_[ _Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project?_](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a)_And How Much Of Each?’_ I gave the best overview that I possibly could of the pros and cons of pricing per hour, per job, and per project. + +It’s all explained there. And wrapped up in [this infographic.](https://miro.medium.com/max/875/1*uFXagjdXSh7D2db1jjm46A.jpeg) + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +To cut to the chase of that post (although I still recommend reading it in full if you’d like to think about the various options you could play around with): **I recommend building quotes around an estimated time expenditure and at your hourly rate**. To clarify, that means offering people flat / project rates. But they are built, on your side, based on your hourly (to understand why I think this is advantageous, read the post!). + +Figuring out what hourly you need to charge in order to make those numbers work is another inexact science. But [‘How To Set An Hourly Freelance Rate’](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf) is my guide to doing just that. + +[**How to Set An Hourly Freelance Rate** + _Two months ago, I provided some guidelines for tackling one of the most difficult aspects of working as a freelance…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf) + +### How To Prospect For Work (Outbound Marketing and Sales) + +A mixture of inbound and outbound methods is optimal in order to achieve as much success as possible when freelancing. Frankly, although mostly for lack of time, my inbound game has sucked more or less since I started doing this — although I _do_ have good experience with using outbound methodologies, such as cold emailing, to lure in new accounts. + +However: if I could turn back the clock and recapture time wasted on executing my outbound marketing poorly then **I would spend a lot more time qualifying leads and a lot less time simply entering every company I was excited about into a sales funnel** (and if you’re keen on the idea of automating that, then I’ve had good experience using [Klenty](http://klenty.com))**.** That means quite a lot of digging around the internet (due diligence sounds fancier) and being realistic about whether your prospect is mature enough to be able to afford you. It means taking a much more nuanced approach to email and casting a smaller — but much more engaged — net in your search. + +If you’re looking for some ideas to help guide that process, I recently put together a set of questions I think you should ask yourself before initiating any major outbound campaign for Micro Biz Mag, a UK-based publication for small businesses. It’s here: + +[**Client Prospecting Tips - 5 Questions to Ask About Your Prospects** + _"Asking smarter questions can help you run a leaner sales funnel." That's the advice of freelance copywriter, Daniel…_ www.microbizmag.co.uk](https://www.microbizmag.co.uk/client-prospecting-tips// "https://www.microbizmag.co.uk/client-prospecting-tips//")[](https://www.microbizmag.co.uk/client-prospecting-tips//) + +If, on the other hand, you want a more cut and dried step-by-step investigative process for those prospects that you’re _really_ serious about, then check out my piece about [Basic Due Diligence for Freelancers](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0). It goes through everything from trying to estimate the company’s human resource turnover on LinkedIn to paying for their financial reports (in the unlikely even that you are sufficiently motivated). + +[**Know Your Freelance Client (KYFC): Basic Due Diligence For Freelancers** + _If you started the new year on a quest to scale up your freelance business, then you’re probably on a business…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/know-your-freelance-client-kyfc-basic-due-diligence-for-freelancers-1b439589af0) + +Part of prospecting — a big part I would argue — is knowing how to spot bad leads and put them into your ‘disqualified’ bucket. I was a little bit reluctant to write this particular post mostly because I didn’t want to come across as an aggressive client-shamer. + +However, my experience in this game teaches me that unless you know how to spot those looking to push you into bad deals … you are going to be walked all over more than a doormat on a rainy day. This guide offers five red flags — and very much my slant on them — that I think that any potential freelancer should become well-acquainted with. + +[**5 Red Flags to Help Avoid ‘Difficult’ Freelancing Clients** + _I recently wrote about my deliberate decision to be less responsive — about how taking slightly longer to get back to…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d) + +If you’re looking to grow your business and work with medium to large companies, then don’t forget to ask your point of contact if anybody else in the company might wish to avail themselves of your services. I call this playing the internal referral game and describe how to do that here. + +[**Internal Referrals — An Under-Tapped Way To Grow Your Freelance Business** + _What’s the best way to build your freelance or consulting business?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579) + +### Ergonomics + +Finally, don’t forget to pay attention to ergonomics. + +As a freelancer, you will be spending a scary amount of time at a desk typing furiously into a keyboard. People forget to do things like buy decent office chairs (or work from an ergonomic computer.) And because of the aforementioned long hours that freelancing often entails, the negative effects can accumulate quickly. + +Here’s my guide to making your home office a productivity haven for Hi5: + +[**How to Make Your Home Office a Productivity Haven** + _Working from home can be an oddly exhilarating experience._ medium.com](https://medium.com/getting-better-together/how-to-make-your-home-office-a-productivity-haven-4ea8ab2e8b46 "https://medium.com/getting-better-together/how-to-make-your-home-office-a-productivity-haven-4ea8ab2e8b46")[](https://medium.com/getting-better-together/how-to-make-your-home-office-a-productivity-haven-4ea8ab2e8b46) + +Being a huge fan of backups and ensuring business continuity (yes, I’m also something of a prepper) I also advocate putting a couple of steps in place to make sure that your home office can stay operational during adverse weather conditions. Backups (or UPSs — like small reserve power supplies for desktops) are something that I can only imagine not too many freelancers take seriously. However, they add a certain level of robustness to your business. For many freelancers, loosing a laptop full of files (assuming they are not synced to the cloud) could be nothing short of catastrophic. Thankfully, there’s no need to ever risk that. Figure out a backup strategy that works for you, use it, and — to be extra diligent — do a test restore periodically to make sure that it actually works. + +[**How to (sort of) disaster-proof your home office** + _Picture the scenario:_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-sort-of-disaster-proof-your-home-office-5ed5c48095e6 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-sort-of-disaster-proof-your-home-office-5ed5c48095e6")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-sort-of-disaster-proof-your-home-office-5ed5c48095e6) + +### Technology + +Finally, you’ll want to make sure that you have some good technology at your disposal with which to conquer the world of clients waiting to hear from you. + +You know, stuff like a CRM to make keeping in touch with your prospects delightfully easy and an accounting platform to make it easier to try to get paid. + +Recently, I wrote a book (yes, a book!) on this subject. + +#It’s called _The Confused Freelancer’s Guide to Technology_. And it’s available on Amazon.com in e-book and paperback format. + +[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B089N9L5S4?pf_rd_r=1EJ2RZQ6E5CNR2S4S1EM&pf_rd_p=6fc81c8c-2a38-41c6-a68a-f78c79e7253f](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B089N9L5S4?pf_rd_r=1EJ2RZQ6E5CNR2S4S1EM&pf_rd_p=6fc81c8c-2a38-41c6-a68a-f78c79e7253f) + +### Questions? + +If you’re a freelance writing rookie and have a question about how to get started in the game, then I’d be happy to try to help. I can be reached at the email below. + diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Home-Office-And-YouTube-Studio-All-In-One-Home-Workspace-Tour.md b/posts/medium/My-Home-Office-And-YouTube-Studio-All-In-One-Home-Workspace-Tour.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4071a26942fde309b6dc4db11f74c150ddaea3d7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Home-Office-And-YouTube-Studio-All-In-One-Home-Workspace-Tour.md @@ -0,0 +1,351 @@ +# My Home Office And YouTube Studio All-In-One Home Workspace Tour + +#### Storage, lighting, speakers, and backup internet and power. This is the home office I do most of my writing and thinking in. + +When there’s a pandemic going on in the world and you work for yourself anyway there’s … a lot of time to think about home office improvements. + +My workstation in my home office. Photo: author. + +I take pride in my home office and making it better iteration by iteration — although given that I rent, it’s a space that’s still awaiting its final destination (and as soon as that happens. Well, let’s just say I have a laundry list ready to work on.) + +There are also a few features that I think every work-from-home should consider having. I call these the technical prepper’s home office essentials. + +[**The 5 Must-Haves In Every Prepper’s Home Office** + _Steps to take before the lights go out and the internet goes down ….during your next client Zoom call_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-5-must-haves-in-every-preppers-home-office-102fa27a64be "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-5-must-haves-in-every-preppers-home-office-102fa27a64be")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-5-must-haves-in-every-preppers-home-office-102fa27a64be) + +Here’s what I have going, component by component. + +### An Office Door Sign + +Yes, I really bought one of these things from Amazon. + +An employees only door sign from Amazon. Photo: author. + +A lot of work-from-homers–particularly the pandemic newbies — report difficulty in coming to grips with the idea that their home and workspace are no longer separated. + +If possible, having a dedicated room for your home office makes a world of difference. Admittedly, this … typically involves paying more in rent. But on the flip side, you’re able to save on renting dedicated office space. + +Ultimately, I would _love_ to have an office space out of the house to call my own. But I’m also a big fan of _private offices_. Yup, I’m a contrarian all the way through and open plan WeWorks just don’t do it for me. I use them as meeting spaces. But when I need to get serious work done — a large part of what I do is writing — a door is an essential focus mechanism. + +The home office doubles as a guest bedroom. It’s a square cube of about 3 x 3 meters. But it’s … a space to work in that’s my own. + +(Note: for the _first time ever_ I’m including Amazon Affiliate links here. The recommendations are impartial — it’s the stuff I have in my own home workspace). + +**— “Employee only” door sign.**[**Available from Amazon.com.**](https://amzn.to/2YfmHIj) + +### A Doorbell. Or A Home Intercom. + +Focus time is good but it’s also nice to provide other humans with a means of catching your attention. + +A cheap office bell can never go astray either. Photo: author. + +Another nice addition you can use: [a home intercom system.](https://amzn.to/3a4kHoP) + +**—**[**Home intercom from Amazon.com**](https://amzn.to/3a4kHoP) + +### A Custom Desk, A Custom Computer Running Ubuntu, And A 3 x LCD Monitor Array + +My current desk setup. The desk was custom cut wood that I finished myself. Photo: author. + +I’ve been working with a three screen array for about five years now. + +Do you need three screens? + +No. I find two almost just as useful. + +But I find two having infinitely better than only one. + +I’m firmly entrenched in the desktop computer camp. My current model is a custom build running Ubuntu Linux 20.04 LTS, although it’s reaching the point in time at which the next upgrade will probably involve swapping out the whole machine and not just one of its components. + +Another great addition: a custom cut whole wood table that uses almost all the available horizontal space in the room. + +This was more necessity than upgrade: monitor arrays can place a lot of weight on the table and result in bowing where they are mounted (mine’s a C-clamp that runs around the back of the table). + +I bought my whole wood table from a local DIY store for about the same price as an MDF table cost in my local IKEA. Finishing it was my first ever woodworking project. If you have a wood workshop or scrapyard in your area, you can get something infinitely more solid than IKEA (although IKEA aficionados will notice that my setup is now a hybrid!) + +Suggested purchases: + +**— Mount It! Three screen monitor mount.**[**Available from Amazon.com**](https://amzn.to/3lc9U2y)**.** + +**— 200 x 60 cm wood table from a local woodworking store.** + +**— Computer and components from local technology store.** + +### The IVAR Modular Shelving System. And Lots And Lots Of Glas Boxes. + +I own … quite a bit of tech gear. + +Cables. Adapters. Microphones. Mixers. + +The collection has kind of sprawled over the years. + +Lots of sprawling tech gears means … you need somewhere to put it. + +The apartment that my wife and I live in in Jerusalem is — as is typical in this city — relatively small. However it’s redeeming factor, from a storage perspective, is tall ceilings. + +To take advantage of those, I picked up the IVAR modular shelving unit in IKEA. Every time I’m there — or whenever I run out of space — I pick up a couple more shelves.I have another vertical trellis cable-tied for when I have somewhere to build out to. For now, the room is pretty much full up. + +The eagle-eyed IKEA fans on the (unofficial) IKEA subreddit (/r/IKEA) tell me that the Glas boxes I bought in bulk have sadly been discontinued. They’ve been replaced by UPPSNOFSAD. These storage bins are cheap but when you buy a lot of them .. can really stock a lot of gear. + +I also have two Hyllis storage units joined vertically using an IKEA hack on the other side of the room. + +[**Double Up the Hyllis - IKEA Hackers** + _Materials: 2 Hyllis shelving units, a good screwdriverDescription: The Hyllis is a nice piece of furniture to begin…_ ikeahackers.net](https://ikeahackers.net/2010/08/double-up-the-hyllis.html "https://ikeahackers.net/2010/08/double-up-the-hyllis.html")[](https://ikeahackers.net/2010/08/double-up-the-hyllis.html) + +My workstation and storage system. A bit crowded but it gets the job done. Photo: author.The Ubuntu 20.04 LTS (Focal Fossa) lock screen wallpaper. Photo: author.The IKEA IVAR is a terrific shelving system, although the cost of adding the shelves has really added up. My local IKEA has ranked as one of the most expensive in the world, which is in exactly zero ways surprising. Photo: author.My home office typically has at least one random box of microphones / accessories / cables lying around it. It’s part of the atmosphere. Photo: author.The double up on the Hyllis IKEA hack. Most Hyllis’s are pre-drilled for this but if not you can use a metal drill bit to drill through. Do this outside with proper ventilation, eye-wear, and ventilation protection. Photo: author. + +Above: ‘Double Up The Hyllis’ IKEA hack. A cheap storage system perfect for small spaces with generous ceilings. + + + +What I’m using: + +**— IVAR shelving system.**[**Available from IKEA.**](https://www.ikea.com/us/en/cat/all-parts-11705/) + +**— IVAR pine shelving unit inserts, 17" x 12".**[**Available from IKEA.**](https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/ivar-shelf-pine-10318159/) + +**— UPPSNOFSAD boxes.**[**Available from IKEA.**](https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/uppsnofsad-storage-box-black-50444783/) + +### Digital Prepper Essential 1: An Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) For The Desktop And Screens, With Extensions And Splitters To Provide Extra Power For Lighting And Accessories During Electricity Outages + +Uninterruptible power supplies provide some passive power conditioning and also act as a power reservoir in the event of an electricity outage. + +If you use a desktop computer, these are great investments irrespective of whether your power frequently goes out. + +A UPS: a must-have for a home desktop user. I use a relatively small Eaton unit. We have a relatively high number of power outages during your average winter. Keeping the networking gear on the UPS also prevents the network going down due to momentary power losses. Photo: author. + +I’m squeezing the most out of this UPS by using several adapters: + +— **C14-to-C13 cable runs** to bring one fork of the power supply to the networking equipment on the other side of the home office alongside a conventional power extender. [(Available from Amazon.com)](https://amzn.to/3la17Oz) + +– **An IEC-C14 to universal power adapter** to run a power plug off one of the UPS forks [(Available from Amazon.com)](https://amzn.to/3ixX6lc) + +— **C14 1-to-4 male to female splitter** to run the power outputs for the 3 monitors. [(Available from Amazon.com)](https://www.amazon.com/Eonvic-4XC13-female-splitter-power/dp/B07PP1VCFW/ref=sr_1_18?dchild=1&keywords=c14+splitter&qid=1633397268&sr=8-18) + +Using these adapters, the computer, 3 screens, and networking equipment are on a UPS (it would be more ideal to use two; next upgrade!). And I also have a plug that I can stick a light into in the event of a power outage. + +Use an online speccing tool to ensure that the UPS you buy has a large enough reserve for the equipment you have on it. A [1,000 VA Eaton UPS](https://amzn.to/3DfoOLh) should be generous for most home users’ needs. + +Recommendation: think liberally about everything you might need during a power outage, including lighting. Find low-draw appliances. And wire them into the largest UPS you can afford. + +And for the (fellow) preppers: glow in the dark tape. Affix it to the UPS’s backup power outlets to find your way to connectivity even if and when the lights go out. + +[**— Glow in The Dark Tape — 15 Ft x 0.5 Inch — Bright, Rechargeable, & Long-Lasting Fluorescent Tape**](http://Glow%20in%20The%20Dark%20Tape%20—15%20Ft%20x%200.5%20Inch%20—%20Bright,%20Rechargeable,%20&%20Long-Lasting%20Fluorescent%20Tape)**(Available From Amazon.com)** + +### Digital Prepper Essential 2: Redundant ISP And Cellular (4G) Connectivity Sources With A Load Balancing Router To Make The Magic/Failover Work + +If you’re working from home, your internet connection is your conduit to the world. + +Where I’m based, data only cellular plans are widely available and affordable. I use mine for a variety of purposes: + + * The main internet running through the house is provided by load-balancing the ISP and cellular routers through a load balancing router. A WiFi router running in access point (AP) mode provides wireless connectivity that takes advantage of the automatic ISP-to-cellular failover. + * I use ethernet runs to hard-wire both routers into my desktop computer and Speedify to bond the connections for enhanced speed and seamless failover. + +A dual router setup minus the load balancer. Photo: author. + +All my home networking tweaks this summer have been documented here: + +[**How To Set Up A Home Internet Connection That Almost Never Goes Down** + _If you’re struggling with home internet connectivity, there are some cool solutions out there. This may save you a few…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b) + +Suggested purchases: + +[**— TP-Link Multi-WAN Wired VPN Router (Available From Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3Fg1XkF) + +[**— 4G VPN Router, Industrial Dual Sim 4G LTE WiFi Router (Available From Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3adquZf) + +**—**[**Speedify**](http://www.speedify.com)**, connection-bonding VPN (subscription)** + +Flat ethernet cabling is a controversial subject within the home networking community. Some claim that it doesn’t have proper crossed wires although most specs I’ve read suggest that they do. + +As a renter, it’s often my only option for ethernet runs (I run one from this office to the a switch which has my NAS and the router serving as an AP on it). + +Also, I apparently have less strong feelings on the cut-throat round vs. flat ethernet cabling debate than many home networkers. + +[Here’s a cabling option.](https://amzn.to/3Bc2wtv) + +#### **Explainer: Load balancing vs. failover vs. channel bonding** + + + +### Lots And Lots Of Cuttable Velcro, Cable Clamps, And Wire Organizers To (Try To) Keep Wires Tidy + +There was my life before the discovery of cuttable velcro roles and there will be my life after it. + +Cable management is really useful to reduce the visual clutter of your gear. I’m slowly getting better at it. + +I picked up [a few spools of cuttable velcro](https://amzn.to/3mtpZ3j) and got to work on all the wires in the room to make sure that everything was reasonably tidy. + +Velcro cable ties are terrific for keeping your wire management under control. + +Because we rent, I want to use solutions that won’t peel paint off the property. I use 3M-backed wire clamps to keep the ethernet wires tidy while they’re running aboard the skirting board. + +Clip on cable clamps with 3M backing are great for keeping ethernet runs off the ground and, for renters like me, can be easily taken up without having to remove nails from the wall. Photo: author.Some desk-mounted wire management for USB extensions. Photo: author. + +Suggested purchases: + +**— Cuttable velcro and velcro cable ties.**[**(Available from Amazon).**](https://amzn.to/3mtpZ3j) + +[**– Cable clip cable organizers, 50pcs (Available from Amazon).**](https://amzn.to/3l8umRG) + +### Monitor Speakers And Headphones For Audio And Video Editing + +For the past year, I’ve been slowly getting into YouTube-ing and video production. + +Besides, listening to music over headphones all day gets boring. Sometimes you have to do what you have to do. + +Both studio speakers and studio headphones are extremely useful for video and audio editing. They replicate the sound you’re editing as accurately as possible. + +These are the first pair of halfway-decent speakers that I’ve ever owned in my life. Because I didn’t know much about what I was looking for, I turned to the good people at [/r/BudgetAudiophile](http://reddit.com/r/budgetaudiophile). I’m _extremely_ happy with them. + +The over ear studio monitors are the [Audio Technica ATH-M20Xs](https://amzn.to/3la33Xl). Also a pleasure to listen to. + +My studio headphones and speakers. Photo: author. + +What I’m using: + +[**— PreSonus Eris E3.5–3.5" Near Field Studio Monitor (Pair) (E3.5) (Available From Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3itVB7p) + +[**— Audio-Technica ATH-M20X Professional Studio Monitor Headphones, Black (Available From Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3a8IvrG) + +### RGB Spot Lighting Clamped Onto The Shelving Unit — And Magnetized Into It + +My home office could possibly be described as a workspace that also functions as a guest bedroom and a YouTube production studio. It’s a busy place. + +But because it’s also a fundamentally small space, I had to get creative about where to mount lighting for the videos. + +Mostly, I use a small LCD lighting panel that I telescope upwards using the [Ulanzi MT-34 Multi-Function Tripod](https://amzn.to/3DdhYGo) — one of the most useful pieces of mounting gear I’ve ever purchased. I use a clip mount to affix it one of the shelves (there’s a quarter inch thread on the top of it). + +When I can muster up the energy to do so, I have a stronger panel light that I keep on a webcam scissor unit. I try to keep my desk as free from clutter as possible, so I put these away when I’m not using one. A typical setup is one for the fill light and another for the webcam. + +Because I couldn’t think of a better place to put this RGB spot light in, I bought a clip on clamp and attached it one of my shelves. It ended up being a great place. To try to keep the shelves looking neat, I used cuttable velcro ties to hide the wire running down the side of it. Photo: author.Rear facing RGB lighting in operation. I use a couple of Ulanzi VL49s. Photo: author. Unintentionally, the lighting setting here ended up color-coordinating with my screensavers. + +These are the [MT-34s](https://amzn.to/3DdhYGo) set up on my desk.This would be a pretty typical recording setup for YouTube vlogging. + +Two [Ulanzi MT-34s](https://amzn.to/2YhEe2y) with a webcam (Logitech C920C) and lighting. Photo: author.A LCD lighting panel on top of a [Ulanzi MT-34](https://amzn.to/2YhEe2y) telescoping tripod. Photo: author. + +The [MT-34](https://amzn.to/3DdhYGo) has a surprisingly decent telescopic length. And I can position one behind one of the screens and inflex it downwards (there’s a ball bearing on the top of it). + +A fill light on top of the [Ulanzi MT-34](https://amzn.to/2YhEe2y) multi functional telescope.The [MT-34](https://amzn.to/2YhEe2y) can telescope up to a sufficient height that it can crown over a monitor screen to provide fill lighting for a vlog. Photo: author. + +Recently, I’ve been trying to improve the background lighting in my videos. The Hyllis shelf ends up looking a bit dull. I decided to buy a couple of RGB lighting bars. + +Because the Hyllis is made of steel, if you can find ones with magnetic backing, you can affix and move them about very easily. + +I use a couple of USB-powered RGB lighting strips with metal backings that magnetize to the metal surface of the double Hyllis hack. You could really go to town with this if you bought enough USB lights! Photo: author.The office at night. Photo: author.A moodier “all nighter” setup with the screens turned off. Photo: author. + +I also have a floor-based mount stand for whenever I need to record audio. And a tripod for video. + +A microphone stand I use when recording audio or podcasts. Photo: author. + +Suggested purchases: + +#### Hardware: + +[**Logitech C920E 1080P business webcam (Available from Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3oyTy68) + +#### Gripping: + +[**QYXINC 3Pack Super Clamp (Available from Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3oDoRwJ) + +#### Lighting: + +[**LAIFUNI Dimmable Under Cabinet Lighting, RGB LED Light Bar (Available From Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3moD9hP) + +[**Ulanzi VL49 RGB Video Light (Available from Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3uE1nse) + +[**Neewer 2-Pack Dimmable 5600K USB LED Video Light (Available from Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3DdjTe4) + +### Some Random Tech Accessories I’m Waiting To Try Out + +This summer, I picked up quite a few video accessories. My plan is to really focus on this during the winter. I’m hoping that it’s going to be a great creative outlet. + +Some of the tech products that are on my “to test list. Photo: author. + +The [Comica TraxShot](https://amzn.to/3ouwDZH) is an _extremely interesting_ microphone concept that I’m extremely excited about trying out. In fact, it’s one of very few transformational microphones on the market (you can swivel the microphones in different directions). + +[**— Comica Traxshot Super Cardioid Microphone Transformable All-in-One Shotgun Microphone for Camera iPhone Smartphone (Available From Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3ouwDZH) + +### A Compact HP Laser Printer And A Few Folders + +I try to digitize as much as possible. + +I have an IP network scanner in another room which I use for that purpose and would love to own one of those portable scanning wands (what can I say — I triage my purchases!) + +A compact laser printer can save space while also giving you printing capabilities. Photo: author. + +Nevertheless, there are some things that have to be printed on paper. Because it’s a small workspace, I use the HP M15W which is a compact laser printer. It works great. + +[**— HP LaserJet Pro M15w Wireless Laser Printer, Works with Alexa (Available From Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3ozmKdg) + +### A Noise Pollution Survival Kit + +For as long as I can remember, I’ve been sensitive to sound. + +Perhaps sensitivity is the wrong word. + +Noise pollution _really_ grates on my nerves. Unfortunately, it feels like I’ve lived in close proximity to a building site for more years then not over the past 5 years. + +The noise pollution survival kit in all its sanity-saving glory. Photo: author. + +The solution(s): + + * A [white noise generator for sound masking](https://amzn.to/3FgJpAQ). I’ve been using the LectroFan to good effect for many years now. + * Earplugs. To say I have a collection would be an enormous understatement. + +I introduced a globetrotting CEO friend to this appliance who formerly _packed a fan_(as in an actual fan) for it white noise producing qualities. There is a better way. This is that way. + +(The combination of noise masking _and_ passive noise isolation, which is basically what earplugs do, can be really effective). + +As you may have guessed, I’m a big fan of online shopping. If I had to make a list of the top 5 things I’ve ever purchased from the internet, the [LectroFan](https://amzn.to/3FgJpAQ) would likely be on it. + +[**— Adaptive Sound Technologies LectroFan Premium White Noise Sound Machine (Available From Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3FgJpAQ) + +### A Handheld Label Printer + +[Label printers](https://amzn.to/3a9b2xk) are extremely useful and this would probably be on my list too. + +Currently on my wish list: a heat shrink-wrap printer for labelling ethernet cabelling. This I use for just about everything else. You can sometimes find me roving the house in the early hours of the morning sticking labels on plug adapters. + +My Dymo Label Manager 160 label printer. Photo: author.I attempted to create a sort of stock management system although mostly random things are stored in random boxes! Photo: author. + +[**— DYMO Label Maker LabelManager 160 (Available From Amazon.com)**](https://amzn.to/3a9b2xk) + +### A Stuffed Animal Clutching A Beer + +Don’t tell me that there’s an age limit on stuffed animal ownership — particularly when they’re holding a beer. + +When half your clients are overdue on their invoices and you’re too exhausted to remember what the other half are even called …he’s there. No food (or beer) required. + +Every home office could be livened up by a sloth stuffed toy clutching onto a bottle of beer. I wrestled it from his grasp after finishing this post. Photo: author. + +### Forthcoming Upgrades + +I’ve finally gotten the hang of budgeting. But it’s still nice to dream. + +My plans for V 1.2 include: + + * A motorized remote tripod system + * Acoustic paneling + * A surround sound system + +### Things This Workspace Has That Your Average Startup Space Doesn’t + +I _love_ remote working. And I absolutely love working in this space. + +Hybrid working is fine. But if you can structure your way in a day that gives you plenty of reasons to get out of the house and meet people — like shooting YouTube videos — I think that fully remote can be great too. + +If you got to the sound sensitivity part, you probably won’t be surprised to hear me tell you that I _hate_ open offices. Not my thing at all. I find the visual clutter and the noise pollution overwhelming. + +I’ve yet to see a workspace where I’m based that wasn’t almost entirely configured in this way. Workspaces are weird. Research has repeatedly shown that open plan offices are detrimental to concentration and productivity and yet most employees who enquired about what their workspace would look like at a company would get laughed out of the interview. + +When you see the CEO working in the bullpen, you know that all hope is lost. + +Quiet writers like me often prefer spaces like these to work from. Things I have that your average startup worker doesn’t where I live: + + * _A door_ + * _A custom built computer_ + * _Studio speakers to blast music_ + * _Lots of tech toys to play around with during the day (okay maybe that they do)._ + +Thanks for reading. diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Jerusalem-food-and-drink-recommendations-map.md b/posts/medium/My-Jerusalem-food-and-drink-recommendations-map.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..971769fd35867f1a5effbe499591e949d7c0f8c4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Jerusalem-food-and-drink-recommendations-map.md @@ -0,0 +1,16 @@ +# My Jerusalem food and drink recommendations map + +I just got back from a delightful two day pandemic expedition to Akko in Israel’s north. + +Riding on the enthusiasm for travel that that trip has given me, I put together an updated list of places I want to see in Israel. While adding pins to custom Google Maps I decided to throw together some recommendations for food and drink in Jerusalem. + +After five and a half years in the city I might perhaps be verging towards the point where I could consider myself a local. Note a few things about the recommendations: + + * **There may be what seem like glaring omissions.** Probably, these were intentional. I would boldly say that I have probably been to most kosher restaurants in the city at least once at this point. + * **This is a work in progress.** I have probably hundreds of bars and eateries to try remember and add to the list. + * **Not all recommendations are kosher** — at least to the extent that they don’t all have Rabbanut certifications. When places have tzohar certification, I have tried to note that. But in general I have avoided doing so because certifications change and I don’t want to mislead anybody about a place’s kashrut. If you’re not Jewish, you can ignore all this. + * **I like street food.** Particularly falafel. And shawarma. My gallbladder evidently didn’t share my enthusiasm for these delights but that’s for another day. + +For some more detail check out: [My Standing Jerusalem Bar and Restaurant recommendations.](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-standing-jerusalem-restaurant-and-bar-recommendations/) + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Optical-Media-Digital-Archiving-Workflow--V2-02-24-.md b/posts/medium/My-Optical-Media-Digital-Archiving-Workflow--V2-02-24-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7b43375e5606a5938b47d789afc3a44d68de8067 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Optical-Media-Digital-Archiving-Workflow--V2-02-24-.md @@ -0,0 +1,144 @@ +# My Optical Media Digital Archiving Workflow (V2 02/24) + +My onsite optical media archive (box 1!) based mostly on the M-Disc. Photo: Daniel Rosehill. + +### Should I Use M-Discs Or “regular” Blu Rays?**Target:** + +Create archival copies of my ongoing personal data pool, including (but not limited to): + +_Creative outputs like:_ + + * Originals of YouTube videos + * Photographs + * Podcast episodes + * Blogs + +Also video specific stuff like: + + * B-roll that may later be useful + * Raw shoot archives + * VFX, SFX outputs + + _Personal things like:_ + + * Documents + +### **Physical Medium:** + +I currently use a mixture of **high-quality inorganic (HTL) Blu Rays**(25GB-128GB per disc) as well as Verbatim M-Discs. + +I currently source Blu-Rays from Amazon Japan. + +I like and trust these products from Sony and Panasonic respectively: + +For lower quality media, here’s a bulk pack of Verbatim BD-R: + +### Digital Archiving — A Basic Approach + +Per the 3–2–1 rule, you’ll need to create two optical media archives at geographically independent sites. + +This is a base requirement and many people will create additional duplicates for more important data. + +My approach is based on physical periodic offsiting of physical media. More regular offsiting would be more ideal — ideally as soon after disc creation as possible. + +I store my creative outputs on a Synology NAS using a simple file structure to attempt to capture as much of the data that I care about as possible: + +### Disc Authoring Process + +**Step 1 — Download Data** + +Download data from NAS/computer/intermediate/working storage. + +**Step 2 — Generate ISO** + +Create a burning image (.iso). + +**Step 3- Generate ECC or parity data** + +Use dvdisaster to generate error correction code (ECC). I use the RS03 methodology to store ECC both on the disc being created and on an independent file system. + +Parity data can also be used for this purpose. + +**Step 4 — Burn 2 x copies** + +After generating the new image containing the ECC, author 2 x copies of the archival data. + +One copy should be retained locally. Another should be stored offsite. + +I write the disc identifier on the transparent inset of the discs and also write on the surface using a CD safe marker. Finally, I write the disc identifier on the jewel case. + +**Step 5 — Catalog media** + +Finally I catalog the media that I have created using a digital cataloging software. I use VVV primarily because I use Ubuntu Linux. For Windows users, WinCatalog adds some nice additional features: + +[**Virtual Volumes View** + _VVV uses a relational database to store its data._ www.fsoft.it](https://www.fsoft.it/VVV/ "https://www.fsoft.it/VVV/")[](https://www.fsoft.it/VVV/) + +[**GitHub - speed47/dvdisaster: A tool providing additional ECC protection for optical media…** + _A tool providing additional ECC protection for optical media (unofficial version) - GitHub - speed47/dvdisaster: A tool…_ github.com](https://github.com/speed47/dvdisaster "https://github.com/speed47/dvdisaster")[](https://github.com/speed47/dvdisaster) + +### Other Bells and Whistles You Can Add + + * **Calculate checksums** and record them in your cataloging software. + * **Disc encryption for security**. This can be complemented by physical security measures such as storing the media in physically secured locations, including vaults and safes. + +### Common FAQs + + * ** _Why not just store ‘stuff’ on the cloud?_** + +This approach is intended for people who want to create physical archives of their digital data. There are a number of reasons why some people feel uncomfortable committing important personal data to the cloud. The cloud is … simply somebody else’s computer. + + * **_But … isn’t optical media dead?_** + +Optical media’s popularity has drastically declined but it remains a relatively popular medium for data archiving thanks to the relatively longevity of the medium in cold/offline storage environments. + + * **_Why not use LTO?_** + +LTO is great for cheap archival storage. But it’s not actually a great medium for cold/offline archival. Tape can experience data rot in as little as 30 years. Many forms of optical media are rated for stability in excess of 100 years. + + * **_But … hard drives are so much cheaper!_** + +The advantage of optical media for archival use-cases is data permanence not cost savings. In cold storage environments, archival-grade optical media can be expected to outlast HDDs and SDDs by many decades. + + * **_Is it time consuming?_** + +Refining the workflow and writing about it has been far more time-consuming than the actual process of maintaining the archive (but this has been a labor of love and a source of periodic joy for me. I get a somewhat regular stream of emails from other optical media users around the world!) + +I create about 2 x 25GB BD-Rs per month. I could reduce my frequency further by using bigger discs but … I quite enjoy the monthly ritual and creating physical products from my creative efforts. Burning those two discs requires about 10 minutes of hands-on effort. + + * **_Don’t you need to store lots and lots of discs?_** + +If you’re a photographer/videographer (etc) storing relatively modest quantities of personal data …. this doesn’t require as many discs or as much room as people seem to imagine. + +It took me the bulk of 2 years to fill up half a small box…. and many of those discs were test burns. If you use the largest capacity media on the market currently (128GB BD-R) you can use even less space. + +Imagine you’re archiving episodes of your podcast and each episode is about 100Mb. You can fit more than 1,200 episodes on a single 128GB BDXL. You get the idea. + + * **_Should I Use M-Discs Or “regular” Blu Rays?_** + +People have different opinions on this, often strident ones. + +I have come around to the opinion that “regular” inorganic HTL Blu-Rays with MABL are perfectly good enough for archival use. + +I would still focus on buying media from reputable manufacturers and avoiding ‘bargains’. Shop for quality. + +I still use lots of M-Discs but no longer regard them as ‘essential’. + +I do not believe that M-Disc are selling regular HTL media as BD-R Mdiscs (see: the “fake M-Disc charge”). However I do believe that they have done a woefully inadequate job at explaining how their BD-R M-Discs are superior to their regular product line. I would like to see head to head comparisons and transparency about the differences between the products. However I also think that it’s a somewhat moot point. + + * **_What about using CDs or DVDs for data storage?_** + +I don’t recommend using CD-Rs and DVD-R for data storage, including products marketed as “archival grade.” + +The gold CDs look impressive (visually) but still contain organic dyes in the recording layer. + +I would take a bet on an MABL BD-R disc over these products any day of the week. + + * **What burner should I buy for the M-Disc?** + +Assuming you’re looking at BD-R M-Disc and not the DVDs … just about any Blu Ray burner on the market should be able to read and write them. For BDXL .. it’s worth double-checking the spec and remembering that tri-layer (BD-TL) and quad-layer (BD-QL) are usually listed separately. + +I’ve heard that Pioneer make good products. A stronger belief is that products with an independent AC-DC supply should be favored over those that can only draw bus power from USB connections. I would favor internal SATA drives in an enclosure over external slimline ones. + +### Some More Photos Of The (Growing!) Archive! + diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Personal-Brand-Marketing-Dream-Team.md b/posts/medium/My-Personal-Brand-Marketing-Dream-Team.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..63974be7533f89ba577b9d3bc477ceeaee00135d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Personal-Brand-Marketing-Dream-Team.md @@ -0,0 +1,100 @@ +# My Personal Brand Marketing Dream Team + +#### If money weren’t an object, these are the people I’d have working with me to build my personal brand + +Personal brand building doesn’t have to be a solitary endeavor. If you have the budget, you could build out a whole team full of contributors to provide all the constituent skillsets required to make a truly impactful effort. Photo by [fauxels](https://www.pexels.com/@fauxels?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/top-view-photo-of-people-near-wooden-table-3183150/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Approximately two years ago, I set out on the process of attempting to build a coherent personal brand to support my work as a [marketing communications consultant.](http://www.danielrosehill.com) + +I believed — and I still do — that inbound marketing is _“where it’s at”_ in terms of forging a career in the modern world. A common and longstanding aphorism goes that it’s not _what_ you know but _who_ you know. I believe that that’s still true. And that inbound marketing has the ability to extend that circle of people who know about you from the physical confines of your network and onto the online realm. That’s why it can be so powerful. + +Ultimately, however, I’m one person who does everything from balancing my books to turning in projects. My workweeks are currently scrappy, long, and full of pivots between the work that clients pay me to do and the work I do that attempts to bring me work down the road. + +I try, wherever possible, to do both. Because if there’s anything I’ve learned from three years of full-time self-employment, it’s that you never want to rest on the laurels of the pipeline you _think_ you have developed. Ultimately I guess most people get to that point and can put their feet up in the afternoons. But it’s a long and arduous journey to reach that level. Until then, you have to make sure that enough people know about you to continue to bring in leads. + +[**Inbound Marketing Is Investing — For Brand-Builders** + _When you think about, developing inbound collateral and investing in financial vehicles have a lot in common_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03) + +To continue scaling in this direction, my plan is ultimately to go from a team of one to a team of a few. If money were not an object and I were ready to put all these players in place tomorrow, this is the hiring spree I would go on. + +### A Freelance Proofreader + +If there’s one thing I learned from my first summer in Israel, which I spent working as a copyeditor at the _Jerusalem Post_ it’s this: never proofread your own work. + +Text-based content marketing is one of the easiest places to start if you’re interested in getting your ideas out into the world and attracting interest back in return. + +If you’re brimming full of ideas and enthusiasm to get them down onto paper, some typos may end up slipping into the output in the process. + +Sadly, this has happened to me. I now have a backlog of writing that I’m slowly sending out for editing. But it’s a slow process. + +That process could have been avoided from the get-go. If you have some money to invest in your content marketing, then consider finding a freelance proofreader and utilizing their services from the get-go. A quick proofread of every blog you’re thinking about publishing could save you a lot of embarrassment down the road. + +### A Freelance Graphics Designer + +Hire two, for me, would be a freelance graphics designer. + +Because while I may enjoy writing, I know that I have a _terrible_ eye for design. + +Graphics designers are great additions to a content marketing team — even a content marketing team that’s supporting a personal branding campaign rather than a more far-reaching effort on behalf of a business. + +Assets that I would probably be sending out for design already if I had this resource in place: + + * Thumbnails for my YouTube videos (until then, I clumsily try to get a few decent designs created using Canva) + * Headers to make these Medium articles more engaging to read + * Social media images to make these articles look more attracted when clicked into through those channels + +### A Freelance Publicist + +About a year ago, I signed up to PodcastGuests.com in order to help myself get over my phobia of talking about myself publicly. + +I answered a few show requests and conducted a few interviews. And after doing a couple, I received a couple of invitations in return. + +Podcasts can be really valuable ways to build up a personal brand, although you have to triage the opportunities carefully (some podcasts, particularly those starting out, have very small listenerships). + +Likewise, answering HARO requests is a great way to get your name in print and beginning establishing credibility as a go-to source when the media wants commentary on a certain topic. There are other platforms too for connecting journalists and expert sources but these two (Podcasts Guests and HARO) would be a great start for many personal brand-builders. + +The problem is that this kind of PR is … very time consuming to do well. Monitoring pitch request sources every day becomes almost like a full-time job. Ultimately I decided that I didn’t have time to devote to the energy. And thus my folder full of podcast pitches has remained unopened for over a year now. + +However, if I had a freelance publicist on hand (the dream!), this could be a weekly activity. Like content marketing and brand building, public relations is really a long-term gambit. You’re likely to see best results if you pitch consistently rather than all at once. + +### A Virtual Assistant (VA) + +Another great hand to have on deck would be a virtual assistant (VA). + +Even at the lower levels of content marketing scale, things can start to get surprisingly busy. + +Having somebody on hand to set up interviews, meetings, and everything else that goes into producing a steady stream of content would be an immense time-saver. + +### Freelance Audio and Video Editors + +This summer, I picked up a supply of video accessories. This winter — and beyond — I want to really get into producing video. + +[**4 Reasons Making Video Is More Fun Than Writing** + _As a longtime writer dipping my toes in video, there are aspects of this mode of creative expression that already…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382) + +While my videos are initially going to be focused on documenting the world around me and my hobbies, ultimately I’d like to angle the project more professionally. + +There are things that I know I can do reasonably well — like writing — and things that I know I do only because I currently don’t have budget to outsource these activities. In the latter category would be things like graphic design and video editing. + +While shooting video is enormously fun, I believe that editing video to professional standards is really best left to .. the professionals. Or at least those who have an eye for this kind of thing. For the most part, I don’t. + +### Other Team Members You May Want To Have On Hand + +**An SEO manager:** Likely more useful for businesses than individual contributors, but many personal brand builders could benefit from the input of a digital marketing specialist to ensure that they’re hitting on the right keywords for their content to get discovered. + +**A social media manager:** Managing engagement across social platforms can become time-consuming and missing out on engagement opportunities with the audience you are building could backfire. It’s unlikely that any but the largest personal brands would require a dedicated social media manager, but this is definitely a role that could yield substantial value. + +**Editor:** As well as hiring a proofread, you could hire an editor to lend polish and brevity to your written output. + +**Business manager:** If and when you choose to monetize your personal brand related content, a business manager could be brought in to handle monetization and the day to day operation of the business. + +Building up a personal brand through blogging, podcasting, and producing videos is a very time-consuming endeavor. If you’ve wondered why it feels that way, try breaking down what you do into its constituent parts — you may realize that you’re touching upon the work of 8 or 9 different contributors! + +For many — like me — it’s something we try to fit around the margins of our work life. Attempting to add long term value while simultaneously paying our bills through the work on our plate right now. + +I reiterate one of my go-to phrases: inbound marketing, and developing a personal brand built around cogent content marketing, is investing. If you can afford to do so, there’s nothing wrong with giving the investment a decent initial float by hiring out a few assistants. + +When I’m ready and able to make that investment, my hiring strategy will look very like what I’ve laid out above. + +[**Inbound Marketing Is Investing — For Brand-Builders** + _When you think about, developing inbound collateral and investing in financial vehicles have a lot in common_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03) diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Personal-User-Manual---V1.md b/posts/medium/My-Personal-User-Manual---V1.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..41680f384120d7f707dfd04bfe18dc56dacc8719 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Personal-User-Manual---V1.md @@ -0,0 +1,113 @@ +# My Personal User Manual — V1 + +#### Thinking about working with me or bringing me into your team as a contractor? Here’s some info on my preferred working style + +Photo: Pixabay + +Last night, while browsing Medium, I came across somebody advocating the idea that professionals should create personal user manuals. + +There have been a few such pieces. Here’s one of them: + +[**Personal User Manuals — The Good, the Bad, and a Template** + _What is a personal user manual and how can it help improve your team?_ betterprogramming.pub](https://betterprogramming.pub/personal-user-manuals-the-good-the-bad-and-the-template-7b80db5044ea "https://betterprogramming.pub/personal-user-manuals-the-good-the-bad-and-the-template-7b80db5044ea")[](https://betterprogramming.pub/personal-user-manuals-the-good-the-bad-and-the-template-7b80db5044ea) + +Fridges and software APIs have them, the author reasoned. So why shouldn’t humans too? + +I was _delighted_ to learn that there was a widely used name for what I attempted to do six months ago when I added a page to my writing website entitled (rather unimaginatively) ‘Good Fit Guidelines.’ + +[**Potential Client: Read This First! | DSR Ghostwriting | Thought Leadership And Content Marketing…** + _So you're interested in working with a freelance writer. The first thing you should know is that most of us are…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/clients/good-fit-guidelines/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/clients/good-fit-guidelines/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/clients/good-fit-guidelines/) + +My idea here was to dissuade the type of clients that I _don’t_ want to work with from reaching out to me and encourage those I’d likely jive well with. As such, I envisioned it as a kind of lead pre-qualification resource. + +But —and I think I guessed rightly here —I figured that few people would bother clicking into a page with as unappealing a title as “Good Fit Guidelines” which I chose to reflect the idea that the manual is part of my sales process. + +A _personal user manual_ , however, is much more descriptive. + +It also doesn’t pidgeon-hole you into only writing about your professional interface. I can spin out a private one too, a derivative of this work. + +With that intro out of the way, here’s the first version of my personal user manual that’s intended for a professional audience — namely my clients and my prospective ones. + +It’s an updated version of the Good Fit Guidelines on my website and (as Medium has proven such a great platform to draft in) it will probably end up superseding it too. + +### I Love Order. I Hate Chaos. + +Please save your armchair diagnoses about what this might say about me for another day. + +While you wouldn’t reach this conclusion by looking at my home office (read: a labyrinth of briefs, pens, and other manifestations of chaos), when it comes to my work life, I like to keep things pretty well-organized. + +I find that a well-written brief is an integral part of the freelancer-client relationship. Which is why I’ve podcasted, video-d and written explanations about what I like to get in them. Here’s one such piece. + + + +As a busy writer, I live and breathe deadlines. But there are two things that I dislike: + +a) **When clients unilaterally set deadlines without asking me if I can make them / they’re reasonable first.** If we have a standard service level agreement (SLA) or we’ve been working together for years then there’s a lot more leeway. You know that I can do X in two days unless I tell you otherwise / send out a circular letting my clients know that I’m taking time off. But (please) don’t spring a white paper on me with a 2 day deadline and just assume that I’m down to take on the project. If you’re hiring me as a freelancer, please remember (with respect) that you don’t have a monopoly on my time. I have other clients. I also take time off. If you’re worked as a freelance before, you probably have an easier time understanding this. + +b) **When clients don’t give any deadline at all.** Nothing confuses me more than _“just get this back when you can.”_ I actually _like_ having a firm deadline for every project in my workflow so that I can label it appropriately in my project management system. That way, I’ll get notifications if the deadline is fast approaching and the work hasn’t been delivered yet. + +Essentially a derivative of the above, but: + +### I Dislike Same Day Meeting Requests And Clients That Are Always In Emergency Mode + +Sorry to be so negative but there’s really no point in drafting this document if I’m not going to be honest about stuff that I don’t like. It’s actually easier for me to communicate this way. Avoid these few things and in most cases we can expect a smooth and enjoyable working relationship. + +I have my Calendly set to disallow meeting requests for the next 48 hours. + +**In light of the above, I like working with clients that are pretty well organized. I don’t like clients that always want to meet in 30 minutes’ time or are always in fire-fighting mode.** + +Want to discuss something at the start of next week? Excellent. That gives me lots of time to prepare for the meeting. I’ll go over your website, existing collateral, and browse through your background on LinkedIn. Case study happening in an hour? It becomes very hard for me to prepare for the meeting well. The quality of the work will probably suffer. I’ll be more stressed out. Lose-lose. + +The above probably has a lot to do with the fact that I love deep work but sometimes have trouble getting into it. + +I block off periods in my calendar to undertake challenging client work and my own content marketing. + +If I have 10 clients constantly blowing up my phone and asking to join a Zoom call that’s happening in 10 minutes … trust me, I’d get almost nothing done in a day. + +### Email Is My Go-To. Pointless Zoom Meetings Just Waste Your Time And Mine. + +Although asynchronous communication certainly has its pitfalls, as a writer, I generally find email the most efficient way through which to onboard information. That includes edits to a document and requests for revisions. Even though I’ve used Slack for many years, for the most part, I just don’t see the point. Email, for me, is still the centerpoint of my working life. + +I’ve noticed that there are clients who like to phone and email about every little thing. Those are ones that I tend to have a tough time enjoying working with (and I believe that working relationships should _always_ be enjoyable if possible). Often these are extremely unproductive and just consist of somebody reading out a few comments on a document. + +There are plenty of exceptions to the above. For instance, I’ve become a big fan of receiving briefs when they are communicated by Zoom video call. + +[**Calls Or Documents: What’s Better For Briefing Creatives?** +_Which is more effective for briefing writers and other creatives?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/calls-or-documents-whats-better-for-briefing-creatives-e0413689e85a "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/calls-or-documents-whats-better-for-briefing-creatives-e0413689e85a")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/calls-or-documents-whats-better-for-briefing-creatives-e0413689e85a) + +But equally, organizations whose default response to any issue is “let’s meet” tend, in my experience, to be unproductive ones. + +Speaking of communication channels, I’m not so keen on clients using informal tools such as WhatsApp to send me important information. If it’s an essential element for a project brief, I end up just having to copy it from WhatsApp into my project management tool or email. It makes keeping a searchable record of everything that can accessed across platforms very messy. You can save me the double work by putting it in an email / somewhere else. + +### I Can Do A Lot More Than “Just” Write. Ask Me For My Opinion! + +One of the pitfalls of offering writing services to clients (or so I have found) is that clients tend to box you in as a “writer” and assume that that’s all that you can (and want) to do. For me at least, nothing could be farther from the case. + +Prior to launching my own writing business, I managed marketing communications (MarCom) at two technology companies. I have strong interests in PR, marketing strategy, and content marketing. + +I’m also something of a Linux geek, know my way around Google Analytics, and previously worked for and with PR agencies. So don’t be afraid to ask _if_ I can do something. Best case: you can tap into a skillset I have and you make my job more engaging. Worst case scenario: I just say no. + +Here’s an example of some of my thinking on inbound: + +[**Inbound Marketers: Stop Watching Your Daily Social Metrics. It’s A Distraction.** +_If you’re playing a long game, you should consider not obsessing over short term needle shifts_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketers-stop-watching-your-daily-social-metrics-its-a-distraction-bad754ca598d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketers-stop-watching-your-daily-social-metrics-its-a-distraction-bad754ca598d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketers-stop-watching-your-daily-social-metrics-its-a-distraction-bad754ca598d) + +If we’re working together, I love when clients treat me more as a creative partner rather than just a task executor. People tend to get bored with being repeatedly told “fill out this template.” They move on. That kind of one way communication and management style ultimately benefits nobody. + +Please don’t be afraid to ask me for my opinion about your marketing. + +If I have relevant experience and am pretty sure that I know what I’m talking about, I’d only be too happy to offer it. + +### A Dash Of Humanity Goes A Long Way + +I once worked for a client for two years and got to know almost nothing about my account manager. + +His communications were so black and white that I once asked jokingly whether he might actually be an AI bot that had been scripted to send me out projects. + +“How was your weekend?” No answer. “Thanks, really looking forward to this project!” silence. The only things I ever got from my client were terse briefs and one word emails like “Received.” + +Some freelancers / consultants actually _like_ this kind of sterile communication. But I actually ended up finding it really dehumanizing, particularly the longer the relationship went on. + +I do my best to run efficient meetings. But at the end of the day … humans are humans. I try to share a select few details about my private life with clients. For instance, I just told a local client that I’m planning on taking a day at the beach tomorrow so my next deliverable will likely be pushed out until early next week. I find that it warms up a relationship when clients do the same. + +Maybe I’m the odd one out. But this is personally how I prefer to operate. diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Photo--And-Video--Reel-From-The-Past-Few-Months.md b/posts/medium/My-Photo--And-Video--Reel-From-The-Past-Few-Months.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..be87f063921b20fbcf71e80200d79c144d695752 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Photo--And-Video--Reel-From-The-Past-Few-Months.md @@ -0,0 +1,174 @@ +# My Photo (And Video) Reel From The Past Few Months + +#### Bits and pieces from my camera and YouTube feed + +Things I found lying around my cloud while cleaning up photos from the past few months… + + _(Reel 2)_ + +I’ve been spending quite a bit of time learning about video over the past few months. + +Lots of time spent learning about the technical aspects that go into video production; getting out shooting; and planning what I can do next with this. + +### Building Up Some Video Accessories + +As time evolves, so does my gear. I started shooting with a few add-on accessories to my camcorder (Canon Vixia HF R800). Namely, a battery-powered shotgun microphone (Saramonic Cam Mic Plus) and a few handheld stabilizers. + +Rig V1 in the pre gimbal days. At the First Station, Jerusalem. Photo: Author. + +Probably the most interesting shoot so far was joining the second installment of the controversial flag march in Jerusalem. The last one literally kicked off the conflagration between Israel and Hamas. + +Capturing some footage from the rescheduled flag march in Jerusalem. Photo: Author. + +The best part of learning video as a creative hobby? It gives you a terrific excuse to get out of the house and explore what’s in your city. + +Below: from a few months ago at the Gazelle Valley in Jerusalem which made for an interesting place to play around with lighting and white balance settings. + +Playing around with the Vixia and Saramonic in Jerusalem. Photo: Author. + +After hearing so much about them — and realizing that stabilization is an important _part_ of video-making — I picked up a DJI Ronin SC gimbal while on a recent trip to the US. + +Sourcing the component required a freakish amount of determination and sent me down a protracted rabbit hole that involved writing to manufacturers, speaking to suppliers in the Far East, and connecting with other hobbyists with the same camcorder. + +I visited virtually every camera store in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv trying to find a place that would sell me a gimbal. Ultimately, B&H in NYC came through. It’s a great tool and I have a _ton_ still to learn about it. Below: the gimbal with the Ulanzi claw grip. An interesting demonstration — for me — of how Chinese merchandise is taking over e-commerce. + +The Vixia HF R800 on top of the DJI Ronin SC with a Ulanzi quick mount mechanism. Photo: Author. + +[**4 Reasons Making Video Is More Fun Than Writing** + _As a longtime writer dipping my toes in video, there are aspects of this mode of creative expression that already…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382) + +### Discovering Kosher Ghost Pepper Sauce in Texas + +My recent trip to the US (purpose: visiting family) covered four cities: NYC; Storrs, CT; Wellfleet, MA; and Dallas, TX. + +What started out sounding like a long three week itinerary ultimately ended up feeling quite rushed. + +Visiting Dallas, I found two things that I believe would make consumerism that much more enjoyable in Israel: + + * The provision of ghost pepper sauce (kosher certified) + * Endless aisles packed full of craft beer and cider + +For the first, we need to look no further than [Melinda’s](https://melindas.com/) who produce a _wonderful_ ghost pepper sauce that also happens to be kosher-certified. Melinda’s and I are in touch. Although I’m not sure that my please to totally buy their hot sauce are going to be enough to swing them over to sell to Israel. + +Alas, during my very overly-rushed last minute packing I left my provision behind in Dallas. To say I regret doing so would be an understatement. The fiery aftertaste of ghost peppers would take this drafting process to the next level (and beyond). + +(To learn more about Melinda’s check out [their site here](https://melindas.com/). On my to-do list for this week: see if there are any Israeli hot sauce makers, especially those that produce sauces that the top end of the Scoville scale). + +$3.15 (before sales tax) is all you need for a bottle full of fire. Photo: Author.Melinda’s ghost pepper hot sauce replete with kosher certification (parve, VkB). Photo: Author. + +### … And Craft Cider + +There’s been much talk about the growth in the craft cider (or ‘hard cider’) category over the past number of years. + +Personally I’m a big fan. Although I tend towards the dry to very dry end of the taste spectrum (I also like 100% chocolate so … there’s a trend, or a trend to buck it). + +This was another domain in which those of you across the Atlantic (and, from me, Mediterranean) seem to excel in. + +I also noticed that Texas seems to have vibrant food scenes for locally produced products in key product catchments. Supermarkets take pride in supporting locally-produced products. + +I found an abundance of locally produced ciders for sale in liquor stores — [especially in Spec’s](https://specsonline.com/location/dallas-central-expy/) which is sort of a gigantic alcoholic warehouse. I also found an abundance of craft hot sauces produced by local chilli growers in both Texas and even Cape Cod. + +At 8.5% ABV Bishops Cider’s Nectar certainly packed a punch. But I thought it was delightfully tangy. I also discovered Untappd while in the US. Feel free to follow me there! + +Nectar by Bishop Cider. 8.5% ABV. Photo: Author. + +### At 32, I Finally Purchased My First Suitcase + +Even at 32 (I’m still 32, right!?!?!) there are little moments of transition that signify the ongoing journey from being a high school student to being a fully grown adult with bills to pay and obligations to meet. + +One of those is using luggage that you actually picked out and bought yourself on an a trip to another country. + +My new Samsonite hard case looking unfazed after a particularly rough bout of turbulence over the East Coast of the US. Seen at DFW. Photo: Author. + +[**Dear kindly disposed benefactor, please buy me these things from Amazon** + _A blog post I’ll keep on hand in the highly unlikely event of meeting a well-disposed benefactor in the early hours of…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/dear-kindly-disposed-benefactor-please-buy-me-these-things-from-amazon-12e837fb1190 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/dear-kindly-disposed-benefactor-please-buy-me-these-things-from-amazon-12e837fb1190")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/dear-kindly-disposed-benefactor-please-buy-me-these-things-from-amazon-12e837fb1190) + +Such a growth moment was unexpected foisted on me when the suitcase I was travelling with to the US began falling apart at just about the worst possible moment: while on the train to the airport. + +Thankfully, I quickly switched into Amazon mode (the mental association between ‘USA’ and ‘Amazon Prime’ runs strong in me). There, I found a 28 inch hardcase suitcase which I had quickly dispatched to a hotel in New York City (the pandemic has hit Amazon hard and delivery and inventory options were greatly narrowed). + +While my credit card bill will be tear-inducing and though you may find me eating rice and beans for the next few months (those will _not_ be featured here), I secretly always harbored a desire to own a decent suitcase. + +Samsonite wouldn’t have been my top choice–there are niche manufacturers that make _really_ study baggage but finding stuff that would ship in time was a challenge. But it’s still amazing to have a suitcase to call my own. + +Speaking of things to call my own, I picked up a few other delightfully random items while in the US: + + * An emergency LED roadside flare kit to stick on your car (or hand) in the event you need to call for help. + * An insanely bright tactical flashlight that I’m not entirely convinced is legal to own. + * And a portable monitor and clip-on laptop light to make it more convenient to work from anywhere in the world. + +Speaking of purchases, I had to muster every ounce of responsibility to prevent myself from ordering airplane marshaling sticks which I’m certain will make a fantastic Purim costume accompanied by a hi-vis vest. + +Unfortunately they fell foul of my criteria that things have to be at least _somewhat_ practical to spend money on them (so did a cowboy hat). Using them as guerilla implements to capture the attention of wait staff at bars sadly didn’t cut it — although I’m certain they (or a megaphone) would be fantastic for that purpose. + +Traffic control wands: earmarked as a future purchase from Amazon. Screenshot: Author. + +But the best purchase of the trip (which _is_ very practical) was undoubtedly this gigantic 50L backpack which is the first backpack I’ve ever owned that can actually fit what I need it to and which will replace the 10 year old thing I’ve been lugging to meetings for the past decade (first impressions and all that). + +So as not to be mistaken for an affiliate marketer, I’ll leave you only with the photo. But search for “large 50L backpack” on Amazon and you’ll find it or something very similar. + +They may be TSA-approved, but I’d definitely check your airline’s carry on size limits before attempting to bring this on an aircraft. It holds so much that it would be easy to blow through a budget carrier’s weight limit — and it can comfortably expand beyond a small size. There’s even a little USB line so you can stick a power bank in the backpack and charge your peripherals on the outside. + +My new 50L backpack that is certainly one of the greatest things I’ve ever owned. Water delivery: beefy 1L Nalgene bottle. The US does obscenely large products well. Photo: Author. + +### I Also Began Learning The Science And Craft Of Maximizing Airline Baggage Allowances + +Here are some very random things I learned about luggage and travel accessories during this trip. + +If I ever do become a digital nomad road warrior — or you do — then these tidbits should be handy: + + * 62 linear inches is about the biggest suitcase you can get into stow on most airlines. That’ll be 28 inches on most suitcases, although you can find larger on the market (they just won’t necessarily be accepted). + * There’s a whole world of outstandingly rugged luggage out there built by specialist companies, most of which I had never heard of before researching this. Check out the Pelican Air range if you’re interested in owning a suitcase you can drive over or throw off a bridge (without your stuff breaking, needless to say). + * The 25KG luggage limit most airlines enforce is actually more about a safe manual handling limit than anything to do with the weight and balance of the aircraft. This is why many airlines will turn a blind eye while you find creative ways to stuff ridiculous things into your carry on luggage. It’s the same weight. But it’s less likely to cause a compo claim (or maim) baggage handlers. (Thanks to /r/travel for this particular tidbit). + * Packing cubes are possibly the greatest travel accessory ever invented. There’s not even a remote chance I would have made it back with the items I picked up if I hadn’t learned about their existence on the last leg of the trip. + +I came back bearing a hard case suitcase stuffed with packing cubes and carrying an insanely large backpack. Surely this is the measure of success for any international trip out of Israel? Photo: Author. + +Note: + +If you want to take Amazon consumerism to its most depraved excesses, consider purchasing “please place your package here” and delivery signage from Amazon to help Amazon couriers deliver more packages to you. + +Amazon purchased signage to direct more Amazon purchases. Source: Author.Amazon purchased signage to direct more Amazon purchases. Source: Author. + +(The true diehards will deploy their LED flares at night-time also. Actually, maybe don’t do that.) + +### I Found An Israeli-Made Spirit That’s Cheaper Outside of Israel… + +Hardly surprising, but add Tubi 60 to the long list of Israeli-made products that can be found for less money … out of Israel. + +I _love_ Tubi 60 (think of it as tasting something like a citrusy cleaning product). + +But it’s majorly disappointing to know that Israel is so overpriced that even products that are made in the country are cheaper across different continents. + +### I Made A Few Short Videos While On The Road + +It was a rush to try to figure out how to calibrate and use the DJI Ronin SC in the couple of weeks I had over in the US. + +But I tried to get to grips with the tool and made a few short videos. + +### I Checked Out A Bar In NYC Where They Tell You To Be Quiet + +Minus the camera accessory, there wasn’t anything I particularly wanted to _see_ in New York City. + +Instead I met up with a couple of friends that moved to the city over the last couple of years. + +I also turned to Reddit (/r/AskNYC) to try figure out some obscure places to visit in the City. As they don’t require much time to visit and tend to be open late, I figured that bars would be low hanging fruit. + +New York City’s finest Redditors told me that the really weird bars have sadly all but vanished. This apparently happened around the time the city was cleaned up. Although you can still find a Ukrainian dive bar and institutions where the bartenders have been known to pass out while on the job. + +However — thankfully and despite the pandemic — [Burp Castle](https://nymag.com/listings/bar/burp-castle/) is still doing its weird thing on E 7th Street. Which is sort of enforcing a weird code of quiet and confronting customers who speak too loudly. + +Burp’s Castle, NYC. Photo: Author. + +Perhaps I’m just too old and grumpy, but the dignified near silence interrupted only by the white noise of a fan was startlingly interrupted by some very un-silent late night bar-goers. + +While our bartender was friendly in an oddly and unnaturally quiet sort of way, I was disappointed that he took a full 10 minutes before summoning the courage to eject his first “shush” in their direction. + +The fabric of our shared moment of serenity had been ruptured — every decibel emanating from the troupe a verbal dagger sullying the fake monastery surroundings with its auditory pollution. Why did he take so long? Were we not united in quietness — bound without uttering a word? I am left only speculating. + +I will (hopefully) be back. While making little noise. + +### Previous Reels + +[**I’ve Been Living In Israel For 7 Years — And All I Got Was These Lousy Photos** + _Last night, I decided to clean up my Google Photos. It was a gargantuan undertaking of sorts._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/ive-been-living-in-israel-for-7-years-and-all-i-got-was-these-lousy-photos-d581e849eccf "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/ive-been-living-in-israel-for-7-years-and-all-i-got-was-these-lousy-photos-d581e849eccf")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/ive-been-living-in-israel-for-7-years-and-all-i-got-was-these-lousy-photos-d581e849eccf) diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Theory-About-Why-Customer-Service-In-Israel-Is-So-Frequently-So-Bad.md b/posts/medium/My-Theory-About-Why-Customer-Service-In-Israel-Is-So-Frequently-So-Bad.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..09303c9dc0ad36d3d96d00fd49b1cd7420da72fa --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Theory-About-Why-Customer-Service-In-Israel-Is-So-Frequently-So-Bad.md @@ -0,0 +1,123 @@ +# My Theory About Why Customer Service In Israel Is So Frequently So Bad + +#### In a sometimes pitched battle for bare profitability, the small buyer frequently gets the raw end of the stick + +Customer service: in Israel, why does it so often seem so dysfunctional? Here’s my theory. Photo by [Olha Ruskykh](https://www.pexels.com/@olha-ruskykh?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-view-of-a-laptop-and-a-headset-7504896/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Israel has a thoroughly well-deserved reputation for being home to some of the worst customer service on the planet. + +Okay, you caught me out there. + +I can’t affirm that it’s the worst on the planet because I haven’t been to most of it. But I _can_ tell you that it’s frequently pretty dismal. Sometimes even abusive. + +I’m not the only one to have noticed either. Here’s some more online grumbling: + +[**Why is customer service in Israel so bad?** +_In case you are a busy person and do not have the time, or the wish, to read the whole post, here is the answer: the…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-is-customer-service-in-israel-so-bad/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-is-customer-service-in-israel-so-bad/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-is-customer-service-in-israel-so-bad/) + +[**What is the deal with Israeli customer service?** +_Israel is not renowned for its customer service, nor any other type of service. Many feel that Israelis for the most…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/what-is-the-deal-with-israeli-customer-service-657812 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/what-is-the-deal-with-israeli-customer-service-657812")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/what-is-the-deal-with-israeli-customer-service-657812) + +[**What purpose does the culture of poor customer service in Israel serve?** +_Answer (1 of 3): As an Israeli who lived several years abroad (in the US an EU) I'm not sure Israeli customer service…_ www.quora.com](https://www.quora.com/What-purpose-does-the-culture-of-poor-customer-service-in-Israel-serve "https://www.quora.com/What-purpose-does-the-culture-of-poor-customer-service-in-Israel-serve")[](https://www.quora.com/What-purpose-does-the-culture-of-poor-customer-service-in-Israel-serve) + +Other writers have taken a crack at explaining this mysterious phenomenon. + +Blogging in _Times of Israel,_ Haim Shore pins the blame on senior management. + +They don’t care, he says, because they don’t have to. + +I agree with Haim’s reasoning. + +But I’d like to add my own theory to the mix. + +### In Israel, To Remain Profitable, Businesses Have To Set Their Sights On Only The Big Fish (Or That’s What They Say) + +You could say that when it comes to online shopping, I’m sort of a seasoned veteran. + +Not only am I a card-carrying Aliexpress addict (note: but really. My order volume is well into the thousands). But I also do strange things in my spare time like set up elaborate home networking setups to … automatically back up an ISP connection onto cellular. Commonly, this calls for sourcing some more esoteric bits and pieces. And when it comes to sourcing even slightly obscure bits and pieces, the internet tends to be a much more fertile hunting ground than the high street. + +[**If You Run A Work From Home Business, Consider Investing In Backup Internet** + _A small monthly investment can drastically improve the stability of your home internet connection_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-run-a-work-from-home-business-consider-investing-in-backup-internet-450be6d111c4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-run-a-work-from-home-business-consider-investing-in-backup-internet-450be6d111c4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-run-a-work-from-home-business-consider-investing-in-backup-internet-450be6d111c4) + +The more unconventional my hobby — and there have been some weird ones, I went through a brief flag phase — the more it tends to bring me into contact with what you could call specialized retailers. + +These are the types of guys who don’t expect to hear from the oddballs of the world like me — the hobbyists tinkering around with SIM cards and ethernet cables but who only want one of that fancy (albeit quite pricey) router that you’re selling. Some don’t sell B2C at all and I can’t fault those for not making an effort. + +[**How Israel’s Draconian Defamation Laws Shield Abusive Businesses From Consequence** + _In a country in which even leaving a negative Google review can trigger a legal action, residents say the strict legal…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-israels-draconian-defamation-laws-shield-abusive-businesses-from-consequence-94fe272ef5dc) + +And this is actually where I see — and have seen — Israeli customer service at its ugliest and most dysfunctional. The shops carrying gear that _can_ be purchased in Israel but only from them or perhaps their one competitor. + +Because if they could be bothered to reply to an email or answer the phone at all, they don’t spare a second to tell you what they think: you’re a time-wasting nuisance. Stop bothering us with this petty question. We couldn’t care less about who you buy this computer from. + +Really, it ain’t pretty. But the question is still: why? + +### In Israel, The Biggest Chequebook Wins The … Minimal Effort + +I don’t defend the often shoddy customer service one encounters in Israel even slightly even if I believe I can understand the crude system of economic triage that underlies much of it. + +So here’s that theory I mentioned. + +One commonly finds — especially when dealing in anything tech-related — that businesses put varying degrees of effort into customer service depending upon how much business is at stake. + +This is simple economics at works. + +The higher the computed lifetime customer value (CLV) the most resources the business can _afford_ to put into servicing the account. + +Buy one computer? You’ll get service at tier one which might mean speaking to somebody at an outsourced call center. + +Buying one hundred for your small IT shop? + +We’ll give you a dedicated account manager so at least you’ll have somebody to talk to familiar with what you’re buying for. + +Buying one thousand? + +Perhaps we’ll back our usual service by an SLA so that you can know exactly how quickly we’re going to resolve your issues, should they arise. + +And the problem in Israel: + +Margins are too tight. It’s too tough to get by (or at least that’s what they say). So businesses become _accustomed_ to skipping over tier one altogether. It’s just not worth their time doing so. No pretenses needed. + +The attitude if you’re not a volume buyer is too commonly something like _“We don’t want to know. We don’t care. Buy from us. Or buy from our competitors. Please leave the showroom and stop taking up our representatives’ time. We have bigger customers to serve.”_ Others have described it as businesses treating you like they’re doing _you_ a favor by selling you something. I’m pretty sure we’re both talking about various sides of the same coin. + +Where do we see this dynamic borne out the most in Israel? + +In my experience: in the kind of specialist businesses I mentioned above that are also the most likely to hold exclusive distribution arrangements for global manufacturers. + +Their motivation might be a little bit different. They have a nice monopoly sown up. They don’t _have_ to care. And so they don’t (tip: if you’re getting the run-around and are really determined, try speaking to the EMEA level of the organization or even head office). + +In my experience, these businesses tend to care the very least about your tiny one unit order. And so I try, wherever possible, to avoid buying from them. I’d rather keep my order for when I’m out of the country so that — if I have a pre-sales question — the business doesn’t look irritated by the fact you have something to ask before handing out, say, €500 on a piece of hardware. I don’t believe in supporting “blue and white” when that means propping up dysfunctional businesses. + +[**The Pros and Cons of Living in Israel** + _(And Why I Still Think the Cost of Living is the Elephant in the Room!)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) + +### But … Why Can’t Israel Build Its Own Amazon? + +The starkest contrast to your average Israeli online retailer’s customer service that I can possibly think of is buying from Amazon.com. + +Love them or hate them, but Amazon have put customer-centricity at the heart of what they do. + +So why can’t customer service be like that in Israel? + +Perhaps it could. But ironically we — Israeli customers — would need to be given a _reason_ to buy locally rather than the precise opposite of that. So some fundamental dynamics about shopping in Israel would firstly have to change. + +In the US, a lot of small fish — 147 million of them — can make for a very large catch. In Israel, we don’t have those economies of scale to work with. + +But the fact that there _are_ Israeli organizations who offer superlative customer service proves that it can be done. We just need to move beyond a paradigm in which it’s acceptable to only view trade business as worthwhile. + +My theory again and in summary: + +Customer service in Israel often sucks because — sort of, oddly, like _mafiosos_ — many businesses are simply focused on servicing their largest accounts. + +That holds true everywhere, of course. A sales consultant would be extremely unlikely to wine and dine an account worth $500 per year. But they allege that it’s so tough to do business here that there’s no time left over for the small guys of this world. But those are also everyday consumers. Like you and I. + +My theory also explains why customer service encounters are so variable — especially between those who have only interfaced with Israel through business and those who live here. + +You might have had a terrific experience buying from an Israeli company if you were representing a government agency purchasing millions of dollars’ worth of cybersecurity gear. But an abysmal one if you tried to order a $10 teapot from an online website. + +I’d love to see the culture of broken customer service in Israel get better. + +But to do that, Israeli businesses need to understand that every cheque book is a valuable one. + +Because together, enough small fish can amount to a sizeable haul. diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Thoughts-On-Simona-Weinglass-s-ORM-Expos-.md b/posts/medium/My-Thoughts-On-Simona-Weinglass-s-ORM-Expos-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2b05cad35af8744a5d8eb0c7082010f112f26520 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Thoughts-On-Simona-Weinglass-s-ORM-Expos-.md @@ -0,0 +1,91 @@ +# My Thoughts On Simona Weinglass’s ORM Exposé + +Today, [the Times of Israel](https://www.timesofisrael.com/wikipedia-probe-exposes-an-israeli-stealth-pr-firm-that-worked-for-scammers/) published another excellent _TOI Investigates_ piece from [Simona Weinglass.](https://twitter.com/SimonaWeinglass) + +For those unaware, Simona Weinglass is the same reporter who penned the epic [_‘Wolves of Tel Aviv’_](https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-wolves-of-tel-aviv-israels-vast-amoral-binary-options-scam-exposed/) __ exposé that essentially kickstarted the slow and ongoing meltdown of the disgraceful, deceptive binary/forex industry. + +Beyond kicking off legislative action here in Israel, the piece has been shared more than 23,000 times at the time of writing — indicating that it also started an important conversation that, when it comes to Israeli high-tech, _“all that glitters is not gold.”_ + +I can imagine that some might view airing Israel’s dirty economic laundry with a jaundiced eye. + +I would argue that Israel’s authorities have proven themselves unwilling to fully crack down on some of the dubious industries they are home to. And that without the uncomfortable light of international media coverage, it is doubtful that anything would have changed at all. + +For instance,[ it has been the FBI — not the Israeli authorities](https://www.timesofisrael.com/fbi-arrests-israeli-binary-options-ceo-as-she-disembarks-el-al-flight-at-jfk/) — that has led the charge against prosecuting the binary/forex lynchpins who were the masterminds of the type of (sort of) unsuspecting olim operatives that Weinglass sourced comment from. (According to one immigrant worker quoted in Weinglass’s piece: _“I was told to tell people I had years of experience in the market, that I had studied at Oxford and worked for the Bank of Scotland.”_) + +Judging by the posts on Israeli job boards, it would also appear as if efforts to completely stymie the industry here have been unsuccessful. This is unsurprising. + +Apparently buckling under industry pressure, [the law that eventually passed the Knesset](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-bans-entire-binary-options-industry-finally-closing-vast-10-year-fraud/) was a watered-down version of what it was originally intended to be. Unlicensed marketers of other financial products — namely forex — were allowed to continue operating. + +In response to the legislation, many online crooks moved operations overseas on paper. Given their proximity to Israel, Cyprus and Malta remain popular destinations. While other shifted into fields with comparable potential for mischief, particularly the cryptocurrency space. + +It is sad, but not unexpected, that it was the US that ultimately succeeded in landing the first major prosecution of a binary lynching and not Israel: [Lee Elbaz was sentenced to 22 years in prison by a US court last December](https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-jails-israeli-binary-options-fraudster-lee-elbaz-for-22-years/). Most of binary options’ victims were based overseas, although the activity emanated from Israel. But — thanks to the Times of Israel’s dogged investigative work — Israel had sent out a clear message that it was not going to allow its territory to be used as a base for overseas scams. + +### My Encounter With Israel’s ORM Industry + +Online Reputation Management (ORM) is a field with both legitimate and fraudulent potential. Image: Pixabay. + +Simona’s deserving target today was the dubious field of Online Reputation Management (ORM) which also has a substantial presence in Israel. + +Despite the impression which the coverage might give, ORM is not _inherently_ a bad industry. + +ORM _can_ be used by those with excellent reputations to proactively manage what appears about them on Google, the great arbiter of five second public opinion. + +Because it’s involved in managing reputations, however, ORM is a field that is rife for abuse — and many choose to chase after the easier and more lucrative money that lies in helping fraudsters and scammers to shield their misdeeds from the first page of Google. + +Thus, while not inherently toxic, the field has unfortunately become a magnet for “black hat” operatives who exploit the same tactics that those looking to proactively _preserve_ good reputations use in order to keep the doldrums of “bad news” from blowing over their personal reputations. + +I should know. I got a brief glimpse into the field through my freelance work. + +### “Our Client Has Some Bad Press” + +A man being arrested. Source: Pixabay + +I’ve been working as a freelance writer for five years, although it’s only been my full-time income for two and a half of those years. And, like most freelance writers, I’ve gradually ascended through the client ranks. + +The low-point of my first year in business was probably writing a description for a clickbait video about the various ways in which one could microwave bacon. Written from an office in the epicenter of Jerusalem. By a Jewish author who attempts to keep kosher. + +A less obvious one that sneaked into my client list via a referral was a content marketing firm that purported to be based in Cyprus. Which made it strange that the founder seemed to have never heard of Larnaca and had an Israeli cellphone number. + +The client approached me with a quandary. It began with the wonderful euphemism that their client had unfortunately accrued some “bad press.” What _had_ in fact transpired was that the firm’s client had just been arrested — oh my! — but, ever the industrious duo, they had just pivoted into a new line of business. + +In retrospect, it was woefully stupid of me not to stop my engagement with this client right there and then. DSR Ghostwriting, I should state, is not generally in the business of promoting the newfound commercial interests of suspected (now confirmed) fraudsters. Although equally, doesn’t everybody deserve a second chance? + +Or perhaps, rather than being naive, maybe I was simply intrigued by the brief. After all, it offered far more mystery and intrigue than penning another video description about how the high setting was the best option to get your bacon extra crispy. + +The brief was for a series of five articles. It explained — without mentioning the fact that it was a barefaced fiction — that the two unlucky jailbirds were “investing heavily” in blockchain. Yes, I had heard of it. The interesting thing was that, despite my best online sleuthing, there was no mention of an association between the misfortunate Israelis and this new technology. + +It got better. + +The brief also stated that the articles were to be written from different “tones of voice.” Unknown to me, but apparent later, that meant that the articles were not in fact works of ghostwriting for the unlucky client — incarcerated on some far-off tax haven. Rather, they would be spun out onto various fake news websites that the client illicitly operated and attributed to fictitious reporters who were disseminating completely fake news about the duo’s investment in blockchain. I discovered these intriguing details retrospectively through simply running “exact match” searches on the illicit content that I had helped author. + +A week later, while paying courtesy calls, I met my client at a swanky cocktail bar in Tel Aviv which curiously sounded as if it was a coffee shop. The good thing about meeting clients in person — I’d call this Client Management 101 — is that you pick up tidbits which the client would never put in writing or say over the phone. + +This meeting didn’t disappoint. + +Appearing somewhat inebriated and clutching what might have been one of many beers that evening (I’m not sure coffee was even on the menu) the client confidently confided “just write anything, mate. It’s total b***cks.” + +### An Industry Built On Lies + +After learning that my Cyprus-base client in all likelihood lived in Israel and wasn’t visiting home on a business trip, and that she was presiding over a marketing operation that involved writing complete fiction for convicted fraudsters (at this point I was asking myself: is anything true?) I pieced together a little bit more about what Online Reputation Management (ORM) was and how it all works. I should qualify that with: black hat ORM. + +Putting my experience together with Simona Weinglass’s reporting today, it would appear that Israel is home to a cluster of ORM companies that play the decidedly black hat side of the game. + +Having become acquainted with the methodologies that some operators use to promote fake content and attempt to artificially suppress real news carrying negative sentiment, I would venture a guess at the number of such operatives based here as a few. And to clarify: I am not alleging malfeasance against any company in particular. + +Naturally, I can’t go into detail about who my former client was — or who their client was, the person I was inadvertently creating ORM articles for. + +All I _can_ say is that while nothing appeared on Google about their newfound proclivity for investing in blockchain that I was writing about, there _was_ plenty of coverage from top-tier media about their arrest for not reporting million of dollars of profit hidden in tax havens. + +The two at the center of this scandal — like the company helping them (and note: the company wasn’t mentioned in Simona’s coverage) — were both residents of Israel. + +By utilizing the services of an ORM specialist to create fictitious articles about their investments in Blockchain, the pair were hoping to divert the narrative from their arrest and push the damning content about their arrest on tax evasion charges further down the Google rankings. + +There’s _much_ more to the machinations of the ORM companies than this. But these are the essential details. At least as I’m familiar with them. + +The black hat ORM machine that proliferates in Israel is another dirty industry that does Israel’s international reputation no favors. The world, _olim_ and the State of Israel would all be better if it didn’t exist here. + +It is one of several — and it is great that the TOI is lifting the lid on these industries. + +Now I must go. Thankfully, I have more legitimate work to attend to. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Three-Year-Long-Non-Fiction-Reading-List--150--Books-.md b/posts/medium/My-Three-Year-Long-Non-Fiction-Reading-List--150--Books-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..99869bc7d23a81099ffad7a9928ca39dc6e0a71b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Three-Year-Long-Non-Fiction-Reading-List--150--Books-.md @@ -0,0 +1,822 @@ +# My Three Year Long Non-Fiction Reading List (150+ Books) + +In order to be a good writer it goes without saying that one should ideally be an avid reader. + +Unfortunately, over the past two years or so, the busy-ness of founding and running a full-time [freelance writing business](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) has insidiously but decisively monopolized my time. + +If I haven’t been writing, I’ve been figuring out _how_ to make the whole thing work — and I’ve learned that I’m far from alone in feeling like during the formative years of that process that there’s a _lot_ to come to grips with. + +If not that, then there’s always sales and marketing. And don’t forget tax compliance, invoicing, and back-office work (if only I weren’t the front office too!) + +A three year non-fiction reading list intended for Kindle e-book readers + +Thankfully, the coronavirus slowdown has given me a good excuse to dust off my Kindle and get stuck in to some excellent books. What else would I be doing on my weekend during lockdown? + +And living in Israel — where English books are naturally not the norm and physical orders from overseas can still take weeks to arrive — Kindle e-books are _definitely_ the way to go (its only downside for locals is that, as an electric device, [it’s off-limits for the religiously observant on Shabbat and holidays](https://www.thejc.com/judaism/features/wanted-a-kindle-you-can-read-on-shabbat-1.33907)). + +To make up for lost time, **I’ve set myself the goal of reading (at least) one book from this list a week.** + +And this is a non-fiction reading list because — to the chagrin of those close to me — I unfortunately gave up on reading fiction several years ago (ditto for movies and TV; if you’re thinking about asking me, you should probably find somebody else to go to the cinema with). + +This list was compiled from browsing through the [main non-fiction landing page](https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=lp_154606011_nr_n_19?fst=as%3Aoff&rh=n%3A133140011%2Cn%3A%21133141011%2Cn%3A154606011%2Cn%3A157325011&bbn=154606011&ie=UTF8&qid=1590941455&rnid=154606011) in the Amazon Kindle Store and adding some supplementary finds [from my friend, Peter Duffy’s, reading list](https://peter.readwise.io/). The former list, [here](https://www.amazon.com/s?i=digital-text&rh=n%3A133140011%2Cn%3A133141011%2Cn%3A154606011%2Cn%3A157325011&page=8&qid=1590944189&ref=sr_pg_7), returns over 70,000 titles — I dug into the first 50 or so pages of results before calling it quits. + +Some final notes about this selection: + + * **It does _not_ contain non-fiction books in discrete areas which I regard as interesting but others probably do not** (subjects in this bracket include content marketing, marketing, and advertising — as well as quite a long tail of other ones that have nothing to do with continuous professional development!). I keep these in more specific lists I maintain on Amazon. + * **I did _not_ set out to focus on mental health** but — given how much wellness and psychology permeates this category — that genre, as well as business/leadership, is admittedly over-represented. + * **I’ve steered away from narrow niches that aren’t of interest to me** (US-specific books mostly) + * My main criteria when evaluating a potential non-fiction read, which has also informed the selection of this list, is:**beyond the contents being interesting am I going to gain some _actionable information_ by reading this book? **If you’re concerned about optimizing your time, then actionable information helps yield a positive return on investment (ROI) on the considerable time it takes to read a full-length book. (I’ll read a biography or a history, for instance, only if I’m sure there’s a lot to be learned from that individual’s approach to life or that period in history— gleaning scintillating details about what happened ‘behind the scenes,’ at least for me, isn’t enough.) + +Feel free to follow me [on Goodreads](https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/89570136-daniel-rosehill). + +And — as my non-affiliate marketing disclaimer usually goes — this list is shared in the simple pursuit of sharing information; therefore, none of the following links earn me any affiliate commission. + +I hope there are a few items on my reading list that might be of interest to you too. Happy reading! + +Interested in leveraging group accountability to make it through the list with other readers? Check out the[ ‘3 Year Non-Fiction Reading Challenge’ on Facebook:](https://www.facebook.com/groups/nonfictionreadingchallenge/) + +[**Facebook** + _Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know._ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/nonfictionreadingchallenge/ "https://www.facebook.com/groups/nonfictionreadingchallenge/")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/nonfictionreadingchallenge/) + +(The books are ordered as I added them to my reading list, in reverse): + +### Year One + +Week 1: + +[**The Road to Character** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * David Brooks challenges us to rebalance the scales…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00LYXV61Y&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Ye.0EbTKT3VRB "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00LYXV61Y&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Ye.0EbTKT3VRB")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00LYXV61Y&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Ye.0EbTKT3VRB) + +Week 2: + +[**The Emotion Code: How to Release Your Trapped Emotions for Abundant Health, Love, and Happiness…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: "I believe that the discoveries in this book can change our understanding of how we…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07J4RMSNQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_tg.0EbAVFFWCX "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07J4RMSNQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_tg.0EbAVFFWCX")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07J4RMSNQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_tg.0EbAVFFWCX) + +Week 3: + +[**Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: "This book is a breakthrough, a lyrical, powerful, science-based narrative that…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B011H56MKS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2g.0Eb8SAKYVB "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B011H56MKS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2g.0Eb8SAKYVB")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B011H56MKS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2g.0Eb8SAKYVB) + +Week 4: + +[**Algorithms to Live By: The Computer Science of Human Decisions** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A fascinating exploration of how computer algorithms can be applied to our everyday…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B015CKNWJI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ui.0EbDQPMEV3 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B015CKNWJI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ui.0EbDQPMEV3")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B015CKNWJI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ui.0EbDQPMEV3) + +Week 5: + +[**Give and Take: Why Helping Others Drives Our Success** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A groundbreaking New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller that is captivating…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00AFPTSI0&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Mi.0Eb3XT90CK "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00AFPTSI0&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Mi.0Eb3XT90CK")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00AFPTSI0&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Mi.0Eb3XT90CK) + +Week 6: + +[**The Code of the Extraordinary Mind: 10 Unconventional Laws to Redefine Your Life and Succeed on…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: What if everything we think we know about how the world works-our ideas of love…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0182SMOBE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_1i.0EbHVRTHZB "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0182SMOBE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_1i.0EbHVRTHZB")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0182SMOBE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_1i.0EbHVRTHZB) + +Week 7: + +[**AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: THE NEW YORK TIMES, USA TODAY, AND WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER Dr. Kai-Fu Lee-one of…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0795DNWCF&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_dj.0EbS1346B5 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0795DNWCF&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_dj.0EbS1346B5")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0795DNWCF&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_dj.0EbS1346B5) + +Week 8: + +[**Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Brilliant and engagingly written, Why Nations Fail answers the question that has…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0058Z4NR8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_nj.0EbWW0SGXT "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0058Z4NR8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_nj.0EbWW0SGXT")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0058Z4NR8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_nj.0EbWW0SGXT) + +Week 9: + +[**Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A Best Book of the Year: The Financial Times, Bloomberg, Chicago Tribune, and Detroit…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NC11JGM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_rm.0EbBR5GF6N "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NC11JGM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_rm.0EbBR5GF6N")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NC11JGM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_rm.0EbBR5GF6N) + +Week 10: + +[**The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The New York Times bestselling author of Better and Complications reveals the…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0030V0PEW&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_kn.0EbMVPTGHN "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0030V0PEW&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_kn.0EbMVPTGHN")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0030V0PEW&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_kn.0EbMVPTGHN) + +Week 11: + +[**When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B072Q985YX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_zn.0Eb1WSZF68 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B072Q985YX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_zn.0Eb1WSZF68")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B072Q985YX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_zn.0Eb1WSZF68) + +Week 12: + +[**Swipe to Unlock: The Primer on Technology and Business Strategy** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Authored by 3 Product Managers at Google, Facebook, and Microsoft, Swipe to Unlock is a…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0756MTX6K&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ip.0EbX5Q24G7 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0756MTX6K&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ip.0EbX5Q24G7")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0756MTX6K&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ip.0EbX5Q24G7) + +Week 13: + +[**Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Why is it so hard to make lasting changes in our companies, in our communities, and in…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0030DHPGQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_vp.0EbNMTJ7EB "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0030DHPGQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_vp.0EbNMTJ7EB")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0030DHPGQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_vp.0EbNMTJ7EB) + +Week 14: + +[**WORK FROM HOME WHILE YOU ROAM: The Ultimate Guide to Jobs That Can Be Done From Anywhere** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: If you had two years to live would you keep your current job? Search your heart. If the…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B083H9P1C5&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Jp.0Eb7SYZNWE "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B083H9P1C5&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Jp.0Eb7SYZNWE")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B083H9P1C5&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Jp.0Eb7SYZNWE) + +Week 15: + +[**The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Achieve "Massive Action" results and accomplish your business dreams! While most people…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004X75OES&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_0p.0EbVPT4C68 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004X75OES&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_0p.0EbVPT4C68")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004X75OES&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_0p.0EbVPT4C68) + +Week 16: + +[**The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: "Brilliant. . . . Lewis has given us a spectacular account of two great men who faced…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01GI6S7EK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_eq.0Eb0CS2JGY "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01GI6S7EK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_eq.0Eb0CS2JGY")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01GI6S7EK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_eq.0Eb0CS2JGY) + +Week 17: + +[**Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: NATIONAL BESTSELLER ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES 10 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR Who are the…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0180SU4OA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_sq.0EbS17SB98 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0180SU4OA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_sq.0EbS17SB98")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0180SU4OA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_sq.0EbS17SB98) + +Week 18: + +[**Turn the Ship Around!: A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00AFPVP0Y&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Nq.0EbHJD3Z0Q "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00AFPVP0Y&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Nq.0EbHJD3Z0Q")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00AFPVP0Y&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Nq.0EbHJD3Z0Q) + +Week 19: + +[**The Manager's Path: A Guide for Tech Leaders Navigating Growth and Change** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Managing people is difficult wherever you work. But in the tech industry, where…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XP3GJ7F&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_3q.0EbXKH6RBE "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XP3GJ7F&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_3q.0EbXKH6RBE")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XP3GJ7F&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_3q.0EbXKH6RBE) + +Week 20: + +[**Not Nice: Stop People Pleasing, Staying Silent, & Feeling Guilty... And Start Speaking Up, Saying…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Are You Too Nice? If you find it hard to be assertive, directly ask for what you want…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076VVH14M&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_fr.0EbA0T890V "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076VVH14M&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_fr.0EbA0T890V")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076VVH14M&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_fr.0EbA0T890V) + +Week 21: + +[**You Can Heal Your Life** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: "An excellent book for restructuring one's life and finding self-esteem and self-love."…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000SEHQ96&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ur.0EbV0JEFR8 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000SEHQ96&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ur.0EbV0JEFR8")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000SEHQ96&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ur.0EbV0JEFR8) + +Week 22: + +[**The Catalyst: How to Change Anyone's Mind** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: "Jonah Berger is one of those rare thinkers who blends research-based insights with…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07THCZ626&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Ir.0Eb553QCJW "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07THCZ626&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Ir.0Eb553QCJW")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07THCZ626&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Ir.0Eb553QCJW) + +Week 23: + +[**Welcoming the Unwelcome: Wholehearted Living in a Brokenhearted World** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: From the bestselling author of When Things Fall Apart, an open-hearted call for human…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07V77TZ33&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Yr.0EbZCTMHM8 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07V77TZ33&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Yr.0EbZCTMHM8")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07V77TZ33&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Yr.0EbZCTMHM8) + +Week 24: + +[**It Takes What It Takes: How to Think Neutrally and Gain Control of Your Life** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07R8VDNMJ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ds.0EbRS13JR2 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07R8VDNMJ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ds.0EbRS13JR2")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07R8VDNMJ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ds.0EbRS13JR2) + +Week 25: + +[**The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail (Management of Innovation…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Named one of 100 Leadership & Success Books to Read in a Lifetime by Amazon Editors A…_read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B012BLTM6I&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Qs.0EbYQGT3VY "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B012BLTM6I&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Qs.0EbYQGT3VY")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B012BLTM6I&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Qs.0EbYQGT3VY) + +Week 26: + +[**The Price We Pay: What Broke American Health Care--and How to Fix It** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07MXPJ33B&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6s.0EbMK9D6BH "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07MXPJ33B&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6s.0EbMK9D6BH")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07MXPJ33B&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6s.0EbMK9D6BH) + +Week 27: + +[**Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The New York Times bestseller that gives readers a paradigm-shattering new way to think…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004P1JDJO&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_kt.0Eb0SVRS33 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004P1JDJO&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_kt.0Eb0SVRS33")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004P1JDJO&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_kt.0Eb0SVRS33) + +Week 28: + +[**The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Master your game from the inside out! With more than 800,000 copies sold since it was…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003T0G9E4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_yt.0EbXP16CTK "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003T0G9E4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_yt.0EbXP16CTK")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003T0G9E4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_yt.0EbXP16CTK) + +Week 29: + +[**Uninvited: Living Loved When You Feel Less Than, Left Out, and Lonely** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The enemy wants us to feel rejected . . . left out, lonely, and less than. When we…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01864DVG6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Ot.0Eb3FAHNRQ "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01864DVG6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Ot.0Eb3FAHNRQ")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01864DVG6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Ot.0Eb3FAHNRQ) + +Week 30: + +[**Rhythms of Renewal: Trading Stress and Anxiety for a Life of Peace and Purpose** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Daily struggles with anxiety and stress make it difficult to receive God's peace…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07PR87J2C&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2t.0EbJ5ESAF3 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07PR87J2C&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2t.0EbJ5ESAF3")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07PR87J2C&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2t.0EbJ5ESAF3) + +Week 31: + +[**The Hundred-Year Marathon: China's Secret Strategy to Replace America as the Global Superpower** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: One of the U.S. government's leading China experts reveals the hidden strategy fueling…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00IWUI7B4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ru.0EbRXNYC53 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00IWUI7B4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ru.0EbRXNYC53")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00IWUI7B4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ru.0EbRXNYC53) + +Week 32: + +[**The Courage to Be Disliked: The Japanese Phenomenon That Shows You How to Change Your Life and…** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B078MDSV8T&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Fu.0EbQPW6BHH "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B078MDSV8T&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Fu.0EbQPW6BHH")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B078MDSV8T&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Fu.0EbQPW6BHH) + +Week 33: + +[**Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004JN1DBO&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Tu.0Eb0GJ4058 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004JN1DBO&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Tu.0Eb0GJ4058")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004JN1DBO&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Tu.0Eb0GJ4058) + +Week 34: + +[**What You Do Is Who You Are: How to Create Your Business Culture** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NVN4QCM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_RD.0EbS9CK69P "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NVN4QCM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_RD.0EbS9CK69P")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NVN4QCM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_RD.0EbS9CK69P) + +Week 35: + +[**The Hot Zone: The Terrifying True Story of the Origins of the Ebola Virus** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B007DCU4IQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_-D.0EbPDA2XTQ "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B007DCU4IQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_-D.0EbPDA2XTQ")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B007DCU4IQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_-D.0EbPDA2XTQ) + +Week 36: + +[**Master Your Emotions: A Practical Guide to Overcome Negativity and Better Manage Your Feelings…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Want to overcome negative feelings? Feel like you aren't good enough? Need help dealing…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CX8H6YH&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oE.0EbBHYKHYF "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CX8H6YH&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oE.0EbBHYKHYF")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CX8H6YH&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oE.0EbBHYKHYF) + +Week 37: + +[**The Silk Roads: A New History of the World** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Far more than a history of the Silk Roads, this book is truly a revelatory new history…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00XST7IX2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_DE.0EbZYZE02F "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00XST7IX2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_DE.0EbZYZE02F")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00XST7IX2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_DE.0EbZYZE02F) + +Week 38: + +[**I Hear You: The Surprisingly Simple Skill Behind Extraordinary Relationships** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B071K4MWMK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_WE.0EbNGNBWJ6 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B071K4MWMK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_WE.0EbNGNBWJ6")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B071K4MWMK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_WE.0EbNGNBWJ6) + +Week 39: + +[**What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: From the creator of the wildly popular webcomic xkcd, hilarious and informative answers…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00IYUYF4A&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_-E.0Eb1Y9CSC1 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00IYUYF4A&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_-E.0Eb1Y9CSC1")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00IYUYF4A&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_-E.0Eb1Y9CSC1) + +Week 40: + +[**Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: From the winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics, Richard H. Thaler, and Cass R…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00A5DCALY&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oF.0Eb89YREHY "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00A5DCALY&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oF.0Eb89YREHY")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00A5DCALY&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oF.0Eb89YREHY) + +Week 41: + +[**Metahuman: Unleashing Your Infinite Potential** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Is it possible to venture beyond daily living and experience heightened states of…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07MYKX6B7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_GF.0EbHVAPAVY "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07MYKX6B7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_GF.0EbHVAPAVY")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07MYKX6B7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_GF.0EbHVAPAVY) + +Week 42: + +[**The End of Mental Illness: How Neuroscience Is Transforming Psychiatry and Helping Prevent or…** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07T6C3CWH&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_UF.0EbPWCPFQH "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07T6C3CWH&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_UF.0EbPWCPFQH")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07T6C3CWH&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_UF.0EbPWCPFQH) + +Week 43: + +[**Present Over Perfect: Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, More Soulful Way of Living** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: OVER 500,000 COPIES SOLD! In these pages, New York Times bestselling author Shauna…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01863JROC&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_VH.0EbXGJE2D6 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01863JROC&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_VH.0EbXGJE2D6")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01863JROC&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_VH.0EbXGJE2D6) + +Week 44: + +[**Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Don't simply show your data-tell a story with it! Storytelling with Data teaches you…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B016DHQSM2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_tL.0Eb52TMEM4 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B016DHQSM2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_tL.0Eb52TMEM4")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B016DHQSM2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_tL.0Eb52TMEM4) + +Week 45: + +[**The Future of Feeling: Building Empathy in a Tech-Obsessed World** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: An insightful exploration of what social media, AI, robot technology, and the digital…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07PSGFN34&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_IL.0EbJ83ZKHH "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07PSGFN34&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_IL.0EbJ83ZKHH")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07PSGFN34&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_IL.0EbJ83ZKHH) + +Week 46: + +[**The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * "The Uninhabitable Earth hits you like a comet, with an…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07GVPFH5V&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_YL.0Eb0NSQ39K "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07GVPFH5V&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_YL.0Eb0NSQ39K")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07GVPFH5V&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_YL.0Eb0NSQ39K) + +Week 47: + +[**The Slight Edge: Turning Simple Disciplines into Massive Success and Happiness** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The Slight Edge is a way of thinking, a way of processing information that enables you…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07G2D82DM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_gM.0EbB0Y4HFK "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07G2D82DM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_gM.0EbB0Y4HFK")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07G2D82DM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_gM.0EbB0Y4HFK) + +Week 48: + +[**The New Class War: Saving Democracy from the Managerial Elite** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07MYKVWZD&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_xM.0EbQPZVC4Z "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07MYKVWZD&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_xM.0EbQPZVC4Z")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07MYKVWZD&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_xM.0EbQPZVC4Z) + +Week 49: + +[**Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004H4XI5O&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_LM.0Eb1WCA30R "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004H4XI5O&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_LM.0Eb1WCA30R")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004H4XI5O&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_LM.0Eb1WCA30R) + +Week 50: + +[**Loonshots: How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas That Win Wars, Cure Diseases, and Transform Industries** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: * Instant WSJ bestseller * Translated into 18 languages * #1 Most Recommended Book of…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07D2BKVQR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2M.0EbGA00B4W "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07D2BKVQR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2M.0EbGA00B4W")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07D2BKVQR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2M.0EbGA00B4W) + +Week 51: + +[**The Gift of Forgiveness: Inspiring Stories from Those Who Have Overcome the Unforgivable** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07W3J798V&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_gN.0EbDV2BY1H "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07W3J798V&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_gN.0EbDV2BY1H")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07W3J798V&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_gN.0EbDV2BY1H) + +Week 52: + +[**High Performance Habits: How Extraordinary People Become That Way** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B072N6MQ5V&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_uN.0EbJQMAJGR "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B072N6MQ5V&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_uN.0EbJQMAJGR")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B072N6MQ5V&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_uN.0EbJQMAJGR) + +### Year Two + +Week 1: + +[**The Decadent Society: How We Became the Victims of Our Own Success** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: From the New York Times columnist and bestselling author of Bad Religion, a powerful…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07THDLJZL&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_fO.0EbZVK7XCM "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07THDLJZL&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_fO.0EbZVK7XCM")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07THDLJZL&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_fO.0EbZVK7XCM) + +Week 2: + +[**Relentless: From Good to Great to Unstoppable** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: For more than two decades, legendary trainer Tim Grover has taken the greats-Michael…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B008O58LL8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_rO.0EbS8VEYRH "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B008O58LL8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_rO.0EbS8VEYRH")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B008O58LL8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_rO.0EbS8VEYRH) + +Week 3: + +[**Life After Google: The Fall of Big Data and the Rise of the Blockchain Economy** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A FINANCIAL TIMES BOOK OF THE MONTH FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: "Nothing Mr. Gilder…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B072NYKG2G&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_FO.0Eb2PV08S2 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B072NYKG2G&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_FO.0Eb2PV08S2")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B072NYKG2G&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_FO.0Eb2PV08S2) + +Week 4: + +[**Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don't Have All the Facts** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Poker champion turned business consultant Annie Duke teaches you how to get comfortable…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B074DG9LQF&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_UO.0EbS0V88Q9 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B074DG9LQF&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_UO.0EbS0V88Q9")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B074DG9LQF&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_UO.0EbS0V88Q9) + +Week 5: + +[**The 1-Page Marketing Plan: Get New Customers, Make More Money, And Stand Out From The Crowd** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: WARNING: Do Not Read This Book If You Hate Money To build a successful business, you…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01B35M3SM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_vP.0EbK73BQN2 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01B35M3SM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_vP.0EbK73BQN2")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01B35M3SM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_vP.0EbK73BQN2) + +Week 6: + +[**Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Do you have a grip on your business, or does your business have a grip on you? All…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B007QWLLV2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_NP.0EbMC5D1A8 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B007QWLLV2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_NP.0EbMC5D1A8")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B007QWLLV2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_NP.0EbMC5D1A8) + +Week 7: + +[**Loserthink: How Untrained Brains Are Ruining America** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: From the creator of Dilbert and author of Win Bigly, a guide to spotting and avoiding…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07P8J8YB6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_0P.0EbET4CRJC "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07P8J8YB6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_0P.0EbET4CRJC")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07P8J8YB6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_0P.0EbET4CRJC) + +Week 8: + +[**Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The New York Times bestselling, groundbreaking investigation of how the global elite's…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B077WZRBV2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_dQ.0Eb2M3T3EX "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B077WZRBV2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_dQ.0Eb2M3T3EX")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B077WZRBV2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_dQ.0Eb2M3T3EX) + +Week 9: + +[**The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0052FF7YM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_yQ.0Eb0XAY8Y6 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0052FF7YM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_yQ.0Eb0XAY8Y6")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0052FF7YM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_yQ.0Eb0XAY8Y6) + +Week 10: + +[**The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * The author of The Talent Code unlocks the secrets of highly…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01MSY1Y6Z&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_MQ.0Eb52NP105 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01MSY1Y6Z&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_MQ.0Eb52NP105")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01MSY1Y6Z&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_MQ.0Eb52NP105) + +Week 11: + +[**Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER If you want to build a better future, you must believe in…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00J6YBOFQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2Q.0EbSPX66GN "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00J6YBOFQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2Q.0EbSPX66GN")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00J6YBOFQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2Q.0EbSPX66GN) + +Week 12: + +[**Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01HCGYTH4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_eR.0EbJS9BXJC "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01HCGYTH4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_eR.0EbJS9BXJC")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01HCGYTH4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_eR.0EbJS9BXJC) + +Week 13: + +[**SELL LIKE CRAZY: How to Get As Many Clients, Customers and Sales As You Can Possibly Handle** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: In what some are calling the most controversial marketing book of the decade. Sell Like…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07N7GRHNK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_tR.0EbEDZR4SP "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07N7GRHNK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_tR.0EbEDZR4SP")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07N7GRHNK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_tR.0EbEDZR4SP) + +Week 14: + +[**The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000RO9VJK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_KR.0Eb484FF56 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000RO9VJK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_KR.0Eb484FF56")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000RO9VJK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_KR.0Eb484FF56) + +Week 15: + +[**The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00DQ845EA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ZR.0EbRZE85PC "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00DQ845EA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ZR.0EbRZE85PC")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00DQ845EA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ZR.0EbRZE85PC) + +Week 16: + +[**Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2018 ONE OF THE…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B073TJBYTB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_aS.0EbP348CWE "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B073TJBYTB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_aS.0EbP348CWE")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B073TJBYTB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_aS.0EbP348CWE) + +Week 17: + +[**The Making of a Manager: What to Do When Everyone Looks to You** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Congratulations, you're a manager! After you pop the champagne, accept the shiny new…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079WNPRL2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_nS.0Eb8XPHN1V "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079WNPRL2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_nS.0Eb8XPHN1V")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079WNPRL2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_nS.0Eb8XPHN1V) + +Week 18: + +[**Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The Challenge Built to Last, the defining management study of the nineties, showed how…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0058DRUV6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_CS.0Eb6FRSCTZ "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0058DRUV6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_CS.0Eb6FRSCTZ")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0058DRUV6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_CS.0Eb6FRSCTZ) + +Week 19: + +[**The Course in Miracles Experiment: A Starter Kit for Rewiring Your Mind (and Therefore the World)** +_Shared via Kindle. Description: ACIM, the Fun Version! A real-world rewrite of the lessons of A Course in Miracles by…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07X1FHXTM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_QS.0EbCK4W1NR "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07X1FHXTM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_QS.0EbCK4W1NR")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07X1FHXTM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_QS.0EbCK4W1NR) + +Week 20: + +[**Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Why do we do the things we do? Over a decade in the making, this game-changing book is…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01IAUGC5S&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6S.0EbQ786E1F "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01IAUGC5S&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6S.0EbQ786E1F")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01IAUGC5S&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6S.0EbQ786E1F) + +Week 21: + +[**Inspired: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B077NRB36N&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_iT.0Eb0ZH8YRR "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B077NRB36N&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_iT.0Eb0ZH8YRR")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B077NRB36N&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_iT.0Eb0ZH8YRR) + +Week 22: + +[**The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Most startups fail. But many of those failures are preventable. The Lean Startup is a…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004J4XGN6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_wT.0EbXMH36GN "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004J4XGN6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_wT.0EbXMH36GN")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004J4XGN6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_wT.0EbXMH36GN) + +Week 23: + +[**The Happiness Project, Tenth Anniversary Edition: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the…** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CRQMQ17&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_JT.0EbY9P0C4Z "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CRQMQ17&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_JT.0EbY9P0C4Z")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CRQMQ17&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_JT.0EbY9P0C4Z) + +Week 24: + +[**How To: Absurd Scientific Advice for Common Real-World Problems** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: AN INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "How To will make you laugh as you learn...With…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NCQTJV3&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_XT.0EbPR75KCK "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NCQTJV3&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_XT.0EbPR75KCK")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NCQTJV3&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_XT.0EbPR75KCK) + +Week 25: + +[**Upstream: The Quest to Solve Problems Before They Happen** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07THBM1M6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_aU.0EbBEP6HRP "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07THBM1M6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_aU.0EbBEP6HRP")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07THBM1M6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_aU.0EbBEP6HRP) + +Week 26: + +[**Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 New York Times Bestseller An inspiring and thought-provoking graduation gift: At…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01BJSRSEC&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_pU.0EbYHT6A0Y "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01BJSRSEC&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_pU.0EbYHT6A0Y")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01BJSRSEC&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_pU.0EbYHT6A0Y) + +Week 27: + +[**The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Something is going wrong on many college campuses in the last few years. Rates of…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076NVFT5P&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_CU.0Eb5KXSMQT "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076NVFT5P&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_CU.0Eb5KXSMQT")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076NVFT5P&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_CU.0Eb5KXSMQT) + +Week 28: + +[**The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For?** +_Shared via Kindle. Description: The New York Times #1 bestselling book by Pastor Rick Warren that helps you understand…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B008EGV4BQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_PU.0EbBA0V6GP "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B008EGV4BQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_PU.0EbBA0V6GP")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B008EGV4BQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_PU.0EbBA0V6GP) + +Week 29: + +[**Ego Is the Enemy** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The instant Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and international bestseller "While the…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B015NTIXWE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_1U.0EbHAQ0Q9R "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B015NTIXWE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_1U.0EbHAQ0Q9R")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B015NTIXWE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_1U.0EbHAQ0Q9R) + +Week 30: + +[**Radical Candor: Fully Revised & Updated Edition: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: * New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller multiple years running * Translated…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07P9LPXPT&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_bV.0EbKMEMPYC "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07P9LPXPT&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_bV.0EbKMEMPYC")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07P9LPXPT&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_bV.0EbKMEMPYC) + +Week 31: + +[**Measure What Matters: How Google, Bono, and the Gates Foundation Rock the World with OKRs** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 New York Times Bestseller Legendary venture capitalist John Doerr reveals how the…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B078FZ9SYB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oV.0EbH0HW7EE "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B078FZ9SYB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oV.0EbH0HW7EE")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B078FZ9SYB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oV.0EbH0HW7EE) + +Week 32: + +[**The Future Is Faster Than You Think: How Converging Technologies Are Transforming Business…** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07TD6GPVR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_DV.0Eb7YHPGZS "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07TD6GPVR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_DV.0Eb7YHPGZS")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07TD6GPVR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_DV.0Eb7YHPGZS) + +Week 33: + +[**The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Everybody tells you to live for a cause larger than…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07DT1BD63&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_VV.0EbAR9Z699 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07DT1BD63&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_VV.0EbAR9Z699")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07DT1BD63&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_VV.0EbAR9Z699) + +Week 34: + +[**Leadership: In Turbulent Times** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079RLPFG7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_7V.0EbWVP61T2 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079RLPFG7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_7V.0EbWVP61T2")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079RLPFG7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_7V.0EbWVP61T2) + +Week 35: + +[**Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The book that started the Quiet Revolution At least one-third of the people we know are…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004J4WNL2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oW.0EbMQKE848 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004J4WNL2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oW.0EbMQKE848")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004J4WNL2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_oW.0EbMQKE848) + +Week 36: + +[**Everything Is Figureoutable** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "This book will change lives." --Elizabeth…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07N5KD7ZB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_FW.0EbQM0FVZ5 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07N5KD7ZB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_FW.0EbQM0FVZ5")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07N5KD7ZB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_FW.0EbQM0FVZ5) + +Week 37: + +[**Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00G1J1D28&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_SW.0EbB55VK8R "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00G1J1D28&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_SW.0EbB55VK8R")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00G1J1D28&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_SW.0EbB55VK8R) + +Week 38: + +[**Sandworm: A New Era of Cyberwar and the Hunt for the Kremlin's Most Dangerous Hackers** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07GD4MFW2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_7W.0EbTR24JNW "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07GD4MFW2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_7W.0EbTR24JNW")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07GD4MFW2&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_7W.0EbTR24JNW) + +Week 39: + +[**The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * This instant classic explores how we can change our lives…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0055PGUYU&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_jX.0EbK50WX28 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0055PGUYU&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_jX.0EbK50WX28")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0055PGUYU&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_jX.0EbK50WX28) + +Week 40: + +[**Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: You are not doomed by your genes and hardwired to be a certain way for the rest of your…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B006M7A8JI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_AX.0EbCEDHNJA "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B006M7A8JI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_AX.0EbCEDHNJA")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B006M7A8JI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_AX.0EbCEDHNJA) + +Week 41: + +[**The Coming Plague: Newly Emerging Diseases in a World Out of Balance** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B005FGR6RO&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_YX.0EbKKCWZJR "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B005FGR6RO&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_YX.0EbKKCWZJR")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B005FGR6RO&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_YX.0EbKKCWZJR) + +Week 42: + +[**Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: In Being Mortal, bestselling author Atul Gawande tackles the hardest challenge of his…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00JCW0BCY&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_aY.0EbSQXVERY "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00JCW0BCY&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_aY.0EbSQXVERY")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00JCW0BCY&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_aY.0EbSQXVERY) + +Week 43: + +[**When Breath Becomes Air** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * PULITZER PRIZE FINALIST * This inspiring, exquisitely…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00XSSYR50&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_pY.0EbW4EX0JA "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00XSSYR50&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_pY.0EbW4EX0JA")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00XSSYR50&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_pY.0EbW4EX0JA) + +Week 44: + +[**The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07FFCMSCX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_DY.0EbN8DK5NG "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07FFCMSCX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_DY.0EbN8DK5NG")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07FFCMSCX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_DY.0EbN8DK5NG) + +Week 45: + +[**Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The inspiring, life-changing bestseller by the author of LEADERS EAT LAST and TOGETHER…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B002Q6XUE4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_QY.0EbXFBBK9E "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B002Q6XUE4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_QY.0EbXFBBK9E")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B002Q6XUE4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_QY.0EbXFBBK9E) + +Week 46: + +[**Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World--and Why Things Are Better Than You Think** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "One of the most important books I've ever read-an…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0756J1LLV&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6Y.0EbV2BD887 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0756J1LLV&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6Y.0EbV2BD887")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0756J1LLV&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6Y.0EbV2BD887) + +Week 47: + +[**The 4-Hour Workweek, Expanded and Updated: Expanded and Updated, With Over 100 New Pages of…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The New York Times bestselling author of The 4-Hour Body shows readers how to live more…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B002WE46UW&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_jZ.0EbW8985VP "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B002WE46UW&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_jZ.0EbW8985VP")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B002WE46UW&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_jZ.0EbW8985VP) + +Week 48: + +[**Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The key text on problem-solving negotiation-updated and revised Getting to Yes has…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0051SDM5Q&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_xZ.0Eb707854M "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0051SDM5Q&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_xZ.0Eb707854M")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0051SDM5Q&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_xZ.0Eb707854M) + +Week 49: + +[**Permanent Record** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Edward Snowden, the man who risked everything to expose the…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07STQPGH6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_PZ.0Eb7M602V9 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07STQPGH6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_PZ.0Eb7M602V9")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07STQPGH6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_PZ.0Eb7M602V9) + +Week 50: + +[**Mindset: The New Psychology of Success** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000FCKPHG&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_4Z.0EbDVS0K4C "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000FCKPHG&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_4Z.0EbDVS0K4C")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000FCKPHG&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_4Z.0EbDVS0K4C) + +Week 51: + +[**Unfu*k Yourself: Get Out of Your Head and into Your Life (Unfu*k Yourself series)** +_Shared via Kindle. Description: Joining the ranks of The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck, The Subtle Art of…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B071F7C5NQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_j0.0EbXSP7JHX "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B071F7C5NQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_j0.0EbXSP7JHX")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B071F7C5NQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_j0.0EbXSP7JHX) + +Week 52: + +[**Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition, and Accelerate Your Career** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Now a Wall Street Journal bestseller. Learn a new talent, stay relevant, reinvent…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07K6MF8MD&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_y0.0EbKHY7FYN "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07K6MF8MD&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_y0.0EbKHY7FYN")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07K6MF8MD&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_y0.0EbKHY7FYN) + +### Year Three + +Week 1: + +[**Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: In this instant New York Times bestseller, Angela Duckworth shows anyone striving to…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B010MH9V3W&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_01.0Eb5YD0KFZ "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B010MH9V3W&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_01.0Eb5YD0KFZ")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B010MH9V3W&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_01.0Eb5YD0KFZ) + +Week 2: + +[**The Girl with Seven Names: A North Korean Defector's Story** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER An extraordinary insight into life under one of the world's…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00JD3ZL9U&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_m2.0Eb5ZPG5YJ "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00JD3ZL9U&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_m2.0Eb5ZPG5YJ")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00JD3ZL9U&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_m2.0Eb5ZPG5YJ) + +Week 3: + +[**Disunited Nations: The Scramble for Power in an Ungoverned World** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A forward-thinking geopolitical guru explains who will win and who will lose in the…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07RB1HMRM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_A2.0EbR3AWCST "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07RB1HMRM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_A2.0EbR3AWCST")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07RB1HMRM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_A2.0EbR3AWCST) + +Week 4: + +[**The 48 Laws of Power** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0024CEZR6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_T2.0EbWHE4Z34 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0024CEZR6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_T2.0EbWHE4Z34")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0024CEZR6&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_T2.0EbWHE4Z34) + +Week 5: + +[**Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! The world's leading expert on habit formation shows how…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07LC9KDP5&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_62.0Eb07255XF "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07LC9KDP5&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_62.0Eb07255XF")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07LC9KDP5&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_62.0Eb07255XF) + +Week 6: + +[**The Phoenix Project: A Novel about IT, DevOps, and Helping Your Business Win** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: ***Over a half-million sold! The sequel, The Unicorn Project, is coming Nov 26***…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B078Y98RG8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_h3.0Eb7KJVDR8 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B078Y98RG8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_h3.0Eb7KJVDR8")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B078Y98RG8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_h3.0Eb7KJVDR8) + +Week 7: + +[**Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01BBQ33VE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_u3.0Eb7CVBMW4 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01BBQ33VE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_u3.0Eb7CVBMW4")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01BBQ33VE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_u3.0Eb7CVBMW4) + +Week 8: + +[**Lifespan: Why We Age-and Why We Don't Have To** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A paradigm-shifting book from an acclaimed Harvard Medical…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07N4C6LGR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_J3.0EbS7EP4DJ "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07N4C6LGR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_J3.0EbS7EP4DJ")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07N4C6LGR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_J3.0EbS7EP4DJ) + +Week 9: + +[**Why We're Polarized** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The New York Times Bestseller The Wall Street Journal Bestseller "Few books are as…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07TRNVTZQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_W3.0EbVT05T4H "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07TRNVTZQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_W3.0EbVT05T4H")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07TRNVTZQ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_W3.0EbVT05T4H) + +Week 10: + +[**The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Who are you? When you start to explore this question, you find out how elusive it…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003TU29WA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_93.0Eb71082V7 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003TU29WA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_93.0Eb71082V7")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003TU29WA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_93.0Eb71082V7) + +Week 11: + +[**How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: New York Times Book Review 10 Best Books of 2018 A New York Times Notable Book The #1…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076GPJXWZ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_n4.0EbWYKXE4E "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076GPJXWZ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_n4.0EbWYKXE4E")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076GPJXWZ&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_n4.0EbWYKXE4E) + +Week 12: + +[**The Intelligent Investor, Rev. Ed** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000FC12C8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_A4.0EbMJZXEDD "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000FC12C8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_A4.0EbMJZXEDD")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000FC12C8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_A4.0EbMJZXEDD) + +Week 13: + +[**Boundaries Updated and Expanded Edition: When to Say Yes, How to Say No To Take Control of Your…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Boundaries is the book that's helped over 4 million people learn when to say yes and…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XFKNB2Y&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_N4.0EbF03YWNT "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XFKNB2Y&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_N4.0EbF03YWNT")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XFKNB2Y&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_N4.0EbF03YWNT) + +Week 14: + +[**Becoming Supernatural: How Common People are Doing the Uncommon** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER The author of the New York Times bestseller You Are the…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0746RN3G7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_04.0EbVA6AEWV "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0746RN3G7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_04.0EbVA6AEWV")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0746RN3G7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_04.0EbVA6AEWV) + +Week 15: + +[**These Truths: A History of the United States** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: "Nothing short of a masterpiece."-NPR Books A New York Times and Washington Post…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07BLKWBYT&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_a5.0Eb8BSSKYF "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07BLKWBYT&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_a5.0Eb8BSSKYF")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07BLKWBYT&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_a5.0Eb8BSSKYF) + +Week 16: + +[**Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: "Why We Sleep is an important and fascinating book...Walker taught me a lot about this…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06ZZ1YGJ5&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_n5.0EbKCHX319 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06ZZ1YGJ5&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_n5.0EbKCHX319")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06ZZ1YGJ5&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_n5.0EbKCHX319) + +Week 17: + +[**Profiles in Corruption: Abuse of Power by America's Progressive Elite** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Washington insiders operate by a proven credo: when a Peter…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07X1K1GLM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_C5.0EbMWFS6GN "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07X1K1GLM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_C5.0EbMWFS6GN")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07X1K1GLM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_C5.0EbMWFS6GN) + +Week 18: + +[**The Library Book** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A REESE WITHERSPOON x HELLO SUNSHINE BOOK CLUB PICK A WASHINGTON POST TOP 10 BOOK OF…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CL5ZLHX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_P5.0Eb6HV6MFB "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CL5ZLHX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_P5.0Eb6HV6MFB")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CL5ZLHX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_P5.0Eb6HV6MFB) + +Week 19: + +[**Super Thinking: The Big Book of Mental Models** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER! "You can't really know anything if you just remember…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07P8J83WR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_k6.0Eb1PPWFA3 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07P8J83WR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_k6.0Eb1PPWFA3")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07P8J83WR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_k6.0Eb1PPWFA3) + +Week 20: + +[**Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Revised and Updated, Featuring a New Case Study How do successful companies create…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00LMGLXTS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_x6.0Eb78ZDJ58 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00LMGLXTS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_x6.0Eb78ZDJ58")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00LMGLXTS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_x6.0Eb78ZDJ58) + +Week 21: + +[**The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 Wall Street Journal Bestseller The Obstacle is the Way has become a cult classic…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00G3L1B8K&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_K6.0EbYZRK6Z5 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00G3L1B8K&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_K6.0EbYZRK6Z5")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00G3L1B8K&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_K6.0EbYZRK6Z5) + +Week 22: + +[**21 Lessons for the 21st Century** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * In Sapiens, he explored our past. In Homo Deus, he…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079WM7KLS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Y6.0EbS3JW00X "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079WM7KLS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Y6.0EbS3JW00X")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079WM7KLS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Y6.0EbS3JW00X) + +Week 23: + +[**The Compound Effect** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller, based on the principle that…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XHKBHQL&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_.6.0EbNBP9QW9 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XHKBHQL&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_.6.0EbNBP9QW9")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XHKBHQL&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_.6.0EbNBP9QW9) + +Week 24: + +[**Show Your Work!: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: In his New York Times bestseller Steal Like an Artist, Austin Kleon showed readers how…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00GU2RGGI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_m7.0EbKFDQ4F2 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00GU2RGGI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_m7.0EbKFDQ4F2")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00GU2RGGI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_m7.0EbKFDQ4F2) + +Week 25: + +[**You Are What You Read: Why changing your media diet can change the world** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Do you ever feel overwhelmed and powerless after watching the news? Does it make you…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07L35KXWK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_y7.0Eb19CDS8A "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07L35KXWK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_y7.0Eb19CDS8A")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07L35KXWK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_y7.0Eb19CDS8A) + +Week 26: + +[**Money: A User's Guide** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Take control of your personal finances with this concise, timely and indispensable…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CRGY73D&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_L7.0EbMBBSV6V "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CRGY73D&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_L7.0EbMBBSV6V")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07CRGY73D&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_L7.0EbMBBSV6V) + +Week 28: + +[**The DevOps Handbook: How to Create World-Class Agility, Reliability, and Security in Technology…** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01M9ASFQ3&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Y7.0Eb5KW792D "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01M9ASFQ3&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Y7.0Eb5KW792D")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01M9ASFQ3&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Y7.0Eb5KW792D) + +Week 29: + +[**Don't Sweat the Small Stuff and It's All Small Stuff: Simple Ways To Keep The Little Things From…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: This groundbreaking inspirational guide -- a classic in the self-help genre -- shows…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00JJ9QXRC&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_e8.0EbT0RR4ED "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00JJ9QXRC&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_e8.0EbT0RR4ED")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00JJ9QXRC&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_e8.0EbT0RR4ED) + +Week 30: + +[**Building a StoryBrand: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XFJ2JGR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_t8.0Eb79Y9W5E "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XFJ2JGR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_t8.0Eb79Y9W5E")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06XFJ2JGR&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_t8.0Eb79Y9W5E) + +Week 31: + +[**Do No Harm: Stories of Life, Death, and Brain Surgery** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A New York Times Bestseller Shortlisted for both the Guardian First Book Prize and the…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00FYUM52C&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_28.0Eb99W5PHW "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00FYUM52C&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_28.0Eb99W5PHW")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00FYUM52C&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_28.0Eb99W5PHW) + +Week 32: + +[**The Money Revolution: Easy Ways to Manage Your Finances in a Digital World** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Transform the way you think about money in this easy-to-use, jargon-free guide by Anne…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07RY9XXGX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_e9.0EbT07YGC3 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07RY9XXGX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_e9.0EbT07YGC3")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07RY9XXGX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_e9.0EbT07YGC3) + +Week 33: + +[**99%: Mass Impoverishment and How We Can End It** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: A Financial Times Book of the Year. A clear, readable analysis of the inescapable fact…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07SZ95LX1&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_q9.0EbQXJFPJV "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07SZ95LX1&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_q9.0EbQXJFPJV")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07SZ95LX1&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_q9.0EbQXJFPJV) + +Week 34: + +[**How to Read a Book (A Touchstone Book)** +_Shared via Kindle. Description: With half a million copies in print, How to Read a Book is the best and most successful…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004PYDAPE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_D9.0EbHJ12FCB "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004PYDAPE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_D9.0EbHJ12FCB")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004PYDAPE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_D9.0EbHJ12FCB) + +Week 35: + +[**Pitch Anything: An Innovative Method for Presenting, Persuading, and Winning the Deal** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004H4XL7E&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_S9.0EbXMKX509 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004H4XL7E&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_S9.0EbXMKX509")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B004H4XL7E&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_S9.0EbXMKX509) + +Week 36: + +[**It Doesn't Have to Be Crazy at Work** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: In this timely manifesto, the authors of the New York Times bestseller Rework broadly…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079WV79TK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_69.0EbZDHWNC1 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079WV79TK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_69.0EbZDHWNC1")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B079WV79TK&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_69.0EbZDHWNC1) + +Week 37: + +[**Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B013UWFM52&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_g-.0EbJXD3HV8 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B013UWFM52&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_g-.0EbJXD3HV8")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B013UWFM52&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_g-.0EbJXD3HV8) + +Week 38: + +[**The Happiness Advantage: How a Positive Brain Fuels Success in Work and Life** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER * The happy secret to greater success and fulfillment in work…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003F3PMYI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_u-.0EbSHM2T0C "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003F3PMYI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_u-.0EbSHM2T0C")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003F3PMYI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_u-.0EbSHM2T0C) + +Week 39: + +[**Trust Me, I'm Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076VS1DPB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_K-.0EbE76A3QW "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076VS1DPB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_K-.0EbE76A3QW")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B076VS1DPB&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_K-.0EbE76A3QW) + +Week 40: + +[**Fifty Inventions That Shaped the Modern Economy** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: NAMED A BEST BOOK OF 2017 by BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK, THE FINANCIAL TIMES, AND AMAZON A…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01N0Z56TX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_W-.0EbTA5TJ4J "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01N0Z56TX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_W-.0EbTA5TJ4J")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01N0Z56TX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_W-.0EbTA5TJ4J) + +Week 41: + +[**Stumbling on Happiness** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000GCFW0A&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_--.0EbQ3H1WQQ "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000GCFW0A&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_--.0EbQ3H1WQQ")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B000GCFW0A&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_--.0EbQ3H1WQQ) + +Week 42: + +[**Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: An updated edition of the blockbuster bestselling leadership book that took America and…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0739PYQSS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_M..0Eb9JVAY8E "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0739PYQSS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_M..0Eb9JVAY8E")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0739PYQSS&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_M..0Eb9JVAY8E) + +Week 43: + +[**Thinking, Fast and Slow** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Major New York Times bestseller Winner of the National Academy of Sciences Best Book…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00555X8OA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_1..0EbQTVAXE5 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00555X8OA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_1..0EbQTVAXE5")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00555X8OA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_1..0EbQTVAXE5) + +Week 44: + +[**High Achiever: The Incredible True Story of One Addict's Double Life** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: NATIONAL BESTSELLER * An up-close portrait of the mind of an addict and a life…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07QCLBDFX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_gaa1EbRYMZJ3M "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07QCLBDFX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_gaa1EbRYMZJ3M")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07QCLBDFX&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_gaa1EbRYMZJ3M) + +Week 45: + +[**Blowout: Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia, and the Richest, Most Destructive Industry on…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Big Oil and Gas Versus Democracy-Winner Take All In…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07Q18953R&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_taa1EbTXVMHFC "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07Q18953R&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_taa1EbTXVMHFC")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07Q18953R&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_taa1EbTXVMHFC) + +Week 46: + +[**Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: The #1 New York Times bestseller that has all America talking: as seen/heard on Morning…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07H1ZYWTM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Iaa1Eb81H144X "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07H1ZYWTM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Iaa1Eb81H144X")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07H1ZYWTM&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Iaa1Eb81H144X) + +Week 47: + +[**Start with No: The Negotiating Tools that the Pros Don't Want You to Know** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Start with No offers a contrarian, counterintuitive system for negotiating any kind of…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003EY7JEE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Waa1EbQN2FS8X "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003EY7JEE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Waa1EbQN2FS8X")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003EY7JEE&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Waa1EbQN2FS8X) + +Week 48: + +[**The Spirit of Kaizen: Creating Lasting Excellence One Small Step at a Time: Creating Lasting…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Discover the power of KAIZEN to make lasting and powerful change in your organization…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B009Q0CQMA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_eba1EbR41CNS9 "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B009Q0CQMA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_eba1EbR41CNS9")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B009Q0CQMA&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_eba1EbR41CNS9) + +Week 49: + +[**Principles: Life and Work** + _We're sorry. This preview is not currently available on this browser. In the meantime, you can read on one of these…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B071CTK28D&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_rba1EbRYG96KJ "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B071CTK28D&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_rba1EbRYG96KJ")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B071CTK28D&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_rba1EbRYG96KJ) + +Week 50: + +[**Man's Search for Meaning** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Psychiatrist Viktor Frankl's memoir has riveted generations of readers with its…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B009U9S6FI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Eba1EbX51EX0H "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B009U9S6FI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Eba1EbX51EX0H")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B009U9S6FI&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Eba1EbX51EX0H) + +Week 51: + +[**How To Win Friends and Influence People** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: You can go after the job you want-and get it! You can take the job you have-and improve…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003WEAI4E&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Tba1Eb7CFYA8S "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003WEAI4E&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Tba1Eb7CFYA8S")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B003WEAI4E&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_Tba1Eb7CFYA8S) + +Week 52: + +[**Dark Towers: Deutsche Bank, Donald Trump, and an Epic Trail of Destruction** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: #1 WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER * NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER New York Times finance…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NLFHHJ3&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_8ba1Eb856320W "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NLFHHJ3&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_8ba1Eb856320W")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07NLFHHJ3&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_8ba1Eb856320W) diff --git a/posts/medium/My-Top-Tips-For-Starting-A-Freelance-Writing-Business.md b/posts/medium/My-Top-Tips-For-Starting-A-Freelance-Writing-Business.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0d054bc13fca46fa44979dfa6ace71566fe30b5c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-Top-Tips-For-Starting-A-Freelance-Writing-Business.md @@ -0,0 +1,81 @@ +# My Top Tips For Starting A Freelance Writing Business + +#### And Why Now Is As Good A Time As Any To Take The Plunge + +I recently had the honor of talking to Shawn Dean of the [Certifiably Unemployable podcast](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/certifiably-unemployable/id1525275912) (have I created a self-fulfilling prophesy now?). + +[**‎Certifiably Unemployable: Starting Your Writing Business with Daniel Rosehill on Apple Podcasts** + _‎Are you a Freelance writer? Maybe you are a musician, artist, performer, or you have a side hustle you want to get off…_ podcasts.apple.com](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/starting-your-writing-business-with-daniel-rosehill/id1525275912?i=1000496652073 "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/starting-your-writing-business-with-daniel-rosehill/id1525275912?i=1000496652073")[](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/starting-your-writing-business-with-daniel-rosehill/id1525275912?i=1000496652073) + +We covered a lot of ground during our forty minute conversation (feel free to watch it, above). + +I wanted to use this post to expand upon some of the ideas we discussed relating to founding a freelance writing business. Maybe even one that can go on to flourish during these strange times. + +### 1\. Referrals And Relationships Are Key + +There are a few ways that you can use to acquire clients as a freelance writer. Remember that client acquisition is far more expensive than client retention (although if you’re moving up in the rates tables then you’ll probably need to do a bit of both). So it makes sense to retain and possibly upsell and cross-sell your existing client base before looking at ways to get new people in the door. + +You can use: + + * **Outbound marketing techniques** such as cold calling + * **Inbound marketing techniques** such as blogging and podcasting (this is my big focus this year) + * **Referrals.** As Shawn pointed out, being proactive about _asking_ for these is absolutely key. Freelancing isn’t for the gun-shy + * **Paid advertising** + +But, while I’ve landed clients through both inbound and outbound means, the most consistent success I’ve enjoyed in the five years I’ve been doing this to date has been through referrals. + +Find a client, please them, and then ask if any of their friends/network might be looking for freelance writers too (replace ‘writer’ with whatever it is that you do). + +### 2\. Inbound Referrals Are Particularly Good + +All referrals are good and useful. But I think that one type of referral is particularly under-utilized and that’s something which I call the ‘inbound referral’. + +[**Internal Referrals — An Under-Tapped Way To Grow Your Freelance Business** + _What’s the best way to build your freelance or consulting business?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579) + +This mechanism works really well if you’re freelancing for medium size organizations. + +Small seed-funded startups are usually simply too small for this. But if you’re dealing with a client of some stature, then you should ask your point of contact if anybody else _within the company_ might require your services. + +### 3\. Freelancers Are Eminently Forgettable. It’s Our Job To Change That + +I once heard an adage that the only thing in an office more forgettable than yesterday’s lunch are freelancers. + +As hard as it might be for freelancers to here, I believe that there’s a large ring of truth to it. + +The reason why this is so hearkens back to my first point: relationships are central. + +Picture yourself in an office environment. More than likely, you already work in one. You see your close work colleagues every day. You might see on-site contractors from time to time. But what about freelancers that you hire through a remote marketplace? + +The gritty reality is that face to face relationships _humanize_ the other party. Conversely, we tend to dehumanize those who we do _not_ physically encounter in our world. + +It is in freelancers’ best interests to be seen as something other than disposable, outsourced labors by the companies that they work for. To make themselves memorable as more than “that guy on the internet who helps us with X”. + +Of course, freelance work will often be temporary or project-based in nature. And freelancers should always be working on pipeline so that they’re not overly dependent on any one account. + +But it behooves freelancers to do everything in their power to keep the working relationships they have open to them warm. + +### 4\. If You Have Experience To Offer, Your Timing Can Be Good + +Of course, these are not typical times. + +On the one hand, layoffs are forcing many to consider setting up shop as a freelance writer in time for dinner. + +On the other, companies have been forced to enter into a remote-first reality. And reaching customers through the internet is often now just about their only way of connecting with them. + +I’m no economics genius, but that to me signals: + +Demand for freelance talent: ↑ + +Supply of freelance talent: ↑ + +My feelings are that if you can pick the right niche and have good experience to offer that you can make this dynamic work for you. The field is even more competitive than it was previously, but it’s still possible to land good work. + +To paraphrase Charles Dickens: it’s both the best of times and the worst of times to be starting a freelance business. + +_To listen to the podcast interview, visit this link:_ + +[**‎Certifiably Unemployable: Starting Your Writing Business with Daniel Rosehill on Apple Podcasts** + _‎Are you a Freelance writer? Maybe you are a musician, artist, performer, or you have a side hustle you want to get off…_ podcasts.apple.com](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/starting-your-writing-business-with-daniel-rosehill/id1525275912?i=1000496652073 "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/starting-your-writing-business-with-daniel-rosehill/id1525275912?i=1000496652073")[](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/starting-your-writing-business-with-daniel-rosehill/id1525275912?i=1000496652073) + + _Watch the video interview on YouTube:_ diff --git a/posts/medium/My-current-Ubuntu--desktop--backup-strategy.md b/posts/medium/My-current-Ubuntu--desktop--backup-strategy.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2a757d4d0fe70b38742bd36d3471cb4d3e4b4e04 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/My-current-Ubuntu--desktop--backup-strategy.md @@ -0,0 +1,113 @@ +# My current Ubuntu (desktop) backup strategy + +A schematic of my Ubuntu Desktop backup strategy, which has the primary data source (the SSD) backup up to four locations, three on-site and one off-site. + +About a year and a half ago, two very unfortunate incidents hampered my productivity and occurred within the space of one month: + + * Just after migrating web host — while I was temporarily bereft of hosting backups — **my shared hosting account was targeted by a virulent form of Russian Wordpress malware called Baba Yaga** (yes, that’s its real name, and WordFence have put together an excellent white paper [dissecting it here](https://www.wordfence.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Wordfence-BabaYaga-WhitePaper.pdf)). This resulted in two mostly sleepless weeks attempting to debug a network of 20 infected websites down to the MySQL level. Many, unfortunately,had to be reconstructed manually.[ Very little writing or actual work](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) got done during that period. + * **An attempt to upgrade from an LTS version of Ubuntu to the latest release bricked my system** — and over-zealous use of the fcsk command then bricked the SSD it had been running on. I was down for another two days or so as I was forced to built my desktop back from scratch on a new storage medium. + +Yes, I realize that backups is a _really boring subject that we’d all rather not have to think about. But losing your desktop and/or cloud data is painful!_ + +This painful experience — which cost far more in lost time than the price of a new SSD — taught me to take backups _very_ seriously. And I set as an objective for myself that that unplanned reinstallation of Ubuntu would be the very last one I ever did. + +Thankfully, my system has been up ever since, which puts me at about 18 months of uptime. + +My backup strategy is a work in progress, but — in case anybody finds it of use or of interest — this is what has served me in the period since. + +### The 3–2–1 Backup Rule + +**The overarching objective for my backup strategy (besides, keeping my system up and stable) is now to adhere to**[**the 3–2–1 backup rule**](https://www.nakivo.com/blog/3-2-1-backup-rule-efficient-data-protection-strategy/)**.** + +This states that: + + * You should keep three copies of your data. Which I actually find a little misleading because that means **_your primary data source plus two backups._** + * **The two copies should be kept on different devices or storage media.** For instance: an external hard drive and an AWS bucket. + * **At least one of these copies should be stored offsite.** + +I aim to ensure that this process exists for all my data sources. + +Currently these include: + + * **My desktop** , which consists of my Linux drive (Ubuntu + LXQt) and my very infrequently accessed Windows drive.**Backing up these as whole drives obviously captures all virtual machines (VMs) stored on the drives** — but not drives which are temporarily mounted such as my primary cloud storage. Obviously, if you have various OSes on separate partitions rather than separate drives the process is a little more simple. + * **My cloud storage:** which consists of my primary cloud storage account. + * Data from the **various cloud services** that I use. + * My **web hosting.** + +At the moment, only my desktop meets the strict criteria, so the others (namely, my cloud infrastructure) are themselves a work in progress. + +### Desktop Backup 1: Timeshift SSD (on-site, daily) + +Linux desktop: full backup strategy V1.3. By: Daniel Rosehill.My current Timeshift backups, consisting of an on-demand backup, a daily backup, a weekly backup, and a monthly backup. Timeshift can restore images as a CLI if your system won’t boot. It’s saved me several times already. [Link to the Github project here.](https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift) + +My first line of defense against day-to-day system stability issues is [Timeshift](https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift). + +I keep a dedicated 1TB SSD in my desktop just for holding restore points. I personally recommend this versus partitioning a single backup drive for various purposes. Why? Storage is cheap and it adds a little more redundancy. + +I typically keep; + + * **Two day rolling daily backups.** + * **A weekly backup.** + * **A monthly backup.** + +If a set of upgrades corrupts GRUB, for instance, or the latest NVIDIA driver upgrade won’t work with my graphics card so that I can’t drive a monitor, I can usually roll back to a restore point taken if not this morning then yesterday. + +So far, this has all that has been required to keep my system running at its best order ever. + +### Desktop Backup 2: Clonezilla SSD (on-site, monthly) + +The desktop + +Because — as a relatively soft backup engine that runs aboard a live system — I don’t want to pull all my eggs in Timeshift’s basket,**I also manually take backups using**[**Clonezilla**](https://clonezilla.org/)**. I run this manually once a month.** + +I run disk image to disk image duplicates onto another dedicated SSD (I’ve currently maxed out my motherboard’s SATA ports!). + +### Desktop Backup 3: Backup, Ready-to-Run SSD (on-site, every six months) + +Again using Clonezilla, every six months I format and overwrite _another_ SSD again with my primary. + +I keep this SSD in a hard drive case in my office — but on a shelf. + +Because this SSD is not kept attached to my computer it is not vulnerable to power surges. + +In the unlikely event that a power surge were to fry my entire desktop and all its components (including the two other on-site backups drives) this would be my quickest restore point. + +In the even more unlikely even that my worldly belongings, including my computer are robbed, flooded, or go up in a fiery furnace, backup 4 will be my only restore point (of course, if you store this backup at an offsite location such as your office, you would have two points of redundancy). + +_Alternative approach:_ use Clonezilla to back up an _image_ of the primary (like for Desktop Backup 2) to a simple external SSD. _Disadvantage:_ slightly longer recovery time in the catastrophic my-computer-was-fried-by-lightning-I-need-to-buy-a-new-one-now eventuality. + +### Desktop Backup 4: AWS S3 (off-site, yearly) + +‘Major’ cloud backup schematic‘Minor’ cloud backup schematic + +Of course, for this system to be truly complete,**I need to take an off-site backup for a system disk image.** + +For this purpose, and given the data size involved, S3 (and S3 Glacier) is the obvious cloud-hosted option. + +Uploading a file of this size would be very difficult from my home internet network, which has a typical upload speed of about 2 Mbps. + +For that reason, I pushed my last image to the cloud from a company with a business-grade uplink. + +This year, I will have to find another creative solution. + +### Reminders by Todoist + +Of course, as I haven’t yet figured out a way to automate all the bits and pieces in this backup strategy, I have, unfortunately, to rely upon Todoist reminders that I set in a dedicated project. + +Cloud services and hosting are backed up to AWS which I figure is enough for the time being. + +At some point, I want to buy a physical server to pull down all my buckets once a year. + +This has been on my to-do list for a while but has been out-prioritized by other tech expenses. + +But, let’s be realistic about it — AWS isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. + +That’s it for now. + +Yes, it’s a little complicated. Yes, it’s a little time consuming. + +But it’s better and less time consuming than having to reinstall my desktop from scratch twice a year. + +Hope you enjoyed — and if you have a better backup strategy, or have flaws to point out in mind, please let me know in the comments — [or drop me an email.](http://www.danielrosehill.co.il) + +Happy backing up! diff --git a/posts/medium/Need-PR-On-A-Budget--Here-Are-3-PR-Agency-Alternatives.md b/posts/medium/Need-PR-On-A-Budget--Here-Are-3-PR-Agency-Alternatives.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..be47ac9e740943ca7fcbe10483e7dcc970700e83 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Need-PR-On-A-Budget--Here-Are-3-PR-Agency-Alternatives.md @@ -0,0 +1,68 @@ +# Need PR On A Budget? Here Are 3 PR Agency Alternatives + +#### For lighter touch PR you can leverage these cheaper sources while still getting publicity + +If you’re looking to gain publicity for your organization but don’t have the budget for an expensive agency, consider some of these alternatives. Photo by [Kaboompics .com](https://www.pexels.com/@kaboompics?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-using-stylus-pen-for-touching-the-digital-tablet-screen-6335/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +If your small business is looking to leverage public relations (PR) in order to drive brand awareness and help with lead generation, then a full-fledged agency might be your dream but just out of budget. + +PR agency retainers vary considerably but if you’re in the US you can expect to pay at least $2,000/month for a boutique agency and $5,000 or more for larger names. Some big name agencies even have fees starting at $20,000/month (and above). (Source: [Mustr,](http://getmustr.com/blog/show-money-pr-agency-pricing-structure-fundamentals-2/#:~:text=Boutique%20PR%20agencies%20are%20the,starting%20at%20%2420000%20per%20month.) among others). + +For many solopreneurs and startups, that kind of cost simply can’t be justified, at least during the cost-strapped pre-funding days. + +This is particularly true for organizations whose news release cycles consist mostly of product updates and new hires: in other words, material that may not result in much coverage. + +**While many PR agencies will be wont to tell you this, the truth is that expensive retainers are simply (often) a bad use of marketing budget for many organizations.** + +But before I list a few alternative strategies, I want to underscore the following. PR agencies do a _lot_ more than just get their clients publicity (I worked at one and have had several as clients). + +A full-fledged PR service, for organizations who really stand to benefit from it, can indeed be an invaluable investment. Besides publicity PR agencies can: + + * Manage relations with market research analysts (analyst relations) + * Ghostwrite content, including thought leadership material. PR agencies can also, of course, pitch that material for publication in outlets. + * Manage social media accounts. + * Monitor the media and provide reports about emerging sentiment — positive or otherwise — towards an organization. + * Guide a company through a crisis (crisis communications). + +The thing about PR, however, is that many organizations don’t need all of these services at once. If you just need to get _some_ of those functions covered, then considering keeping one of the following on speed dial. + +### Hire a PR-focused freelance writer / ghostwriter + +A freelance writer / ghostwriter can assist with a lot of the same deliverables that a PR agency can help prepare — and often for a fraction of the cost. + +While in a PR firm the writing duties for an account might get delegated to an anonymous assistant account executive, by working directly with a PR freelance writer, clients can develop strong one-to-one bonds with the people doing their ghostwriting. + +Ghostwriters — as I’ve pointed out before — are effectively just freelance writers who specialize in ghostwriting for their clients. You can use them to produce many of the same resources that you might expect from your PR firm, including: + + * Thought leadership content + * Speeches + * Press releases + +I’m a ghostwriter who works a lot with PR agencies and companies and individuals with PR requirements. So if you’re interested, [consider dropping me a line.](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) + +### Hire a solo PR professional + +PR agencies typically assemble teams of account executives and assistant account executives to assist with turning out the deliverables required for a client. + +For higher level accounts — and those that require the input of an experienced industry expert — a partner might even be drafted in to assist with account management duties (the precise taxonomy will very depending upon the company’s internal organizational structure). + +Solo PR practitioners are essentially (typically) one person shops that offer a panoply of PR services without the (sometimes) bloat and price tag of a full-fledged agency. + +PR pros might brand themselves as either PR freelancers or PR consultants. They often have years of experience operating in the busy agency environment. And might have access to some of the same tools — like the popular Cision media database — that their agency counterparts do. + +In many instances, working with a solo PR practitioner can be a fantastic means for solopreneurs and smaller organizations to conserve budget — or at least spend it more wisely. + +### Manage your own PR + +For many individuals and firms with modest things to talk about — and news to offer to the media market — opting for the DIY approach can actually make a lot more sense. + +[**3 Very Cost-Effective Ways To Get PR Exposure As A Startup** + _If you want coverage without the five figure pricetag, these could be some options to explore_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-very-cost-effective-ways-to-get-pr-exposure-as-a-startup-87be4bcb9157 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-very-cost-effective-ways-to-get-pr-exposure-as-a-startup-87be4bcb9157")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-very-cost-effective-ways-to-get-pr-exposure-as-a-startup-87be4bcb9157) + +There are some great tools that individuals can use themselves without having to get either an agency or a PR pro (or anybody else) involved in the mix. + +Again, unless you yourself are a PR veteran, it would be foolhardy to expect the same results that you might expect to receive by hiring an agency. PR professionals are immersed in the world of PR from morning until night and often develop great relationships with editorial sources that take years to build. But you can certainly get some initial traction by managing things yourself. + +The big name PR agencies of this world certainly fulfill an important function helping manage the communications of many companies. + +However many startups and smaller organizations are looking for alternatives and there are a few out there — particularly for those willing to put in a little bit of effort to taking the reins themselves. diff --git a/posts/medium/No--The-Facebook-Outage-Doesn-t-Mean-We-Should-Avoid-Creating--On-Rented-Land-.md b/posts/medium/No--The-Facebook-Outage-Doesn-t-Mean-We-Should-Avoid-Creating--On-Rented-Land-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..992a1c87564ab8efefac3f000e82e070baf9d795 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/No--The-Facebook-Outage-Doesn-t-Mean-We-Should-Avoid-Creating--On-Rented-Land-.md @@ -0,0 +1,104 @@ +# No, The Facebook Outage Doesn’t Mean We Should Avoid Creating “On Rented Land” + +#### The Digital Prepper’s Perspective: Everything On The Internet Is A Risk. Facebook’s Outage Is Just A Reminder About How To Use Owned and Syndicated Channels Effectively. + +Facebook: the outage doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t create on ‘content’ going forward. It just means that you should be a bit more circumspect about how you set up your marketing stack. Photo by [Oleg Magni](https://www.pexels.com/@oleg-magni?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-photo-of-smartphone-2733662/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Unless you were in a remote cave yesterday, you probably caught wind of the fact that Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instragram all went down simultaneously. + +During moments like these, preppers such as myself give ourselves a small pat on the back (pre-pandemic that would sound ridiculous; now I’m proudly owning the term). + +I posted a few takeaways for those concerned with digital preparedness online yesterday. + +Key among those were: + + * **Probe the ownership structure of every provider in your networking stack.** Yesterday demonstrated perfect something called a ‘single point of failure’ in technology. If Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp are all provisioned on shared infrastructure, they go down, and come up, together. The Fastly outage was also a great demonstration of this. The lower you go down in the networking stack, the more damaging the repercussions downstream. + * **Never assume a protocol is deprecated until it truly is and you have a good replacement for it.** In Israel, WhatsApp is used for absolutely everything–which is why so many Americans are struggling to grasp what the big deal was. During disasters, when networks go down, alternative connectivity sources are often quickly flooded with traffic. SMS, though horribly archaic, still works. + * **Redundant communications are vital.** Have Telegram, Signal, and WhatsApp on your phone. VoIP is extremely useful both during emergencies and for business communications. Ultimately, it just relies upon _internet_ and not on something provisioned more locally such as GSM phone connectivity. + +That’s the prepper in me. Now what about the marketer? + +Many marketers are intoning on social media that this provides that you shouldn’t run your business on non-owned media. + +**_Unfortunately this is confusing two totally unrelated concepts: best practices in marketing and best practices in computer networking._** + +On the marketing front, the point they’re trying to make is true. + +But if all you’re doing on social is _syndicating_ then the point is also entirely useless. + +It’s a pity that you suffered some downtime on your channels yesterday. But such is life. You could have suffered them had you hosted your blog also. That’s not the point. + +Where to build our a content marketing infrastructure is a topic that I’ve posted discussed here and advised clients upon previously. + +The summary version of my recommendation: always shoot for owned infrastructure and _syndicate_ to social for audience development. + +[**Where Should I Create My Business Content: Blog, Website, Or Social Media?** +_A quick rule for where to post your content on the internet_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe) + +### Why Your Blog Could Go Down Wherever You Host It And At Almost Any Time (And Technically Speaking, There’s No Such Thing As A Truly ‘Owned’ Channel) + +Yesterday _did_ have a few useful lessons for marketers. Or rather, it served to reiterate them: + + * **You shouldn’t put social channels at the core of your strategy.** Remember what I wrote above: these channels are great for syndication. But you should never make them the cornerstone of your approach to content distribution. + * **It’s also probably not a good idea to premise any mission-critical aspect of your business on a social media network.** One poster on Twitter lamented how his business relied upon the messaging feature in Facebook to handle all customer interactions. This sounded like terribly bad practice. If the channel was only used as a supplementary form of communication the damage would have been mitigated. Essentially this is the exact same lesson as the preppers were drawing about comms: redundancy and never becoming dependent upon a single source is key. + +What’s the lesson not? + +Don’t publish on social! Make sure all your content distribution channels are owned! Syndicated distribution sources like social media still have _massive value_ for amplification and for widening reach. + +### Why Any Blog Can Go Down Irrespective Of How It Got On The Internet + +Why do I say this? + +Let’s take a blog as a useful surrogate for a marketing asset that most businesses don’t want to live without. + +Let’s look at the various ways you could host that blog and their dependencies from a technology perspective (dependencies: what companies and technologies are we dependent upon to continue operating)? + + * **You could self-host your blog but do so in the cloud — ie on somebody else’s computer.** That’s pretty easy to do. You could used shared hosting or VPS hosting or dedicated hosting. _But what happens if the host goes down? What happens if the data center catches fire? (There are some potential solutions to minimize that risk here but they’re already pretty complicated. Those would involve provisioning redundant data centers with one always on standby in the event of failure. But the vast majority of small businesses neither have budget nor inclination to set those up.)_ + * **You could self-host your blog _and_ host it yourself on premises**. But …. what happens if the hardware that you’re hosting your on premises infrastructure on fails? What happens if you loose networking to the business where those assets are? Again, you’re down. + +And so on and so forth. + +And those factors don’t even factor in something called .. the internet … which is basically just a ginormous worldwide network of switches and connected computers moving packets of data between servers and computers. + +If any of the switches on the way between you and other internet users breaks .. you’re offline. + +### All We Can Do About Risk Is Take Prudent Steps To Manage It, Marketers And Social Media Managers Included + +It’s extremely difficult to set up online infrastructure that almost never goes down (for example the type of five nines high availability infrastructure demanded by critical infrastructure providers). + +This holds true irrespective of whether that infrastructure is being used to manage and deploy mission critical tools like CRMs and ERPs or less vital infrastructures like the servers that host marketing blogs. + +Truly highly available infrastructure costs a fortune. But it’s used whenever people’s lives depend upon it. Those who receive it typically maintain a service level agreement (SLA) which stipulates the uptime guarantee as a contractual clause. + +But here’s something about Facebook et al. + +**They’re free.** + +In exchange for providing your data, you get to use them. And that’s about the extent of the bargain you can drive. + +There’s no such thing as a free lunch in tech.They don’t owe you anything. Including an uptime guarantee. + +In fact, they don’t even have to provide you with an estimate for when they’re going to get your page back online. + +Therefore, they should never be relied upon as critical business tools. Including as the only support channels to your customers. If you use them at all, you want to build in redundancy. + +### Takeaways For Marketers From The Facebook/WhatsApp/Instagram Outage + +When something crazy and industry-disrupting like this catches the world by surprise, it’s _always_ a good idea to take a step back and try to draw lessons. + +But the lesson here isn’t _don’t create content on social media_. + +It’s _don’t rely upon your social media channels as the core elements in your marketing strategy._ Create it somewhere else that you and then duplicate it out. + +Own your own castle, yes. Syndicate out to social, yes. I’ve been advising this for years. + +And realize that ultimately all technology is fallible. That’s just how it goes and a threat that we all live with. + +Your blog could go kaput just as easily as Facebook could even if you host it somewhere else. + +The best we can do is take reasonable steps to mitigate risk. + +Those look exactly like the above. + +The rest is down to luck. diff --git a/posts/medium/OSINT-adventure--Pillaging-media-lists-from-Google.md b/posts/medium/OSINT-adventure--Pillaging-media-lists-from-Google.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bda6615aca79171722e3cb64b90bbed9701a7f31 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/OSINT-adventure--Pillaging-media-lists-from-Google.md @@ -0,0 +1,67 @@ +# OSINT adventure: Pillaging media lists from Google + +Writing about my [almost entirely failed attempt to find WordPress form completions](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/osint-experiment-trying-to-scrape-completed-contact-forms/) “in the wild” (of the clearweb, that is) was a bit of fun. + +So as I’ve drunk far too much coffee for the hour at hand, let me explain something that _does_ yield results. + +Whether this is properly described as Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) or just some plain ‘ol Google-fu I’ll leave up to you to decide. But either way, it _does_ illustrate just how much stuff people leave exposed on public-facing and indexed web-servers. + +So, without further a-do, here’s how to to find journalists and media contacts to spam with your next press release without paying a dime (watch out, [Cision](http://www.cision.com)!) + +### 1: Look For Spreadsheet Formats + +The most basic [Google operator](https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/) that’s going to help us scoop up media lists that NGOs, individuals and even media outlets themselves have left floating around the internet is to search for spreadsheets. + +So let’s think of file extensions. We have: + + * **.xlsx:** modern spreadsheets. The changeover actually took place in MS Office ‘07. + * **.xls:** the legacy MS Office spreadsheet format + * **.ods:** that’s the default format that LibreOffice Calc uses, which is what weirdos like me in Linux-land use when we want to save a spreadsheet. + +The Google search operator we need to filter based on file extension is **filetype:**. We could also string together a series of them: + +One thing worth pointing out: although the media lists would likely be badly outdated, .xls might actually be better hunting ground here. + +To be cynical about it: the less tech-savvy the user and the more outdated the system they’re using, the better the chance they will have done some ill-advised like uploading a media list onto a public-facing web service. + +### 2: Combine Them With Some Operators + +Let’s start off with something really easy: + +That will throw up 179 results including a relatively recent media list for WEFTEC — which is a water industry trade conference. + +What did we find? + +If you’re simply out hunting for email addresses, this is a nice little sample set with 45 personal addresses for trade media contacts working for industry publications: + +To find a few more: + +If we wanted to specifically try to dig up higher level media tier contacts, we would probably want to start by knowing our target publication’s internal email structure. + +Hunter would quickly find this out: + +Then we could combine a wildcard search with that domain name in order to validate addresses that have appeared in media lists out in the open: + +Which would yield some more resources: + +That resource yielded a nice collection of high level media contacts from major outlets and news bureaux along with their personal emails and phone numbers: + +### 3: Other Interesting Things Floating Around The Internet + +You can repeat this as a sort of iterative process to find media contacts. + +You could go searching for contacts at radio stations: + +You might want to find some direct contacts at agency bureaux: + +A few years out of date, but some nice contacts: + +Or you could play around with queries and look for something “interesting” but totally not news related. + +Such as: + +Or: + +And happen upon some scintillating information — such as who to call for emergency problems affecting railway bridges in Wisconsin. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/OSINT-experiment--Trying-to-scrape-completed-contact-forms.md b/posts/medium/OSINT-experiment--Trying-to-scrape-completed-contact-forms.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d7efa88dc608812afc56e5aa58af357b735a89b8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/OSINT-experiment--Trying-to-scrape-completed-contact-forms.md @@ -0,0 +1,82 @@ +# OSINT experiment: Trying to scrape completed contact forms + +I recently completed a contact form on a technology website to send in a query. + +The site looked like it was built on WordPress. + +After populating the usual fields, rather than displaying an email confirmation or populating a dropdown with some standard confirmation text, the site instead displayed a copy of my query on a confirmation URL. + +The URL structure looked familiar to me. + +I was almost certain it was [Contact Form 7](https://wordpress.org/plugins/contact-form-7/) — which I used to use before jumping ship to WP Forms, which is the form embedded in this site. + +I was wrong. There are services for detecting which themes and plugins a WordPress site is running, but in this case all I had to do was inspect the source HTML: + +The confirmation URL looked like this: + + + [http://www.website.com/contact-us?contact-form-id=243&contact-form-sent=24245&contact-form-hash=353533598988958&_wpnonce=cdf79b8067#contact-form-865](http://www.website.com/contact-us?contact-form-id=243&contact-form-sent=24245&contact-form-hash=353533598988958&_wpnonce=cdf79b8067#contact-form-865) + +So we can clearly identity four variables: + + * The**contact form ID**(a three digit number). Its raw string is contact-form-id + * The **contact form confirmation number (** a five digit number). Its raw string is contact-form-sent + * A **40 character hash** , in UTF-8. Its raw string is contact-form-hash. + * **A second unique form identifier** : ‘Wpnonce’ + +The contact form hash alone is enough to prevent people from being able to access other users’ completed forms simply be polling URLs with sequential contact form IDs. + +I presumed that the plugin was generating these confirmation messages with the appropriate SEO tags. + +But -being the naturally inquisitive type, this immediately made me wonder: **are these confirmation URLs ephemeral**? And even if they are supposed to be in the deep web, **might any have slipped through the net and be retrievable in the wild?** + +I went searching. + +### Query Building + +After analyzing the URL structure of the confirmation page, my next task was building a Google query that might dredge these up. + +Clearly the confirmation messages might vary, so polling for a specific URL pattern seemed like a better approach than looking up text strings. + +I figured that `"contact-us?contact-form-id="` should be common to all form completions using this WordPress plugin. + +First query, no success: + +The URLs either don’t seem to persist or are well de-indexed. + +But simply searching for the text string dug up some interesting information — potentially content created through integrations: + +A form has been partially completed and held online. But it looks like a bot submission: + +Unfortunately, directly looking for queries doesn’t yield any obviously exposed form completions. + +I decide to look for `inurl: contact-form-hash` and I start to find actual form confirmations: + +Unfortunately these sites haven’t piped the form output to the confirmation page. + +And if they did, what’s a word somebody might use in a form? Regards, perhaps? + +Note: any time you run advanced operators like this, you are virtually guaranteed to start getting this: + +Which merely draws up more Russian spam: + +Unfortunately these are not cached in Google: + +One interesting observation is that the backend fields _are_ sometimes captured by search engines, probably due to a misconfiguration: + +We can find some more by searching for: + +Or: + +### Outcome + +This OSINT adventure didn’t yield too much in the way of useful information — but it did reassure me that my form completions are probably not being scraped. But every challenge like this is certainly an interesting experiment. + +Some things I picked up from this: + + * **Contact form completion URLs are generally properly deindexed** and so are on the deep web rather than the open internet — as they should be. + * **The URL structure includes several unique tokens, including a hash,** which would make attempting to guess live completion URLs, or brute force them, basically impossible. + * The only completion available ‘in the wild’ on the open web are from Russian spammers. + * Sometimes, form fields that should be kept within the backend are exposed to Google, making it possible to identify site owners’ private email addresses. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/On-The-Great-M-Disc-vs---Regular--Blu-Ray-Debate.md b/posts/medium/On-The-Great-M-Disc-vs---Regular--Blu-Ray-Debate.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1e512385c8f1446025ba463ba4f9b85eed6cc063 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/On-The-Great-M-Disc-vs---Regular--Blu-Ray-Debate.md @@ -0,0 +1,139 @@ +# On The Great M-Disc vs. “Regular” Blu-Ray Debate + +#### My attempt to get to the heart of the surprisingly fierce online debate as to which form of optical media storage is the best for long term offline archival storage + +My M-Disc based video library containing about 3 years’ worth of YouTube videos, podcasts, blogs (like this one!), and more. Photo: author. + +_This text was originally published to Reddit:_ + +So last week I posted a support response that I received from Verbatim regarding whether their currently produced Blu Rays are HTL (high to low) or LTH (low to high). + +Unfortunately in attempting to clarify this subject I did the exact opposite. + +Hence my attempt to start a new thread from scratch. + +Although these differences might seem trivial, to those who have placed their data and trust in optical media for archival purposes (and thus expect reasonable longevity from the media) this stuff is actually data-critical. + +Hence I’m investing some time and effort inanomaterialsn trying to get to the bottom of things. + +### **LTH vs HTL** + + A Verbatim company presentation outlining the differences between Blu Ray LTH and HTL technology. + +Let’s start with what’s uncontroversial: + + * **LTH = low to high = recording layer is organic** (like CDs and DVDs). BD-R LTH was attractive to the storage industry and they could only slightly modify existing CD and DVD production lines to churn out this media. + * **HTL = high to low = recording layer is inorganic** (like M-Discs). In Verbatim world, HTL involves the use of MABL (metal ablative recording layer). But MABL is not the only possible implementation of an inorganic recording layer for BD-X media. + +Verbatim’s description of how its MABL technology works. Source: Verbatim. + +Here’s how Verbatim describe **MABL** (I’m quoting verbatim — pardon the pun — from their marketing literature): + +> _“MABL: A specially created inorganic recording layer present on Verbatim’s BD-R media ensures excellent recording compatibility and prolonged stability for archival life.”_ + +Organic dyes — including AZO — are subject to ageing and deterioration. Dye degradation leads to lack of optical contrast which leads to lost data. It’s widely believed that inorganic recording layers offer superior longevity (for MABL, I’ve heard 300 years thrown about. Mdisc famously claims a millennium.) + +**This doesn’t mean, by the way, that inorganic recording layers are guaranteed to be impervious to data loss.** + +M-Discs’s product literature suggests that the polycarbonate substrate may be a more vulnerable failing point than the recording layer itself. + +Presumably inorganic layers can degrade in other ways that would reduce the all-important optical contrast which holds the key to data preservation on optical media. + +But it seems reasonably widely agreed-upon that inorganic layers including metal alloys are overall better primed for the job of staying physically inert over time than their organic counterparts. + +### HTL / Inorganic Blu Rays vs. M-Discs + +A Verbatim BD-R M-Disc in a Pioneer burner. Photo: Daniel Rosehill. + +And here’s what I can surmise on this particularly controversial topic: + +**_To the extent that the M-Disc and HTL Blu Rays are different, the differences probably have to do with differences in the composition of the inorganic layer._** + +Even researching this subject briefly, you can find resources pointing to different alloys and composites that different manufacturers have used in their Blu-Ray products intended for archival. + +An excerpt from the Wikipedia page describing the evolution of the BD-R technology gives a hint towards the varying material compositions which different manufacturers have attempted to use to engineer BD-R disks with optimal longevity. Screnshot: Wikipedia, Highlight: Author. + +So what’s ‘marketing speak’? What’s legit? + +The only truthful answer as far as I can tell is _“nobody knows.”_ + +The M-Disc BD-R came to market in 2014, 10 years ago. + +At the time I’m writing this, we’d need to hop into a time machine and teleport 990 years into the future to test whether that claimed longevity was accurate. + +Of course, we’d also need to bring with us a sizeable enough collection of M-Discs to satisfy whatever the imagineary statisticians in this experiment were to deem a reasonable sample size. We’d likely also want to bring with us some organic (LTH) Blu-Rays to serve as controls. And finally all this media would need to have been written and checksum-ed on the day that the M-Disc came to market. Otherwise, we better change the setting on our time machine…. + +Clearly none of this is feasible in today’s world. But using what data we have can we decisively say that whatever’s in the M-Disc truly better than whatever’s in Verbatim’s “regular” BD-R with MABL? Can we prove that there’s even a difference? + +I suggest that it’s reasonable to assume that there’s at least _some_ difference in composition between these two products and for a very simple reason: It wouldn’t make any sense for Verbatim to maintain the Verbatim M-Disc and regular Verbatim (HTL) BD-Rs as concurrent product lines if there were truly no differences between the two. And yet — as of the time of writing — they do exist as separate products .. with the M-Disc specifically recommended for best-in-class archival. + +Of course, Verbatim could be an evil corporation intent on duping us optical media diehards. But I would suggest that unless somebody can prove that to be the case by examining the products’ material composition at the microscopic level that … this level of skepticism and cynicism may be unwarranted (to put it mildly). Generally speaking, I’m not one for conspiracy theories. I put my trust and faith in the M-Disc however much derision that may arouse from more dubious souls. + +Sony and others also manufacture Blu Ray discs with inorganic layers bearing longevity claims. Screenshot via Amazon.com. + +And what, you may ask, about the archival BD-Rs that Sony, JVC, Panasonic, and others have brought to market? Aren’t these also engineered with inorganic recording layers? Well yes they are! + +I suggest that all any of us can do is evaluate the technology on the basis of the best information available to us. + +Because even if we were privy to the exact formulations of nanomaterials used in rival products (and these are trade secrets, so we’re not), I’d humbly suggest that this information wouldn’t take us much further to this unreachable truth in trying to discern which product is the very best (because we’d still have to rely on the extrapolated calculations of accelerated ageing tests to determine truths). + +Might the most simple and reasonable advice be _“pick a brand you like and trust and hope their claims live up to what’s on the website?”_ It may actually be all any of us can do. + +### HTL vs. LTH Debate On Reddit + +There have been [much discussed threads](https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/8ihutc/100_of_bdr_bluray_disks_are_now_organic_lth/) on the /r/datahoarder subreddit alleging that all Blu Rays in circulation are low to high (LTH), organic media. So last week, I decided to reach out to Verbatim to ask whether their currently produced BD-R media is LTH or HTL. + +**Verbatim responded that they no longer make** **_LTH_** **Blu Ray media. Ie, all their Blu Ray media in production is** **_HTL._** + +In retrospect, this seems to make abundant sense (and yes, assuming this is true, this means that the poster in the above thread is incorrect). + +A couple of datapoints: + + * My current “regular Joe” Verbatim BD-Rs detect as HTL. + * But more importantly it seems as if the manufacturers collectively did something of a rethink about the sagacity of trying to use organic dyes in Blu Rays. + +**_The chronology of the evolution of consumer-purchasable and writeable Blu Ray media goes something — as far as I can discern — like this:_** + +-> Blu-Ray was originally standardised on HTL + +-> In 2009–2010 Verbatim launch BD-R LTH using AZO as the recording dye. This BD-R was often marketed as “Blu Ray LTH Type” to differentiate it from HTL which was the original and thus “standard” BD-R. BD-R LTH proved finnicky with burner firmware and perhaps anoraks like us didn’t like the regression that a move from inorganic to organic recording layers entailed. + +-> In 20XX (I don’t know the date) Verbatim seems to have quietly shelved the LTH idea and went back to making BD-R HTL media. + +-> In April 2014 Milleniata launches the first Blu Ray version of the M-Disc (25GB). + +-> In December 2016 Milleniata files for bankruptcy. + +-> 2016 — present: Milleniata licenses its technology to Verbatim and Ritek. Verbatim produces the M-Disc as BD-R, BD-DL, and BDXL (100GB). Ritek initially makes M-Disc DVDs and BD-Rs before focusing exclusively on Blu Rays. Verbatim never manufactured M-Disc DVDs. + +So the trajectory of consumer-writable Blu Ray’s is essentially HTL -> LTH (short lived, failed fork)-> HTL (for the most part). + +And at some point after we got back onto HTL the M-Disc came to market and was then subsumed into Verbatim’s product lines. + +Blu Ray LTH type media is still available on the market but what’s available is likely old stock. Screenshot via Amazon + +Verbatim (now a subsidiary of CMC) is of course only one of several disc manufacturers. You can still find BR-LTH discs on the market without too much trouble. Although I’m not sure why anybody would specifically want them. + +### My Closing Hot Take + +All this detail and debate belies one very simple question: what’s the very best physical form of digital storage medium that I can purchase in the year 2024 which will preserve my data in cold storage for the longest possible time? + +And beyond verifying that any product has a reasonable probability of remaining free of data rot for say 50 years, I’d suggest that further enquiry is likely fruitless. For the following reason: + +**Realistically, stability of digital data beyond 100 years is likely not necessary.** + +Thus whether technology A vs B can guarantee archival life of 100 or 1,000 years is a moot point. + +Since the advent of the digital age storage technology has rapidly evolved. + +It’s reasonable to assume that the storage industry will have come up with a better solution for data permanence than Blu Rays in …. perhaps 30 years. + +We hope and expect, of course, that this point will occur before the deprecation of optical media .. and that backward compatibility will enable us to get our stuff out of the old archival medium (Blu Ray) and onto its better successor … hopefully with vastly greater data densities. + +I’ve heard it said frequently that LTO gets unreliable after about 30 years (max). + +For cold data preservation longer than that, optical media is (weirdly) basically what’s out there. + +**Whether you’re putting your trust in archival grade CDs, DVDs, Verbatim BD-R or the M-Disc … we’ll do well to get 50 years of stable storage out of these things.** + +_*All the above is correctly only to the best of my knowledge at the time of posting. This stuff certainly gets confusing. The definitive source of information about all this is probably the Blu Ray Alliance (BDA). Unfortunately getting hold of their disc specifications isn’t cheap._ diff --git a/posts/medium/On-The-Value-Of-Sharing-Kind-Words-With-Others.md b/posts/medium/On-The-Value-Of-Sharing-Kind-Words-With-Others.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..aea5ef757c9ff9970befc18159c7ad0c62e18d51 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/On-The-Value-Of-Sharing-Kind-Words-With-Others.md @@ -0,0 +1,162 @@ +# On The Value Of Sharing Kind Words With Others + +Thank you, dear sender! + +About an hour ago, I received the following message from a reader of[ my Times of Israel blog.](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/author/daniel-rosehill/) + +_“Big deal!”_ you might be thinking. + +Typically I’d agree with you. + +But it brightened my mood enough that I felt motivated enough to write a short note about it. + +I’m sharing the email I received not as a humble-brag — because I hate humble-braggers ([apparently I’m not alone](https://time.com/5095144/humblebrag-bragging/#:~:text=Humblebragging%20%E2%80%94%20defined%20as%20%E2%80%9Cbragging%20masked,It%27s%20such%20a%20common%20phenomenon.) in that) — but rather to point out a couple of things that I think might be instructive. + +One of those is for people in general and the other one is for my fellow writers. + +These are: + +### 1\. Kind Words Can Enormously Elevate The Recipient — Potentially At A Time of Need + +Kind words can help elevate those receiving them + +**The few people in this world that know me very well know that I detest few things more than receiving compliments.** + +[Yes, I should probably raise this with a psychotherapist](https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/the-squeaky-wheel/201308/why-some-people-hate-receiving-compliments) rather than with Medium. There’s probably some clue into my soul there that I’m missing — or else it’s simply indicative of a lack of self esteem. + +Whatever the cause may be, despite generally hating compliment with a capital ‘H’, periodic notes of appreciation such as the above never fail to raise my morale. + +Why that strange dichotomy, you might be wondering? + +[My _Times of Israel_ blog](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/author/daniel-rosehill/) is a pet project — although it serves the ancillary aim of creating a pool of writing samples when most of the work that I do these days is ghostwriting that does not bear my byline or any evidence of my authorship. + +I update it when I can — which is usually once every few months. + +But it’s neither the subject matter that I typically write about (technology) nor is it client work. + +I don’t write it because I think I’m the best writer in the world and I want others to know that. I’m learning and always trying to improve — and if you told me that you thought my writing were great it _would_ make me feel decidedly awkward. + +I write it, rather, because I care about the viewpoints that I’m expressing. + +And I want to try influence, in some small way, the vast marketplace of ideas. In order for that to work, they need something called ‘reach’. + +There’s only one problem. + +My posts — like these ones on Medium — tend to receive little in the way of apparent engagement. + +I get why. + +I’m not a big name writer. I’m not great at self promotion (in fact, it takes excruciating effort for me to even share my own writing on Facebook). + +And — in a crowded marketplace of ideas — why would anybody care to read what some random guy from Ireland [has to say about Israeli politics](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-israelis-be-the-ultimate-freyers/)? + +So although I care deeply about what I write — and try to pour as much energy as I can muster into each post — this lack of engagement does not surprise me. + +Maybe it will change. Maybe it will not. I don’t take it to heart. Or at least that’s what I tell myself. + +One of my evident flops + +Like most websites, the Times of Israel provides a social likes counter which is proudly emblazoned near the masthead of every post that one contributes there. It’s in the archive pages too. This isn’t a criticism of their UI — most news sources carry this feature and it exists for a reason. + +Sometimes, I don’t get page views statistics for the places in which my writing appears. So this social KPI is, for me, a proxy indicator for reach and it’s the only information I have to go by about how my posts are performing. And so, when what I write tends to peak out at about 20 shares, it can sometimes feel discouraging. + +And so, this brings me back to the email I received. + +Sharing your appreciation for a writer’s work, or a business’s service, can enormously lift the latter’s morale, or brighten their afternoon, in a way that you, as the sender, may enormously underestimate — or fail to appreciate at all. + +This pleases me enormously because — just like those that occasionally send _me_ letters — I often also write in to my favorite authors, bloggers, and businesses to tell them how much I appreciate what they are doing or writing. I’ve been doing this my whole life. Now in fact, I’m beginning to think that I may not do this often enough. + +And I’ll be honest — doing so sometimes feels like an exercise in futility. + +Or worse — it makes me feel like a bored online stalker. + +Because when I get determined to reach somebody in order to express my praise, I get determined: I can track down an email address from Hunter.io, a WHOIS page, or wherever else it can be found. + +I won’t lie, I’ve opened a fan mail letter or two over the years with something very like _“Hi, I ran a search for your name and found you referenced in your high school magazine with your email address”._ + +This feels — and indeed it may sound — a little bit stalkerish. + +I don’t always get a response or manage to start a dialogue with the author. Although really I’m just writing in to say ‘thanks’. + +People might be justifiably weirded out. But my intentions, in all cases, are good — to communicate with the recipient that their work has been appreciated. + +Sharing a kind word can show a business, writer, or author that you appreciate what they are doing. + +It can shine a light that might lift whatever bleak mood they might be in. If they feel like their writing is a waste of time, it might help show them that it’s not. + +Don’t underestimate the positive impact that a few minutes of your time can have. + +### Kind Words Tell The Recipient That Somebody Cares About What They’re Doing + +**The second benefit of writing nice things to people — and this time to writers specifically — is that you show them that somebody cares about what they are writing.** + +Sometimes, this sentiment can also arrive at a time that — for the recipient — might be badly needed. When they feel as if nobody does and wouldn’t it be better just to pack things up? + +I know that this might all be beginning to sound a little naff. + +But bear with me for a moment. + +Humans these days — writers no less — are obsessed with what I sometimes term vanity metrics: How many times has a post been shared, liked, or syndicated?; how often has a podcast been listened to?; how many times sometimes played, or liked, a video on YouTube? + +Public relations practitioners, in particular, invest enormous time and effort in trying to measures and quantity ‘reach’ — in order to try demonstrate a positive return on investment for sometimes skeptical clients who are perpetually seeking answers to why they are handing over several thousand dollars a month in professional fees to them. + +**And yet both the social share counts and the column inches quantified sometimes fail to account, entirely, for the hearts and minds that your words might be slowly — but silently — shifting, influencing, and connecting with.** + +Sadly, this fact is often unbeknownst to the authors themselves — who may assume that because nobody is liking their LinkedIn statuses, or reading their Medium articles, that they are wasting their time and that they are falling on deaf ears. + +There are countless reasons why this discrepancy between your blog’s apparent and actual reach might differ. But let me provide a few examples. + +Sometimes people don’t ‘like’ your posts on social media because they were about to but then the microwave bell went off and they realized that their pasta was ready. And then they ate their pasta and promptly forgot about whatever it is that you had written. + +Sometimes people don’t like your post because they don’t have a Facebook account from which to like your post. + +In fact, sometimes they didn’t like your post at all — and so they won’t express their appreciation for it on social media! + +Sometimes all of this is true. + +And sometimes it isn’t. + +It might depend upon a variety of circumstances completely beyond your control: whether the microwave pings in 30 seconds time or now, whether your demographic has a social media account and is feeling sufficiently motivated to express their appreciation for your work that day. Etc, etc. + +But there’s good news. + +It’s in _your_ power, as an appreciative reader, consumer, or fan to change all this. + +The next time that you read something that you greatly appreciated consider dropping the writer a clap, an encouraging comment, or even a short email. + +Sometimes, as the sender, you cannot fathom the positive and uplifting impact that this little engagement will have. + +### Positive Language Creates Positive Effects + +I’ll admit that I’m no great touter of positive psychology — so am probably not the ideal person to be penning this post. + +My mindset can be negative at times. + +And my online writing sometimes unashamedly points out things that I perceive to be wrong — with governments, policies, and even cultures. + +Increasingly, however, I try to do so in a way that (to the best of my understanding) is in accordance with the Jewish concept of _lashon hara —_ the religious laws regarding negative speech and the ancillary concept of gossip-mongering and slander. + +I try not to interject religion into my posts here on Medium. It’s not the platform, I realize. But it’s also my frame of reference for this. + +Because it likely isn’t yours, if you’d like you can substitute _lashon hara_ for ‘negative speech’ — even though, in Judaism, it’s meaning is more precise and controlled than that. + +But however you’d like to call it my point is simply this. + +Religious Jews study, in depth, the precept of what they believe is the commandment to avoid negative speech. + +But perhaps it is about time that they — and we — start thinking as well about _lashon hatov_ (“good speech”)_—_ and what speaking _positively_ about other people might be able to achieve in a world brimming full with so much negativity and hurt. + +This isn’t a recipe, I hope, for creating an echo-chamber effect, for becoming self-righteous, or for fawning praise. For saying that everything is wonderful and rosy. But sometimes holding your tongue and staying silent is a better approach than saying something critical — if the latter serves no constructive purpose. + +[**5 Customer Service Stock Phrases— To Make the Internet A Less Angry Place** + _Few of my friends are aware of this, but — in addition to being a marketing extraordinaire (just kidding) — my resume…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-customer-service-stock-phrases-to-make-the-internet-a-less-angry-place-8c6ee2b87b "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-customer-service-stock-phrases-to-make-the-internet-a-less-angry-place-8c6ee2b87b")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-customer-service-stock-phrases-to-make-the-internet-a-less-angry-place-8c6ee2b87b) + +Last week I wrote a piece, on Medium, about how one can use stock customer phrases to defuse angry online arguments. It’s above. + +It’s in that same vein that I write _this_ post. + +And what better time than now? When so much divisiveness and hatred — much of it spewed online — permeates our societies. + +If you follow an author whose work has positively influenced you, or bought from a business whose goods or services delighted you, then consider taking five minutes out of your day to write them a short note of appreciation. + +You might never know the positive effect which that small act of kindness can achieve. diff --git a/posts/medium/Open-Sourcing-Isn-t-Just-For-Code---The-Value-Of-Sharing-Know-How-Even-When--Almost--Nobody-Is-.md b/posts/medium/Open-Sourcing-Isn-t-Just-For-Code---The-Value-Of-Sharing-Know-How-Even-When--Almost--Nobody-Is-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..329e995331deafc96a875bce20a1d1d67670abbc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Open-Sourcing-Isn-t-Just-For-Code---The-Value-Of-Sharing-Know-How-Even-When--Almost--Nobody-Is-.md @@ -0,0 +1,90 @@ +# Open Sourcing Isn’t Just For Code — The Value Of Sharing Know-How Even When (Almost) Nobody Is… + +#### Why I Believe In Posting About Obscure Topics That I Know Few People Care About + +Screenshot: from a video I uploaded to YouTube about using a backup program called Clonezilla. Screenshot: Author. + +Recently, a distant relative began following me on Twitter. + +We haven’t spoken much over the years. In fact, we’ve grown distant. It happens. The pandemic doesn’t help. + +Like many, through perusing my tweets, he picked up quickly on a couple of things. Namely, that: + + 1. I like Linux and tweet a lot about technology-related things. Recently, I’ve tweeted a lot about failover internet because I’ve been working on setting it up at home. Previously, I sent in quite a number of posts about backups. As I work on “problems” I tend to discuss and share about them. + 2. I share the odd personal thing from time to time. Like that time I wrote on here about being diagnosed with ADHD. + +[**My ADHD Diagnosis Story** + _Cross-posted from Twitter, lightly redacted, and expanded:_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c "https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c")[](https://medium.com/daniels-adhd/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c) + +He (she?) admitted that the tech stuff flew over his head — probably including the post I shared yesterday about setting up backup internet connectivity and why an ISP + cellular config is probably better than subscribing to two ISP lines. + +And then — like many, I assume — he threw in a conclusion (this was relayed through another family member): Daniel is on Twitter. And it’s painfully boring. Ouch, that one stung! + +### Open Sourcing Isn’t Just For Code + +Having used Linux for more than a decade, I’ve become a huge advocate for the whole enterprise of open-sourcing information. + +The work of other open source advocates has enabled me to use technology I would likely never have been able to afford. And through that, I’ve developed a passion for technology that has greatly influenced the direction my career has taken to date. + +Sometimes, it’s given me enough knowledge to be able to share that with _others_ who are getting into the same things I was a few years ago — or a decade previously. It creates a fulfilling cycle. And it’s nice to be able to close the loop. + +[**Happy 30th Birthday, Linux (From A Humble Tech Marketer And Longtime Ubuntu User)** +_Linux is so much more than a geeky operating system; it’s a movement that embraces surmounting challenges through the…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/happy-30th-birthday-linux-from-a-humble-tech-marketer-and-longtime-ubuntu-user-f47b195fc0ec "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/happy-30th-birthday-linux-from-a-humble-tech-marketer-and-longtime-ubuntu-user-f47b195fc0ec")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/happy-30th-birthday-linux-from-a-humble-tech-marketer-and-longtime-ubuntu-user-f47b195fc0ec) + +But more than that, open source has become a central part of my philosophy. About technology. But also about life. + +Of course, as one grows older, the bills start accruing and the imperative to make money from one’s know-how becomes ever more pressing. There’s rent to pay — or a mortgage. Fancy technology hobbies that demand hardware which doesn’t pay for itself. Food to keep one living. + +Which is why I think that the open source movement is always going to be circumscribed by the profit incentive. + +Sure, society will produce the odd creative genius who inherits an enormous trust fund (or becomes independently wealthy) and can dedicate all day and night to creating things for the benefit of society (without expecting a profit motive). But such individuals are likely to be vanishingly rare. + +The vast majority of people who enjoy sharing ideas — and thinking and open source projects — are folks like me. We do it for fulfillment and because we believe in the cause, get excited by the obscure topics we know about, and want to provide the blueprints of our work to help others take them further and in directions our brains weren’t able to envision. But we also need to pull back quite a bit because it’s not the work that pays the bills. + +When I’m on the clock, I’m a marketing communications consultant. But I also believe in sharing what I’ve learned in the hope that it might help others to chart paths that might intersect with mine. + +That’s why: + + * I shared pretty much everything I’ve learned to date about freelance writing on a Medium publication I set up. Even though all my Medium writing is un-paywalled and thus I haven’t made a cent from the writing. As I’m far less focused on freelance writing these days, the publication is inactive. But I know — because I pick up emails from readers — that what I’ve shared has helped some people navigate the sometimes choppy waters of this line of work. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +I’ve shared the actual backup strategy I’ve been using for 4 years on Github. + +[**GitHub - danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy: A markdown file summarizing my current…** + _A markdown file summarizing my current approaches for creating 3-2-1 compliant backups of my local and cloud…_ github.com](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy "https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy")[](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy) + +I provided enough detail about the failover internet solution I set up today on YouTube that just about anybody motivated enough and with enough technical literacy could set it up for themselves in their own homes. + +I could even watch my own video if I wanted to replicate the setup somewhere else and I had already forgotten the steps I went through to set it up at home. When I detail technical steps like those I set out in the video below, I also do so to create documentation for my own use. But why not liberate that information for broader consumption? + +### Open Sourcing Information: For Me, For You, For The World + +My approach to open-sourcing information is pretty simple: if I don’t have to make money from knowledge, I’m happy to let it go. + +More than that, I _believe_ in letting it go. And so I do. + +I monetize selectively. + +What’s left goes out to the community to do whatever they want with–if they want to read it, watch it, or use it at all. + +In the course of doing this, I create documentation and a digital history that will chart the history of my own evolution — in technology, in thinking, and in life. And it may provide inspiration or be of use to somebody else. Or it may not. But either way is fine. I struggle to see how I lose anything by sharing what I know with the world. Even when the audience doesn’t exist. + +Just as other creators who have published YouTube videos, Github documentation, and open access blogs have helped _me_ , I’m glad to share information that _potentially_ might be of interest. Even if it’s only to one other human. + +I know that most people don’t care about setting up backup internet connections (even if they’re totally great and by minimizing your downtime could save your business money!) + +I know that most people use Windows and couldn’t care less about an obscure operating system called Linux. + +And guess what? + +None of those things matter to me. + +And none of them are going to stop me from sharing what I know about these topics. And the passion that I feel for them. Even if those who _don’t_ care about those things will judge me as “boring” for sharing about them. + +Because when I sit down to document or explain how (after hours of trial and error) I finally managed to get a cellular and ISP connection running in a cost-effective manner, I’m writing or recording that video for those who _do_ care about these things. + +They’re my intended audience. The ones who are also engaged in the subject. Who could run with my idea and then take it further. And feed it back into the open source community to provide _me_ with impetus for my next project. + +That’s why I open source. That’s why I share. With the internet, knowledge can reach anywhere. And boomerang back. It’s a great ecosystem to be a part of. diff --git a/posts/medium/Opinion---300-Really-Isn-t-A-High-Rate-For-Freelance-Writing-Services.md b/posts/medium/Opinion---300-Really-Isn-t-A-High-Rate-For-Freelance-Writing-Services.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e8574f5a6db5dcbef55cb517d3e48885c1012ec3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Opinion---300-Really-Isn-t-A-High-Rate-For-Freelance-Writing-Services.md @@ -0,0 +1,66 @@ +# Opinion: $300 Really Isn’t A High Rate For Freelance Writing Services + +#### Talking in awed tones about “reaching” $300 doesn’t do our industry much good + +$300 per blog. Is it really the best we can aim for? Photo: Pix4Free.Org + +As anybody who has participated in one will know, one of the staple fixtures for discussion on freelance writing fora is rates. + +How much to charge? How to charge? How many revisions to allow in the price? (If you want the pros and cons to answer point two, then check out my post below). + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +As the above makes clear for anybody who has read it, I generally _don’t_ advocate pricing writing on a per-word basis. While it’s useful if you’re a _very_ quick writer, it also discourages brevity. + +Secondly, it only takes account of the writing itself. As you accrue experience as a writer and begin working on more challenging projects, background research and interviews become more time-consuming and significant parts of the writing process. + +The methodology I have come to prefer after writing professionally for the past five is to first put together a _time estimate_ for a project (how many hours will this take to write?); secondly to control for scope (“you get one round of revisions” — this ensures that the time estimate is realistic); and finally to multiply that time estimate by my target hourly rate. + +### Trumpeting Basic Rates Has Bizarrely Become A Thing In The Writing Community + +Having followed aspiring writers on Medium and elsewhere for some time now, I have begun to notice a trend that somewhat puzzles me: + +**Writers sharing how they managed to reach the lofty position of being able to charge clients $300 (or similar) for a blog post.** + +[Here’s a recent example, from The Writing Cooperative](https://writingcooperative.com/the-difference-between-a-50-article-writer-and-a-250-article-writer-3f2554ae80fd), of a writer who tries to explain “The Difference Between A $50 Article Writer And A $250 Article Writer.” The implication that runs throughout the piece, at least in my view, is that the latter figure is one that professional writers should be aiming for. With this idea, I take exception. + +The piece contains this passage which — to my mind — nicely describes the kind of thing I’m talking about here. + +> “So, here is what I did to take my writing business from $50/article to $250/article and what you can do too:” + +Newsflash: if you have experience and a portfolio to back it up with you can do a lot better than charging $250 per article. + +There are clients who will pay $500 for well-written pieces on complicated subjects. And even, in rare parts, those who will shell out $1,000 for them. + +**So call my a cynic —and yes, by the way, I totally am one — but I personally want to set my sights a lot higher than charging $250 for articles.** + +Recently, I sent in my first white paper charged at more than $1 a word. + +I was on the fence about sharing that with a writing group. But given that so many writers are creating the notion that $300 is the vaunted rate to aim for, I chose to do so. + +So let me give you another little piece of my mind even if my doing so will strike some fellow writers as haughty and unrealistic: + +**If you live in the developed world, in a country with a reasonably high cost of living, then at some point you’re going to have to start charging a lot more than $300 for deliverables in order to make this your full time living.** + +Sure, you could go down the outsourcing / work like a maniac approach. But personally I think that looking up — rather than down — is a better objective. + +Some mathematics: + +Assuming an only marginally high hourly rate of $100/hour — nowhere near as high as it might sound — that $300 blog post only covers three hours of … everything. Briefing, researching, writing, and editing. At $50/hour you’ve got six hours to play around with. Decent. But still by no means luxurious. + +Every freelance writer has their own cost of living as well as their own target income. + +Despite how this may have come across to some, I didn’t come here to rate-shame those that are earning smaller per-project sums. + +**I’m simply advocating the viewpoint that (perhaps contrarian) that, if we’re going to share a sample rate as one that we feel should be universally inspiring among writers, we can shift our horizon a good deal northward from $300.** + +Why did I bother even sharing this? + +Because the expectations for what decent rates look like that we set among ourselves ultimately end up percolating down to clients. And then we all face a market that regards $300 as a “high rate” for writing. + +For freelance writers working from developed world countries, I believe $300 is a better representation of a credible _baseline_ rate at which a simple project is unlikely to be grossly exploitative. It’s not a rate we should hold out as an aspiration. + +We can do better. We can charge professionally viable rates. + +And, for the good of freelance writing generally, we should encourage one another to do so. diff --git a/posts/medium/PSA--anything-written-about-me-on-Reddit-may-be-untrue.md b/posts/medium/PSA--anything-written-about-me-on-Reddit-may-be-untrue.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a67f13a6f16b078a10efb0b761078cbb6ffba7c8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/PSA--anything-written-about-me-on-Reddit-may-be-untrue.md @@ -0,0 +1,34 @@ +# PSA: anything written about me on Reddit may be untrue + + _Cross-posted from Reddit:_ + +During the past six months or so, I have been receiving a (sometimes) steady stream of harassment on Reddit, some of it anti-Semitic in nature. + +[**Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit** + _Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2) + +[**Reddit cyberbullying —a thank you note to those who stood by me** + _Bullying, gaslighting, and a platform that appears not to care: a toxic combination of hate_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/reddit-cyberbullying-a-thank-you-note-to-those-who-stood-by-me-5556621eb05c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/reddit-cyberbullying-a-thank-you-note-to-those-who-stood-by-me-5556621eb05c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/reddit-cyberbullying-a-thank-you-note-to-those-who-stood-by-me-5556621eb05c) + +[**If you see cyberbullying, consider reaching out to show support** + _A two minute email can be powerfully uplifting for targets_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-see-cyberbullying-consider-reaching-out-to-show-support-d1db5d48694d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-see-cyberbullying-consider-reaching-out-to-show-support-d1db5d48694d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-see-cyberbullying-consider-reaching-out-to-show-support-d1db5d48694d) + +Against my better judgment, and what the textbooks on “how to deal with cyberbullying” say I have been responding periodically to rebut lies being spread about me by some of these posters. + +However, at the point of time I’m writing this, I believe I’m fast reaching the point at which doing this any further is a waste of time and energy. I’m also behind on two projects and really need to move on with my week. + +I’ve carefully documented the abuse, reported the involved users to Reddit, and attempted to start a petition calling on Reddit to consider banning anonymity (ironically itself defaced with anti-Semitic abuse!). + +What more can be done? + +[**Sign the Petition** + _Reddit is a valuable online social community but has also unfortunately become a festering hive of online hate, abuse…_ chng.it](http://chng.it/VZHLwLfd "http://chng.it/VZHLwLfd")[](http://chng.it/VZHLwLfd) + +While the bullies attempt to dictate what I should do — or tell me to leave Reddit — I reserve and assert the right to do whatever I want on Reddit. + +Nevertheless, as I’m thinking about continuing to post on Reddit, I’m pinning this notice to my profile to point out that: + + * If there is disinformation being spread about me (or abuse or harassment) I may be avoiding responding for this reason + * There’s a good chance that any suspicious behavior or claims on Reddit fall into this context + + _Note: anything I have posted to Medium about the cyberbullying and abuse I have received on Reddit has resulted in Reddit trolls swarming the comments section here on Medium to continue the abuse. Hence, I have had to close comments._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Palestinian-supporters-rally-in-Dublin--Ireland--call-Israelis--a-bunch-of-rats---f930f66f0c2.html.md b/posts/medium/Palestinian-supporters-rally-in-Dublin--Ireland--call-Israelis--a-bunch-of-rats---f930f66f0c2.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2402ea626dea9ac68e5f9bd3b5ae07b19c63047a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Palestinian-supporters-rally-in-Dublin--Ireland--call-Israelis--a-bunch-of-rats---f930f66f0c2.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,48 @@ +# Palestinian supporters rally in Dublin, Ireland; call Israelis “a bunch of rats.” + +#### Newspaper tweets video in which Palestinian supporters describe Israelis as “a bunch of rats” + +Today, the Irish Daily Mirror — an Irish tabloid — shared a video from an anti-Israel demo outside the Israeli Embassy in Ballsbridge Dublin — their preferred venue for spewing lies and hate towards the Jewish State. + +The tweet that accompanied the footage was as follows: + +Playing the video, however, plainly reveals another chant that the newspaper conveniently neglected to mention in their report. + +> “From the river to the flat … **Israel [sic] a bunch of rats.** ” + + _(Note: while it’s hard to make out the first part of the chant — what I heard was ‘from the river to the flat … which I presume means the West Bank — the second part is clearly audible)._ + +As one commenter pointed out: + +### There’s Plenty of Anti-Semitism in Ireland To Go Around + +While a group of hundreds of “Pro-Palestinian” protesters liking Israelis to vermin might be shocking to some (an almost obvious manifestation of anti-Semitism), truth be told, I wasn’t that surprised by it. + +As I wrote here in March, it’s been my lifelong contention that there’s no shortage of anti-Semitism in Ireland. Even though I have met plenty of (fellow) Irish Jews who would stridently disagree with me or call me an alarmist for making the claim. + +[**Please don’t tell me that there’s no anti-Semitism in Ireland. There is.** +_Or that Ireland “only has a problem with Israel”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b) + +Anybody following the reaction from Irish Twitter users to the events in Israel and Gaza recently — or on TheJournal.ie, Ireland’s main online news source — will encounter a steady barrage of anti-Semitism flying under the thin cover of opposition to Israel. + +There’s barely a trope or canard that doesn’t get aired countless times per day, including: + + * Comparisons between Israel and a German regime that sought the global elimination of the Jewish people + * Allegations that Israel “controls the media” + * The gross lie that Israel is conducting “ethnic cleansing” through its aerial campaign in Gaza designed to thwart Hamas rocket fire (while minimizing civilian casualties). Miriam O’Callaghan, an Irish television presenter who fronts the Prime Time news show, described that same targeted aerial attack as “indiscriminate” while asking an Israeli ambassador whether “Israel has brought it [the hostilities] ‘upon itself.’” + +When I sent in a news report about how the Green Pass report was going in Israel to the same TV show I witnessed, much to my surprise, a steady torrent of anti-Semitic replies from Ireland in return. + +To my surprise, users grossly likened the Green Pass to the Jude star that Jews were forced to wear before being deported to concentration camps. + +There can be no other basis for such a distorted, inaccurate, and grossly offensive statement than a hatred for Jews. + +Despite whatever the countless online Israel haters from Ireland will tell you — that they hate Israel, not Jews — or when they attempt to gaslight the undecided by alleging that anybody pointing out bald anti-Semitism is “playing the race card,” there is, I believe, a significant amount of anti-Semitism emanating from Ireland. + +And the logic is obvious. + +If a significant amount of Palestinian supporters in Ireland are happy to espouse obviously anti-Semitic views … and the large majority of the country seems to virulently espouse the Palestinian cause … then there is a significant amount of anti-Semitism in Ireland. + +Anybody who tells you otherwise — whether they are an Irish Jew or otherwise — is trying to skirt around an inconvenient truth. + +Much of it is on obvious and daily display whenever anything to do with Israel. Those seeking it don’t have to look far. diff --git a/posts/medium/Picked-Up-A-Client-Referral--Now-Pay-Attention-To-What-They-Say--And-Think--About-You.md b/posts/medium/Picked-Up-A-Client-Referral--Now-Pay-Attention-To-What-They-Say--And-Think--About-You.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..881d834d2eba4977895b952cfb869e6e60f5e0c9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Picked-Up-A-Client-Referral--Now-Pay-Attention-To-What-They-Say--And-Think--About-You.md @@ -0,0 +1,85 @@ +# Picked Up A Client Referral? Now Pay Attention To What They Say (And Think) About You + +#### A pattern of spotty referrals can indicate that your clients don’t see your value — or that your marketing doesn’t communicate what you do + +All that’s referrals isn’t golden. To avoid time-wasting referrals, ensure your personal branding presents an accurate image of what you do. And that your current clients understand the value that you’re bringing. Photo: Pixabay. + +Like most individuals who have been self-employed for any length of time, from time to time I pick up referrals. + +Sometimes they come in waves. At other times, it can be All Quiet On The Referral Front for a few months. But inevitably, from time to time, they crop up. + +I’ve talked before about how what I call ‘internal referrals’ can be a brilliant way to scale up your business–so long as you’re working with a company that’s big enough that you can ask people in other department whether they might need an additional hand (most probably medium to large organizations). + +[**Internal Referrals — An Under-Tapped Way To Grow Your Freelance Business** + _What’s the best way to build your freelance or consulting business?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/internal-referrals-an-under-tapped-way-to-grow-your-freelance-business-fe6d5bb5f579) + +Perhaps more common, though, is the type of referral that happens reactively. + +You don’t need to push for that connection. Your client just thinks about somebody you might be good to work for. Or a friend who’s also in business leaves freelancing — but knows that you’d do a terrific job for their long term client who they’re also fond of. + +Think that’s great? It could be. But what if you’re being introduced as … something that you’re not? + +### The Problem With Bad Referrals — And Why They Happen + +Businesses and careers evolve over time. Mine certainly has. In the last year, to a reasonably significant extent. Which is why referrals that are based on static sources of information — or outdated knowledge — disproportionately tend to wind up being bad ones. + +**_One problem you can run into when following up with referral leads is being introduced to people who pick up an entirely inaccurate picture of how you’re currently bringing value to your clients._** + + * **Perhaps the referral is coming from a client that you haven’t worked with in a year.** They’re not really up to speed on the kind of work you’re doing or how you’ve changed since they last interacted with you. They might be wedded to perceptions that you’ve been working hard to shift since then. + * **Perhaps it’s from a client that you’ve got grandfathered at a rate that you’re no longer prepared to work at.** The rate they _think_ you’re prepared to work for isn’t the rate that cuts your financial mustard any more. So it can be aggravating and frustrating when they pass you on to somebody who seems very enthusiastic and eager but … they want the job done for cheap. + +Either way we have a potential problem in the making that _isn’t_ so terrific. + +Inaccurate information about you, your capabilities, and what you charge might be getting passed on. + +There’s a good chance you’re not going to be privvy to any of those conversations. It might all be well-intentioned, of course. But you know what they say about the road to… + +This is where all manner of diplomatic stickiness can begin to occur. + +It’s a position I’ve found myself in at least once during my six year tenure in self -employment. + +When somebody feels like they’re going out of their way to help your business, the gut feeling is often to try to be as accommodating as possible. But sometimes it’s best to stifle that desire. + +You want to speak to the person they’re passing you on to. You want to preserve the relationship with your friend/colleague. And you don’t want to damage their credibility by snubbing a hand-off. + +Of course, there are better ways to avoid all these problems. + +This is why _communication_ is vital before even thinking about making a referral to anybody else. + +Are you looking for work? What are you charging these days? How should I introduce you? These are all questions that can avoid this kind of sticky situation. + +But if you truly are stuck in the mud, it can equally be a chance to try gauge how your professional network is perceiving you. + +In any event, even an open referral might actually be partially blind. That handover email may be accompanied by a private messaging exchange or phone call that you’re not privvy to. + +Things may be being said. Heads-up being given. That’s why it’s important to pay close attention to how the companies you’re being referred to behave. What kind of pre-built perceptions do they seem to have about you? + +Those may have been downloaded only moments before from your referrer. Which may be a useful barometer for understanding what your network thinks about you and how it perceives you. That kind of intelligence can be hard to come by. If you have a means of obtaining it, use it to your advantage. + +### “Dave Tells Me That You’re Good And Cheap — Quite The Combo, I Must Say!” + +To clarify, I’ve never heard a sentence like the above. + +But it’s totally credible. And I’ve chosen it to illustrate the point because it’s _precisely_ the type of handover I’m guessing that you’d be eager to avoid. + +I’d like to think that I’m reasonably good at what I do. Am I cheap? Hopefully at this point not (good value? hopefully yes!) But I’ve had references that seemed to be predicated on completely off-base pricing information that ended up leading to dead end sales processes. + +Nevertheless, any business to whom you’re referred — and it’s the wrong kind of referral — can still be a valuable learning ground to help pinpoint what might be going wrong in your marketing. + +That could be: + + * **Your current batch of clients don’t really understand the value that you’re bringing to their businesses.** Perhaps you’ve just got lousy clients who demand the world and never seem to appreciate the work you put in (I’ve had those — they’re not fun). Or else you need to do a better job of framing the value that you can sell _before_ you sign off on a contract. + * **Your personal branding is lousy and you’re presenting yourself as something that you’re not or no longer want to be.** This is a trickier presumption to dislodge, particularly once your reputation is somewhat entrenched in an industry. You don’t want to be stuck in the past or wed to the career that has got you to where you are to date. That’s why personal branding work is an ongoing activity. It’s on your shoulders to present to the world the type of image that you hope and think is going to get you to where you want to go tomorrow. + +### How To Avoid The Pain Of Time-Wasting, Dead-End Referrals + +You can avoid the time wasting suckiness of picking up dead-end referrals from well-intentioned but ultimately misguided referrers — and the relational minefield that can follow it — by: + + * **Politely asking anybody who’s expressed an interest in referring you onto somebody to clarify that what they’re envisioning might be a good fit for you.** Before they get on the phone or bounce over an email. + * **Be very transparent about what your current capacity and pricing looks like.** Be very firm about it with those who you are referred to. You don’t want to waste the time of the business you’re being put into contact with either. And there’s no point in holding a conversation out of a sense of obligation or guilt. If you state your price to your referrer and the company tries to low-ball you. Then …. that’s really too bad. You’re not obliged to give a discount just because you were referred on. + +You can also: + + * **Make sure your clients know the value that you’re bringing to their organizations.** This is a much broader point. And it starts _way_ before the sales process has even kicked into action. + * **Make sure that your professional image and personal branding is true to the kind of work that you’re doing.** How you present yourself will feed into perceptions and this will feed into what your (current) clients think of you. A lot of the work involved in offsetting this risk can be done _before_ people even think of referrals. It can take place on the level of reputation management, branding, and positioning. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Please-Don-t-Join-A-Company-Because-It-Puts-On-A-Flashy-Happy-Hour--Or-Gives-You-Free-Beer-.md b/posts/medium/Please-Don-t-Join-A-Company-Because-It-Puts-On-A-Flashy-Happy-Hour--Or-Gives-You-Free-Beer-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..71c7120d5e05104d9641dd66c3773adf8ba51408 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Please-Don-t-Join-A-Company-Because-It-Puts-On-A-Flashy-Happy-Hour--Or-Gives-You-Free-Beer-.md @@ -0,0 +1,162 @@ +# Please Don’t Join A Company Because It Puts On A Flashy Happy Hour (Or Gives You Free Beer) + +#### My LinkedIn posts are too grumpy for that network, so they’ll have to go here instead: + +A credible example of a startup beer refrigerator. A minor detail which often manages to make it into unusually prominent positioning in HR-distributed imagery. Photo by [Allec Gomes](https://www.pexels.com/@allecgomes?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/heineken-beer-bottles-4276950/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +From time to time, I feel the need to get something off my chest on LinkedIn. + +Then, after I do, I instantly regret sharing the post. + +What will my clients think, I ask myself, (as if I’ve been told to ask myself that question) + +My prospective clients who’ve been silently lurking and picking up my posts (I’ve talked about the silent audience effect; it’s crazy powerful)? + +[**The Silent Audience Effect — And Why You May Have Never Heard The Names Of Your Biggest Fans** + _Why your most ardent cheerleaders may simply be too busy to create the data that shows you that they care._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-silent-audience-effect-and-why-you-may-have-never-heard-the-names-of-your-biggest-fans-8f8a8e174d74 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-silent-audience-effect-and-why-you-may-have-never-heard-the-names-of-your-biggest-fans-8f8a8e174d74")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-silent-audience-effect-and-why-you-may-have-never-heard-the-names-of-your-biggest-fans-8f8a8e174d74) + +What would a _career advisor_ say, I worry with trepidation? + +Shouldn’t I have bragged about the gift hamper that I received at the holidays instead!? + +And then I go back to remembering that time when a client hired me on the back of something contrary which I post there; the sage advice of my friend (“sometimes, you’re communicating to the more engaged 10% of your readership”); and I summon up the courage to leave it there anyway. + +Rinse and repeat. Perhaps once a month. If in an unusually cranky mood — it happens now and again — perhaps a little more frequently. But it’s still the slim majority of my output there. + +Most of the time, when I share on that network, I play it safe. I figure that’s what people are expecting when they log into LinkedIn. Isn’t it the social network in a suit? + +I also use it as my dumping ground for anything I write that touches upon what I do for a living (marketing communications consulting)— and there’s a bit of that. The dialogue that can create and the network and business LinkedIn can eventuate have kept me from leaving during times I got bored with it or tired of reading self-promotion. + +Some of what I share: best (and worst) practices I’ve seen in marketing communications from companies that aren’t my clients and as I see them. The former probably never will be. The latter might peg me as a source of sage advice in their mental notepad. Sometimes, it peters down into business. At other times, I just have a good (online) chat. That’s how the “magic” of inbound marketing works (or is supposed to). + +[**The 3 Most Insufferable LinkedIn Posts That Need To End Right Now** + _From old job love letters to here’s my gift hamper, the 3 type of LinkedIn posts that do my head in_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3) + +And you know something? This kind of professional back and forth is the aspect of LinkedIn that I enjoy the most. The dialogue. The connection. The exchanging of ideas between (hitherto) strangers in an industry but countries apart. + +[**The Connection Between Inbound Marketing And Authenticity** + _An argument in favor of amorphous free-flowing content creation and leveraging authenticity to create change_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-connection-between-inbound-marketing-and-authenticity-1322dbace3a3) + +But I also wonder that what I post is just too contrarian sometimes. + +Like trying to perform standup to a bunch of people who’ve just lost their jobs. Read the room and all that. Keep those rants for your Facebook friends (just make sure to take your clients out of the audience). + +In that vein, I decided today that I needed to forewarn my connections of the content I was sharing. + +And that it should be understood as part of a broader trend of contrarian posting that would be surfacing in their feeds from time to time. So that they wouldn’t either be surprised or assume that it some kind of virtue-signalling was incoming that they could safely scroll past. No, I reckoned, they _needed_ to hear this message. + +And so I put my best graphic design talents to use using the epic graphic design program that could totally give Photoshop a run for its money called GIMP. Here’s what I came up with after investing 30 seconds in the creative process. More colors, or anything more professional, I reckoned, would have made me look too put-together for a man about to spew aggression towards prevalent HR practices. If I’m going to be ranting, I needed to look haggard. I use Linux. This is what we’ve got.This is what you’re getting. + +And so it was that the official episode one of Your Daily Dose Of LinkedIn Contrarianism (which won’t actually be put out daily) was circulated this afternoon. I’m sure my connections in HR — especially those working at startups — were lapping it up. + +### “We’re Hiring” Posts Are Meaningless Unless You Back Them Up With Detail (Lots Of It) + +I see lots of “we’re hiring” posts on LinkedIn that feel slightly tainted by the idea that the poster — or company he/she represents — is inordinately proud of that fact. And more interested in announcing that the company has reached that vaunted status than actually putting good fits into good jobs. + +_“We’re hiring!_ ” they affirm. “ _Yes, even during COVID!_ ” “ _When jobs are scarce, we’re here dishing them out like a bread-seller at the shuk on a Friday”_ (Okay so they probably don’t write this, but it’s totally often the subtext being communicated; the latter reference probably isn’t intelligible outside of Israel) + +And speaking of Israel. You guys are the worst offenders. + +Sorry, Israelis — or to be more exact, Israeli startups — but you’re top of the league table, at least in my eyes. (I live in Israel. I’ve made peace with the fact that my attitudes don’t endear me to much of the local market.) + +And I’m not talking about the “we’re hiring” announcements, by the way. I’m talking about the tacky use of happy hours to lure in those who can envision no greater hallmark of career success than sitting at a beer and clutching a beer _that the company paid for_._You got that? The COMPANY paid for this 10 shekel ($3) bottle of Goldstar. A benefit in kind. I’ve made it here. You could too.”_ + + _“Come work with us and you’ll join our monthly happy hour?_ ”;_“come work with us because your place is with us?”_ + +Really? Why? I have my own clients and a home replete with electricity and heating. You’re going to have to do a lot better than that. + +And that Goldstar you’re clutching like it’s a bottle of Dom Pérignon carried out by a butler on a tray is at best a mediocre lager. Last resort drinking option when you could only make it to the _makolet_ in my view _._ I’ll continue buying (or brewing) my own beer. But thank you very much for the offer. + +So anyway: here’s the deal with jobs and all that stuff. + +**Jobs are fundamentally two way arrangements and job interviews are supposed to be two way dialogues during which both parties assess whether they wish to enter into a significant contractual arrangement with the other.** + +For the most part, they’re intended for grown adults. + +In developed countries, labor laws designed to prevent the exploitation of minors typically mandate that. And trying to bribe adults with promises of free alcohol (or pizza) is kinda like trying to .. I don’t know … get a hamster to chase after go where you want it to by dangling some cheese in front of it. A Pavlovian response. We need something more. + +As the jobseeker, I may be looking for a job. But under ideal circumstances, I’m also actually looking for one I can truly succeed in. Maybe something that leads onto something more (those things they called careers; I had a minor disagreement with an acquaintance over this. Her position was that careers are outdated concepts and that circulating among different companies as the only method of achieving pay rises was just something that should be embraced. The new normal. It should be noted: I agree with her about practically nothing) + +Why? Well right now, I don’t really have the patience for professional relationships that aren’t going to work out. + +But more than that, I don’t want to be back job-searching in a year or two. Really. Even dealing with the paperwork is a massive headache not to mention having to move over the pension and set up a new ridiculous workstation only to have to later clean it up. (While these days I’m self-employed, if I interviewed at your company previously and said that, please know that I actually meant it.) + +I’m setting this, going forward, as a non-negotiable condition of employment. I reserve the right to provision my own workstation which will look a lot like this. In a private or semi private office environment. And I reserve the right to bring along speakers with subwoofers and play them at a volume of my choosing. Interested? Contact info in the about page. Photo: author. + +I also need to know that I can succeed in this role. + +And that you’re prepared to stick with me, in return, by providing the kind of environment that I can grow in. What can I do? Bring everything I’ve learned to date in my career and use it to help your company succeed — however you’ve defined that for my role. + +That’s why there are some things we _do_ need to talk about. We could even get these out of the way during the first interview so that we don’t follow through with a protracted process for no reason. + +You’ll hit me with some simulations. So I can respond with a couple of my own. + +If I tell you that I need to use Marketo are you going to provide me with budget to buy it or are you going to try to do everything on the cheap and use me as your lackey to hunt down freebies? I need to dig underneath words that are often used as euphemisms (“we’re fast paced”) to understand what kind of culture you truly operate. When potential devs asks CTOs ask one another what stack the company’s using there’s more being assessed than just competency with tool(s). So give that conversation room to breathe. + +Why? These things matter more than you might think. At least to me. To roll with the Marketo example, it’s because I have a self-interest here in that I want to develop my skillset and that means knowing how to use industry-standard software. I’m thinking about my career here and not just this gig. + +So it’s important to know if you’re going to help me out with that. And that you’re honest with me. I’d really hate to take this gig only to find myself straddled with rookie level tools in a company whose culture seems to boil down to _“get everything done for less, as well as possible, and preferably by tomorrow morning.”_ + +In return, I’ll be honest with you. + +About what I’m looking for. How I can see myself tackling your pain points and why I’m qualified to do so. + +I’ll give you a taste of my vision for what kind of skillsets I’d bring to this role. What kind of things would really turn this thing sour also- like a stifling focus on cost reduction (see: above). You care about retention. Curiously enough, I do too. So there’s a confluence of interests if we can figure out a way to make it work for both of us. + +And you know what I couldn’t care less about? + +Your happy hour policy. + +### Serious Things That Should Be In Serious Recruitment Posts + +There are so many examples I could screenshot of _horrible_ job descriptions. _(I’d totally add them as visual enrichments here but there’s too high a chance that doing so would result in lawsuit threats. Unless I could find a way to totally anonymize the firms involved, it would also be in bad taste.)_ + +Instead, if you’re posting that you’re “hiring”, here are some basics that I do need to know about: + + * **Firstly: who are you, person promoting a job on the internet? What does your company do? And just as importantly, what’s its vision?** I’d love to work with an organization that I thought was doing something really cool and which I knew I could really get behind (I’ve been with one before and it’s truly energizing). If you’re focused on pushing jargon, it risks obscuring your mission just because you think it makes you sound impressive (it probably doesn’t). If you obscure your mission, how can I possibly connect with it? + * **What kind of culture do you have? But really. Can you go a little deeper than what’s on the site? Like, beyond those happy hours that happen once a month, what’s day to day work like at the company?** + * **What’s your preferred management structure?** Recently, I consulted for a startup here in Israel. The weekly check-ins quickly went from being par for the course to _“there’s no way I’m doing any more of this. What was the termination period on this contract again?”_. Particularly given the fact that I was brought on board as a contractor and not a full-time staffer. You’re building that media list we need? Wonderful! How many lines of contacts did you add to it this week? What’s your target for next one? Shall we set 5 rows as this week’s goal? I responded that this entire exercise was pointless. I was trying to identify quality relationships and not fill up a spreadsheet (even though the spreadsheet was filling up rather expediently). I could promise 20 rows but even that would mean nothing. If we really need to set a KPI for this tiny constituent element of a much bigger picture (PR, reputation, inbound marketing) I’d rather set a monthly target for coverage achieved and relationships initiated. The response to my protest, said without a hint of irony: _“everybody needs to be micromanaged until they prove to their superiors that they’re worthy of not being subjected to that.”_ He tried to convince me that this wasn’t an Israeli thing but some kind of universal norm that exists among companies around the world. That was the way. It was a pointless argument. But I wish he’d told me that before I started working with his company so that I could have passed on the opportunity. Sorry to vent for just a moment. + +Next, I need to know what kind of jobs you’re hiring for. Right off the bat. + +If I’m working as a dev and see generic posts that talk about happy hours only to find that you’re actually a beauty label and need a salesperson then I’ve just wasted a couple of minutes of my day. + +A trivial time expenditure? Perhaps. But I’d probably be more kindly disposed to companies that spelled out their requirements _before_ I had to click through to their careers page. It takes two seconds to summarize that you have roles open in “sales, marketing, and business development”. So why leave this info out? + +If I’m talking about committing the entirety of my working week to your company — and that’s what a full time salaried job basically is, which seems kinda scary when you’re accustomed to divvying up your time among 6 or 7 clients— then I need to know what you’re really about from the moment I first think about sending you in a resume. + +I can tell you about my career aspirations. Who doesn’t like to talk about where they dream about getting? About what I’ve done for other companies and could do for yours. + +In response I need to see a job description that lays out a realistic summary of your requirements. That’s to determine if I could do this or not. No point wasting time on either side. + +Next, I need to know who your company is and what it’s actually about. If you can go deeper and more human-to-human level than what’s on the career site than that would be truly wonderful. + +For instance: + +Is this the kind of place that has a policy against giving pay rises — where the accepted standard is that the only way to get that is to threaten to leave the company or actually do so? + +I know you’re not going to tell me if that’s the case, but it would be awesome nevertheless if you did so that I don’t need to be appraised of that through my own social network or Glassdoor. + +I’ve heard this detail many times from friends — they work at X and the only way they’re going to get paid more is by quitting. + +I’ve been asked to take on a promotion for the same pay and been told that we could talk about a 5% raise in … 8 months. It sucked. I left a job over it. These things are like massive elephants looming in the back of the room and waiting for the right moment to thwart an otherwise constructive experience. + +I know you’re probably going to be asking me all sorts of probing questions during my interview process if I progress through it (“what was the biggest challenge you’ve faced in your career to date?”). So it would be nice if you could be transparent too. + +But above all, I couldn’t care less about your happy hour or where it’s held. + +Really. Not one bit. + +Much bigger fish are either being fried or running through my mind — both within this process and beyond it. They have to be. I’m weighing up this opportunity, potentially those of other prospective hiring parties, and correlating it through past experiences to make sure this _could_ work out. + +And anyway, even if happy hours did matter to me, when and where you hold yours would be way, way down my evaluation list. Like I hope the color of my hair is for you. Who’s on your team now? What kind of culture do you have about working hours and responsiveness? All much more valuable data points from my perspective. + +During previous attempts at jobhunting, I’ve been searching for a fitting (and well compensated) job that I could stick with. + +I care about my career advancement and my salary. If you’re not prepared to pay me enough then I don’t care about how talented you think I am or what could be down the line. We can negotiate about X + Y% later. But if X doesn’t work — whatever the structure of our contact — then all we’re left to talk about is the weather or exchange closing pleasantries. Am I being passive aggressive? Demanding? No, I just don’t feel like wasting my time. + +Also: I’d love to find a good organization which I could truly help because I thought that what they were doing was awesome. One which I believe in. Knowing which beer you give to your employees once a month doesn’t tell me any of that. + +Speaking of salary, I’d love a decent one. Partially so that I can afford to buy my own alcohol and vacation at a place of my choosing. And by the way, I prefer cider. At least these days. + +Thank you and good luck! diff --git a/posts/medium/Please-don-t-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-Semitism-in-Ireland--There-is--7575673229b.html.md b/posts/medium/Please-don-t-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-Semitism-in-Ireland--There-is--7575673229b.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..137b4e403eba3742f5045913970b6676d01af7f4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Please-don-t-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-Semitism-in-Ireland--There-is--7575673229b.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,162 @@ +# Please don’t tell me that there’s no anti-Semitism in Ireland. There is. + +#### Signed: an Irish Jew, born in Dublin, now living in Israel. + +A couple of weeks ago, I was approached by a producer with a show airing on Ireland’s national broadcaster, RTÉ, to shoot a few minutes of footage showing what life is like in Israel as it emerges from the lockdown. + +As one of relatively few Irish people living in Israel — who also blogs a lot about life here — I’m relatively easy to find on Google. + +Hence, from time to time, media people looking for an _“(originally) Irish guy living in Israel”_ source stumble upon this Medium page and thereafter me. + +So although my friends may see my recent radio and TV appearances as indications that I’m some sort of rising media star, in reality it’s just a reflection of the power of inbound marketing (something which I always advocate for in my professional life; and hey, if you’re passionate about non-business things, it works too). + +As somebody who aspired to be a journalist (I won’t lie, the dream is still latent) and who now works in communications (that’s what journalists still fondly call “the dark side”), I saw sharing the story of what life is like on the ground in Israel to as wide an audience as Prime Time commands as a privilege and, in a sense, responsibility. + +Prime Time commands a national audience and — as I recently posted here — the Irish are interested to know how Israel’s emergence from lockdown is going. I went to journalism school. It was a project I was happy to undertake. + +Why is Ireland currently so interested in learning the details of Israel’s vaccine response? + +The countries are both small and Ireland is significantly behind Israel in terms of the vaccine rollout. + +So therefore, we here in Israel make a convenient case study to emulate and the Irish are looking to us, in a way, as a sort of oracle for what their future might bode. They stand to learn from our successes and failures. But to do that, many of them would need to get past their own hatred first (we’ll come back to that theme later). + +[**Why Ireland is trying to learn Israel’s COVID vaccine playbook** + _Israel’s vaccine campaign has been quick and dirty. But effective._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ireland-is-trying-to-learn-israels-covid-vaccine-playbook-d680c5bc2e0d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ireland-is-trying-to-learn-israels-covid-vaccine-playbook-d680c5bc2e0d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ireland-is-trying-to-learn-israels-covid-vaccine-playbook-d680c5bc2e0d) + +So when RTÉ asked if I could shoot a few clips on my phone to show their audience what life is like on Israel I didn’t hesitate to say ‘no problem’. + +(For anybody who wondered, if I’m interested in doing a radio/TV slot, am approached by an outlet, and have time to do them, I make it a practice never to ask about a contributor’s fee. I do them to share. I should also give the Prime Time team a shot-out here: they were amazingly professional and a pleasure to work with) + +With that in mind, and much to the chagrin of my travelling companions from the day (we traveled to an Irish bar in Tel Aviv especially for the occasion), I spent a good chunk of Patrick’s Day last week looking like an aspiring YouTube influencer while shooting clips of my phone as those around me necked back pints of Guinness in Molly Bloom’s bar in Tel Aviv. + +Last night, my (edited) dispatch went out on Prime Time along with those from three other contributors around the world. Those who also appeared in the segment sent in clips from Paris and South Africa. Thoroughly uncontroversial locations, for Irish eyes, compared to Israel. Tellingly, there has been no hatred leveled against their governments. + +On a journalistic note: it was an innovative format from the Prime Time team which showed how citizen journalism can work hand-in-hand with professional broadcast journalism to produce interesting television. + +RTÉ also edited the clip for Twitter so the clip has really been doing the rounds (if you want to watch it, click below). + +[**Vaccines: How Ireland compares to other countries** + _What will Ireland look like when the majority of the country is inoculated? It's a question that will be asked over the…_ www.rte.ie](https://www.rte.ie/news/primetime/2021/0323/1205711-vaccines-how-ireland-compares-to-other-countries/ "https://www.rte.ie/news/primetime/2021/0323/1205711-vaccines-how-ireland-compares-to-other-countries/")[](https://www.rte.ie/news/primetime/2021/0323/1205711-vaccines-how-ireland-compares-to-other-countries/) + +### The Irish Twittersphere Reacts To Israel Being Cited As A Case Study To Emulate. By And Large, They Don’t Like It. + +So now a little bit about me. + +I was born in Dublin and lived in Ireland (specifically Cork) until I was almost 26 at which point I “made aliyah” (translation for those unfamiliar: moved to Israel.) + +As the accompanying article on RTÉ mentioned, I now live in Jerusalem. As the foregoing probably makes clear, I’m also Jewish. + +[**What Was It Like Growing Up Jewish in Ireland?** +_I've written before about the trials and tribulations of making aliyah - and the ways in which I think Israel's culture…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland/) + +So what happened that I went from there (Ireland) to here (Israel)? + +As I grew up — and particularly after my first trip to Israel — I became progressively (but silently) more frustrated at the vitriol thrown out by Ireland when it comes to all things to do with Israel. It’s the same poisoned sense of hatred that I’ve seen hundreds of times before and which the reaction to my dispatch is providing a thoroughly unpleasant reminder of. + +As I increased in my level of religious observance — inspired by the wonders of podcasting rabbis — I also began to feel increasingly out of place as a Jew in a country almost bereft of them and the religious institutions needed to live as one. + +But that was a separate push factor. + +As I have blogged (and more recently YouTubed) it’s not Ireland’s opposition to the policies of Israel that I take issue with (to the extent, of course, that anybody can “take issue” with anybody else’s opinions). + +Opposing Israel on political grounds is the prerogative of any country or citizenry. If they don’t like us — that’s fine. But racism is never excusable. + +Why do the Irish hate Israel so much (at least, that’s how it feels)? + +Many have spent time pondering the question. + +The Irish buy in _en masse_ to a nexus that they see between Israel’s treatment of its neighbors and their experience with British colonialism. I think the analogy is a poor one. But they can have their view and I can have mine. + +I would contend — and this is the purpose of this blog in a sense — that there is a good deal of anti-Semitism fanning the flames of that hate too. At least at the vocal margins of Irish public opinion on the matter. + +**Rather than the fact that Ireland by and large opposes Israel in the political realm, it’s the unrelenting ferocity of that opposition that has long made me believe that there has to be something underlying it.** + +I have long privately maintained this view much to the chagrin of some individuals close to me who have believed me to be a paranoid tin foil hat wearing conspiracy theorist who spends too much time reading Twitter feeds. + +“That’s just a few angry people on Twitter,” they charge. But how many angry Twitter does it take before we can admit that perhaps the vociferous anti-Semitic fringe of Ireland’s beef with Israel isn’t as fringe as we’d like it to believe? + +I seem to be slowly in going self-confidence over the years helped in measure by having become a frequent poster here on Medium. + +So now once and for all I’ll say: on this issue at least, I (still) think I’m right. And you’re wrong. + +There _is_ anti-Semitism in Ireland. And it may be a lot more substantial than you believe. + +_(I should add here that I briefly worked in PR and have managed that function for companies in my professional life. When it comes to media monitoring — I have things pretty pat down. If something is being said in reaction to a piece I wrote on Google, Twitter, or Facebook — if I’m sufficiently motivated to do so, I can probably track it down.)_ + +Thus I was not surprised — but still surprised — to see the ferocity of the reaction on Twitter, and elsewhere on social networks, to my two minute dispatch showing how Israel is emerging from the pandemic. + +The piece on Prime Time began with the show’s presenter asking how the lockdown emergence is happening in other countries. + +As Israel went first — and it’s Israel rather than South Africa or France — it’s borne the brunt of the reaction. + +And here’s what the Irish Twittersphere had to say in response. + +_(Lest they be deleted, tweets are screenshotted rather than embedded)_ + +### **Antisemitism in the Wild: Israel’s Green Pass is like the Jude star used to send Jews to concentration camps** + +I probably wouldn’t have been exercised enough to write this blog post had a worryingly non-trivial amount of Irish internet users not put forth the repugnant notion that Israel’s vaccination app — the Green Pass, which I showcased in my video — is akin to the yellow badge which a certain German authoritarian regime used to mark out Jews for slaughter in concentration camps. + +This comparison is both disgusting and — frankly — anti-Semitic. + +Both the Prime Time clip and an article I sent comment for a few weeks ago — in the Irish Independent, one of the country’s leading newspapers — received this reaction on Twitter. + +Have a look for yourselves. + +By the way: these don’t appear to be sockpuppets or Irish-Americans, who are sometimes derided in Ireland for trying a little too hard to be Irish. + +Rather they appear to be real Irish people living in Ireland. + +### **Have the shady Israelis been up to their usual monkey business to “get their hands” on vaccines?** + +### **G-d forbid we [the Irish] should follow the example of Israel. If that happens, all is lost (BTW, Israel is “hoarding” vaccines too)** + +Israel didn’t manage its amazing vaccine rollout through ingenuity or because it was primed to cut a great doses-for-data deal with Pfizer. + +Rather it did so because it was “hoarding” vaccines from the Palestinians, upon whose land we are living (I guess that must mean all of it). + +In response to a piece in the Irish Independent about Israel’s vaccine rollout, we got this: + +### **Is the Israeli government paying an Irish newspaper to spread news about its vaccine rollout?** + +### More Reaction From Ireland + +### What Underlies The Obsessive Irish Hatred Towards Israel? + +If there were ever a deserved application for the phrase _“don’t cut of your nose to spite the face_ ” it would seem to be the Irish reaction to Israel’s vaccine drive, which — in many objective respects — provides it with a logical role model for how their own vaccine rollout could be managed. + +Comparisons between Israel and a certain German regime are generally done solely to be hateful. + +I would side with the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) that — in the absence of massive proof to the contrary — any such comparisons are essentially automatically anti-Semitic. There is almost never a reason to compare the actions of the State of Israel to a German one that sought the complete destruction of the Jewish people. + +The odious comparisons being leveled on Twitter between Israel’s Green Pass vaccination app — which attests to one’s vaccination status — and the Jew badges which were forced upon Jews during the Holocaust — to mark them out for _slaughter_ — fall squarely into that category. + +There is no reason to compare and a smartphone application in Israel designed to save lives with a badge in Germany designed to send people to their demise except to be gratuitously offensive. + +I was dismayed and even slightly surprised to see them being leveled by a good number of Irish internet users. + +With the foregoing out of the way, let me end this by sharing another thought on anti-Semitism in Ireland. + +Many Irish Jews — I, of course, am not one of them — have long attempted to toe a party line that supports the notion that there is very little anti-Semitism in Ireland. “Jews have always felt welcome in Ireland,” many will affirm. + +If I were to share these screenshots with certain contacts of mine (or those from any other time Israel is mentioned somewhat favorably in the Irish media) the reaction would likely have been an eye-roll and some argument along the lines of _“there are always angry people on Twitter.”_ + +For many in Ireland the prevailing narrative that Israel is evil incarnate must not be challenged. + +Any attempts to challenge it — however trivial (see: my Prime Time report) — must be battered into silence. Hence the outsized reaction. And so I ask: what might underlie such a combative and uncompromising attitude? + +**During an era when many of us are living so much of our lives on the internet, how much longer can be continue to find excuses for what appears to be a manifestation of a latent anti-Semitic undertone that runs through at least a proportion of Irish society?** + +To the extent that there has not been much institutional anti-Semitism, or physical attacks upon Jews, those supporting the lie that there is no anti-Semitism in Ireland are correct, at least in the most part. + +**But there is a form of anti-Semitism in Ireland that is more insidious and pervasive.** + +**It hides under the cover of opposition to Israel that is almost unparalleled among the world’s nations in its ferocity and the degree of its vitriol.** + +Why would a small island nation far removed from the Middle East feel so strongly about it that a good number of its citizens seem to express racism towards its citizens? + +So it’s really too bad that many Irish seem eager to cut off their own noses. + +They’d probably say that ours are too big anyway. + +But at least our faces are vaccinated. diff --git a/posts/medium/Pragmatism--not-bridge-building--governs-Israel-s-emerging-peace-ties.md b/posts/medium/Pragmatism--not-bridge-building--governs-Israel-s-emerging-peace-ties.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5b638f782ddd7b1d3a72bb7adba3b6672b026bcc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Pragmatism--not-bridge-building--governs-Israel-s-emerging-peace-ties.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# Pragmatism, not bridge-building, governs Israel’s emerging peace ties + +I’ve been as interested as anybody to learn about the announcement of diplomatic relations that have become a staple item in the news agenda in Israel for the past few months. + +Although I’ll admit that my first thoughts have tended to turn to food. + +_“What’s Butanese cooking like? Will they open a takeaway in Tel Aviv?”_ + +Sorry for being so debased. And hungry. + +Regardless of whether we’ll be eating kosher _jasha maroo_ and _ema datshi_ next year in Jerusalem, it does seem certain that these ties are going to continue blossoming. + +The pattern seems to be obvious now. Such that it can almost be predicted. + +Insiders will leak cryptic clues that[ “more ties are on the way”](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/obrien-in-israel-after-morocco-israel-normalization-says-more-to-come-651973) (note: the circle has already repeated itself and Oman and Indonesia are being billed as the next in line). + +Then, one sunny morning, when Israelis have finished their morning coffee and forgotten about the latest round of speculation, social media will blow up with news that another former foe has announced ties with Israel. It’s happened — again! + +Then the Tel Aviv Municipality will light up City Hall with the colors of the new diplomatic partner’s national flag. + +Then we’ll all go back to worrying about the pandemic. + +Many on the right in Israel have predictably seized upon this unexpected diplomatic windfall as proof of the genius of the now bygone Trump era — a reign, like that of Bibi, that they would seemingly wish continued indefinitely. + +_“Can you imagine Biden achieving any of these things? NO!”_ an angry-sounding commented intoned on the Jerusalem Post’s talkback sections. That type of discourse is pretty indicative of the lot. + +While I have no doubt that the ties _will_ benefit Israel, I think that pragmatism provides the best explanation for their sudden mushrooming. + +### A Changed Calculus Governing Relations + +The question at the heart of the emergence of ties between Israel and the Arab World is to what extent Arab nations are prepared to place Arab nationalism above the pragmatism. + +And the emergence of ties between Israel and the UAE means that -in the eyes of many-the formula which historically governed ties has been upended. + +You don’t need to be a prize-winning economist to see the positives for Israel’s new trading partners. + +Normalizing diplomatic relations with Israel affords Arab countries a closer trade relationship with the regional superpower of the Middle East. One which can offer their countries technology exports and other know-how if their leaders allow it. + +Emirati leaders have set the tone for the dance. + +Their messaging has focused around highlighting to Israelis that this will be a “warm peace” — drawing a sharp distinction between relations with Egypt and Jordan. + +While Israel and Egypt and Jordan are technically at peace, nobody is under any illusions about the depth of animosity that lie beneath the agreements. + +Periodic incidents like the shooting of a guard at the Israeli embassy in Amman and the tension over the returning of the “Island of Peace” enclave to Jordan underscore the depths of the division. + +Secondly, UAE leaders have highlighted how their country can work with Israel for mutual benefit. Here, they have been transparent in their emphasis — focusing on the commercial and economic nature of the relationship. + +Thani Al Shirawi, vice-chairman and deputy managing director at the Al Shirawi Group of Companies, [told an Israeli conference](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3876510,00.html) that the UAE could help the Startup Nation become the Scale Up Nation — referring to the high density of early stage startups in Israel but also to the fact that, as a tiny market, Israeli startups have historically needed intermediate markets from which to scale (a role up to now played predominantly by the US). + +Although relations between Israel and the Emiratis have been quietly cultivating themselves for some time, the very sight of an Emirati businessman openly addressing an Israeli forum and calling for a “marriage” between the two countries would have been unthinkable just a few short years ago. + +### Pragmatism or policy: which matters more? + +That is because the emergence of diplomatic and trade relations with Bahrain, the UAE, Morocco, and Bhutan represents nothing short of a betrayal — by the Arab world — of the Palestinian cause. + +The geopolitical signal being sent out is clear: relations with Israel are no longer predicated upon Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians or the reaching of some kind of mutually satisfactory resolution to their conflict. + +The moribund peace process — and the fact that the “Deal of the Century” is worth possibly only the paper it was written on — is no impediment to the advancement of bilateral ties. + +Once the UAE broke ranks on this, the cascade that followed was almost inevitable. The internal Arab calculus around the Israel question has shifted. Somebody just had to be the first one willing to publicly rewrite the equation. + +If forming ties with Israel no longer means being excommunicated from the pan-Arab fold, then there can only be net gains from doing business with Israel. Few countries want to shoot themselves in the foot by looking a gift horse in the mouth. + +While the ties are certainly a boon for Israel’s export-led tech industry, in the minds of many, it would nevertheless be a mistake to mistake moves taken due to economic exigency for the beginnings of a new era of lasting peace with the Arab world. + +The peace is not cold a la Jordan and Egypt. But it remains to be seen whether economic benefit can truly lead to a more significant rapprochement with dimensions that surpass the exchange of goods and services. + +Henry Kissinger once said that America has no permanent friends or enemies, only interests. + +Those words resonate beyond the context in which they were originally uttered. + +For some friends of Israel, the _carte blanche_ that the Arab world has provided it will be an unwelcome development. With the Palestinians’ hand further weakened by their marginalization from the Arab world, Israel has almost no incentive to put any more effort into pursuing peace talks with them. + +For Israel, the establishment of ties with new trading partners will be a boost to its industry. The UAE relationship in particular will provide Israelis with a valuable regional hub from which to explore new markets. diff --git a/posts/medium/Price-buyers-vs--value-buyers--the-easiest-way-to-screen-potential-clients.md b/posts/medium/Price-buyers-vs--value-buyers--the-easiest-way-to-screen-potential-clients.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c3ab77a117469bbfd8eb91390b8aa5a374d5a397 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Price-buyers-vs--value-buyers--the-easiest-way-to-screen-potential-clients.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +# Price buyers vs. value buyers: the easiest way to screen potential clients + +#### If you’re selling solely by price, there’s almost always somebody cheaper + +Which wine do you go for? Image: Wikimedia Commons + +In the last few months, I’ve stepped into unchartered territories in my freelancing journey. + +My Book of Business has reached that point called “capacity” or “just past capacity”. But because I’ve been investing in inbound marketing for the past couple of years, I continue to pick up inbound leads. + +Taken together, these two facts put me in a nice position from which I can coldly survey the market and judge the expectations and signals being sent out by those companies who land in my inbox. + +I can decide whether to bother responding to a request for a Zoom call. I can ignore an email altogether if my intuition screams out that this is going to be a waste of time (always trust your intuition!). Or I can read the right (green) flags and decide that this is a lead worth pursuing. + +And as I’ve done this, I’ve realized how far I’ve come in the 5 or so years since I started out on my freelancing journey. + +How much easier it’s become to size up the potential client landscape and pinpoint with a reasonable degree of accuracy who I might like to work for and who …. would be the latest iteration of Model Bad Client. + +**And the simple way to make this determination: ask yourself if you are dealing with a price buyer or a value buyer?** + +### If You’re Negotiating Three Figures With A Business … The Chances You’re Talking To A Price Buyer Are High + +Most of us have been through straitened financial times. + +The kind of times when the difference between a $3 and a $5 beer is enough to warrant making do with the more affordable option. + +Sure it tastes worse, you might say to yourself. Sure, it might be filled with all sorts of dubious ingredients and give you a horrible hangover in the morning (that may cause you to skip your morning workout and be less productive during the subsequent day…). But it’s $2 cheaper and if you drink three beers in a night you’ll have saved up $5 through your purchasing decision. Who can argue with that logic? + +Think back to college. Perhaps every dollar mattered. It was either that or foregoing consumption. + +Eventually, many consumers go on to have _slightly_ more disposable income to play around with. They get jobs. And then raises. And the disposable income left over after bills are paid becomes a little more padded. + +And as that happens, most consumers — I wager — go through a slow process of evolution that feels a lot like slowly reaching maturity and being an adult. That crude means of selecting between different products and services can be slowly let go of. It takes more brainpower to look at whether A is _better value_ than B. But ultimately most consumers find that it’s worth it. + +Purchasing decisions are no longer made according to a simplistic means of comparing absolute price. We’ve become older and wise and we’ve probably had enough experiences that taught us that “you get what you pay for,” is more than just a common saying. + +We realize now that that cheap beer has an opportunity cost in terms of lost productivity the next morning. We remember that time we discovered that that cheap toaster we bought didn’t come with a warranty and then ended up being wasted money after it broke down 3 months later. And we’re past the point of trying to save $2 by imbibing a product that we don’t actually enjoy. + +Rather, we can afford for value to be a factor in our logic. And slowly, for many, value becomes the dominant factor when weighing up options. + +Let’s now move from the consumer context and into the business one. + +Small startups are often notoriously strapped for cash. They _have_ to be price buyers in order to purchase the goods and services they need without going bankrupt. But as many organizations scale, grow their revenue, and become funded (dependent on the business model), many go through a similar process of evolution to that experienced by most consumers. It feels good, if nothing else. + +It’s no longer strictly about which candidate is cheaper to hire. It’s about who can deliver the best return on investment (ROI). And working out the value that that resource can bring is an integral part of that equation. + +### “Can you do it for $50 less?” + +The above is why whenever I’m dealing with a business who’s trying to shave $50 off a quote … I know that it’s unlikely to be a good fit for me. A lot of time can be saved by making this determination from the outset. + +Truth be told, even a lead that wants me to re-scope a $500 quote into a $300 one is a business that I’m unlikely to want to work with. + +Could I do it? Possibly. But do I want to? Not particularly. + +Why, you may ask? + +Having done this for 5 years, I build out quotes with fairly reliable mathematical precision. + +I know how long it’s going to take me to deliver sufficient value and then multiply that by my hourly. There’s no seedy formulae being applied that you don’t know about. I’ve even shared most of how I bill quotes online. It’s not so much about what I _want_ to charge. But what I _have_ to charge if I want to do good work. + +Moreover, when I have enough budget to work with, I can do my best work for my clients. And by doing my best work, I can accrue impressive portfolio samples that I can use to sell more. + +It’s also more fun and satisfying to know that I’m being paid reasonably. Nobody likes the feeling of begrudgingly doing work for cheap. It boosts my morale and makes me happier which in turn makes me do a better job. I’m happier and my clients get better work. + +On the other hand, trying to make small budgetary adjustments means that I’m either going to have to do a worse job or do a rushed job (usually the same thing). Either way, it’s going to be a frustrating process from my end. And who, given the option, would want to engage in that? + +I once read a great quote in a sales book (sadly, the name evades me but it has stuck with me all these years). + +**If you sell yourself on value, then you’re going to loose your customers as soon as somebody can do something comparable to what you do for less money.** + +And here’s where that really falls down: in the global environment we’re all competing in, there’s almost _always_ going to be someone who’ll do it for less. + +The way out of this hapless situation? + +Price according to value and find clients who buy according to value. + +Your business — and you — will thank me. diff --git a/posts/medium/Project--Offbeat-Offsite-Backup-Storage.md b/posts/medium/Project--Offbeat-Offsite-Backup-Storage.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ea6234dc20ada9f800dd3a3c0f66c382f0df78e0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Project--Offbeat-Offsite-Backup-Storage.md @@ -0,0 +1,98 @@ +# Project: Offbeat Offsite Backup Storage + +Google Map for demonstrative purposes only + +Things have been quite good in terms of my backup strategy over the past few months. + +After documenting just about everything I currently do to take backups on [Github](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm), [Medium](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill), and on several Linux websites, I thought I had things all sorted out. + +My Synology DS920+ continues to run my rsync scripts every night. I have now fully migrated from S3 and Glacier over to Backblaze B2. And the SaaS cloud-to-cloud backup scene continues to evolve in promising ways with new vendors popping up on my radar every few months (I remain hopeful that in a few years’ time somebody will have developed a one-click Zapier-style SaaS cloud backup solution suitable for consumers. Until then, I have [my documentation](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy) to rely on). + +### The Gsuite Backup Problem + +Unfortunately all has not been totally rosy in Backup Land … and so the backup improvement mission marches on. + +The most prescient “backup problem” I face is that I feel the need to backup my [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83) data at a regularity which the platform is not well designed to handle. + +The details, which I have discussed here previously, do not bear lengthy repetition, but — remarkably — there currently exists no way to _incrementally_ back up _all_ of one’s Gsuite data. + +Sure, there are third party tools by companies like Spanning that capture _business-important_ aspects of Google’s cloud service offering intended for enterprise users (Drive, Contacts, and Gmail are the usual suspects). But that leaves an _awful_ lot of a typical Google/Gsuite user’s footprint un-backed-up. Things like: Google custom Maps; YouTube videos; Maps (to name but a few). + +Google _does_ provide an end-user oriented solution called Google Takeouts. However, this is clearly not intended as a backup methodology — rather, it is a user data export tool. But even if it were, by simply exporting every part of one’s Google data in a massive dump it would clearly be a full approach. And those, from a data standpoint, are clearly inefficient. + +There are a few problems here: + + * I generate new data on Google which needs to be backed up almost daily. Today alone I created several new albums in my Google Photos; added a few YouTube videos; and send and received a few email. ActiveBackup for GSuite, one of the components of Synology DSM, takes care of my email once a day — but what about the other components? Currently I’m only backing those up whenever I run a Takeout which is, by necessity, a manual process. + * If I am going to rely on the Google Takeouts / full backup methodology this is getting progressively more difficult as the pool of data I host in Gsuite continues to grow — while, pending the arrival of fiber to my locality, my upload speed remains a constant at a dismal 3–4 Mbps. + +### Old Style Offsite Backups? + +Through listening to the various entertaining anecdotes relayed in the [Restore It All podcast](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/backup-centrals-restore-it-all/id1469663053) I have gotten (what I think is) good insight into what people used to do to take offsite backups before things like Backblaze B2 and affordable cloud object storage came on the scene. They stored them … offsite! + +[**‎Backup Central's Restore it All on Apple Podcasts** + _A podcast dedicated to making sure you can restore everything you need to restore. Hosted by W. Curtis Preston (Mr…_ podcasts.apple.com](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/backup-centrals-restore-it-all/id1469663053 "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/backup-centrals-restore-it-all/id1469663053")[](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/backup-centrals-restore-it-all/id1469663053) + +In what could be considered an early (and much lighter) predecessor of the [AWS Snowmobile](https://aws.amazon.com/snowmobile/#:~:text=AWS%20Snowmobile%20is%20an%20Exabyte,by%20a%20semi%2Dtrailer%20truck.), people periodically loaded up backup tapes in a car and proceeded to drive it to some location geographically separated from their place of business (or home, or production studio). + +Anecdotally, I am aware that this methodology is still being widely employed. A friend — used to listening to me drone on about backup problems — recently confided in me that her architecture firm shipped off a backup copy to an employee’s home every weekend on a rotating basis. + +The rationale for creating offsite/cloud backups is clear. Synology DSM has ample functionality for creating backups of the NAS. But the question remains where to back up. Sadly, my station in life is not lofty enough that I own multiple properties. Therefore I have toyed with a few options. + +Thus, I did some thinking: + +### Potential Offsite Backup Storage Locations + +### A Car + +I could keep the offsite backup in my car. This will be relatively offsite to my apartment depending on where I park for the night. The advantage here would be that I would feel _relatively_ comfortable with having an unencrypted backup lying around. + +**Advantage:** Access is regulated by lock and key. + +**Disadvantage:** HDDs would be very susceptible to physical damage due to bumpiness while driving + +### A Random Hole in the Ground + +A more imaginative approach would be to find a patch of grass (say, in a forest), dig a hole, put a hard drive into it, and then mark the geocordinates on a Google Map. + +This has the appeal of feeling very much like a drop site from espionage. However its practicality is probably limited. + +**Advantage:** Completely ridiculous. + +**Disadvantage:** Likely to arouse massive suspicion if the storage is discovered. Potentially illegal. + +### A Friend’s House + +Storing the hard drive in a friend’s house would be more conventional. And this is very close to what Hyper Backup achieves. The downside of this approach is that — for obvious reasons — the backup would need to be encrypted, which is a minor inconvenience. Additionally, access to this offsite location is controlled by a third party. + +**Advantage:** Secure + +**Disadvantage:** Access is limited. Encryption necessary. + +### A Burn Bag On The Roof + +The final idea I’m toying with here is storing the backup on the roof of my building encased in a fireproof box. Alternatively in the basement cellar. My rationale here would be that in the event of a fire catastrophe the roof of the building might remain intact. + +**Advantage:** Relatively easy access. Relatively secure. + +**Disadvantage:** Minimally ‘offsite’ + +### A Bank Safe Deposit Box + +People have been using safe deposit boxes in banks and dedicated institutions for years in order to store valuables — including data. Unfortunately it’s not clear what options are currently available in my locality — and it seems that if they do they tend to be exorbitantly expensive. + +**Advantage:** Secure. Professionally managed. + +**Disadvantage:** Hard to find (for me). Expensive. + +### Action Items + +To take this latest backup experiment I am going to need to buy, and do, the following: + + * Figure out how much storage I’m using on my NAS and two sufficiently sized HDDs for backing these up to (1 to store offsite, 1 to rotate with). + * Figure out how to use Hyper Backup to back up the NAS to this drive + * Survey my local neighborhood for any abandoned fields which may be suitable for using as offsite storage locations using the dig-and-mark-geocordinates methodology (note: in less geeky and underage days this same methodology _may_ have been employed to tactically store cans of beer in off-the-beaten-track locations in my city) + * Buy a fireproof bag + +I will update this blog with the results of my experimentation. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Pros-and-Cons-of-Living-in-Jerusalem--Israel.md b/posts/medium/Pros-and-Cons-of-Living-in-Jerusalem--Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9e985cfcc55ca8f62a6b1e5f7351c889e6bbd4c1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Pros-and-Cons-of-Living-in-Jerusalem--Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,163 @@ +# Pros and Cons of Living in Jerusalem, Israel + +#### Political hotspot or religious backwater? What if the answer were ‘neither’? + +Shuk Mahane Yehuda: vegetable market by day, nightlife hub by night + +What’s it like to live in Jerusalem? + +Sometimes sneered upon by Israelis as a religious, provincial backwater, Jerusalem is in fact Israel’s capital city with a population of close to one million citizens spread between the (technically united) two halves of the city. + +But what’s living in Jerusalem like compared to the more glamorous city on the coast (Tel Aviv)? + +Here are some pros and cons from more than six years living full-time in the city “between heaven and earth.” + +### Jerusalem Has One of Everything — Even Large Yellow Ducks + +Jerusalem has one of everything, including a random giant duck perched on its main street + +If Noah’s ark could be personified by a city, then I think that Jerusalem would be in contention to be its earthly representation. + +While Jerusalem _isn’t_ bursting at the seams with any of the below, it manages to have at least one of all of them: + + * A specialty DJ store + * A Mexican takeaway + * A place to buy Judaica (okay, it has a _lot_ of these) + * A vegan Korean hole-in-the-wall ([Seoul House, The Old City](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Seoul+House/@31.7758209,35.2308662,15z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0xc3286b366a709559?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwic1omu4N_vAhW4_rsIHbuaCaQQ_BIwdXoECDkQBQ)) + * One of the most historic old cities in the world + +HaTaklit (‘The Record’) bar in downtown Jerusalem — sporting an Irish flag on this occasion + +Additionally, although Jerusalem certainly isn’t bursting forth at the seams with nightlife options, there are enough bars and late night dining options in the city to keep most punters happy ([my longtime favorite is HaTaklit](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Hataklit+Bar/@31.7818851,35.2211647,15z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x68a4aa240b2707f0?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiA3q3c4N_vAhVfgf0HHVU1CooQ_BIwVnoECG0QBQ), which means, in English, ‘The Record’). + +That’s living in Jerusalem in a nutshell for me. Nothing is missing. There is one of _almost_ everything* + +(* Important caveat: at the time of writing there is no meaty kosher Indian restaurant in the city. In kosher cuisine, restaurants are usually either meat or dairy). + +### Jerusalem Is Surprisingly Varied, And Invisibly — But Powerfully — Divided + +A scene from Jerusalem’s Old City. Source: Wikimedia Commons + +Far from the monolithic religious ghetto that some of its detractors like to portray it as, Jerusalem actually has quite a variety of neighborhoods with residents drawn from many different demographics: + + * The city’s Nahlaot neighborhood is popular with American immigrants and spiritual hipsters + * Rehavia — the neighborhood in which the Prime Minister’s residence is located — is young and trendy + * The downtown area — ‘Merkaz HaIr’ — has a abundance of shops and restaurants + * Baka, next to the Germany Colony, has a unique urban village atmosphere + * Mea Shearim and Geula are centers of Orthodox religious life and learning + +Of course, it’s hard to talk about Jerusalem without mentioning politics. + +After all, Jerusalem is a fundamental status issue in the Israeli-Palestinian dispute. While Israel exercises _de facto_ sovereignty over the entire city (the boundaries of the Jerusalem Municipality actually extend, in places, beyond the separation barrier) the Palestinians have not ceded their demand to demarcate a capital in its eastern half (the status of the international community’s recognition of even West Jerusalem is somewhat complicated.) + +The Eastern half of the city — there’s no border running through the city these days but the Green Line is a reasonably good surrogate — is decidedly Arab in character. + +Strolling through any of its neighborhoods — but particularly those of a more virulently nationalistic character — one will see Palestinian flags in place of Israeli ones. + +Minus the absence of the PA (which is banned from operating in Jerusalem) and the presence of some signage in Hebrew, distinguishing the streetscape of its neighborhoods from nearby Ramallah and Bethlehem isn’t that clear-cut. + +Listening to its radio stations and reading its social media pages, one will hear the Jerusalem Municipality referred to as the ‘Occupation Municipality.’ + +While Jerusalem is unified on paper and on the map, there is little meaningful integration between the two sides of the city. + +Personally, I like to think of Jerusalem as an amalgamation of three different cities which explains why — despite its population of close to one million residents — each of its constituent parts manage to retain a small town parochial sort of feel. + +Traditional Arabic coffee with cardamom. Enjoyed outside Damascus Gate / Bab Al-Amood + + * Palestinian Arab East Jerusalem with its nucleus in the area abutting Damascus Gate / Bab a-Zahra + * Secular to Dati Leumi (national religious) Jerusalem with its nucleus in the downtown area around Ben Yehuda St (‘midrahov’) and Yaffo St. + * Ultra-Orthodox / Haredi Jerusalem with its nucleus in the area around Mea Shearim + +How poorly integrated are Jewish and Arab Jerusalem? Consider the fact that: + + * East Jerusalem has its own bus company and infrastructure + * East Jerusalem has its own hospital network + * East Jerusalem is by and large staunchly Palestinian in character and rejects Israeli sovereignty, viewing Israel — and the Jerusalem Municipality — as hostile occupying powers. + +Arab Jerusalem is the beating heart of Palestinian nationalism. Jerusalem is Israel’s capital and home to Jerusalem’s holiest site. While Jewish Jerusalemites might work alongside Arab East Jerusalemites (who are typically permanent residents rather than citizens) it’s difficult to escape the conclusion that any manifestations of integration in the city tend to be superficial. The city is divided — even if the border fence is now demarcated by a cultural rather than physical divide. + +### Relative to Tel Aviv, Jerusalem Has A Bearable Climate With Cool Evenings + +Jerusalem’s climate graph. Site: HikersBay.comTel Aviv climate graph. Site: HikersBay.com + +Although Jerusalem and Tel Aviv are separated by less than 50KM as the crow flies, they retain somewhat distinctive climates. + +The distance between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv as the crow flies. Source: FreeMapTools.com. + +While both Tel Aviv and Jerusalem are relatively dry and hot, Jerusalem — due to its topography nestled on a series of hills — cools down considerably at night-time, giving its residents some respite from the long and hot Israeli summer. + +And Jerusalem’s relative coolness is more than the stuff of urban legend: the average relative humidity in Jerusalem during both July and August is 40%. By comparison the figures in Tel Aviv are 70% and 67%. + +Compared to Tel Aviv, Jerusalem’s climate is — for the author at least — substantially more livable. The relative lack of humidity also means that Jerusalem suffers from less … disconcertingly large flying insects … compared to the city down the coast. A benefit not to be sniffed — or swatted — at. + +### Jerusalem Isn’t Entirely Religious, But It Is Significantly So + +West Jerusalem — that’s the Jewish part — isn’t entirely comprised of ultra-Orthodox Jews. + +Nevertheless, religious Judaism makes a significant imprint upon life in the city. According to the Jerusalem Institute, 36% of Jerusalem’s Jewish residents are defined as Haredi; 31% are just Orthodox; and 33% are secular. (Thanks to /u/DaDerpyDude on Reddit!) + + * During Shabbat, the city effectively shuts down. The degree of closure is substantially more pronounced than in Tel Aviv. While there is an emergency pharmacy on rotation and non-Shabbat-keeping minimarkets, these are in the slim minority. + * The Egged buses in Jerusalem stop running on Shabbat. + +Of course, if you _are_ Jewish and religiously observant, then the strong current of religious life that runs throughout the city is likely to be a plus for you. The city is home to plenty of Jewish religious institutions and centers of learning as well as Judaica stores and book shops. + +Keeping kosher in the city is also extremely easy, particularly compared to Tel Aviv. In Jewish (West) Jerusalem, kosher food is the norm rather than the exception. + +### Jerusalem Is Cheaper Than Tel Aviv But Still Expensive + +It’s no secret that life in Israel is kind of crazily expensive. If you ask me, the cost of living is one of the major challenges to living here. + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +While Jerusalem is a little bit cheaper than Tel Aviv, there’s also a major negative: there are generally speaking far less jobs in the private sector here than in the coastal city. + +Numbeo pegs the difference between the two cities at 7% + +Additionally, salaries in Jerusalem are often lower than those in Tel Aviv. + +### Tel Aviv — And The Center — Is Really Where The Jobs Are At + +Jerusalem is Israel’s seat of government and the home to its most important national institutions, including the Knesset (parliament) and Supreme Court. + +Nevertheless, in many respects Tel Aviv serves as the country’s _de facto_ capital — and certainly eclipses Jerusalem in the realm of culture and economic life. + +If Jerusalem is lacking in one thing — besides affordable housing for its young people (on the flip side, Jerusalem has an abundance of ghost apartments)— it’s jobs. + +Partially for this reason, historically, Jerusalem has ranked as the poorest city in Israel. + +[**Why does Jerusalem rank as Israel's poorest city?** +_A Central Bureau of Statics report has once again ranked Jerusalem the country's poorest large city. But the municipal…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/why-does-jerusalem-rank-as-israels-poorest-city-473208 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/why-does-jerusalem-rank-as-israels-poorest-city-473208")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/why-does-jerusalem-rank-as-israels-poorest-city-473208) + +While that statistic might sound alarming, it needs a little interpretation given the fact that poverty levels in both the East of the city and among the ultra-Orthodox population are disproportionately highly. + +Nevertheless, I think it’s fair to say — at least at the time of this writing — that the job scene in Jerusalem, particularly in the private sector, lags considerably behind its equivalent in Tel Aviv and the ‘merkaz’ (center) of the country. + +### It’s Noisy, Sometimes Tense, And Often Full Of Construction + +When, last year, Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) assessed the quality of life in Israel’s cities, Jerusalem finished last on the list. + +[**Quality of Life Index: Kfar Saba leads, Jerusalem ranked worst** + _Kfar Saba, Ramat Gan and Rehovot have the highest quality of life among large cities in Israel and the Tel Aviv…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/quality-of-life-index-kfar-saba-leads-jerusalem-ranked-worst-653614 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/quality-of-life-index-kfar-saba-leads-jerusalem-ranked-worst-653614")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/quality-of-life-index-kfar-saba-leads-jerusalem-ranked-worst-653614) + +Jerusalem’s quality of life indices plotted on a datagram against the national (Israeli) average. Jerusalem: blue line. National average: red line. Source: Quality of life in major Israeli cities. Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). (Hebrew). + +Sometimes I wonder whether the rampant construction (and consequent noise pollution) in the city might have something to do with that dismal rating. + +A JCB outside the door — literally — of my odl apartment + +If I could level one charge against the Jerusalem Municipality (who undoubtedly also do good work for the city) it’s that they don’t do enough to take into consideration the needs of current residents when it comes to planning often disruptive building projects. During my six years living in Jerusalem, I reckon I’ve spent as many as two living in the immediate vicinity of noisy construction projects. + +Yes, building Jerusalem is important. But surely preserving the quality of life of current residents deserves consideration too. + +Besides construction-related noise — and the sound of incessant honking, which sometimes feels like the city’s permanent background soundtrack — many visitors to Jerusalem remark upon a vague feeling of tension. + +Given that the city is home to two warring populations — Arabs and Jews — I think that’s hardly surprising. During times of political turmoil, Jerusalem, which opens onto the West Bank, has historically been more affected than other cities in Israel. + +Living in Jerusalem, like any city, has its pros and cons. + +Despite its tumultuous political standing, life in Jerusalem — for the most part — is surprisingly normal. + +Secular people tend to dislike its religious character while those who are themselves religiously observant tend to see it as a pro. + +The main negative affecting all residents is the comparative lack of jobs and the consequent outflow of young people to Tel Aviv and the merkaz which is staunchly liberal compared to Jerusalem’s innate conservatism. If there’s one issue about which the Arabs and Jews of Jerusalem can agree on, it just might be this one. diff --git a/posts/medium/Public-resource--Jerusalem-coronavirus-exposure-map--breaking-.md b/posts/medium/Public-resource--Jerusalem-coronavirus-exposure-map--breaking-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a2994c810226c4ae788482ecedc96680dd08d28a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Public-resource--Jerusalem-coronavirus-exposure-map--breaking-.md @@ -0,0 +1,51 @@ +# Public resource: Jerusalem coronavirus exposure map (breaking) + +[0404.co.il recently reported](https://www.0404.co.il/?p=549752&fbclid=IwAR11epngqoercCPi2xVeEwHUnHctyDNHOubuDZcjYw9Xb6ovDHWcoZkV8Hs) (in Hebrew) that an infected patient from New York visited Jerusalem between 23/03 and 27/02. + +This has likely resulted in exposure to the general public. + +As a public service I threw together a quick English translation and added the details to a Google Map. + +Both are below. + +The Ministry of Health advises that: + + * Anybody who was in the listed places during the specified times should begin a 14 day quarantine and r[eport it to the Ministry of Health website.](https://govforms.gov.il/mw/forms/QuarantineForExposees@health.gov.il?displang=en) + * Alternatively they should call *5400. + * In the event of symptoms such as shortness of breath, fever, or cough, they should contact the MDA (national ambulance service) hotline by dialing 101. + +### 23/02 (Sun) + +**21:30–23:30:** Mamilla. Café Rimon and Zara. + +### 23/02 (Mon) + +**13:00–15:00:** Café Rimon on Ben Yehuda St. + +**15:00:** Took 74 (Northbound) from King George St. Disembarked on Derekh Hevon (not sure if that’s a specific spot or in general). + +**17:00–19:00:** Went to Keyon Hadar and Osher Ad + +### **24/02 (Tues)** + +**14:00–15:00:** Kitchen Station, David Remez 4 (That’s Hamiznon in the First Station) + +### 24/02 (Weds) + +**09:00–10:00:** Visited Mizrahi Tefahot Bank on Heleini HaMalka 9 + +**11:30–1400:** Another trip to Osher Ad. Visited Fox Home, Osher Ad (again) and צוצת ספרים (Tsomet Sfarim — the book store that isn’t Steimatsky). + +### 25/02 (Thurs) + +**10:00:** Took the Sorthbound bus line 74 FROM Derekh Hevon to town. + +**11:00–13:00:** Went to the the Kafit coffee shop on 36 Emek Refaim + +**19:30:** Took the 74 Southbound (again) from Derekh Hevron to the Tahana Merkazit / CBS + +**20:30:** Took the train to the airport. + +### Exposure Google Map + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Questions-to-ask-before-hiring-a-ghostwriter-for-your-book-project-56f782f6fe7.html.md b/posts/medium/Questions-to-ask-before-hiring-a-ghostwriter-for-your-book-project-56f782f6fe7.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6c2782c1df35b18cce46526157455cb82caa8c8e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Questions-to-ask-before-hiring-a-ghostwriter-for-your-book-project-56f782f6fe7.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,91 @@ +# Questions to ask before hiring a ghostwriter for your book project + +#### Questions to ensure a good fit with your potential writer + +Book ghostwriters help turn literary ideas into literary realities + +Are you thinking about hiring a ghostwriter to help transform your great book idea into a great … literary reality? + +If so, book ghostwriters are the perfect writers for the job. + +Ghostwriters are freelance writing specialists who work with authors to capture their tone of voice and produce books, blogs, and articles that are published in their name. + +Ghostwriters are hired by individuals ranging from celebrities to businesspeople and technology leaders. If you have something worth writing about but lack the time and/or skill to write it, hiring a ghostwriter might be one of the best investments you can make. + +[**Who hires ghostwriters? These people!** +_Thinking about working with a ghostwriter, but not sure it’s a “done thing”? Some professionals who commonly work with…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-hires-ghostwriters-these-people-d0e3ce1e991b "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-hires-ghostwriters-these-people-d0e3ce1e991b")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-hires-ghostwriters-these-people-d0e3ce1e991b) + +In order to make sure that you find the best ghostwriter for your project, however, it’s prudent to prepare a few questions. Ghostwriting doesn’t come cheap and you may even need to budget for a five to six figure sum if you’re planning on having a book ‘ghosted’. + +Here are some potential questions to help guide the evaluation process. + +### Would you be interested in ghostwriting my book? + +As literary guns for hire, ghostwriters tend to work with a variety of clients at any one time. While it’s not an essential prerequisite for the job, it certainly helps if they’re at least somewhat engaged in the material they’re writing about. + +You might consider asking your prospective ghost: + + * Have you helped clients with this type of book before? + * What, in particular, about my story interests you? + +### How much will ghostwriting this book cost? + +Naturally, you’re also going to want to get a sense of costs. + +Ghostwriting tends to fall into three price bands: + + * **Marketplace ghostwriters** , who sell their services on platforms such as Upwork, tend to be the cheapest ghostwriters for hire. + * **Mid-tier ghostwriters** offer book ghostwriting services at rates above marketplace ghostwriters but below high-end ghostwriters. For a typical length non-fiction project, you can expect to pay between $2,000 and $10,000 for a project. + * **Private ghostwriting** fees tend to start from around $10,000.To hire a high end ghostwriter, you can expect to pay up to a six figure sum (in US dollars). + +### What is your process for ghostwriting books? + +Every writer has their own preferred means for transcribing your ideas into paper. + +Many book ghostwriters, for instance, will start with an intensive period of informational “onboarding.” This could take the form of remote or in-person meetings during which the ghostwriter will record the dictated thoughts of the client. + +Additionally, clients may send source material in the form of: + + * Private written material + * Transcriptions of previous interviews + * Unpublished material such as the client’s own previous, self-directed attempts to write a book + +### What kind of timeline are we looking at? + +Ghostwriters are seasoned professionals who should have strong organizational and project management skills in addition to strong abilities in writing and editing. + +After you’ve briefed your writer on the project, he/she should be in a position to provide you with a good estimate for how long the project is going to take. + +[**How to Brief Freelance Writers Like a Pro** + _On any given week, I receive anywhere a number of briefs for pieces of writing from clients. On any given day, my home…_ www.business2community.com](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261 "https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261")[](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261) + +Book ghostwriting projects can range from as little as one month (extremely rushed; quality: highly dubious) through to more than one year. + +### What does the book ghostwriting service include? + +Many prospective first-time authors are under the (mis)impression that ghostwriters also offer a publishing service. + +In reality, ghostwriters are effectively contract writers. Their scope of service is limited to actually doing the writing. + +For publishing, there are two directions through which prospective authors typically navigate the market in order to bring their book idea to reality: + + * Self-publishing through a service such as Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) + * Traditional publishing through a publishing house or an imprint of one + +Whichever direction a prospective author chooses, one may have to deal with third parties who take the written text (manuscript) and then prepare it for publication and then publish it. + +This list of professionals might include: + + * Typesetters + * Layout specialists for print and/or digital + * Cover art designers + * Publicists + * Literary agents + +### Better questions for better projects + +Getting a book written is a major undertaking. + +Before engaging a ghostwriter prepare a list of questions to get a sense for what kind of budget you should be prepared to invest in the project, how long you might expect the project to take, and who else you may need to deal with in order to bring your book idea through to publication. + +_Interested in learning more about DSR Ghostwriting’s non-fiction book ghostwriting service?_[_Click here_](https://dsrghostwriting.com/services-outline/writing/books/) _to learn more._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Re-imagining-Aliyah-As-The-Jewish-Immigrant-Experience.md b/posts/medium/Re-imagining-Aliyah-As-The-Jewish-Immigrant-Experience.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a14e24facf5b5018cd5ee1a317f5c1420022ade1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Re-imagining-Aliyah-As-The-Jewish-Immigrant-Experience.md @@ -0,0 +1,85 @@ +# Re-imagining Aliyah As The Jewish Immigrant Experience + +#### _Aliyah_ is often conceived of being a unique immigration experience. But it’s time for an attitude change. In fact, it’s rather typical. Even banal. + +True story: a landlord once ripped out the toilet of an apartment that I was renting. Reimagining aliyah as the quintessential immigrant experience. Screenshot: from author’s You Tube. + +To the best of my knowledge, research into _aliyah_ — and post-aliyah retention — is a field in its infancy. + +Thankfully, that is fast changing. + +The literature narrating _olim’s_ experience in Israel — and asking hard questions about why many of them return to their countries of origin — is growing. + +Former Ambassador to the US Michael Oren [penned an articulate and insightful piece](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israel-needs-olim/) on _The Times of Israel_ a few days ago. It’s well worth a read. + +It laid bare some uncomfortable realities about life in Israel that seem starkly at odds with Zionism, the ideological tenant upon which the State of Israel is founded (indeed they are). + +For one, as Oren explains, even within the vaunted halls of the Knesset there is a general apathy towards _aliyah_ — sometimes even a hostility — that runs entirely contrary to the lip service Israeli politicians routinely pay it as an ideal. + +To weathered long term _olim_ , inured to the trials and tribulations of life in this quarrel-strewn part of the Middle East, this probably comes as no surprise. To those yet to step on the plane to Israel, however, this fact alone may strike as quite shocking. And rightly so. Because it is. + +This shocking attitude on the part of our overpaid and largely unaccountable parliamentarians needs fixing. + +Without it, it’s unlikely to expect the kind of concrete policy reforms that Oren argues urgently need enacting. + +When there’s a will, there’s a way. And when nobody _really_ cares about _aliyah_ because it’s largely the concern of people without much influence in Israeli society, it’s hardly surprising that issues like these simply languish until we reach a breaking point of rage (see: 2019 Ethiopian protests against police violence). + +When it comes to how we, _olim,_ think about _aliyah_ , however, I’d like to suggest that there’s also an attitude that _we_ can adopt. + +It’s to stop thinking of _aliyah_ as a unique immigration phenomenon, a message which is heavily pushed by Nefesh b’Nefesh, the Jewish Agency, and just about everybody else who evangelizes the Jewish Diaspora with grand messages about the merits of coming “home” to Israel. + +Rather, it’s time to start thinking aboYouTUbeut _aliyah_ as simply today’s normative Jewish immigrant experience — much as perhaps showing up to Ellis Island from Poland was in the last century. + +And when we start conceiving of _aliyah_ through a frame of reference that more closely mirrors its grisly reality, we can do a better job at advancing our shared struggle for a better future in Israel. + +### Aliyah Is No Exception To The General Law Of Immigration + +So I’d like to suggest that it’s high time that we stopped thinking about _aliyah_ as the great exception to _The General Law Of Immigration._ + +Because that’s what we currently largely _do_ think. + +We think that because we’re Jewish — and this is a Jewish country founded on Jewish values which we Diasporans and _tsabrim_ share — that our experience as immigrants to Israel will, somehow, be different. + +Consistently, generation after generation, we find that it isn’t. + +Rather, we find that it’s just about as good — and as bad — as that of Jamaicans showing up as immigrants to New York. + +Some of us stay. Some of us return to our countries of origin bearing horror stories about the squalid apartment we rented in Ramat Gan or Tel Aviv. Some of us thrive and manage to climb through the ranks of Israeli society (or at least its high tech world). And some of us don’t. + +Many of us, however we end up, report instances of exploitation and discrimination along the way. In a country with stifling defamation laws, and a sizeable population of immigrants who believe that maligning anything about Israel is a religious sin, most of these go unchronicled, the stories exchanged only around informal water coolers. + +And those very same crushed expectations are the root cause of huge amounts of heartache and bitterness among those who have found themselves used, abused, and thrown out on the garbage heap of Israeli society. That may not be the _majority_ of _olim._ But they are a portion of them. And vocal. + +No, the General Law isn’t a real thing, by the way. But if it were, it might go something like this: + + 1. **Immigrants the world over are generally taken advantage of by a malevolent minority of the population who look to exploit weaker segments of society for underpaid labor** — or to rent them shoddy accommodation without properly informing them of their rights (or ripping out their toilets while they are at work, _etc etc_). This is a problem that plagues immigrants the world over and which has spurned some excellent literature over the years (I contend that many _olim_ would find much that resonates in Orwell’s _Down and Out in Paris and London_) . Which is also why most people don’t willingly subject themselves to this plight (this is the key point about which Israel and Zionism truly _are_ exceptional and perhaps also what underlies this mental disconnect; largely, from Western countries, it’s a very voluntary migration pattern.) + 2. **Immigrants the world over generally struggle to get the non-immigrant majority — or at least its political class — to adequately care about their issues.** Because generally, as individuals and collectives, humans are selfish creatures who care about themselves and _their_ problems. In a tribal society such as that which exists within modern Israel, this dynamic is magnified. Ben Gurion once remarked that _“We will know we have become a normal country when Jewish thieves and Jewish prostitutes conduct their business in Hebrew.”_ He made an immensely important point. In one enormous respect — it’s the world’s only Jewish country — Israel in unique. In so many others, it’s banally mundane. + 3. **Immigrants usually face concrete challenges to their absorption.** In the case of Israel, these are usually both linguistic and cultural. As such, it’s quite normal for immigrant communities to exist within enclaves as they make the slow process of assimilating into the larger culture that surrounds them. Maligning so-called Anglo enclaves is therefore quite unreasonable, or at least the kind of double standard that those who peddle in _hasbara_ often love to complain about. At a minimum, it’s quite understandable that they exist — much as London has entire neighborhoods that culturally and demographically resemble Ireland. + +### Aliyah May Achieve A Beautiful And Unique End. But It’s A Gritty, Typical Immigrant Experience Nonetheless. + +So _aliyah_ — like Israel in so many respects — is a paradox. + +Both unique and commonplace all at the same time. Which — doubly paradoxically — almost makes it somewhat unique. + +Compared to other major population movements, it’s a _sui generis_ form of population movement. + +_Aliyah_ represents the homecoming of the Jewish people to their ancestral homeland, a process of re-self-determination without many (if any) historical parallels. That’s why we, Jews, largely engage in it. + +_Olim_ largely move to Israel because they feel an ideological pull to do so; the weight of history, even. It’s a pull migration. Commonly, modern day _olim_ commit to _aliyah_ , and Israel, knowing that it will represent a substantial hit to their financial future and standing in society. + +For those truly committed to the ideal, the satisfaction of playing a role in the migration usually mitigate against all the hardships encountered along the way. And so they go through with it anyway. + +So while most _olim_ can probably agree that the enterprise of _aliyah_ is lofty and even sacred, that doesn’t mean — I contend — that we need to keep paining ourselves to prop up an image that depicts _aliyah_ as some kind of Zionist fairytale. + +Because it’s not. It’s a gritty and jagged immigrant experience — even the quintessential one — undertaken by a heterogeneous group of Diasporan Jews from Addis Ababa, Paris, London, New York, and everywhere in between, to a somewhat dysfunctional and young state in the Middle East. + +We don’t speak the same language. We often don’t look the same. And yet we share many of the same challenges. + +Rather, _aliyah_ — while unique — is awfully common. + +Filled, often, with dodgy employers who forget to make pension contributions (I’ve had that happen); landlords who rip out your toilets while you are paying rent (ditto); and other ugly manifestations of the gritty existence that typifies life as an immigrant the world over. + +It’s the Jewish immigrant experience, no less. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Reasons-To-Use-A-Pen-Name-For-Your-Amazon-Self-Publishing---And-Why-Not-To-3f96a53fabd.html.md b/posts/medium/Reasons-To-Use-A-Pen-Name-For-Your-Amazon-Self-Publishing---And-Why-Not-To-3f96a53fabd.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..66f47608a979d21bde2f32e86fccb6f83c5ca378 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Reasons-To-Use-A-Pen-Name-For-Your-Amazon-Self-Publishing---And-Why-Not-To-3f96a53fabd.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,139 @@ +# Reasons To Use A Pen Name For Your Amazon Self-Publishing — And Why Not To + +#### Thinking about writing under a pen name? Some reasons why you may want to … and reasons why you may end up regretting doing so + +Should you publish under your own name on Amazon? Or under an assumed identity? Image: Piqsels + +Pseudonyms — pen names — have long been a popular literary device among authors. + +Indeed, today’s crop of indie authors and self-publishers are really spoiled for choice: publishing on Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) is not only simplistic to use, you don’t even need to worry about contravening the terms of service (TOS) by publishing under a pen name, or even multiple names. (Translation: it’s fine with Amazon. Yes, really!) + +[**Can I Publish on Amazon With a Pseudonym? | Platforms, Retailers and Uploading | FAQ** + _Yes, you can publish on Amazon with a pseudonym, to preserve your identity, for whatever reason. You can do the same…_ www.booknook.biz](https://www.booknook.biz/platforms-retailers-and-uploading/can-i-publish-on-amazon-with-a-pseudonym#:~:text=At%20the%20KDP%2C%20you%27ll,and%20every%20book%20you%20upload.&text=A%20lot%20of%20authors%20use,then%20%22Add%20New%20Title.%22 "https://www.booknook.biz/platforms-retailers-and-uploading/can-i-publish-on-amazon-with-a-pseudonym#:~:text=At%20the%20KDP%2C%20you'll,and%20every%20book%20you%20upload.&text=A%20lot%20of%20authors%20use,then%20%22Add%20New%20Title.%22")[](https://www.booknook.biz/platforms-retailers-and-uploading/can-i-publish-on-amazon-with-a-pseudonym#:~:text=At%20the%20KDP%2C%20you%27ll,and%20every%20book%20you%20upload.&text=A%20lot%20of%20authors%20use,then%20%22Add%20New%20Title.%22) + +KDP — as the name suggests — is a platform for self-_publishing_. As the publisher of the works you upload there, _you_ need to register under your actual identity to remain compliant. + +However using KDP you can (all without violating their TOS): + + * **Publish books on behalf of a third party — ie somebody else**. When you think about it, this is effectively using KDP in a manner analogous to the way traditional publishers — Penguin et al — operate. This use is uncommon, though. + * **Publish books on behalf of your pen name(s).** You can even associate the pseudonymed work with an Amazon Author Central account. + +Amazon makes publishing under pen names extraordinarily easy. + +You can collect royalties from the pseudonymed works just as if they were written under your own byline. Of course this means that Amazon knows who you are. But your readers will have no way of ascertaining that information. + +**Why would you want to publish under a pen name?** + +**Why might you _not_ want to?** + +Here are some reasons — offered without judgement as to their merits or legitimacy — for this enduring literary practice. + +### ✅ Why To Publish Under A Pen Name + +#### To shield yourself from haters + +Many authors publish under pen names to protect themselves from angry fans and online abuse. A photo of an angry man. Photo: Piqsels + +A lot of authors who write about controversial subjects choose to do so under a pen name. + +**These authors do so in order to avoid having to receive hate mail and threats (or cyberstalking) from those who are ticked off by their views.** + +Authors who might publish under a pen name for this reason might be writing about: + + * A political conflict + * A politically charged and divisive issue + * Any other subject that tends to bifurcate readers cleanly into lovers and haters. Think veganism, the Israeli-Arab conflict, the roundness of Planet Earth, etc. + +#### Because, for personal or professional reasons, you don’t want to take credit for the work + +Sometimes authors write under pen names because they’re not so keen on publicly endorsing a particular viewpoint — or a set of them. + +This reason might apply to authors who don’t quite feel ready to endorse a certain viewpoint because they feel that doing so might have adverse implications in their personal or professional lives. + +Don’t want your boss to find out that you’re a popular rom-com fiction author by night? A pen name could provide the degree of anonymity you’re seeking. + +Other examples: + + * **You want to write a book about something that you believe in but which you know your loved ones and family don’t.** Maybe you’re a secret vegan in a family full of carnivores and want to pen a book about animal rights without risking ostracization from the clan? In this kind of situation, an author might determine that the most prudent course of action is to use a pen name. + * **You’re working for a Democrat-affiliated organization — or a Democrat boss — and you want to write a book that argues for Republican or conservative politics.** Sure, your employer mightn’t be supposed to discriminate on political grounds. But do you really feel like taking that risk? + +#### Because you’re testing the waters of publishing + +A lot of indie authors and first-time self-publishers will use pen name publishing as a gentle means of easing themselves into the publishing process. + +Publishing a book — whether traditionally or over Amazon — is a big step. + +For authors who are concerned with developing personal brands, a book is a big affirmation of where they stand on a certain issue — or on what their story represents. It becomes part of your literary record. Something that’s hard to recant. + +Books also expose authors to criticism and negative feedback. It’s extremely rare to encounter a popular title on Amazon that hasn’t received at least one scathing review if not a slew of them. If you’re writing on a subject that’s even somewhat controversial, you can expect to encounter readers who don’t like what you have to say or how you say it. + +While developing a thick skin might seem like a prerequisite to launching a career as a writer, believe it or not, not all writers have the skin of elephants. + +Many will therefore use publishing under a pen name as a means of putting a little bit of distance between themselves and their readers for their very first foray into publishing. + +#### Because it wouldn’t be safe to publish under your real name + +One extremely important function which pen names fulfill is enabling whistleblowers and those with important stories to share to be able to do so without risking adverse consequences to their personal safety. + +[**The Internet User’s Guide To Anonymous Whistleblowing** + _Basic steps to share information with journalists and other parties without divulging one’s identity_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-internet-users-guide-to-anonymous-whistleblowing-bd4b8ec48483 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-internet-users-guide-to-anonymous-whistleblowing-bd4b8ec48483")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-internet-users-guide-to-anonymous-whistleblowing-bd4b8ec48483) + +Consider for example: + + * A victim of sexual or emotional abuse who wishes to write an anonymous account of (his or her) recovery from abuse without risking identifying either his or her identity or that of the perpetrator + * A whistleblower who wants to lift the lid on malfeasance in an organization which he or she is affiliated with + +It’s important to note that publishing under a pen name isn’t _carte blanche_ to defame others. + +Remember that Amazon will know your real identity with a good degree of certainty if you’re publishing through KDP. + +It’s prudent to put the same care into avoiding defamation when publishing under a pen name as you would if you were publishing using your own byline. + +### ❎ Why Not To Publish Under A Pen Name + +Just as there are compelling reasons _why_ to publish under a pen name — and important objectives which pseudonym publishing continues to fulfill for authors — pen name publishing also presents difficulties which authors who chose to publish this way must deal with. + +#### It’s hard to do effective promo for your book + +As any book author will tell you, the art of selling a book involves 10% writing and 90% marketing. + +When you publish under a pen name it becomes a lot more difficult to do things like: + + * Go on podcasts to be interviewed about your book. This is particularly problematic if your pen name is more of a fictitious identity and claims to have a different accent than the one you naturally speak in. + * Speak at panels and authors’ conferences as your pen name. In fact appearing publicly in the character of your pen name is likely to be problematic in any social situation where you might be photographed or recognized. + +#### You don’t get the credit if your book’s a big hit + +As a pen name author, there’s a high price to pay for the anonymity that publishing under a pen name affords you. + +You’re free to test the waters by publishing under a pen name, **but if that test’s a big success then you won’t be able to take credit for the pseudonymed authorship unless you choose to do so.** + +All of the work and little to none of the potential glory. If you know — or have a strong inkling — that your book is going to be a runaway success, then you may wish to consider your idea of publishing using a pen name. + +#### You run the risk of being doxxed + +You might recall that one of the popular reasons for authors to write under pen names is because they are worried of attracting hatred and harassment from those who don’t take kindly to the views espoused in their authorship. + +There’s a risk to pen name publishing, however. Keeping your real and pen name identities separated isn’t a perfect science. + +For one, many authors are somewhat open about their pen name identities and will tell friends, family, and sometimes even the media about their publishing identities. But the wider you extend your circle of trust the greater the likelihood that somebody is going to spill the beans and out your name. + +Many successful pseudonymed authors have had to ultimately take credit for their books — or declare their pseudonyms — after a diligent investigator blue the lid on their alias. + +### Pen Name Publishing Fulfills An Important Literary Function + +Personally, I think it’s tremendous that Amazon makes it so easy to publish under a pen name using KDP. + +Pen names — while they undoubtedly have their drawbacks — continue to fulfill a vital function in today’s literary landscape. + +They allow rookie authors to assess the reaction to their writing without having to bite their nails raw waiting for the first reviews to percolate in. + +They allow abuse victims and whistleblowers to tell their stories in a way that doesn’t compromise their personal safety. + +And they shield those writing about controversial topics from having to take ‘heat’ for their views. + +You may find some of the use-cases outlined above cowardly. + +But for those who employ this device, the pen name is often a powerful and worthwhile stepping-stone that allows aspiring authors to work up the courage to one day take credit for their work — while gently easing them into the process of encountering feedback from real world readers. + +For these reasons, and more, I continue to support pen name publishing and commend Amazon for their decision to facilitate this kind of authorship through KDP. diff --git a/posts/medium/Received-antisemitic-abuse-on-Reddit--Consider-reporting-it-.md b/posts/medium/Received-antisemitic-abuse-on-Reddit--Consider-reporting-it-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d5260372bc03c465fb413bb6dd072ceb406eb221 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Received-antisemitic-abuse-on-Reddit--Consider-reporting-it-.md @@ -0,0 +1,79 @@ +# Received antisemitic abuse on Reddit? Consider reporting it! + +Reddit is one of the largest social networks on the internet. + +It also — famously — allows users to sign up virtuously anonymously. The majority of Reddit users — called Redditors — post under pseudonyms. + +And wherever total anonymity at scale happens, there’s a strong chance harassment, cyberbullying, and abuse will follow. + +If you’ve encountered anti-Semitism on Reddit, consider taking the following actions in order to report the abuse you’ve received. There’s no guarantee that the social network will do anything about it — but it’s a pity not to at least try. + +### Report the anti-Semitic content to moderation + +Let’s say you encounter anti-Semitism on Reddit. Here’s an example: + +If you feel that there are grounds to do so, then you can access the report functionality by clicking on the three dots to the right of ‘Share’: + +Firstly, you’ll need to state exactly what rule the offending comment(s) breaks: + +An explanation of each reporting option will populate towards the bottom of the window: + +After submitting the report, you’ll have the option to block the user that posted the content: + +### Report abuse to Reddit + +If you’re receiving persistent abuse such as a Redditor harassing you or making repeated anti-Semitic remarks to you, then you can use this URL to submit a request to the Reddit admins: + +[**Submit a request** + _If you are reporting a content policy violation, please use our report form. If you need to contact us on Reddit.com…_ www.reddithelp.com](https://www.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/requests/new "https://www.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/requests/new")[](https://www.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/requests/new) + +If you’re reported the anti-Semitic bullying to a moderator who has ignored you — or worse decided to gang up on you or report your account in revenge — then there’s also an option to file a moderator complaint: + +### Document the abuse + +Firstly, consider taking screenshots of the abuse that you received. If you have screensharing software installed on your computer, then you can record a video screen capture of the abuse also. + +Secondly consider using an archiving site — such as this one — to store a snapshot of the Reddit thread containing the abuse: + +[https://archive.ph](https://archive.ph/) + +You should also make a note of: + + * The usernames that are sending the offensive content + * All URLs where the comments appeared + +### Document it to an anti-Semitism monitoring subreddit + +There are subreddits — Reddit communities — that exist to allow a safe space in which Redditors can document anti-Semitism that they have experienced on the network. + +[**r/AntiSemitismInReddit** + _r/AntiSemitismInReddit: Documenting antisemitism in reddit_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/AntiSemitismInReddit/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/AntiSemitismInReddit/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/AntiSemitismInReddit/) + +### Consider reporting to any other authorities + +Sadly, there’s sometimes not much that can be done about online cyberbullying and abuse — particularly when the moderators and administrators of the platform aren’t willing to step in and help. + +Some social network users have reported that — after reporting the abuse — they received vengeful target-blaming in response, sometimes by hordes of online bullies, and complete silence from the website hosting the abuse. + +If this happens, you may be out of options. But it might still be worth reporting the abuse to authorities that monitor online anti-Semitism. + +[**Report an Antisemitic, Bias or Discriminatory Incident** + _Report an Antisemitic, Racist or Bigoted Incident_ www.adl.org](https://www.adl.org/reportincident "https://www.adl.org/reportincident")[](https://www.adl.org/reportincident) + +Sadly, both cyberbullying and online anti-Semitism are pervasive phenomenons. + +Reddit’s largely anonymous nature makes it something of a magnet for online cyberbullies who are looking for a safe home from which to heap abuse and bullying on Jewish Reddit users. + +If you’ve been targeted in this manner, consider reporting the abuse to subreddit moderators, Reddit itself, and third parties. + +[**Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit** + _Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2) + +— — — + + _Note: everything I’ve posted about Reddit bullying to date has resulted in Reddit bullies swarming into the Medium comments section to continue bullying. Therefore, with regret, I’ve had to close the discussion section here before anybody has a chance to respond._ + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/Reddit--Why-I-Predict-That-This-Social-Dark-Horse-Will-Only-Get-Bigger-And-Better-This-Year-And-.md b/posts/medium/Reddit--Why-I-Predict-That-This-Social-Dark-Horse-Will-Only-Get-Bigger-And-Better-This-Year-And-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..760c060382fbf53d5c40fccb1b1558624c5267e9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Reddit--Why-I-Predict-That-This-Social-Dark-Horse-Will-Only-Get-Bigger-And-Better-This-Year-And-.md @@ -0,0 +1,246 @@ +# Reddit: Why I Predict That This Social Dark Horse Will Only Get Bigger And Better This Year And… + +#### If Reddit Can Tame Its Sprawling Web Of Hyper-Engaged Communities, It’s Primed To Capitalize On Influencer Ennui And Short Video Fatigue + +When it comes to the social media apps that many of us interact with everyday, I think it’s fair to say that each and every one of them has its own distinctive flavor. In fact, I prefer to think of them personified — as caricature sketches. + +Reddit: can it move beyond its current place in the social network leaderboard? Photo: author. + +Medium — the one you’re on right now — is the kind of wistful crowd gathering on the balcony of a party in the early hours of the morning looking for a moment’s soulful conversation amid the hustle and bustle of life elsewhere on the social internet. + +While the social butterflies are busy taking selfies with one another inside (those would be the Instagrammers), the Medium-ers (is that a word?) come together to ruminate, to share things often spoken only in whispers, and to ponder what the future may bring. We’re less cool. + +Like most social networks, Medium comes in a few flavors. Like most social networks, people have a habit of stereotyping it only with reference to one. Sometimes pseudo-inspirational. Sometimes weightily dark. + +[**Reddit Usage and Growth Statistics: How Many People Use Reddit in 2021?** +_Reddit was founded in 2005 as a centralized community platform categorized around different interests. It started with…_ backlinko.com](https://backlinko.com/reddit-users "https://backlinko.com/reddit-users")[](https://backlinko.com/reddit-users) + +Twitter posters are the jabby people you overhear talking to their best friends on the bus, sharing whatever’s on their mind in short sharp hurried bursts. + +Befitting that crude stereotype, Twitter folk are usually the first to know about what’s going on too. Which is why the platform is disproportionately popular among journalists and everybody working in news. Want to find out about a breaking new story or follow #OSINT enthusiasts doing the same? Turn to Twitter and you’ll find them congregating there. + +Twitter’s downside? At 280 characters, there’s only so much nuance that can be squeezed into a status. Things like podcasts prove that folks _do_ read online and can stick with long-form content. Twitter is often where digital relationships are first kindled. Where the conversation kicks off. + +YouTubers and Instagrammers — tick off all of the above. After they’ve gotten round to putting on clothing for the day and setting up a ring light. + +Linkedn users are the corporate animals who (nowadays) can be found boring you to sleep with their latest virtue-signalling ode to their boss (or company, or gift hamper). Now and again, they’ve got something insightful to say and if you play your cards right you might just land your next job (or client) there. Most of us are there because we have to be (or think that we do). + +[**The 3 Most Insufferable LinkedIn Posts That Need To End Right Now** + _From old job love letters to here’s my gift hamper, the 3 type of LinkedIn posts that do my head in_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3) + +Reddit — and Redditors? + +Of all the social networks, I reckon that Reddit cultivates the most diverse community. + +That’s due, in large measure, to the fact that Reddit doesn’t demand that users divulge their identity. And the fact that its bewildering network of subreddits simply precludes there being such as thing as a normative Redditor (even if that myth is longstanding). Each subreddit is effectively its own chat forum and by latest reckoning there are more than 2.8 million of them. + +Speaking of divulging identities, most Redditors choose not to — which has given the network a well-deserved reputation for toxicity and for playing host to hate communities, those touting conspiracy theories, and platforms that wouldn’t be tolerated anywhere else on the normative side of 4Chan. + +The flip (positive) side of the anonymity thing? Reddit’s sprawling mass of mental health communities (or its career change subreddit). When users want to share online but can’t attach their identity to their posts, Reddit provides an excellent home. (Unlike many networks, Reddit doesn’t preclude users from having multiple accounts.) + +So there are the longstanding stereotypes about Reddit. But when /r/wallstreetbets forced a short squeeze on GameStop earlier this year, the world — for a moment — stopped thinking that Redditors were all by and large Silicon Valley tech employees shooting the breeze about obscure topics during their workday. + +I mean perhaps they were. But they also apparently traded socks (befitting the stereotype in a gaming company), were financially savvy enough to invest, and could even move markets when they traded _en masse_. Reddit had taken Wall Street off guard, the commentators intoned. And they were right. + +That January squeeze will come to be regarded, I believe, as a pivotal moment in the network’s evolution and its popular depiction. + +For besides proving that its users had jobs and expendable income, Reddit made headlines for reasons that weren’t entirely down to the cat and mouse game it seems to always be engaged in against hate and disinformation (continuing that more longstanding narrative, this week Reddit made headlines for banning a controversial pandemic subreddit). + +[**Reddit Bans Controversial Covid Subreddit After Users Protest Disinformation** + _Reddit shut down r/NoNewNormal, a community that undermined the coronavirus pandemic's severity and dismissed face…_ www.forbes.com](https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/09/01/reddit-bans-controversial-covid-subreddit-after-users-protest-disinformation/ "https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/09/01/reddit-bans-controversial-covid-subreddit-after-users-protest-disinformation/")[](https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/09/01/reddit-bans-controversial-covid-subreddit-after-users-protest-disinformation/) + +On the back of recent investment and an upcoming IPO, I believe this social network could only continue to ride an upward wave in popularity. + +[**r/wallstreetbets - Wikipedia** + _r/wallstreetbets, also known as WallStreetBets or WSB, is a subreddit where participants discuss stock and option…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R/wallstreetbets "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R/wallstreetbets")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R/wallstreetbets) + +Whether you’re a marketer interested in social media or a Reddit user yourself, here are some thoughts on why I think it can keep growing. But firstly, where it stands now: + +### How Big Is Reddit Now? By Monthly Active Users, On The Periphery Of The Top 10 (Globally) + +When it comes to sizing up the comparative might of social networks, two metrics are commonly looked at by commentators to evaluate network size: + + * Monthly active users (MAUs) + * Daily active users (DAUs) + +Additionally, _where_ you look has a gigantic impact upon what social networks make the leaderboard. + +To many in the West, the names WeChat, QQ, and Douyin are entirely foreign. But by global MAUs, these names all outshine much more familiar names such as Snapchat, Reddit, and Pinterest. WeChat is embedded into daily life in China in a way that no major western social media application _is_. These lesser-known networks are used by enormous populations and can provide an interesting glimpse into where those networks we’re more familiar with _could_ take us in just a short measure of time. (No, I don’t foresee Reddit going anywhere close to that direction). + +Numbers fluctuate quickly, but at the time of writing, by active users, Reddit is currently: + + * About the 15th most popular social network worldwide + * About the 10th most popular social network in the US, rolling in just behind TikTok. About 18% of US adults use Reddit actively compared to 21% on TikTok. + +So while Reddit currently indeed _does_ sit on the periphery of the big time list (in the US: YouTube is currently in first place followed by Facebook and Instagram), one noteable factor that could quickly change that is the pace at which Reddit is growing. + +Last December, Reddit revealed its daily active user (DAU) number for the first time: 52 million. That pegged it about where it stands today. But as Jake Kastrenakes observed for _The Verge_ : + +> “Reddit revealed that it now has 52 million daily users, and the number appears to be growing quickly. … The number is small compared to other social media rivals, though. Twitter has 187 million daily users, Snap has 249 million, and Facebook has 1.82 billion. **But at their larger sizes, none of those services are seeing daily usage grow as rapidly as Reddit.** In their most recent quarters, Twitter reported 29 percent year-over-year growth, Snap reported 18 percent, and Facebook reported 12 percent.” + +[**Reddit reveals daily active user count for the first time: 52 million** + _Reddit revealed that it now has 52 million daily users, and the number appears to be growing quickly. Reddit told The…_ www.theverge.com](https://www.theverge.com/2020/12/1/21754984/reddit-dau-daily-users-revealed "https://www.theverge.com/2020/12/1/21754984/reddit-dau-daily-users-revealed")[](https://www.theverge.com/2020/12/1/21754984/reddit-dau-daily-users-revealed) + +### Why I Think Reddit Has A Lot Of Legs And Where I Can See It Picking Up MAUs From Other Networks + +Now here’s my prediction. + +**Reddit still has a _long_ ways to go when it comes to reaching its potential as a social network.** + +In fact, I can only see it getting bigger and bigger. + +As a text-centric network with traditionally very little focus on sharing any imagery besides memes, Reddit swims against the zeitgeist. + +But with investment and some strategic feature additions, I can see it picking up users thirsting for an online discussion space that isn’t saturated with undirected thoughts (Twitter) or corporate speak (LinkedIn). In a sense, it may benefit from being the last (useful) horse standing. + +Where do I see that growth coming from (and at the expense of which network because ultimately humans have a finite capacity to engage with online communities)? + +Firstly from Twitter (Twitter sits two places about Reddit in the USA MAU table.) + +Twitter is a useful platform. But it also has a major usability problem: it’s too damn noisy. + +Twitter’s normative methodology for organizing a stream of consciousness from over 200 million users is to encourage the use of hashtags. + +However, hashtags only work to an extent. They risk either creating a hivemind or excluding less savvy network users who are unaware how to research which hashtags are trending for a particular topic. + +For those unwilling to spend lots of time muting accounts and diving into hashtags, the signal to noise ratio is low. A lot of blue tick accounts with a lot of unnoteworthy engagement from accounts with small followings. What initially feels like an odd sort of meritocracy between brands and users soon starts to feel inauthentic. + +Reddit suffers from the hivemind dynamic too (see: the upvoting/downvoting system, one of its core and most debated features). But I still maintain that its system for helping users identify the most relevant discussion (finding subreddits) is a lot more intuitive. Search for a subreddit, filter by communities, and you can quickly identify where (most) of the discussion about a topic is behind held. + +And here’s something that I believe to be a fact: + +In a very crowded internet the best predictor of a social network’s success is its utility — and the signal to noise ratio (how much of a newsfeed is irrelevant clutter versus genuinely useful content) is a pretty good surrogate of that. On this count, for many users, Twitter scores poorly. + +Oddly enough I can also see Reddit leeching some traffic for LinkedIn. + +Periodic grumblings from my network tell me that it’s not just me who has come to the conclusion that LinkedIn has become a pretty insufferable place over the course of the past year or so. + +There’s no reason — no reason at all — that Reddit can’t be a great home for professionally-oriented discussion. In fact, the anonymity thing makes it kind of ideal for that. For those in tech careers, it already is. For those not working in technology, it has a lot of potential. + +Right now I primarily use Reddit for that purpose. Virtue-signalling isn’t that effective when the rest of the network doesn’t know who you are or who the “best boss ever” you’ve just strategically tagged is. Compared to starting a post on LinkedIn, the signal to noise ratio can be significantly higher when other commenters aren’t afraid to tell you how they see it. + +#### Reddit Is Well-Funded And Is On Track To IPO + +Reddit is financially well-endowed which gives it some good leeway to take care of its currently most glaring issues. + +The best known of those is its longstanding problem with bullying, harassment, and hate communities. + +One that Reddit regulars have begun griping about is the quality of its infrastructure — the @redditstatus Twitter handle keeps tabs on those but they happen (at the time of writing) with frustrating regularity. (If it wasn’t already clear, I use Reddit). + +[**JavaScript is not available.** +_Edit description_ twitter.com](https://twitter.com/redditstatus?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor "https://twitter.com/redditstatus?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor")[](https://twitter.com/redditstatus?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor) + +In February, the company closed a Series E round worth $250M: + +[**Reddit raises $250 million in Series E funding** + _Reddit has raised a new funding round, totaling $250 million. This is the company's Series E round of financing, and it…_ techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2021/02/08/reddit-raises-250-million-in-series-e-funding/ "https://techcrunch.com/2021/02/08/reddit-raises-250-million-in-series-e-funding/")[](https://techcrunch.com/2021/02/08/reddit-raises-250-million-in-series-e-funding/) + +According to a report in TechCrunch this month, the company is on track to raise $700M in a Series F (this round is being led by Fidelity). + +[**Reddit is raising up to $700M in Series F funding** + _Earlier this year, Reddit raised $250 million, bringing the 16-year-old site up to around $800 million in total…_ techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2021/08/12/reddit-is-raising-up-to-700m-in-series-f-funding/ "https://techcrunch.com/2021/08/12/reddit-is-raising-up-to-700m-in-series-f-funding/")[](https://techcrunch.com/2021/08/12/reddit-is-raising-up-to-700m-in-series-f-funding/) + +And of course there’s the impending IPO. The date still hasn’t been confirmed. + +#### Unlike Many Social Networks Reddit Is Actually Useful — And Utility Is The Key Prediction Of User Retention + +I could probably never log into Twitter again and my life would go on as usual. Ditto LinkedIn. + +Sure, I would miss stumbling upon the odd tech account (I mostly tweet about technology) and kicking off new relationships with those who happen to share similar interests. I do derive _some_ utility from Twitter. But I can talk tech with tecchies on Reddit or … meet them in person when the world opens up again. + +LinkedIn … the only aspect I enjoy are the useful professional conversations that are increasingly drowned out amidst a sea of self-promotion and a relentless appetite to prove one’s worthiness and love of one’s company (and boss) at any given moment. For client acquisition and organization mapping it has its purposes too. + +During the last 3 months alone: + + * Reddit has helped me pick out a rugged suitcase by highlighting the few brands that actually specialize in making these things. + * I’ve discussed everything to do with collecting audio with people who do this for a living on movie sets (/r/locationsound — be respectful of professionals’ time; a great subreddit). When a Redditor directed me towards a course that he/she recommended, I didn’t doubt the sincerity of the recommendation for a moment. If I keep pursuing the hobby, I’m thinking about taking it. + * Reddit has pointed me in the direction of an Android email client that allows tracking pixel blocking and which I’m almost certain that I would never otherwise have discovered. I’ve also discussed cellular internet connectivity and a boatload of other niche topics. + +#### Reddit Is Attempting To Clean Up Its Toxicity Problem + +I’ve posted here before about how I once thought about quitting Reddit indefinitely — and then decided to return. In fact, this wasn’t all that long ago. + +My reasoning? + +While getting bullied on Reddit was pretty awful, **I came to the conclusion that Reddit was simply too big to be able to adequately tackle the low level harassment that has become so endemic on the network.** + +Is that an excuse or a justification? I don’t think so. But weighing the pros of a mostly productive user experience against this blip on the radar, I came to the conclusion that posting on Reddit has still been a positive experience in spite of it. + +Compared to transparent bullying and harassment, toxicity is a much harder beast to pin down — however you define that. Because simply being snarky or a lousy person doesn’t contravene Reddit’s terms of service (or that of any network). It’s almost certain that it never will. + +My prediction is that Reddit is going to have to lean pretty hard on artificial intelligence (AI) in order to keep up with its growing user base because right now it seems to have already far outstripped the abilities of human admins and moderators to effectively sanitize the space. + +Reddit is moderated by unpaid volunteers who lack a financial incentive to do a superlative job in tackling aberrant behavior on the communities they moderate. + +A (privately conveyed) comment from a Reddit admin that merits inclusion here (admins are the actual paid Reddit employees; there are a few hundred of them): we’re doing our best but it’s a few of us (admins) versus a lot of them (users) and keeping up the battle isn’t easy but we’re working on it. + +#### Reddit Is Courting Voice And Video Through Strategic Feature Additions + +There are two pronounced trends happening in social media right now: + + * **A flight from text-based social media networks to those either centered around voice and video or that leverage them as core features.** Think less: Reddit and bulletin board networks that require lots of typing. Think more: video voice based networks with text interaction as possible bolt-ons (Clubhouse, etc). + * **A move towards brevity.** As attention spans shorten users are seeking shorter forms of online engagement. YouTube has begun courting this feature aggressively on the back of appetite for this type of content from Tik Tok and Instagram users. + +Reddit also seems to be in the process of dehitching itself from Discord (Reddit, Discord, and Twitch seem to have a very overlapping demographic that is heavy on gamers.) This makes a world of sense as these platforms have their own drawbacks and the unofficial pairing only makes sense if you happen to game. + +At least one noteworthy developing in this regard: Reddit Live. One very significant facet of Reddit Live: Redditors have begun live-gigging and doing other things that involve foregoing the anonymity that has up to now typically been a core part of the network’s appeal. + +#### Reddit Is A Last Bastion Of Non-Marketing In A Marketing Saturated Social Internet + +One final observation about Reddit and Redditors: + +The community is by and large incredibly adverse to self-promotion and shilling. This is oddly enough one of the few things about Reddit’s culture that largely transcends subreddit divisions. + +Is it possible for determined marketers to infiltrate Reddit in spite of this? Undoubtedly. Would I recommend it? As somebody who uses Reddit to derive _value_ from it and not to be marketed to, the answer is a resounding no. + +When I think of social networks that have shown more and less advertising and sponsored posts, Reddit occupies an interesting place on the spectrum. + +On the one hand it _does_ allow sponsored advertising. But advertisers tend to be very niche technology solutions. Disproportionately, I’ve found Reddit-served ads more engaging than those I’ve seen elsewhere. Reddit hasn’t shown me a lot of advertising and I’ve tended to find what it has shown me interesting. I give it a pass. + +What is Reddit (thankfully) currently free of? + +Those awful _“buy my course to learn how to get rich”_ sponsored posts that are spreading over Facebook like a field of wild mushrooms. I’ve thankfully yet to encounter a sponsored post for somebody selling a get rich quick scheme dressed up in the guise of teaching others some unknowable method. Reddit occasionally shows me things. But it has yet to show me complete garbage. I assume there’s some vetting going on and I appreciate that. + +Finally — here’s a core part of why I use Reddit. And one which — as unethical affiliate marketing continues to mushroom — is actually becoming more salient as time goes by. + +Reddit is one of the last places on the internet that I trust to contain objective opinions from people who aren’t trying to sell me something. Like the very last. + +When I recently decided to purchase a pair of studio monitors for my home office, I asked /r/budgetaudiophile if the Esus 3.5 was a good option. + +Within a few hours, I received opinions for and against the solution by random helpful internet users who were _very_ into audio and educated me about things I previously knew nothing about (by the way: I love the speakers). + +No group admin interjected with a pitch for his or her course on mixing audio. Nobody dropped by with affiliate links or made it obvious that they were trying to sell me something. It was plain old discussion on the internet between people who knew more about audio and those who new less. Nowadays, it sometimes feels like a scarce commodity. + +### With Funding And Some Good Curation, Reddit Can Leapfrog Other Networks + +With about 430M MAUs, Reddit currently stands perched on the edge of the social network top ten in the western world. It’s commonly ignored by marketers. But at their own peril (my advice for marketing to Redditors: make your content as easily shareable on Reddit as possible and encourage its users to share your content there.) + +Flush with cash and with a pool of investors about to create a large measure of accountability for the network, I can see Reddit being forced to take further measures to ensure that its traditional commitment to hosting diverse communities stays on the right side of the divide that separates eccentric discussion from people spreading hate or nonsense. + +Depending on how committed Reddit proves to be to this process, it’s possible that it may alienate some long term users who react negatively to these changes. + +But the social network may also see an influx of users from Twitter, LinkedIn, and elsewhere on the internet — with recent feature additions keeping those looking for video engaged also. + +Reddit has come along way during its 16 year history. + +But I have a feeling that it can go a lot further too. + +### My Favorite Subreddits + +I open this every few months whenever I could use a good laugh: + + + +For non-geeks who don’t really get the idea of Reddit, this is a good gateway community: + + + +One of many examples of a niche subreddit filled with knowledgeable posters engaging about a relatively specific topic: + + + +### Where And How Should We Content Market This Year? + +For that, please check out my updated business website: + + diff --git a/posts/medium/Reddit-cyberbullying--a-thank-you-note-to-those-who-stood-by-me.md b/posts/medium/Reddit-cyberbullying--a-thank-you-note-to-those-who-stood-by-me.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cb8777fa7d9d6631a82e39107965ba0f5139c838 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Reddit-cyberbullying--a-thank-you-note-to-those-who-stood-by-me.md @@ -0,0 +1,61 @@ +# Reddit cyberbullying —a thank you note to those who stood by me during a difficult time + +#### Bullying, gaslighting, and a platform that appears not to care: a toxic combination for enabling hate + + _Crossposted from Reddit, with slight edits:_ + + Cyberbullying. Image: Pixabay + +A few days ago I posted that I was leaving Reddit. + +Given the eagerness with which the trolls and haters egged that decision on, I have begun to feel as if doing so would be giving into their bullying. + +I was disappointed to see the eagerness with which other Redditors (including those whom I formerly considered to be digital friends of sort) bought into the lies that those sowing the hatred created and, with great determination, spread throughout the network. + +Namely that my cyberbullying consisted of “being downvoted” or some users disagreeing with my posts. The truth is that both before and during the incident in question, [it went a lot further than that](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-vGQXzcHLw&ab_channel=DanielRosehill). + +[**Sign the Petition** + _Reddit is a valuable online social community but has also become a festering hive of online hate, abuse, and…_ www.change.org](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups "https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups")[](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups) + +I was also enormously encouraged by the volume of nice messages I received from concerned Redditors. + +In order to not draw the attention of the trolls upon them, I will not name them. But you know who you are. And please know that I was grateful for each and every one of your supportive messages. + +During the course of the past six months, I: + + * **Receiving a failed doxxing attempt in angry retribution for posting on the same Reddit thread from two accounts** (a practice, by the way, that I do not attempt to condone or justify, but which I believe is now long in the past and which absolutely did not justify an attempted doxxing). + * **Was told that I was a “sociopath”, “social deviant,” “100% full of sh*t”, a “f***king j***ckass”, “ugly AF,” “big eared”** , among too many insults to list here. + * Was systematically followed around Reddit by a small handful of users. Actually just two. But their **persistent downvoting was a pernicious and very determined form of bullying** that ultimately sapped by spirit to continue participating here. + * **Received repeated anti-Semitic abuse about my “big beak”** and was told frequently to leave Reddit or “take my big beak elsewhere.” + * **Was repeatedly called a “Sperg” (internet slang for ‘Aspergers). Something which a moderator of a company I formerly participated in regarded as a “lighthearted and jovial” remark that he (or she) refused to moderate (while silencing another poster’s suggestion that my abuse was motivated by anti-Semitism).** Ironically, the remark was amplified on drama — one of the most notorious hate subreddits on the site — where it kicked off another round of abuse. I have now been called a “Sperg” or describes as writing “Spergout” more times than I can remember and by a large amount of Redditors. I think that this is a disgusting label that trivializes a serious developmental condition. Anybody using it as an insult should be ashamed of themselves. + * **I’ve received more abuse, including more remarks about my nose, through just about every “open” digital channel I maintain.** Given that I rarely receive anonymous correspondence of any kind, I believe these are all emanating from Reddit. + +To those who attempted to gaslight me by telling me that I was “overreacting” to some “disagreements” or mounting an exaggerated reaction to “some downvoting”: + +You possibly didn’t know some of the above details — I don’t expect anybody to be able to read minds. But if you did, and made those claims anyway, then I regard you as complicit in cyberbullying and, I’m sorry, but I don’t want anything to do with you. + +I am extremely appreciative for the kind messages I have received over recent days and know that I have quite a few more friends on Reddit than I thought. Sadly, in order to not draw the attention of trolls upon themselves, they are often silent supporters. But they are out there nevertheless. + +Cyberbullying is terrible. + +Reddit is unfortunately full of those sharing hate. + +The platform, as a whole, would be better if it were taken more seriously. And if moderators who enable it were held to higher account. + +— — + + _If you’d like to take a small action towards stamping out cyberbullying on Reddit,_ [_please consider signing this Change.org petition._](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-ban-the-reddit-community-r-drama) + +[**If you see cyberbullying, consider reaching out to show support** + _A two minute email can be powerfully uplifting for targets_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-see-cyberbullying-consider-reaching-out-to-show-support-d1db5d48694d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-see-cyberbullying-consider-reaching-out-to-show-support-d1db5d48694d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-see-cyberbullying-consider-reaching-out-to-show-support-d1db5d48694d) + +[**Does online anonymity have a place on the internet?** +_Can we facilitate online anonymity’s “white hat” use-cases without making it a den full of trolls and haters?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-13c745909238 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-13c745909238")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-13c745909238) + +[**Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit** + _Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2) + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/Reddit-is-a-world-of-niche-online-communities--Here-are-some-of-them-.md b/posts/medium/Reddit-is-a-world-of-niche-online-communities--Here-are-some-of-them-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ce8b4727729cf5f56fe6db5e137d7bfe06a829c5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Reddit-is-a-world-of-niche-online-communities--Here-are-some-of-them-.md @@ -0,0 +1,366 @@ +# Reddit is a world of niche online communities. Here are some of them. + +#### With more than 100,000 active communities, there’s a lot of discussion, and variety, on the network + +Reddit: an interesting world of online niche communities. Photo: Author. + +I recently experienced some nasty troll harassment and bullying on Reddit. + +[**Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit** + _Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2) + +While it made for a difficult week — and my thoughts about Reddit at the time weren’t very positive — I ultimately decided to keep posting on the network. + +Why? + + * **I realized that Reddit is a vast online space and that each subreddit is effectively its own digital fiefdom / community.** I experienced stalking / harassment / bullying on _one_ subreddit. But why leave the website as a whole because of one unwelcoming community when there are more than 100,000 others on the social network, many of which I’ve found very friendly and useful? + * **I realized that cyberbullying can happen anywhere on the internet — it’s just that anonymity-centric platforms like Reddit make the bullies’ job a lot easier**. All you can do is block it, report the trolls, and report the users. But it’s probably fair to say that there’s no online community or space that’s totally safe. + +This was admittedly a change of plan. + +While I was angry at Reddit’s lackadaisical approach to cyberbullying and continue to think that the network doesn’t do enough to combat it, when I tried to find Reddit alternatives I realized why I have made so much use of the platform: there’s really nothing like it on the internet. + +Reddit is a vast amalgamation of online communities and discussion forums that takes the idea of crowdsourcing knowledge and applies it at scale. With Reddit, you’re never more than a few clicks away from finding a group of likeminded individuals to discuss hobbies, interests, or problems with. + +Examples: + + * **/r/noburp** is — I believe — the only online community by and for those suffering with retrograde cricopharyngeus dysfunction (RCD) + * **/r/turkishcoffee** brings together enthusiasts of my favorite means of preparing coffee + +Here are some of the other nooks and crannies of Reddit — some lesser known, some more popular — that I’ve discovered over the years. Member counts, at the time of writing, are in brackets. + +### /r/pseudonyms (3). For discussing writing under pen names + +I’m a big advocate for the idea of publishing under pen names. They have distinctive and useful purposes. + +[**Reasons To Use A Pen Name For Your Amazon Self-Publishing — And Why Not To** + _Thinking about writing under a pen name? Some reasons why you may want to … and reasons why you may end up regretting…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/reasons-to-use-a-pen-name-for-your-amazon-self-publishing-and-why-not-to-3f96a53fabd "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/reasons-to-use-a-pen-name-for-your-amazon-self-publishing-and-why-not-to-3f96a53fabd")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/reasons-to-use-a-pen-name-for-your-amazon-self-publishing-and-why-not-to-3f96a53fabd) + +If you’re looking to discuss pseudonym publishing with other writers that have published under a pen name then look no further than [/r/pseudonyms](https://www.reddit.com/r/pseudonyms/) with … three members. + +[**r/pseudonyms** + _r/pseudonyms: All about pen names_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/pseudonyms/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/pseudonyms/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/pseudonyms/) + +### /r/selfpublish (65K) and /r/KDP — for discussing self-publishing and Amazon KDP (2.3K) + +If you’re looking for a more populous subreddit to discuss the same topic, then /r/selfpublish and /r/KDP (for discussing Amazon KDP) would probably be better options. + +[**r/selfpublish** + _r/selfpublish: A place to discuss just about everything in the world of indie books. *Not* a place for self-promotion._ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/selfpublish/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/selfpublish/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/selfpublish/) + +[**r/KDP** + _r/KDP: This is a subreddit for discussion of Amazon KDP, Kindle Direct Publishing._ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/KDP/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/KDP/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/KDP/) + +If you’d like to know more about more traditional publishing avenues, there is also: + +[**r/publishing** + _Welcome to /r/publishing. This subreddit is focused on publishing and the technical/marketing/social information that…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/publishing/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/publishing/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/publishing/) + +### r/podcasting (69K) — for discussing podcasting + +[**r/podcasting** + _For people who make podcasts. Topics include podcasting news, how to guides, gear, marketing, and anything related to…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/podcasting/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/podcasting/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/podcasting/) + +If you’re looking to discussing everything related to making podcasts with others that also have one, then check out /r/podcasting. The subreddit’s description says that it exists to discuss podcasting news, how-to guides, gera, and marketing. + +There’s also /r/podcast (57.9K) which is more focused on listeners than podcast creators. + +[**r/podcast** + _This subreddit is great! And it has the potential to be even better. Here are some initiatives to get the ball rolling…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/podcast/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/podcast/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/podcast/) + +/r/podcasts is larger and seems — to me — to serve largely the same purpose. (Subreddit duplication is definitely a phenomenon one will encounter on the network!) + +[**r/podcasts** + _This subreddit is a space for people to discuss podcasts, and is not a place to discuss the process of creating a…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/podcasts/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/podcasts/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/podcasts/) + +Looking for a great pair of headphones? There’s a subreddit — with more than 132K members — just for this purpose (/r/headphoneadvice)! + +For more general discussion about audio equipment, /r/audiophile might be of interest: + +[**r/audiophile** + _r/audiophile is a subreddit for the pursuit of quality audio reproduction of all forms, budgets, and sizes of speakers…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/audiophile/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/audiophile/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/audiophile/) + +### /r/podcastguests (3.2K) and /r/PodcastGuestExchange— for finding (or offering yourself as) a podcast guest + +If you’re looking for a “I want to be a guest” <-> “I need a guest” exchange forum, then there’s even one on Reddit. check out /r/podcastguests + +[**r/podcastguests** + _r/podcastguests: A place to find guests for your podcast._ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/podcastguests/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/podcastguests/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/podcastguests/) + +/r/PodcastGuestExchange serves essentially the same purpose. + +[**r/PodcastGuestExchange** + _The subreddit for podcasters and guests together in one place. We are podcasters and guest experts pursuing excellent…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/PodcastGuestExchange/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/PodcastGuestExchange/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/PodcastGuestExchange/) + +### /r/AffiliateMarketing (79K) for discussing affiliate marketing + +I love Reddit primarily for the fact that it houses a lot of professionally-oriented communities. Yes, really! One of those is /r/affiliatemarketing. + +It’s a place to discuss everything related to affiliate marketing, a popular passive income strategy. + +[**r/Affiliatemarketing** + _Hello! You've found the Reddit affiliate marketing community. This is our space to talk about what works, what doesn't…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/Affiliatemarketing/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/Affiliatemarketing/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/Affiliatemarketing/) + +### /r/editors (76K) and /r/videoediting (199K) for discussing video editing and postproduction + +Sometimes subreddits bifurcate into communities by and for experts and those more intended for hobbyists. This is what has happened with Reddit’s main communities for discussing video editing and postproduction. + +There’s: + +[**r/VideoEditing** + _A subreddit for amateur, hobbyist, and prosumer editors to meet, share techniques and tutorials and find…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/VideoEditing/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=usertext&utm_name=frontpage&utm_content=t5_2qpkc "https://www.reddit.com/r/VideoEditing/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=usertext&utm_name=frontpage&utm_content=t5_2qpkc")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/VideoEditing/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=usertext&utm_name=frontpage&utm_content=t5_2qpkc) + +Which is intended for hobbyists and other amateurs. + +And /r/editors for those editing video for a living in some professional capacity: + +[**r/editors** + _Generally we're not a place for you to advertise your work, and we expect everyone to be civil and generally not act…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/editors/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/editors/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/editors/) + +### /r/MediumApp (9.3K) for discussing writing on this website! + +There are subreddits that function as unofficial user communities and others that are actually run and moderated by the websites/applications that create them. + +An example of the former is /r/MediumApp which facilitates discussions from users about Medium.com. + +[**r/MediumApp** + _r/MediumApp: Welcome to /r/MediumApp!_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/MediumApp/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/MediumApp/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/MediumApp/) + +### /r/whistleblowers (6K) for discussing whistleblowing + +A lot of users like Reddit because the platform makes it easy to stay anonymous. /r/Whistleblowers is an example of a subreddit that you might want to keep a burner account on hand (in Reddit jargon an ‘alt’ account) for participating on. + +[**r/Whistleblowers** + _r/Whistleblowers:_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/Whistleblowers/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/Whistleblowers/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/Whistleblowers/) + +### /r/battlestations (2.3M) — for ogling Redditors’ fantastic workstations + +If you’re looking for a place to gawk at other internet users’ amazing home office and productivity workstations, then /r/battlestations is the place to do it. + +There are smaller subreddits for showing off home offices. But if you’re after volume then this is the place to check out. + +### /r/technology (10.5M) — General tech new and discussion + +Reddit is particularly popular among the millennial and Gen Y crowds and is used wildly in Silicon Valley. This makes it a great place to connect with other internet users that are interested in and knowledgeable about technology. + +If you’re looking for a generalist subreddit to start as a tipping off point in your browsing, then check out /r/technology which has more than 10M subscribers. + +[**r/technology** + _r/technology: Subreddit dedicated to the news and discussions about the creation and use of technology and its…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/technology/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/technology/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/technology/) + +### /r/buildapc (3.8M) — Advice from randoms about building your own computer + +When I was thinking about leaving Reddit in its entirety I realized that the platform has overall been more useful than it’s been harmful for me personally. + +An example of the kind of great and kind help I’ve received from internet strangers is /r/buildapc + +[**r/buildapc** + _Planning on building a computer but need some advice? This is the place to ask! /r/buildapc is a community-driven…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/) + +If you’re thinking about building or upgrading your own desktop, then this is a great community in which to ask other Redditors for their input or help. + +There’s also: + +[**r/hardware** + _r/hardware: The goal of /r/hardware is a place for quality hardware news, reviews, and intelligent discussion._ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/hardware "https://www.reddit.com/r/hardware")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/hardware) + +And if you’re also into Linux there are tons of Linux-related subreddits: + +[**r/linux** + _Greg K-H: "And don't get me started on the inability for "executives" to fund other parts of Linux that they rely on…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/linux "https://www.reddit.com/r/linux")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/linux) + +[**r/linuxquestions** + _Posts should be asking questions that have answers. Any Linux question beginner or advanced are welcomed. Read How To…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/linuxquestions/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/linuxquestions/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/linuxquestions/) + +[**r/Ubuntu** + _r/Ubuntu: The Ubuntu community on Reddit_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/Ubuntu/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/Ubuntu/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/Ubuntu/) + +I’m also particularly interested in self-hosted software. It has its own subreddit: + +[**r/selfhosted** + _r/selfhosted: A place to share alternatives to popular online services that can be self-hosted without giving up…_ reddit.com](http://reddit.com/r/selfhosted "http://reddit.com/r/selfhosted")[](http://reddit.com/r/selfhosted) + +As does everything related to open source: + +[**r/opensource** + _r/opensource: A subreddit for everything [open source](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_source) related._ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/opensource/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/opensource/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/opensource/) + +And if you’re interested in OSINT, there’s a subreddit for that too! + +[**r/OSINT** + _r/OSINT: Open Source Intelligence_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/OSINT/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/OSINT/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/OSINT/) + +### /r/turkishcoffee — for discussing Turkish coffee (251 members) + +If you’re into Turkish coffee — a relatively obscure preference even in the coffee world — then there’s even a subreddit just for you! + +Check out: + +[**r/TurkishCoffee** + _r/TurkishCoffee: For lovers of the delicious, thick drink prepared in a multitude of variations all within a simple…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/TurkishCoffee/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/TurkishCoffee/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/TurkishCoffee/) + +If you’re just into coffee for the buzz, then you can discuss everything about the chemistry of caffeine and caffeine supplementation here: + +[**r/caffeine** + _r/caffeine: The most popular chemical. Of, like, all the chemicals. And there are a lot of chemicals._ reddit.com](http://reddit.com/r/caffeine "http://reddit.com/r/caffeine")[](http://reddit.com/r/caffeine) + +While you’re at it, these also might be of interest: + +[**r/Nootropics** + _r/Nootropics: Discussion of nootropics and cognitive enhancers._ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/nootropics "https://www.reddit.com/r/nootropics")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/nootropics) + +[**r/productivity** + _r/productivity: Tips and tricks for being more productive_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/productivity/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/productivity/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/productivity/) + +If you’re into the GTD methodology there’s: + + + +### /r/NewTubers — for rookie YouTubers (214K) and /r/YouTubers (157K) for networking with other YouTubers + +If you’re looking for advice about which microphone to use with your new YouTube channel etc then /r/NewTubers is a nice community worth checking out: + +[**r/NewTubers** + _NewTubers is the Premiere Small Content Creator Community, created to allow up-and-coming creators to improve through…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/NewTubers/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/NewTubers/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/NewTubers/) + +### /r/booksuggestions (442K) and /r/suggestmeabook (1.5M) for soliciting book recommendations + +If you’re looking for your next great read, then these two subreddits — which serve similar purposes — might be of interest. + +[**r/booksuggestions** + _r/booksuggestions: This is exactly what it sounds like. In need of a good read? Let us know what you want and we…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/) + +[**r/suggestmeabook** + _r/suggestmeabook: Need an idea what to read next? Tell us what you've enjoyed in the past, or what you're looking for…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/) + +### /r/onions for exploring the dark web (268K) + +Fascinated by the dark web and the more hidden side of the internet? + +/r/onions is a good starting off point: + +[**r/onions** + _Or, as chromakode put it, "Things That Make You Cry." You might not always like what you see down here. SecureDrop is…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/onions/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/onions/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/onions/) + +TOR has its own subreddit too: + +[**r/TOR** + _This is a very frequently asked question we see in this subreddit. You generally do not need to use a VPN in…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/TOR/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/TOR/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/TOR/) + +/r/privacy might also be of interest: + +[**r/privacy** + _r/privacy: The intersection of technology, privacy, and freedom in a digital world._ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/privacy/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/privacy/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/privacy/) + +And to discuss cybersecurity matters: + +[**r/cybersecurity** + _Cybersecurity is definitely on everyone's mind these days, but this subreddit might not be the place for your question…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/cybersecurity "https://www.reddit.com/r/cybersecurity")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/cybersecurity) + +Those interested in hacking might also like: + +[**r/hacking** + _A subreddit dedicated to hacking and hackers. Constructive collaboration and learning about exploits, industry…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/hacking/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/hacking/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/hacking/) + +[**r/Kalilinux** + _r/Kalilinux: Dedicated to Kali Linux, a complete re-build of BackTrack Linux, adhering completely to Debian development…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/Kalilinux/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/Kalilinux/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/Kalilinux/) + +[**r/SocialEngineering** + _r/SocialEngineering:_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/SocialEngineering/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/SocialEngineering/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/SocialEngineering/) + +### /r/AWSCertifications (32K) members) + +If you’re also studying towards an AWS certification, then you probably already know that trying figure out who’s “legit” and what’s paid advertising, when it comes to course providers, can be challenging. + +This is where a community forum comes in handy. Check out /r/AWScertifications which is, as the name suggests, populated by posters studying towards their AWS certifications: + +[**r/AWSCertifications** + _This subreddit focuses solely on AWS Certifications. Bring in your discussions, questions , opinions, news and comments…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/AWSCertifications/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/AWSCertifications/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/AWSCertifications/) + +/r/AWS exists too: + +[**r/aws** + _r/aws: News, articles and tools covering Amazon Web Services (AWS), including S3, EC2, SQS, RDS, DynamoDB, IAM…_ reddit.com](http://reddit.com/r/aws "http://reddit.com/r/aws")[](http://reddit.com/r/aws) + +To discuss other IT certifications, check out: + +[**r/certifications** + _r/certifications:_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/certifications/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/certifications/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/certifications/) + +### /r/SEO (162K) — for everything about SEO + +SEO is a valuable skillset for many marketers today, particularly those working in digital marketing related roles. + +/r/SEO can be a great place to go to to ask SEO questions or solicit recommendations for training providers: + + + +If you’re more interested in discussing marketing from a higher level perspective, then /r/marketing could be worth a subscribe: + +[**r/marketing** + _For marketing communications + advertising industry professionals to discuss and ask questions related to marketing…_ reddit.com](http://reddit.com/r/marketing "http://reddit.com/r/marketing")[](http://reddit.com/r/marketing) + +For those involved in content marketing, there’s also: + +[**r/ContentMarketing** + _r/ContentMarketing: Online marketing is shifting more and more towards pulling customers IN with great content rather…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/ContentMarketing/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/ContentMarketing/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/ContentMarketing/) + +[**r/inbound** + _r/inbound:_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/inbound/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/inbound/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/inbound/) + +There are also lots of subreddits for particular tools that marketers commonly interface with. For instance: + +[**r/Wordpress** + _r/Wordpress: **Welcome to r/WordPress** A Reddit devoted to all things WordPress_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/Wordpress/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/Wordpress/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/Wordpress/) + +### /r/journalism (42K) and /r/broadcasting (4K) — for learning more about journalism and broadcasting + +Once upon a time, I aspired to go into journalism. + +/r/journalism is a good watering cooler to discuss everything related to journalism on: + +[**r/Journalism** + _r/Journalism: r/journalism is a community focused on the industry and practice of journalism (from the classroom to the…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/Journalism/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/Journalism/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/Journalism/) + +When I think about smaller and lesser known subreddits that are incredibly valuable sources of information, I think about places like /r/broadcasting. + +This subreddit is populated by many working broadcast journalism technicians. If you’re interested in going into journalism and want to learn more about how TV/radio is put together, this is a terrific resource. + +[**r/Broadcasting** + _r/Broadcasting: A place for all those who surf the [air] waves. Someone has to punch the buttons, right?_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/Broadcasting/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/Broadcasting/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/Broadcasting/) + +If you’re specifically interested in investigative journalism, then check out: + +[**r/indepthstories** + _r/indepthstories:_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/indepthstories/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/indepthstories/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/indepthstories/) + +### /r/documentaries (17.8M) — for fellow documentaries fan + +The fact that almost 18 million people have joined this subreddit makes me feel less alone as a non-fiction fan and documentary lover. + +[**r/Documentaries** + _r/Documentaries: tl;dw_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/Documentaries/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/Documentaries/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/Documentaries/) + +If you’re specifically interested in discussing documentaries on Netflix, there’s a much, much smaller splinter subreddit, /r/NetflixDocumentaries (255 members). + +[**r/NetflixDocumentaries** + _A place to share favorite documentaries that can be found on Netflix (or other streaming services) so that the rest of…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/NetflixDocumentaries/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/NetflixDocumentaries/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/NetflixDocumentaries/) + +### /r/ideasfortheadmins (27K) — to send Reddit feature requests and ideas + +If you’re interested in helping to make Reddit a better place, then /r/ideasfortheadmins might be of interest: + +[**r/ideasfortheadmins** + _r/IdeasForTheAdmins is a subreddit where you can submit ideas from your reddit feature wishlist for admin…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/ideasfortheadmins/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/ideasfortheadmins/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/ideasfortheadmins/) + +In this subreddit you can submit ideas for consideration by the admins who run Reddit. + +There’s also /r/help if you’re looking for support with functionalities and other user questions. + +[**r/help** + _This is a community to help you with your Reddit-related questions. Please note that this is not an IT help desk - for…_ reddit.com](http://reddit.com/r/help "http://reddit.com/r/help")[](http://reddit.com/r/help) + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/Release--Danbuntu-18-04--LTS-.md b/posts/medium/Release--Danbuntu-18-04--LTS-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ba17aeaad624575d1c717b22bca1a5ca4a359adc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Release--Danbuntu-18-04--LTS-.md @@ -0,0 +1,34 @@ +# Release: Danbuntu 18.04 (LTS) + +### What is Danbuntu? + +I’ve been using **Linux as my main desktop OS for more than ten years now** , so I figured it was time to begin taking steps towards creating my own distro! + +More practically, I’ve always wanted to have a live USB stick that’s**“ready to go” with all the additional programs** that I usually download whenever I’m working in a live environment. That’s usually either when I’m feeling adventurous in a business center (occasionally, quite interesting attached network devices become exposed!) or need to work on a non-mounted volume, such as **running**[**fsck**](https://linux.die.net/man/8/fsck)**to attempt to fix a corrupted filesystem** (the story of my life for a week during the summer). + +Using and a [Lubuntu 18.04 LTS ISO](https://lubuntu.net/lubuntu-18-04-bionic-beaver-released/), I **added the following packages** that I typically install to remain productive within a temporary environment. + +As an aside, my own live environment is actually more valuable to me than creating an actual distro using something like [Linux Respin](http://www.linuxrespin.org/), because I’m extremely happy with my system as it is (which I can easily replicate, if required, using [Clonezilla](https://clonezilla.org/)) and I can’t imagine anybody else having use for my unique preferences. + +### Danbuntu = Lubuntu 18.04 LTS + + + * [**Arandr**](https://christian.amsuess.com/tools/arandr/)**—** a lightweight Xrandr GUI for multiple monitor display management. + * [**Caffeine**](https://launchpad.net/caffeine) — an additional tool for generating a background process that overrides display power management — solving the outrageously annoying ‘screen goes black every ten minutes when I’m trying to stream a movie’ problem. + * [**VMWare Workstation Player**](https://www.vmware.com/il/products/workstation-player/workstation-player-evaluation.html)**** — Because I am forced to interact with the wretched Windows operating system on a daily basis for work. And I can copy in a VDI image in about a minute. + * My unique set of****[**Openbox**](http://openbox.org/wiki/Main_Page)**keybindings** , which I’ve tweaked over the years. Mostly things like more intuitive volume management, shortcuts that interact with Chrome Apps, and using the grave key to lock [xscreensaver](https://www.jwz.org/xscreensaver/). + * [**Seahorse**](https://www.openpgp.org/software/seahorse/) — for importing and managing OpenPGP keys. + * [**Thunderbird**](https://www.thunderbird.net/)**** — with [Engimail](https://enigmail.net/index.php/en/) already added on (again, for PGP-protected email). + * My two favorite **screenshot utilities** pre-installed: [Shutter](http://shutter-project.org/) and [Flameshot](https://github.com/lupoDharkael/flameshot). + * **LibreOffice**. Basically essential. + * My cloud storage utility of choice, [Pcloud](https://my.pcloud.com/). + * [**Rambox Community Edition (CE)**](https://github.com/ramboxapp/community-edition) — a multi-tabbed communications messenger that I can’t live without. + +Of course, by the time I’m writing this, some of the programs already require an update. I think that VMWare, Rambox, and Pcloud have already all been updated since I created the ISO, so I’ll probably need to periodically update it once every few months to ensure backwards compatibility is reasonable. + +### Download Danbuntu + +If you’re interested…. + +[**Download Danbuntu 18.04 LTS**](https://s3.amazonaws.com/danbuntu/danbuntu-1804LTS.iso) + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Remote-From-World--How-The-Gold-Standard-In-Digital-Nomadism-Is-Still-Surprisingly-Evasive.md b/posts/medium/Remote-From-World--How-The-Gold-Standard-In-Digital-Nomadism-Is-Still-Surprisingly-Evasive.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b15bbca8ac370186fd35a3d71290dad7f9ad2b61 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Remote-From-World--How-The-Gold-Standard-In-Digital-Nomadism-Is-Still-Surprisingly-Evasive.md @@ -0,0 +1,58 @@ +# Remote From World: How The Gold Standard In Digital Nomadism Is Still Surprisingly Evasive + +#### The buzz around remote working is great. But globally accessible remote opportunities remain harder to come by than you might expect. + +Remote working: It’s tempting to think that we’re already there. Unfortunately, the reality facing many “international” remote jobseekers speaks otherwise. Photo by [Christina Morillo](https://www.pexels.com/@divinetechygirl?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-looking-at-phone-and-at-macbook-pro-1181244/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Remote working is taking off. + +Grouchy longtime self-employed entities like the author now find themselves sharing war stories about the travails of working in pajamas with those who actually own business cards and hold respectable job titles (when talking amongst ourselves, we refer to these newcomers merely as ‘the corporates’). + +The excitement about remote work is palpable. + +We hear lots and lots about the merits of it and about how (now) longterm remote workers don’t particularly want to head back into offices._(Disclosure: I’m heavily biased in favor of all this and am totally among that crowd.)_ + +And yet one theme has been conspicuously absent in the debate about remote work to date. This strikes me as somewhat strange. + +We love remote work. We fall over one another at times to talk about how supportive we are of it. And yet when it comes to talking about how accessible remote working options are for those in non-mainstream geographies .. oddly, for the most part, there’s currently silence. Hence why I’m writing these posts. + +For remote working and digital nomadism to reach the fullest reaches of their potential, we need to create a truly globalized workforce in which companies and talent can be paired irrespective of where both are located or the fact that either party’s entity might frequently change (more probably that of employees). Don’t let the buzz convince you otherwise. Right now that’s far from our reality. + +### “Remote From US” Constitutes A Sizable Chunk Of The Accessible Remote Opportunity + +Unfortunately there’s a tug of war going on between the digital world that many of us would like to see take shape and .. the mechanisms that currently keep our societies tethered together in place. + +To be more specific, some of those are: + + * **Tax codes which determine one’s tax residence based upon the country in which individuals spend the majority of their time.** This can quickly pose a problem for salaried employees who suddenly — post pandemic — find themselves wishing to move to a new operating geography. Or to move between different ones (the latter is typically called ‘digital nomadism’). + * **Healthcare systems that aren’t joined up and which create continuity of care issues for patients dependent upon lifesaving (or mental health saving) medication.** + * **A world which has left renting as the only viable accommodation option for many.** But which locks many into contracts that preclude them from doing things like subletting. This issue has rarely been discussed but creates a powerful dynamic that prevents the greater mobility of many young professionals. A bout of location independence shouldn’t constitute grounds for eviction. Yet all too often, it does. + +The result of all the above? + + * **Remote employers are frequently predicating the acceptable degree of remoteness around co-location in a jurisdiction.** “Remote from US” is the most typical formulation for this kind of an arrangement reflective of the fact that many US-based companies prefer to spare themselves the headache of hiring international resources. + * **Comparable situations in just about every other country. “** Remote from EU” is also common and typically restricts the talent pool eligible for a remote position to those currently tax domiciled in a European Union (EU) member state. + +### The Gold Standard For Internationally Accessible Remote Working: Remote From World + +While it sounds like a snipe at Americans (it’s not intended that way), browse through any community discussing remote working and you’ll quickly discover that “international” is frequently used as a sort of shorthand to refer to … anywhere outside of the US. + +Those of us who live and work outside the confines of the USA are thus “internationals.” It’s a label that I don’t love. But for the purpose of simplifying this discussion, let’s run with it. + +Right now, there is a significant talent pool interested in exploring remote working as a means of broadening their employment options and exploring opportunities outside of their home base, wherever that might be. + +They’re not necessarily looking for opportunity solely on the basis that it might be higher paid than the type they can access locally (this raises questions of geographical arbitrage and whether salaried remote gigs should be tied to local costs of living). Some are. Others just like the idea and find themselves drawn to the idea of working with companies that aren’t located in the same country as them. + +Much of this talent pool isn’t located in the US. Much also isn’t located in the EU. And this talent pool is currently being precluded from accessing a sizeable chunk — perhaps even the overwhelming majority — of remote opportunity. + +Disclosure number two: my interest in writing this post is of course entirely self-serving. + +I’m one of those people interested in exploring remote work who _doesn’t_ live in the US or Europe. I’m one of those “internationals” you hear about whenever this gets discussed online, even if I got here by choice (or rather voluntary migration). + +Nevertheless, it’s also a topic I care about because I believe in remote work and think that in order for it to reach its potential it needs to be as normalized as possible. + +This idea isn’t compatible to the way in which remote work is currently structured. At least over the channels through which a substantial amount of remote opportunity can be accessed. + +Reorganizing this would be a good thing for remote working. Certainly a good thing for many employees with value to contribute to companies outside of their immediate geographical radius (at least so far as their countries’ borders stretch). And likely also a good thing for companies. + +Remote from world. It’s the gold standard for truly accessible remote opportunity. Now we just have to create a world that actually enables it. diff --git a/posts/medium/Remote-Work--Why-Discussing-Its-Flaws-Is-A--Hugely--Positive-Sign-For-Its-Future.md b/posts/medium/Remote-Work--Why-Discussing-Its-Flaws-Is-A--Hugely--Positive-Sign-For-Its-Future.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6239b09ba4c7a23d451c3f90209b3a54dcc14263 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Remote-Work--Why-Discussing-Its-Flaws-Is-A--Hugely--Positive-Sign-For-Its-Future.md @@ -0,0 +1,76 @@ +# Remote Work: Why Discussing Its Flaws Is A (Hugely) Positive Sign For Its Future + +#### While the discourse surrounding remote work might feel overwhelming and repetitive at times, frontloading key conversations might make it more future-proof + +A laptop — possibly open for remote work. Image; Piqsels. + +Open up Medium or LinkedIn or just about any professionally-oriented social network these days, and you’re sure to see plenty of debate taking place about remote work. + +Common topics I’ve seen cropping up recently include: + + * **The pitfalls of remote work** and the fact that while remote may be a sign that an organization is forward-thinking, it doesn’t mean that it’s immune from the kind of toxicity that might pervade in an offline-first organization. + * **Asynchronous vs. synchronous communications** and how important getting the communications stack is to making remote work truly work for everybody involved. (Disclaimer: I’m a huge fan of async and recently [set up a publication here on Medium](https://medium.com/all-about-async) to discuss developments in the space). + * **How remote working is the new norm.** Yes, this particular line of attack is beyond cliché already. But give your professional contacts just a little bit more time to make the point that remote work isn’t some nice-to-have newfangled toy that startups are playing around with. It’s an entirely viable way for people to come together to make companies work. And it’s happening everywhere. + +The debate surrounding remote work might at times feel repetitive. + +It sometimes feels as if there’s no online space that hasn’t been touched by it. + +And yet I believe the fact that we’re seeing so much of it taking place right now is actually a massively positive barometer for its future. + +### By Talking About Its Problems, We’re Front-Loading Critical Conversations That Impact Remote Work’s Future + +The evolution that we’ve seen taking place in the entire sphere of remote work recently represents a seriously seismic shift forward in terms of how quickly we’re getting used to working in new and improved configurations. + +The kind of transition that might have taken the best part of a decade had a pandemic not _forced_ us to figure out the whole remote connectivity thing has been squished into the best part of a couple of years. + +As that has happened — and far more of us have been doing it — the discourse around remote work has moved from something of interest to futurists to something that touches upon the working lives of just about everybody. + +And so while remote work might have previously been the near exclusive province of tech evangelists and pundits, we’re now seeing the debate about how to do it best taking place at a societal level. + +If you were interested enough to click into this article, then there’s a chance that everybody from your mother to that old coworker you’re still friends with on Facebook has mentioning something about it to you. It’s on everybody’s lips in a way that wasn’t true just a few short years ago. We’re way past only geeks and techies talking about it. _Everybody’s_ heard about it — if they’re not already doing it. + +And the catalyst for all this? The pandemic. + +Due to it, we’ve had to rearchitect our workplaces at a pace that would have probably seemed inconceivable before we _had_ to find a way to work remotely through exigence. + +And like most changes that are forced upon humanity by circumstance rather than by choice, the initial attempt at making the change is likely to be buggy. It’s reactionary, after all. And we’re seeing plenty of evidence of that in the war stories that those who have worked in ineffective and sometimes even toxic remote environments relay to the internet. + +That’s why I think it’s vital to understand that the remote work environments that we’re currently seeing cropping up around us are rough drafts. They’re V1s of what an ideal remote-first or hybrid working environment might look like. At some point in the future that mightn’t be that far off. And like most drafts, they’ll slowly get better over time. The quicker we can kick them off, the sooner they’ll reach maturity. + +Of course, in order to bring drafts closer to the finished product, a feedback loop is necessary. Which is why I think that the conversations we’re seeing cropping up right now are enormously valuable to remote work’s future. Even if they may seem a bit repetitive. + +### Remote Work Can Get Better Fast — If We Keep Sharing Knowledge About What’s Working And What’s Not + +Anybody following the debate online about remote work has probably noticed that the whole topic of synchronous vs. asynchronous communications has been one of the first debates to receive a major online airing. + +This is one example of how the widespread practice of remote work — and the availability of online discussion fora — can vastly accelerate how we flag problems in discrete areas of it. Where technical solutions can plug the gap, vendors are never far behind to offer solutions. The result of this loop is that the process of remote working can iteratively improve at a pace that would have been difficult in recent history. + +[**All About Async** + _All About Async is a Medium publication for those interested in learning more about asynchronous communications and…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async "https://medium.com/all-about-async")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async) + +To continue with the async debate as an example: + +While the pros and cons of these two different communications modalities has always been important, when virtually _everybody_ is being subjected to often pointless and repetitive Zoom meetings, flagging the issue takes on a whole new level of prioritization. + +All it takes is a LinkedIn thread to coalesce support for a viewpoint. Then leave social media to do what it does best — drive virality — and we’re on the fast road to actually bringing about change in how companies approach this aspect of the equation. + +This is a great time for remote work to finally — and belatedly — really start coming into its own (belatedly because the tools to make it work have long been ahead of actual adoption rates). + +Because the online content sharing ecosystem has rarely been more vibrant. + +Ideas about what works–and doesn’t — in the realm of online working can be shared in minutes. Syndication to social networks ensures that critical masses can quickly coalesce around viewpoints that are likely to gain traction. The next step in the process is actually affecting change. + +There’s a lot of chatter taking place about remote work on the internet right now. And in bars. And in coffee shops. You can’t escape it. It transcends both the online and physical realms of our existence. + +While the topic may feel like it’s already surpassed saturation point, I think it’s enormously important. The more we can discuss what works about this arrangement, the quicker we can mark from remote working V1 to V2. + +This is a great time for those interested in remote work. There’s an enormous appetite to explore it on the part of companies. + +Those working in remote or remote-first environments can see themselves as more than just remote workers. + +They’re vital nodes in a worldwide ecosystem dedicated to helping establish best practices that will make remote work more enjoyable and effective for all involved. + +Which is why they shouldn’t be shy about sharing their experience about what’s working, and what’s not, with others. Because it’s that very sharing that can contribute to making the whole project better for everybody. + +We’re at a vital juncture in the transition towards remote work. The online discussion surrounding everything remote can be a powerful conduit towards driving that change. diff --git a/posts/medium/Request-for-sources--why-did-you-choose-to-share-your-mental-health-journey-publicly-.md b/posts/medium/Request-for-sources--why-did-you-choose-to-share-your-mental-health-journey-publicly-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..49256dc95c0d7b945ce2b4f6d83072d8fd29927e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Request-for-sources--why-did-you-choose-to-share-your-mental-health-journey-publicly-.md @@ -0,0 +1,41 @@ +# Request for sources: why did you choose to share your mental health journey publicly? + +Greetings esteemed Medium followers! + +Recently, I’ve been witnessing a growing number of LinkedIn connections — and those elsewhere on the internet — choosing to disclose their mental health journeys. + +Stories I have witnessed have included recoveries from anxiety and depression; getting back into full gear after a period of ‘burnout’; and ways to live in a more mentally healthy manner. The first dynamic interests me much mores than the latter two. + +My network, of course, is only a tiny microcosm of the internet: The growing trend to “come out” with mental health journies in a bid to destigmatize mental health is a global one. Right now, the momentum behind this movement is strong. + +Many moons ago, I set out to work in journalism. I received a degree in the field and freelanced, briefly, for publications. + +But like many former journalists — and aspiring ones — market forces took me in the direction of communications instead. Nevertheless, a journalist’s inquisitive soul is not easily extinguished. There is a story here that I think needs to be discussed and explored. + +It’s this one: + +However laudable, “coming out” publicly as having been diagnosed with a mental health condition is a risky move. Destigmatizing is a noble aim, but we also live in a world rife with stigma. + +I would love to explore how those who shared their journies dealt with that dynamic. + +Here are some much more specific questions that I think will do a better job at getting to the crux of where I want to go with this piece: + + * Did you worry about what effect publicly disclosing your mental health diagnosis might have upon your career? + * Did you worry that it might prejudice future job searches? + * If you’re currently employed, did you worry about how this disclosure might impact your relationship with your boss and employer? If they reacted, how did they do so? + * If you worried about these things and chose to share anyway, what prompted you to do that? + * When did you choose to share? Where did you choose to share? And why did you choose to share at the moment that you did? + * Those who are opposed to sharing mental health journies commonly couch their argument in terms of secrecy and shame: it’s _better_ to keep these things private. How would you react to that? + +An integral part of this story would be fielding responses to these questions from those prepared to share. + +Ideally, I’d like to include a few attributed sources. But perhaps one or more unattributed sources could be added also. + +Right now my thoughts about where I’d like to publish this are open-ended. Ideas range from mental health focused Medium publications to magazines and more generalist / mainstream outlets. + +My objective is simply to open, or further, this important aspect of the conversation around mental health awareness. I believe it warrants a lot more discussion than it is currently receiving. + +If you’re interested in sharing what motivated you to disclose and share your journey — and specifically whether professional consequences were on your radar when doing so — then please feel free to get in touch: + +Please send responses / expressions of interest to: + diff --git a/posts/medium/Review--Rise-And-Kill-First--Ronen-Bergman-.md b/posts/medium/Review--Rise-And-Kill-First--Ronen-Bergman-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..dabd782465dc918109a268b165df864ebee54f0e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Review--Rise-And-Kill-First--Ronen-Bergman-.md @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +# Review: Rise And Kill First (Ronen Bergman) + +Ronen Bergman’s Rise and Kill First is a powerful tour-de-force that recounts the targeted assassination program of the Israeli intelligence community (including, but not limited to, the Mossad). + +Those interested in the murky world of intelligence (particularly HUMINT) will find lots to interesting insights into the tradecraft of the Mossad, particularly during its formative years, as it surveilled and then eliminated threats to Israel’s national security around the world. + +Through what must have been a painstaking research process and the insights of plenty of insiders, the author also does a good job at portraying the internal politics that pervaded between various heads of the Mossad and Prime Ministers as well as the considerations — beyond the many tactical ones — that led to decisions to sign off on Red Papers and then action missions to eliminate targets. + +Nevertheless, for all its sense of intrigue and the rich insights into Israel’s turbulent shadow wars that it managed to convey, the sheer length of this book (784 pages in paperback) felt at time arduous. + +I don’t, on principle, read multiple books at the same time; so I embarked on a mission of my own to finish this one. Although, through the missions discussed here, one gleans a lot of information about Israeli history and the practicalities of Israel’s infiltration of hostile groups, in other respects, the unending cycle of violence begins to feel as repetitive as it is outside the curtained world of the intelligence community. + +A very worthwhile read, particularly for those interested in the world of Israeli intelligence. + +But equally, I felt that had some material been cut, and some detail left to the imagination, the outcome would have been a more succinct read that would have delivered the same gritty messages and perspective. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Review--Save-the-Cat--The-Last-Book-on-Screenwriting-You-ll-Ever-Need.md b/posts/medium/Review--Save-the-Cat--The-Last-Book-on-Screenwriting-You-ll-Ever-Need.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e00339e69e3e7b9e59fcc7296661988cbdb57fea --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Review--Save-the-Cat--The-Last-Book-on-Screenwriting-You-ll-Ever-Need.md @@ -0,0 +1,27 @@ +# Review: Save the Cat: The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need + +I bought ‘Save The Cat’ hoping to get a basic overview of the screenwriting process — something which I’ve always been interested in but which I never knew where to start. + +If you’re looking for an informative how-to with lots of script examples, then _Save The Cat_ is likely to disappoint. + +Instead, _Save The Cat_ is written more in the form of an elongated (and textual) fireside chat from a Hollywood insider with lots of screenwriting acumen under his belt to share with the reader. + +On the positive side, and in light of that, this was an entertaining read and the information conveyed was delivered in a witty and informal style. + +Snyder, however, advocates for a rather uncompromising template-based approach to screenwriting in which key elements need to appear on specific pages of the script. And elaborating upon this formula constituted the bulk of the text. + +Besides the various template formulae, the text consists of a lot of insider-style information about how to pitch scripts to executives and anecdotes from the author’s experience. Although there is undoubtedly much useful information about how to navigate the business of working as a screenwriter — the author devotes a few pages to paying tribute to this late agent — I felt that there was key basic information that should have been covered first. Such as …. what font is most acceptable for pitching. + +For that reason, while there was lots of lively information provided, I would contest the veracity of the subtitle _“the last book on screenwriting you’ll ever need.”_ As a script-writing novice, there were no examples provided or concrete guidance on how to format scripts. + +To supplement the information I gleaned in this book, I read a recent script to learn layout and formatting conventions. And I’ve picked up information about industry typesetting conventions from the internet. But it was a pity that for all the trips down memory lane none of this information was provided in the text itself. + +Finally, this edition could really use an update if the author hopes for it to remain as an evergreen guide for newbie screenwriters. + +The references to the Internet (with a capital I) really show the book’s age. And I suspect that the advent of the internet as a daily staple of our lives has brought with it many other innovations that were not covered. + +As entertaining an account of the author’s experience and views about screenwriting as this was, it could have used, I felt, more practical information. + +Without having attempted to write a script, the formula, which is essentially the core of the book, sounded extremely constricting to me. + +Finally, I think this text could use an update to bring it up to date with the advances that the internet has brought to the movie business. diff --git a/posts/medium/Review--Ubuntu-GUIs-for-Managing-AWS-S3-Buckets.md b/posts/medium/Review--Ubuntu-GUIs-for-Managing-AWS-S3-Buckets.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..25251170abd9a6b28fa0e23de150c1a1bbbed5b6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Review--Ubuntu-GUIs-for-Managing-AWS-S3-Buckets.md @@ -0,0 +1,70 @@ +# Review: Ubuntu GUIs for Managing AWS S3 Buckets + +For those that need to interact with AWS S3 buckets on a regular basis, a graphical user interface (GUI) can take the pain out of having to memorize long lists of commands. + +Command Line Interfaces (CLIs) can be fun and exacting — but sometimes, particularly during grueling [backup-taking sessions](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle/), you just crave something with a window display that actually works. + +Unfortunately, the list of options in Ubuntu Linux in this respect isn’t particularly wide — which is a bit surprising considering the popularity of both Linux distributions and AWS among developers. + +To save you a little bit of searching, here are a few options that work at the time of writing. And what each tool has to offer. + +### Top Choice: CrossFTP (GUI) + +**Price:** Pro license $24.99, Enterprise license $39.99 (per computer) + +[CrossFTP](http://www.crossftp.com) is a cross-platform FTP and cloud management platform. Unlike Filezilla, the Pro version has supported Linux for years (hence the name). + +The “catch” with the free version is that you’ll need Pro in order to initiate multipart (and multithread) uploads. And the maximum file size limit for a single PUT command on S3 is 5GB. + +It’s worth the small investment, in my opinion, if you’re a frequent S3 user. It splits multipart uploads so that you can monitor progress piece by piece. You can also schedule transfers. + +Besides S3, CrossFTP supports a decent variety of protocols beyond FTP and SFTP. These include FXP, WebDAV, Amazon Glacier, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Storage (GCS). + +### Alternative 1: DragonDisk (GUI) + +DragonDisk is a totally free S3 client. It’s also cross-platform supporting Windows and MacOS in addition to Linux. + +Unfortunately the product is no longer in active development and the software doesn’t support AWS V4 authentication. + +I’m also unable to launch the utility since upgrading to Ubuntu 19.10. + +### 1: Mounting via S3FS + +An alternative approach to using a GUI is to mount your S3 buckets as a volume using S3FS (S3 filesystem). + +I’ve personally never been a major fan of mounting cloud storage volumes in Ubuntu — the last time I tried out Google Drive this way I found it horribly laggy (although whatever magic [pCloud](https://medium.com/u/1e5b29a8cc6b) are using, the performance on Ubuntu has always been exceptional!). + +For instructions on how to mount your S3 buckets using S3FS [check out this guide.](https://www.interserver.net/tips/kb/mount-s3-bucket-centos-ubuntu-using-s3fs/) + +### 2: Using an FTP Server (Or Another Cloud Volume) as a Gateway + +Another approach to moving files (in) to an S3 bucket easily is to use an FTP server as a gateway. + +Using this approach, Ubuntu users can simply use Filezilla and upload files via simple (S)FTP. Alternatively, they can use another cloud storage volume and keep it in sync with an S3 bucket via Multcloud. + +Services that can help you patch this together include: + + * [DocEvent.io](https://docevent.io/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI5brG2Kz36AIVSuvtCh2V9gvxEAAYASAAEgKgN_D_BwE) + * [Multcloud](https://www.multcloud.com/tutorials/sync-ftp-to-s3-1004.html) + +(This setup can also be set up and managed independently — [see: AWS Transfer for SFTP](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/new-aws-transfer-for-sftp-fully-managed-sftp-service-for-amazon-s3/)). + +### 3: s3cmd (CLI) + +Of course when all else fails Ubuntu users can always fall back on a CLI! + +[s3cmd](https://s3tools.org/s3cmd) is a very capable tool that supports multipart uploads and the syntax is very easy to come to grips with. + +In fact typing: + +`s3cmd put yourarchive.tar.gz s3://yourbucket` + +Into a terminal is really all you need to know how to do in order to begin whizzing gigabytes worth of data up to the cloud. + +### Conclusion + +The S3 GUI market for Ubuntu is definitely under-served and a couple more well-maintained tools would be useful. + +Thankfully there are at least a couple of options and an easy CLI to use. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Richard-Boyd-Barrett-s-Infamous-Antisemitic--Intifada--Speech-Against-Israel--Transcribed-.md b/posts/medium/Richard-Boyd-Barrett-s-Infamous-Antisemitic--Intifada--Speech-Against-Israel--Transcribed-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e80357667e2c76fd738c45eab85e429e532a14f0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Richard-Boyd-Barrett-s-Infamous-Antisemitic--Intifada--Speech-Against-Israel--Transcribed-.md @@ -0,0 +1,37 @@ +# Richard Boyd Barrett’s Infamous Antisemitic “Intifada” Speech Against Israel (Transcribed) + +**_Transcribed:_** + +I think that most of us over the last few days honestly despite everything we know [about Israel] thought “they couldn’t do this again.” “They couldn’t do it again!” The massacre, the savagery, the mass murder, the barbarism, the genocide. How could any sentient human being after what we have witnessed over the last five or six weeks consider starting it again? + +And I think this should be a moment of truth for people who have lied to us or who are lying to themselves that this a State that is capable of doing this [Israel] is a psychopath. A state that is capable of doing this is a criminal. It is a barbarian. It is a mass murderer. And to talk of peace … you can only make peace with human beings. With people who have some humanity. You cannot make peace with a psychopath. With a mass murderer. With a savage. And that is what the State of Israel is! + +But the people who’ve allowed this to happen have blood on their hands. Every single one of them. Blinken went to Israel in the last couple of days and he gave them the green light to these psycopaths to restart the genocide. It is absolutely as clear as day. The United States gave the green light because as Aseel said Israel is the United States. Israel is the monster created by the United States and Britain before them. + +They are capable of any atrocity. Any savagery. As surely we should have known this from the Iraq War. For those who don’t remember they did it in Iraq. A pack of lies about weapons of mass destruction. And they massacred a million people. And now they’re willing to do it again. And all of those European governments who stood with Netanyahu, who continued to give them money, continued to give them weapons, continued to treat them as a normal state … they all have the blood of Palestinians on their hands. + +And then there’s our government. Them too. How shameful is it that Micheal Martin went to Israel and paraded around with Netanyahu and these mass murderers. It is utterly utterly shameful. + +So they also have given the green light. Because people here protested after a few weeks they were just about able to spit out the word ‘ceasefire’. But only because you forced them. But words are meaningless when you then go over and parade around with Netanyahu and these mass murderers. And confer legitimacy on a state that is capable of genocide. They too … our government are complicit with all of this. With all of it. + +They talk of two state solutions. What a load of nonsense. What a con trick that is. Because that’s also about legitimising a state that was built and based on ethnic cleansing, on terrorism, on occupation, on the day in day out murder of Palestinians. On the criminal siege of Gaza for 16 years. + +The only you can do with a state like this is resist it and bring it down! + +And this is what we have to get across. Just as with apartheid South Africa You don’t negotiate with apartheid. You don’t say “there’s a little bit of apartheid we can have over here.” We brought it down! The black South African people resisted. They were right to resist. They were justified in that resistance. And eventually the world woke up and rose with the people of South Africa. And dismantled that filthy, racist, regime. And that is what has to happen with the filthy, apartheid racist colonial settler regime that is Israel. + +We have to do what they did in South Africa. We have to do what they did in Vietnam. We’ve to do what they did in Algeria. We have to do what we had to do here in Ireland. Resist them! + +So we must not rest because they are capable of any level of atrocity. But they can be stopped. And this is the important point. They want to normalise this horror. They want to induce despair in those who are horrified at this. That’s what they’re trying to do. And their friends on the far right are trying to do it too. + +We’ve seen that. This is where it comes home. Because the same people who tried to exploit a horrific terrible incident to whip up racism and fear and division and wreck our city were the same people who were cheerleading Israel’s massacre in Gaza. + +You know there’s a song by the Manic Street Preachers: “if you can tolerate this, your children will be next.” And what we saw in Dublin last week is an alarm bell of that fact. These psychopaths are being let off the leash. And because Western governments — our government, the European Union tolerate this- it’s coming back home. + +So it is in all of our interest to stand together. Not just to stop the horror being visited on the Palestinians. Because if they can do it to the Palestinians they can and will do it to any of us. + +So this is a fight for humanity. This is a fight for a civilized world against barbarians and psychopaths who care only about power and money and who are willing to sacrifice their humanity for those things. + +Richard Boyd Barrett’s infamous “intifada” speechy in Dublin. Screengrab from: X. + +So we’ve got to rise up. The only answer to this is intifada! Revolution as Aseel said. The collective revolution of humanity to take our society back for humanity. diff --git a/posts/medium/Secure-Remote-Accessible-Home-Assistant-Webhooks-With-Tailscale.md b/posts/medium/Secure-Remote-Accessible-Home-Assistant-Webhooks-With-Tailscale.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c54d16e21746d4d990aff362555e18cfd9cbc6fe --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Secure-Remote-Accessible-Home-Assistant-Webhooks-With-Tailscale.md @@ -0,0 +1,60 @@ +# Secure Remote-Accessible Home Assistant Webhooks With Tailscale + +Creating a Tailscale to Home Assistant config for webhooks + +Webhooks are extremely useful tools for creating all manner of automations. + +But from a security standpoint, when used in the context of home automation, they cause justifiable concern. + +Nobody wants to accidentally have their webhook scraped and have their smart lock / HVAC / lighting controlled by a random hacker. + +After some trial and error, I discovered a way to create webhooks that resolve from the WAN using Tailscale. + +Here’s a quick rundown of the steps needed. + +### Configure A Static Local IP For Your HA Instance + +My Home Assistant OS runs off a mini PC. + +Firstly you’ll want to give your Home Assistant instance a static IP on the local area network. + +I can’t think of a situation in which this _wouldn’t_ be a good idea, but if we’re creating webhooks, we’re going to need to do this (I’m sure there’s a way to get homeassistant.local URLs to resolve from the WAN but .. it isn’t easy). + +Next, you’re going to want to add this integration: + +[**Local IP Address** + _Instructions on how to integrate the Local IP Address sensor into Home Assistant._ www.home-assistant.io](https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/local_ip/ "https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/local_ip/")[](https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/local_ip/) + +### Deploy Tailscale On Your Home Assistant And Advertise A Subnet Route + +Next we’re going to want to install Tailscale onto our Home Assistant OS and — so that it can resolve the local IPs remotely — advertise a subnet route. + +To do this refer to the latest tutorials/instructions on configuring Tailscale on your Home Assistant: + +Here’s the integration: + +[**Tailscale** + _Instructions on how to integrate Tailscale within Home Assistant._ www.home-assistant.io](https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/tailscale/ "https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/tailscale/")[](https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/tailscale/) + +Make sure not to skip the subnet route as it’s essential to getting this working. + +### Create Webhooks To Drive Automations + +Home Assistant (out of the box) has the ability to create locally-hosted webhook endpoints which is amazing for creating automation triggers. + +Create a webhook (When -> Automation -> Webhook). + +Make sure that the webhook is relative to your static local IP path and not homeassistant.local. + +Also make sure that you enable GET. You can (and should) keep the local-only option on because … when authenticated with Tailscale the connection “looks” local to Home Assistant: + +### Write A Webhook To An NFC Tag For Testing + +To test this out, let’s create an NFC tag (or QR code) with the webhook. + +Then to validate, let’s do the following: + + * Connect to Tailscale. + * Turn off WiFi if we’re on a mobile device to move ourselves outside of the LAN. + * Scan your NFC tag to trigger your webhook (or simply visit the URL in your browser). The automation should work even when you’re not physically at home! + diff --git a/posts/medium/Shabbat---Yom-Tov-Home-Assistant-Automations---Part-2--Helper-Configuration-.md b/posts/medium/Shabbat---Yom-Tov-Home-Assistant-Automations---Part-2--Helper-Configuration-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..dc9fe64f718303b36f71d9cfec1e017bb1b32f41 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Shabbat---Yom-Tov-Home-Assistant-Automations---Part-2--Helper-Configuration-.md @@ -0,0 +1,186 @@ +# Shabbat / Yom Tov Home Assistant Automations — Part 2 (Helper Configuration) + +Jewish homeowners who want to configure automations in Home Assistant to facilitate religious observance will want to do so in two instances: + + * It’s Shabbat (a weekly event!) + * It’s a Yom Tov (an event that occurs at intervals in the calendar) + +The [Jewish Sabbath Holidays Home Assistant add-on](https://github.com/rt400/Jewish-Sabbaths-Holidays) provides two sensors that are very helpful for configuring automations (these in turn are derived from the [HebCal API:](https://www.hebcal.com/home/developer-apis) + + + sensor.hebcal_is_shabbat + +This is a simple binary sensor (True/False) for determining whether or not it’s Shabbat (based upon your preconfigured candle-lighting time etc). + +And: + + + sensor.hebcal_is_yomtov + +This sensor states **“No Info”** unless it’s a Yom Tov (and changes to the Yom Tov name when one is in effect). + +To simplify our automations, let’s try to condense both of these sensors into one state that we can (in turn) use to drive our lighting automations (etc). + +I think that this is pretty straightforward, but it sometimes gets confusing thinking about devices, entities, helpers, automations, and so on. + +Here’s what we’re doing: + +### Step 1: Create A Toggle (Type Of Helper) + +Firstly, we’re going to create a toggle called Shabbat Or Hag State (name as you wish) + +We could roll all of this into one automation but to make any potential troubleshooting easier I decided to create two separate automations. + +### Step 2: Build The Automations That Will Drive The Toggle + +The Shabbat one is a bit easier. + +When the Shabbat sensor moves to “True” we want to shift the toggle from off to on: + +This is what I came up with: + + + alias: Shabbat activates Shabbat/Hag mode + description: "When the Shabbat sensor switches to 'True' we're going to turn the Shabbat or Hag toggle on" + trigger: + - platform: state + entity_id: + - sensor.hebcal_is_shabbat + to: "True" + condition: [] + action: + - service: input_boolean.turn_on + metadata: {} + data: {} + target: + entity_id: input_boolean.shabbat_mode + mode: single + +For the Yom Tov sensor: + +The sensor reports ‘No Info’ unless it’s a hag/Yom Tov in which case it will report the name of the hag. + +The logic we need here is that we want to trigger the toggle if the sensor changes to **any value other than** ‘No Info’. + +I used this value template (thanks to those who shared it on the Home Assistant forums). + + + alias: Hag triggers state + description: "" + trigger: + - platform: state + entity_id: + - sensor.hebcal_is_yomtov + condition: + - condition: template + value_template: "{{ not is_state('sensor.hebcal_is_yomtov', 'No Info') }}" + action: + - service: input_boolean.turn_on + metadata: {} + data: {} + target: + entity_id: input_boolean.shabbat_mode + mode: single + +### Step 3: Then Automate Based On The Toggle State + +You could trigger an entire cascade of automations that trigger at various times IF it’s either Shabbat or Yom Tov: + + * IF it’s Shabbat or Yom Tov and 23:00, automatically get the apartment into bedtime config. + * IF it’s Shabbat or Yom Tov and 09:00, automatically get the apartment into morning config. + +Etc. + +For instance, here’s an automation that triggers a lighting scene for the start of Shabbat/Yom Tov when the helper toggle becomes true: + + + alias: Start of Shabbat / Yom Tov automation + description: >- + Activates the start of Shabbat / Yom Tov scene when the Shabbat or Yom Tov + helper becomes true. + trigger: + - platform: state + entity_id: + - input_boolean.shabbat_mode + to: "True" + condition: [] + action: + - service: scene.turn_on + metadata: {} + target: + entity_id: scene.start_of_shabbat + mode: single + +At bedtime: + + + alias: Shabbat or Hag bedtime + description: Triggers bedtime lighting on Shabbat or Hag + trigger: + - platform: time + at: "23:00:00" + condition: + - condition: state + entity_id: input_boolean.shabbat_mode + state: "on" + action: + - service: scene.turn_on + metadata: {} + target: + entity_id: scene.shabbat_bedtime + mode: single + +### Step 4: Configure The ‘Toggle Off’ Automations + +Finally we’re going to need to configure automations that reverse the toggle state (to off) when Shabbat or Hag ends. + +To save a bit of time we can use the ‘Duplicate’ button in ‘Automations’. + +Here’s the Shabbat one. + + + alias: Shabbat over, Shabbat/Hag toggle off + description: "When the Shabbat sensor reports 'false' we'll move the helper trigger to off too." + trigger: + - platform: state + entity_id: + - sensor.hebcal_is_shabbat + to: "False" + condition: [] + action: + - service: input_boolean.turn_off + target: + entity_id: + - input_boolean.shabbat_mode + data: {} + mode: single + +Then do the same for the hagim/Yom Tov switch. If the sensor goes back to reporting ‘No Info’ we’ll move the toggle back over to false: + + + alias: Hag is over, toggle goes to false + description: >- + When the is_yomtov sensor reports 'No Info' (it's not Yom Tov) we'll move the + toggle back to false. + trigger: + - platform: state + entity_id: + - sensor.hebcal_is_yomtov + to: No Info + condition: [] + action: + - service: input_boolean.turn_off + target: + entity_id: + - input_boolean.shabbat_mode + data: {} + mode: single + +### Optional Monitoring Dashboard: + +My Shabbat monitoring dashboard continues to evolve. + +It pulls in entities both from Home Assistant’s (built in) Jewish Calendar integration and from the aforementioned third-party one. + +It serves two purposes: before Shabbat get Shabbat times. And monitoring and troubleshooting, if required (the right column / ‘Automation States’). + diff --git a/posts/medium/Should-Writers-Start-Branding-Themselves--Content-Entrepreneurs--To-Escape-Freelancing-Suckydom--bbf6d1c7cac.html.md b/posts/medium/Should-Writers-Start-Branding-Themselves--Content-Entrepreneurs--To-Escape-Freelancing-Suckydom--bbf6d1c7cac.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6349f8b841ff3d338d119a5c173a2312ee133f72 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Should-Writers-Start-Branding-Themselves--Content-Entrepreneurs--To-Escape-Freelancing-Suckydom--bbf6d1c7cac.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,132 @@ +# Should Writers Start Branding Themselves “Content Entrepreneurs” To Escape Freelancing Suckydom? + +#### Some thoughts on a piece that rages against the broken gig economy. And why I personally believe the answer is a resounding ‘absolutely not’ + +There’s a distinct possibility that this photograph was taken ten seconds before a prospective client asked this guy: “lovely draft. Could we see a V8?” Photo by [Ron Lach](https://www.pexels.com/@ron-lach?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-typing-on-laptop-8036326/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +As an active Medium publisher, I also read a fair amount of writing on this network also. + +I’m also beginning to try to engage more with other _writers_ here. This is what makes [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) such a cool idea in my opinion: it’s a _writing_ community that’s also a social network. _(Why are the italics there: I will make my best effort never to refer to another author’s writing as “content”; nor them as a “content creator”)_ + +If you enjoyed a piece — or disagreed with it — you can pop into the comments section and let the author know. Even a relationship borne from differences of opinion can become something fruitful. + +This afternoon, a piece popped up on my news feed that instantly caught my attention. + +It didn’t hold back with the headline either: “Fuck Writing Jobs” [K.B. Hubbard](https://medium.com/u/78eb984ea1b) proudly intoned. + +[**Fuck Writing Jobs: This is The Future For Content Creators** + _You’re a whole-ass writing business_ kbtheauthor.medium.com](https://kbtheauthor.medium.com/fuck-writing-jobs-this-is-the-future-for-content-creators-998ef4d2f147 "https://kbtheauthor.medium.com/fuck-writing-jobs-this-is-the-future-for-content-creators-998ef4d2f147")[](https://kbtheauthor.medium.com/fuck-writing-jobs-this-is-the-future-for-content-creators-998ef4d2f147) + +My initial response to this was _“K.B., I’d be happy to get a drink with you any time, buddy”_ + +I’ve been writing ever since I first started hemming words into one of those clunky old digital typewriters that were the stopgap between _real_ typewriter and word processors (probable age: about 10). + +I hold what typically feels like a pretty useless degree in journalism; covered a historic state visit with a press pool and got to look like I knew how to react when presented with the sight of the Queen of England visiting my hometown (no that’s not a metaphor); and have written everything from clickbait articles about how to microwave burgers to speeches for city mayors commemorating honors on authors and advertorials trying to get Irish Americans to visit Irish islands (they’re a heavenly patch of the Emerald Isle didn’t you hear?). _(I guess you could say I’m a failed journalist that ended up in corporate comms)._ + +But I recently explained why I’ve decided to drop the ‘writer’ branding altogether. Because it’s sucky. And because a friend of a friend once told me about the sunk cost fallacy and I’ve finally accepted that that applies to more than throwing out old electrical appliances because _“making shawarma at home with this thing would be cool. Besides, we’ve been storing it for a year.”_ + +But if you want me to compact a long and emotional read into a single paragraph and dig in further: I realized, some time last year, that writers are being chronically short-changed by companies who assume that writers can only write and thus deserve to be compensated merely for the (short) amount of time they imagine it takes them to do that. + +When a company that had just raised $10 million dollars asked me if I could do better on a $400 quote for a piece of writing, I knew that we writers were all (yes, collectively) doomed. + +They needed writers with niche experience and a portfolio of pieces. Both of which I had (I hesitate to say “in spades” but … I’ve been doing this for a while). With $10M in the bank they shouldn’t have had to be scrimping. And yet here they were doing just that. Again. This was the niche B2B tech space that the money is apparently aflush in (it is; just don’t sell yourself as a writer). + +So there I was asking myself if I should drop the price by $100 or send back a simple but ill-advised one sentence email I feel like K.B. might have appreciated:_“f**k you you miserly p**k!”_ + +(Here’s a sanitized formulation if you need one: _“Thanks for that transparency about your budget! I think we’re going to have a hard time meeting in the middle here. Perhaps I can suggest instead my nephew Dave. He’s living in a shed somewhere out rural and I don’t think he’s eaten in weeks so I’m sure he’d be happy to just do this for exposure and then potentially we can talk about his usual rate, which is $0.00001 per word”)._ + +Oh yes — and my career micro-pivot. + +After knocking together brain cells with a brand strategist who lives locally to me, I determined that I was dealing with the right clients but approaching them all wrong by grossly underselling what I _could_ do for them. He was selling consulting services for (at least) four figure retains. I was trying to knock down quotes on blog posts by $100. Something gave. + +The game plan I cooked up for myself: + +By simply widening out my service offering to re-position what I used to do for businesses — marketing communications — I could make more money and not be treated like the literary equivalent of a code monkey. Fun, no? Ironically this sometimes simply involves finding different ways to describe the mechanisms through which I can bring value in different ways. I de-niched a little and played some Scrabble. A literary pursuit after all. + +[**Why I’ve Stopped Identifying As A ‘Freelance Writer’ — Or A Writer At All** + _Why I (Sadly) No Longer Think Freelance Writing Is A Good Space To Be In_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb) + +So even though I think that “content” is frankly the dumbest word the marketing universe has ever cooked up that fails to really distinguish between the words on the back of a cereal box and an Oscar-winning piece of cinematography, I’m with the thrust of the argument. + +[**The Insidious Rise Of “Content” — And How It’s Destroying Creative Livelihoods** + _If we regard all creative output as homogeneous collections of keywords, nobody should be surprised when AI comes…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-insidious-rise-of-content-and-how-its-destroying-creative-livelihoods-5d62dc3c5357 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-insidious-rise-of-content-and-how-its-destroying-creative-livelihoods-5d62dc3c5357")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-insidious-rise-of-content-and-how-its-destroying-creative-livelihoods-5d62dc3c5357) + +But then K.B.’s piece took a turn that I found less agreeable. Or rather one that I thought was worth opening for discussion. + +### “Take Your Skill And Make A Skill Baby With It “ + +So let’s get back to K.B.’s piece: + +After dropping a few F-bombs in the direction of “writing jobs” (I’m a bit more old fashioned than K.B.; I try not to swear online but I share his disdain), K.B. finally lays out his plan for writers who want to escape the sinking cesspool that is today’s “content writing” industry.” + +Here it is in full: + +Here’s my (repeatable, _easily stolen_) plan: + +> What skill can you mate with**writing**? I don’t mean mate like glue together. I mean actually mate. Take your writing skill and find another thing in your life that you’re passionate about. Make babies. + +> Your skill-baby is your new content niche. + +> Register an LLC. + +> Don’t be scared to build relationships with businesses. Cold-call, cold-email, invite them on a lunch date, send them a hand-written follow-up letter. + +Hubbard then suggests that those following his plan reframe themselves as “content entrepreneurs.” + +> Content entrepreneurs are a group of individuals with a unique talent; the ability to generate exceptional content. Not “okay” or “passing” content, but truly exceptional content that readers actually enjoy and find useful. + +And he suggests as possible examples of that four formats that to me sound extremely … commonplace: + +> Unique, in-demand eBooks + +> Press releases + +> Content marketing + +> SEO rewriting + +### Here’s My Recommendation For What To Do Instead + +I didn’t sit down at my keyboard to write a hatched job about a man known as K.B. Hubbard. + +K.B. might be a great guy, but I had never heard of him today. I doubt extremely much that he’d ever heard of me. But now we’ve had the pleasure of crossing paths digitally. An amazing this, this internet, eh? + +I fundamentally disagree with most of Hubbard’s argument even if I can get on bored with the basic premise that _“the writing market sucks and rather than get stuck doing gigs we need to start thinking about ways to do stuff that’s a lot better.”_ + +I _like_ the idea of rebranding what we do for two reasons: + + * **For writers to survive in this increasingly brutal marketplace, we need to hold our heads up high**. However, I also think that calling ourselves “entrepreneurs” if we’re not actually doing something unique is delusional. As a freelance writer that has gone through bouts of mild depression when the market was at its bleakest and a long succession of prospects were asking whether I could make $300 $200 or $100, I’m in favor of better self-labels even if they just make us feel a little more optimistic about what we do. Being chronically devalued is more than sucky. It’s erosive to self-esteem. I venture the following assertion: most of us doing this for a living are so much more than just “writers.” + * **“Content” is such a stupid word that almost any appellation is better.** Ditto “content creator” which just emphasizes that you make something incredibly vague and undefined. What are most “content marketers” doing? A modern version of brand journalism that involves some version of weaving organic keywords into texts or video or audio (or an admixture thereof). That’s enormously commonplace. Fortunately there are ways to distinguish yourself from the crowd just a little. + +K.B. insists that finding a “skill baby” (to me that just sounds like a niche) and creating (subjectively) content make you eminently unique. + +But I’m pretty sure that many businesses would think otherwise. Sorry. That just makes you another freelance writer. What’s your hourly rate? + +### A Remix on K.B.’s Plan + +So as much as I disagree with constituent elements of it, I like K.B.’s plan because — fundamentally — it’s a call for writers to do something different and to start branding themselves as more than just people who can move their fingers over a keyboard to put text on the internet. + +Because as the rise of writing bots like Jarvis.ai bears out (I try to take a dig at them once every few articles), by marketing ourselves thusly we now find ourselves competing with robots to stay relevant. Surely a low point for the writing profession if there ever was one. + +So because I see value in K.B.’s argument but think it doesn’t go far enough, here’s a remix on it. _(A derivative work of the KBH (K.B. Hubbard). OK now I’m just trolling this guy by trying to be deliberately creepy. )_ + + 1. Expunge the word ‘writer’, ‘content’ and ‘content creator’ from your brand presence and find more descriptive and unique ways to describe what you do. + 2. Find that extra skill that Hubbard talks about. But either: a) don’t position it as content creation. Or b:) make it subject matter experience in a damn obscure industry that not many people are competing in. Now put THAT front and center and the writing/content stuff second. + +For instance change: + +> “I’m a freelance content writer who writes about AI and is very passionate about it. I have a wide reaching portfolio of previous blog posts” + +To: + +> “I spent 3 months learning how to build my own computer model and actually understand how algorithms work. I specialize in building out branding and communications strategies that will drive home what your company does to help people actually get it. My previous clients say it helped them double their inbound leads” + +Writer 1 is a generic freelance writer. A chump clutching to an online portfolio and hoping that somebody will rustle up a few dollars to pay them to write their blog. I have spent far too much of my career being that chump. Only a chump changing their colors knows the true pain of chumpdom. + +Writer 2 is something a bit different animal. He’s not a writer. + +I like to throw down some predictions on Medium so that in two years’ time I can write a bragging article that says “I predicted the future so please hire me.” I kid (mostly). + +Writers are screwed. And writers are only going to get more screwed as the content drumbeat keeps getting louder and we’re increasingly seen as just the people who feed ideas into AI bots that create as much of it as fast as algorithms can. + +A great way out of that future of bleakness and $100 discounting is to reframe what we do and how we add value. Emphasizing unique skillsets and industries is a great start. Feel free to weave in the content _angle_. Naturally always focus on the value you can bring, quantify it wherever possible, and leverage social proof to show that others can affirm your greatness. But do what you can to get away from the masses. diff --git a/posts/medium/Should-You-Hire-A-Freelance-Writer--A-Ghostwriter--Or-An-Agency-For-Your-Next-Content-Marketing-.md b/posts/medium/Should-You-Hire-A-Freelance-Writer--A-Ghostwriter--Or-An-Agency-For-Your-Next-Content-Marketing-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d59146fc12a7db164ac9dfc0d25547e7b46369a0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Should-You-Hire-A-Freelance-Writer--A-Ghostwriter--Or-An-Agency-For-Your-Next-Content-Marketing-.md @@ -0,0 +1,74 @@ +# Should You Hire A Freelance Writer, A Ghostwriter, Or An Agency For Your Next Content Marketing… + +#### Sometimes, There’s A Lot To A Name + +Big city agencies may come at a big price. So what about a freelance writer? + +If you’re thinking about engaging in a thought leadership or content marketing campaign, then you might be wondering what kind of professional you need in order to execute upon your project and help you achieve your objectives. + +If you’ve worked in a large organization in a traditional marketing role, then whenever you hear the word “outsourcing,” “agency” might be the very next word that jumps to mind. But that’s not necessarily your only option. + +What if you’re a solopreneur without a large budget to throw around? Or what if you need somebody to write under your byline? To help demystify the service provider alphabet soup, here’s a quick guide as to who’s who in the world of content marketing outsourcing. + +### Freelance Writers + +Freelance writers are typically solo businesses run by an individual who makes a living by providing writing services for contract to clients. + +Their clients might be tiny startups or global tech monoliths. They might write copy, white papers, or ebooks. + +There is therefore enormous variability in terms of what freelance writers do and who they work for. Some may present themselves as agencies and if they have referral networks to farm work out to they might indeed provide a quasi-agency type service. + +👍 **UPSIDES** + + * Freelance writers, being miniature business units, tend to be lean and efficient organizations to deal with. There are no layers of salespeople to deal with in order to get to a quote. + * Freelance writers, by and large, tend to be cheaper than hiring agencies. Many freelance writers will take on ad hoc projects and not force their clients to commit to a monthly retainer. If they do work through retainers, then they might be a good deal cheaper than those which agencies charge. + +👎 **DOWNSIDES** + + * Freelance writers have to plan their workflow carefully or risk getting overloaded. After all, unless they have partners to delegate to, they’re only one person. This could impact upon continuity of service. + * If you need a wide variety of skills for your content marketing or thought leadership project then an agency, with a team behind it, could be more effective at helping you reach your objectives. Again, a freelance writer is one person. And nobody, however talented, can do it all. + +### Ghostwriters + +Traditionally, the word ghostwriter denotes a freelance writer who works primarily on book projects for their clients. Under this arrangement, the writer is said to “ghost” books on behalf of the “author” (who is actually not the person who writes the book, but rather the person to whom the text is _attributed_ or _bylined_). + +Thanks to the explosion of content marketing and thought leadership, demand for ghostwriters extends far beyond books. Ghostwriters nowadays can be found hemming out speeches, articles, blogs, and ebooks on their clients’ behalf. + +Truthfully a ghostwriter is a type of freelance writer. Many freelance writers exclusively ghostwrite while others mix ghostwriting with bylined output for clients or freelance journalism. + +👍 **UPSIDES** + + * Ghostwriters should be particularly familiar with how to navigate the ghostwriting process from start to finish including ascertaining the client’s voice, onboarding material, and working with them to produce a finished work. + * Ghostwriters likely have procedures in place to ensure the anonymity of their clients (assuming that that is a requirement). + +👎 **DOWNSIDES** + + * Ghostwriters may only focus on ghostwriting. Some may explicitly refuse to take a byline even if that is what you want them to do! + * Ghostwriters are typically simply freelance writers who specialize in ghostwriting. The same negatives apply to them as do to freelance writers in general, including the fact that they are only one person. + +### Agencies + +If you’re looking to entrust your content marketing or thought leadership to an organization, then agencies are the doors that you should go knocking at. + +The good news is that there is no shortage of agencies out there handling everything from reputation management to PR and content marketing. + +Clutch is a good directory. Although you can also find a suitable agency for your requirements and budget through word of mouth or simply by Googling for providers in your area (although in the remote era that’s increasingly a negotiable requirement). + +[**Top Content Marketing Companies - 2021 Reviews** + _Detailed client reviews of the leading content marketing companies. Hire the best content agency for your needs._ clutch.co](https://clutch.co/agencies/content-marketing "https://clutch.co/agencies/content-marketing")[](https://clutch.co/agencies/content-marketing) + +👍 **UPSIDES** + + * Agencies consist of teams of creatives, account managers, and administrative staff. The work of managing your project is likely to be distributed among several providers rather than focused on one individual. Often times more brains are better than one. + * As a cooperative unit, your average agency will have providers with a variety of different skillsets ranging from copywriters to graphic designers and SEO specialists. Agencies’ outsourcing pools may be wider than those of individual freelancers. + +👎 **DOWNSIDES** + + * The size of agencies comes at a cost. They tend, by and large, to be more expensive than individual freelance writers. + * Working with an agency might be more bureaucratic than working with a solo freelancer. If you’re working with an agency, communication with the person actually doing the writing might need to be funneled through an account manager. Worse, you may have no control of who that person is. + +### Different Business For Different Clients + +Whether you wish to work with a freelance writer, an agency, or a ghostwriter will depend upon several factors including your budget, scope, and personal preferences. + +All these service providers could be used to help you or your in-house marketing team to execute a content marketing project or a thought leadership campaign. diff --git a/posts/medium/Should-You-Hire-A-Writer-For-Your-Next-Thought-Leadership-Project-.md b/posts/medium/Should-You-Hire-A-Writer-For-Your-Next-Thought-Leadership-Project-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..356e166de1326a9b8c20b2e898a7f42f72ab5ea0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Should-You-Hire-A-Writer-For-Your-Next-Thought-Leadership-Project-.md @@ -0,0 +1,115 @@ +# Should You Hire A Writer For Your Next Thought Leadership Project? + +If you’re looking at rolling out a thought leadership campaign for your business, then you might be thinking about what the most efficient way to get the job done is. + +After all, if you’re writing thought leadership on a regular basis, it’s important to do it well. + +Thought leadership that does a poor job at impressing audiences is [likely to actually do damage](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/why-most-thought-leadership-misses-the-mark/) to the brand you’re carefully building and impair your company’s ability to realize tangible commercial gains. + +If you’ve decided that you have great, original insights to share — and you’re preferably also among the first to come to market with them, the second key criterion for effective thought leadership — then you might be ready to put pen to paper. + +But there’s only one question: _who_ is going to do all the writing? + +Here are your options. + +### 1- The Write It Yourself Approach + +Thought leadership is often undertaken by senior executives at a company who have some important piece of thinking they wish to disseminate to a target readership. + +Whether an executive will choose to do their own writing, or prepare their own speeches, will prepare on a few factors. + +These include: + + * **Is the executive proficient at writing?** If we’re talking about writing thought leadership, then how one approaches the writing process is going to make a big difference as to whether it makes more sense to take care of the process singlehandedly or enlist the support of assistants or external contractors. Technically-minded executives such as CTOs who hate the idea of writing are more likely to seek outside support. + * **Does the executive own the messaging?** Is the thought leadership coming directly from the executive or is the executive to whom the thought leadership will be bylined only effectively a convenient spokesperson for the company? Executives that feel a strong sense of ownership over the messaging will be more likely to wish to retain the job of writing thought leadership themselves — or keep it among their close team. + * **Does the executive have the time needed to make the writing project a success?** Thought leadership often needs to be coordinated with a variety of stakeholders including corporate communications departments who work to ensure conformity with company-wide branding guidelines. This is particularly true in large organizations. All this liaising requires time. Executives that are strapped for time will probably wish to have a third party take care of this task. + +Of course, to maximize influence and reach, thought leadership needs to be published somewhere — and preferably somewhere of note that is attracting the eyeballs of those in the industry. + +Those producing thought leadership themselves need to put as much thought into _distribution_ as they do into writing it to begin with. Independent producers, in particular, will need to come up with a good distribution plan to complement their insights. + +😀 **ADVANTAGES:** + + * No dependencies in getting the thought leadership out the door + * Executives that truly own the thought leadership can remain close to it + +😟 **DISADVANTAGES:** + + * If executives are just being used as spokespeople, they might lack the enthusiasm necessary to get great ideas across effectively + * Distribution may be challenging without professional help + +### 2- Get The Communications Team To Write It + +Almost all large organizations have an internal marketing function. Many also have a dedicated communication team staffed with experts in crafting writing for internal and external purposes. + +In smaller organizations, where wearing multiple hats is more common, the pool of workers who might be called upon to write for executives is more varied. + +The assigned thought leadership ghostwriter in your office might be: + + * The Office Manager + * An executive assistant + * The guy who does marketing, sales, and a little bit of accounting + +Handing a thought leadership project over to the communications team can be a great way to make sure that your projects gets done. After all, the people that staff it are typically experienced communicators. + +However, doing so can often mean getting your piece of writing entangled in a complicated web of editing and approval cycles. Not so much fun. + +😀 **ADVANTAGES:** + + * Outsource the job internally + * Professional project management from outlining through to publication + +😟 **DISADVANTAGES:** + + * Can entail navigating internal bureaucracy + * Production timeline could be elongated + +### 3- Hire A PR Firm To Write It + +Public Relations (PR) firms are responsible for producing a large amount of thought leadership — in fact there are even firms that specialize exclusively in thought leadership and executive communications and do virtually nothing else. + +If you follow a well-known industry executive on LinkedIn, Medium, or their personal blog — there’s a reasonable chance that a PR firm took leadership over the authorship of that writing. + +While hiring a PR firm to strategize and execute a thought leadership campaign can work for _some_ organizations, for others it involves committing to an expensive retainer arrangement that may not be feasible over the long term. This is particularly true for early-stage startups who are often focused on minimizing marketing budgets to prioritize product development. + +On the positive side of things, PR firms are expert at … well, public relations. Many publicists have preexisting relationships with editorial contacts and introduce their clients to target publications. This involves more than simply opening up a contact list. + +Landing appropriate offsite placement opportunities for thought leadership can be a time-consuming endeavor, involving liaising with editors, adhering to publication style guides, and making sure that the pitching process runs smoothly. Those that have a PR firm making sure their thought leadership makes it into the right trade or mainstream media can put themselves at a significant advantage over the competition. + +😀 **ADVANTAGES:** + + * PR firms are great at placing finished writing + * They’re used to managing accounts and tend to be good at organization, ensuring that thought leadership is produced in time for the internal editorial calendar + +😟 **DISADVANTAGES:** + + * Many only work on retainer models + * Retaining a PR firm just to write thought leadership may not be cost-effective + +### 4 — Hire A Freelance Thought Leadership Writer + +If you want to outsource your thought leadership program without the expense and the (often) complication of hiring a public relations firm, then working with an individual freelance writer who specializes in thought leadership can be a smart and worthwhile investment. + +Freelance writers are used to juggling a lot of different accounts, so often bring strong organizational and project management skills to the table — ensuring that deadlines are met and that submitted copy conforms to publication style guides. + +Hiring a freelance writer specifically for writing thought leadership can also be a great way to plan and see a writing program through to completion. After all, it’s what they do for a living! + +😀 **ADVANTAGES:** + + * Often more cost effective than hiring a PR firm + * Outsources the nuts and bolts of running a thought leadership campaign + +😟 **DISADVANTAGES:** + + * May not have the distribution skills of a public relations firm + * An external contractor; companies may not be at liberty to share confidential information with third parties + +### Your Options Are Wide Open + +Whether you’re the type who likes to scribble down their own thoughts on the back of a napkin (later polished and perfected on a computer), have enormous trust in your internal PR team, or like the idea of working in close alignment with a freelance thought leadership writer best of all, there are plenty of options for getting thought leadership produced and into the market. + +[Effective thought leadership can boost industry reputation, position authors as subject matter experts (SMEs) and realize commercial gains like RFP inclusions.](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/what-can-thought-leadership-do-for-me-or-my-business/) + +If you’re interested in learning how thought leadership can be used to benefit _your_ organization, [click here](https://dsrghostwriting.com/consultation/) to schedule an introductory meeting with DSR Ghostwriting. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Should-You-Publish-Your-Blog-On-Your-Site-Or-Elsewhere-On-The-Internet-.md b/posts/medium/Should-You-Publish-Your-Blog-On-Your-Site-Or-Elsewhere-On-The-Internet-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..71e533086391c7fcdf5b5e1f731f7d8215a67943 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Should-You-Publish-Your-Blog-On-Your-Site-Or-Elsewhere-On-The-Internet-.md @@ -0,0 +1,137 @@ +# Should You Publish Your Blog On Your Site Or Elsewhere On The Internet? + +#### Publishing on Medium, LinkedIn, or your blog. Does it really matter? + +‘Content’ distribution: the channels you leverage can make a big difference to the success of your content marketing or thought leadership campaign. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/business-charts-commerce-computer-265087/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Periodically, I hear from prospective clients about starting up thought leadership and content marketing campaigns (shameless plug: check out my new site [here](http://www.rosehillmarcom.com)). + +One of the recurrent questions — beyond what to write about — is _where_ to write it. Because these days, the (online) world would seem to be our oyster with many different channels available to chooser between. + +I’ve written previously about the respective merits of publishing on Medium — as I’m doing now — or on third party websites. LinkedIn and Medium are common objects of focus — for some marketers, they’re still the flavor of the day — but the actual platforms matters less than their unique characteristics (I’ll get to those later). + +[**Medium and LinkedIn Thought Leadership Writing | Insights by DSR Ghostwriting** + _As I discussed previously in this blog, thought leaders need to invest as much time in the promotion of their content…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/medium-linkedin-or-your-blog-where-should-you-publish-your-thought-leadership/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/medium-linkedin-or-your-blog-where-should-you-publish-your-thought-leadership/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/medium-linkedin-or-your-blog-where-should-you-publish-your-thought-leadership/) + +But for those looking to skip ahead, here’s a very quick summary: + + * Nobody knows the magic formula of how much to write on-site versus on guest posts. But 80% is sometimes offered as a guesstimate. + * Onsite posting should generally be preferred because it helps you build up your own SEO. There are other reasons too, but they can be summarized as _“don’t build a castle on land you rent.”_ + * Syndicating content is fine so long as it doesn’t penalize your original authorship. + * Guest posting is a different thing entirely and _can_ be worthwhile because it can bring you to new — and larger — audiences. + * You can rewrite ‘content’ also and funnel it across different distribution channels. + * You can build a strategy that uses different permutations of the above to try to reach as many potential readers as possible. + +### Onsite vs. Offsite; Owned vs. Non-Owned + +Firstly, let me explain the technical fundamentals. + +There are various methodologies for mapping out the differences between various content distribution channels. + +But this is the one that I have (soft of) developed and refer to all the time. + +It relies on only two distinctions to separate between channels: onsite vs. offsite and owned vs. non-owned. Here’s what both mean: + + * **Onsite:** Is publishing through a _platform_ that you _own_ and can _control_ \- at least in digital terms. Think of buying a domain name and hosting and putting a basic website on the internet. It’s yours. Nobody can censor your thoughts or kick you off the platform as happened to Trump on Twitter. You’ll also — slowly, over time — be building up the SEO reputation of that digital asset. This is because as content-rich websites mature and get bigger, more people tend to discover them organically and then link back to them. And as backlinks and other indicators of interest accrue, the site’s content becomes increasingly easier to find. This is the magic that essentially makes inbound marketing work. + * **Offsite:** Offsite is a third party platform. Let’s take publishing on Medium.com. I may write here a lot, but it’s not my website. I don’t own Medium.com. Medium give me access to a content management system (a software) that’s hosted on top of their _platform_. I can’t control the CMS. I can’t change the platform. It’s a SaaS tool. Every time I post here, my posts are going to be published at a subdomain on Medium.com. The already massively authoritative main domain — Medium.com — is reaping some of the benefits from the content I create here. In exchange, I don’t have to worry about hosting and get to use a CMS that I love. + +And here’s owned vs. non-owned: + + * An **owned** platform is one that I _have_ editorial control over. Unless I post for a Medium publication — in which case there _will_ be an editorial process — nobody can control what I include in the articles that I write here. I don’t have to check for conformity to a style guide. I _am_ the style guide. + * A **non-owned** platform is a platform that you don’t have editorial control over. Let’s take the case of guest posting or — in more classic terms — contributed op-ed content. A website owner or publication _owns_ these publishing assets / distribution channels. We’re merely being invited to share a piece of content _on_ them. + +And here are three typical publishing scenarios plotted according to that matrix: + +### How Much Content Should I Publish Onsite? + +Each of these approaches have their own pros and cons. + + * If we publish content _onsite_ for instance then we’re making a long term investment in our SEO. But at the potential expense of lower short term traction because the audience we can muster there, at the start, is likely tiny. + * If we publish our thoughts — or a blog — on an offsite owned channel (like Medium) then we’re getting our writing out in an easy to use manner. + * If the platform has a social/audience/follower functionality (see: Facebook / Twitter / Medium) then we’re effectively syndicating into those platforms’ social feeds too (in addition to hosting and publishing ‘content’ there). + +While that _is_ an advantage, the concept of channel half lives is worth mentioning here too. We’ll come back to syndication later. + +[**The Lifespan of Content on Social Media** + _Do your social media posts get their 15 minutes of fame? As much as we hope their legend will live on to rival those of…_ www.oktopost.com](https://www.oktopost.com/blog/lifespan-content-social-media/#:~:text=The%20study%20found%20that%20the,half%2Dlife%20is%203.2%20hours "https://www.oktopost.com/blog/lifespan-content-social-media/#:~:text=The%20study%20found%20that%20the,half%2Dlife%20is%203.2%20hours")[](https://www.oktopost.com/blog/lifespan-content-social-media/#:~:text=The%20study%20found%20that%20the,half%2Dlife%20is%203.2%20hours) + +The primary and secondary audiences that can be achieved through these channels looks something like this (automatic/manual means whether the secondary audience arrives from a built in feature or whether it’s something you’ll need to actively implement): + +Of note (again): + +The lifespan of “content” distributed through social media is remarkably short. By contrast, creating blog posts is bringing evergreen assets into digital existence. There are some caveats — for best discoverability even blog posts should be updated — but the general concept holds true. + +#### The Pros And Cons Of Offsite Content Distribution + +Leveraging non-owned / offsite channels means that you’re again forsaking the opportunity to build up your own channel _while_ distributing your content. + +**But it comes with one major advantage that you’re going to be lacking if you go onsite all the way: you’re tapping into new and pre-built audiences.** In _some_ cases these are likely to dwarf the ones that you have created yourself, no matter how painstaking the process. + +(The reason for this? Size. A publication like the _Washington Post_ has many hands on deck finding ways to get ‘content’ seen. Your solo Medium blog probably doesn’t). + +Some examples of non-owned, offsite channels you may wish to leverage include: + + * Guest posting opportunities + * Contributed content opportunities + * Op-eds and regular spots in online publishing sites and newspapers + +To wrap this up, let’s look at a couple of common questions: + +### How Much Content Should I Publish Onsite vs. Offsite? + +There’s no right or wrong answer here. + +**But a common approach is to publish the _majority_ of ‘content’ onsite while leveraging select publishing opportunities — typically secured through PR agencies — in order to periodically broaden out one’s reach and drive traffic back to an onsite resource such as a website.** + +The polar opposite of this approach is to publish mostly offsite. + +Think guest posting blitzes or building a blog around Medium.com. + +In the former case, this isn’t as easy to pull off as it once was — the ranks of pay for play guest posting hosting sites has exploded in recent years — but it _can_ still work for established personal brands with preexisting relationships to big name networks. + +### How Is Guest Posting Different From Syndication? + +When we look at things from a pure SEO standpoint, we’re looking at the difference between _original_ content — where a chunk of text or piece of audio was first created and indexed on the internet — and any subsequent copies of it. + + * Guest posting means creating content for distribution through some offsite channel. + * Syndication means _copying_ content from one channel to another. + +In order to syndicate well, you need to make sure that you’re using canonical tags to mark the copy as a derivative of the first work (for more details, see my comments to CMS Wire below). + +[**2021's Guide to Content Syndication** + _Creating great content that targets your ideal customer, ensuring it's on all of your relevant channels, and optimized…_ www.cmswire.com](https://www.cmswire.com/content-marketing/6-tips-for-better-content-syndication-in-2021/ "https://www.cmswire.com/content-marketing/6-tips-for-better-content-syndication-in-2021/")[](https://www.cmswire.com/content-marketing/6-tips-for-better-content-syndication-in-2021/) + + * _Syndication_ is an effective means of expanding audience reach without forsaking the ability to build up a primary onsite resource. It’s sort of the best of both worlds. + * _Guest posting_ means creating content somewhere non-owned and offsite. And very few publications will accept for publication something that you’ve published yourself first. Nor will they want you to create a duplicate on your own site. + +Excerpting posts from published content and splitting them out into social posts is a different practice again. This can be a very effective means of driving audiences back to your main (onsite) resource. + +### What About Rewriting Articles / Blog Posts? + +Another common tactic employed by those looking to expand their reach and get more mileage out of essentially the same content is to rewrite variants and publish them through different channels. + +For whatever reason, the analogy I always go to here is remixing (as in music). + +One song can have 100 remixes and each can bring a unique perspective on the original track. As with remixes, there’s nothing wrong with that. As with remixes, the derivative versions can sometimes be (far) better than the originals. If you’re diligent enough, you can build your own version of Soundcloud by spinning your core message in a lot of different ways. + +If you’re looking to add ‘remixing’ to your strategy then you can: + + * Take your (onsite) blog posts, rewrite them, and publish them offsite + * Publish initially offsite and then rewrite them as blogs + +To be clear, I’m talking about fresh rewrites here that incorporate the ideas of the original without necessarily rehashing all their points. So my remix analogy is somewhat weak. + +### Enough! What Should I/We Do? + +A common cookie-cutter recommendation might be: + + * Publish 80% of your content ideas on-site + * Try to find quality guest posting opportunities for the remaining 20% that actually stand a chance of bringing your content out to fresh and widened audiences + * Syndicate and excerpt wherever appropriate + * Consider rewriting if you want to extend your reach and audience as far as it can go. That 80% of onsite content is a huge bank of content that can be rewritten and published elsewhere. + +However, as trite as this may sound, each ‘case’ — or content distribution strategy — is really best assessed on its own merits. + +Factors that influence what might be the best content distribution strategy include: the off-site assets that can be leveraged for placement opportunities; the level of commitment to the overall plan; and the level of patience on the part of the founder/company/brand-builder to get everything to simply ‘work.’ + + _Daniel Rosehill is the founder of_[ _Rosehill Marcom_](http://www.rosehillmarcom.com) _, a marketing communications consultancy dedicated to helping tech clients including entrepreneurs and agencies to execute integrated marcom plans centered around thought leadership and content marketing._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Should-you-write-your-own-book--Or-hire-a-ghostwriter-to-write-it-.md b/posts/medium/Should-you-write-your-own-book--Or-hire-a-ghostwriter-to-write-it-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b0299e0c9321ebbddd78af3aea6c777894f3253e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Should-you-write-your-own-book--Or-hire-a-ghostwriter-to-write-it-.md @@ -0,0 +1,108 @@ +# Should you write your own book? Or hire a ghostwriter to write it? + +#### DIY or working with a ghostwriter: which route makes more sense for you? + +Do you have a great story welling up inside of you and waiting to get out into the world? + +Perhaps you want to become a book author but aren’t sure where to start to turn your hot idea into a reality? + +Working with a ghostwriter is one way in which prospective authors can go from thinking of a concept to finishing the cover art quicker than they could while relying solely on their own devices. + +For prospective book authors, however, there are pros and cons to the decision to work with a ghostwriter. These are some of them. + +Ghostwriter: specialists at keeping themselves in the dark + +### Why Work With A Ghostwriter + +Ghostwriters are freelance (contract) writers who specialize in writing under somebody else’s byline. + +If you need to work with someone who you know you can trust to keep the writing relationship confidential, then working with a ghostwriter is one tried and trusted way to do this. + +Ghostwriters ghostwrite for a living. + +This means that they’re skilled at: + + * Writing + * Getting book projects from A to B including setting timelines, outlining chapters, and controlling a fixed revision cycle + * Capturing the clients’ voice including their natural way of speaking and any idioms they tend to fall back on — in fact, this is arguably the key skill involved in ghostwriting + * Navigating issues such as confidentiality with professionalism and skill + * Advising their clients upon other professionals that can help move the book further along in the publishing journey + +Remember that ghostwriters, at the end of the day, are writers. + +Like freelance writers (ghostwriters are a type of freelance writer) their output is textual. In almost all cases, they will assume no responsibility for the _publishing_ of the text they help produce. + +Again, in virtually all cases, ghostwriters will hand over the intellectual property (IP) in the work to their clients upon publication. While it’s worth clarifying this contract term as a formality, you can almost rest assured that the IP will vest to the client. + +For first-time authors, the publishing world can be a confusing maze to navigate. Beyond the writer, one may need to deal with a literary agent, a publisher, a typesetter, a graphic designer, an e-book specialist — or all of the foregoing! + +Although ghostwriters don’t typically provide _any_ of these add-on services, as integral parts of the literary landscape, many will be well-connected enough that they can point you in all the right directions and explain what each moving part of the publishing machine does. This service is in itself hugely valuable. + +Of course, one hires ghostwriters in order to get their book written. Ghostwriters are typically seasoned freelance writers who are efficient at what they do. If you have great ideas for what you want to go _into_ your book, but think that you lack the time and/or tenacity to actually make that dream a reality, then working with a ghostwriter can be a great way to expedite the process. + +### Why Not To Work With A Ghostwriter + +Just as there are pros to using a ghostwriter, there are some potential negatives to be aware of too. + +#### You’ll be detached from the writing journey + +For many authors, the actual process of committing their life experience to writing is actually a hugely transformative and emotional process. + +While a good ghostwriter can honor the author’s unique perspective on the topics they are writing about, ultimately they are a third party in the writing relationship. + +When the work in question is especially ‘close to an author’ — like an autobiography — they may choose to write it themselves. + +#### You don’t have a clear timeline to publication + +Ghostwriters are busy professional writers who tend to be juggling multiple clients. + +One of the first questions a ghostwriter is likely to ask a prospective client is _“when are you thinking about publishing?”_ + +Because books are relatively long writing projects, ghostwriters also tend to devise a writing timeline early in the process of their engaging with a client. + +If you’re still murky on when you might be interested in publishing or what form you wish the book to take you may be better served waiting to engage a ghostwriter until you’ve a clearer idea of what the finished product will look like or else writing the book yourself. + +### What Do Ghostwriters Write? + +Classically, the term ‘ghostwriter denoted a writing professional who helped aspiring authors to write books. + +With the advent of online publishing and self-publishing, however, ghostwriters increasingly find themselves kept busy with a growing variety of tasks. + +I tend towards adopting a more expansive definition of ghostwriting. After all, if a writer is authoring social media content in the name of another party, who’s not to say that that’s ghostwriting? + +If we’re going to draw the line between ‘ghostwriting’ and general marketing support somewhere, it probably makes sense to put social media on the other side of it. But many would consider all of these writing activities to be ghostwriting so long as the output is officially accredited (bylined) in a name other than the actual author’s: + + * Authoring white papers + * Authoring speeches (speechwriting) + * Authoring ebooks + * Authoring blogs and articles + +### Where Can I Find A Ghostwriter For Hire? + +Ghostwriters can be found from many different directions. + +For one, I’m a full-time ghostwriter that has been working with clients for more than 5 years to help produce and polish their writing. + +You can find more details about the services I offer through my writing website: + +[**DSR Ghostwriting | Thought Leadership And Content Marketing For Tech Clients | DSR Ghostwriting |…** + _By: Daniel Rosehill SPECIALTIES: PUBLIC RELATIONS AND DSR GHOSTWRITING CLIENTS HAVE INCLUDED Download a free white…_ www.dsrghostwriting.com](https://www.dsrghostwriting.com/ "https://www.dsrghostwriting.com/")[](https://www.dsrghostwriting.com/) + +You can also: + + * Find a writers’ association in your area and see if they maintain a listing. If they do, it might be filled with ghostwriters + * Check out the listings section of the Association of Ghostwriters (AoG) + * Run a Google search + * Check out a marketplace such as Upwork (word of caution: these tend to be filled with low-cost providers. Often, as in everything, you end up getting what you pay for.) + +### How Much Does Book Ghostwriting Cost? + +The cost of having your book ghostwritten tends to vary widely. + +Many seasoned professional ghostwriters have relatively expensive rates. Expect to pay $10,000 (or well above that sum) for a typical full length novel. + +Marketplace ghostwriters tend to be cheaper. + +Finally, you may find some ghostwriters who are willing to work by the hour. + +_Daniel Rosehill is a ghostwriter and marketing consultant. He is available to discuss non-fiction book ghostwriting projects with prospective clients. For more information, visit_[ _DSRGhostwriting.com_](http://DSRGhostwriting.com) _._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Should-you-write-your-own-thought-leadership-or-hire-a-ghostwriter-for-the-job-.md b/posts/medium/Should-you-write-your-own-thought-leadership-or-hire-a-ghostwriter-for-the-job-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e8f74f359584b4ec5f3d657500f55af149ebd07e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Should-you-write-your-own-thought-leadership-or-hire-a-ghostwriter-for-the-job-.md @@ -0,0 +1,54 @@ +# Should you write your own thought leadership or hire a ghostwriter for the job? + +#### Should you thought leadership be ghostwritten or is it best to go for the DIY approach? + +Thought leadership is a powerful marketing strategy. For those that manage to leverage it well, thought leadership can: + + * **Allow the authoring party to charge a premium** for their goods or services + * **Allow the authoring party to realize “soft” benefits** like enhanced reputation + * **Allow the authoring party to realize “hard” benefits** such as RFP inclusion and greater sales volumes + +[**What Can Thought Leadership Do For Me — Or My Business?** +_From heightened perceptions to RFP inclusions — thought leadership’s tangible benefits_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/what-can-thought-leadership-do-for-me-or-my-business-8e6b25c5ef92 "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/what-can-thought-leadership-do-for-me-or-my-business-8e6b25c5ef92")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership/what-can-thought-leadership-do-for-me-or-my-business-8e6b25c5ef92) + +There is also evidence — from research carried out by LinkedIn and Edelman — that thought leadership gets better when organizations commit to it over the long term. + +At a minimum, internal cultures that support thought leadership tend to develop when organizations become long-term thought leadership producers. And when people are on-board with the idea of producing quality thought leadership, corralling up the enthusiasm to do it well becomes relatively easy. + +When it comes to ghostwriting thought leadership, like any form of writing, there are pros and cons around outsourcing it to a ghostwriter. + +### Using A Ghostwriter Can Help You Scale Up Your Thought Leadership + +The main advantage to using a ghostwriter to help you write thought leadership is that it becomes easier to scale up your production of thought leadership. + +[**The 4 Key Differences Between Thought Leadership and Content Marketing** + _7 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Thought leadership garners a lot of attention…_ www.entrepreneur.com](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323 "https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323")[](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323) + +Of course, it’s worth pointing out that more isn’t always better. True thought leadership is both original _and_ leading (hence the name!). + +Nevertheless, if you really _do_ have a lot of quality thinking to share with your industry and the world, hiring a ghostwriter to help produce your thought leadership is one effective way to get more done more easily. + +[**Does Your Thought Leadership Need Strategy | Insights by DSR Ghostwriting** + _Whether you're engaging in thought leadership marketing for yourself or for your business, you may have thought about…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/does-your-thought-leadership-campaign-need-a-strategy-document/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/does-your-thought-leadership-campaign-need-a-strategy-document/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/does-your-thought-leadership-campaign-need-a-strategy-document/) + +Ghostwriters are effectively specialized freelance writers. Many can also lend a hand with helping you craft a strategy that will guide your thought leadership effort in order to make it more effective. + +### When Using A Ghostwriter, You’re Not Writing The Content Yourself + +The main disadvantage to working with a ghostwriter to produce thought leadership content is that — to state the obvious — it won’t actually be _you_ producing the writing. + +If the thought leadership you’re looking to get out is very wrapped up in your personal story, then this might be a significant disadvantage — perhaps even a “deal breaker.” + +Working with a ghostwriter doesn’t mean forfeiting the right to lend your personal touch to the thought leadership you create. After all, good ghostwriters are proficient in capturing the voice of their clients and crafting the writing according to their clients’ desires. + +Authoring an excellent brief is one good way to make sure that your ghostwriter writes something that you’re proud to lend your byline to. + + + +Whether you wish to hire a ghostwriter to help produce your thought leadership or go it alone is very much a personal choice. + +If you’re comfortable with the idea of outsourcing writing — and don’t mind the thought of publishing something that was written by another person — working with a ghostwriter can be an effective means of quickly scaling up your thought leadership marketing output. + +On the flip side, for those who want to maintain a personal touch throughout the writing process and have the time and writing skills necessary to make it “work”, writing one’s own thought leadership might be the better way to go. + +_DSR Ghostwriting is a writing service and marketing consultancy specializing in helping plan and execute thought leadership campaigns. For more information,_[_click here_](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) _._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Silencing-Criticism-Doesn-t-Help-People-Stay-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/Silencing-Criticism-Doesn-t-Help-People-Stay-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..22c18d2fdadfb84e8811092ab6cb74cba16328dc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Silencing-Criticism-Doesn-t-Help-People-Stay-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,98 @@ +# Silencing Criticism Doesn’t Help People Stay in Israel + +#### Ignoring Painful Realities Doesn’t Help Retain Olim + +Moving to Israel — and leaving it — has always been fraught with criticism and controversy. Does it really need to be that way? + +For Jews who have uprooted their lives to live in Israel, getting here can often end up being the easiest part of the journey. + +In recognition of the fact that many that move to Israel don’t end up staying (at least not for very long … or for life), a wellspring of energy has developed in recent years around the idea of getting _olim_ to stay in Israel. Those that offer this service tend to call it post-aliyah support. Or retention. + +The flagbearer for this movement has been Keep Olim In Israel (KOII) — which is both a Facebook group and a non-profit that describes its mission as to “empower, support, and inspire olim.”. + +More established _aliyah_ organizations — namely the Jewish Agency (JA) and Nefesh b’Nefesh (NBN) — also devote resources to the same cause. In terms of organization, many make the charge that these are nowhere near as extensive as their efforts to _bring_ Jews to Israel. + +[**Home** + _David Cohen - I'm very grateful! I received some desperately need financial help from the Israel government. Help that…_ keepolim.org](https://keepolim.org/ "https://keepolim.org/")[](https://keepolim.org/) + +While the energy and mission is well-intended, equally I feel that a lot of the dialogue around retaining _olim_ becomes unconstructive or actually ends up only emboldening them to leave. In some cases, this happens after disaffected _olim_ feel marginalized and excluded by conversations about what they _should_ think about living in Israel or how positive they should remain. Or about how they should feel about the State itself, its politics, and their relationship to it. + +These are some aspects of that culture that I think we would be richer without. + +### Silencing Criticism of Life in Israel + +While there is much to love about life in Israel, equally, it isn’t a bed of roses. News flash: no country is. + +But if often feels as if — when it comes to Israel —those who defend it feel the need to apply a different logic. One which excludes the possibility of there being challenges. + +I have been particularly vocal about criticizing the cost of living in the country (to the extent that I have written posts about it here on Medium!). Although truthfully it is the relatively low _real_ income — and the impossibly high cost of real estate for today’s young generation— that are the more pressing issues. + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +[**State's inability to fix the housing crisis leaves many out in the cold** + _The gap between the haves and the have-nots in Israel has grown substantially wider over the past decade, stemming from…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/states-inability-to-hammer-out-housing-crisis-fix-leaves-many-out-in-the-cold/?fbclid=IwAR0P2VeI72kg0IfdbhNoeSGe15Yz3gWObnnHc9mKRg3PmLjwvC5X4scmAzs "https://www.timesofisrael.com/states-inability-to-hammer-out-housing-crisis-fix-leaves-many-out-in-the-cold/?fbclid=IwAR0P2VeI72kg0IfdbhNoeSGe15Yz3gWObnnHc9mKRg3PmLjwvC5X4scmAzs")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/states-inability-to-hammer-out-housing-crisis-fix-leaves-many-out-in-the-cold/?fbclid=IwAR0P2VeI72kg0IfdbhNoeSGe15Yz3gWObnnHc9mKRg3PmLjwvC5X4scmAzs) + +Silencing criticism of these and other dynamics very often emanates from those that grew up in a different financial reality than which exists in today’s Israel. + +Or (sometimes) from those who have benefited from the largesse of family members or of generational wealth. In Israel, things — especially real estate prices — change quickly. Veteran olim, in particular, can treat relative newcomers with astonishing unkindness when these conversations are aired. Often, they are not fully appraised of the current reality. + +While argument and counter-argument is healthy, I think that silencing those who try to contest a dominant narrative, or ask difficult but important questions, isn’t. + +The counter-arguers can be acerbic and insistent in their criticism that those questioning the financial reality in Israel must be privileged, deluded, or missing out on the obvious. Or all three! + +This dynamic — which sometimes strays into the realm of what could be called toxic positivity — is not a healthy one. + +### Silencing Leftist Political Views + +Today’s Israel (with the exception of the Tel Aviv bubble) has become overwhelmingly nationalistic and right-wing in its dominant political orientation. + +In fact, for those who live here, it’s hard to imagine a time when the political pendulum _didn’t_ swing this way. + +David Horowitz, the Times of Israel’s editor, has predicted that with virtual certainty the forthcoming coalition will be the most right wing yet. + +[**Whoever wins, we'll be a fundamentally changed Israel when this election is over** + _For the first time in Israeli history, our next election will be a battle fought overwhelmingly on the right wing of…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/whoever-wins-well-be-a-fundamentally-changed-israel-when-this-election-is-over/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/whoever-wins-well-be-a-fundamentally-changed-israel-when-this-election-is-over/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/whoever-wins-well-be-a-fundamentally-changed-israel-when-this-election-is-over/) + +Emboldened by the Trump years, perhaps, left wing supporters have become objects of derision and magnets for hatred in today’s Israel and among those who support the country from afar. + +“Leftist,” has, for many, become a smear word used to delegitimize any opinions that don’t accord with the right wing worldview (example: the Balfour Street protesters were often derided as “bored leftists” when in reality they also attracted protesters from the right). The pressure to conform can feel palpable. + +Increasingly, and as a result of this pressure, left wing voices are feeling marginalized, scorned, and unwanted in today’s political conversations about Israel and within it. Many are feeling intimidated or are being silenced into expressing viewpoints that would have been uncontroversial just a few years ago. + +A political conversation in which the prerogative to be left wing has been taken off the table is, in reality, merely an echo chamber. To many, this feels like a dangerous dynamic. + +### Silencing Conversations About Leaving Israel + +Leaving Israel has always been fraught with controversy. At least within it. + +Israel depended upon immigration for its initial survival. Although it sometimes feels as if this fact has vanished from the collective memory. + +But how far have we really come in this conversation since the days in which those who left (_note: I’m deliberately avoiding using a certain word to describe them_) were openly derided? + +[**Facebook Groups** + _Leaving Israel - The Official Yerida Group For People Who Want To GTFO has 1,816 members. Israel finally broke you? not…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/2184447471823061 "https://www.facebook.com/groups/2184447471823061")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/2184447471823061) + +Remaining blindfolded to the possibility that there is a life outside Israel does nothing to encourage people to stay. In fact, it just makes them feel trapped and pressured. Perhaps the zealous assertions that nothing could possibly be wrong in Israel stem from this feeling too. + +For some olim, _chul_(countries besides Israel; abroad) is a periodic escape valve. Others leave for good. + +Attempts to stifle conversations about leaving Israel ignore the fact that, in the modern world, emigration is a fact of life. Those who do leave are sometimes wished a hearty “good riddance” by those who remain. Such bitter exits likely diminish the chance that the emigrées will return. + +Growing up in Ireland, emigrating to the UK, the US, or Australia — for part of one’s career or all of it — was never derided. I can’t recall hearing those who left derided as traitors or accused of having vivid imaginations for believing that a better life might exist outside the country’s borders. + +While the dynamics clearly differ, I think that a more open conversation about decisions to stay in Israel or leave it could actually — counterintuitively — make people more comfortable about planning a long-term future here. + +It’s time to normalize this conversation and stop marginalizing those who engage in it. + +Israelis often think about their country in mistakenly dichotomous terms: one is either for us or against us, a friend or a foe. + +Too often, that same black or white logic gets applied internally by those who come to live here. + +You’re either all in or you must be a hater. Stay for life. Or be gone for good. + +My belief is that stifling criticism of internal dynamics, contrarian (read: left wing) political views , and conversations about leaving Israel ultimately do nothing to help the country or those who live in it. Shutting down debate does not lead to progress. + +These dynamics only succeed in creating one narrative and making large parts of the population feel alienated and bleak about envisioning a future here. Or to feel alone when, in reality, that isn’t the case. It’s simply that others aren’t getting a chance to raise their voice in agreement. + +It is my hope that as time goes on a kinder conversation will develop in and about Israel and decisions to live in it or leave. One that embraces rather than silences divergent views. That conversation is ours to architect. diff --git a/posts/medium/Smart-Home-Shabbat-Automation-With-Home-Assistant--V1-.md b/posts/medium/Smart-Home-Shabbat-Automation-With-Home-Assistant--V1-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..789a9913be260da193c3a84aec28cbf693d66902 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Smart-Home-Shabbat-Automation-With-Home-Assistant--V1-.md @@ -0,0 +1,118 @@ +# Smart Home Shabbat Automation With Home Assistant (V1) + +Shabbat is a weekly religious ritual practised by observant Jews around the world. It stretches from before sundown on Friday through to the start of nightfall on Saturday (approximately; customs vary slightly by location). + +My Shabbat indicator light (A Zigbee E27 smart bulb that I automate to indicate whether Shabbat is in/out). Photo: Daniel Rosehill + +During Shabbat, religiously observant Jews refrain from using electricity. However … hosting guests and … well .. eating … are popular activities in the Shabbat-observant world. Shabbat is intended to be a day of rest, after all. Sitting in darkness and eating cans of tuna wouldn’t really be in the Shabbat spirit. + +The traditional solution to this religious quandary has been a decidedly low-tech one. + +Enter stage the humble manual electricity timer as shown on the left. If you ever wondered why your religious Jewish neighbors had enough of these to start a small electricity store, now you have your answer. + +Fortunately, technology has evolved. Personally, I think the idea of using modern technology to assist in the observance of a millennia-old ritual is kind of amazing. Enter stage a much more elegant, modular, and granular solution to the Shabbat electricity issue: home automation. + +### Prerequisites For This Project + +You can use proprietary technologies and their ecosystems for setting up basic home automations. But doing so hamstrings your abilities to truly customise and own your system before the get-go. + +If the sensors and smart lights and smart plugs are the players in this picture, then Home Assistant is the conductor. Home Assistant can tie together components from many different manufacturers and make them all achieve a common purpose.. + +But enough with the sales pitch. Let’s get down to tech details. + + * You’re going to want to run**Home Assistant Operating System (HAOS)** on … something. My wife likes to remind me that I never shy away from making things incredibly complicated. My HAOS is running as a VM in Proxmox which is on the mini PC (which I picked up on Aliexpress and thus far have only praise for). + * Although you could create your own integration based on the [HebCal Shabbat times REST API](https://www.hebcal.com/home/197/shabbat-times-rest-api) there’s no need to reinvent this particular technical wheel. I like the **Jewish-Sabbaths-Holidays integration (**[**Github link**](https://github.com/rt400/Jewish-Sabbaths-Holidays)**)** because it includes a no-BS (excuse the language) binary sensor for Shabbat and Yom Tov (plus so much more). It either IS Shabbat or it’s NOT. Your automations can follow along accordingly. + +The second Home Assistant integration that I use is [**SimpleScheduler**](https://github.com/arthurdent75/SimpleScheduler). You could use it to configure actions to run in relation to the start of Shabbat (e.g., four hours after Shabbat go into bedtime mode). But personally this approach makes more sense for me. + +### Getting The Integration Set Up Correctly + +The easiest way to install the integration is through the Home Assistant Community Store (HACS): + +Shabbat times are based on geolocation and your Home Assistant installation needs to know where it is to pull in the correct Shabbat times from the integration. So make sure that you have the following set up in configuration.yaml. + + + homeassistant: + latitude: 32.0667 + longitude: 34.7667 + time_zone: Asia/Jerusalem + +If you don’t know your geocordinates, [find them here](https://www.latlong.net/). + +Here’s what the plugin authors recommend adding to your configuration.yaml. This will get you the bare essentials (unless you live in Jerusalem, we’ll cover that next): + + + # Example configuration.yaml entry + sensor: + - platform: hebcal + resources: + - shabbat_in + - shabbat_out + +If you want to enable “Jerusalem candle-lighting” (40 minutes before sundown) then you’ll want to add: + + + jerusalem_candle: True + +So, for example: + + + # Example configuration.yaml entry + sensor: + - platform: hebcal + jerusalem_candle: True + resources: + - shabbat_in + - shabbat_out + +YAML’s less-endearing quality is that it is VERY particular about indentation. But the effort will seem worth it when we’re enjoying our Shabbat-ready smart home! + +### Creating Scenes And Automations To Manage Everything + +Next on our to-do list is creating the scenes and automations that are going to actually control all of our devices over the course of Shabbat. + +I’ve divided my automation-ing into several points in time: + + * **_Shabbat comes in:_** get the apartment into Shabbat mode (if you’re lucky enough to live in an actual house — congratulations!) + * **_It’s bedtime:_** Turn the bedroom lights off. But leave on the couch light for whoever wants to read. + * **_It’s morning_** _!_ Rather than use a forced lights-on automation to coax myself out of bed at a reasonable hour (it’s Shabbat!) I instead just get the living spaces set up. During the summer months, this is probably unnecessary. To take this further, you could tweak this by adding conditions based around a weather forecast to your automation. + * **_It’s Shabbat afternoon:_ **Change the lights a little more. + * **_Shabbat’s out:_** One quirky feature I decided to add to this was a “Shabbat light.” It’s a bulb that comes on after Shabbat and turns on after it. Its sole purpose is to serve as a physical indicator for when Shabbat is in and out. + +Each of these setups is a separate scene. + +The first of these (Shabbat comes in) is triggered by the Shabbat times integration (as well as the automation that turns off the indicator bulb when Shabbat is out). The rest are run off Simple Scheduler. Their time can be modified a little throughout the year or as preferences change. + +For example: + +Here’s the automation that kicks off ‘Shabbat mode’: + +In YAML: + + + alias: Start of Shabbat automation + description: "Puts home into Shabbat configuration mode " + trigger: + - platform: state + entity_id: + - sensor.hebcal_is_shabbat + to: "True" + condition: [] + action: + - service: scene.turn_on + metadata: {} + target: + entity_id: scene.start_of_shabbat + mode: single + +This is V1.0 of my humble Shabbat indicator light. It’s a simple Zigbee E27 hanging off a socket. The next steps of the project are making this look good. I’m thinking of DIY-ing a custom lightbox. + +I also built a little monitoring dashboard just to check up on the condition of my sensors before Shabbat: + +There are dozens of ideas I’ve already jotted down for how to take this further (next in line: send a notification 30 minutes before candle-lighting). But …. it’s a functional start. + +Thanks for reading! + +_Daniel Rosehill_ + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/So-----as-a-very-active-Reddit-user-for-about-seven-years-I-have-very-mixed-feelings-about-the-.md b/posts/medium/So-----as-a-very-active-Reddit-user-for-about-seven-years-I-have-very-mixed-feelings-about-the-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7e1b24afca466b11d0a2429904073a9cbe0a7597 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/So-----as-a-very-active-Reddit-user-for-about-seven-years-I-have-very-mixed-feelings-about-the-.md @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +# So ... as a very active Reddit user for about seven years I have very mixed feelings about the… + +So ... as a very active Reddit user for about seven years I have very mixed feelings about the platform. + +For one the audience is incredibly resistant to advertising and anything that smacks of promotion. + +Secondly, as Milos points out below, there's just a general sort of nastiness and pettiness that pervades the platform. A pen-pal friend who I connected with through Reddit describes it as an "uncharitable" disposition. I've never been able to find a better descriptor. + +There are a lot of good things about Reddit. You're right that it focuses in on a great demographic for tech and (as a personal user) that's a lot of the value I get from it. + +But equally, as a marketer, there are days when I don't think I'd go near it. There are just far less hostile spaces on the internet. diff --git a/posts/medium/Some-Creative-Uses-For-Google-Groups-b24986dcb78.html.md b/posts/medium/Some-Creative-Uses-For-Google-Groups-b24986dcb78.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..52b3fea6875f9af9702ec711bacee156d8567cf8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Some-Creative-Uses-For-Google-Groups-b24986dcb78.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,89 @@ +# Some Creative Uses For Google Groups + +I’ve been using G-Suite for a _long_ time at this point. + +Long enough that I still occasionally catch myself referring to it as Google Apps. + +There are _many_ G-Suite hacks and tricks that I need to document — although I’m certain that quite a few of them likely expressly violate that provider’s Terms of Service. + +But to get things going, here are a couple of things you can do with Google Groups (besides the obvious and intended function of, you know, actually creating email lists). + +### 1\. Set up a newsletter “inbox” + +I’ve always been extremely particular about my inbox management — and communication platforms in general. + +I strongly favor **one-to-one, rather than one-to-many, digital communication** — at least to the extent that it is practicable (clearly, a subordinate might be contractually required to receive group communications and reports by email from middle management, for example). It’s my main bone of contention with WhatsApp groups, among other fora. + +In fact, I believe that **most people would be far closer to that illustrious goal of zero inbox than they might imagine if they only found a way to segregate their group subscriptions from their actual person-to-person email correspondence**. + +Their inboxes, they may find, might in fact be surprisingly manageable were it not drowned out by the noise of a daily torrent of email marketing and the egregious over-use of the carbon copy function that has overtaken the corporate world (unfortunately, I do not have a technical remedy for this). + +Before you point it out, dear reader,_yes I am aware that Gmail offers inbox categories including one for just this purpose: newsletters_. Unfortunately, in addition to being highly particular about inbox management, I am also a contrarian. + +I have my own system for determining the content of messages (shown below), based primarily on some simple Boolean queries that Gmail’s filter creator allows its users to deploy. This does everything from sorting voicemails to putting all utility bills in the right inbox folder — and I even have some residual client archiving rule son my personal inbox. + +Additionally, I try to avoid duplicating messages and notifications from other platforms where possible (which is my issue with the idea of a “social” inbox — although ideally I would backup these social “inboxes” just to protect the data). + +Although channeling mass newsletters into a separate sub-inbox is a step in the right direction, **I’d rather keep these communications in a separate system altogether such that clicking the most broad Gmail button, “All Mail” will still show as many personal emails as possible and all archives and backups of email will show only, well, email correspondence.** + +Regrettably, up until very recently, I **simply maintained a very strict zero newsletter policy** to make this preference a reality. + +In practice, this wasn’t actually quite the case and I subscribed to a few particularly good newsletters as well as [HARO Alerts](https://www.helpareporter.com/) — an essential notification for anybody walking either side of the journalist / publicist tandem. + +But it still meant clicking the “unsubscribe” button _multiple times a day — for (literally) years_ in order to avoid the vast majority of automatic and stealth opt-ins that occurred every time I tried out a new online service or connected with somebody on LinkedIn (a lot!). + +Clearly this was undesirable — although my inbox has been quite delightfully streamlined for years, I was almost certainly missing out on a world of information conveyed only by email. + +**Enter stage: the group newsletter inbox.** + +After the lengthy preamble, it may come as a disappointment (but no surprise) to learn that**my first hack is merely to set up a Google Groups address to serve as a sort of newsletter-only inbox.** + +Above is my group notification page for the first such inbox I created. + +I recently signed up for former CIA agent Andrew Bustamante’s[ _Everyday Spy newsletter._](https://everydayspy.com/)I also updated the subscription address on [my friend Peter Duffy’s newsletter, _How Curious_](http://newsletter.peterduffy.ie/), As a result, neither of these subscriptions touch my inbox at all. I have bookmarked this page next to my main Gmail bookmark and can simply check into it once every few days — without fearing that my once clutter-free inbox will suddenly be overcome with notifications. + +Two configuration changes are important for this to work properly (I’m using the “old”, non-Gsuite UI to demonstrate these as the question of which will reign supreme seems to remain perpetually unanswered). + +2\. Under Settings -> Moderation ensure that all options to moderate messages are disabled. Until I did this, the spam filter was flagging a significant amount of legitimate newsletters as spam. + +Perfectly good email marked as spam by Gmail prior to moderation setting edit: + +Finally, don’t forget to set your update preferences to “don’t send email updates” to ensure that the newsletters don’t, in fact, continue to touch your inbox. + +Here’s what my[ HARO Alerts](https://www.helpareporter.com/) Google Group looks like. It’s great to have these in a separate area as I try to go through them at least once in a while. + +### 2\. Forward your mail to backup inboxes + +I use Two Factor Authentication (2FA) on virtually all my accounts and suggest that anybody do the same. As we all know, strong passwords no longer cut the mustard when it comes to keeping the bad guys out. + +However, 2FA obviously has its downsides. + +For one, I can no longer rely on simply memorizing my password to have access to my inbox from any internet-connected device anywhere in the world. (I carry a [Thetis key](https://thetis.io/) on my keychain, but, you know). + +As a result, I created a group called “Email Duplicator” with the sole purpose of creating backup copies of my mail from more easily accessible programs. + +_Yes_ this sort of defeats one of the benefits of 2FA — securing your data behind a stronger authentication method. But viewed otherwise, you get the advantage of keeping the most important benefit of second factor authentication — preventing access to the account itself — while giving yourself a couple of backup access options for your email if you’re in a pinch. + +I opted to send the relay to: + + * My ProtonMail address (for end-to-end PGP encryption) + * A Gmail with regular security + * Another address I operate at GMX.com + +To finish setup, go into your Gmail settings and under “Forwarding and POP/IMAP” set up a forward for all your inbound mail to this Google Group address. + +Naturally, you will need to wait for and click the verification code. + +### 3\. Add “free” extra email addresses by spoofing them elsewhere + +Gmail’s own security for authenticating additional sender addresses has improved substantially in recent months. + +However, other services have not caught up quite so quickly. + + * If you need another address, [[email protected]](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection), simply set up a Google Group with yourself as the sole member. + * Sign up for a Mailchimp account, or another email provider whose authentication method relies upon you confirming a verification email to that address. _Note: this can also be achieved by simply setting up a catchall if you are the only user on the G-Suite domain._ As shown below, the process is incredibly straightforward. + * You now have an additional account you can “send as” which is not billed as an additional G Suite user. + +There are _many_ more uses I have come across over the years. To be continued! + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Some-Must-Have-Accessories-For-Multimonitor-Workstations.md b/posts/medium/Some-Must-Have-Accessories-For-Multimonitor-Workstations.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5fa4a3e53f8e42d2619e0f3e403abef495aeb8bf --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Some-Must-Have-Accessories-For-Multimonitor-Workstations.md @@ -0,0 +1,126 @@ +# Some Must-Have Accessories For Multimonitor Workstations + +Photo: A dispatcher at the Marine Corps System Command (public domain). + +So, you’ve decided to ditch the laptop and join the ranks of the multimonitor computer enthusiasts? + +Whether you’re a day trader, financial analyst, emergency services dispatcher, or (just a!) gamer, deploying multiple monitors can boost your productivity [by as much as 35%](http://www.qcsgroup.com.au/benefits-multiple-monitors-35-productivity-increase/). + +I’ve already covered some basic bits of gear you’ll need in previous posts here. + +These include: + + * [**A GPU (graphics card) with a lot of outputs**](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/graphics-cards-gpus-that-support-six-and-more-outputs-a1322cfca9b2?source=---------5------------------). _Or_ a few graphics cards — two is by far the most typical configuration and using two of the exact same card is the best approach. But if your motherboard has enough PCI Express slots and your PSU can provide enough power, it’s possible to run three or even four cards simultaneously. + * [**A VESA mount (technically optional)**](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-meandering-guide-to-vesa-monitor-mounts-dc5a4a1b500f). Those are those brackets or stands that you see behind workstations. You’ll need to make sure that your monitors have VESA holes first, although almost all modern ones do — and even if your monitors don’t [you can always buy an adapter](https://www.amazon.com/VIVO-Adapter-Monitor-mounting-Stand-VAD1/dp/B00RTS5WWM/ref=sr_1_7?keywords=vesa+adapter&qid=1580906470&sr=8-7). If you’re going for a configuration with multiple rows of monitors vertically, (say, a hex setup, or dual vertical) then you’ll definitely need them mounted on a stand. If you have VESA holes but the pattern is the wrong one for your mount, then you can even buy a [VESA hole adapter like this one](https://www.amazon.com/HumanCentric-Adapter-Conversion-Patterns-Smaller/dp/B079SF6XG9). + +Basically all options are covered. The HumanCentric VESA Mount Adapter. [Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/HumanCentric-Adapter-Conversion-Patterns-Smaller/dp/B079SF6XG9). + +Of course, you’ll also require: + + * **A computer.** As ever, your options for expansion with a laptop are a lot more limited, although with DisplayPort and USB-C options for how many external displays you can drive are widening. + * **Monitors.** Ideally, and to look best, they should all be the same make and model. + +You might also want to consider adding: + + * **A Universal Power Supply (UPS)** : to put the monitors on a backup power supply and provide them with some passive surge protection. Of course, if you’re using a desktop, you should connect that to the UPS too. + * **Some C13-C14 cabling** (if the power input on your monitors is that “kettle” electric connection.) + +IEC C13 — for connecting to displays which take C13IEC C14 — for connecting to UPS + +And here are some other things that might be helpful. + +*Disclosure: as before, I write about multimonitor computers because I am interested in the subject and know that others are too. None of the Amazon links I am sharing here are affiliate links. + +### KVM Switches + +The acronym KVM was named after ‘Keyboard, Video, Mouse’ — referring to the initial pieces of hardware that KVM switches were used to toggle inputs and outputs for. + +In truth, the list of components which can be toggled in this manner is not closed. + +USB KVMs are ubiquitous, for example, allowing you to push a button and choose which computer to send your keyboard, mouse, or webcam to. + +**KVM switches are particularly handy for users that actually have multiple (physical) computers rigged up to one multimonitor setup**. + +For instance: three screens come from computer 1 and three screens come from computer two. + +Whatever devices they’r designed to attach to, KVM switches are hardware devices that let you push a (physical) button to redirect input/output sources. + +KVM switches are commonly used in multimonitor setups for the following purposes: + + * **KVMs for toggling 3.5mm analog audio sources.** E.g. for choosing whether to send audio to a set of wired headphones or to speakers. + * **KVMs for toggling monitors.** You can find KVMs for toggling almost all common monitor connections, including both analog and digital signals. Head over to Amazon to find a [VGA KVM](https://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Keyboard-Connection-Switching-Function/dp/B071Y6C516/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?keywords=vga+kvm&qid=1580907317&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEySE01SkIwRjNRWkxQJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNDA5NTA0VEhCVDYyU0hLRTFSJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTEwMzg2OTczSkFOSUNZMDFWSzZIJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==), a [DVI KVM](https://www.amazon.com/Monoprice-2-Port-DVI-KVM-Switch-Retail/dp/B001TKMNKK/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?keywords=dvi+kvm&qid=1580907333&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExMFdWT05XR05XVzIwJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNDg5MzA5SUVCSFIzTzJMQVdCJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA2NzgwMTUzOVdaSVZLNUJUQVpGJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==), a [HDMI KVM](https://www.amazon.com/Switch-out%EF%BC%8CUSB-Powered-Hotkey-Cables/dp/B07VK4RZ44/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?keywords=hdmi+kvm&qid=1580907352&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFSOUpHS1RSVlA5NE0mZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA4Nzk2MDMxQU8zUTA2MU4yWlFUJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA1NzAwOTczS04zNjVCQUFCNk1UJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==), and a [DisplayPort (DP) KVM](https://www.amazon.com/TESmart-DisplayPort-Switcher-Supports-Devices/dp/B07YW89SLD/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?keywords=dp+kvm&qid=1580907364&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzOFJDMjlOSzBYUUdTJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMDU0OTkzMlgxMEJXSEVXMjhaSCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNzU3MDY5MVpNOEkzVzFNNkgyUyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=) + * **KVMs for toggling USB inputs:** as above, this is usually used to toggle where to direct mouse and keyboard inputs. + +### Virtual KVMs (Like Synergy) + +A more modern approach to physical KVMs is to redirect input sources over the local network (LAN). + +Programs such as [Synergy](https://symless.com/synergy) broadcast your keyboard/mouse activity from a server on one computer. You install a client on a second (or third) computer in order to create seamless mouse/keyboard activity between the two. + +I like Synergy because it is cross-platform and I primarily use Linux. + +A basic Synergy license is available for a one-time payment of $29. + +### A Multi Stream Transport (MST) Hub + +A Multi Stream Transport (MST) hub is another tool that might feature in your multimonitor workstation arsenal. + +MST Hubs are used to “split” up displays — **specifically DisplayPort outputs** which have wider maximum resolutions than can be fit on most monitors (to figure out how many displays you can split off your hub, assuming you are using the same displays, take the DP output’s max resolution and divide it by the height and width, in pixels, of each of your monitors). + +MST Hubs work with DisplayPort (or Mini-DP ports) that support DP1.2 or greater (such as DP 1.4). + +Think of it as splicing the output into parts. + +You can use the displays in extended mode just as if they were coming from dedicated outputs on the GPU. + +### Other Nice-to-Haves (Depending on Taste!) + +As I posted recently, [/r/battlestations](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/some-great-workstations-from-r-battlestations-f6dc6332bc56) is a popular subreddit which contains some pretty exemplary workstations. + +The community has certain distinctive tastes which I will add for the sake of completeness — although I don’t think any add value to the multimonitor experience, at least for non-gamers: + +**RGB Lighting** + + Keyboard with RGB backlighting + +If you’re ever seen a PC lit up with eye-catching lights, then you’re looking at a user that’s installed Red Green Blue (RGB) lighting strips. + +There are[ plenty of YouTube videos](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=how+to+install+rgb) explaining how to install RGB into your PC case — and, by watching them, you can get a rough feel for the end result. + +RGB is polarizing — personally I think it looks tacky and distracting but others add it to ever peripheral they can. + +**A Mechanical Keyboard** + +There’s also enormous overlap between the battlestation-loving community and those that are into mechanical keyboards. + +Don’t know your MX Red from your buckling springs? + +[Reddit and the /r/MechanicalKeyboards community](https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalKeyboards/wiki/buying_guide) is a good place to start. + +Just be forewarned: the slope, it is slippery. + +**An Oversized Mousepad** + +Another thing that the battlestation-using community seems to adore is oversized mouse pads. + +These are — literally — mouse pads that take up your entire desk. Your mouse _and_ keyboard are designed to sit on them. + +As an added benefit, because they take up so much space, they can soften the edges of your desk and prevent wear and tear on your elbows. + +I’ve picked up a couple but haven’t gotten around to actually trying them out yet. + +**Other Battlestation Favorites** + +From longtime observation of the[ /r/battlestations](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/) subreddit: + + * Gamer chairs + * Boom microphone + * Mini fridges + +### Get Your Battlestation Set Up Today! + +Personally, I like to keep my workstation pretty simple. + +I have a great solid wood table and a decent chair — and future upgrades are more likely to be in the monitor/display department and upgrades to the computer itself. + +But if you want to use multiple computers with one set of screens, or just want to get that RGB bright color look, then check out the above accessories! diff --git a/posts/medium/Some-Totally-Random-Niche-Ideas-For-Freelancers-Looking-To-Be-More-Imaginative-With-Their-Pitching-6317da7aa30.html.md b/posts/medium/Some-Totally-Random-Niche-Ideas-For-Freelancers-Looking-To-Be-More-Imaginative-With-Their-Pitching-6317da7aa30.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..251cb31cf76900063ef34bb99ff7b0d8ab851720 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Some-Totally-Random-Niche-Ideas-For-Freelancers-Looking-To-Be-More-Imaginative-With-Their-Pitching-6317da7aa30.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,120 @@ +# Some Totally Random Niche Ideas For Freelancers Looking To Be More Imaginative With Their Pitching + +#### Here’s one: if you want to look different, stop saying that you specialize in B2B tech + +Freelancing: wherever the Venn Diagram between what you know about and what’s popular is at its narrowest point of intersection … these are the niches it might make the most sense to target. Image: Flickr + +I’ve written plenty of verbiage recently about how I’ve moved away from positioning myself as a freelance writer and onto … my next professional iteration. + +[**Should Writers Start Branding Themselves “Content Entrepreneurs” To Escape Freelancing Suckydom?** +_Some thoughts on a piece that rages against the broken gig economy. And why I personally believe the answer is a…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/should-writers-start-branding-themselves-content-entrepreneurs-to-escape-freelancing-suckydom-bbf6d1c7cac "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/should-writers-start-branding-themselves-content-entrepreneurs-to-escape-freelancing-suckydom-bbf6d1c7cac")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/should-writers-start-branding-themselves-content-entrepreneurs-to-escape-freelancing-suckydom-bbf6d1c7cac) + +What can I say? Words matter. Branding matters. And how you _present_ the value you can bring to your potential clients can make the difference between squabbling over $100 and landing a comfortable monthly retainer that also provides you scope to do _way more_ than simply take in briefs and spit out words. + +Nevertheless, freelance writers tend to do one interesting thing and I think it has application far beyond that neck of the marketing woods: they’re very focused on niches. Niches matter, too. But you can be more clever about which ones you zone in on. + +[**Why I’ve Stopped Identifying As A ‘Freelance Writer’ — Or A Writer At All** + _Why I (Sadly) No Longer Think Freelance Writing Is A Good Space To Be In_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb) + +The niche-du-jour right now? + +B2B technology. I’ve been helping technology companies to market since I first managed marketing communications for one about 8 years ago. And you know something? I’ve still never figured out why whether a business sells to other businesses (B2B) or direct to consumers (B2C) matters should be your first point of differentiation. The only explanation: it’s a good keyword. + +But let’s put that aside for the time being. If everybody is chasing after the (relatively few) potential clients who happen to be AI startups or purveyors of some new IoT tool…. you’re going to facing some stiff competition. + +Why not take your random hobbies and life observations and try to go after somebody who’s possibly never been randomly pitched for work … potentially ever. Somebody like. + +### Why Should Should Start Pitching People Like Specialist Purveyors Of Vexillology Solutions + +I was once so into flags that when friends from Ireland and Hong Kong came to visit my first Jerusalem my immediate inclination was to welcome them to my apartment with a ceremonial flag display. True story. + +I’ve mentioned two things here before. + +I was diagnosed, not so long ago with ADHD. And I briefly went through a flag kick (yes, you read that correctly). + +Now here’s a little more in the way of explanation (I’ll take any chance I can get to break down stigmas and explain things): + +ADHDers tend to go through intense periods of fascination with niche subjects and to commit to them with an odd overmeasure of focus. This is known as hyperfocusing (it can last for hours, days, or months). I’ve also mentioned that — in pre-diagnosis days — I once developed an inexplicable ‘thing’ for flags. Thankfully, the only fad I’ve been through since — video — is both more normal and seems to have weathered the test of time. Now you get the connection. + +Thankfully — or actually quite sadly — I never started my own variation of _Fun With Flags._ + +But I did build up a collection that might give your local foreign affairs department a run for its money. + +Now here’s the thing about the flag industry. + +You know who needs flags and flagpoles? + +A lot of people: + + * Governments at all levels + * Large corporations + * Anybody involved in the world of public affairs + +What to these entities all have in common? + +They’re all: + + * Probably pretty stable + * Likely very cash buoyant + +Did you ever hear anybody prophesying that the era of flags and flagpoles is about to come to a screeching halt? + +You didn’t! Almost nobody is writing about flags. + +Are flags trendy? No. + +A trend somebody is going to write about and attract a whole flood of excited newbies? + +No. + +Are flags going anywhere? + +Maybe eventually when we’ll replace them with laser projections of countries’ colors but probably not for the foreseeable future. Governments are monoliths and don’t tend to do things like scrap their national collections of flags because they felt a whim to do so. + +These may seem like elementary questions to ask but they’re potentially not the worst way to screen a potential niche for profitability and long term potential. + +So perhaps you should market to flag companies. + +Really- they exist- literally in every country on the planet. I’ve bought a few fixtures from my local one. + +Did you ever wonder who schools and embassies and government departments buy their flags and flagpoles from? They don’t drop down from the sky. Flag companies. B2B sales. It goes on every day without anybody noticing because … it’s not trendy. + +Your pitch: + +_Dear Rosehill Flags,_ + +_From the moment I first created my own crest, as a mere child of five, I have been enamored by the world of vexillology._ + +_My connection now encompasses more than 500 flags, including every member state of the UN, hobbyist designs, and some of my own output. But whenever a flag catches my eye, I still feel that same childish energy that first magnetized me to this vital field that dignifies states and officials with the protocol befitting their stature. There’s something about the sight of our nation’s flag fluttering in the breeze that sets my heart on fire. Still._ + +_As you can tell, I’m also a writer. A vexillological verse-spinner. And I couldn’t help but notice that you have never created a blog! Did you know that if you did you could be reaching X many more views per month? My flag fanaticism. Your blog blackhole. They could do great things. Together. As one._ + +_I’m enclosing a photograph of me and my latest design which I’ve also had couriered to your office. I know all about flags, flag brackets, and I think there’s a lot that could be said about how symbolism is still relevant even in this pressured era._ + +_Regards,_ + +_Daniel._ + +You get the idea. + +How may cold pitches are you likely to be competing against? Maybe none! + +At the least, my experience has been that people who have weird hobbies — flags hasn’t been my only pit-stop — love to hear from other oddbods. + +Creating a human to human connection is easier when it’s blatantly obvious that you really care about and get what the business is doing. + +Generally, true subject matter expertise is hard if not impossible to fake. + +So companies can distinguish pretty easily between wannabees who are targeting a niche because it’s “hot” and those who are generally interested in the space. + +You may think that you’re managing to “convince” your pitch list that you care about IoT. + +But if you actually don’t, you’re probably actually fooling nobody. + +Some more ideas for people you could pitch and get yourself to the front of a very short or non-existent queue: + + * Whatever other weird hobbies you have that you know not many people are into. I used to be really into Turkish coffee which is still kind of the undiscovered gem of the coffee world. + * Fertilization solutions. + * Indispensable medical devices. + * A good one: aspects of the technology world that are slow-moving and don’t tend to be flooded with discourse about surface-level developments by very eager startups. Networking is, in my opinion, a great example. The move from IPV4 to IPV6 but vitally important. Ditto the 5G rollout or When stuff really matters to billions of people in the world, the ecosystems that surround them tend to actually be quite slow-moving. Slow-moving is good. It means stable. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Some-great-workstations-from--r-battlestations.md b/posts/medium/Some-great-workstations-from--r-battlestations.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8419bbe62d65a471607f552a00609dc4eea928e3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Some-great-workstations-from--r-battlestations.md @@ -0,0 +1,132 @@ +# Some great workstations from /r/battlestations + +Whether you’re into Reddit or not, if you’re a multimonitor fan then you’ve probably come across the [/r/battlestations](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/) subreddit. + +[/r/battlestations](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/) + +It’s the subreddit where gamers, day traders, and just about anybody else with an elaborate computer setup comes to post pictures of their ‘battlestation’ — which in normal / non-gamer parlance translates to ‘workstation’ (the ‘battle’ appendage refers to the fact that these workstations are often used for gaming). + +As I’m always interested in improving my home office setup, I’ve spent quite a bit of time there drawing inspiration from other enthusiasts’ configurations. + +[I even posted my own](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/e6ipbx/my_current_battlestation_feedback_welcome/) for feedback (I’ve no idea why I don’t keep my monitors together, but my desk could probably still use a tidy!) + +My Google Photos ‘stash’ + +I’ve been following this subreddit so closely, in fact, that I’ve even stashed a selection of my favorites in Google Photos — and used [MixBook.com](http://www.mixbook.com) to order a photo album of some of them! + +To give you a flavor of what’s in store (warning, the subreddit is weirdly addictive), here are some favorites. + +Check them out — and get ready to plan your next upgrade! + +### ‘Serenity’ + +[**Source**](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/bx4csz/i_call_itserenity/) + +I _love_ the massively wide table that this guy (or girl) has position on three trellises and its polished appearance (it’s described as a 12ft American walnut butcher block desk — that’s _3.66 meters!_) + +My first workstation table was a humble [Linnmon / Adils combo from IKEA](https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/linnmon-adils-table-white-s29932181/) — which worked great until the table started warping and the mount looked like it was ready to burst through the table at any moment! + +I swapped it out for a 200 x 75 cm chunk of solid wood which I bought in a local DIY store and it’s been rock solid ever since. + +But this desk, at more than three and a half meters, puts mine to shame! + +### ‘My Music / Gaming Room’ + +[**Source**](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/85ikwj/my_music_gaming_room/) + +This Redditor says that he “owns a travel agency and works as a real estate photographer.” + +But judging by the post title, acoustic paneling, and mixer on the desk he is into audio production too! + +Although there’s no evidence of natural light, which I would find offputting, I love how spacious this setup looks. + +My home office has several of these components (couch, light, desk, speakers) but is cramped into about a quarter the size (at most). + +Down with tiny Jerusalem apartments! + +### What Am I Looking At Exactly? + +[**Source**](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/8d2496/48core_3drendering_workstation_w_triple_4k/) + +This setup is described by the poster as a “48 core 3D rendering workstation with triple 4K [monitors]” + +The poster describes himself as a “3D artist” and adds that “the programs used are very demanding” — necessitating separate machines for various stages of the workflow. + +But what’s with that ….. exposed computer mounted to the wall you may be wondering? + +The poster says that the three computers are “all connected to the main rig (desktop) on the bottom right.” + +It’s not clear whether the poster uses a KVM, [Synergy](https://symless.com/synergy), or both to toggle the input sources. + +But …. if you’re doing this, [you should buy yourself some KVM switches](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=kvm+switch&ref=nb_sb_noss_2) …. and pay for a Synergy license, which is well worth the investment. + +### Battlestation With A (High-Rise) View + +[**Source**](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/9onzkl/my_battlestation_at_night/)**1 /**[**Source 2**](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/c5z0pa/who_needs_rgb_when_the_city_does_it_for_you/) + +I absolutely _love_ dense urban planning and skyscrapers. I find something oddly comforting about being surrounded by tall buildings and signs of vibrant urban life. Maybe it’s the feeling of anonymity it provides? The feeling of being part of something big, like a huge metropolis? + +Whatever the answer to that, I can think of nothing better than working in a room with a view like this. + +That’s Atlanta, Georgia, by the way in the first picture and Long Island City in the second. + +### … Or A View of Nature + +[Source](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/6ftplm/views/) 1 / [Source 2](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/9ygc3n/three_ultrawides_over_the_park/) + +If high-rises don’t do it for you, then perhaps this beautiful scenery would? + +**Location 1:** Traverse City, Michigan. **Location 2:** Atlanta (again) surprisingly. + +### Two is Better Than One + +[**Source**](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/74wv5p/a_week_after_i_move_out_my_dad_has_taken_over_my/) + +[This post](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/74wv5p/a_week_after_i_move_out_my_dad_has_taken_over_my/) was entitled “A week after I move out, my Dad has taken over my old room.” + +I think this guy’s dad strikes a nice balance between modern workstation and old school charm — mechanical keyboard enthusiasts will immediately spot the IBM Model M on the right. + +What impressed me more, though, was the comfortable L-shaped desk and the fact that the guy has set up two different computers on either side of it. + +Once I have more home office square footage to play around with I would _love_ to set up a distraction-free non-internet-connected secondary desktop/laptop whose sole purpose is for capturing drafts. + +### Battlestation With A View (And A Bed To Crash In!) + +[**Source**](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/cfhx16/battlestation_with_a_view/)**1** + +[**Source 2**](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/ex7fg8/making_it_work_with_what_ive_got_doctors/)****(a doctor’s lodgings in a hospital) + +Another weird future aspiration of mine: rent an office with a bed in it! + +This looks like the poster’s apartment but — besides being surrounded by skyscrapers — how nice is it to roll into bed after a grueling day’s work? + +Okay, probably not the healthiest or most work-life-balance-friendly option out there but if this guy or girl has to pass out the sofa bed is waiting! + +### The Him and Her Option + +[**Source**](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/dcqu1v/finally_finished_mine_and_my_girlfriends_setup/) + +Him-and-her battlestations are another recurrent theme on /r/battlestations., particularly among the gaming crowd which makes up the vast majority of the posters. + +This one is a little too heavy on the RGB (artificial lighting) for my liking, but otherwise it looks like a cozy setup. + +You know what they say — couples that battlestation together stay together! + +### Take Your Battlestation On The Road + +[Source](https://www.reddit.com/r/battlestations/comments/boyhww/had_to_temporarily_move_into_an_rv_but_i_fit_my/) + +I’ve yet to experience life (truly) on the road. + +But if this can be fit comfortably into a camper van, then I’m all in. + +### Some More Battlestation-Related Content From Me + +If you’ve enjoyed this post then consider checking out: + + * [GPUs with six and more outputs](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/graphics-cards-gpus-that-support-six-and-more-outputs-a1322cfca9b2?source=---------2------------------) + * [My Meandering Guide to VESA Mounts](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-meandering-guide-to-vesa-monitor-mounts-dc5a4a1b500f) + +### Corrections, Clarifications + +If you’re the proud owner of one of these workstations and I got something wrong, or you have another need to get in touch, [please do so here.](http://www.danielrosehill.co.il) diff --git a/posts/medium/Some-of-my-favorite-words-in-the-English-language.md b/posts/medium/Some-of-my-favorite-words-in-the-English-language.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0120c51fb291544c4d44423aecd2c4c3e27e53ab --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Some-of-my-favorite-words-in-the-English-language.md @@ -0,0 +1,111 @@ +# Some of my favorite words in the English language + +#### Despite the vicissitudes of the day, I managed to pull together this post. Please spare it your opprobrium. + +Like many writers, I am also a logophile. And like most logophiles, my love of words is an inequitable one. In other words, I have my favorites. + +The list of these is ever evolving. Amazon’s Kindle — which is always either by my bedside or in my satchel — has a wonderful feature by which the device remembers your dictionary lookups (it doesn’t even require an active data connection to store these). Thus, by periodically reviewing this, the list keeps growing as I encounter new words from different authors. + +Compared to my adopted second language — Modern Hebrew, I live in Israel — English has a remarkably diverse lexicon. + +Estimates vary, but by some (Webster) there are 470,000 words in English. Modern Hebrew, by comparison, has only 33,000 words. The difference, needless to say, is more than 10-fold. + +Practically speaking, the result of this is that it’s not uncommon for words in Modern Hebrew to serve triple or even quadruple uses — similar to the way in which _makolets_(convenience stores) often serve as _de facto_ nightlife venues and bars and lotto stands all rolled into one. Such is life in Israel. + +דחוף (dahuf), for instance, can be used to indicate that a matter is pressing. But it’s also the standard verbiage affixed to door signs indicating that pulling is not the expected way to open the door. Which makes sense occasionally like when you feel an urgent need to bail on a boring event. But at other times, particularly for one not accustomed to the dynamic, working with a more constrictive lexicon can be a little bewildering. + +Old habits being that, I love the nuance that English’s comparative wealth of words create. It’a also the language that I write in most days. + +Some that stand out as favorites include these: + +### Opprobrium — harsh rebuke + +Use of the word opprobrium over time. Source: Google Trends + +Even looking at the relatively recent graph provided by Google Trends, one can see that usage of the word opprobrium seems to be in slow decline. If the time frame were extrapolated to centuries past, the decline would undoubtedly be far more dramatic (most references to the word I have encountered are from around the time of Dickens). + +According to Merriam-Webster, the first definition of opprobrium is “something that brings disgrace.” + +Unsurprisingly given its ending, the Online Etymology Dictionary (etymoline.com) confirms that the word owes its origins to Latin. + +Its adjective is opprobrious, although this is heard even more seldomly than its noun counterpart. + +If a proposal or suggestion is described as being met with opprobrium — or an opprobrious reaction, which means essentially the same thing — then you know that it really rubbed people up the wrong way. + +Saying that something was met with disgust oddly doesn’t seem to capture quite the same level of repugnance that this residue from Latin does. There’s also something oddly powerful about the word’s obvious foreign origin. + +Sample everyday usage for the modern obscure word-loving man: _“When I suggested to Cynthia that she come back to my place for drinks, her friend cast an opprobrious look in my direction that said nothing — but spoke volumes.”_ + +### Mandarin — a bureaucratic clerk + +Although it’s not listed on my resume — for the tenure was too short — one of my employment stints in Israel was as a part time copy editor at _The Jerusalem Post,_ the country’s best-known English language broadsheet newspaper. + +There I was responsible for heeding the dictates of the IDF military censor so as not to spill military secrets out to the great unwashed masses of the newspaper-buying public (I kid. Sort of). And fact-checking and all the other things that copy editors — the unsung heroes of the newspaper business — get up to. + +One of my crowning achievements, during that brief but glorious time, was succeeding in managing to slip a reference to the word ‘mandarin’ past the watchful gaze of my line editor — who was generally not fond of sharing obscure words with the paper’s readership. + +Not only did I succeed in possibly introducing this fantastic word to at least a _few_ readers in Israel — one can only hope — I managed to couple that with a touch of alliteration. + +Google bears evidence to a sentence that I authored affirming that _“the military mandarin said that bureaucratic haggling is occurring between the Finance Ministry and the IDF.”_ + +As students of the orient can probably guess, this somewhat pejorative word for a low-level bureaucrat — these days sadly fairly seldomly encountered — owes its origins to Ancient China. + +The Online Etymology Dictionary (etymoline.com — well worth bookmarking) traces its origins back to the middle ages and derives the appellation, in turn, from Portuguese and older Dutch. + +The next time your driving license application is behind held up at the DMZ, you have my permission to consider the fact that a “malevolent mandarin” may be at fault for the hold-up. + +### Vicissitudes — the ups and downs of life + +While some are fond of the fact that Modern Hebrew has a narrow lexicon — there’s something about the baldness of the language that they find appealing — the existence of words like vicissitude demonstrates, for me, why words with narrow meaning are wonderful. Some would argue, in fact, that a language can never have too many words. + +Mirriam-Webster, in its second definition for the word, calls a vicissitude, in the singular, “a favorable or unfavorable event or situation that occurs by chance.” It gives as a sample usage the one that I would reflexively reach for if asked in which context I would use this word: “the vicissitudes of daily life.” + +Life is full of vicissitudes, you know. But oddly, I find that having a precise term with which to reference them helps dealing with them just a little — even if the word is essentially an anachronism. + +Also wonderful and worthy of inclusion _en passant_ : tumultuous. + +“Despite the vicissitudes of the day and his tumultuous mood, Daniel found time to write another post on Medium. + +### To condescend (archaic meaning) + +Sometimes, despite the best efforts of anoraks like me (British English: an enthusiast) words fall out of use entirely. + +Like the dinosaurs, they lamentably go by the wayside and can be found only in the kind of tomes that only the most dedicated of logophiles keep on their shelves. + +At other times, their meanings change. Or rather, older meanings are lost to history. + +Condescend is one such word. + +The Cambridge dictionary provides an entry for “condescend to do something.” Its definition is: _“if you condescend to do something, you agree to do something that you do not consider to be good enough for your situation.”_ + +These days, of course, one doesn’t hear condescend used much as anything other than a negative adjective. One who is supercilious, or who looks down on others, is often described as having a ‘condescending attitude.” + +But in days gone by (mostly, the use is still somewhat current) to condescend had a somewhat favorable meaning. Example: “despite her busy schedule, Mr. Daniel condescended to meet our group.” A better one:_“despite the fact that I was attired but in scruffy shorts and a t-shirt, the bouncer condescended to permit me entry to the nightclub.”_ + +Oddly — as an old teacher once told me — ‘present’ has gone through a similar morphology. + +These days, present is regarded as virtually synonymous with ‘current’. But in older times, ‘present’ indicated a time in the near future. “I will attend dinner presently” meant that one would shortly attend dinner — rather than that one was already there. + +### Ullaged — a bottle that is partially empty + +Many moons ago, while wandering through an airport book store in London, I stumbled upon a wonderful piece of authorship entitled _The Bluffer’s Guide To Wine._ + +Not only was this a superlatively useful book, it was part of an excellent series whose stated aim was to equip readers with the bare minimum level of knowledge to appear passively competent in a given subject at, say a dinner party. It has served me ever since.For those interested, the Bluffer’s Guide series can be found on Amazon and elsewhere. + +This esteemed piece of authorship — which has imbued with me just enough knowledge to impress wine snobs ever since I read it — introduced me to the word ‘ullaged’. + +Mirriam Webster states its definition as _“the amount that a container (such as a tank or a cask) lacks of being full.”_ Think, for a moment, about the vast implications for this worthy appellation. Particularly for those surrounded by those imbibing. + +The next time you’re at a dinner party and you see a half-empty bottle of wine — perhaps residing next to a somewhat inebriated guest (another great word!), perhaps not — you have my encouragement to cast a knowing glance across the table, pick up the bottle, and remark nonchalantly, _“ah, slightly ullaged I see.”_ + +Words are wonderful things. + +And our lives are enriched by the presence of the more obscure ones among them. + +### Honorable Mentions + + _Desirous_ — one who wishes for something. Sample usage: “despite the late hour and the preceding pub crawl I had engaged in, I found myself desirous for one more beer.” + + _Exigencies —_ needs. “In spite of the exigencies of my lofty position as a freelance writer, I managed to find time to write this blog post.” + +Also: too many others to truthfully fit into one post. diff --git a/posts/medium/Speedify-Review--Ubuntu-Linux-GUI-.md b/posts/medium/Speedify-Review--Ubuntu-Linux-GUI-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..88599599d1b206e707b702fd4cb1ddfb1d32904d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Speedify-Review--Ubuntu-Linux-GUI-.md @@ -0,0 +1,36 @@ +# Speedify Review (Ubuntu Linux GUI) + +#### Seamless failovers — albeit on a device-level centric platform + +For the past couple of months, I’ve been making various tweaks to my home networking setup in order to not just improve our weak ISP connectivity but also create a truly business-grade highly-stable connection that can serve me for years into the future. + +If you want to read about all my adventures — and the differences between bonding, load balancing, and simple failover — then feel free to check out the list I aggregated: + +What I discovered is roughly as follows: + +It’s relatively easy to purchase a wired internet router to manage multiple internet connectivity sources (WANs). (Look among the following product categories: load balancing routers, wired routers, business routers; or look for products by Cisco, Draytek, TP-Link, Ubiqui and MikroTik). + +My TP-Link load balancer handles “real” failover events flawlessly, shifting connectivity onto my 4G cellular backup line and then bringing it back once my ISP connection has recovered. + +However, there have been two flaws in terms of how it has performed in the month that has gone by since I first set it up: + +The system didn’t perform very well during those days when my ISP line was struggling under the demands of increased demand — weekends for instance — and when it wasn’t _offline_ but rather _intermittently useful_. + + * The TP-Link load balancer also didn’t know how to distinguish between a connection that was _weak_ and one that was _offline_. + * Failover — from ISP to cellular and back — consistently took about 30 seconds. I attribute this to delays at the application layer. Programs — like web browsers — aren’t used to flicking back and forth between connectivity sources. + +When I bonded my connections using Speedify, the program effectively solved all these issues: + + * **Failover events are effectively instantaneous.** Speedify describes these as “seamless” and they truly are. Once multiple connections are bonded into one pipe, applications are able to avail of the sustained connectivity without any interruption whatsoever. + * **The system did a much better job at providing sustained connectivity during those “bad internet” days when my ISP’s connection was coming in and out.** By configuring my cellular failover line as both a failover WAN and a secondary “booster” I was able to not only rely upon the 4G line for failover, I was able to use its bandwidth to supplement my ISP line. + +Speedify however brings with it a couple of drawbacks: + + * **Its main intended use case seems to be as a device level program.** Speedify will run on an Ubuntu router or on Raspberry Pi OS but it doesn’t currently support Open-WRT or DD-WRT. + * **Because true channel bonding requires provisioning a hardware appliance in the cloud to order packets, using Speedify means entrusting your data protection, to an extent, to a third party.** I’ve made the point before that no VPN — or anybody you can’t directly audit! — can be considered totally trustworthy. + +More pragmatically, when connecting through Speedify, I experience some of the typical behaviors that can be expected when using a VPN. Reddit began throwing up post-rate limits. Google began showing me suspicious activity interstitials. And I wouldn’t be surprised if Netflix began rejecting connection attempts via Speedify down the line. + +On the positive side, the Ubuntu GUI worked perfectly and integrated seamlessly with network manager. As soon as I brought connections up they appeared in the GUI and vice versa. + +Bonding my ISP connection with my cellular router. Screenshot: author.Speedify lets you use your connection sources in multiple ways. For instance, you can use a server for failover only or configure it to both handle failover and provide a bandwidth increase during normal operation. Screenshot: author. diff --git a/posts/medium/Startup-Marketers--Stop-Calling-Yourself--Growth-Hackers---It-s-Making-Us-All-Look-Bad-.md b/posts/medium/Startup-Marketers--Stop-Calling-Yourself--Growth-Hackers---It-s-Making-Us-All-Look-Bad-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5fdaadfd8ac33559e695e2f858f01029a9f9f3e0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Startup-Marketers--Stop-Calling-Yourself--Growth-Hackers---It-s-Making-Us-All-Look-Bad-.md @@ -0,0 +1,70 @@ +# Startup Marketers, Stop Calling Yourself “Growth Hackers.” It’s Making Us All Look Bad. + +#### Claiming that there is a way to “hack” marketing is every bit as damaging to mainstream marketers as companies looking for “ninjas” or “rockstars” in a difficult field + +A lesson lost on many growth hackers and their advocates: playing a game of cat and mouse with major tech companies typically only leads to one result: big tech winning. Photo by [Lukas](https://www.pexels.com/@goumbik?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-blue-and-clear-ballpoint-pen-590022/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Opening up my LinkedIn feed today, I came across this post from Sofie Segercrantz who (at the time I’m writing this) is the Performance Marketing Lead at Supermetrics. + +Sofie posted the following: + +> Stop trying to hire marketing ninjas/rockstars/wizard/gurus instead of managers/strategists/specialists/coordinators. To me, **these” fun” titles show that the companies using them don’t see marketing as a vital business unit but a flighty art and crafts department. They also signal that the company doesn’t really know what tasks the role will entail and/or that the pay is on the smaller side.** Or do the same companies also hire law superstars, human resource ninjas, and finance wizards? AND while you’re at it, stop trying to make one person have all the skills and tasks of a mid-sized marketing agency. + +Although I never know whether LinkedIn echo chambers actually have any possibility of changing thinking beyond the people who already (the people who needed to read this post: many small startup founders) I welcomed the opportunity to click the like button. + +I would never even think about responding to a job post looking for a “rockstar” (or permutation thereof) for precisely the reason that Sofie outlined: it’s a strong indicator that the company doesn’t take (or pay) marketing seriously. + +And in a field in which even specialized content marketers can easily find themselves grossly underpaid, it’s important to steer clear of the less productive parts of the market. That’s self-preservation. + +[**Why I’ve Stopped Identifying As A ‘Freelance Writer’ — Or A Writer At All** + _Why I (Sadly) No Longer Think Freelance Writing Is A Good Space To Be In_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb) + +I added my own two cents also. + +**Growth marketing is problematic because it’s often us marketers using the appellation to describe what we do and creating the fiction that most conventional marketing is a bloated waste of time and budget.** + +Much like freelance writers who affirm that writing is easy and a boatload of low volume churn can be produced for almost no budget and time, when we assert to the world that there’s an offshoot of our professional that is dedicated to “hacking” growth, we further the notion that marketing as a whole just isn’t the valuable. + +### What Growth Hacking Tells Non-Marketers About Marketing + +Growth hacking succeeds in communicating the following to non-marketers about marketing. + +And everybody who works in marketing ends up dealing with the fallout from the kind of mistaken expectations that these ideas convey: + + * **Growth is something that can be hacked and doing so is a sustainable alternative to traditional marketing.** Let’s start with the fundamental flaw at the heart of the growth hacking title. If one of marketing’s core duties is to pave the way for growth, then “growth hackers” tell anybody who doesn’t want to pay marketers properly that there’s a cheaper way to buy the value they can contribute. You can buy the real software or the pirated version. For those who simply want quick results at low cost — and that’s a prevalent breed in the startup sector — growth hacking sounds like an instantly appealing proposition. Those hiring full time growth hackers are presumably putting their trust in growth hacking as a long term value-add to their businesses. Otherwise, they’re looking at growth hacking as a Band Aid solution to marketing that’s underperforming. Either way troublesome information is being conveyed about how the business views marketing (it requires quick fixes or can be “hacked at” indefinitely). Here’s the truth about marketing. Working on the marketing communications and public relations side of the divide, I know that true value takes a long time to build up. But I see it as investing — for brands. Suggesting that a miscellaneous assortment of algorithm-circuiting hacks (in my experience, what most “growth hacking” amounts to) to replace that activity is encouraging short term thinking. + * **It tells non-marketers that isn’t a serious field.** If you required brain surgery, would you consider subjecting yourself to surgery at the hands of a non-doctor who had watched a few YouTube videos and described himself as a “brain hacker” (literally!). The surgeon might affirm that he or she had concluded that most of the ways in which formal brain surgeons had learned to apply their knowledge were over the top and unnecessary and that with a few quick “hacks” the same results could be achieved for far less time and money. You wouldn’t. You’d likely regard that as ridiculous hubris and I would agree with you. It’s probably a good idea to assume that anybody who has dedicated a career to working in a field knows enough about it to have come across the various “hacks” as they are developed and promulgated by their enthusiasts. Occasionally, we might recommend them to our clients as non-traditional approaches with attendant shortcomings. But we also have the basis of knowledge to typically affirm that focusing on short term gimmicks isn’t the right way to build long term value. When there’s an entire pool of marketers out there trumpeting this field, the results feed back to everybody working in the field. + +“Growth hacking” isn’t a replacement for marketing. + +At best, in my experience, it’s a loosely defined catch-all used to described a series of “tricks” that represent nothing more than temporary ways the industrious have devised to “get ahead” of things like social algorithms. + +A (bad) go to market plan for those who are obsessed with quick results? That’s a lot more accurate than calling it a career, in my opinion. + +The gaps growth marketers exploit are almost inevitably closed and in a cat game of cat and mouse with major tech the growth hackers will almost never emerge victorious. + +Predicating a go to market upon non-owned platforms and things you have no control over (other people’s algorithms) is typically bad strategic sense too. + +[**Where Should I Create My Business Content: Blog, Website, Or Social Media?** +_A quick rule for where to post your content on the internet_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe) + +### More Thoughts On Adopting A Long Term Approach And Mindset To Marketing + +[**Inbound Marketing Is Investing — For Brand-Builders** + _When you think about, developing inbound collateral and investing in financial vehicles have a lot in common_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03) + +[**Inbound Marketing —And How It Goes Where Outbound Can’t** + _There’s one less frequently discussed benefit of inbound: it can dredge up leads in places that, for many…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7) + +[**Inbound Marketing: Why Human Minds Are Often The Biggest Enemy To Its Success** + _The biggest impediment to getting the ROI you’re after from inbound … might actually be you and your brain_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-why-human-minds-are-often-the-biggest-enemy-to-its-success-55a479c908bf "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-why-human-minds-are-often-the-biggest-enemy-to-its-success-55a479c908bf")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-why-human-minds-are-often-the-biggest-enemy-to-its-success-55a479c908bf) + +### The Difference Between A Mature Approach To Growth And Growth Hacking — Worth A Watch + +Intercom’s Growth Team Director Ben McRedmond and Stephen O’Brien (Engineering Manager) do a refreshing and excellent job of contrasting an actual systematic approach to user growth with “growth hacking” to help elucidate the differences. + +The above is my slightly toned down version of the title (toned down because I have some self-proclaimed “growth hackers” in my professional network and this is my attempt to reduce collateral damage). + +If you want to get a mature perspective on why — as the title suggests — growth hacking is by and large a silly field for short term thinkers (and companies who don’t understand the value of mature approaches to marketing), it’s highly worth a watch and listen (there’s also a transcript for those who would rather consume the discussion in textual format). + +[**Growth Hacking is BS: Lessons from Intercom | Heavybit** + _Growth hacking is often cited as a resource-effective way to build reach and digital presence, but is it all it's…_ www.heavybit.com](https://www.heavybit.com/library/video/growth-hacking-is-bs/ "https://www.heavybit.com/library/video/growth-hacking-is-bs/")[](https://www.heavybit.com/library/video/growth-hacking-is-bs/) diff --git a/posts/medium/Statement-regarding-my-ghostwritten-and-pseudonymed-books.md b/posts/medium/Statement-regarding-my-ghostwritten-and-pseudonymed-books.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..638c3f332ae48d052da55bba5a73fae8fd7d0fa1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Statement-regarding-my-ghostwritten-and-pseudonymed-books.md @@ -0,0 +1,29 @@ +# Statement regarding my ghostwritten and pseudonymed books + +#### Why I Will Not Be Responding To Attempts At Blackmail + +Pseudonym publishing is something I support and will continue to + +For the past five years, I have been working as a freelance writer + +As part of my professional activities, I have ghostwritten several books on behalf of clients. The books I have written to date have been in the following genres: mental health; biography; business/innovation. To date, I have not accepted coauthoring credit for any books that I have ghostwritten. Thus, my involvement with the projects I have undertaken to date is, in effect, invisible. + +Additionally, I have published a number of books, via Amazon, under a pseudonym. The books are in the genre: Jewish history and current affairs. + +Over the past several months, I have become an outspoken supporter of pen name publishing. It should be pointed out that publishing under a pen name — even one backed by an online identity — does not contravene Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP’s) terms of service. + +I believe that pen name publishing fulfills an extremely important function in today’s literary landscape. + +Among other uses, pen names allow indie authors to avoid using their real name when it may not be safe, prudent, or otherwise advisable to do. Pen names can also be used to protect the identity of both whistleblowers and their sources. Thus, I believe it is fair to say that pen names help achieve a societal good that is in the public interest. + +I therefore commend Amazon on their decision to support pseudonym publishing through KDP. I also continue to provide professional advice to clients upon the possibility of publishing under a pen name and the legal and copyright implications of such a decision. + +**In order to maintain the viability of any pen names I have used in the past or may in the future, I will not — now or ever — be _responding_ to public attempts to associate me with a pen name and/or supporting identity.** + +This is partially to maintain the integrity of the pseudonyms for future use and partially because — in order to support other authors publishing through pseudonyms — I do not wish to create a precedent of acknowledging a pen name in response to pressure. + +Likewise, unless I accept coauthoring credit, in order to protect the anonymity of my clients, I do not publicly comment upon book ghostwriting projects that I have been involved in. + +If I ever choose to disclose a pen name I have used, or book (co)authorship, I will be making that disclosure voluntarily and not in response to attempts at blackmail or public pressure. + +ENDS diff --git a/posts/medium/Storrs--CT--Verdant--Small--And-With-A-Surprising-Appetite-For-Ethnic-Food.md b/posts/medium/Storrs--CT--Verdant--Small--And-With-A-Surprising-Appetite-For-Ethnic-Food.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..725838d21cf645915038a4b2f0133f642e17863c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Storrs--CT--Verdant--Small--And-With-A-Surprising-Appetite-For-Ethnic-Food.md @@ -0,0 +1,92 @@ +# Storrs, CT: Verdant, Small, And With A Surprising Appetite For Ethnic Food + +#### A Connecticut village home to the University of Connecticut — and three Indian takeaways + +This summer, I spent a few weeks travelling around the US — visiting in-laws, trying to avoid catching the plague, and, as befitting any tourist spending time outside of Israel, purchasing as many Amazon orders as could be compacted into a suitcase. + +Amazon is so incredible that you can overnight signage to coordinate delivery of more Amazon orders. Photo: author. + +Along the way we managed to spent a few days in Storrs — which was the first time in my life I set foot within the State of Connecticut (the previous extent of my knowledge: it’s small and located somewhat close to New York. My knowledge now: there’s lots of grass and Storrs is in the state). + +After a few days plodding through New York City, my wife and I took the Amtrak to Hartford. And arrived in … “the insurance capital of the world” (note for future travels: in 2016, Aer Lingus began serving Hartford ex. Dublin but the route — like so many others — appears to have frosted over into a permanent COVID hiatus). + +From there, it was a short half hour drive to Storrs — a census designated place (CDP) best known for being home to the University of Connecticut (referred to by locals almost always as ‘Uconn’), being named after two brothers called Storrs and not for its abundance of commercial premises, and… apparently housing a bewilderingly large variety of ethnic restaurants for a village of scarcely 16,000 people. + +Storrs, although tiny, seems to be graced with a disproportionate selection of ethnic food. Above: some of the excellent fare available at Kathmanndu, which includes a wide selection of Indian dishes with distinctive Nepalese spicing. Photo: author. + +Storrs — somewhat like Cork, Ireland, where I grew up — is very much a university town. + +Its population of permanent residents is swelled by the ranks of students studying there. Uconn began as an agricultural school and its prospectus still has a strong focus on agriculture and the environmental sciences. + +[**List of UConn Majors | The Major Experience** + _How can you know which major is right for you if you don't know what's available? Below, you will find a complete list…_ tme.uconn.edu](https://tme.uconn.edu/explore-majors/list/ "https://tme.uconn.edu/explore-majors/list/")[](https://tme.uconn.edu/explore-majors/list/) + +Unfortunately, Storrs wasn’t exactly brimming with life during our five day stay in town. + +Uconn was out of session, Storrs is tiny anyway, and — minus a few students holding what sounded like riotous house parties — there didn’t seem to be much of anything much a-do. + +On the positive side of things: Although undoubtedly small and cosy, Storrs _is_ located within a short drive of lots of natural attractions. + +Worth a visit: Codfish falls, who unusual name apparently owes its origin to a tall tale once circulated by fisherman staying out drinking. Also apparently worth a visit: Willmantic, which Connecticut-based students hype as Storrs’ more exciting southern neighbor. + +Other things to do in Storrs? + +Storrs is apparently also home to a puppet museum (the [Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry](https://bimp.uconn.edu/))! + +While their staff did their utmost to facilitate a visit outside of their normal opening hours (my pitch: I have a tiny YouTube channel and would like to film your puppets) the itineraries unfortunately didn’t match up. Alongside visiting Willmantic, it’s on my list of places to check out next time. + +Absent those delights, I fell back on two categories of business that I’m always interested in checking out virtually regardless of where I find myself on this planet: places to sample craft beer and Indian food. + +While I didn’t have much luck in the former category (TOAST, at Four Corners, seemed like the best option but their hours of operation were limited), I did manage to find a surprisingly full-hearted variety of ethnic food for a town of Storrs’ diminutive size. + +Kathmandu, an India/Nepalese hybrid located in Storrs’ small downtown, is worth checking out. + +For a town that seems small on the surface, Storrs seems to be home to a surprising amount of drama — if Heather Lake’s reportage in The Chronicle are anything to go by. + +[**Courtney Talks Infrastructure In Mansfield** + _September 20, 2021 U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, met with Mansfield officials Thursday to discuss bipartisan…_ patch.com](https://patch.com/connecticut/mansfield/courtney-talks-infrastructure-mansfield "https://patch.com/connecticut/mansfield/courtney-talks-infrastructure-mansfield")[](https://patch.com/connecticut/mansfield/courtney-talks-infrastructure-mansfield) + +The relationship between Uconn and Mansfield County has sometimes proven testy. Currently, Mansfield Mayor Antonia Moran is pushing for funding that would greatly improve pedestrian access along Route 195, which runs through the town. + +Uconn’s plans to buy up land at the bustling Four Corners commercial crossroads has also drawn the ire of some residents who fear what the sprawling web of campus accommodation might mean for the town’s future. + +#### **Fun Storrs Fact** + + _Slate Magazine_ bestowed upon Storrs the dubious honor of being the best place in the US to take shelter in during a natural disaster. + +Which makes total sense. + +Besides an unrelenting supply of Amazon deliveries and food and water, Indian food and beer are just about everything anybody needs to stay happy. + +[**Where to hide from Mother Nature.** +_Human beings are self-absorbed creatures, so the response to Hurricane Katrina has naturally included some…_ slate.com](https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2005/09/where-to-hide-from-mother-nature.html "https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2005/09/where-to-hide-from-mother-nature.html")[](https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2005/09/where-to-hide-from-mother-nature.html) + +#### What To Do And See + +The University of Connecticut + +[**University of Connecticut** + _It's simple enough - UConn is a great university. But it's more than that. A top-ranked research institution, campuses…_ uconn.edu](https://uconn.edu/ "https://uconn.edu/")[](https://uconn.edu/) + +Codfish Falls + +[**Codfish Falls - Connecticut** + _RATING: 2.5 / 5.0 stars (Good) (see below for larger image and additional photographs) STATE: Connecticut COUNTY…_ newenglandwaterfalls.com](https://newenglandwaterfalls.com/ct-codfishfalls.html "https://newenglandwaterfalls.com/ct-codfishfalls.html")[](https://newenglandwaterfalls.com/ct-codfishfalls.html) + +#### **Where To Drink** + +Toast at Four Corners + +[**Breakfast And Lunch - Toast, Four Corners, inc. - Storrs, Mansfield** + _Located in Storrs-Mansfield, CT, TOAST, Four Corners is "your cornerstone to great food!" Our breads and muffins are…_ www.toastfourcorners.com](http://www.toastfourcorners.com/ "http://www.toastfourcorners.com/")[](http://www.toastfourcorners.com/) + +Huskies’ Tavern — named after Uconn’s athletic teams + +[**Home - Huskies Tavern** + _Edit description_ huskiesbar.com](http://huskiesbar.com/tavern/ "http://huskiesbar.com/tavern/")[](http://huskiesbar.com/tavern/) + +#### Where To .. Find Indian Food + +Kathmandu Kitchen and Bar + +Wing’s Express diff --git a/posts/medium/Synology-DS920--Unboxing-and-Setup-Photos.md b/posts/medium/Synology-DS920--Unboxing-and-Setup-Photos.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ee47abf28a68f65d52ef6631cc159b322b3bf5c3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Synology-DS920--Unboxing-and-Setup-Photos.md @@ -0,0 +1,114 @@ +# Synology DS920+ Unboxing and Setup Photos + +#### This Uninitiated User’s First Thoughts on Everything NAS and Synology + +[All unboxing photos](https://imgur.com/a/cIvCO4V) / [Spec sheet](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/06/Synology_DS920_Plus_Data_Sheet_enu.pdf) + +After putting the NAS through a mandatory quarantine period (the poor guy came all the way from Taiwan to the Middle East), the unboxing and reviewing process for the DS920+ I received from Synology last week is finally underway. + +Bear in mind, firstly, that I’m a total but unashamed noob when it comes to all things NAS. + +My local server deployments have historically consisted of breathing life into old laptops by having them redeployed as staging servers running Ubuntu. A family member’s old laptop once hosted an on-prem CRM install for a (then) tiny startup. It now trades internationally. Ergo don’t diss it — the DIY approach can lead to big things (no proprietary software required). + +As to why I’ve never really considered adding an NAS to my network: That’s partially because my needs for storing things locally beyond my desktop could best be described as modest or more honestly be called virtually non-existent. + +I don’t game. I don’t do much in the way of video editing. And I’ve always preferred streaming to downloading content (legally of course, ahem). + +Additionally, as a technology writer I work on mostly lightweight things like word documents that can be skirted back and forth to the cloud in milliseconds. And — because I think this is the easiest way of achieving cross-platform compatibility with those pesky Windows people — I try to do everything that I can on places like Google Docs. It beats a LibreOffice <-> Word duel any day of the week. In brief: I’m cloud first and not a movie buff. + +While that’s true, I have always had _one_ potential need for these things: after experiencing way too many bricked Ubuntu installations over the years (but trust me, I know what I’m talking about!),****[**I now __ take backups very seriously**](https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/)**.** Obsessively so you might say.**** But the record lifespan of my current OS (it’s a venerable two years old) is testament to why it’s a good idea. For that reason alone, I have long dreamed of getting round to building a fileserver. But in the meantime, I just made do with sticking a couple of dedicated backup SSDs into my desktop.[ (Check out my Linux backup documentation o](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm)n Github if you would like all the details). + +The bays with the locking device inserted + +This was roughly the status quo in my life until about two weeks ago when the good people at Synology, which is headquartered in Taiwan, came along and decided to show me that the derelict state of my local area network (LAN) needn't stay that way for any longer. + +As one of the relatively few people on this planet both obscure and boring enough to find Linux and backups/data recovery subjects of interest they offered to send me a review unit of their DS920+ NAS (it’s already launched Down Under and [this link](https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/545630) pegged it at $927 AUS — which is $639 in USD). + +Two days later (yes, DHL can really move things that quickly when they want to) I had this beautiful product packaging to admire. + +Yes, stuff can move from Taiwan to the Middle East in two days!Because of … you know …. the current health situation (I’ve taken to avoid referring to it by name) I decided to give it five days of rest and relaxation leave in a corner of the apartment. While that happened, I found that my dreams were unexpectedly interrupted by visions of syncing Clonezilla backups over the local network while my Synology beeped back approvingly with its green LED lights. I was getting excited. + +After I determined that my desire to try out the device exceeded whatever a reasonable quarantine for a package from Taiwan might be (and bear in mind — Taiwan’s track record with the virus has thus far been rather exemplary) I set about unboxing the hardware. + +I decided, at first, to be sheepishly straight-edged about the process and actually _read the instruction manual_ the NAS came with. However, having spent too much time in the company of actual techies, I know that the preferred way of figuring out how to get storage drives into bays is to figure out where the screws align, put them in that way, take a screwdriver to the device, and then hope that you’ve got the connections correctly aligned and not damaged the hardware. If not jiggle it a bit left and right and see if something clicks into place. And in the case of failure, resort to the mother of all troubleshooting resources: Google.com. Thankfully there was no need for need for any diagnostics or mechanical bludgeoning. It worked out of the box. + +My next two hours were spent shoving whatever spare drives I had on hand into bays (ultimately I only found one lowly non-NVMe SSD), checking out Diskstation Manager (DSM) (the embedded server / management console for Diskstation NASs), and configuring several apps that let me do everything from set up two way syncs with my Backblaze B2 buckets to run email servers and even install my favorite open-source CRM ([Vtiger CRM](https://medium.com/u/cb0b220f1395)). Having completed this process, I can confidently say that I understand _why_ people prefer these to provisioning actual full-fledged servers on their networks. + +Setting up a bidirectional sync with Backblaze B2 in DSM + +### Here’s Why (I Think) People Like NASs + +As mentioned, I never quite ‘got’ the appeal of NASs. And spending a little bit of time on the internet I can see that I was not alone. So let me give you my perspective on the answer to that gnawing question — probably more popular among Linux users — of _“why would I get an NAS if I could just build my own server and control everything including the OS and hardware?”_ + +It’s a good question but there are answers. + +An NAS is simply a prebuilt server which makes it extremely easy to add more storage (the bays literally slide out — so the skill required is essentially just ensuring that they’re the right way up going in). And it’s designed to work, in Synology’s case, with a proprietary OS, accessed through a web server, that makes it comparatively simple to do things like set up web and email servers. + +If you enjoy things like setting up Apache and spending a lot of time in the terminal, then that is probably a bad thing (although you can still SSH into the NAS). If, on the other hand, you want a quick and easy installation process of everything you might want to do on a server — this is a nice gadget to have underneath the TV or in a spare closet that you can repurpose as a local data center. + +The hardware aspects aside think about the pain which getting a GUI in an actual server would entail: installing a desktop environment, connecting to the virtual desktop server and making sure that it synced with a variety of client OSes. In other words: work. The embedded OS makes doing all these things — and administrating the hardware — as easy as opening the IP in a browser. It doesn’t matter who’s doing the opening. + +Make no mistake, though: this guy isn’t only LAN-accessible. Synology has figured out a nice trick to make the NAS remotely accessible without the need for configuring port forwarding on your router — you get a custom URL and can access it from any web browser. Easy to setup and use? Very. + +### Hardware + +In terms of what’s under the hood (although “beneath the bays” might be a more accurate description): + +The CPU powering the DS920+ is a relatively modest Intel Celeron J4125 although it’s a step up on what kept the DS918+ ticking. + +The spec sheet from Synology + +Likewise the RAM and the power supply are already there. I have no idea where (nor — and this is the point — do I particularly care) and you risk voiding the warranty by making aftermarket alterations to anything other than storage (although NAS Compares has an unofficial Synology NAS upgrade guide): + +[**Synology NAS Unofficial Memory Upgrade Guide** + _If you have purchased a new NAS Drive in the last few months, then chances are that you would use it to the best if…_ nascompares.com](https://nascompares.com/2019/05/09/synology-nas-unofficial-memory-upgrade-guide/ "https://nascompares.com/2019/05/09/synology-nas-unofficial-memory-upgrade-guide/")[](https://nascompares.com/2019/05/09/synology-nas-unofficial-memory-upgrade-guide/) + +As I mentioned in the unboxing video, the NAS comes with a simple AC/DC adapter —Synology even studiously included the perfect plug type for my location despite the fact that the box arrived unopened straight from Taiwan (my pet peeve is manufacturers, including local ones, sending unearthed Type C Europlugs — and Synology had the foresight to send me the perfect connection for my supply which is the grounded Type E — well done to them!). Although this is one device that I would definitely want to have hooked up to my trusty UPS rather than have plugged into the wall. + +That’s really about it from a hardware perspective. + +Out of the box, all you need to worry about is adding storage drives. Speaking of which, there are two NVMe SSD slots on the underside. But if you’re more traditional and can’t quite understand the need for such read/write speeds you can just proceed as I did and slot either 2.5" or 3.5" disks into the aforementioned slots which snap out with a delightful click mechanism. + +My unglamorous needs, as mentioned, are going to consist of moving full and incremental backups to this thing over the LAN from my desktop. So I figured that bog standard SSD would more than do the job. And if I can get it connected on an ethernet-WiFi bridge an out of earshot (more on that next), I’ll stick in a few noisy HDDs and get a RAID configuration going. + +From a software perspective, the DSM web-based OS lets you do everything — and the device isn’t as locked down as I had expected. + +You can still do everything from deploy virtual machines to configure various servers. It’s just that the fulcrum of the device, out of the box, is the proprietary Synology DSM interface. + +One cool thing about DSM (because NASs are, after all, simply designed to be network-attached storage devices): it makes it really easy, as you might expect, to configure the various RAID configurations. This is particularly exciting for me as, until very recently, I mistakenly assumed that RAID configurations were something only seen in data centers (nope, you can provision them on desktops too). + +The hour being late when I got round to unboxing, I didn’t feel like rustling around my tech cabinet to see whether I could muster up a few spare HDDs to slot in to the bays to keep the SSD company. So instead I provisioned the NAS with the solitary 240GB SSD — which, until recently, had permanently lodging rights in my desktop. I formatted it to ext4 while attached to the NAS (I thought the fact I could do this while still using the web server was impressive)— but DSM was not shy about pointing out to me that my solitary drive could not provide me with the data protection that is the reason RAID arrays exist. + +And that was essentially that. + +While I had to install a few of the backup apps I intend testing from DSM’s sort of internal marketplace, provisioning the bare fundamentals — by which I mean shared file storage buckets — was incredibly simple. + +After creating a new user and adding read/write permissions, they were immediately visible on the network both from my desktop running Ubuntu 20.04 LTS and from a Windows laptop. Success! + +The NAS was immediately found in Ubuntu + +And that’s essentially the extent of my journey so far. + +### Forthcoming Synology Linux Backup Adventures + +Tomorrow I’ll test SSH-ing into the device and buy a WiFi-to-ethernet bridge so that I don’t have to put up with the annoying humming sound which its fans emit. + +I’ve heard that running an rsync sync is the best means of backing up a Linux desktop onto the NAS, but I’m going to see if I can get Clonezilla to write an image to it directly over the LAN — because I _love_ Clonezilla and trust it more than any newfangled backup tool with securing my data. + +I’ll also see if there’s some way to set up sync to the NAS with all my Backblaze cloud storage buckets that _doesn’t_ involve adding them one by one ….. which will be difficult, as there are a lot of them to say the last (we’re talking dozens; and please don’t ask me why). + +The one negative? + +**As mentioned, unfortunately the DS920+ is _not_ silent **— I found the fans, whatever they are, too noisy for my liking (although bear in mind that for logistical reasons related to available ethernet cabling I had the NAS perched on a cabinet in my home office rather than tucked away in a storage cabinet). + +This was a surprise to me as I had heard that the only noise from NASs come from the hard drives they are typically filled with. I thought that by adding an SSD I would basically make it so but, unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Although bear in mind that, in addition to storing it in my home office (it has now been demoted to the living room) I’m especially sensitive to sound (I have four SSDs in my desktop for this very reason!). I found the hum from the fans loud enough to be audible, but it was definitely slight. + +[**If you’re noise-adverse and working-from-home consider buying this gear** + _There’s an explosion of interest in working from home at the moment and one of the most common issues people are…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/if-youre-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear-4b28dfbaab7b "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/if-youre-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear-4b28dfbaab7b")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/if-youre-noise-adverse-and-working-from-home-consider-buying-this-gear-4b28dfbaab7b) + +This will probably mean that I will be using an ethernet -> WiFi bridge tomorrow to set it up in another room so that I can access its storage bounty without having to stream white noise to not hear its vague din. + +Some more product photos below. + +All the details on how well this fares for backing up my Linux desktop coming to the internet soon. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Taking-The-High-Speed-Train-Between-Jerusalem-and-Tel-Aviv--Photos---Video-.md b/posts/medium/Taking-The-High-Speed-Train-Between-Jerusalem-and-Tel-Aviv--Photos---Video-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..344ef68357afda960fa2eb68a03caf9c8be44e93 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Taking-The-High-Speed-Train-Between-Jerusalem-and-Tel-Aviv--Photos---Video-.md @@ -0,0 +1,20 @@ +# Taking The High Speed Train Between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv (Photos + Video) + +#### The journey takes a little over 30 minutes + +In September 2018, the new fast train route running between Jerusalem’s new Yitzhak Navon station and Tel Aviv HaHagana was officially inaugurated. + +A video depicting the high speed rail journey between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Video: Daniel Rosehill. + +Initially, the train only traveled between Jerusalem and Ben Gurion Airport (in Hebrew called ‘Natbag’) and passengers continuing to Tel Aviv had to change transport. + +Later, the route was extended, as planned, to Tel Aviv itself (the line made it to HaHagana firstly, in December 2019, and later to Savidor Central). + +The line was the first heavy train line in Israel to be electrified and the journey from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv takes a little over half an hour. + +Jerusalem’s Yizhak Navon station is one of the deepest train stations in the world. According to Wikipedia, it’s the world’s deepest heavy rail passenger station and the fourth deepest underground train station in the world. + +[**Jerusalem-Yitzhak Navon railway station - Wikipedia** + _Jerusalem-Yitzhak Navon railway station ( Hebrew: תחנת הרכבת ירושלים - יצחק נבון‎, Tahanat HaRakevet…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem%E2%80%93Yitzhak_Navon_railway_station "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem%E2%80%93Yitzhak_Navon_railway_station")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem%E2%80%93Yitzhak_Navon_railway_station) + +Yizhak Navon railyway station from the outside. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.The departure board inside the Yizhak Navon railway station in Jerusalem. Photo: Daniel RosehillDescending inside one of the long series of tunnels that carry passengers between the street level and the platform, some 80 meters below. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.A tunnel inside the underground complex of the station. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.An informational sign inside the train station complex. Photo: Daniel RosehillInside one of the carriages. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.After disembarking the train in Tel Aviv HaHagana Train Station. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.The advantage of taking the train between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv: beating this! Rush hour traffic moving into Tel Aviv. Photo: Daniel Rosehill. diff --git a/posts/medium/Tamid-V1-0--The-Israeli-Home-Internet-Connection-That-Never-Goes-Down.md b/posts/medium/Tamid-V1-0--The-Israeli-Home-Internet-Connection-That-Never-Goes-Down.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..190ece775f81c819dde06e5ec1d1697c97612aa6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Tamid-V1-0--The-Israeli-Home-Internet-Connection-That-Never-Goes-Down.md @@ -0,0 +1,199 @@ +# Tamid V1.0: The Israeli Home Internet Connection That Never Goes Down + +#### If you want really robust home internet that should barely ever go down — if ever — then read on + +** _(This blog is intended for a semi-technical to technical audience. But if you can wade through the terminology, this might actually really help you drastically improve your home internet for …. not a vast amount of money (hardware costs: $200; ongoing costs: $10/month). It’s the result of about 2 weeks of experimentation with different networking setups…__** + +For these instructions without the Israel-specific information, see: + +[**How To: Set Up A Budget Home Internet Network With Backup Cellular Connectivity** + _A how-to guide for those interested in achieving cellular backup without using hardware_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5) + +I recently wrote about how I had spent a little bit of time* tweaking my home internet network. + +The start of my setup — before cable management!. Photo: author.V1 of the “unbreakable” home backup internet stack. Bottom: ISP router. Middle: load balancer. Top: cellular router. Next upgrade: to improve cellular performance, using external antennas to bring in 4G from a better source. Not shown: wireless access point. Photo: author.Recommended: run all power from a UPS. To do this (besides buying a UPS) use a UPS to power socket adapter and run a power cable over to where your routers are located. Photo: author. + +For about the past year, I have been experiencing daily downtime that has really hampered my productivity — and sometimes even caused me embarrassment (such as that time I had to abort a podcast interview — as the guest — because my internet wasn’t stable enough!) + +Internet infrastructure in Israel can be very localized— which tends to be the case when final mile connectivity is being delivered over DSL (lest you need a reminder: DSL, like coaxial, was never designed to deliver internet). + +And although my wife and I life in a relatively central part of Jerusalem, it seems like we’re in something of an internet blackhole. We have tried both ISP options with about the same results (fiber optic is being rolled out in Israel but is not available everywhere yet including in our part of the city). + +_(For those thirsting for the details: in Israel, Bezeq provisions last mile connectivity over VDSL2 — yes, Israel still uses DSL — and VDSL2 has a maximum throughput speed of 200 Mbps. Hot — the other last mile infrastructure provider — provisions it using coaxial. These infrastructure-providers, in turn, are resold by many different ISPs (Hebrew: sapakim) which supply connectivity from domestic to international switches. The government claims that_[ _fiber optic will reach 50% of homes this year_](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-fiber-optics-will-reach-50-of-israeli-homes-this-year-1001376280) _, although I’m somewhat skeptical. This is one of the many paradoxes about life in the ‘Startup Nation’. Unless you have fiber optic or a business-grade line, internet connectivity in Israel can be decidedly old-school)._ + +[**VDSL - Wikipedia** + _Very high-speed digital subscriber line ( VDSL) and very high-speed digital subscriber line 2 ( VDSL2) are digital…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VDSL "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VDSL")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VDSL) + +The good news is that there are few things I enjoy more than a technical challenge I _might_ be able to succeed at. So I got to work**. + +The good news: after much cable-running and network tweaking we now have a business-grade home network capable of automatically failing between multiple connectivity sources in less than 2 seconds. There’s been no noticeable downtime since setting this up. Like none whatsoever. + +[**If You Run A Work From Home Business, Consider Investing In Backup Internet** + _A small monthly investment can drastically improve the stability of your home internet connection_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-run-a-work-from-home-business-consider-investing-in-backup-internet-450be6d111c4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-run-a-work-from-home-business-consider-investing-in-backup-internet-450be6d111c4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-you-run-a-work-from-home-business-consider-investing-in-backup-internet-450be6d111c4) + +Here’s the shopping list. And how to set everything up. + +(*: This is an enormous euphemism. It took quite a bit of time to set this all up) +(**: By work I mean playing around with home networking. Like the people who fix our electricity networks, I did most of my tweaking in the small hours of the morning so as to minimize disruption to local network users. It was oddly peaceful). + +**Load balancing cellular and ISP connections: why it beats hotspots, MiFis, and other “easy fixes”:** + +### 1: Buy A Load Balancing Router + +The core of this setup is a simple load balancing router. And its sole purpose on the network — besides routing — is to handle automatic failover between multiple connectivity channels. + +Load balancers are devices typically intended for businesses or small data center setups (load balancing is used extensively in cloud architectures to distribute incoming connections between servers). They may look a little bit different from the compact antenna-sporting routers you’re used to seeing in your home. But for $80, it’s hard to think of a better upgrade. + +The good news is that if you’re happy to go with a not-so-cutting-edge model (like the TP-Link TL-R470T that I picked up from KSP) these aren’t so expensive either. If you want one with some bells and whistles that can also cut down on the _other_ hardware we’ll need, they get pricey (fast). + +At the time of writing, I can find the updated version of that load balancer for 269 NIS on KSP.co.il. That’s $83 at today’s rate. + +The TP-Link R480T+ load balance router. Screenshot: KSP. + +Note: before picking your load balancing router (these might also be described as multi-WAN routers) check the throughput of the WAN ports. + +The one I purchased (the R470T+) only has 10/1000 ethernet ports so if you’re getting more than that from your ISP box — say, you’re lucky enough to have fiber optic — then you should go for a load balancer that won’t cause a bottleneck downstream in your network. + +I’m not and I plan on rationalizing this setup when we get fiber optic. So if my $200 investment buys me almost unbreakable internet for a year, I’ll be happy. + +If you _already_ have fiber optic and want to cut down on one piece of hardware (or two), you could go, say, for the Draytek Vigor 296 or the 2876ac. + +The latter is 1791 NIS at the time of writing from a major online retailer ($557). + +### 2: Buy A USB Cellular Modem. + +Next, we’re going to want to set up our second “internet” connection. + +You could absolutely simply use two ISPs — which for a lot of people right now would mean purchasing simultaneous subscriptions to Bezeq and Hot (these can often be bought from the same _sapak)_. But if you’re noticing that both “infrastructures” tend to go down together this dual-ISP setup isn’t going to get you very far. + +Cellular, however, is pretty cheap — and all you need to add this as a connection source is a SIM card and a USB modem. + +Cellular can also provide decent speeds that are comparable and sometimes better than home broadband (see: 5G). And there’s a line of thinking that it gives you a more diverse setup from a backup/failover standpoint. If a digger accidentally cuts through _all_ the internet connectivity on your street, for instance, the cellular line shouldn’t be affected. If the digger cuts through the home internet switch and your nearest cell tower’s fiber backhaul connection … well, it’s possible but unlikely. + +I subscribed to a data-only line from we4g. At the time of writing, I’m paying 29.9 NIS / month for a 200 GB connection that should be more than enough to cover all interruptions to the main connectivity. At today’s exchange rate, that’s just shy of $10 (USD). + +### 3: Buy A Cellular Router (If You Bought A Cellular-Capable Load Balancer You Can Skip This!) + +If you went for a higher end load balancer that includes either an embedded cellular module or supports cellular USB modems, then you’re almost good to go. You just need to make sure that the load balancer supports the frequency your mobile network operator transmits on. + +You can check those out [here](https://www.tikle2.com/%D7%A8%D7%A9%D7%99%D7%9E%D7%AA-%D7%94%D7%AA%D7%93%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%9D-%D7%94%D7%A1%D7%9C%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%99%D7%9D-%D7%91%D7%99%D7%A9%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%9C). At the time of writing, the good news is that all 3 mobile infrastructures in Israel are using the same 3 5G bands (yes, there are basically only three phone infrastructures in Israel and a boatload of MVNOs reselling connectivity). For 4G, they differ a little. But check the chart linked above. + +Note: at the time I’m writing this, 5G routers are also a _very_ young product category and tend to be significantly more expensive than 4G alternatives (like … by a _lot_). I haven’t yet seen a load balancer with an embedded SIM that supports 5G, although they will undoubtedly come to market. + +Because I was focused on putting this all together on a budget, I simply went for a basic 4G router from Ivory. I picked up the TP-Link TL MR 100. You can check out their latest options here: + +[**ראוטרים (נתב) ראוטר סלולרי** + _היכנסו לקניית ראוטרים (נתב) ראוטר סלולרי ברשת אייבורי מחשבים וסלולר המציעה את מיטב המותגים במחירים משתלמים ברכישה באתר…_ www.ivory.co.il](https://www.ivory.co.il/catalog.php?act=cat&id=2616&f=6365 "https://www.ivory.co.il/catalog.php?act=cat&id=2616&f=6365")[](https://www.ivory.co.il/catalog.php?act=cat&id=2616&f=6365) + +**The only tricky part of this setup was configuring the TP-Link router to work as a wireless bridge rather than as a router** — by default, it only supports two modes of operation (3/4G router or wireless router which can convert it into a failover-capable device that accepts a passed-through ISP line; this was my first implementation). I only discovered post purchase, the TP-Link cellular routers don’t support this mode of operation by default. + +[**4G LTE routers in bridge mode** + _Model : Hardware Version : Firmware Version : ISP : Hi, I'm interested in buying a 4G/LTE router to provide a backup…_ community.tp-link.com](https://community.tp-link.com/en/home/forum/topic/102460 "https://community.tp-link.com/en/home/forum/topic/102460")[](https://community.tp-link.com/en/home/forum/topic/102460) + +Fortunately, you have options: + +a) **Work around this by “creating” bridge mode yourself on the TP-Link gear.** Essentially this means disabling the DHCP server and manually assigning an IP address to the 4G router that fits outside of the LAN IP address range on the main router. I actually _didn’t_ take down the DHCP server because I couldn’t figure out a way to access the router admin page without it. It works fine for me either way. But your mileage may vary. + +b)**Buying a cellular router that _does_ support wireless bridging natively.** This is preferable to setting up workarounds but the hardware will end up being more expensive. The Netgear range of LTE routers, for instance, support cellular bridging out of the box. + +Disabling DHCP in the TP-Link cellular router. + +You’ll also need to: + + * Potentially set up an APN profile in your cellular router matching whatever phone company you’re subscribed to. This is no different from doing this on a handset device. + +### 4: Wire Everything Together + +I decided to simply keep using my ISP-supplied router because finding a VDSL2-compatible router that could be used only as a modem proved to be too difficult (yes they should work in theory, but not all of them do. Bezeq apparently uses vectoring technology in parts of the country and — surprisingly — not all VDSL2-capable routers being sold here support it). + +The setup I went for: + + * ISP router into load balancer WAN 1 + * Cellular router (in manual “bridge” mode) into load balancer WAN 2 + +Because the load balancer doesn’t put out a WiFi network (note: you can find ones that do) I also picked up a TP-Link WiFi router that can be used in access point (AP) mode. Therefore, in addition to the ISP-supplied router, I now have 3 additional pieces of hardware running on my home network. + +Due to where my devices are located around the house, I have one ethernet switch in use. The rest of the devices are connected on WiFi. To maintain the stability of the network, all wired devices are coming off the load balancer rather than the AP router downstream (which has ethernet ports). This way, the load balancer has direct connectivity to every wired device on the network. For the wireless devices, it can see them to and bind their MAC addresses to local IPs — although I haven’t yet checked whether they have survived. + +Here’s how all that looks plotted on a network diagram: + +### 5: Configure ISP To Cellular Backup In The Load Balancer + +After setting up my load balancer, I assigned static local IPs to the devices in my network. + +My two WANs are now up and running: + +Don’t forget the whole purpose of this — to create reliable backup connectivity! + +In my TP-Link load balancer the settings can be found under: + + * Transmission -> + * Load balancing + +Here you can enable application optimized routing. But I just configured the backup: + +All is working perfectly. + +I can test the failover at any time by pulling out the ethernet cable that feeds the ISP line into the load balancer. + +Failover takes less than 2 seconds (which is far quicker than implementation 1 which had to bring the cellular link up before failing over to it). + +### 6: Put All Your Hardware On A UPS + +Routers are surprisingly low-draw devices. Even several of them won’t likely come close to what a desktop PSU draws. + +If you’ve gone to the trouble of setting this up, it would be a crying shame for temporary drops in power to bring your whole elaborate failover network offline. + +Buy an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) and put all your hardware on it. Measure the combined power draw and then get a UPS with enough capabity. From experience: run-down times of over one hour are easily achievable if nothing else is drawing from the gear. + +[**אל פסק** + _אייבורי מחשבים וסלולר מציעה מבחר מערכות אל פסק למקרה של נפילת מתח או הפסקת חשמל למניעת אבדן מידע חשוב או נזק למחשב_ www.ivory.co.il](https://www.ivory.co.il/ups.html "https://www.ivory.co.il/ups.html")[](https://www.ivory.co.il/ups.html) + +**Component:** + +UPS IEC C14 to C13 socket (or whatever power socket is standard _and_ grounded in your country). + + + +### Pricing For My “Cheap And Cheerful” Method For Load-Balanceable ISP/Cellular Home Internet + +In the most compelling proof yet that I have gone off the deep end, I’ve given this networking stack a name: Tamid V1.0. “Tamid” is Hebrew for “always”. And this is going to be the home network that _always keeps running (even during Shabbat and Chag, although I’ll try to keep off it then)._ + +Although this setup might seem elaborate, it still worked out to be a lot cheaper than going for a high end WiFi-capable load balancing router with embedded cellular. + +Don’t get me wrong: if you can afford to do so streamline your hardware and go for something like a Draytek (or Cradlepoint or Peplink). But I managed to shave the cost of this setup down by quite a lot by cobbling together a few pieces of TP-Link gear. + +### Also Worth Checking Out + +Failover and load balancing are not the same thing as bonding. In fact failover and load balancing aren’t the same thing either. + +You _could_ bond the cellular and ISP lines but to do so you’d need to get something like OpenMPTCProuter running which would involve setting up a VPS. + +My technical skills don’t stretch that far and I came to the conclusion that high availability — rather than speed — was really what I was shooting for. + +But if you want to bond the cellular and ISP lines you could actually do so and this would be taking advantage of splitting up the cellular and ISP routers. + +One easy implementation: run your failover network over ethernet into your wired devices. And broadcast out a wireless network from the cellular-only router. Then bond the two using Speedify: + +[**Speedify - Use all of your Internet connections at the same time** + _Speedify runs on the devices you already have and uses the connections you already pay for. We have apps available for…_ speedify.com](https://speedify.com/ "https://speedify.com/")[](https://speedify.com/) + +### Footnotes + + 1. Many ISP-supplied routers contain a USB slot which will take a USB cellular modem. You may be able to achieve similar failover times by configuring this.**However, I strongly recommend against predicating your home internet setup on the hardware your ISP supplies.** This setup should be able to travel with you — even between networks. You might just need to upgrade components depending upon what connectivity you have access to. For instance, two hardware components in this setup — the load balancer and the access point router — would be bottlenecks to fiber optic, or any connectivity with a throughput exceeding 100 Mbps). + 2. **The router ISP(s) at the “head” of this setup should be running as bridges themselves.** Their only purpose is to pass on connectivity to the load balancer. The load balancer’s sole purpose is to configure automatic failover between the ISP connection(s) and the cellular line. The AP’s sole purpose (in setups containing one) is to create a wireless network from the load balanced wired network. + +### Potential Alternative Configurations + +There’s no real limit to what type of connectivity you can fit into a load balancer (minus the physical ports on the devices). + +But internet connections cost money and most will want to invest in the most prudent manner possible. + +If you already have fiber optic, I’d suggest simply duplicating the cellular setup here. You’ll just want to make sure that the load balancer has fast enough ports (1,000 Mbps / Gigabit ports should be safe). + +Remember: fiber optic may be crazy _fast_ but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s crazy _reliable_. For a small overhead, I suggest it’s worth adding even a slow-ish backup connection on top of a very fast primary one just so that you can achieve the kind of really high availability this networking setup intends to achieve. + +Right now 5G routers and MiFis are a lot more expensive than cellular. For data-only plans there’s a cost differential too although it’s not as big. As 5G penetration increases, this will all change and prices will drop. + +Therefore, I reckon the “safe for at least 5 years” setup would consist of a 5G router and line provisioned for failover next to a fiber optic ISP connection running through a modern load balancer (that’s setup two in the charts below). + diff --git a/posts/medium/Tech-project--Wedding-thank-you-videos-with-Mailchimp.md b/posts/medium/Tech-project--Wedding-thank-you-videos-with-Mailchimp.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..84fdeef07974ee32307f26442d90503bbb90a7cd --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Tech-project--Wedding-thank-you-videos-with-Mailchimp.md @@ -0,0 +1,68 @@ +# Tech project: Wedding thank you videos with Mailchimp + +I wrote previously [about some of the unconventional thing](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/the-weddingofalifetime-pr-campaign/)s I did to get some friends to make the trip from overseas for my wedding last summer. + +You could call it a creative marketing campaign of sorts involving automated email sequences, [social media campaigns](https://www.instagram.com/danandhanwedding/?hl=en), [a podcast](https://open.spotify.com/show/6Ve2ATC7jWDG7s7Fw5onjx), and text to speech (TTS) narrated promotional videos + +Yes it was (intentionally) wacky. Yes it was (very) weird. But it was a lot of fun to put together. And in its own odd sort of way it kind of worked. + +**In order to put the finishing touches to the campaign, I knew that just sending out plain stationary “thank you” cards was not going to cut the mustard.** + +I had to go above and beyond conventional approaches. + +**I had to …. record thank you videos!** + +If you want to borrow the idea, here’s what you need to do. + +### 1: Record Your Thank You Videos + +The first think you’ll need to do (clearly) is record your thank you videos. + +I got a bit creative here and dipped into my extensive flag collection to change up the background for guests from Ireland and Hong Kong. + +Thank you video with Irish flag backdropThank you video with Hong Kong flag backdrop + +I also took advantage of the visual medium to demonstrate gratitude for the various gifts received including this delightful flower pot. Books, cutting boards, and just about anything you can hold up to the camera can be demonstrated in this way. Use a tripod to keep the frame steady. + +Because you’ll be saying the same thing over and over again — and if you’re setting up a backdrop it’s a bit of work — I think it’s best to do this in a batch. + +### 2: Edit Your Thank You Videos + +Using OpenShot to edit videos + +I didn’t want to dedicate more than a day to this crazy (but well-received!) initiative so I limited the post production to adding a start image and fade transitions to the beginning and end of each thank you video. + +To edit the videos, I used[ OpenShot](https://www.openshot.org/) — although I run Linux, so if you’re on Windows, you’ll presumably want to use a different tool. + +### 3: Upload to YouTube (And Set Privacy to Unlisted) + +Next, I uploaded the entire library of about 80 thank you videos to YouTube. + +I set the privacy on each video to unlisted so that they wouldn’t randomly show up on searches. Don’t select “Private” — you’ll need to be logged into your account to see these — or “Public” (unless you want the whole world to be able to watch your thank you videos). + +### 3: Build a template in Mailchimp + +I was already using [Mailchimp](https://medium.com/u/772bf2413f17) to send out wedding invitations and the automated pre-event email automation sequences. + +Those were tasteful communications like: + +But if you haven’t taken that approach you could also create an account just for that purpose — as I will show here. + +**To start, I created a custom field in the audience for the unique YouTube video URL for each guest’s thank you video.** + +Then, I set up an email automation to trigger whenever I added a subscriber to the audience. + +I designed a simple email template telling them that they had a thank you video waiting for them. This could have been designed a lot more elegantly — but this is just to demonstrate the idea. The thank you videos were sent to mostly friends who knew that the whole campaign aspect was for a bit of fun. + +**And you want to change the link for the CTA button (“Watch Your Personal Video Message”) to the value of the custom merge field:** + +And that’s basically it! + +You simply need to add subscribers on the backend and make sure that you ad the right person with the right YouTube link! + +**Your emails will send out as soon as you enter the emails to the queue (unless you have configured a delay on your automation).** + +If you want to change the send delay edit this setting: + +Look forward to delighting your guests and receiving great feedback! + diff --git a/posts/medium/Technology-Trends-Explained--A-YouTube-Playlist.md b/posts/medium/Technology-Trends-Explained--A-YouTube-Playlist.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5e16092ebe5e2bfdfd5dd33905f6f788be2b6f22 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Technology-Trends-Explained--A-YouTube-Playlist.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# Technology Trends Explained: A YouTube Playlist + +Everybody, these days, is looking to understand the fascinating trends in technology that are disrupting societies and changing the way in which we live. + +Technology in general is a fascinating field. And, as a [technology-focused freelance writer](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com), I make a living — in part — by explaining tech to end-users (the other part of my writing is thought leadership, which often involves explaining advanced technology to other technologists). + +YouTube has a wealth of excellent ‘explainer’ videos which explain technology — in detail and at a 10,000 foot level. Feel free to [check out the playlists](https://www.youtube.com/view_all_playlists?nv=1) I put together for myself and for others’ interested. Or watch some of the videos embedded below. I have organized these by subject. + +### General Topics + +The following videos are good introductions to some commonly encountered terminologies in technology. These fit into a ‘miscellaneous’ bucket. + +### Encryption + +Encryption is a vital part of modern cybersecurity approaches and is essentially how VPNs keep internet traffic and DNS queries invisible from ISPs and government agencies (in theory, at least). These videos break down some introductory topics for those interested in learning more. + +### Data and Big Data + +A lot of breakthrough use-cases in technology are being realized through mining large sets of data. These videos provide a good introduction to many recurring terms and topics within the data world. + +Some database fundamentals are also useful to know: + +### Cloud + +More and more computing is moving from the edge and the premises to the cloud. *-as-a-service is disrupting how all manner of technologies are hosted and provisioned. If the cloud is a topic that you are interested in learning more about, then the following videos drill down into core concepts and architectures. + +(These videos are a little more in-depth than high level) + +High level overviews: + +### Augmented Reality (AR) + +Getting humans to perform workloads is so passé. Augmented reality (AR) and machine learning (ML) are also helping to realize a lot of amazing emerging use-cases that leverage cutting edge technology. These videos provide some basic terminology and concepts. + +### Cybersecurity + +With the continued growth of the IoT, network attack surfaces are widening — and no longer consist of solely human-operated network interfaces. Cybercriminals are exploiting a widening variety of payloads and attack methodologies to wreak havoc upon both businesses and technology end-users. As a result, cybersecurity continues to be a field that is attracting a lot of interest and innovation. + +### DevOps and CI/CD + Docker and Containerization + +DevOps has led to operations and development resources working together in harmony — realizing faster code deployment and more harmonious workflows than ever before. The result (for consumers) software that is less buggy and more quickly and frequently updated. Docker and containerization has also disrupted things in the world of software development. Both concepts are worth exploring. + +### Serverless and Kubernetes + +Serverless doesn’t mean the end of servers. It just means that those in charge of rolling out software don’t need to worry as much about where and how to provision infrastructure. This is due to a variety of cool innovations including serverless and Kubernetes. + +### Blockchain + +Blockchain is best known for its adoption as the core technology behind cryptocurrencies — but it’s changing more than how people manage currencies: it changes the whole model of how centralized resources are typically managed. Here are some resources to get up to speed on the technology and what it can do. + +### Internet of Things (IoT) + +The internet is still in the process of going to places where it hasn’t gone before. That massive disruption — which is affecting both the consumer and industrial spheres — is know as the internet of things (IoT). Here are some introductions. + +### Backup and Disaster Recovery (DR) + +One of the technology niches I’m most passionate about is backup and disaster recovery (DR). Yes, relative to the above it’s not particularly newfangled or — in many technologists’ eyes — all that exciting. But there are innovations happening within the backup and DR space and it’s a field that almost _everybody_ ultimately needs. + +If you’d like to know what’s up in backup, then here are some good videos worth checking out. diff --git a/posts/medium/Thank-you-for-sharing-this-powerful-perspective--Nina-.md b/posts/medium/Thank-you-for-sharing-this-powerful-perspective--Nina-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f35a5334ff2d6b7984954ec6a3d749cc5b8309ca --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Thank-you-for-sharing-this-powerful-perspective--Nina-.md @@ -0,0 +1,13 @@ +# Thank you for sharing this powerful perspective, Nina. + +Thank you for sharing this powerful perspective, Nina. + +You probably know my thoughts about hasbara,and I think that there is a parallel to be drawn with the lesson you teased out here. + +In trying to paint a relentlessly flattering picture of itself as the “only democracy in the Middle East,” a “beacon of civilization among a continent of chaos,” etc, etc, I think that Israel — sometimes directly and sometimes by inference — is constantly labelling its neighbors, and sometimes the whole world, as inferior and “evil”. + +I’ve always felt uncomfortable with the self-righteousness of this line of thinking (and also felt that gloating about Israel’s achievements was incompatible with Jewish teachings about modestly). But I could never quite put my finger on why, psychologically, that was so. + +I think you did a nice job in explaining why seeing yourself as better than others — even if, sometimes, that might objectively be true — is problematic. I would like to hear more of your thoughts on the same! + +(P.S. I’m also uncomfortable, and contrarian about, the way we commemorate the Holocaust. Yes, we must remember and never forget — that is for certain. But I would love to hear more about your perspective on how we can mark the occasion in a more self-reflective manner. One that edifies the living — while also remembering the dead.) diff --git a/posts/medium/Thanks-for-checking-out-the-piece--Rachel-.md b/posts/medium/Thanks-for-checking-out-the-piece--Rachel-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0205da827c942c02cf86b8a00696a0e091c3ba04 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Thanks-for-checking-out-the-piece--Rachel-.md @@ -0,0 +1,13 @@ +# Thanks for checking out the piece, Rachel. + +Thanks for checking out the piece, Rachel. Always great to encounter somebody else from Ireland - whether in digital life or in real life. + +I'm not sure that I doubt her income either. I also - if only retrospectively - want this to avoid coming across as an ad-hominem or attack on her character. + +And truth be told I don't particularly care how she makes it - although I strongly suspect it's not in the way she intimated to CNBC. + +But as I tried to get across in the video I added to the post, this is really about a much broader dynamic of dubious course salesmanship that I see as becoming a very pervasive issue in the freelancing space. + +As a hard-working freelancer that derives 0% of my income from course sales or boasting about my income, I think it reflects a little badly on us all. Equally, there's something I sort of love about the honest grind of it all. + +\- Daniel. diff --git a/posts/medium/That-Time-My-Landlord----Ripped-Out-My-Toilet---After-Aliyah.md b/posts/medium/That-Time-My-Landlord----Ripped-Out-My-Toilet---After-Aliyah.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..492b29c9f2ceb36ae75e3cdaa5d80b9217d444dc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/That-Time-My-Landlord----Ripped-Out-My-Toilet---After-Aliyah.md @@ -0,0 +1,49 @@ +# That Time My Landlord …. Ripped Out My Toilet — After Aliyah + +The year was 5775 (or thereabouts). + +I was cherry faced. A sprightly young _oleh_ of 26. I still had my gallbladder. They were simpler times. In some respects, they were better times. But _After Aliyah_ didn’t exist yet so they can’t have been that good. + +After leaving the salubrious surroundings of Ulpan Etsion, I relocated to the bustling metropolis of Jerusalem city center. My first sublet was from a friend. Then I was the awkward third in a flatshare with a guy that was really a couple (thankfully that phase only lasted a month). + +After several enduring the life of a sublet-bouncing itinerant for an entire summer I finally gave up on the idea of trying to coordinate finding a place with roommates. I ended up renting an apartment in Jerusalem city center. For legal reasons, I can’t divulge the exact street. + +For a period, things were good. I was working a job at a high tech park so I actually had to leave the house on occasion. + +Then one day, out of the blue, I got a call from my landlord. + +The flat below me, which was occupied by a few students, was experiencing a leak. Five years’ renting in Israel has convinced me that plumbing here is just often poorly done. This wasn’t the first time and probably won’t be the last (note: there is currently a similar leak in our building. No, I will not be letting anybody near our toilet while I’m not there!). + +The fearsome allegation was that the cause of the plumbing mishap originated in my bathroom directly above the students. My landlord asked my permission to send their handyman to check out the source of the leak while I was at the office. Being a newbie _oleh_[ _freier_](https://www.afteraliyah.com/guides/a-hebrish-glossary-for-making-aliyah/) __ I agreed. “ _Zeh bi’seder gamur!”_(that’s perfectly fine) I probably intoned with all the wisdom of a man putting his life savings into penny stocks. + +I returned from work that evening to a rather distressing scene. + +Where, a few hours ago, the floor of the bathroom had been, there now stood a heap of mud. The toilet had apparently been extricated. In its place was piping from the cistern that led nowhere and an open drain. Random tools and work supplies lied scattered throughout the apartment (that was about big enough to stretch my legs in). + +Confronted by the rather shocking state of my shoebox-sized living quarters I made the phone call that I hope I will never have to again (same for you, _oleh_ reader): _“sorry, there seems to have been a bit of a misunderstanding. Your contractor has ripped up my toilet and there’s just mud where the shower was this morning. Any chance you could get that seen to?”_ + +The ignominy of the situation was compounded by the fact that I had literally nowhere to go except to take refuge with my then girlfriend whose parents were (conveniently) on the way from the US. Talk about a great way to make a first impression with the parents:_“Hi, I’m your daughter’s boyfriend, and I’m going to have to be sleeping on the couch because my landlord ripped out my toilet so I’m here because … bodily functions. Sorry about that! Nice to meet you!”_ + +Attempting to overcompensate in my efforts to learn the local culture — actually maybe this was pretty reasonable — I tried playing hardball with my landlord. + +This endeavor, however, was complicated by the fact that the apartment was — I believe — illegally subdivided and the owner of the other half was the husband she had just got divorced from. So in addition to having no toilet I was caught in the middle of acrimonious divorce proceedings. “But I have nowhere to go!” I insisted desperately “you need to pay for a hotel.” + +My landlord was unmoved by my pleas and ended the phone call with _“ani mitstaeret”_(I am sorry). Fortunately I was at a wedding that night so the shame of not having a toilet (or shower) was blunted a little by the _simcha_. + +In the meantime, I took up residence in my then girlfriend’s apartment. After about four days, my landlord finally agreed to provide a key to a downstairs apartment that was under construction. I could live in my apartment — with its rubble bathroom — and then use the downstairs toilet whenever I needed to. + +Day after day contractors began shuffling in and the weeks — as in yes the weeks — rolled by laconically. + +Sometimes they would show up with ten minutes’ notice at eight in the morning and demand to be let in only to inspect the toilet and then disappear after ten minutes having done absolutely nothing. A student was commandeered to try help with the renovations who told me that he was studying for his undergraduate degree by day and I guess fixing toilets by morning. It appeared that the landlord was trying to spend as little money as possible and trying to find the cheapest contractor to get the job done all while my bathroom was a pile of rubble. Or they were fighting about who to hire. I didn’t know. I didn’t care. I just wanted my toilet / shower back. + +After the start of the second or third week without a toilet — sleeping elsewhere — I returned to the apartment to find that there had been another new leak (a leak caused while trying to fix leak one) and my apartment was now surfaced by a centimetre or so of water that had (conveniently) soaked through the few remaining clothes I was storing there (I’d already moved out most of my belongings not really expecting to return). There were a few more contractors on hand for good measure. The shame of having to answer “yes” to “do you live here?” caused a mental scare to form. The usual assortment of people that seemed to change every time. It was at this point that the contractor took me aside and advised, in earnest, that I abandon the apartment. I took his advice. + +I relate the above story primarily to underscore how shoddy Israel’s tenant protection law remains in too many respects. + +Although attempts at reform have been forthcoming, in some respects even those attempts have been completely frustrated — such as the realtor hiring fee that conveniently still falls on renters because agents have found a convenient “workaround” that frustrates the intent of the law. + +While in retrospect it’s easy to laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of the situation, at the time it wasn’t funny at all. If it weren’t for my girlfriend, I would have been running around town in a frantic panic trying to find accommodation. What happens when you’re an _oleh_ and your apartment is suddenly uninhabitable? I don’t want to know and I hope that you never need to. + +Too often _olim_ end up renting from bad landlords. _Olim_ are in a vulnerable situation. We need protection and support for when things go wrong. As well as legal mechanisms to ensure that this kind of insanity isn’t permitted — and can be speedily resolved. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/The-3-Defining-Features-Of-Irish-Anti-Semitism.md b/posts/medium/The-3-Defining-Features-Of-Irish-Anti-Semitism.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3207f4e79a73d306de3116489203c19a6022205e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-3-Defining-Features-Of-Irish-Anti-Semitism.md @@ -0,0 +1,89 @@ +# The 3 Defining Features Of Irish Anti-Semitism + +#### What’s unique about the anti-Jewish agitation emanating from Ireland? + +The global discourse on anti-Semitism has shifted into high gear thanks to the recent wave of attacks on Jews the world over by protesters using the mask of anti-Israelism to attack and intimidate Jews. + +Ireland, too, has seen its fair share of agitation that — to my mind and those of many others — crosses the line from legitimate opposition to Israeli policies and well into the realm of outright Jew-hatred. + +[**Palestinian supporters rally in Dublin, Ireland; call Israelis “a bunch of rats.”** + _Newspaper tweets video in which Palestinian supporters describe Israelis as “a bunch of rats”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/palestinian-supporters-rally-in-dublin-ireland-call-israelis-a-bunch-of-rats-f930f66f0c2) + +[**Please don’t tell me that there’s no anti-Semitism in Ireland. There is.** +_Or that Ireland “only has a problem with Israel”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b) + +For one, there’s Ireland’s obsessional and vitriolic hatred of Israel that appears to emanate out of every pore in society from the political class — who will shortly join only Jordan in formally debating whether or not to expel the resident Israeli embassy — down to the average man and woman fanning the flames of incitement on Twitter and other social networks. + +Then there are the specific incidents. + +Two days ago, hundreds of “pro-Palestinian” protesters gathered outside the Israeli Embassy in Dublin to label Israelis — as a race — “a bunch of rats,” conjuring up the grossest of Medieval anti-Semitism likening Jews to vermin. + +The video was shared on social media by a tabloid newspaper although the incendiary chant was conveniently committed from the coverage. + +An incendiary priest once routed the tiny Jewish community out of his city. And one doesn’t have to look very far (try: Irish Twitter, TheJournal.ie, Politics.ie) to see that any mention of Israel is greeted by a slew of both normative criticism and explicit anti-Semitism. + +Comparing Israel to a German regime that sought the Jew’s destruction appears to be a common past-time for many Irish Twitter users. + +The haters even managed to surpass their usual level of creativity by likening Israel’s vaccination pass system — the Green Pass — to the Jude badge (unless I’m mistaken, the Irish can claim credit for this perverse invention). And allegations that Jews control the media are … a cent a dozen. + +But beyond those facts, there are some facets of Irish anti-Semitism that make it an interesting case study. I hold these to be: + +### Many Don’t Actually Believe It Exists + +Ask many Irish people whether there is any anti-Semitism in Ireland and they will happily tell you that Ireland is one of the few countries that has never persecuted its Jews. + +Those who make this argument will often do so with the same air of smugness as those who affirm that Ireland is _merely_ anti-Israel — and one of the world’s leading voices crusading in favor of the Palestinian cause. + +Here’s a choice sample from a few hours ago. + +Less than 2 days since those protesters gathered outside the Irish Embassy in Dublin to liken (all) Israelis to vermin: + +> [](https://twitter.com/dublincomments/status/1396811520407916546) + +While it may seem hard for some to believe in light of the hatred emanating from Ireland at the moment, the claim is often precisely this. Not that there “isn’t much” anti-Semitism in Ireland. But rather that there’s virtually none at all. You wouldn’t see it under a microscope. + +Sadly many Irish Jews — or at least many among the few that are left — have fallen prey to this strange form of collective denialism. + +If you ask them about anti-Semitism in the country in which they live, many will happily affirm to you that their compatriots are “only anti-Israel.” Including those who marched down main streets around the country last weekend calling for the freeing of “Palestine” “from the river to the sea.” + +The conversation about anti-Semitism in Ireland it therefore at a reasonably elementary state. In fact the conversation itself is generally silenced. Such that I imagine that if anybody from Ireland reads this post it will be dismissed before the end of the headline. + +Whether it stays that way or not, I suggest that it’s probably imprudent to expect anything to change. For those interested in seeing anti-Semitism be called out in the world, low expectations are probably essential. For those Jews still residing in Ireland, I would argue that moving to Israel is the only logical move. + +Needless to say: it will also be impossible to ever advance this discussion it if the majority of the country’s citizens remain wed to the delusion that Jew hatred in Ireland doesn’t exist. + +While it’s true that many Irish citizens back the Palestinian cause simply because they believe in it, the self-righteous feeling that comes from backing what the Irish believe to be a noble cause creates a sort of enveloping fog that makes it hard to spot those who have hijacked the movement to sow hatred. + +Many Irish see an equivalence between their own experience of colonialism and what they perceive Israel to be doing to the Palestinians. They thus see themselves as the heroic underdogs of the world fighting the cause of another downtrodden people. It is this sense of moral superiority, if you ask me, that blinds so many of them to explicit anti-Semitism outside their front door. + +(Source: I’m an Irish-born Jew who lived in Ireland until I moved to Israel). + +### There Are Barely Any Jews + +When I attended high school in Cork, Ireland I was — to the best of my knowledge — the only Jewish student in the entire school. + +The majority of Irish Jews these days live in Dublin. And according to recent census date, there are less than 3,000 Jews living in Ireland. + +There are a couple of significant corollaries to this fact: + +Firstly, in a country almost bereft of Jews, organized opposition to Israel is naturally thin on the ground. + +While the Irish Israel Alliance does a commendable job at advancing Israel’s case — as does the Israeli Embassy in Dublin — it’s difficult to put up any kind of a fight when confronted with a populace that by and large appears to be vehemently opposed to every policy undertaken by the State of Israel. + +This also means that many Irish people — I suspect it may be the majority — have never met a Jew. + +Therefore, to the extent that anti-Semitism exists in Ireland it is a racism entirely borne out of ill-will fomented through second-hand sources. This is a factor that distinguishes it from other national anti-Semitisms. + +### In Ireland, There’s Plenty of Room To Hide Among The Anti-Israel Movement + +While estimates vary — after all, it’s unlikely that somebody is going to survey for this data — anecdotal evidence and common sense would suggest that most Irish people seem to be rather staunchly opposed to Israel and in favor of the Palestinian cause. + +Against this backdrop of near blank support for the Palestinian cause, it becomes extremely easy for anti-Semites to slip in with the stream unnoticed. + +After all, who’s going to call them out on it? + +My opinion is and has always been that there is a significant amount of anti-Semitism in Ireland, particularly mixed up among the pro-Palestinian element — and especially among its more virulent fringe. + +Ireland provides an interesting case study among global cases of anti-Semitism to the extent that many among its population continue to peddle in a barefaced lie that it doesn’t exist. + +My experience, and that of many others, is that such a notion is nothing more than a fairytale delusion. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-3-Most-Insufferable-LinkedIn-Posts-That-Need-To-End-Right-Now.md b/posts/medium/The-3-Most-Insufferable-LinkedIn-Posts-That-Need-To-End-Right-Now.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5511b1f2a62b4edc392eac35abb2de4c7b895182 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-3-Most-Insufferable-LinkedIn-Posts-That-Need-To-End-Right-Now.md @@ -0,0 +1,90 @@ +# The 3 Most Insufferable LinkedIn Posts That Need To End Right Now + +#### From old job love letters to here’s my gift hamper, the 3 type of LinkedIn posts that do my head in + +LinkedIn: a trifecta of infuriating virtue-signalling posts as selected by the curmudgeonous author. + +I’ve mentioned here a few times that I proudly self-identify as a curmudgeon. + +While the curmudgeons of this world tend to get lumped in with the misanthropes, as a non-misanthropic curmudgeon I would like to point out that there are several degrees of separation that divide between us and our humanity-hating cousins. + +While misanthropes actively dislike humankind (as a whole), us curmudgeons merely find them periodically, or frequently, rather annoying. At least that’s my definition. And I’m sticking to it. + +[**Horrible Corporate Jargon That Needs To Go Away Right Now (Part 2)** +_As a full-time writer, I’m allowed to both be cantankerous — also know as having an “artistic spirit,” a wonderful…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/horrible-corporate-jargon-that-needs-to-go-away-right-now-part-2-532986029117 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/horrible-corporate-jargon-that-needs-to-go-away-right-now-part-2-532986029117")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/horrible-corporate-jargon-that-needs-to-go-away-right-now-part-2-532986029117) + +One of the most triggering online spaces to be a curmudgeon these days is the professional social network known as LinkedIn. The reason is simple. It’s so eminently annoying. + +Like Reddit, my views towards LinkedIn have become more nuanced over the years. As a self-employed professional, I find it invaluable for connecting with clients past and present. Lots of great thinking and advice is shared there. But equally … there’s a whole tidal wave of virtue-signalling drivel. + +Narrowing that tidal wave down to these three selections was no small feat. But the following are at least some of the posts I believe the network could happily survive without. + +### The Old Job Love Letter + +LinkedIn has become crowded of late with posts from those leaving their jobs penning odes of appreciation to the former team they worked alongside. + +Typically these will be include strategic mentions of accolades achieved while excelling in said job. + +To butter up the former boss and demonstrate one’s irreproachably good character, the boss should also ideally be wholesomely praised. Lavish descriptions like “visionary” and “dynamic” can be added for extra effect. + +These “I’m leaving” notes have traditionally been communicated in textual format. But recently video old job love letters have started cropping up. Get ready for the next iteration of this form of self-congratulatory corporate drivel. + +A template is below for those who have the good fortune of not having yet happened upon this beast: + +_Dear network,_ + +_I’m so humbled to announce that my last day at X Corp was last [date]._ + +_Working alongside their talented team was truly the opportunity of a lifetime. Particularly [former boss]. Without this kind of supportive environment, there’s simply no way I could have led two subsidiaries to three years of successive quarter-on-quarter growth — all while volunteering in my local rescued animals shelter!_ + +_My next journey is at Y Corp beginning on [date 2] where I’ll be joining another [hyperbolic adjective] team of superstars. Can’t wait for the next stage!_ + +Suggested response: + +_“If ya liked it so much, why did ya leave then?!”_ + +### The “Here’s My Gift Hamper” Move + +This trend may be localized to where I’m based or it may be not. + +Employers have become fond of sending their employees gift hampers around the holidays or at other significant moments during the calendar. + +A typical hamper will include (perhaps) a bottle of wine, some peanuts, and a whole boat-load of swag. + +As seen through my cynical eyes, the idea here is to hope that the recipients of said gift hampers will take to LinkedIn posting photos of the hamper for their disinterested network to ogle over. + +Because who wouldn’t want to stare at the wine and peanuts that that guy you met at a conference five years ago is now evidently enjoying? + +This will have two effects: + + 1. It will encourage people to consider joining the company. Because who wouldn’t NOT want to change jobs for the prospect of receiving a smattering of nuts and a sip of Merlot on the company once a year?! + 2. It will make the company look magnanimous + +The game is not over, however, until the gift hamper recipient reciprocates the peanuts with the desired shared photo on social media. + +Those who want to play the game well should also make sure to tag the company and boss so that HR knows all about one’s loyalty. + +The gluttons who mindlessly munch on their peanuts and wine without sharing the experience on LinkedIn will be slowly selected out of the organization for failing to achieve the requisite degree of “cultural fit.” + +### The Intern-Hirer + +I’ll pause here to admit that I’ve run out of steam and exhausted myself with this outpouring of opprobrium which will make interacting on LinkedIn bearable for another six months or so. + +And anyway, what kind of self-respecting writer would author a two-part listicle?! And which to include from the hundreds of other examples I could cite of annoying behavior on LinkedIn!? I’m too tired to triage annoyances right now. + +I’ll conclude therefore with a brief mention drawn from a refresh of my LinkedIn feed. + +The Intern-Hirer will seek to leverage their hiring of a past intern as proof of their magnanimous and wholesome nature. + +A picture of a former intern will be blasted over one’s feed — ideally the intern will look somewhat disheveled and in need of a leg up in not only their career but also life itself. + +Next to it will be the corporate photo of that intern today. Ideally sporting some job title that begins with VP. The VP’s teeth should be immaculately whitened. The suit pristinely pressed. Beaming a smile that communicates: “[poster] got me here!” + +For his or her part, the Intern Hirer should make sure to subtly position him or herself so as to take credit for the intern’s subsequent success by affirming that he or she noted the spark of passion in the young intern’s eyes when nobody else did. + +What great things did the intern go on to achieve? + +How goodly is this network! + +_(In the interest of not further ruining my professional credibility I’ve refrained from sharing even redacted screenshots. But I can confirm that rumors that I carefully stash the most egregious examples in a private Google Photos folder are indeed true)_ + diff --git a/posts/medium/The-3-Tribes-In-The-Jewish-Discussion-About-Israel.md b/posts/medium/The-3-Tribes-In-The-Jewish-Discussion-About-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ebb04e5420a676b7cfc8033a245d91d3c706f703 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-3-Tribes-In-The-Jewish-Discussion-About-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,91 @@ +# The 3 Tribes In The Jewish Discussion About Israel + +#### It’s not just the political discussion about Israel that’s massively polarized. Even discussing the experience of living in Israel is a wildly divisive issue in today’s Jewish world. + +Israel: a land of great beauty but not bereft of challenges. Debate about life in Israel has become as polarizing as discussing the country’s right to exist — or its politics. Photo: author. + +To understand Israel’s convoluted politics, commentators commonly divide today’s society into tribes. + +The disproportionate use of this exact metaphor — popular among commentators from all points of the political spectrum and none at all — achieves a few objectives all at once: + + * Firstly, it reinforces the factionalism that has become a prominent feature of Israeli society. In doing so, it challenges the narrative that Israel — or at least its Jewish population — is a homogeneous entity. We’re tribal, those making the comparison insist. We divide along religious, ethnic, and political lines — among others. + * It subtly challenges Israel’s oft-spun narrative about being a beacon of Western prowess among a dismal and divisive Middle East. The suggestion: Israel’s right at home here. + * It lays bare the fact that the divisions within Israeli society aren’t just those between left and right and between hawks and doves and between the secular and the religious. Rather, it points out that they concern much more integral matters such as what the state’s fundamental character should be. And this is wholly accurate. We have, within Israel, a subset of the ultra-orthodox community that believes that Israel should be a theocracy governed by the edicts of the Torah and that secular Zionism and the current character of the state are therefore both the product of sinful misinterpretations of holy texts. We also have a sizeable portion of the Arab population who believes that the idea of a Jewish state at all is repugnant and who call for a one state solution as a resolution to the conflict. The first group has been known to burn the Israeli flag even in the midst of its capital. The latter has been known to hoist the Palestinian one in protest at what they see as the state’s oppressive governance. + +All this is well known because these meta-narratives about the character of the state tend to be well-reported around the world. + +**What those living _outside_ of Israel usually don’t grasp , however — including Israel’s legions of cheerleaders in the Jewish Diaspora — is that the same polarization regarding how the state should be perceived exists also in respect of apolitical matters.** + +For instance: putting politics, religion, and everything else to the side, is Israel a good place in which to live? + +Given that a sizeable portion of the Jewish diaspora have uprooted their lives in order to come to live in a divisive part of the Middle East, the quality of Israel’s transportation network might seem like as eminently uncontroversial a topic as could be chosen. Yet as anybody who moves here soon discovers: that ain’t necessarily so. + +Underlying those deceptively simple questions are rather frank differences in ideology — which is why a discussion about the quality of toilet paper, or fish, in Israel commonly turns so unexpectedly hot under the collar (at least among immigrants). + +To spell those out: + +Should we hold a conversation about Israel that’s based upon rational observation about what’s good — and less than good — in the country? + +Or should we filter all discourse through the lens of _halacha_ , suppressing unpalatable factors of life here because we subscribe to the idea that speaking ill of any facet of life in Israel is a sinful violation of Torah law (precedent for this position within the Torah comes from the Sin of the Spies)? + +It’s a major difference of opinion — a _makloket_ — in the Jewish world. And daily it drives some serious conflict. + +Because different people — and ethnic groups — subscribe to different views about these issues, I’d like to suggest that the online discussion about life in Israel (at least in the Jewish and Israeli worlds) splits in three. + +To continue the analogy, let’s call them three tribes. I suggest that they are as follows. + +### Tribe 1: The Relentlessly Pro-Israel Group + +Tribe 1 has managed to effectively monopolize discussion about life in Israel in the Jewish world. I’m showing my bias here. As a tribe three-er (my feelings about life in Israel are very much mixed), I resent this fact, mostly because its adherents have a tendency to stifle conversation. + +But for reasons that likely have a lot to do with the polarization of debate in general — as well, perhaps, of Israel’s embrace of black-or-white Trumpian politics — this has become the embedded reality in today’s Jewish fabric. + +The position of this group is an unwavering one, totalitarian even: Everything about Israel must be supported and ideally stated as being singularly good even when common opinion, outside of Israel, flatly contradicts such a claim. Not only its politics. But also the general quality of toilet paper as found in its supermarkets. It’s all wonderful. All of the time. + +An example, although this strays slightly into the realm of politics: Every action of the IDF must be supported fully, even when circumstances — like Elor Azaria’s killing of a Palestinian — seem to merit questioning. Furthermore, it must be called “the most moral army in the world.” The attitude was also on full show last week two: questioning whether the Border Police were justified a subdued Palestinian, for many, was simply intolerable. They’re the best. + +If one asks why imported Spanish olive oil costs less, in many Israeli supermarkets, than that grown a few miles away — and why olive oil in dreary Ireland is even cheaper — the explanation must be that Israeli olive oil is unquestionably the very best in the world, thus the higher price tag. We’re lucky to have it. + +For this group, facts aren’t an impediment to argument. You could point out that Israel has one of the highest rates of poverty in the OECD and that that fact is problematic in light of Israel’s now established position as a generally wealthy nation. They would likely retort that that reflects Haredi and Arab non-participation in the workforce. In other words, it’s not Israel’s fault. In fact, it just evidences how magnanimous Israel is. Etc. + +### Tribe 2: The Relentlessly Anti-Israel Group + +The smallest of the three tribes — but one that certainly exists — is the group that holds that life in Israel is singularly _bad_. + +This group consists of many who moved to Israel and lived to regret the decision. + +They won’t concede that anything in Israel might be positive. + +Its food? A crude copy of Arabic cuisine. + +The sunshine? It’s oppressively hot here and requires the regular application of overpriced sunscreen, thereby only adding further to the already extreme cost of living. + +Because Tribe 1 is so dominant, however, tribes 2 and 3 tend to mix and mingle on the fora that exist on the periphery of mainstream conversation in the Jewish world — and in _olim_ communities. + +### Tribe 3: Those Who Endorse The Lost Middle Ground + +The third tribe represents those who adhere to a view of the country that’s grounded in logic. + +Because in any construct as large as a country, it’s likely — almost 100% inevitably — that there will be aspects that are good and others that are not-so-good. + +Tribe 3 is where I feel most at home, although it’s becoming harder and harder to find fora in which to discuss our experience of living in Israel without facing harassment from either tribe one or tribe two. Many of us feel like we’re being forced to the edge of the debate, silenced from two directions. + +We see Israel — the country in which we live — through a mixed lens. + +Many of us — like me — are Zionists. + +We’re immensely proud to be part of the rejuvenation of the first Jewish state in more than two thousand years. + +But we’re also pragmatists and we can’t understand why supporting Israel meant agreeing to perceive everything about the country through the prism of black and white logic. It wasn’t in the terms and conditions sheet. + +We realize, for instance, that there’s nothing to celebrate about the fact that Tel Aviv was recently named the most expensive city in the world even if, simultaneously, it bears testament to the city and country’s rapid economic transformation. + +We don’t see the good in the endemic aggression on Israel’s roads because we realize that there is none. + +And while we’re keen to celebrate the success of Israel’s high tech sector in capturing record inbound investment flow this year, we’re also not blind to the fact that 90% of the economy does _not_ work in the technology sector and continues to struggle to make ends meet against an oppressive cost of living. + +We see that non-participation in the sector and worrying trends in STEM subjects aren’t evidence of Israel’s magnanimous nature, but rather strategic challenges that will have to be met head-on if Israel’s vaunted tech revolution is to continue for the generations to come. + +At very least, we’d like the right to talk among ourselves at peace. + +Talking about Israel is polarizing no matter which context you engage in it in — whether you’re talking about the quality of its politics or its toilet paper. Wherever you stand in the debate, silencing doesn’t help. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-4-Types-Of-Readers-You-ll-Get-As-An-Online-Writer.md b/posts/medium/The-4-Types-Of-Readers-You-ll-Get-As-An-Online-Writer.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b9ddca1dc519f9136f821bb499aeaffe60ff4279 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-4-Types-Of-Readers-You-ll-Get-As-An-Online-Writer.md @@ -0,0 +1,80 @@ +# The 4 Types Of Readers You’ll Get As An Online Writer + +#### What happens after you hit the publish button + +Something they leave off the curriculum in journalism school (note: I went to journalism school) is what happens when people start actually _reading_ your work and engaging with it. + +Yes, this is kind of a “nice problem to have.” It’s also — oddly — what virtually all writers aspire towards but that many are totally unprepared for when it actually happens. + +For a kind of essential part of the process of becoming a writer, this is something that — oddly — seldom gets discussed. + +**How many online writing gurus and journalism tutors have you heard coaching writers on how to handle criticism of their work professionally?** + +[**6 Top Tips For Dealing With Criticism Of Your Writing | Writer's Edit** + _As a writer, you'll hear feedback about your work in many different contexts. Notes from your editor; comments from…_ writersedit.com](https://writersedit.com/fiction-writing/6-top-tips-for-dealing-with-criticism-of-your-writing/ "https://writersedit.com/fiction-writing/6-top-tips-for-dealing-with-criticism-of-your-writing/")[](https://writersedit.com/fiction-writing/6-top-tips-for-dealing-with-criticism-of-your-writing/) + +Or how to handle a barrage of criticism towards the ideas that you’ve bravely exposed to the world without retreating back into your own shell (this is why learning how to handle criticism is a survival skill for writers; to be successful as a writer you need to be authentic and open yourself up to the world.) + +Maybe I was just asleep during class, but I think that this is a pretty big issue to leave undiscussed. + +The late British wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill had a great quote that bears interjection here. + +_“You have enemies? Good! That means you’ve stood up for something sometime in your life.”_ + + Winston Churchill. Image: Pixabay + +Let me break down why this matters for writers: + + * The more you write online (usually) the wider a readership you will reach. On Medium, you accrue followers. Elsewhere, you become incrementally notorious as people hear of you and read what you have to say. + * The wider a readership you reach (statistically) the more likely it becomes that some people will be ticked off by what you have to say. If 1% of people are going to hate what you write but you only have 50 readers you haven’t reached enough people to even have one “hater” yet. But by the time you have 500 eyes regularly reading what you say, you’re up to 5. As your readership widens, the maxim “you can’t please everybody” will start to look increasingly true. + * As your numbers notch further up you’re going to even get on the hinge of some genuinely unstable people. Here, uncomfortable things like cyberstalking can start to become _bone fide_ possibilities. + +**In other words: if you’re going to become a _successful_ writer (which, for many, means having _readers_) then you’re going to need to deal with all manner of fans: including those who seem to positively hate your guts. **And better to learn the ropes of how to handle this sooner rather than later, no? + +The other major factor that matters is what you write about. + +If you’re writing content marketing on behalf of a laundry company then you’re probably not going to rouse up much in the way of either passion or antagonism. Nobody’s likely to become that exercised either way. + +At the polar opposite of that spectrum, I contend that it’s virtually impossible to write a single word about the Israeli-Arab conflict without inflaming the passions of either side. + +If you’re an online journalist — or an op-ed or editorial writer — then it’s extremely unlikely that you’re going to be able to become widely read _without_ attracting all manner of people into your orbit. Here are some to look out for. + +### The Fans + +Once people start reading and engaging with your content you’ll likely begin picking up fan-mail from appreciative readers around the world. + +Sometimes people will leave friendly comments. The more determined ones will reach out to send you a kind email. + +When you think of “getting fans” this is probably the classic activity that you’re thinking about. + +Fan mail is good! It shows you that people appreciate what you’re writing and that you’re connecting with people. But it’s not the full picture. + +### The Critics + +Critics are those who don’t like what you have to say or how you say it. + +They can often be found disagreeing with your latest article or leaving a critical comment beneath it. + +Critics are useful because without them all you’re left with is an echo-chamber of positive feedback. + +You don’t need to react to every single piece of criticism. But it’s worth stopping for a moment to ask yourself whether the person might have a point and what motivated them to criticize you. + +### The Trolls + +Sometimes criticism will stray far beyond the level of those suggesting that you might have taken a different course with the narrative. + +It’s possible to annoy readers enough that they will develop into genuine haters. + +Once this line has been crossed you might start receiving abusive or harassing messages on any platform that you have exposed to comments. + +While I think that every writer should be equipped with the skills to professionally handle criticism, one we cross into the realm of bullies things get a little bit murkier. Many, at this stage, would benefit from professional help. In extreme cases, other parties may need to get involved. + +### The Silent Ones + +One of the easiest things to underestimate as a writer is the silent audience effect. + +These are the people that: read your tweets, lap up every article you write, and see every status you post on LinkedIn. But you’d never know about it because they never have anything to say or show any signs of engagement. + +The mysterious silent types could be fans. They could be critics. Or they could even be haters (less likely). But don’t neglect to remember that it’s likely that they exist. + +The more you write, the more readers you will reach (in general; dependent upon a few factors). Unless you’re writing something entirely uncontroversial, you can expect a variety of reactions to your work. Being prepared to handle every one of them is part of the process of becoming, and being, a professional writer. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-5-Must-Haves-In-Every-Prepper-s-Home-Office.md b/posts/medium/The-5-Must-Haves-In-Every-Prepper-s-Home-Office.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5032d3942d46c8a48551ad8b36f9f272ff6249f0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-5-Must-Haves-In-Every-Prepper-s-Home-Office.md @@ -0,0 +1,128 @@ +# The 5 Must-Haves In Every Prepper’s Home Office + +#### Steps to take before the lights go out and the internet goes down ….during your next client Zoom call + +Work from home? + +Like to keep one step ahead of … whatever might go wrong? + +So do I! + +If you’re running a busy business from home, then you know how costly and embarrassing even relatively momentary periods of downtime can be: + + * Risk to deadlines + * Reputational damage (see: risk to deadlines!) + * Lost business (see: risk to deadlines and non-responsiveness) + * Work projects getting pushed over into your personal time + +To mitigate risk, you can equip your home office with a few technological bits and pieces that should keep all your key business systems — and you — online. At least when they need to be. + +### A Backup Internet Networking Stack + +I’ recently described, in detail, how I spent about $200 on hardware in order to convert my sometimes-online home network into a very robust connectivity solution that should be online at _least_ 99.9% of the time. + +A small monthly connection overhead keeps it running. + +I’ve even been able to use a connection bonding tool to speed up the baseline connection — all while driving much more reliable connectivity throughout the house. Faster _and_ more reliable internet! + +V1 of my ISP to cellular backup networking stack. Photo: author. + +If you want all the detail on how to provision a redundant home internet network with backup / failover connectivity, then check out my posts below which go into all the detail. + +[**How To Set Up A Home Internet Connection That Almost Never Goes Down** + _If you’re struggling with home internet connectivity, there are some cool solutions out there. This may save you a few…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-home-internet-connection-that-almost-never-goes-down-562143906d0b) + +[**How To: Set Up A Budget Home Internet Network With Backup Cellular Connectivity** + _Budget-friendly hardware for setting up ISP connectivity with cellular failover for high availability home networking…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5) + +### An Appliance For Storing Computer Backups — And An Approach That Uses It + +Another big tech focus of mine? + +Backups! + +Backups aren’t particularly cool or glamorous, I realize (hey, neither is prepping!). + +But when your computer goes _kaput_ just before you’re about to jump on a Zoom call you’ll be glad you have a spare SSD handy to boot into (set up with your must-have applications, of course). + +For many years, I’ve been running Ubuntu Linux as my main operating system. + +This article covers the core of my backup approach. + +[**My (Ultimate!) Ubuntu Backup Strategy** + _What I’ve Been Using To Keep My Desktop Safe From Accidental Deletion, Disk Failure, and Other Forms of Destruction_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78) + +If you’re running a more common operating system, that guide probably won’t be much good to you. But try to adhere to at least the following: + + * **The 3–2–1 rule** : keep two backup copies of your primary data source at all times. One of those backups should be stored offsite. If your upload is good enough and you’re backing up incrementally, the cloud is a great offsite. + * **Take backups regularly and automatically.** Don’t leave anything to memory. Most people have better things to be doing than thinking about whether they last took a backup. + +Also useful: + + * A backup server. Or a network attached storage (NAS) device. Or a spare internal disk that you use exclusively for backups. But storing the backups on a different (onsite) appliance is a bit safer. If your computer is fried by a freak power surge, your backup won’t be. + +### Some Backup Power Solution(Or, At Minimum, A UPS — Or A Few Of Them) + +I rent. + +So while I’d _love_ to have a generator at home, I feel like this probably isn’t the best time in my life to make that purchase. + +My main motivators to purchase property (besides, you know, the feeling of owning a roof over my head); + + * Setting up some ridiculous home networking + * Setting up a backup power solution + +I kid. Power outages where I’m based aren’t frequent enough to make me want to go full-in on this. But down the line it is something I’d like to check out. + +For now, I do the most common basic approach used in home networking: run my appliances off an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). + +These are cheap, affordable, and (I think) must-haves for every desktop computer user. They also provide some power conditioning to protect your appliances from minor surges. + +**Tip:** Buy some adhesive glow in the dark type and put some along your UPS and a power strip running off it (C14 adapters) to illuminate both in the event of a power outage during nighttime hours. + +### A Supply Of Ramen (Or Tuna) + +Yes, really. + +From time to time, we all have to skip meals. + +Sometimes, we forget to do the shopping when we said we were going to do it. + +If you’re in the middle of an important client deliverable — or about to send in a pixel-perfect presentation — then you won’t want the inconvenience of eating to stand in the way of getting the big project bid in. + +Keep a few dried goods in your pantry. Try to access them as infrequently as possible and eat better quality food instead. + +But it’s always handy to have a few spare meals on hand that can go from in-the-packaging to in-your-body in no time at all. + +### A Backup Computer (And Router And …. Potentially Everything Else) + +My primary computing interface (a desktop). My laptop serves as its backup in the event of hardware failure. Photo: author. + +Our backup internet connection should keep us online pretty much always. + +We haven’t created five nines (99.999%) enterprise-grade redundancy here. + +But for the high availability needs of your typical home-based business user … this should more than suffice. By deploying this setup, I’ve gone from having near daily downtime (what got me interested in this) to almost none at all. + +We’ve also invested in software backups so that we can roll our operating system back in time if needs be. + +But what about … the computer itself? + +If we want to extent the idea of redundancy to its farthest possible reach, then we’d quickly reach the conclusion that we should have “backups” for just about everything we use to work. For instance: + + * Our office chair + * Our office table + +However, even dedicated preppers have finite time with which to set up their systems. Most have limited floor space within which to house their gear. And virtually all of us have some kind of budgetary constraint as to how far we can take this. + +What I’d suggest, therefore, is to focus on the essentials. Have “backups” on hand for those. And find “second best” solutions for the other things. + +For instance: even if you don’t have a spare office table and leather chair at home, you probably have at least a couch you could work on if needs be. + +If you use a desktop as your main computing interface, then you could buy backup hardware components. But that would likely prove unwieldy and if (say) a CPU fails, you’ll probably want to avail of the opportunity to buy an updated model. + +What I’d recommend, therefore, is contenting yourself with having another _computer_ in the house to work from. My backup computer is my laptop. If you use a laptop day to day, then keep a spare one handy and periodically test it to make sure that it still turns on and is good to go in the event it’s needed. + +There’s a whole industry — business continuity planning — that creates backup systems that are designed to ensure the continuous operation of businesses during times of emergency (or at least some of their mission-critical systems and human resources). + +If your livelihood depends upon your ability to generate revenue from work that you do at home, then you can step up your own continuity game by ensuring that your most essential systems — your internet connection and your computer — are protected by backup systems. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-5-People-You-Will-Encounter-in-Facebook-Medical-Groups.md b/posts/medium/The-5-People-You-Will-Encounter-in-Facebook-Medical-Groups.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..996b65b4cbfb478c6ed6f5f6268b49521db99047 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-5-People-You-Will-Encounter-in-Facebook-Medical-Groups.md @@ -0,0 +1,104 @@ +# The 5 People You Will Encounter in Facebook Medical Groups + +Bile reflux: not a whole lot of fan + +[I opened up last week ](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-gallbladder-surgery-story-and-the-water-party-project-b6ac76f8f124)about my health struggles following gallbladder surgery seven months ago. In a nutshell, the surgery — like I’ve learned for a significant proportion of patients — seems to have created more problems than it solved for me. The period since the surgery has been difficult to say the least — but I’m taking it day by day and making slow but steady progress in figuring the whole thing out including diet changes and medication. + +As frustrating as it has been to have to mix up a weird mutant orange juice powder drink before every meal (if I don’t, there’s a good chance I will be throwing up bile within a few days), I was absolutely delighted to find a supportive Facebook community of people going through more or less the same set of issues — specifically a great one that focuses on bile reflux, which is what seems to be the crux of many of my difficulties after surgery. + +Finding support for a health issue on Facebook might seem like a strange thing to do — but when doctors aren’t of much help (or taking their sweet time about offering it!), trading notes with other patients who are going through the same thing and trying to get better can be useful. + +For one, you can compare the approach of doctors in your country with those on the other side of the world — and see if there’s some drug, or treatment, that isn’t being offer locally but which might promise relief. I was shocked, for instance, to discover that I was just about the only poster, after my gallbladder removal, that hadn’t been prescribed strong opiate painkillers (and I say this as a good thing — America’s opiod is something that no health service should be in a rush to emulate.) + +Another benefit is the simple feeling of no longer shouldering the burden alone — particularly if your complaint is more obscure and you are unlikely to find others with your issue to exchange notes with in real life. I don’t know anybody that has had their gallbladder out — much less somebody with a bile issue — and meeting such people online is better than not at all. I would say that beggars cannot be choosers but that would be disrespectful to the many kind and supportive individuals that populate these groups and give selflessly of themselves to help others. + +The benefits I have gleaned from being part of a couple of communities have been manifold. + +For one, I’ve gleaned a ton of information from my bile group that I would otherwise never have encountered: such as the fact that there’s a newer and supposedly better (second generation) drug for binding bile called colesevelam (Welchol). And slowly, I’m learning things about the condition that will help me to minimize symptoms (apparently a bile reflux flare will often kick off acid reflux; the stomach boosts production of the latter in order to try normalize its pH — because bile is alkaline — so I have an extra imperative to do whatever I can to keep the bile reflux under control.) + +Although my overall experience has been very positive, in the course of interacting in these groups, one _does_ encounter a familiar cadre of characters about which the same could not always be said. + +In the interest of trying to provide some comic relief for what can otherwise be a somewhat depressing topic (dealing with health problems), here are some of those I have come up with labels for. + +Some are legitimately problematic insofar as they cause others to buy into nonsensical ideas (the conspiracy theory pushes); others are somewhat amusing, like the people convinced that everybody will benefit from what helped them. And I’d imagine that these vignettes will probably be familiar to anybody else using Facebook groups to learn more about a chronic health condition. + +Without further a-do, here they are. + +(*These trends have not been discerned from any one particular group but rather from a combination of them). + +### 1\. The Pseudoscience Pushers + +Unfortunately, but unsurprisingly, medical Facebook groups seem to attract their fair share of people that ascribe validity to unproven treatments that run contrary to the scientific method upon which Western medicine is essentially based. + +The suspects are the usual ones: gluten and vaccines are common targets and the diagnostic criteria for the former seems to be “if no other cause is found, one’s symptoms can safely be pinned on an undiagnosed wheat intolerance”. But you can find plenty of lesser known ones too. + +The claims of those pushing pseudoscientific theory might at first sometimes sound plausible — but the medical community generally does a good job at debunking such theories and fighting misinformation — such as the notion that amalgam fillings can cause multiple sclerosis (MS) and neurological disorders. Having to search Google whenever a sensational claim is aired is not ideal, but sometimes it is the most prudent course of action. + +**Common refrain:** + +**“** Wheat is a simple TOXIN — a POISON! Those Celiac tests the doctors give only catch less than 1% of cases. I’m telling you now — you’re suffering from wheat headaches” + +### 2\. The Doctor (And Big Pharma) Haters + +I wrote, last week, about how the journey to try find help for many bile reflux sufferers can be a surprisingly long and frustrating one. + +Gastroenterologists can be dismissive at first. Some will even mistakenly tell you that all bile reflux is normal (if you’d like to know why, read my blog below; the rise in laparoscopic surgery probably has a lot to do with that). It can be frustrating. And I won’t lie: I’ve probably never been as disappointed by the medical community as I am right now (although truth be told, I never really had strong feelings before this). + +[**My Gallbladder Surgery Story. And: The Water Party Project** + _A little more than seven months ago I underwent one of the most common surgical procedures in the world: a laparoscopic…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-gallbladder-surgery-story-and-the-water-party-project-b6ac76f8f124 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-gallbladder-surgery-story-and-the-water-party-project-b6ac76f8f124")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-gallbladder-surgery-story-and-the-water-party-project-b6ac76f8f124) + +However strong my feelings are, though, they utterly pale in comparison to the dislike which many frequent posters in medical Facebook groups have against doctors, Western medicine, and the pharmaceutical industry as a whole. + +These individuals will waste no time in asserting that doctors _“know nothing”_ about nutrition (a very common claim — and one that is completely incorrect); might claim that medicine is suppressing cures for financial reasons; and are probably fond of stating that a certain issue is not on the curriculum of most medical schools and therefore most doctors know nothing about the issue. + +The amazing part to observe is the extent to which these individuals are convinced of the fact that whatever information they have gleaned from reading medical abstracts and self-directed research is necessarily superior to the information doctors spent years learning in medical school and during residences (the curriculum of which is often derided). + +These posters are also often very fervent critics of big pharma and tend to portray Western medicine as one giant racket designed to enrich those working in it at the expense of patients. + +**Common refrain:** + +“Zinc carnosine totally cures this. But don’t expect to hear that from your family doc. Those guys know nothing about nutrition — they don’t even teach this stuff in med school any more! And anyway, there’s no money in an amino acid for the big pharma guys to patent!” + +### 3\. The Snake Oil Salesmen + +This one is actually something of a misnomer because the people in medical groups who frequently recommend treatments that have helped _them_ often have good intentions. However, you know what they say about those. + +The enthusiasm of these individuals becomes problematic when they fall victim to the logical trap of assuming that everybody in the group presenting with a similar problem to them must automatically need to take the same remedy that has helped them. + +This is a dynamic that I have observed in many of the handful of medical Facebook groups that I have been part of. + +A poster will find that an Omega 3 supplement alleviated their asthma, for instance, and then appear to decide that it is now their life’s mission to convince every asthmatic — particularly those that wander into the group — that taking the same supplement will be the definitive cure to their asthma too. What worked for them must work for everybody else — or so their logic goes. + +Although you could argue that the fact that these individuals often choose to become _sellers of the supplement they advocate for_ is simply a manifestation of the strength of their faith in the cure, after that discovery becomes apparent it can be difficult to see their relentless promotion as anything other than predatory salesmanship in bad taste targeting those struggling with health conditions — who, despite their vehement protestations, _may or may not actually be helped by_ the supplement or treatment they so relentlessly advocate taking. + +**Common refrain:** + +“Supplement X will cure your symptoms — it made me into a new woman! Unfortunately I couldn’t find any that were good enough when I needed help so the only brand I recommend is the one that I happen to sell.” + +### 4\. The Ones That Ask A _Lot Of Questions_ + +OK, enough bashing other posters. + +This one is squarely on my shoulders. + +If the snake oils salesmen have decided that their supplement is the only way to be rid of this ailment then the repeat question-asker seems to have decided that only an unrelenting barrage of questions will get to the truth — and the all-important cure. + +This individual, a fervent believer in the power of crowdsourcing, is generally well-received for an introductory/warming period — until, that is, the point at which he/she begins to monopolize the news feed and turns the group into a sort of external stream of consciousness which every member receiving notifications is then subjected to. + +The incessant question-asker only typically realizes how badly his or her question asking habit has gotten out of control when, upon searching the group to see if a question has been previously asked, he or she discovers almost exclusively threads that he or she has initiated. + +**Common refrain:** + +“Don’t mean to hog the feed here but just another question to follow up from the last one to follow up from my thread about the amino acid supplement.” + +### 5\. The Heroes + +As exasperating as it can be to see the medical professional ridiculed by people spreading misinformation, to see people making baseless assumptions about what they think will help others, and to see straight up falsehoods receive Facebook air-time, in general, I would still say that my experience with Facebook groups for medical conditions has been net positive. + +For the most part, discussions stay civil and people keep on target by sharing what’s working for them (and what’s not), offering support to those that need it, and sharing whatever useful information they may have at their disposal. + +It’s _these_ posters that remind the rest of the group of why it was formed in the first place and help create communities in which patients can truly do good things for one another — when otherwise they might feel as if they have reached a hopeless diagnostic dead-end or given up trying for ways to get healthier. + +If you’re struggling with a health condition and feel like you might benefit from connecting with others that share your ailment, I encourage you to see if you can find a support community online — in all likelihood (unless it’s it’s something _really_ obscure) there are already one or many active on Facebook. + +Just don’t be surprised if somebody tries to convince you to give up gluten, or pins your problems on vaccines, in the process. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Best-Freelance-Writing-Community-You-ve-Never-Heard-Of.md b/posts/medium/The-Best-Freelance-Writing-Community-You-ve-Never-Heard-Of.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3bad8f79205c99bc2e487bf57ae5733c06a19415 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Best-Freelance-Writing-Community-You-ve-Never-Heard-Of.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# The Best Freelance Writing Community You’ve Never Heard Of + +#### Reddit’s Penchant For Creating Obscure Communities Is A Win For Writers + +Where can you find the best freelance writing communities to discuss the craft with other writers? The answers may surprise you. (Image: Pixabay). + +Mixing and mingling with writers through the medium of the internet may not seem like the most satisfying activity in the world. But it’s beneficial for many reasons. + +For one, freelance writing can be one of the loneliest jobs on the planet. + +There are no colleagues — minus, perhaps, the dog or cat or goldfish that you may keep close to hand. Clients are … well, clients. And few outside of the “profession” can understand what it is that we do and some of the challenges that we all face. Ghosting clients, downward pressure on rates, and long working hours are just some of the occupational hazards that freelance writers face. + +[**Freelance Or Remote Work? What’s The Better Deal For Digital Nomads?** +_A Run-Through Of The Pros and Cons Of Two Increasingly Common Working Arrangements_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-or-remote-work-whats-the-better-deal-for-digital-nomads-c9219ebf16a3 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-or-remote-work-whats-the-better-deal-for-digital-nomads-c9219ebf16a3")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-or-remote-work-whats-the-better-deal-for-digital-nomads-c9219ebf16a3) + +Discussing writing with writers has more benefits than just alleviating loneliness, though. + +For one, freelance writing is all about learning. On the surface, that doesn’t seem like the case. You don’t need to “know” that much — strictly speaking — to get started. But with freelance writing, it’s the details that can really end up making or breaking one’s progress. + +How much should you charge for a white paper? Should you offer one round of revisions for your rates, zero, or two? These kind of questions are aired in writing fora almost every day and — after a while — you’ll be able to help those newer to the game out by offering some of your own hard-earned knowledge. There’s something satisfying about passing on the torch. + +Additionally, “meeting” other writers — whether online or in real life — is a great way to build up a referral network. There’s a selfish aspect to this too. Prospects are often more likely to turn into good customers if you can point them in good directions when they need guidance. + +Finding a writers’ community can be a daunting task, though. There are many such groups out there. And separating those that are likely to be useful from those that are likely to just blitz your news feed with spam isn’t an easy undertaking. + +### How To Find A Good Online Writer’s Community (And What To Avoid) + +When looking for a writer’s community I recommend first asking “what motivated the admin/moderation team / group creator to put this group together? + +Too often Facebook Groups are nothing more than thinly disguised advertising platforms in which the group owner tries to push members into buying his or her writing course. + +[**Why I Believe Freelance Writing Courses Are Bad For Writers** + _There’s Nothing You Can’t Learn For Free Online_ medium.com](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7 "https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7")[](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7) + +My advice is to avoid such communities. While I don’t endorse the viewpoint that _no_ communities facilitated by people with books or courses to sell can be valuable, I think that the fact that the owner or moderator is engaging in that activity should give you grounds to be cautious. + +Secondly ask: “why are the regular members contributing”? The good reasons are: to share knowledge and “talk shop” with other writers. But sometimes these communities can attract those that are looking to promote their own vested interests. If that’s the case — and those posts are not at least kept in reasonable check — this might be another sign that this writing community isn’t the one that can offer you most value. + +Online communities can also quite easily turn into groupthink-centric echo chambers. So consider asking: does the group owner promote a particular approach to freelance writing and expect the members to fall in line? Are members that hold contrary views ostracized or silenced? Again, this is something that you’ll probably want to avoid as the truth is that there is no one correct way to “make it” as a freelance writer. + +### My Top Two Freelance Writing Forum Recommendations + +Reddit is a social network that I have mixed feelings about. Most Redditors post under pseudonym/anonymous accounts. That fact seems to be responsible for the fact that so much of Reddit is toxic and seems filled with angry, hateful, people. + +Nevertheless, Reddit is incredibly community-dependent. The good “parts” (subreddits), if well-moderated, can turn into useful communities. [/r/freelancewriters](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/) is one such forum. + +My second community recommendation is for [The Freelance Content Marketing Writer](https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelanceCMW) on Facebook. Although this group _is_ moderated by somebody with a book to sell, the admin has been good about not saturating the community with promotion for it and not advocating an uncompromising approach to freelance writing. + +On the other side of the spectrum, I have seen too many freelance writing groups to count that are nothing more than promotional fronts for the creators’ courses or books. But I’m sure that there are other worthwhile groups that I have not yet encountered. + +**Current recommendations:** + + * [/r/freelancewriters](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/) (Reddit) + * [The Freelance Content Marketing Writer / TFCMW](https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelanceCMW) (Facebook) + diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Case-For-Being-A-Generalist-Specialist.md b/posts/medium/The-Case-For-Being-A-Generalist-Specialist.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d0a5944b008492a93ab319dc6f5d4aa36cb82912 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Case-For-Being-A-Generalist-Specialist.md @@ -0,0 +1,89 @@ +# The Case For Being A Generalist Specialist + +Today I spent a little bit of time updating the homepage of my writing website, [DSRGhostwriting.com](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com). + +Trying to summarize the type of technology I have written about for clients over the past four to five years was a bit more difficult than I expected. + + * There was that wacky white paper (couldn’t resist the alliteration, but it really wasn’t that wacky) about how Low Earth Orbit satellites (LEO) are allowing cruise ship operators to deploy better payment solutions at sea. Did you know that there are more than 2,200 LEOs orbiting earth!? + * A couple of interesting articles for a contract client around this time last year probing into the murky underworld of dark web fora and helping the company’s clients — including some law enforcement people — figure out a way to build API queries that catered for the fact that people on the dark web tend to speak in their own coded lexicon. + * Then there were the much more accessible blog posts I wrote for a telecommunications provider trying to convince local businesses, in an Asian country, of the need to “digitalize” — explaining how a certain provider’s solutions would make it more easy for them to access global markets. + +And potentially dozens of pieces, for various clients, about why to move from your creaky legacy systems to the cloud. Lots and lots about the cloud. + +### Being A Generalist Specialist + +Freelance writers, and creatives, are being constantly adjured to “niche down” — and to niche down further if they’re already plumbing a niche. + +The thinking goes a little bit like this. + +Anybody can write (or so we’re told; when it comes to writing to professional standards, at the tempo professional writers need to maintain, I strongly disagree). + +Fewer people can write in great detail about VoIP solutions. Or why those with peanut allergies have faulty immunological responses. Or about the difference between LEO satellites and those in higher orbits. + +Fewer people again can write, to an industry audience, about the intricacies of robot-assisted surgery, the linear regression machine learning algorithm, and cybersecurity best practices for Kubernetes clusters. + +Go continuously deeper, the drumbeat demands, until you’re one of few people on the planet capable of writing about a very narrow series of topics. Then, you’ll find yourself on the right side of the supply-demand curve and can chip in on your elusiveness. + +However, I’d like to make the case for why _not_ to take that journey all the way. Or at least to proceed along it with caution. + +### 1\. It’s Bad Business Sense + +Over the years, I have had a couple of _prospects_ whose expectations for work exceeded what I knew myself to be capable of producing at the time. When this happens, I simply tell them — because there’s no point in wasting everybody’s time. One, of recent vintage, wanted an expert-level overview (with strong emphasis on that fact because of the intended readership) of the fine cryptographic differences between two encryption algorithms. + +To which I would love to have responded (but didn’t): + +_“Sir, if I knew enough about cryptography to be able to write this article, I probably wouldn’t be in marketing writing.”_ + +No disrespect intended to what I do. I enjoy it. But I would argue that if you’ve managed to rise yourself to the level of a world-leading expert in whatever field you’re writing — especially one such as cryptography — then you should probably switch into that field and cash in on your experience. Otherwise, demand top dollar. Unrealistic demands abound when those in highly specialized fields lose perspective on how specialized their offering is. + +To my mind being a creative within a specialized area entails being able to leverage both a creative mindset — which the operational resources on the client side often lack — alongside an understanding of the company’s niche industry, which total generalists would lack too. That’s the value add and — if you’re specialized enough — can even become a USP. I don’t see any sense in shifting the balance too far towards either polarity. + +### 2\. Writing About The Same Exact Thing Gets Boring … REALLY BORING! + +Another early client example from my annals. + +I once wrote about VPNs for one of my earliest clients. + +Client A referred me to Client B who also happened to need articles about VPNs. + +Client C, who I still work with, sometimes needs writing about VPNs — but thankfully also needs writing about a few different B2C technology products. + +I wrote a Medium piece, a few months, ago, about [The Five Common VPN Myths.](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/five-common-vpn-myths-and-responses-910576ab3301)And I stand by what I wrote. + +There’s a lot of marketing misinformation about VPNs. Many of them do more or less the same thing. And most VPN features, for most people, are far more than they require. + +Can you imagine writing about the same subject matter every week for 18 months? + +I did precisely this and I hope that I did it well. But the basic things one can know about VPNs is a finite pool of knowledge and repetition — and boredom — was thus virtually inevitable. The experience underscored, for me, the importance of maintaining a _diverse_ client base. If you’re also in technology I would recommend picking at least four or five subjects that you are interested in. + +Otherwise weird situations can easily emerge. You might find yourself working for several players in an industry who all do virtually identical things. You might be the only writer in the world good enough to write competently about a machine learning algorithm but then loose interest in machine learning altogether or that particular algorithm. Or you might find yourself writing about VPNs from morning until evening. + +### 3\. Trends, In Most Industries, Are Fickle — And Predicating A Career On One Is A Risky Gambit + +Today, everybody is interested in Dockers, Kubernetes, Containers, and how serverless infrastructure makes a lot of sense from a technical perspective and allows DevOps people to have think even less about getting the infrastructure running they need to house their cloud-hosted product or software. + +A few short years ago everybody wanted to talk about the massive potential of the cloud and how every legacy system ever needed to be there (opinion: the continued existence of mainframe computing demonstrates that not everything, currently, can economically be shifted to the cloud). A few years before that, people needed basic instructional content on what the cloud even was. + +My point here is that taking a long view of almost any industry will probably demonstrate that hitching a 20 year career solely on the (technological) flavor of the day is a poor decision from a strategy perspective. This is as true for full-time employees as it is for freelancers. + +To throw in a truism, one should always be making small adjustments in business. It would be prudent for most contractors in an industry to attend industry conferences, and listen to podcasts, solely to know what conversations are happening and what industry experts are expecting to happen next. Being a generalist specialist gives you some wiggle room in being versatile enough to begin opening up your next niche just as a current trend is heading southward from the Peak of Inflated Expectations. + +### 4\. It’s More Fun This Way + +Every time I utter this phrase to myself alarm bells start ringing in my head that I am being “too generalist”. But for me at least it’s true. + +I find most technology interesting. + +Some things more than others. As a desktop-centric computer user, for instance, I’m never particularly crazy about hearing about the latest and greatest smartphone app unless it truly does something useful for the world. That’s because I have a personal bias: I try to minimize my use of the phone and I’m more interested in technology that businesses use. I love Linux and open source — but those are other personal biases. + +But within that niche? Many things — from HRM systems through to CRMs and ERPs and VoIP tools — are at least somewhat interesting to me. + +Keeping up a diverse client-base is a great way of always keeping things fresh and never — again — falling into the situation of writing about the same thing from dawn until dusk. + +There’s a middle-ground between being a generalist and a specialist. I called it being a ‘generalist specialist’ here, but it’s my own terminology. + +Whatever you want to refer to it as, spending more time in the middle of the road, or taking a slower path down the generalist -> specialist trajectory has its own advantages that merit consideration. + +**_Are you a proud generalist or an ultra-niche specialist? Leave your thoughts in the comments._** + +**_DSR Ghostwriting specializes in long form thought leadership service for clients in the technology sector. For more information, visit:_**[**_DSRGhostwriting.com_**](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com)** _._** diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Case-For-Israel-To-Move-To-A-Monday-To-Friday-Workweek.md b/posts/medium/The-Case-For-Israel-To-Move-To-A-Monday-To-Friday-Workweek.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9f0ac839aeec33c68b7f72749f54539991d1bf5a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Case-For-Israel-To-Move-To-A-Monday-To-Friday-Workweek.md @@ -0,0 +1,101 @@ +# The Case For Israel To Move To A Monday To Friday Workweek + +#### Could a redistributed workweek increase worker satisfaction, productivity, and help overcome Israel’s productivity paradox? + +Like many countries in the Middle East — but relatively few around the world — Israel currently works to a Sunday to Thursday workweek. + +[**Workweek and weekend - Wikipedia** + _The workweek and weekend are the complementary parts of the week devoted to labour and rest, respectively. The legal…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Workweek_and_weekend "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Workweek_and_weekend")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Workweek_and_weekend) + +Wikipedia’s handy visualization of the standard workweek underscores how the Middle East is an anomaly in the global picture, which is dominated by countries beginning their workweeks on Monday morning: + +The standard workweek by country. The Sunday to Thursday workweek that Israel shares with some Middle Eastern countries is colored dark gray. Monday to Friday is in light blue. Source: Wikipedia (CC0) + +Israel, and Israelis, have periodically called the workweek into practice. + +A proposal to add several Sundays per year to the working calendar — effectively creating some three day weekends, like the Bank Holiday observances common in Western Europe — was shot down by powerful trade unions. + +[**Israelis to get Sundays off - but not every week** + _After years of proposals and contentious debates between lawmakers and industry leaders, Israel appears poised to…_ www.israelnationalnews.com](https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/222879 "https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/222879")[](https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/222879) + +While that proposal never went anywhere, I’d like to re-open the debate and present some reasons why I think the country moving to a Monday to Friday workweek like the rest of the world — with a conventional Saturday-Sunday weekend — might be in the country’s best interests. + +### Is What We Have Really Working All That Well? Possibly Not + +A mainstay of arguments in favor of preserving any status quo is the _“if it ain’t broke, don’t change it”_ line of thinking. + +While the success of Israel’s high-tech sector — the engine of the economy — is beyond doubt, Israel’s economy has nevertheless historically had a sort of strange contradiction at its core: productivity per capita has historically lagged behind the OECD average. + +Gilad Brand, formerly of the Taub Center — a social policy research institute — authored a paper entitled [Why Does The Startup Nation Still Have Low Productivity](https://taubcenter.org.il/wp-content/files_mf/whydoesthestartupnationstillhavelowproductivity.pdf). + +Israeli labor productivity plotted as productivity per hour and per worker. Taub Center for Social Policy studies in Israel. Reproduced with permission. + +As the data from that chart makes clear, Israel’s labor productivity, at the time the data was collated, lagged behind both the G7 and the OECD averages. + +Israel’s closest neighbors on the chart — Turkey, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Portugal — aren’t the type of countries that one thinks of when imagining high-tech powerhouses. + +Israel’s standard workweek — at 43 hours — is on the longer end of the scale. And that’s only the _legal_ standard. The _de facto_ standard in the high-tech industry tends to be 09:00 to 18:00 — which provides a total of 45 hours. + +Meanwhile, despite the relatively low salaries paid to the majority of the economy working outside of high tech, Israel’s minimum mandatory vacation day entitlement, for employees on full time working weeks, at just 12, lags significantly behind that of many developed countries. The European Union (EU), by contrast, ensures that all its member states legislate a minimum vacation entitlement for full-time employees of 4 weeks’ paid time off (PTO). + +Could excessively long hours and insufficient PTO be contributory factors to the Israeli productivity paradox? + +[**OECD: Weak labor productivity hampering growth of Israeli economy** + _The wide gap in GDP per capita between Israel and the upper half of OECD countries has not declined in the last decade…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/oecd-weak-labor-productivity-hampering-growth-of-israeli-economy-595633 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/oecd-weak-labor-productivity-hampering-growth-of-israeli-economy-595633")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/oecd-weak-labor-productivity-hampering-growth-of-israeli-economy-595633) + +Many countries have tried out four day workweeks and the results of some studies have demonstrated favorable outcomes for both productivity and employee satisfaction. + +Japan is famous for its culture of grueling working hours (like Israel it remains something of a high-tech paradox and is one of the few countries still making regular use of the fax machine). But it nevertheless had success with an abbreviated work-week experiment. + +[**Microsoft Japan tested a four-day work week and productivity jumped by 40%** +_Microsoft tested out a four-day work week in its Japan offices and found as a result employees were not only happier …_ www.theguardian.com](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/nov/04/microsoft-japan-four-day-work-week-productivity "https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/nov/04/microsoft-japan-four-day-work-week-productivity")[](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/nov/04/microsoft-japan-four-day-work-week-productivity) + +When Microsoft tested out a four day workweek at its Japan site it found that its employees were both happier and more productive. + +### Remote Fridays Can Overcome The Shabbat Problem + +Some potential alternative arrangements for the Israeli working week + +The traditional argument in favor of maintaining the Sunday to Thursday Middle Eastern workweek is that it makes it easier for (Jewish) religiously observant employees to keep the Shabbat. + +Shabbat starts on Friday night but — owing to religious restrictions — food has to be prepared in advance of the day. + +Given that its start time is linked to sunset — which obviously occurs earlier during the winter in the Northern hemisphere — it’s not uncommon for Shabbat to come in as early 4PM or slightly earlier. (The earliest Shabbat occurs when Shabbat falls out closest to the earliest sunset of the year. This differs from the winter solstice by a couple of weeks). + +Observant Jews are forbidden from using electricity on the Shabbat so families would actually begin preparing their homes for its arrival — setting electric timers and so forth — a few hours before its arrival. + +An excerpt of the halachic times (zmanim) for Jerusalem, Israel last December 4th. This was the Shabbat that was closest to the earliest sunrise of the year, which occurred the next Monday on December 7th. + +Nevertheless, I think that there is a solution. + +Like elsewhere in the world, the pandemic has proven the catalyst that has encouraged Israeli companies to re-evaluate their working arrangements and many employees are shifting to a hybrid in office-remote means of working. + +Like shorter working weeks, flexible arrangements like these seem to both increase the productivity and satisfaction of workers. + +(Jewish) religiously observant employees could work a half day on Friday — say from 08:00 to 12:00 — which would make their working week 4.5 days. + +If employers felt strongly that they needed to recover those few lost hours — despite the fact that employees appear to be reasonably productive even working only _four_ days per week — they could ask employees to pull one unpaid overtime shift per week to make up the remaining hours. + +Admittedly, under this arrangement, the question of preparing food might remain somewhat problematic. In which case policymakers could consider _officially_ abbreviating the workweek to 4 days. If every day of the 4 day workweek were legally standardized at 10 hours (09:00 to 19:00), Israelis would still work 40 hours per week. + +The average working week in Ireland is 39 hour. In the Netherlands, men average just 34 hours of week per week. + +[**The Netherlands Has The World's Shortest Working Week** + _Unhappy at work? If long working hours are a chief factor behind that, maybe you should consider trying to move to the…_ www.ladbible.com](https://www.ladbible.com/news/interesting-netherlands-has-the-worlds-shortest-working-week-20210228 "https://www.ladbible.com/news/interesting-netherlands-has-the-worlds-shortest-working-week-20210228")[](https://www.ladbible.com/news/interesting-netherlands-has-the-worlds-shortest-working-week-20210228) + +If Israel were to mimic the Dutch model, employees could work 4 x 8.5 hour days — to total 34 hours (09:00–17:30). + +### In An Export-Led Economy, Sundays Can Be A Wasted Day In The Office + +Israel’s high-tech sector — the backbone of Israel’s economic transformation — is overwhelmingly export-led, doing business with, and selling to, the rest of the world rather than the domestic market. + +The US and Europe — both of which are on Monday to Friday workweeks — are major trading partners. + +Creating as close a synchronization between the Israeli and world-predominant workweeks as possible — without violating Israel’s Jewish character — would: + + * Help maintain jobs in Israel by allowing some labor to be provided on Fridays + * Eliminate lost productivity on Sundays when many Israelis are likely less productive waiting for work to be reviewed or approved by colleagues located overseas who do not start their workweeks until Monday + +The above is intended merely to add a contribution to the debate that periodically surfaces in Israel about whether the country should maintain its workweek in sync with the Middle East or move towards a model that would put it in closer alignment with the rest of the world. + +By eliminating the Sunday workday and distributing hours over other days, Israel could perhaps salvage some lost worker productivity while increasing satisfaction. On Sundays, Israelis could enjoy a leisure day like the rest of the world and explore the many wonders that the country has to offer. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Case-For-The-3-Hour-Freelancing-Workday.md b/posts/medium/The-Case-For-The-3-Hour-Freelancing-Workday.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1dd1e094e294a43d9f5c733f57e6b5eac81bd461 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Case-For-The-3-Hour-Freelancing-Workday.md @@ -0,0 +1,118 @@ +# The Case For The 3 Hour Freelancing Workday + +#### If freelancers are to be as productive as office workers, we need to get less done than you might expect + +Research indicates that most people are unable to engage in highly focused deep work for more than 4–5 hours per day. Office workers are typically only really productive for 3. Why, then, do we talk about 8 hour freelancing days as being evidence of working insufficiently hard? Photo by [KoolShooters](https://www.pexels.com/@kool-shooters?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/yellow-and-white-alarm-clock-6976599/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +If you were to take a guess at how many hours a day your average office spent actually … you know … working … what would you peg it at? + +Most developed countries work something like a 9 to 5 (incidentally, the standard workweek where I live, in Israel, is more like 9 to 6). + +Taking a conservative starting point of eight hours and then excluding an hour for lunch, which is standard in most salaried jobs, we’re left with seven hours to work with. + +But does your office worker really _work_ for those seven hours? Answer, no, no, and no again. So we have to take away from that to reach their realistic figure. + +What about: + + * The time you spend browsing social media + * Those solitaire competitions with your boss + * Time spent chit-chatting around the water cooler + * (_This was me in an open office)_ the time spent fiddling with the sound meter on SimplyNoise.com + +Alright, enough with the tantalizing hints. + +[**According to research**](https://behavioralpolicy.org/articles/workplace-stressors-health-outcomes-health-policy-for-the-workplace/)**, your average office worker is only productive for _three_ hours per day.** + +The explanations for that: + + * All the aforementioned distractions + * The fact that getting interrupted, and then back on track, is actually a pretty time-consuming endeavor + +[**Workplace stressors & health outcomes: Health policy for the workplace** + _1.Baicker, K., Cutler, D., & Song, Z. (2010). Workplace wellness programs can generate savings. Health Affairs, 29…_behavioralpolicy.org](https://behavioralpolicy.org/articles/workplace-stressors-health-outcomes-health-policy-for-the-workplace/ "https://behavioralpolicy.org/articles/workplace-stressors-health-outcomes-health-policy-for-the-workplace/")[](https://behavioralpolicy.org/articles/workplace-stressors-health-outcomes-health-policy-for-the-workplace/) + +[**In an 8-Hour Day, the Average Worker Is Productive for This Many Hours** + _The eight-hour workday is not based on the optimal number of hours a human can concentrate. In fact, it has almost…_ www.inc.com](https://www.inc.com/melanie-curtin/in-an-8-hour-day-the-average-worker-is-productive-for-this-many-hours.html "https://www.inc.com/melanie-curtin/in-an-8-hour-day-the-average-worker-is-productive-for-this-many-hours.html")[](https://www.inc.com/melanie-curtin/in-an-8-hour-day-the-average-worker-is-productive-for-this-many-hours.html) + +The corollary of that piece of information: your average office worker is unproductive more time than they are actually working. + +Which, when you think about it, is actually kinda astonishing. Particularly when you consider that that’s in _addition_ to the two hours per day they spend commuting. + +Cobbling those two facts together, we find that your average salaried worker probably spends about four hours per day on the company’s dime not really working or only marginally engaged in work tasks. And a couple more on their own dime commuting to and from the physical location where they put in only slightly more time per day on deep work than they do commuting. Maybe remote work makes sense after all? + +And that’s why I’m especially unashamed to reveal that: + +### Typically, I Work On Client Work For 3–4 Hours Per Day (At Absolute Maximum) + +I’ve explained before that there is an awful lot of activity that goes into making a self-employed business work. It’s so much more than writing/coding/whatever else you do. If you’ve never done it, but plan to, just wait for what’s in store. + +In addition to the time I spend actually _creating_ work that I can itemize on invoices and bill clients (AKA the roof-over-head-keeper-uppers) I: + + * Hold prospecting calls with prospects that I think stand a good chance of converting into paying customers + * Keep on top of all the admin and tax work, including filing bimonthly reports that keep my compliant with the tax authorities + * Work on my own inbound marketing process that, hopefully, brings clients to me and not vice versa (because, let’s face it, who actually enjoys cold prospecting?) + +The above is a very partial list of routine non-deliverable-centric engagements. I don’t subsume it into the above three hour cache. But if you really wanted to know how many hours per day I spend _actually working_ on real client deliverables for, then that would be about accurate. + +### The Human Brain Simply Wasn’t Engineered For 40 Hours Of Knowledge Work Per Week + +Here’s my contention. + +Now a disclaimer. + +**No empirical evidence (whatsoever) stands behind this claim so pick the salt shaker up off your table and sprinkle it liberally over the rest of this post.** + +I thoroughly believe that humans were never designed to sit and engage in intensive knowledge work for 40 hours a week. In fact, I don’t think it’s possible. We just all seem to have some kind of natural reserve of laser-focused attention. And we can only give so much of it on any given workday. + +Here’s another fact that I think argues in favor of the self-employed allowing themselves to feel perfectly okay if they’re not exactly hammering out deliverables from the time they begin work until they wrap it up. + +Office workers–by contrast to freelancers — engage in a lot of work that doesn’t necessarily involve them putting their noses to the grindstone, to draw upon the saying. + + * For example, they might passively participate in meetings which mostly consist of them listening to others speaking. + * They might engage in some mindless “keeping busy” work that sees them adding value but not _directly_ creating something on behalf of the company. + +There is more evidence that suggests that meaningful concentration — so-called deep work — is only really accessible to human brains for up to about 5 hours per day. + +[**Perspective | Your ability to focus may be limited to 4 or 5 hours a day. Here's how to make the…** + _My mind gets a little fuzzy when I concentrate for too long. So, to protect my focused time, I rearranged my life…_ www.washingtonpost.com](https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/productivity-focus-work-tips/2021/05/31/07453934-bfd0-11eb-b26e-53663e6be6ff_story.html "https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/productivity-focus-work-tips/2021/05/31/07453934-bfd0-11eb-b26e-53663e6be6ff_story.html")[](https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/productivity-focus-work-tips/2021/05/31/07453934-bfd0-11eb-b26e-53663e6be6ff_story.html) + +Here’s my all-time favorite methodology for getting and staying in periods of deep work. It won’t buy you more time engaging in deep work than you can get out of your brain. But it may allow you to make maximal use of it. + +[**Why Flight Mode Has Been My Best Productivity-Enhancing Intervention to Date** + _And I Think That Synchronous Communication Platforms Like WhatsApp And Slack Are Today’s Destroyers of Focus_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-flight-mode-has-been-my-best-productivity-enhancing-intervention-to-date-a062a3659664) + +### How I Structure A Typical 8 Hour Day Of Self-Employed Labor + +My average freelancing workday consists of a few core activities: + + * The deliverables I’m working on for clients. This is the raw production that creates outputs which clients pay me to produce. + * Engagement associated with those deliverables. This could range from in-person meetings to Zoom calls delivering status updates. Sometimes, it includes in-person meetings. + +Then there’s also: + + * Lead nurturing. Looking at who’s in my pipeline, if anybody (yup, there are dry patches), evaluating whether they might be a fit, and trying to move the lead forwards if there is potential there. + * Inbound marketing. I define this quite broadly as any activity I engage in that could attract clients to _me_. Inbound marketing also comprises a substantial amount of the work I do on a day to day basis with clients. So in a sense it’s just inverting that process and deploying it on myself. + +I also: + + * Write articles on Medium whenever I feel like writing articles on Medium. Typically, I try to defer these until I’m through with work for the day. But sometimes inspiration strikes while I’m in the middle of it and I throw caution to the wind and jump right in and draft. Occasionally, I post more than once here per day. + +### Why You Don’t Need To Beat Yourself Up For Not Writing For 8 Hours A Day + +I reckon that the only way I could write for 8 hours per day is if I picked up a serious cocaine habit. No, really. + +Seeing as I have no intention of doing that, my creative output is capped, like most people’s, at somewhere between 3 and 4 hours per day. I can _work_ for longer than that, sure. But it’s not going to be on the kind of deep and focused work that I directly bill clients for. + +And that’s on a good day. We all have those occasional off days when we’re hungover/depressed/generally grumpy and unproductive. Me no less so than others. Peg my real nuts-and-bolts output on those occasions at something more like one. + +But three to four hours of quality working time per day is my maximum mental bandwidth. So I try to work around that. + +If you structure your day like me, then I’d like to suggest that there’s really nothing abnormal about your workday. Or rather about ours. + +In fact, by _not_ pumping out client deliverables for eight hours per day, we’re really just mimicking the way most knowledge workers operate, albeit in a different employment context. + +Any freelancer or freelance coach who advocates some kind of productivity hack that they claim will unlock your ability to work for a full 8 hour day is, in my opinion, delusional. And any path to freelance riches that’s predicated on you really _working_ for that amount of time is similarly unrealistic (and I’ve seen plenty of those). + +I’m not talking about being unable to work 100 hour work-weeks. I’m saying that even 8 hours per day is probably more than the vast majority of us are able to really concentrate on deep work for. + +There’s more to freelancing than just cranking out deliverables. And that’s perfectly okay. Because almost none of us can probably do that full time. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Connection-Between-Inbound-Marketing-And-Authenticity.md b/posts/medium/The-Connection-Between-Inbound-Marketing-And-Authenticity.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..271447a787718db80706769a1cd25376e229cb75 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Connection-Between-Inbound-Marketing-And-Authenticity.md @@ -0,0 +1,88 @@ +# The Connection Between Inbound Marketing And Authenticity + +#### An argument in favor of amorphous free-flowing content creation and leveraging authenticity to create change + +Authenticity and inbound marketing: a powerful and potentially transformative combination. Photo: Flickr + +While I’m wont to say that I’ve been on a personal development kick for the past year, one area that I _have_ certainly been heavily focused on is authenticity. + +As a mysterious guest once told me at a wedding dinner: to succeed to the fullest extent that you can, you have to be one hundred percent authentic. Every single day of your life. And if you’re not authentic even for a day, you won’t get to that maximum potential. (I have no idea who this guy was, but this advice has been lodged in my brain ever since). + +Developing authenticity — at least for me — is really about pulling down the masks that we hold up to ourselves and which prevent others from getting to know the true ‘us’. + +Often, we begin this process of ‘masking’ as a defense mechanism. But sometimes we retain the habit long after it has ceased to serve our best interests. This has been the case for me. Unlearning my instincts towards privacy and away from sharing my true self has been a slow but transformative process (and one that, as a writer, I feel the need to go through). + +Simultaneously, in the professional domain, I have begun, over the course of about the past year, to shift towards a fully inbound-led system for generating business leads. + +Whereas 18 months ago I might have sent a round of cold emails to potential prospects, these days I’m leveraging content marketing — as I often do for clients — to try to trip leads into my marketing and sales funnels. + +What’s the connection between these two things? + +### How Authenticity Creates Content That Resonates + +The world — especially the internet — is drowning under a rising deluge of content. + +[**Content Shock** + _Does the saturation of content exist ?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@VisualErnesto/content-shock-94fef736b7ef "https://medium.com/@VisualErnesto/content-shock-94fef736b7ef")[](https://medium.com/@VisualErnesto/content-shock-94fef736b7ef) + +Other writers have discussed the concept of content saturation — a dynamic that I think everybody who creates online writing for marketing purposes needs to pay attention to. + +While authors naturally differ in their conclusions, most seem to arrive at some version of the following: While the market for readers’ attention has never been more competitive than it is today (think: over-supply), superlative content can still rise to the top and get seen, read, or heard. + +And what’s the magic formula to creating superlative content? + +Naturally there are plenty of ingredients that must go into the creation of successful _business_ oriented content (brand messaging, SEO strategy, target persona targeting to name but a few). + +**But for personal writing — and those leveraging writing to build personal brands — I think that authenticity is the ‘X factor’ that can engross readers in your work.** + +Because in an internet brimming full of keyword-stuffed content — in which even robots can attempt to game organic search discoverability — the one factor that’s impossible to fake, or for robots to replicate, is authenticity. + +Sharing from the heart. From true, lived experiences. And letting the masks that stand between you and your readers vanish away into nothingness. + +### Authentic Content — Rather Than Content Marketing — Can Kick-Start Relationships + +Inbound marketing is sometimes also known as attraction marketing. + +Its simple premise is that authors create content that resonates with the type of audience they’re trying to sell to. + +The common visualization used to represent content marketing, and inbound, is a magnet that draws leads into some kind of funnel. Which basically describes how it’s intended to work. + +That works well for businesses. In my day job, I help them with it almost every day of the week. + +**But I’d like to propose that you can leverage the same content for personal brand building and relationship development.** + +Look at it like this. + +With content marketing — as used for lead generation or inbound which is typically what ‘content marketing’ means — we’re, in a sense, reverse engineering the type of free-flowing process that I believe can be used when you’re putting out content into the world solely to attract the kind of people that can take your life, and career, in new and interesting directions. + +This second type of content creation doesn’t get discussed much — except perhaps in negative terms. It’s content created in a vacuum of strategy. But I’d like to suggest that it has its own merits, its own potential, and even its own methodology for success. Which is authenticity. The latter requires heaps of it. The former — traditional business content marketing — really doesn’t. + +In corporate content marketing — at least if we’re doing it as the textbooks recommend — we don’t typically just sit down to hammer out content. Instead, we think strategically. _Who_ do we want to attract with this content. _What_ are they interested in. _How_ would they like to receive it? As Joe Pullizi puts it, this strategy, and engaging in this thinking, is the difference between creating “content” and engaging in content _marketing._ + +This is all well and good. + +But here I’d like to suggest that it’s not compatible with sharing content with maximum authenticity. + +Because instead of sharing what _we_ really want to communicate into the world, we’re looking at what our target audience wants to hear and then working backwards. This is why I call it reverse-engineering. + +But what if we discarded all that and intentionally did things the other way. + +And we created this kind of content not to land ourselves business but rather to attract into our personal lives the kind of relationships that could create change. + +Isn’t that essentially the same thing as inbound marketing but without the reverse engineering? Inbound centered around free-form content shared for personal reasons and leveraged to strike up relationships? + +This is the kind of authenticity-led content marketing that I think serves its own purpose and which merits its own discussion whenever we’re talking about inbound. Its currency is the authenticity at its core much as that of business content marketing is creating valuable information and targeting it to the people who are likely to be attracted to it. With personal inbound marketing authenticity can be the catalyst that powers the results which it can achieve. + +Those mightn’t be the kind of output that we want classical content marketing to predictably yield: well-qualified, neatly segmented prospects who are interested in our product or service. + +But perhaps it can yield something inherently more powerful than that: Connections with people who are really on the same wavelength as us and who connected with the authenticity that we put out into the internet. + +Lest the above be misunderstood: + +I’m not suggesting for a minute that businesses abandon classical content marketing. Inbound is an amazingly powerful marketing strategy that’s also a lot more fun to engage in than cold calling and other disruptive forms of marketing. + +Besides the fact that I’m unqualified to make such a recommendation, I think that — as a business activity — content marketing _needs_ to be structured in a way that can yield predictable results and ROI. Which is why those undertaking it are, in my view, well-advised to go into the process strategically. + +However the value of amorphous content creation — for non-businesses and businesses — shouldn’t be disregarded. Perhaps (for businesses) the two could even be employed in tandem. + +With sheer authenticity as its driving force, this kind of writing, and content creation, can yield something more powerful than inbound business leads. It can lead to strong relationships; and those, in turn, can lead to much more. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Corona-Diaries-1--Social-Isolation-in-Jerusalem.md b/posts/medium/The-Corona-Diaries-1--Social-Isolation-in-Jerusalem.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d15a588c55b67f8e26d6451360fffdc8898e302d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Corona-Diaries-1--Social-Isolation-in-Jerusalem.md @@ -0,0 +1,251 @@ +# The Corona Diaries 1: Social Isolation in Jerusalem + +### How Did We Even Get To This Point? + +I’m calling today “day 3”. (Although, in truth, this is the first day that I’ve been completely apartment-bound.) + +When I think back about this eerie new world we’ve all been unwittingly thrust into, it’s hard to even grasp at the suddenness with which life has so drastically and unrecognizably changed for all of us. + +Into something that, just a month ago, would seem not only unimaginable but also preposterous. (Mirroring guidance issued by Saudi Arabia, Israel’s government announced today that people were not to leave home [“unless absolutely necessary”;](https://www.jpost.com/HEALTH-SCIENCE/Coronavirus-New-Health-Ministry-guidelines-translated-into-English-621345) the government intends using technology intended for tracking terrorists to monitors confirmed infected citizens’ whereabouts). + +The first time I heard about “the virus” was about a month ago when I was talking, via WhatsApp, with an Irish friend based in Hong Kong. + +He mentioned something about being stuck at home eating noodles. + +And I had a laugh conjuring up the mental image — and thinking how unfortunate it was that there was another crisis in Hong Kong just after the civil unrest there seemed to have finally died down. And then I went about my Friday as normal, wholly unaware that it would be the last totally normal Friday I have had since. + +The novel coronavirus’s encroachment into my life since has been but gradual constant — like a slow-moving tsunami spreading from the East drawing slightly closer every day. + +Now, the wave feels like it’s about to crest. + +### The Wuhan Meat Market + +After learning that the virus had both a name and a family I watched distressing footage of the Wuhan Meat Market — and understood that SARS-CoV-2 was a zoonosis, like SARS-CoV-1 (better known simply as ‘SARS’), which had probably leap-frogged from bats to humans, probably through one or several intermediate species, although we’re not quite sure which yet. + +And that was when I first remember feeling scared. + +[Looking at the footage from Wuhan](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0Y4SFz_A-c) and learning — [as Vox nicely summarized ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPpoJGYlW54)— why deadly viral pandemics seem to consistently emerge from China, I couldn’t escape the feeling that the Almighty was exacting divine retribution for humanity sinking to the depraved act of layering dead pangolins upon dead bats upon live snakes and offering them all up for human consumption. + +Belief systems and cultures of course differ quite starkly in what animals they consider acceptable for human consumption. But it’s also hard to escape the conclusion that history is repeating itself (it is!) and that there’s some universal moral underpinning that’s been violated — and that some monstrous punishment is being meted out to the world. + +And to be transparent — I felt, in that moment, a sense of seething anger towards China for engaging in a practice which all previous pandemics have shown to be woefully unsafe and then trying to suppress the spread of information that another deadly virus has escaped the bottle. Now, with mounting infections and deaths in countries as far removed as Brazil and Japan, it’s clearly far too late. + +(As the above probably makes clear, I am religious, although I tend to keep that fact private; note two: the exact chain of transmission is still undetermined, although both bat and pangolins share more than 90% of the novel coronavirus’s genetic material and the pandemic’s origin was almost certainly the Wuhan Market). + +Thankfully, in those first moments of blind panic (“humanity is threatened by another BAT disease!?”) I thankfully happened upon [Dr. John Campbell’s excellent YouTube channel.](https://www.youtube.com/user/Campbellteaching) And, after watching his videos, that raw fear was replaced firstly by a sense of academic concern at what was then, as now, a very rapidly unfolding and complicated public health situation. + +Because as we all now know by now (if not, we should!) the novel coronavirus is **_nothing_** like the seasonal influenza. + +It is both many times more deadly and contagious and — at this moment in time — we have neither a vaccine nor treatment to stop its spread or treat its symptoms. + +But digging a little bit deeper, the picture began to look even more worrisome (this was probably when I should have stopped Googling!). + +20% of those that catch the disease go on to develop a more severe disease course and require hospitalization — a percentage so high that it is virtually guaranteed to overwhelm the capacity of health care services unless we can all do everything to #flattenthecurve. + +5% of patients overall need mechanical respiration and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). And while both are lifesaving medical interventions, [the former is associated with pulmonary fibrosis](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4991945/). + +There is also some evidence that the virus may be neuroinvasive, shutting down patients’ autonomic reflex to breathe as part of its respiration-disabling double-whammy. And like SARS, patients who develop a severe disease course but recover [appear to be left with pulmonary fibrosis](https://futurism.com/neoscope/coronavirus-patients-lung-damage) as a result — although the samples size was small and it’s clearly too early to gauge the long-term results. And finally, given the virus’ similarity to SARS, the potential for [psychiatric sequelae ](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mental-sars/alarming-mental-problems-seen-in-sars-survivors-idUSTRE5BD4XW20091214)and fatigue syndromes cannot be discounted. + +To top it all off, just after reading that the virus appeared relatively benign to the elderly, I discovered that comorbidities including my own (I have asthma) muddied that picture. + +If that’s not scary, then I don’t know what is. + +Nobody, including me, was safe from this invisible monster jumping borders and communities on what seemed like an hourly basis. + +And so it was time to find out what _I_ could do to try keep safe. + +### Step One: Gather Good Information From Wherever It Can Be Found + +**When faced with crisis, my primal instinct is to gather information.** + +I’m a nerd, a digital native, and Google to me feels like a sort of wide omniscient elder who has been answering questions for me since before my _bar mitzvah_. With this deadly virus spreading by the day, it felt like a race against time to inform myself about everything I could do from a prevention standpoint. + +So I downed a cup-full or two [of my experimental coffee-water-solution](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/an-absurd-way-to-drink-coffee/) and got to what felt like work. + +The headline information was clear: This virus may infect if not all of us then the majority of us some time over the next two years. + +I toyed very briefly with the idea of going into a sort of permanent quarantine — avoiding society until such time as a vaccine or cure was developed. And then realized that that would essentially be impossible. (As thing stands, the government is in the process of making that choice for us.) + +I began checking out Reddit in depth for the first time in months, trying to pick out legitimate information from conspiracy theories and misinformation on the various subreddits covering the spread of the new disease caused by the novel coronavirus: COVID-19. + +When even governments are arguing basic facts about the virus that’s easier said than done. + +One evening, as I sat trying to figure out which hand sanitizer to add to my shopping list for the next day’s errand (this was shortly before pharmacies ran out) I turned to Google for an answer and got this in return: + +That screenshot is completely unredacted save for the black border which I have added for clarity. + +Seeing USA Today and CNN.com in stark disagreement at the top of a Google search was terrifying. My all-knowing oracle was confused. It seemed like nobody — from governments to health ministries — knew quite what to advise. And that made things all the more scary. + +After spending a few days of not doing much besides reading the news, bringing my [hitherto neglected Twitter account back to life](https://twitter.com/danielsrosehill), and trying to make sense of whatever information I could glean from Google, Facebook, Reddit, PubMed, and a million and one other websites, I felt confident that I had learned everything I needed to know about the virus in order to prepare myself. + +_Do face masks work?_ Nobody really knows, but get a good one anyway and know what certification to look for. + +_Can the virus live on surfaces?_ Yes, but it’s susceptible to bleach, so start spraying surfaces every other day. + +And, most pressingly, Is _takeout safe?_ There’s no evidence the virus can survive in food. So probably. + +After three highly-caffeinated days of frenetic Googling, I was beginning to feel like I had a pretty good handle on things. And as the first reports of asthmatics faring well with the virus began coming in, I began to feel a bit more reassured that all wasn’t necessarily doom and gloom. + +During those frantic days (during which work essentially fell by the wayside) I made what I suspected might be my last frantic forays for a while into the outside world: stocking up on any remaining essentials, ensuring that I had a nebulizer and reliever medications on hand, and buying a few extra bottles of wine to take the “bite” off staying indoors for weeks on end (no, I do not advocate using alcohol to escape reality; but at a time when it feels like the world is in collective meltdown, a glass of wine, or two, can be mildly therapeutic.) + +But as I took my last trips to supermarkets and pharmacies, I grew increasingly concerned. + +**Everywhere I went, I noticed that people were doing literally everything they were not supposed to be doing.** + +Hugging. Kissing. Shaking hands. Chatting and gesticulating frantically in closely-knit groups. (I worry that the virus’s rapid spread throughout Italy has been due, at least in small part, to the rather up-close-and-personal Mediterranean culture that Israel largely shares.) + +My brief forays out were, oddly enough, more stressful than days spent at home. + +I shuffled awkwardly to the side of the checkout counter, trying to keep two meters from the clerk — only to have another shopper brush right behind me a second later. Keeping to the government guidelines was not only hard; it was downright impossible. + +At that point, I resigned myself to staying at home for the immediate future. + +The very first time I really felt as if my liberty had been curtailed was Thursday night, which is the start of the weekend in Israel. + +On the work front, it had been an unusually grueling week and there was no end in sight. Usually, I hang up my [writing shoes](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com/) for a few hours and pick things up again on Friday morning. But this Thursday night was going to be different. + +The attitudes of my family in Ireland, and my wife — along with those of the world, it seemed — were changing by the day. + +Exchanging views and news on the virus with friends on WhatsApp, I noticed that I was suddenly no longer the crazy guy reading from other crazies on Reddit and frantically trying to save myself from impending doom. + +When I floated the idea that getting out of our comfortable-but-not-opulent Jerusalem apartment for a few hours might do us a bit of good, I was met with an uncertain and decidedly cautious stare in return. + +I chugged a cup of coffee and spurted out a few more hours of work, falling asleep, exhausted, in the early hours of the morning. (Note: if you work from home _and_ are social-isolating, then you’ll really learn the value of pacing yourself!) + +And I cried just a little inside. + +### An Unfestive Purim + +Until there was official guidance for asthmatics I was choosing to play it safe and socially isolate — not leaving the apartment save for essential purchases. (Interestingly, the official guidance is now for vulnerable population groups to do just that.) + +But after about a week of voluntary social isolation I finally cracked. + +The occasion was Shusan Purim, the happiest of Jewish holidays in which — I exaggerate not — Jews are injured to drink alcohol to the point at which they cannot distinguish between Haman (an evil tyrant who plotted unsuccessfully to annihilate the Jews) and Mordechai, one of the heroes of the Book of Esther. + +Along with, I’m pretty sure, the majority of Jewish Jerusalem, I begin looking forward to Purim about three months in advance. + +The great joy aside, however, events on the ground were already beginning to shift rapidly — part of the chaotic new world order that we are all grappling to get to grips with. + +The Jerusalem Municipality, siding with the Government which had just announced its first ban on crowds, [had chosen to ban the traditional boisterous party](https://www.timesofisrael.com/purim-parades-sporting-events-scrapped-over-coronavirus-fears/) in the Mahane Yehuda Market and that on the nearby Nissim Bahar Street in the city’s English-speaking-heavy Nahlaot neighborhood. + +But then the above photo (which has now gone locally viral) was posted to a popular English-speaking Facebook group and began doing the rounds. + +It showed hundreds of patrons squished into the market’s small lanes doing the exact opposite of social containment. + +Seeing that photo (which is not my own) I was on the verge of drinking more coffee and doing more work. It was unsafe to go out! + +And then, suddenly, I felt a strange but fervent urge to do precisely that and celebrate one final time. A compulsion borne out of equal parts boredom, religious fervor, and desperation. It was time to emerge — if only for one last time! + +So emerge I did, blinking and grimacing into the outside world, stumbling into a taxi (from confusion, not drunkenness!). + +For those wondering what quarantine will be like, and who haven’t yet started socially isolating, I can affirm that even after a few days, emerging back into the outside world feels a little bit strange — intoxicating even. + +There’s so much stimuli to take in — the sky seems somehow brighter, a routine conversation with a cab driver suddenly engrossing. The whole experience can ebe overwhelming to overly-sensitized senses dulled by the boredom of four repetitive walls. + +But what I _can_ say, in retrospect, is that I do not regret going out on Purim Shusan — not even one bit. + +Yes, I tried my best to keep a safe social distance, washed my hands meticulously, and carried a tub of hand sanitizer in the back pocket of my _jelabiah_(my costume for the day). + +But I also got moderately inebriated, per the religious commandment; wandered into a synagogue where, after jumping around to strange religious techno blasted from massive speakers, I prayed passionately for the end of this bitter virus flooding through our communities and the world; and then, expunged of energy, visited my favorite bar and enjoyed one tremendous, extremely bitter IPA. + +I lived. I had fun. And best of all I forgot about the coronavirus for a few hours. + +But just as I suspected when I was going out — it _was_ to be the last time for a while. + +Several days later [bars, restaurants and all other recreational facilities were ordered closed.](https://www.timesofisrael.com/no-more-daycare-restaurants-gyms-or-prayer-quorums-the-new-virus-regulations/) + +### And Then …. Everything Got Very Real + +Although I’m writing this only a few days after it, my little Purim expedition has proven strangely therapeutic. + +Having enjoyed one last foray into the real world (while knowing that it might be my last foray for a while), I’ve made an uncomfortable peace with living a more limited version of life at home for a while. + +Which, as I write this, seems like a pretty good way to sum up my existence. + +And, in part because of that expedition, I’ve stopped feeling sorry for myself. Because there’s truly no reason to. We’re _all_ going through this together. And there’s something oddly comforting and cohesive in our shared mission. + +[caption id=”attachment_778273" align=”aligncenter” width=”600"] + +Watching another emergency government broadcast over YouTube. It’s become an abnormal part of the new daily norm.[/caption] + +If this didn’t feel quite real two weeks ago — picking up on hard news about this virus from an English doctor on YouTube and some Reddit threads — then it certainly does now. + +There are nightly emergency press conferences about it. Such as the one I have screenshotted above. Police showing up on doors to check for quarantine-evaders. And loudspeakers broadcasting news of the latest government restrictions to devout Jews in _Mea Shearim_ and other ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods who don’t carry smartphones. + +Like I imagine many places, virtually nobody in Jerusalem is talking about anything else. + +Two weeks ago, I decided to risk what I was sure would be major embarrassment and cancel a couple of meetings with clients in Tel Aviv. I figured it wasn’t worth the risk. + +Today, I’m not sure whether it would be legal for those clients to meet with me; [citizens have been adjured to remain at home “unless absolutely necessary”](https://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Israelis-with-coronavirus-Health-Ministry-reports-304-patients-621258) — although the ban has no legal enforcement mechanism and so remains underpinned by a sort of honor-system, although the police _is_ clamping down on those who might be evading quarantine. + +I’m also grateful for the knowledge which I was able to draw up on at the last minute (truthfully, I should have been following this for months). + +I’ve prepared myself as best as I can for the virus, although filling remaining knowledge gaps has taken a lot of time (how should you wash your clothes to remove the virus? do you need to wash fruit and veg?). + +Humanity’s understanding of the novel coronavirus remains extremely limited; but at the same time there’s only so much you need to know to adequately prepare yourself. There comes a point at which you need to say “I’m practicing prevention to the best of my abilities and I can do no more.” + +If you made it this far then, as you might have guessed, I’m taking things relatively seriously — although my measures pale in comparison to those I’ve seen documented in some accounts online. + +I’ve set up a “decontamination zone” at the entrance to my apartment (this is where all goods from the outside world enter but do not pass as they must be considered automatically, if invisibly, contaminated; and yes, it’s really hard to write about this without sounding like a mad conspiracy theorist). + +I’ve stocked up on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) so that — should the pandemic get extremely severe — I can venture into the outside world with the best possible protection to. .. I don’t know …. put the rubbish out. + +And I’m being parsimonious about my visits into the “outside world” — which now seems like a vaguely malicious sot of place beyond the expanses of my oddly comfortable personal bubble. + +Yesterday, I ventured out into that area to see a gastroenterologist because I’ve had (what I believe to be!) some complications from gallbladder surgery several months ago. + +The gastroenterologist prescribed a bile binder to help things settle down. + +Today, I decided that it was not worth visiting the pharmacy to pick it up. + +I can survive without it for a few weeks — or should that be months? Hopefully, things will have settled down by then, along with the level of bile refluxing into my stomach. Although I — like anybody — am no longer really sure. + +Oddly enough, in the interim, all this has started to feel quite normal. And, surprisingly, all this focus time has its perfect + +As a writer, I love writing entries like this just for the joy of writing — and it’s nice to have comfortable time to do this after also getting other work done. + +The epidemiological situation is changing rapidly. + +I stick to a daily YouTube diet of [Dr. Campbell](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCF9IOB2TExg3QIBupFtBDxg) and Peak Prosperity to try keep on top of the big picture while filtering out much of the unnecessary detail such as the continuously-rising case counts. I’m trying to cut down on monitoring the lower-level picture as it’s dissected on Twitter, Google News, and other sources. + +And I’m taking pleasure in the little things. + +We’re still ordering the odd takeout. + +Delivery people who once took my odd requests to pick up a tip from atop a flower vase as a doomsday-like oddity are now insisting on similar precautions themselves. + +Because if there’s one thing it’s worth looking forward to at the end of the day it’s a Burrito and some nice wine. + +I’m finally getting value out of that Netflix subscription which I’ve been paying for for six months but barely using. + +There’s now a daily recreation schedule affixed next to the mask-donning (and doffing) instructions to make our apartment feel more like some sort of temporary resort rather than a prison. + +And far from being a place of boredom, life within these four walls is so busy that it’s sometimes hard to keep up. + +[Work](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com/) has been buoyant — there’s the usual volume that clients send me along with requests for ad-hoc pieces about remote work, how to remain productive during the coronavirus, etc. As I’ve spent so much time thinking about it, these are practically writing themselves. + +And there’s so much news to _legitimately_ keep up with, such as government restrictions and orders that it’s hard to keep up on that front too. + +During the course of the last few hours alone there’s been a dramatic increase in the lockdown and public transport [will cease](http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/277415) during weekends and nights. Halfway through writing this, the police knocked on our door to make sure we’re not breaking quarantine. All this feels slightly odd — while also feeling normal. + +The learning goes on too and — I must make a dastardly confession — has become a perverse enjoyment of sorts. + +I need to figure out how to use my new nebulizer just in case. + +And to try out a face visor for the first time (okay, that might have been a little overkill). + +Simultaneously, while trying on face visors and half-face respirators, the gravity of the crisis facing the world doesn’t evade me. + +But there’s no point stressing about it either. + +Above all, I’m happy and grateful to be living in a country that seems to be taking delaying the spread of the virus extremely seriously. + +In fact, my chief criticism has been that the lockdown hasn’t been tough enough and that “recommended” measures — such as non-essential services avoiding workplaces — are being trounced upon by employers who won’t tolerate any disruption to their businesses whatever the cost. And that I couldn’t figure out a way to get Guinness in time for Patrick’s Day. + +As my friends keep reminding me these are extraordinary and wholly unprecedented times. + +There’s no playbook for how to get through this — for the world or for us. + +But for now a hefty dose of information, the busyness of work, some Netflix, and the odd drop of wine are enough to get me through. + +May we all keep safe and healthy; and may the coronavirus be brought to a speedy and swift end. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Dangers-of-Chasing-After-Social-Engagement-Metrics.md b/posts/medium/The-Dangers-of-Chasing-After-Social-Engagement-Metrics.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7af4e401c456e387a8218bfbd37cc855d3e26ba7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Dangers-of-Chasing-After-Social-Engagement-Metrics.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# The Dangers of Chasing After Social Engagement Metrics + +#### In a world drowning in data, we’re also swimming in noise. Are most social engagement metrics simply part of that? + +Social metrics: if they don’t put money in the bank, are they just distractions? Image: PXHere.com + +I recently made a friend. + +Because I like this friend, he (or is it a she?) will have to remain nameless. But for the sake of convenience, let’s call this person Nate, which isn’t his (or her) real name. + +Nate is what you might call a rising star in the firmament of social media. His posts have quickly picked up traction. When I first encountered Nate online (we later met in real life) I immediately connected with what he was doing. + +Like me, it seemed, Nate had an innate and sincere passion for creating and sharing “content” (this is the one time I actually use that term deliberately because it’s conveniently vague here). I connected with the crux of Nate’s mission. But it quickly became apparent to me that there was something slightly amiss. + +With a speed that amazed me, Nate seemed to develop a serious case of a new internet syndrome called Dopamine Microhit Addiction Syndrome (DMAS). + +DMAS isn’t a real condition, of course. But if it were it would be characterized by an addiction to the tiny releases of dopamine we feel whenever the sagacity of our thoughts are validated by the form of an online engagement that is really mostly meaningless in the context of our broader mission in life. + +Examples of DMAS-inciting activities include: + + * Accruing one new follower on Medium + * Receiving a certain numbers of likes for a post on Facebook + * Reaching an arbitrary number of followers on Twitter + +Let me explain why I think that this is a potential condition that we all need to be cognizant of. And personally why I feel that it’s a trap that I want to work on avoiding falling into. + +### External Validation Is A Poor Measure Of Content Value + +The danger of DMAS— as I witnessed with Nate — is that the syndrome quickly self-perpetuates. It can strike even the most guarded of us — derailing sincere content creators and turning them into virtual slaves beholden to the whims that tiny social engagement signals send. + +The syndrome of chasing after what I often term vanity metrics also puts its sufferers into a tumultuous series of highs and lows. + +The highs one receives after authoring something popular don’t last long. The troughs can pull them down for no reason at all. The innocent joy of authoring meaningful content gets replaced by a futile desire to placate audiences and accrue signals — likes, comments, subscribers — that in the bigger picture mean almost nothing. + +The other danger of DMAS is that it predicates your self-image, as a content creator, upon something unpredictable and external — namely how your writing is received. Which is unfortunate because the worth of content and its immediate engagement levels are often wildly out of sync. + +If the only way you’re measuring how well your content is being received is by simplistic engagement signals — like likes and comments — then you’re also missing out on an enormous part of the picture. + +Those are the thoughts, feelings and sentiment that those who _don’t_ engage with your content are keeping wrapped up in their thoughts which you don’t have access to. The more I learn about the power of hidden audiences the more I realize how much power and information lies locked up in them. + +And what about engagement metrics anyway? + +Even when we receive them what do they really mean? + +Maybe most of your audience got up on the wrong side of bed when you wrote your last social post. + +Perhaps the news cycle was too full and working against you when you sent out your last LinkedIn status. + +There are many reasons — some way beyond your control — why a piece of content might fall flat on any given day. And if you’re constantly looking at the surface level signs of engagement, you risk missing out on the bigger picture. The one that talks about the kind of audience you’re developing. + +### Social Metrics Often Mean Nothing + +But enough with the abstract reasoning. + +Let me provide an example from my own content-creating career. + +My most popular Medium post at the of time of writing this piece, with more than 2,000 claps, is my attempt to question how a course creator could have amassed such a staggering income. + +An advertorial I wrote on behalf of an Irish tourism body, about Irish islands, has received more than 11,000 shares on social media. + +But I would rank both pieces far down the list in terms of the most “worthy” pieces of authorship that I have penned over the course of my career, to date, as a writer. In fact, this piece means more to me than the piece that got shared more than 10,000 times on Facebook. + +And so it was with sincere disappointment that I watched as Nate went from earnest content creator to vanity metric chaser. + +Nate’s descent into the far reaches of vanity metric chasing was as fast as it was obvious. + +He began setting himself arbitrary KPIs for engagement metrics that he wished to achieve. If he posted something that caught the right gust of the winds that blow over social media he would be elated. But if it didn’t he would agonize over what had gone wrong when arguably nothing had. His desire to create meaningful content was replaced by an obsession with algorithms and a quest to find ways to work them in his favor to shift some numbers in an upward direction. Nate stopped creating content for humans and began writing for algorithms. + +It seemed to me as if Nate’s initial innocent enthusiasm for sharing content had been replaced by a nonsensical urge to gamify the process in order to collect metrics that ultimately meant nothing of substance. + +### Ignoring The Noise Helps Us Focus On The KPIs That Really Matter To Our Businesses + +When doing a bit of background reading for this piece, I [stumbled upon this piece by Gary Vaynerchuk](https://medium.com/@garyvee/your-follower-count-is-irrelevant-9e4b228099a7). As Gary states:_“All you need is one follower of the 10,000 to really change the course of your business or personal life.”_ That summarizes exactly what I’m trying to get at here. + +When I was in school, I used to engage in swimming meets and competitions. + +Ironically one of the only things that has stuck with me in the years since is this: You don’t waste even a fraction of a second checking where the swimmer in the lane next to you is. Because doing so can mean the difference between finishing in first and second place. + +**Nate’s experience was enlightening for me. But it also caused me to look in the mirror.** + +I check my Medium follower account periodically. Before I surpassed 500 connections on LinkedIn — to get the illustrious “500+ connections badge” that now virtually everybody has — I watched my connection count anxiously, waiting for the day when I would finally budge past 499. For me at last, I’ve since concluded that those are both complete wastes of my time. + +I have a few key KPIs that I keep track of in my business and my note to self here is to keep looking at these instead of how many followers I have on Medium. One of those is how much income I make per month. The other is how many clients I’m currently working with. These are the things that really matter to me. They keep my business on track. And bread on my table. + +Not only are they often meaningless, but vanity metrics like likes, followers and subscribers are like miniature darts of dopamine distracting us from focusing on our more important objectives as content creators and sharers. + +In the interest of trying to gamify social networks, in a sense, they’ve turned us all against each other and against ourselves — in a furious and ultimately futile attempt to outdo one another. + +Not only is it a battle that almost none of us stand a chance of winning — we’re competing against the world! — in many cases it’s also one that doesn’t matter. And who has a career to waste chasing after those? + +Many of us are working to be more data-driven these days. But if we’re going to the trouble of collecting data, we also need to make sure that we’re measuring ourselves against the right benchmarks. + +Most social networks put this kind of information in our faces — through notifications, emails, and other user touchpoints. It takes discipline and deliberate effort to resist the temptation to succumb to chase after them. As well as a good measure of contrarian thinking to question the received wisdom that these things matter at all. + +Today, I’m resolving to stop logging into Medium to see whether I’ve picked up followers. And I’ll try to look the other way when the notification ticket puts that information in my face. Because ultimately, for my business, and my life, the number doesn’t really matter. + +Metrics that don’t put money in the bank for me or make a critical difference to my business are ultimately mere distractions. In a world increasingly swimming with data, we’re also drowning in noise. + +And like most distractions, I think they’re best ignored. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-History-of-Jewish-Cork---As-Told-By-YouTube-6167446962e.html.md b/posts/medium/The-History-of-Jewish-Cork---As-Told-By-YouTube-6167446962e.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..487cf2643a4b6ab43b746a3aa607e50f745b5fe1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-History-of-Jewish-Cork---As-Told-By-YouTube-6167446962e.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,45 @@ +# The History of Jewish Cork — As Told By YouTube + +Browsing through YouTube recently, I came across several videos telling the story of Jewish Cork. I’m embedding these here into one article as many remain interested in the Jewish narrative in Ireland. (I recently covered the subject here and on _Times of Israel_. Link below) + +[**What Was It Like Growing Up Jewish in Ireland?** +_I’ve written before about the trials and tribulations of making aliyah — and the ways in which I think Israel’s culture…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland-1f04fe73b36a "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland-1f04fe73b36a")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland-1f04fe73b36a) + +This touching piece from [RTÉ Cork reporter Jennie O’Sullivan](https://twitter.com/osullivanjennie?lang=en) tells the story of the origins and gradual decline of the Cork Hebrew Congregation. It features an interview with my late grandfather, Fred Rosehill, ZL. I make a cameo appearance — evidently in days when I was in need of a better barber! + +For those interested in knowing about how the _vicklemen_(Yiddish: door to door salespeople) established home in Ireland, after migrating, largely, from Lithuania, this eight minute clip, for RTÉ Nationwide, does a nice job at laying out the history of the community. + +JewishCork.com, the website of the Cork Hebrew Congregation (CHC), has a rough textual equivalent[ here](https://www.jewishcork.com/history/). + +[**Jewish Cork | Cork Hebrew Congregation** + _The first wave of Jewish emigration to Cork was in 1772 with the influx of a small community of Sephardic Jews from…_ www.jewishcork.com](https://www.jewishcork.com/history/ "https://www.jewishcork.com/history/")[](https://www.jewishcork.com/history/) + +### Other Videos + +In this video, [George from Ireland — Reflections](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgFQkyULcV1PskkEYkGFJbQ) shoots a video outlining the history of the community in front of the former synagogue on South Terrace. The synagogue was deconsecreated, and closed for Jewish worship, [in early 2016.](https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-20380614.html) + +[**Fall-off in number of Jews forces only Cork synagogue to shut** + _Cork's synagogue on the city's South Terrace has closed following ceremonies over the weekend. "It was very sad to see…_ www.irishtimes.com](https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/fall-off-in-number-of-jews-forces-only-cork-synagogue-to-shut-1.2527246 "https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/fall-off-in-number-of-jews-forces-only-cork-synagogue-to-shut-1.2527246")[](https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/fall-off-in-number-of-jews-forces-only-cork-synagogue-to-shut-1.2527246) + +George tells the story of the synagogue’s closure and of the rise and fall of Cork’s Jewish community. + +### Walking Tours + +When Jews arrived in Cork, many of them settled in _Jewtown_(Hibernian Terrace) — located just a few hundred meters from the synagogue on South Terrace. The area is still known by that appellation to some older Cork residents. + +The National Sculpture Factory in conjunction with Cork City Council and Bord Gásis put on a commemorative project, Evening Echo, in one of the area’s green spaces. + +[**Cork Independent - Haunting reminder of jewish presence in cork** + _"Jewtown is something that Cork people are linked to in their own minds." That's how Fred Rosehill, the 88 year old…_ www.corkindependent.com](https://www.corkindependent.com/20141218/news/haunting-reminder-of-jewish-presence-in-cork-S97277.html "https://www.corkindependent.com/20141218/news/haunting-reminder-of-jewish-presence-in-cork-S97277.html")[](https://www.corkindependent.com/20141218/news/haunting-reminder-of-jewish-presence-in-cork-S97277.html) + +Dave Lane has uploaded these two short clips providing a tour of Jewtown’s streets by Albert Place. + +Finally, Ruti Lachs has uploaded this virtual walking tour of Jewish Cork. The video provides some information about the Evening Echo art installation as well as the history of the community. + +### Jewish Ireland Videos + +In addition to videos about Cork’s Jewish community, there are videos on YouTube about Ireland’s Jewish community and the Jewish experience in Ireland. Here are some of them. + +Ruth Gilligan, an author, has taken an interest in the Irish Jewish experience and gave this lecture on their experience to the Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University. + +The former Jewish synagogue on South Terrace. Photo: Cork Hebrew Congregation (reproduced with permission). diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Idiot-s-Guide-To-Getting-Away-With-Online-Racism.md b/posts/medium/The-Idiot-s-Guide-To-Getting-Away-With-Online-Racism.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0d6f66ce508b56e6c674a56f1a77c0b1c003af17 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Idiot-s-Guide-To-Getting-Away-With-Online-Racism.md @@ -0,0 +1,101 @@ +# The Idiot’s Guide To Getting Away With Online Racism + +#### Want to troll minorities and spout online abuse without repercussion? This guide should set you in good stead + +Hate speech may be hard to get away with in real life. But the internet is still something of a wild west. What can we do to stop it? Image: Creative Commons + +Are you looking to abuse minorities from the comfort of your own home? + +Are you full of anger, dissatisfied with your life, and feel like taking it out on some random person on the internet? A Jew? A black? A Jewish left-wing black?! + +The good news is that you’ve been born into a great age during which to engage in this kind of behavior. Probably actually the best one in history. + +Follow this guide to get away with hatred. + +### Pick The Right Platform + +Firstly, you’re going to want to find a platform on which your intended target(s) congregate. + +That means matching your target demographic to the type of social network they frequent. + +Teenagers these days (I’m told) tend to hang around on TikTok and Instagram. Young men are found in abundance on Facebook and Reddit. There are also more niche social networks popular with other minorities. + +But that’s not enough. + +You’re also going to want to find a platform that has a spotty or poor track record with tackling online abuse. + +Personally I regard Reddit as the leader in this regard — although that’s only one man’s opinion. Put out feelers among other haters and suss out which network is putting the least effort into moderating hate. + +You’re looking here for a platform with lackadaisical moderation or a system that doesn’t really hold them to account. Ideally you want the top echelon — the company itself — to be almost totally disinterested in combating abuse. + +If the platform’s hate reporting system operates largely through AI and abusers can lodge revenge abuse reports … that’s even better. + +The final ingredient in the cocktail? + +You’ll want to find a platform that facilitates completely anonymous signups. If they don’t really care what IP you sign up with — or have systems that detect rapid changes, such as those facilitated when using TOR or a VPN — that’s even better. + +Ideally, you’ll want to find a platform that doesn’t require that you surrender — much less verify — a single piece of personally identifiable information (PII). + +### Come Up With A Good Username — And Use It Only Once + +Next, you’re going to want to come up with a username. + +Spouting hatred under your own name is kind of dumb because you leave a digital breadcrumb trail that could — in a very unlikely scenario — be used to prosecute you. + +Potential employers also tend to shy away from hiring obvious anti-Semites and other racists. So go incognito when launching your tirades! + +If you start hating people online then there’s a good chance that targets are going to be riled up enough to attempt to ascertain your real identity. + +Therefore: + + * Don’t leave any sloppy digital breadcrumbs that could be used to narrow down your identity. + * Don’t user the same username on different websites. + +Other tactics that online racists have exploited: + + * Conducting online hate under a pseudonymous identity + * Conducting online hate while impersonating an innocent third party + +### Assume Your Targets Are Reporting You — So Report Them Back! + +The moment you begin engaging in racially-motivated trolling it’s reasonable to assume that your target is going to pay attention and file a report against you. + +Don’t worry — all hope isn’t lost! + +Consider: + +a) Currying favor with the admins/moderators of the forum. Perhaps they could be bought off? Perhaps you are the moderator and are able to kill the complaints yourself? + +b) Filing preemptive abuse reports against your targets accusing them of abusing the reporting feature. + +### How Can We Stop Online Hate? + +The purpose of the above — of course — is not to encourage online hate but rather to do exactly the opposite: To point out how unfortunately easy it has become for anonymous internet trolls to spread abuse and harassment without consequence on the internet. + +With a VPN, some racism, the right platform, and access to the right targets, one has all they need to dish out abuse to minorities on the internet. + +What can we do to prevent this? We can start by trying to reverse engineer the above: + + * **Ban fully anonymous signup processes from social networks.** + * **Force signups to provide identification to verify their identity.** + * **Strip online bullies and trolls of their ability to sign up for powerful platforms that can be used to harass without providing a digital breadcrumb / piece of PII that could be used to verify their identity in the event of abuse.** + * **Avoid participating in websites that enable fully anonymous signups** — communities such as the notorious hate site 4Chan. + * **Properly vet online moderators** to ensure that they don’t end up colluding with bullies or abusing their moderator powers to engage in bullying of users themselves (for instance, by bullying users using a different online identity or suppressing genuine abuse reports). + * **Make social networks aware that reporting functionalities can be abused. But also that even reports of abuse can _themselves_ be abused to punish targets rather than perpetrators!** + * **Hold social networks to higher account through legislation and regulation.** Make it impossible for them to be derelict in their duty of care to ensure a safe online environment for users. + * **Exert pressure on social networks** that are failing in their duty of care to users. + +[**Sign the Petition** + _On social media platforms, there are various 'anonymous' apps available that allow the user to register and then post a…_ www.change.org](https://www.change.org/p/theresa-may-remove-all-anonymous-messaging-apps-from-google-play-and-the-app-store "https://www.change.org/p/theresa-may-remove-all-anonymous-messaging-apps-from-google-play-and-the-app-store")[](https://www.change.org/p/theresa-may-remove-all-anonymous-messaging-apps-from-google-play-and-the-app-store) + +[**Does online anonymity have a place on the internet?** +_Can we facilitate online anonymity’s “white hat” use-cases without making it a den full of trolls and haters?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-13c745909238 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-13c745909238")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/does-online-anonymity-have-a-place-on-the-internet-13c745909238) + +— — — + + _To prevent this article’s comments section from being targeted by bullying comments have been proactively disabled._ + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Insidious-Rise-Of--Content----And-How-It-s-Destroying-Creative-Livelihoods.md b/posts/medium/The-Insidious-Rise-Of--Content----And-How-It-s-Destroying-Creative-Livelihoods.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..eacd219a79edadba722fe1d7935273699d0467c0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Insidious-Rise-Of--Content----And-How-It-s-Destroying-Creative-Livelihoods.md @@ -0,0 +1,285 @@ +# The Insidious Rise Of “Content” — And How It’s Destroying Creative Livelihoods + +#### If we regard all creative output as homogeneous collections of keywords, nobody should be surprised when AI comes “stealing” our jobs + +If all creative enterprise is subsumed into an amorphous mass known as “content,” everybody trying to distinguish themselves based upon their unique talents faces a steep uphill climb. Photo by [Jessica Lynn Lewis](https://www.pexels.com/@thepaintedsquare?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/clear-glass-jar-filled-of-coloring-pens-beside-of-white-sketch-pad-998592/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +It’s hard to trod five feet on the internet these days–especially if you work in marketing — without coming across mention of the word “content.” + +It’s the vaunted secret sauce that those brewing it suggest can make our lives and brands tick over faster than ever before. Never mind the fact that nobody seems entirely clear on what exactly it _is._ + +Here’s one attempt at pinning down a definition, at least: + +“Content has become a sort of insipid and thoroughly abused catchword to describe everything from _writing_ to _movie making_ to _podcasting_.” + +In fact, content is such a useless mental bubble gum — so hopelessly vague to have been debased of all meaning — that I’m losing faith that anybody, including those who sprinkle it into every sentence, can actually muster up a cogent definition of what it _is,_ or at least what it’s supposed to _be._ + +Doing so would require somebody to stop to think for a moment, which might seem like a big ask for those with Wordpress open and one finger looming over the publish button. That would of course also require somebody to briefly stop creating _content._ + +Or at least to create the type of “dictionary-based content” (we used to call them definitions) that stands a very low chance of virality or meeting our SEO objectives. And such a thought is unfathomable. In fact it’s positively anti-_content_. + +**So what is “content” you ask again?** + +I sometimes tell businesses that I may be able to help out with their “content marketing” only because the type of “content” we’re prospectively talking about — in my work mostly brand journalism collateral that promotes the business or thought leadership that tries to leverage what its people know and think about things — is a bit of a mouthful. But the more times any lead mentions the word ‘content’ or does anything that suggests they want to leverage it as a commodity, the less hopeful I feel about its potential as a lead. + +I know my Moz from my SEMRush. But I specialize in helping people with great ideas to communicate to find impactful ways to say them. I help humans communicate with other humans. Sometimes I need to use keywords to help reach the target audience. I know the basics but digital marketers do all that stuff better than I do. Why not hire us both? + +So ‘content’ is sometimes my hook. By necessity — I work in marketing after all — I sprinkle drops of it like magic fairy dust over my own website and social media profiles. + +And then I try to explain in non cookie cutter language what I actually _do_ and try to never speak of this ghastly content thing for time immemorial. + +I use real descriptors and tell prospects that simply throwing verbiage onto the internet is ultimately not going to create lasting value. + +It works. For now. + +But tomorrow that linguistic victory might seem like a fluke — or a Pyrrhic one when we realize we ended up stuffing in the wrong keywords (note: I have nothing against keywords or SEO. This is about commoditizing idea-creation). + +Marketers and search engines have been playing a game of cat and mouse since the time some dude first plugged an ethernet cable into a networking port and created the internet (who was that guy?). + +We were never going to win and I don’t foresee that changing any time soon. Creating long term value makes far more sense than trying to leverage temporary breakaways. No massive volumes of computer-aided “content” required. + +But let’s put me and my little marketing business to the side for a moment and try to rationalize this a little more. + +What is _content_ fast becoming in most of its common usage (the one that content marketing has sadly spawned and which is increasingly seeing application outside of business uses)? + +It’s stuff. Ideas. Thoughts. _Any_ or none of those. Shoot me a definition as a comment. + +But it’s wasn’t always like this. The skies above the Post Content era weren’t always so dis-contenting. + +For those of us who make a living creating “it” — for ourselves or others — we used to at least have the noble luxury of being able to distinguish ourselves by the type of “content” we created. + +Society even indulged us in this pursuit. When the world was young (it’s a Beckett quote; a great playwright / content creator). + +For one, we used to distinguish “it” — whatever it is exactly— according to the _format_ in which it emanated. + +There were _books_ and _movies_ and … even _podcasts_. + +And you know what? As baffling as this might seem, that really wasn’t so long ago. I didn’t have streaks of grey hair then. I blame it on all the bad “content” I’ve seen on Netflix. It was the Before Content era (conveniently also ‘BC’). A halcyon time. + +But now we’re all in such a rush to churn it out that even those distinctions have been judged unnecessary. + +It’s JUST CONTENT. + +Hurry up and create more of it, we’re urged. + +### Even If The Definition Makes Sense, Its Application Can Be Damaging + +As dogmatic as I might sound writing this, I have heard — and can somewhat agree with — the other side of the argument. + +Content is words and images and chunks of audio. + +So what better idea do ya have for it then, Mr Marketing Person? We probably need a collective noun so that we can hurry up and produce more content. + +We can try to find other words that will serve as useful shorthands to refer to text, audio, and video, but we may do no better than ‘multimedia.’ + +Yet even that appellation somehow seems more noble to me than ‘content’. + +It at least specifies that we’re using _media_ to distribute _ideas_ and acknowledges the fact that we’re ultimately trying to connect with _human beings_(my top line thoughts about SEO for anybody who wants them: search engines are never more than a conduit to a human. Hence you can never solely write for them. You can quote me on that). + +Content just sounds like stuff that sits anywhere. + +Perhaps the ingredients list on the back of a breakfast cereal. Or the warning label on the back of a battery. Or the billboard across the way from the cinema. All just content, no? + +The main drivers of this senseless vapidity? + +The trivial simplicity with which new material can be created (sorry, content). + +Whatever content can be called, it can be recreated with consummate ease and — here’s what the content-abusers love most about it — at virtually no cost. + +Even a YouTube vlog will get an automatic transcription in a few minutes and we can easily use TTS to spin a podcast out into a blog post and get those keywords up on the internet. _(Disclaimer: I argue in favor of what I call format agnostic content but qualify that support on the idea that every medium honors its format.)_ + +[**The Looming Flight Towards Format-Agnostic Content Creation: And Why It Matters (Now) For Creators** + _To get ahead of the curve, consider leveraging easy win syndication opportunities that straddle distribution formats_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92) + +However you create _it_ it won’t be long before you have your keywords floating around on the internet … doing something (we hope). + +You can even use AI nowadays to iterate even more quickly to … create more ‘content.’ To an internet saturated with banal variations on it. + +The more the merrier and the faster we can scale up production surely — but surely! — the more leads we can get in the door + +If we weren’t obsessed with the notion of scaling it to its infinite end, folks like Jarvis.ai probably wouldn’t be bragging about how quickly they can make content appear from thin air with a few directives and the power of algorithms spinning the wheels of their machine. + +But before we get too drunk on our Kontent Aid (I coined this one too), perhaps we should first be sitting down and trying to think through this conundrum. + +It may even lead to something constructive: + +**We can create all the content in the universe, but _who_ is going to be interested in reading this ever-swelling sea of it?** + +Think about it. “Content” — however you define it — is useless unless it gets consumed. There’s a limit to how much of it any of us can take in — particularly in a busy world populated by people with finite attention spans. Creating an endless splurge of it makes little sense as an objective. + +So perhaps, then, thinking humans’ finite capacity to create quality “content” is actually a _good_ thing. We should be celebrating out content-creating frailties rather than co-opting algorithms to do the writing for us. + +Were we to do so, this would conveniently also place a natural cap — maybe better described as a stopper — on the amount of crap that can be found floating around on the internet at any given point in time. + +It means that the supply of actual thoughtful _ideas_ meets demand in some kind of natural equilibrium. + +We’d be pushed to do some higher order thinking that wouldn’t be content — excuse the pun — with simply driving northward KPIs that laud the “engagement” and “views” we’ve created. + +We’d have to stop and think about what we’re about, who we’re trying to communicate with, and what we really have to say that’s actually worth being written (or podcast-ed or vlog-ed). And we’d have to stop taking surface level engagement as a surrogate for actually measuring the _real_ impact we’re creating as marketers. + +The post-content era. It could be an oddly wholesome time. If we ever allow it to emerge. + +But indulge me for a moment while I get back to my railing (if you’d have enough of that — and I wouldn’t blame you, or you’re not a creative — skip forward to the end for some closing thoughts about where we can go from here). + +On this subject, you may have noticed, I have enough “content” to last all day. + +What else sucks about ‘content’? + +What it has done to those working in what might loosely be defined as creative fields. + +Because the content catchall has become the greatest mushifier this world has never before known. A burger press that presses everything in its path into indistinguishable goo. + +Why do I say that? + +Because distinctions between formats aren’t the only things that have melted away in this frenzied rush to stuff keywords into strings of texts that sit on web servers with progressively larger storage which require ever less money to run. + +You remember that time when folks used to go to _film school_ in order to become _directors_ or _documentary producers_? + +Poets would sullenly pen verses they premiered at readings while journalists would lug around little notepads to report on the _news_ in _newspapers_. + +They dreamed, perhaps, about becoming great _writers_ or _singers_ or _news presenters_ in the way that I can only presume today’s youngsters dream about authoring tomorrow’s “content.” They were distinguishable in that primitive era. + +They prided themselves on their _output_ — however they called it — on the quality of their _art_. Driving metrics wasn’t their primary motivator. Were we silly to indulge them in that pursuit? + +They were fastidious about what they called _themselves_ too, befitting the creative stereotype. _Artistes_ at the very least. In the finest French pronunciation. + +**Now they’re much more pliant. They’re happy to be refer to their work as “content.” Themselves merely as its progenitors.** + +Should anybody who does that be surprised to find themselves facing a pay cut? + +But we’re not at the finish line yet. + +Tomorrow’s job descriptions will take this evolution further. + +We’ll begin seeing the first _“AI Content Bot Supervisors”_ popping up on LinkedIn (I called it first). + +There, they will brag about how they _“ensure that our AI algorithms communicate maximum value about their brand.”_ + +Ultimately they will be bots too — just lower order ones. + +They’ll even have a special setting for how much humble-bragging is appropriate on any given day. Perhaps they’ll self-react when the news cycle would render excessive mentions of the company’s innovative culture inappropriate. Finally, the only one with an actual pulse will be the CMO. + +These days, we’ve decided — collectively, or maybe just the loudest content-promoters have — that such distinctions are meaningless. The path of least resistance is often easier than putting up a fight. So the grumps like me are in the minority. + +But wait: + +What about things like passion? Uniqueness? A calling to a particular form of expression? + +Human to human connection created through a medium that one has honed ones talents in? + +The rousing of emotion? The elucidation of ideas? The furthering of debates? + +We can let the “content creators” argue about those things among themselves. + +To the content advocates I can only assume that all that sounds awfully like watching a group of Eskimos argue over which of their fifty words for ice a particular iceberg is while it’s on course to sink our ship. + +Likewise when Aristotle first organized rhetoric into its three constituent elements. He was just trolling us while he hemmed out his next content idea. Ahead of his time. In every respect. + +Let the writers and the video people and the audio folks squabble over it among themselves while we take corrective action. To us it’s all “content.” They’re “creators.” + +Those “content creators” who still have the temerity to distinguish themselves or what they do are fast becoming museum curiosities. Interesting to observe from a detached distance. A reminder of how things rolled in the BC era. But of no practical consequence to our pressed, evolved, lives. Dinosaurs. + +Today, those people — the “content creators” working at their “content” — are all one conveniently homogeneous mass whose collective purpose is the churn out as much creative output in as little time and ideally as cheaply as possible too. The payscale has been flattened (downwards). Which is good too. + +Gentrification has come! _“Liberté, égalité, fraternité,”_ it’s as if we all cheer. We have a _noveau_ appellation that encompasses all of that, that we’re supposed to enthusiastically adopt. + +We’’re content workers. And influencers if can accrue a large enough following. Note that in both cases it’s a metric that defines either our value. + +Where do we go from here? Perhaps to bot-dom. + +[**Will tomorrow’s freelance writers be the custodians of bots rather than wordsmiths?** +medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/will-tomorrows-freelance-writers-be-the-custodians-of-bots-rather-than-wordsmiths-5d91a125b149 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/will-tomorrows-freelance-writers-be-the-custodians-of-bots-rather-than-wordsmiths-5d91a125b149")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/will-tomorrows-freelance-writers-be-the-custodians-of-bots-rather-than-wordsmiths-5d91a125b149) + +What do they do these “content creators,” you ask? + +You know … maybe you don’t. Or maybe I don’t. Perhaps nobody actually does. They communicate in some format these content creators. So they do. + +The richest irony of the content gold rush? + +The frantic rush in pursuit of an objective whose goals and methods both seem mired in fog. + +It’s a bit like the theater of the absurd. + +Which is also why I love Beckett so much and insist on watching _Waiting For Godot_ at least once every winter. + +Just don’t call it theater. It was a notable era of _content_. + +There’s an insatiable thirst for content. + +We’re constantly being encouraged to create more of it. + +And yet nobody seems quite sure exactly what we’re running towards, why we’re running at all, or even what vehicles can take us to the finish line faster. + +Rather than logic, we’re being driven by the same kind of false economy that says that if something is cheap, it makes sense to consume as much of it as possible. It’s why people go nuts for all you can eat buffets. + +Storage is getting cheaper by the season. We can fit encyclopedias’ worth of “content” onto the back of a thumb drive. So surely it makes sense to just create as much of it as possible!? + +Where has all this content craziness taken us? + +To the point at which companies like Jarvis.ai can proudly announce that they’ve taken content commodization to its logical next step. + +Their bots can crank the stuff out faster and cheaper than even a writer in the Philippines on a mixture of cocaine, Adderall, and coffee*. + +I can’t help but imagine that the vague trail-off and the ellipses on their site are there for a reason. You know. We’re making content. We don’t need specifics. You don’t. Let’s do content. + +(*Please don’t ever attempt this) + +I’ve argued this point before. And I’ll do so once again. + +**Nobody who describes what they do as _“creating content”_ is doing creative industries any favors. Quite the opposite in fact.** + +And one more point for emphasis: senseless content creation is not an effective marketing strategy. It can’t create long term value. + +“Content marketing” isn’t the problem. Or brand journalism. It’s the lack of thought that’s gone into the gold rush that promotes its senseless creation. Because it ignores a fundamental rule of marketing: ultimately, we’re all vying for the attention of other _humans_. + +I see its damaging effects as being two-fold. + +While creating a senseless “more is more” paradigm that seeks to create an infinite amount of “content” that nobody has the volition of time to consume, it simultaneously belittles the unique skillsets and approaches that make effective communication work and mushes them down into one meaningless and amorphous pool of mushiness. It’s often a bad approach for clients. And a bad approach for those working in the field. + +The mush pile stretching out infinitely before us is currently called “content.” + +And it’s spreading through the internet like a gooey landslide. + +Our collective slide into a world in which every form of creative enterprise is termed “content” should be a cautionary tale for anybody interested in the power of branding, words, and messaging. + +The blame’s on us too. + +By failing to assert what makes our individual skillsets unique — and proudly own those descriptors — we’ve created a linguistic monster in which we’re all being conceived of as AI-like vassals (or equals) that find some way to compact ideas into keywords. + +I may work as a content marketer. + +But if this is what “content” has come to mean I’ll proudly stand against it while trying to encourage clients to think of communication slightly differently. “Brand journalist” is fine with me. I prefer to just say that I work in marketing communications. It’s wide enough to actually encompass the work that I do. + +Sometimes what sets us apart is what makes us unique. + +Perhaps it’s time to own and celebrate those differences. + +The alternative? + +We’ll all melt into a nebulous mass of nothingness. + +So gooey that even a robot could cook it up. + +### Other Anti-Content Thinkers Whose Work I Have Appreciated + +[**Dear Journalists: For the Love of God, Please Stop Calling Your Writing Content** + _The word content is creeping into journalism, which scares the hell out of me. You see it in the job listings. Politico…_ slate.com](https://slate.com/human-interest/2016/05/content-and-its-discontents-it-s-massively-depressing-when-journalists-call-their-writing-content.html "https://slate.com/human-interest/2016/05/content-and-its-discontents-it-s-massively-depressing-when-journalists-call-their-writing-content.html")[](https://slate.com/human-interest/2016/05/content-and-its-discontents-it-s-massively-depressing-when-journalists-call-their-writing-content.html) + +[**Please, Stop Calling it ‘Content’** + _How We Devalue Our Work, Simply by What We Call It_ hackernoon.com](https://hackernoon.com/please-stop-calling-it-content-778bf3abfea3 "https://hackernoon.com/please-stop-calling-it-content-778bf3abfea3")[](https://hackernoon.com/please-stop-calling-it-content-778bf3abfea3) + +[**Stop Calling Creative Work "Content"** +_I hosted a national conference a few years ago, and interviewed actor Sean Astin from the stage. You'll remember Sean…_ www.philcooke.com](https://www.philcooke.com/stop-calling-creative-work-content/ "https://www.philcooke.com/stop-calling-creative-work-content/")[](https://www.philcooke.com/stop-calling-creative-work-content/) + +[**Want To Be An Artist? Stop Calling Yourself A Content Creator.** +_If it’s ‘content’, it’s culturally worthless._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@mjsm/want-to-be-an-artist-stop-calling-yourself-a-content-creator-a6595fa8f48a "https://medium.com/@mjsm/want-to-be-an-artist-stop-calling-yourself-a-content-creator-a6595fa8f48a")[](https://medium.com/@mjsm/want-to-be-an-artist-stop-calling-yourself-a-content-creator-a6595fa8f48a) + +[ _creeping into journalism, which scares the hell out of me. You see it in the job listings. Politico…_ slate.com](https://slate.com/human-interest/2016/05/content-and-its-discontents-it-s-massively-depressing-when-journalists-call-their-writing-content.html "https://slate.com/human-interest/2016/05/content-and-its-discontents-it-s-massively-depressing-when-journalists-call-their-writing-content.html")[](https://slate.com/human-interest/2016/05/content-and-its-discontents-it-s-massively-depressing-when-journalists-call-their-writing-content.html) + +[**Don’t Call it Content** + _Please, for the love of all that’s holy, nuanced, and true, stop calling writing content._ writingcooperative.com](https://writingcooperative.com/dont-call-it-content-7ff5947ae69c "https://writingcooperative.com/dont-call-it-content-7ff5947ae69c")[](https://writingcooperative.com/dont-call-it-content-7ff5947ae69c) + +The fringe anti-content movement dates all the way back to 2011, when folks were still talking about brand journalism. + +[**AOL Biz Dev VP: "Stop Calling It Content"** +_AOL's VP of Business Development Bob Buch has a blog post up exploring the economics of content, and they way we think…_ www.businessinsider.com](https://www.businessinsider.com/bob-buch-content-2011-3 "https://www.businessinsider.com/bob-buch-content-2011-3")[](https://www.businessinsider.com/bob-buch-content-2011-3) diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Internet-User-s-Guide-To-Anonymous-Whistleblowing.md b/posts/medium/The-Internet-User-s-Guide-To-Anonymous-Whistleblowing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..29801dbbffb0ca2225f5c5fb118d5cedb2b436fb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Internet-User-s-Guide-To-Anonymous-Whistleblowing.md @@ -0,0 +1,136 @@ +# The Internet User’s Guide To Anonymous Whistleblowing + +#### Basic steps to share information with journalists and other parties without divulging one’s identity + +From time to time, those working within organizations might feel the need to divulge information to the media and other parties. + +Whistleblowers may be those who have witnessed corporate malfeasance; those eager to shed light on abusive practices happening within their country; or those that know about industrial practices taking place that could wreak harm upon the local environment. + +Often — due to concerns about their personal safety, keeping their jobs, or protecting themselves from various forms of retribution— whistleblowers will choose not to divulge their identity to those with whom they share information. This is particularly true of those leaking information anonymously to the press. + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + +Whatever their motives, employing basic measures to protect one’s anonymity needn’t be complicated. + +These are some basic protective measures that one concerned with anonymizing themselves can employ. + +### Use TOR + +The Onion Router (TOR) works by routing a user’s internet packets through a _series_ of nodes before connecting them to the target web server (and vice versa). + +Imposing several random layers of anonymity between the end-user and the web server he/she is accessing effectively helps obfuscate his or her identity. + +Unlike a VPN, Tor routes user’s traffic through _multiple_ servers when connecting to the internet (an onion has layers and so does TOR). Also unlike a VPN, TOR routes traffic through a series of volunteer-operated nodes rather than servers controlled by a commercial entity (a VPN company). + +No matter how much a VPN company pays lip service to privacy, ultimately you need to trust that they’re doing what they say they do in terms of privacy. With TOR, your traffic follows a randomized route to the internet. + +Relative to using a VPN, using TOR has a disadvantage (it’s easier for a rogue entity to subversively operate a node) and an advantage (there isn’t a single point of vulnerability in the network design). + +These concerns notwithstanding, one using TOR can be reasonably certain that their real IP address — an important clue to one’s identity — will be masked from the end server or person receiving the communication. + +If you need to leak or whistleblow from a computer that you don’t own, then you can install Tails onto a live USB and run it virtually anywhere. + +[**Tails - Home** + _Tails uses the Tor network to protect your privacy online and help you avoid censorship. Enjoy the Internet like it…_ tails.boum.org](https://tails.boum.org/ "https://tails.boum.org/")[](https://tails.boum.org/) + +Although this will require a ;little bit more in the way of technical skills to set up, once you have it installed you’ll have more flexibility about where you can communicate from. + +### Decide Upon An Alias. Grab A Face. + +If at any point you’re going to need to provide particulars to a service provider, you may wish to have some fake information at the ready. + +Of course, whether or not this is illegal will depend upon in what context you use it. + +You could invent: + + * An alias. Like gray goose. + +You could also use an [AI face generator, like this one](https://thispersondoesnotexist.com/), to popular a Zoom account or other service with an artificial face that doesn’t belong to a real person. + +This is Dave. He’s got some interesting info to share. Source: ThisPersonDoesNotExist.com. + +This is something that wasn’t available to your average person just a few short years ago. + +### Sign Up For A Protonmail Address (Or Start Using PGP) + +Firstly, let me flag an important clause in Protonmail’s terms of service (TOS) agreement, which exists at the time of writing at least: “You agree to not use this Service for any unlawful or prohibited activities.” So don’t use Protonmail for anything illegal. + +Protonmail is an open source end to end (E2E) encrypted email service. It is typically accessed through a web browser although premium users can access it through a desktop client (Protonmail Bridge). + +Protonmail provides you with access to the Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) key associated with your account. + +By sharing your public PGP key with any PGP email user (including one that doesn’t use Protonmail) you can exchange email that is enveloped in end to end encryption. + +By signing up for a Protonmail account through TOR you hide your real IP from the service provider. + +In order to keep the account secure, you should also enable two factor authentication (2FA). There’s a security option in the user menu that you can enable in order to generate a 2FA credential. + +**Note:** You can also use the TOR network while connected to a regular desktop email client and you can configure PGP on any email address, not only a Protonmail email. + +### Set Up A Dropbox For Easy File Sharing + +(The following may contravene Dropbox’s TOS. They can be found at the link below). + +[**Dropbox - Terms of Service** + _Posted: July 25, 2019 Effective: September 24, 2019 You can see your previous Terms here. Thanks for using Dropbox! Our…_ www.dropbox.com](https://www.dropbox.com/terms "https://www.dropbox.com/terms")[](https://www.dropbox.com/terms) + +Once you have an email address set up, you should be able to sign up for _most_ other online services (at least those that don’t require that you also verify a phone number). + +Signup up for a Dropbox account will allow you an easy way to upload large batches of documents or other information to be shared with third parties. + +You can also create a file request in order to create a folder into which _another_ anonymous source can drop documents or other files: + +**Note:** If you don’t want to sign up for another service, you can simply Google ‘anonymous file sharing’ to find various pastebins and filesharing sites that don’t require that users even have an account. Although for the sake of convenience’s sake having an account you can frequently access may be more useful. + +### Set Up Zoom And Calendly Accounts + +What if you want to actually _speak_ with somebody to whom you are whistleblowing? + +Firstly you may wish to install a voice modifier on your computer that will take the input from your microphone and modify it to an output device, like a program on your computer. + +Specifically, you’re looking for a real time voice changer. Note: basic pitch modulation isn’t necessarily a foolproof way to anonymize your voice. Although how concerned you’re likely to be about that will depend upon your level of risk tolerance. + +[**5 Best Real Time Voice Changer For Discord, Skype, Steam Gaming Trolling** + _Do you want to sound like Lucifier or Satan when gaming? The best way to troll online is to mask your voice, imagine…_ www.geckoandfly.com](https://www.geckoandfly.com/27131/real-time-voice-changer/ "https://www.geckoandfly.com/27131/real-time-voice-changer/")[](https://www.geckoandfly.com/27131/real-time-voice-changer/) + +In order to anonymously create a way to speak with our leakees (note: I don’t think this is a real world) we could: + + * Configure a virtual number and fund its payment with cryptocurrency. Vulnerability: the number operator will know a real credential, your actual number. + * Set up Zoom and Calendly accounts, integrate the two, and then send the link out to our correspondents by email. + +Accessing Calendly via TOR + +Note: some web application firewalls (WAFs) will block users attempting to access their sites via TOR and/or enforce stricter security requirements due to TOR’s tendency to be used to facilitate nefarious ends (TOR is the main interface for accessing the dark web). + +Once you have both Zoom and Calendly set up, integrating the two is as easy as navigating to the right page in the integrations library: + +Another option: If you don’t require synchronous communication, then you could do something a little strange and use a text to speech (TTS) generator to synthesize a voice to provide your side of the conversation while you hurriedly type in. + +### Scrub and Rescrub Metadata + +If you’re thinking about sharing documents with a reporter / other person, then the user data that programs automatically append to the files you create is your number one enemy: + + * Metadata created by smartphone camera apps can reveal what phone you use, where you took a photo, and what aperture you used at the time of taking it. + * Metadata associated with documents can include your name and organization if you have these settings configured in your Word processor. + +Be very careful of leaking metadata. Here’s an image I ran through MetaPicz.com, an online metadata viewer. + +How to remove metadata from your files will vary upon: + + * The operating system (OS) you are using + * What type of files you need to scrub + +There are both desktop-based and cloud-based metadata scrubbing tools. + +Find one that you trust and clean up any files before sharing them. Remember to double-check that the files are “clean” using a metadata checker. + +### Get Ready To Share + +The above are some _basic_ tips for anonymously sharing information with third parties. + +There are many more ways to achieve all of the above ends, including using more secure applications. + +But the tips shared here were designed to strike a balance between usability and security. + +Naturally it should be pointed out that whistleblowing and leaking information may or may not be illegal depending upon the nature of what you have to disclose. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Ireland-Israel-Disconnection-Plan--A-Harm-Reduction-Approach-To-Foreign-Relations-With-Dublin.md b/posts/medium/The-Ireland-Israel-Disconnection-Plan--A-Harm-Reduction-Approach-To-Foreign-Relations-With-Dublin.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..abb40347922f408520400387ceccdfbfdf71c923 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Ireland-Israel-Disconnection-Plan--A-Harm-Reduction-Approach-To-Foreign-Relations-With-Dublin.md @@ -0,0 +1,14 @@ +# The Ireland-Israel Disconnection Plan: A Harm-Reduction Approach To Foreign Relations With Dublin + +The Ireland-Israel women’s basketball game last night. After refusing to shake hands with their Israeli opponents, the Irish team played ball against a backdrop of this advertising. They were also roundly defeated. Back in Ireland, the players were congratulated on their “moral” stance. Screenshot: X. + +Following on from the basketball and all that: + + 1. **The mutual closing of embassies between Ireland and Israel should be carried out, ideally with as little fanfare as possible**. Israel’s diplomatic staff in Dublin can be quietly rushed onto a flight in the dead of the night to ensure that when the facility is torched to the ground by angry mobs the following morning they’ve made their escape. Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs can then inform the Irish Embassy in Israel that they have accrued the staff of IHNGs (_Israel Haters Non Grata_) as representatives of the Irish government and sent packing. Through its failure to condemn the spiteful actions of their basketball team last night we can deduce that Ireland’s government condones refusing to shake hands with Jewish athletes. Much as Iran doesn’t have an embassy in Israel, Dublin shouldn’t have a premises here either. + 2. **Israeli companies who maintain operations in Ireland and create jobs there should get a stern talking to.** We might also consider speaking to anybody involved in promoting trade between the two countries. The first list includes Wix and Teva to name only a few. The interviews can follow a template that begins with the following sharp question: _“are you f***ing crazy!?”_ We can take the money we save on the embassy and use it to help defray the cost of relocating these jobs back to Israel. Alternatively we can invest the money in upskilling potential Israeli employees, for example by providing them with free or subsidised tuition in English. + 3. **The export of goods and services to those parts of Ireland which have approved BDS resolutions should be made illegal.** An ever-growing number of Irish local government bodies are formally endorsing BDS against the Jewish State (despite the national government insisting that it is “neutral” vis-a-vis Israel). These include Cork County Council in Ireland which last week voted to include mere _support_ for the Jewish State in the boycott resolution it approved (Cork County Council has banned itself from purchasing from these heinous Zionist entities). As these local governments hate Israel so much we can only assume that they would hate to discover that the CPU chip in their computers was the product of Israeli ingenuity. It is unkind, I suggest, to deprive them of this opportunity to revert to calculating rent due on abacuses or to not flag our noxious presence in the hardware behind their smartphones, tablets, computers, servers, etc. Israel should not stoop to being the first to boycott countries because doing so legitimises BDS. But it is perfectly reasonable, I contend, to eliminate trade with countries that have _legally instituted such mechanisms_ against us. + 4. **We should not award tenders for business in Israel to companies headquartered in parts of Ireland which have instituted BDS tactics against us.** A few potentially affected parties spring quickly to mind. Those who argue that they are being unfairl _y “tarred with the one brush”_ should be encouraged to work within their local governments to rescind state-sanctioned discrimination against Israel. We acknowledge with thanks the support of friends of Israel in Ireland. But assert our right to align our foreign policy in reflection of the actions of the Irish _government_ and the views of the _majority_ of its residents. Yes, it’s kind of unfortunate. + 5. **We should convene a taskforce to study the scope and scale of Irish imports to Israel.** We can reasonably predict that things will only get worse and begin preparing for the day when Ireland deems it illegal for every citizen to do business with Israel. After last night, it wouldn’t surprise me if Ireland were to go Lebanon-style on this and ban the mere contact with us noxious Israelis. We should make sure that there are no essential supply chain dependencies with Ireland. This might require localising the production of Viagra or switching those members of our population affected by erectile dysfunction over to Cialis (fun fact: Ireland produces most of the world’s Viagra). We should also expedite the production of a local Guinness clone because Guinness is fantastic. + 6. **We should proactively monitor developments in Ireland** and issue travel warnings to our citizens. Ireland appears to be intent on refusing to tackle anti-Semitism and anti-Israelism. A country which condones refusing to shake hands with Israelis or appear alongside them on a basketball court is not one which any Zionist or Jew should have any willing association with. The failure to condemn this action on the part of the Irish authorities also merits a vote of no confidence in Ireland’s ability to ensure the welfare of Jews and Israelis who may be travelling through it or living there. However under this minimisation framework we hope that bilateral ties will continue to dwindle into something approaching nothingness. + +Now, make it happen. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Israel-I-Would-Like-to-Live-In-In-10-Years.md b/posts/medium/The-Israel-I-Would-Like-to-Live-In-In-10-Years.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1610e861bc9468beafe12fb3eb27d487b93dec7a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Israel-I-Would-Like-to-Live-In-In-10-Years.md @@ -0,0 +1,153 @@ +# The Israel I Would Like to Live In In 10 Years’ Time + +The coronavirus crisis has afforded us all a collective moment of pause. + +In light of that, I did a little thinking this morning about the type of country I would _like_ Israel to become in 10 years’ time. + +Not in order to point out its flaws — but rather because I feel like we (as individuals and as a collective) are taking stock of our lives right now. So why not think about what this country could become? + +How did we get to this point? What can we learn from this experience? And how would we like to grow as a result of it? + +Here’s what I came up with for national changes. + +In the Israel of 5790 I would like to see: + +### 1\. A Lower Cost of Living + +My Facebook straw poll + +This week, on a Facebook group, I took a straw poll. + +My answers were designed to tease out immigrants’ commonly-voiced frustrations about life in Israel. But respondents were free to add their own options too. + +One poster complained that the food was too spicy. + +Another lamented Israel’s drift away from its democratic roots. + +But guess what came out on top? + +Yup: the cost of living. + +[I’ve made the case before](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10?source=friends_link&sk=acbba4cd461ea0732e6b743ec6423923) that Israel’s extremely high cost of living — recently ranked the eight highest in the world, ahead of the US, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Korea — is the elephant in the room facing the future of organized _aliyah_. + +And, as I still believe in the Zionist ideal, I also think that that is a gross betrayal of Israel’s founding tenants: That Israel would be an everlasting home for all Jews, irrespective of their socioeconomic status. + +I know Diaspora Jews that would like to live in Israel but feel that they cannot afford to to do so. + +In a country with a paltry minimum wage of under $7 an hour (but living costs comparable to Manhattan!), simply getting by here — especially for many older citizens, and especially for those that do not have pre-organized pensions — simply isn’t an option. Never mind a comfortable retirement option, for all too many the concern about becoming destitute is all too real. + +Sadly, Israel’s sky-high living costs have repeatedly gone almost unaddressed in the country’s repeat elections — because whether Bibi was fit to stand for office, whether [Gantz once saw a psychotherapist](https://www.timesofisrael.com/gantz-denies-report-hes-being-treated-by-psychologist-party-to-sue-journalist/), and the perpetual threats posed by Iran and Hamas were evident ally more important than addressing the fact that [more than 41% of the country is in overdraft](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4633784,00.html). + +But if my straw poll and social network are anything to go by, this is the hot-button issue facing young immigrants. + +### 2\. More Affordable Property + +Paying almost $10 for a local lager in a Tel Aviv bar, as we’ve just discussed, is one thing. + +But feeling like you will never own the roof over your head is an altogether more serious financial impediment. + +Before you point out the obvious, yes, I am aware: Generation’s Y limited ability to get on the property ladder is not a uniquely Israeli problem. + +But in a country with artificially inflated real estate costs from foreign demand, restrictive government policies around the private ownership of land, a high cost of living, comparatively low salaries, and downpayments that typically start at 25% — the only outcome of this grim calculus for many young immigrants is a lifetime of renting. + +This, needless to say, is bad. + +But Israel’s poor tenant protection legislation (an attempt to outlaw charging tenants agents’ fees has proven completely ineffectual), the culture of mom and pop landlords, and the lack of professionally managed property in the country make this is a totally unsustainable situation. + +For Israel to be the return to the Jewish homeland that so many Jewish generations dreamed of, those Jews that uproot their lives to come live here need to have a fighting chance of owning a home of their own. + +It’s time we recognized Israel’s smoldering housing crisis as the threat to Zionism that it is. + +### 3\. A More Vibrant, Prosperous Jerusalem + +The few people that follow this blog (hello friends!) [might remember my piece from about a year ago](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/on-leaving-jerusalem-after-four-years/) in which I bid a public goodbye of sorts to the Holy City. + +And yeah … that sort of never happened. + +Instead, in the interim, I have amassed one more year’s experience of living in Jerusalem. + +And I have this to say as a result: + +**It’s time that Jerusalem stepped out from Tel Aviv’s shadow.** + +It’s time that Jerusalem stopped looking and feeling like a provincial European town. And it’s time that Jerusalem stepped up to its status as Israel’s _capital_ — not its second-tier city. + +Jerusalem gets a lot of lip-service from Israeli politicians. There’s even a special Ministry of Jerusalem — now manned by a dedicated minister. + +Don’t get me wrong: I like Jerusalem — if I didn’t I wouldn’t have stuck out five years here. But I think that it’s nowhere near fulfilling its potential. + +And to reach that it needs: + + * Jobs. And _lots_ of them. + * Better transport. + * More entertainment options (ahem, bars) + +### 4\. Some Cultural Shifts + +[I’ve written a little bit](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) about some of the more unusual aspects of Israel’s culture. + +And particularly the pervasive national fear of being a _freier_(pronounced “fr-eye-er”; meaning sucker) — and how I think that it, in fact, has massively damaging and far-reaching repercussions. + +Because when being nice or mannerly is perceived as being a _freier_ nobody can be too nice or mannerly to a stranger — and the result is that a rather unkind, rude, and aggressive society develops around that belief. + +I’ve also written about _shitat mazliach_ (the “successful method” _)._ It and _frierism_ tend to go hand in hand: such that one fears one’s peers labelling him a _freier_ because one also fears that the other party may be chancing his/her arm. + +This plays out in shopping lines. In salary negotiations. And — to dramatic effect — in the chaotic experience that is driving on the country’s roads. + +After plenty of analysis, I think I get where this all comes from. + +Israel’s early history was etched out in gruesome warfare. No doubt some measure of deception and mistrust was as valuable a survival skill as knowing how to dispatch an Uzi. T + +But the idea that Israelis can never give an inch — or admit to being wrong (for that, too, is a form of weakness) — is often taken just a little bit too far here. + +If there’s any chance that we could agree to get rid of all that and build a more compassionate, patient, and kinder social culture — well, that would be just lovely. + +Please and thank you. + +### 5\. Better Customer Service + +Firstly, let me clarify a few things. + +Customer service in Israel _is_ getting better. No question about it. + +In the early days of my _aliyah,_ when I lost my _Rav Kav_(national travel card) I had to get one replaced. + +To do so, I visited the customer service office in the Central Bus Station (CBS) in Jerusalem. There, paint was peeling off the walls. Stale smoke wafted in from the bus drivers nearby. And when I summoned up the nerve to interrupt her phone conversation, the woman manning the desk looked back at me quizzically — as if I had asked her to explain Einstein’s Theory of Relativity in university-level detail. + +Three years later and the _Rav Kav_ office in the _Tahana Merkazit_(Central Bus Station) is a shining beacon of efficient bureaucracy. Its clerks beam back ear-to-ear smiles at those that need their travel cards replaced, knowing that they are about to execute a well-oiled standard operating procedure — and that’s if one needs to visit the office at all, because so much can now thankfully be done by computer. + +Of course, I exaggerate on both accounts. + +But I do remember the staff looking perplexed at what must be among the most routine of tasks which a travel card office can engage in. And it has vastly approved in both appearance and function in the years since. Dramatically so, in fact. + +However, many Israeli businesses could still use a few refreshers on Customer Service 101. + +And those are that: + + * Shouting at your customers is never okay + * When a customer walks into your premises and you are paid to work as a shop assistant you should stop using your phone or conducting your stock check in order to attend to that customer’s needs. The customer should not have to wait until it is convenient for you to finish. + * “The customer is always wrong” is not a good attitude either. + * Arguing with the custom to convince them that they are wrong is generally not appreciated — even if you mean to be helpful + * Fobbing warranty repairs off to the official importer is … aggravating + +Things are getting better. But …. _lee-at, lee-at_ as they say (slowly slowly). + +### Some Other Minor Gripes + +And some other major wishes that didn’t merit their own sections. + +I would like to see: + + * **Less income inequality:** despite the IT boom, Israel has historically posted [some shocking poverty numbers. ](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-israels-poverty-remains-worst-in-oecd-1001214592)It also remains among the countries with the highest measures of income inequality in the world, as measured by the Geni coefficient. Israel’s rapid shift from socialism to capitalism has been a tide that has not risen all the boats. I would like to see that change. + * **Less noise.** Is there any chance people could stop the whole communicating by shouting at one another thing? Also: there is no need to use your phone over loudspeaker in a public space. In fact, it’s rude to have a loud conversation on a bus. + * **Less corrupt politicians that don’t have the public’s interest at heart:** At a time of almost unprecedented national austerity, Israel’s government has just assembled [the most enlarged and lavishly expensive cabinet in its history](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/elections/.premium-israel-s-biggest-government-set-to-be-sworn-in-this-is-what-it-would-look-like-1.8845810). Yet again, Likud party politics, rather than the good of the people, has determined key cabinet and ambassadorial appointments — including the almost unprecedented, and otherwise nonsensical, posting of one diplomat to both the UN and the US. In 10 years’ time I would like to feel like I am living in a country that cares about me — and other citizens — not what’s expedient for them, their tribe, or their party. + * **Better education, better health:** Yes, Israel is traditionally thought of as strong in both those respects. But Israel’s education system has been showing concerning metrics [for some time now](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3775140,00.html). Likewise — if it weren’t for some brilliant Israeli ingenuity — the health system was almost caught with its pants down at the most unfortunate moment. Long term fixes, rather than Band-Aid solutions, need to be applied. + +And finally: + + * **I would like Israel to start being honest about what it is.** Because in my opinion, Israel is part theocracy, part democracy, part dictatorship … and part something else entirely. What I think about that is irrelevant to this blog. I simply wish that the country would stop trying to placate the Western world by trying to seem like them. Israel is not. It never has been. + * **I would like Israel to stop engaging in _hasbara_. **Yes, you could say that I’m anti-hasbara and proud of it. If Israel’s year-long electoral stalemate proved anything, it’s that the societal divisions in this country run deep and run raw. In the words of President Rivlin, Israel’s society needs mending. And, as I have hopefully pointed out, there is a lot of work to do. We can all live without amateurs trying to make our case to everybody on the internet that has a grudge against us and redirect that energy internally — to the more important job of mending fences and making the Jewish state the best country that it can possibly be. And besides … Israel may not always be right … but it _is_ always changing. + +**_What changes would you like to see in the Israel of ten years’ time?_** + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Jerusalem-Trail---In-Photos-And-Videos.md b/posts/medium/The-Jerusalem-Trail---In-Photos-And-Videos.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..606ce4b35af709920657a2303cb3e8657a9d2d70 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Jerusalem-Trail---In-Photos-And-Videos.md @@ -0,0 +1,31 @@ +# The Jerusalem Trail — In Photos And Videos + +Though Jerusalem is steeped in history and antiquity, not so many are aware that the city is also home to a wonderful hiking trail. + +The Jerusalem Trail is a point to point trail stretching for 42 kilometers from Even Sapir through to Sataf (or the other way around). + +The Jerusalem Trail route from Even Sapir to Sataf. Via Google My Maps. + +Starting from Even Sapir, it skirts around Hadassah Ein Karem hospital (and the ALYN Hospital) before transversing some of Jerusalem’s best-known landmarks, including (almost) the Knesset (plus the Rose Garden and Sakker Garden). + +It then becomes an urban path crossing Rehavia, briefly proceeding down Emek Refaim St. in the German Colony, before turning into the Zurich Garden and embarking upon its stretch through East Jerusalem. + +There, it continues for more or less the duration of the Hinnom Valley (you can walk along Guy Ben Hinnom Street or get down into the forested central area after the City of David biblical garden), before veering into and through the village of Silwan (this part of the route isn’t well-signposted; a GPX reader and file is advised). + +East Jerusalem section (Part 1)East Jerusalem section (part 2) + +Next comes the short open stretch from where Silwan emerges into the Kidron Valley, past Absalom’s tomb, and around Gethsemane (the contiguity of the valley itself is interrupted by Derekh Yerikho and private church land on either side of the road). + +Hikers then meander up to but around the Ordon Hyde Memorial Gardens and proceed through the picturesque valley (again). Interjecting between this half of the valley and the half leading to Ein Tsuim is Shamouil street which runs through the Arab village of As-Sawana just below At-Tur. + +The turn westward at New Gate + +The trail then loops up around the Hebrew University of Jerusalem before returning southward alongside Route 60 then veering West Again at Tzahal Square. + +It then makes it way out of the city crossing through Lifa, then Park Nahal Soreq. At the Tur Sinai Organic Farm it turns due west again and at the picturesque town of Motza is avails of the overly passage across Route 1 before winding towards Sataf. + +The trail’s making is a gold horizontal line encapsulated by two blue ones and the Lion of Judah. + +#### Parts of the East Jerusalem Section At As-Sawana + +The beautiful forested section alongside As-Sawana. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.The trail passes direct past Absalom’s Tomb. Photo: Daniel RosehillThe King’s Valley Trail is marked by a blue line encapsulated by two white lines. Photo: Daniel RosehillThe trail as it emerges from the village of Silwan. Photo: author. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Key-To-Freelancing-Happiness--Not-Working-With-Jerks.md b/posts/medium/The-Key-To-Freelancing-Happiness--Not-Working-With-Jerks.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..acf01c3481239e6eae45218567987a7e0bab267a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Key-To-Freelancing-Happiness--Not-Working-With-Jerks.md @@ -0,0 +1,78 @@ +# The Key To Freelancing Happiness: Not Working With Jerks + +#### This is probably more important than how to charge enough etc + +As a freelance writer of five years’ vintage, I think that I’ve figured out most of the rudiments when it comes to freelance writing. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +The process has been helped — in no small measure — by documenting the journey of discovery as I go along. + +If you feel like siphoning up some of the knowledge that I peter out onto the internet (for free), then check out my Medium publication about freelance writing above. There’s no ulterior motive there, profit or otherwise. It’s just the things I figure about freelance writing as I accrue experience “doing” it. + +Something I haven’t talked about before — and which I thus feel is somewhat overdue — is my conscious decision not to work with jerks. It’s been a constant feature of my freelance writing live over the five years that I’ve engaged in this occupation. + +Although I’ve figured out a _ton_ about freelance writing since I started, this is actually arguably the thing that has saved my mental health the most. And while I’ve written plenty about how to charge by the word and by the hour (again, I refer those interested to the above), I’ve frequently worked with lower paying clients simply because they were pleasant to work with and treated me well. + +Conversely, I’ve — on many occasions — decided _not_ to work with clients that paid well solely because they treated me with contempt or disrespect. + +Sadly, I believe that there’s a correlation between lousy companies and those that hire freelance writers. + +Which isn’t to say that every company that works with freelancers is lousy. Rather that — in that large mixture — there are a good amount of operators who turn to the freelance talent pool solely because they are parsimonious characters who simply want to save a dime at all costs. Almost invariably, these are not agreeable companies to work with. + +Here are some of the jerk red flags that I’ve learned to both spot and avoid. If you’re encountering these, then there’s a good chance that your freelance writing business might work better without them in your life. + +### Aggressive Editorial Feedback + +As a freelance writer, I naturally receive — from time to time — some version of: _“yeah, we really hated this draft.”_ It happens, I’m pretty sure, to virtually all of us. + +However, there’s also an enormous difference in the way that organizations and professionals communicate this to me. + +In my “good” book are editors that have an almost intrinsic knack for tact and diplomacy. + +They’ll let you know that the draft wasn’t quite what they were looking for while giving the impression (at least) that they’re patiently there, in your corner, helping you to bring it to a more satisfactory state. + +Others are downright blunt and nasty in the way they convey such feedback. + +There are also those who just seem to relish in giving (negative) feedback for the sake of giving negative feedback. These characters typically prove themselves to be utterly implacable. Almost nothing you write within a reasonable number of drafts will be good enough for them. In my experience, it’s usually more prudent to just stop trying. + +Clients that have these kinds of editor on staff are never those that I feel too bad about losing. + +### “You’re Freelancer 9. The Last 8 Were Kind Of Rubbish” + +As a freelancer that tries to stick up for freelancing, I honestly hate hearing other freelancers being badmouthed (even though, most times,I know nothing about them). + +In such instances, I’m almost always privy only to one side of the story — my client’s. + +But it never casts the client in a particularly good light. + +I consider any derogatory references to prior freelancers to be warning signs. There are ways with which to let a new freelancer know that they’re not the first without necessarily making obvious that you thought their predecessor was, frankly, kind of rubbish. + +I’ve noticed a large correlation between clients who turn out to be jerks and those that proudly boast about having gone through a veritable litany of prior freelancing talent. + +If your client is jumping up and down to tell you about how lousy their previous agency was and how quickly they got rid of them … please be forewarned that you may be next in line. + +### Clients That Don’t Respect (Or Get) What You Do + +The final red flag that I like to keep in mind is the type of client who doesn’t really get — or value — what you do. + +Sometimes it’s hard to run into this particular conundrum because … if clients don’t get what you do, they’re less likely to hire you. + +Nevertheless, one does encounter clients that don’t really seem to value, much less understand, the kind of work that you do as a freelancer. + +They have a go-to catchphrase too. And it’s this: “I could do this myself but … meh, I couldn’t be bothered.” (Or: “I don’t have the time.” Or: “this isn’t worth my time.”) + +If you hear that from a client, take it from me, there’s a good chance that they don’t really think much about the service that you’re providing. + +And when you’re disrespected as a professional, no matter how much money you’re charging, it’s hard to corral a good level of enthusiasm for that particular client. + +There are myriad ways in which clients communicate that they’re likely to fall into the jerk category. + +Some freelancers advocate charging a premium for the displeasure of having to put up with working for people that you loathe. + +Personally — if you can afford it, and that’s, I realize, a big ‘if’ — I recommend just avoiding them entirely. + +Working relationships should be, if not fun, then at least tolerable. + +Being merciless about weeding out those clients who don’t treat you well — and there seem to be too many of those among the ranks who hire freelancers — has, in my experience, been highly beneficial. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Largely-Untold-Story-Of-How-One-Guy-In-California-Keeps-The-World-s-Computers-On-The-Right-.md b/posts/medium/The-Largely-Untold-Story-Of-How-One-Guy-In-California-Keeps-The-World-s-Computers-On-The-Right-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4fd22fc760256b2de4acb260e5e154c46981ed62 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Largely-Untold-Story-Of-How-One-Guy-In-California-Keeps-The-World-s-Computers-On-The-Right-.md @@ -0,0 +1,193 @@ +# The Largely Untold Story Of How One Guy In California Keeps The World’s Computers On The Right… + +#### Down the rabbit hole: my brief odyssey into the esoteric world of the tight-knit time zone data maintenance community who quietly keep the world’s computers from avoiding DST-related-meltdowns + +The next time your Linux or MacOS-based computer boots into the perfect time zone, say a mental thank you to Paul Eggert and the team responsible for maintaining the world time zone computer database. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/london-new-york-tokyo-and-moscow-clocks-48770/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I run a small YouTube channel. + +And now and again, I record short videos documenting how to “do” certain things using Linux. + +I make them as much for myself as for my 300-odd subscribers. + +Because Linux, or rather doing things with it, tends to … you know … be quite complicated. And I can’t always remember how I got X to work three months later. + +It’s nice to create documentation I can refer back to and it’s even better if others find it interesting as they occasionally tell me they do. But, for now at least, that’s about all there is to it. + +Yesterday evening, I recorded a short video describing how to look up the time zone database (tzdb) to find the right way to denote the time zone on a certain world clock program (gworldclock). I wasn’t expecting that the video would give Netflix a run for its money. It hasn’t. But it _has_ brought me into contact with a world so wonderfully weird that it could well be the stuff of fiction. Thankfully it isn’t. + +As most techies know, time zone setting is a fairly elementary feature of computing which most operating systems bake into their graphical user interfaces (GUI). Time zones are attached to locales. Setting a locale is often done on the basis of rough geolocation which users can manually override. Once set, users typically never need to change it unless they move countries. “ _Ah, I see Paul has been up to his usual tinkering_ ” might be a clever excuse for being late to a Zoom meeting. But it would very seldom be a truthful one (Eggert, the world time zone coordinator, will be introduced later). + +Linux, of course, tends to excel in letting users jump under the bonnet and denote changes themselves. That’s largely why I, and many, love it. So we get to see from a closer distance exactly how all this arcane technology works. + +Typically, when I’m making my videos, I’ll do a bit of research before setting up shop and hitting the record button. I don’t script most of these, but I like to keep a few notes at the ready. + +If you ever want to know what time zone your computer is configured to in Ubuntu Linux, you can run the ‘timedatectl’ command form the terminal. Screenshot: author. + +And _this_ particular production process led me to a series of completely unexpected discoveries sometime in the early hours of yesterday morning. + +Perhaps I had simply drunk too much coffee (at most hours of most days I usually have). But I found them all oddly engrossing as they came to me in slow waves of weirdness, one crescendoing after the other: + + * **All Linux and Mac-based computers pull their time zones from a massively important database — the time zone database.** The process of defining time zones is centralized. This is actually quite a big deal in its own right because people tend to grossly underestimate how pivotal Linux is to … the entire internet and technology as we know it. It may constitute a small percentage of desktop users and be an OS largely favored by nerds and computer developers. But in server-land it’s actually the dominant operating system, especially on the public cloud infrastructure that is rapidly usurping the diminishing role that on-premises infrastructure has to play in getting packets of data from hosts to users (in normal language: making the internet work). AWS instances, for instance, default to Amazon’s Linux spin-off. Virtually all the world’s supercomputers used for everything from weather forecasting to simulating physics experiments run on Linux. Android is a fork of Linux. (_I don’t play the “will this be Linux’s year on the desktop?” game. People have been wrong too many times and I don’t particularly care either way)._ If you’ve ever used an Android device, received a weather forecast, or accessed a website (you’ve probably done all those things), then you’ve benefited from the existence of Linux. + * **The time zone database — which is sometimes called the Olson data or zoneinfo database — has a fascinating history.** Unlike most databases, it’s been deemed interesting enough to have a wikipedia entry maintained about it. Just as curiously, the database has also been the subject of litigation. In fact, it’s been deemed so essential to the operation of computers worldwide that ICANN — which approves top level domains (TLDs) among many vital internet-relation functions — has brought it under its auspices. This generally only happens when something is _really fricking essential to the internet_. Or more accurately, the upkeep of the database is now the responsibility of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) — which sounds vaguely like the sort of organization that would feature either in an Orwell novel, _The Martix,_ or be the go-to name for an intelligence service looking to create complete stultification about what a front company did _(“So … what do you for a living.” “Oh, I’m a time zone specialist at the IANA”. *For the sake of clarification: I’m not alleging that either IANA or ICANN is a front company of any intelligence service although that would probably make good fodder for a bad conspiracy theory)._ + +[**tz database - Wikipedia** + _The tz database is a collaborative compilation of information about the world's time zones, primarily intended for use…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tz_database "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tz_database")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tz_database) + + _But wait, there’s more. Lots more, in fact._ + +You thought time zones were straightforward or even boring or at least eminently controversial? + +So I did I. Until last night. + +Not only are time zones apparently a longstanding menace for computer developers, but the time zone maintenance community is currently, it seems, mired among some procedural dispute regarding how this essential database should best be maintained. Of course that’s an interesting fact in its own right: there _is_ a world time zone data community. + +[**tz database community up in arms over time zone merges** + _The time zone database hosted at the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) has been updated following threats…_ www.theregister.com](https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/28/time_zone_database_controversy/ "https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/28/time_zone_database_controversy/")[](https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/28/time_zone_database_controversy/) + +In fact,_The Register_ recently described __ them as being no less than _“up in arms”_ about the direction the project was proceeding down. When this saying is being rolled out in reference to a group of middle age computer scientists who discuss time zones in their spare time, you know that something serious must be going down. + +The community’s water cooler, apparently is a listserv that looks pretty much like what you’d expect an _actual_ listserv to look like. + +It sports the characteristic bald look favored by computer scientists around the world. Its markup unsullied by a single line of CSS. Hyperlinks its most high-tech feature. + +But to understand why the time zone data community can prove to be so oddly mercurial, its decision-making process volatile, you have to watch Tom Scott’s video first — no cheating, all the way through. + +As Tom points out, the best way to deal with time zones is simply not to deal with time zones by integrating a library into your code. Like hangovers, they’re best avoided at any cost. And like bad hangovers, once you already have one, time zone problems are all sorts of hassle to fix. + +The maddening series of problems and exceptions and inconsistencies he speaks of with the air of a man teetering ever closer to the brink of insanity? The ones that thankfully any developer can now avoid by simply integrating the time zone database? + +That’s the thankless work of the people maintaining the time zone database. Tom Scott’s video may have driven him mad for five minutes. For these guys, tackling these issues is a career-long endeavor. + +[**Big problems at the timezone database** + _The last time I wrote about the timezone database on this blog, the database was under threat from a lawsuit…_ blog.joda.org](https://blog.joda.org/2021/09/big-problems-at-timezone-database.html "https://blog.joda.org/2021/09/big-problems-at-timezone-database.html")[](https://blog.joda.org/2021/09/big-problems-at-timezone-database.html) + +As befits the significance of their mission, the minds at the top of the time zone management community are serious guys. Tech titans and heavyweights. + +Such as noted Java expert Stephen Colebourne who recently took fire at a recent series of updates to tzdn. + +At least, that’s how I understand it. _(I asked Colebourne to explain things more simply and he kindly indulged me with an answer; a difference of vision among time zone enthusiasts might be the neatest summary anybody can advance. Colebourne and the rest of the time zone community, I believe, remain on good terms. But you could say that professionally speaking they’re no longer on the same time zone. Sorry, I had to.)_ + +In a blog bearing the utterly fantastic title _“Big problems at the timezone database”_ Colebourne alleges that: + +> Paul Eggert is the project lead of the [timezone database](https://www.iana.org/time-zones) hosted at IANA, a position referred to as the TZ Coordinator. He is an expert in the field, having been involved in documenting timezone data for decades. Unfortunately, he is currently ignoring all objections to an action only he seems intent on making to solve an invented problem that only he sees as important. + +Colebourne’s biting critique has already drawn the ire of other time zone mavericks on the Coordinator’s side. They charge that Colebourne is being overly hasty in his pronouncements. He’s jumped the clock, so to speak. + +Not only can’t the time zone titans currently agree on the best way to carry the timezone database forward, it seems. But the entire process of codifying and standardizing time zones is also decidedly contentious political business with a long and tumultuous history to go with it. + +Those who enter the fray need to be therefore not only technical heavyweights but also prepared to have the occasional audacity to stand up to countries like the Hashemite Republic of Jordan and tell them that their attempt to prematurely end DST is unacceptable and will not be promulgated in the database. + +Practically speaking, the time zone maintenance process is tightly controlled and shared with major industry stakeholders (apparently). But ultimately — or at least on paper — the time zone database represents a sort of final arbitration of its decisions. At least as to how time zones are interpreted technically. + +Like many other nations — the Germans probably aren’t to be reckoned among them — the Jordanians have had enough with summer time this year and are throwing caution to the wind and moving the clock over one month ahead of schedule. They’re going all YOLO on DST. Again. + +But it could be worse. + +Weary time zone mavericks are bursting to the seams with horror stories of African states who made rash time zone decisions on only _four days’_ notice. Warlords and dictators, in the midst of nervous breakdowns, have been known to take out their anger on time zone conventions. Perhaps they’re secretly just trying to troll people like Eggert. + +[**Jordan will start DST one month early** + _The new rule states that daylight saving time will start at 24:00 on the last Thursday of February (which is…_ time.is](https://time.is/time_zone_news/jordan_will_start_dst_one_month_early "https://time.is/time_zone_news/jordan_will_start_dst_one_month_early")[](https://time.is/time_zone_news/jordan_will_start_dst_one_month_early) + +And so time zone politics are an occupational hazard in this little corner of the tech universe. Political leanings — or rather adjudications — are sometimes called for. Those who rise to the heights of this part of the open source community rarely do so without having taken at least _one_ stand on _one_ contentious zone. + +The ramifications of these decisions don’t go unnoticed, either. A thread from Hacker News by Y Combinator provides a rare look inside the obscure listservers where much of the coordination for the project happens and shows that those who are most closely involved are acutely aware of the weightiness of the project.. + +[**Big problems at the timezone database | Hacker News** + _There has been two major ways to use the Timezone Database other than using the bundled tzcode. One is to use the…_ news.ycombinator.com](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28650019 "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28650019")[](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28650019) + +As one user commented in response to another poster raising doubts over whether time zones could really be that big of a deal: + +> “We have a client in Azerbaijan who was very angry their timezone was shown as Asia/Yerevan. As you may know, Azerbaijan is in a state of cold of war with Armenia.” + +And here’s something else I learned: Pre-independence Ireland once operated its own time zone — Dublin Time — which was stamped out by the British as punishment for the Easter Rising. + +All this is why the official source code for the world time zone community reads less like a text database and more like .. something you may never have seen before even if you’re the type to pore over with curiosity the commented lines that some developers leave in their code. + +I would call it an entirely _sui generis_ form of literature. Part historic intrigue (those lines are commented out). Part actual code that can be read by computers. And part trivia reference. + +It is suffused, from file to file, with the sense of heaviness that could only come from men and women who have spent large parts of their life tracking the evolution of time zones and who (one sometimes feels) are lamenting the complete minefield they have waded into. _Eggertian_ I would call it. + +These are the people for whom adjudicating upon such matters as France’s attempted move to the decimal system and the International Atomic Agency’s periodic decision to add nuclear seconds to the world time system are the bread and butter that they grapple with at work every day. While we’re planning content marketing or just developing code — on computers with time zones set by their labor. + +Time zone data insiders say that every single one of these high stakes deliberations represents a near Y2K disaster that must be averted. If Hollywood thought more imaginatively, it could even be the stuff of blockbusters. Another rogue country has pulled a time zone trick. Better think about a response before it’s too late. + +Although most computer users have never heard of the project or its maintainers, the decisions of the time zone maintainer and his cohorts affect the daily computing lives of hundreds of millions of users worldwide. + +After all, a keystroke on the Americas file could change EST to CST (or PST). + +Zoom meetings could be missed in their millions, vast numbers of transactions incorrectly recorded in ledgers. The consequences of their actions are, frankly, rather enormous. + +And the man heading all of this up: + +### Meet Paul Eggert. The Incumbent Time Zone Coordinator. (TZC). And Where The Buck Totally Stops When Nations Pull Surprise DST Changes. Oh, And Whose Database May Very Well Be Sitting Somewhere On Your Hard Drive. + +The most intriguing part of this rabbit hole ( — _thankfully it was a brief one, at least comparatively speaking. I spent the best part of a month attempting to figure out the best home internet setup_): + +At the helm of this project is one individual. One guy. + +Paul Eggert, a computer scientist who teaches at the Department of Computer Science at the University of California’s LA Campus. + +Paul Eggert, a computer scientist who has led efforts to coordinate time zones on computers for a number of years. Screenshot: UCLA CS department website. + +Eggert’s students speak of him in awed tones. With reverence. + +He is said to be an almost impossibly hard grader. + +A-grades from the Time Zone King are not to be taken lightly. This is a man, after all, whose codebase helps hundreds of millions of users know what time zone they’re in and who — for the past ten years — has gone to bed knowing that hundreds of millions of computers are using _his_ code to know what time zone they’re in. He’s lived under that pressure for over a decade. And by all accounts thrived. + +So having chanced upon this fascinating circus of the absurd, last night, I started a thread on the Today I Learned subreddit — dedicated to sharing interesting things that you learned today. + +Posts there are prefaced with TIL and Reddit is full to the brim with geeky technology fans like me. + +I was pretty sure that at least a few others would find Eggert’s role as world time zone master intriguing. + +Within a few seconds of posting, there were ten upvotes. + +And by the time I took the screenshot to embed here, more than 3,700 Redditors had propelled my post sharing the news of Eggert and his project to near the top of the subreddit, which has some 26 million subscribers. + +News spread fast across the online community. + +The thread was cross-posted to UCLA’s own subreddit (/r/ucla) where some of Eggert’s own students learned that the guy who had been grading their own tests also got up to some weird stuff at night. Not pole dancing kinda weird. To the best of everybody’s knowledge, Paul Eggert doesn’t have a raging cocaine habit or spend his evenings playing strip poker. But he _does_ dedicate time to maintaining the global time zone system. + +Redditors — including me — began roasting (or trolling) Eggert. Sorry. It was really hard not to. It still kind of is. + +As befits Reddit’s internet culture, Redditors were quick to share a comic from [xkcd](https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/dependency.png) which depicts a thoroughly fascinating facet of the internet that remains grossly under-explored (time-dependent, I would love to): The fact that vast swathes of the internet depend upon tiny projects and crews — like the work of Eggert _et al._ — to perform truly essential services for computer-using humanity, which is increasingly almost all of it. + +The project that Eggert and a tiny team of cohorts maintain is at the bottom of a stack upon which (literally) hundreds of millions of computers rest. [xkcd depicted that visually](https://xkcd.com/2347/) in this excellent web comic. + +It tells a sad history but also an inspiring one. Because — as a somewhat weary technology-focused marketer — that’s exactly how I think about projects like these. + +Untold millions have been made by startups announcing dubious advents upon existing technologies heralded with the breathless fanaticism of companies announcing that they have found a way to turn air water into oil. Many of these will vanish into oblivion within a few short years. The time zone database won’t. Because it can’t. + +And those at the very bottom of the tech stack — those tirelessly and thanklessly maintaining open source projects upon which so much of the world’s computing derives — languish in comparable obscurity. + +Yesterday I learned of the existence of the time zone database (tzdb) which provides authoritative data upon time zone configurations and is used by hundreds of millions of computers around the world every single day (in addition to Linux and MacOS, it can be mapped onto Windows). + +I’ve reinstalled the Ubuntu computer I’m typing this post on probably dozens of times over the year. + +While many things on the Linux Desktop tend to go either periodically _kaput_ (NVIDIA drivers!) or not work at all, I can’t recall even a single time when the time zone detection program has worked anything less than flawlessly. Daylight saving time even left it unfazed. + +Had that not been the case, I might have missed countless Zoom meetings. Perhaps run late to job interviews. Who knows what else might have happened. Without the time zone project, my life may have taken a different course. + +In recent years, the project has fallen under the purview of ICANN. Its code reads like a cross between a JSON file and a historical novel. + +And while I’m sure the project has many noteworthy contributors, there’s ultimately one guy who’s responsible for maintaining it. + +The Time Zone King. His name is Paul Eggert. + +And he’s a computer scientist based out of UCLA. + +We probably all owe him a ‘thank you’. + +> [](https://twitter.com/Grady_Booch/status/1447330292159565825) + +I’ll have to add UCLA formally endorsing the “time zone king” alias as one of the highlights of my writing career on Medium: + +_— With thanks to:_ + +The Time Zone King and everybody who has contributed to the zoneinfo project; + +Stephen Colebourne; + +Reddit diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Logical-Loophole-At-The-Center-Of-The-AI-Content-Craze.md b/posts/medium/The-Logical-Loophole-At-The-Center-Of-The-AI-Content-Craze.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..13aa1820cbd83fe16806b8b21736a47882c8ad24 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Logical-Loophole-At-The-Center-Of-The-AI-Content-Craze.md @@ -0,0 +1,79 @@ +# The Logical Loophole At The Center Of The AI Content Craze + +#### The problem with the idea of generating an endless amount of ‘content’ that nobody will want to read + +Are tomorrow’s content marketers going to be robots? Why, I think, the current push towards AI-generated content is not the best approach for most brands to take. Photo by [Alex Knight](https://www.pexels.com/@agk42?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/high-angle-photo-of-robot-2599244/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Right now, we’re seeing an explosion in AI-backed technologies that promise to radically change the way we do content marketing. + +The advertisements are brash and clear: We can churn out an ever-increasing volume of “content” — while simultaneously freeing up humans from having to get involved in the process at all. + +This trend has folks like me in a huff. We’re worried that the robots are going to take our jobs. It’s probable that a good percentage of our potential clients are spellbound by these bots (I hasten to point one thing out to any other content ‘sellers’ reading this: if a client leaps to replace human-authored writing with that produced by a bot, they were probably never a great fit anyway. It says a lot about how much value they ascribed to your work. And not in a good way). Those who aren’t sold yet might be tomorrow. + +There are a number of AI-generated bots already on the market. + +Some of them look reasonably sufficient. + +But all of them, in my opinion, depart from one very flawed premise. + +### The Answer To Content Saturation Is Not Creating More Content + +For some time now, we have been witnessing a rise in the volume of “content” being created in the world _(note: generally speaking, content is one of my least favorite words because it’s so muddy; but I’m talking, here, about text-based, audio-based, and video material intended to promote a business)._ + +The rationale behind this trend is pretty simple. + +It’s become progressively easier, over time, to produce content marketing. + +In fact, if we traced back the “content” craze long enough, I suspect we would arrive to around the point content management systems (CMSs) became widespread. The name really stuck and nowadays it’s rare to encounter a business that isn’t at least somewhat focused on the value they can create through promulgating brand journalism. + +Truth be told, the rationale behind the idea that more content is automatically better was never all that strong. In fact, you could argue that the logic was positively flimsy. + +Content production may, for the most part, be free. But so is walking. If you pay to participate in an all-you-can-eat buffet, then each refill is free too. + +However, most people would argue that it makes sense to put both of these activities — walking and refilling your plate at the buffet — within some kind of reasonable limits. Just because we can derive a lot of value from an evening stroll — it’s great exercise and lovely to get outdoors — doesn’t mean that we should now devote 14 hours per day to the act of walking. Besides the fact that diminishing and then negative returns will set in, we just have other things to do. Likewise with content marketing. + +There’s another reason why the “content is free” thing is a big fat lie too. When we get older and wiser we realize that time is our most precious commodity — both in our businesses and in our lives. Even when there are no obvious factors of production that can be accounted for — like the cost of printing and paper — time is a cost that must always be borne in mind. If you’re devoting significant time to creating content marketing, then you’re heavily invested in the process, whether you realize it or not. Multiple your content producers’ salaries by the hours you invest and you have the number. + +But there’s a much more prescient reason why AI-authored content isn’t the way to go for most businesses at the present. And it’s this. + +### In An Era Of Content Saturation, Quality, Not Quantity, Is The Best Way To Differentiate Your Business + +Marketers have been talking about a little known thing called content saturation for a while now. + +[**Battling Content Saturation - 6 Useful Steps to Follow | Digital Marketing Philippines** + _Each year, the world internet usage increases at an unprecedented rate, making it the most viable and effective…_ digitalmarketingphilippines.com](https://digitalmarketingphilippines.com/battling-content-saturation-6-useful-steps-to-follow/#:~:text=What%20is%20Content%20Saturation%3F,deep%20in%20the%20search%20results. "https://digitalmarketingphilippines.com/battling-content-saturation-6-useful-steps-to-follow/#:~:text=What%20is%20Content%20Saturation%3F,deep%20in%20the%20search%20results.")[](https://digitalmarketingphilippines.com/battling-content-saturation-6-useful-steps-to-follow/#:~:text=What%20is%20Content%20Saturation%3F,deep%20in%20the%20search%20results.) + +Writing back in 2014, Mark Schaefer defined “content shock” to be the [then] “emerging marketing epoch defined when exponentially increasing volumes of content intersect our limited human capacity to consume it.” + +That definition remains as good today as when it was first created. + +The problem with the AI-led content revolution that is currently encouraging businesses to replace their staff writers with robots is really two-fold: + + 1. **We’re already operating in an environment that looks a lot like content saturation.** Unless you’re selling something totally obscure, keyword saturation and … too much content … are probably already significant pain points threatening the viability of your content marketing strategy. + 2. **While the volume of ‘content’ out there for consumption has increased exponentially in recent times, our capacity to consume it hasn’t grown one iota.** In fact, there’s room to argue that with today’s harried lifestyles, your average online reader has _less_ time and not more available for engaging deeply with any piece of content they may encounter. + +If we consider the global market for attention as, just that, a market. Then you can see how in classic economics terms we have a classic economics problem. The supply of content marketing has mushroomed. But demand hasn’t increased even slightly. Content producers have to do more than ever to justify the slightest sliver of attention from an engaged reader. Simply throwing more content into the mix will merely get you ignored — and increase this dynamic for everybody else in the market. + +And it’s because of these two dynamics that swooping into the market with a brute force approach — get as much ‘content’ out the door as quickly and cheaply as possible — is arguably actually _less_ likely to work now than at any point up to now in marketing history. + +The internet is reaching, if it hasn’t already reached, something that could be well-defined as a content crunch. + +There’s already more information out there, in most categories, than any of us are going to realistically be able to consume. + +The internet — and the world — doesn’t need more bland ‘content.’ Especially the type cooked up by robots. + +**In light of this ultra-competitive content landscape, the natural conclusion is that we’re going to see a sort of whittling down process in which producers realize that to cut through the increasing noise, content is going to have to be increasingly value-laden and high quality.** Otherwise, it’s going to be ignored. Bytes distributed onto the internet only to never really wind up anywhere. + +In other words, the quality of the content we produce is going to have to increase. + +AI-generated content tools are functional and work well. + +But their typically stated objective of ramping up content production as quickly as possible is horribly misguided. + +Your average human can produce enough content marketing to sustain the needs of a business. Bigger companies typically have them working in teams. + +We’re fine. Content marketing is good enough. Well studied. We can create enough of it. A much better objective for the world is for us to begin getting better at it. + +More isn’t automatically better — in the world of content marketing as in life. + +Those who can play the long, quality game are likely to see much better results than those who attempt to play a short-term gambit against search engines to blunt-force their way to success. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Looming-Flight-Towards-Format-Agnostic-Content-Creation--And-Why-It-Matters--Now--For-Creators.md b/posts/medium/The-Looming-Flight-Towards-Format-Agnostic-Content-Creation--And-Why-It-Matters--Now--For-Creators.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c590758f1df3568e22c108d1784687e75513a1ef --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Looming-Flight-Towards-Format-Agnostic-Content-Creation--And-Why-It-Matters--Now--For-Creators.md @@ -0,0 +1,132 @@ +# The Looming Flight Towards Format-Agnostic Content Creation: And Why It Matters (Now) For Creators + +#### To get ahead of the curve, consider leveraging easy win syndication opportunities that straddle distribution formats + +The camera, the condenser microphone, or the pen: which creative tool is going to dominate for tomorrow’s content marketers and creatives? What if the answer were: it mightn’t really matter? Photo by [Terje Sollie](https://www.pexels.com/@solliefoto?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-canon-dslr-camera-close-up-photo-320617/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’ve mentioned my prediction before that we’re sitting on the precipice of some really significant changes in the “content creation” universe. + +These dynamics won’t take us past content saturation. But they will change the way content is delivered in a way that will — belatedly, deservedly — shift the focus away from who is saying what _how_ to …. just who’s saying what. + +In other words, we’re about to see a really big shift towards a renew focused on the _value_ that content delivers and the message. Not how it’s said. All wild speculation courtesy, of course, of me. + +I call this the looming age of format agnosticism in content marketing. To make that sound more dramatic let me repeat that sentence in title case: + +The Looming Age Of Format Agnosticism In Content Marketing. + +It’s coming. And creators should start preparing now. + +[**Does Text-Based ‘Content’ Have A Future In The Age Of Video?** +_My own evolution as a content creator — and why I believe that format-agnosticism may be the way our industry moves_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/does-text-based-content-have-a-future-in-the-age-of-video-3fad6037a683 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/does-text-based-content-have-a-future-in-the-age-of-video-3fad6037a683")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/does-text-based-content-have-a-future-in-the-age-of-video-3fad6037a683) + +[**3 Advantages Text-Based Content Retains Over Video Marketing** + _The written word still has its advantages over those fancy video-slayers, especially for nascent companies_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-advantages-text-based-content-retains-over-video-marketing-5a37f941cf34 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-advantages-text-based-content-retains-over-video-marketing-5a37f941cf34")[What](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-advantages-text-based-content-retains-over-video-marketing-5a37f941cf34)[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/3-advantages-text-based-content-retains-over-video-marketing-5a37f941cf34) + +What’s going to happen? (Hint: much of it already has): + + * Any gaps that that make the process of converting from text-based content to video content and vice versa difficult are going to be rapidly closed. + * **Content consumers are eventually going to get sick of dealing with providers (see: YouTube) who attempt to monetize or may it needlessly difficult to quickly jump between formats, like video and audio.** We know that there’s no good (technical) reason why video content can’t be easily played in the background of smartphones, for instance. We’re going to get sick of being asked to fork out for that minor concession. Ditto for video transcripts. We know that YouTube have them and that they’re mostly pretty good. Why can only creators currently download the autogenerated files? Eventually I predict we’re going to see the emergence of new ideas marketplaces who focus on making all this as easy as it should be. + * **If methodologies to make those jumps exist — and they mostly already do — then content consumers are very soon going to start _demanding_ these as if they were their natural rights.** See: above. New platforms will step into the fold or existing major tech platforms will be forced to change tact. + +How can creators leverage this: + + * **This would be a great time to explore all the various “jumps” I’ve included in the infographic below.** There’s a lot of great tech already on the market including some of the more ambitious gap-closing initiatives that I’ve cited. + * **Before platforms emerge that make it simplistic to do so, we can take advantage of the fact that converting from text to video and vice-versa is already _fairly_ easy.** Free: no. But there’s an opportunity to widen distribution by jumping channels and formats for anybody prepared to invest minimally in doing so. + +Some other predictions: + + * We’re going to see a greater demand for stock videography in the near future. Likewise, AI-generated video is going to be a growth space. As it will increasingly become standard for even (hitherto) text only bloggers to share full length and short videos on video hosting platforms, we’re going to need more platforms that will allow us to make the jump. Sure, this could mean lots of growth in video marketing. But to make content marketing as cost effective as we’ve become accustomed to it being, AI is going to prove the more viable option. + +And some recommendations. As usual, partially made to myself. + + * If you only blog right now, consider syndicating to audio and/or video. Take a look at the product categories highlighted below. + * If you primarily create video based content right now, do the same and check out the other ‘gaps’ in the text to video spectrum highlighted. Namely how viable and easy it might be to distribute podcast (audio only) versions of your videos. And how simple it may be to finally get those down into text format. Remember: you can still embed the video! + +And because it’s sometimes easier to read words presented in images rather than just words, here’s the infographic. To not be a hypocrite, I’ll be working on podcast and video versions of this post soon too. + +### The (Just-Beginning) Flight Towards Format-Agnostic Content Creation: An Infographic + + + +The above infographic and this post are both released under the following creative commons license: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) + +[**Creative Commons - Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International - CC BY-NC-ND 4.0** + _This page is available in the following languages: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC…_ creativecommons.org](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/")[](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) + +### My Content Predictions In (Self-Administered) Q&A Format + +#### **Where do you think it makes the most sense for the creators of today and tomorrow to focus their efforts?** + +Without a doubt, in my opinion, the answer is video. + +Video may be more expensive to produce for creators (and businesses), but it’s at the peak of the pyramid. At least, as I see it. The expense factor might actually be a good thing. More thoughtful and original creation which could take us a step back from content saturation. + +It may be beyond simplistic, but I think it’s nevertheless worth thinking through all the fundamental differences between creating content for distribution in text, audio, and video. + +When we create text-based content, like a blog post, we’re fundamentally limited in terms of how we can communicate by the confines of text-based communication (not considering things like diagrams and photos). + +When we step up to audio-based content, we have the nuances of vocal communication to add to the richness of the communication experience. Studies affirm that tone of voice confers a significant amount of human communication. Of course we lose some things. We could link to images and graphics from a show notes / description. But we’re really at the mercy of the syndication destinations in terms of how nicely they render these. And needless to say if you’re listening to a podcast while commuting to work we can’t deliver visual elements. + +Finally , by the time we get to video, we have it all. + +We can add those same ideas we would have blogged about and integrate them into either a script or other elements like titles. We can voiceover that script and then it’s kind of podcast layered onto imagery. Or we can have a voice-to-camera setup and then we’re already hitting just about the peak of how we can currently digitize human communication. + +This makes video more stressful to produce, in a sense. I can write a blog post while sick or exhausted and my readers mightn’t be any the wiser so long as I express the ideas well. With video, there’s not much room to hide. + +I also really like the idea that video is the most advanced form of communication we currently have and therefore it makes sense on that basis to utilize it — whereas text-based communication has been around forever (even if the way we distribute it, the internet, is much more recent). + +We’ve been writing since about the dawn of human history. Sound reproduction has been with us since the late 19th century. But we have to get well into the 20th century before we start seeing full color resolution let alone the type of high resolution video creation that we now have at our fingertips. + +There are fascinating advances taking place in video at the moment. Stabilization systems that would have cost thousands of dollars are now available for a couple of hundred dollars. + +#### Do you think working in only video is a safe bet for a small brand? + +We’re seeing a flight towards short based videos right now which is being led by viral video hosting platforms aimed at a younger demographic such as Tik Tok etc. More mature video hosting platforms like YouTube are rolling out their own bolt-ons as a response to that. + +This creates a kind of distribution network just within video. But it also means that we have two social ecosystems taking shape within the same format. And one could play into the other. + +You have your full length video up on, say, YouTube, and you distribute teasers or promos out to other networks that are more optimized for those shorter snippets. One might be referring traffic onto the other but you’re sticking with video the entire time. + +A lot of content creators are going out to audio and then text just in order to cover all their bases. As I mentioned above, I don’t think this is a bad idea at all. But inevitably I do think there’s going to be a kind of crunch. + +Which format is going to lose out? Sadly my bet is on text. + +Audio has a definite use. When we have other visual cues — like we’re commuting or exercising — we can still immerse in audio-based content almost to the maximal extent possible. AI based vision aids are going to undermine that advantage. But probably only partially, at least initially. + +Video: if you want the full shebang or are too tired to really engage with an interface to say open up a blog post then video provides the ultimate experience. Lie down on your couch and watch YouTube. + +Click on a button to download and add the episode to your ‘listen later’ queue on a podcatcher. Click another one to automatically pull down the (near perfect) AI-generated transcript and read it in a tool that uses a little bit more AI to parse the segments and output that in traditional blog format. That’s the kind of thing I’m envisioning. + +But where does that leave content creation that _starts_ as text? + +#### **What role do you see artificial intelligence (AI) playing in all this?** + +Having done lots and lots of writing over the past few years and gradually and painfully moved up through the client ranks, I wouldn’t be even slightly sorry to see the bottom of that market swallowed up by algorithms. I doubt anybody would. I’d go so far as to say that I hope that it goes so that newcomers don’t need to waste time doing bad work for companies that couldn’t really care less about it. That type of work is most fertile for replacement by AI. + +The seedy underbelly of the internet — fake reviews playing off affiliate marketing schemes, black hat keyword stuffed SEO content — all that could be eliminated. Very few people would shed a tear. + +The solutions aimed at bridging the gaps I mention. At least you can say that they’re more mature and fulfill generally useful purposes. Take Rev for instance, which is a tool that I use a lot and greatly appreciate. Done well, AI based video creation tools that take audio and then identify the best stock footage and render into video could be useful too. Although I suspect that many videographers might reel at the thought much as I would if you told me that a bot could generate great and thoughtful writing. + +But ultimately we have to be practical and realize that most brands don’t require the services of a Shakespeare or a Spielberg. So I do think that various types of AI will end up doing a lot of the heavy lifting in tomorrow’s marketing. + +#### **You’ve spent your career to date in text-based marketing. Does the above make you worried?** + +In the same way that many journalists have been forced to repurpose as content marketers, many news videographers have gone into corporate or governmental work. Similar dynamics have swept across two creative fields. + +I think that videographers and content marketers are going to work a lot closer together in coming years. If more content marketing moves towards video marketing and away from text (perhaps text will be leveraged only as a syndication destination), then we’re still going to see a strong demand for all creatives involved in producing video. I think that there are spaces for former writers to ply their trade there. Perhaps script writing or layout planning or directing or producing video. + +Another option is audio. But again my thinking is that we’re going to start with the highest order form of creativity and then work down to other formats in a process that is increasingly fluid. So I reckon there’s going to be the most work at the top of that pyramid rather than as marketing moves down through the channels. + +[**4 Reasons Making Video Is More Fun Than Writing** + _As a longtime writer dipping my toes in video, there are aspects of this mode of creative expression that already…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-making-video-is-more-fun-than-writing-63ff3c498382) + +#### What’s the summary version of the above? + +Let me try bullet points: + + * Tomorrow, those who consume content are going to care a lot more about the … content … than how it’s going to be delivered. + * In marketing terms, I think we’re going to see less CTAs like “subscribe to my channel on YouTube” or “follow my podcast on Spotify.” Maybe we can just get to “subscribe!” and then we’ll have a new platform that integrates all bases: video, podcast, and text (blog). + * I think that the gaps that divide between text, audio, and video are going to be eloquently closed and rather soon too. Platforms at these junctures will be very profitable and highly useful to creators. + * I think video will be the best of these three spaces to be in because it represents the most immersive experience of the three — sort of the pinnacle of humanity’s creative advancement (until we have something that can integrate the olfactory sense, that is). Content will flow down across the channels from there. + * AI will swallow up some lousy content marketing channels and prove tremendously useful for others. Which I think overall will be a good thing for the world, and those working in it. + diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Magic-Formula-For-Freelancing-Success-They-DON-T-Want-You-To-Know-About-.md b/posts/medium/The-Magic-Formula-For-Freelancing-Success-They-DON-T-Want-You-To-Know-About-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f4b9c2a3d776bcae2003d0fa89cb4abd4011ae87 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Magic-Formula-For-Freelancing-Success-They-DON-T-Want-You-To-Know-About-.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# The Magic Formula For Freelancing Success They DON’T Want You To Know About! + +#### (Sadly I Wasn’t Quite Clever Enough To Come Up With A Clickbait Subtitle) + +Let me begin by thanking you for clicking into my Medium page’s inaugural clickbait article. If you’re reading this — HOORAY, THAT MEANS IT WORKED 🎉! + +Now that I have you hooked, let me try to play some clever mental games to lead you further into the text. + +The type I learned from the copywriting book I read on the beach that one time (before I fell asleep). That advocated conjuring a strong emotion. Like FEAR. Because you DON’T want to fail at freelancing right? Then read on! + +Alright now time to go back to me. + +Because here’s the thing I’ve discovered about freelancing, after about five years of doing it: (SPOILER) there really is no magic formula. (/SPOILER) + +This is disappointing because humans, apparently, share a common fondness for absolute truths. + +Unfortunately, in freelancing, those are thin on the ground. + +Instead there are thousands of little things that _might_ help you get to where you want to go. These, it turns out, really take years to come to grips with. Which is also why most courses that purport to unveil the secrets of freelancing in a convenient three week period are full of hot air. + +Nevertheless, I’m as fond of simplistic formulae as the next guy. + +So here are the few things that — over the course of my freelancing career thus far — I have found that have reliably helped. + +They can be summarized — but not really — in the following graphic. + +### The One Graphic You Need For Freelancing Greatness + +Let’s break down the constituent elements: + +### 1\. An Abundant Supply Of Caffeine + +What do you think is keeping me going at one in the morning on the start of the weekend after having just finished the latest blog for my website and scheduled an email newsletter? While typing frantically in ALL CAPS while I try to make my point? + +☕ CAFFEINE, THAT’S WHAT! ☕ + +Freelancing — if nothing else — is insanely hard work. You’re the writer/graphic designer/programmer. You’re also going to be the marketer, salesperson, and bookeeper. And if the printer breaks down? Yes. That too is on you to fix. All this adds up to many many man-hours (or woman hours). An inevitable consequence of long hours is fatigue. + +Thankfully, all hope is not lost. For there is a chemical. A natural one. It attaches to your adenosine receptors so that adenosine — which slows down your brain and tells you things like “ _Daniel, it’s a Thursday night, you should go vegetate on the couch_ ”— doesn’t get a chance to read its lines. Its formula is C8 H10 N4 O2. It is caffeine. + +You might answer in blithe retort _“but Daniel, couldn’t you just make a cup of coffee like a normal person?”_ To which I would respond: _“you must be new around here, young bucko!”_ + +That three minutes you spend boiling and poring hot water over coffee grounds could be spent on Upwork pitching for business. The act of ingesting a pill, by contrast, takes approximately one second. Think you can afford to waste 3 minutes x 5 per day x 7 days per week? Neither did I . Now buy yourself a big juicy supply of caffeine pills and get pitching! + +(If you’re going to go down this route, then I recommend splitting your typical 200mg caffeine pill into four, yielding 50mg per dose. Caffeine is much better in smaller doses. Yes, people have studied these things. Also: look up the safe daily limits!) + +[**Doses and Delivery Mechanisms** + _Numerous studies exist in the scientific literature evaluating the safety and efficacy of caffeine. These studies have…_ www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK223795/ "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK223795/")[](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK223795/) + +An old school computer + +### 2\. A Lot Of Time + +Of course, buying prodigious amounts of caffeine is all designed to serve some greater end. We wouldn’t want to be getting all anxious and fidgety for no good reason, would we? + +Remember those Upwork pitches we talked about? Well yes; they’re not going to write themselves! And trust me, there are going to be a _lot_ of them for us to get through! + +The purpose of the caffeine, of course, is simply to get oneself acclimatized to sitting at a computer for inordinately long stretches of time. Or a ledge at the back of a coffee shop. You’re freelancing now; it might be time to leave your pickiness at the door. **This is because freelancing success is ultimately some rough function of time expended multiplied by how well you’re using that time.**(Caffeineophiles would argue that caffeine helps on both counts although the extent to which the famous poster that says that coffee “helps you do dumb things quicker” is true is worthy of debate.) + +The above is why it’s somewhat easier to make freelancing work when you quit your day job. You can throw absolutely everything but the kitchen sink into making it work. Why else do you think I’m here at one in the morning!? + +The key — I have found — is to get disciplined about how you manage your day to day. Lest this be misunderstood, I am not citing myself as an example of excellence. Quite the opposite. But if I was absolutely terrible at time management when I started this I am now slightly less than terrible. Progress has been made. + +As I have mentioned previously, I find getting into focus difficult. I am finnicky. So I like to work for long stretches and value these enormously. If freelancing is your full time gig, resist the urge to run errands in the middle of the day. If you can’t summon the willpower to do so endogenously, consume more of the aforementioned stimulant which should make the idea of pleading for $5 writing assignments on Upwork sound unnervingly appealing. Work for decent stretches of time and then call it a day. And when you’re off the clock, make sure to properly disconnect. + +Questions are good + +### 3\. Learning From Others + +I’m an enormous fan of connecting with other freelancers — whether that’s online or in person. It’s a hugely valuable activity that can lessen the otherwise isolating nature of freelancing. + +Thankfully there are many good freelancing communities available online. + +The good thing about these is that people don’t charge to share their knowledge with you. Of course, it’s courteous to give some back in return. But you don’t need to sign up for an expensive course to get going in many popular freelancing occupations — such as writing. + +In particular, I have learned a lot by asking pointed questions about freelancing. Of course there are the basics (“where do I find clients?”). But the longer you do this, the more you will find yourself digging into the nuance of making the whole picture work. + +### 4\. Watching Out For Your Mental Health + +The good news is that I’m not going to end this tongue-in-cheek post by advocating consuming alcohol in order to deal with stress, anxiety, and other mental health issues. + +But sadly, when I wrote in my graphic that beer can be useful to deal with _“periodic (freelancing-related) nervous breakdowns”_ I was only half joking. + +Freelancing can be incredibly stress and anxiety-producing.**There is research that indicates that freelancers are twice as likely as those working in offices to suffer from clinical depression.** That’s a scary number. It’s also a fact that — I predict — is going to receive much more attention (and very deservedly so) as the gig economy continues to pick up steam. I may or may not be speaking from first hand experience. + +[**Freelancers Could Be Twice as Likely to be Depressed than Office Workers** + _The benefits of being able to work from anywhere has allowed people to find a work/life balance they are happy with…_ smallbiztrends.com](https://smallbiztrends.com/2019/11/freelancing-and-mental-health.html "https://smallbiztrends.com/2019/11/freelancing-and-mental-health.html")[](https://smallbiztrends.com/2019/11/freelancing-and-mental-health.html) + +But when you stop and think about it, it is totally unsurprising, particularly considering the close relationship between depression and anxiety. + +Income instability is particularly anxiety-provoking. As a freelance writer, I often feel disrespected and grossly undervalued by prospective clients who sometimes seem obsessed with how much can be done for the smallest amount of money possible. When prospects and clients treat you poorly, and this pattern repeats itself over years, it’s hard not to suffer a massive blow to your self esteem as both a professional and a person. + +As a writer, I am of course unqualified to give specific advice about mental illness. But my unprofessional opinion is that anybody freelancing needs to be especially mindful about their mental health and quick to ask for help if it takes a turn for the worse. Doing everything to stack your chances of happiness in your favor — like connecting with others (as above) — is of course also a common sense recommendation. + +### The Secret Is That There Is No Secret + +Even the above isn’t reductive enough for my liking so let me finish by trying to condense this even further: + +Work as hard as possible. + +Learn whatever you can with others (and share what you can). + +Watch out for your mental health. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Missing-Middle-Ground-In-The-Debate-About-Israel.md b/posts/medium/The-Missing-Middle-Ground-In-The-Debate-About-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..29cd6b4d505500d74307a1ddf3f1a340582b879a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Missing-Middle-Ground-In-The-Debate-About-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,84 @@ +# The Missing Middle Ground In The Debate About Israel + +#### Being In The Middle About Israel Can Be A Lonesome Place + +Israel is making international news these days. + +Not because of some war it’s fighting. + +But rather because it’s leading the world in the pace of its coronavirus vaccination program. + +The plaudits are deserved — at least in my view. + +Israel’s leadership has managed its response to the pandemic in a sometimes chaotic manner, with conflicting information often leaking to the media within hours of weighty cabinet decisions. + +Small business owners have been critical about the lack of compensation offered as their businesses crumbled in the face of repeated and protracted closures. + +The collapse of the government and the holding of the fourth elections in two years raises troubling questions about why Israel’s leaders seem unprepared to put cohesion and the national interest ahead of personal political expediency. + +And yet .. when it comes to its vaccine rollout, it’s hard not to admire Israel’s ingenuity. + +Its decision to buy vaccines from multiple providers was sensible diversification on a national scale. + +It leveraged its small size to offer itself up as a test case to major pharmaceutical companies, exchanging anonymized medical data for preferential access to the potentially pandemic-crushing measures. + +And the aggression with which it has swooped into 24/7 mode took advantage of its considerable expertise in logistics to inoculate its population with a rapidity that other countries could only dream about + +### “The Best In The World”: Reflexive Nationalism vs. Ungrounded Hate + +Yet, amidst all the frenzied excitement about this good news, there’s been an unmistakable element of hyperbole and hubris permeating through the blogosphere and Twitter. + +The vaccine rollout — which is about as untainted by politics as issues can get in Israel — is the perfect opportunity to trumpet Israel’s achievements. But some wonder why that needs to be — or why a reflexive instinct to counter bad news about Israel with developments that show it in a favorable light need to be taken so far. + +Consider, as an example, _The Jerusalem Post_ , which, a few days ago, [carried an article](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/vaccine-rollout-inspires-jews-to-move-to-israel-and-israelis-to-return-654141) claiming that “Vaccine rollout inspires Jews to move to Israel and Israelis to return.” + +To which I — and many — feel compelled to respond: why would you want to live in a country just because of a vaccination push? And how will you feel about that decision when the pandemic is over? + +[**Why I Think Hasbara Is A Waste of Time (And Resources)** +_Three days to go until 5780 becomes 5781. Out with the old and in with the new. So - as I'm particularly fond of airing…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/) + +Nestled among legitimate criticism of its policies, Israel receives a lot of unjustified hatred, some of it anti-Semitism cloaked in the disguise of anti-Zionism. + +Yet, when it comes to Israel, and the polarized debate that surrounds it, it often seems as if the middle ground is taken off the table entirely. Israel cannot be approached rationally. You can’t be ambivalent about it. But seizing evidence to support your side of the argument is always considered fair game. + +Before I moved to Israel, from Ireland, I was much more familiar with the hatred side of this formulation. + +For many Irish commentators, Israel is the epitome of evil and any contrary qualifiers to that position are unwelcome. Israel’s vaccine rollout may be marvelous — but look at what it’s doing in Gaza! After a while, the arguments become circular. + +But there’s another countervailing force to this blind hatred that it’s taken me longer to come to terms with. This is the force which uses _hasbara_ to not only rebut the claims of the detractors but also to preemptively negate them. + +Under this paradigm — echoed by many supporters of Israel and Israelis, many of whom are instilled with a ferocious sense of nationalism— Israel can do no wrong and any suggestion to the contrary, in any respect, must be met with aggressive dissent. + +[**Silencing Criticism Doesn’t Help People Stay in Israel** + _Ignoring Painful Realities Doesn’t Help Retain Olim_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/silencing-criticism-doesnt-help-people-stay-in-israel-f1228f115c80 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/silencing-criticism-doesnt-help-people-stay-in-israel-f1228f115c80")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/silencing-criticism-doesnt-help-people-stay-in-israel-f1228f115c80) + +It is this dynamic, I believe, which keeps Israelis beholden to political leaders who trumpet macro issues — like the security situation — at the expense of paying any attention to domestic concerns, such as the cost of living. Which — oddly, in a sense — perpetuates an unending “us versus the world” narrative. And this mindset which ensures that those leaders are continually re-elected. + +Under this reflexive playbook, asking why Israel has the second most expensive real estate in the world is as weighty a moral turpitude as likening its rule in the West Bank to Apartheid. “That’s not true,” isn’t sufficient as an answer. Better to claim that Israel has the best housing market in the world. + +For proponents of this approach, successes, like Israel’s vaccine drive or its survival in the Six Day War, are eagerly latched on to as proof of its superiority. + +It’s not enough to merely rejoice in the success of our own vaccination program. Rather, its excellence needs to be heightened and then weaponized to push back against the arguments of those who would do Israel harm. + +To illustrate: about a year ago, I posted photos from a shopping expedition to my local supermarket and showed that imported Spanish olive oil was cheaper than the Israeli brand. Why, I queried, would this be so? + +People jumped in with some good reasons — economies of scale being a major one. But there was a not inconsiderate amount of voices insisting that the higher cost of Israeli olive oil was due to the fact that Israel produces “the best olive oil in the world.” A quick Google search confirmed that this position is not widely held. This kind of reflexive nationalism is the strange byproduct of unwarranted hate. + +### A Successful But Flawed State + +The kind of black or white logic that many subscribe to about Israel is a lot easier to maintain living in the Jewish Diaspora, perhaps as an armchair supporter of the Jewish State, than it is actually living in the country. + +While its vaccine program is marvelous, it should also be pointed out that: + + * Israel is currently plagued by repeat elections which are wasting billions of shekels of taxpayer money + * Divisiveness between its population groups remains very high + * Israel’s cost of living, and cost of real estate, remain unaddressed issues + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +All these issues are a lot more apparent when one lives in Israel and knows more about the country than the wars it has recently waged or how its vaccination program is going. The latter — while fantastic and inspiring — is a short term dynamic and but a small part of the picture of what it’s like to live here. + +Israel faces a lot of hatred both in international fora and from those opposed to its policies. But sometimes the response to the torrent of hatred comes out as bloated self-aggrandizement in which every positive must be magnified and used as an anchor in rebuttal. + +For those who feel that Israel is a small country, with flaws, that sometimes does extraordinary things, the debate around the country can sometimes feel like a very lonesome space. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-New-Immigrant-s-Guide-To--Living-In-Jerusalem.md b/posts/medium/The-New-Immigrant-s-Guide-To--Living-In-Jerusalem.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c9ac0d9e1ebf937bef18384fed26af70f35e2aa6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-New-Immigrant-s-Guide-To--Living-In-Jerusalem.md @@ -0,0 +1,164 @@ +# The New Immigrant’s Guide To: Living In Jerusalem + +#### A Guide For Those Making Their First Steps in Israel In The Holy City + +A little over six years ago, I began my _aliyah_ journey in Israel in Jerusalem. + +I didn’t exactly plan it this way. + +When I had my first meeting with my Jewish Agency _shaliach_ (emissary) in London, I had no idea where I wanted to live in Israel, although Tel Aviv seemed like the natural choice for somebody moving to Israel in their mid-20s. + +The train tracks — Park HaMesila — is a great place to take exercise. It tracks the line of an old railway route between Jaffa and Jerusalem. Photo: author. + +Coming from one of the Jewish world’s great obscure landmarks — Cork, Ireland — I wasn’t very clued into what my options were. Therefore, when my _shaliach_ provided me with three _ulpan_ options and none of them included Tel Aviv, I assumed that these were my only choices (note: this was wrong. There is a nationwide network of _ulpanim_ that you can qualify for and which worked through the Jewish Agency system. Also: even if you live in an obscure part of the Jewish world, I encourage anybody to do their homework online. There are Facebook groups and an [Israel-centric subreddit](http://www.reddit.com/r/israel) and people are generally delighted to share their opinions and experience with newcomers). + +So my choices — or what I believed to be my choices — consisted of Jerusalem, Lod, and Ramla. Ramla sounded vaguely like Ramallah and seemed to be the incarceration capital of Israel. Lod looked depressing (sorry, but Lod _is_ kinda depressing). So Jerusalem easily stood out as the shining light among what seemed like a fairly dim firmament. + +A few months and some random complications later (one day my _shaliach_ excitedly called to tell me that she had taken the liberty of booking me into Lod. I wasn’t impressed), and I was on my way. To Jerusalem. + +Having lived in this city of one million for more than six years now, here are a few tips to prepare the fresh off the boat — or soon to be. + +### Jerusalem Is Not Where The Jobs Are At In Israel + +Sorry to have to start out on a bit of a sour note. But I’m a big believer in telling it like it is. Glossy _aliyah_ brochures often result in a lot of misplaced expectations, in my opinion, and most new immigrants are going to want to be thinking about employment sooner rather than later. + +Although most economic opportunity can be found in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem does have a number of active networking organizations, including a chapter of LinkedIn Local. Photo: author. + +Jerusalem may be the capital of Israel. But its economic powerhouse it is most certainly not. + +Traditionally, Jerusalem has been thought of by Israelis as a poor and religious city. + +It’s true that the government is a major employer in the city. But new immigrants are much more likely to be positioning for jobs in tech companies than at government offices. + +**The majority of startup jobs in Israel can be found in Tel Aviv and the surrounding area — commonly know as the _merkaz_(center) in Hebrew.** Other cities like Herzlia and Be’er Sheva have commercial centers too. + +The good news is that the fast train that runs between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv has cut down the transit times between the two cities enormously. + +Getting between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv is easier than ever. Empty tracks at HaHagana Station in Tel Aviv. The fast train now takes a little over 30 minutes to travel between the two cities, although this doesn’t include the lengthy descent from the ground level in Jerusalem to the track. Photo: author. + +Given the fact that many companies have now switched to hybrid configurations, it’s more viable than ever to live in Jerusalem but work in Tel Aviv — without needing to do an arduous daily commute (I know many who have done this for years; and almost nobody who hasn’t ended up hating it). + +The City of Jerusalem also has ambitious plans to develop business parks at the entrance to the city. + +There _are_ jobs in the private sector in Jerusalem — naturally. There are also some startups here and a few technology parks (Malha and Har Hotsvim are two of the major ones). It’s just that quantitatively, the city is still nowhere near parity with Tel Aviv. Historically, this has prompted a lot of emigration from the city among young people. This continues to this day. + +If you _do_ really want to find employment within the city, check out Made in JLM, which is a startup and tech community. They hold events and run a jobs board. LinkedIn Local Jerusalem is a newer and more informal organization. + +[**Jerusalem Tech Jobs** + _Find your next position in Jerusalem's startup and tech scene._ www.madeinjlm.org](https://www.madeinjlm.org/jobs "https://www.madeinjlm.org/jobs")[](https://www.madeinjlm.org/jobs) + +### Jerusalem Is Really Three Cities Mushed Into One + +I used to wonder in astonishment at how Jerusalem could be a city of one million and yet seem so small to walk through. Understated is a good way to describe its downtown district (minus the giant duck, of course). + +One of the most notable features of Jerusalem’s downtown district, centered on Ben Yehuda Street, was this public art installation of a duck. Photo: author. + +My hometown of Cork, in Ireland, has a population of just 124,000 — and yet its city center feels much more buzzy and lively than Jerusalem’s (sorry Jerusalem). + +For a city of its size and importance, Jerusalem also retains an oddly small-town sort of feel — in both good and bad ways. + +Although there is no meat Indian restaurant in Jerusalem, Jeera, on Hileni HaMalka, is worth checking out (vegetarian; kosher supervision: Tsohar). Photo: author. + +(At the time of writing) the city doesn’t have a single Indian restaurant — at least one that serves meat. Finding food after midnight is surprisingly difficult. There are enough bars here but not many. + +The answer, I believe, is the fact that Jerusalem is much less one city, but rather a loosely allied conglomerate of three different cities. + +I would take those to be East Jerusalem — which is Palestinian in character and, in many respects, functions as a _de facto_ separate city. West Jerusalem which is the part that many tourists are familiar with. And Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Jerusalem. + +While sometimes deceptively sedating, Jerusalem is also the fault line of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. The nationalistic Flag March, held earlier this year, effectively kicked off a round of fighting with Hamas in Gaza. Photo: author.Members of the press report upon the Flag March in Jerusalem earlier this year. Photo: author. + +Regarding ‘West’ and ‘Haredi’ Jerusalem as two separate cities is perhaps pushing things a little — but they _do_ have separate centers and distinct characteristics. + +For those living in Jerusalem’s _haredi_ neighborhoods, life revolves around Torah study and places of religious study — _yeshivot_ and _kollelim_ — are the community’s most numerous and prized institutions. Think: life as depicted in _Shtisel_ which was based around the life of a family living in Geula, abutting Mea Shearim. + +‘West’ Jerusalem — into which I would subsume the predominantly national religious (_dati leumi_) neighborhoods — functions mostly like any other world city, although the majority of Jewish residents are at least somewhat religiously observant (Jerusalem does have a secular community and the First Station complex was designed to cater for all needs). + +East Jerusalem — the part to the east of the Green Line that once subsected the city with an international border — is predominantly Arab Palestinian, although there are a few Jewish enclaves populated by far-right-wing nationalists. East Jerusalem has its own bus system, hospital network, and identity. + +When you consider that Jerusalem is more an urban conglomeration with three constituent parts, its relatively diminutive downtown starts to make more sense. + +### The Shuk Is Both A Vegetable Market And A Nightlife Center + +Now here’s what I love about Jerusalem. + +As much as it can feel oddly parochial and small, it’s also kind of the Noah’s Ark of Israeli cities: It’s so big that it has at least _one_ of everything. But small enough to retain a sort of small city charm _not_ befitting its stature or size. + +Shuk Mahane Yehuda — better known to locals simply as ‘the Shuk’ — is now a curious mixture of vegetable market and nightlife venue. This was the market during the Pesah (passover) holiday earlier this year. Photo: author.If you’re into kebabs, Aka, near the shuk, is worth checking out. Photo: author. + +Jerusalem is not exactly heaving with nightlife (in fact, there’s a notable lack of nightclubs), but there are a few decent bars around the _shuk_(Shuk Mahane Yehuda), although in recent years the demographic seems to have shifted drastically in the direction of drunken teenagers. Grumpy thirty year olds like me still dream about reclaiming our turf. + +There are a couple of DJ stores where you can source specialist equipment like wireless microphones and mixers. And around the same part of town (Heleni HaMalka) you can find a few more bars to whet your palette after a hard day’s work or sightseeing. + +For those looking to enjoy a few drinks at nighttime, there are plenty of happy hour deals around the city. So if you’re early enough you can dodge the otherwise painful alcohol prices in Israel (32 NIS is a common price for a pint of imported beer; at today’s exchange rate, that’s almost a whopping $10). + +My list of favorite bars around the city has been drastically whittled by the coronavirus (sadly, three of my favorites never reopened), but HaTaklit (“The Record”) remains popular enough to have thankfully survived the plague. + +Murphy’s Irish Stout, like me, made it from Cork to Jerusalem. Photo: Shuk Mahane Yehuda. Photo: author. + +[**Log In or Sign Up to View** + _See posts, photos and more on Facebook._ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/hataklit/ "https://www.facebook.com/hataklit/")[](https://www.facebook.com/hataklit/) + +### There Are A Few Cool Neighborhoods Worth Checking Out Too — And There’s A Lot Of Church Property + +Besides all the touristy things to do in Jerusalem — those can disproportionately be found in the Old City — there are some really nice neighborhoods worth checking out both as places to live and places to hang out. + +**Rehavia** is probably the closest thing to a youngish and somewhat chic neighborhood in Jerusalem. There are a few decent bars in this part of town and places to grab a humus and falafel (if you want a quintessentially low-key but relaxing Jerusalem evening, meet a friend at one of these for a _humus_ and a beer). Nearby **Baka** and**Emek Refaim** , in the German Colony, both have main streets lined with restaurants. These are probably the closest things to inner suburbs, with local centers, that can be found in Jerusalem. + +Fresh fruit on sale at a fruit stand in Baka, one of the most picturesque urban villages within the city limits. Photo: author. + +**Musrara** and **Talbiyeh** are both beautiful and dotted with cultural institutions such as the Jerusalem Theater (although the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra is based in Tel Aviv, the orchestra often performs in venues in the city). The area around Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, and its Rose Garden, are both lovely places to walk around. + +As you meander through the streets of Jerusalem, it’s hard not to notice how much property is owned by various churches, especially the Greek Orthodox Church, the Russian Orthodox Church (the Russian Compound is the nucleus), and the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. + +Jerusalem’s street names could form a book in their own right (they probably already have). Many of them are named in honor of non-Jewish Zionists, who are also celebrated at the Friends of Zion museum downtown. Lloyd George street crosses between Derekh Beit Lekhem and Emek Refaim. Photo: author.Patterson Street in Jerusalem is named after John Henry Patterson, a non-Jewish Zionist born in Forgney, County Longford, in Ireland. Photo: author. + +Those renting property in the city — upon checking the _tabu_(Land Registry) — commonly find that they are actually sub-tenants of a religious body! + +In addition to this, various monastic orders have monasteries dotted throughout the city, the monastics living a cloistered life just meters from the hustle and bustle of the city (the soundtrack to the city is a mixture of endlessly beeping cars and constructions hammers; these aspects I am less fond of). Nuns and brothers can often be found roaming the streets of Jerusalem next to ultra-religious Jews — a juxtaposition that gets progressively more normal the more you live here, to the point that you find yourself not even noticing it any more. For all Jerusalem’s eccentricities — and the fact that it is the fault line of a major geopolitical conflict — it oddly, mostly, seems to work out. + +There are even a few diplomatic missions — although these are actually _sui generis_ institutions that are officially accredited to the City of Jerusalem but _really_ accredited to the PA (for the details, see the article below. The push to attract world embassies to the city is an entirely separate endeavor). + +Jerusalem is dotted by several consulates, although these are actually accredited to the City of Jerusalem and not the State of Israel. Photo: the Greek Consulate in Jerusalem. Photo: author. + +[**5 Types Of Diplomatic Mission Already in Jerusalem** + _Not everything diplomatic in Israel is based in Tel Aviv_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-jerusalem/5-types-of-diplomatic-mission-already-in-jerusalem-a3cf14f5bb4e "https://medium.com/living-in-jerusalem/5-types-of-diplomatic-mission-already-in-jerusalem-a3cf14f5bb4e")[](https://medium.com/living-in-jerusalem/5-types-of-diplomatic-mission-already-in-jerusalem-a3cf14f5bb4e) + +Venturing just outside of Jerusalem, you also have the Jerusalem Hills which include many picturesque _moshavim_. This summer, these were the centerpoint of forest fires, some of the worst and most extensive in Israel’s history. + +Earlier this year, the skies above Jerusalem turned red due to the widespread forest fires in the Jerusalem Hills. Photo: author. + +The reservoir at Beit Zayit — which for a large part of the year is dry — is worth seeing. I highly recommend visiting Motza, seeing its ancient synagogue, and enjoying the excellent food at its café. And if you need to stock up on home goods and kitchen appliances, there’s now an IKEA that can accessed in Eshtaol, near Beit Shemesh. + +Enjoying a wonderful lunch at the café in Motza. The perry is from HaMatsesa and one of my favorite local craft tipples. Photo: author.Motza, outside Jerusalem, has beautiful olive groves that you can walk through. Photo: author. + +### Jerusalem Is Actually A Pretty Mellow Place To Live + +Although Jerusalem is lacking a coast, abundant economic opportunity, and a little bit in the nightlife department, I’m personally much more of a fan of the city than its more glamorous counterpart on the coast, Tel Aviv. + +It’s historic. Parts of its are grand and beautiful. And there are just about enough amenities to keep most young people happy. + +While there are a few academic institutions in the city — Hebrew University has two campuses and Bezalel is Israel’s most prestigious design school — the city doesn’t really have the bohemian feel of a typical college town. + +For those going to college here, I’m told that Jerusalem is more of a quiet house party scene. For those past college age, its defining characteristics could probably best be summed up as ‘religious’, ‘family-oriented’ and ‘clean living.’ + +Another great thing about Israel is that it’s a really small country. Taking a weekend getaway to Tel Aviv is extremely easy — it’s only about one hour by car and the train, bus, and _sheruts_(shared taxis) now provide abundant transport options between the two cities. + +When taking the train between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, don’t forget to factor in time for descending from the ground level in Yitzhak Nevon station, to the track. It’s a long way down! Photo: author. + +In the other direction, the beaches of the Dead Sea — Kalia and Ein Bokek in order of distance down the coast — are actually closer (from where I live in south Jerusalem, my wife and I can get to Kalia in about 45 minutes depending on traffic; as you exit the city, you’re quickly surrounded by camels and sand dunes; it’s quite spectacular how close Jerusalem is to Judea and Samaria). In fact, the moment I hit the publish button on this piece, I’m off for some salty water and mud there! + +Minus the sometimes inescapable construction, Jerusalem, as a city, is oddly liveable. + +The city’s local government — in Hebrew called simply the _iriyah_(_iriyah_ simply means municipality in Hebrew) — has ambitious plans to shore up construction links in the city, by adding more light rail tracks, and to attract employers to create jobs here. + +Specifically, the city is planning on adding high rises to the downtown district and to create a sort of second urban center in Talpiot, a traditionally industrial wasteland of factories in the south of the city. + +Jerusalem resident pro tip: Yochanannof, in Talpiot, is currently the cleanest and least chaotic supermarket in the city (in the author’s opinion). Do your shopping here and avoid the shuk chaos. Photo: author. + +Although this has attracted vociferous opposition from both Israelis and immigrants, many (including me) would be glad to see Jerusalem advance and leave behind its historical image as a somewhat quaint city that at times feels like Israel’s capital in name only. + +The Jerusalem Municipality commonly puts on public artwork displays in the downtown area. This was the second iteration of its umbrellas in the sky artwork. Photo: author. + +Jerusalem isn’t cheap. Politically, it’s contentious ground. But it affords a high standard of living for its residents. + +And I’ve been proud to call it home for the past six years. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-New-Immigrant-s-Guide-To-Buying-Goods-And-Services-In-Israel--Infographic-.md b/posts/medium/The-New-Immigrant-s-Guide-To-Buying-Goods-And-Services-In-Israel--Infographic-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d55c845341e3a8cc72ac4e969c4a892661e15d13 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-New-Immigrant-s-Guide-To-Buying-Goods-And-Services-In-Israel--Infographic-.md @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +# The New Immigrant’s Guide To Buying Goods And Services In Israel (Infographic) + +_— Satire with a very large measure of truth:_ + +_Today was a good day._ + +Believe it or not, even though I’ve criticized many facets of life in Israel on this Medium blog, I don’t derive any enjoyment from doing so. + +I do because I care about Israel. And I think that the culture of silence that has emerged around life here, at least among English speaking _olim_(Jewish immigrants)is harmful. So I try to buck that trend. + +If we believe that we can only say nice things about Israel — and that anybody who does otherwise is somehow ‘against’ us or the country — then how are we ever going to start having honest conversations to try to make this country better, both for us and generations to come? + +This is a theme that I’ve tried to explore a lot through this page. And I was delighted to see [this excellent piece about](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/?fbclid=IwAR3EgHnchkLKfpYTvgWWordukzKJpsmvZlC7D4K1Aqi4JS25Gbig3DFoYyg) the extremely problematic macroeconomy and housing picture published in _The Times of Israel_ today. + +Ricky Ben-David’s piece is _really_ worth a read. All the way through. It describes the issue in detail. If offers some ideas worth exploring. And most importantly of all, it sounds a warning: if things don’t change, we’re in a bad situation. Israel’s rental market is largely unregulated. Meaningful schemes to incentivize first time home ownership are virtually nonexistent. And worst of all, nobody seems to care. + +Speaking of problematic dynamics in the State of Israel, here’s another one worth talking about: the cost of living, which consistently ranks as one of the highest in the world. And here’s a quick bit of satire on that note: + +In other news: + +_— I have a graphics tablet on the way. More satire (less likely to be about Israel) and comics coming soon._ diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Nimbus-tender-may-be-the-best-explanation-into-how-Israel-works-that-you-ll-ever-receive-.md b/posts/medium/The-Nimbus-tender-may-be-the-best-explanation-into-how-Israel-works-that-you-ll-ever-receive-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..db3316b5f108c414cb63da6846ade3cec779e118 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Nimbus-tender-may-be-the-best-explanation-into-how-Israel-works-that-you-ll-ever-receive-.md @@ -0,0 +1,119 @@ +# The Nimbus tender may be the best explanation into how Israel works that you’ll ever receive. Here’s why. + +#### Only in Israel can a pop singer turn data center tycoon at the drop of a tender + +What can a tender for cloud computing services teach us about how Israel operates as a country? Photo by [Brett Sayles](https://www.pexels.com/@brett-sayles?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/server-racks-on-data-center-5480781/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Once upon a time, in an office block far far away, somebody high up in Israel’s procurement hierarchy decided that it was time to put a tender out to market (the story gets slightly more interesting, I promise). + +Reading the news coverage, Israel had decided that it was time to begin shifting its government’s tech infrastructure off-site. + +In the business word, migrating business systems to the cloud is a banal and common occurrence. + +Managing infrastructure on-site is these days considered clunky and cost-ineffective and the major infrastructure providers — AWS, Google, Oracle, and Microsoft, among others — can generally do a better job. Your tech guys can get back to thinking about business problems. Or playing Solitaire. + +When _governments_ and _secret services_ want to move their stuff off-premises, however, the usual process of scrutinizing the security of the prospective cloud vendor gets an elephant-sized dose of anabolic steroids. + +All the more so in Israel’s case. + +The Nimbus tender was interesting for two reasons: + + 1. Israel evidently saw this as a worthwhile enough priority that it made no effort to keep things on the DL. The tender — and the reaction to it — made the news. + 2. Israel — as in the State — made clear that it wanted companies with experience operating clouds to do the job. Hence, in an unusual move, Israeli firms were excluded from bidding on the project. + +But also for one final reason that _didn’t_ attract so much attention: + + * Israel had very little in the way of existing cloud infrastructure — or at least cloud infrastructure robust enough to support a project of this nature where security was paramount. This created an interesting opportunity for local monoliths to move in on the international action. + +### Turning An Opportunity Into Gold The Israeli Way + +So what was your average Israeli IT operator (or real estate developer) to do when their country had announced an outsized tender but forbidden them from directly bidding on it? + +Not make a huff and puff about it or mount a constitutional legal challenge (although those options are not off the table). + +Explore other ways to take advantage of the capital flow. + +There was one more interesting detail that presented an opportunity for local operators. + +[**Cloud Computing for the U.S. Intelligence Community- Amazon Web Services (AWS)** +_Cloud computing at mission speed AWS proudly supports the unique needs of the U.S. Intelligence Community through…_ aws.amazon.com](https://aws.amazon.com/federal/us-intelligence-community/ "https://aws.amazon.com/federal/us-intelligence-community/")[](https://aws.amazon.com/federal/us-intelligence-community/) + +The wonders of encryption have made it possible for even intelligence agencies to entrust their sensitive data to somebody else which is how foreign entities are being allowed to develop the cloud in the first place. + +AWS, for instance, has provisioned a cloud specifically adapted to meet the needs of the US intelligence community. + +But physical access remains a concern whenever you’re handing over data to somebody else — and much moreso for governments than private consumers. + +AWS is an American entity and so is the CIA. But the lucky confluence of great cloud expertise and passport didn’t exist in Israel. + +Why does this matter? + +In part, physical access control. Both governments and people running solo marketing websites probably want to make sure that their data is stored reasonably securely. But the consequences of a breach are vastly different. + +A nation state’s unexpected bid to decrypt Rosehill Marketing Communications’ web infrastructure may only yield them a few lousy client invoices (I suspect Japan may be plotting something…). But replicate the effort on servers operated by the Ministry of Finance and something a lot juicier could spill out the other end. + +So geography matters. Even though modern cloud architecture can be complicated and involve replication, redundancy, and nodes that minimize latency, data ultimately physically sits — even temporarily — on a server located in a room located in some country. + +In this respect, the abstraction of cloud computing and virtualization meets a decisive end. And governments, it turns out, want to keep stuff on land that they control. + +So it’s risky if that country is a jurisdiction you don’t have sovereignty over. A homeland security hazard no less. And it seems almost insanely risky to host government data within the physical parameters of another jurisdiction. Or as Oracle Israel’s CEO put it: dangerous. + +[**Oracle Israel head: Storing data outside Israel is dangerous** + _“Larry Ellison doesn’t like to lose, and when one of the biggest billionaires in the world doesn’t like to lose …_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-oracle-israel-head-storing-data-outside-israel-is-dangerous-1001382537 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-oracle-israel-head-storing-data-outside-israel-is-dangerous-1001382537")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-oracle-israel-head-storing-data-outside-israel-is-dangerous-1001382537) + +But that’s still not a reason to avoid making lemonade from this bag of lemons. It’s the Israeli national ethos. + +As the famous saying in IT goes, the cloud is simply someone else’s computer. + +Or as another variation I’d be happy to coin goes: A cloud is just a data center that somebody else manages for a fee. If you can’t supply the computers you can try to install the hardware. Or at least lease out a patch of land — or carved out bedrock — to host it on. + +And the problem: + +Traditionally, Israel hasn’t been considered a worthwhile place to host these things. If you’ve ever attempted to even host a website in Israel — I have — you probably knew this five years ago. + +The solution: + +Israeli developers and tech magnates are getting involved in the sudden rush to provision the (physical) infrastructure that’s needed to execute the contract. + +[**Tech giants battle for data center real estate in Israel** + _Five years ago, two major cloud computing players, Google and Amazon, were offered the possibility of hosting Israeli…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-tech-giants-battle-for-data-center-real-estate-in-israel-1001385489 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-tech-giants-battle-for-data-center-real-estate-in-israel-1001385489")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-tech-giants-battle-for-data-center-real-estate-in-israel-1001385489) + +Compass Datacenters, a subsidiary of the massive Azrieli Group, is helping build data centers on behalf of AWS. By all reports, at a furious pace (this sounds like the pace of the tender; but it’s also the pace of Israel in general). + +Google is pumping one hundred million dollars _per data center_ into two subterranean facilities via a partnership structure. + +But wait .. there’s more. + +In a development that may only be loosely connected to Israelis’ newfound crazy for building all manner of facilities for housing data, Omer Adam — best known for regaling Israelis with Mizrahi pop hits, including the odious Irish trad mimic _“Rak Rotzeh Lirkod”_ (an unforgivable affront to my ears) — has joined a partnership with a somewhat cryptic entity called the Lian Group to pour $120 million into an underground facility in the peripheral neighborhood of Afula. + +The move makes eminent sense and I imagine will turn out to be a great investment for the superstar. + +If Israel’s government successfully gets its infrastructure offsite, Israeli businesses will be tempted to do likewise also (isn’t that already the case? Not necessarily. In a market that’s overwhelmingly focused on exports, Israel’s domestic tech isn’t necessarily up of the highest order.). + +If the case for storing data within Israel has been proven — and the government provides about as robust a case study as any on the fence could hope for — then it’s only a matter of time before demand zooms up. + +Israelis will finally feel confident enough in entrusting their data to third parties, including international technology companies. + +But they may initially (or over the long term) want to mimic their government’s stipulation that the data physically reside within Israel. + +[**Singer Omer Adam partnering with Europe-Israel Group and Swiss fund Lian Group to build $120…** + _Europe-Israel Group, P.A.I., controlled by Israeli singing sensation Omer Adam, and the Swiss fund Lian Group have…_ www.calcalistech.com](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3907224,00.html "https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3907224,00.html")[](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3907224,00.html) + +Oh. + +And Adam controls Europe Israel Group P.A.I (yes, the pop star). + +It may just have pumped part of a 400 million NIS deal into a major infrastructural project. + +But it doesn’t appear to operate a website. + +### What Ordinary Israelis And Olim Can Learn From The Nimbus Tender + +What lessons can be ordinary mortals derive from a government computing technology worth over one billion dollars? + + * Israelis are terrific at identifying opportunity. + * Israelis are difficult people to offend. Their government can prevent them from competing on a tender in their own country. But if there’s still an indirect way to profit from the opportunity they will find it. + * The majority of Israeli companies are focused on the export market. But those who want to land deals in Israel think _big_. Millions and billions big. Unfortunately, the wealth generated from those deals sometimes has a habit of not trickling down the food chain. + * In Israel, a pop star can also quietly be a data center tycoon without many people noticing or remarking upon how strange a development that is. + * This country probably runs entirely on _protezia,_ big deals, and — to a lesser extent — foreign investments. + diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Personal-Brand-Builder-s-Case-For-Creating-With-Abandon.md b/posts/medium/The-Personal-Brand-Builder-s-Case-For-Creating-With-Abandon.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6646bce3118b62ac47ae6204bfa107fa7ef6f845 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Personal-Brand-Builder-s-Case-For-Creating-With-Abandon.md @@ -0,0 +1,79 @@ +# The Personal Brand Builder’s Case For Creating With Abandon + +#### In the hotly competitive market for potential customers’ attention, it takes a lot of effort for the world to start caring about you + +Photo by [Serpstat](https://www.pexels.com/@serpstat-177219?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/silver-imac-displaying-line-graph-placed-on-desk-572056/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’ve discussed here before about how — prior to moving from Ireland to Israel — I decided to change surname to my current one. + +Overnight, the reputation that I had been carving out as a budding journalist, writing both for my own news website and an Irish-American media portal, vanished into (digital) thin air. + +I went from having several hundred bylined clips floating around the internet to …. precisely zero clips. It was starting, figuratively and literally, from the scratch. + +### The Case For Accepting Every Byline You Can + +My first few years living in Israel (I moved roughly six years ago) were dominated by …. various facets of life. + +I had to come to grips with life in a new country. Make a new circle of friends. Learn a new language. As a result, there wasn’t much time left at the margins for thinking about things like building a personal brand. + +At the same time, I was dabbling for the first time in freelance writing. + +But not the type of freelance writing I’d dabbled in before, writing for media publications. This type of freelance writing was freelance content marketing writing — helping companies produce “content” to drive lead generation and sales. + +When I first ran my name through Google — around this time — I didn’t like what I saw on the search engine result page (SERP). There was _nothing_ (bar news of a distant relative’s wedding). + +But I also saw this as an opportunity of sorts. + +I didn’t feel a sense of ownership over the content marketing that I was doing on behalf of clients — and the ghostwriting I was precluded from bylining anyway. + +Unlike journalism, even though I was being paid for it, it wasn’t really _mine_. I was writing to help companies sell and not because I necessarily felt passionately about the topic. + +I insisted that my old employer keep my name off press releases that I authored on behalf of the company. + +I turned down every opportunity to accept a byline for the freelance writing work that I was doing. + +If I was starting from digital zero, I wanted to make sure that the stuff I put out to help build myself back up was quality. That if I was putting a foot forward, that it would be my very best one. + +This, I believe, was a mistake. + +### The World Doesn’t Care About You Until You Make It Care About You + +Why do I care about building up a personal brand at all, you may wonder? + +I think that inbound marketing is enormously powerful — I’ve written lots about it here before — and I reckon that being _known_ as a technology ghostwriter will make working as one a lot easier. + +Inbound — attracting people to you — is where marketing is at, at least these days. + +But in order to attract people to you, you have to create content that attracts them into your orbit. And if you’re keeping yourself anonymous, there’s simply no way that that process can work. + +In marketing, we talk (and think) a lot about funnels. If you’re self-employed and the funnel doesn’t lead to you, then — again — there’s just no way for it to bring results. Bottom line: if you want to attract inbound leads, you’re going to have to both create content _and_ stand behind it. + +I can already see the first fruits of the work that I’ve been doing. + +About a year ago, I began receiving a slow trickle of inbound leads. From my perspective at least, it’s a lot better than going out looking for clients. + +But getting back to my personal branding story. + +So if I were starting my freelance content marketing journey today, here’s what I would do differently which is essentially the exact opposite of what I spent years doing. + +Unless there was a very compelling reason not to, I would insist on slapping my byline (that’s the ‘By me’ line) at the top of every piece that I could. + +Even if I didn’t feel a complete sense of ownership over the work. Even if I had a strong suspicion that I would look back in a year on what I had written and feel like I could have done a lot better. + +Instead of finding excuses _not_ to be bylined for my own writing I would actively push for them and contest every decision to take my name off a piece. + +Because what I’ve come to understand is this: + +In the world of building up brands — whether for businesses or people — things like bylines are currency. + +And you need to make a lot of deposits into the checking account for the world to even give the very slightest of cares about who you are, what you do, and what you stand for. + +There are (at the time of writing) about 7.9 billion people in the world. + +Roughly 360 million of those speak English. + +That creates a hotly competitive market for gaining the attention of potential customers. + +If you want to capture even the tiniest sliver of it, you need to give yourself a chance to make that happen. + +What are you going to do to attract opportunity to you? diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Piracy-Risk-of-Using-File-Sharing-Websites.md b/posts/medium/The-Piracy-Risk-of-Using-File-Sharing-Websites.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..711fe77c15f4c4d4eb39bc57c8db9146ffd7d261 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Piracy-Risk-of-Using-File-Sharing-Websites.md @@ -0,0 +1,109 @@ +# The Piracy Risk of Using File Sharing Websites + +#### And An Idea To Frustrate Those Trying To Pirate Your Work! + +A few days ago I published, on Amazon, a primer to help freelancers come to grips with technology. + +If you’re interested, check out [_The Confused Freelancer’s Guide to Technology: The Bare Essentials You Need to Get Your Freelance Business Online (1st Ed.)_](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B089N9L5S4?pf_rd_r=M2M85V5NCHDB5YDK92JE&pf_rd_p=6fc81c8c-2a38-41c6-a68a-f78c79e7253f) + +[**The Confused Freelancer's Guide To Technology: The Bare Essentials You Need To Get Your Freelance…** + _Shared via Kindle. Description: Are you about to take the plunge into the turbulent world of the gig economy? Do you…_ read.amazon.com](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B089N9L5S4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_mCb3Eb91RH4FK "https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B089N9L5S4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_mCb3Eb91RH4FK")[](https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B089N9L5S4&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_mCb3Eb91RH4FK) + +Ironically, one of the chapters covers cybersecurity and staying safe online 😳. + +**_What can I say other than that you live and learn?_** + +I have not yet begun actively promoting the book yet — there’s a whole campaign calendar plotted out and undoubtedly you’ll see me giving the book a plug on this Medium account from time to time. But the activity, up to this point, has been _on the DL_. + +Nevertheless, before publicizing it on Amazon, I wanted to offer it to my professional network off the bat for advance review — and particularly those who freelance. It’s always good to spread the word and what not. + +So, towards the end of last week, I: + + * **Uploaded a password protected PDF to a website that I manage** + * **Uploaded a the same password protected PDF to a Google Drive folder** that I shared with some more contacts + +This was all well and good until I made a minor modification to the cover art and decided to upload it to a _third_ website and send that group to another pool of individuals (a Facebook group that I administer). + +**This time, however, I didn’t bother encrypting the PDF and setting a password to unlock it.** + +Much more problematically, I decided that I didn’t want to go through the bother of logging in to my web hosting and stick it there. Instead, I relied upon the services of a few file sharing websites to quickly upload the PDF and send out a download link. + +To make matters worse, I ended up using not one of these file sharing sites but a few because there were some hitches during the upload process with those that I tried. I firstly tried **an ephemeral file sharing service** but then gave up on the idea of using ephemeral file sharing (we’ll call this ‘suspect one!’). + +Next I tried**another file sharing service I had not heard of which but which looked easy to use**(‘suspect two’!)**.** However the upload process seemed to mysteriously keep failing 🤔. Finally, I decided to just use something I was familiar with — [WeTransfer](https://medium.com/u/4f3adf668e67). + +All seemed to be going well until I began getting some Google Alerts using the alert I had set up with an exact search match for the book’s title. I began finding links like this: + +Sanet.St — the website did quickly honor a copyright request to have the ebook removedGoogle search results include a Torrent link + +To my dismay, the review version of the e-book (thankfully, an abridged prepublication file) had been pirated and was now being offered for download on various torrent and file sharing sites. + +There’s even a Reddit user hocking it (the file, for those wondering, appears to be down): + +I managed to get the file taken down from one site — Sanet.st — by filing a DCMA notice. But once a pirated version of your content is in circulation tracking down all extant copies of it — particularly on the dark web — is virtually impossible. + +So a lesson learned: + +### Assume That Any Untrusted File Sharing Site Is Being Maliciously Scraped — And Anything You Upload To It (Of Potential Value) Will Be Pirated + +This was a pretty interesting case for me —because the time from uploading the PDF to the file sharing sites and it turning up on various Torrent download sites and Reddit was less than twenty four hours. + +My pool of suspects is also rather small. So pulling apart cause and effect here doesn’t require the detective skills of Sherlock Holmes. + +I have confidence in [WeTransfer](https://medium.com/u/4f3adf668e67) — they follow a freemium model and the company is transparent about who’s behind the operation. + +The other entities that will have to remain nameless? + +I’m not leveling a direct allegation against either but I don’t think that there are any other credible suspects. + +There are a few things worth knowing about e-book piracy. + +And [this blog](https://kindlepreneur.com/ebook-piracy/) from [Dave Chesson](https://medium.com/u/59b1dfbc1584) does a nice job of explaining why — in a sense — **it almost doesn’t matter that people pirate your authorship** and it’s almost inevitable that it’s going to happen**.** + +[**Ebook Piracy [2020] - What To Do If Someone Steals Your Book** + _Ebook piracy is a real issue. You'd be amazed at how many websites have pirated or claim to have pirated your book…_ kindlepreneur.com](https://kindlepreneur.com/ebook-piracy/ "https://kindlepreneur.com/ebook-piracy/")[](https://kindlepreneur.com/ebook-piracy/) + +As [Dave](https://medium.com/u/59b1dfbc1584) points out, people that steal your e-books are not really your target market anyway. Amazon allows users to download purchased content. And if you’re really sufficiently motivated to do so, removing DRM protection is within the technical reach of most tech-savvy users. Ie, if a sufficiently motivated party decides that they want to pirate your book, it’s going to happen. + +[**Remove the DRM From Amazon Kindle Books** + _Disclaimer: I don't endorse pirating e-books. If you do this, you won't hurt Amazon or Sony, but you might hurt the…_ www.geoffstratton.com](http://www.geoffstratton.com/remove-drm-amazon-kindle-books "http://www.geoffstratton.com/remove-drm-amazon-kindle-books")[](http://www.geoffstratton.com/remove-drm-amazon-kindle-books) + +Nevertheless, as [Dave](https://medium.com/u/59b1dfbc1584) writes, it makes sense to fight back with whatever vigor you can muster. + +And I’ll one-up him and say: it makes sense to try play the pirates at their own game too. + +As preventative measures to stop pirating from happening you can: + +Setting up a Google Alert + + * **Configure Google Alerts for your e-book’s title**. Choose to receive the alerts as they happen so that you can react quickly. + * **Assume that any file sharing website you do not fully trust is unsafe.** It’s possible, but unlikely, that they’re providing a backdoor directly to pirates. A more likely scenario, however, is that the filesharing site has lax security and any uploads to it are being continuously scraped by bots that win pirates their bounty (if you don’t know what web scraping is, I’ve provided a resource below). + * **Apply DRM on all your e-books in Kindle Direct Publishing** (KDP). + * If you are going to be using third party file sharing websites that you don’t trust and are worried might be intent on scraping your PDF then either **encrypt the file with a PGP key or set the strongest password that you can**. [PGPTool](https://pgptool.github.io/) is a good tool for encrypting files and doing so end-to-end is far safer than relying upon any web UI that could conceivably be capturing your keys. Most likely, a pirate is not going to be prepared to expend exhaustive effort attempting to brute force his/her way into your book. + +Using PGPTool on Ubuntu 20.04 + +[**PGPTool - use this tool to encrypt and decrypt PGP files. OpenPGP compatible** + _PGP for Windows, MacOS and linux. Desktop application to encrypt and decrypt PGP files. It's free and easy to use…_ pgptool.github.io](https://pgptool.github.io/ "https://pgptool.github.io/")[](https://pgptool.github.io/) + +[**What is Web Scraping and How Does Web Crawling Work?** +_If you've ever copy and pasted information from a website, you've performed the same function as any web scraper, only…_ scrapinghub.com](https://scrapinghub.com/what-is-web-scraping "https://scrapinghub.com/what-is-web-scraping")[](https://scrapinghub.com/what-is-web-scraping) + +### An Idea To Exploit This To Annoy E-Book Pirates + +Seeding a PDF via [OnionShare](https://onionshare.org/)Here’s another idea: + + * **1: Develop a teaser version of your e-book.** You could cut out the first two chapters or else pull together something yourself that includes all the most juicy nuggets — those parts most likely to actually entice readers to download the book. + * **2: Deliberately title the file to mislead would-be pirates into believing that it represents the whole book.** An example would be ‘My Great Ebook — Full Version for KDP.pdf’. Alternatively you could emphasize that it isn’t password protected: ‘My Great Ebook — No Password.pdf.’ You could even roll the file into a compressed archive and pretend that it’s something else entirely. + * **3\. Scour the internet for the most dubious looking file sharing websites**. Upload various versions of your file to all of them, making sure to change the name slightly each time. Find a few on the dark web for good measure. Emphasis on ‘all’ here: the more effort you put into this the greater the probability that it’s going to end up in circulation. + +Altneratively, you could just throw together a quick one page document like this and then seed it to said websites: + +The first approach might potentially convince somebody to actually shell out for your work. The second would be a good way of taking a small stand against ebook piracy. + +**In conclusion:** + + * Don’t upload stuff you don’t want to be pirated to file-sharing websites you’ve never heard about. + * Without question, don’t upload any personally identifiable (PII) there either — or even think of putting anything financial. + * Actually, don’t trust any website at all with your data unless you trust their ability to govern it securely and prevent malicious bots from scraping and pirating your data. + diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Problem-With-Side-Hustle-Culture-And-Its-Champions.md b/posts/medium/The-Problem-With-Side-Hustle-Culture-And-Its-Champions.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6bf67668afc173b55a15c32e82effe7093a279ce --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Problem-With-Side-Hustle-Culture-And-Its-Champions.md @@ -0,0 +1,85 @@ +# The Problem With Side Hustle Culture And Its Champions + +#### Celebrating callous survival mechanisms indirectly supports exploitation and perpetuates impossible financial conditions for millennials + +Opinion: the ubiquity of remote working has made side hustling commonplace and spawned a legion of those eager to champion it as a hallmark of industriousness. But is it really so? Photo: Pexels + +Every time I see a person on the internet championing the side hustle — as if having one were something great, glorious, and the marker of rugged industriousness — I do a double take. + +And they’re not exactly hard to find. + +The supporters of side hustlers — as always on the internet, extremely dogmatic, highly virulent in tone— are simply everywhere. + +Their preponderance doesn’t appear tied to any fluctuation in global financial conditions. Even during the present pandemic-led downturn, for instance, they’re out in force — telling us that if we’re not actively side-hustling, we’re doing it all wrong. + +They host podcasts. They can be found penning inspiring-sounding posts on LinkedIn that equate holding side hustles to living the modern, millenialized version of Living The American Dream (TM). This platform — for whatever reason — attracts them like moths to a flame. You’ve probably heard it many times already. You _should_ have a side hustle. You _must_ have one, no less. + +And the problem — I would argue — is that they’re all badly wrong. + +### The Problem With Side Hustles + +So make it clear why I have a bone in this flight, let me take you through my own interesting employment history — unexpectedly full of pivots and shimmies. + +I arrived to Israel — as a Jewish immigrant from Ireland — 6 years ago _(it was actually seven, but I’ve become accustomed to calling it six because it makes me feel less bad about my progress in learning Hebrew, or lack thereof — I’m still not what I would consider adequately fluent)._ + +There are two myths here that I’d like to play a small part in debunking. The first is that all Jews are rich and excellent at managing their financial affairs (and those of others). + +While I come from a middle class background and wish to do nothing to underestimate that position of relative privilege, equally I arrived to Israel with a starting float of about €500 and my financial strategy in life has hitherto consisted primarily of placing an ATM card into a digital slot and hoping something comes out the other side. I’m pretty sure I’m behind on my pension contributions. + +The second is that Israel is a war-torn land that’s highly geopolitically contentious but also (one assumes) cheap. It’s not. A pint of larger, here, costs an eye-watering sum that, in expensive parts, is now close to $10 (that’s before service, by the way). + +In fact, Tel Aviv was recently named the world’s most expensive city on the planet. So let me correct that. It’s horrendously expensive here and survival — for those of us not working at the pinnacle of high-tech or the heirs to large family fortunes — is something of a gritty struggle with strong flavors of scrimping, saving, and trying to find imaginative ways to top up our incomes. If you’re reading this from a major metropolitan area in the US, our lives may have more in common than you thought. + +So as an immigrant arriving to one of the most expensive places on the planet with a modest starting float, I did what any immigrant in my position would, I’d like to think, have done: I started hustling. + +Hustle one — it has continued virtually to the present — was freelancing. I hold a journalism degree. I love writing. And I love technology. Fortunately, there appears to be a robust and continuing demand among tech companies, especially startups, for people who can write about their products in order to help them sell them. In other words: if you want to take it, there’s work available. + +I fairly quickly found stable employment at one of these technology companies. But — albeit with less fervor — I continued my side-hustling. + +Why you might ask? I hate to break it to future writers or marketing communications professionals, but this field, as much as I love it, doesn’t command the top paychecks (that’s not to say, I emphasize, that it can’t provide a middle class income). + +Thus, over the course of the past few years, I’ve written probably hundreds of blogs, case studies, speeches, and even books on behalf of a miscellany of technology companies, agencies, and entrepreneurs ranging in location from Singapore to Israel to Ireland and countless places in between. Some of those authored from hotels. Many while formerly on vacation while a futile “out of office” autoresponder tried to restore some kind of calm. + +Secondly .. I come back to the cost of living thing. + +To give myself a realistic chance of being able to afford an occasional staycation in one of the many grossly-overpriced hotels in this part of the world — or perhaps even to leave these climes altogether for a bit — I had to earn more money. If I wanted to not have to choose between indulging in my newfound favorite hobby — videography — and buying new clothes … I needed more income. Etc, etc. + +### If Side Hustling Is Anything, It Ain’t Pretty. Or Glorious. + +As I’ve tried to make clear, I didn’t see side-hustling as something I got into because I was an ambitious Yuppie trying to make as much dough as possible while I still could. + +There are those who fit that mold, I’m sure. But I reckon that for many more enduring the side hustle isn’t a hallmark of outsized industriousness or ambition. + +Rather, it’s much better described as a compensatory mechanism that’s intended to rectify, sometimes only partially, full-time incomes that just don’t stretch far enough in helping to meet financial goals, or even achieve a good quality of life. + +Which is not to say that there aren’t benefits to side-hustling beyond the money generated. There _are_. + +My years’ freelancing _have_ probably made me better at managing my own business, developed me into a more well-rounded professional with more accrued experience than I would have got from just doing _one_ job. It’s also boosted my professional network through doing work for companies other than my employers who have referred me in turn to more contacts (etc). + +But equally, I would rather have been spending time working on boosting my network of _personal_ contacts. Ie, hanging out on my weekends with friends. In large part, I can’t help but feel that that time was, if not squandered, spent on activities that I would rather have skipped out on. + +And that’s what side-hustling unfortunately entails. + +Spending your weekend mornings turning in projects for clients that you couldn’t get to during the week because you were too busy and then exhausted from your main job. + +Having your weekends reduced to effectively one day rest periods because one of them has to go towards taking on extra work. + +And trust me, it’s as ugly as it sounds. + +It leads to burn-out. Stress. A nagging feeling that you’re never truly off the clock because if you’re not working your day job you should be either working on your side hustle or (the much harder part) doing all the stuff needed to land projects for that (marketing, holding introductory meetings, making sure the accounting is in order, etc). + +So to my mind (which, admittedly, tends to be a highly opinionated one), those championing the cause of the side hustle are endorsing, effectively, a perverted version of The American Dream. + +They’re probably doing so unwittingly. But I believe that that’s equally the side, or the cause, that they’re out batting for. + +One rife with exploitation, suffering, and inhumane working conditions (that bypass conventional legislation aimed to stymie this because they are spread between employers and other parties). + +Legislators may enforce laws designed to protect employees from submitting themselves voluntarily to inhumane working conditions that deprive them, practically, of the very opportunity to sleep. + +But no legislator , government, or country — at least to the best of my knowledge — has instituted mechanisms designed to prevent those working conventional 40 hour workweeks from then spending their evenings freelancing on Fiverr, Upwork, or anywhere else. Cumulatively, those workweeks may well surpass safe and fair working limits. But it’s a form of exploitation that’s almost impossible to prevent. + +The market for purveyors of freelance services may be vibrant — such that it resembles the same kind of sea of opportunity that those arriving in Ellis Island years ago encountered — but that’s about where the similarities between the two end. One many provide the starting point for a life that _is_ indeed filled with better opportunity. The other is just a crude and desperate way of trying to get by. + +I’ve spent my fair share of time immersed in the side hustle. + +Rather than championing this crude compensatory mechanism designed to ameliorate underpay and impossible financial conditions for millenials and those working these jobs, let’s invest our time, instead, in working to fix the root causes of this society dysfunction: income inequality, underpay, and unequal opportunity. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Pros-And-Cons-Of-A-Career-In-Freelance-Writing.md b/posts/medium/The-Pros-And-Cons-Of-A-Career-In-Freelance-Writing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b77782c2729cd439eff0a82458537b8446f37c55 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Pros-And-Cons-Of-A-Career-In-Freelance-Writing.md @@ -0,0 +1,110 @@ +# The Pros And Cons Of A Career In Freelance Writing + +#### As a lifestyle, it offers its ups and downs. Here are some of them. + +Freelance writing: An acquired taste, but it can make for an interesting and perhaps even secure employment option. Photo: By Negative Space on Pexels + +Freelance writing is an increasingly popular career choice. + +With the economic downturn eventuated by the pandemic having forced many companies to downsize, many are now turning to freelance writing as an effective way to make money online over the internet. + +I’ve been working as a freelance content marketing writer for five years now — close on three of which have been full-time (my prior career was as an in-house marketing communications manager at technology startups). + +I sometimes get asked what I think about freelance writing and whether I recommend that people get into it as a career. That’s a tricky question to answer and will probably be the subject of a later post. + +In the meantime here are the good parts and not-so-good parts of the job itself. + +### Pro: It Can Be Varied Work + +When it comes to learning how to work as a freelance writer, there’s a lot to learn. But if you want to pick up some of my knowledge for free, then check out my Medium publication, Freelance Writing, which dives deep into a lot of relevant topic areas. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +But if I could make only two recommendations to those starting out they would be: + + * **Get going with inbound marketing as soon as possible.** In my opinion, it’s a lot more fun (and sustainable) than relying upon outbound techniques like sending out cold emails to drum up work. Having a real-life network to tap into helps enormously too. But don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Which brings me to: + * **As above, diversify as widely as possible.** If you want to learn ‘how’ read the following post. There are a lot of ways when you put your mind to it. + +[**Ways You Can Diversify Your Freelance Writing Business** + _The Art Of Not Putting Your Eggs In One Basket_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/ways-you-can-diversify-your-freelance-writing-business-f53bac2deaf5) + +One of the upsides of diversification is that — if you do it right — it should also make your day-to-day life a lot easier. + +Working for only one client — besides usually being a terrible idea — also has a tendency to become really boring. I’ve made the same point about writing for only one small niche. So branch out — but not too far. + +Diversifying your business can also give you access to a wide variety of clients in different industries and geographies. + +### Pro: Theoretically, It Can Be A Secure Way To Make A Living + +Before you reach for the rotten vegetables to (virtually) pelt me with while screaming _“freelancing? Secure? You idiot!”_ hear me out just for a moment. + +It takes a lot of work to get to this point. I wouldn’t even say that I’m there myself yet, although I’m further along in the process than when I started out. + +**But I believe that if you plan your business properly you can get to the point at which you’re actually in a more secure position freelancing than your average employee.** + +How could that be so, you may be wondering with astonishment? + +Your average employee is at the mercy of one organization. If you’re employed at-will then you can be let go for virtually no reason at all. But if you can diversify your freelance writing business (between clients, between passive and active income, between industries) you actually create a lot of redundancy in your business model. More redundancy than your average employee can muster. + +If one client fires you, you may loose 1/6th of your income. But that’s a whole lot better than losing the totality of it. This is why pipeline development really matters too. You want to have a contingency for when stuff goes wrong. + +### Pro: If You Love Writing …. You’ll Get To Do Lots Of It + +I think it’s safe to assume that the majority of people who get into freelance writing — or writing generally — do _not_ do so for the money. When I got into student journalism, income was certainly not the driving factor on my mind. + +Rather, they’re attracted to this profession, and way of working, because they love writing and find creativity rewarding. + +And now I have to be honest for a moment. + +I’m not always completely fulfilled by the kind of writing that I do for clients — particularly when it’s heavy on the content marketing side (I do a lot of thought leadership writing too). + +This is where you have to make a decision between what’s more important to you: financial stability or professional fulfillment. + +If you’re really craving fulfillment and the feeling that what you write makes a (positive) difference in the world then spending most of your energy in freelance journalism might make more sense. Although many on the journalism side of the divide would take issue with that notion. + +On the other hand, there’s arguably a lot more work in freelance content marketing these days and picking a popular niche in that kind of writing might prove a more lucrative strategy over the long term. + +Either way you’ll probably be doing lots and lots of writing (it kinda comes with the turf, ya know!?). But you can blend the kinds that you do in order to find the best mixture. + +### Cons: It’s Really Tough And Hard Work + +Unless I’m doing something horribly wrong, there’s nothing easy about being a full-time freelance writer. + +The hours can be brutal. We’re responsible for everything from getting the actual writing done to paying taxes and making sure that our clients get invoiced on the right day of the month (eventually many writers hire VAs for this kind of thing but at the start you’re more likely to be a one man band.) + +Add to that the fact that the freelance writing market is extremely competitive — and seemingly always getting more so — and you can probably understand why there are days when I wonder why I don’t just do the easier thing and go get a job in an office. + +Making a living as a full-time writer requires a lot of work and effort. Writing can be energy-sapping. If you also write for fun in your off hours — as many writers do — you can compound the mental exhaustion. But for many who really love writing, it’s still worth it in the end. + +[**Writing hangovers are a thing. Reading is one of their cures.** +_While I love them, creative spurts can also lead to burnout_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/writing-hangovers-are-a-thing-reading-is-one-of-their-cures-1a2900fe3550 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/writing-hangovers-are-a-thing-reading-is-one-of-their-cures-1a2900fe3550")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/writing-hangovers-are-a-thing-reading-is-one-of-their-cures-1a2900fe3550) + +### Cons: It Can Also Be Really Lonely + +A lot of my work involves sitting in a home office, or coffee shop, and typing into a keyboard. + +If that sounds kind of bleak to you then you might have a hard time making this work as a career. + +[**The Value Of Zoom Networking With Other Freelance Writers** + _Other Writers Are Just A Video Call Away. Why Not Reach Out?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-value-of-zoom-networking-with-other-freelance-writers-19fb97988bf4 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-value-of-zoom-networking-with-other-freelance-writers-19fb97988bf4")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-value-of-zoom-networking-with-other-freelance-writers-19fb97988bf4) + +This is one of the reasons why I think that networking with other writers — even if just over the internet — is vitally important. + +It’s not just for the social aspect either. + +Ideally every writer should have a strong referral network so that you have people to outsource work to if you hit capacity. Swapping ideas with other writers can be extremely useful and healthy too and I see nothing wrong with comparing notes about rates. + +How else can you avoid becoming an unwitting hermit? + +It’s obvious but having a good social life and ensuring you allocate plenty of downtime to recuperate makes a big difference too. It just might take a bit more effort than somebody who has a social group automatically created through the office water cooler. + +The lifestyle of a full-time freelance writer is what I would call an acquired taste. + +There are amazing perks to it — like being able to drop everything to go to the beach. + +But equally I think that some of the supposed benefits — you have no boss! — are overstated. In reality, you’re still answerable to your clients. + +I think that anybody getting into freelance writing should seek to diversify their income as quickly and as widely as possible. + +Along with starting with a robust professional network this seems, to me, to be a key to success. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Pros-and-Cons-of-Living-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/The-Pros-and-Cons-of-Living-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3b8b1b36a174b87dc8e2f3bf5cee2e6c4e644c15 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Pros-and-Cons-of-Living-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,190 @@ +# The Pros and Cons of Living in Israel + +#### (And Why I Still Think the Cost of Living is the Elephant in the Room!) + +**The strange living situation that the coronavirus has thrust us all into has provided me with a little bit of pause for thought about how my _aliyah_(immigration to Israel) has gone.** + +Five years in, I’m now well past the ranks of the rookies — although I’m still far from a veteran too. + +I need to keep working on my business Hebrew — although I’m making some great progress at the moment (check out my YouTube video below for some slightly unconventional ways to improve). + +**I’m — to be transparent— unsure about whether it makes sense to continue living here (and have frequent thoughts about leaving!).**(Side-note: Apparently so do many friends that have moved here — perhaps we can agree to start talking openly about this and stop repressing it like it’s some sort of dirty secret?) + +**But — paradoxically perhaps — I find myself reasonably happy and fulfilled while doing so and thinking about what might be next on the agenda.** + +Oddly, once you move past the rose-tinted glasses phase, you’ll feel that this is how many native Israelis actually experience life: A strange and seemingly conflicting mixture of contentedness coupled with fundamental unease with the country politically and economically (or sometimes both at the same time). + +In [“Israel vs. Ireland: My Thoughts After Five Years”](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71) I gave a̶ ̶p̶r̶e̶t̶t̶y̶ an extremely detailed overview of what I viewed as the pros and cons of living in Israel. + +If you want to spend the next hour on Medium, feel free to check it out. + +[**Ireland vs. Israel (As Places to Live, That Is!)** +_(About a month ago — just when I was resuming my self-publishing voyage — I wrote this rather detailed run-through of…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71) + +But assuming you have much better things to do, I could summarize it while on one leg as: + +Good weather (almost) year round: a definite plus in most people’s book + +### 👍 **Pros:** + +🌎 **_Universal_** + + * Great weather (and lots of sunshine) + * Good and **very affordable healthcare** + * Good food + * Falafel (it deserves its own mention) + * **Good travel** opportunities + +🧔 **_Individual-dependent_** + +**Cultural factors.** + +Israelis are, by and large: + + * **Straight-talking and down to earth.** + * There are **comparatively flat hierarchies in the workplace.** + * **Israeli culture is fundamentally informal and Mediterranean** in nature (although quite unfamiliar to those from more frosty Northern climes.) + +💼 **_Professional_** + + * Vibrant startup ecosystem + +✡️ **_Jewish-specific_** + + * In Israel,**it’s easy to lead a fulfilled Jewish life** and (for Jews) to feel instantly “at home” among people from a similar cultural background + * For religiously observant Jews,**it’s also easy to follow Jewish religious law** ; Israel is a society that is built around it rather than one which shifts to accommodate it (this is more applicable in religious cities such as Jerusalem, where I live) + * As a split-off from the preceding point: **being Jewish is mainstream/the norm in Israel**(I grew up in Ireland and was the only Jewish student in my high school! For some feelings about how much not feeling like a fish out of water means to me, again, feel free to check out [the Israel/Ireland post](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71)) + * **Feeling of resettling the Jewish homeland** / contributing to Zionism / being a small part of a larger historical enterprise / and being among the first generations of Jews in thousands of years to live, again, in Israel + +😮 **_Dependent upon your martial status and gender:_** + + * Israeli women + * Israeli men + +Whether you’re here for a vacation or to stay, you can expect to burn through rather a lot of these + +### Cons: + +💰** _Financial_** + + * **Extremely expensive!** CEOWORLD business magazine [recently ranked ](https://www.ynetnews.com/business/article/By5ba11dfL)Israel as the **eight most expensive country in the world** ([original source](https://ceoworld.biz/2020/02/03/most-expensive-countries-in-the-world-to-live-in-2020/)). That ranking put Israel “ahead” of the US, Hong Kong (yes, Hong Kong!), the US, and even Singapore. + * **Property is particularly expensive** and consequentially [unaffordable for most young people](https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Unaffordable-housing-is-harming-Israel-466363) — at least those without massive family help. To compound the problem, down-payments in Israel are set by law [at a minimum of 25%](https://ogen.org/en/loans-for-homes/). Because of the disparity between salaries and the cost of housing, the average number of mortgage payments it takes to own a property is notably higher than in many other countries. ([Source](https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/) — Taub Center for Social Policy Studies: “It now costs 148 monthly salaries to buy a home here, compared with 76 in France and 66 in the U.S”). + * For the 91% of society that doesn’t work in “high tech” (the technology sector) **salaries that are not commensurate with the cost of living**. Israel’s wage gap was recently found to be the [highest in the OECD](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-israel-has-widest-wage-gap-in-oecd-1001244670). + +💼 **_Professional_** + + * **Limited professional growth opportunities in many careers** and outside of the startup and IT (“high-tech”) world. + * R&D centers excluded, **relatively few large businesses and multinational companies** have major footprints in Israel. + * [**_Protekzia_(the buddy system)**](https://www.haaretz.com/word-of-the-day-protekzia-1.5202007) which can make it hard for immigrants to get a leg up on the career ladder. + * By European standards, **paltry vacation time (**[**legal minimum 12 days**](https://www.timesofisrael.com/minimum-number-of-vacation-days-rises-to-12-in-2017/)**)** for those often meager salaries. A standard 45 hour work week to compound that. + * **Middle Eastern haggling culture** — [which can make it hard to ensure you’re being paid a fair salary](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca) + +** _Minor / Only Sometimes Applicable_** + + * **Poor customer service** is commonplace. Sometimes it is downright abusive. Limited and ineffectual consumer rights to compound that. + * **Extremely sparse tenant protection legislation**. In Israel —[ despite the government passing a law to attempt to ban this](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-knesset-enacts-fair-rents-law-1001197670#:~:text=The%20Fair%20Rents%20Law%20seeks,minimum%20quality%20of%20leased%20housing.) — tenants are routinely forced to pay agent fees (plus VAT) solely in order to _rent_ a property. This is because (_shitat matzliach_) landlords ensure that any prospect tenants signs a piece of paper “hiring” the agent. + * **The p**[**ostal service**](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israelis-go-postal-over-failing-mail-system-but-it-could-be-a-lot-worse/)**** often leaves a lot to be desired + * [** _Freier_ culture**, societal mistrust](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71), and [racism](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/09/israels-ethiopian-community-denounces-racism-election-190915100618316.html). [Read my blog about working with Israelis](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca) to understand what I mean by “freier culture” because it’s otherwise a tricky one to explain. + +**_📢 Cultural_** + + * **Israel can seem very aggressive and loud compared to some more genteel climes.** Perceptions of manners differ between countries, but — in line with the stereotype — many find that “Western” manners are still often lacking here. ([This piece outlines the dynamic well](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israelis-are-blunt-and-rude-you-got-a-problem-with-that/)). + * **The security situation**(yes, I’m listing that as a minor drawback. Thanks to the advances that Israel has made in defense its impact on day to day life is far lesser than it was just a short decade ago). + +🗳️ **_Political_** + + * **The increasingly right-wing nationalistic direction of the government** — and concurrently diminishing chances for peace. (Of course, this _is_ some people’s cup of tea). + * **In reality, Israel has always been partially a theocracy**. (This is part of the reason why I find the country’s oft-touted _“the only democracy in the Middle East”_ claim a bit grating — because, besides being all self-righteous, I don’t believe it’s ever been an accurate representation of Israel’s politics.) Public transport does not operate on the Jewish Shabbat (_sabbath)._ This is particularly noticeable in Jerusalem where almost the entire (West) of the city shuts down for 24 hours. If you do not observe Shabbat (I try to), I can imagine that this can be enormously frustrating. + +For the ultra-religious (and those with a robust commitment to Zionist) the call to stay in Israel trumps all the negatives + +**I would coalesce that even further to:** + +**a)** Unless you work for a foreign employer or as a software developer or are sponsored by family or are independently wealthy **the cost of living — and the rat race to get by (Hebrew idiom: “to finish the month”)— is the hardest part of living in Israel.** Just as I have friends who were unable to make a living here in the food service industry, I have friends who relocated to the Bay Area because even the most expensive part of the US offered a better salary:cost of living ratio. + +**b)** **There are other slightly annoying things about living in Israel**(customer service that can be downright abusive, dirty supermarkets).**But none of these are really deal-breakers.**(In much the same way that you probably wouldn’t want to leave Ireland just because some people can be passive aggressive rather than in-your-face like Israelis). + +**c) If you’re not Jewish a lot of the benefits go out the window** — and there are things like the country closing down for Shabbat that will probably eventually drive you crazy. And to be blunt, these will only be the start of the difficulties you will encounter. So scratch that section from the “pros” list. Although Tel Aviv is still a fun town whatever your religious persuasion — particularly so if you are a simple hedonist. And if you’re making a good international salary there the fact that beer costs $10 a pint shouldn’t bother you too much. + +**d)** **Depending on the strength of your commitment to Judaism and Zionism none of the drawbacks may matter to you at all.** Because I’m unashamedly in the “Jews should live in Israel (if financially possible)” bracket I’m partially in this list — although I have met many with much greater religious fervor than I. It’s also why I believe that those of us that share this viewpoint shouldn’t feel ashamed about pointing out Israel’s (current) flaws. How great would it be to rewrite this piece in 10 years and discover that none of the above apply? + +### A reading list about the cost of living + +The Tel Aviv skyline + +**I therefore think that the major issue facing immigrants to Israel, like me, continues to be the cost of living.** + +In fact, I**would go so far as to say that until it is normalized the difficulty of surviving in Israel economically — much less living a comfortable middle class existence — is going to continue to be the unspoken elephant in the room facing those looking to move to Israel.** And especially those without generous and extensive family support and who are not among the 10% of the economy working in software development and related fields. + +Because irrespective of one’s salary the cost of living is an equal opportunity discriminator — plaguing both those that make great salaries in the pinnacle of the “high tech” world and those on the other end of the spectrum struggling to make ends meet in the food service industry and making close to Israel’s paltry minimum wage (at the time of writing, 4,300 NIS / $1,200 / month). + +In a country where the cheapest supermarket pizzas start at $5, new cars are subject to an 83% purchase tax and [even IKEA furniture costs double](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-ikea-israel-prices-nearly-double-ikea-norway-1001032811) what it does in Nordic countries there are simply always going to be a lot of expenses to keep up with whatever you do between nine and six. + +In my view — by making it financially difficult or impossible for many diaspora Jews to envision a fulfilled life in Israel — Israel’s unsustainable cost of living represents a major betrayal of the key Zionist tenant that the country will forever be a sanctuary and safe haven for all Jews. Because — despite the stereotype — not all Jews are rich. And a society cannot consist of Java programmers and the working poor alone. + +Therefore I say: let’s stop skirting around this issue and let’s work towards changing things. And let’s stop letting our government get off the hook and voting solely based upon fear and the security situation. Because financial stability is a form of security too. + +Unfortunately, and despite the pervasiveness of the issue, the cost of living has been almost entirely disregarded during the three national election campaigns that have taken place in Israel over the last year. + +But here are some telling clippings from the news that I keep on hand to explain the extent of this problem facing Israel society: + +[**Nearly 25% of Israeli Households Live in Perpetual Overdraft, Says Report** + _This is the sixth year in a row of a longitude CBS survey of ownership of financial assets by households. The current…_ www.calcalistech.com](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3775563,00.html "https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3775563,00.html")[](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3775563,00.html) + +> Of the 97.5% Israeli households that have a bank account, **42% have been in overdraft for at least one month during the past year** — 1.1 million households accounting for about 4 million people, according to a new report published Monday by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). **Twenty-two percent were in overdraft 10 months or more of the year.** + +[**Sure you can make it in Israel - if your parents help, say economists** + _There's an old saying among olim - immigrants to Israel - that if you want to make a small fortune in Israel, come with…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/sure-you-can-make-it-in-israel-if-your-parents-help-say-economists/) + +> Unless they are in the top 20 percent of income earners, Regev told The Times of Israel, or unless they already own significant assets, a typical professional couple making aliya from abroad will likely never be able to save enough money for a down payment on an apartment. + +And: + +> Gilad Brand looked at consumer prices in Israel and found that relative to incomes, prices are higher here than in every OECD country except Japan + +(Quote from [Eitan Regev](https://en.idi.org.il/experts/20492), Taub Center for Social Policy Studies). + +And: + +> It now costs 148 monthly salaries to buy a home in Israel, compared with 76 in France and 66 in the U.S. + +[**Israeli parents forced to support adult kids** + _Kleiman is financially helping all of them. "My two older girls are very dependent on me right now," she tells The…_ www.ynetnews.com](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4429740,00.html "https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4429740,00.html")[](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4429740,00.html) + +> A new study by the [Taub Center for Social Policy](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4427136,00.html) finds that 87% of all Israeli parents help their adult children with finances. + +The “high tech bubble” inflates the national salary average, but: + +[**Hi-tech sector exceeds 300,000 workers for first time** + _The percentage of Israelis working in the country's hi-tech sector rose to 8.7% of the entire workforce by the end of…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/hi-tech-sector-exceeds-300000-workers-for-first-time-599829 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/hi-tech-sector-exceeds-300000-workers-for-first-time-599829")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/hi-tech-sector-exceeds-300000-workers-for-first-time-599829) + +> **The percentage of Israelis working in the country’s**[**hi-tech**](https://www.jpost.com/Jpost-Tech/Business-and-Innovation/Why-Israel-is-automotive-techs-global-engine-599419)**sector rose to 8.7% of the entire workforce** by the end of 2018, exceeding 300,000 employees for the first time, new statistics published by the Israel Innovation Authority (IIA) has revealed. + +(Obvious corollary: more than 90% do not work in the sector!) + +And the wage gap is quite striking. + +[**Report: It pays to be an Israeli high-tech employee - ISRAEL21c** + _Tech employees and multinationals in Israel jump in latest IIA and Start-Up Nation Central report. Israeli tech firms…_ www.israel21c.org](https://www.israel21c.org/report-it-pays-to-be-an-israeli-high-tech-employee/ "https://www.israel21c.org/report-it-pays-to-be-an-israeli-high-tech-employee/")[](https://www.israel21c.org/report-it-pays-to-be-an-israeli-high-tech-employee/) + +> High-tech workers in Israel earn an average ₪22,479 ($6,534) a month, **more than double the average of ₪9,345 for workers in the rest of Israel.** + +And the cause of the low salaries outside of “high tech”? + +Productivity per capita that has consistently ranked among the lowest in the OECD — particularly among disadvantaged sectors of the workforce and in protectionist inward-facing industries that have been artificially shielded from foreign competition (at the time of writing no major international supermarket chain operates in Israel): + +[**OECD: Weak labor productivity hampering growth of Israeli economy** + _The wide gap in GDP per capita between Israel and the upper half of OECD countries has not declined in the last decade…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/oecd-weak-labor-productivity-hampering-growth-of-israeli-economy-595633 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/oecd-weak-labor-productivity-hampering-growth-of-israeli-economy-595633")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/oecd-weak-labor-productivity-hampering-growth-of-israeli-economy-595633) + +And the root causes of the high cost of living? + +Rampant monopolies, oligopolies accompanied by tight import restrictions and far-reaching government bureaucracy: + +[**Monopoly nation: How a handful of firms control prices, hold Israelis ransom** + _If there's one thing that Israelis hate, it's being "freiers" - suckers. But it seems many consumers are when it comes…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/monopoly-nation-how-a-handful-of-firms-control-prices-hold-israelis-to-ransom/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/monopoly-nation-how-a-handful-of-firms-control-prices-hold-israelis-to-ransom/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/monopoly-nation-how-a-handful-of-firms-control-prices-hold-israelis-to-ransom/) + +My hope is that the issue will receive more political attention over coming years — as the amount it does at the moment is extremely scant. + +Together, let’s hope that Israel can work to reduce the high cost of living, encourage greater participation in the “high tech” workforce, reduce income inequality, and make Israel a more affordable and equitable place. + +Because only then, I believe, can it fulfill its mission of being the only true and everlasting home of the Jewish people — whatever their economic status. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Quiet-Rage-That-Comes-With-Getting-Mentally-Well.md b/posts/medium/The-Quiet-Rage-That-Comes-With-Getting-Mentally-Well.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..71052c30217bcbe8ccce7153bf41d8f1913c889e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Quiet-Rage-That-Comes-With-Getting-Mentally-Well.md @@ -0,0 +1,426 @@ +# The Quiet Rage That Comes With Getting Mentally Well + +#### The stage of mental health recovery that nobody ever talks about + +Conquering mental health. The long upward battle. Photo by [Mikhail Nilov](https://www.pexels.com/@mikhail-nilov?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/mountain-near-a-body-of-water-8413917/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + + _Imagine that:_ + +You spend 30 years in a brain — or 60, or 90 — brushing off always feeling slightly off but never quite feeling sure why. + +You hear about something called depression in the news from time to time. + +Via awareness campaigns and the odd push towards de-stigmatization. + +If you’re living in the current era — I mean you are, you’re reading this on Medium — you may even recently have seen professional contacts in your LinkedIn network open up about their struggles and the paths they have charted, or are charting, towards recovery. + +This period — lest is be dismissed as a blip or a passing fad — is absolutely almost unprecedented in human history. And in an enormously good kind of way too. It’s not all the time that those things can be said together. + +But here’s something that you mightn’t have known. + +Okay, so it’s actually more theory than knowledge. But here it is anyway. + +Many of those people sharing right now are actually inwardly terrified about what doing so might mean for their professional future. They’re possibly dealing with the occasional palpitation as they write posts like this on Medium, LinkedIn, and whatever other corners of the internet this _sharing_ is happening in. + +Yet — and at the risk of sounding melodramatic — sometimes there’s the feeling of the slight bearing of the weight of history that’s prompting them to do that. That’s pushing in a direction that feels like the right way up. And that feeling is the slight sense of magnetism that pulls you towards its orbit. + +So you want to do your little tiny bit to become part of that force for change. And the more of your peers you see joining the bandwagon, the stronger and more convinced you feel that it’s the right thing to do. The right movement to participate in. You might, actually, feel that you _have_ to join it. Like it’s your responsibility to do so. You can write. Or vlog. Or podcast. So if you have those skills to use, it’s your obligation to put them to work for good. Because, really, change _has_ to happen. We’ve made a lot of progress recently. But, as a society, we’re still far from where we need to be. Where we could be. + +The pandemic has changed our lives in so many ways. + +So much so that we — and here’s intuition speaking again rather than something based on empirical logic — are also all having a collective YOLO moment. Throwing caution to the wind. Probably against the advice of the entire baby boomer generation. Whatever. It’s not like we leave the house any more anyway. + +I mean that’s totally not me saying that. + +This totally isn’t my story I’m narrating here. + +But back to depression. The happiness thief. + +We think it only means people who can’t get out of bed for days or weeks at a time. + +Maybe forever. + +I mean they’re not among us, are they … these dreaded … depressives? + +(_They’re everywhere among us all of the time. Depression afflicts 1 in 10 adults. If you don’t work with somebody who’s experienced clinical depression —and here’s a news flash, you probably do — you’ve likely played sports with them or taught them or gone on a date with one of them or been served by one of them last time you went out to eat.. or all of those things)._ + +And you think to yourself: + +_“Gosh, that sounds awful. But fortunately there’s no way I could possibly have that. Those people are so much sicker than me. I’m normal. I just feel a bit bleak from time to time. That’s perfectly okay. We’re all like that.”_ + +You may believe that the line that divides between the mentally well and the mentally infirm — or here’s a much kinder way to put it, the slightly to severely less well — is as steep as the Grand Canyon. + +Except that it’s not. See the link at the very end of this article. + +Or realize that like most things in life it’s actually a big old bundle of gray mush. Or at least a very wide spectrum. And that the cases at the polarities that you believed represented the prototypical depressives are actually the edge cases instead. So invert the diagram and take another look. + +You got duped, friend. We all did. + +You may also learn — later on perhaps — that even the lines that apparently delineate between the different mental health diagnoses in the DSM aren’t written in stone. They’re etched instead in whiteboard marker that zigs and zags and sometimes sits somewhere in the awkward midsections that divide the parts. + +Crossover and comorbidity is enormously common in mental illness. And between physical health conditions and those which afflict only the mind (if such things exist). + +Increasingly, we know that there’s a complex interplay between physical and mental health. + +Simply reaching a diagnosis is a multifacetecd and complex process that involves ruling out organic causes of mental illness and using questionnaires to distinguish between things that — to laypeople — may as well be identical clones of one another. + +Although the good news is that, for most, the wait needn’t be enormously long. + +The better news is that the people who you may encounter whose job it is to do this are well-trained professionals. + +It’s what they do for a living. To them, you’re unlikely to be exceptional. + +You’re just somebody who needs help. + +But coming back to how _you_ are feeling _now_. + +You know, perhaps, that your focus isn’t as good as it could be. + +That you tend to day-dream because you don’t always feel so rooted, or engaged, by reality as you experience it. + +And maybe also that if you had more self-esteem and motivation you’d probably have made it to a different place in life than you have. _(A hard pill to swallow, perhaps untrue, but a thought that tends to surface whether beckoned or not)._ + +Perhaps if you’d been able to muster more optimism — and show it when appropriate — you’d have gotten that promotion you were after. Or date. Or friend. + +Or believed in yourself enough to pursue the hobbies — or the career — you thought you … weren’t _enough_ … to pursue. You realize — _post facto —_ that you could probably have done all those things all along and that somebody else with the exact same background but with the self-confidence you couldn’t muster snatched the gig instead. There was a hurdle standing in your way that you didn’t cross. You _couldn’t_ cross it. At least until you got help. + +You’re plagued by feeling _slightly_ tired, and down, about yourself, but it’s not really bad enough that you think about making that first phone call to reach out. + +Maybe you _love_ self-deprecation and humor because they’re great ways to throw others off the scent and deflect uncomfortable questions. + +The self-deprecation part is real but when it’s coupled with a touch of humor you can convince people that that’s not what you _really_ think about yourself. + +And about the humor, it’s a genius strategy, really. + +Somebody who’s laughing can’t be depressed. + +Expect that they can. People aren’t necessarily as taken in by the front as you believe. + +_( — But you love dark humor but that’s just really because you love dark humor and even being un-depressed is absolutely not going to stand between you and dark humor. But you later learn that many folks with depression share your characteristic sometimes bleak and frequently self-deprecating sense of humor)._ + +Ultimately it’s a lot like alcoholism; or rather that’s the natural disease course of it. + +And speaking of alcoholism, substance abuse is an occupational hazard for those with _untreated_ mental illness. Which is another reason — among the countless that could be advanced — why it’s smart to treat it. + +With alcoholism, you never guess who’s struggling with it until it reaches the point where their acting abilities just kind of burn out _(everybody’s eventually do; it’s a full time job on top of the full time job you may already hold)._ + +One day you know somebody who, in your eyes, is a high functioning executive. The next thing you hear your friend is in a rehab facility and confiding to you about how they’ve been drinking half a liter of vodka a day for 10 years just to keep the anxiety at bay all while somehow — almost inexplicably — managing to hold down a corporate job. _(One interjection against the third person and the hypotheticals: this particular part isn’t based on my story, it’s just to illustrate the parallels … and the risks)._ + +Your self esteem might be in the gutter. Perennially. This isn’t SAD. It’s just bad and slightly less bad. + +To the point that selling yourself for a job — or even trying to win a client — feels a bit like attempting to climb Mount Everest over and over again. + +And you feel progressively more hopeless about it each time you make it a few steps up only to come crashing back down to earth. + +Until enough bad experiences — one terrible experience too many — finally push you to the point at which it’s undeniable that you _have_ to make that first phone call. + +Some of that could be down to you, by the way. But you should probably remind yourself of that in only the most non-judgmental way possible. Because you may already have faced enough judgement. + +It was harder to get this far than you may have given yourself credit for. + +For everything that you read online — act confident! highlight your expertise! — there’s an equal and opposite voice telling you that you’re not really good enough or you’re faking things and shouldn’t have bothered in the first place. Or that you’re doing terribly and that you’re embarrassing yourself with your badness and that if there were an invisibility cloak you could envelop yourself in this would be a great time to do that. The voice is relentlessly harsh. Unyielding. + +That voice may be embedded, inherent, in your psyche — which is where cognitive-based interventions may fall down, or at least not get you to where you know you can get. + +The good news is that that voice can be dislodged, exorcised. Or enormously mitigated, if not totally banished (to return to the idea of a wide spectrum, you’ll soon learn that all humans harbor self-doubts, but that’s not to say that everybody’s experience of being a human is necessarily equal.) + +The folks with bipolar may deal with _actual_ imagined voices in their head, you might remind yourself. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that the ones that _are_ there but which you only hear as your own _thought processes_ aren’t just as pernicious. + +The ‘voices’ you encounter, the menaces, are just refracted into your conscious. Is that you? Or is that it? (The depression). + +Eventually you’ll come to understand the difference and that lone can be enormously helpful because you’ll be able to gain a foothold in a cognitive order that can distinguish between you and your mental illness. + +If you’re not religious, you may feel tempted to join a faith movement. Because it becomes very hard to argue with some pretty metaphysical concepts. Such as that if you and your thought processes aren’t one and the same, then what’s that other thing that isn’t your mind then? I call it the soul. But that’s informed by the belief system I subscribe to. + +Sorry, I digress way off key. + +But about your thoughts. + +You might also think that that’s just the way it has to be. Or not know what it feels like for that _not_ to be the case. Nothing under your control _has_ to be any way. + +This makes sense, though. It’s hard to know what you’ve not experienced, if not impossible. You can only guess at what real happiness or a life without anxiety might feel like. + +And if the world has been gray for a while — maybe 20 years kind of long — or filled with panic for that long, then the sun is at first going to feel a little blinding when you come blinking out to greet it. + +You may be so covered in cobwebs that you don’t even recognize it as the sun at first. + +The idea of feeling well — not on a fluke day, but day after day — can even be anxiety-producing. You’ll start becoming your own mental health forecaster and wonder when the current bright patch is going to be interrupted by the next rainy spell. + +But never to mind. Because you’ll soon cross over into a place that will at first seem like stepping into _The Matrix._ + +It’s the place where healing happens. Doctors offices and therapists’ rooms. But sometimes it feels as if they may as well be another universe because they’re so far removed from the world that surrounds them. + +Firstly it will feel uncomfortable there. Like really weird and you might resist against ‘it’. And then you’ll actually start to rather like it. + +Finally, you’ll never want to go back to the warped version of reality in which it’s not normal to talk about feelings or write things like this on the internet. (Sadly that place is also called ‘the world right now’ — and we all have to live in it). I told you it was like _The Matrix_! You’ll see my point eventually. + +You’ll begin to see that it’s our _current_ social construct for talking about mental illness that’s, frankly, insane . And not the paradigm that encourages people to open up and share their stories. + +Speaking of insane, you might, like me, come to deeply hate the word. + +You realize how full of unnecessary judgement it is. + +That we’re all, to an extent, mentally ill. + +But that just like diseases that effect the body, some of us are sub-clinically so; others need a mild course of treatment; and others might require more heavyweight interventions to get and stay well. + +It’s a place in which you realize that actually a whole crowd full of people are walking around with diagnoses like depression and anxiety and bipolar disorder and ADHD and being successfully medicated or otherwise treated for them. + +They just kept that secret from you — and everybody — and you reciprocated the favor because that’s the kind of world we’ve been conditioned to accept as normal. + +They’re kept from sharing their stories by a social paradigm that’s as rigid as it’s damaging. + +One in which it’s perfectly acceptable to say that you’re taking a paracetamol for your headache. But not okay to say that you take Zoloft for anxiety. It’s deeply messed up the more you think about it. Shamelessly hypocritical. It motivates me, and others, to keep chipping away at it until the edifice comes crumbling down to rubble. + +You’ll also soon discover that this — this _talking_ this _healing_ — has actually been going on for a while. I mean not forever. But for a reasonably long time. + +You just thought that mental illness and treatment was like for … super schizophrenic people who had been placed on involuntarily hold in a psychiatric ward. + +That was wrong. It’s okay to be wrong. + +At first, it’s a very weird place in which you figure out that it’s actually _normal_ and _acceptable_ to be treated for these things. + +That this nebulous “help” that we’re always hearing as being “out there” actually is. _(The vagueness of the “out there” metaphor, I sometimes think, doesn’t help. It’s amorphous. Where is that? Who provides it? You find these things out when you first go fumbling trying to find it.)_ + +You may be so shaky at first, so hesitant, that you need to do double-takes on sentences like the one I’ve just typed. + +It’s okay to not be okay. You can stop acting. And go and get well. + +So firstly you resign yourself to the fact that it’s okay to ask for help. This is what I would call stage one of recovery. + +And then you start kicking yourself for being so damn stubborn that you didn’t just swallow your pride 10 or 20 years ago and do it then. Late onset stage two. + +These aren’t actual stages (there are real ones, so please ignore mines; they’re informed by nothing but my own experience). Just frames of cognition. + +Once you get past stage one you’ll begin to actually feel elated. + +It’s kind of the same feeling as when you start an SSRI. + +I’ve never taken ecstasy — while I’m spilling all my secrets out at once, cannabis is the hardest drug I’ve ingested other than alcohol and coffee, and I never really liked it — but I imagine this is something like what it feels like. At least if the reports of those who have are accurate. + +Serotonin! Elation! Connection! + +You feel good all of sudden. A sense of kinship to everybody around you blossoms. But this isn’t what you’re shooting for and it typically also doesn’t last._(A comparable process happens with psychostimulants. The goal of medication isn’t to make you feel drugged. It’s to make you feel like yourself and normal. Which is why although these “side effects” might sound desirable they’re not.)_ + +More cognitively, you’re ecstatic because you finally “reached out” — even if that only meant looking up a website or searching in a Facebook group or talking anonymously, at first, with others on the internet. You give yourself a pat on the back and feel weird for doing so because self-respect is something that’s been so far from your frame of consciousness for so long. + +Because you overcame your crippling anxiety about what an unknown potential withdrawal _may_ look like and swallowed that first pill. + +Getting to that point can be indescribably hard in a way that’s hard to describe to people who have never had to face that choice. + +Or, you know, you picked up the phone and actually _made an appointment_ to see a therapist and actually _went to the session_. Or maybe you did both. + +You got over all that reluctance, faced down a nemesis that once seemed so impossibly menacing that even starting to tame it seemed like an exercise in futility, and committed to doing _something_ to feel better. + +You’re absolutely amazed that you had the opportunity to speak to another human, told them that you were struggling, and they didn’t throw you out of the room in a fit of disgust about how weird you were for speaking about how you _felt._ + +They weren’t freaked out or weirded out or however you imagined they would react by you unleashing everything that you’ve been keeping penned up inside of you for years. + +This is what they _do_ for a living. It was just a normal day at the office for them. It’s difficult to accept but likely true. You — and the problems that loom so large f or you — were just an entry on their diary. + +Also: you’re not wasting their time and, no, they probably don’t secretly hate you or resent you for using their services.You’re just a client of theirs getting help. And you’re doing the right thing. + +You’ve also — and this is massively massive — just taken the first step to breaking the chain of mental illness that tends to run between generations. + +Hurt people hurt. And I find the idea that therapy and medication can not just save lives but _arrest the passage of mental illness for future generations_ beyond exciting. Its potential is world-changing. It’s why I respect enormously the work of everybody in the mental healthcare system. + +Even if you don’t have children of your own yet, if you plan on having them in the future, you’ve just taken a major step towards making their future a brighter one — possibly one free of the antidepressants you may now be picking up on a monthly basis. + +Perhaps you were hurt and that’s made you more hurt and caused you, in turn, to hurt others. Cases like that are probably are common as dirt. + +If you can fix yourself you can become the type of person that _doesn’t_ pass the hurt forward. So congratulations. You just broke a cycle that leaves broken people, homes, and lives in its wake. How cool is that? How _noble_ is that? To end the trail of destruction? + +You’ve given epigenetics a chance to work its magic (if it has any to work). + +It might feel kind of like a coffee high that doesn’t wear off. Which when you’re depressed and used to feeling tired — and possibly used to real coffee highs but only when you’re drinking coffee — might at first feel kind of strange. + +Did your therapist slip something in your water? Nope. This is just how it feels to start getting better. Feeling normal will feel like some variation of this. + +But that unfortunately doesn’t mean that there won’t be hurdles along the way. + +Comedowns. Sometimes significant ones. + +Your bubble will first burst when you have your first conversation with a judgmental person who looks at you as if you’re crazy and all the courage you’ve mustered to talk about it for the first time just gets shot down in one verbal volley. It backfires. You’re not in the protective bubble of safe spaces any longer. If that person is somebody you thought really cared about you, that’s going to be even more painful. + +You may find that you have to distance yourself from people who, on a bad day, just make you feel worse — and that might make your life a bit isolated for a while because sometimes there isn’t enough time to introduce new people into your life as you pull up bridges with old relationships. + +Eventually, you might realize — once more — the truth in the saying that _“hurt people hurt”_ and begin cutting others a bit of slack. They hurt you because they are wounded. Your remit is to protect and keep yourself well enough to prevent the toxicity from being meted out any further. + +These are all really tough dynamics by the way. Especially when they’re all coming at you at once and from various directions. + +Alongside the depression. Because depression is already prone to narrowing people’s social circles because it makes it really hard to summon up the desire to socialize when it has you in its clutches. + +You stop calling people or reaching out to friends or going to events and so people assume that you’re busy or don’t care about them or have emigrated or (ironically) are having the time of your life. + +When actually the precise opposite is true and you’re just sitting at home instead and would love to connect with them on one level but can’t muster the energy to on the other. + +You may be extremely busy. But you don’t want to call because you don’t feel like acting today. It’s exhausting and it’s finally your day off. You might — like me — enormously value honestly. And you feel like it’s weird to answer a “how are you doing?” with “today pretty bad” but that’s really the only truthful answer. So that poses a problem. You don’t want to feel like a burden. + +But the good thing about having a mental illness is that you eventually start to develop the skin of an elephant. + +It’s a battle ground out there. And you’re engaging in a protracted fight. + +You get used to drawing upon your own strength while you’re being built up by the strength of others. It’s the process I mentioned earlier in reverse, by the way. Instead of hurt people tearing others down it’s healthy people reaching out to float a raft to those who are sinking. + +Now you’re past the wonderment phase and you see your own mental health in more practical terms. It’s not new to you any more. At first your list of mental ills might be a lot smaller. It now resembles your list of physical complaints. Your knee has been hurting. And you think the dose of this medication is _slightly_ too high. Eventually you’ve ticked off all the items on your list and all that’s left to do is maintain your wellness rather. + +So now you’re mostly free. You can move on. To the extent that any of us can. Almost all of us see doctors and dentists periodically for checkups. You have one more practitioner on the list. + +You’re now sort of becoming a consummate pro at managing your mental health. It’s not all consuming. Because you’re stronger now. + +Speaking of management, you’ll likely discover a few things about mental illness that are actually kind of shocking to uncover at first. You’ll get used to them with time. + +For instance, you’ll probably figure out at some point that doctors don’t really understand fully how selective serotonin uptake inhibitors (SSRIs) actually work. + +Wait … what? + +Like the ones I just got prescribed? + +The one that’s currently swimming around in my bloodstream? Yup, those! + +The mechanism of action (MOA) hasn’t been fully elucidated yet, you’ll read in medical texts. + +The clinical effects of antidepressants also don’t necessarily correlate with what we know about how quickly they raise serotonin levels — which very interestingly, was relatively recently discovered to be pretty much instantaneous. + +But just because we don’t know exactly _how_ they work doesn’t mean that millions of lives can’t be made better by their existence. + +By and large, science currently believes that they’re safe. By contrast, we know that untreated depression is extremely dangerous. So that’s the calculus that justifies their ongoing use. + +At first this will seem confusing. Perhaps like me you’ll be lucky enough to even know a friendly psychiatrist to whom you can direct a few of your questions. + +You might learn about how patients’ understanding of mental illness — typically, boost the level of a neurotransmitter associated with the psychopathology by inhibiting its reuptake and thereafter become well and ridden of that affliction as long as you’re taking the drug — is actually pretty far off the mark of how the brain works. + +It’s an enormous simplification that belies the almost unfathomable complexity of the organ that imbues us with the power of cognition. Those who know most about it admit that they’re only scratching the first layer of its surface. + +If you need reassurance that psychiatrists know what they’re doing even though neuroscience still has so much to learn (or rather still doesn’t understand a lot of the brain’s mysteries), I recommend firstly remembering that it takes an awfully long time to become one: A typical program might look like four years’ residency plus five years’ medical school. That doesn’t include pre-med. + +And secondly opening up a textbook on psychiatry. The brain and medications used to treat it are very complicated. + +Which is also why it commonly takes a little bit of trial and error to find a drug, or combination of them, that works for you. + +You may even end up being misdiagnosed along the way with a mental illness that looks like depression (or anxiety) but is really something else. Or vice-versa. + +Medication may even be used as part of the diagnostic process. For instance, you could take a stimulant medication and become more energized but also more depressed and just react horribly to it. These are all great clues that clinicians use to find the best medication for your brain. This is good. This is progress. Even though you might feel crummy at the time. + +And here’s a much more shocking thing about how we treat depression in the current age. Get ready for it. I think it’s fascinating. + +We don’t yet have at our disposal a human being who’s been on SSRIs for a normal human lifespan. + +Prozac was approved for the treatment of depression, by the FDA, a mere two years before I was born. That makes it 34 years old. And … you see the problem? + +That’s right. You’re a guinea pig. So am I. In fact, so is everybody taking nexium (esomperazole) which also hasn’t been in use long enough to confirm that what we think about its long term effects _in vitro_ necessarily hold true _in vivo_(at least not when the vivo we’re talking about are human beings taking it for normal lifespans.) + +You’ll realize–maybe you’ll also find this fascinating — that this isn’t even slightly unique to psychiatry. Rather, it’s a western medicine thing. Doctors are both calculated gamblers and scientists. Conventional science-based western medicine is actually something like a gigantic game of numbers. It’s humbling. We’re all just managing risk. It can’t be fully obliterated. + +But if you’re only thinking in terms of risks associated with treatments, then you’ve also got a giant gaping gap in your logic. Because you’re not thinking about the risks involved with _having depression_ or any other mental illness that goes untreated. And those are pretty enormous. + +We know that depression is bad and causes all sorts of problem ranging from absenteeism to unemployment to ….far rose things. Even physical abnormalities of the brain. + +And we have at our disposal medicines that help. + +A few different major classes of drugs, some atypical agents, and other much more experimentary approaches that are only now beginning to be used in clinical practice. + +Ones that work better with less side effects are typically also in the pipeline, which is always reassuring to know. What we have today is good. And there’s hopefully better on the way for tomorrow. + +We hope that what we thought would happen with medicines actually hold true when they past the clinical trial process and go through the ultimate longitudinal study: Their use in a medical system when they get prescribed to patients who take them for years or decades on end + +The same thing was true before the medicines we’re able to receive today was introduced. + +Mostly, the game of numbers — and faith — that we play seems to work out favorably. + +But let’s get back to the hypothetical _you_ in this story. The one that hadn’t been diagnosed yet. The one we left a while ago at the start of this journey. + +Maybe _you_ keep, or kept, trying supplements and vitamins hoping that those will do something but you never think it’s worth mentioning to a doctor. + +Or if you did you never mentioned your _emotions_ to them. It’s just how you’ve always felted, you rationalized. + +I mean why would you? And that’s not what doctors are for, anyway. Isn’t it? (Wrong!) + +Then you get a lucky break _(even though you don’t recognize it as such)_ and life circumstances conspire to make things _actually legitimately_ bad for a while. + +That finally forces you in the door of a doctor’s office and you get asked about your sleeping habits — which are pretty atrocious — and then a bunch of other things. + +And there, or shortly thereafter, you get a total reeducation about depression and learn that it can look a lot like some other problems and that … oh wait …maybe you actually do have it after all. Maybe you’ve had it all along. + +You go to a psychiatrist and you learn that there was literally nothing to be afraid of. And that it’s not really any different than going to any other doctor. It’s just that we’re treating the brain — and cognition — instead of another organ or biological system. + +And you go to a therapist and that’s just like talking to somebody interested in your welfare except that it’s intended therapeutically and is structured pretty carefully even though it mightn’t always feel like it at the time. That’s kind of how skilled therapists roll. + +And you take your first medicine and come off it and don’t experience the horrible withdrawals you were reading about on Reddit (although it was mildly unpleasant). + +And you wonder why you were so completely terrified of taking an SSRI but totally fine with taking steroids when you needed them for your asthma. Or something else. + +That all now seems insanely irrational and .. stupid .. and that makes you regretful. + +Now, you take a small bit of daily medication and feel a whole bunch better. A tiny pill. You could fit a lifetime’s supply in something about as big as a bin. It’s almost mind-boggling how something so physically small can change a life so profoundly. + +And those little pills cost … less than $20 a month … and other than making you feel slightly wired for the first few weeks have only mild side effects. If any at all. + +When you break the cost you realize that it’s even less than the one cup of coffee per day. Of which you used to drink a ton. Hopefully, it will allow you to stop self-medicating _with_ coffee. So arguably you’re no worse off. + +And then, maybe one evening, you think back on your life to date. This takes you by surprise because, in general, you’re doing pretty great now. At least comparatively speaking. + +And you get annoyed with yourself about how stupid you were for not looking into this so much sooner _(this also takes you by surprise because you may be feeling so calm and relaxed that you hardly know yourself)._ + +Annoyed about how an irrational phobia and fear of psychiatry and medication and therapy (you were told it was for “crazy” people) kept you from reaching out for help for … _potentially two decades_. + +Really? You count the years again and get the same count. + +And you think about how unnecessary all that suffering was. + +And how you sort of unintentionally sabotaged yourself. In part. + +Which is kind of difficult to forgive. I mean to the extent that you have to forgive _yourself._ + +You didn’t maximize your potential. But you _must_ forgive yourself. + +Because you’re vastly more self-aware than you were before you first stepped foot in that psychiatrist or therapist’s office — or both — and know that poring anger and blame on yourself isn’t going to help one iota. It’s a destructive anger. And you must break the cycle. + +You still can’t help but wonder from time to time about what life _might_ have been like _had_ you acknowledged that depression was a possibility years earlier. + +Or at least the years of it that — to an extent — you feel like you lost. + +To a disease that you didn’t know that you had. Or one that you refused to consider as a possibility. + +That you were too aloof to consider. + +That you thought was only for frail people. + +You _were_ one of the frail people. + +We’re all vulnerable. + +And genetics and circumstance or biochemistry sometimes conspire to push something embedded into our DNA, or not, into becoming a clinically diagnosable — and treatable — condition. + +It’s not your fault. + +You can forgive yourself and let go of that self-recrimination. + +But I believe that it _is_ our responsibility to treat our mental health where it needs treatment. If not for the alleviation of our own suffering, then at least to break the cycle. + +The generational cycle that I talked about earlier. + +It so often exists. Although you can of course be the first person in your lineage to feel persistently sad or anxious or have identifiable difficulties with concentration. + +But you still wonder. And when you do there’s one thought that hurts the most. + +About how you probably wouldn’t feel right now as if you’re coming out of a fog that you’ve been wrapped in for like … 20 years. + +Because that one’s not a guess. It’s a certainty. You _are_. You can _feel it_. You were wading through it. + +And if you feel that you’ve learned something from the experience or have something to share, you might also wish to do that too. + +Perhaps later. There’s no pressure. No pressure to do so at all. + +And certainly no pressure to do so before you’re ready to. + +It took me years. I wrote a lot of things during those years. But not about _this_. + +It feels good to open up. + +And that’s kind of the whole name of the game. + +**Links that may be of interest:** + +[**Persistent depressive disorder (dysthymia) - Symptoms and causes** + _Persistent depressive disorder, also called dysthymia (dis-THIE-me-uh), is a continuous long-term (chronic) form of…_ www.mayoclinic.org](https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/persistent-depressive-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20350929 "https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/persistent-depressive-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20350929")[](https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/persistent-depressive-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20350929) diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Real-Person-s-Guide-To-Buying-From-Aliexpress.md b/posts/medium/The-Real-Person-s-Guide-To-Buying-From-Aliexpress.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..756a4afa40b3cd71263fc6d8c0d381a280f1e216 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Real-Person-s-Guide-To-Buying-From-Aliexpress.md @@ -0,0 +1,225 @@ +# The Real Person’s Guide To Buying From Aliexpress + +A little over a year ago, [I wrote an extensive blog](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-thoughts-on-aliexpress-after-500-orders-achieving-coveted-diamond-membership-status-sarcasm-disclaimer/) for my personal site about my love of Aliexpress — Alibaba’s consumer-grade sister company. + +I wrote that post with the contrite tone of a man who realized that placing over 500 orders on the platform in the space of a few years might have been a bit ‘ _moogzam_ ’ as they say in Hebrew (translation: ridiculous/OTT). + +I would love to tell you that I learned my lessons from the stolen mail fiasco, from the many combative “disputes” I have been forced to initiate with sellers (note: Aliexpress doesn’t really have customer support), and from the often abysmal nature of the products one receives from China. + +Except that, at the time of writing, my account homepage looks like this: + +**Yes, I’m now closing in on the 3,000 order milestone rather than the 600 one!** + +All my takeaways [from the post I linked](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-thoughts-on-aliexpress-after-500-orders-achieving-coveted-diamond-membership-status-sarcasm-disclaimer/) apply equally now that I have amassed 2,500 more orders. + +And, for reiteration, those are: + + * **(Generally) don’t buy clothing from Aliexpress.** If you do, buy a few sizes up. Definitely don’t buy cosmetics. + * **Know that many electronics are going to break within a year** and, when they do, you will have absolutely zero recourse. + * For the most part, **you should forget about reliable warranties, good customer service, and other features of Western marketplaces.** If you live in Israel, like me, then thankfully the shock to the system that would otherwise cause [will be significantly blunted](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-is-customer-service-in-israel-so-bad/). + +However, one major development has rocked my world in the intervening period. + +**Amazon.com has finally come to Israel** — in the form of a $49 and over free shipping deal. + +And the country, has frankly, [gone Amazon crazy](https://www.timesofisrael.com/with-free-shipping-to-israel-amazon-has-expats-filling-up-their-carts-again/). (As a joke, I started a petition which got mentioned in the TOI piece!) + +So — although my reliance on Aliexpress is on the decrease (didn’t I say that last year?) — here are some general observations about buying on it from a guy with almost 3,000 order who’s never even thought about running a dropshipping site. + +(If you’re interested to know what I buy and why I buy it [check out my original post](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-thoughts-on-aliexpress-after-500-orders-achieving-coveted-diamond-membership-status-sarcasm-disclaimer/). It has a lot to do with living in Israel — so probably isn’t relevant for most readers). + +### Most Stuff Is Frankly Pretty Bad + +Before you embark on your next Aliexpress cart-filling odyssey, you should take a quick note of the following chart. + +As the saying goes: stuff can be good, fast, or cheap — but not all three at once. + +The reason I have amassed such a large order volume is because, for the most part, I buy small items that it would be quite a pain to source locally. The ordering process is also pretty slow so it’s more a one area Venn diagram. But I certainly don’t have any major expectation that my orders will be particularly ‘good’. + +[I’ve written recently here](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/some-must-have-accessories-for-multimonitor-workstations-88f85afdfd4d) about my love of multimonitor workstations — and geekery in general. + +So it shouldn’t be a surprise to learn that my most recent Aliexpress orders have been: + + * [A DP to VGA adapter](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/33011598701.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.31544c4dsljUyf). $2.09. [Amazon price: $8.95.](https://www.amazon.com/DisplayPort-Adapter-Display-Converter-Gold-Plated/dp/B017Q8OCSY/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?keywords=dp+to+vga+adapter&qid=1581076101&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyVUg3MkZRMkdFOFdVJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwODA0MTIzMVUxR0tHMDkxR000VyZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMTYyOTI3MUZMT1paRlY0N1hISCZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=) + * [Some HDMI extension cabling for $1.86.](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32827611629.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.31544c4dsljUyf) + * [Some ethernet couplers](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000493590055.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.31544c4dsljUyf) for less than a dollar. + +Frankly, finding all this stuff locally would be more time-consuming than it’s worth. + +So instead, once a week, I make a foray to the local post office and collect my haul. As a result, I have every conceivable type of monitor cable, adapter, and converter that one could ever need. My tech cabinet fills up two shelving units by my workstation. + +If I find that something is truly useful, I’ll invest in a good quality equivalent from Amazon. + +But: + + * I won’t be badly out of pocket if the Aliexpress stuff breaks down after a year, which has a habit of happening. + * I won’t be too badly out of pocket either if things don’t break down. + +This is absolutely horrible for the environment. + +I am aware. + +But right now I’m too distracted by my shiny monitor adapters to really care. + +### Communicating with Sellers in Pidgin English Helps A Lot + +Those that know me are aware that I have a penchant for languages. + +In high school, I taught myself pretty decent Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese — passing an Instituto Cervantes test and getting top grades in Spanish and French in my Leaving Certificate (that’s the Irish equivalent of what I believe the Americans call the ‘SATs’). + +My point in mentioning this is to affirm that — as a language enthusiast and [professional writer ](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com)—**I hold Pidgin English in the highest of high esteems.** + +I live in Israel and, compared to English, Hebrew is a crude tongue with a very limited lexicon (English has about 170,000 words in current use; Modern Hebrew has 7,000) . + +For a humble immigrant learner like the author, this is actually a great blessing. + +You don’t need to memorize grammar tables or know your subjunctive mood from your indicative to be able to spout out (with gesticulations) to a stranger: + + * _“Where the shop?”_ + * _“How much the falafel?”_ + * _“When you close Friday?”_ + +When you’re running around trying to buy your groceries before everything closes for the weekend, **sometimes intelligibility, rather than eloquence, becomes the key.** + +Likewise, when talking in English with Israelis, I subconsciously mimic their overall pretty good but slightly warped version of English. (Israelis have a weird obsession with the adjective ‘relevant’ that drives me inwardly crazy!) I once had dinner with a PhD student in linguistics who told me that this dynamic has been scientifically studied. In other words, if you’re a native English speaker interacting with non-native speakers on a regular basis, this will eventually happen to you too. + +Aliexpress buyers should be aware that most sellers are based in the Chinese Mainland (particularly Shenzhen, just across the border from Hong Kong). + +Some may know English, but the widely held belief, which I endorse, is that the vast majority are using a translation service to automatically parse your queries into Chinese. + +Just as, if I were writing for teenagers, I would reduce the readability score of my text to the appropriate level, when communicating with Aliexpress sellers, I try to keep things as simple as possible, avoiding superfluous things like niceties or flowery adjectives. + +Here’s what I might write to an FBA seller on Amazon to follow up on an order: + +> “Dear Seller Team, + +> I just wanted to follow up on my order number 28242–8242. + +> It’s been a week since dispatch and I still haven’t received it. + +> Do you have any updates? I’m not getting much info from the tracking. + +> Thanks in advance and looking forward to hearing from you.” + +When writing to an Aliexpress seller, I would simplify that to: + +> Hi dear, + +> Order 28242–8242 doesn’t come. + +> Why? + +### There is virtually no customer service — and people “go home” around Chinese New Year (CNY) + +I hate to have to blow my own trumpet again, but with close to 3,000 orders I am at this point basically Aliexpress Royalty. + +If anybody at Aliexpress scans my account (but more practically, if bots do) they’re probably assuming that I’m a drop-seller. + +Which is a good thing. + +As a result of my eminent status on the marketplace: + +I get hookups on must-have accessories like plastic boxes of fishing lure: + +And runners that look like they were made in a paint factory. + +**Most importantly, because I’m a “good customer”, Aliexpress also mediates the vast majority of disputes in my favor.** + +This basically means that if an item arrives defective, Aliexpress is actually swallowing the cost and refunding me the order — not the seller, which is also why they don’t pull a freak-out. + +This happens about 80% of the time. The other 20% the dispute process occurs as normal. It seems to be totally randomized and sometimes the evidence requirements are so onerous that I just give up. + +Speaking of freak-outs, if you’re not at this lofty level of the Aliexpress fiefdom, then you should be aware that sellers seem to live in perpetual fear of disputes. + +(Note: the Aliexpress automatic refund to bulk buyers thing isn’t their official policy and there’s no indication other than the speed at which disputes close that this is what’s happening). + +So if you’re a low volume buyer, then you’re going to start getting really weird messages from freaked-out sellers like these the moment you try to dispute an order: + +I really hope this wasn’t for real. Sincerely.Another great idiosyncrasy of Aliexpress that I have come to greatly enjoy is that sellers typically address their customers as ‘Dear’. + +As a result, I have started incorporating this wonderful opening into my communications with sellers. + +Another facet of Aliexpress that any long-term buyer will become familiar with is Chinese New Year (CNY). + +This is also known as ‘Spring Festival’ or ‘Lunar New Year’. + +Around that time, you will start receiving poetic compositions such as this from sellers informing you that your shipments might be delayed. + +Speaking of “disputes” — this is quite bizarrely the main customer service mechanism that Aliexpress operates. + +It’s usually the only way to get your money back if an item arrives completely defective. + +That’s because the only other “customer service” mechanism Aliexpress provides is an (almost entirely) bot-operated live chat system. + +**If you don’t believe me, take a look at this exchange I initiated with ‘Eva’:** + +### It’s Not Really In Your Interest To Confirm Receipt of Goods — And Stuff Automatically Marks As Arrived After a Time Frame + +There are other ways in which Aliexpress’s default system is pretty miserable to the buyer. + +Firstly, Aliexpress calculates a transit timeframe for every order placed. + +If the product doesn’t arrive within that timeframe then they will be automatically considered to have arrived. + +This means that ideally you should: + + * Go through your orders + * Check if anything is about to close that hasn’t arrived yet + * Ask the seller to extend purchase protection + +Also, I’m pretty diligent about clicking ‘Confirm Goods Received’ so that I can keep track of what I’m still waiting on. + +But doing that is actually a bad move tactically because the timeframe during which you can open a dispute (in the event the good is defective) is about 14 days from that point. + +What happens if you confirm receipt, put the Bluetooth player on your cabinet, try it out in three weeks only to find that it doesn’t turn on? + +You’re out of luck. + +### Sellers Are Behind The Great Firewall of China + +Another important point. + +If you’re having artwork designed and need to send a vector format over to the seller (the default messaging system only lets you exchange PNGs) then you’re going to have to deal with the fact that common file sharing platforms, like WeTransfer.com, might not be accessible on the seller’s end. + +Sometimes sellers will share their email address with you. The same point about phrasing correspondence in Pidgin should be followed here too. + +At other times, they’ll try convincing you that an inappropriate format for the graphics job “will be fine.” I advise pushing back. + +Another option is to use a file transfer service that isn’t blocked by the Great Firewall. Search Google for a few options. + +### Concluding Thoughts About Aliexpress Shopping + +Aliexpress can be a decent way to buy up lots of gizmos and gadgets but quality can be so-so. + +For buying things like Ethernet cabling, computer adapters, and random gadgets — it can be a good source. Remember the quality/price/time triangle and set your expectations accordingly. + +Buyers should: + + * Brush up on their pidgin English + * Realize there is basically no reliable customer support channel + * Keep their purchase values modest, because quality can be poor and stuff tends to break down relatively quickly. This is a good way to hedge yourself against the otherwise dysfunctional nature of the marketplace by Western standards + * Know that confirming orders kind of works against you + * Realize that sellers might be behind the Great Firewall of China and being evasive about whether they can receive your design work for that reason. + +With that out of the way, here are some decent things that I have bought through ‘Ali’ recently. + +Good luck shopping! + +[**Bluetooth headphones.**](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32813056906.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.1ec64c4dZIVCIT) These are actually surprisingly decent (screenshots reflect pricing at the time of writing) + +[**A plastic bird feeder**](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000147406802.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.1ec64c4dbdjeeg) + +[**A HDMI KVM**](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32961921484.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.1ec64c4dbdjeeg) + +[**A mouse/keyboard combo**](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32989928597.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.1ec64c4dbdjeeg) + +[**A customized doormat**](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000210097007.html?spm=a2g0s.12269583.0.0.42cd72c4zE4xYq) + +[**An umbrella.**](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000443209973.html?spm=a2g0s.12269583.0.0.7b127571hRN7Ua)Have found these to actually be windproof. + +[**Some custom metal plaques**](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32951782559.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.27424c4dngSM5P) + +[**Quite a few custom flags**](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32697536693.html?spm=a2g0s.12269583.0.0.27461b62iMplli) + +And here’s the output: + diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Reddit-like-social-network-I-m-looking-for-3cf1382c09a.html.md b/posts/medium/The-Reddit-like-social-network-I-m-looking-for-3cf1382c09a.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..13c29f7c4e7f33a35324baba018b51bb9384d27d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Reddit-like-social-network-I-m-looking-for-3cf1382c09a.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,29 @@ +# The Reddit-like social network I’m looking for + +#### Can somebody make something better already? + +_Crossposted from /r/RedditAlternatives:_ + + Reddit. Is there something better out there? + +Reddit is a great platform — but to a large extent, only in theory. + +It allows users to congregate into very narrowly defined interest communities. As somebody that’s always had a lot of niche interests (Turkish coffee, Ethiopian cooking being but two), I love this about Reddit. + +Unfortunately I see two major problems with it: + +\- **Aggressive downvoting** : I’ve never downvoted somebody on the basis that I disagreed with their opinion. I’ve never even downvoted those that have cursed and been abusive towards me (and I’ve received my fair share of abuse there). Unfortunately downvoting to cower people into something like silence pervades the platform — a crude form of online social ostracism. While downvoting occasionally serves to make hardly visible truly spammy comments, in more cases it seems to be used spitefully. Like many who have spent time on Reddit, I’m sick of it. The downvoting system also enormously encourages groupthink. + +\- **Anonymity.** I think that Reddit shows that anonymity has a very important place in our lives. For instance, people can talk about mental health freely in the respective MH communities. But on Reddit the fact that most accounts are anonymous seems to just make a lot of people into nasty, mean, and toxic online characters (which Reddit has garnered a well-justified reputation for). The problem with the mental health stuff (as I see it) is that there are some deranged people on Reddit who will follow you between accounts or (if you make a determined enemy) start downvoting you across the site. If you _don’t_ want to be anonymous most of the time, or just don’t like being subject to vitriolic hate campaigns, it makes Reddit feel like a very hostile space. + +My “dream” social media platform is something like Reddit that keeps the best bits of the platform — its non-hate niche communities — while trying to discard the bad: + +_Something with a ton of niche communities like Reddit;_ + +_Something publicly accessible (ie not closed Facebook groups). Again like Reddit;_ + +_Unlike Reddit, no upvoting/downvoting. Rather a reporting system for abuse etc that takes care of the really bad stuff;_ + +_Unlike Reddit, a platform with no anonymous accounts allowed. Those that require online anonymity can continue using Reddit and risk being thrown into a lion’s den of hate. While those that don’t feel the need to be anonymous can enjoy a more civilized discourse;_ + +Anything close to meeting these criteria? diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Remote-Job-Marketplace-Has-So-Much-Potential--But-It-s-Also-So-Badly-Broken-.md b/posts/medium/The-Remote-Job-Marketplace-Has-So-Much-Potential--But-It-s-Also-So-Badly-Broken-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..38e238d69ccea4c1243bfd37f05725558356c9f9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Remote-Job-Marketplace-Has-So-Much-Potential--But-It-s-Also-So-Badly-Broken-.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +# The Remote Job Marketplace Has So Much Potential. But It’s Also So Badly Broken. + +#### The glaring dissonance that’s emerged between the remote working hype and the reality as many are encountering it + +Photo by [Alex Qian](https://www.pexels.com/@alex-qian-1180283?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/flat-screen-monitor-turned-on-in-office-2343475/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Right now, the internet is saturated with news about how remote working is the new big thing. + +Log into LinkedIn, or Twitter, and behold the avalanche of posts proclaiming the advent of this exciting new era. + +We’re told that this isn’t just a coronavirus thing. The statistics about the ranks of those joining the remote workforce — or revolting against the move back to the office — are eye-opening. + +And yet, the remote job market that many applicants are encountering is …. something quite different indeed. + +### Mislabeled Opportunities, US-Only Jobs Among Some Of The Roadblocks Applicants Are Encountering + +Recently, I began exploring the job market for remote and hybrid opportunities. + +After a little more than three years spent running my own marketing communications practice, with clients from literally all over the world, I felt that working remotely for one company made more sense than freelancing for five or six of them. (The reasons for this decision are multifactorial; I’ll get round to sharing them in another post). + +Besides, wasn’t remote working all the rage? + +I’m a huge exponent of both the power of remote working and the benefits of asynchronous communications in this context — to facilitate collaboration between colleagues on different continents and working from different time zones. + +You can back remote working with words. Or you can actually go ahead and … join a distributed team. Besides the career aspect, this, the more ideological reason, also appealed to me. + +No sooner had I stuck my head out the door, however, that it became clear that when it came to the remote jobmarket, all that glitters — or which we’re told glitters — is always gold. + +Some of the ‘bugs’ in the system that I encountered very early on (within the first month): + + * **Mislabeled remote opportunity.** Go onto any social media forum populated by remote jobseekers, these days, and you’ll see many aggrieved jobseekers complaining about the vast amount of incorrectly described remote jobs on the market. I reported a few months ago, here, that the first dissenting voices were cropping up on LinkedIn complaining about this. + * **Limited internationally-accessible opportunity** : Predictably, the US, the world’s largest English-speaking workforce, has been able to set the agenda when it comes to remote working. ‘International’ remote opportunity is set in reference to America. If you’re not based in the US — no matter where you are in the world — you’re considered an ‘international’ applicant. In other cases, companies limit their potential talent pool to those residing in EU member states or some other geographical catchment. Their rationale is understandable, although this greatly frustrates the potential of remote work to mobilize a truly global workforce working with companies in a limitless pool of countries. As I’ve remarked here before, the pragmatics of today’s world — rife with laws governing taxation and preventing the free movement of labor across borders— don’t exactly go out of their way to make remote work possible. In fact, they make it cumbersome for companies to get on board with the movement. + * **Poor hiring practices** : I recently made it to round three of a remote interviewing process with a US-based company, a round billed as the final one, and after a fairly exhaustive written assessment. Unfortunately, the interviewer never showed up and I never heard from the company again. Ignoring and ghosting an applicant after two face-to-face remote interviews, and the investment of hours of time, is extremely poor practice. During successive rounds of in-office job hunting it’s not something I ever encountered. And yet during my very first month of remote jobhunting — there it was. Remote jobseekers are in a vulnerable position. Right now, the only recourse that candidates have to call out bad practices is leaving Glassdoor reviews. We need more robust mechanisms. + +### The Remote Marketplace Needs A Better Filtering System Too + +The world is a big place. For remote jobseekers, this isn’t always a good thing. Photo by [Porapak Apichodilok](https://www.pexels.com/@nurseryart?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-world-globe-facing-mountain-346885/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +One other problem quickly stood out to me as I made my first forays into interviews: the world is a very big place. And for remote jobseekers, that’s not always a good thing. Because job boards really don’t scale very well when the pool of applicants, and the pool of employers, both become virtually limitless. + +Let’s start by looking at things from the jobseeker’s side of the fence. The pool of potential opportunity, when you’re looking for a remote job, is vast. + +The result can be a chaotic avalanche of what, from a marketing perspective, would be called top of funnel opportunity for candidates. + +My sleep schedule over the past three weeks has been all over the place. + +I’ve had late night meetings with clients and potential jobs on the West coast of the US (a 10 hour offset from Israel). And early morning ones, and in-person interviews, with companies here. + +Between the work I’m paid to do, process-related assignments, interviews, and jobhunting, I haven’t taken a single day off in three weeks. Processes move quickly. Sometimes it’s too much. During the three years I’ve spent running my own company, prospecting calls and lead nurturing have been regular features of my workweek. But this has been the most exhausting job hunt that I’ve ever undertaken. + +More presciently, it’s become clear to me that when the job search scales up to _“anybody on the planet”_ the process works neither for applicants nor for companies. + +Let’s say I’m a marketing communications specialist with a background working in technology companies. I’m looking for a similar organization to make my next mark upon. Naturally, I’m also looking for a nice team and decent compensation. But most importantly, I would argue, I’m looking to join a company I believe in. Mission is vital. But who has time to read the mission statement of every potential employer …. on the planet? + +Nevertheless, things whittle down. If for no better reason than the restrictive hiring practices that I outlined above. But we’re still talking about a potential hiring pool of potentially tens of thousands of employers. No job applicant is going to have the time and tenacity to be able to sift through all of that in order to find the perfect opportunity the moment it comes to market. The result? From the perspective of both applicants and employers something like an iceberg effect: the majority of opportunity, and potential talent, goes unseen. + +What’s happening instead? + +Both applicants and companies are (paradoxically, ironically) giving up on this so-promising new form of recruitment and falling back on the more traditional ways in which people found jobs and companies landed talent who they knew stood a reasonable chance of being good fits: they’re tapping into existing professional networks, asking what school you went to, etc. + +Remote working [has been likened](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kjartanrist/2020/09/07/working-from-home-the-new-industrial-revolution/?sh=4138ee2c62fd) to a new industrial revolution. + +The shift which it can graft onto our societies, and our world, is no less far reaching. + +And yet, the hype — much of it meticulously crafted by vendors manufacturing technology to support remote working — is often falling quite gapingly out of sync with the reality. At least the one that many remote jobseekers encounter. + +Much work has been done in encouraging companies to throw their hat in the ring of remote and hybrid work. + +But those drinking the Kool Aid risk believing a reality that isn’t there yet, or at least not universally so. + +Hiring parties need to up their game when it comes to putting processes in place that work for remote talent. + +And we need far better systems for making matches than the generic job boards that attempt to connect talent and companies through a listings system. This is the format most remote-specific boards are taking and it’s simply not enough to make an appreciable different towards solving this challenge of scalability. Unfortunately, the traditional job-hunting practices just break down when the level of scale becomes global. + +Much good work has been done. But there’s a lot still left to do. + +The incentive to make that happen is enormous: remote work can make the planet a better and less restrictive place for just about anybody not holding down a geographically-constrained job. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Scambaiting-Diaries--Karen-From-DBS-Has-An-Inheritance-And-She-Wants-To-Offer-40--Of-It-To-Me.md b/posts/medium/The-Scambaiting-Diaries--Karen-From-DBS-Has-An-Inheritance-And-She-Wants-To-Offer-40--Of-It-To-Me.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5480d65089dafbdccf59af7a553b8df6d83c63b5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Scambaiting-Diaries--Karen-From-DBS-Has-An-Inheritance-And-She-Wants-To-Offer-40--Of-It-To-Me.md @@ -0,0 +1,137 @@ +# The Scambaiting Diaries: Karen From DBS Has An Inheritance And She Wants To Offer 40% Of It To Me + +#### What happens when you send a real scammer a fake passport from a non-existent country? + +Last night, a relative received the unwelcome news that her Facebook account had been compromised. Or rather I did. When you get messages from somebody in the US asking _“did you see this?”_ and it’s a link with a Iranian URL .. you know something is up. + +This was disappointing. But obvious scammers also present great opportunities to practice a fine act of internet vigilantism called ‘scambaiting.’ + +But on that point I must make a confession. + +Until last night, I had never come across the term ‘scambaiting’ — although I _had_ seen James Veitch’s clip asking what happens when you reply to scam emails. If you haven’t seen it, worth a watch — you’ll get a laugh. + +Scambaiting involves, essentially, pretending that you have been taken in by a scam in order to waste the time of the scammer. + +It’s a little cruel so this will probably be a once off attempt. You could argue that by robbing some time from the scammer, you’re preventing it from being expended on talking to actual potential victims, thereby putting a small dent in the scammer’s effectiveness and helping others not be taken in by the fraud and having their identities stolen. + +I think satisfying curiosity is probably a more common motivator for those who engage in it. What would happen if ….? Is this a fictitious identity or is this scammer robbing a real person’s? These are all questions that I find fascinating. + +[**Tomorrow’s Internet Will Be A Bot-Infested, Mind-Warping Wasteland** + _How bots and scraping will conspire to create an internet that will feel something very much like The Matrix at scale_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/tomorrows-internet-will-be-a-bot-infested-mind-warping-wasteland-992a979dbe4e "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/tomorrows-internet-will-be-a-bot-infested-mind-warping-wasteland-992a979dbe4e")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/tomorrows-internet-will-be-a-bot-infested-mind-warping-wasteland-992a979dbe4e) + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + +Online scam 1 resolved itself fairly expeditiously. But I decided that I may as well give scambaiting a go — and so I went in search of messages. + +### How To Find Scams To Scambait (You’ll Never Guess The Answer To This Question!) + +If you’ve never scambaited but want to give it a go once — to learn the tactics of the scammers — all you have to do is …. pop into your spam folder. And there you have an abundant pool of scam emails to write back to. + +Sorry for the clickbaity title. I reckon if I’m writing about scamming and spamming then I had to use that tactic once. + +As you’ll often hear repeated, it actually _is_ worth making periodic forays here to check for legitimate mail. But anti-spam filters are getting pretty good and you’ll mostly encounter utter garbage. + +One more spam tidbit: Gmail has pretty decent spam filtering so what you’re seeing is actually only the tip of the iceberg (spamberg?). + +If you host email on shared hosting, with cPanel, and disable the built in spam filtering there … the floodgates to SpamVille will pour open in your face. You’ll also appreciate how good a job modern MTAs are doing at spam filtering even though it sometimes doesn’t feel that way. There’s a reason that most modern computer users no longer receive that many unsolicited emails about Viagra. And it’s not because there aren’t folks in the world eager to increase their prowess in the bedroom. Filtering isn’t perfect. But it’s a lot better than it was. + +What interests me about scams is that the lines that delineate between them and legitimate business practices aren’t always as razor sharp as we would like to think them to be. + +For instance, the first message that caught my attention and which I thought about reply to was obvious scraping spam. + +It was from a real conference organizer hoping to lure the gullible into paying their enormous registration fee for the chance of some dubious mention in an online webpage. + +They’d managed to scrape some info and pop it into the email with a good subject line to attempt to play to people’s vanity (doxxing the spammers is a step too far, but it went something very like _‘Don’t you deserve some recognition, Daniel?’_). But it was as disingenuous and robotic as it gets. An undoubted shakedown play. + +I wrote back, pretending to be flattered that they had taken interest in my writing on marketing as they claimed to have and enquiring as to what aspect, specifically, they found so engaging that they were encouraging me to spend a few thousand dollars to “register” for the “chance” of this honor? I never heard back._(Scammers operate at volume and they generally don’t want to waste their time on difficult customers. Also: asking them something like this simply ends the conversation as the scammers know they’ve hit a roadblock.)_ + +So I kept going, wading through some emails directed to this Medium blog (observation: if your spelling is sufficiently bad, you will be flagged as spam). Then I finally found something worth shooting off a reply to. (Advisable best practice: don’t use your real email) + +### “Did You Get My Email From Monday?” + +That seemed like as good a one as any to respond to. And so I dove right in. + +There was still a 1% suspicion that the email from a real Karen who I had simply forgotten about (excuse the pun). + +But that suspicion was quickly disproved when the reply bounced back in a few minutes. + +Pointing out the obvious scaminess of this is futile. + +But suffice to say that I found it highly unlikely that a group managing director at DBS would be randomly blitzing me from a Gmail. Oh, and that the bank had come into a $25M deal from a deceased customer and was proposing some kind of shady split almost down the middle with a total stranger living in Israel. + +Before proceeding any further, I was curious whether Karen at DBS was indeed a real person (I’m redacting Karen’s second name to attempt to protect her privacy although). Here’s where I needed my curiosity satisfied. + +Answer: Karen at DBS is undoubtedly a real person although I wasn’t sure if her LinkedIn was real or a supporting asset that the scammer had cooked up to build credibility. + +She’s a high profile banker who has been interviewed on television, spoken at conferences and … done whatever investment bankers get up to these days (which I imagine it driving around expensive cities in Ferraris but maybe that’s just me buying into stereotypes). So this was essentially a poor man’s impersonation attempt. + +Because I try to be a good netizen, I first tipped off the real Karen that a cybercrook was acting as her imposter and attempting to defraud people. + +Here’s another thing I’m always interested in seeing. If you try to challenge the scammer with a basic identity verification test, how will they deflect that? + +So after I discovered that Karen was a real person and that this was a low-end impersonation job, I threw in: + +A few minutes later and Karen bounced back. + +The excuse had me in stitches. + +She told me that DBS do not encrypt their emails. Thus, she didn’t want the techies over at IT snooping on our correspondence. They’re creative these scammers! + +That part of the reply: + +> _Your messages are well received and i want you to know that. am same person but due to the nature of this transaction it will not be wise to keep contact on my company domain as the emails there are not encrypted, the IT department get to see all correspondence which is not good for the success of this transaction._ + +That’s the crazy thing about these emails scams that I can’t wrap my head around. + +Fundamentally, they’re volume plays and rely on the fact that while the vast majority of internet users will not fall for these tricks, a profitable minority will. Which is why I always worked on the assumption that they were AI-operated. But here, undoubtedly, was a living breathing human being hand-crafting an answer as she tried to get me to send over a passport scan to claim my chunk of the leftover inheritance. + +I was also curious where Karen was from. Google has a useful tool for inspecting email headers. To access this, firstly grab the original email contents: + +You’ll get some useful information there that can be used to probe the origin of the email in a little more detail. You’ll also be able to see (roughly) what kind of mail server it originated from before making its way through the internet to your inbox: + +You can also run that head through MessageHeader to derive more information about its route: + +[**Messageheader** + _Edit description_ toolbox.googleapps.com](https://toolbox.googleapps.com/apps/messageheader/analyzeheader "https://toolbox.googleapps.com/apps/messageheader/analyzeheader")[](https://toolbox.googleapps.com/apps/messageheader/analyzeheader) + +There you’ll be able to see a little bit more info about the email’s passage through the internet: + +Unfortunately, geolocating the IP address wasn’t very useful in this case. Unless Karen is actually based in California: + +It looks more like a Google server used on route. + +I tried to show Karen a bit of defiance and then copied in a (real) friend based in the US to see if I could move this forward regardless of the temporary thawing in relations. To show her that I had associates at my disposal ready to make this wire transfer happen. + +I also wanted to challenge Karen on something else: are these scammers prepared to do _anything_ to vouch for their legitimacy, like couriering fake documents perhaps? Or is the online world as far as they’re willing to take things? + +But alas that got me nowhere. + +Karen was after my national ID and was in a hurry to get it, it increasingly seemed. + +A few hours went by without word from Karen. So I decided to try one last experiment: sending a fake passport from a non-existing country. + +Without knowing where Karen actually was in the world, it was hard to guess at her time zone. But I shot this over anyway: + +Oh, and one noteworthy details. + +When the scammers think they have a _potential_ victim on the hook, they don’t like it when others get added to the conversation. Karen was crafty enough to take my friend out of CC when she responded, showing that the scamsters are paying somewhat careful attention to these little details. I asked Karen why. And whether she would be willing to reciprocate with the document exchange: + +Finally one more challenge. I looked up the names of two Chinese restaurants in Singapore and asked Karen which her favorite of the two was. Unfortunately Karen wasn’t playing game at all and just kept pushing for the ID: + +So I jumped into GIMP and sent over this: potentially among the worst fake passports ever created: + +I threw in this to try to get Karen to respond. A time constraint, essentially. + +Alas, I never hard back from Karen. + +### What I Learned About Low Level Gmail Scamming Attempts From This Exercise + + * Most scammers are pretty lazy + * But they also appear to be real people + * Identities can be concocted. Or they can be real people + * The chosen legend doesn’t need to be a celebrity. It can simply be a real person who has received some media coverage which the scammer hopes will serve as corroborating evidence of their authenticity for most people + * I was surprised by the IP trace and expected it to geolocate to a developing world country. Fraudsters can be based anywhere + * They will get cagey when additional parties are added to the fraud attempt + * Some low level scammers invest no energy in learning their legend. Karen was unable to provide any information about her recent conference appearance + diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Secret-Sauce-Behind-My-Best-Year-Freelancing-Yet.md b/posts/medium/The-Secret-Sauce-Behind-My-Best-Year-Freelancing-Yet.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2f9a228d7854e7c2f1fe0203e1b9e8f11b27fb3b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Secret-Sauce-Behind-My-Best-Year-Freelancing-Yet.md @@ -0,0 +1,124 @@ +# The Secret Sauce Behind My Best Year Freelancing Yet + +#### (You Should Run Financials More Often Than Annually ) + +There are statistics. And lies. + +Last night I ran some financials (translation: plugged invoice values into a Google Sheet). + +Thereupon, I discovered that my annual turnaround is up 69% year on year. And there’s one full month, from today, to increase that gap even further. + +Two caveats need to be added here: + + * Last year was dismal. It somehow took me an entire year to figure out just how bad. Work out your annual turnover more than once per year. + * While I don’t feel comfortable disclosing how much I’m earning, bear in mind it’s a reasonably modest amount. Enough to live on? Thankfully. Will I be posing with my Ferrari on Instagram soon? Probably not. + +A few things accounted for this year’s growth — at least as far as I can tell. Here are those key activities. + +### I Cut Out Distractions + +I posted recently about my crazy experiment: To the aggravation of many delivery drivers, I have been unreachable by telephone for a sizeable chunk of this year. + +[**I Went Into Flight Mode For Six Months. Here’s What Happened.** +_Back in January, I wrote an excited Medium post about how being slightly less responsive was going to be the motto of…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/i-went-into-flight-mode-for-six-months-heres-what-happened-e8ffd86e88b1 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/i-went-into-flight-mode-for-six-months-heres-what-happened-e8ffd86e88b1")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/i-went-into-flight-mode-for-six-months-heres-what-happened-e8ffd86e88b1) + +I’m not sure how to feel about my flight mode hack — and it’s still very much under internal evaluation. I get that it drives people crazy. If you work with clients that love to call you up randomly, it probably won’t work for you. + +But equally it’s been responsible for my best and most focused periods of writing and client work. + +I made some other pivots along the way. Actually, I try to make small pivots all the time. + +Last night I determined to take a more strategic approach to my (offsite) guest blogging efforts, honing in on publications that I felt offered a fairer deal when working with authors: + +[**Guest Posting Is Often A Scam** + _And It’s About Time We Called It Out_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/guest-posting-is-often-a-scam-61f84c07d36b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/guest-posting-is-often-a-scam-61f84c07d36b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/guest-posting-is-often-a-scam-61f84c07d36b) + +I’ve also set up a Google Calendar for marketing so that I can try to make some effort in that department every year: + +[**A Daily Marketing Keep Fit List For Writers** + _Marketing is a fascinating field. There’s so much to learn. So many emerging practices and technologies to keep up…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-daily-marketing-keep-fit-list-for-writers-94bd3ccee976 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-daily-marketing-keep-fit-list-for-writers-94bd3ccee976")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-daily-marketing-keep-fit-list-for-writers-94bd3ccee976) + +A few weeks ago, I realized that I can get a lot more value by reading books and listening to podcasts than I can (often) by checking out my LinkedIn feed. I think that quality non-fiction has a high ROI. So I’m trying to do more of that: + +[**Why I Really Can’t Do LinkedIn Anymore** + _Is Content Curation The Key To Staying Sane In Today’s World?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48) + +### I Worked Long Hours + +If there’s some magic secret to make freelancing work, then I’m sorry to have to convey that I haven’t figured it out. + +My hours this year have been long. + +I don’t want to support the culture of humble-bragging about being busy or working a lot so I won’t elaborate on how many hours I have worked. Let’s just say that the Four Hour Workweek it is not. + +For what it’s worth, I also don’t see this as either desirable or sustainable and one of my objectives for the short term is to do more walking. + +Being one-dimensional isn’t good. No doubt about it. + +### I Chatted A Lot With Other Freelance Writers + +Check out the freelance writers’ subreddit: + +[**r/freelanceWriters** + _I know that "where do I find gigs?" and "how do I get started" is a common question here. People also want to know…_ www.reddit.com](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/ "https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/")[](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/) + +In general, I have issues with Reddit. Anonymity can breed toxicity. + +Equally, however, there are good and wholesome parts of it. I think that the freelance writers’ subreddit is one such place. + +I see very high ROI in talking shop with other writers. + +We help each other figure out resolutions to common problems and to see things differently. Participating there has been a rewarding experience. + +### I Started Taking Client Bylines + +For those not in the writing biz: + + * Ghostwriting = writing under somebody else’s name + * Byline = Literally the ‘By’ line that precedes an article + +For years I turned down all client bylines reasoning that if I was being paid to content market for somebody the writing wasn’t really my own. + +I’ve flipped perspective on this. + +In most instances bylines are good. I struggle with this. Part of me loves being a behind the scenes ghostwriter. But equally I have to be pragmatic in order to survive. If people Google you and find nothing — then you may seem like a big spoofer. + +Show people who you are and what you do. Transparency breeds trust. + +### I Got Into Learning Mode + +I’ve been working with content marketing teams for years and yet it wasn’t until recently that I started to fill my Kindle with books about sales and marketing. + +The hardest part of all this these days is figuring out where to turn to for info. We’re literally drowning in content. Just about anything you want to learn (and are capable of learning) can be learned with a combination of: + + * Books + * Podcasts + * YouTube + +### I Started Inbound Marketing + +I’ve wasted way too much time on outbound marketing over the years. Outbound marketing that yields results — yes — but which has a spotty ROI. + +There’s nothing wrong with outbound marketing in my book. So long as — if you’re cold emailing — you’re reasonably tailored in your approach and you follow email best practices. + +However, it’s a lot of work and it’s neither fun for recipient nor sender. + +I still think that it has its place and that freelancers need to deploy a diverse article. + +BUT I think that inbound is a much more wholesome way to market. + +I’ve recently begun paying more attention to my long neglected writing website blog. Even adding some pages for the niches I write about has resulted in a couple of inbound queries. + +It takes time. But it works. + +### I’m Focusing On Authenticity + +Finally, one that is going to sound incredibly cheesy. + +If there’s one value that I’ve been trying hard to cultivate it’s authenticity. + +I see this as very closely allied with inbound marketing. + +You need to show the world who you really are in order to attract the right kind of people — and clients — into your life. + +For me, this is a work in progress. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Short-And-Dirty-Playbook-To-Finding-Better-Paying-Freelance-Clients.md b/posts/medium/The-Short-And-Dirty-Playbook-To-Finding-Better-Paying-Freelance-Clients.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b383633f5c288540493115d88821a43106079cf9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Short-And-Dirty-Playbook-To-Finding-Better-Paying-Freelance-Clients.md @@ -0,0 +1,82 @@ +# The Short And Dirty Playbook To Finding Better-Paying Freelance Clients + +#### If you want to move up in the client ranks, here’s a step by step approach that might work + +There’s a client for every freelancer. But most also want them to get progressively better over time. Photo by [Pille Kirsi](https://www.pexels.com/@pille-kirsi-222198?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-wooden-ladder-996127/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +There’s no magic formula for freelancing success — whatever you freelance in. Although that certainly doesn’t seem to keep people asking for it (disclosure: I’ve totally been there). + +Nevertheless, over the course of the past 5 years, I’ve figured out a few strategies that seem to work for moving ahead with the whole process of it. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +If you’re finding that you’re attracting the wrong type of clients — or simply ones that don’t see or appreciate your value or haggle with you over pennies— then you may want to think about making tweaks to improve how you run your business. + +A couple of things to get out of the way first: + +Firstly, the ladder I’m about to describe might strike some as Machiavellian. If you feel it that way, I’d encourage you to see it instead as charting out that natural path of forward evolution that many freelancers move through over years doing this. I believe that everybody should be able to capture their market value — including myself. + +There’s also no need to feel sorry for doing whatever it takes to grow your income. If you’re anything like most people, your financial needs may be growing as you accrue responsibilities. + +Working for less than you know you’re worth is also vaguely soul destroying — trust me I know all about this — and there’s a lot to be said for the boost in self-esteem that comes from changing that dynamic irrespective of your current financial position. + +I don’t ditch getting rid of clients the moment you’ve found someone who pays better. That would be a short-sighted approach. Something I’ve found over time is that you can’t put a price on clients who are pleasant to work with and treat you with respect. Nevertheless, over the long haul, you’ll probably want to be advancing your income and client base in a direction that feels like it’s moving upwards. + +This is an approach that seems to work: + +### The Process + +#### 1: Establish An Inbound Lead Pipeline + +I’ve talked an awful lot on Medium about the immense importance of inbound marketing. I’ve affirmed the belief that for small businesses and freelancers, it’s particularly valuable. + +[**Inbound Marketing —4 Reasons It Rocks For Small Businesses** + _Inbound marketing can help any team. But the benefits for small businesses are particularly noteworthy._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-4-reasons-it-rocks-for-small-businesses-916f5eb8a809 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-4-reasons-it-rocks-for-small-businesses-916f5eb8a809")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-4-reasons-it-rocks-for-small-businesses-916f5eb8a809) + +The first step in this process is actually setting up some kind of a funnel that consistently delivers leads into your pipeline. This could also take the form of a referral network. What matters is that this should be something that you can depend on to deliver leads at a pace that can afford you enough room to shake things up. + +#### 2 : Get Fully Booked Or Close To It + +The next step is to get fully booked or close to it. + +That means taking on just about as much work as you can handle without taking on too much so that you have to either find an outsourcing partner in a hurry or else do a less than stellar job for your current clients. + +#### 3: Learn How To Ask Your Value From Prospects + +Now, we’ve layed the foundations in place to make this work. Obviously this whole process is incredibly simplified. Setting up that pipeline could take years. You might also spend years honing your skills so that you’re truly great at what you’re selling. + +But now that we’ve reached this point, we’re at liberty to say ‘no thanks’ to however many prospective clients we deem necessary. + +Remember, you have a pipeline in place so they should still be coming in. But right now you don’t _need_ to take on more work/projects in order to keep the mortgage/rent paid. + +What we’re doing here is attempting to exploit this situation in order to get your comfortable with asking your value. Because doing that involves as much confidence as it does knowing how to send a sales proposal. + +Please note: I’m not encouraging anybody to keep high-balling until enough people say ‘yes’. That’s kind of scammy. What I’m suggesting instead is that anybody who knows that their rates aren’t where they should be — or that they’re working for companies who don’t value them enough — do this to get from point A to point B. + +Note 2: I don’t like the idea of setting up an inbound pipeline solely to tell a bunch of people that you don’t want to work with them. Keep your eyes and mind open to the idea and hope that something good _will_ come along. Consider keeping a little bit of capacity in your schedule to make room for something that could grow into something amazing. + +The crude way to describe what to do here is ‘cutting from the bottom.’ Again, it sounds a bit blunt but this might be what you have to do. Unless you’re madly enamored about the people you’re working for or passionate about the work that you’re doing, many freelancers will ultimately chose whatever option makes it easiest for them to put food on the table. + +### How This Should Work + +Freelancing being freelancing, projects tend to wrap up. Often for reasons that are entirely beyond your control. If you want to know what some of those are, check out my previous post below. + +[**5 Reasons Freelance Writing Clients Disappear** + _All can be very uncertain in the life of a freelance writer. Here are some reasons why clients commonly leave._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/5-reasons-freelance-writing-clients-disappear-dc2c5c78cb96 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/5-reasons-freelance-writing-clients-disappear-dc2c5c78cb96")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/5-reasons-freelance-writing-clients-disappear-dc2c5c78cb96) + +In other words, in the world of freelancing, some level of churn is inevitable. This is another fact that can be leveraged. People pick up freelancers partially because they can pick them up and put them down. + +When you’re in the learning phase, above, you’ll find yourself saying ‘no, thanks’ plenty of times. Perhaps a client wants to low-ball your (existing) rate before you even kick off a project. Or else you just get all sorts of negative signals. But eventually you’ll find yourself saying ‘that sounds great.’ + +What you should eventually achieve is that your existing client base slowly upgrades so that you can develop a referral network from higher tier clients at the next level on the ladder. True, this might mean working on some less than optimal projects in the short term. But this should also keep things moving forward. + +A belief I’ve often heard articulated is that there’s a client for every freelancer. + +Freelancers evolve and as they do the type of clients they’re best suited to working with do so in tandem. + +Setting up a solid inbound pipeline isn’t just a great way to take some of the pressure off your sales and marketing. + +It can also open up the door to working with the type of client you aspire to work with. + +At a rate that makes sense to you. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Silent-Audience-Effect---And-Why-You-May-Have-Never-Heard-The-Names-Of-Your-Biggest-Fans.md b/posts/medium/The-Silent-Audience-Effect---And-Why-You-May-Have-Never-Heard-The-Names-Of-Your-Biggest-Fans.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f3e8fb647a664a57e2c1e4973e87fdb71a85f4f1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Silent-Audience-Effect---And-Why-You-May-Have-Never-Heard-The-Names-Of-Your-Biggest-Fans.md @@ -0,0 +1,106 @@ +# The Silent Audience Effect — And Why You May Have Never Heard The Names Of Your Biggest Fans + +#### Why your most ardent cheerleaders may simply be too busy to create the data that shows you that they care. + +You may feel like you’re writing to an empty house. But your biggest fans may be sitting right there in the audience. You just can’t see them. Photo by [Tuur Tisseghem](https://www.pexels.com/@tuurt?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/empty-seat-391535/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +A few days ago, I received an InMail on LinkedIn. + +It was from a secondary connection who is also in my industry. + +The message went something like this (to try to be a little tactful, I’m paraphrasing rather than sharing a redacted screenshot): + +_“Hi Daniel,_ + +_I loved the article you recently shared about sharing posts on LinkedIn. I thought it was hilarious and one of your best pieces yet. I’ve been following you on Medium for the past year so thought it would be nice to connect here. Keep up the great writing.”_ + +The DM kicked off a brief back and forth. + +To my surprise, Mrs. A _indeed_ had been checking out my writing — which I was rather flattered about. + +Some of my pieces had caused her to think about issues in our industry in a new way. Which was why she reached out to encourage me to keep going. + +But I’m sharing this not to brag about receiving a piece of fan mail. To those who _do_ follow what I write here, you probably already know that that wouldn’t really be my style. + +But rather because there was something significant about this exchange that I think is an important point for content marketers to keep in mind. + +Particularly when you feel like giving up because you think you’re speaking into a vacuum. When discouragement and the desire to give up pecks away at your desire to keep doing what your content marketing calendar asks you to. + +**Not only had I never heard of Mrs. A up until this exchange, I never had reason to know that she existed.** + +While Mrs. A had thoughts to share about some of the things I have written about and was mentally engaging with the ideas I had communicated — mostly those in the marketing domain — Mrs. A had never once: + + * Liked one of my LinkedIn statuses + * Sent me a LinkedIn connection request + * Followed me on Twitter or liked or retweeted anything I had shared + * Commented or clapped on any of the articles I post here on Medium + * Until this week, given me any overt digital engagement signal to show that she was reading my writing + +I’m also sharing this because while the case of Mrs. A is illustrative, it’s far from the first time I’ve received such a communication. + +While I create content under the general assumption that I’m speaking to myself (what can I say … I enjoy writing?), friends occasionally surprise me with remarks like: “I’m reading your article on ADHD and really enjoying it” or “I really enjoyed that post about inbound marketing.” + +What does this say about engagement? I suggest the following — and I think it’s a significant point to remember for content marketers and anybody else involved in inbound. + +### Engagement Metrics Only Capture A Small Part Of The Picture + +A few days ago, I shared the viewpoint that I think that email open rate tracking is — broadly speaking — a weird practice. + +I also questioned whether it’s time for marketers do open up a broader conversation about whether it’s a good practice at all — regardless of whether it helps our campaigns or not. + +[**Email Open Rate Tracking Is Creepy And Weird. Should Marketers Be Using It At All?** +_This week marked a historic turning point in privacy advocates’ battle against email open rate tracking — a…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/email-open-rate-tracking-is-creepy-and-weird-should-marketers-be-using-it-at-all-f0e15a33ec3a "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/email-open-rate-tracking-is-creepy-and-weird-should-marketers-be-using-it-at-all-f0e15a33ec3a")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/email-open-rate-tracking-is-creepy-and-weird-should-marketers-be-using-it-at-all-f0e15a33ec3a) + +And part of my argument was that as a way of measuring the extent to which your target audience is engaging with your content, it’s a highly flawed metric. + +These days, us marketers are all falling over one another to accrue data so that we can proudly say that we’re “data-driven.” + +**But how many of us actually pause to meaningfully investigate whether the data that we’re trying to leverage in our automations and strategy really represents something meaningful?** + +Here’s the thing about the silence audience effect and people like Mrs. A. + +Your brand might have hundreds or even thousands of Mr. and Mrs. As in your online audience. + +The problem is that — if you measure the efficacy of your communications solely based upon visible engagement metrics — you’ll have no way of knowing who that they exist at all. + +The silent audience effect cuts both ways, by the way. + +**For every Mr. and Mrs. A. who would feel inclined to pen you fan mail if only they could muster up the energy or find the time to do so, there’s a Mr. or Mrs. A who’s silently and negatively judging what you write.** + +And that’s fine and expected. If you’re going to create content at scale, you’re going to inevitably attract fans, critics, and even downright nasty haters. + +[**The 4 Types Of Readers You’ll Get As An Online Writer** + _What happens after you hit the publish button_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/the-4-types-of-readers-youll-get-as-an-online-writer-c3f2596c6b4a) + +But here’s the problem: + +If you’re patting yourself on the back because your latest email marketing campaign got a 34% open rate, you may be completely missing out on the fact that those who opened the email were all junior level staff without authority to buy your solution and the senior execs rolled their eyes at your tacky subject line. + +While data is undoubtedly useful in guiding marketing efforts, we can’t live solely to accrue metrics. The particular case of engagement metrics bears this out. If we do, we risk missing out on the signal — the execs that hated our email and the damage that did to our brand — and adding a lot of noise to the picture for good measure. That’s the kind of thing that _doesn’t_ help marketers make better decisions. + +There’s a mental health aspect to the above too. + +**For those us in the trenches of creating content on behalf of ourselves and the companies we work work,_we_ are often the biggest impediment to that process’s success.** + +[**Inbound Marketing: Why Human Minds Are Often The Biggest Enemy To Its Success** + _The biggest impediment to getting the ROI you’re after from inbound … might actually be you and your brain_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketing-why-human-minds-are-often-the-biggest-enemy-to-its-success-55a479c908bf "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketing-why-human-minds-are-often-the-biggest-enemy-to-its-success-55a479c908bf")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketing-why-human-minds-are-often-the-biggest-enemy-to-its-success-55a479c908bf) + +Why? + +**Because humans are by and large impatient creatures who expect and demand quick results.** But content marketing really doesn’t work that way. + +We want things to work immediately. To see immediate ROI on our efforts. + +And we take the often misleading data that social media networks throw back in our face as surrogates for actually truly understanding how we — and our brands — are being perceived in the market. + +There’s a good chance that you’ve never heard the names of your brand’s biggest advocates and cheerleaders. + +They may be reading and loving everything that you write. + +Or at least some of it. But they may be too shy — or too busy — to create datapoints that will make that evident. + +There’s a good chance you don’t know their names. Their job titles. Where they work. Or anything about them. + +If you’re creating content and think that you’re speaking into the dark, push on regardless. You may be. Or you may think that you are. + +And your biggest fans may be lurking silently in the background. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Staggering-Gulf-Between-Salaries-In-Israel-s-High-Tech-Sector-And-The-Rest-Of-The-Economy.md b/posts/medium/The-Staggering-Gulf-Between-Salaries-In-Israel-s-High-Tech-Sector-And-The-Rest-Of-The-Economy.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cb37c21aa5a8ef4b55ddfe4ba48d0b43b84745e6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Staggering-Gulf-Between-Salaries-In-Israel-s-High-Tech-Sector-And-The-Rest-Of-The-Economy.md @@ -0,0 +1,51 @@ +# The Staggering Gulf Between Salaries In Israel’s High-Tech Sector And The Rest Of The Economy + +#### The average salary in Israel’s high-tech sector stands at more than six figures (USD). But the rest of the economy lags behind. The difference is more than two-fold. + +The differential between salaries in Israel’s high-tech sector and the rest of the economy is more than two-fold. Photo: Wikimedia Commons + +As reported in the news today, Israel’s national statistics body, The Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) recently released its updated salary figures. + +[**Average salary in Israel up 10.7% to NIS 12,146** + _The average monthly salary in Israel in February 2021 was NIS 12,146, up 10.7% from February 2020, the Central Bureau…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-average-salary-in-israel-up-107-1001369880 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-average-salary-in-israel-up-107-1001369880")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-average-salary-in-israel-up-107-1001369880) + +The average salary underwent a relatively substantial rise of 10.7% although the report noted that many workers in lower paid jobs were out of the workforce and thus not included in the statistics. + +“High tech” has its own average, though, and the average salary in that sector of the economy rose 12.6% from the beginning of the year to 28,837 NIS + +Salaries in Israel are quoted on a monthly rather than annual basis. + +The equivalence of both those figures to the US dollar — at the exchange rate operative at the time of writing — is as follows (rounded to the nearest dollar): + +**Economy-wide average** = $44,671 + +**High-tech sector average** = $106,057 + +To put that in perspective: the latest high-tech salary average is 237% of the economy-wide average. + +### The Catch: Most Israeli Workers Don’t Work In High-Tech + +As successive nationwide salary surveys continue to make clear, there are segments of the economy that are doing very well indeed from Israel’s high-tech ecosystem — even during pandemic times. + +The fact that the average salary in the sector exceeds six figures — in the US dollar — is nothing short of staggering. + +But there are a few more datapoints required to interpret this information in its proper context: + + * [The vast majority of the Israeli workforce](https://innovationisrael.org.il/en/news/2019-high-tech-human-capital-report#:~:text=The%20number%20of%20high%2Dtech,8%25%20increase%20over%20the%20year.) — during some years more than 90% — does _not_ work in the sector defined as ‘high tech’ + * Israel has one of the most expensive costs of living in the world. A recent survey [ranked it in eighth place globally.](https://www.ynetnews.com/business/article/By5ba11dfL) + +The latest salary data from the CBS makes clear that there are many in Silicon Wadi doing exceptionally well from the export-led sector of the economy that sells leading technology around the world. + +But, in addition to the above, it’s also worth remembering that even within the world of “high tech” there’s a significant variability in terms of salaries paid. While even rookie algorithm developers can comfortably demand starting salaries well above 20,00 NIS, the starting payscale doesn’t start at such lofty heights in other departments in the organization. + +While Israel’s high-tech scene tends to be dominated by smaller organizations and startups, the arrival of R&D centers of major multinational tech players has likely also had a buoyant effect on average salaries, even if those are often impossible for local operators to compete against. + +[**Tech salaries continue to climb, highlighted by particularly sharp increases outside of Tel Aviv** + _The Matam High Tech Park in Haifa. Photo: Michael Doron/Evolvemedia The most sought-after employees in the northern…_ www.calcalistech.com](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3902170,00.html "https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3902170,00.html")[](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3902170,00.html) + +[**How To Research Salaries In Israel** + _Places To Research Your Market Value In The Israeli Job Market_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-research-salaries-in-israel-3c0c6ca577f4 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-research-salaries-in-israel-3c0c6ca577f4")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/how-to-research-salaries-in-israel-3c0c6ca577f4) + +The massive gulf in salaries between Israel’s tech sector and the rest of the economy underscores the large gap between Israel’s haves and have-nots ([25% of Israel’s population lives below the poverty line](https://santandertrade.com/en/portal/analyse-markets/israel/economic-political-outline)). + +Increasing participation in the high-tech boom and upskilling immigrants and _sabras_ alike __ to be able to participate in it can be expected to be a major economic concern for policymakers going forward. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Type-Of-Freelance-Writing-Clients-You-Encounter-At-Various-Price-Points.md b/posts/medium/The-Type-Of-Freelance-Writing-Clients-You-Encounter-At-Various-Price-Points.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..18a584cba344f7431d1524da37da3d5e4a943364 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Type-Of-Freelance-Writing-Clients-You-Encounter-At-Various-Price-Points.md @@ -0,0 +1,140 @@ +# The Type Of Freelance Writing Clients You Encounter At Various Price Points + +#### How the market changes at various price points on the way up the pricing ladder + +Climbing the freelance writing pricing ladder? These are the types of clients you may encounter at each price point along the way. Photo by [Monstera](https://www.pexels.com/@gabby-k?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/big-piece-of-clay-on-table-5302904/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I’ve written previously about the various ways you can charge for freelance writing work. + +[**My Guides To Finding Clients and Pricing Freelance Writing Work** + _To continue with the process of indexing I initiated yesterday, here’s an ordered list to some bits of information I…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-guides-to-finding-clients-and-pricing-freelance-writing-work-e3dc5e5a8d25 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-guides-to-finding-clients-and-pricing-freelance-writing-work-e3dc5e5a8d25")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-guides-to-finding-clients-and-pricing-freelance-writing-work-e3dc5e5a8d25) + +The common options are: + + * Pricing per word + * Pricing per project + * Pricing per hour + * Retainer pricing + +Pricing per word and pricing per project are both charging based upon an output. Pricing per hour is pricing based upon a unit of time. Retainer pricing, when you think about it, is really just a kind of project pricing: you get paid a recurring amount for a fixed set of deliverables (typically). + +I (personally) don’t recommend pricing per word unless you’re churning out lots and lots of low-rate content (and the brute force method is also an approach that I don’t recommend). But I _do_ think that it makes for a good yardstick of comparison. + +[**Why Low Rate Writing Didn’t Work Out For Me** +medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-low-rate-writing-didnt-work-out-for-me-1ccae1b6ae32 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-low-rate-writing-didnt-work-out-for-me-1ccae1b6ae32")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/why-low-rate-writing-didnt-work-out-for-me-1ccae1b6ae32) + +I charge project rates which I put together based on a time estimate for each job. I can calculate a per-word equivalent (PWE?) based on these to see where what I’m charging stacks up against the market. + +Recently, I completed my first freelance content writing project for which my PWE was slightly above $1 per word — a traditional benchmark in the publishing industry for reasonably well-compensated work. + +Having finally made it all the way from near the bottom of the scale to a significant milestone, I thought I’d throw together my quick thoughts on the type of work you’re _likely_ to attract at various price points along the ladder. + +### $0-$0.10 CPW + +For those who retain their own clients, and are working from countries with reasonably expensive costs of living, $0-$0.10 (cents per word / CPW in USD) represents the bottom of the market. + +Of course even here there’s a ten-fold difference (between $0.01 CPW and $0.10 CPW). My very first rate, for anybody wondering, was $0.08 CPW. I charged this to put together the video descriptions about how to microwave burgers that provided my ignominious entry to the world of freelance writing. Those were interesting days. + +At this rate, most writers would need to rely on pretty serious volume in order to make a full-time living from their writing. + +Clients at this price are typically SEO buyers: affiliate marketing sites with bulk needs and the like. Quantity and the speed at which writers can turnaround passable text is typically the concern rather than quality. + +### $0.10-$0.20 CPW + +Let’s take a look at the next decile on the way up the ladder. + +To get a sense for what kind of rate we’re talking about here, I like to quote a number based on a 1,000 word blog post — because it makes it easy to see what kind of money these numbers actually work out to. + +At $0.14/word a 1,000 word blog post would net you $140. + +For most writers, $70/hour isn’t a _bad_ hourly rate. Sure it’s not top tier, but it’s enough to amount to a reasonable annual income. + +Assuming that’s your hourly, you’d be able to allow yourself two hours for this blog project. Don’t forget that that would also need to include revisions and the back and forth with the client — and I’d subtract 20 minutes for the latter alone. + +As the above makes clear, I think it’s fair to say that at this rate you’re still looking at “churnalism” being the only way to make these kind of rates work. + +#### Who’s buying? + +(Often) the SEO buyers who think that they’re paying generously for “content.” Many writers can make this kind of rate work but speed and quantity are going to be prerequisites. + +### $0.20-$0.30 CPW + +At $0.25 CPW our 1,000 word blog post is now netting us $250 in revenue. + +At our $70/hour hourly rate, we now have (rounding) 3.5 hours to complete the project. + +These kind of rates still aren’t what I would consider top tier (or close to it). But for simple blogging projects (and the like) that don’t require much in the way of revision (or any at all) these rates can actually be pretty solid. + +3.5 hours — roughly half a workday — should be enough for most writers to complete basic blog posts. You could probably even squeeze in one revision if you could get the first draft turned around in under 3 hours. + +#### Who’s buying? + +At this kind of rate, we’re starting to see non-SEO buyers enter the picture. Of course, everybody buying writing tends to be concerned about SEO. But other objectives for writing — like actually creating useful information for humans — tend to become part of the picture here as well. Non-_pure_ SEO buyers might be a better term of art. + +### $0.30-$0.40 CPW + +If you asked me to name the price point at which freelance writing clients are the most difficult to work with, guess which one I’d pick (based on my five years’ experience to date)? + +The market’s bottom at $0.08/word? + +Actually no. Expectations there tend to be low and if you can drink enough coffee and type sufficiently quickly these can get you going in the market and building up a portfolio. + +The most difficult clients I have encountered have all — not coincidentally — been in this range at $0.30-$0.40/word. + +For what it’s worth, I still do a significant chunk of work at this price bracket. But my experience has been my experience. + +Why do the _thirties_ seem to attract a disproportionate share of bad clients? I think the reason is that at this price point clients feel like they’re paying an awful lot for writing and feel entitled to be extremely demanding. If you hear the “we’ll pay it, but for this price it better good” line then you’re probably in for trouble. + +At these kind of budgets, we’re beginning to have enough time to actually work on quality writing. At the middle of this range — $0.35/word — our 1,000 word blog post is now netting us $350 in revenue. Using our $70/hour target, we now have exactly 5 hours to turn around the job. + +That’s enough, if you ask me, to put together something halfway decent with time for _one_ decent round of revisions. But it’s still — in my opinion — reasonably tight. + +#### Who’s buying? + +Small organizations and startups that are investing in writing for the first time. They tend to choose these kind of numbers deliberately to get themselves beyond the rookie levels. + +### $0.40-$0.50 CPW + +Next question: + +Where do the _quality_ freelance writing clients start cropping up in the pricing table? + +I’d argue you need to get into the forties before you start feeling like you’re out of the range of the price buyers. And out of that range — and into the fiefdom of the _value_ buyers — is really where you want to get. + +At these kind of prices, organizations are starting to allocate some decent budget to writing deliverables. Which communicates that they value writing and are prepared to invest in quality. + +Based on my experience, you’ll see a lot of medium-sized organizations at this price point. Ironically, the enterprise clients of this world tend to farm out an enormous volume of work though sprawling agency networks who often need to squeeze down the writers to preserve their profit margins. Which means that you can find yourself in the odd position of writing for household name clients for crummy rates. + +I like the forties. At these rates, it’s _beginning_ to not feel like a frantic rush to put together quality writing deliverables while keeping one eye on the clock. I have time to actually spend an hour poring over a draft outline to make sure that what I’m going to write flows in a cohesive order. Clients tend to be decent to work with too. Overall, a win-win situation. + +#### Who’s buying? + +As above, medium sized orgs that want to actually create something halfway decent to impress prospects. We’re already typically past the range of the pure SEO buyers. + +### $0.50-$1/word + +I’m wrapping up my pricing observations with a range that encompasses half the scale towards the $1/word rate for a specific reason: + +Most of my blogging work — even these days, as I write this — is in the $0.30-$0.50/word range. + +I’ve done projects for more. But I typically don’t stray too far beyond that. So I don’t have enough datapoints to make conclusive observations about the type of clients you encounter at each price point. + +Most of my work in this range also isn’t blogging. It’s case studies and white papers. These tend to be research and process-heavy such that — if you’re not careful — even $1/word can end up not being such a great rate from a time perspective. + +When would I quote $0.60-$0.70/word for, say, that 1,000 word blog? The type of buyer here would be an organization looking for something _really good_ on a complicated topic that’s going to be sent to people with domain expertise (think B2B sales and the like). + +They might insist that I budget for two rounds of revisions so I’d have to work this into the quote. And I’m also making sure that I’m budgeting enough time for an outline revision process as well as my own desk research. Possibly an SME interview too. + +To run the breakdown one more time: at $0.65/word the 1,000 word blog nets us $650 in revenue. That gets us 9 hours (roughly) at $70/hour. So these kind of rates aren’t as astronomically high as they may appear to some. Breaking down the numbers in this manner is one way to see that. + +#### Who’s buying? + +A lot of B2B organizations who realize that they need to allocate decent budgets in order to get important “content” assets like white papers and e-books produced professionally. Higher-end blog buyers too. + +Finally, the best kept secret in the freelance writing business (I kid, it’s not really a secret): + +As you begin charging more you find that — to your amazement — clients actually get _easier_ and _more pleasant_ to work with and are _less demanding_. + +Of course you want to do your best possible work at all levels on the pricing ladder. + +But it’s worth charging more _just_ to work with organizations and people who value what you do and are prepared to back it with reasonable budget. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Ultimate-Long-Game--Content-Marketing-Demands-Its-Own-Mindset-Too.md b/posts/medium/The-Ultimate-Long-Game--Content-Marketing-Demands-Its-Own-Mindset-Too.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a4d4aa2b198c02ba4d245cf2d837d3a0308f2cdc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Ultimate-Long-Game--Content-Marketing-Demands-Its-Own-Mindset-Too.md @@ -0,0 +1,68 @@ +# The Ultimate Long Game, Content Marketing Demands Its Own Mindset Too + +#### When transitioning from outbound to inbound-led marketing, attitudes need to change as well + +Marketing in the slow lane: why inbound and content marketing demand their own mindset. Photo: Colin Smith via Geograph.org.uk + +Inbound marketing is my new favorite thing. + +For the past year, instead of sending cold emails to keep my pipeline full, I’ve been blogging, podcasting, and video-ing my way to lead generation instead. Attraction rather than disruption. You’ve probably heard the spiel before. + +Learning content marketing requires one skillset. But one lesson that is often left off the curriculum is what to do about mindset. + +Because when transitioning to marketing like a hare (outbound) to marketing like a tortoise (inbound) attitudes and expectations also need to change in order to avoid disappointment. Otherwise one risks becoming an “are we there yet?” marketer. + +Here are a few shifts I’ve been trying to implement in order to more fully embrace the new way of marketing. + +### Expect Results To Come Slowly + +This one is obvious but merits mentioning anyway. + +Inbound marketing, and content marketing, isn’t about getting results in the here and now. + +**Rather, content marketing is the ultimate long game.** + +Whether you’re putting out writing on your own blog, Medium, or distributing it over social feeds, there’s an inevitable time lag between when you engage in the process of creating content and when you start actually seeing results from it in the form of inbound leads. + +The reasons? + + * **People are busy and tend to sift through their social media feeds slowly.** It may take a while before your social post will even begin reaching target audiences. + * **The internet is an increasingly crowded place;** therefore, getting discovered through competitive keywords gets progressively harder as the internet continues to grow. + * **Onsite SEO, which assists discoverability, tends to be developed slowly.** + * Search engines don’t index new content immediately and there’s a lag between when you hit the publish button and when that piece of content is indexed in Google. + * **Reputations — which depend upon human as well as technological factors — are developed slowly too.** If you’re aiming for discoverability through social networks, audiences don’t develop overnight. But once you’ve got the ball rolling, it becomes easier to get subsequent posts seen. I like the static friction analogy. Getting the call rolling is harder than keeping it that way. + +### Realize That Content Creation Volume Is A Leading Indicator + +[**Leading vs Lagging Metrics** + _Are your managers operating as company doctors or coroners?_ iangotts.medium.com](https://iangotts.medium.com/leading-vs-lagging-metrics-baa0c7e9ddb4 "https://iangotts.medium.com/leading-vs-lagging-metrics-baa0c7e9ddb4")[](https://iangotts.medium.com/leading-vs-lagging-metrics-baa0c7e9ddb4) + +In business, we commonly talk about the difference between leading and lagging metrics and KPIs. + +When we’re engaging in content marketing, we need to transition through three stages: + + * Firstly we create the content. This is the hard graft of sitting down to write the post or create the status. + * Next, we wait for people to read the content. This is the most dangerous part of the content creation process because it’s when we’re most likely to give up on the whole enterprise in exasperation. “I spent a whole week writing blog posts and nobody’s even read them!” you might think. + * Finally — hopefully — people discover and engage with our content and we move them through our marketing funnel. + +The takeaway from the above: when it comes to content creation, effort (and writing) is a leading indicator. There’s a gap between when we put in the work and when we reap the results. Patience is therefore a vital part of the inbound mindset. + +### Realize That Content Creation Is A Leading Indicator + +When it comes to monitoring the effectiveness of your content creation process, chasing after short term metrics can be a dangerously temping business. + +[**The Dangers of Chasing After Social Engagement Metrics** + _In a world drowning in data, we’re also swimming in noise. Are most social engagement metrics simply part of that?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-dangers-of-chasing-after-social-engagement-metrics-3d504c882321 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-dangers-of-chasing-after-social-engagement-metrics-3d504c882321")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-dangers-of-chasing-after-social-engagement-metrics-3d504c882321) + +If you’re watching how many likes your posts get the moment they’re published, then there’s a chance that you’re also missing the medium to long term dynamics that are really shaping how you’re doing at developing an audience. + +Becoming a content marketer requires stepping back just a little from the precipice. Give your content time to breath and percolate through feeds. Then come back and assess what’s working and what’s not. Measuring things on a monthly rather than daily basis is often therefore the better approach. + +Becoming an inbound-first organization requires more than just writing content. You also need to get into a different mindset. + +You can start by realizing that: + + * It’s not going to work overnight + * Effort is a leading indicator that precedes success + * Getting lost in the noise of short term metrics can be distracting and dangerous + diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Unspoken-Extra-Skills-That-Are-Needed-For-Freelancing.md b/posts/medium/The-Unspoken-Extra-Skills-That-Are-Needed-For-Freelancing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f39c3e0fa4af99ce2c928f7ddb694034dc25e253 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Unspoken-Extra-Skills-That-Are-Needed-For-Freelancing.md @@ -0,0 +1,140 @@ +# The Unspoken Extra Skills That Are Needed For Freelancing + +A few articles have addressed the various skills that individuals need in order to pull off freelancing well. + +Typically these articles ( [example](https://www.creativelive.com/blog/top-valuable-skills-for-freelancers/)) focus on the skills that you are selling — such as WordPress development, graphic design, or writing (sorry … I don’t use the word ‘content’!). + +I’d like to do something slightly different here. + +Let’s put aside the skill you are selling for the purpose of this blog post. + +It should be obvious that you _do_ have a skill to sell if you plan on making a full-time living as as freelancer. + +Additionally, in order to succeed in the competitive freelance marketplace, you’re going to need to be pretty good at it. + +Ideally, you should also have proven experience executing that skill _before_ you go looking to get started on your own. + +Previous work experience is a common basis for achieving this basic proficiency, although many freelancers disagree upon exactly how much experience is ideal to accrue before going out on one’s own (a school of thought: the connections gained in a role might matter more than the skills.) + +More ideally again those clients should provide you with social proof to validate your proficiency in order to pre-qualify you to future leads. Think testimonials and case studies and the like. + +But that still leaves an awful lot of things you’ll need to pick up during the journey. These are the soft and hard skills that you need to have as accompaniments to your writing / editing / developing ones. Calling these skillsets ancillary would be doing them a disservice, in my opinion. In reality, I believe that one’s command of these skills can make or break one’s success as a freelancer. And several of them are afforded all too little attention. + +I imagine that everybody has their own list as to what these are. But here’s mine. + +### 1\. Marketing + +As a freelancer, your first concern is likely going to be getting clients to pay you for what you do. Your second concern, which you may only be able to really focus on after a few years at the grindstone, is going to be finding lucrative and desirable clients that make the process of earning a living a pleasant -rather than torturous — experience. + +To do this you’re going to need to generate demand for your goods and services by marketing yourself and hoping that you get in front of potential cleints. + +And to do this, you’ll likely try to leverage a combination of inbound and outbound methodologies. I have been extremely weak in the former. And I question whether the latter-assessed soberly-has provided a justifiable return on investment (ROI). + +Learning about marketing will mean learning SEO. Becoming proficient in blogging. And building an audience that actually wants to hear from you. These days, it’s an almost universal expectation that you’ll also distribute your “content” through social media pages. Setting up a podcast and distributing video through YouTube is also becoming more increasingly popular. + +Finally, there’s a public relations (PR) dimension here too that you shouldn’t neglect which is typically bracketed under the broader marketing rubric. + +As a freelancer, you’re the beaming face of your own personal brand. Some freelancers will consider paying for exposure (PPC) just as a business would. Others will focus instead (or complement that with) a strong public relations (PR) game. + +The most successful freelancers, from what I have gathered, are pretty ruthless about seeing themselves as a commodity and waste no time in signing up for HARO alerts and trying to get themselves ‘out there’ in order to, again, hopefully connect with potential customers. + +Being somewhat reticent about the whole idea of promoting myself, this is another aspect of the journey I have struggled with. + +Focusing on opportunities where I felt I could deliver value independent of my product/service offering has helped me get over that apprehension. And remember this: if nobody marketed and sold it would be much harder to find anything to guy when you needed it! + +Don’t underestimate how much time and energy this will take. Marketing (which is in effect self-promotion) is a massive time-draw for most freelancers. + +### 2\. Sales + +After you have generated demand for your goods or services -whether you find your prospects or they find you-you’re going to need some good sales skills in order to get the deal over the line. + +Don’t assume that just because somebody tells you that they’re really keen to use you that they’re going to pan out as a client. Counting your chickens before they hatch is a rookie mistake. The more bitter reality is that most deals are lost somewhere in the pipeline. But it’s your job to maximize your sales skills in order to raise your won:lost ratio as high as possible. + +This is a lot easier said than done. In fact, my greatest challenges when it has come to freelancing have all been fairly run-of-the-mill sales problems. Not client management. And not getting the jobs that I sell done in time for the deadline. + +It is my strongly held belief that among the best things that most freelancers could do with any spare time they might have is take a sales training — ideally one targeted at small businesses because that is likely the level of scale they are going to be dealing with. + +Freelancers are going to be thrown in the deep end when it comes to things like handling sales negotiations, preparing contracts, and qualifying leads (very, very important!). + +A lot of problems that freelancers think are ‘something else’ (my client doesn’t understand what I do! I keep attracting cheap prospects!) are actually sales problems. Network with other freelancers in order to pick up some tips. And consider taking a structured course to really give your skills a good run-through. + +### 3\. Interpersonal Skills and Networking + +I’ve put interpersonal skills and networking under its own heading because -unlike, say, “networking” on LinkedIn or managing clients -this one ideally requires getting out into the world. + +Again, this is an area where I have underperformed over the past two years. Mostly because I have been very busy working and wary of attending things like conferences in other countries because it represents an investment with uncertain ROI. But this, I believe, has been a mistake. + +I have an informal mentoring network of two or three veteran freelancers (those that have been in the game for 20+ years). The one thing they have all told me? Their best clients have come from networking and in-network referrals. Not from cold emailing. And not even from inbound marketing. + +Think about it this way: if money weren’t an issue what sounds better to you: slogging away at a few more blogs/podcasts/video, putting together proposals and holding prospecting calls on Zoom or actually getting to see some of the world by attending a conference you know your prospective customers are going to be at? If you can afford to travel for these kind of opportunities then, in my opinion, it’s a no-brainer. + +As a freelancer, you’ll be spending plenty of time being a screen. Getting out into the world (as soon as we can) and showing potential clients that we’re a real person still means a lot. Freelancers need interpersonal and etiquette know-how in order to pull this off as effectively as possible. + +### 4\. Technical Skills + +I recently published [a book](https://www.amazon.com/Confused-Freelancers-Guide-Technology-Essentials-ebook/dp/B089N9L5S4) in which I covered (I hope!) just about every technical skill that freelancers might need to arm themselves with in order to succeed in the game. + +Ideally that would include things like: + + * Knowing how to set up hosting and buy a domain + * Knowing how to run backup systems in order to keep extra copies of all their critical client work + +You don’t need to be a technical wizard in order to begin freelancing. + +But if you can get to be good enough to know how to use a CRM effectively, and run an email marketing program to send out enticing campaigns, then you’ll be giving yourself a leg up. + +### 5\. Administrative Skills + +In addition to managing your marketing and sales pipeline and .. you know … actually doing your best work for clients, most freelancers also need to handle all the administrative / back-office side of their businesses themselves. + +This means everything from correctly itemizing invoices to making sure that they are sent off in time to making sure that you put away the right amount for your tax liability each month to making sure that you get your UK account details to that new account you just signed up in London. + +Trust me — it’s a lot. + +To make this job a little easier it has become trendy for more successful freelancers to hire a virtual assistant (VA). These individuals are typically located in a lower cost wage base. But for many, particularly at the earliest stages of scaling up, doing everything themselves is their only practicable option. + +### 6\. Continuous Professional Development (CPD) and Self-Directed Learning + +Yes, learning isn’t exactly a hard skill in and of itself. But one of the things that freelancers need to keep their eye on is making sure that their skillsets are both up to date and continuously evolving. + +When companies hire freelance support they often expect that they will be hiring people who are at the top of their game (although the increased supply in the freelance market is arguably whittling away at this dynamic). They may also be looking for rare skills that they can’t find internally in their organization. Even if that _isn’t_ the expectation in your industry you would probably be advised to carry on as if it were. And the more specialized and skillful you can be the better the rates you should be able to command (in an ideal market; note, particularly in the freelance marketplace, reality and theory don’t necessarily always align). + +Freelancers would be well-advised to pay close attention to CPD and to always be looking for training opportunities that can expand or cement existing skillsets. Popular options for freelancers involved in writing and marketing-related endeavors are the Hubspot certifications. More casual means of improving one’s skills include listening to podcasts and reading books by leading authors. + +As I work quite a bit with companies in the technology and cloud sphere I’m currently pursuing the AWS Cloud Practitioner certification. + +There are wide and plentiful options. Find a training that might impress prospects down the line and add it to your list of credentials. + +### 7\. Mental Fortitude + +With an unpredictable income, a market that sometimes behaves grossly unfairly towards external talent, and the additional difficulty of not having paid vacation or benefits, it is easy to see why freelancing is not a game for the feint of heart. + +Statistics about the incidence of mood disorders such as anxiety and depression among freelancers, versus the general population, bear out in raw numbers just how taxing the lifestyle can be for those that choose it. + +With nobody looking over one’s shoulder — both to set tasks and to check up on your mood — freelancers need to go the extra mile towards ensuring their own wellness. + +Burnout, in particular, is a constant threat that freelancers need to be on the lookout for. + +Those that find that they cannot make a reasonable income in exchange for reasonable hours might be better advised to find a more stable source of income. + +### 8\. Gatekeeping + +As a freelancer, your time is your most precious asset and what you use in order to make a livelihood. Unfortunately there are many people who will gratuitously waste your time. The skill of being your own secretary and gatekeeper and being reasonably selective about what meetings you take is greatly underappreciated. + +If you also dabble in, say, journalism then you are likely to run into a few of the following characters over the course of your time in business: + + * Publicists that will attempt to use you in order to get undeserved earned media. + * “Prospective” customers that are actually just window shopping in order to suss out where the market rate is. + * If you consult, then you’re also likely to run into “prospective” customers that are actually just collecting market intelligence and looking for free advice. + +Be wary of anybody that seems on a frantic rush to get on the phone. Validate their intent and level of seriousness _before_ committing any substantial block of your time — whether that’s putting together a proposal or getting into a protracted email exchange asking about what ‘value’ you could bring to their company. + +### There’s A Lot To Master At Once + +Freelancers need to be good at a lot more than whatever it is that they sell to clients. + +To be at the top of their game in a competitive playing field freelancers need to have a good command of sales and marketing. They need the technical chops to maximize their utility from modern systems designed to do everything smarter and better. And they need the motivation and mental resilience to stay the course even when the going gets tough. + +It’s a lot to come to grips with at once. But for those that do, the rewards can make it all seem worth it. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Unusual-Tactic-I-m-Using-to-Attract-High-Intent-Inbound-Leads.md b/posts/medium/The-Unusual-Tactic-I-m-Using-to-Attract-High-Intent-Inbound-Leads.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d6883b4c8fe01dbf0eb9de861018c55464071cda --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Unusual-Tactic-I-m-Using-to-Attract-High-Intent-Inbound-Leads.md @@ -0,0 +1,214 @@ +# The Unusual Tactic I’m Using to Attract High-Intent Inbound Leads + +Yup. I’m one of those LinkedIn users. + +For the past few years, I’ve been using and experimenting with a strange tactic for driving high-intent leads [to my writing business](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com). + +Admittedly, it’s not the only facet of my approach to business that is a little unorthodox. + +[**I wrote here recently**](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0?source=---------5------------------)**about how I actually _tell_ prospective clients at the start of a conversation that I’m not likely to be the most responsive freelancer they’ve ever dealt with.** + +That I endeavor to _always_ get back to questions within the same business day and almost always respond to emails within three hours. + +But that there’s also no way I can commit to being plugged into their Slack (and that of every other client) _and_ agree to the expectation that I will be able to give instantaneous responses through it. + +If we’re in very different time zones I might be asleep. + +Or at the gym. Or on a call. Or working for another client. + +As I also wrote in the piece I linked, this is in fact a _deliberate technique_ to exclude clients who want somebody who’s always on call from my sales funnel — or, in sales jargon, to enforce this as a qualification criterion. + +And to my surprise and relief, I described how I’ve discovered that there are just as many businesses who are fine with that as there are those who would roll their eyes at the idea and with this very post. + +_(_[_As I also wrote recently_](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d) _, I don’t believe that freelancers should see themselves as being in the business of ‘firing’ clients. Rather, I know that these clients would not be a good fit_** _for me_** _— but they probably are for somebody else. Freelancers complete in a global marketplace, but this isn’t a zero sum game. So why not save us both the time and heartache?)_ + +There are another couple of tricks up my sleeve too. + +Some are slow burners — works in progress that might take years to come to fruition. + +When I’m absolutely sure they work, and that I know exactly what I’m talking about, I’ll share those with you too. + +But here’s one that I can affirm _does_ yield good results. Or at least which has done so far. + +And so I present: + +### To Drive Higher Intent Leads, I Made Myself (Ever So) Slightly Harder To Get In Touch With + + _(Heavy emphasis on the word ‘slightly’ here.)_ + +I’ve withheld disclosing this idea before because it’s so completely antithetical to received marketing wisdom that I assume it will ruffle some feathers. + +I also assumed that people would think the idea was crazy or idiotic, which actually worried me more. + +Then, about an hour ago, I realized that I’m fine with all of the above. + +We disagree now, but I might agree with you in a year’s time. + +For now, this is working for me. + +And if it stops doing so, I will go back to doing things the conventional way. + +So let me try to explain. + +Standard advice for freelancers hoping to develop a successful and continuous sales pipeline goes something like this: + +They should: + + * Publish their portfolio everywhere on the internet. + * Splash their email address in their LinkedIn cover art. You want to capture interested clients from every digital compass point, after all! + * Be as visible and loud as possible everywhere online all of the time. (Rationale: as above). + +### But First: A Note About Personal Branding (And Why You Ideally Need Lots Of It To Pull This Off) + +The first caveat I have to say about my strategy is that unless your personal branding and search engine visibility is pretty rock solid, this is a very risky approach to attempt. (But what can I say? Sometimes I’m a risk taker!) + +As I will disclose, my own personal branding frankly sucks right now. But I’m also being very proactive about reaching out to prospects. So for now, at least, things are working out. + +To make the overall strategy at work here a bit clearer, though, let me explain a little about my personal branding _objectives_ rather than where I’m at right now. + +With all due respect to those that do things differently, I’m not keen on putting out the image of a gun-for-hire who will take any work that comes his way. + +Because — unless and until I’m in truly dire straits — I know that I won’t. + +My goals instead are to: + + * **Develop a _reputation_ as somebody knowledgeable in their field.** Dare I say it, to become, over time, a ‘thought leader’? To generate social proof, this really needs to come from other people — or at least from me on closed _fora_ (websites, events) that other people have deemed me credible enough to write for / talk at. + +I intend doing this through: + + * **Engaging in guest posting** / having my work published in online assets that other people manage (right now, I don’t have the time to pitch these pieces out. But I also really like Medium! Hey, it’s a start!). + * **Giving podcast interviews.** + * **Attending conferences and meetups.** + +Having managed marketing communications (MarCom) at two startups and worked (briefly) within a PR firm, I have at least a basic idea about how to go about doing all of the above. I plan on simply doing the activities I would undertake for a client (like developing a content calendar, collating editorial calendars to spot great pitching opportunities and pitching them to podcasts). But instead pitching myself. + +But all good efforts need a roadmap and some criteria to measure them by, of course. + +[PricewaterhouseCooper’s Personal Brand Workbook. ](https://www.pwc.com/c1/en/assets/downloads/personal_brand_workbook.pdf)A free resource. And highly, highly recommended. + +So last year, I spent days working through PricewaterhouseCooper’s superb [‘Personal Brand Workbook’](https://www.pwc.com/c1/en/assets/downloads/personal_brand_workbook.pdf) with a friend. + +For a business workbook put out by one of the Big Four, it was a surprisingly deep and emotionally-taxing resource, prompting both of us to ask ourselves, and one another, some difficult and at times uncomfortable questions about our values in life — what we ascribed value to and which attributes we would like to project professionally in our personal branding efforts. The anonymous author(s) should run a sideline in life coaching if they haven’t already thought about doing so. + +When we were done, I put together a two page roadmap that is (roughly) guiding my efforts in that respect up to the present. + +And I periodically exchange emails with that friend to help keep one another accountable. + +As a result of a) a change in surname and b) almost exclusively ghostwriting for the past five years, my web presence and SEO both currently suck. At least for a writer. + +I’m aware of that. + +So I’m starting from pretty much zero here. + +My online visibility leaves a lot to be desired. I know. + +[Google me currently](https://www.google.com/search?q=%22daniel+rosehill%22&oq=%22daniel+rosehill%22&aqs=chrome..69i57j69i65.2055j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8) and you’ll find, among other things: + + * [A blog about leaving Jerusalem](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/on-leaving-jerusalem-after-four-years/). I still live in Jerusalem. Long story. And I know, kind of awkward. + * [Some stuff about Linux and a Javascript plugin.](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm) + * [A guide to the best Irish island getaways](https://www.irishcentral.com/travel/travel-tips/ireland-islands-coastline) (for IrishCentral, Irish-America’s leading online news source). + * [A run-through of the most notorious anti-Semites in history](http://www.communitym.com/article.asp?article_id=101920) for a religious Jewish magazine based in Brooklyn. + * [Me ranting about an Irish pub in Jerusalem](https://www.inspirock.com/israel/jerusalem/dublin-irish-pub-jerusalem-a3270940077) — calling it an “abuse of the name Irish pub” (Word of warning to fellow Google Maps reviewers: by mindful that what you write can be scraped and syndicated!) + +I could go on but you get the picture. + +It’s not exactly a compelling image for a technology writer. But one article / HARO response / e-book (forthcoming!) at a time I’m working on changing it. + +I reckon that the personal branding push which I’m just beginning is going to take about a year to yield results. I think that’s possibly even over-ambitious. + +To keep track of how things are progressing, I run a vanity search every three months, make a screencast of the results (I offer commentary on what’s new and what it’s probable impression on a viewer might be), and upload and save the recordings to a private YouTube playlists. I’m doing this to both measure progress and keep myself motivated. + +By the time my arduous Personal Branding Bonanza is done, however, I hope to present a very different image to the world. + +Ideally, they would see: + + * An interview + * Some bylined content on third-party websites + * A link to my website + +### Almost Everybody is Reachable — If You Try Hard Enough + +Let me try to tie this back to sales funnels and how being less contactable works to generate higher intent leads. + +Almost every is contactable — some how. + +Unless you’re the President of the United States, I contend that you can reach pretty much anybody on the planet that has an email account — or at least you can try to. + +**That’s why — even by making yourself slightly less contact-able — I guarantee that you will still receive inbound leads** — they will just have to be slightly more determined to get in touch with you. + +Exhibit A: a real-life lead reaching out via my website’s contact form after seeing my (sort of) profile on LinkedIn + +Busy people like CEOs and senior politicians have gatekeepers like secretaries. + +Sometimes even whole rings of them. + +But I’ve still cold-emailed Fortune 500 CMOs and received personal responses. + +In other words — if somebody is _really interested_ in what you’re selling, **_they will still find a way to reach out to you if they want to badly enough._** + +So to make myself only _slightly_ harder to reach (emphasis, again, on the word ‘slightly’ here), I have been trying to encourage prospects to reach me through my all time favorite means of capturing top-of-funnel leads — and through no other way. + +That is, by completing a contact form on my website. + + * [My personal site has virtually nothing but that exposed to Google.](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il) + * [My business website also has a contact form.](https://dsrghostwriting.com/contact/) It’s a three-fielder: name, email, and message. + +Either one is fine for initiating a conversation about writing services. + +Because some people like to just pick up the phone and reach somebody, I also set up a virtual US phone number and added that to my contact page — along with an email address that routes to a gated inbox: + +In the grand scheme of things, I’m still very easy to get a hold of. + +But even if my website didn’t have a contact form there are a plethora of ways to discover email addresses that most marketers know about: WHOIS lookups and Hunter.io just to name two. + +So it works. + +### And Here Are The Weird Things I Do To Encourage That Workflow + +As I mentioned, because I want to capture and track inbound leads through my CRM systematically, I’ve tried to coerce prospects into _not_ contacting me through virtually any other means. + +Some unpopular LinkedIn privacy settings + +Because I still need and want to be on platforms such as LinkedIn (more on that later), that entails a little bit of firewall-ing. + +So: + + * **To add me on LinkedIn, you need to enter my email address**. But — because disabling invitations is not a native LinkedIn functionality — the email address I associated with my account begins with a random 32 character alphanumeric string which would be impossible to guess. It would be very difficult even to brute force the invitation, which — let’s face is — nobody is going to be bothered to do. Periodically, I take off the requirement for a few days at a time just to observe what happens and see how interested the people that message me are. + * **I don’t post my private email address or cellphone anywhere. Ever.** Yes, all those details are out there and easy to find. But I never share my email address publicly — even in a private Facebook group. + * **I generally opt to hide profiles like LinkedIn and Facebook from Google.** Most social networks have this functionality somewhere in the privacy section. Look for UI verbiage such as “deindex this profile from Google and other search engines” next to a check box. + * I don’t know if this is still considered a legitimate SEO practice,****[**but I use Robots.txt quite a lot**](https://www.seobility.net/en/wiki/Robots.txt?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=wiki_en&utm_term=%7Brobots%20txt%7D&utm_content=lp_robots.txt&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI58PrreqP5wIVy7TtCh1-wA-iEAAYASAAEgL48_D_BwE) and manage which parts of my online infrastructure Google and other search engine bots are allowed to crawl. + +### And Here’s What I’ve Observed to Happen As a Result + +Remember what I said about almost everybody being contactable if you really want to get in touch with them? + +And the part about personal branding? + +Let me tie them together. + +i) I’m slightly harder to contact than your average freelancer but still pretty contactable. As a result, I still get inbound leads — just ones that arrive to my inbox or on my call calendar with a bit more intent in their sails. + +ii) As I described, although my personal branding is currently pretty atrocious, I’m compensating for that by doing a _lot_ of my own outbound prospecting. As I develop my personal branding, however, I expect the pace of that inbound lead generation to pick up. + +Doing all of the above has had a few happy effects. + +Let me outline them. + + * **The people that _do_ initiate contact with me are — by default — higher intent leads. **The reason for this is obvious — they’ve invested a little bit of time (and sometimes money) in the process. Despite being essentially impossible to connect with on LinkedIn, as soon as I begin an outbound email marketing campaign, the InMails start to flow in. The difference between adding somebody on LinkedIn and sending them an InMail is that [InMails cost money](https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/1584/inmail-overview?lang=en). But guess what? So does my time. I take InMails as a great sales signal and will make that lead my top priority to nurture. The buy-side is evidently quite serious about the engagement. In return, I prepare for a conversation very seriously too. We can show one another high intention. + * **Doing this _forces_ me to engage in prospecting. **As a solo business owner, I believe that it’s my responsibility to be _continuously_ engaging in business development and prospecting. Of course, the personal branding push I mentioned is pivotal too. If I pick up a referral from a client? Beautiful. But I know that I can’t count on low to medium intent leads reaching through me LinkedIn as I know they don’t even have the option. By doing the above, I essentially force myself sometimes through a VA) to constantly go out into the world and try to develop relationships. People won’t add _me_ on LinkedIn. So I know that I need to add and engage _them —_ and all of the time _._ Yes, this puts myself under a bit of pressure. But it also means that I have to take initiating contact with potential clients very seriously . + +### Concluding Thoughts + +I put this idea out into the open just to present a slightly alternative approach to business development. + +It’s goes against the typical freelance marketing drumbeat of ‘make more noise online’. + +Feel free to ridicule it. Or to suggest that it might just be a good idea. + +As I mentioned, I may abandon the idea altogether. Think of it as a sales experiment of sorts. I don’t have to be permanently tethered to it to see how it goes — or to run an A/B test with it in order to compare results before and after. + +What I can tell you with certainty, however, is that lead intention scoring is a terrific idea — whether you choose to firewall your inbound contact streams or not. + +The conversations I’ve had with people that took the 30 seconds to complete my contact form and outline their writing needs (I had one this morning) are on a completely different level to those I receive casually — or even those that respond to my outbound prospecting campaigns. + +High-intent sales leads are worth careful nurturing. This might be a way to select for them in your funnel. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-Value-Of-Zoom-Networking-With-Other-Freelance-Writers.md b/posts/medium/The-Value-Of-Zoom-Networking-With-Other-Freelance-Writers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..448280ce5830928ad1ac6fcdf8cc99b9b4a6b0a9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-Value-Of-Zoom-Networking-With-Other-Freelance-Writers.md @@ -0,0 +1,54 @@ +# The Value Of Zoom Networking With Other Freelance Writers + +#### Other Writers Are Just A Video Call Away. Why Not Reach Out? + +Other freelance writers are a webcam chat away. Why not reach out to them? + +Freelance writing can be a solitary and isolating endeavor. + +Physically removed from coworkers, the water cooler, and sometimes other human company, it’s easy to become socially isolated while making a living writing from home over the internet. + +Compound that sense of isolation with the income instability, long hours, and extreme competitiveness of the freelance writing market and the mental health picture that emerges is, unsurprisingly, often not a pretty one. As more workers join the gig economy, this can be expected to become a more prominent issue; and deservedly so. + +[**WNW MAGAZINE - Am I Depressed or Am I Just a Freelancer?** +_When I started freelancing, everything about it was novel to me. I delighted in the idea that I could sleep in as late…_ magazine.workingnotworking.com](https://magazine.workingnotworking.com/magazine/2019/1/24/am-i-depressed-or-am-i-just-a-freelancer "https://magazine.workingnotworking.com/magazine/2019/1/24/am-i-depressed-or-am-i-just-a-freelancer")[](https://magazine.workingnotworking.com/magazine/2019/1/24/am-i-depressed-or-am-i-just-a-freelancer) + +The above is _partially_ why I think that it’s vital for freelance writers to make an effort to connect with other writers. + +While one-to-many online fora to talk shop certainly exist (my top two recommendations are The Freelance Content Marketing Writer on Facebook and /r/freelancewriters on Reddit), there’s something just all the more humanizing about one-on-one interactions, whether over the phone or by Zoom. + +[**Facebook Groups** + _The Freelance Content Marketing Writer has 6,117 members. This group is for anyone who has at least some digital…_ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelanceCMW "https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelanceCMW")[](https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelanceCMW) + +### What Can You ‘Get’ From Online Networking With Other Freelance Writers? + +Freelance writing can sometimes force one to adopt something of a mercenary mindset. + +After all, time, in this business, equals money. We’re typically looking to get in front of other companies rather than other writers (for some, the latter is synonymous with ‘the competition’). + +So what’s the return on investment from speaking to other writers? + +If this is how you’re approaching networking with other writers, then I’m here to tell you that you’re being shortsighted. + +Some of the Zoom calls I had with other writers last year were among the most professionally enriching uses of my time. But let’s get to specifics. Talking to other freelance writers can: + +**Relieve the sense of loneliness:** There’s something comforting and helpful about knowing that there are other freelance writers out there working through the same set of challenges that you are. The most striking aspect of talking to freelance writers in other countries, for me, has been the extent to which we share the same set of aspirations and frustrations with the current writing marketplace. You’re not alone. If you don’t have a real life peer community, a virtual one is better than nothing. + +**Exchanging notes:** Writer-to-writer meetups can be great fora for simply trading notes on the industry and discussing client acquisition, pricing, and other pragmatic considerations related to working as a freelance writer. For this to feel like an equitable swapping of information it’s obviously best if those talking are at relatively similar stages of their careers. + +**Mentorship:** The pool of freelance writers out there is pretty vast. There are many more experienced writers who are happy to share some of their experience and tips with relative rookies. Yes, this flies in the face of my previous point. But think of them as different kinds of meeting. If your experience and that of your interlocutor are starkly asymmetrical, it might be worth flagging that before scheduling a meeting. Likewise be prepared for the possibility that some may try to abuse the meeting to try relentlessly pry information out of you (more about that later). + +**Finding referral partners:** The mindset that all other freelance writers represent competition isn’t a realistic one. Freelance writing isn’t a zero sum game. I would argue that it’s in all writers’ self-interest to have a strong partner network to refer work out to. If you can make clients’ lives easier by pointing them in good directions, they’re likely to remember you favorably. With other writers, this could morph into a reciprocal relationship. + +### How To Set Up Online Meetings With Other Writers + +In order to have a URL to direct other freelance writers to, I set up a dedicated Calendly slot for what I call peer to peer networking opportunities. + +I recommend setting a couple of simple ground rules to mitigate against the possibility that there are people who will likely try to abuse your time by using the session as a one-way street for their benefit: + + * Neither party is selling anything to the other party. + * Both parties will respect the fact that the meeting should be considered off the record. This encourages people to talk freely. + +Naturally, whenever you’re meeting strangers from the internet, it’s prudent to be a little bit careful about the information that you choose to share. If you’re usually anonymous online — such as on Reddit — then you may want to think carefully before dropping clues to your real-world identity. + +Networking with other writers — whether in real life or on Zoom — is far from a waste of time. To the contrary. Just as most writers need to be regularly networking with potential clients, knowing and meeting other writers is a great way to build up a referral network, meet people doing the same thing as you, and trade notes on what’s going on in the industry. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-abbreviated-playbook-for-becoming-a-fake-course-millionaire-4951bc857de.html.md b/posts/medium/The-abbreviated-playbook-for-becoming-a-fake-course-millionaire-4951bc857de.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e9f0930888caf68d633110c2c3a4e5f07c2aa5a4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-abbreviated-playbook-for-becoming-a-fake-course-millionaire-4951bc857de.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,35 @@ +# The abbreviated playbook for becoming a fake course millionaire + +#### 6 Easy Steps To Cash In On Your Claimed Huge Income + +There was a discussion on Reddit last week about [a certain freelancer’s claims of making a wild income on Fiverr.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHhYtZV_T9M&t=2s&ab_channel=CNBCMakeIt) + +I decided it would be a good launching-off point to write something I’d be meaning to for ages explaining why I think that most freelance writing courses (and freelance courses, and digital nomad courses) are snake oil coaching products for the gullible and the desperate (of which there are many). + +[**The almost totally secret to getting FILTHY RICH as a freelance writer** + _Sports cars, Rolexes, and private jets. Follow my guide and they can be yours. Yes — even as a freelance writer!_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573) + +[**Why I Have Suspicions About Alex Fasulo’s Claimed Fiverr Income** + _Fiverr Freelancer Claims Massive Income; Sells Courses On Becoming A Digital Nomad; A Familiar One-Two_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-have-suspicions-about-alex-fasulos-claimed-fiverr-income-2e5fdd51c1ab "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-have-suspicions-about-alex-fasulos-claimed-fiverr-income-2e5fdd51c1ab")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-have-suspicions-about-alex-fasulos-claimed-fiverr-income-2e5fdd51c1ab) + +In the process of doing so, while banging brain cells together, I created a diagram that I propose does a decent job of explaining how these operations work in practice. Creating it was kind of fun. And I have to admit: in a perverse way, I sort of admire the course hucksters’ ingenuity. + +Here it is again: + +Why am so I anti these freelance writing courses (for the most part)? + + 1. **They rip people off and enrich people that (often) don’t actually have anything useful to teach.** The wiki and this sub are great examples of places people can find almost everything they need to know about freelancing for zero cents. Nobody sharing info is making money from helping others out here. I also don’t like aspiring freelancers being swindled. + 2. **I think they sully our “profession” if you want to call it that.** If we’re a collective at all, then I think the battles we need to be fighting are getting fairer legislation for freelancers worldwide (see: the debate currently taking place in the US). As freelancer writers we need to be advocating (IMO) for fairer rates and standardization within markets. The more freelance courses mushroom, the more we’re all going to get sidetracked into believing that teaching other freelancers how to freelance is the ultimate aim of what we do. I think a huge mistake. + +And now, dear readers, the playbook. + +### How To Become A Freelance Course Huckster / Fake Fiverr Millionaire — In 6 Easy Steps! + + 1. **Freelance for a token period of time.** You want to do this for the minimum possible time and as soon as enough gullible people start buying your course you can pretty much drop the sweaty work of making active income altogether. You want to freelance write / graphic design etc just long enough to gather some war stories and success stories and (ideally) testimonials to give your future course social proof. You also want to be able to say “after 5 long and hard years freelancing, I’m lifting the lid on my freelancing success” and “THIS happened to me. But if you buy my course, I can show you how to avoid such a fate.” Don’t forget to include lots of emojis and red ink and gifs in your course landing page because for whatever reason this seems to be what desperate and gullible people go in for. + 2. **Start flaunting your wealth**. The next step is to be begin flaunting your supposed “wealth” in the most egregious and relentless way possible. Visually oriented social networks like Instagram and Tik Tok are PERFECT for this which is why I think we see so many fake millionaires drawn to these platforms like moths to a flame. A picture speaks louder than words and showing yourself lounging in a business jet with champagne is more effective than saying “I’m rich!!!” If you’re not actually getting wealthy through the hard graft of actually working then no need to sweat it. You can rent out time in a fake biz jet interior. Rent a suit. Get creative. Now’s the time to start saying (or rather tweeting) things like “I’m Daniel, the six figure freelance writer. Off to Ibiza for the weekend #freelancelife” + 3. **Have a moment of reckoning.** This part’s key. Somewhere along the line you’re going to want to have some kind of epiphany during which you realize that we’re all in this together. Why deprive the world of this fantastic knowledge you’re accruing that has helped you become fabulously wealthy, you may ask yourself? Again (like step two) you want to do this very publicly. Creating digital breadcrumbs is key here. When a hostile interviewer in a few months says “but Daniel, aren’t you kinda the latest course huckster?” you want to have a tweet that you can screenshot and say “no, I’m here to help people!” + 4. **Launch your course:** With all the legwork in place we’re finally ready to launch our course How To Become A Freelance Writer in 90 Days! We need the usual aggressive sales and marketing to support its launch that snake oil people go in for. As I said they LOVE their emojis. Red ink. Lots of photos from Instagram. A landing page. + 5. **Start actually becoming wealthy:** When I said that I sort of perversely admire their playbook this is what I meant. I believe that many of the fake course “millionaires” don’t actually start making a significant income until the point at which they convince people that they’re rich and THEN start making bank from the course signups by all the 18 year old wannabees who want to become rich too. Again, I think it’s crappy and don’t condone it and the very reason I’m writing this post is to try help people see this stuff for what it is. But …. you gotta kinda hand it to them. It’s darkly clever if nothing else. + 6. **Return to step 2 and repeat cycle.** The “genius” part of this whole scam formula is that it’s self-perpetuating. Remember that we’re actually getting wealthy for real now through all those desperate people who want to know how to become as super successful as we are. So now we have ACTUAL money to show off. And guess what? The more we Instagram and Tik Tok it the more people are going to sign up for our course about how to get rich,. Beautiful eh? + +I can’t say that every dubious course person follows the above formula. But I believe that a substantial percentage of them do. Seeing through the ruse is the first step in calling this activity out for what it is. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-FILTHY-RICH-as-a-freelance-writer.md b/posts/medium/The-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-FILTHY-RICH-as-a-freelance-writer.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..81a77c41724e425a2e88d86dc5d020587b59b0f5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-FILTHY-RICH-as-a-freelance-writer.md @@ -0,0 +1,277 @@ +# The almost totally secret to getting FILTHY RICH as a freelance writer + +#### Sports cars, Rolexes, and private jets. Follow my guide and they can be yours. Yes — even as a freelance writer! + +Are you feeling dejected today? + +Trying to shake off a vague sense of tiredness, perhaps? + +_Ennui_ as the French call it. Melancholy as the old-timers did. Can’t shake the feeling that you’re stuck in second gear? + +Perhaps, dear writer, you’re simply dealing with clients trying to haggle down your rates like they’re buying tomatoes at a Middle Eastern supermarket? + +You know how it makes you feel. + +Devalued. Dejected. Underappreciated. + +Trust me. I’ve been there. And I’m on your side here. + +**You know you’re worth more than this — a voice in your head keeps saying.** And I want you to begin trusting that voice. Because that voice is speaking the truth. + +Hell, I know it too. That’s why — against the best advice of just about everybody I’ve ever met — I’m sitting here about to spill the beans on a centuries-old secret of the trade with you, dear internet stranger. + +Dreaming of ballin’ in a Ferrari but worrying how your $50 articles are going to add up to enough to pay rent? I thought so. I used to worry about that too. + +But before I show you how to get from A (your sucky life right now) to B (untold millions and the kind of life I have) I wanted to get you riled up with some images. Because, ya know, pictures speak louder than words and all that. + +I don’t bat an eye when I see this things because it’s all I know now. But you probably take the bus so ….. + +**👇 STUFF THAT COULD BE YOURS IF YOU KEEP SCROLLING 👇** + +**Sports cars:** + + A super flashy Ferrari + +**Luxury yachts:** + + A luxury yacht + +**Private jets:** + + A luxury private jet + +**Insane quantities of beer:** + + Totally insane amounts of beer + +**SOOOO much ice cream:** + +**Nachos EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK!** + +Andwho. Enough with the spammy intro and the clickbait. + +**You want the roadmap I’ve promised.** + +**The secret formula that writers around the world speak of in hushed tones. They call it The Money Printer. Those who know about it guard it jealously from prying eyes.** + +And today I’m disregarding the advice of my closest advisors and sharing it with the world. + +Interest in this blog might be so astronomical that I’ll have to take down this link soon and deprive the world of this great knowledge. + +So don’t delay and keep reading — right now! + +### The Magic Formula To Making It 💵 Rich 💵 As A Freelancer + +Bear with me here because this is going to take a bit of work. At least if we’re going to do it right. + +It’s vital that you follow _all_ of my steps. + +**Doing so will guarantee your best chance of hitting it big. Not just small time kinda big. Like CRUISING AROUND IN A GULFSTREAM WHILE POSTING PICS TO INSTAGRAM FROM ONBOARD WIFI kinda big.** + + Summary version of “the way”. Customer version. + +### 1\. Decide Upon Your Origin Story 🧙 + +So so smart .. and eminently hireable. A common freelancing hook. + +I’m going to give you a few options here. + +When it comes to creating your Instagram and preparing your course to sell you’re going to want to memorize and stick to this story. YouTube vids are great too particularly if you can make them look like … totally casual. The main thing we’re looking for here is consistency. Say this like … 100 times. Tweet it. Facebook it. Instagram it. Whatever you’re into. + +OK so here are (some of) your options: + +➡️ The disgruntled former employee (option A): + +**_“I worked as a wage slave for six years in Manhattan. After suffering years of micromanagement, 100 hour weeks, and sucky bosses, I decided that I wanted to start working for myself — and not the man.”_** + +➡️ The prodigy-for-hire (option B): + +**_“I learned Python at three. Java at six. By ten years old I was creating my own algorithms when my friends were playing soccer. The idea of working in an office job has never even appealed to me. Now you can hire me.”_** + +➡️ The wellness fiend (option C): + +**_“When my boss told me that I couldn’t store cucumbers in the staff kitchen I knew that I had to take matters into my own hands. Now I’m free to juice as many times a day as I please. I’m organic. I’m whole. And I freelance.”_** + +**SUMMARY: Come up with a good story for why you got into freelancing that’s going to make you sound inspirational in the future.** + +### 2\. Choose Your Freelancing Narrative 🧙 + +One of the only open source images I could find of something industrial. Ie work. This is kinda what we’re trying to avoid here + +OK guys here’s the really sweet part of this deal. + +You’re not going to actually have to do ANY work as a freelancer. + +**WHAT!?** + +Yes you read that right. + +Okay let me retract that a little. + +You’re going to have to do a LITTLE bit of work. But only enough to sound like you know what you’re talking about. + +Think of it like creating a minimal viable product (MVP) instead of building … say a whole aeroplane. Think wireframes versus actually coding stuff. Like … something but not very much effort. + +All you’re going to need is to undertake enough projects to: + + * Have some anecdotes to bleed into your course / marketing collateral + * Have a couple of war stories to share. These will help you look humble + * Be able to namedrop a few past or current clients + +You’ll also be able to get up to speed with the basics of what you’re shortly going to be holding yourself out as an expert on (ah I gave away a big teaser there). + +Three to six months is probably enough to get this phase of the plan down pat. + +**SUMMARY: Do actual freelancing work for the bare minimum amount of time necessary to appear vaguely competent to total rookies who really can’t tell their left foot from their right.** + +### 3\. Begin RELENTLESSLY Sharing Your (Claimed) Income ABSOLUTELY EVERYWHERE On The Interwebs 🧙 + +Next, I’m going to present two methods to take things to the next level. + +Whichever one you’re comfortable with will depend largely upon which way your moral compass sways: + +a) Share how much money you actually earn + +b) Grossly exaggerate or invent a number + +I love Medium — you’re reading this post on Medium — but it seems to be the ‘in’ place for sharing this kind of material. This is the kind of thing you should be aiming for. Bonus points if you can work a clickbait hook into the title. + +You need to start seeding the market with your success story BEFORE hemming out your course + +### 3(B): Begin Doctoring Earning Screenshots And Focus On Making Unverifiable Claims + +There are a few really important things to do here: + + * **Make sure that your claims are unverifiable**. Again if you want to go black hat on this you can doctor screenshots and post them on Twitter. If you want to hide behind confidentiality agreements and NDAs — man, I say that’s totally gravy (you may too! + +But if it’s in a screenshot, it’s gotta be true. Right!? + + * **Ideally your claimed income should be at least six figures.** Earning six figs is like the entry level income to gain credibility and a cult like following in the Western world. Nobody wants to hear about how you made $30K last year. Trust me about this. That’s for poor people. + * **Your income should be positively awe-inducing.** Awe and admiration are really important emotions to conjure up here. Cite a number that sounds kind of flabbergasting. Like people can’t believe that a freelance writer could actually join the seven digit club. + +**Remember: jealousy is an extremely powerful human emotion.** + +Shakespeare talked about the green eyed monster centuries ago. Do whatever you can to conjure up in order to attract wannabees to the vision of success that you’re modelling. + +**The best way to do this is to live as ostentatiously as possible.** + +But that’s not enough. You’re going to have to document your ostentatious lifestyle in the most visible way too. + +The best way to do this is to begin tweeting inane platitudes on a visually oriented social network such as Instagram or Tik Tok. + +The interior of a private jet + +I specialize in ghostwriting so let me help you out there. + +Share a photo or video of you inside a corporate jet with your followers. Tweet / write / state some variation of the following to accompany the post: + +> “Travelling in my private jet across the Atlantic today I remember where I came from and those first clients and those $50 blogs. How far I’ve come! I never stopped believing in myself. And you should too. The journey may be hard. But the destination is totally worth it! #reflection #midair” + +Can’t actually afford to live like this? + +Never fear. You can rent a fake private jet for a selfie today: + +[**Influencers Are Renting Studios for Fake Private Jet Selfies** + _A recent listing on booking platform Peerspace has revealed a handful of studios with staged setups depicting interiors…_ hypebeast.com](https://hypebeast.com/2020/9/peerspace-social-media-influencers-fake-private-jet-room-rental-info "https://hypebeast.com/2020/9/peerspace-social-media-influencers-fake-private-jet-room-rental-info")[](https://hypebeast.com/2020/9/peerspace-social-media-influencers-fake-private-jet-room-rental-info) + +Remember the golden rule. What matters isn’t the substance. It’s the image. _You_ need to be the one who creates that image. + +**SUMMARY: Relentlessly spam social media with pics of you living the high life and boasts of how much money you make. If necessary doctor screenshots and rent fake airplanes to snap photos in. Big up EVERYTHING along the way. When we get to step 5, you’ll understand why.** + +### 4\. Stage An Epiphany About How Important Sharing Knowledge Is 🧙 + +Sharing is caring right? + +What’s the point of climbing to the top of the freelancing totem pole if you’re not going to stop to help others lower down? + +**As before, it’s important that you repeat these affirmations as publicly and widely as possible.** + +So again we’re talking about a social-led playbook: + + * Facebook streams + * YouTube + * Twitter + +Hopefully by now your claims about massive wealth have attracted you a few sycophantic followers. + +The good news it that you can leverage those people — very soon. + +But first you need to share that you want to help others out wherever you can reach the widest audience. + +If you’re handy at PR or have access to an effective agency you could try: + + * Getting yourself booked on TV shows + * Sharing all this on radio + +I also dabble in the world of PR. So let me draft you up a couple of quick talking points. Remember to stay on message: + +> _“I went from writing $50 blogs to taking home over $10K every single month.”_ + +> _“And then one day I thought to myself: but there are so many people who, if only they knew what I had known when I started freelancing, could have got here so much easier. And I didn’t have those resources available to me. But you will be able to soon. Watch this space!”_ + +**SUMMARY: Have a very public ‘humility moment’ in which you come down from the high of jetting around the world and decide it’s time to pass on the baton of your knowledge to those less evolved.** + +### 5\. Start A Course To Monetize Your Narrative 🧙 + +Get some nice collateral together and you’ll be well on your way to freelancing success! + +Before we finally get to the good stuff, let’s just quickly recap to where we are now. + + * We’ve come up with a nice story about how we got into freelancing. + * We’ve done barely enough work to know the basics and have a few stories worth repeating. If these can be matched with platitudes about the value of hard work than even better. + * By dissembling as somebody who’s a self-made millionaire we’ve cultivated a loyal following of adoring and dissatisfied masses on social media who want what we have. + +True, we haven’t made that much to date. But, dear friend, that’s all about to change. + +**We need: a COURSE ABOUT HOW TO FREELANCE!** + +That’s not all we need. + +We’re also going to need: + + * **Tactics and assets to create a sales funnel.** + * Some very aggressive and **high pressure promotional collateral.** + * Some **great copywriting that preys upon new freelancers’ sense of insecurity** and doubt about the lifestyle they’ve chosen to get into. + * Some**testimonials from former students to provide social proof.** + +But all that stuff can come in time. + +Our course needs a good title and caption. + +Some suggestions off the top of my head: + + * How to get rich freelancing in 30 days + * The quick and easy way to freelancing money + * Freelance writing for those who like money + +Get the course online. Make sure to keep repeating how wealthy you are. And get ready to _actually_ start making the big bucks — for real this time! — while newbie aspiring freelancers click the sign up button! How easy was that? + +And guess what? + +This cycle, by the way, is self-perpetuating. + +Having sold an initial cohort of individuals on the illusion that you’re making tons of dough, it becomes easier to wheel in your next group. + +Now you actually ARE making money. And so the circle resolves. + +**The self-perpetuating cycle of freelance course guru income generation. Graphic: Daniel Rosehill.** + +**SUMMARY: Sell your story that might be fiction by offering a course to lure in those who are desperate to make money. As you REALLY start making money you’ll be able to show off more of your high expense life, thereby creating further validation about your success story and attracting more signups. This creates a self-perpetuating cycle.** + +### And Finally … The Actual Point Of This Post + +As you may have guessed, I don’t actually have the secret to freelancing riches to share with you. In fact, nobody does. The closest I’ve come is this: work really hard and ask others for advice. + +Here’s the truth: + +**_Many_ freelance writing courses — particularly those touted by aggressive ‘influencers’ who conjure up images of having accrued enormous personal wealth — are nothing but the latest evolution of pyramid schemes. And those selling them are peddling nothing better than digital snake oil.** + +You can learn almost all of what you need to know to be successful at freelance writing through freely available web resources.[The wiki at a Reddit community for freelance writers](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/wiki/index) is — oddly enough — actually a pretty decent place to start sifting through real information for people not trying to sell courses. + +Sometimes those offering them will disclose information about those earnings. Often they won’t. You see, if they’re not selling a dream, they don’t have to convince you about their reality. + +The more grandiose the claims and the more aggressively the course promoter tries to convince you that they are extremely wealthy or have made $X freelancing … the more wary you should be. + +Thanks for reading. + +Oh. And for this you owe me zero dollars. diff --git a/posts/medium/The-strange-linguistic-weaponization-of-specifying-who--reached-out--first.md b/posts/medium/The-strange-linguistic-weaponization-of-specifying-who--reached-out--first.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..82af73b7383515d5e874544a7d25769d94917d95 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/The-strange-linguistic-weaponization-of-specifying-who--reached-out--first.md @@ -0,0 +1,89 @@ +# The strange linguistic weaponization of specifying who “reached out” first + +#### (And why it matters to inbound marketers and salespeople) + +The direction of initial marketing outreach can have a significant impact upon the course of the rest of the relationship. Photo by [Solen Feyissa](https://www.pexels.com/@solenfeyissa?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-white-samsung-android-smartphone-5744250/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +There are many phrases that one encounters on a near daily basis in the world of business. + +One hears endlessly about “reaching out.” + +As one attempts to get through their work day, they may be endlessly asked to “jump” on “quick calls” (why are they always billed as quick!?). + +For some strange reason, we insist on calling Powerpoint presentations “decks” — even though many of us have never been alive during a time when physically loading slides into a projector was … like ever done. + +If you’d like to hear me rail against these and other disagreeable entries from the lexicon of life in our modern professional world, then feel free to peruse through the following selection of rants: + +[**My Favorite (Most Hated) Corporate Jargon** + _Feel free to reach out to me if you were inspired by this selection_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-favorite-most-hated-corporate-jargon-a2bafdf723d2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-favorite-most-hated-corporate-jargon-a2bafdf723d2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-favorite-most-hated-corporate-jargon-a2bafdf723d2) + +[**The 3 Most Insufferable LinkedIn Posts That Need To End Right Now** + _From old job love letters to here’s my gift hamper, the 3 type of LinkedIn posts that do my head in_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3) + +[**Horrible Corporate Jargon That Needs To Go Away Right Now (Part 2)** +_As a full-time writer, I’m allowed to both be cantankerous — also know as having an “artistic spirit,” a wonderful…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/horrible-corporate-jargon-that-needs-to-go-away-right-now-part-2-532986029117 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/horrible-corporate-jargon-that-needs-to-go-away-right-now-part-2-532986029117")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/horrible-corporate-jargon-that-needs-to-go-away-right-now-part-2-532986029117) + +There’s one subtle use of language that goes way beyond the realm of corporate oddities, though —one which, however comical or irritating, are just facts of language that us linguistic nitpickers learn to live with. + +And that’s specifying who reached out to who (technical edit: to _whom_). + +Pay attention the next time you pick up a response to some outreach that you feel mightn’t have been whole-hearted. Did they go to pains to specify the direction of the initial contact? There’s a good reason for that. + +### Inbound-Led Lead Generation Campaigns Work Better For Everybody (A Small Consumer Purchasing Example) + +I’ve talked here many times about outbound and inbound marketing. + +And how, over the years, I’ve gradually attempted to shift my lead generation pipeline from an outbound-dominated one to an inbound first lead pipeline. + +I’m not ashamed to admit it: my ultimate objective it to never have to send out a cold email in my life. + +If I’m interested in sourcing something from a service provider — let’s take today’s purchase of a 4G/LTE router as an example — then I do my own research and then contact the company whose solution I’m most interested in acquiring. + +By the time I contact that company, I’ve likely already price compared domestically, internationally, checked the warranty, and checked the product spec. + +As a digital native, whoever can provide me with the most seamless online ordering experience typically wins my business even if they’re not the cheapest provider. Have a live chat functionality that’s actually staffed by somebody? Brilliant. You can show me stock levels at your current stores so that I can see whether I can pick it up today? Even better. Step by step, these are all little things that would take me closer to a sale. In fact, I’ll go out of my way to support sellers that leverage technology to provide superlative buying experiences. + +I have a need. The business can address it. I have the budget for the purchase. So we’re virtually already good to go. Just get me the info and make my life easy. + +If it’s a good fit, great. But if something goes wrong somewhere along the way, then I probably already have a number two and maybe even a number three supplier earmarked. + +Versus what a shotgun method would look like in this small consumer transaction (send a cold email to every electronics store in the country and see who writes back) this is way more efficient from my end. + +As a seller, because you’ve done your legwork (in this case by providing a great ecommerce site and purchasing experience) you’ve got an almost converted pre-qualified lead in your pipeline. + +Less dud leads for you. More speaking to low potential suppliers for me. Less wasted time all round. Everybody’s happier, no? + +### The Dreaded “You Reached Out” Phrase And What It Signals + +Back when my sales process was heavily outbound-led, I would often wind up on calls with customers that weren’t the greatest fit for what I was selling. + +Don’t get me wrong. This was entirely my fault. One part bad prospecting. But another part the pain of outbound marketing. + +Every time a process shrugged their shoulders and said “ _but you reached out to us_ ” it meant more than the words at face value. + +It was a small act of passive aggression. + +The subtext was perfectly clear: _you_ approached _us_ and not the other way round. You need to impress us. Hurry up and do your thing! + +In order to survive in business, whether you’re selling a product of service, you need to impress your customers. You have to do a good job. That applies regardless of which channel or direction the leads originated from. + +Nevertheless, there’s also a power imbalance created the moment that one party gets in touch with the other. + +It’s logged as the sales direction in CRMs. Marketers use it to keep a running tab of how many of their leads are coming from their outbound pushes versus the work they’re doing on the inbound side of things. + +That power imbalance is often immortalized with the slightly grating stock phrase that specifies which party did the initial “reaching out.” And there’s a reason that you’ll often find that your sales contacts seem fixated on reminding you when it was _you_ who did it. + +Because it matters. Because it sets the tenor of the rest of the sales process. And it sets subtle expectations about how each party in the buying tango should behave and what the ground rules of the relationship should look like. + +My advice: whenever you can, be the one being reached out to. + +### More Articles About Inbound Marketing + +[**Inbound Marketers: Stop Watching Your Daily Social Metrics. It’s A Distraction.** +_If you’re playing a long game, you should consider not obsessing over short term needle shifts_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketers-stop-watching-your-daily-social-metrics-its-a-distraction-bad754ca598d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketers-stop-watching-your-daily-social-metrics-its-a-distraction-bad754ca598d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/inbound-marketers-stop-watching-your-daily-social-metrics-its-a-distraction-bad754ca598d) + +[**Inbound Marketing —4 Reasons It Rocks For Small Businesses** + _Inbound marketing can help any team. But the benefits for small businesses are particularly noteworthy._ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-4-reasons-it-rocks-for-small-businesses-916f5eb8a809 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-4-reasons-it-rocks-for-small-businesses-916f5eb8a809")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-4-reasons-it-rocks-for-small-businesses-916f5eb8a809) + +[**Inbound Marketing —And How It Goes Where Outbound Can’t** + _There’s one less frequently discussed benefit of inbound: it can dredge up leads in places that, for many…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-and-how-it-goes-where-outbound-cant-7f5697514df7) diff --git a/posts/medium/Things-Horrible-Freelance-Writing-Clients-Say.md b/posts/medium/Things-Horrible-Freelance-Writing-Clients-Say.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..02e656cb436393f23b9dc0cef151d5000b4900d7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Things-Horrible-Freelance-Writing-Clients-Say.md @@ -0,0 +1,88 @@ +# Things Horrible Freelance Writing Clients Say + +#### Because Bad Clients Make Themselves Known Very Quickly + +There are too many sucky freelance writing clients out there. This might help you avoid them. + +One of the toughest parts of working as a freelance writer is having to run a marketing and sales funnel: attracting new leads to do business with you. Assessing whether you’re a good fit. And turning away those that you know are not going to work out. + +And I won’t lie about this. Disqualifying bad leads has been a substantial — and sometimes painful — part of this process for me. + +I would love to have an answer for you as to why so many freelance writing clients treat their writers like … complete garbage. But I don’t. Instead I have my theories: + + * **Writing is viewed as an easy skillset:** Writing professionally is hard going. Those white papers about cutting edge cybersecurity for serverless workloads? You don’t pop out of high school being able to write them. Unfortunately many clients seem to think that you do. And that they are therefore worth $5. + * **Writers are a dime a dozen these days:** Blame Upwork and globalization for this. There’s almost always another writer out there that can do what you’re proposing to do for less money. Compound this with low barriers to entry — now really as low as they’ve ever been — and you’ve created the perfect storm for being perceived as being in a weak bargaining position. (Note: good clients realize that this isn’t actually the case and that truly competent writers with strong subject matter expertise aren’t growing on trees). + * **You don’t see your writers:** It’s kind of hard to treat David in the marketing department like rubbish or to ignore his emails. You seem him every day at work, after all. You know he’s a fiend for Indian food and you’ve gone for beers after work. Most crucially, this normal low-level social interaction makes David human for you. And his humanity decrees that he be treated with at least basic respect. Daniel the freelance writer on the other side of the world who you talked to once over Zoom? Yeah, forget about that guy! + +So while the reasons that clients _might_ treat their freelance writers poorly are knowable, this doesn’t (fortunately) mean that every freelance client is going to treat their writers like that. The freelance writing market has value buyers and price buyers. Respectable people and … those that really aren’t so great to work with. + +The good thing is that your average crummy freelance writing client has a habit of making him or herself known within the first few emails or the first five minutes of a call. + +Here are some cues to look out for. + +### “Your The Fifth Freelance Writer We’ve Hired For This Project” + +Professionals don’t trash talk other professionals. + +I can’t tell you how many leads I’ve talked to over the years that have basically told me that their previous X many freelance writers were absolute rubbish. This is one of the only “flags” for me that is unconditionally red. + +This might well be true. But is there any reason to disclose this information to the next writer in line? I submit that the answer is no. + +I would be very hesitant to work with any lead that basically told me that I was the latest in a long line of suitors vying for the chance to pull off a project. There’s a very high likelihood that _they_ are the problem (unfortunately bad clients rarely see things this way). + +### “$500? How About $480?” + +I’ve expended great time and effort in figuring out how to price my freelance writing services. + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +[**How to Set An Hourly Freelance Rate** + _Two months ago, I provided some guidelines for tackling one of the most difficult aspects of working as a freelance…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf) + +As in hours. I have spreadsheets. I’ve figured out what my hourly needs to be with and without downtime. At various billable: non-billable ratios. I revise these at least once every six months. + +This is when I tend to really hate it when a lead instantly tries to haggle me down. Particularly by trivial amounts. + +I’m selling a professional service. You’re buying one. I know what I need to charge. I’ve calculated that it should deliver at least that much value to you. I’ll offer volume pricing for bulk jobs. But if we’re squabbling over $10 … it’s probably not going to work out. + +### “I Could Probably Do This Myself But I Couldn’t Be Bothered” + +Look out for subtle verbal cues that indicate that the client holds writing — and writers — in low esteem. + +These utterances could be to the effect of: + + * “I could probably do this myself hungover and typing on the toilet. But ya know. I’m too busy flying around the world to bother with that kinda stuff” + * “Meh. It’s just writing. This isn’t worth our time and attention. How about you do it? If not, I’ll shoot it over to the intern” + * “This should take you what 30 minutes?” + +The last is particularly pertinent. I have been astounded by the amount of leads I have spoken to that have no idea what kind of process is involved in producing good writing, including research, interviewing subject matter experts, and just … writing. Once you understand how “easy” these clients think writing is, it’s virtually certain that they’re not going to be prepared to back the activity with proper budget. + +Convincing these leads that what you’re doing _does_ require the application of skill is almost always a losing battle. Find people that “get it” instead and focus your attention on them. + +### “Responsiveness Is Absolutely Key Here.” + +Many freelance clients — particularly first time hirers, particularly those from the tech industry — have absolutely no clue how to work with freelance contractors. + +They don’t get that freelancers’ time is their money. That they can’t just drop everything to work on their project when they have ten other clients. They expect that they should be able to treat them just like their employees. Sometimes that means incredibly poorly. + +Demanding instant or excessive responsiveness is another form of disrespect that bad clients show writers. + +Look out for cues like: + + * “Responsiveness is critical for success here” (often code, in my experience for, we’re going to need you to be at our beck and call) + * Being patched into Slack channels and quizzed when you don’t respond to a DM within 2 hours + * Clients that are very keen to use the phone and begin calling you incessantly + * Clients that unilaterally impose tight deadlines without first checking in with you about your bandwidth and lead time + +All these are signs of clients that don’t know how to work with freelancers and likely also hold them in low regard. + +### Find Better Clients + +Disqualifying bad fit clients gets a lot easier with time. + +It’s a skill like any and a core part of the training of many salespeople. + +The good news is that — in my experience — bad freelance writing leads all tend to sound and look the same. There are definite patterns. Red flags rarely come in ones. Pairs and triplets are more common. So you just need to hone in and identify them. + +Of course it’s better to focus on the positive. Attracting good leads is a better use of time. More about that in future posts. diff --git a/posts/medium/Things-I-Learned-About-Freelance-Writing-From-My-Therapist.md b/posts/medium/Things-I-Learned-About-Freelance-Writing-From-My-Therapist.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4e9737c9f532c6cb5093f8ca1c5a07d1940b7f9a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Things-I-Learned-About-Freelance-Writing-From-My-Therapist.md @@ -0,0 +1,125 @@ +# Things I Learned About Freelance Writing From My Therapist + +#### You Need To Give Yourself Acceptance When The Going Gets Touch + +The therapy couch. A place to resolve life’s issues. And one’s feelings about freelancing? (Image: Wikimedia Commons) + +Freelancing is stressful. Unpredictable. Inherently unstable. Often lonely. + +Far too often it involves dealing with companies that view you as an (eminently) expendable and dehumanized resource for getting projects done. Ideally, in today’s globalized market, you should also be cheap — if not at the very bottom of the market. + +And because all good projects — like all good things — tend to inevitably come to an end, you need to also be adept at constantly drumming up work for yourself. That means lots of ghosting,_“I didn’t think writing would cost that much,”_ and more pitching. Sound like fun? + +Seen in those terms, it is hardly surprising that a sizeable percentage of freelancers suffer from some mental health affliction or another. In fact, a whopping 56% of freelancers — needless to say, more than half! — say that they suffer from depression, or some other mental illness, as a result of their job. + +[**Freelancing made my depression worse - here's how I learnt to cope** + _remember the day I decided to take the plunge and go freelance. It was 2015, I was in a full-time job I wasn't…_ www.theguardian.com](https://www.theguardian.com/careers/2017/may/09/freelancing-made-my-depression-worse-heres-how-i-learnt-to-cope "https://www.theguardian.com/careers/2017/may/09/freelancing-made-my-depression-worse-heres-how-i-learnt-to-cope")[](https://www.theguardian.com/careers/2017/may/09/freelancing-made-my-depression-worse-heres-how-i-learnt-to-cope) + +And guess what? You’re talking to one of them (or rather reading from one). + +A man with a prescription pad and a stethoscope around his neck recently told me that I have one helping of dysthymia, another of various forms of anxiety, and a third of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). A trifecta that’s actually pretty common (50% of ADHD sufferers have a comorbid psychiatric condition). Freelancing is what ultimately prompted me to look for explanations as to why I needed to drink coffee by the gallon to get writing, sometimes felt a bit bleak, and often felt apprehensive about the future. + +Thankfully, things are not as egregiously bad as the combination of those labels might suggest. So long as I have a boatload of stimulants flowing through my bloodstream and can get out of my own way I can generally roll with the punches. But it does mean that, for me, freelancing poses a challenge to my mental health about which I need to consistently vigilant. And if I’m going to be honest with you: from a mental health standpoint, freelancing has been a rough ride for me. + +The above notwithstanding, while I was extremely reluctant to bring the vicissitudes of freelancing to the attention of a therapist — after all, they’re not career coaches, or so I rationalized my desire to keep job stuff for another conversation— I did find tremendous value in doing so. Because a lot of the mentally challenging aspects of freelancing, I believe, have both cognitive and emotional roots. While just doing something else isn’t always immediately possible, working on the processes that make freelancing mishaps turn into mental woes often is. + +Without further introduction, here are some of the pearls of enlightenment which my therapist bestowed upon me about the life of a full time freelancer. + +### Don’t Take Mistreatment Personally + +Unlike the foregoing, this particular diagnostic label is of the self-diagnosed variety, but I am certain that I am what you might call a “highly sensitive person” (HSP). I tend to take things personally and am sensitive to nuances in language — “I’m going to need you to call us now,” is one that I got recently — that most people would just shrug off. In freelancing, these often come by the boat-load. + +I’ve only been full-time freelancing for two and a half years, but have periodically — perhaps once a year — reached a point at which I seriously questioned whether it made sense to continue on with it. + +The provoking factor was rarely being out of work. Although there has been the odd slow month and the even odder day when I had nothing to do but work on my website, I can count on one hand the amount of days since I started during which I didn’t have at least one project on my plate that required my attention. + +Instead, whenever freelancing pushed me into a bout of depression, it usually had to do with the unpleasant feeling that comes with being mistreated, or steam-rolled, by somebody in business. + +Yesterday I had a brand new client (that was referred to me no less!) berate me for not answering her colleague’s unannounced phone call at eight o’clock at night. The next morning I woke up to an angry email again lamenting the fact that I had missed an unplanned call replete with the passive aggressive threat that “responsiveness is paramount to this project.” That was, I should add, to a project that I had not yet agreed to take on. + +The client, a cybersecurity consultancy that one might expect wasn’t short of a few bob, was trying to evade responding to my email because the reasonable price I had quoted for the copywriting she needed was evidently beyond their budget. It’s easier to haggle people down over the phone. This kind of mixture of devaluation and disrespect, which I have witnessed far too many times to count, is the kind of thing that really gets under my skin. If it’s particularly egregious, it can make me feel down for a couple of days. + +The trick, when dealing with this kind of thing, is not to take the slights to your self-esteem personally. + +Salespeople are the absolute masters of this art and I recommend that every freelancer both increase their sales know-how (we’re all selling) and also take a leaf from your average salesperson’s arsenal of mental practices that keep them well in the face of repeated rejection. If a lead doesn’t want to pay your price, then they go into the disqualified bucket and you move on to the next person in your inbox. No more thinking necessary. And no feelings at all. + +Another hack is to lower your expectations. + +If I’m going into a sales process than I try to think (only) about[ the BANT lead qualification criteria](https://www.newbreedmarketing.com/blog/what-is-bant-and-how-can-it-enable-your-sales-team). During that first discovery touchpoint, I’m trying to find out, essentially, whether the lead has the budget and authority to hire me; what their timeline is; and what need they’re trying to fulfill. The worst that can happen is that you can find out that they would be a terrible fit for you and your business. As I did yesterday. And on quite a few others days. + +The second hack is to realize that it’s almost never about you. + +Shock, horror: clients that treat freelancers horribly tend to treat their employees badly too. Next time you deal with an egregiously bad client, check out their Glassdoor page and see what people who work there are saying about them. There’s a good likelihood that they’ll also let the red flag among red flags slip into the conversation: something like “you’re the fifth freelancer we’ve hired for this project; the other four were totally useless!” + +There’s one mental health nugget I’d love to share here. And that’s that clients who treat your well are, in my estimation, worth their weight in gold. I, and other freelancers, spend plenty of time thinking about things like rates, how to quote projects, and other monetary concerns. But it’s impossible to place a worth on a client that’s prepared to treat you with dignity and respect. + +Naturally, there are times when you just need to pay the rent/mortgage and keep the lights on. But in all other circumstances it’s often preferable to spend your time lining up the next project than working for a jerk who treats you like garbage. + +### Acknowledge The Difficulty Of What You’ve Signed Up For + +If/when the going gets tough, it’s worth remembering that, if you’ve started freelancing full time, you’ve signed up for one of the hardest ways out there to make a living. + +During my years in high school I worked various part time jobs: assembling picture frames in a factory, assisting women find appropriate footwear in a high street fashion store (please don’t ask), working as a pool lifeguard, and briefly helping a landscape gardener move plants between nurseries. + +When freelancing gets tough I would argue that it’s a worse deal than even what people tend to automatically reach for whenever they need a mental shorthand for a dead end job: flipping burgers at a fast food outlet. + +The burger flipper is at least guaranteed his minimum wage. He has colleagues with which to commiserate about the experience of flipping burgers for cash. And he at least has an office to report to which forces him to leave the house, shower (hopefully), and put on respectable clothing. + +None of these dynamics hold true for freelancers. + +When freelancers are at their most desperate they may find themselves sending out proposal after proposal on a bidding site like Upwork while dealing with perhaps the odd “bite” from a client that wants to pay them pittance. Not an easy life. + +As much as all the above sucks, there’s a lot of relief to be found in accepting that freelancing is as hard as it often feels. Some unappetizing realities: + + * Other things being equal, companies will often ditch you the moment they have access to somebody that can provide the same value you can but for less money. Even if you’ve been working with the client for years. + * Companies like the fact that they’re not committed to freelancers and can use them as labor as a service — much like you can fire up a server in Amazon and only pay for the time you actually need it. That’s largely why they use them. Yes, the better clients will meet you in the middle and perhaps off you a retainer to lock in your availability. But many won’t. This isn’t them being egregiously mean. This is simply them using you according to the terms that you set out you _may_ be prepared to work for the moment you describe yourself as a freelancer. + +There’s one more thing that I think it’s vital to bear in mind. And that’s to try see yourself from the other party’s perspective. + +Imagine your average marketing manager who might have four subordinates on top of a pool of ten contractors. Unlike his/her direct reports, the manager doesn’t see you when he clocks into the office every day. He (I’m going to use the masculine pronoun but purely for convenience) doesn’t know a thing about whether you have a great sense of humor or none at all. He doesn’t know whether you’re into music or running or basketball. + +In other word you’re dehumanized. A collection of pixels in an inbox. Which makes you eminently forgettable. And expendable. Thus although it’s beyond crummy and often demoralizing when clients _do_ treat freelancers like they’re … well, expendable project resources … that’s ultimately because they are …. well, often viewed as expendable and unvisible project resources. + +If the world does truly transition to a gig labor model then you could say that this is a bug in the system. But again, it’s not something that you need to internalize and not take personally even if it’s the automatic human tendency to do so. + +### Understand That Quitting Is Okay + +Like many people who suffer from anxiety and solicit the service of therapists to help them straighten out broken ways of thinking, I’m a massive fan of black and white or all and nothing thinking. I like it so much that I have it on speed dial! + +In fact, because I find dichotomous reasoning so appealing, I even sometimes consciously try to make myself internalize outcomes that deny the possibility of the uncomfortable gray matter that exists on the spectrum between ‘yes’ and ‘no’. + +For instance, for a long period I turned off whatever setting in LinkedIn allows you to accept connection requests from those outside of your network. My reasoning was that I wanted to exert as much pressure as I could upon myself to have to be proactive about initiating contacts to build my network. + +For a while, I also entertained the idea of revoking my foreign passport. My reasoning here was that I wanted to give myself no option _but_ to make life work where I live. Thankfully, I saw the light on both counts. And both behaviors were undoubtedly self-destructive and stress-inducing. + +Both these behaviors were my dysfunctional way of attempting to take the option of conceding defeat off the table. + +I have a writing acquaintance with whom I maintain a sporadic dialogue. + +More than once I have shared that I was exploring alternative career options. I reckon that this was probably misconstrued as a cry for help. In reality, I was just being open. Keeping the door that leads out of freelancing slightly ajar, I have learned, is the only way that I can make sure that the stressful periods never really push me that far down. + +One of anxiety’s cardinal features is that its sufferers are profoundly uncomfortable with uncertainty. + +This was why, for example, I felt compelled to engage in self-defeating behaviors that would close the door on alternative possibilities. By boxing myself in, I hoped to find comfort in knowing that I had no other option but to make freelancing work. In reality, I only ended up making a sometimes already stressful situation worse. + +Therefore, I encourage anybody reading this — at least anybody who isn’t wholly satisfied with their freelancing existence — to leave open the possibility that other options may be more conducive to your happiness. + +Six months ago I would have been worried that a client might read this and would be dissuaded from hiring me. I’ll be honest and say that while it took a lot of trepidation to write this blog post that is no longer my prime concern. More than once I’ve shared with a lead that I’m not sure if freelancing will be my eventual guise. If I’m not mistaken they went ahead with the project anyway. Most people intuitively know that freelancing is extremely hard. + +Trying your hardest to make freelancing work while acknowledging that it might not are not mutually exclusive options. + +If the latter eventuality comes true, then there’s also no need to beat yourself up about that. It doesn’t represent some kind of personal shortcoming. Rather the likelier explanation is that you attempted to make one of the hardest occupations work for you. That simple fact alone tells you that difficulty is the norm. + +### Realize That You’re Worth Isn’t Determined By How Your Clients Treat You + +I believe there is a good case to be made for the idea that today’s crop of writers are often being gaslit by the industries they work for — whether they’re working mostly in freelance journalism, content marketing, or something else. + +Underpaying is often endemic. So, sadly, are the ranks of clients who don’t treat freelance resources particularly well. + +There are only so many times that you can be told that you’re market value is worth X (not a lot) before you internalize the notion that your skillset really isn’t worth all that much. Or that you’re “just” a writer. Or that you deserve to be ghosted by prospects and clients with whom you spend time conversing with by phone and email. You may ultimately come to think that you don’t deserve to be treated with respect. All these thoughts are like highways to low self-esteem and depression. + +Therefore, I think that it behooves writers of all stripe and color to understand and acknowledge that there can be very real consequences to self-esteem from the sometimes harsh forces of the market. It’s important — nay, essential — to separate one’s sense of self-worth from whatever the market is asserting it to be. + +To do whatever it takes to truly believe that one has self worth. And that — whatever the market is prepared to pay or however the market is prepared to treat you — there’s a good chance that you’re worth more and deserve better than that. + +These are _some_ of the ways my therapist shared with me that freelancers, especially freelance writers, can be more protective of their mental health. diff --git a/posts/medium/This-Is-How-Bad-Google-Workspace-Support-Is.md b/posts/medium/This-Is-How-Bad-Google-Workspace-Support-Is.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c4c2e8ae281f3d7b3750870688a3dd02d0b65e69 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/This-Is-How-Bad-Google-Workspace-Support-Is.md @@ -0,0 +1,332 @@ +# This Is How Bad Google Workspace Support Is + +Google users beware: + +Google can lock you out of your own account for an arbitrary reason (which it will refuse to share with you). + +You may well also find that their support is entirely unhelpful and contradict themselves every time you contact them. + +Here’s one sample interaction with the official Gsuite support team. + +[**What’s The Worst That Could Happen If You Got Locked Out Of Your Google Account?** +_Relying on the cloud for everything seems great. Until it unexpectedly turns on you and you can’t legally leave your…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4) + +### Text Version: + +(Redacted to prevent private information) + +***COPY of the CHAT TRANSCRIPT*** + +Case: [redacted] +Subject: help with account access + +Chat Started: Wed, 4 Aug 2021 04:43:34 -0700 +Chat Subject: help with account access + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Thank you for contacting Google Workspace Support. My name is Nikita and I’ll be working with you today. While I read over your message, is there anything else you’d like to add? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Hello there. Thank you so much for patiently holding on the queue to speak with us. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Lovely day to you. How are you doing today? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Not so great + +**Daniel Rosehill:** You know that sinking feeling when a company called Google arbitrarily locks you out of your account and you can’t access your holiday photos / YouTube / calendar / email. Well, Nikita, I have that feeling. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So what I’m thinking about doing today Nikita is a little unusual + +**Daniel Rosehill: I** ’ve already spoken to your team multiple times over the past 24 hours to attempt to regain account access. And so far nothing has happened. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So as things are looking desperate I thought that you might be interested in joining me in a remote affirmation session? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Basically I’ll type out an affirmation (I’m going to go with “I WILL regain access to my Google account”). Then you type back something encouraging like “yes you will!” + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I think doing this one or two times could be very therapeutic for me + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Hi Daniel. As an email client myself, I know how important this is for you to regain access with your account. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** And I totally get that. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Nikita, it’s gratifying to know that you’re also an email user. It really is. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Also, as I really wanted to have a remote session with you, my apologies, but we don’t have that option here in chat support team. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So you can imagine the horror when I was stuck waiting for my COVID test results yesterday but couldn’t access them because I couldn’t log in to my email! + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Still, I’ll be glad and will do my best to help you out on what we can do about this matter. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Indeed. As a citizen myself, I completely understand the impression. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I’ve been through all the conventional options, Nikita. But as they say, where fear ends, faith begins. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Do you happen to have any sage on hand? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Hmm. Actually, yes, I do have an issue with my personal email before, which I lost access, but thank G-d, I was able to retrieve it last year. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** By the way, may I ask, what is the Google email account we are having a concern with? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I’m going to create an opportunity for you to go through the support logs and identify the issue + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I’d like you to feel a joint sense of ownership over this issue, Nikita. Simply handing you that information would not achieve the same thing. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** If you truly feel the pain of suddenly losing email access, then you’ll join me full-heartedly in this joint quest. If you refuse, I must question the sincerity of your commitment… + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Nikita you have lapsed into silence. What has gone wrong? What did I say? What did I do? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Yes, I’m with you here. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita** : I just pull out my tools, and check the previous interaction you had with our team. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** And have the details, where you need an access with your [redacted; account email] + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Also, able to get the ticket [redacted; ticket number] for your account access request. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Terrific + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Now all I need is access to my account! + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita** : And to confirm, you have added the CNAME to verify the ownership of the domain you are trying to access, and you have replied to the Account recovery team, correct? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** indeed i have + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Thank you for confirming that. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Thank you for thanking me for confirming that + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Now, kindly allow me about 3 to 5 minutes to check that status of the request. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Sure + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Hi Daniel Thank you for staying with me. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** As I checked, indeed, the request is being handled of our Recovery team, and with the status, it is still in Progress — which means, they are still doing some analysis with the request. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** This is an intriguing detail! + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Can I ask what kind of “analysis” is being conducted on my account? Given that it’s now more than 24 hours since I added the verification CNAME and answered your knowledge test? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** To give you a heads up, with account recovery processing time normally takes within 3–5 business days — as they will also need to contact the owner that has been detected on the system, which might need to save the files. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I’ve tried to do my own analysis on why I was locked out of my account but haven’t come up with an explanation yet. I’d be very grateful if this recovery team could help with that detail. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** The owner and only user of the Gsuite is me, Nikita. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So let me ask you a question. You do understand that depriving users of access to their Google data for up to 5 business days is entirely unreasonable, right? What do you expect people to do while you’ve held their data hostage exactly? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** But with depth process with how our recovery team handle this kind of cases, my apologies I am not able to discuss it with you as I primarily works with Google Workspace technical issues. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So the sucky part of this is that nobody from this mysterious account recovery team has contacted me either + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So I guess nobody is able to provide any details on why you’ve locked me out of all my files that you’re processing? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** For this, I would best recommend for you, to wait 48 hours, and when you have not receive any updates from our Recovery team, feel free to keep us updated. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Or you can simply reply to the email (with our chat transcript) so that I can personally take chances in following up with you. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I’m also really curious to know why just an hour ago your colleague told me that I would be updated within 24 hours + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Now the timeframe has mysteriously mushroomed to 5 days + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Why is this? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** That is the normal time frame, Daniel. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So I ask you again — — why are your colleagues lying? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I recorded a call with your colleague this morning during which I was told that I’d be updated within “one to two hours” + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** To provide you an overview, when you submit a request with our recovery team, most like you will get a reply from them within 24 hours, to provide you details on what you need to do — which you have added CNAME to verify the ownership for your domains. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Then, you will reply on that. And they will reach you within the next 24 hours for an update as possible, but for the processing time, it normally takes withing 3 to 5 days. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Therefore, 3–5 days, processing time, and as long as our recovery team do have an update with your request, they will update with you during the processing time. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So I’ll keep asking + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Why have I been locked out? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Why have you failed to provide any reason for this? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** And finally, do you intend doing anything to make up for the inconvenience of being unable to access my data for the best part of a week through your over-zealous systems? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Oh, for that, my apologies, I cannot check that for you, as I don’t have visibility in your [redacted; Gsuite domain] account. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So let me get this straight + +**Daniel Rosehill:** You represent Google Workspace support + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I’m speaking to you from my other Gsuite because I have no means of accessing the admin panel from the domain I have been locked out from by your system + +**Daniel Rosehill:** And yet you have “no visibility” over the account — after I have completed your verification questions? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Yes, that is correct Daniel. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** To provide you an overview, we can only have visibility in the account, where our clients, like you, initiated the chat from + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** And this is in accordance to Google’s strict policies towards Data and Privacy. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** The wonderful policies that have locked me out of my own data… + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So let me ask you something Nikita + +**Daniel Rosehill:** If you were me and couldn’t get into your account + +**Daniel Rosehill:** How would YOU recommend contacting Google? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Therefore, even if you already added the CNAME for your domain verification in your other account, as much as I wanted to check that for you on why the account has been locked or what not, I am not able to that for you. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** That’s very unfortunate + +**Daniel Rosehill:** One more question, Nikita + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Who CAN provide any meaningful information from Google? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** You’ve made very clear that you’re unable to + +**Daniel Rosehill:** And I don’t have 5 days to spare trying to figure out if I’ll get this account back + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Nikita I should also let you know + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Of course, I would also feel the same way. But then again, as much as I wanted to help you to gain access with that account, we do have another team, who is handling it for you. And no worries, I can guarantee that they are working on it. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** That I’m screenshotting this correspondence and will be publishing it online + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** It was just that, the status is still in progress. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** And as a client, deserve the transparency of what our services can and cannot do. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** You know something — we can agree about this + +**Daniel Rosehill** : Clients do deserve transparency + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So here’s a chance to offer some of it: + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Why was I locked out of my account? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** When do you guarantee recovery by? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Alternatively: who can I speak to who can provide this information? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Nikita I feel like we are going around in circles + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Let’s talk about escalation + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Do you have any colleagues who might be more helpful in providing information? + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** To be direct and transparent with you, as recovery team is another department, for you to direct speak with them, you can simply reply again to their email and request a callback instead. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So here’s the thing Nikita + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I requested a callback this morning + +**Daniel Rosehill:** And your colleague said the same thing + +**Daniel Rosehill:** He wasn’t able to provide information because he wasn’t from the account recovery team + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Which leads me to wonder + +**Daniel Rosehill:** How DOES one contact this team? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** By the way it would be great to have a direct point of contact at this team that is currently holding my digital life hostrage + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** Here in Google Workspace support team, the least we can do is for you to provide the status of the request. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** But I’m presuming you can’t offfer that + +**Daniel Rosehil** l: The “in progress” status doesn’t help me at all + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Nikita I have to run soon + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** To be honest, yes, our Recovery team, can only be contacted directly by our clients, like you, who do have an issue accessing their account. + +**Daniel Rosehill** : I’ll be publishing this interaction on my blog + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Do you have anything to share on behalf of Google? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Perhaps you’d like to reassure readers that their data can’t arbitrarily be locked down as mine was? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** BTW really funny that you say that because I’ve been trying for days now and haven’t succeeded in finding a way to actually directly speak to somebody from that team with info + +**Daniel Rosehill:** You can of course choose not to comment + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** I completely get the point on what you are saying, about the status which is ‘In progress’, Daniel. + +x + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Alright then + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Well I don’t believe in lying + +**Daniel Rosehill:** This hasn’t been helpful in the slightest + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Please let me know if I can wrap up now + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I’ll go back to saying affirmations alone in the hope that it will expedite my request to get back into my email, work calendar, etc. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Just let me know when you’d like me to disconnect as I want to make sure this transcript is complete + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** But that is the status that I can see from your request. And I don’t want to provide any details that will lead to false hope. + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** With this, I am asking kindly for more patience, at least 48 hours, and if you haven’t heard back any updates from our Recovery team, as we discussed, simply reply to my email (with the copy of our chat transcript) so that I can personally take chances in following up with you. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So you’re implying that thinking that I will be able to access my data again would be “false hope”?! + +**Daniel Rosehill:** That’s certainly reassuring to hear! + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** I apologize for the confusion, Daniel. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Nikita I have to move on with my day + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Thank you for trying to be helpful + +**Daniel Rosehill:** I’m going to go ahead and end the chat now from my side + +**Google Workspace Support, Nikita:** What I meant was, I am not giving more details like, giving you an exact time frame which you will be able to access your account, something like that. + +### _1 day later_ + +**Google Workspace Support, Cherry Bell:** Thank you for contacting Google Workspace Support. My name is Cherry Bell and I’ll be working with you today. While I read over your message, is there anything else you’d like to add? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Good morning Cherry Bell + +**Google Workspace Support, Cherry Bell** + +Hi Daniel. I hope you are doing well today + +**Daniel Rosehill:** What an unusual name!case ID for your Account recovery will be: [redacted].Please update me. We’re now passed the 48 hours mark without access to my Google Account. What’s going on? + +**Google Workspace Support, Cherry Bell:** I understand you have concern with recovering your account with the reference number [redacted]. Please allow me to check on this and I will do my best to assist you + +**Google Workspace Support, Cherry Bell** + +Thank you for patiently waiting. I have checked the case number you have provided and it shows that your concern has been forwarded to our support engineers. Also one of our recovery team is currently handling this case where you will be updated we got one from our Engineers + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Yeah you’ve been saying this for 3 days already. What’s the ETA? + +**Google Workspace Support, Cherry Bell:** We know and understand how important this is for you. As per the last email conversation sent to you + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Why can’t I speak directly with the “engineer” dealing with the recovery of *my own* data? + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Also, that doesn’t answer my question + +**Google Workspace Support, Cherry Bell:** The requests usually take up to 3 business days + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So at 18:00 tonight (my local) your 3 day window is up. So I assume you can guarantee recovery by then? + +**Google Workspace Support, Cherry Bell** + +On the other hand, the other way to regain access to your Super Administrator account is via your secondary/recovery email address. This is usually the email address that you provided when you first signed up for your Google Workspace account. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So I’m guessing you haven’t read the support logs. Your delightful system doesn’t provide me with any means of recovery, including via the backup email address that I have access to + +**Daniel Rosehill:** + +Cherry, you know one word that would really make a difference that I haven’t heard from you or most of your colleagues at Google? + +**Google Workspace Support, Cherry Bell** + +I am sorry to see that Daniel. What I can do for you on this ís to notify and ask for the update from our Recovery Team that currently handles your concern. + +**Daniel Rosehill:** Yeah your told me the same thing yesterday. Nobody from this mystical team has been in touch + +**Daniel Rosehill:** So “Cherry Bell” this has been another useless interaction with Google support. As you clearly have no information to share and don’t even feel the need to apologize for locking me out of my account for no fault of my own, I don’t see the point in sticking around any longer.I guess I’ll keep waiting as that’s all you give your customers an option to do. diff --git a/posts/medium/This-Summer--I-m-Going-To-Try-Run-Only-On-Asynchronous-Communications.md b/posts/medium/This-Summer--I-m-Going-To-Try-Run-Only-On-Asynchronous-Communications.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c26a69d27cc1312bfcfb0913be4c7a6b7c97dee0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/This-Summer--I-m-Going-To-Try-Run-Only-On-Asynchronous-Communications.md @@ -0,0 +1,84 @@ +# This Summer, I’m Going To Try Run Only On Asynchronous Communications + +#### Async is great. But can you get your colleagues to use it? + +Synchronous communications: the increasingly well-recognized cause of much burnout, especially for remote workersPhoto by [cottonbro](https://www.pexels.com/@cottonbro?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/turned-on-macbook-3205403/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +In less than a week, I’m planning on undertaking the first international travel that I’ve embarked upon in more than two years. + +That means tearing myself away from my beloved home office (it’s where I get all my writing done!); trading somewhat reliable home internet connectivity for whatever’s available in a vacation rental; and hopefully spending a bit more time disconnecting while I focus on other things. + +[**Async Communication: You Mean Those Things Us Deep Work Folk Already Use And Love?** +_Async is blooming. But it just reflects the preferences that deep work enthusiasts have had for years._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/async-communication-you-mean-those-things-us-deep-work-folk-already-use-and-love-5c3492c49fa0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/async-communication-you-mean-those-things-us-deep-work-folk-already-use-and-love-5c3492c49fa0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/async-communication-you-mean-those-things-us-deep-work-folk-already-use-and-love-5c3492c49fa0) + +As I think about where I’ll be and how I can best structure my days to get _some_ work done (without getting so much work done that there’s no actual vacation, of course!), I realize that this could be a great opportunity to continue exploring the virtues of asynchronous communication (#async) for those working in remote or hybrid environments. + +Which is why when it came time to configure an autoresponder so that my clients wouldn’t think that I’ve fallen off the face of the earth, I opted for an unconventional approach: + +> Dear clients, + +> I’ll be travelling between July 12th and August 2nd with periodic access to email. + +> If I’m doing what I should be and disconnecting, replies will be a bit slower over this period. If I’m responding too quickly, please give out to me. + +> By the way, have you heard about asynchronous communications (if not, [guide here](https://blog.doist.com/asynchronous-communication/#:~:text=Simply%20put%2C%20asynchronous%20communication%20is,example%2C%20you%20send%20an%20email.&text=In%20contrast%2C%20synchronous%20communication%20is,the%20information%20and%20responds%20immediately.))? I’m a big fan! + +> As I’ll be less responsive over this period, this would be a great time to send your project brief/ urgent messages / rants about my writing / general musings by one of the following channels: + +> \- Email + +> [\- Loom](http://www.loom.com/) + +> [\- Yac](http://www.yac.com/) + +> And I’ll pick them up as soon as I can. + +> Looking forward to connecting! + +> \- Daniel. + +### The #Async Advocate’s Challenge: Weaning Others Off Zoom + +As soon as I hit the ‘save changes’ button on the above autoresponder message, I reflected upon how useful #async could be during the more normal course of events in the world when people are travelling. + +For distributed teams: + + * **Large time zone differences can be worked out when both sides can settle upon an efficient way to communicate that doesn’t require both to be present at a meeting.** + * **Remote resources can do things like travel and take appropriate amounts of vacation while remaining somewhat contactable.** In effect, it’s a way of enforcing basic boundaries. Choose the level of responsiveness that works for you and then find a platform where it most closely aligns with others’ expectations for contactability there. You can gently coerce colleagues to work around that. + * **An async-first culture can allow resources to focus on deep work periods during which important deliverables are undertaken.** Communication and information sharing can be siloed into separate ringfenced blocks of time. + +While organizations like [We Are Async](https://www.weareasync.com/jobs) are doing a great job at pushing awareness of the virtues of #async communication (note: it’s a [Doist](https://medium.com/u/788627f2f641) project), there’s still a sense that most of the few heavyweight async advocates doing the rounds online are either developing async tools themselves or are advocating from the vantage point of a company that’s already bought into the philosophy. + +But where does that debate leave lone wolves like me who consult for clients but who also _are_ the business? + +If our clients and remote colleagues refuse to give up on Zoom and phone calls as the default mode of internal communication, then it’s unlikely that we’re going to make much headway advocating for the adoption of tools such as Loom and Yac. Perhaps the answer is just doing the best that we can. And hitching our hopes that the revolution will spread to those who we work for. + +### When You Think About It, All Communication Is #Async + +As I was thinking through how best I could try structure my time working away from home this summer that both allowed me to achieve some level of productivity without hampering any relaxation, something else came to mind. + +**When you think about it,_all_ communication is really asynchronous.** + +Two people can’t have a conversation when they’re speaking to one another at the same time. And even if you’re having an IM exchange, you have to read what the other party wrote before you type a reply. + +There’s always a lag between communicating and awaiting your interlocutor’s response. + +But the factors that distinguish #async tools from #sync ones are the extent of that lag and what kind of expectation both parties typically bring to the platform in terms of responsiveness. + +That’s why even though Slack is commonly listed as an example of an async platform, I tend to bucket it more into the #sync side of the divide. + +Coworkers commonly request reasonably fast if not instantaneous responses to Slack messages. The addition of a “you there?” appendage to the communication leaves little room to doubt that intention. + +### Can Async Be The Best Vacation Productivity Boundary? + +When I got to thinking about what I feel like I need a break from during my upcoming period of partial disconnection, I realized — without even thinking about the word — that synchronous communications were what my mind needed to do without for a time. + +That’s the part of my work-week that feels like work. That’s the part that’s fatiguing and stressful. When I’m in deep work mode and communicating periodically by email, I barely notice the time going by. If deep work is the fuel that (paradoxically) energizes me, then synchronous comms are like an insipid drain on the tank. + +On any given day during the past two or so years, I’m constantly running between turning in deliverables and showing up to Zoom meetings. (While I may be a passionate advocate for #async, I can’t guarantee that those who I work with see things similarly. We all have different preferences.) + +I need a break from a day — or a week — punctuated by Zoom meetings. I need a day free from feeling the sense of pressure to check Slack workspaces and respond to pings in a reasonably responsive manner before people escalate to email or WhatsApp to communicate that a two hour response lag over that channel was too much. I need a week — no make that a few of them — away from the strange kind of pressure that comes with striking up a relationship by video feed with somebody who’ve you’ve never met in person and possibly never will. + +By contrast, the thought of responding to emails every few days from a more relaxed environment doesn’t daunt me. To the contrary, I look forward to having something to keep me engaged while I’m away (you could say I have a hard time shutting off). What I _do_ need a break from, ultimately, is synchronous communications. + +This summer I’m diving a bit deeper into the possibilities of remote work and the ability to work from new geographies. I envision minimizing unnecessary synchronous interactions as an integral part of that process. diff --git a/posts/medium/Tired-Of-Lousy-Home-Internet--How-To-Use-4G-Cellular-Backup-To-Boost-Connection-Stability.md b/posts/medium/Tired-Of-Lousy-Home-Internet--How-To-Use-4G-Cellular-Backup-To-Boost-Connection-Stability.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..27046b2e79946c03a8da9dcae120a2a0c7e4ab14 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Tired-Of-Lousy-Home-Internet--How-To-Use-4G-Cellular-Backup-To-Boost-Connection-Stability.md @@ -0,0 +1,197 @@ +# Tired Of Lousy Home Internet? How To Use 4G/Cellular Backup To Boost Connection Stability + +#### Backup cellular connectivity can plug the gaps on your home internet connection and give you more stable surfing + +Seeing this page a lot? Consider adding a backup cellular line + +This summer, I spent a few weeks in the United States (US). + +There, I learned of a bitter reality. + +A house nestled among the leafy woods of Storrs, Connecticut was able to receive faster and more reliable than I could living in the capital of the Startup Nation in Jerusalem, Israel. It didn’t appear to suffer from hours’-long downtime while the person on the other end of the support line asked whether you had tried turning the device on and off again. + +How so? Why so? + +Provisioning home internet connectivity is finnicky business — and home internet consumers (from the standpoint of ISPs) are small fry, even if there are lots and lots of them. + +Did you know that the cabling that essentially makes the internet work — the internet backbone — is basically laid through sea? SubmarineCableMap.com provides a fascinating education and shows the oceanic landing points and cabling connecting the world. Private ownership of the internet backbone by major tech companies is a growing concern. + +[**Google and other tech giants are quietly buying up the most important part of the internet** + _The Transform Technology Summits start October 13th with Low-Code/No Code: Enabling Enterprise Agility. Register now…_ venturebeat.com](https://venturebeat.com/2019/04/06/google-and-other-tech-giants-are-quietly-buying-up-the-most-important-part-of-the-internet/ "https://venturebeat.com/2019/04/06/google-and-other-tech-giants-are-quietly-buying-up-the-most-important-part-of-the-internet/")[](https://venturebeat.com/2019/04/06/google-and-other-tech-giants-are-quietly-buying-up-the-most-important-part-of-the-internet/) + +Israel takes a particularly unusual approach to things, mandating a separation between the company managing the connection (the ISP; Hebrew ‘sapak’) and the company that manages the infrastructure (‘tashtit’). + +While fiber optic is currently rolling out within Israel, in many parts of the country, it’s still not available. That leaves two infrastructure options (Bezeq and Hot) being resold by a dizzying array of ISPs. (Parenthetically, since reforms were introduced to the cellular connectivity market, a parallel situation exists there with a few core MNOs and a burgeoning network of MVNOs reselling connectivity. You didn’t think that Rami Levy Mobile really owned its own tours, did you!?). + +The ISP + cellular router stack during the “is this going to work?” testing phase? (Photo: author). + +So what can you do if ISP One provides lousy connectivity? Try ISP two! What can you do if _both_ ISP One and ISP Two are lousy? Given how internet is wired from its oceanic landing points into homes (look up last mile internet connectivity) this is a distinct possibility and this is also the situation that I experienced. + +After experimenting with a crude V1 of backup connectivity (two simultaneous ISP subscriptions “managed” by a $5 network switcher from Aliexpress) I decided that this needed more serious consideration. + +You’re now reading the results of two weeks spent down the home internet networking rabbit-hole (and oh how engrossing a rabbit hole it was!). + +### Step 1: Buy A Data Only SIM Package + +In Israel, I found two providers of data only SIMs: we4G and Pelephone. There are probably more. The screenshot reflects the prices current at the time of publication only. Screenshot: Author. + +After finding that a hotspot worked better than the second ISP to tide me over during outages, I decided that cellular backup was going to be the way to go. + +My first step was finding a data only SIM plan. + +These are basically phone plans that strip everything out of them except the provision of data. + +Thus, they tend to be cheaper than regular phone plans. It’s also … designed precisely for this purpose. + +Here’s the tip to be aware of. + +It’s worth considering what hardware you’re going to be buying in step two now. Check what type of SIM card the router is going to expect. And if the phone company allows you to choose the type of SIM you receive … then choose accordingly. + +In practice, as an easy way of covering all bases, many phone companies these days send you a Russian Doll type SIM: it’s a full SIM with little bits of plastic that can be pushed off to it down to a micro SIM and then to a nano card. + +### Step 2: Buy A Cellular Router + +Next, you’re going to want to pick up a cellular router. + +In Israel, I found that KSP and Ivory both had plentiful selections of different cellular routing devices. Screenshot: Ivory.co.il + +This is basically a router that’s designed to take data from a SIM card and then network it locally either via ethernet or WiFi. + +#### A Simpler (But Less Powerful) Alternative + +If you want to keep things really simple, even this stage of the process might be something you can cut down on. + +Check whether your ISP’s router has a USB port. Next, go into whatever online interface you use to manage the router. See if there’s something there about mobile connectivity or mobile backup. + +If both are there, your router might be able to work with a USB 4G dongle in order to provide failover mobile network connectivity. + +While you _could_ avoid buying another router and just go with this option, I still gently recommend against it because: + +a) When it comes to setting up the tech that my business depends upon, I personally want to own all my own hardware. I don’t want any of the options that my ISP has for sale. Therefore, I rent it. If I didn’t, they wouldn’t provide service in the event that I require it. + +b) This network design will be more robust. + +#### Choosing A Cellular Router With The Right Ports + +What do I recommend? + +I recommend going for a 4G/LTE cellular router that has at least one LAN and one WAN port. + +Those are the RJ-45 ethernet ports and will allow us to network the 4G router into other devices. You can probably find ones from TP-Link for roughly $100 in your locality. + +Note: this guide is focused on using fairly affordable consumer-level hardware to achieve basic backup connectivity and I tried to keep the cost of designing this as low as reasonably possible without compromising on key parts of the network design. + +If you’ve got more dollars to throw around, you could simplify the network design further by picking up a dual WAN (or above) router that has built-in SIM card slots and supports 4G/LTE or even 5G. See for instance the Vigor2927 LTE Series from DrayTek. This would be a pretty sweet solution that would allow you to wire in two ISPs plus cellular to the router and run everything off this one device. + +You could also purchase a load balancing router such as the TP-Link ER605 and install another router on one of the LAN ports if you wanted to run a WiFi network (most homes these days want to run WiFi networks and even ethernet eccentrics like me are prone to using WiFi while watching Netflix in bed). Again, TP-Link makes a number of options. Here are both those product options below: + +### Step 3: Set Up Your Cellular Router (Set APN, Change Mode, Other Setting Change) + +Now you should have a cellular router with ethernet ports and a data only SIM to go into it. + +The next thing you’re going to have to do is set up this router. + +This didn’t _quite_ work out of the box for me as the packaging expected (note: packaging sometimes lies!). + +Here’s a video I made showing how to manually configure the APN setting on the TP-Link router that I ended up using (TL-MR 100). A couple of changes and I was up and running on 4G: + +Your setup, however, isn’t going to be the typical one. So you’ll need to pay attention to the user manual. + +You’re going to be setting the 4G router up as a wireless router rather than a cellular router. + +**Firstly, I needed to use ethernet cabling to connect a LAN port in my ISP router and connect it to the WAN port of my cellular router.** After I did this and changed the mode on the cellular router, it had to do a reboot. + +(This is why buying an actual 4G-supporting _router_ with ethernet ports rather than just a hotspot-type device was essential. If you can afford it, I’d recommend going for a higher-end cellular router with more ethernet connections. What you’re doing here is passing your ISP router’s connectivity into the cellular router so that that will be running your network.) + +My setup during the testing phase (pre cable management). Photo: Author.4G router with we4G data SIM + +In my TP-Link router, I had to make a few settings changes to get this to work. + +These were all clearly laid out in the user manual but here were the essential ones. + +Firstly, I set the operation mode to ‘wireless router mode’. + +Next, I changed the ‘internet backup’ setting under network to 3G/4G backup. + +This flips the router on its head. Instead of it being a cellular router that can also support home internet, it’s now a home internet router that can leverage its ability to pass on cellular connectivity as a _backup_ option. The failover should happen automatically. Want to test it? Shut down your ISP router and see what happens! + +Remember, we’ve now got two routers on our network: a cellular router and the one our ISP supplied. There’s a high chance that the embedded web servers (EWSs) of the two routers are going to collide. We’ll need both to be available to make configuration changes. + +Check whether this is the case. If your ISP router’s web server is also on the default one for your cellular router, than you should change its IP address. + +### Step 4: Take Down The Old WiFi Network, Put Up The New One + +Let’s look at what we’ve done so far: + +We’ve: + + * Purchased a data only SIM card so that we can use 4G as a fallback connection source in our home network + * Purchased a compatible 4G router to use that connectivity + * Wired our ISP router into the 4G router in order to pass along the connection and make the 4G router the router that’s actually driving connectivity around our house by providing a bonded internet connection + * Made some changes to the cellular router’s settings in order to tell it what we want it to do: serve as a router that passes along our ISP’s connection in the first instance and uses the 4G connectivity it provides only as a backup + +If you’ve made it this far, then everything should be up and running nicely. + +All you have left to do is hook up your devices. + +As I made the mistake of purchasing a TP-Link 4G router with only one LAN port after the WAN was in use (my initial plan was to go with the load balancing option before realizing this device could do everything I needed), I had to run an ethernet switch off the LAN port in order to give myself enough ports to connect my desktop, NAS, and home media center. You might be able to avoid this by purchasing a cellular router with more ports! + +Presumably, you’ve been running a WiFi network off your ISP router. There’s not really any point in keeping this running as we can now run a WiFi network from the cellular router. The reason? The ISP router’s WiFi only provides ISP connectivity. The one we can transmit from the cellular router leverages _both_ the ISP and the fallback cellular connectivity. + +So take down your initial WiFi network(s) and fire up the WiFi on your cellular device. + +You now have a router with fallback cellular connectivity set up throughout your home. + +### Other Networking Options For Achieving The Same Thing. More Streamlined. But Typically Also A Lot More Expensive. + +When it comes to backup internet connectivity — as with everything else in tech — there are a few ways to skin a cat. + +Here’s a schematic for the type of connection that I ended up implementing: + +And here’s something like what I would have done if I had unlimited funds at my disposal: + +If you can afford and can source a dual WAN router (or one with more LANs that can be interchanged) then what you could set up would look something like this: + +And if you just want to go with the USB dongle into router approach — this would be the outcome: + +Happy connectivity! + +### FAQs + +**Couldn’t I Just Use My Phone’s hotspot?** + +You could but this setup is a lot more useful and stable: + + * It’s always up and running. No phone running out of battery preventing hotspot incidents. + * Everything on the network can benefit from the backup cellular connectivity including wired/ethernet devices. + +**How Much Does This Cost?** + +Here’s what I paid: + + * About $100 for a TP-Link 4G/LTE cellular router that had the minimum number of ports I needed. Needless to say, this was a once off payment. + * I’m paying about $15 per month for the cellular connection. + +**Is This Really Worth It?** + +If you depend upon home connectivity to run a business from home and your ISP connection is even slightly unreliable, I would be extremely surprised if you didn’t quickly reach the conclusion that this was a great idea and is likely to pay for itself within a few months. + +**Could I Use Satellite Internet As Backup?** + +Yes. + +You could implement that via either a multi-WAN router (the more consumer-ish kind that also runs WiFi). Or via a load balancing router and then just network a consumer router or ethernet to WiFi bridge into the end of it. + +If you have enough WAN ports (e.g. both of the above) you could run ISP _plus_ cellular _plus_ satellite. + +**Could I Use 5G?** + +Of course. + +The reason I used 4G/LTE is because 5G routers are currently a _lot_ more expensive than 4G ones. We’re talking $500 vs. $100. This will probably change within a few years. At which point it would be more logical to use a 5G-supporting data plan and a 5G router to provision the cellular side of this setup. + +**My Home Internet Is Pretty Great. Should I Still Set This Up?** + +Honestly, I think that having a backup connection is a very prudent idea. Your ISP might be amazing but there’s still a lot that can go wrong on the way to your house — including a construction crew accidentally splitting a cable right outside your front door. + +### Videos diff --git a/posts/medium/To-Grow-As-A-Writer--Write-About--Slightly--Uncomfortable-Topics.md b/posts/medium/To-Grow-As-A-Writer--Write-About--Slightly--Uncomfortable-Topics.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9a4b39c307777a11358dece4a3f00217bfb133c6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/To-Grow-As-A-Writer--Write-About--Slightly--Uncomfortable-Topics.md @@ -0,0 +1,54 @@ +# To Grow As A Writer, Write About (Slightly) Uncomfortable Topics + +Photo by Xarew on [PXFuel.com](https://www.pxfuel.com/en/free-photo-xarew) + +As freelance writers, we’re constantly being adjured to niche down. + +The value of finding a niche to write about has been covered so often that there would be point in repeating what everybody else has already said (in summary: you should find a niche; when you do you’ll have less competition and also fewer clients to market to). + +Niching down isn’t the panacea for all freelance writing woes, however. + +There are downsides to being exclusively focused on a series of niches that I think merit discussion. + +And reasons why I think that projects that are _slightly_ out of niche are actually the most valuable ones to take on. + +### The Downsides Of Being Overly Niched + +#### It Can Get Really Boring 😴 + +The main downside of confining yourself to a couple of narrow niches is that writing about the same thing over and over again has a tendency to get extremely boring. + +There are some niches that are just wide enough to draw in repeat work but narrow enough to draw in work that is extremely similar. + +If you stick to a couple of narrow niches, it’s very easy to find yourself writing for clients that are barely distinguishable one from the other. + +#### It Can Lead To Professional Stagnation + +Writing about the same niche or sub-niche(s) repeatedly isn’t a great way to grow professionally. In fact, it’s a downright terrible one. + +One of the hardest aspects of freelance writing is figuring out a way to ensure professional growth. Unlike our in-house brethren, we don’t have a fixed corporate ladder to climb. Periodic promotions aren’t really a thing in the freelance writing world. And if we want to accrue more responsibility then we have to figure out a way to make that happen ourselves (I’ll blog about that soon). + +### The Lateral Growth Model + +**The best model for freelance growth, in my estimation, is to take on projects that are slightly outside of your comfort zone.** + +Writing endlessly about things you could write about in your sleep is clearly just going to lead to you accruing hundreds of more virtual carbon copy samples in your portfolio. Your clients may progress slightly over the years. But it will be a slow ascent through the ranks at the best of times. + +Being bold about the work you take on isn’t easy, though. Taking on projects that you’re slightly dubious about your ability to complete involves a couple of difficulties. + + * **For one, it’s harder to convince prospective clients to hire you.** The reasons are obvious: your pitch is weaker. Instead of confidently pointing clients in the direction of samples and past/previous clients, you’ll have to hope they feel confident enough in taking a gamble on you. + * **Secondly, you’ll probably make a lower hourly rate on these projects initially.** Because you don’t have a background writing about a subject, it will initially take a lot longer to write about. There will be acronyms and industry jargon to unpack. Business models and concepts to understand. There’s a reasonable probability that your client isn’t going to have a budget for your independent I-need-to-get-up-to-speed research. But don’t forget that if you can develop a new and profitable niche that the long term payback may greatly outweigh the short term penalties. + +### Pick Projects That Are Slightly Unfamiliar + +**My advice, as a writer, is to jump at projects that you’re slightly doubtful you have the ability to undertake.** + +**In my experience that _“I’m not really sure I can pull off this brief”_ move is precisely the signal you should be looking for in order to take on a project. **There’s a very high chance that you can and that that self-doubt is preventing you from writing about interesting new niches and topics. + +If you can write about something in your sleep already — it may be decent work but it’s not a growth opportunity. + +Have some FinTech pieces in your portfolio but none that take a stab at summarizing European financial regulations? Perfect. This is your opportunity to make the leap. + +Yes, your first few pieces (if you can get them!) probably won’t pay as well. But you may just have opened up a new lucrative niche which you can continue writing about for years. + +And don’t forget that next time somebody comes asking, you’ll have those clips in your portfolio. diff --git a/posts/medium/Tomorrow-s-Internet-Will-Be-A-Bot-Infested--Mind-Warping-Wasteland.md b/posts/medium/Tomorrow-s-Internet-Will-Be-A-Bot-Infested--Mind-Warping-Wasteland.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6f80067d438b79ad0a3abd75e7df51086e1a503c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Tomorrow-s-Internet-Will-Be-A-Bot-Infested--Mind-Warping-Wasteland.md @@ -0,0 +1,156 @@ +# Tomorrow’s Internet Will Be A Bot-Infested, Mind-Warping Wasteland + +#### How bots and scraping will conspire to create an internet that will feel something very much like The Matrix at scale + +Tomorrow’s internet: a sea of bots on the tails of the more prolific online posters. Crafted deep fake seating as a major vector for identity theft. Photo by [Tima Miroshnichenko](https://www.pexels.com/@tima-miroshnichenko?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-view-of-system-hacking-5380618/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Yesterday, one of my favorite tech prognosticators (Peter Duffy, you should [sign up for his newsletter](https://newsletter.peterduffy.ie/)) shared a tweet from [Tim Ferriss](https://medium.com/u/56d3bc91794f). + +Here’s Tim’s tweet: + +Tim’s tweet flashed across my screen at one in the morning, just before I drafted a story here about how one guy in California is the internet’s time zone master _(no, really; and if you haven’t figured out my circadian rhythm here it is: I work for clients during the day; do my own writing at night; and catch glimpses of sleep at totally random times, which is one of the joys of the freelancing lifestyle)._ + +[**The Largely Untold Story Of How One Guy In California Keeps The World’s Computers On The Right…** + _A brief odyssey into the secluded world of the tight-knit time zone community keeping the world’s computers from…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-largely-untold-story-of-how-one-guy-in-california-keeps-the-worlds-computers-on-the-right-time-a97a5493bf73 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-largely-untold-story-of-how-one-guy-in-california-keeps-the-worlds-computers-on-the-right-time-a97a5493bf73")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-largely-untold-story-of-how-one-guy-in-california-keeps-the-worlds-computers-on-the-right-time-a97a5493bf73) + +I sent Tim back a few tweets in reply. Tim Ferris being Tim Ferris and me being a guy in Jerusalem with internet access I am certain Tim Ferris didn’t see any of those. + +But the picture of reality that I tired to get across is so warped that I thought it really merited a bit more long form space. + +So here it is. + +### We Will See A Massive Proliferation Of Deep Fakes + +I don’t think anybody is doubting that this is going to happen.But let’s take it as our starting point anyway. + +Something many people know about me: I’ve been fascinated, for a long time, with misinformation and how easy it has become to divulge it over the internet. + +That fascination has led me to a few very disturbing conclusions: + +[**How to create a fake online identity** + _And what you should do to avoid interacting with one_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-create-a-fake-online-identity-3ce07dc4589c) + +One of them: a college student with internet connectivity has, today, a social engineering toolbox at their fingertips that’s pretty disturbingly rich. + +So far, it’s mostly been the object of intrigue. + +But very soon — in fact this is probably already happening — we could see it being exploited at scale to … really shake the internet up in a way that may be so much closer around the corner than many of us realize. + +Creating a somewhat compelling alternative online identity today is quite easy. + +And this is just going through the process manually. The threat landscape I’m describing is, of course, more likely to rely upon programmatic methods. + +You can, for instance: + + * Very easily use an AI generator to create a fake face + * Use further AI generators to create derivative images of that fake face to populate social media profiles which look like a real person’s + * Create imagery that brings together multiple fake people together for a family photo consisting entirely of people who either don’t exist or are people who do exist in situations they were never in + * Combine all the above with one of the increasingly credible text to speed (TTS) engines to start a podcast using the voice of your fake person + * Use a deep fake video generator to create fake video footage involving your fake person and start a YouTube channel under their name + +We also have on hand reasonably sophisticated NPL and AI to study and then emulate patterns of speech and preferred modes of writing: such that credible copycat blogs and correspondence could be generated. + +These technologies are all rapidly maturing: + +[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLoI9hAX9dw&ab_channel=BloombergQuicktake](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLoI9hAX9dw&ab_channel=BloombergQuicktake) + +### Scraping-Based PII Sniffing Will Become A Major Vector For Identity Takeover Attempts. Deep Fake Seeding And Cloning Will Be Fraudsters’ Go-To Approaches. + +Currently, low level internet scamsters — which is probably most of them — rely upon a variety of methods to leverage the internet’s large size in order to scam people and make money. + +Technology companies have been mostly focused to date on better filtering in order to try to thwart the problem. + +But without dissing the defensive side — it stops people’s life savings from being stolen — both adversaries and attackers are operating at a fairly basic level of sophistication. + +I’m talking about phishing — which is the most basic social engineering exploit most people have heard of. + +Its secret sauce is currently typically scale: + + * Create (say) a copy of Facebook that looks reasonably credible. + * Buy a domain name that looks close enough to the real thing that some people will fall for it + * Buy up or scrape a large volume of emails + * Begin sending out fake notification messages demanding a password change. + * Sit back while you siphon off user credentials + * Then put those together with other personally identifiable information (PII) and work your way slowly towards identity takeover. + +I’ve had, on my client list, a few startups that all did somewhat similar things (the protection against these I mean!)— so I have some idea about what’s coming to market in the space. + +The underlying logic that has connected them: if we’re targeting human gullibility, we need to create smarter humans to stop them clicking on phishing links and things like that that current threat actors cook up. Those things are familiar. There are a few nice ideas in development that combine actual phishing protection with human upskilling. But we’re looking at countering threats that most cybersecurity professionals are very familiar with. + +What we haven’t seen nearly as much of yet? + +Processes that attempt to exploit online breadcrumb quickly to wield out real human copycats for identity takeover purposes. And to do so at scale: + + * Sniff out carelessly strewn PII from the internet + * Combine that with as much peripheral info as can be gathered from people who are active online + * Use AI to cook up deep fakes. Or increasingly rich copycat profiles that begin the process of identity theft. Potentially ones that can even pass facial recognition challenges. + +_This_ is the threat landscape that we’ll need to focus on protecting against tomorrow. + +And as a result: + +### We’ll Need To Prove Our Identity Constantly Through Identity Checks. But Deep Fake AI Seeding Rather Than Unauthorized Account Access Will Be Our Primary Nemesis + +We all love CAPTCHAs and digging out our 2FA generator of choice to peck in credentials, right? More of both on the way (I predict). Lots more. + +If the above threat landscape were to happen— the generation of deep fake clones at scale by scraping bots leveraging as much data as could be siphoned from the internet — where would that lead us to? + +To a very dystopian place called: tomorrow’s internet. + +It’s one in which we assume that a constant degree of identity replication and deep fake seeding is happening around us all of the time. + +This will become a major nuisance for the majority of internet users who are operating legitimately, of course. + +We’ll all start to become a bit paranoid whenever we encounter an entity that purports to be another human on the internet. + +Are we engaging with a bot? A clone? Or a real person? Is this a real action or is this a potential AI cloner trying to collect intelligence? + +For those working in cybersecurity, reality will end up looking quite familiar and different all at the same time. + +Sort of like how any major website is constantly being challenged with backend takeover attempts (a fun fact I learned last year: malicious login attempts will basically happen all the time if you run a popular web script like a major CMS on an internet-exposed website.) + +The industry will assume that consumers are constantly facing identity cloning attempts and bring solutions to market that attempt to thwart this process. Most likely that process will be focused on _reactive_ defenses. + +Instead of creating products that detect, say, SSN changes to provide _reactive_ warning of fraud detection (by plugging into a database that contains verified legitimate entries), we’ll be using reverse search lookups and reverse voice detection (we’ve seen rather little of the latter) to keep on top of emerging deep fake cloning attempts of ourselves. We’ll need to work with real humans so that we know we’re not comparing fakes with fakes. + +That’s still reactive. + +Although we’re trying to mitigate a new attempt to malfeasance: + + * Daniel 1 has a Medium count and Twitter profile that weakly validate one another for the purpose of proving that Daniel 1 is Daniel 1 to both networks. One links to the other. + * Fraudsters can very quickly replicate that process with fake accounts, creating Daniel 2. And create contact forms on those web assets which will intercept email intended for Daniel 1. + * Our validation process is now useless. + +The end point? + +We’ll live in an increasingly mind-bending internet in which we’re all be increasingly rubbing shoulders with accounts on Reddit, Twitter, and everywhere else that social chatter happens which aren’t actually real. + +They could be anything from marketing bots to bots trying to convince us that they’re real people to … real people. What if … the real humans are outnumbered? + +Scamming will move from a numbers-based game (distribute one million phishing emails because we know predictably that 0.1% will fall for it enabling us to cash in on say a ransomware injection). + +And towards something that will be much more targeted (sort of like account based marketing!). + +Hone in on the targets who have voluntarily shared the most personally identifiable information (PII) online and thereby provided the most fertile dataset from which we can begin an identity cloning attempt for much the same set of reasons as we’ve always wanted to do that. + +It’s cybercrime moving from the era of the mass approach to the tailored one. + +Fraudsters aren’t the online equivalent of petty burglars any more going house to house looking for assets that are improperly secured. + +They’re much more sophisticated adversaries. + +AI is in one hand. Constant surveillance is in the other. + +Together they are used to execute strategies that scam and defraud by cloning and impersonating rather than forcing unauthorized access and emptying bank accounts. + +It’s not using a chunk of metal to barge in the door. It’s studying the real house-owner with binoculars for a few weeks before creating somebody that looks and talks and sounds just like the house-owner. And then simply having them walk straight in the front door. + +Cybercriminals as something more like PII artists whose expertise is in convincing others that they are somebody else through increasingly elaborate deep fakes. + +And all of us facing increased checks to verify our own identity as a result. + +(Much in the same way that a few successful terrorist attacks have forced hundreds of millions of air travelers every day to abandon water bottles and take off their shoes at security. This is frequently how security works. The disruptive minority force the peaceful majority to live with daily restrictions on their freedom.) + +Are you ready for it? + +It could happen much sooner than any of us think. diff --git a/posts/medium/TorGuard-VPN--Ubuntu-Linux-GUI-.md b/posts/medium/TorGuard-VPN--Ubuntu-Linux-GUI-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..019dcdf2cfa0426b0f7cc90325b9745e57f4c7aa --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/TorGuard-VPN--Ubuntu-Linux-GUI-.md @@ -0,0 +1,89 @@ +# TorGuard VPN (Ubuntu Linux GUI) + +**Disclaimer** : _Information accurate only as of the time of writing_ + +I took a look at [TorGuard](https://www.google.com/aclk?sa=l&ai=DChcSEwivl4uPq9LqAhVU6-0KHSYmB5kYABAAGgJkZw&sig=AOD64_3sQtB3Yx-XOaEegOj9qgJQGvrY5g&q=&ved=2ahUKEwjotIWPq9LqAhUTqXEKHaM0BqMQ0Qx6BAhmEAE&adurl=) last night — not one of the VPN clients I had heard much about, but I found their website intriguing for its technical detail and (comparative) focus on Linux. + +First things first, though: **TorGuard actually has nothing to do with TOR**! This surprised me. A few companies, including ProtonVPN, have rolled out a streamlined [TOR-over-VPN functionality](https://protonvpn.com/blog/tor-vpn/) (or formerly did so). So I was expecting that TorGuard would be a VPN network dedicated to making it easy for users to use the various possible TOR-over-VPN configurations. Wrong guess. + +[BolehVPN has a nice blog post](https://blog.bolehvpn.net/tor-over-vpn-vpn-over-tor-which-is-better/#:~:text=To%20recap%3A%20connecting%20to%20TOR,VPN%20as%20our%20preferred%20setup.) that summarizes the nuances with schematics, but the essential idea behind TOR-over-VPN is that your traffic travels within a VPN tunnel on the way to the TOR entry node. + +If everything works well this should obfuscate your TOR usage from your ISP. TOR-usage alone isn’t an enormous red flag for those intent on detecting and disrupting cybercrime, but some people — perhaps those _actually_ intent on committing cybercrime — prefer to use minimal digital footprints. + +But that’s not what TorGuard offers. **What TorGuard offers instead is a standard VPN network.** + +It has about 3,000 servers in 68 server locations in 50 geographies worldwide. **Its main selling point, for me, would be the 8 simultaneous connections it supports**. Unlike most VPNs it delineates its service offering according to three different products: + + * **Anonymous VPN** which gets you their basic VPN service. + * An add-on subscription for streamers which gets them a couple of dedicated IPs (from the VPN, that is, of course) + * **Business VPN** which has more bells and whistles and gets business customers a dedicated account manager + +TorGuard has a decently sized VPN network. Although some niche geographies are missing, the VPN offers both servers that support SSH access + +The company also maintains an: + +In terms of speed, although I had bad luck on my first attempt, I managed to actually pull down very respectable download speeds testing out the Irish, Australian, and New York-based server. + +My baseline was about 91 Mbps. + +Australian server (Sydney): 21.05 Mbps + +I pulled down about 37 Mbps through the US server on my first attempt but got that up to 56 when I made the video embedded above! + +I achieved 32 Mbps through the Taipei server (Taiwan). + +I initially got an almost unusable bad 1.4 Mbps download through the Irish server (the experience corresponded to the testing rate that I got). However, when I tried again — for the screencast above — I managed to leapfrog all the way up to 50+Mbps. [Check the video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ32ZuY9ePM&feature=emb_title) for the actual numbers I managed to pull down. + +Conclusion: their server network is good! + +Not only does TorGuard have an actual functional GUI for Ubuntu, they in fact offer _multiple_ Linux clients. In addition to the Ubuntu GUI, I found downloads for an RPM package for Fedora and RedHat users as well as a download for Arch. + +The Ubuntu Linux Debian package installed as expected through the Gdebi GUI. + +TorGuard provides a registered business address in Orlando, Florida [on its privacy policy](https://torguard.net/privacy.php). It has claimed to maintain a [“strict zero logs policy.”](https://torguard.net/blog/five-reasons-why-smbs-need-business-vpn-service/) + +Like many VPN companies, trying to decipher the actual center of operations — and unpacking the actual ownership structure — is a little challenging. + +Searching for TorGuard VPN on LinkedIn for instance, I was only able to find two listed employees. It is possible that the company relies on outsourced support, but that headcount seems a little light, to me, to operate a VPN network. + +Some people prefer to subscribe to VPNs that are not based in a country that has a domestic signals intelligence (SIGINT) capability or which is a member of an international SIGINT-sharing alliance. If that’s you, you’ve probably already figured out a better option. + +### Features + +I liked the fact that TorGuard provided a few more advanced features than is standard in a VPN and that it presented me with a choice of tunnel type, protocol (TCP/UDP), connection port, and cipher when connecting. In addition there were plenty of leak-protection and kill switch options in the network settings menu. + +### Application-based kill switch + +I was able to create an application-based kill switch in the Ubuntu client to disconnect the VPN upon the termination of any program — whether a daemon, GUI, or CLI. + +There was even a ‘select’ option which populated a list of currently running processes. This features was in addition to the global kill switch, of course. + +In addition to the kill switches, the client prevents packet leaks over IPv6 and included options to use custom DNS nameservers. The DNS nameserver option was even preconfigured with the correct options for popular third party DNS providers such as Google Public DNS. The custom DNS nameservers used could be changed before, during, and after VPN connection. + +I was also able to configure scripts to execute at the same intervals. + +### Torrents + +TorGuard [encourages users](https://torguard.net/torrent-vpn-service-ip.php) to use its service to “make torrenting more secure.” To make sure everything worked as expected, I downloaded an Ubuntu ISO torrent while connected through the US server and everything worked as expected. + +### Tools + +A nice features of TorGuard is that it contains a few diagnostic utilities on the user backend. + +These include a test Torrent downloader which will report back on the detected user agent and IP. + +For Linux users that prefer to connect through importing OpenVPN files to the network manager, or users running supporting firmware on their router, TorGuard also has a nice OpenVPN connection file generator. Users simply fill in the desired connection server, protocol, port, and cipher, and a .opvn file automatically downloads. + +### Other Facets + + * Customer support is good. I opened one ticket and got a response back within about 30 minutes. There’s also an active community forum. + * Pricing is reasonable. Check the website for the latest numbers. + +### Summary + + * A real Ubuntu Linux GUI! + * Nice OpenVPN configuration generator + * Good speeds through the servers + * Some nice advanced features and an application-based cutoff switch that works in Linux + + _ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Translation-apps-and-websites-with-Hebrew-text-to-speech--TTS--support.md b/posts/medium/Translation-apps-and-websites-with-Hebrew-text-to-speech--TTS--support.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e5cc03765d86e617600614aab0cad29c23ed778c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Translation-apps-and-websites-with-Hebrew-text-to-speech--TTS--support.md @@ -0,0 +1,113 @@ +# Translation apps and websites with Hebrew text to speech (TTS) support + +For learners of Hebrew (and Arabic) the lack of written vowels in non-liturgical contexts adds one more challenge to learning the language. + +Typically, when learning a language, I like to use Google Translate for this purpose. Unfortunately — and quite remarkably — Hebrew remains one of the language that it cannot synthesize in. + +If you need to learn words with _nekudot_(vowels) then there are a few workarounds. If you just need the vowelization of a single word, then regular English-Hebrew dictionaries will provide those (just not Google Translate). + +The most common online option among learners (which has both smartphone apps and a web UI) is Morfix. + +[**תרגום מורפיקס - מילון עברי אנגלי חינם | Free Morfix Dictionary** + _אחת המילים הבולטות בחדשות בחודש האחרון הייתה המילה סִפּוּחַ. לא כאן המקום לדווח על תוכנית הסיפוח, ובוודאי שלא לדון…_ www.morfix.co.il](https://www.morfix.co.il/ "https://www.morfix.co.il/")[](https://www.morfix.co.il/) + +Morfix supports English TTS, to help English learners, but doesn’t have a Hebrew text to speech engine. + +If Hebrew TTS is what you need, then these are some viable options. Here is what I have found so far. + +### Desktop-accessible / web UIs + +Being a desktop-centric sort of guy I prefer solutions that are accessible from a browser / that have web user interfaces. + +Microsoft Translator supports TTS on its Android app but strangely whenever I clicked on the sound button nothing happened. + +I was using Chrome from a Linux computer (so the problem could be me-specific), but this bug [has been reportedly previously — so it is probably safe to say that the behavior is cross-platform.](https://www.reddit.com/r/bing/comments/cfkls4/no_sound_in_bing_translator/) + +Digging through Reddit threads, I instead found a recommendation for [Reverso Translation](https://www.reverso.net/translationresults.aspx?lang=EN&direction=english-hebrew). I hadn’t heard of or used the tool before but it (surprisingly) handled Hebrew TTS admirably. + +[**Reverso | Free online translation, dictionary** + _Reverso.net : Free online translation in French, Spanish, Italian, German, Russian, Portuguese, Hebrew, Japanese…_ www.reverso.net](https://www.reverso.net/text_translation.aspx?lang=EN "https://www.reverso.net/text_translation.aspx?lang=EN")[](https://www.reverso.net/text_translation.aspx?lang=EN) + +[After crowdsourcing information on Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/hebrew/comments/i5at80/looking_for_translation_app_with_tts_in_hebrew/) (thank you /u/shaulreznik!), I was directed to another TTS engine, AlmaReader. This provided a synthesized Hebrew voice which sounded much more natural than Reverso’s. However, this is just a Hebrew reader — it doesn’t have a translation functionality from English. So to translate and then hear a phrase I would need to firstly run the text through Google Translate and then copy in the snippet. + +[**Almagu AlmaReader 2** + _Your browser does not support the audio element._ app.almareader.com](https://app.almareader.com/ "https://app.almareader.com/")[](https://app.almareader.com/) + +To just hear the vowelization of a single word, [Milog](http://www.milog.co.il), a Hebrew dictionary, works fine: + +[**מילוג - מילון עברי עברי** + _מילוג, מילון עברי עברי, פירושים, ביטויים, ראשי תיבות, מילים נרדפות, תחביר, ציטוטים, חרוזים ועוד בשפה העברית_ milog.co.il](https://milog.co.il/ "https://milog.co.il/")[](https://milog.co.il/) + +### Android + +Like on the web, Google Translate’s app does not support Hebrew TTS. + +However there are some that do. + +I found two (again, with the help of some crowdsourcing): iTranslate and Microsoft Translator. + +[**iTranslate Translator & Dictionary - Apps on Google Play** + _iTranslate is the leading free translator / traductor and dictionary app. Easily translate text or start voice-to-voice…_ play.google.com](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=at.nk.tools.iTranslate&hl=en&fbclid=IwAR0J-27EcH7YTH3aEyGPIH2Qj9gtX_Ngn_ENIpU8KsmEletH4nJPcyXen5s "https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=at.nk.tools.iTranslate&hl=en&fbclid=IwAR0J-27EcH7YTH3aEyGPIH2Qj9gtX_Ngn_ENIpU8KsmEletH4nJPcyXen5s")[](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=at.nk.tools.iTranslate&hl=en&fbclid=IwAR0J-27EcH7YTH3aEyGPIH2Qj9gtX_Ngn_ENIpU8KsmEletH4nJPcyXen5s) + +[**Microsoft Translator - Apps on Google Play** + _Microsoft Translator is a free, personal translation app for 60+ languages, to translate text, voice, conversations…_ play.google.com](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.translator&hl=en "https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.translator&hl=en")[](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.translator&hl=en) + +Using a text to speech translation app makes the process of learning Hebrew a lot easier for learners. As an auditory learner, I prefer learning words in the context of phrases and sentences rather than as isolated entries in a dictionary — although it’s always worth cross-checking with a dictionary to make sure that the word any translation app provides is right and fits the context. + +### Other Resources For Learning Hebrew + +Finally, a couple more resources that I have been using recently to improve my Hebrew. + +**Kitzurim** + +Modern Hebrew is chock full of acronym contractions that are actually read out as words. To make matters worse, the rules for vocalizing these are not consistent. The UN, for instance is אומות מאוחדות which is actually read out as ‘oom’; however the contraction for the USA (אה”ב) is not read out as ‘ahab’. The preponderance of these can be another source of confusion for learners. + +[The Kitzur lookup dictionary ](http://www.kizur.co.il/home.php)expands these _kitzurim_ to help you understand what they mean or do decrypt a mysterious acronym. + +[**מילון קיצורים וראשי תיבות** + _ברוכים הבאים למילון הקיצורים המקיף!כאן תמצאו פירוש לקיצורים ולראשי התיבות השגורים בעברית.למשל: מה זה יאח"ה? קוט"ש…_ www.kizur.co.il](http://www.kizur.co.il/home.php "http://www.kizur.co.il/home.php")[](http://www.kizur.co.il/home.php) + +**Verb Conjugation** + +If you need to conjugate verbs, then there is a website for that too. Check out hebrew-verbs.co.il. The pro version costs $49.95 for lifetime access and increases the library of verbs available for conjugation from 350 to more than 1,000 and provides learning resources including quizzes and flip cards. + +[**Hebrew Verbs** + _Hebrew Verbs is a site dedicated to learning Hebrew through verb conjugations and translations. Try our PRO version for…_ www.hebrew-verbs.co.il](https://www.hebrew-verbs.co.il/ "https://www.hebrew-verbs.co.il/")[](https://www.hebrew-verbs.co.il/) + +**Colloquialism and Sayings** + +Most languages have proverbs or wise sayings which can be liberally injected into conversation to make you sound far older than your age. Irish has a wonderful collection of these known, collectively, as _seanfhocail_. In Hebrew, the word is פתגמים. Many of these, unsurprisingly, are drawn from Biblical verses. + +There is a collection of these online here. + +[**פתגמים בעברית** + _אויל מחריש - חכם יחשב איזהו גבור? - הכובש את יצרו איזהו חכם? - הלומד מכל אדם איזהו מכבד? - המכבד את הבריות איזהו עשיר…_ lib.cet.ac.il](https://lib.cet.ac.il/pages/glossary.asp?item=16 "https://lib.cet.ac.il/pages/glossary.asp?item=16")[](https://lib.cet.ac.il/pages/glossary.asp?item=16) + +### Summary + +**English to Hebrew translation with Hebrew TTS:** + + * [Reverso Translation](https://www.reverso.net/text_translation.aspx?lang=EN) (desktop) + * [Microsoft Translator](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.translator&hl=en) (Android) + * [iTranslate (Android)](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=at.nk.tools.iTranslate&hl=en&fbclid=IwAR0J-27EcH7YTH3aEyGPIH2Qj9gtX_Ngn_ENIpU8KsmEletH4nJPcyXen5s) + +**English to Hebrew dictionary** + + * [Morfix](https://www.morfix.co.il/) + +**Hebrew dictionary** + + * [Milog](http://www.milog.co.il) + +**Verb conjugation** + + * [Hebrew Verbs](https://www.hebrew-verbs.co.il/) + +**Contractions** + + * [קיצורים וראשי תיבות בעברות](http://www.kizur.co.il/home.php) + +**Proverbs (Hebrew — Hebrew)** + + * [Pitgamim](https://lib.cet.ac.il/pages/glossary.asp?item=16) + diff --git a/posts/medium/Tutorial--Creating-a-Password-Protected-Wordpress-Staging-Environment-Using-Softaculous-And--3baead4337e.html.md b/posts/medium/Tutorial--Creating-a-Password-Protected-Wordpress-Staging-Environment-Using-Softaculous-And--3baead4337e.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c40f203b6b02cb350c634064a05aa3d10b3b743c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Tutorial--Creating-a-Password-Protected-Wordpress-Staging-Environment-Using-Softaculous-And--3baead4337e.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,168 @@ +# Tutorial: Creating a Password-Protected Wordpress Staging Environment Using Softaculous And… + +What’s better than a well-functioning Wordpress site, you might be wondering? + +A well-functioning Wordpress site _with_ a functional staging environment to push changes from! + +I used to think that cloud-hosted staging environments were something that only developers with access to AWS tools and EC2 instances could take advantage of. + +Wrong! + +In the following tutorial I’m going to demonstrate how to quickly and easily set up a Wordpress staging environment using only a run-of-the-mill shared hosting plan and Cloudflare for security. + +**Prerequisites:** + + * You have a [Cloudflare](https://medium.com/u/a00e599743a7) account. + * You have added your domain to Cloudflare. + +### Step One: Point Nameservers to Cloudflare + +This one goes without saying. + +To use Cloudflare (a Content Delivery Network that does _so much more_ than that) you need to set up an account and point over your nameservers. + +Cloudflare assigns different nameservers to different users. You will find them in Cloudflare itself and by email. They’ll be in the format x.cloudflare.com and you’ll need two credentials. + +This is a DNS change, so it could take as long as 48 hours to propagate. + +Swapping over nameservers to Cloudflare + +### Step Two: Set Up DNS Records on Cloudflare + +Next, you’ll want to copy over your zone files. + +If you can export a BIND-formatted list of DNS records from your host, then click the ‘Advanced’ button in order to pull down a drag and drop import tool. + +### Step Three: Create Subdomain + +Your staging environment should be a **subdomain** of your site — not a directory. + +Create this in Cpanel and give the subdomain a document root that makes it obvious that it’s a staging environment. + +I went for staging.mydomain.com. + +### Step Four: Create Staging Environment in Softaculous + +Next, you’ll need to install Wordpress on your staging environment with Softaculous and mark it as that. + +To do this click on the icon that looks like two pieces of paper being exchanged (the first one to the left) next to the site you want to create a staging environment for: + +You’ll want to choose the subdomain you just created as the installation URL: + +Softaculous will duplicate your current site on to your new staging environment and show you a confirmation messages. + +### Step Five: Build Our Your Next Version(s) in Your Staging Environment + +From here on in, you should work on your site in the staging environment. + +(Pedantic note: calling it a staging environment is something of a misnomer, because in professional development setups the staging server is actually the environment _after_ the development server where raw development is QA’d before being pushed to production. But let’s stick with Softaculous’s terminology.) + +**The beauty of the staging environment is that Softaculous will copy your Wordpress instance _exactly_ between the two instances (or servers) **while automatically rewriting every staging.yoursite resource to yoursite. + +That means the Wordpress directory _and_ its MySQL database with all its tables. + +Which means that: + + * All**plugin and theme** additions, changes, and deletions and + * All **content** additions, changes, and deletions + +Will be replicated whenever you push to live. + +Additionally all updates — to the Wordpress core, to themes, and to plugins — will update. + +So your involvement with your production site can cease with clicking the ‘Push to Live’ button . + +This means, of course, that **_you should never directly edit your production site_** or your work will be overwritten the next time you push to live. (But if you do, you can just overwrite staging with them!) + +Now you can take your sweet time about fine-tweak-ing and QA-ing your site until it is pixel and functionality perfect. No more rushed sloppy work! + +When you’re done and ready to push out your latest batch of changes, simply click on the path icon: + +And then click ‘Push to Live’ + +Softaculous will first take a backup of your production environment to help you restore it if sometimes goes amiss. Then it will propagate the files and MySQL changes. + +### Push to Live Process + +Keep the tab open and make sure that the push to live process runs through all its steps. This can take about four minutes, depending on the size of the site being pushed. + +The stages you should see Softaculous go through are: + +**Step 1: Validation** + +**Step 2: Backup:** + +(I explain later why you might want to set up a cron job to automatically clear these from your server) + +**Step 3: Deployment / Propagation** + +**Step 4: Confirmation** + +### Step Six: Using Cloudflare to Password Protect The Staging Environment + +Ideally, cloud-hosted staging environments should not be exposed to the public or indexed by search engines. + +It’s where you’ll be doing your raw work and making things break, after all. + +The problem with using the Directory Privacy tool built into cPanel and Softaculous’s staging methodology is that it works by automatically regenerating the domain’s .htaccess file …. which of course gets carried over to production when you Push to Live — meaning that your public-facing Wordpress installation will be password protected. + +Likewise for a robots.txt file. If you disable spiders on staging … you’ll risk production vanishing from Google too. + +Caging the subdomain at with Cloudflare is a more elegant solution to secure and hide your staging environment from the public and prevent it from indexing on Google. + +**To do this, set up Cloudflare Access:** + +(At the time of writing) Access is free for up to five users per month. + +But even if they change their pricing mode, the basic protection tier is only $3/user/month. If you’re doing a lot of development work on your website, it’s well worth it, in my opinion. + +The easiest authentication method to set up is One-Time Pin (OTP). This means that every time you want to log in you’ll have to enter a pin which gets sent to your email. + +But you can also configure Single Sign On (SSO) through Facebook, Google, Github, and other providers. + +Next, you’ll want to create an **access policy** for your staging environment. + +If you’re using the staging environment a lot,**then it makes sense to extend the default session duration from 24 hours to something like the maximum** … which is a month. + +The policy I set up is the most simple one for authenticating by email OTP. + +Set that up like this: + +You can input a range of emails which you wish to be able to authenticate by OTP. + +Save the policy to deploy it. + +### Step Seven: Log in to Staging! + +Now, whenever you (or anybody) visits your staging environment, they’ll be presented with the following page: + +In order to securely log in, simply enter your email address into the box. + +You’ll get an instantaneous OTP form Cloudflare: + +Click the one time link _or_ enter the code to gain access: + +### Step Eight (Optional): Add a cron job to clear old Softaculous backups + +If you’re doing a few pushes to live every day, the automatic backups which Softaculous generates can easily accumulate a few dozen gigabytes-worth of storage: + +If you’re on a storage-confined server, then you might want to automatically clear these daily. + +If you have a separate backup solution in place as I do (which should mop up the entire server) then there’s really no need to take these backups too. (You _can_ disable the functionality entirely, but you’d need root access to your server to do so. If you have a VPS / dedicated server that’s fully backed up then why not?) + +In most shared hosting installations, the autogenerated Softaculous backups are stored in: + +root/domain/softaculous_backups + +I set up a once daily job to clear these out: + +The cron line: + + + 0 0 * * * rm -f /home/X/softaculous_backups/* + +Where x=your domain document root (assuming you’re on a shared host that offers Softaculous). + +That’s all there is to it. It’s a few simple steps but it’s made a world of difference for me so far in being able to carefully plan and deploy new versions of my website. + +Congratulations — you’re now the proud owner of a password-protected Wordpress staging environment in the cloud! diff --git a/posts/medium/Tutorial--Creating-a-custom-module-in-Zoho-CRM-to-send-clients-work.md b/posts/medium/Tutorial--Creating-a-custom-module-in-Zoho-CRM-to-send-clients-work.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..123b242642d888a886753915bef2b8e8821acfb7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Tutorial--Creating-a-custom-module-in-Zoho-CRM-to-send-clients-work.md @@ -0,0 +1,105 @@ +# Tutorial: Creating a custom module in Zoho CRM to send clients work + +I’ve written a few posts about [CRMs](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-zoho-crm-review/) in my blog and about how, for many years, I was spoiled for functionality by hosting my own implementation of [Vtiger CRM](https://medium.com/u/cb0b220f1395). + +More recently, I belatedly joined the cloud-hosted CRM world. + +And while I would be lying if I said that I don’t still have paranoid misgivings about what might happen if [Zoho](https://medium.com/u/fa8587072b22) or any other cloud provider vanished off the face of the earth one day (or, more likely, dramatically changed its terms of services — or lost my data), I can’t deny that**the functionality comfortably exceeds that found in the open source world.** + +One feature which I’ve always “built” into CRMs I have self-hosted is the ability to track articles I write for clients as projects within the CRM — and to send out automated update notifications as I indicate that they are in progress, have been finished, etc. + +I imagine that this is a fairly routine use case but also that most freelancers would see this as overkill. Personally, I like scalability and even at the 10 account point, sending out emails for every status update tends to get tricky. + +Obviously, while I want to send updates, I don’t want to annoy my clients with too many notifications. + +So I generally **configure the automations to only run when a project has been initiated and completed** ; the other statuses I create are for internal tracking only and won’t trigger the workflows. + +Let me explain how I set this up. + +(**_Screenshots and Zoho CRM functionality as described at the date of writing only)_** + +### 1: Create a custom ‘Article’ Module + +In retrospect ‘Projects’ might have been a better and more generic title, but I was working on an article that I wanted to track when I decided to give setting this up a go. + +From the main setup menu, select **‘Modules and Fields’** from under **‘Customization’** : + +Then, **simply click on the button to create a new module.** + +The asterisks will flag this as user-created — compared to the default modules built in to the CRM: + +Your first port of call will be the **field editor**. + +Here, you can add all the picklists and conditions that you’ll require for tracking this type of item. + +This is how I set up my module: + +It includes fields that associate the article with: + + * A current status + * A current version + * A billing cycle + +It also has room for a download link and expected delivery date which I can populate when the project is finished and hide in the status update templates. + +**‘Suppress client no.’ is abbreviated from ‘suppress client notifications.’ (** Whenever I’m building CRM automations, I like to create a sort of ‘kill switch’ and then build that into the workflow logic.) + +To create a connection to an Account / Contact record, or any other module in the CRM, **you’ll want to firstly add in a ‘Lookup’ field:** + +**Then you’ll want to map which Contact/Account this relates to.** + +And then give this module a title in the related list. You can also make the lookup required — or allow entries in this module to be freestanding. + +I made one additional customization beyond the default Zoho configuration. + +For every client I onboard, I set up an email group with all the points of contact. And I created a custom email field for this address. This is the ‘point of contact’ email that I associate with the record in my invoicing platform. + +I _still_ create all points of contacts in the conventional way in Zoho and associate them with this account record. + +But this custom field for the account management email is the one I will be building into my workflows. + +### 2: Build Workflow Rule + +I chose to set up three workflow rules for project deliveries, again using ‘article’ as a sort of generic shorthand for shorter writing projects: + +These are: + + * **Article status update** : sends for articles statuses that are not system capture (default) or delivered. + * **New delivery date** : used to advise clients of delays in expected delivery date. + * **File delivery** : used to confirm that the project has been finished and provide a download link. + +I built my workflow logic like this: + +When I was creating the picklist for ‘Current Status’ I added just about every conceivable stage a shorter written project could be at from ‘Brief Received’ to ‘Draft 1: Feedback Received’ and so on. + +But I also set its default value to be ‘System Capture’. This is so that I can quickly add projects that haven’t been initiated to the CRM yet without triggering any workflows: + +Note that I also added the ‘suppress system notifications’ as an AND logic condition. + +If you’re the Professional tier, you might also want to make this a date-based workflow and configure it to only run during business hours. + +### 3: Create Email Template for Workflow + +Finally, I set up an email template to go to the client when the status has been updated to an intermediate status _but not_ when the project is marked ‘delivered’. Because I add myself to all the account management groups, I didn’t need to configure my address as an additional email — although that is also an option. + +I expect that most people wouldn’t bother clicking into the status update emails, so I included all the essential information in the subject line itself: + +In English, that should read (for example): “Update: Article X is: in progress.” + +I then added my fields and wrapped this text into a template: + +And I added a custom field as the link itself so that I don’t show the download link as a URL but rather embed it with a hyperlink on the ‘clicking here’ text: + +Now, all I need to do to mark an article as finished and send it to my client is update the field from a dropdown: + +Which will send this to my client: + +Additionally, I now have a module called ‘Articles’ in my CRM where I can see all current articles that I am working on. + +I edited the default columns to make the information more useful: + +I can simply click on each piece and send all project updates to the clients without having to ever send a manual email. + +(Many thanks to [Michael Trow](https://medium.com/u/51ec5263aa64), President of [Alderbest Solutions](https://alderbestsolutions.com/?s2-ssl=yes) who kindly [provided me with guidance on the Zoho Community forums](https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/community/topic/whats-the-best-way-to-create-a-custom-module-that-can-be-linked-to-a-parent-module) that set me off in the right direction.) + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Two-Contractual-Pitfalls-To-Avoid-In-Your-Next-Freelancing-Gig.md b/posts/medium/Two-Contractual-Pitfalls-To-Avoid-In-Your-Next-Freelancing-Gig.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9c1925166034cc9fda8eb40bff1bf27a6dc3c69e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Two-Contractual-Pitfalls-To-Avoid-In-Your-Next-Freelancing-Gig.md @@ -0,0 +1,111 @@ +# Two Contractual Pitfalls To Avoid In Your Next Freelancing Gig + +#### Us remote folk may all look like the same haggard creature to some, but our financial realities can be starkly different. If you freelance, here are two acronyms to avoid the pitfalls of exploitation in your next contract. + +How easy is it to pick up a bad (nay, terrible) deal as a freelancer? Far too easy. These two terms could spell major trouble down the line. Photo by [Andrea Piacquadio](https://www.pexels.com/@olly?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/crop-businessman-signing-contract-in-office-3771097/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +As is well known, the world of remote employment is opening up at a dizzying pace. Companies are getting more comfortable with hiring full time talent based in other countries. While there are plenty of details left to be figured out (cross-country healthcare, taxation), this is, broadly speaking, an excellent thing. + +[**Welcome To A Remote-First Working World. Here’s What’s New Around Here.** +_A glimpse into how profoundly a fully remote workforce could change the world as we know it_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/welcome-to-a-remote-first-working-world-heres-what-s-new-around-here-d689cf27c54a "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/welcome-to-a-remote-first-working-world-heres-what-s-new-around-here-d689cf27c54a")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/welcome-to-a-remote-first-working-world-heres-what-s-new-around-here-d689cf27c54a) + +In an indirect sense, it’s also probably fair to say that this dynamic draws its inspiration — at least in part — from the freelancers of this world. + +We were sort of the scrappy V1 slaving away in coffee shops and doing our thing before working remotely was kinda oddly cool (who’d a thunk it?). + +When it came time to present the feasibility study of remote working to you corporate big-wigs, we’d like to think that we featured on your deck. With our jaded expressions and bags under our eyes hopefully gracefully Photoshopped out of existence. + +You see these grizzled souls — they include the author lest you hadn’t guessed — have been doing this kind of thing for years now. + +Zoom and Zoom burnout are both old hat to us — we’re several iterations past those neophyte concerns. We’re happy to welcome this new crop of digital nomads to the fold. But don’t assume that we’re one and the same. + +The problem, you could say, is that the memo hasn’t reached everybody in the hiring chair yet — and sometimes us humble freelancers are won’t to say ‘yes’ a little too easily. We may have expedited the problem. But we didn’t spawn it. + +So here’s the short version: + +Those of us who choose to structure our businesses as freelance concerns _are not_ the same thing as full-time remote employees even if we both work out of coffee shops and have the unmistakable worldly air that comes from talking about time zones in reference to UTC while you’re ordering your fourth latte of the morning (“Dave’s on two hours past Zulu. The project _can’t_ wait that long! Let’s sync up on Zoom NOW!”) + +The simplest distinction is this: those folks get benefits but in exchange for those benefits they typically forego some of the convenience that we enjoy. + +Let me offer two simple contractual terms that might seem trivial from _your_ perspective (Mr. or Ms. Remote Employer). But which can be oddly pernicious from that of remote workers trying to avoid picking up the wrong end of a bum deal. + +Ready? Here they are. + +### Full Time Equivalent (FTE) + +FTE does what it says on the tin. + +A full time job has an FTE value of ‘1’. Let’s take ‘1’ to be the value of the salary attaching to that job. + +And something less than that is a fraction of the whole. + +FTE as a concept is totally fine. The problem arises when those trying to save themselves a dime start trying to cut freelance contracts based on the FTE value. + +This is problematic because — in freelancing-land / consulting land / The Land of the Self Employed (it’s adjacent to Narnia, I’m told) — what those vaunted characters who receive benefits get is completely irrelevant to our meager existences. We’re not one of them. We weren’t chosen. + +If you want somebody to work one day a week, then you can’t offer them the FTE of 0.2. + +Why not, you pout? + +**Because the full time person gets _benefits_. It’s all based off an initial number of somebody that _does._ So the divisors based around that don’t compute for us.** + +Otherwise put: if you’re not prepared to offer benefits and are looking to hire somebody who doesn’t get them that’s fine. But you’re going to need to hire them on a different framework. That framework is one of non-salaried employment. And the provider of such services typically needs to work those benefits they’re not receiving into their rate. Which — much to your chagrin — typically makes them “expensive.” + +I can’t understand why FTE has any merit whatsoever in fixing freelance contract rates. + +Because freelancing and salaried employment are two separate beasts, it would make _way_ more sense to let the freelancer proffer an offer rather than try to negotiate around some anchor that represents something they’re legally precluded from achieving: benefits. + +Because for both parties merely mentioning “benefits” — much less factoring it into calculations — is dangerous territory, it’s best avoided entirely. FTE may have some merit but it doesn’t make sense for self-employed resources. + +### Paid Time Off (PTO) (Esp. Of The Unlimited Variety) + +Unlimited paid time off (PTO) is stupid. + +There, I said it. + +Tell me how many days per year I’m _not_ expected to be working and I can plan my off-time around it. + +The evidence supports me. + +My experience supports me (mini-vent: the last time I tried to skip out on a 30 minute meeting at an organization that supposedly offered unlimited PTO I was asked if I _really_ needed to skip it or just _sort of_ needed to skip it. The unlimited PTO policy also mysteriously vanished when I was asked to send a closing invoice with only the days that I actually worked). + +The other embittered ones in the audience can hopefully agree with me that unlimited PTO is contrary to human nature _(Daniel’s Law Of Finite PTO states that humans will remain at a permanent state of leisure until such time as economic hardship or the exigencies of employment require them to emerge from that indefinite state of leisure and holds that anything contrary to this arrangement — like a nebulous PTO entitlement — is thus nonsensical)._ + +But we can hopefully agree that it makes sense to leave this particularly bad concept — like the other foolish things of corporate life — to those unenlightened ones who haven’t yet made the transition to our side of the divide. With its unyielding financial stress and endless trips to Starbucks. + +Truly, though, this point is merely a derivative of the above point. + +For if we can agree that predicating _any_ contractual freelance term by reference to something intended to govern full-time _employment_ relationships is bad, we can also agree that unlimited PTO has no place in contracts with freelancers. + +So although I can’t rewrite the past. I can rewrite a recent contractual encounter with the responses that I should have offered. + +— - + +_Daniel_ : OK, so $1,000 is the rate that you’re offering. You’re insisting on basing this on an FTE value. But I need to work that figure up to my usual freelancing rate. I have to factor in things like the vacation I don’t get and other benefits so that I can make sure I’m covering enough here. + +_Client:_ Vacation? Ah, so some good news here. We actually offer unlimited PTO. So there’s no need to work that into your calculations. + +_Daniel:_ Well, that sounds like a crock of [expletive]. It’s fine that that’s what you do with your employees. But I’d be joining your team as a contractor. Hence that’s totally irrelevant to me. I need to factor it in anyway. + +_Client:_ But … money… ! + +The present ones are dangerous times for freelancers. Remote work is on the rise. So is freelancing. Many rookie hiring parties — over-represented among them, as usual, are startups — may fail to understand the very significant differences between contractors and employees. + +Frameworks that attempt to graft employee remuneration onto compensation packages paid to part-time resources such as contractors are liable to be hugely exploitative. + +They’re also fundamentally at odd with best practice in freelancing — which calls for a diversified pool of clients. But freelancers can’t always be relied upon to protect their own interests. And so many — who am I kidding, I’ve been there?! — have jumped at simplistic FTE-based formulae to be part of remote teams without first thinking whether they were fair deals. + +Perhaps they were blinded by the glitzy — though eminently illogical — promises of unlimited PTO. + +Employees get benefits. Freelancers don’t. Know which side of the divide you and your business falls out on. And conclude contracts that are fair reflections of that reality. + +### **Keep Reading** + +[**Top 7 Free Contract Templates for Freelance Writers in 2021** + _Choosing the right one is crucial for a freelancer_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelancers-handbook/freelance-writer-contract-9df6fa7c4534 "https://medium.com/freelancers-handbook/freelance-writer-contract-9df6fa7c4534")[](https://medium.com/freelancers-handbook/freelance-writer-contract-9df6fa7c4534) + +[**Top 7 Educational Resources For Freelance Web Developers** + _These resources will help you level up your freelance web development game_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelancers-handbook/educational-resources-freelance-web-developers-db1ce35f2ccb "https://medium.com/freelancers-handbook/educational-resources-freelance-web-developers-db1ce35f2ccb")[](https://medium.com/freelancers-handbook/educational-resources-freelance-web-developers-db1ce35f2ccb) + +[**5 Ways to Generate Income As a Freelance Writer on Medium in 2021** + _Earning passive income as a writer has never been easier_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelancers-handbook/medium-freelance-writer-153da8e17f51 "https://medium.com/freelancers-handbook/medium-freelance-writer-153da8e17f51")[](https://medium.com/freelancers-handbook/medium-freelance-writer-153da8e17f51) diff --git a/posts/medium/Ubuntu-Desktop---My-Complete-Backup-Strategy--V1-3-.md b/posts/medium/Ubuntu-Desktop---My-Complete-Backup-Strategy--V1-3-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1f10a8ce0ba76ddf642c62ce57ad581c2510f38e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Ubuntu-Desktop---My-Complete-Backup-Strategy--V1-3-.md @@ -0,0 +1,142 @@ +# Ubuntu Desktop — My Complete Backup Strategy (V1.3) + +**A 3–2–1 Compliant Approach to Keeping Your Ubuntu Desktop Safe** + +This documentation summarizes the latest iteration (V1.3) of my approach to comprehensively backing up my Ubuntu Desktop (20.04 LTS). + +For an approach that covers my approach to cloud backups as well, see my [‘Master Backup Strategy’](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy) repository on [GitHub](https://medium.com/u/8df3bf3c40ae) — or my previous Medium article: “Linux Desktop and Cloud Backup: A Summary of My Master Backup Strategy.” This article will deal with only my backup approach for my desktop computer. + +[**Linux Desktop and Cloud Backup: A Summary of My Master Backup Strategy (V1.3)** +_After having spent the best part of a week playing around with B2 and S3 buckets, syncing gigabytes of data across the…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/linux-desktop-and-cloud-backup-a-summary-of-my-master-backup-strategy-v1-3-c65ae0cdf649 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/linux-desktop-and-cloud-backup-a-summary-of-my-master-backup-strategy-v1-3-c65ae0cdf649")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/linux-desktop-and-cloud-backup-a-summary-of-my-master-backup-strategy-v1-3-c65ae0cdf649) + +### Objective: 3–2–1 Compliant Backups + +[This blog](https://www.carbonite.com/blog/article/2016/01/what-is-3-2-1-backup) from [Carbonite](https://medium.com/u/6a794585fac0) explains the basic premise of 3–2–1 backups. + +You want to keep: + + * **3 extant copies of all critical data sources** , such as our desktop computer (primary plus two backups). In reality, this means two backup copies. + * Those 2 backup copies should be on **different storage media.** For instance, backing up a primary drive onto itself would be a bad idea. Because if the drive failed the backup would go with it. Therefore it’s best to store backups on different physical media entirely. If that onsite backup isn’t connected to electricity then it’s slightly safer still. + * 1 of those backup copies should be stored **offsite.** If our home were flooded for instance then both our primary data source and our (onsite) backup would likely be no good to us. This works around that problem. + +**What’s achieved in this backup strategy:** + + * This backup strategy achieves 3–2–1 with **one additional onsite backup**. + * **This backup strategy creates that additional onsite backup taken via a different strategy.** This diversifies the methodologies employed ([Timeshift](https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift) vs. [Clonezilla](http://clonezilla.org); incremental vs. full image). It means that we have a frequently created backup to restore from (Timeshift) so that we minimize data loss if we need to rely upon it. But just in case that fails we also have a “harder” backup that should work instead — although that will entail more data loss (Clonezilla). + * One could improve upon this backup strategy further by adding an additional SDD and syncing via RAID 1. However, this would add redundancy (vs. another unnecessary backup). (And remember: redundancy ≠ backups). + +### Hardware Prerequisites + + * **A primary drive to hold your Linux OS.** Your partition will almost certainly be formatted as ext4. This is my /dev/sda. And I use a 480GB SSD for this drive. + * **A secondary drive to hold one (or two) backup images** taken with Clonezilla. I’m currently using a 240GB SSD and these fit comfortably. Obviously if I begin using more of my primary drive I would need to scale these up. If you don’t share my distaste for HDDs then it would probably make sense to install something at your primacy capacity x 2 from the start. I take partition -> image backups using Clonezilla. This my /dev/sdb. + * **A tertiary drive** just for holding system restore points taken with Timeshift. Timeshift can use rsync (or Btrfs) to create **incremental** backups. In the two years since I last did a fresh install, have used Timeshift several times already to roll back distribution upgrades or package installations that broke dependencies (or worse, the package manager). For that reason I have it on a larger drive (480GB SSD) than my Clonezilla drive. I didn’t want to have to be economical about how many snapshots I can store. Additionally, incremental backups are obviously lighter than full ones. This is my /dev/sdc. + +**Note:** most people prefer to use HDDs for storing backups rather than SSDs. + +### Optional But Recommended: A Fourth Drive for RAID 1 (Redundancy) + +Yes, adding three additional drives just for the purpose of keeping your data safe might seem a little overkill, but if you want to go the whole nine yards then it might be worth considering (and if you just want a very simple approach then [stop reading here and follow this guide](https://www.jwz.org/doc/backups.html)). + +Here’s why: + +### **Why? Backups ≠ Redundancy.** + +And redundancy, rather than backups, is what will ensure continuity in the even that our primary storage device decides to suddenly fail. + +Disk failure is — at the time of writing, and no less so with SSDs, even NVMe ones, than HDD — a threat that is essentially omnipresent. + +Therefore we should **expect** that at some point or another our main disk will fail. + +Backups and redundancy are separate requirements because you might need them at different times. + + * If your SSD suddenly fails then you would need **redundancy** in order to be able to resume computing — ideally as soon as possible if not instantaneously. That’s assuming that the OS was working just fine prior to the hardware failure, of course. + * If a package broke your system at the software level, then you’d probably want to do something like use Timeshift — effectively restoring from a **backup**. + +### Ways To Achieve This + +Here are some ways you could go about achieving both redundancy and keeping good backups. + + * Add a fourth drive and keep it in sync with your primary drive in a RAID 1 setup. + * Create a fourth backup of your primary drive . You could use Clonezilla for this purpose too but mirror the drive instead of creating an image as we do in backup two (the strategy you would employ here would be a disk to disk clone). You could keep this drive in your storage cabinet somewhere. In the event that you suffered disk failure it would be ready to insert into your motherboard and roll. However, it would clearly be less redundant than the drive synced in real time with RAID. + +### Software and Other Prerequisites + +And so, here are the tools that we will require in order to get this backup approach up and running. + +**Timeshift:** + +[**teejee2008/timeshift** + _Timeshift for Linux is an application that provides functionality similar to the System Restore feature in Windows and…_ github.com](https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift "https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift")[](https://github.com/teejee2008/timeshift) + +**Clonezilla:** + +[**Clonezilla** + _Clonezilla is a partition and disk imaging/cloning program similar to True Image® or Norton Ghost®. It helps you to do…_ clonezilla.org](http://clonezilla.org/ "http://clonezilla.org/")[](http://clonezilla.org/) + +**For creating the live USB you can use unetbootin:** + +[**UNetbootin** + _UNetbootin allows you to create bootable Live USB drives for Ubuntu and other Linux distributions without burning a CD…_ unetbootin.github.io](https://unetbootin.github.io/ "https://unetbootin.github.io/")[](https://unetbootin.github.io/) + +**Cloudberry:** + +[**Ubuntu Cloud Backup Software | MSP360™ (CloudBerry Lab)** +_MSP360™ Backup for Ubuntu allows you to perform file-level backup to Amazon S3, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud or other…_ www.msp360.com](https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux/ubuntu.aspx "https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux/ubuntu.aspx")[](https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux/ubuntu.aspx) + +**Backblaze B2:** + +[**Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage** + _S3 compatible cloud storage at ¼ the price. Brought to you by a company entrusted with over an Exabyte of customer…_ www.backblaze.com](https://www.backblaze.com/b2/cloud-storage.html "https://www.backblaze.com/b2/cloud-storage.html")[](https://www.backblaze.com/b2/cloud-storage.html) + +Firstly, we’ll need to install Timeshift. + +sudo apt-add-repository -y ppa:teejee2008/ppa +sudo apt-get update +sudo apt-get install timeshift + +Next we’ll need to create a live [Clonezilla](http://www.clonezilla.org) USB. + +### Procedure + +### Backup 1: Configure Timeshift To Run Automatically (Onsite, Automatic, Incremental) + +Next, we’ll need to set up Timeshift to automatically run on schedule and create snapshots onto our Timeshift drive. + +You’ll want to use Gparted to format the drive you intend housing its restore points on with one ext4 partition taking up the whole disk. + +Tell Timeshift where to put your system restores: + +Create as many snapshots as you think will be useful for your needs: + +Timeshift will run automatically (if a scheduled time was missed it will run as soon as possible). + +You can check the snapshots you have in your file manager: + +If you ever need to restore you can do so from the GUI _or_ you can boot into recovery mode and then use the Timeshift CLI. The latter is useful when the GRUB has broken and the system is badly damaged. + +Running a restore from the CLI looks something like this: + +### Backup 2: Take Manual Clonezilla Backups (Onsite, Manual, Full) + +I run Clonezilla manually to create backups onto my Clonezilla drive. + +I use the partition → image option in order to create the images and save them onto the SSD. Soon, I will be replicating this process but saving directly onto a Synology NAS. + +My hierarchy of the best place(s) to put your second onsite backup would be: + +**Safest:** External storage media. This could be a USB WD device or an internal drive that you hook up via an enclosure but store in a filing cabinet. I say that this option is the safest because it won’t be connected to power. + +**Safer:** An NAS. I call this ‘safer’ because you can put it in another room, for instance, so that it’s not on the same power circuit as your desktop computer. + +**Least safe:** Storing the backup image on an internal storage media. As I do. + +Traditionally, I try to take the Clonezilla backup at least every three months. Latterly, however, I’m trying to do this monthly. + +### Backup 3: Cloudberry (Offsite, Incremental, Automatic) + +Finally I use Cloudberry to sync full system backups up to a Backblaze B2 bucket. + +The above represents V1.3 of my backup approach. In the spirit of continuous improvement, it is a work in progress. Further improvements will be documented both here and in my Github repository. + +[**danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy** + _By: Daniel Rosehill ( github@danielrosehill.co.il) Version control: V1.3 (Documentation updated 06/20) V1.3…_ github.com](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy "https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy")[](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/Master_Backup_Strategy) diff --git a/posts/medium/Update-08-21--Closing-Comments--Thanks-For-Participating.md b/posts/medium/Update-08-21--Closing-Comments--Thanks-For-Participating.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4ebe5c33f1c66e1bb98c5941e52bda8625c1ce18 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Update-08-21--Closing-Comments--Thanks-For-Participating.md @@ -0,0 +1,19 @@ +# Update 08/21: Closing Comments, Thanks For Participating + +**Update 08/21: Closing Comments, Thanks For Participating** + +I write pieces on Medium from time to time. It’s a hobby. To get out views and connect with others that have them to offer in return. + +When I wrote this piece about a Fiverr influencer that was starting to go viral on American news stations, I never expected it to generate much of a reaction. + +I wrote it primarily because I find the cloak and dagger mechanisms of dubious online fads pretty fascinating to observe — and to dissect. This struck me as great fodder for such material even though it was far from the first article on the subject I could have written. + +Since writing this piece, it’s gone sort of viral in its own right. It’s spawned a podcast episode, a couple more blogs that have quoted it as a source, and I’m sure it’s annoyed more than a few people in the process too. + +Equally, it’s been a few months since I last thought about it. I’ve moved on to a lot of interesting things since, including making videos of my own. Looking at those who inspire you is more fulfilling than analyzing those who don’t. + +For that reason, I’m closing the discussion on this piece now. + +There have been quite a few comments but I simply don’t have time to moderate this discussion, particularly given the nature of it. + +Thanks to everybody for participating and for engaging. diff --git a/posts/medium/User-Data-Export-Approaches-of-SaaS---Cloud-Service---Social-Media-Providers---An-Overview.md b/posts/medium/User-Data-Export-Approaches-of-SaaS---Cloud-Service---Social-Media-Providers---An-Overview.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..37ed30d92452062ffa02470cf6344970e76d7b9c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/User-Data-Export-Approaches-of-SaaS---Cloud-Service---Social-Media-Providers---An-Overview.md @@ -0,0 +1,188 @@ +# User Data Export Approaches of SaaS / Cloud Service / Social Media Providers — An Overview + +Continuing with the backup theme of this week, I decided to create a [GitHub](https://medium.com/u/8df3bf3c40ae) [repository](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches) documenting the user backup export options of common SaaS and cloud providers. + +These are all the services I have taken my own backups of this week — and they vary quite significantly in methodology and ease. + +Here’s an alphabetical run through: + +### Cpanels + +Backing up web hosting Cpanels is relatively straightforward. + +Although there a variety of proprietary tools on the market — like JetBackup — Cpanel includes a default option for initiating full account backups including files and MySQL databases. + +These can be taken cloud to cloud or delivered to email and moved elsewhere: + +### Facebook + +I give Facebook top marks for the granularity and ease of its data export options. + +Like [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83) Takeouts, Facebook users are able to control exactly what they want to include in their export archive, including: + + * The date range + * The format (HTML/JSON) + * The media quality + +Users can also use simple checkboxes to indicate which services they want Facebook to compress into your archive on the backend: + +Users receive a Facebook notification and email when the compression is over and the archive is ready to be downloaded: + +The archive is neatly organized — although trying to decipher statuses from the HTML clutter can be a little tricky! + +### [GitHub](https://medium.com/u/8df3bf3c40ae) + +Exporting your repositories from [GitHub](https://medium.com/u/8df3bf3c40ae) is pretty straightforward. + +Users can clone their repositories on local or cloud storage by using the Git CLI. Alternatively, repositories can be manually downloaded as archives and uploaded to another cloud storage repository. + +### [G Suite](https://medium.com/u/17911f92be83) + +Thanks to its Google Takeout backup engine Google makes it very easy for users to export a copy of their data. + +Google users can select precisely which services they wish to include in the export — although be warned, when YouTube videos are added to the mix these files can easily end up constituting tens of gigabytes. + +Users can retrieve their generated Takeouts for some time after they have been created: + +### LastPass + +Users can backup LastPass by navigating to the ‘Export’ functionality in advanced options. + +Then by clicking on ‘Export’. And finally by saving the .php output and saving it to another cloud storage repository. + +### LinkedIn + +LinkedIn has a decent user data export functionality nested under the privacy tab: + +After clicking ‘getting a copy of your data’ users can choose exactly what they would like to bundle in the archive: + +The final archive will be delivered via email: + +### [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) + +Dear, [Medium Staff](https://medium.com/u/a32c340ea342), + +I love this platform and your clean-cut UI. I liked how easy it was to find the ‘Download your Information’ button: + +However, in the spirit of this article, I had to dig a little deeper and take a look at what you presented in the Zip archive: + +The articles are .HTML files. That’s fine. But where are the images, I was wondered? + +Answer: trapped in the [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) CDN! + +[Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6), your CDN and progressive image loading technology is amazing. + +But would you mind giving us access to our images, please? + +### [Quora](https://medium.com/u/3853f85f7d5e) + +Better late than never, right? + +Quora’s lack of a built-in backup functionality has been something of a sticking point among the user community for many years. + +Thankfully, Quora seems to have finally seen the light. + +Although it doesn’t yet have a native backup export functionality, you can ask its support people to generate a download archive for you. + +Proceed as follows: + +Follow the link for data privacy: + +You should eventually find this help center resource: + +[**Can I get a copy of my data?** +_Yes. Quora will send an archive of your content and personal data to your account's primary email address on request…_ help.quora.com](https://help.quora.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000839503-Can-I-get-a-copy-of-my-data- "https://help.quora.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000839503-Can-I-get-a-copy-of-my-data-")[](https://help.quora.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000839503-Can-I-get-a-copy-of-my-data-) + +Follow the instructions and within 72 hours, as stated, you will get your data by email. + +My archive came in a little over 24 hours. + +Quora will give you two archives: data and content. Content contains your answers and images: + +The HTML file which the process outputs looks like this in a web browser: + +Of course, if keep the images in the same folder you will get the images as well where you have them in your answers: + +### Reddit + +Reddit has also never developed a self service backup functionality. + +Like [Quora](https://medium.com/u/3853f85f7d5e), you need to ask their support people in order to get an archive of your data from their storage. + +Do a little bit of digging in the help center: + +And ask them for an archive. + +You can choose to download all your Reddit activity or just your activity over a specific date range: + +A short while after you ask for your data, /u/RedditDataRequests will get back to you with your archive: + +All your account activity should be in the archive: + +This includes: + + * Your posts + * Your comments + * Your IP log + * Your chat history + * Your hidden posts + * The subreddits + +### [Todoist](https://medium.com/u/9593ea611ff6) + +I give my favorite task manager top marks for how easy it makes it to download backups of your own data. + +True, todo lists are basically just text files. But Todoist creates a bunch of snapshots and allows you to download whatever date points you like. + +The data is presented as a .CSV file for each project. + +However, I couldn’t find task attachments — like images or audio clips — anywhere in the archive. + +This could be improved upon. + +### Twitter + +Finally, the Twitter machine. + +Twitter ranks towards the top of the table. + +It doesn’t take much digging to locate the data export functionality. + +Once you’ve done that it’s a couple more clicks to download the archive. No data requests to support teams necessary. + +Deciphering your own tweets isn’t too hard: + +And Twitter actually does a really good job at organizing these within the archive. + +Your tweets are in /tweet.js and any media you include with your tweets — namely images — is at /data/tweet_media: + +### Concluding Thoughts + +**SaaS services and cloud providers vary enormously in how well they allow users to download a copy of their own data.** + +I would suggest various criteria to judge a provider by: + + * **Is the data export self service or do you need to contact support in order to get your data out?** Self service is obviously optimal + * **How is the data export packaged?** Take a look inside an archive to find out + * **Are your images included or are these trapped in the provider’s CDN or simply not given out at all?** + +Hopefully, as awareness about the importance of data protection, governance, and portability continues to grow we can look forward to an era in which every internet user has on-demand access to a well-structured and complete archive of all the data they have created in every cloud or cloud service that they use. + +### Github Repository + +[**danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches** + _In this repository I will endeavor to maintain up to date documentation regarding how to backup your (user) data from…_ github.com](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches "https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches")[](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches) + +### More About Backups + +[**How to Extract Your Data From Quora and Reddit** + _Thank you, GDPR!_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-extract-your-data-from-quora-and-reddit-46dea4ff698c "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-extract-your-data-from-quora-and-reddit-46dea4ff698c")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-extract-your-data-from-quora-and-reddit-46dea4ff698c) + +[**3-2-1: A Common-Sense Approach For Backing Up Ubuntu - And Keeping It In Good Order** + _If using Ubuntu, backups are a topic that you should give at least occasional thought to. I use Timeshift as my primary…_ linuxhint.com](https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/ "https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/")[](https://linuxhint.com/ubuntu_backups_321/) + +[**How to: Use Multcloud For Cross-Cloud Backups** + _I’ve written a little bit about the importance of taking (3–2–1 compliant!) backups — whether you’re using to back up…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-use-multcloud-for-cross-cloud-backups-67e37f7c9885 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-use-multcloud-for-cross-cloud-backups-67e37f7c9885")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-use-multcloud-for-cross-cloud-backups-67e37f7c9885) + +[**How to: Backup Your Web Hosting (According to the 3–2–1 Principle)** +_In my writings about backups I have emphasized the importance of adhering to the 3–2–1 principle across all your data…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle-37e993fb47ba "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle-37e993fb47ba")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-your-web-hosting-according-to-the-3-2-1-principle-37e993fb47ba) diff --git a/posts/medium/Using-Checklists-To-Reduce-Human-Error-in-Business.md b/posts/medium/Using-Checklists-To-Reduce-Human-Error-in-Business.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a6db42e7253227767b0139cdda74b855da8b17d8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Using-Checklists-To-Reduce-Human-Error-in-Business.md @@ -0,0 +1,57 @@ +# Using Checklists To Reduce Human Error in Business + +One of the productivity habits I have picked up over the past year is using checklists to minimize human error when carrying out repetitive tasks. + +This isn’t my idea, of course. + +Checklists are widely used in aviation — both commercial and private — because the margin of error in both endeavors is essentially nil. + +The checklists used in aviation look something like this: + +Formulating standard operating procedures (SOPs) and checklists needn’t be reserved for people flying tens of thousands of kilograms of metal with passengers through the skies. + +Humans are prone to making errors — particularly when completing repetitive tasks under tight time constrains. Aviation’s checklist-centric paradigm for maximizing safety has been adopted in several other industries including healthcare. SafetyCulture has put together a nice resource with some suggestions for devising good ones: + +[**Lessons We Can Learn From Aviation Checklists - SafetyCulture Blog** + _In the last thirty years, aviation has had a radical cultural transformation. The transformation has been a critical…_ blog.safetyculture.com](https://blog.safetyculture.com/checklist-best-practices/lessons-we-can-learn-from-aviation-checklists "https://blog.safetyculture.com/checklist-best-practices/lessons-we-can-learn-from-aviation-checklists")[](https://blog.safetyculture.com/checklist-best-practices/lessons-we-can-learn-from-aviation-checklists) + +Although the stakes involved in forgetting to CC the A&P department on an invoice aren’t quite as high as forgetting to put the landing gear down before landing a 737, I find using checklists helpful to avoiding mistakes that might have adverse professional consequences. + +### Finding Software + +Finding software for reusable digital checklists is surprisingly difficult. + +Of course, there are plenty of to-do list programs (Todoist, Wunderlist, among others). But the list of software that allows you to create task lists that are designed to be used repetitively is smaller. + +I searched for ‘reusable checklists’ and went in search of a tool that was either cross platform or had a good web UI. + +I found: + +**SaaS** + + * [Firesub](https://app.firesub.com/). Firesub is the tool that I have actually ended up using. It’s free and cloud-hosted but users can pay a premium in order to be able to use the checklist tool as a team. + * [Manifest.ly](https://www.manifest.ly/). This is a checklist apps designed for team use. At the time of writing its pricing starts at $25 per month for a team of five. So this isn’t priced attractively for single users. + +I have also heard that it’s possible to reuse Trello cards and to use Google Keep for this purpose. But I didn’t find either option an attractive solution. + +**Android** + +I tend to try avoiding using my smartphone for business but an app that I could sync with the cloud would have been nice. I didn’t succeed in finding that. But I did find a few Android apps that support resusable checklists. + + * [Check Off](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=name.obrien.dave.lister&hl=en) + * [Listing It](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.listing_it&hl=en) + +### Building Checklists + +Taking inspiration from how checklists are used in aviation, I built checklists focused on things that I do everyday — and included small details that it’s easy to overlook without (hopefully) creating overwhelmingly long lists to check off. + +Here’s the one I have been using to make sure that work I’m sending to clients is presentable and ready to go out the door. The “deadline” item is there just in case I’m sending something behind schedule — in which case an apology to accompany whatever I’m sending is in order. The second screenshot shows how Firesub looks when you’re working through the lists. + +And here’s one for sending monthly wrap-up invoices to clients: + +Depending on how forgetful you are, times where personal checklists could come in handy might include: + + * Before leaving on a business trip + * Before leaving the house! + +These checklists have helped me to reduce human error and given me the confidence that, even if I’m sending in a job in the small hours of the morning (as happens from time to time) I’m not sending it in with any egregious errors. diff --git a/posts/medium/Using-Cloudberry-to-upload-Clonezilla-disk-images-to-cloud-object-storage.md b/posts/medium/Using-Cloudberry-to-upload-Clonezilla-disk-images-to-cloud-object-storage.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ca43f52397c5fa7986af4800c3f84a7cdd7418d1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Using-Cloudberry-to-upload-Clonezilla-disk-images-to-cloud-object-storage.md @@ -0,0 +1,90 @@ +# Using Cloudberry to upload Clonezilla disk images to cloud object storage + +Running a device to image backup using Clonezilla + +When it comes to full disk imaging, [Clonezilla](http://www.clonezilla.org) is one of the most simple and effective low-level tools out there. + +Unlike, say, dd, Clonezilla’s sort-of GUI provides plenty of instruction for how to use it effectively through command prompts — and it can be run off a lightweight live USB to back up just about any type of disk or partition (including ext4 filesystems hosting Linux distributions and Windows installs living on NFTS-formatted partitions.) + +Clonezilla _does_ support creating backups directly to remote (offsite/cloud storage): + +Specifically, the tool can can save the backup + + * Over SSH + * To a local SAMBA server + * To an NFS server + * To a WebDAV server + * To an AWS S3 server + +While this is the most direct means of backing up a Clonezilla image to an offsite location, there are a few significant drawbacks: + + * If you’re running Clonezilla in its most simple mode, then you cannot use your computer while the imaging process is taking place + * Over a typical home internet connection, saving a full disk image of say, 30 GB, directly offsite would take days + +In light of the above, taking a two-step approach to saving Clonezilla images to the cloud is sometimes the best option. + +My overall backup strategy (V1.3) — which this is part of. + +### 1\. Save Your Clonezilla Image Locally — Or Copy To Your Desktop From an External Source + +To do this, save your Clonezilla disk image locally. + +You can either mount a local directory as + + + /home/partimag + +Or else you can save your offsite to your usual ‘onsite’ location (mine is a WD Elements external hard drive) and then copy the image over. E.g.: + + + sudo cp -r /home/media/user/WD_Elements/DesktopBackupDDMMYY /backup_images/ + +If the image is large and you would like to keep abreast of progress as the copy runs then consider using rsync instead of cp: + + + sudo rsync --progress /home/media/user/WD_Elements/DesktopBackupDDMMYY /backup_image/ + +### 2\. Create A Backup Plan in Cloudberry + +MSP360 (formerly Cloudberry) make [a backup client for Linux](https://www.msp360.com/backup/linux/ubuntu.aspx) and Windows. + +The program can be purchased for a lifetime perpetual license of $29.99 (at the time of writing). This pro version includes advanced features like compression and encryption. But the basic (freeware) version contains everything needed to push (unencrypted uncompressed) backups to the cloud. (Note: [Clonezilla supports compression in its advanced mode](https://clonezilla.org/clonezilla-live/doc/01_Save_disk_image/advanced/09-advanced-param.php)). + +Of course, you could also use a CLI like rclone to get the job done — but, despite being a longtime Linux user, I don’t believe in making life difficult for no reason! + +After selecting “Create a Backup Plan” in Cloudberry Backup I went ahead and added a bucket I created in Backblaze just for Clonezilla images: + +I then gave the backup plan a name and provided the software with the location of my Clonezilla image. It can be set to run when you are ready to push to the cloud. + +It’s also useful to think about whether the _‘do not backup hidden file’_ option — by default disabled — needs to be enabled. + +Of course, if you wanted to build a (very) simple Bash script, or just run a command, you could execute + + + #!/bin/bash + + + sudo rclone -v sync /home/daniel/my_backups/clonezilla_backups B2:myclonezillabackups/ + + + exit + +You will just need to run + + + sudo rclone config + +Before you do so that the root user has a valid configuration file for rclone. The CLI will not automatically import the configuration file belonging to the user and the terminal will give the following error message: + + + NOTICE: Config file “/root/.config/rclone/rclone.conf” not found — using defaults + +I used ‘show hidden files’ in my file editor to verify that the Clonezilla image directory did not include any hidden files: + +It’s worth looking at the file of the Clonezilla archive in order to estimate how long pushing the backup up to the cloud is going to take: + +And the using DownloadTimeCalculator.com to estimate how long the process is going to take to run. + +Unfortunately because this is a local → cloud backup there are no tricks — [like backing up from an EC2 instance ](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/how-to-backup-gsuite-to-backblaze-b2-using-rclone-ec2-1d05db2f1cda)— to be relied upon. + +Good luck running your backups! diff --git a/posts/medium/Using-Video-For-More-Efficient-Note-Capture--The-How-And-Why.md b/posts/medium/Using-Video-For-More-Efficient-Note-Capture--The-How-And-Why.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8a537fb77101cb37436aa5ae5d4c28e72755e890 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Using-Video-For-More-Efficient-Note-Capture--The-How-And-Why.md @@ -0,0 +1,65 @@ +# Using Video For More Efficient Note Capture: The How And Why + +#### Why capturing your notes-to-self as video files rather than text documents can save you time while also capturing more useful information + +With a webcam and a screen capturing program you can record and memorialize notes in video format with great ease. Photo: author. + +Video is occupying a more central role than ever in modern communications. + +And so, I thought I would share a practice I’ve been using for the past couple of years in order to use it to expedite the capturing of information. + +It’s simply this: when preparing for meetings, instead of capturing information in textual format, I’ve begun recording screenshares and filing them away for my own later reference. + +Of course, video can be used for note-capturing in much broader contexts than this. But it provides a useful case study in how video, as a technology, can usurp text and audio — doing a better job at recording important information with less effort expended in the process. + +### Use Cases + +During any given week over the past number of years of my working life, I’ve found myself preparing for a number of business meetings with clients and/or business prospects. + +Every meeting with somebody I haven’t met before calls for basic due diligence — to ascertain who the person is, anything relevant about their background, and why our paths have crossed. + +During the course of your average working week, I rarely have the luxury of doing that twice. On the plus side, if you need to brief yourself regularly for new client meetings, you eventually get somewhat proficient at it — or at least develop a robust methodology. + +My traditional format for preparing myself for meetings — a methodology I borrowed from an internship at the Mayor of Jerusalem’s office — included drafting up a document with screenshots from the internet to paint a picture of the person and their life. To humanize what can otherwise be a dull collection of facts, I always make sure to include a headshot. + +To adapt this note-taking and memorializing process for video I simply: + +### Install OBS Studio + +Although screen recording apps now come in plentiful flavors and formats, OBS, in my view, remains the most powerful application for combining sources — like a webcam and a screen, or a couple of them — in order to create information-rich video screencasts. + +Using a powerful but free tool like OBS that works at the operating system level (rather than a Chrome extension) gives you an awful lot more power and flexibility. The information-gathering process can be captured in real-time and quickly shared with other team members (like a virtual assistant / VA, if you have one). + +Although OBS might be a little bit more intimidating than some friendlier-looking tools, it’s really worth investing the time at becoming proficient in it. It’s cross-platform, available on Linux, Mac, and Windows. + +[**Open Broadcaster Software | OBS** + _OBS Studio is equipped with a powerful API, enabling plugins and scripts to provide further customization and…_ obsproject.com](https://obsproject.com/ "https://obsproject.com/")[](https://obsproject.com/) + +### Record The Screencast + +If I’m preparing for a meeting — or using video for another note-capturing purpose — I’ll typically combine a webcam recording with a screen recording to create the video file. I’ll narrate into a desktop microphone as I go along. + +### Store Your Video Somewhere Private + +Naturally, you’ll want to store your videos for later reference somewhere you can access but others can’t. + +Cloud storage is cheap these days and screencasts don’t tend to generate particularly heavy video files. + +You can host these videos anywhere secure that allows for private storage. For instance you can: + + * Upload the recording output files to Google Drive and don’t share them with anybody else + * Upload the videos to YouTube and configure their privacy setting as ‘private’ + +Storing your video note recordings inUse OBS Studio the cloud rather than leaving them lying around on your laptop confers a few advantages: + + * You can access them easily from other devices + * You can use internal sharing functionalities — like Google’s built in sharing functional that inter-operates with other Gmail and Google Workspace accounts — to extend access but keep the video recording non-public-facing. + +### Use A Dedicated Tool + +Such as Nimbus: + +[**Download Center: Nimbus Note, Nimbus Clarity, and Nimbus Clipper** + _Download Nimbus Web solutions for all platforms and offline use._ nimbusweb.me](https://nimbusweb.me/download.php "https://nimbusweb.me/download.php")[](https://nimbusweb.me/download.php) + +Recording private notes in video format can save time and effort relative to text and audio — while capturing more information for no extra effort. It’s a win-win from a productivity standpoint. diff --git a/posts/medium/Using-xdotool--at--and-Bash-to-automate-Netflix-and-YouTube-viewing-on-Linux-5ae62185d1c.html.md b/posts/medium/Using-xdotool--at--and-Bash-to-automate-Netflix-and-YouTube-viewing-on-Linux-5ae62185d1c.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..10f723dae00904e35081c62cf3b580f7052a1906 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Using-xdotool--at--and-Bash-to-automate-Netflix-and-YouTube-viewing-on-Linux-5ae62185d1c.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,25 @@ +# Using xdotool, at, and Bash to automate Netflix and YouTube viewing on Linux + +Creating Bash script to automatically open and run Shtisel on Netflix + +**What could be better than wrapping up a hard day at work with a few hours of Netflix and chilling?** + +How about having your home media center doing all the hard work for you: opening your favorite show, hitting the resume button, and even turning on closed captions if you so desire. + +All you need to do at the appointed hour is plonk yourself on the couch! + +Here’s how easy it is to set that up: + +All it takes to get that up and running is some very elementary **Bash scripting** know-how, the **xdotool** command line interface (CLI), and the **‘at’ CLI** to schedule once off jobs at your preferred Netflix-and-chilling time (for more detail on how to get ‘at’ working [check out the man page here](http://manpages.ubuntu.com/manpages/trusty/man1/at.1posix.html)). + +In the above screencast I demonstrated how you can use xdotool and a simple Bash script to: + + * Open, in Google Chrome (or your browser of choice) the media file / YouTube video / Netflix series you wish to view. + * Find the coordinates for any buttons that you need to press. In the demonstration script I used simulated mouse clicks to play the video, turn on captions, and enter full screen mode. + * Simulate a keystroke. + +You can even include an ‘at’ command within the Bash script itself to turn the whole system off (or run another script) after a designated period. This will allow your system to gracefully shut itself down upon your movie’s conclusion. + +### Example Bash script for automatically launching and resuming a Netflix series + +[** _Follow me on Github_**](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm)** _for more experimentation in Linux system administration and automation._** diff --git a/posts/medium/Value-and-price-based-buyers--how-can-you-tell-them-apart-in-your-sales-cycle-.md b/posts/medium/Value-and-price-based-buyers--how-can-you-tell-them-apart-in-your-sales-cycle-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fd6473dd19b62a7e2dbdd7073dcd9dab33a60ad6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Value-and-price-based-buyers--how-can-you-tell-them-apart-in-your-sales-cycle-.md @@ -0,0 +1,134 @@ +# Value and price-based buyers: how can you tell them apart in your sales cycle? + +#### A mental shorthand for telling high and low potential prospects apart (and why selling on value is typically a far better long term strategy for freelancers and consulting-based businesses) + +Value-based and price-based buyers may both be looking for the same service or product, but they typically go about the process in very different ways. Photo by [Negative Space](https://www.pexels.com/@negativespace?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/working-macbook-computer-keyboard-34577/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +If you’re a freelancer or self-employed consultant, you’re likely to handle lots of sales leads over the course of your career. + +This is one of the parts of freelancing nobody ever tells you about: you’re forced to go through a crash course in business development and sales. But ultimately that’s a good thing. + +[**A 4 Point Lead Qualification Checklist For Freelance Writers** + _Bringing Good Fits From Lead Through To Client_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-4-point-lead-qualification-checklist-for-freelance-writers-cd83f39368b1 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-4-point-lead-qualification-checklist-for-freelance-writers-cd83f39368b1")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/a-4-point-lead-qualification-checklist-for-freelance-writers-cd83f39368b1) + +Talking to leads is great- in theory. But freelancers can easily walk right into a major time crunch if they talk to everybody who expresses interest in their services: when you’re a one man (or woman) show, dead-end leads can become major time sinks. + +Our time is our money and sometimes we have to guard it jealously. + +If you start throwing it into the wrong places you lose out. There’s an opportunity cost involved. One that can be measured in dollars. + +While I’ve found BANT a useful framework to work into my meeting booking form, there’s one methodology that’s way easier. + +Just ask yourself if you’re dealing with somebody who’s looking to buy a service for a price … or looking to buy value for their business. + +### Price Buyers … Talk About Price. Very Early In The Sales Process. Too Early. + +The most reliable sign of a price buyer, in my book at least, is that they talk about price. Very early. Too early. This is telltale sign number one. + +If a prospective customer’s first response to your pitch (or what they fill out on your contact form) is _“how much would X cost?”_ then there’s a _high chance_ that you’re talking to a price buyer. + +This is one that catches newbies off guard all the time. Particularly those trying their hand at cold email marketing. “ _Great, I got five people asking me how much I charge?”_ Sorry to burst anybody’s bubble, but this typically just means that you have five price buyers on your hands. + +Now I know what you may be thinking. + +Aren’t people entitled to ask how much something will cost? So that they can know if it’s within their budget? Doesn’t being transparent about money up front save a ton of wasted time? + +Yes, yes, and yes. + +That’s why I _also_ recommend that you include prices on your website. + +Doesn’t everybody do this? Not necessarily. Many service providers do _not_ provide any indication where their rates start. + +You don’t have to provide a full pricing table. But I find it helpful to set out a _minimum_ price. + +Here’s the one currently up on my MarCom site (note: this is really for illustrative purposes only. I have no idea what my rates will look like in the future) : + +Here’s a second recommendation/thought: present pricing only _after_ you discuss the _value_ you could bring to your clients. Don’t _lead_ with value because if you do you will attract the interest of _price_ buyers who will do the same. + +Why is that a problem? + +Get ready for it. I got this from a sales book: + +If a customer _chooses you_ because you’re cheap, they will _leave you_ the moment they can find somebody cheaper. + +Print that off and stick it next to your computer. Along with a second line if you want to drive the point home: + +There will (almost always) be somebody cheaper. Somewhere in the world. + +This is why, over the long run, serving a clientele of price-buyers is, sadly, a recipe for failure. + +Unless you want to get mired in a race to the bottom type marketplace, competing on value is the only way to differentiate yourself. Otherwise you’re left fumbling for discounts and trying to keep people happy who don’t really understand or see the value you can bring to their businesses. + +If you have them on your books, you might also have already realized that price buyers are _really_ focused on price. Like .. price is sort of their whole ‘thing’. + +They are liable to: + + * Balk at minor rate increases + * Always be looking for discounts + * Put price at the very center of any future project discussions + +Money is always front and center with them. But not in a good way. They’re trying to conserve as much of it as possible. + +But the biggest giveaway of all: they seem to care much less about _what_ you do(or could do for them) than they care about what you _charge_. + +### Value Buyers Ask About Capabilities. And Only Then Discuss Price. + +What do value buyers look and sound like, by contrast? + +Quite different from the price-led folk, actually. + +They’re not interested in what you charge. (They are, they just don’t start from that premise). + +Perhaps they’ve mentally sized up your rates and they know that the ballparks align with what they have budgeted for a project. + +Actually, they’ve hopefully done that. + +**But if they haven’t, that will probably be part of the first discussion at some stage. Just not right away.** + +Firstly, value buyers want to know what you can _offer_. + +This isn’t an abstract question. They want to know how much _value_ they can squeeze out of _you_. + +So you have to be prepared to be able to answer that question in a way that will translate your value with their business problem and put a price tag on it. + +And what that requires: that you have some means at your disposal of quantifying the value you deliver. So that they can know that they’re going to receive a positive return on investment (ROI) from using your services. + +What’s also really helpful in this regard is social proof. If you can show that others think that you’re great and that you have delivered value to their companies … that bolsters your deck a lot more. + +### A Thought Exercise: Can You Remember A Time When You Were A Price-First Buyer? And A Time When Your Focus Was On Quality? How Did You Go About Sourcing Vendors Differently? + +I often find it helpful to approach this question in reverse. + +Think about a time that you were looking to fill some need. + +But you were on a tight budget so … the main thing was to find somebody who could get the job done for cheap. + +How did you approach the search? + +Answer: as a price buyer. + +Perhaps you send out a scattergun series of emails hoping that somebody would bite and offer a quote that you could afford. + +Did it matter how good they were? Did they have to be the best gardener/cleaner/carpenter out there? + +No. They just needed to be able to get the job done for the price. + +And let’s say you bought something and you wanted it to be _good_. Let’s take a pair of studio speakers. + +You pored over spec sheets. Perhaps turned to the internet for help with the purchasing decision. + +Would you have balked if a vendor had the speakers for sale for $50 more? + +Nope! You’re crystal clear on what you’re looking for. Of course, you’ve probably got some ballpark figure of what you know you _can’t_ spend. But if somebody’s bid fits close to that top range of the scale, you know that things are going to work out just fine. + +You’re more flexible. And if you decided to call up a shop and ask about the speakers you’d probably be primarily interested in knowing whether they had the right _model_ you’re looking for in stock. + +You’re a value buyer now. You’re looking for the _best_ solution that can fit within your budget and not _any_ solution that can fit within your budget. + +Is your clientele, and sales pipeline, full of value buyers or price buyers? + +Have a think about it. And if the answer is ‘price, price, price’ consider what tweaks you can make to your sales process and marketing collateral to swing that over to the value side of the house? It’s a much better place to sell from. + +— + +I run [Rosehill Marketing Communications](http://rosehillmarcom.com/) and specialize in working with emerging technology clients and leaders to plan and execute thought leadership-led communications strategies that help share a vision for the world they’re helping to build tomorrow. Client have included entrepreneurs, marketing agencies, and publicly listed listed FinTech providers. To learn more, visit RosehillMarcom.com diff --git a/posts/medium/Venice---The-Ancient-City-Where-Impossible-Dreams-Come-True.md b/posts/medium/Venice---The-Ancient-City-Where-Impossible-Dreams-Come-True.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..49eed4733dbe1f0d582d2d28c1aebd9fd831d77f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Venice---The-Ancient-City-Where-Impossible-Dreams-Come-True.md @@ -0,0 +1,72 @@ +# Venice — The Ancient City Where Impossible Dreams Come True + + _— Diary, 30/11/2022_ + + _(Trigger warning: pro-Israel content)_ + +Venice, Italy, is a global tourist attraction. My wife and I got back yesterday from a few days there. You could say that Venice chose us rather than the other way around. We found a last minute ticket and booked ourselves in on Wizz Air, an ultra low cost carrier based in Hungary that now serves Israel. + +My wife, Hannah, is an architect —and so is naturally enthralled by the city’s rich art and architecture which can be found around every corner. For her, the city is a kind of Mecca. Me less so. Art isn’t quite my cup of tea and I probably wouldn’t visit the _Bienalle_ if it was happening next door to me. Fortunately my wife and I have plenty of other commonalities and we were happy to pick up the last minute bargain. So off we set for a few days of sipping prosecco, walking on bridges, and seeing what else the city had to offer. + +A delivery worker carrying Amazon packages around the narrow streets of one of Venice’s islands. Photo: Daniel Rosehill. + +Now I’m back and writing this from my usual operating base in Jerusalem. And I’m feeling oddly energized. This despite barely stopping in any galleries and paying only a cursory visit to _Piazza Di San Marco_ — heaving, as ever, with tourists. I left Venice extremely glad that we had chosen to spend a week there. + +**So what impressed me about Venice? Why would I recommend it to a friend who had never been?** + +The food was great (off the tourist trail, that is. Try Bacaro Vintido and thank me later). But I wouldn’t travel to another country just for a few good meals. + +Venetians like to call the city _“the most beautiful in the world.”_ It’s full of nice views, no doubt about that. But there’s only so much taking in gorgeous views of canals that one can do. + +**What inspired me about Venice was in fact none of these things. But rather the sheer ingenuity of the place.** + +You can geek out online reading about the history of the city and how it was initially constructed to handle overpopulation on the mainland _(the point of this article is to convey a point and if I have butchered some historical details here I trust that readers will forgive me…)._ + +About how they initially drove relatively short wooden poles into the muddy floor of the lagoon. + +About how the the endeavour was essentially carried out by hand, without the help — needless to say — of heavy machinery. + +About how Venice’s early builders essentially conducted a sort of trial-and-error experiment, making modifications to their buildings techniques as scientific understanding of geology and engineering evolved with the passage of time. + +[**How was Venice built? The extraordinary building technique of Venice.** +_How was Venice built? Just looking at her, walking the narrow streets, and getting a Spritz at the bar, you may not…_ allaboutvenice.com](https://allaboutvenice.com/how-was-venice-built/#:~:text=Venice%20was%20built%20by%20driving,the%20foundation%20of%20the%20city "https://allaboutvenice.com/how-was-venice-built/#:~:text=Venice%20was%20built%20by%20driving,the%20foundation%20of%20the%20city")[](https://allaboutvenice.com/how-was-venice-built/#:~:text=Venice%20was%20built%20by%20driving,the%20foundation%20of%20the%20city) + +Due to some geological phenomenon I am unlikely to ever understand, that bottom layer of Venice — poles literally driven into mud — has now morphed into a material that has a unique consistency that varies between rubber-like and more like marble (the wood is prevented from rotting due to the fact that the surrounding environment is now anaerobic). The foundation on which all the artificial islands are built, however, is essentially still that ancient layer. + +When you arrive to Venice by water (like most, we took the public ferry from the airport), it’s hard not to be awed at this city standing in the middle of the water. + +But like all sights that are captivating the first time you see them, the novelty eventually wears off — and eventually the most distinctive thing about Venice you notice is the fact that it has waterways rather than streets criss-crossing it. + +You forget that beneath your hotel bed are some wooden sticks that some ambitious people drilled into the ground hundreds of years ago. + +Here, I perceived a commonality between Venice and Zionism (for those who aren’t politically aligned, I did forewarn) + +Bath ducks for sale at the Venice Duck Store. Photo: Daniel Rosehill + +Both undoubtedly must have struck the majority at the time as outlandish ideas. In retrospect, people can agree that Venice is amazing. But for those who pioneered the city’s establishment and saw this initial trial and error process up close and personal, things mustn't have felt so reassuring. There must have been the constant temptation to give up on this monumental undertaking of engineering. To call it a day. + +Populating Israel likewise required clearing vast swamps of mosquitoes and dealing with the immediate hostility of the surrounding and more numerous Arab world — which seemed certain to strike a mortal blow to the country if engaged in combat as they quickly were. I can only imagine that many of Herzl’s contemporaries — and those of early Zionist leaders — must have thought the idea no better than delusional lunacy. + +And I can imagine that the environment among the founders of Venice — when that city was taking shape — can’t have been much different. + +I can only imagine what conversations were had way-back-then when somebody suggested creating a new city to accommodate people from the mainland by driving big wooden poles into mud. + +I kept that mental image in my head for the duration of my trip — as I sipped my _aperol spritz_ from one of the many excellent bars in the city. The steadfast determination to make it through this foundational phase. The backbreaking labor of doing all this without heavy machinery. It must have required an almost unimaginable level of mental toughness and resolve. + +What must those conversations have been like back then — when people were debating whether this enterprise of building a city in the mud were even sensible and those lined up in opposition were making their voices heard? + +What must the naysayers have said in response _(because, like tax and death, their existence seems constant throughout the ages)._ Building a city on water by sticking pieces of wood into mud must have struck many as suicidal and stupid. + +Venice and the founding of Israel both prove, to my mind, the notion that if you really believe in a crazy plan it may just work out. It also drove home the idea for me that once a critical mass of early backers are behind you it may even come to flourish. The naysayers, of course, will look on with retrospective vision, which always tends to be perfect. + +Venice had enough people believing in it that it not only sprung up out of the lagoon surrounding it, but became a city state and a major naval power far beyond the lagoon (effectively, in that historical period, a veritable empire). In less than 100 years, Israel has gone from fighting for its survival to forging regional alliances and exerting its might globally as a developed nation. + +I liked Venice not for its food nor for its buildings however attractive both were. But rather for the fact that it proved that audacity and ambition can pay off with enough persistence and determination and time. + +Venice may be slowly sinking. If worst case climate scenarios come true, it may be sunk as soon as 2100. And it is sobering to think that my future children may be looking at the photos I took on this trip and wondering what it must have been like to stay for a few days in this now-sunk relic of history. + +But for now — and until now — it’s been here. Thriving, even. + +Venice is worth a visit. + +And crazy ideas are sometimes also worth a shot. diff --git a/posts/medium/Video--Podcasts--Or-Blogs--What-Format-Should-You-Be-Creating-Content-In-This-Year--And-Beyond-.md b/posts/medium/Video--Podcasts--Or-Blogs--What-Format-Should-You-Be-Creating-Content-In-This-Year--And-Beyond-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fd97adc8fb0583697be3f65bc9294ba574e65dc2 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Video--Podcasts--Or-Blogs--What-Format-Should-You-Be-Creating-Content-In-This-Year--And-Beyond-.md @@ -0,0 +1,101 @@ +# Video, Podcasts, Or Blogs? What Format Should You Be Creating Content In This Year (And Beyond) + +#### Actionable tips for increasing readership and getting more eyes on your “content” + +With better options for converting between text-based, audio-based, and video content at our disposal, where should content marketers be focusing their efforts? Some thoughts. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-turned-on-silver-laptop-computer-261662/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +The world of content marketing is currently changing at a rapid pace. + +As it does, marketers are spending time talking about dynamics — some of those well-worn and others that are occupying a lot of time at the moment. + +Of course, businesses and brands are ultimately in search of actionable information. What should we be doing now? Where should we be investing our time and energy? + +I recently published a post here which sets out — roughly — how I envision content marketing changing over the coming years. It’s below. + +[**The Looming Flight Towards Format-Agnostic Content Creation: And Why It Matters (Now) For Creators** + _To get ahead of the curve, consider leveraging easy win syndication opportunities that straddle distribution formats_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-looming-flight-towards-format-agnostic-content-creation-and-why-it-matters-now-for-creators-c8ca78c1ec92) + +But to translate that down into practical guidance (or at least opinions), here are some of the things I’ll typically be advising clients over the coming … while. + +_(Bear in mind that I’ll be trying to follow this myself, but as a one person content creation / marketing team for myself and my business the number of hours in the day is a constraint on my ability to do so!)_ + +### Invest In Video And Aim For A Wide Syndication Strategy Across Formats + +There’s been plenty of buzz about video marketing recently. + +For businesses, barriers to entry are falling. Or perhaps more accurately, it’s becoming more acceptable to use home-based vlogging-style equipment to get _basic_ content out to readers. Increasingly, such videos are being distributed over channels like LinkedIn. + +I think of this as a convenient extension of the work from home revolution. We’re getting used to interacting with potential clients from more intimate and personal spaces — namely our homes. There’s less of a need to glamorize our workspaces with fancy set design. Get the fundamentals of audio and lighting and video capture in place and you can be good to go- at least if simple vlogging is your initial target. The communication that emanates could even be perceived as less over-produced and more genuine. + +Naturally, there’s still a very specific place for the kind of video content produced by high end agencies that requires a large budget to put together. An airline buying a million dollar TV spot to announce a new route is unlikely to use a quick readout shot on the CEO’s webcam. But at the smaller end of the scale — for niche brands, solopreneurs, and small businesses — results can be achieved for a lot less. + +A high res camera (4K is nice but for vlogging probably unessential). Some basic lighting and sound gear (ring light, lavalier microphone). And a smattering of editing software to bring the raw input and blend it into something more. For very simple projects, that should be more than enough to get going. + +### What’s Available? Here Are Your Current Options For Converting Content Between The 3 Key Formats + +If — like me — you own a brain that inherently struggles with the concept that there’s no singular answer to _what_ you should be publishing and _where_ then I’d like to at least lay down the options. + +Let’s start with what the main options are: text, audio and video. + +Naturally this is a simplification. Still imagery and informational graphics for instance are both being left out (sorry, photographers!). + +My rationale for doing so: to a large extent those are used primarily to spruce up text resources and are less commonly used as self-standing entities in business content marketing. Infographics are great but they’re still basically text-based information (with nicer layout). + +(Speaking of infographics, to get the full one these images are broken out of, [click here](https://miro.medium.com/max/1400/1*o4BjvbCE08eyK2ZonTmW_w.png).) + +Let’s look at the ways we could currently “convert” a blog post to the more “advanced” formats of audio and video: + +Welcome to the future: AI generated humans as spokespeople. Screenshot taken from Synthesia.io + +Here are those in a little bit more details. We can: + + * **Use tools like text to speech (TTS) in order to take a chunk of text and turn it into audio format.** Naturally we should aim to honor the format that we’re creating for. So rather than just taking our blog post and feeding it into a synthesization engine, we’d probably achieve better results by editing that text first. Of course, we could also … actually narrate the audio ourselves. The blended AI-human workflow that I think is ultimately going to be favored: we re-format a textual post optimize it for audio and _then_ run it through synthesization. Audio editors still have a job but under this workflow it’s limited to post-production work. + * **Use AI video generation tools (**[**check out Synthesia**](https://www.synthesia.io/)**for a rough idea of what’s possible) in order to take text and then layer _both_ audio and video on top of it. **How can the latter be achieved? AI has much to offer here. AI humans can assume the role of corporate “spokespeople” in talking head style videos. Or we can combine stock video footage with the audio that we achieved from the previous step. The joined-up AI and human workflow: human editors storyboarding the video for a blog. But the footage is sourced from a stock library and some of the editing may be done by engines too. + +### How can we “convert” content in the other direction (from video to text)? + +Here’s that section of the infographic: + +Namely: + + * **To get from video to audio we can simply work with the audio that was part of the video stream to begin with**. As when using TTS it would be best if we did this in a way that was more mindful than just extracting the audio track from video which can be done in a few seconds. Audio can be extracted from video and then edited and reworked for final presentation as a podcast. + * **To get from audio back to text** we can use AI-based transcription engines which are increasingly reliable, affordable, and good. + +### The summary version: + + * There are tools on the market to help us take text and convert it into audio and video. + * There are tools that take our creative output in the opposite journey: from video to text. + * To get between the two gaps, we can use humans, AI, or both. Right now, it’s a pretty safe bet that ‘both’ is going to be the winning proposition that allows smaller creative teams to do more with less resources. + +### Which Format To Create Content For? Here’s What I Would Be Doing + +Firstly, the obvious caveat: it’s almost impossible to offer cookie cutter guidance that will be widely applicable enough to actually be useful. + +But some general thoughts: + + * **If jumping across format gaps is going to get a lot easier (I predict that it will; more tools are going to come to market in each of the ‘gaps’ identified above) then one argument is that it makes sense to focus your primary creative energy on the format you’re most comfortable working in.** If you’re a writer, that’s probably text-based content (blogging). If podcasts are your thing, that’s probably audio. Then work across to create accompanying blog posts and videos to widen your distribution options. + +However: + + * **I also back the argument that it makes sense to focus activities on the most evolved form of content creation currently at our disposal. And that would be video.** Video offers arguably the most immersive experience of the three formats being considered here. However you’re trying to communicate, you can get across the same messages you would using text but you’ve got audio and motion working on your side too (vocal cues and body language). So start with video content. And then work back to syndicate across audio and text-based channels using the tools outlined above. + +But what I would also be doing: + + * **Whatever kind of content workflow you’re currently working with — let’s say right now you’re only doing blogs — setting up the means to syndicate that across channels.** In this case, we’d be looking at setting up a podcast so that readers could follow the blog in audio format and potentially also taking that blog into video format through either automated or human-based means (for the latter, one workflow could be redacting the blog post into a shortened script and having the author read that to camera). + +I would also focus on presentation. + +In an ideal world you want it to be virtually effortless (or as close to that as possible) for those interested in you, your brand, or your business to download your information in the means that makes the most sense to them. + +Some examples for how to achieve this: + + * Embed video versions of your content in every text based post. + * If you’re publishing your video content to hosting platforms such as YouTube, make sure to link to the blog version or cleaned up autogenerated transcript from the video description. + +Let’s go even shorter with those recommendations, from the top of this post until this point: + + * Probably start with video. + * Definitely use what’s on the market currently to syndicate to whatever formats you’re not touching upon. + * There are human-centric and AI-based workflows. Using both in concert is probably the most effective strategy (example: using Rev to automatically transcribe a podcast and then utilizing the services of a human editor to optimize that text for reading and then using more AI to format it most appropriately for reading in blog format). + * Whatever mix you end up deploying, make sure that it’s as easy as possible for your consumers to choose how they’d like to consume your content + diff --git a/posts/medium/Ways-You-Can-Diversify-Your-Freelance-Writing-Business.md b/posts/medium/Ways-You-Can-Diversify-Your-Freelance-Writing-Business.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..907ec9c05517ac4d3d67e180cc7dd293eed7d7fa --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Ways-You-Can-Diversify-Your-Freelance-Writing-Business.md @@ -0,0 +1,110 @@ +# Ways You Can Diversify Your Freelance Writing Business + +#### The Art Of Not Putting Your Eggs In One Basket + +Diversification: the art and science of not putting the eggs of your freelance writing business in one basket. Image: Pixabay + +Freelancing — including freelance writing — can be a risky gambit. + +With no guaranteed income, clients that pay invoices late, and the stop-start nature of many freelancing projects, it’s little wonder that many leave freelancing in search of more stability. + +While there will always be something inherently risky in managing your own business, thankfully, there are ways you can reduce the risk. + +In a job market rife with layoffs and at-will employment arrangements, one could even argue that it’s possible to have _more_ job security as a freelancer than a 9 to 5-er. + +Sound like the stuff of dreams? It really isn’t. + +These are some very practical ways in which you can make sure that you’re not over-exposed in any one area. + +### 1\. Diversify Your Client Base + +One of the classic rookie freelancing mistakes is working for only one client. + +If you’re doing this, then you’re not freelancing — you’re working as a shadow employee without benefits. + +Experts vary in terms of the maximum income that they recommend any one client should constitute. + +I think that 20% is a credible recommendation. But if your risk tolerance threshold is set a little higher, you could bump that up to 33%. + +If any one client constitutes more than 33% (a third) of your income, then you’re already getting into risky territory. + +What happens when that client decides to: + + * Hire a full time staff member to take up your workload + * Ditch you for another freelance writer + * Stop using freelancers all together + +I’ve seen all these things happen and I’ve personally lost clients because they hired my job away. Even with a great relationship with your client, you’re always on somewhat shaky ice as a freelance writer. Do whatever you can to skate on different ice rinks. + +### 2\. Diversify Your Industry Exposure + +Another great way to keep things diversified is to diversify the number of industries that you work with. + +This is a good reason why it’s not good to take niching down _too_ far. + +You ideally want to have a few well-defined niches. + +But equally you don’t want to pidgeon-hole yourself into just working with one industry. + +What happens if that industry suffers a monumental downturn such as happened to the entertainment business during COVID? All your clients might go down with it. + +That’s why it’s a good idea to take a look at _what_ clients you have on your roster. Are they all in the same industry? If so, consider adding another niche. + +### 3\. Diversify Your Geographical Exposure + +I’m a massive proponent of the idea that freelancers should work with clients all over the world unless they have a compelling reason to “stay local.” + +Payment solutions like Wise and Payoneer have made it almost trivially easy to do business with clients anywhere in the world. + +All you need is a webcam, Zoom account, and enthusiasm to do business with clients in far-flung destinations. + +Working with clients in different geographies is also another smart way to diversify your freelance client-base. + +Again ask yourself what would happen if the startup scene in your home country were ravaged by some downturn. + +If you had clients scattered throughout the world you wouldn’t be in this situation. + +### 4\. Diversify Your Lead Acquisition Approaches + +[**How To Find Freelance Writing Clients** + _The Various Channels For Client Acquisition_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-find-freelance-writing-clients-7b90032bf8b6) + +I’ve written before (above) about the various ways in which you can find freelance writing clients. + +You can find them through: + + * Cold emailing (outbound marketing) + * Inbound marketing (including content marketing) + * Working through word of mouth referrals + * Advertising including PPC and print media placements + +Here’s my recommendation. Even if one approach to client acquisition is working well for you, it’s still a good idea not to make sure that your pipeline is solely dependent upon that strategy. + +The lead acquisition approach I’m most enthusiastic about is inbound marketing. I think that generating a way for clients coming to _you_ is much more sustainable than having to constantly go out hunting for clients by email or LinkedIn. + +Nevertheless, I don’t want to give up on cold emailing entirely. The reason: I want my lead acquisition channels to be diversified. + +### 5\. Diversify Your Income Sources + +Have you heard about passive income? + +If you’re freelancing, then you probably have. + +Passive income is another way in which you can diversify your freelance writing life. + +You can leverage the following _active_ income sources to make money directly: + + * Writing for clients + * Offering consulting add-ons + +And, as a writer, you can make money through passive income sources by: + + * Authoring books + * Selling course subscriptions (note: I’m not a fan of most freelance courses!) + * Investing your savings in the stock market + +In a risky business like freelancing, diversification can be the make it or break it difference that can help you weather downturns in your industry, geography, or the world in general. + +It can also help you weather the vicissitudes of freelancing life that are far beyond your control. Things like client hiring decisions and internal decisions about how to direct marketing budget spend. + +_Liked this post? Consider subscribing to this Medium publication for more tips about freelance writing from Daniel Rosehill, a freelance marketing consultant and thought leadership writer with more than 10 years’ writing experience._ diff --git a/posts/medium/We-Need-To-Stop-Expecting-Aliyah-To-Be--Immigrant-Life-Lite-.md b/posts/medium/We-Need-To-Stop-Expecting-Aliyah-To-Be--Immigrant-Life-Lite-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1f0a9996c75dfb69bf8863b58f25ae62c239d433 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/We-Need-To-Stop-Expecting-Aliyah-To-Be--Immigrant-Life-Lite-.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +# We Need To Stop Expecting Aliyah To Be ‘Immigrant Life Lite’ + +If immigrants to Israel start expecting life to be a gritty immigrant existence, perhaps their integration will be more successful. + +The Israeli English-speaking Facebook bubble is often full to the brim with those that have complaints about life in Israel. On occasion, I have joined the choir. On others I have led it. + +The complaints about the difficulties of life in Israel are familiar to anybody who has spent a lot of time in the country. + +[It’s woefully expensive here](https://www.afteraliyah.com/9-crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel/). Israeli bureaucracy can be a handful at the best of times. Rude neighbors smoke carelessly on their _mirpeset_ ensuring that it wafts into your apartment just when you’re trying to enjoy your morning coffee there in peace. Exploitative employers conveniently forget to provide the requisite benefits month after month or neglect to inform you of your rights. Not to mention getting on the property ladder which, for many young couples, seems downright impossible. + +While life in Israel undoubtedly has its challenging aspects, increasingly, I believe that there is one central driver of all these complaints. + +### We Expect Israel To Be Different. But Should It Be? + +Let’s look at _aliyah_ in geographical terms for a moment. + +I would venture to guess that the majority of modern _olim_ — at least those participating in these Facebook communities — moved to Israel of their own volition. + +Sure, Israel is the Jewish homeland, a global bulwark against anti-Semitism, and the place that any Jew can flee if facing religious persecution. + +Undoubtedly, the State has absorbed many _olim_ fleeing persecution in countries such as Russian, Ethiopia, and elsewhere. That continues to be an important driver of _aliyah_. + +But I would imagine that for most English-speaking immigrants, at least these days, their migration to Israel has been voluntary. This, I contend, has created a dissonance between what people _expect aliyah_ to be and what it ultimately ends up being for many. And when expectations are left unmet, disappointment is the inevitable result. + +### The Era Of Voluntary Migration to Israel + +Today’s _aliyah_ has entered a new phase in its evolution. In many cases (but needless to say not all), today’s _olim_ face no significant push factors. + +Perhaps — like me — they felt a vague sense of dis-ease living in a non-Jewish country, like a fish out of water. + +But in most cases the _pull_ of Zionism was the driving force behind their decision to come to Israel. Why live as a religious minority when you can be part of the mainstream? Especially when the place to do that is back where it all started for the Jewish people? + +There are other factors at play that create the expectation that Jewish migration to Israel will be ‘different’ than other voluntary migrations (like an Englishman moving to Australia for better work opportunities). + +For one, many Jews who grow up affiliated with Jewish communities have regular interactions with Israeli expats. In other instances, they take part in cultural exchange programs designed to forge connections between Israel and Jewish communities in the diaspora. Think summer camps; study abroad programs in Israel; gap years spent in _yeshiva_ or seminary in Israel. + +All these important activities serve to create a sense of connectedness but sometimes also create inflated expectations about what life in Israel will be like (as many reading this will probably know, expats sometimes see the world through a “grass is greener” mentality). + +These interactions cement in our minds that Israel isn’t just some random country. It’s a country that Jews have a stake in, to which we belong. Often spurred on by emissaries from Israel, we make the move expecting, in a sense, to have an easy land. Feeling that we’re going to be immigrants but not really. Expecting _aliyah_ to be immigrant life like. And too often those expectations prove to be false. + +### Why Don’t We Label Ourselves Immigrants? + +I don’t know about you, but it’s relatively seldom that I hear Anglos refer to themselves as ‘immigrants’. + +True,_‘new immigrant’_ is often what dictionaries automatically translate ‘ _oleh hadash_ ‘ to mean. But how many of us actually conceive of ourselves in those terms in the cold light of day? + +Instead, English-speaking immigrants to Israel tend to refer to themselves as “Anglos” — a linguistic label that emphasizes the fact that they are English-speakers. People, of course, talk about _“making aliyah_.” The more ardent Zionists might speak of “coming home.” + +But for some reason there remains a common dissonance between understanding what one has done — uprooted a life to come to move in Israel — and what the natural outcome of that process is: One is now a stranger in a new country responsible for building a new life from the ground up. + +### Conceiving Of Ourselves As Immigrants Lowers Expectations + +I would argue that once we make the mental switch and begin actually thinking of ourselves as the immigrants that we are when we move to Israel, coming to terms with some of the unsavory facets of life here that many of us experience becomes far more bearable. In a sense, it’s to be expected. + +Immigrants are inherently vulnerable. Particularly in a network-dominated society like Israel, our lack of connections can make it harder for us to find quality employment opportunities, particularly those that are circulated through word of mouth means and old boys (or girls) networks tied to army units. + +Immigrants are at a competitive disadvantage in so many respects because they have to not only learn a new language — in many cases — but also to learn a new country and how it works. And in Israel, everything from how the postal system works to how to rent a car tends to be different. + +These dynamics not only make life harder for _olim_ , they also make them easy prey for opportunists. + +It’s unsurprising, therefore, that some landlords will take advantage of the fact that immigrants are likely to be less versed in tenant law than native Israelis and less likely to have recourse to effective legal representation in the case that they need it. + +Employers might count on immigrants not understanding the work culture in order to deny them benefits. + +In so many respects, therefore, immigrant life is unsavory, at least in its beginnings. + +Which is precisely why — all things being equal — many would rather stay put in their own country than chart such a rocky path in another country. But every _oleh_ and _olah_ signed onto the journey because they believed in the calling of Zionism and understood that, by moving to Israel, those that came after them wouldn’t have to. + +Much good can come from internalizing our status as immigrants. + +Accepting that we are liable to experience exploitation and the actions of opportunists doesn’t excuse the latter’s action. In fact it only emphasizes that we need better post- _aliyah_ support and representation from interest groups. Currently, there is much work to be done in this field. + +But equally, while it might be idealistic to think that making _aliyah_ will be inherently different from any other voluntary migration pattern, it might be protective for us to drop that expectation. And to see us as _olim_ : temporarily at the mercy of the societies around us, but seeking an integration that with leave us as equal stakeholders. True immigrants in every sense of the word. + +Doing so can not only make us happier, but also help recalibrate our expectations towards a point from which we’re less likely to get emotionally maimed in the process. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/We-Need-To-Stop-Judging-ADHD-Patients-By-Their-Expected-Cover-13801876cec.html.md b/posts/medium/We-Need-To-Stop-Judging-ADHD-Patients-By-Their-Expected-Cover-13801876cec.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6c54ffe352a73a50342ae1cf1bd95f20660fdde8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/We-Need-To-Stop-Judging-ADHD-Patients-By-Their-Expected-Cover-13801876cec.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# We Need To Stop Judging ADHD Patients By Their Expected Cover + +#### So much ADHD is unseen. Why does society expect it to be otherwise? + +ADHD: it frequently doesn’t fit a classic picture. Photo: Tara Winstead (Via Pexels) + +When ADHD patients finally feel ready to share their diagnosis with their friends and family — if indeed they ever do — then one of the most discouraging reactions can be the following (Note: I’m pretty sure I got every single one of these. Like, actually): + +_“Trust me, Dan, you DON’T have ADHD!”_ + + _“You’re one of the most productive people that I know! You can’t have ADHD”_ + + _“But you write stuff. How can you have ADHD if you can write stuff?”_ + + _“Stop worrying about problems that you don’t have. You don’t have ADHD”_ + + _“But …. you’re not hyperactive”_ + +[**Why I Decided To Share Publicly About Having Adult ADHD** + _Shame gets us nowhere. Also, I’m excited about the journey_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-decided-to-share-publicly-about-having-adult-adhd-59de64d1c0dd "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-decided-to-share-publicly-about-having-adult-adhd-59de64d1c0dd")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-decided-to-share-publicly-about-having-adult-adhd-59de64d1c0dd) + +### Truism: People Generally Don’t Invest Too Much Time Thinking About Problems They Don’t Have + +There are a few problems with the way society perceives ADHD. + +The first is that society’s conception of what ADHD should look like is stuck where science was several decades ago. + +[**My ADHD Diagnosis Story** + _Cross-posted from Twitter, lightly redacted, and expanded:_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c) + +To throw a little less judgment about, I would actually contend that this is perfectly reasonable. + +To the best of my knowledge, I don’t suffer from multiple sclerosis. Hence, I know relatively little about the disease. I assume that all MS patients fit a certain picture. I’m unaware of what research is being done about MS or what its drug pipeline looks like. + +If I were diagnosed with MS — G-d forbid — or someone I loved was, then that would likely change. But for the moment I make do with my elementary knowledge of the illness. I don’t need more than that to get through life. + +And so I imagine it is for many people and ADHD. + +We think that ADHD is a children’s disease. We think that ADHD is a monolithic clinical entity and that there are no subtypes to it. + +That every ADHD patient is a five year old restless toddler running around a classroom. Even though many ADHD patients are predominantly inattentive and the condition commonly persists into adulthood. + +### Many ADHD Patients Don’t Fit The Stereotype + +I have a friend who is what could be described as hyperactive. Let’s call him Dave. He talks at a million words a minute. He fidgets. His brain jumps from topic to topic as he talks animatedly. + +People — including me a year ago — might assume that he is a classic undiagnosed case of ADHD. Some might even use the term colloquially _“oh, he’s very ADHD.”_ (By the way, this trivializes the condition and is something that I do not support.) + +**But put Dave in a library — or an office — and he can switch in a moment’s notice from Gregarious Dave and into Studying Dave or Working Dave.** + +He might emanate a restless social energy that fits the ADHD stereotype much better than I, but his focus is nevertheless very much under his control. + +He doesn’t need stimulant medication to get into that mindframe. It just happens naturally for him because his brain is producing, endogenously, enough dopamine and norepinephrine. Dave make look hyperactive, but he doesn’t have ADHD. + +Now take me. + +I emanate a much lower key social energy than Dave. People would probably describe me as quite or even shy. I have my moments, but I’m often the thinking, pensive, retiring type. Which is why I assume I pick up the _“you can’t have ADHD comments.”_ But the difference between Dave and I is that I can’t shift gears so easily. In fact changing gears from _“I’m awake”_ to _“here’s that complicated white paper you ordered”_ used to take me hours of effort. + +Put me in that same library or office without medication (previously self-medicated caffeine, now Vyvanse) and I’ll sit there procrastinating or fidgeting for 20 minutes. Or daydreaming. Or looking out a window. Or browsing Twitter. + +It’s not that I don’t _want_ to focus and get through my workday. It’s that I _can’t._ + +But put a stimulant into my bloodstream and — hey presto! — within 20 minutes I’ll be right up there with Dave studying or working. I might even outpace him. The difference between un-stimulated me and stimulated me is night and day. Most people enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning. But I’m pretty sure that they’re not getting quite the same thing I do out of it. + +### Many Facets Of ADHD Are Invisible — For Many, Most + +The final reason why judging any ADHD patient’s condition _without_ walking a day in their shoes — or an hour in their brain — is that frankly you’re going to miss out on virtually everything that makes this condition a challenge to live with. In fact, unless you’re overtly hyperactive, almost the _totality_ of your symptoms — what makes ADHD a challenge to live with — might go unseen. + +Here’s some of the ways ADHD affects me for instance: + + * **Before I take stimulant medication, I have a hard time “getting going” in the morning.** But because I realize that people who show up late to work habitually tend to get fired, I have developed a careful ritual of preparing my morning’s Vyvanse (previously caffeine) the night before. Hence, I’ve never been fired. But I’ve also had to go through this routine every morning for about the last 15 years. + * **I am overly sensitive to noise and (to a lesser degrees) smells.** They compete with my focus and make it hard to pay attention to whatever I’m trying to do. In fact, even the air conditioning in my apartment — which is set slightly too low — is making it 5% harder to finish this post because my brain keeps jumping in every five seconds to say _“hey, it’s slightly too cold here, what’s the thermostat set at?”._ I once lived in a studio apartment that was barely big enough to accommodate me and my belongings. The sound of the fridge compressor drove me crazy. My solution? I lived fridge-less for a year and subsisted on street food. The only people who know how intolerant I am to sound when trying to work are my family and former coworkers. A mildly loud conversation in the next room — or a TV or radio playing — can make it so hard for me to focus that I need to put on headphones or earplugs. Even an open plan office with all glass windows presents a lot of visual stimuli that I need to filter out. + * **I am famous for going through phases — being extremely passionate about hobbies. T** his is a common ADHD trait known as hyperfocus. We have a hard time staying focused on things we’re not interested in. But when we find something that captures our attention — it’s all there, but on overdrive. People who know me get a kick out of this — I’ve always picked up my latest ‘thing’ (the low point: flags). But sometimes I wish my attention was a bit more consistent and I didn’t feel the need to jump into every new passion project 110% and was just mildly interested in a few things across the board. For the most part, I know a little about a lot. This has had a big impact on what I do professionally. + * **I have a very hard time getting to bed at night and have been on various degrees of a terrible sleep schedule for large stretches of my adult life.** My brain often simply refuses to turn off and I lie in bed too restless to sleep but also exhausted at the same time. I drive myself crazy by overthinking things. Even by fidgeting when unsuccessfully trying to get to sleep (it happens subconsciously). Hyperactivity can be entirely mental — on the inside. Unless you can get inside the brain of the person you’re sure “couldn’t” have ADHD, you probably shouldn’t make assumptions. + * **There are times when I would _love_ to be able to enjoy a book or a TV show, but my brain literally won’t allow me to. **I can’t pay attention long enough to follow the plot development unless I find the show totally riveting (see: hyperfocus). And so I give up and do something else. But if I find a show really engrossing — I can watch it for hours. + * **I’ve been misplacing things and losing belongings for as long as I can remember — wallets, phones, you name it.** Because my brain doesn’t do a particularly good job at paying attention to things it doesn’t find stimulating. When you put your wallet somewhere you’re supposed to briefly think _“here’s where I left my wallet”_ so that you can remember it the next time you need it. I often don’t do that. I’ve made a lifelong habit of buying “backup” extras of things I really need — like headphones. I haven’t invested in a high quality smartphone for years — even though I’d dearly love to— because I’m worried that I’ll loose it somewhere. The good news is that if I’m diligent about taking stimulants I can mostly avoid this. But I have residual losing-things anxiety and constantly worry, when I’m out of the house, that I’ll misplace something. + * **Sometimes, I’m irritable. But never more so than when my focus is interrupted.** When I’m writing and “in the zone” … I’m doing that. Something as simple as background music at a restaurant — while I’m trying to focus on a conversation and my thoughts — can ruin the experience for me and even put me in a bad mood. Cigarette smoke is another pet peeve. Beyond asthma (research suggests the conditions might be linked) it’s an olfactory distraction. By the way: I detest background music. + * Here’s a slightly weird one. I make no secret of the fact that I’m partial to beer, but (almost) never have even one beer while I’m working. The reason? Alcohol is a CNS depressant and will counteract whatever is helping me stay focused which, in turn, will make it harder for me to finish whatever I’m working on. I leave that until I’ve wrapped up all my day’s activities. I drive a fairly strict line between work and pleasure. + * **Time management can be an issue for me because I tend to get into hyperfocus periods and loose all sense of time in the process.** Because it’s hard for me to get “in the zone,” I tend to feel a strong desire to take care of whatever needs to get done right now. The reason? Sometimes I’m worried that my focus won’t be on par tomorrow. Again, now that I’m discovering an effective treatment regime that isn’t taking caffeine pills, this is also in good measure simple anxiety. + +In short: + +ADHD patients — including me — don’t all look the way society expects them to. We don’t all jump about with arms flailing running around classrooms. + +Some of us look out the window when we should be looking at the blackboard, loose our wallets repeatedly, and undergo silent struggles whenever it’s time to get to bed on time and prepare for the next day. + +Those around us might think that we’re crazy because we can’t focus on a writing project because there’s a TV in our field of vision with presenters doing distracting things. But that’s how our brains work for many of us. + +But guess what? + +Depressed patients also don’t constantly walk around with a big frown on their faces. + +Anxiety patients aren’t constantly shaking with tremors. + +Schizophrenics under treatment aren’t constantly chasing after imaginary people on the street. + +We’re all different. And most mental health patients become _very_ good at finding ways to hide our conditions from the world and put up the masks we need to in order to get by and succeed — as best as we can. + +ADHD is a truly multifaceted condition. Society will learn more about its many manifestations as time moves on. + +If you’re reading this and are trying to support an ADHD patient, please remember that a lot of our struggles are unseen. + +Leave the judgments aside and trust that the psychiatrists and medical professionals who have diagnosed us know what they’re talking about more than you do. It’s a tough condition. But with the right support many of us can manage. diff --git a/posts/medium/Welcome-To-A-Remote-First-Working-World--Here-s-What-s-New-Around-Here-.md b/posts/medium/Welcome-To-A-Remote-First-Working-World--Here-s-What-s-New-Around-Here-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..179ade6b2525e1bf0838f7bb7185cb2486f27e15 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Welcome-To-A-Remote-First-Working-World--Here-s-What-s-New-Around-Here-.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# Welcome To A Remote-First Working World. Here’s What’s New Around Here. + +#### A glimpse into how profoundly a fully remote workforce could change the world as we know it + +A remote-first world could change our lives to a greater extent than we might be currently able to imagine. Photo by [Taryn Elliott](https://www.pexels.com/@taryn-elliott?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-using-a-laptop-at-home-4231767/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Right now, there’s a significant debate going on about whether remote or hybrid work is going to be the ‘way’ of the future. + +While the differences might seem trivial at first glance (go into the office one versus zero days a week), when you think about them, they’re actually massively significant. + +**So much so, in fact, that I think it’s fair to say that a leap from a hybrid-first to remote-first world would actually be every bit as significant as the jump from an office-dominated environment to a home-based one.** + +We’re not talking about another incremental shift in a forward and more trendy direction. We’re talking about a logarithmic one. + +**It’s the difference between a working arrangement that could rearchitect our countries versus one that could rearchitect our world.** + +To be more specific: + +While hybrid work environments will allow employees to unhitch themselves from living within the geographical radius that represents whatever a reasonable periodic commute looks like (for most workers, that’s probably up to one hour travelling time), **fully remote working means that employees can unhitch themselves entirely from any job-related geographical constraints at all.** + +That’s massive. + +An example, even if an obvious one: + +Most London-based professionals would find themselves precluded from working a hybrid job that required them to be on-site in New York even once a week. + +Vanishingly few companies would want to fit the bill of a weekly airfare and few workers are making enough money to justify the cost. + +But legal and bureaucratic considerations aside — those pesky things called taxes and laws — there’s literally _nothing_ stopping a professional in Dublin from telecommuting to an office in Aukland so long as he’s either never expected to be on site or only to be there at some negligibly significant interval (ideas about what this might constitute will vary, but I’d like to submit six months as a benchmark). Or vice versa. Think about that for a moment. + +If hybrid proves to be more than just a stopgap on the way to a remote-first world — and I’ll put my cards on the table, I’m very much hoping that’s going to be the case — then we can expect to transition to a working world (or just a world!) that looks fairly radically different to the one we know today. + +Here are just a few of the things that might be different. + +### Towns Will Become Trendy Places In Which To Live + +As professionals quickly realize that they no longer need to live within a reasonable commute of their office — at least the periodic one that most hybrid gigs will implicitly demand — a significant amount of people may turn their sights towards other places in their country of residence in which they might wish to live. + +Naturally, emigration will be an attractive option for many and the world of digital nomadism will continue to flourish. + +**But it’s also predictable that the majority of people are likely not going to wish to leave the country of their birth solely because it’s now possible to do so while keeping a job**. + +At least not permanently. + +And many of the digital nomads will likely return to where their roots are. All in all, I think that intra-country population redistribution is the more likely migration pattern to expect. + +As commercial spaces are abandoned and then re-zoned — because who wants to rent an office space when the team needs to meet one day a week!? — professionals will move out of expensive cities and take advantage of a geographical arbitrage opportunity that may quickly vanish (this aspect of the remote working picture remains undecided; namely, should compensation be tied to cost of living). + +A professional who once lived in New York can slash their cost of living by moving to upstate New York and capitalize on this migration almost tomorrow. + +Assuming their salary isn’t negatively corrected for cost of living, that means a higher real income that can be realized as soon as this professional can pack his or her bags. Towns and villages — once perhaps thought of as Sleepyvilles for those uninterested in the rat race — are suddenly cast as hip alternatives to megacities and monotonous suburbia. We’ve arrived at an entirely different world. + +It becomes cool to live in what were only recently considered second rate towns. They have craft pubs and the other trappings of affluent culture. Young professionals are flocking there. And this thing called the internet is keeping everybody connected — and, apparently, employed. The full potential of a networking technology that’s been around for decades has finally been realized. + +### Digital Working Relationships Will Become The Norm + +Right now, we live in a world in which the expectation for working relationships is that they should be maintained on a face to face basis. Like any massive change, this is being rebut at only a gradual pace. + +**However, if remote working becomes the norm rather than the exception, then it stands to reason that the majority of working relationships between colleagues will be conducted over Zoom and email.** **Digital means won’t be supplementary modes of communication to meeting in person. They’ll supplant them as the norm.** + +In the short term, this will feel stilted and unfulfilling and slightly awkward for all involved. For the philanders of this world, that will mean no more late night hookups in abandoned conference rooms. I guess sexting or seedy off-the-calendar Zoom “one to ones” will have to be the tactic of choice. + +For the sake of transparency, let me put it out there that even after five years of remote working (at least in part) I still struggle with the idea of feeling like I _know_ people whom I’ve only met digitally. I once had a local client for two years whom I never met and it pained me. I insisted on a cursory coffee meeting and it pained me a lot less. + +Slowly — perhaps — society will become accustomed to this new reality. + +Colleagues are those people in distant countries that we talk to on Zoom. Friends are those whom we meet at the grocery store or when we’re out on our walk. One group is seen in pixels and the other with the eye. This dichotomy could have pretty profound effects. + +Some of us will meet at the pub to share war stories about Zoom calls and micromanagement-by-email. The difference will be that those doing so won’t be freelancers and digital nomads and those charting what are still considered somewhat unconventional employment paths. Those people will be the norm. Working remotely is conventional. Perhaps those poor sods still stuck working for hybrid organizations will be considered the odd ones out. + +### The Asynchronous Communication Revolution Will Only Continue To Pick Up Pace + +As society begins to explore and appreciate the many advantages of remote working, we’ll see continued pushback against synchronous forms of communication and the societal expectation for hyper-responsiveness in general. There’s only so long that most people can withstand a calendar packed full of Zoom meetings, you know. + +We’re already seeing the first seedlings of this revolution in bloom as platforms dedicated to connecting colleagues via voice notes and video recordings come to market. + +I predict that this market will mushroom in coming years. This is also a trend that I fullheartedly support. + +### Organizational Culture And Mission Will Become Key Differentiators Between Companies + +If remote work really becomes the norm, then we’re perhaps about to enter into an era that could be considered the era of meritocracy. Or at least of a radical population distribution led by the mass untethering of employees from their place of employment. + +This could revolutionize the workforce to no less an extent than the advent of mechanization did during the Industrial Revolution. + +If career advancement in conventional office-bound organizations is determined by some mixture of talent and skill at navigating internal politics, those who rise to the fore of remote first organizations might be the most productive team members. + +Whether that is desirable or not is another question entirely. + +If productivity is all we are gauged by, then don’t we risk becoming a workforce full of boring worker bee automatons? But it will mean that organizations will be able to take a radically different approach when it comes to recruiting the best talent. + +What will this mean for employees? + +If they can work for just about _anybody_ from _anywhere_ then their calculus for where to work will involve more factors than simply whatever workplace places the most. + +What might be considered nice to haves in a geographically-circumscribed labor market (organization mission, culture) will become critical differentiators in the era of the remote-first world. + +A transition towards hybrid workplaces will profoundly change how humans interface with their countries and their tax jurisdictions. + +But a shift in the direction of fully remote working environments will do nothing less than rearchitect how humans settle and engage with the planet. + +It’s a massive difference. + +And though the above dynamics might now seem far off, they could be (much) closer than many of us currently anticipate. diff --git a/posts/medium/Welcome-To-My-Medium-Page-ddaa28562c7.html.md b/posts/medium/Welcome-To-My-Medium-Page-ddaa28562c7.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2dff5cc942f098fbc4849b927a474bde3ce207ba --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Welcome-To-My-Medium-Page-ddaa28562c7.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,221 @@ +# Welcome To My Medium Page + +#### A welcome message to my Medium profile! + +Thanks for checking out my Medium profile! Feel free to watch the video intro below. + +My name is Daniel Rosehill. I’m a marketing consultant with a passion for technology (and journalism). I was born in Ireland, although I currently live in Jerusalem. + +I blog on here about tech (especially Linux and backups!), marketing, writing, and whatever else comes to mind (including sometimes ADHD). + +[**4 Reasons I Write A Post A Day On Medium (Just For Fun)** +_Sometimes Non-Monetary Payoffs DO Matter For Creators_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-i-write-a-post-a-day-on-medium-just-for-fun-a0d302a12e9d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-i-write-a-post-a-day-on-medium-just-for-fun-a0d302a12e9d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-i-write-a-post-a-day-on-medium-just-for-fun-a0d302a12e9d) + +At the time of writing at least, my Medium content is all un-paywalled. I write to share ideas with people rather than to monetize. So whether you’re a paying Medium member or a curious browser who’s stumbled here through a search engine, you should be able to read this writing. + +The joy of writing, for me, is in the pursuit of the expression — and the opportunities and relationships it creates that may otherwise have never been possible. + +If you like something that I wrote, please feel free to share it with your network. If you want to reproduce it on your blog, podcast, or another channel, then see the reproduction section below. But the TL;DR is that it’s fine so long as the writing is attributed and used for non-commercial purposes as a non-derivative work (that [Creative Commons](https://medium.com/u/a85b8aeafab8) license is [here](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/#:~:text=Attribution%20%E2%80%94%20You%20must%20give%20appropriate,endorses%20you%20or%20your%20use.&text=NonCommercial%20%E2%80%94%20You%20may%20not%20use%20the%20material%20for%20commercial%20purposes.)). + +Linktree is a great service! If you want quick access to my information, check out my Linktree below: + +[**Daniel Rosehill | Linktree** + _Marketing communications for technology clients._ linktr.ee](https://linktr.ee/danielrosehill "https://linktr.ee/danielrosehill")[](https://linktr.ee/danielrosehill) + +### My Medium Publications + +Please feel free to also follow these publications which I run: + +#### **Marketing Communications Digest** + +**Marketing Communications Digest** contains some of my thinking — and writing — on everything to do with marketing communications (MarCom), including strategy, inbound marketing, and the evolution of marketing. + +[**Marketing Communications Digest** + _Marketing communications consultant Daniel Rosehill offers thoughts on inbound marketing and content, thought…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing) + +#### Freelance Writing (Inactive) + +**Freelance Writing** contains my writings about …. freelance writing. It’s a (small) reservoir of free knowledge which I’ve shared both to clarify these things in my head and because I don’t believe in monopolizing knowledge about “how to freelance.” Although I’m no longer focused on selling writing services to clients (at least exclusively), it is my hope that the articles published there will prove useful to those pursuing freelance writing as a career — whether for journalistic or marketing purposes. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +#### DSR Ghostwriting + +My professional pursuit, **DSR Ghostwriting** and my articles about thought leadership: + +[**DSR Ghostwriting** + _DSR Ghostwriting specializes in providing long-form thought leadership writing services to B2B technology and public…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting) + +[**All About Thought Leadership** + _All About Thought Leadership contains insights about using thought leadership as part of your inbound marketing…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership) + +#### All About Async + +I’m a huge believer in the power of asynchronous communications — and remote work. In fact, although I understand the need for occasional synchronous communication (sometimes that need is unqualified; like calling emergency services!), I think that asynchronous communication is going to prove essential for remote work to reach its potential and create the kind of satisfactory fulfilling working environments its participants deserve. **All About Async** is where I post my occasional thoughts about what’s new and exciting in the world of async — including best practices, vendors, and data. + +[**All About Async** + _All About Async is a Medium publication for those interested in learning more about asynchronous communications and…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-async "https://medium.com/all-about-async")[](https://medium.com/all-about-async) + +### My Email Address / How To Get In Touch + +Feel free to drop me a line either through my website or by emailing this address: medium + my name (first name and last name together no spaces, all lower case). + +The TLD is dot co dot il. + +Hopefully that was clever enough to defeat the spambots. If not, I’ll just delete the automated email trying to sell me on an SEO review. + +[**How To Contact Daniel Rosehill** + _Written awkwardly in the third party for SEO purposes_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-contact-daniel-rosehill-223ffbc2b222 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-contact-daniel-rosehill-223ffbc2b222")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-contact-daniel-rosehill-223ffbc2b222) + +If you’re the type to prefer PGP, then a public key that will reach me can be found here: + +[**Here’s how to reach me by secure (PGP) email** + _I’ve been using PGP encrypted email for a number of years now._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/heres-how-to-reach-me-by-secure-pgp-email-c1ac58d7dc51 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/heres-how-to-reach-me-by-secure-pgp-email-c1ac58d7dc51")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/heres-how-to-reach-me-by-secure-pgp-email-c1ac58d7dc51) + +### Sign Up For My Email Newsletter + +Note: distribution is highly irregular and at best highly infrequent. + +You can also subscribe to receive posts from me directly here on Medium. + +At the time of this writing, the latter is probably a more reliable channel. + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ eepurl.com](http://eepurl.com/goPyzj "http://eepurl.com/goPyzj")[](http://eepurl.com/goPyzj) + +### Follow Me Elsewhere On The Internet (And Social Media) + +I’m currently exploring videography and am having great fun creating some videos around Jerusalem and elsewhere to learn the ropes of it. Who said writers can’t learn new tricks?! + +If you’re interested in following that process, you can subscribe to my YouTube here: + + + +I’m too cantankerous— and old and skeptical — to use Instagram and Tik Tok. I dip into other platforms throughout the day. + +While I have periodically vented here about the awfulness of LinkedIn, for its connection-making qualifies and its other redeeming features, I retain a presence there. + +[**The 3 Most Insufferable LinkedIn Posts That Need To End Right Now** + _From old job love letters to here’s my gift hamper, the 3 type of LinkedIn posts that do my head in_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-3-most-insufferable-linkedin-posts-that-need-to-end-right-now-2ffa6c1f69e3) + +### My Writing Can Also Be Found Here + +Professionally, I undertake a lot of ghostwriting and marketing advisory work on behalf of clients. + +But from time to time, I also get round to hemming out my own thoughts elsewhere on the internet. As time goes by, I find myself deriving less value from publishing through external channels. Most of my writing is now congregated here. + +**Times of Israel (blogs); mostly outdated** + +[**Daniel Rosehill's Blog** + _Daniel Rosehill is a professional writer based in Jerusalem specializing in ghostwriting long-form thought leadership…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/author/daniel-rosehill/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/author/daniel-rosehill/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/author/daniel-rosehill/) + +**AfterAliyah.com — a website I set up about post-aliyah** + +[**Daniel Rosehill - After Aliyah** + _Daniel Rosehill is an oleh hadash who moved to Jerusalem from Ireland six years ago. Daniel founded AfterAliyah to host…_ www.afteraliyah.com](https://www.afteraliyah.com/author/drosehill/ "https://www.afteraliyah.com/author/drosehill/")[](https://www.afteraliyah.com/author/drosehill/) + +**Entrepreneur.com** + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _The latest articles written by Daniel Rosehill you will find only on Entrepreneur_ www.entrepreneur.com](https://www.entrepreneur.com/author/daniel-rosehill "https://www.entrepreneur.com/author/daniel-rosehill")[](https://www.entrepreneur.com/author/daniel-rosehill) + +**Marketing Profs** + +[**Daniel Rosehill : MarketingProfs Author** + _Content Marketing and Thought Leadership: What's the Difference? Though they are often conflated, content marketing and…_ www.marketingprofs.com](https://www.marketingprofs.com/authors/4228/daniel-rosehill "https://www.marketingprofs.com/authors/4228/daniel-rosehill")[](https://www.marketingprofs.com/authors/4228/daniel-rosehill) + +**Muckrack** + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _My current work primarily consists of ghostwriting on behalf of clients in the technology and public affairs sectors…_ muckrack.com](https://muckrack.com/danielrosehill "https://muckrack.com/danielrosehill")[](https://muckrack.com/danielrosehill) + +**Business2Community** + + + +**Geopolitical Monitor — some old writing about politics** + +[**Daniel Rosehill | Geopolitical Monitor Contributor** + _Geopolitical Monitor article writer / author / contributor_ www.geopoliticalmonitor.com](https://www.geopoliticalmonitor.com/author/danielrosehill/ "https://www.geopoliticalmonitor.com/author/danielrosehill/")[](https://www.geopoliticalmonitor.com/author/danielrosehill/) + +**Linux Hint** + +[**Daniel Rosehill - Linux Hint** + _Edit description_ linuxhint.com](https://linuxhint.com/author/drosehill/ "https://linuxhint.com/author/drosehill/")[](https://linuxhint.com/author/drosehill/) + +### Professional Background (Core) + + * **Founder @ RosehillMarcom / DSR Ghostwriting** + +I’ve been running my own business since 2015 — previously as a “side-hustle” and now full time. + +I’ve worked with marketing agencies, companies, and individual entrepreneurs from around the world. + +My main area of focus, these days, is on creating and executing cohesive thought leadership marketing strategies, particularly for delivery in print, ‘in pixel’, and in speech. + +While that may sound jargony — and thought leadership receives some well-deserved skepticism — I really try to offer something specific. + +I see thought leadership and content marketing as [very distinc](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/358323)t marketing activities with unique purposes. In my day-to-day work with clients, I try to help those with genuinely important and impactful things to say to say it right — and connect with the best audiences. + + * **Marketing Communications Manager @ Various Technology Startups** + +My in-house career involved managing marketing communications at a number of high growth technology companies, including those in both Ireland and the Middle East. + +In Ireland, I was the first marketing resource at Ecanvasser, now a global political technology company. In Israel, I worked at an industrial IoT company — and have worked with many others. + +What’s in my future? I’m exciting about remote working and continuing to work with businesses from around the world. + +### Education + +**MA in Political Journalism — City University, London** + +**BCL (Law) — University College Cork, Ireland** + +### Quoting Something I Wrote Here + +Unless otherwise stated, everything that I post here to Medium can be considered to be licensed under the following [Creative Commons](https://medium.com/u/a85b8aeafab8) licensing terms: + +[**Creative Commons - Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International - CC BY-NC-ND 4.0** + _This page is available in the following languages: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC…_ creativecommons.org](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/")[](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) + + * Attribution is courteous, much appreciated, and requested. + * The licensing terms are non-commercial because I don’t make money from these articles so don’t grant the right for others to do so (on these pieces). + * And non-derivative because I go to pains to create content the way that I do. While I’m always happy to have writing here quoted with attribution, I don’t grant the right for others to change my words. + +I’ve had people quote my pieces excellently. And watched as dubious internet scammers plagiarized my writing and butchered it into broken English. I’d request the former. + +If you’d like to do something more with anything that I wrote, the best course of action is to get in touch. Full info is here: + +[**Current licensing and syndication terms for my writing on Medium** + _If you’d like to reproduce or quote anything from this Medium account, kindly do so under the following terms_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/current-licensing-and-syndication-terms-for-my-writing-on-medium-3a73c9355a0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/current-licensing-and-syndication-terms-for-my-writing-on-medium-3a73c9355a0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/current-licensing-and-syndication-terms-for-my-writing-on-medium-3a73c9355a0) + +### A Little Bit About Why I Post Here + +[**Content Creation: The Best Means Of Open Sourcing Your Life’s Thinking (And Knowledge)** +_An argument in favor of sharing just about anything that might be of interest to other humans_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-creation-the-best-means-of-open-sourcing-your-lifes-thinking-and-knowledge-4cb0309a2db1 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-creation-the-best-means-of-open-sourcing-your-lifes-thinking-and-knowledge-4cb0309a2db1")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-creation-the-best-means-of-open-sourcing-your-lifes-thinking-and-knowledge-4cb0309a2db1) + +[**4 Reasons I Write A Post A Day On Medium (Just For Fun)** +_Sometimes Non-Monetary Payoffs DO Matter For Creators_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-i-write-a-post-a-day-on-medium-just-for-fun-a0d302a12e9d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-i-write-a-post-a-day-on-medium-just-for-fun-a0d302a12e9d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-reasons-i-write-a-post-a-day-on-medium-just-for-fun-a0d302a12e9d) + +### Media Resources + +If for any reason you need a headshot and bio, this short and snappy one is my go-to for podcasts, the media, etc: + +_Daniel Rosehill is a marketing consultant based in Jerusalem who helps technology clients including startups and entrepreneurs to plan and execute thought leadership marketing campaigns. His interests include Linux, startup businesses, technology, and travelling._ + +More resources here: + +[**Daniel Rosehill Press Kit** + _Resources for online and print media, podcasts, and broadcast media_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/daniel-rosehill-press-kit-87ca344b7417 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/daniel-rosehill-press-kit-87ca344b7417")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/daniel-rosehill-press-kit-87ca344b7417) + +Thanks for checking out my profile on Medium! + +Daniel. + +### This Medium Blog’s Comments Policy + +At my discretion, I reserve the right to remove comments to articles that I publish on Medium. The policy that sets out the grounds upon which I may do so are below. + +[**A Comments Policy For This Medium Account** + _By default, comments are open on articles published to Medium.com._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-comments-policy-for-this-medium-account-74862b6a9d46 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-comments-policy-for-this-medium-account-74862b6a9d46")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/a-comments-policy-for-this-medium-account-74862b6a9d46) diff --git a/posts/medium/What-Are-The-Big-Red-Warning-Signs-in-The-West-Bank-About-.md b/posts/medium/What-Are-The-Big-Red-Warning-Signs-in-The-West-Bank-About-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4b597afe411dee9ec33bd5b0ead357ae63719d2a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-Are-The-Big-Red-Warning-Signs-in-The-West-Bank-About-.md @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +# What Are The Big Red Warning Signs in The West Bank About? + +Around the time of the second intifada, an order issued by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) banned Israeli citizens from entering areas classified as Area A under the Oslo Accords (under full control of the Palestinian Authority). + +In order to warn motorists not to enter these areas, Israel erected conspicuous signs throughout the West Bank (Hebrew: Yehuda and Shomron) warning motorists when they were on a road leading into one of these localities. + +The red signs positioned at the entrance to area A cities note that entrance for Israeli citizens is “illegal” while those at the entrance to Palestinian villages — typically area B — use slightly different language, noting that the entrance is “dangerous” (the IDF officially advises against it). + +Despite the presence of the many signs, Israeli motorists continue to accidentally stray into area A and B territories — and are sometimes met with hostile ‘welcomes’. + +An area A warning sign positioned at the start of a road leading into Bethlehem. Photo: author.An area B warning sign outside the village of Hussan. Photo: author. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-Book-Publishing-And-Documentary-Making-Have-In-Common-For-Emerging-Thought-Leaders.md b/posts/medium/What-Book-Publishing-And-Documentary-Making-Have-In-Common-For-Emerging-Thought-Leaders.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2c020ab8045f9bf7883360d52f2ef581604e550a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-Book-Publishing-And-Documentary-Making-Have-In-Common-For-Emerging-Thought-Leaders.md @@ -0,0 +1,70 @@ +# What Book Publishing And Documentary-Making Have In Common For Emerging Thought Leaders + +#### How aiming for the highest possible ‘denominator’ can give aspiring thought leaders an ‘unfair advantage’ over the chasing pack + +By setting yourself goals of communicating in formats that aren’t accessible to everybody, you make it easier to distinguish yourself from other voices in your industry. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/gray-and-brown-mountain-417173/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Throughout the course of running this blog (it’s now several years old), I’ve offered various thoughts on the merits of writing books — a field I’ve been involved in professionally, with clients, for a number of years now. + +Recently, I offered a tongue-in-cheek take on the subject, providing four shameless — but valid — reasons to take the plunge into the rough and tumble world of book authorship. + +[**4 Shameless Reasons To Consider Becoming A Book Author** + _If you need encouragement to get that book idea out of your head and onto the page, then read on_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-shameless-reasons-to-consider-becoming-a-book-author-f4dc8c231fea "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-shameless-reasons-to-consider-becoming-a-book-author-f4dc8c231fea")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/4-shameless-reasons-to-consider-becoming-a-book-author-f4dc8c231fea) + +There’s one more reason to become a book author beyond those I articulated in that piece, however. Actually, I touched on it — but the point has wider application than the context through which I explained it so I’m writing this blog to explain it properly. + +Put more crudely — and expanded out more widely — it might go something like this: + +**_You should consider becoming a book author because it’s pretty hard to see a book project from inception through to completion._** + +**_And that makes you a far rarer commodity than somebody who has a Twitter account, Insta, or Tik Tok._** + +### Leverage The Value Of Scarcity When Choosing Your Communications Approach + +For those looking to establish or solidify their reputations as thought leaders, I would therefore recommend something like this: + +**_“If you can write a book, write a book. If you can produce and fund a feature length documentary that’s likely to win plaudits at major film festivals, go through with that plan and you’ll come out the other side famous. If that all sounds like too much work for now, write a blog post and build up your thought leadership the slow way.”_** + +In other words: Shoot as high as you possibly can when choosing how you’re going to package your message. + +Because the higher you achieve, the more rarefied you’re going to be within the thought leadership hierarchy. And humans tend to ascribe more value to people who do exceptional things than those who do the mundane. Rarity confers value. So if you’re trying to distinguish yourself from serious competition to “ _be the authority on [your industry]”_ aiming at the most difficult level is a good way to achieve that aim. + +Now, let’s bring this down to a more mundane and practical level. + +Let’s imagine what a hierarchy might look like in the world of text-based communication _(recently, I’ve been driving a hard distinction between that, audio, and video on the basis of how they communicate.)_ + +At the bottom we might have posting on Twitter. + +Why? + +For one, Twitter is a ready-to-go SaaS platform. + +It requires absolutely no technical skills whatsoever to communicate through, and no outlay of capital to set up on (_confer_ : operating your own website which requires both some technical know-how and a small investment before you can begin publishing there). + +Virtually anybody in the internet-connected world can set up a Twitter account in a matter of minutes. + +It’s ubiquitous. It’s fiercely noisy because there are so many people screaming at one another on there in 280 character goes. + +And from a communications standpoint, the barriers to entry are just about as close to nil as they could be. + +Twitter is a great digital notepad for those who have already built reputations. But it’s a difficult platform to break through on for all the above reasons and more. + +At the top of the text-based totum pole let’s take writing a book. + +That takes a _lot_ more work than sending a tweet. + +Although now that Amazon KDP and self-publishing have rendered even achieving this feat relatively simplistic, we need to set our sights slightly higher to truly and credibly distinguish ourselves from others. + +What about — counter-intuitively perhaps — courting traditional publishers and trying to get published traditionally? + +Again, this provides another means for us to create distance between what _we_ can do and anybody else can. + +If we were to plot out what a hierarchy for text-based thought leadership publishing might look like, this might be something like the result. Infographic: author. + +We could plot out the same steps for video-making projects and for audio ones too: it’s easy to shoot a 10 second Tik Tok video on your phone (even if the potential for virality is still high!). It’s a lot harder to put together a professionally-produced and edited 60 minute feature length production involving multiple locations. + +If you’re trying to emerge as a thought leader in a hotly competitive field — as most major tech niches are today — then consider asking yourself _“what’s the most difficult way I’m capable of communicating?”_ + +How can I encapsulate my vision and message in a way that’s going to be a lot more difficult for others to emulate? + +Once you can carve yourself out into that more rarefied space, you’re going to gift yourself an ‘unfair advantage’ over the competition and make it a lot harder for others to play catch-up. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-Browsing-Wikileaks-Cables-Taught-Me-About-Report-Writing.md b/posts/medium/What-Browsing-Wikileaks-Cables-Taught-Me-About-Report-Writing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f777acf2dcfb41eeed650c6238de1b1f0618e784 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-Browsing-Wikileaks-Cables-Taught-Me-About-Report-Writing.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# What Browsing Wikileaks Cables Taught Me About Report Writing + +#### The treasure trove of diplomatic cables has a lot to teach about summarizing meetings — even those of the civilian kind + +Whatever your thoughts about Chelsea Manning and Wikileaks, I believe that the Diplomatic Cables which the leak released is a veritable treasure-trove of information that is of immense use for anybody that wants to integrate effective debriefing and report writing as part of their (civilian) workflow duties. + +[**Full-text search** + _BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- mQQBBGBjDtIBH6DJa80zDBgR+VqlYGaXu5bEJg9HEgAtJeCLuThdhXfl5Zs32RyB…_ wikileaks.org](https://wikileaks.org/plusd/?qproject\[\]=cg&q= "https://wikileaks.org/plusd/?qproject\[\]=cg&q=")[](https://wikileaks.org/plusd/?qproject\[\]=cg&q=) + +For those who haven’t had exposure to military or intelligence community environments — and that includes me by the way — they represent a large repository of real reports written by professional report-writers for an important audience (the US State Department). They are therefore at least potentially instructive. + +Here are a few tidbits I have picked up from perusing them. I try to integrate them into my day-to-day workflow as I summarize meetings, calls, and other engagements with clients. + +### Use Document Header Tags To Standardize Your Reports (And Improve Their Searchability) + +Did you know that the US military has its very own system for writing email headers designed to make it more efficient for users to scan through their inboxes? + +[**The US military has a system for writing efficient emails that anyone can use** + _In the military, we all know, you learn how to fight, how to push past your perceived limits, even how to make your…_ www.businessinsider.com](https://www.businessinsider.com/the-us-military-has-a-system-for-writing-efficient-emails-that-anyone-can-use-2016-12 "https://www.businessinsider.com/the-us-military-has-a-system-for-writing-efficient-emails-that-anyone-can-use-2016-12")[](https://www.businessinsider.com/the-us-military-has-a-system-for-writing-efficient-emails-that-anyone-can-use-2016-12) + +US military members use keywords that allow recipients to get a sense for the contents of an email just by scanning the subject line (SIGN, as a tag, requires the signature of the recipient, for instance). + +A cable from Wikileaks which, in raw content view, contains tags in the header area. Image: Wikileaks + +When writing summaries of meetings — minutes effectively — you can include a few ‘tags’ that can make the documents more discoverable in whatever file storage system you’re using. Come up with a system and then standardize on it. + +### Write Your Reports While Your Memory is Fresh + +While Wikileaks readers aren’t privy to _when_ the cables that were ultimately leaked were authored (as in how soon after the events to which they refer) the general sense from reading them is that they’re authored in a fairly time-sensitive manner. + +I find this concept useful when summarizing the outcome of important meetings too. Memories fade and capturing the information close to when it happens is often more reliable. + +How does work in the comparatively boring civilian contexts in which you may also operate? I’ll often record important Zoom meetings and then automatically transcribe the meetings through Rev, but type up a quick précis with my main takeaways from the encounter while that’s going on in the cloud. + +In the language of the military and intelligence communities, an important interpersonal meeting can be a valuable source of human intelligence (HUMINT). If I have a particularly useful business lunch I’ll often type up a quick “cable” and file it away in my Google Drive. While I don’t literally model my report format on a diplomatic cable, I find the concept of diligently “debriefing” to my incredibly useful. + +### Follow Journalistic Convention — Use The Inverted Pyramid + +Journalists are typically taught to use the so-called inverted pyramid structure when typing up their articles. The most pertinent and newsworthy information is included in the top paragraph — also called the lede — and progressively less important information follows. + +The opening paragraph of a Wikileaks cable + +Whenever I’m typing up meeting summaries, I try to follow roughly the same format. That way, if I want to just scan my recollection of a conversation I can skim the first paragraph and stop reading if the contents are not of interest. + +### Create (And Stick To) A Format That Works For You + +Many of the Wikileaks cables are engaging and well-written recounts of the interactions between US embassy officials worldwide and their foreign interlocutors. + +They weave succinct accounts of political narratives with the actual new information received during an information with counterparts or government officials. + +The cable writers will often stick to a tried and tested format that best presents and summarizes the information they have gleaned. + +Effective report-writing is an art — but one that can improve your own organization. Writing up synopses of key meetings can be a useful way to make sure that action items are actioned, deliverables due get tracked in a project management tool, and information received is memorialized. + +The US embassy cables contained in Cablegate, The Carter Cables (series) and The Kissinger Cables provide instructive examples for anybody interested in seeing some good examples. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-Can-Thought-Leadership-Do-For-Me---Or-My-Business-.md b/posts/medium/What-Can-Thought-Leadership-Do-For-Me---Or-My-Business-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0fa88698d52ea0f840499ab8c875f94d4e8b9213 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-Can-Thought-Leadership-Do-For-Me---Or-My-Business-.md @@ -0,0 +1,70 @@ +# What Can Thought Leadership Do For Me — Or My Business? + +#### From heightened perceptions to RFP inclusions — thought leadership’s tangible benefits + +If you’re looking at rolling out a thought leadership campaign for yourself or your business, then you may already be familiar with some of its top-level benefits. + +The [Edelman](https://medium.com/u/5133e2015ab1) / LinkedIn B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study, which I previously dissected in a podcast and white paper, did a good job at summing up the proven effectiveness of thought leadership. + +The study assessed the perceptions of thought leadership among a sample size of more than 3,000 global business executives. 55% of these worked at organizations with more than 200 employees and 71% of respondents were at the Manager or Director level. + +[**2020 B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study** + _B2B decision-makers and CXOs told us that strong thought leadership content not only strengthens a company's reputation…_ www.edelman.com](https://www.edelman.com/research/2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study "https://www.edelman.com/research/2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study")[](https://www.edelman.com/research/2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study) + +Number by number, here are some of its key insights. + +### Thought Leadership Can Enhance Your Reputation + +**Key stat: 89% Said Thought Leadership Can Enhance Organizational Perception** + +If you’re like most organizations and business leaders, then _part_ of the reason you engage in marketing campaigns is lightly to shift perceptions around you or your organization. After all, marketing lays the ground for sales — and people want to buy from those that they trust. + +The good news on this front is that a massive majority — almost nine out of ten respondents — said that thought leadership can be effective in enhancing their perception of an organization. + +### Thought Leadership Can Win You Business — And RFP Inclusions + +**Key stat: 49% Said That Thought Leadership Generates RFP Inclusion Opportunities** + +Thought leadership’s benefits are not limited to increasing intangible metrics such as “perception” and “trust.” Thought leadership can just as well create tangible gains for the authoring party. + +Overall, LinkedIn and Edelman found that 49% of decision-makers said that thought leadership had influenced their purchasing decisions. That figure was the result of an average which they called the Sales Impact Index. + +Specifically: + + * 49% said that thought leadership had led to inclusion in an RFP opportunity. + * 48% said that thought leadership had led to the direct awarding of business + * 53% and 54% of respondents said that thought leadership could enhance an organization’s ability to up-sell and cross-sell (respectively) + +### Thought Leadership Can Make You Money + +**Key Stat:** 42% of respondents said that they would be willing to pay a premium for an organization that disseminated thought leadership + +Given that thought leadership can position the authoring party as more authoritative, influential, and trustworthy it’s no surprise that good thought leadership can translate directly into a higher ticket value. + +Specifically, 42% of respondents said that they would be willing to pay a premium for an organization that produces thought leadership versus one that does not. + +### Thought Leadership Can Be More Influential Than Marketing Collateral + +#### Key stat: 59% Place More Emphasis On Thought Leadership Than Marketing Collateral + +If thought leadership is currently playing a distant second fiddle to your content marketing efforts, then it might be time to rethink your organizational priorities. + +LinkedIn and Edelman found that a full 59% of decision-makers affirmed that thought leadership was a more trustworthy barometer for gauging the quality of an organization’s thinking than its marketing collateral and product sheets. + +Almost 7 out of 10 decision-makers said that they considered thought leadership to be one of the best ways to gauge the caliber of an organization’s thinking. + +### Thought Leadership Can Have Many Benefits For You Or Your Organization + +To recap: + + * Thought leadership can enhance your organization’s public perception + * Thought leadership can win you RFP inclusion opportunities and business + * Thought leadership can allow you to command a premium for what you sell + * Thought leadership can be more influential than marketing collateral in shifting how the public perceives your organization + + _To learn more about how thought leadership can help your business, and to speak about thought leadership campaign planning and execution, visit: dsrghostwriting.com. DSR Ghostwriting specializes in thought leadership content writing for the technology sector._ + +See also: + +[**How Can I Develop A Thought Leadership Campaign For My Business?** +_You’ve read about thought leadership’s benefits. You know that thought leadership can favorably influence outsiders’…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/how-can-i-develop-a-thought-leadership-campaign-for-my-business-62f07ec1d73b "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/how-can-i-develop-a-thought-leadership-campaign-for-my-business-62f07ec1d73b")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/how-can-i-develop-a-thought-leadership-campaign-for-my-business-62f07ec1d73b) diff --git a/posts/medium/What-Do-Marketers-Really-Think-About-Salespeople-.md b/posts/medium/What-Do-Marketers-Really-Think-About-Salespeople-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2f263fa8af60382249002f2d8b66649bc2231c5a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-Do-Marketers-Really-Think-About-Salespeople-.md @@ -0,0 +1,78 @@ +# What Do Marketers Really Think About Salespeople? + +#### We work hand in hand. But do we get on? + +Marketing and sales: close colleagues or corporate frenemies? Photo by [PhotoMIX Company](https://www.pexels.com/@wdnet?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/blue-click-pen-near-white-document-papers-on-top-of-brown-wooden-table-95916/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +As a marketing communications professional, I’ve spent a lot of time interfacing with sales teams. Typically, alongside other marketing team members, they’re my closest colleagues. + +Many marketers see their jobs _as_ providing qualified leads for sales teams and I would agree that it’s certainly an integral part of the job function. As a marketing communications specialist I see the other as ensuring the integrity of the organization’s image and brand. + +The majority of working relationships I’ve had with sales resources, I’m please to say, have been extremely positive. + +[**Marketing Communications (MarCom): What We Actually Do Within Marketing Teams** + _There are career guide descriptions of what marketing communications professionals do. But here’s how I’ve experienced…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/marketing-communications-marcom-what-we-actually-do-within-marketing-teams-10c30a3f1b6c "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/marketing-communications-marcom-what-we-actually-do-within-marketing-teams-10c30a3f1b6c")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/marketing-communications-marcom-what-we-actually-do-within-marketing-teams-10c30a3f1b6c) + +Keeping marketing and sales resources in close sync is vital and if there’s one field I’ve had to educate about myself during the course of my time in self-employment — it would undoubtedly be sales. + +There’s another reason why I think that “sales matters” too — besides the obvious one of keeping the entire organization afloat, including the marketing department. + +**Whatever company I’m marketing for, I find it impossible to convincingly communicate a product without the benefit of knowing how it’s currently being received in the market.** + +To get that kind of knowledge, you need to speak to customers — including the dissatisfied ones — and see how the product is being used in the field. + +**You can’t understand what’s unique about the solution you’re marketing if you’ve only really seen what it does in your own company’s presentations.** + +Expecting this _not_ to be the case is an extremely common mistake among companies trying to cut corners on marketing (a short-sighted gambit commonly observed among early stage startups!). I think it’s essential that marketers make at least occasional forays to the field and speak with the end users of the product or service. Otherwise they have no reliable means to distinguish between their own Kool Aid and reality. And doing so is vital to market with integrity. + +Between instances when those forays to the field happen, frontline customer-facing resources like field sales staff can serve as vital conduits for that kind of knowledge transfer. Marketers, in turn, can make sure that they develop the kind of brand awareness that makes the job of salespeople so much easier. + +They can also develop an inbound marketing pipeline that shifts some of the responsibility of lead generation off sales’s shoulders. Working together, sales and marketing can drive revenue growth and get a lot achieved. + +But what do sales and marketing really think of one another? + +Here’s my experience from the marketing side of the departmental dividing line. + +### What I Think Salespeople Think About Marketers + +When sales and marketing _do_ work in close alignment, there are times when the relationship can be placed under a little strain. + +As a marketing communications professional — especially as one working in a non-English speaking country — part of my job is sometimes functioning as the company’s ‘language police’ making sure that everything that goes out the door is in relatively good shape. + +If a sales presentation spells the company’s name wrong or deviates massively from the brand’s tone of voice — or worse again, contains misplaced apostrophes speaking about ‘KPI’s’ — then I see it as my job to make sure that those things get fixed in a timely fashion. + +Naturally when you have to point out and fix the grammatical mistakes of your seniors, this doesn’t always feel good or comfortable. But in my experience it’s often part of the job. But it would be foolish to think that some degree of friction isn’t a possibility. + +Many salespeople, I’ve noticed, have good marketing brains. Sometimes, I’ve had the feeling that the salespeople would rather be working on the marketing side of the divide and even hold a slight degree of resentment to us marketers. + +This is sometimes the case where sales resources have been put in place before marketers have. If sales resources are being driven to engage in old school methodologies like cold calling disinterested “leads” then it’s little wonder that it will look like the marketing guys (and gals) have landed the better deal. + +Sometimes — and sometimes as an outgrow of this — sales resources can be critical of the work of the marketing team or feel strongly that the messaging being used to communicate with customers isn’t effective. + +Dealing with these occasional tug-of-wars can be challenging and sometimes differences need to be resolved at the managerial / VP level with an intermediate high-ranking executive as the ‘mediator’. + +While I qualify all of the above by saying that I have _mostly_ had good relationships with sales colleagues, there have also been times where I’ve felt that a colleague was attempting to undermine the work that I was doing for the company. + +Sometimes, sales doesn’t really understand what marketing does — particularly when they’ve involved in doing a lot more than creating collateral to support their day to day work. + +PR and thought leadership and brand positioning are all subtle activities but ones which can have enormous impacts on the company’s reputation and its ability to go to market, laying the foundational awareness that can make all the difference when a salesperson strikes up a conversation with a prospect at a trade show who’s already heard about the company. + +Sometimes I feel like us marketers need to explain more clearly the value in much of what we do — even when it’s not always eager to quantify our efforts in ROI. + +### And Here’s What Marketers Think About Salespeople + +If there’s one professional field that I have enormous respect for, it’s sales. + +During the course of my time in self-employment, I often found myself remarking that most “freelancing” problems are really just sales problems in disguise. + +Keep getting foisted with clients you end up hating? + +Positioning could be part of it (a marketing concern) but your qualification process (a sales concern) might suck or be non-existent. + +If you decide to speak to everybody who shows the slightest level of interest in your business, it’s virtually certain that you’ll end up wasting a substantial amount of time talking on the phone to tire-kickers. + +While some salespeople might think that marketers are full of themselves, if anything, I think the jealousy is just as likely to run the other way. Salespeople carry quotas, sure, but they generally earn more than marketers too. + +Sales and marketing can and should work in close alignment in order to deliver maximum value for the company. + +Both teams have unique strengths and — by sharing more about what they do — the two can work together in close alignment. The result: happier colleagues, more revenue for the company, and a more satisfying working relationship for all. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-Do-Marketing-Communications-Consultants-Do-Exactly-.md b/posts/medium/What-Do-Marketing-Communications-Consultants-Do-Exactly-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2ca60c6facfc18887f8ed85af61b337142175544 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-Do-Marketing-Communications-Consultants-Do-Exactly-.md @@ -0,0 +1,53 @@ +# What Do Marketing Communications Consultants Do Exactly? + +#### What are MarCom consultants and how are they different from content specialists? + +Frequently seen as the heavy lifters of marketing teams, marketing communications (marcom) consultants can help execute many critical marketing functions ranging from public relations (PR) to creating thought leadership. Photo by [Serpstat](https://www.pexels.com/@serpstat-177219?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/silver-imac-displaying-line-graph-placed-on-desk-572056/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +If you’re a small business owner or startup looking to develop a pool of outsourcing contractors, then you may be trying to decide whether it makes more sense to hire for a marketing communications (MarCom) manager or whether you’d prefer to outsource the roll to a contractor. + +Or else you may be a step ahead in the process and wondering what MarCom consultants _do_ exactly? + +If you’re looking for the long form answer on what MarCom professionals do day to day within marketing teams (or _as_ the marketing team!), then check out my description below. I’ve led marketing communications efforts at a number of technology startups and this is my take on what it’s actually like doing the job on the inside. + +[**Marketing Communications (MarCom): What We Actually Do Within Marketing Teams** + _There are career guide descriptions of what marketing communications professionals do. But here’s how I’ve experienced…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/marketing-communications-marcom-what-we-actually-do-within-marketing-teams-10c30a3f1b6c "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/marketing-communications-marcom-what-we-actually-do-within-marketing-teams-10c30a3f1b6c")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/marketing-communications-marcom-what-we-actually-do-within-marketing-teams-10c30a3f1b6c) + +But what about if you’re looking to go down the contractor route — outsourcing the domain, at least initially? These are the kind of things a MarCom consultant will likely be able to help out with. + +### What Marketing Communications Consultants Can Actually Do + +Marketing communications consultants wear many different hats to make sure that organizations’ marketing is as effective as possible and communicates the vision of the company out to the world. + +**As the name suggests, marketing communications practicioners straddle the sometimes invisible divide between two complementary functions within companies: communications and marketing.** + +Given that they’re often required to expend significant effort in both of these areas, MarCom consultants are hybrid creatures, typically having some level of familiarity with public relations (PR), content creation, and higher level marketing strategy. + +In light of that fact, MarCom professionals can often be found in greater concentration in organizations with lower headcounts. Think startups and the like. The reason? As companies scale and their marketing teams move in tandem, the many responsibilities that MarCom team members frequently handle get broken down into constituent roles. + +In fact, it’s not uncommon for marketing communications to “graduate” from putting the elementary pieces of a PR strategy in place to overseeing the work of a solo PR practitioner. Or of a firm on retainer. + +On a day to day basis, MarCom consultants can assist with: + + * **Creating marketing collateral.** Think everything from brochures to blog posts to white papers. This is why many MarCom professionals have a background in writing or journalism. + * **Proofreading.** MarCom professionals are often required to be the last line of defense when it comes to ensuring the professionalism of the collateral that an organization puts out into the world. + * **Developing a communications strategy** that will provide the overarching framework to guide all efforts under their field of responsibility including public relations, content marketing, and (sometimes) thought leadership. + * **Handling little technological puzzles** like building website analytics dashboards, installing a content management system to host a blog on, setting up an email marketing solution (and writing the campaigns!), and integrating moving pieces of the marketing toolkit. + * **Managing public relations or building up a network of trusted outsourcing partners** who can help to get the heavy lifting done required to get earned media coverage. + +### They’re Marketing’s Non-Digital Heavy Lifters + +Marketing is commonly broken down into digital marketing and … whatever the opposite of that is (non-digital? branding and comms?). + +On the digital side sit the digital marketing specialists, PPC experts, and those who seem to have been born with a spreadsheet open on their computer. + +On the other are branding and messaging experts including communications experts, content marketing professionals, and others responsible for helping the organization to drive inbound lead generation, get its message out to the world, and cultivate a professional image. + +**Marketing communications professionals tend to have their fingers in a lot of the latter paragraph, helping make sure that branding, communications, and anybody else helping out to create collateral are coordinating their efforts and moving towards executing a cohesive strategy that will achieve results for the company.** + +### Looking For A Marketing Communications (MarCom) Consultant? + +If you are, please drop me a line. I’d be happy to discuss your requirements and see if it’s a project I could help out with. + +[**Marketing Communications | DSR Ghostwriting | Thought Leadership And Content Marketing For Tech…** + _Marketing Communications (MarCom) involves coordinating communication across the full variety of marketing channels…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/services-outline/marketing-communications/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/services-outline/marketing-communications/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/services-outline/marketing-communications/) diff --git a/posts/medium/What-Does-Bragging-on-LinkedIn-Actually-Achieve-.md b/posts/medium/What-Does-Bragging-on-LinkedIn-Actually-Achieve-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b3fc22f3bf3024f1c0172aa94fbe3c85f6324f8d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-Does-Bragging-on-LinkedIn-Actually-Achieve-.md @@ -0,0 +1,69 @@ +# What Does Bragging on LinkedIn Actually Achieve? + +#### Is There Any Point To Signalling Your Achievements? + +This morning, like almost all weekday mornings, I began my daily communications swoop. + +It goes something like this and happens about once every three hours between the time I wake up and the time I go to sleep: + + * Check inbox + * Check phone + * Check WhatsApp + * Check Facebook, Reddit, Twitter, LinkedIn + * Check Google News to make sure a world war hasn’t been declared. + +Without question, the part of this swoop which I enjoy the least is checking LinkedIn. + +Like a quiet majority, I think, I use LinkedIn as a sort of virtual Rolodex. I subtly pitch for work by adding professional contacts that might require my writing services. Sometimes, marketing and content managers come to me to do the same. I share whatever I think is worth sharing with a professional audience through my feed. + +**But the feed is precisely what I take the most issue with.** + +This morning, like most mornings, I hadn’t spent more than 20 seconds scrolling when I came across a post that made my eyes pull skywards. + +Most criticism of LinkedIn on other social networks focuses on decrying what people term ‘humblebrags’. But personally, I can never quite manage to find the humility to which people who use this description are presumably referring. + +The connection, who does not work in my industry, was recently named on a newspaper list highlighting his growing professional stature. Wow! I’m being intentionally sparse with the details here. The post essentially announced his recipient of the award and was of course embellished with a glossy newspaper photo. + +If you’re a regular LinkedIn user, then I think you probably know the type of thing I’m describing without me needing to add details. Here’s why I take issue with it. And a guideline I would suggest for non-obnoxious usage of this professionally-oriented social network. + +### Ask Yourself: Might My Average Connection Care About This Post? + +Lest this post be mistaken for a jealous tirade, please, dear reader, trust that I couldn’t care less about the fact that my LinkedIn contact was named on a newspaper list. Really. Not one bit. + +Moreover, I derive absolutely no value from the influx of this information to my life. No insight has been shared that might enrich my life or make me professionally more proficient. My contact was named on a newspaper list. And what else is new in the world? + +But this post got me thinking about a couple of things, so in a sense I’m glad that I came across it: + +a) Whether I would share my own achievement if I were in the poster’s shoes? (Sadly, no newspapers are listing me on rising star lists, but I do achieve small successes from time to time) + +b) What’s worth sharing on LinkedIn. And what isn’t? + +### Will Readers Derive Value? + +Where I have traditionally drawn the line — and where I will continue to and I offer it here as a suggestion for a potential yardstick for those interested in communicating in a way that doesn’t just spread irritation— is whether or not there is a _reasonable_ chance that your average reader might derive information from the post that I wish to share. (Bear in mind that, currently, my average LinkedIn engagement is almost zero. So to state that I don’t get the network would be a massive understatement.) + +Here’s a real world example. + +I’m currently closing in on passing my first cloud computing certification (yes, it’s taken a while, I realize). So when I saw my connection’s post I asked myself: when I finally pass the certification, hopefully in the coming weeks, will I share it on LinkedIn? It feels like it’s almost _de rigeur_ to do so. I come across “I passed my AWS certification, here’s my credential link” posts almost every day, after all. + +And there and then, in the duration of about one second, I decided that I wouldn’t. + +Why? + +Because while it will undoubtedly be a nice add-on to my resume, it’s neither something that my present nor prospective clients really need to have blasted at them. I’ll list it on my resume. And if they’re sufficiently interested in getting to know me and what I know about, they can find that information there. It won’t add value. So why share it? + +Contrast: + +On the 19th of this month, my first contributed article to the Entrepreneur.com Leadership Network is scheduled for publication. + +On the contrary, this I _will_ be sharing publicly. Why? Because I wouldn’t have written the article if I didn’t at least hope that the insights it contains might add value to somebody. And those people might be lurking in my network. + +LinkedIn bragging is annoying. It gets deeply under my skin and I suspect that of many. It operates according to the crudest of advertising logic. That if one has a captive audience of feed-viewers and no limits upon how often one can promulgate a post, that one may as well post everything which might make one seem attractive to potential employers. More brags, more impressions, more wins. It’s a logic which, it seems to me, most posters sadly subscribe to. + +I humbly submit that one can rise about this self-promotional race to the bottom — because that’s truly what it is — by focusing on whether the contents of one’s post is likely to add value to one’s network. + +If that question can be answered in the affirmative, then those who are not remotely interested in what you have to share are collateral damage. But at least you inflicted irritation for a reason and to send a message worth sending to at least part of your network. + +To state the obvious: this probably isn’t the best strategy to follow if you’re looking to get ahead on LinkedIn at any cost. + +But if you want to avoid adding more bragging and gloating to a social network and world already bathing in it, then perhaps it might be worth considering. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-I-m-Like-To-Work-With.md b/posts/medium/What-I-m-Like-To-Work-With.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fdf7eb0608a60b19e48baed805c9fc9564af9963 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-I-m-Like-To-Work-With.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# What I’m Like To Work With (As A Freelance Writer) + +#### What’s The Point In Hiding Who We Are? + +Interested in working with me? Some warnings coming up! + +So you’re interested in working with a freelance writer. + +The first thing you should know is that most of us are temperamental creatures. That includes me. + +I don’t like to trot out the _“unless I’ve had my morning coffee”_ cliché. So please instead try to gauge the level of my mood before calling me. I kid (mostly). + +An interesting facet of life as a freelance writer is that you get to work with a _lot_ of different companies throughout the course of your career. Many more than you would in-house (unless you liked to change jobs once a quarter). + +Upon checking my accounting system (and at the time of writing), I’m surprised to see that I’ve worked with more than 40 clients over the past 5 years. That’s a lot! + +While most of my professional relationships have been positive (and some have been great!), who am I kidding to pretend that there have not been some bumps along the way? + +In some of these cases, an amicable parting of the ways came about because clients and I were what could be best described as ‘bad fits’. I sat down to write this post for that reason. + +One lesson I’ve learned in earnest from this experience is that it’s better to be clear from the outset — or better before it — about what your expectations are when going into a freelance relationship. Or a job for that matter. Both are two way streets and nobody wins by misrepresenting their true self to the other (more often, in fact, both sides lose out). + +In the interest of transparency and explaining who I am (professionally) and what my preferred work style looks like, here are some ‘Good Fit Guidelines.’ + +If these are up your street — well that’s wonderful! If not, then better that we figured this out now before wasting time. + +### I Like To Schedule My Workweek In Advance + +I’m big into planning. I like to schedule projects the week in advance so that I know what’s coming up on my radar and can plan time away from the dear “coal face” if that’s a possibility. + +My average lead time is three to six days per project (for articles). The longer and more complicated the project, the more time it takes to produce. + +In particular, I have a “hard time” ( _I’m trying but failing not to fall back on euphemisms_) with clients that need everything done tomorrow. + +At the same time, I try to be practical. Life being life, I realize that plans periodically fall apart and urgent requirements do arise. I’m happy to facilitate those when they crop up. + +On the plus side (at the time of writing) I’ve never charged my clients a rush fee even if it meant I had to work weekends to make a deadline. If you need something done tomorrow, I’ll try to do my best. I just don’t work well with clients for whom _“we needed this yesterday”_ is a default mode of doing business. If that’s you, you probably know that about yourself. And, in all likelihood, we wouldn’t work well together. + +I have no particular aversion to phone calls or video conferences, by the way. In fact, I think they’re effective. I just like them to be scheduled. + +### I Like Good Briefs + +… and good dark chocolate and good coffee. (I’m not sure why I had to add that but I did). + +Good briefs are really important for creating good writing projects. In fact, clients and agencies can waste a lot of time and money by authoring poor ones. + +They align expectations, create a written record of objectives, and streamline — or better avoid — subsequent revisions. + +If you’re not sure how to write one, then Google is awash with answers. + +If you’d prefer to follow my guidelines then here’s a [form](https://dsrghostwriting.com/forms/briefs/sendbrief/), [here’s a guide](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/how-to-brief-a-freelance-writer/), and [here’s a podcast episode](https://open.spotify.com/episode/0MhSdqwDJDtnRPkk55uFup?si=KFuhOVNfQge_FEqpoepQQA). + +There’s no Certificate of Completion, unfortunately. But if you feel the information was valuable, please share the resources with your professional contacts. + +### Ghosting Makes Me Sad + +Everybody unintentionally ghosts from time to time. + +I’ve done it myself on plenty of occasions. Things get busy. Courtesy gets forgotten. Most of us can agree it’s a problem — but still do it. Although avoiding it is nicer. + +Even a quick _“thanks, got the draft”_ email helps me know that my work has been received and I can stop worrying about whether my message got caught in some spam filter. + +### I Have Firm Terms And Conditions — For A Reason + +Alright, time for the brass tacks then. + +Over the years, I’ve rolled some [standard terms and conditions](https://dsrghostwriting.com/standardterms/) into my contract. I realize that my rates aren’t at the bottom of the market and that some of the T&Cs might even seem mercenary to some. Please know that they’ve all been added by necessity rather than choice. And that they’re there, essentially, to protect my hourly rate rather than to gobble up your budget. + +Firstly, clients should remember that freelancers are exchanging their time for payment. If you’re hiring me as a freelance writer, I’m not getting benefits — and you shouldn’t expect me to act as your employee. I can’t attend hour long feedback meetings or watch three hour webinars to “get a feel for what we do” unless that’s been built into the quote (also: it’s always awkward to have to point this out…). + +I allow one revision per project. Again, this is simply so that I can quote competitively and control scope. If you need more, we can arrange that. I’m always happy to negotiate. If something’s truly a problem, then we can try to work around that. But in general, that’s why my term sheet looks the way it does. + +### I Love To Be Asked For My Opinion + +Nobody likes the feeling of being a cog in the wheel — including freelancers. + +Prior to founding this freelance writing business, I worked in-house as a marketing manger. I find marketing, communications, and PR fascinating and I know how to do a lot more than arrange words in a document. + +If you can, please try to think of me as more than just the guy that writes your blog or article or as a cog in your content producing machine. I might have insights and experience that could be useful to your project but if I’m not asked I might be reticent to share them. Unless and until I integrate these as aspects of my service offering, I’m generally happy to just chip in with my thoughts as part of the writing fee. More value for your budget! + +### No Micromanagement Necessary + +If I tell you that I will do something for a deadline, I will be entering it into my project management system. I will get alerted about the deadline well in advance. + +If I need help, I’ll ask for it. If there are any problems, I’ll notify you at the soonest opportunity. It’s highly unlikely that that will be too late for you to find a replacement resource if, for some reason, I’m not up to the job. + +Otherwise you can assume that the project is on track. Repeated “friendly check ins,” are really annoying and unnecessary. They communicate a lack of trust. + +### In Spite Of My Hang-Ups, I Think I’m Pretty Decent At What I Do + +I may have a few specific hang-ups and eccentricities, but I try to do the best work that I can for my clients. + +I’ve been writing in various professional guises for more than 10 years and have good organizational, project management, and writing skills. + +I love learning from my clients about technology and new industries. Growing professionally, and acquiring knowledge, is really what keeps me inner fire burning — and I see tackling bigger and better projects as a key path to growth. + +If you’ve made it this far, thank you for taking the time out to read this. + +If the above doesn’t have you rolling your eyes or clicking for the exit button, then I think we might have a future working together. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-It-s-Like-To-Work-In-English-In-A-Non-English-Speaking-Country.md b/posts/medium/What-It-s-Like-To-Work-In-English-In-A-Non-English-Speaking-Country.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bb4c432e6710c06f37ae1680083654055dd2ee89 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-It-s-Like-To-Work-In-English-In-A-Non-English-Speaking-Country.md @@ -0,0 +1,116 @@ +# What It’s Like To Work In English In A Non English-Speaking Country + +#### Working as a native English speaker in a non-Anglophone country — and the interesting experiences it throws up + +Wherever you move to in the world, you may find that working as an English-speaker in a non-Anglophone country creates plenty of unexpected moments. Photo by [Mike](https://www.pexels.com/@mike-468229?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/assorted-country-flag-lot-1174136/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Six years ago, I set out on a flight from Cork, Ireland to begin a new life in Israel. + +My career, since then, has taken me on a circuitous route to where I currently stand. + +I briefly avoided getting sucked into a couple of scams (yes, really); worked at the Jerusalem office of an international PR firm; marketed an IoT technology solution around the world; and launched, and grew, an independent marketing consultancy. + +I’ve worked, on salary, at Israeli companies, Irish companies, and with clients from more than 10 countries around the world — among them places as diverse as Hong Kong, Denmark, and my native Ireland. + +Fun fact: A lot of work within Israel’s high tech sector — the nucleus of its economy — gets done in English. As a general rule, the technology sector, and the economy, is grossly focused on exports. + +It’s probably fair to say, in fact, that the _majority_ of sales and marketing roles put knowledge of Hebrew as a distant secondary requirement. There are some domestic sales roles, sure, but most startups — disproportionately, the major employers here — are focused internationally. + +As an aspiring journalist turned marketing communications professional turned freelance technical marketing writer turned marketing consultant (I told you it was circuitous), my work also essentially _has_ to be done in English. + +I strive valiantly to improve my Hebrew (I would describe it as conversational with a smattering of missing vocab; although I’ve noticed that more brash expats use the word ‘fluent’ very liberally). + +But I can’t envision ever being able to do what I do — a lot of writing work and providing advice— in Hebrew. It’s a hard language (typically, Hebrew is placed one notch up from Romance languages in language difficulty scales; but below Arabic). + +My day-to-day therefore runs in both languages — split in two by errands, work, and whatever else life produces on any given day. + +I pay my monthly taxes, and handle administration, entirely in Hebrew (my accounting platform doesn’t even have an English user interface). But the work is mostly done through English. + +I watch Hebrew-language television almost daily and make small talk with the falafel guy through Hebrew. But with most of my clients — almost none of whom are based in Israel — I communicate in English. + +A few observations and thoughts: + +### You’ll Risk Being Hired For Your Language — And Not Your Actual Skills + +A disproportionate amount of job vacancies published in Israel emphasize heavily — towards the very top of the job spec — that the company is seeking a “native English speaker.” I still find this somewhat amusing: as if “natives” are in short supply in Israel or some kind of prized specimen. + +My gut reaction would be to advise anybody to avoid these jobs. All of them. + +**As a professional, you want to ideally differentiate yourself on much higher ground than just the fact that you can communicate in your mother tongue.** + +But if you’re looking for work in marketing — or anything writing-related — this would mean cutting out an enormous chunk of the market, perhaps the majority of it. And most of us need to figure out some way to make a livelihood. + +**If this isn’t an exclusion criterion, then you can at least triage prospects by how much emphasis is placed on your language and how much emphasis is placed on what else you can bring to the table.** + +Focus on the latter. + +As you spend time at a Hebrew-speaking workspace, your Hebrew will improve vastly, even if much of your work, or even all of it, is conducted through English. + +Your native English status should hopefully give way to what you can _do_ with that native English. This is what veteran immigrants who broke through the invisible linguistic glass ceiling (see below) had to say about their successes. + +### You May Unfortunately Find That The English Speaking Department Is A (Comfortable) Professional Dead End + +Again, sorry to be all negative. False positivity has never been my thing. + +When it comes to working as an English speaker in foreign climes, I’m actually more optimistic than ever. And that’s because remote work is exploding which gives us the opportunity to work with any company that’s willing to hire us. + +But equally it would be a pity to not share some of my experience to try tell you the dangers you may wish to avert. + +One of them is this: + +Be wary of working in the English-speaking parts of organizations — in Israel that would very commonly be sales and marketing. Because if you do, you may find that there are almost no rungs to climb professionally. + +This is a point of enormous disagreement between immigrants. I’ve met plenty of immigrants in Israel who insist that you “don’t need Hebrew” to work here. I think that’s lunacy: you may find some jobs that avail of your native language, but it’s foolhardy to rely upon that. + +The ubiquity of English-speaking marketing roles in English disguises a trend that has, for the past few years, deterred me from seeking out in-house positions here: marketing roles, or at least those that rely heavily on native level English, tend to be regraded as entry level stepping stones towards something bigger. + +It makes total sense. If the marketing department consists of five English speakers focused on communicating with the US, that doesn’t leave much room for an ambitious ladder-climber to wiggle through and advance professionally. + +But where does that leave somebody who wants to make a _career_ in English-language journalism or content marketing? + +You want the bitter conclusion to this point? + +Non-English-speaking countries aren’t the best places to excel in these kind of roles. The more English-dependent your profession is, the more you risk being hired _for_ your language, and not in spite of it, any time you venture beyond the Anglosphere. I’ve grown more professionally through my freelance engagements with American clients than with my in-house roles in Israel. + +### Learners Will Correct Your English And You’ll See An Abundance Of Pidgin Communication + +English-speaking expat writers in Israel like to joke about a familiar if infuriating dynamic: an Israeli client insisting that their incorrect formulation (in English) is the correct one. + +Many an immigrant has had to bite their tongue while making the requested “correction” — or watched as their legitimate corrections were repeatedly ignored and the brand news website went live … replete with obviously botched English. + +Browsing through my LinkedIn feed, I commonly witness second degree connections based in Israel trying to do their best take at corporate American English but failing horribly to grasp the nuances. + +One major disadvantage that nobody warns you about: + +If you’re fastidious about grammar then you may be in store for witnessing a whole trove of internal communications that take place in enforced English (this is a common policy). But being written by students of the language who make some characteristic mistakes. + +As a student of Hebrew, I’m painfully aware of how difficult communicating in a second language is. + +Most Israelis’ grasp of English probably easily outshines my knowledge of their language. When I post on Hebrew-speaking forums, I drive myself crazy with my errors, which are instantly flagged by Google spell check’s red line. + +It isn’t easy. But as a native speaker working with ESL colleagues in professional contexts that sometimes enforce the use of English … it can at times feel a little strange. + +### Your Grasp On Your Mother Tongue May Slowly Loosen Until The Natives Overtake You! + +Linguistic attrition is a fascinating phenomenon. + +[**Language attrition - Wikipedia** + _Language attrition is the process of losing a native or first language. This process is generally caused by both…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_attrition "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_attrition")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_attrition) + +It’s also one that can be readily observed in most expat environments. + +Not every speaker acquiring a second language loses proficiency in their first one. But when it happens… it really happens. + +You may watch in dismay as your native-speaking colleague — or you! — begin slipping in your compatriots’ favorite “isms” in English. + +_(One of the most common ones made by native Hebrew speakers is to use the “or … or” construction in English rather than “either … or”. Example: “or we second out the press release, or we can publish a blog.”)_ + +Working as an English speaker in a non-Anglophone country through English can be a mixed bag — not to mention an unusual experience at times, and sometimes also a frustrating one. + +The best advice I can give is to focus on professional opportunity that _doesn’t_ take advantage of your language. These days, opportunities are widening. The adoption of remote work can accelerate this process. + +If you’re fluent enough to be professionally proficient in the local vernacular, then seek out positions that simply take advantage of your skillset and allow yourself time to continuously improve in your target language. + +The most difficult professions to map this way are probably those that tend to be done in English anyway. + +Don’t be surprised to find a colleague attempting to force incorrect English into your work. Although you may need to be a bit aggressive in your unexpected role as the company’s “language police.” diff --git a/posts/medium/What-To-Know-About-Working-With-Israelis.md b/posts/medium/What-To-Know-About-Working-With-Israelis.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a993865cdc2f05acb745d736ad19b26fdba027ab --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-To-Know-About-Working-With-Israelis.md @@ -0,0 +1,179 @@ +# What To Know About Working With Israelis + +As a new immigrant and now small business owner (I eschew the term “freelancer”) I’ve spent the last five years, in large part, working with Israelis. + +At any given time, my client base typically contains a mixture of Israeli and international clients. + +And even though, sometimes, international clients can be more “lucrative”, [as a technology writer](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com), it makes obvious sense to keep an eye and an ear on the local market. There’s something just more wholesome about working with people down the road — even if that “road” is Highway One connecting Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. + +I’ve written an extremely long post comparing my native culture (Ireland) with Israel. [It’s here](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71). To save you wading through what Medium describes as a “44 minute read” (yes, I really went all out that day!) let me summarize by saying that I can hardly think of two more different work cultures. + +If you have also made the uncomfortable transition from a soft-spoken, self-effacing culture to a much more aggressive and assertive one, then here are some pointers that might make the journey across the divide a little easier. + +Here are a few of my observations. + +### Fact 1: In Israel, Arguing Is Regarded As Normal and Healthy + +The very word “argument” still evokes a visceral feeling of discomfort in me. + +I remember attending my first Shabbat meal in Israel (a Friday night dinner held on the Jewish Sabbath) and being perplexed at the sight of friends using their recreational hours to pull apart one another’s beliefs and gesticulate frenetically in heated debate. + +> “You can’t be serious!” + +> “You’re 100% wrong!” + +Among many other clipped excerpts. + +For me, hearing people yelling or screaming at one another invokes an automatic stress response. + +The Irish, like most Western cultures, form social bonds through congeniality and seeking out the company of people among whom they are more likely to reach consensus on matters like lifestyle and thought. + +For Israelis (Jews?) there’s a sort of violent screening process which involves putting large groups around a table habitually, laughing and screaming at one another, and then making friends based on whoever you forged the strongest connection with (hint: it could be either party!). + +Truth be told, I’m still not a crazy fan of the whole argument thing but I have come to see enormous value in not keeping things bottled up or trying to circumvent differences of opinion. (One thing you come to appreciate over time is that cultures are nuanced and viewing societies as monoliths is completely inaccurate: many Israelis aren’t entirely comfortable with it either.) + +However: + +**One context in which I think expressing one’s viewpoint from the outset and with vigor is almost always beneficial is the business one.** + +Because let’s face it: we all engage in business in order to make a living. + +And skirting around uncomfortable things like money just because it’s an unpleasant conversation topic (which it sometimes is!) is simply neither a winning strategy nor one that is viable over the long-term. + +And let me explain why, in Israel, I think that’s especially important. + +In my [Ireland vs. Israel post](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71) I wrote about an aspect of Israeli culture that I’m not so keen on: it’s called [_shitat matzliach_](https://www.haaretz.com/word-of-the-day-shitat-matzliach-1.5166582) __ and involves trying to force the weaker party into a bad deal because, well, you hope that theyre’ a _freier_(pronounced “fr-eye-er”; translation: sucker) or because they don’t know any better. It’s like _freyerism_ ’s lesser known but more malign sibling. + +In Ireland, this would be called “chancing your arm.” + + _Some_ Israeli companies — I’m trying hard not to generalize, but I can’t lie, the proportion is significant— are unfortunately strong proponents of this, particularly when they’re dealing with _olim_(recent Jewish immigrants) who mightn’t know their market value or rights. + +The prevalence of _shitat matzliach_ in the Israeli workplace is another reason why speaking up and arguing is not just important but actually vital for your economic survival. + +In other words, genteel newbie immigrants — as painful as the process is going to be — start learning assertiveness (along with Hebrew!) right now. + +What may be a nice-to-have now may become an adaptive trait when you’re fighting for your first contract or pay rise. + +### … And You Should Say No To BS Where You Find It + +If you want a crash course on negotiating with Middle Easterners, head down to the Old City of Jerusalem, know what a product is worth, and haggle with a seller to get it down to a reasonable markup. No, really! + +Now let’s get to practical applications for assertiveness. (And I should point out that I think assertiveness training would be a great line of business for somebody. Or is that what life coaches do?) + +If a well-funded Israeli cybersecurity company wants you to run a PR campaign for them and tries to get you to take a budget of 2,000 NIS a month ($582) to do so, then (assuming you have at least some experience) you need to look them in the eye — or speak to them down the phone — and tell them that their budget is a joke. + +OK, so maybe _“lo maspeek”_ (not enough) might be more diplomatic. + +There’s another reason it’s important. + +Many _olim_ have had to learn this the (very) hard way and have been burned — sometimes many times — by Israeli companies, whether they worked _for_ them or with them as a contractor. + +As a result, one encounters many _olim_(immigrants) who are extremely skeptical about working with Israelis and might even tell you, off-the-record that is, that they have therefore chosen to simply bypass the local market by working exclusively with international companies. In other words, for them, the potential upside isn’t worth the risk. + +If a company is trying to push you into a bad deal, as you will sometimes find that they are, I think it’s important to resist the temptation to just walk away (and I’m writing this to myself as much as to anybody that reads this). + +Instead, gather intelligence in order to know what a fair budget or salary is for your position. And then, stand your ground and push back on the unreasonable request. (Note: this is why I think being transparent about salaries among peer groups is so important). + +Sometimes the company will be unreasonable and let you walk away (I’ve experienced this unfortunately). Other times they’ll sit down and negotiate with you. + +But, at the very least, you owe it _to yourself_ to try. + +(Israelis are incredibly informal and if you need to really demonstrate how worked up you about the dud deal you’re being offered you might need to drop an expletive. Just make sure to pronounce it _bull-sheet_ if you do. Just kidding, don’t do that!) + +### Fact 2: Israelis Let By-Gones Be By-Gones Amazingly Quickly + +More irrelevant stock imagery. + +The other thing I’ve noticed about working with Israelis is that — just as arguments can escalate quickly and frequently — Israelis tend to forget about “professional disagreements” too. Not only that, but relationships that momentarily soured can quickly blossom. In Israel, you could say that the standard deviation of relationship states is simply higher than in many other cultures. + +I’ve had several of those “professional disagreements” with clients. Sometimes, I felt as if a bridge had unfortunately been burned in the process. Only to find that same individual referring me to a contact of theirs several months later. + +At first, I thought the person had forgotten about the fact that we disagreed about a project — or I that I had to ask them to stop calling me on weekends about projects. + +In fact, we were just seeing things through different frames of reference. + +Because of _shitat mazliach_ if you’re working with Israelis you need to be _really_ good at setting boundaries. If you aren’t, you run the risk of being taken advantage of from time to time. + +In the Israeli client’s eye, me telling them not to call on weekends was me setting my “red line” (note: Israelis selectively _love_ a few phrases in English; “red lines” is one of them and the adjective “relevant” — which is wantonly overused here — is another). + +Obviously the same rule about keeping relationships healthy and trying _not_ to burn bridges applies in Israel just as it does anywhere else in the world. + +But don’t think you’re going to risk a major falling-out with an Israeli client just by expressing disagreement. + +Those that have visited Israel will surely have observed that Israelis live their lives frenetically. + +They’ve probably forgotten about it by lunch. + +### Fact 3…Israelis Love The Telephone (And WhatsApp And ….. The Fax Machine) + +At the risk of de-marketing myself to Israelis once again (but we can disagree, right?), I should point out that communication can be another gap that Israelis and immigrants need to bridge. + +I’m one of those weird old-schoolers [that positively adores email](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/in-praise-of-email/). (Yes, you read that right.) + +It’s not that I have any particular aversion to phone calls. + +It’s just that if I need to say _“thanks, I got the brief — will try get it back to you by end of week”_ — I’m more likely to put that into an email than pick up the phone just to say that. + +Israelis are obsessed with their phones and — relative to other cultures, like, say Ireland — also have comparatively little concept of privacy or individual rights. + +You’ll see this at a societal level when you find out that a government agency can summarily put an _ikul_(lien) on your bank account because you never got an _arnona_ bill (municipal tax). + +And you’ll encounter this when riding on a bus when the man next to you decides to call his mother to fill her in on how his appointment with the gastroenterologist just went. Israelis will take phone calls while participating in meetings, “serving” customers at café, and waiting in line to pay. + +It’s all audible. It’s all in your face. It’s all right now. And that’s just how things work here. So if you want to align workflows, you might need to adapt. + +However, even this is changing in some respects. + +My only request for long phone calls, like to convey feedback on a draft, is that they be scheduled. In the relatively short period I’ve lived here (five years) I’ve seen this slowly become the norm. Less sporadic calls. More “can we have a chat to discuss this at 15:00?”. + +I always see the Israeli workplace retaining some distinctive features, like flat hierarchies and informality. But with so much cross-pollination between Israel and other labor markets, particularly the American one, I see the differences eroding over time. + +The other interesting facet of Israeli work culture is their love of WhatsApp which I only recently learned is not a major “thing” in the US. + +I strongly suggest that anybody working for themselves and dealing with Israelis buy a second SIM card and install [WhatsApp Business](https://www.whatsapp.com/business/). + +As an informal and Mediterranean culture, the personal/professional line can be less clearly delineated in Israel than in other countries. But I have found maintaining a separate phone line invaluable in setting boundaries. + +Finally …. yes, the fax is still a thing here although less so each year. + +Thankfully, the Knesset introduced a law **two years ago** making it mandatory for government agencies to give citizens the option to send correspondence through a newfangled technology that I believe is called electronic mail …. or was that a Telex machine? + +### Fact 4: It Can Be A Rewarding Experience + +Without obviously disclosing details, I can you that — like many _olim_ I have met — I have had several painful professional experiences involving Israeli companies. + +At times, these really sourced my impression of the market as a whole. And they have caused me to be too quick to walk away from prospects I assumed were the next iteration of that. + +And I regret that. Because — as the Irish saying goes — it doesn’t make sense to throw out the baby with the bathwater. But it still pays to be cautious. + +I recently wrote an article for a client in the cybersecurity world. + +We were talking about posture hardening as a basic element for securing complex server configurations. + +The idea was that before system administrators look at things like running behavior-based algorithms to flag suspicious network activity that has evaded a basic firewall, they need to conduct a basic audit of their infrastructure to make sure that things like S3 file storage buckets are not inadvertently left accessible to the public when they’re part of an internal workflow like parsing user-submitted documents. + +(Or to check that somebody [hasn’t accidentally left user credentials to the national citizen registry](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/10/world/middleeast/israeli-voters-leak.html) in code that’s served to the end-user!) + +I vehemently dislike _shitat matzliach_ and wish that trying to pull a quick one on everybody else wasn’t a prominent feature of Israeli culture. Because, in my opinion, it is. + +But until and if that changes, the best job-seekers and candidates can do to work with Israeli companies and come out of the process unscathed is to do some basic posture hardening and ensure they know what they’re worth, what their red lines are, and be prepared to enforce them to get the result they need to make the arrangement work for them. + +Intelligence — by which I mean gathering information — is crucial in this endeavor. + +Which is why I think it’s important for workers to share the information they have transparently. + +Because you can rest assured that the other side of the equation is doing the same. + +I’ve given a bit of thought over the years to when it makes sense to work with Israeli companies. + +In my opinion, as a market it still features too much exploitation and underemployment, particularly among _olim_. That’s _shitat mazliach_ at work. But it’s also not _all_ the market. + +Some of my best accounts were, and remain, Israeli companies. + +Working with or for Israeli companies can not only be “worth it” — it can be among the most edifying and rewarding experiences you can imagine. + +It also provides the opportunity to work with some amazingly talented thinkers who don’t conceive of a box being there much less think within it. + +That’s an upside that shouldn’t be discounted — even if the financial one may take a little bit of time to realize. + +The only thing required to realize its benefits — and get through the less savory experiences unscathed — is to configure a good firewall. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-To-Know-Before-Working-With-Freelancers-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/What-To-Know-Before-Working-With-Freelancers-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e40e3302461d77e75418eb43d15dc16c3d701f27 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-To-Know-Before-Working-With-Freelancers-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,111 @@ +# What To Know Before Working With Freelancers in Israel + +These days, the world is a global and interconnected village. And increasingly, companies are turning to unconventional labor pools to make sure that the pandemic disruption doesn’t also adversely impact the due date of their projects. + +[Just as I advocate that](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-freelance-internationally-from-israel/) every Israel-based English-speaking freelancer should at least consider the possibility of working with clients based out of the country, **I also recommend Israel as a labor base to companies looking for new places in which to onboard talent.** + +If the thought of working with a freelancer located in the Middle East gives you a case of the nerves, here’s a quick rundown of everything you need to know. + +Extricating Israel from its political situation is just about impossible. + +So with that said, it’s true that there are a few countries with which Israelis are legally banned from doing business with. + +[**That list is:**](https://www.gov.il/he/departments/legalInfo/enemy_trade_order)**Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon.** + +If you’re based in one of these countries, then there’s a good chance you can’t access this website. + +The good news is that Israelis can do business with every other country on the face of the planet — including the UAE and Bahrain with whom Israel recently concluded diplomatic and peace agreements respectively. + +Of course, many countries have their own compliance requirements to take into account. Dual US/Israeli citizens need to manage their own tax affairs and currently need to pay double social security. But for the rest of us, the only question is whether _you_ can work with us. + +### 1\. We Can, And Do, Work Internationally + +Extricating Israel from its political situation is just about impossible. + +So with that said, it’s true that there are a few countries with which Israelis are legally banned from doing business with. + +[**That list is:**](https://www.gov.il/he/departments/legalInfo/enemy_trade_order)**Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon.** + +If you’re based in one of these countries, then there’s a good chance you can’t access this website. + +The good news is that Israelis can do business with every other country on the face of the planet — including the UAE and Bahrain with whom Israel recently concluded diplomatic and peace agreements respectively. + +Of course, many countries have their own compliance requirements to take into account. Dual US/Israeli citizens need to manage their own tax affairs and currently need to pay double social security. But for the rest of us, the only question is whether _you_ can work with us. + +### 2\. Our workweek is Sunday to Thursday — And Business Hours Are (About) 09:00 to 18:00. + +Israel is located in the Middle East, where Sunday to Thursday workweeks are not uncommon due to the fact that Friday is the Muslim holy day (and in Israel’s case, Saturday is the Jewish one). + +[Wikipedia tells me](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Workweek_and_weekend) that this working schedule is shared by Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, The Maldives, parts of Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Saudi, Sudan, and Yemen — among others. + +Israelis also work relatively long hours. Standard office hours are typically 09:00 to 18:00 rather than 9 to 5 — although in practice Israelis tend to be early birds. Operating hours of 08:00 to 17:00 are also relatively commonplace, particularly in the government sector. + +Which leads me on to: + +Many Israelis are religiously observant Jews. Jews will not use electronics, including phone and email, during the Jewish Sabbath. This takes place from before sundown on Friday through to the same time on Saturday approximately. + +Bear this in mind before asking if an Israeli resource could join a call that works out to be 20:00 in Israel on a Friday evening. They might not be able to for religious reasons. + +### 3\. Our Holidays Are Jewish Holidays. + +Israel’s national day calendar is based upon the Jewish religious calendar. + +Israel also has a national day of its own (Yom Atsmaut) and a couple of other Israel-specific observances. + +[Israel’s national day calendar is available online](https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/israel/) and can be added to popular calendar systems such as Google Calendar. + +### 4\. Our Time Zone Is GMT+2 + +As a small country, Israel unsurprisingly has only one time zone: Israel Standard Time (iST). + +Israel switches to Israel Daylight Time (IDT) at roughly the same time of year as the US and Europe. + +Its offset from Universal Time Coordinated (UTC) is two hours positive. Which means that Israel — almost all of the year — is two hours ahead of the UK and Ireland, one hour ahead of central Europe, and one the same time zone as Eastern Europe. + +[I’ve written previously](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-work-with-the-world-from-israel-e71ecc6a5569) about which time zones it’s easy to work with Israel from. The West Coast of the US is challenging. With the West Coast of the US, the offset is usually nine hours negative. But Europe and the East Coast of the US is not. + +Feel free to peruse that article to get the detail. Suffice to say that Australia and New Zealand is just about the only major English speaking geography with essentially no business hour overlap. + +### 5\. Our Currency is the New Israeli Sheqel (NIS). Also: Payoneer Started Here + +Israel’s official currency is the New Israeli Sheqel (NIS) which is a minor world currency used only in Israel. + +Fortunately, there’s no need to worry about dealing with an obscure foreign currency if you’re sending money to suppliers in Israel. + +Payoneer, which facilitates low cost international foreign exchange (FX), was actually founded in Israel. Transferwise is an excellent option too and my personal recommendation. + +Israel-based freelancers that have these payment options configured can accept payment in the US dollar, the British pound, and the Euro. TransferWise’s Borderless accounts system makes this simple. If nothing else works, there’s also Paypal -and bank wires. + +### 6\. Israel Is Home To A Diverse And Well-Educated Talent Pool — And Most Know English + +As a young country built on the back of Jewish immigration from around the world, Israel is home to a diverse and well-educated talent pool. + +[Israel is one of the best-educated populations in the world](https://www.israel21c.org/israel-ranks-2nd-in-worlds-most-educated-countries/) — with the average of residents holding a tertiary degree floating well above the OECD average. + +[Additionally, around 85% of Israelis speak English](https://howwidelyspoken.com/how-widely-spoken-english-israel/#:~:text=A%20very%20high%20proportion%20of,a%20requirement%20for%20their%20job.). + +Of course, English is the native language of many immigrants. + +But even if you’re dealing with native-born Israelis ( _tsabrim_) there’s a good chance that they’ll have enough English to comfortably slot in alongside your in-house team or freelancers from other countries. + +### 7\. Internet Connectivity Is Good And Widespread + +Of course, if you’re thinking about working with somebody in another country you might be wondering whether they … well, have internet access. + +Internet access is adequate and [the country was recently ranked eigth in a recent digital quality of life survey.](https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3842555,00.html) + +That doesn’t mean that Israelis have bad internet. It just means that some countries have faster and better connectivity. + +Internet infrastructure in Israel is provided by two main providers while the country is currently in the process of rolling out fiber optic for faster home connectivity. 5G licenses were recently granted to mobile network operators (MNOs) and the network has now gone live across the country — although of course many mobile devices do not yet support it. + +### Consider Using Israeli Freelancers For Your Next Project + +These days, Israeli freelancers are tapped for their talent by far more than Jewish-owned companies with family members in the country. + +Israel represents a viable and strong labor pool for worldwide projects looking to outsource to new labor bases. Those looking to work with Israel-based freelance resources should bear in mind that Israel has an unusual Sunday to Thursday workweek and that its national day calendar is based around the Jewish calendar. + +This means both that some Jewish holidays — like Rosh HaShanah — are national days off. While some days off in the rest of the world — like New Year’s Day — are regular working days in Israel. + +Working with Israel-based freelancers can be a rewarding experience for both sides. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/What-Was-It-Like-Growing-Up-Jewish-in-Ireland-.md b/posts/medium/What-Was-It-Like-Growing-Up-Jewish-in-Ireland-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f1b9aaeaad5164e98e04c07698fcf0c42d99c3f6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-Was-It-Like-Growing-Up-Jewish-in-Ireland-.md @@ -0,0 +1,229 @@ +# What Was It Like Growing Up Jewish in Ireland? + +I’ve written before about the trials and tribulations of making aliyah — and the ways in which I think[ Israel’s culture is similar to Ireland’s and differs from it.](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71) + +One of the benefits of staying in Israel long enough to be considered an _oleh hadash-_ that-isn’t-so- _hadash_ is getting past the “ _where did you come from and why did you move to Israel?”_ routine that prefaces meeting new people here. + +Having gone through the following enough times to last a lifeline (over the course of five years, I add _)_ , here’s a template FAQ to which I will be referring future inquisitors. + +*** + + **Person at Shabbat table:** You have an accent! Where are you from? + +**Me** : That’s a Nachlaot accent. Didn’t you know? + +**Person at Shabbat table:** I mean, where did you live _before_ Nachlaot? + +**Me** : Rechavia. + +**Person at Shabbat table:** Where are you _originally_ from? + +**Me** : I was born in a hospital. + +**Person at Shabbat table:** In what country was that hospital located? + +**Me:** Western Europe + +**Person at Shabbat table:** Oh, you’re from London! Do you know Harry Cohen? How about Rivka Solomons? Have you visited Golders Green? + +**Me** :_(Reluctantly)_ No, I’m from Ireland. + +_-Israelis and_ _olim alike very seldom meet people from Ireland and assume that all English speaking olim are, by default, from the US. So, to fend off a puzzled “Eer-land?!” I sometimes need to add, for emphasis, “Guinness!” “Riverdance! “ “Michael Flatley!”-_ + +**Person at Shabbat table:** Oh, you’re from Ireland! I’ve never met a Jew from Ireland! Are there many Jews in Ireland? ( _Why do people always ask these two questions in this exact succession?)_ + +**Me:** It’s a very small community. There are about 2,500 Jews in the country, mostly in Dublin. I grew up in Cork, in the south of the country. + +*** + +Once the above routine has run its course I try to change subject as quickly as possible. + +Irish people’s go-to for this purpose is always the weather — but in a country with as stable as predictable a climate as Israel that doesn’t help much. + +_That’s great chicken soup, X, where did you get the recipe from?_ + +My discomfort with talking about growing up in Ireland is definitely palpable and I’m sure that it has given more than one person pause for worry about my sanity. Why do I hate talking about it? + +For one, I’ve had this conversation about a thousand times. I have more to say about it than would be appropriate for friendly small talk with somebody I’ve just met (see: below). And, perhaps most significantly, because I moved to Israel, in large part, precisely to avoid this conversation — to become part of the mainstream. + +So — for one time only — let me open up a bit about it and give the subject a good airing. + +### Growing up Jewish in Ireland + +The former synagogue on South Terrace in Cork. Photo: Cork Hebrew Congregation. (Reproduced with permission) + +I was born in Dublin, Ireland’s capital, to a Jewish mother and a Catholic father. + +Growing up, we lived overseas for a few years: in Aberdeen, Scotland and in The Hague in The Netherlands (my late father worked for Halliburton and the moves were job-related). + +After a few years, we returned to Cork, Ireland’s second city, where my mother is from. My late maternal grandparents lived in the city about twenty minutes’ drive from our house. + +It took me a while to even realize that I was Jewish — that I was somehow different from my friends and just about everybody except my immediate family members. + +In fact, my first memories after moving back to Cork have nothing to do with religion at all. I have fond memories of making Lego movies with my friend and going through a phase of being obsessive about working out in the gym. The latter seems to have passed (sadly). + +Gradually, the feeling that I was different — which is why, in effect, I don’t like talking about this — crept up on me. Slowly, insipidly at first, I began to feel like a fish out of water. + +That — for those looking for the TL;DR — is really how I would define my experience of being an Irish Jew. + +Of being extremely uncomfortable with the exceptionalism of those dual and seemingly conflicting identities. And of being very conscious of not quite fitting squarely into either bracket. + +Part of the reason I don’t like being wheeled out as the Irish Jew party trick, or grilled about my background, is because it makes me feel like an imposter. Because in truth, I’ve never felt authentically Irish. Or believed that I was perceived as such by my compatriots. In equal measure, it’s also just an uncomfortable topic — and not all the memories which being reminded of my Irish-Jewish identity bring back are good ones. + +It’s unsurprising, I guess, that my first memories of realizing that I was Jewish were through the lens of being aware that I was different than the mainstream — the outsider, the odd one out. + +Receiving exemptions from religious education in primary and secondary school. Not really knowing what to do with my hands — or my eyes — when _The Angelus_ or _The Lord’s Praye_ r came through the school intercom system twice a day. + +Bringing chicken sausages, in lieu of pork ones, to my primary school’s barbecue and being asked how on earth chicken can be put into sausages (the same way pork can?). + +Cork’s Jewish community, throughout the time I lived there but particularly before I left for Israel, was vanishingly small. + +My grandfather, the late Fred Rosehill, effectively served as the tiny congregation’s leader. [This video](https://youtu.be/t8EX2YruHEg) (I make a cameo appearance — and have a better barber now) does a nice job at explaining the community’s origins, its history, and its slow demise. + +The permanent community — at the ‘height’ I remember, at least — consisted of perhaps a dozen individuals, to offer a generous estimate. + +The community’s ranks were swelled-usually temporarily, although occasionally not-by Israeli expats. They typically moved to Cork to work in one of the international companies dotted throughout the city. Many were not religiously inclined and interested in affiliating themselves with the tiny local Jewish community. Besides the very few that took up permanent residence in Cork, those that joined our ranks inevitably left when they returned to Israel — or elsewhere. + +Gradually — as individuals died, disassociated from the community, or moved to Israel (or elsewhere) — the tiny numbers that it consisted of slumped even further. + +To the point (which stretches as far back as I can remember) that assembling a _minyan_ was a heroic initiative that would require congregants travelling from adjoining counties for some special purpose. For High Holidays, Chabad trainee rabbis were “imported” from the UK to ensure a _minyan_(quorom) throughout the day. They reported drawing bewildered looks — and occasionally teasing leers — as they traveled through the city. + +There were no regular services during my involvement with the Cork _shul_ except for a Shabbat service that was held once a month. My _bar mitzvah_ was the first to be held at the _shul_ in a long time. + +Growing up, I spent a considerable amount of time with my late grandfather. Were it not for his influence and determination to keep the community going despite its small numbers, and the internet, I’m not sure that I would have had a strong enough Jewish identity to prioritize moving to a community where Judaism was practicable. + +### The Shul That Became A Museum + +The former synagogue on South Terrace in Cork. Photo: Cork Hebrew Congregation. (Reproduced with permission) + +Growing up, I spent a large amount of time helping my grandfather to give tours of the synagogue to school groups. + +And to take care of the many unglamorous activities that go into maintaining even a small Jewish community function (my late grandpa was a stickler for making sure that the community email newsletter list was always kept well updated!). + +Countless schools and museum groups visited the _shul_ on South Terrace which was later deconsecrated and is no longer in use. At other times, these were visiting Jewish groups from the US who stopped off in Cork during a cruise itinerary. + +One thought kept creeping up on me, but more so after my first trip to Israel, was that the _shul_ was seeing more use as a museum than it was as a place of religious worship. And Judaism doesn’t belong in a history book. + +However, the real impetus to start looking for places to emigrate to was attending a Birthright trip to Israel when I was 16 or so. + +A Chabad rabbi in Ireland — Rabbi Zalman Lent, who now serves as Rabbi at the Dublin Hebrew Congregation — got in touch as he was leading a group from Ireland on a Birthright trip to Israel. (At least, this is how I remember events). + +At this time, my only exposure to Judaism, besides helping out at the _shul,_ was through listening to podcasts (Chabad.org’s audio catalog, and then the wonderful Rabbi Eli Mansour, were my go-tos). + +I attended Presentation Brothers College (PBC) — a Catholic high school. Growing up, I didn’t have a single Jewish friend. This was due to demographic reasons rather than by choice: there were possibly two Jewish kids my age in the entire city and county and neither went to my school. At the time I attended, I was the only Jewish pupil in the high school which had more than 500 pupils. + +Besides Cork, the only Judaism I _was_ familiar with — from visits to family members abroad — was that of the diaspora (the UK, the US, and Israel are where most former Cork Jews have moved to). There, as far as I could observe, Jews lived in close-knit communities, often attended separate high schools, and seemed to keep close to, but at a slight difference from, the societies that surrounded them. + +Ultimately, what I perceived to be a somewhat closeted existence appealed to me about as much as staying in Cork with its almost total dearth of Jews and the institutions needed to live an observant Jewish life (it probably goes without saying, but I should point out that there was no source of kosher meat either). + +My first trip to Israel opened my eyes to a different possible way of life which both afforded the ability to live a fulfilled Jewish existence but which didn’t require choosing one’s city or social circle based on their religion. (If you see Judaism as an ethnicity as well as a religion this isn’t as self-contradictory as it might at first seem!) + +It was a place where, unlike Cork, I wouldn’t be a minuscule minority — where I was part of a community that was now a mostly historical artifact that evoked the occasional attention of the media and scholars as well as the reluctant interest of bored high school students who chose Judaism as one of their focuses for their Religious Studies exam. + +As the world’s only Jewish majority country — the one in which Judaism began — Israel also offered something which the diaspora, in its entirety, simply couldn’t. + +A place where being Jewish was the norm. Where the things needed to live a fulfilled Jewish life, including religious holidays, were baked into the country’s very DNA. And a society in which keeping kosher didn’t mean having to choose between three obscure restaurants in whatever neighborhood the city’s Jewish community deemed best suited to establish a center for itself. + +On the linear scale of the Jewish world, Israel was the polar opposite of Ireland. + +I was sold. + +### Staying in Cork + +I don’t believe in dwelling on regrets, but if I had to list one of my biggest ones so far, it was probably staying in Cork for university (as well as studying something I wasn’t passionate about — for another post, or better none at all). + +The passing of my late father, right before I started my law degree, had a lot to do with that. I had looked into studying in New York, the UK, and Israel (and received offers), but I ultimately chose to attend my local university and live at home (regret number two; Take it fro me: you don’t want to be learning how to iron your clothes during _ulpan_!). + +At this stage, my consciousness had been fully awoken to being Jewish — I was now teaching myself _ktav Rashi_ to be able to learn the Talmud. But also to the fact that Israel was rather despised in the country I lived in. + +Through my trips to Israel and the continued inspiration of Rabbi Mansour’s wonderful audio _shiurim,_ I was also beginning to take religious observation more seriously in a city and college campus that was almost devoid of Jewish life. + +To move closer to keeping _kosher_ for instance I adopted a vegetarian and then pescetarian diet. But I found the diet constricting. Besides, having to keep quiet about my growing observance felt a bit too much like being a Marrano in Inquisition-era Spain. + +As I entered university, I couldn’t help but notice that merely mentioning Israel in conversation felt akin to walking around campus with a megaphone and cursing one’s lecturers. This is a battle and feeling that is probably familiar to many American readers. But there was something about facing this feeling almost alone that felt particularly isolating. + +### Is There Really No Anti-Semitism in Ireland? + +When people ask what growing up Jewish was like in Ireland, they often next want to know whether I encountered anti-Semitism during my 20 or so years living in the country. + +The party line of Irish Jews since time immemorial has been that the country is almost totally devoid of anti-Semitism and that Ireland has an exemplary and unique track record in being almost totally untinged by anti-Semitism. + +To the extent that — save the Limerick Pogrom — there haven’t been any mass waves of overt anti-Semitism in the country those making that assertion are correct. + +But internally — and here publicly — I have always both contested that narrative and felt that several historical facts (such as Jews’ exclusion from certain social clubs to name one) flatly contradicted that claim. + +Growing up, I have memories of us, and my grandfather, receiving anonymous anti-Semitic phone calls and voicemails. As uncommon as these incidents were, they did happen. Repeatedly — and particularly when the Israeli-Arab conflict was at its most restive. + +When I wound up the student news website that I founded and edited at the local university, its Wikipedia page was defaced with a comment alleging that the “chief Jew” deleted the page “in a hissy fit”. (On the second part, the poster wasn’t wrong — I pulled the plug on the site rashly). + +This unnerved me more than direct name-calling. Tracing the IP, I could see that it came from somewhere on the college campus. Despite my best efforts to keep a very low profile about my Jewishness, somebody knew who I was, that I was Jewish, and evidently didn’t like that fact. The hardest abuse to take can be that which is cloaked in anonymity. + +Other experiences that I remember as deeply uncomfortable were more direct. + +There was, for instance, the English teacher who would frequently begin classes on literature by lecturing the class about how “the Jews” were stealing Palestinian land. Sitting a meter from the teacher, I maintained a fixated stare on my desk. + +In general, and despite the above (which represent exceptions rather than the norm), I believe that Irish society is tolerant and respectful towards its minorities, including Jews. But equally, I cannot say that I never experienced anti-Semitism while living in the country. + +More than that, though, I always felt profoundly uncomfortable — and, I’m sorry to say, embarrassed — about being Jewish in Ireland. + +Although globalization is fast changing things, many Irish people only know about Jews and Judaism from American media. + +Commonly, after mentioning that I was Jewish, my interlocutor would assume that I was joking. Before realizing that I was not and being hushed into embarrassed silence. + +I was acutely aware of the fact that I was and am likely the first and only Jew that many of my friends had met outside of the context of popular culture. + +If my experiences seem exaggerated or imaginary, then I encourage anybody reading this to read the comments section on any story about Israel on Irish news websites. + +While it’s easy to dismiss those commenting on news websites as a fringe but vocal minority (another party line), to watch many anti-Semitic canards enjoying open and popular support was and remains highly disconcerting for me. + +The Jews control the media; Israel is built on stolen land; what the Jews are doing to the Palestinians is worse than the Nazis. Statements like these slip into Irish conversations about Israel, whether in radio chat shows or on online fora — and opposition is thin on the ground. + +The distinguishing feature of Irish opposition to Israel and its championing of the Palestinian cause is its often ferocious virulence. + +To fail to ascribe anti-Semitic motives to at least a portion of this tidal wave of hate — or to claim that there is no anti-Semitism in Ireland at all — is, in my opinion, to be willfully disingenuous. + +### Why I Left Ireland + +The above probably makes clear why I ultimately left Ireland and came on the crazy journey called _aliyah_. In doing so, it may also leave the false impression that I deeply dislike the country of my birth — which is very far from the case. + +I enjoyed living in Ireland even if — from a Jewish perspective — it caused me to feel increasingly alienated from the country whose passport I held and ill at ease with my own identity as an Irish Jew. + +And if this sense of discomfort began at a slow simmer, then it reached boiling point when I began to identify with the Zionist cause — and sensed that virtually all of society held that movement, and often the existence of the State of Israel, to be anathema to their moral code. + +Most pragmatically, I couldn’t think of a way to marry within the faith — something which I achieved by moving to Israel!. I also couldn’t envision a long term future in a country where it felt like there was an obvious and sometimes painful dissonance between the passport I held and my religion. Nor one in which merely mentioning the word ‘Israel’ felt like breaking a societal bamboo -which left my options as either to join my voice as a Jewish one in opposition to the country or wage a futile war to challenge mistruths and distortions through _hasbara_(I delved in that world and [— as I recently wrote here](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/) — I don’t think that most _hasbara_ is constructive or a good use of time). And finally, simple truth be told, I couldn’t stomach more fish and lentils. + +Being Jewish in Ireland was slightly weird. Slightly embarrassing and uncomfortable (for me, perhaps also for others). And something which I usually felt everybody would prefer was just skipped over in conversation whenever it cropped up. For me, and as my own sense of Jewishness and self matured, that simply wasn’t a paradigm that was compatible with being proud about who I was. + +My emigration push factor was simply that I felt uncomfortable — at times profoundly so — with being Jewish there. + +The countervailing pull factor was that Israel offered a unique selling proposition which no other Jewish community in the world could equal: somewhere where being Jewish was the norm rather than the exception. + +[For the record, while comparing my experiences in these two countries, there are aspects of Ireland that I far prefer to Israel](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71). + +Let me end this blog post by listing them. + +For one, I think that Ireland has a warm and accepting culture — one which is largely free of the unbridled aggression that sadly seems to be endemic in much of Israeli society. + +Like Israel, Ireland punches above its weight internationally — both in terms of the success of its diaspora population and its prominence on the international stage. + +Israel, like Ireland, has a relatively thriving tech scene — and one which, like Israel, is focused internationally. + +_Shitat mazliach_ and _freier_ culture thankfully doesn’t have a grip on Irish society as it does here. Where Israelis value being often abrasively direct, the Irish value being friendly (if sometimes only outwardly) and congenial. In truth, I’ve come to believe that both approaches have merit. Manners are treating others with consideration are highly emphasized virtues in Irish culture — in Israel, all too often, the former is regarded as a waste of time and words. + +Despite all the above, and my sense of feeling proud about where I came from, I couldn’t envision a future staying in Ireland. + +I was tired of feeling slightly ashamed and embarrassed about who I was: always the odd one out, the slightly embarrassed (and perhaps embarrassing) exception to the Irish Catholic stereotype. Kyle from South Park (except in real life). + +Feeling comfortable in my own skin — and figuring out who I am (not quite Irish, not quite Israeli — perhaps just a person figuring out his place in the world?) is a slow process of reawakening that is still going on to this day. Even as I write this. + +Ireland was, all things considered, kind to me and my family — who arrived there in the late nineteenth century (like most Cork Jews) fleeing religious persecution and forced conscription in Lithuania. + +I still have family in Ireland, do business with clients in the country, and am proud to hold an Irish passport (and to fly its flag on my roof). + +But — as the long history of the Jewish diaspora bears out, a legacy of nomadic wandering which I believe only the founding of a Jewish state could interrupt — I, by moving to Israel, have broken a chain of living in the country that only stretches back three generations. And that, in a nutshell, is partially why I believe that Israel must exist. + +Jews have shuffled between countries since the time they went into exile — facing periodic persecution and expulsions. Sometimes, the road has taken them to common destinations like New York or London. Sometimes to off the beaten track places like Cork. The only place I can see us having sticking power as a people, and being comfortable in our collective skin, is where it all began — here in Israel. + +And that — in much more detail than I typically volunteer at a Shabbat meal — is why I made _aliyah_. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/What-can-a-ghostwriter-help-you-to-write-.md b/posts/medium/What-can-a-ghostwriter-help-you-to-write-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6892004fc2dae4e1f52c6fcbf8044974452df162 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-can-a-ghostwriter-help-you-to-write-.md @@ -0,0 +1,51 @@ +# What can a ghostwriter help you to write? + +#### Thinking about hiring a ghostwriter? Here’s what they can do — and more! + +Are you interested in hiring a ghostwriter for your next writing project? Are you interested in learning about what kind of writing projects a ghostwriter could help you with? + +Read on! + +### Ghostwriters Write More Than Just Books + +Classically, ghostwriters are thought of as hired literary guns whose purpose is to write books on behalf of clients. + +Indeed, many ghostwriters continue to specialize in helping their clients produce both fiction and non-fiction books. + +[**Questions to ask before hiring a ghostwriter for your book project** + _Questions to ensure a good fit with your potential writer_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/questions-to-ask-before-hiring-a-ghostwriter-for-your-book-project-56f782f6fe7 "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/questions-to-ask-before-hiring-a-ghostwriter-for-your-book-project-56f782f6fe7")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/questions-to-ask-before-hiring-a-ghostwriter-for-your-book-project-56f782f6fe7) + +While self-publishing has made becoming a book author much more accessible to a wider variety of people, many ghostwriters are nevertheless capable of helping clients write a much wider variety of materials. + +While the classic definition of ghostwriting might only reflect book authorship, a broader understanding of ghostwriting encompasses any text for which the ghostwriter doesn’t receive formal attribution in the form of a byline. + +These days, ghostwriters are tapped by individuals ranging from business leads to celebrities to author a diverse selection of literary genres. + +[**Who hires ghostwriters? These people!** +_Thinking about working with a ghostwriter, but not sure it’s a “done thing”? Some professionals who commonly work with…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-hires-ghostwriters-these-people-d0e3ce1e991b "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-hires-ghostwriters-these-people-d0e3ce1e991b")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-hires-ghostwriters-these-people-d0e3ce1e991b) + +Some of the common outputs include. + +### Ghostwriters Can Author Speeches + +While speechwriters aren’t typically thought of as ghostwriters, I think that fact is quite illogical! + +Speechwriters prepare speeches for their clients but receive none of the credit. While they write for the ear rather than the eye, like literary ghostwriters they’re the invisible hands and minds that make their principals sound eloquent. They also help shift the burden of the heavy lifting of writing away from the busy buisinesspeople, politicians, and diplomats who typically hire them. + +Need a speech written? It might be worth asking a ghostwriter is they also handle speechwriting. + +[**Thought leadership speechwriting | DSR Ghostwriting | Thought Leadership And Content Marketing For…** + _Getting out on the speaking circuit is an important part of becoming a thought leader. Although writing that appears…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/services-outline/writing/speechwriting/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/services-outline/writing/speechwriting/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/services-outline/writing/speechwriting/) + +### Ghostwriters Can Write Articles and Blogs + +These days, so much writing takes the form of articles and blogs. + +Ghostwriters are commonly called upon to help their clients write both of these popular formats. + +What’s the difference? The dividing line is a little blurry but: + + * Blogs are published online. Articles can be published in print media. + * Online publications that solicit ‘articles’ sometimes require a higher standard of authorship + + _Interested in working with a ghostwriter to author your articles, blogs, speeches, and books? Visit_[ _DSRGhostwriting.com_](http://DSRGhostwriting.com) _._ diff --git a/posts/medium/What-do-Israelis-mean-when-they-talk-about-working--in-high-tech--.md b/posts/medium/What-do-Israelis-mean-when-they-talk-about-working--in-high-tech--.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..80e828d8a49d14d075601befaeb36362f66d68c7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-do-Israelis-mean-when-they-talk-about-working--in-high-tech--.md @@ -0,0 +1,34 @@ +# What do Israelis mean when they talk about working “in high tech”? + +The Tel Aviv skyline. Tel Aviv, the center of the ‘merkaz’ (central region) is also the center of the “high tech world” + +**“High tech” is one of the words that even native speakers that move to Israel and live here for some time forget is (somewhat) nonsensical and poorly intelligible outside of the country.** ( [Although “relevant” is in the leading position — by far!).](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/some-mistakes-israelis-make-when-speaking-english/) + +**By “high tech” (עולם ההייטק) Israelis seem to mean any company that has _anything_ to do with the technology sector** — and (typically) which is primarily focused on the international market where salaries are, consequentially, above the national mean. + +However — this could equally be a SaaS company involved in selling AdTech or a life sciences company working on developing a vaccine for viruses. + +A hardware manufacturer making components for the IoT and an API selling web-scraping technology to advertisers are two entirely different beasts — and only people with a limited understanding of technology would lump them under the same awkward rubric. Sorry to be snobby. + +Rather, the essential element of a “high tech” job seems -to me- to be that the company is deploying technology in some way that is innovative — which is why I think it is nonsensical because, even in the agricultural and manufacturing sectors, this holds true for most efficiently run companies. + +Alternatively, a layman might describe “high tech” as being _“anything to do with computers”_. But more presciently, when people talk about _“working in high-tech”_ they are using a shorthand to say that they are working — or wish to work for — a company that exports to the international market, develops some sort of technology (or highlights its technical prowess as a prominent feature of its value proposition), and pays more than the national average salary. + +Depending on the company, actual, non-ridiculous descriptors for companies that Israelis would lump all into the “high tech” descriptor would be: + + * The Information Technology (IT) sector; more archaically known as ICT + * The software industry; + * The hardware industry; + * IoT; water-tech; etc. + +Or to make the distinction between a logical description and the “high tech” catchall easier to understand, simply consider that, outside of the Israel bubble, **companies are more typically described by the industry they serve rather than the state of their technological prowess** (or lack thereof — although “low-tech” is not in common parlance!). + +In reality, “high tech” is an amalgamation of a disparate grouping of industries and verticals. + +Their only real distinguishing factor is that — compared to most Israeli companies that do not export internationally — their GDP per capita correlates to international standards and the salaries they offer are therefore more likely to too. + +[After Israelis’ strange use, in English, of the adjective “relevant](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/some-mistakes-israelis-make-when-speaking-english/),” “high tech” ranks as my second most disliked misappropriated English phrase! + +(As you could surely tell, this was less an article and more a vendetta against the expression ‘high tech’!) + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/What-is-Israeli-culture-like--My-impressions-after-7-years.md b/posts/medium/What-is-Israeli-culture-like--My-impressions-after-7-years.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d2775b6a7ccebae6b4b2011f4d38ab80039ea776 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-is-Israeli-culture-like--My-impressions-after-7-years.md @@ -0,0 +1,140 @@ +# What is Israeli culture like? My impressions after 7 years + +#### A strange hybrid between the West and the Middle East, what’s it like living in Israel with Israelis? + +Having lived in Israel for more than seven years now, I feel like I’ve _begun_ to acclimatize to the culture of Israel. + +[**Ireland vs. Israel (As Places to Live, That Is!)** +_(About a month ago — just when I was resuming my self-publishing voyage — I wrote this rather detailed run-through of…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/ireland-vs-israel-as-places-to-live-that-is-740fff26c71) + +[**How To Work With Israelis - And Enjoy The Experience** + _As a new immigrant and now small business owner (I eschew the term "freelancer") I've spent the last five years, in…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-work-with-israelis-and-enjoy-the-experience/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-work-with-israelis-and-enjoy-the-experience/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-work-with-israelis-and-enjoy-the-experience/) + +Israeli culture is an interesting mix of various influences. + +On the one hand — due to its geographical location — Israeli food and culture is decidedly influenced by the region that surrounds it (the Middle East). + +On the other, the country has also sought to associate itself with the culture of the West, sometimes much to the chagrin of its surrounding enemies. + +For those who think that Israeli is by and large an Ashkenazi Jewish country, here’s something that might change your perspective. There are more than three million Mizrahi Jews — those who migrated to Israel from the countries of the Arab world and North Africa — living in Israel. + +The result of this initial migration, one could argue, is that the country got a head start in assimilating its citizens into their Middle Eastern milieu within which Israel finds itself (of note of course — Jewish settlement in Israel didn’t begin with the foundation of the State!) + +There’s another thing that I think can’t be emphasized enough: + +Israeli culture — in international terms — is very much in its infancy. The country, after all, is less than one hundred years old. + +As Israel continues to forge relations with new allies — and more international tourists come to Israel — there is a sort of tug and pull going on between Israel’s formative culture and the international norms of its major trading partners. + +This can be seen in both the personal and professional spheres. + +Small example: during the seven years I’ve lived here, I’ve noticed the “we need this now!” Israeli _balagan_ mentality (best described as: doing things on the go) slowly giving way to the less chaotic “can we set up a time to call?” approach more typical of larger international businesses. Customer service has also gotten markedly better. + +For those who decry some of the cultural traits that I’m about to list, I always respond by pointing out the above. It’s very early days. Much can still change. Be patient. + +For those new to Israel — whether planning to make a life here indefinitely or temporarily — these are some of my Cliff Notes about the formative culture of Israel. + +### Israeli Culture Is Very Informal — But There Are Limits To The Informality + +The first thing that many visitors and new arrivals remark about the culture of Israel is **the degree to which it is remarkably informal.** + +Israelis are used to growing up in a country with a high population density. + +Israel’s population density is 423 citizens per square kilometer (at the time of writing; source: CBS). India’s figure is 411 citizens per square kilometer. By contrast, Ireland’s is just 70 (yes, I’m one of the only people that routinely uses Ireland as my point of comparison with Israel!). + +In a country in which everybody lives on top of one another — and with a citizen’s army in which every new recruit goes through the same conscription process — Israel’s have a unique sense of social equality bred, perhaps, by close quarter living and the feeling of a shared destiny as a tiny Jewish country living in the middle of a largely hostile neighborhood. + +By and large, Israeli organizations tend to have flat hierarchies. The CEO at a startup could be the guy in sandals and a t-shirt a few doors down and you’re free to knock on this door any time (if he has one). + +Formal modes of address — _‘adon’_ for a man _‘giveret’_ for a woman — exist but are not heard with the same frequency as might be encountered elsewhere. + +When my health fund calls me to remind me of an upcoming doctor’s appointment, they begin “ _Danniielll_?” in a curious sort of braying tone meant to verify my identity (I have a recording somewhere). I don’t think I’ve heard the Hebrew equivalent of “Am I speaking to Mr. Rosehill?” since moving here. If I do, perhaps that will be my indication that I’ve really made it here. + +There’s one very curious facet of Israeli culture. + +New immigrants — _olim hadashim_ — are notorious for attempting to over-compensate their impression of Israelis in an attempt to expedite their integration process. They often, by trying too hard to act Israeli, end up offending even the informally-minded Israelis in the process. + +Final note: when one lives here for years, it becomes increasingly obvious that this blanket informality actually has some degrees of nuance attached to it. + +Cases in point: IDF commanders command respect wherever they go. Showing up 20 minutes late to a job interview is still unbecoming. And repeatedly bearing one’s boss is equally not likely to advance one’s career prospects. + +Israelis are informal … but newcomers to the culture still need to tread somewhat cautiously. + +### Israelis Are Solution-Oriented And Efficient. But Paradoxically, Bureaucracy Can Be A Pain + +Israel: once a land of poor kibbutsim + +As the citizens of a country that started out as a poor socialist backwater with restrictive government practices around imports (among other things), it should come as no surprise that Israelis appear to have an innate love for stopgap solutions and improvisation. + +MacGyver may have been named after an American TV show, but he could just as well have been your typical Israeli _kibbutsnik_ who knows how to use Duct tape to hold together a computer. + +Israelis tend to be focused on finding quick resolutions to problems. It’s no coincidence, I believe, that startups — which by and large favor agile over any other project management methodology — have mushroomed in Israel. + +Israelis excel in getting projects off the ground — again, remember startups. Their weakness, on the other hand, is often in long-term thinking and strategic planning. + +A positive manifestation of this live for the moment attitude: Israelis have a unique “live for the moment” kind of attitude. A negative one: Israelis sometimes seem to derive perverse enjoyment from the atmosphere of chaos — Hebrew: _balagan_ — that pervades organizations where everything needs to be done on the fly. + +This manifests itself, curiously, in sometimes reckless personal finance decisions (Israelis are notorious for living in overdraft and spending beyond their means). This is also the reason why Israelis can frequently be found thronging bars on Saturday night — the evening before the start of the work week. + +Paradoxically — at times, Israel is a land of paradoxes — Israel has a well-deserved reputation for bureaucracy and over-regulation. + +My Israeli clients frequently demand that I send over four different _ishurim_(permits) solely to begin a small consulting project. I need to prove that I own my bank account, have a book-keeper, and am a registered business. + +Those who work in the field of building and architecture frequently encounter unwieldy webs of regulation that make getting even basic development projects approved incredibly challenging. + +[**42% of Israeli households have overdrafts** + _The Central Bureau of Statistics reported today the figures for household ownership of financial assets for 2018 data…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-42-of-israeli-households-in-overdraft-1001310436#:~:text=42%25%20of%20Israel%27s%20households%20had,financial%20assets%20for%202018%20data "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-42-of-israeli-households-in-overdraft-1001310436#:~:text=42%25%20of%20Israel's%20households%20had,financial%20assets%20for%202018%20data")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-42-of-israeli-households-in-overdraft-1001310436#:~:text=42%25%20of%20Israel%27s%20households%20had,financial%20assets%20for%202018%20data) + +### Israelis Have A Unique Conception Of Manners And Social Graces + +Israelis are often decried as being rude. But I think it’s more accurate to say that Israelis just have a different conception of social manners than the rest of the world. + +This doesn’t mean, by the way, that I don’t often dislike their ideals about manners (excuse the double negative). It just means that, at some point, you have to accept that you’re living in _their_ country rather than the one you came from and that nothing you do, as one person, has the power to change prevailing social norms. + +What am I talking about? + +When I hold a door open for strangers, in Israel, I almost never receive even a cursory “thank you” in response. Why isn’t that done? I don’t know. Has somebody in Israel once thanked me for holding the door open for them? Probably. But it’s happened consistently enough that it’s become a feature of the culture that I don’t really understand — much less connect with. + +Example two: last week I received an SMS notification from a courier telling me that they had to change where a package I had ordered online was being sent to. + +But one formulation was conspicuously missing from the notification: “we apologize.” + +An American customer service email would undoubtedly have included the stock phrase “we apologize for any inconvenience caused.” But the Israeli courier (or whoever was writing their notification methods) probably didn’t believe that they should apologize for a change probably caused by a third party (the delivery shop). Again, here I disagree and found it rude that the communication was missing a basic apology. + +Customer service in Israel unfortunately often sucks. Sometimes this is due to the notion of a social meritocracy being stretched way beyond its usual bounds in Western cultures. At other times, it’s a manifestation of the fact that businesses know consumers have few options, consumer rights are restrictive, and that they have a captive audience which they can exploit. + +Israelis can be warm and disarmingly informal. But when it comes to manners, there’s some space between what they regard as normal and what I and much of the world do. As Israelis say: _kacha ze_ (that’s just life). + +### Israelis Are Obsessed With Not Being A Sucker (Freier) + +One more point. + +Israelis have this bizarre national phobia of not being a “freier” (sucker). + +This is the societal reaction to the fact that — in a society of immigrants — there are unfortunately historically those in Israel who are prepared to take advantage of immigrants. + +[**What To Know About Working With Israelis** + _As a new immigrant and now small business owner (I eschew the term “freelancer”) I’ve spent the last five years, in…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-to-know-about-working-with-israelis-c84200d7afca) + +In other words: there’s a culture — somewhat entrenched in Israel — of _shitat mazliach_(the successful way). The Irish translation for this is “chancing your arm.” And the more elaborate one is: “trying to pressure somebody who doesn’t know better into taking a bad deal.” + +Because of the somewhat pervasive nature of _shitat matzliach_ in Israeli society, Israelis have become wildly obsessed with the idea of not being a _“freier_. The problem is that this creates a vicious cycle of behavior: + + * I won’t let somebody into this lane of traffic because that would mark me out as a _freier_ and other motorists will take advantage of me + * Letting someone go ahead of me in line at the grocery store would be a _freier_ move so I won’t do it + +Sometimes, Israelis come off as having a disturbing national “me first” attitude. And yet they are perplexingly also famous for coming to the aid of strangers during times of need. + +I believe that this — one of the many paradoxes of living in Israel — can be explained by the national fear of _freier_ culture.(Another one: how can a nation that prides itself on technology sometimes itself be so low-tech). + +### Israel Can Take A Lot Of Getting Used To + +As an immigrant from Ireland, I can scarcely think of two more dissimilar cultures than those that exist in Ireland and Israel. + +The Irish — like the British — emphasize politeness, “getting along,” and not stepping on somebody else’s toes. The positives: it’s an easier culture to get used to. The negatives: limited agility; disagreements, both major and minor, can get swept up under an overarching desire for artificial conviviality. + +Israelis — by stark comparison — don’t seem particularly concerned by any of these things. The benefits: the opposite of those which flow from the above. Problems can get resolved quickly. Just as disagreements can escalate quickly, so too they can calm down in a moment’s notice. There’s a higher variability in people’s day-to-day behavior. + +As a result, to Irish (or British) eyes Israelis can often come across as coarse and needlessly aggressive and abrasive. But that project or disagreement might be wrapped up far quicker than may have been the case had somebody insisted on keeping a stiff upper lip. + +Israeli culture, in stark contrast, emphasizes being direct. But once you can get past the sometimes brutal honestly you can often find warmhearted, creative, and passionate individuals who can become loyal coworkers or friends. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-is-ghostwriting--What-is-ghostwriting-not--Some-questions-answered-.md b/posts/medium/What-is-ghostwriting--What-is-ghostwriting-not--Some-questions-answered-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c903ac029ef953353d911d612d25ebccbd4ab76e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-is-ghostwriting--What-is-ghostwriting-not--Some-questions-answered-.md @@ -0,0 +1,196 @@ +# What is ghostwriting? What is ghostwriting not? Some questions answered. + +If there’s one subset of the writing world that comes laden with more preconceptions than any other that area may well be ghostwriting. + +The very name sounds mysterious. But the process of working as a ghostwriter is actually anything but. + +So what is ghostwriting? + +What is ghostwriting not? + +And why might you want to work with a ghostwriter? + +Here are some of my thoughts in broad brushstrokes. + +### What Is Ghostwriting? + +The definition of what constitutes ghostwriting isn’t set in stone. + +But a good one might be that, at its most fundamental level, ‘ghostwriting is **writing _anything_ that is officially attributed to another person — or a separate entity than oneself.’** + +But practice and reality differ — and so that definition is realistically overly broad. + +Consider this: would somebody writing a Facebook status for a company consider themselves a ghostwriter? + +They may be the unseen wordsmith behind an account, or author a quick soundbite on behalf of their boss for Twitter, but the answer is almost certainly ‘no’. + +So by almost anyone’s account ghostwriting _can_ but _doesn’t_ involve every instance in which the name on the byline and the actual author differ in person. + +(This might also be a good moment to clear up some parlance. ‘Byline’ is a portmanteau of ‘by’ and ‘line’; it’s the ‘By X’ line that appears below the headings of most news articles, whether published in print or online. The ‘author’ is the person whose name is — confusingly — carried on the byline, but who didn’t actually write the piece. That, of course, would be the ghostwriter, a writer-for-hire who is often confusingly simply referred to as the ‘ghost’). + +### Is Authoring White Papers Ghostwriting? + +If you want to take a more expansive view of ghostwriting, you could choose to exclude things like social media but extend it to also include writing that is attributed _collectively._ Or not attributed to any individual at all. + +Consider white papers, for example, which usually contain no byline but are rather emblazoned with the company’s logo. (In exceptional cases, they _are_ attributed to a specific thought leader — and a thin veneer of fiction is perpetuated that that one person really garnered and divulged all the insights the white paper contains.) + +Or consider articles vaguely attributed to ‘Editorial Staff’ or ‘Marketing Department’. + +A narrower— and more classical — definition is that ghostwriting specifically involves writing _books_ on behalf of authors. + +Think celebrity memoirs and the like. + +This is the assumed definition that underlies many well-known texts on ghostwriting, such as that by [Andrew Crofts](https://medium.com/u/2b8888803aeb). + +Although the book-only approach has insipidly become a popular frame of reference for viewing ghostwriting among those in the publishing world, I don’t think it makes much sense to call writing a book under an author’s name ‘ghostwriting’ — and writing an e-book or article for them an activity by some other name. + +Given the preponderance of e-books, corporate blogs, and the blurry lines that divide ‘new’ and traditional publishing, most ghostwriters — at least during the formative years of their careers — are likely to find themselves engaged in a wide variety of projects on behalf of authors which might include speeches, blogs, books, and e-books to name but a few. + +The reason for that is pretty simple. + +At the outset, at least, it’s usually easier to find somebody, or an organization, willing to entrust you to write a speech for them — and pay you for it — than it is to write an entire book. And, to state the obvious, books are major projects to embark upon which set the bar of expectations far higher for the prospective ghost. + +With those dynamics being so, rather than being book ‘exclusivists’ (note: that’s not a real word), many among today’s cadre of ghostwriters are likely to find themselves tackling a wide array of writing projects. And, commensurate with marketing departments’ increasing demand for quality-over-quantity ‘content’, demand for them seems to be on the continual rise. + +### So…..Who Uses Ghostwriters Then? + +Another question I’ve fielded quite a lot recently is this: + +_“In your estimation, what percentage of Medium posts and executive articles appearing in trade publications are ghostwritten?”_ + +I don’t have a figure, have never come across one, and doubt that a reliable one will ever emerge —after all authors, particularly when they are business executives, tend to be a little reticent about the fact that they often don’t actually write their own words. + +So my best guess at an answer is, rather, simply ‘an awful _lot’._ + +Who does the hiring? + +To cite but a few examples: + + * **CTOs and technology executives** whose eloquence in Java and Python is not matched by their ability to clearly communicate their company’s value proposition; + * **Celebrities and VIPs** who lack the time, patience, and writing skills to tell their _sometimes_ compelling stories; + * **Business executives.** These can be CEOs (or aspiring CEOs) who are ardent consumers of Gartner reports and want to communicate their organization’s high-level strategy to a peer group. But they lack the time, patience, and wherewithal to patch all the sources — internal and external — together into something compelling and cohesive which can be pitched to a trade media publication with a reasonable probability of success. This group also tends to give a lot of keynotes and other speeches. + +And who does the writing? + +All of the following entities and individuals might find themselves involved in ghosting everything from their authors’ speeches to their forthcoming op-ed in a newspaper. Noteworthy distinction: when it comes to books, however the job tends to be left to full-time ghostwriters who come with that express name tag. The former pool of sometime and informal ghostwriters includes: + + * Executive assistants and secretaries; + * PR and Communications Managers; + * PR and content agencies; + * (Long-suffering) spouses, friends, and family members + +### Is Ghostwriting Ethical? + +A teleprompter + +Another question I sometimes get asked: + +**_What do you think about the ethics of ghostwriting?_** + +It took me a while to figure out why this was even a question (hint: there’s a ghostwriting underworld — specifically academic ghostwriting — that is indeed ethnically repugnant.) + +But let’s assume that we’re talking about good old-fashioned ghostwriting: writing a celebrity’s memoir or — on a much smaller level — writing their next LinkedIn post. + +Is that fair? Firstly, let’s ask: to whom? + +### Is Ghostwriting Fair To The Reader? + +I refer, again, to Andrew Crofts’ explanation of the craft. + +Crofts asks, rhetorically, whether most readers actually care whether the person whose byline is on the book cover actually, indeed, sat down at a keyboard to write the prose. Particularly in the world of business publishing, I submit that they almost certainly don’t. + +Secondly, anybody who has worked in Public Relations (PR) or Communications is fully aware of just how vast the world of ghostwriting really is . That between the agencies an in-house departments of this world reams (or screen-fuls) of text are produced on a daily basis that really weren’t written by the CMO or CTO they are officially attributed to. + +In other words, to the extent that ghostwriting is a fiction it is one that is — for many close to the origin — as thin as the paper it is written on. + +Finally, even if we were to venture outside the confines of the corporate world, we would find that ghostwriting is everywhere too. + +We all know that many celebrities don’t actually write the books whose covers proudly bear their names. Just as we know that most national-level politicians don’t write their own speeches — at least all of the time and from scratch. And occasionally, ghostwriters are not just acknowledged but publicly celebrated: former presidential speechwriters fêted for having been entrusted with the President’s words. + +At other times too the plausibility of the ghostwriting relationship is practically out in the open. + +One sometimes observes the spectacle of a non-Anglophone CEO who participates in a conference panel with only a partial command of English — only to publish a verbose piece on LinkedIn that very evening. + +Ghostwriting is simply a service by which professional writers help polish and communicate the work of authors. Authors lack the time or writing expertise and ghostwriters lack the industry experience and expertise. It’s a professional unison that can produce great results. And it’s everywhere once you begin looking for it. + +### Is Ghostwriting Fair To The Ghostwriter? + +The other side of the ethical dimension that gets threshed out less (but more so by concerned family members!) is whether ghostwriting is fair … to the ghostwriter. + +For those unfamiliar with the ghostwriting relationship the logic probably goes something like this: + +_“Didn’t you say that you want to be a writer!? Why would you possibly agree to write something that’s published under somebody else’s name?”_ + +I believe that two assumptions are typically at play here: + + * This isn’t a choice. If you had the option of being a writer or a ghostwriter you’d obviously be a writer / have your name on the byline. + * You’ve been pressured into ghostwriting by some cruel CEO who’s keeping you under his/her thumb. Or you’re mired in a wave of desperation and will do anything for pay. + +Family members of ghostwriters and curious onlookers: let me try to dispel some myths. + + * Ghostwriting is an established practice. As above, there are myriad industries and people that engage the services of ghostwriters — and I think that it should be seen as a valuable writing service. I’m not aware of any writer that has been shunted involuntarily into ghostwriting — or who hasn’t at least made peace with the arrangement as a temporary stop along the road. Journalists often ghostwrite on the side for extra income and many ghostwriters are formal journalists. But they typically won’t feel like they’re being “screwed over” by taking on a ghostwriting project, as seems to be the occasional assumption. + * Ghostwriting can be a good deal. Often, ghosts can command higher rates than writers that get accredited. This is because not getting a byline _does,_ for obvious reasons, make it a little harder to market oneself to prospective clients. + +Additionally, ghostwriting can be: + + * **Fun**. You get to write about a lot of different topics. And meet talented experts with an idea to communicate — but who lack the time to communicate it. + * **Versatile**. Ghostwriting is a popular side-gig among established book authors. And there’s nothing precluding ghostwriters from treading both paths. + * **Stable**. As a ghostwriter your buyer market might be every business, executive, or person that believes they have something interesting to talk about. The market of publications and outlets that might find your _own_ writings worthwhile may be exponentially smaller. + * **Partially attributed:** In book ghostwriting, ghosts are sometimes credited as “Author _with_ ghost”. This is sort of a strange halfway house between accredited authorship and ghostwriting in which the author wishes to maintain trumpet-tooting rights to the work, but basically acknowledges that he/she didn’t actually write the work. Again, the idea of the writing being a “collaboration” is a euphemism and only tenuously plausible. + +### What Is Ghostwriting Not? + +I’ve set out, above, some basic information about what ghostwriting typically entails, who typically uses the service of a ghostwriter, and why I believe ghostwriting should be ethically uncontroversial. + +However, let me immediately add a caveat. + +There are a few activities that are often subsumed under the ghostwriting umbrella, but which have scarce little to do with the activities I mentioned above. + +These are: + +**Rap Ghostwriting** + +Recently, I’ve begun collating articles, podcasts and online communities that talk about ghostwriting. + +Ghostwriting can be a solitary endeavor — or at least one between you and your clients — and I decided that it was about time to expand my network by connecting with others doing the same thing online. + +As soon as I began doing so, I kept coming upon Google News search results discussing a rapper that had been found to be using ghostwriters. Ghostwriting, within the rap world, seems to be particularly controversial. + +Suffice merely to say that if there is any cross-over between the ranks of those authoring business keynotes and those hemming out lyrics for Drake’s next hit I can only imagine that it is minimal. + +**Academic Ghostwriting** + +This one is a much more serious threat to the credibility of ghostwriting as a vocation. + +I think of academic ghostwriting like a parallel ghosting underworld — although truthfully, for the most part, I could describe Upwork in exactly the same terms. + +In ghostwriting, like in all other forms of writing, you have marketplaces, clients, and ecosystems with respectably paid gigs and lots of, or rather make that tons of, …. let’s just say the polar opposite. + +Because it is, by definition, an unethical service that self-respecting professional ghostwriters would seek to distance themselves from as far as possible, academic ghostwriting tends to be firmly entrenched towards the bottom of this second category of ecosystem. + +Academic ghostwriting involves writing term papers, essays, and other pieces of writing on behalf of students. + +This — in near certainty — puts the students in violation of their educational institutions’ terms and conditions and deceives those grading their papers into awarding them higher marks than they might otherwise have accrued. + +I have occasionally been approached by MBA students who wanted me to “collaborate” with them on their coursework. + +A good chunk of the time, the ‘c-word’ is all the red flag you need to steer away bad leads: it tends to be used, disproportionately, as a euphemism by those proposing barter schemes for writing work. + +Where do I draw the red line between this practice and (what I regard as) legitimate ghostwriting work? + +In truth, it’s a tricky one to articulate, but this is the verbiage which I recently added to the “What do you not write?” page in my knowledge-base: + +_“I also do not engage in academic ghostwriting or any ghostwriting that aims to dissemble to a professional or certification body that my writing is that of the author.”_ + +### Summary: What is Ghostwriting? + + * According to most dictionary definitions, and a common sense one, **ghostwriting is engaging in writing where another individual is the named author.** + * I think it’s fair to widen the definition slightly to include **work attributed to collective author-groups such as (sometimes) white papers.** Or work attributed to nobody specific at all. + * A narrower definition of ghostwriting **focuses solely on ghostwriting books.** + * In ghostwriting parlance the person to whom a piece of writing is accredited is called the ‘author’; the ghostwriter who actually wrote the piece is the ‘ghost’ + * A vast array of individuals — from CTOs to celebrities and many others in between— engage the services of ghostwriters every day, whether they bear that name or not. + * **Ghostwriters can be full-time professional ghostwriters or ‘informal’ ones.** The latter category can include assistants and even family members. But when it comes to writing books, the job tends to fall to a professional ghostwriter. + * Ghostwriting can make it a little tricky for writers to self-publicize, but it’s a relationship they typically benefit from. + * Ghostwriting rap lyrics and academic ghostwriting are separate fields. I, and most ghostwriters, have ethical qualms with the latter. + +**ETA 13/04:** Today I learned that the hard-working folks that right porn descriptions often[ describe themselves as ghostwriters](https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/6vq391/just_been_wrangled_into_writing_hundreds_of/). Please add that to the list of disreputable categories which I do not include under traditional ghostwriting. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-is-mental-healthcare-like-in-Israel-for-immigrants--olim--.md b/posts/medium/What-is-mental-healthcare-like-in-Israel-for-immigrants--olim--.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..723c7e1269f58292ddebce70b16fa25f1dcceea6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-is-mental-healthcare-like-in-Israel-for-immigrants--olim--.md @@ -0,0 +1,177 @@ +# What is mental healthcare like in Israel for immigrants (olim)? + +#### Ahead of Aliyah Day, Israel should look at what it is doing to prevent the tragically high suicide rate among its immigrant population. Resources, today, do not parallel those for treating physical conditions. + +Today, I belatedly discovered, is World Mental Health Day. Its mission, according to the World Federation for Mental Health, is to help raise awareness about mental health and reduce the stigma associated with it. + +LinkedIn prompted me to share my thoughts about it after logging in and seeing a barrage of posts bearing the hashtag. Recently, I have been heartened to see many in my professional network doing just that. I was tempted. + +So I thought about sharing a snappy version of my own story. And then I decided not to. + +On the one hand, persistent depressive disorder (PDD) — formerly known as dysthymia — could probably use a few advocates. A lot of people aren’t even aware that a milder more slow-burning form of depression even _exists_(assuming that mild doesn’t mean very life-altering would be a mistake. Its mature makes it somewhat chameleon-like; diagnostic delays are common). + +But then I reckoned that that story, and that awareness drive, can be better and more competently told by others. + +_(— But if you want the one (long) paragraph version of my mental healthcare story here it is: I first saw a psychiatrist a year ago for vague difficulties with focus and concentration that — because I had my gallbladder removed — I could no longer self-medicate with lots and lots of caffeine, which was what was “working” for me — mostly — up until that point. I spent the best part of a year on ADHD medication with partial success before finally conceding that while I was very productive I was becoming ever so slightly miserable and that my problems might have better been described all along as ‘low energy’ rather than ‘poor focus’ and that depression may have been the more significant diagnosis (note: ADHD and depression are extremely common comorbidities). I’m now taking a daily atypical antidepressant and feeling pretty good. The shorter version: I’m a professional writer who failed to find the right words to describe my own problems. But eventually got on track anyway.)_ + +The good news about mental healthcare in Israel is that it exists. + +The bad news is that, in my experience, isn’t not _quite as good_ as the rest of Israel’s healthcare system which, in my view, is overall, rather excellent. + +[**6 Great Things About Israel’s Healthcare System** + _Why Israel’s healthcare has a well-deserved reputation for excellence_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/6-great-things-about-israels-healthcare-system-b7db1a630d7e "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/6-great-things-about-israels-healthcare-system-b7db1a630d7e")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/6-great-things-about-israels-healthcare-system-b7db1a630d7e) + +There are two mainstays of modern mental healthcare. + +One is therapy — talk therapy actually involves many discrete modalities, although many practitioners favor a blend — and the other is psychiatry, which is the medical specialty that treats mental health disorders with medications. I have accessed both branches — and only in Israel. So let me share a few notes about my experience. + +But firstly here’s why this really matters: + +### Suicide Remains A Significant Problem Among Olim (Jewish Immigrants To Israel) + +While it saddens me to write this, the fact has to be stated upfront. + +It’s the ever-sobering reminder of why mental healthcare isn’t just a nice-to-have addendum to healthcare systems that treat the body. It’s vital. Life-saving. And it needs to be properly resourced. + +Suicide represents the worst case consequence for leaving mental health problems untreated or under-treated. Although a life of avoidable suffering is also a pretty bleak proposition that mental healthcare is well-equipped to mitigate if not entirely prevent. + +For Jewish immigrants to Israel (like me, I got here from Ireland) life can be very challenging. Many (like me!) don’t have family in the country. And the struggle of having to try to do everything from learn a language to get by (in an extremely expensive country) can, at times, seem overwhelming. These are all well-recognized risk factors for the development of mental health problems. + +Bear with me while I veer into the realm of opinion momentarily. + +I’ve also long believed that the macroeconomic situation here— [which has recently seen quite a bit of media attention](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/) — plays a causative role. In today’s Israel, it can be hard for young people to see any light (or savings) at the end of a grueling 45 hour workweek. + +Besides the financial hardships of life in Israel, other common stressors include the marginalization of immigrants — some of it self-imposed. And the common feeling of disappointment among _olim_ that their reality of life in the State of Israel faces to live up to either their own expectations or what they were told before coming here. + +Ultimately, these dynamics becomes demotivating and demoralizing. Many end up leaving as a result, a fact which receives precious little media coverage. Some develop mental health disorders along the way. Others arrive with them in tow. + +Either way, to give themselves the best chance of making a life in Israel, they need to get them treated. We should see providing quality mental healthcare to _olim_ — who have traditionally driven Israel’s economy — as in our shared interest. A no-brainer. An initiative likely to pay for itself many times over. + +[**Why So Many Young Israelis Are Feeling Bleak About Their Financial Futures — In Spite Of The…** + _The other, underdiscussed side of the Israeli “success” story: how a sky-high cost of living and never-ending real…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-so-many-young-israelis-are-feeling-bleak-about-their-financial-futures-in-spite-of-the-33641959863c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-so-many-young-israelis-are-feeling-bleak-about-their-financial-futures-in-spite-of-the-33641959863c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-so-many-young-israelis-are-feeling-bleak-about-their-financial-futures-in-spite-of-the-33641959863c) + +Where are we now with regard to _oleh_ mental healthcare? + +The longstanding statistic in Israel has been that one third of suicides are undertaken by olim hadashim. + +A Knesset committee was convened to discuss the matter. Two years after that report came out, Shoshi Eizenberg Hertz, director of the Suicide Prevention Unit at the Health Ministry, told the _Times of Israel_ that not enough was being done and grossly insufficient resources were being allocated to tackle the issue. The national Suicide Prevention Unit, according to that report, consisted of a mere four people. That sounds like a bad joke from an _Erets Nehederet_ sketch. + +One ,ore opinion: when Jews in the Diaspora look for Israel-related causes to give to, they often fund organizations engaged in fighting the online “war” for Israel’s legitimacy (_hasbara_ and the like). Here’s a much better use of those funds: fighting the “war” to keep _olim_ alive. Some of the organizations listed here receive tax-deductible donations. + +In the wake of this bureaucratic shortsightedness, which is rather typical of official Israel’s tendency to not back its warm feelings about _aliyah_ with action and investment that actually encourages _olim_ to stay, other non-governmental organizations have stepped in to try to plug the gaps. + +[**Knesset committee discusses high olim suicide rate** + _The Knesset Immigration and Absorption committee discussed on Tuesday how to battle the high rate of suicide among…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/knesset-committee-discusses-high-olim-suicide-rate-514826 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/knesset-committee-discusses-high-olim-suicide-rate-514826")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/knesset-committee-discusses-high-olim-suicide-rate-514826) + +[**2 years after dire report, immigrants at risk for suicide not getting enough aid** + _Nearly two years after a Health Ministry report concluded that one-third of suicides in Israel are immigrants…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/2-years-after-dire-report-immigrants-at-risk-for-suicide-not-getting-enough-aid/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/2-years-after-dire-report-immigrants-at-risk-for-suicide-not-getting-enough-aid/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/2-years-after-dire-report-immigrants-at-risk-for-suicide-not-getting-enough-aid/) + +This situation is tragic. + +Particularly given the fact that, almost above everything else, Judaism cherishes life. Its prohibition against suicide is unambiguous. The fact that so many immigrants reach the point of contemplating it — and going beyond ideation — is simply awful. + +As I wrote earlier today, Aliyah Day is coming up in a few days. + +Politicians will likely abuse the opportunity to engage in an orgy of self-congratulatory rhetoric bereft of much deeper thinking than affirmations that the State of Israel will continue tos support aliyah. + +A much worthier though more somber use of the occasion would be to evaluate the arrivals in light of the departures. To look at what the State of Israel can do to _keep_ olim — and to keep them mentally well. To improve the mental health resources that so many still find lacking. + +[**Aliyah numbers are meaningless without also talking about olim retention and yeridah** + _To be useful and honest, Israel’s aliyah numbers have to be understood in the context of the much underdiscussed…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah-3c76fb9ae44b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah-3c76fb9ae44b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/aliyah-numbers-are-meaningless-without-also-talking-about-olim-retention-and-yeridah-3c76fb9ae44b) + +But if you need to access these resources, these are some of the options that are out there. + +I’m referring, specifically, to accessing these resources through English. + +Because as the saying commonly goes, there are a few things in Israel that you don’t want to risk misunderstandings over. Seeing your doctor. And seeing your lawyer. I think that seeing your therapist is an important add-on to that list. + +### Accessing Therapy Via Your Health Maintenance Organization / HMO / Kupat Holim + +When I first decided that seeing a therapist might be a good idea (and it was; in fact, it was probably one of the best decisions I ever took) I reached out to my family doctor. Almost since I arrived, I’ve been with the Maccabi health fund. + +With my _kupa_ , in general, the procedure for seeing medical specialists is seamless. If you need to see, say, an ENT you receive your _hafnaya_(referral) and can book online from your computer. + +To see a psychotherapist, my doctor handed me a two page photocopy of names and numbers that looked like it had been last updated around the time the fax machine was invented. Which, in Israel, I can only imagine was a very significant moment. + +The process of actually booking my first appointment wasn’t much better. I tried and tried and had limited success in finding somebody willing to see me, who indeed took the kupa’s insurance, and who also spoke English. It struck me as ironic that seeing a therapist — which you tend to do when you’re not at your mental peak — was inordinately more difficult than booking an appointment with a family doctor. + +[**Therapy Through the Kupat Cholim** + _As of July 2015, the responsibility for providing mental health services to the public was transferred from the…_ shirapranskyproject.org](https://shirapranskyproject.org/therapy-through-the-kupat-cholim/ "https://shirapranskyproject.org/therapy-through-the-kupat-cholim/")[](https://shirapranskyproject.org/therapy-through-the-kupat-cholim/) + +[**Home - Get Help Israel** + _Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna…_ gethelpisrael.com](https://gethelpisrael.com/ "https://gethelpisrael.com/")[](https://gethelpisrael.com/) + +After trying in vain, I chanced upon two resources: + + * A friend who referred me to a private psychotherapist who turned out to be one of the most talented and caring professionals I have ever encountered (what can I say, sometimes you luck out in life) + * Get Help Israel which collates a list of English-speaking resources + +A couple of friends who worked tangentially to the mental healthcare system provided me with a couple more ideas. I found those leads hard to follow and several organizations simply didn’t respond to my messages. Overall, it wasn’t an encouraging process and it was rather starkly different to the ease with which you can access physical healthcare in Israel. + +Unfortunately, this meant paying for therapy out of pocket, which eventually became a financial strain that I had to take a break from. Nevertheless, help is out there and I was lucky enough to get some great support for a decent period of time. + +There are wide-reaching mental healthcare networks in Israel consisting of both native Israel-born and fellow expat practitioners. Unfortunately, you may have a much harder time finding easily accessible resources that you won’t have to pay for fully out of pocket. + +The Shira Pransky Project is a resource that helps English speakers to navigate the healthcare system in Israel. They run a popular Facebook group also. Both are worth checking out. + +[**The Shira Pransky Project** + _Note: For authoritative information that you can research yourself, please see our All Rights Index. For crowdsourced…_ shirapranskyproject.org](https://shirapranskyproject.org/guidance/#gsc.tab=0 "https://shirapranskyproject.org/guidance/#gsc.tab=0")[](https://shirapranskyproject.org/guidance/#gsc.tab=0) + +### Accessing Psychiatric Care Through Your Kupa + +Firstly, I should state that if you’re just suffering from a common mood disorder like depression or anxiety, there’s a good chance that you don’t _need_ to access an outpatient psychiatric service. + +Your family doctor likely sees these conditions every day. Medications are commonplace, effective, and cheap. My family doc was more than willing to handle management of the case. (Side note: I believe that those who have never accessed mental healthcare before have a tendency to believe that whatever they are struggling with is going to be an impossible diagnostic challenge for doctors a-la-Doctor House. In all likelihood, you’re not that special..) + +I saw a psychiatrist for two reasons in spite of this being my situation: + +a) I’m neurotic and I thought that accessing all doctors in Israel was straightforward and easy so why not? Surely a psychiatrist could do a better job than a doctor at managing these conditions? (It took me roughly three years from when I was first prescribed a low dose of an SSRI to actually take the first tablet. I remained, and to an extent still am, irrationally terrified of any medication that has the capacity to alter the brain!) In retrospect this was pretty bad and selfish thinking: if you’re confident in your family doctor’s abilities, there’s no need to overburden the case load of psychiatrists even further. + +b) I later had to see one because I needed to combine a low dose psychiatric med used in gastroenterology with the aforementioned SSRI. My family doc was edgy about the combination so sent me to a psychiatrist who green lighted it without thinking twice. If there isn’t some kind of network for different specialties to ask one another questions — like for family doctors to ask psychiatrists about drug combinations — there should probably be one. It makes little logical sense for patients to have to be the go-betweens. + +By contrast to the struggle of booking a psychotherapist, finding a psychiatrist was pretty straightforward. + +With Maccabi, as medical doctors, they work “within” the system. It wasn’t any different than seeing an ENT and — despite my fear, which was also irrational — seeing one wasn’t any scarier either. Same deal as seeing any other doctor essentially. + +The downside of seeing a public psychiatrist is that … there aren’t that many of them. The need for psychiatry, especially now during the pandemic, is massive. The result is long waiting times. + +A second downside is that, because you’re working in the public system, the appointments tend to feel rushed. The crux of my mental health journey so far has been trying to unpack the chicken and egg situation of whether my ADHD causes depression, my depression causes my ADHD, or they both kind of sit there together independent of one another. + +This is a pretty routine case for psychiatrists to figure out (I’ve learned with some disappointment that I’m not Dr House material and am unlikely to feature as a case study in some psychiatric journal). But it has required some time, patience, form-filling, and subjecting myself to the guinea pig like experience of trying out different medications. Getting what felt like adequate attention within the confines of a five minute public psychiatry appointment felt impossible. + +If I had any reason to see an ENT, I could book an appointment in about 3 days. The next slot the Macabbi psychiatrist I saw has available (I checked just for this article!) is sometime next January. That would necessitate a three month wait. + +Ultimately, I decided to fork out for a private psychiatrist too. With the intention of jumping the queue and then moving back into the public system (my motivation wasn’t really that selfish; I recognized that I was depressed and didn’t want to wait 3 months to start a medication.) + +This was wallet-hurting. To the tune of roughly 1,000 NIS ($309) and 600 NIS ($185) for follow-up appointments. To American readers, these sums of money might seem trivial. To those earning Israeli salaries they are not. When you compound the cost of private psychiatry appointments with private therapy, the burn rate really starts to accumulate. Ultimately I chose to focus on advancing in one “area” at a time. + +The above is intended to paint a partial picture of what my own journey through the mental healthcare system in Israel has looked like to help others get a feel for what resources look like on the ground right now. + +As tough as the struggle has been at times, and despite the fact that my case may have a couple of unique facets to it (fitting in the gastro med has been a particular challenge), it probably fits on the lower end of the scale in terms of severity when it comes to mental health conditions. + +I’ve never been psychotic nor experienced mania. I’ve never had to seek emergency care for my issues or been committed to a hospital because of them. I’ve never been housebound with agoraphobia or avoided a social gathering because I’ve been too stricken with anxiety. And I’ve thankfully never gotten close to the point at which — G-d forbid–I would consider taking my own life. Even though it took a while to get here, my treatment right now consists of taking a modest dose of an antidepressant and trying to eat well and exercise. I pay in the region of $15 per month to receive Wellbutrin. + +Nevertheless, it’s scary to think how far I could have fallen had none of those factors been the case. + +If I didn’t have savings to foot the bill of private psychiatric care and therapy when I determined that I needed them. And I hadn’t been able to jump the queue to receive timely treatment. + +There are some redeeming factors that make routine psychiatric care in Israel better than the above picture probably makes out. + +For one, medication is generally cheap (see: the price of Wellbutrin. Zoloft, if I recall accurately, was even cheaper). + +If all you need is a family doctor to manage your condition — and that’s an awful lot of people — the diagnostic and treatment pathways are both short. + +But it would be foolish to pretend that we don’t have a long way to before our healthcare system delivers the kind of mental healthcare model that other developed nations excel in delivering. Or the kind of mental healthcare system that both older immigrants and newcomers deserve. + +_(Note: I am not a doctor. None of the foregoing should be construed as offering medical advice. Please seek treatment from your family doctor for any mental health issues you may be experiencing)._ + +### Mental Healthcare Resources For English Speakers In Israel + +[**Home - Get Help Israel** + _Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna…_ gethelpisrael.com](https://gethelpisrael.com/ "https://gethelpisrael.com/")[](https://gethelpisrael.com/) + +[**ERAN - Emotional First Aid by Telephone & Internet** + _Previous Next How can we help? Call Us Call 1201 Chat Online Chat Eran's Forum Forum Help By Mail Mail Help By SMS SMS…_ en.eran.org.il](https://en.eran.org.il/ "https://en.eran.org.il/")[](https://en.eran.org.il/) + +[**The Shira Pransky Project** + _Note: For authoritative information that you can research yourself, please see our All Rights Index. For crowdsourced…_ shirapranskyproject.org](https://shirapranskyproject.org/guidance/#gsc.tab=0 "https://shirapranskyproject.org/guidance/#gsc.tab=0")[](https://shirapranskyproject.org/guidance/#gsc.tab=0) diff --git a/posts/medium/What-is-thought-leadership-.md b/posts/medium/What-is-thought-leadership-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7cb1e3e8affe7d47065e67993a5186e78da483e0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-is-thought-leadership-.md @@ -0,0 +1,104 @@ +# What is thought leadership? + +#### And How Is It Different To Content Marketing and PR? + +**Has the idea of a formalized thought leadership program be floated within your organization?** + +Perhaps you’re a solo entrepreneur and are thinking about using thought leadership to develop authority in your niche. You’re excited about what you think it might be able to achieve or have heard that it ‘works’ from others but don’t understand exactly what it is. + +Or maybe you just want to get various ‘thought’ pieces out before a major initiative, such as a book launch, rolls around? + +Maybe, on the other hand, you’re more reluctant — skeptical even about what the ROI from such an activity might be. You might think that thought leadership is a vacuous buzzword and wonder whether (or how) it really differs from content marketing, public relations, and the other forms of marketing that seem to be in vogue these days. Or perhaps your reluctance stems from the fact that a colleague has seen a competitor of yours leveraging the power of this form of marketing to good effect on LinkedIn and Medium. And you’ve been cajoled into returning ball as the spokesperson for your organization. + +Regardless of whether your bias towards thought leadership skews positive or negative it’s definitely understanding what, exactly, it is in order to make an informed decision as to whether it might benefit you or your organization. + +In this introductory post, I’ll explain a little bit about what ‘thought leadership’ entails; what it generally does _not_ involve; and what it could realize for you or your organization in terms of solid ROI. + +Let’s take a look. + +### What Thought Leadership Is + +#### 1\. Thought Leadership is a Marketing Activity + +If you’re reading this, then I’m guessing that you’re interested in thought leadership because you think that it might _‘do’_ something for yourself or your organization. Even if what exactly that _‘doing’_ is remains somewhat nebulous in your mind you probably still hope that, ultimately, its idea is to realize some concrete benefit for your business — such as more sales and higher revenue. If so, your operating assumption is correct. And if you didn’t think this way, then I hope that this comes as good news. + +**As the name implies, thought leadership markets your thinking.** And more specifically it tries to market some kind of thinking that you are doing that tends to be at the forefront of the debates happening in your industry. + +However, with thought leadership, simply highlighting your thoughts about a key industry issue — like where automation is going to lead omnichannel ecommerce — is never the objective in itself. Ultimately the intended purpose of you leveraging your ability to demonstrate this thought leadership is to realize wins for yourself or your organization (even if, as we will see, that process might look a little more slanted compared to alternative tools in the marketing stack.) + +Potential thought leaders are often extremely talented and focused on their area of professional interest. But, whether they are leveraged as the attributed thought leaders themselves or as the subject matter experts in a collaborative writing effort, it’s important to understand that their thinking is not being disseminated altruistically: neither for the benefit of mankind nor certainly for those in your industry who might come across your thought leadership in trade media publications that you both subscribe to. This does not mean that what you’re trying to do or say in your thought leadership campaign is necessarily vapid. Your thinking and what your company does might (hopefully!) indeed be truly revolutionary and it might be so far-reaching that it would be fair to say that it will change our world for the better. It’s just that, ultimately, thought leadership is a marketing activity that tries to directly capitalize on the breadth of your expertise, or what’s particularly interesting and insightful about your opinion(s), in order to realize competitive advantages. + +### The Importance of Messaging and Perception to Thought Leadership Success + +Compare this with some other forms of writing that might entail demonstrating your expertise on a subject: like contributing a scientific article to a peer reviewed journal. Whenever we’re writing thought leadership for a mass-market audience, by contrast, we’re also heavily concerned with managing two things: the _messaging_ that runs through your communications and your _positioning_ around key issues and in the competitive landscape within which you operate. + +By the latter it’s meant, broadly, where you stand amongst your industry peers who might also have something interesting to say about the topic at hand. What messages do you convey in this authorship and what kind of territory does that mean you are staking out in a fast-evolving and high-stakes industry debate? There are many questions that it makes sense to ask before putting pen to paper (to write a thought leadership strategy document that it!). But one in particular is likely to loom front and center: + +**After reading the thought leadership you put out how are you likely to be perceived by your audience?** + +Will you convince them that you’re an expert? + +Or more presciently: Will you convince that you’re an expert convincingly enough that they will be moved to invite you to speak at a key industry conference which will be attended by high value leads? + +If that thought leadership translates to that industry invite the positive benefits downstream can be substantial. + +Beyond the intangible reputational gain (thought leadership tends to self-perpetuate) will those conversations you strike up with prospects at the conference translate to real (tangible) business opportunity? + +These are the types of achievements that thought leadership sets out to achieve. + +### What Thought Leadership Is Not + +#### 1\. Thought Leadership Is Not Content Marketing + +You’ve probably also heard about content marketing. It fits broadly within the picture of inbound marketing (efforts which are intended to attract your target audience _to_ you). + +**What’s so different about thought leadership that makes it worthy of being called something else, you might be wondering?** + +Let’s come back to the previous point about thought leadership. About how it entails marketing one’s _expertise_ , viewpoints, or both. And how, more concretely, it might involve leveraging one’s interesting position on a key industry debate in order to realize business opportunities. + +### Selling Expertise vs. Value + +This is typically not the mechanism at work with content marketing. + +Content marketing, by contrast, is concerned more with providing _valu_ e to readers as a means of marketing to them and thereby ultimately increasing sales. Make no mistake: content marketing (like thought leadership) can be a highly effective enterprise when done well. But its focus is largely educational. By providing useful information to readers one hopes to develop a sort of symbiotic relationship with them. Readers derive value from the content marketing resources you produce. And authors assert themselves as a trustworthy source in the minds of buyers who will develop trust in them and ultimately become far likelier to buy from them when the right moment arises. Content marketing these days is also heavily intertwined with SEO — and for very good reason. In order to forge connections with the right prospective audience, one has to be talking about subjects — and hitting on keywords — that they are actively searching for. Otherwise the messaging, and all that value-buildling, will be ineffective. + +There are a few points of contrast between content marketing and thought leadership that I hope are evident from the ground covered here: + + * **With thought leadership the ‘products’ leveraged to achieve a positive campaign ROI are one’s expertise and viewpoint on an issue.** And the more compelling and disruptive those are the more effective it can be as a tactic. + * **With content marketing the main product leveraged is the education and the amount of sustained value that the author can provide to the reader.** The effect might be arguably more direct than thought leadership. But in big ticket (and long) B2B sales cycles, establishing expertise might prove to be a more appropriate prerequisite to developing a relationship than attempting to facilitate an ‘educational’ buyer journey which might prove completely unnecessary or even counterproductive (sophisticated buyers likely already understand plenty about the nuts and bolts of your industry.) + +### 2\. Thought Leadership Is Not PR + +Compared to content marketing, thought leadership fits much more tidily within a public relations (PR) strategy — even if they are not one and the same. + +Public relations is concerned with managing one’s relationship with the public — or improving the image of the business in their minds (“public perception”). PR also fits within the wider marketing jigsaw. But its goal of facilitating a more conducive sales environment for the business is much broader than thought leadership. + +Nevertheless there is substantial overlap between public relations and thought leadership. + + * **For one, both are concerned with managing — and heightening — brand reputation and awareness.** + * **For thought leadership the aspect to focus on might be one’s general level of expertise about an industry or one’s viewpoint on a specific issue (or a set of them)**. For PR those same top-level objectives might be hit upon (making a favorable impression on one’s industry and prospects). But the focus, again, would likely be broader in remit. Whereas a PR campaign might break down messaging objectives by geography or groups of stakeholder, a thought leadership campaign might focus more on issues and viewpoints and the type of resonance they might have within a narrow and more specialized audience. + +A lot of PR activities support thought leadership. And thought leadership is an important element in many PR campaigns. But the two are not exactly the same thing. + +### But Does Thought Leadership Work? + +Several months ago, [I summarized the findings from Edelman and LinkedIn’s latest B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study](https://dsrghostwriting.com/theblog/edelmans-2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study-key-findings/). Its findings provide a relevant and up-to-date answer to the important question of whether thought leadership ‘works’. + +In very broad brushstrokes: + + * **The vast majority (88%) of B2B buyers — those that thought leadership is often targeted at — assert that it can “work”** (by heightening perception of the author or directly leading to sales opportunities). However, as in previous years, most said that they are disappointed by the caliber of thought leadership they receive. + * **48% of respondents said that effective thought leadership could lead to decisive business gains** such as inclusion in RFP opportunities. 38% said that it had realized a softer gain by increasing their perception or “admiration” for the producer. + * **Thought leadership is a slowly-building ecosystem internally.** Those that had devoted more than five years to it displayed the greatest levels of internal satisfaction with the activity. + +An even more abridged summary could be: Thought leadership can be effective if done right (resulting in both hard and soft gains.) If executed badly, however, it can damage credibility. And the more time an organization devotes to it the more enjoyable the process becomes. + +### What Thought Leadership Is And Is Not + + * **Thought leadership leverages one’s expertise on a subject or viewpoint on an issue(s) to create secondary opportunity** that is ultimately expected to translate into tangible business gains. It is a marketing tactic. + * **Unlike content marketing, thought leadership works by impressing the author’s expertise and relevance upon an audience** or arousing their interest in his or her viewpoint (and potentially the organization that stands in the background). It is not necessarily about providing value through education. + * **Thought leadership is often an important constituent of PR campaigns** (although the two are not the same thing.) + * **Thought leadership can positively influence both hard and soft business metrics.** Although its success is heavily dependent upon how well it is done. It is a double edged sword. + +_DSR Ghostwriting specializes in providing long form thought leadership writing services (including speeches, articles, white papers, and e-books) to B2B technology and public affairs clients. To learn more, visit_[ _www.dsrghostwriting.com._](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com.) + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/What-s-A-Normal-Lead-Time-For-Freelance-Writing-Projects-.md b/posts/medium/What-s-A-Normal-Lead-Time-For-Freelance-Writing-Projects-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e9d5c6ebda448b293e7e66eefd1e0c3922b1c0e1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-s-A-Normal-Lead-Time-For-Freelance-Writing-Projects-.md @@ -0,0 +1,61 @@ +# What’s A Normal Lead Time For Freelance Writing Projects? + +Freelance writing project lead times can vary depending upon several factors + +One of the first things that many prospective clients want to know is what the average lead time for a piece of writing is? + +**In other words, how long**[**after submitting a brief**](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/how-to-brief-a-freelance-writer/)**can clients expect to have a first draft back.** + +The only true answer is _it depends_. + +The short and sweet answer is this: + +For [articles](https://dsrghostwriting.com/services/writing/thoughtleadershiparticles/) and [blogs](https://dsrghostwriting.com/services/writing/blogs/),**I advise clients to factor in a lead time of between three and six business days _per draft_. **For other, longer, projects — it really depends upon the project and the milestones that have been agreed. + +Now, here are the factors that the exact answer depends upon. + +### New. vs Existing Clients + +**Writing for a new client tends to take a lot longer, initially, than writing for an existing client.** + +Why is this? + +For one, every client has slightly different needs and expectations when it comes to the writing they wish to have produced. + +Every client also has a different competitor landscape with different voices dominating the leading conversations taking place in it. Almost all clients do something that is at least somewhat unique. + +The onboarding process for a new client relationship can also slow down the production of deliverables, at least at the beginning. There might be NDAs to be signed off on, internal style guides to be reviewed, and initial background reading material to be sifted through. + +For this reason, I tend to give more conservative turnaround estimates for clients I have just started working with — unless what they’re asking for is something that I am already extremely familiar with. + +### Desk Research Required + +Additionally, many clients ask that writers undertake desk research, or background reading, in order to undertake their projects. Typically, I will build these into a quote. But they still, of course, take time. + +Clients might ask me to: + + * **Watch a recording of a webinar** and extract the key insights + * **Read a detailed Gartner research note i** n order to get up to speed on an industry topic + * **View the playback from a conference panel** and expand upon a CxO’s talking points + +The more desk research and/or background reading is required, the longer the lead time will be for a project. + +### Current Client Load + +My client load fluctuates from week to week and month. My lead times varies according to the work that I am currently undertaking. + +I also give priority to clients that are on fixed contracts or who provide recurring work versus those who are looking for once-off or _ad hoc_ projects. + +### Can You Get This To Us Tomorrow? + +In general, I “plan” my week’s writing, by committing to projects, one to two weeks in advance. + +For this reason, I’m not typically able to facilitate rush jobs, “we need this tomorrow” requests, or fast turnaround projects. + +### Should We Agree On Deadline? + +When preparing a [brief](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/how-to-brief-a-freelance-writer/), I ask that clients coordinate a deadline with me while also stating their preferred turnaround date so that I can do my best to meet or exceed it. + +If we’re already working together, and we’ve spoken about and agreed upon a turnaround time, then — excepting upcoming holidays — it’s safe to assume that I’ll be able to delivery according to my usual timeframe. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/What-s-The-Cheapest-Property-To-Buy-in-Israel--We-Did-The-Research.md b/posts/medium/What-s-The-Cheapest-Property-To-Buy-in-Israel--We-Did-The-Research.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..76bcd0c764a96771511413dbaa0ef68d3fd3e479 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-s-The-Cheapest-Property-To-Buy-in-Israel--We-Did-The-Research.md @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +# What’s The Cheapest Property To Buy in Israel? We Did The Research + +It’s easy to despair about the prospect of ever being able to buy property in Israel. + +Officially the [second most expensive country](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-listed-as-one-of-the-most-expensive-countries-to-buy-a-home-in-649970) in the world to buy a home in, _olim_ and native-born Israelis alike need to shell out millions of shekels just to get their hands on an apartment in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. + +Feeling blue about the prospect of a lifetime of renting? The good news (right in time for Purim!) is that there’s no need to be. + +Read on to find out how (little) you can buy property for. If you’re … flexible. + +### How To Find The Cheapest Property in Israel. + +To find out how little money one can buy property for in Israel, we consulted Yad2 — Israel’s national second hand and real estate website (because everything in Israel is mulifunctional!). + +Screenshots were taken today, Adar 10th. And no, we won’t tell you what that date is in the Gregorian calendar. + +To save on time, we limited the search to properties that matched the דירה criterion in the landing page for דירות למכירה. + +We set the minimum price to 1 NIS — because otherwise the search results dredge up an awful lot of listings with no price tags. + +We decided that _mazgan_(air conditioning) was essential but everything else was not. Come on — we’re not looking to buy the Ritz! + +After setting things up so — and enforcing no geographical limit (thus effectively searching for property throughout the country) — we filtered results from cheap to expensive. We skipped over the various listings that were placed there by agents. + +### 300K NIS And Above + +The good news (at the time of writing) is that if you have 300K NIS sitting in your bank account — or rather enough money to meet a downpayment on that — then you can get on the property ladder on Israel. A rich relative willing to wire you the cash works too. + +The catch is that you might need to use some creative license about what you consider to be ‘property,’ although the listings that we encountered today at that price bracket appeared quite decent. If you don’t agree, then we suggest repeating this experiment over Purim when you’re in a more well-disposed state of mind. Legend has it that in such a condition even a 20 square meter Nachlaot studio takes on the appearance of a mansion. + +But enough talk. What does that money buy you, exactly? + +[Here’s one listing in Haifa ](https://www.yad2.co.il/s/c/2grjq0r5)that we found for 300K NIS. + +It’s 64 square meters and on the third floor. But it has a roof. And it has walls. + +Anybody that runs this experiment will be quickly struck by how much property there is to be found at this price bracket in **Dimona** of all places. + +Want to find yourself some affordable property in Israel? **Dimona** is possibly your best bet. A nearby nuclear deterrent that may or may not exist is even included in the price. Although not the most conventional _aliyah_ destination, this southern time is located within easy commuting distance of Be’er Sheva. The town’s energetic mayor has won plaudits from local residents. And the word on the street* is that the town is attracting new energetic immigrants. (*Any references to words on the street should be understood as ‘the word from Facebook groups’). + +For 325K NIS, for instance, you can snap up this property on HaNitsahon Street. At 66 square meters, there’s ample room here for a small family. + +OK, enough with the sales pitch. Here are the pics. + +### Cheapish Property Exists in Israel + +The happy outcome of this experiment is that After Aliyah can confirm, with the help of Yad2, that one can find property in Israel for a fraction less than one third of a million shekels. At today’s USD exchange rate, that’s about $92K USD. Repeat this experiment whenever you hear somebody tell you that “you can’t buy property in Israel for less than a million shekels.” Or send them here. + +The bad news is that it’s possibly pretty much impossible to find anything for less. + +Dimona, for whatever reason, currently tops the chart as the cheap starter home capital of Israel. And if somebody from Dimona wants to sell _olim_ on this relatively obscure desert town, [we’re all ears.](https://www.afteraliyah.com/contact/) + +**Want to see the listings for yourself?**[**Click here to see the results.**](https://www.yad2.co.il/realestate/forsale?property=1&price=1--1&airConditioner=1&Order=3) + +**Looking to find other English speakers looking to form a mass wave of internal _aliyah_ to Dimona? **[**Join the Facebook group ‘Olim L’Dimona’**](https://www.facebook.com/groups/olimledimona) diff --git a/posts/medium/What-s-The-Worst-That-Could-Happen-If-You-Got-Locked-Out-Of-Your-Google-Account-.md b/posts/medium/What-s-The-Worst-That-Could-Happen-If-You-Got-Locked-Out-Of-Your-Google-Account-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..537753bb4f76e07b0a775be04363850c9bc6ea9b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-s-The-Worst-That-Could-Happen-If-You-Got-Locked-Out-Of-Your-Google-Account-.md @@ -0,0 +1,107 @@ +# What’s The Worst That Could Happen If You Got Locked Out Of Your Google Account? + +#### Relying on the cloud for everything seems great. Until it unexpectedly turns on you and you can’t legally leave your home. + +Recently, I returned from a two week trip to the US. + +As after every trip, there was a lot to get to. Three suitcases to unpack. A slew of business meetings to prepare for. Oh, and I couldn’t access my Google account. + +Apparently accessing my email from a few different cities in the United States was enough to convince the algorithm overlords at Google that I was some kind of malicious fraudster out to … random myself for Bitcoin (or whatever else random fraudsters get up to online these days). + +Knowing my password, having valid 2FA codes, and being able to know and access my backup email and phone wasn’t enough for Google. + +Trying to log into any Google services was met by the same frustrating dialog affirming that “Your sign-in settings don’t meet your organisation’s 2-Step Verification policy. Contact your admin for more info.” (Unfortunately I _am_ the admin on my Google account). + +I’ve encountered various kinds of security challenges before. The type where you have to remember what your first childhood pet was to answer some question you configured years ago. Or go into another email account and click a link. + +But this was in its own category. + +As the system provided no means to actually … prove my own identity … I found myself at the mercy of Google’s nebulous “account recovery team” having to prove to Jorge II and his faceless colleagues at a massive tech corporation that couldn’t care less about me that I was simply some guy trying to access his email. + +Here are some consequences that I didn’t expect. + +### You Could Get Stuck in Quarantine … Indefinitely!? + +There’s nothing quite like realizing that you may be stuck in quarantine to realize that you’ve truly entered the twilight zone of the tech era. + +You see, Israel currently requires that those returning to the country receive a PCR test at the airport to verify that they’re either COVID-free or that — if they have COVID — they’ll have to wait at home until a self-isolation period is over. + +Hefty fines and oversight from law enforcement ensure that that process is well-enforced and backed up by some pretty serious threats. + +But where do you think those test results go? In my case, the answer was email. The same email inbox that I was unable to access. + +Jorge II and Roxana Mae and Nhel really didn’t seem to understand or care that I was essentially stuck at home and unable to know if I could legally head down the road to pick up water or food because some system their company operated–which gave me no opportunity to prove my own identity, at least in an expeditious manner — was locking me out of my digital life. Or if they did, they did a great job at hiding their alarm. + +Roxanne Mae was adamant that she would “expedite the request.” 18 hours later and I’m still waiting. + +### Say Goodbye To Your Holiday Photos + +Typically I try to add a few photos to liven up my Medium posts. + +This would have been a great place to add a picture or two from my time in the US. + +Digital prison: where my photos currently reside. Source: Fliclr + +There’s only one problem. + +I’ve already uploaded all the photos from my phone to my Google Photos account and deleted the local copies to free up storage space. + +That picture from drinks in New York? It’s somewhere in Google. + +The one I took at the airport? I guess it must be there too. + +### You Can’t Access Medium. Or Any System That Relies Upon Email Based 2FA (Like Potentially Your Health Records…) + +The problem with being unable to access your email in this day and age is that an enormous amount of technology companies use two factor authentication (2FA) that sends a one time password (OTP) to your email address in order to prove your identity. + +In fact, Medium uses such a system. The only reason I’m able to write this post is that I’m still logged in through a browser cache. + +And here’s where things get more complicated. Email-based OTP is also used by: + + * My health fund which contains my typical means for receiving crucial health information and ordering doctors’ appointments + * LinkedIn and many other social networks that I use for professional purposes on a daily basis + * My insurance company + +The only way to resolve these issues would be to manually change DNS records to loop emails past Google temporarily. Does your typical Google user know how to do that? Why should this be the only fix? + +### You’ll Have Fun Guessing Your Daily Itinerary And Hopefully Not Missing Appointments (Or Flights Or … Any Calendar Entries) + +Thankfully, I have one device in my possession that Google hasn’t fully denied access to. + +This shows me the Google Calendar appointments that I need to attend today in order to not miss meetings. Missing those meetings might result in lost business opportunities or result in some clients being very annoyed with me. + +The only means at my disposal for accessing my email currently — and attending those meetings — is to manually forward individual calendar entries from my locked-out email and onto another email address that I operate. + +One by one. + +Of course, those Zoom meetings could just as well be flights or doctors’ appointments. + +### Want To Manage Your YouTube Channel? Sorry, That’s A Google Service Too! + +Recently, I got into YouTube-ing. + +It’s a great platform for sharing video content you create and for watching what other creators have put up there. + +Like most YouTubers I receive a few comments here and there. + +I’d love to be able to respond to some. + +Unfortunately YouTube is owned by Google. + +Which means that if you loose access to your account and don’t have additional Managers working on your channel … you’re going to be officially SOL. + +Google and Google Workspaces / Gsuite provides a system for keeping your digital life together bundling key services like email, calendar, and a bunch of nice-to-have add-ons in one convenient and affordable platform. + +Unfortunately by aggregating a lot of essential services together in one place it also creates one serious point of failure that can break whenever Google’s proactive security services mistake your travelling account access history for the footprints left by a fraudster. + +The ideal solution to this quandary would be extremely reliable and quick support from Google’s end. Unfortunately that’s a situation that’s currently much more dream than reality. + +Because you know what? Like Jorge II and Roxanne Mae, Google appears to not really care about the fact that you can’t leave your home or access your medical records. You’re one of hundreds of millions. They’ve all got bigger fish to fry. + +If you get caught up in Google’s dragnet through no fault of your own, then you should know that — at least at the time I’m writing this post — you can loose access to key online services at a moment’s notice. + +And when you do, you’ll have to hope that Jorge II or Roxanne Mae or the “account recovery team” can “expedite” your request or understand that you’re really stuck at home because you can’t see if you can legally leave it yet. + +This is a reality that is probably best avoided. + +Don’t entrust your key online data to a service provider unless you’re totally sure that they can be relied upon in the event that something goes wrong. It’s nice to be able to legally leave your home.Even if Google doesn’t always understand that. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-s-it-really-like-to-live-in-Israel--you-ask-.md b/posts/medium/What-s-it-really-like-to-live-in-Israel--you-ask-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..79d9c721183617a12c2e2977c9e0fb51c2609e48 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-s-it-really-like-to-live-in-Israel--you-ask-.md @@ -0,0 +1,143 @@ +# What’s it really like to live in Israel, you ask? + +The Little Western Wall in Jerusalem — one of the lesser known but highly significant religious sites in the Old City, a visible reminder of Jews’ ancient historical connection to this land. Photo: author. + +What’s it really like to live in Israel — you ask? + +Well, you didn’t. + +Although I do seem to get asked this question — or why I moved here — roughly once a week lately. + +It’s also pouring rain and that means Israel comes to a sort of standstill so … I figured I’d let you know. Like most of the country, I imagine, my Sunday is off to a slow start (and yes, Israel’s on a Sunday to Thursday workweek). + +Living in Israel is — first and foremost — a big fat bundle of contradictions. + +I live here because I’m Jewish — and only for that reason. I’ve written at length about that subject before. + +I was born _far far away_ in Ireland although most fellow immigrants — and Israelis — assume that I’m an American. That’s the default assumption for any English speaker here, by the way. It’s what people are familiar with. + +If it weren’t for my religion and the pull I feel towards living here because of that I would probably have zero interest in relocating to the Middle East. That’s not me being negative about Israel. It’s just me being honest. + +Now for some terminology: + +In the Jewish world, this insane process of uprooting yourself from peaceful plains to the war-torn Middle East is called _aliyah_. + +It’s called that because _aliyah_ means ‘ascension’ and we — Jews — believe that moving to Israel represents a spiritual ascension of sorts. + +From the four corners of the earth to the land from which our faith and tradition originated. + +You can take whatever stand you like about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but most non-conspiracy-theorists will at least respect our origin story and the impetus that drives our migration here. + +The religious fundamentalists who make this transition — in other words folks like me — are called _olim_ or _oleh_(male) and _olah_(female) in the singulars. + +We’ve been arriving in waves since — actually before — the foundation of the state. That’s about all the Hebrew terminology you need to follow the basics of this story. + +My decision to live in Israel, therefore, isn’t predicated on logic. That’s very important to understand as otherwise — from a non-Jewish perspective — the decision of many Diaspora-born Jews to live here appears to defy good reason. + +Why not live in Spain or the US or Canada? It _does_ defy logic. At least of a certain secular kind. + +So I can put it like this: + +Living in Israel has some strengths and some minuses but those are overrided — for me — by the knowledge that I’m participating in something much larger than myself; namely, the process of homecoming of the Jewish people, something with few, if any, historical parallels. + +It’s also the only country on earth in which I don’t have to be an ethnic minority. There are major pluses to being part of the consensus too. Diasporan Jews are accustomed to living as small minorities — though few as small as Irish Jews. It’s a process that takes some getting used to. + +Now onto practicalities. + +A couple of years ago, I wrote a (prodigiously) long post comparing living in Israel and Ireland. It’s somewhere here on Medium. But I’ll spare you the somewhat inane comparisons of climatic factors. + +In some respects, Israel is a truly exceptional place to live. + +In others, it’s a pretty mediocre or even lousy one. + +And here’s a reality that pains me. + +By simply affirming that, many will judge me anti-Israel. + +Others will say I’m being overly praiseful. + +If you want to get used to ticking people off — a worthwhile habit to get into for creatives — write any assemblage of words on the topic of Israel. + +Trust me: if you do that, you’ll find that it’s _impossible_ not to cause offence. Israel’s supporters and detractors tend to both see things through a uniquely black and white lens. After a while, that prism gets exhausting. + +But let’s start with the good. And leave the Jewish stuff to one side because I’ve already explained that pretty clearly (I hope). + +Healthcare here is utterly fantastic. It’s also cheap — and I can say that about very few other things here. No complaints of any substance on that front. If we’re comparing countries — a dubiously useful activity, but whatever — then here, Israel runs rings around Ireland. + +Overall, Israel is a developed first world country. GDP per capita is high for this part of the world. That’s the first thing that smacks many visitors. There are camels here, yes. But also skyscrapers. (But if you want to really get a feel for how developed Israel is, visit Afula — in the periphery — as well as Tel Aviv. Like most economic nuclei, and especially politically, Tel Aviv isn’t representative of the whole.) + +The weather is good, as is well known. The food is tasty. That’s pretty notorious too. + +The conflict looms perpetually in the background of life. The trappings of militarism are nowadays somewhat reserved. You’ll seem them when close to the border on the north. + +You’ll periodically hear sirens and have to rush yourself into a bomb shelter when Hamas lobs rockets over your city. But in my time living here, that’s happened infrequently enough that it hasn’t been a defining feature of my _aliyah._ Just a jarring one. + +Thanks to Israel’s advances in the field of homeland security in recent years, it mostly — thankfully I should add — stays that way. + +When foreigners criticize Israel’s decision to install a security barrier between itself and the West Bank, they fail to remember that before Israel did that restaurants and buses were routinely blowing up due to suicide bombers detonating explosives (and themselves). + +While Israel is in some respects sophisticated and advanced — that system to thwart rocket attacks, for instance, is world leading — in others it’s also oddly backward. + +This is the part of the narrative that pro-Israel literature — which depicts the country as gloriously as possible to counter the avalanche of misinformation and lies strewn towards it — gets hopelessly wrong (in my opinion). + +It’s also something it’s easy to miss if you only spend a week or two in the country on a selectively guided tour. Or even spend a more extended period of time here living in a comfortable expat bubble. + +Bizarrely it’s usually those who don’t actually live here who are the most insistent that this country is a utopia it simply isn’t. At least right now. + +Some pedestrian examples: + +In the field of secondhand smoke prevention, Ireland has the obvious lead over Israel. Enforcement here is poor. Ditto with dog leashing laws. I once received a birthday card almost a full year after it was dispatched. + +Much more pertinently, everything in Israel appears to be insanely overpriced and many enterprises that should be straightforward — running a small business, cancelling an internet subscription — seem to, for whatever reason, be rendered into trying endeavors that require Herculean perseverance to pull off. + +For the 90% of the population who don’t work in high tech — a term Israelis use mostly to refer to the IT sector — salaries simply don’t keep up. + +Shocking statistics have been collated about the proportion of Israelis living in perpetual overdraft, which is termed _minus_ here (pronounced _mee-noos_). If you need a quick and tidy rebuttal to the _“Jews are good with money”_ stereotype, look up that coverage and those numbers. + +To get on the property market here, you essentially need to come up with more than a quarter of a million dollars in capital. I exaggerate not. + +Israel has gone from poor socialist backwater to hyper-capitalist first world country with rampant income inequality in the blink of an eye. As anybody who visits here will witness, not all Jews are oil barons or tycoons — in fact few are. The global generational crunch exists in Israel and has a healthy dose of steroids in its sails. + +But more about the strange disparities evident even in daily life. + +Is Israel a leader in FinTech? + +Perhaps. But contactless credit card payments arrived here belatedly, years after the technology was rolled out in some European countries. You can’t get Revolut here without fibbing about where you live. + +Renting here is a surprisingly affordable — relative to the cost of living — but also a bit of a Wild West with minimal legislative oversight. Today, our heating broke down. On Friday, our internet and power also did. + +The cause? A mild winter rainstorm. My wife and I rent a reasonably comfortable apartment, towards the upper end of what most 30-somethings spend on rent, in an upscale neighborhood in Jerusalem. These are the moments when the punctures begin to leak through Israel’s carefully manicured image of high-tech prowess and success. + +Immigrants to Israel commonly complain that Israel feels _“second world.”_ By economic measures, they are indisputably wrong. But whether it’s shoddy infrastructure or the often hopeless postal service or the sometimes appalling bureaucracy any immigrant to Israel knows exactly what they’re talking about. + +Most people are pleasant, though some can be shockingly rude (manners are changing as Israel internationalizes but it’s a salient enough feature of culture to make an impression). + +Israelis aren’t in the habit of thanking those who hold open doors for them. This is something which I and countless immigrants from more mannerly cultures simply never adjust to. Rather, we contain our irritation into manageable chunks knowing that expending too much of it at once would be futile. Sometimes we spill it out when in the company of other expats. + +Overall, I enjoy living here. Although I’m clearly not without my grievances (I forgot the maniacal driving. I’ve become an avid supporter of public transport partially just to avoid it!). + +When I think about others’ accounts of living in Israel, I think mostly about a series of fictions. + +There’s the mistruth of unstinting Middle Eastern backwardness — though that seems to have fallen out of fashion as more Israeli startups launch on American stock indices. + +And then there’s the polar opposite of that. The one that depicts Israel as an exemplary success in every field that it touches. This one is often crafted and told by official Israel itself. However, as a long term expat, neither have the ring of much truth to me. + +There are some things that I think come very close to being objective truths — things which are in perpetual short supply in this part of the world. + +Israel is a young and highly ambitious country. + +Given its age and security challenges, I think it is doing extraordinarily well. + +Equally, there are many challenges that the country still has to solve. + +Ranging from the meta — the conflict, for one — to the more pedestrian. Like how to do customer service properly. + +In some respects, it _is_ the dysfunctional Middle Eastern country its detractors imagine it to be. + +In others, it’s truly extraordinarily and sometimes even world-leading in spite of its diminutive size. + +Perplexingly, it’s all these things at the same time. + +For Jews, it’s homely. + +For almost everyone, it’s a strange and sometimes perplexing place. diff --git a/posts/medium/What-s-the-difference-between-a-freelance-technical-writer-and-a-technical-marketer-.md b/posts/medium/What-s-the-difference-between-a-freelance-technical-writer-and-a-technical-marketer-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4ebf3f8c0ad41ebf925d446b8759880cc7c0fc28 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/What-s-the-difference-between-a-freelance-technical-writer-and-a-technical-marketer-.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# What’s the difference between a freelance technical writer and a technical marketer? + +Technical writer or freelance technology content marketer: which do you need? Image: PXHere.com + +Many clients in the technology space, at some point during their marketing activities, decide that they need to hire a freelance resource to help produce writing deliverables. + +But not everybody is clear on the difference between **technical writers** and **freelance technical marketers.** + +When do you need the first and when do you need the second? Here’s a quick explainer to help break down the differences. + +### What’s A Technical Writer? + +A technical writer is a writer who specializes in helping companies communicate _how_ to use a product. + +They are essentially information communicators. Their job isn’t to _persuade_ a prospective customer to consider buying a product or service. Rather, their goal is to help the user — or the end-user — to actually make use of the tool provided by the company who they work for. + +Technical writers typically spend the lion’s share of their time writing _documentation_. That documentation can even be internally focused — for instance, they might work on putting together a knowledge-base of instructions to be shared over a company’s intranet. Or it might be external. A common example of the latter would be drafting API documentation to help integrators and technical partners to interact with a SaaS company’s API. + +Some common outputs that technical writers would produce include: + + * API documentation + * User manuals + * Diagrams + +Technical writers tend to be proficient at working in specialist software programs that have strong in-built features for revision logging and version control. This is because keeping precise records of changes to documentation is fundamental to the success of drafting processes in which multiple stakeholders — including subject matter experts (SMEs) — can be involved. + +If you need a freelance writer to help you _document_ your software or to write a user manual to assist your customers, then a freelance technical writer is likely your best port of call. + +### What’s A Freelance Technical Marketer? + +Many writers these days earn their livelihoods primarily through helping companies produce _content marketing_. + +Content marketers work on creating “content” to help attract and develop inbound leads to move them further down marketing and sales funnels. + +This “content” could take the form of: + + * Blog posts + * White papers + * Ebooks + * Podcasts + * Video scripts + +There is a large demand for content marketers from companies in the technology space. For instance: technology-focused startups or AI platforms might require content marketers just as any other organization investing in inbound marketing might. + +However, because these companies might offer products or services that are highly technical, they tend to look for freelancers that themselves have a strong degree of technical knowledge. + +This is where freelance technical marketers come into the picture. Confusingly, these individuals might describe themselves as “technical writers” but they work on producing marketing assets and collateral rather than documentation. + + * Where technical writers work on producing informational resources, freelance technical marketing writers will work on developing collateral and resources for the marketing team + +Freelance technical content writers don’t typically need to use specialist drafting and writing tools in order to produce their outputs. Even though some of what they write _may_ require the input of SMEs — such as white papers — the versioning tools baked into most drafting tools, like Google Docs, are typically enough to get the job done. This isn’t to say that there aren’t freelance content marketers who _do_ use advanced drafting tools. Just that it isn’t typically a requirement. + +“Freelance technical marketer” is a term of art rather than a precise definition. Such writers may also describe themselves as: + + * Freelance content marketers for technology companies + * Freelance technology marketers + * Technical freelance writers + + _If you’re looking for a freelance technology marketer to help develop content marketing and thought leadership for your organization, then consider checking out my website at_[ _DSRGhostwriting.com_](http://dsrghostwriting.com) _._ diff --git a/posts/medium/When-Did-The-Pro-Israel-Community-Become-So-Toxic-And-Hateful-.md b/posts/medium/When-Did-The-Pro-Israel-Community-Become-So-Toxic-And-Hateful-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e1bbed11e291ce9b1950652d1565363065f31112 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/When-Did-The-Pro-Israel-Community-Become-So-Toxic-And-Hateful-.md @@ -0,0 +1,117 @@ +# When Did The Pro-Israel Community Become So Toxic And Hateful? + +#### A militantly aggressive thought police probably isn’t going to win anybody over to Israel’s side. However in parts of the pro-Israel community, this mindframe seems to dominate. + +Today, I was flicking through Twitter. + +While I did, I came across this quoted tweet from Lenny Ben-David referencing a piece of journalism which Patrick Kingsley, the New York Times’ Jerusalem bureau chief, recently penned for the newspaper: + +Ben-David, according to his Times of Israel biography, served as a senior Israeli diplomat in Washington before going on to spend 25 years working for AIPAC. + +These days, he refers to himself as a public affairs consultant. + +His LinkedIn profile, however, describes him as being the Director of Publications at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (JCPA) which describes itself, in turn, as Israel’s “leading independent research institute specializing in public diplomacy and foreign policy.” The Center has previously received financial backing from Sheldon Adelson. I think it’s safe to assume that dovish voices are thin on the ground in its corridors. + +Ben-David’s tweet took me aback. + +Not because it contained the absurd claim that the _New York Times_ pays its bureau chief for the express purpose of “trashing” Israel. + +But rather because it referenced a piece of journalism that I would have thought even the pro-Israel lobby would find palatable. However, judging by the online reaction on Twitter, that was most certainly not the case. + +### When Travel Journalism Is Deemed Unacceptable, What Can Be Written About? + +Kingsley’s piece is hot off the press and is currently doing the rounds on the Jewish and pro-Israel Twittersphere where — among those sympathetic to the Israeli cause — it is being roundly, to use Ben-David’s epithet, trashed. + +It was published only yesterday. It can be found here, although it’s paywalled. + +[**Whose Promised Land? A Journey Into a Divided Israel** + _Two Times journalists drive the length of Israel to discover what it means to be Israeli today. They meet a…_ www.nytimes.com](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/25/world/middleeast/israel-jews-palestinians-journey.html "https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/25/world/middleeast/israel-jews-palestinians-journey.html")[](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/25/world/middleeast/israel-jews-palestinians-journey.html) + +I’m wont to quote too heavily from it for that reason (ie, it hasn’t been shared for open access). However a few choice extracts to give a flavor as to its contents. + +During the course of its narrative: + + * **We meet Shai Melamud** who says that his late father would assert that what Israel has become today is not what he prayed for as a child. In particular, he says that his late father would have seen the religious tension that manifested itself in rioting last summer as entirely foreseeable. He expresses concern about the growing numbers and influence of the ultra-Orthodox sector in Israeli society. Kingsley editorializes that they _“drain the state’s resources by studying religious law and claiming state benefits while avoiding army service and the labor market”_(I take issue with Kingsley’s claim only because it’s a generalism; there is of course workforce participation among the _haredim_ even though it’s less than that among the secular population). + * **We meet Yehoshua Blumenthal** , a Tiberias resident who describes the city as _“tired,”_ _“shabby,_ ” and notable for its growing religious character (of note: I visited Tiberias last year and formed much the same impression as the author; although I was disappointed to see that and believe the city has much unrealized potential.) We hear from religious residents who are described as feeling _“ambivalent”_ about the fundamentally secular nature of the state, which provides an interesting opening into how Haredim conceive of the country in which they live. + * **In Haifa, we hear from Asmaa Azaizeh, an Israeli Arab** who runs a shared bookstore for both Jews and Arabs. Azaizeh warns her interviewed not to be deceived by the coexistence space she has created, emphasizing that it is one of the only such spaces in the city (and this, by the way, is true). She provides an interesting perspective into the Arab-Israeli mentality. For one, she is described — I’d imagine as she prefers — as a ‘Palestinian bearing an Israeli passport.’ She also says that she will not engage in dialogue with Jewish Israelis unless they acknowledge that Haifa is “occupied.” + * In **Givat Amal Bet**(Tel Aviv) we hear from Levana Ratzabi who provides insight into the discrimination that Jews of Arab origin (Mizrahim) often sadly faced when they tried to integrate into the new Jewish state. + * **We also hear from Xenia Sova, a Russian immigrant** with a far less dominant connection to Judaism, who recounts how she didn’t know the meaning of the word ‘Jewish’ until she had her first encounter with antisemitism. + * **We also hear about the _shikunim_ — planned housing projects built around the time of the State’s formation** often populated by economically deprived populations. And about the checkpoints which Palestinian laborers must cross in order to work in Israel. + * Finally we hear about what it’s like for Bedouins living in Israel’s Negev desert before moving down to Israel’s southernmost city of Eilat. There, we hear from Shmulik Taggar about how rapidly the city has advanced fro its humble origins. Now a somewhat tacky resort town most known for its hotels, Taggar reminisces about how small it was when it consisted of only a few hundred residents. “We didn’t need hotels here in those days,” he says. + +Kingsley’s piece isn’t a tourism brochure for Israel, nor does it resemble your typical Nefesh b’Nefesh brochure— which it seems these days is the bar that the pro-Israel community expects from anybody writing about Israel (anything less than that and the author must be ‘anti’). I would agree that Kingsley’s piece often doesn’t paint an upbeat picture of life in Israel. + +It shies away, for instance, from talking about everyday _aliyah_ success stories: Jews who have moved to Israel and are living their best lives here and feeling motivated and inspired by the process of building up the Jewish state. + +Nevertheless, I would contend that that’s unsurprising given that it’s a serious piece of journalism being published in the _New York Times_. Those anecdotes have received plenty of attention. The piece provides a thought-provoking exploration into some lesser known issues that are probably more interesting for an international readership. + +It is, in my opinion, as a good piece of journalism. For those unfamiliar with some of the internal debates shaping Israeli society, I think it’s a worthwhile contribution. + +But a hate-mongering anti-Semitic screed? That it is most certainly _not_. And yet: + +### Israelis And The Pro-Israel Community React To Kingsley’s Travel Journalism With Allegations Of Anti-Semitism And Pre-Meditated Hate + +Here’s a partial selection of what I could gather from Twitter at the time I put together this piece. + +It’s representative of a wall of anger replete with allegations of anti-Semitism, editorial bias, and allegations that the article was, in fact, a premediated “hatched job” aimed at defaming Israel’s good character. I strongly believe that none of these claims are true. + +Weird supermacism much? + +I also had this pleasant exchange yesterday which actually illustrates perfectly what I’m talking about here: + +Perhaps I’m alone in thinking this, but I find it remarkable, and disappointing, that a piece of travel journalism which does a good job at showcasing some of the different ethnicities within Israel and their often complex relationship to the State of Israel (but little more than that) would receive such an opprobrious and hateful reaction from so many. + +And as usual, the ones doing the most mud-slinging are those who seem to identify most strongly as friends of Israel and online warriors defending it. + +It is also beyond disappointing to see that a number of voices arose to level baseless allegations of anti-Semitism against Kingsley for his reportage. + +Flinging the serious charge of anti-Semitism at a reporter because he didn’t paint an endlessly flattering portrait of Israel is a bit like saying that somebody who leaves a restaurant in Lagos, Nigeria a bad review must hate blacks and Africans. It simply doesn’t make sense. More perniciously, it makes pointing out _real_ anti-Semitism vastly harder. And — as a Jew — I believe it is a _hillul Hashem_ to boot. + +However, this kind of pushback has become par for the course for the community that considers themselves to be “pro-Israel” (the quotation marks are because I continue to raise the question of whether this kind of online “defense” of the country is constructive at all). + +These days, being pro-Israel — or pro-Palestinian for that matter — seems to require signing up to a totalitarian creed. + +No degrees of dissent are permissible from the hymn sheet that demands total agreement with the State and all its policies, including internal ones. + +For far too many — in Israel, in the Jewish Diaspora, and among non-Jews who feel an affinity with the cause of Zionism — Israel has become a black-or-white issue. + +Just as has happened on the Palestinian side of the debate, a toxic and ugly echo chamber has been the result. And one which takes the traditional Jewish celebration of debate and throws it squarely out the window. + +In this fundamentalist worldview, no criticism of Israel or dissent is tolerated — irrespective of whether that’s about the state of Israel’s housing market or a comment upon the attractiveness, or lack thereof, of the city of Tiberias. The only allowable narrative is that Israel is perfect and that all its ways are wholesome and pure. Toxic positivity at maximum enforcement. + +Any deviation from that is significant (or sufficient) grounds to assert that the one making the allegation must be either an anti-Semite or a self-hating Jew. This has a chilling effect on anybody not brave enough to stand up to the sometimes organized campaigns of vitriol. + +For those of us who take think that life in Israel is a bundle of gray — there are some good things about it and some bad ones, much like any country — this creates an odd feeling of dissonance between the experience we live every day and that which those supposedly “defending” the country we live in dogmatically claims exist. + +Things weren’t always so bad for those who, these days, might find no better descriptor for themselves other than friends-of-Israel-with-reservations. We weren’t always expected to be all-or-nothing supporters. + +The kind of obsessive witch-hunting that parts of the pro-Israel community seem to relish in engaging in today is, according to some recounts, a recent innovation._(One can speculate, perhaps wildly, that it owes its origin to the point in time at which Israel warmly embraced Trumpism whose worldview accords pretty closely with this kind of thinking)._ + +Once upon a time, one could feel an affinity with Zionism, or the State of Israel, without feeling the need to be compelled to defend every one of its actions. + +Once upon a time Zionist fora embraced the tradition of debate and dissent that has permeated Jewish thinking up to now. Of introspection and internal criticism. + +These days, it often seems as if that value system has been inverted. + +Now the main values that “friends” of Israel seem expected to espouse are seeking out criticism of Israel wherever it can be found — but most prominently online — and shouting it down as loudly as possible. Silencing defiant voices wherever they emerge in an unending game of online whac-a-mole. + +Defending the State of Israel from every charge — and elevating it to a place of untouchability — has become a life calling that, for many, seems to have supplanted their commitment to Judaism itself, or any other ideal which they hold dear. For some in the Diaspora, this doctrine has become the central activity which defines their Jewish identity. + +Personally, I would love for the Jewish world to come to a collective realization. Or to at least agree about a point which I strongly believe in. + +That the connection between the Jewish people and their homeland is immutable. + +That Zionism is a central ideology which ensures the return of the Jewish People to their ancestral homeland. + +But that neither of those things means that we need to place the State of Israel and its actions — after all, the State is only an expression of the ideology upon which it was founded — upon some sort of ideological alter. + +Because when we do, that tends to turn very quickly into something that looks and feels a lot like intellectual idolatry. A strange sort of worship venerating the actions of a state governed by human and often flawed actors. + +Jews have a painful history of what doing that kind of things forebears. + +And besides: the results of the religious services are pretty damn ugly to spectate. + +### Also On Topic: + +[**Zionists and Israel “supporters”: your anti-Irish racism is hypocritical, sickening, and shameful** + _Why, as somebody who supports Israel politically, I feel completely alienated from the mainstream pro-Israel movement_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/zionists-and-israel-supporters-your-anti-irish-racism-is-hypocritical-sickening-and-shameful-d88e45dc40ee "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/zionists-and-israel-supporters-your-anti-irish-racism-is-hypocritical-sickening-and-shameful-d88e45dc40ee")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/zionists-and-israel-supporters-your-anti-irish-racism-is-hypocritical-sickening-and-shameful-d88e45dc40ee) diff --git a/posts/medium/Where-Are-Jerusalem-s-Embassies-Going-To-Go-.md b/posts/medium/Where-Are-Jerusalem-s-Embassies-Going-To-Go-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fb0ba87c7f6c4f10152dc5beacced476576e2229 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Where-Are-Jerusalem-s-Embassies-Going-To-Go-.md @@ -0,0 +1,93 @@ +# Where Are Jerusalem’s Embassies Going To Go? + +It’s been a frenetic few weeks on the diplomatic front for Israel. + +To recap some of the breathtaking developments (and what’s speculated might be next to come): + + * **Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) concluded a normalization agreement.** According to media reports, the deal was brokered by the US. According to a report in Walla news, [the deal is to be accorded the status of a formal peace agreement.](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-uae-normalization-to-be-given-peace-treaty-status-report/) + * After acquiescing to overflights on the nascent Israel-UAE air route, [**Saudi Arabia is reported to be at the negotiation table with Israel and is allegedly also considering normalizing relations with the Jewish state.**](https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/international/middle-east/1599371384-report-breakthrough-made-in-israel-saudi-talks-toward-normalization) + * Another report has emerged claiming that a [**normalization arrangement with Bahrain could be on the way**](https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/international/middle-east/1599108739-bahrain-to-normalize-ties-with-israel-in-nearest-future-report)**.** If both the Saudi and Bahraini normalization deals materialize this would bring to three the number of Gulf states which may normalize relations with Israel (there are seven in total). + +Meanwhile, news of potential embassy openings in Jerusalem has been equally fast paced, undoubtedly accelerated by Israel’s unexpected breakthroughs in normalizing its relations with the Arab world: + + * [On the same day last week, both Kosovo and Serbia announced that they will be opening embassies in Jerusalem. ](https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-kosovo-to-be-first-muslim-majority-nation-to-open-jerusalem-embassy/)Again, the news reportedly follows US-led efforts at mediation — in this case between Belgrade and Pristina. + * Today,[ Malawi announced its intention to open an embassy in Jerusalem. If it does so it will become the first African nation to establish a diplomatic presence in the capital](https://www.timesofisrael.com/malawis-new-president-vows-to-open-diplomatic-office-in-jerusalem/) + +Meanwhile, news of potential embassy openings in Jerusalem has been equally fast paced, undoubtedly accelerated by Israel’s unexpected breakthroughs in normalizing its relations with the Arab world: + +### The US and Guetemala: A Lonely Duo + +Despite the ambitious signage erected by some Jerusalem developers, promising that _“soon, Jerusalem will be home to 200 embassies,”_ (above) Israel’s capital is currently home to only two of the 89 resident embassies in the State of Israel, the vast majority of which are located in Tel Aviv and the adjoining city of Ramat Gan. + +The United States [famously moved its mission to Jerusalem in May 2018, ](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-israel-diplomacy-jerusalem-explai/why-is-the-u-s-moving-its-embassy-to-jerusalem-idUSKBN1I811N)prompting speculation that an influx of embassies was about to begin. Currently, the US Embassy is located on a meandering road off the Arnona neighborhood — housed in the same building that, up to the change of status, housed the US Consulate to Jerusalem. The mission in Arnona also formerly subsumed the Consulate close to the King David hotel in downtown Jerusalem which[ was shuttered after the State Department vested the Embassy with authority to engage in direct talks with the Palestinian Authority (PA). ](https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5473117,00.html)However, the site is not intended to serve permanently as the US’s Embassy in Israel. [Apparently a site closer to Derekh Hevron, in Arnona, is the preferred location.](https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-starts-scouting-site-for-permanent-jerusalem-embassy/) + +The only other UN member state with a permanent embassy currently in Jerusalem is Guetemala, whose mission is located within the high tech park in Malha in South Jerusalem. Guetemala and Paraguay both moved their embassies to Jerusalem shortly after the US did but only Guetemala stayed put. Just four months after moving to Jerusalem, Paraguay, a poor Latin-American country of just under seven million citizens, returned to Israel’s coast — [causing Israel to shutter its mission to the country in turn.](https://www.dw.com/en/paraguay-moves-embassy-back-to-tel-aviv/a-45376293) + +Amid the frenzied excitement that accompanied the US’s move, few noted that it was not the first country to have moved its embassy to Jerusalem since the foundation of the state — or that Jerusalem previously enjoyed a now historic embassy era. + +[Until 2012, Paraguay itself maintained its embassy in Mevasseret Tsion](https://www.timesofisrael.com/paraguay-becomes-third-country-to-open-embassy-in-jerusalem/). According to Israeli journalist Gideon Remez, the city was once home to 13 embassies with El Salvador the last country to up sticks and move back to the coast. According to Remez Israel’s passage in 1980 of Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel — which affirmed Israeli sovereignty over both halves of the city — gave the remaining embassies the impetus to leave. + +Other even older missions to Jerusalem were and are primarily ecclesiastical in nature. The Vatican maintains a mission in the East of the city. The Russian Consulate — now a historical landmark — was established in the mid 19th century. Jerusalem’s oldest formal diplomatic missions represented the interests of pilgrims. Most of its current ones liaise (quietly) with the PA. And perhaps in the future they will be accredited to the State of Israel. + +### Jerusalem’s Nine Consulates (That Don’t Deal with Israel!) + +A custom map of embassies and consulates in Jerusalem. Source: Author. + +These days, in addition to the two embassies currently located in Israel’s capital, the city is home to nine consulates and consulate-generals (a consulate general is typically the highest ranking mission below an embassy for countries that maintain a network of consulates in a receiving country). + +Many mistakenly assume that these are diplomatic missions to the State of Israel, although subtle clues — like the absence of Israeli flags at these missions — belie the strange truth. Surprisingly, not only is this not the case, but none of the missions in the city even recognize Israel’s claim to sovereignty over Jerusalem (at least not past the Green Line). + +As Eylon Aslan-Levy reported [in this excellent piece for _The Tower_](http://www.thetower.org/article/jerusalem-already-has-plenty-of-embassies-just-not-to-israel/) the missions are _sui generis_ institutions in several respects. For one, in most cases, they are officially accredited to Jerusalem — the city — in a strange hangover from the time when the international community envisioned Jerusalem as a [_corpus separatum,_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus_separatum_%28Jerusalem%29)governed by a plurality of foreign nations, or rather by a taskforce of them. An examination of the websites of the missions bears this out. [The website of the British Consulate General in Jerusalem](https://www.gov.uk/world/organisations/british-consulate-general-jerusalem), for instance, describes the mission’s purpose as representing the UK “in Jerusalem, West Bank, and Gaza.” The Wikipedia page for the Consulate General of France in Jerusalem — which has a colorful history dating back to the 17th century — baldly notes that the mission “does not have diplomatic relations with the State of Israel.” + + _De facto_ the mostly European missions in Jerusalem serve as representations to the Palestinian Authority (PA) — quasi-embassies effectively despite their formal status as consulates — while Israel begrudgingly tolerates their continuance in a city they refuse to recognize its sovereignty over. + +Several are also self-contained diplomatic missions not subservient to their sending country’s embassy to the State of Israel — located, of course, an hour’s drive to the West. There are other less intriguing curiosities about them. Nobody I have spoken to — including those working at missions to Ramallah — seems quite sure why some missions to the PA are based in Ramallah itself while others are stationed in Jerusalem. It’s a strange situation — in both its history and its continuation. + +Greece’s Consulate on Rahel Imenu. Source: Author. + +### A Poisoned Relationship + +Most of the international community continues to repudiate Israel’s claims to sovereignty over the city of Jerusalem — at least the whole of it. Israel’s sovereignty over the the part of the city to the West of the Green Line is a consensus issue only on a _de facto_ basis, although, amidst warming ties, Russia recognized Israel’s sovereignty over West Jerusalem [_de jure_ in 2017.](https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-historic-first-russia-recognizes-west-jerusalem-as-israels-capital/) Progress in the international community’s relationship with Jerusalem, where it comes, is fitting. And the poisoned root of the issue — and of the strange preponderance of “foreign” embassies in Jerusalem — is Israel’s conquest of East Jerusalem, in 1967, which was done by force and promptly deemed illegal by the United Nations (UNGAR 69/12). The poisoned relationship most countries have with Jerusalem is far-reaching. The protocol of most countries requires their Israeli embassies to studiously refrain from holding national day celebrations in the city. But interacting with Israeli government bodies there is, of course, a requirement of the job. + +So who exactly is “in” Jerusalem besides the two embassies to the State? + +The UK, Spain, France, Sweden, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Belgium, and Denmark all maintain Consulates or Consulate-Generals in the city. While the missions of France, Greece, Denmark, and Italy are located to the west of the Green Line, the others are nestled in East Jerusalem (along with several residences of heads of mission — both those whose representations are based in Ramallah and in Jerusalem itself). The latter are clustered around the relatively opulent Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. + +Last but not least, Jerusalem, like most world capitals, is home to a smattering of honorary consulates usually only noticeable by an errant plaque and national flag atop a private residence. + +Honorary consulates are quasi-amateur diplomatic missions usually helmed by an unpaid individual who serves as a bridge between the countries (in Israel such individuals tend to be Jewish immigrants, whether first or second generation). The honorary consul is typically vested with some diplomatic responsibilities — such as issuing emergency passports — but is neither typically a paid professional nor do they enjoy the full diplomatic privileges granted to professional diplomats under the Vienna Convention. + +A flag and seal mark the location of Poland’s hon + +### Where Will Jerusalem’s Diplomatic Quarter Be? + +The residence of Belgium’s Consulate in Rehavia. Source: Author. + +Undoubtedly, Israel is strongly committed to encouraging the nations of the world to move their embassies from the coastal cities of Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan to Jerusalem — and, despite the doubts of some, that dream appears to be slowly becoming a reality. Signs of the encroaching foreign diplomatic presence in the city are subtle. Last year, Australia [opened a Trade and Defense Office in Jerusalem. ](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/australia-opens-trade-and-defense-office-in-jerusalem-586641)It’s tucked away, somewhat incongruously, in the city center WeWork, sharing floor space with freelancers and tech entrepreneurs. Last year, Hungary [opened a trade office in the city](https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/259325). The Hungarian PM was keen to emphasize that the mission was to enjoy “diplomatic status.” + +Encouraged, no doubt, by these small advances, Israel continues to do its part to make its dream of the dawn of the embassy era in Jerusalem a reality — although almost undoubtedly more lobbying for this takes place behind the scenes than in front of them. + +As a means of pressuring nations to avoid using backdoor methods to obtain diplomatic representation in Israel’s capital, the Foreign Ministry has said that it will refuse[ to accredit any new honorary consuls in Jerusalem](https://www.timesofisrael.com/no-more-mere-honorary-consuls-in-jerusalem-israel-tells-world/#:~:text=In%20a%20step%20apparently%20intended,honorary%20consulates%20in%20the%20capital.). Given that, in the space of a month, Israel has struck a normalization accord with the UAE and three embassies have committed to moving to Jerusalem it no longer seems so crazy to ask: _“where are they all going to go?”_ + +And if they do all move to Jerusalem, the question looms as to how they will all fit into a city that is notorious for its overcrowding and complicated politics? + +Will major Western countries opt for power plays like the United States or make do with more modest surroundings, as is the case with many missions in Ramat Gan? What neighborhood will be Jerusalem’s Embassy Row (Washington DC’s embassy neighborhood)? + +While that question might depend upon the arrival of a critical mass, the property developer’s rosy prognostics about an impending wave of embassy arrivals mightn’t turn out to be far wrong. + +Although only 85 countries currently maintain embassies in Israel, there are more than 190 UN member states. The discrepancy between the two is due to the fact that some smaller countries maintain relations with Israel through their embassies in other countries (such as Cyprus; this practice is known as maintaining non-resident ambassadors). Additionally, Israel does not have diplomatic relations with a variety of nations including, up to recently, the UAE. Both situations are theoretically fluid. In other words, it is conceivable — if unlikely right at this moment — that more than 100 countries might one day move their missions to Jerusalem. + +Today, that thought might still have a ring of fanciful speculation. But given the pace at which events are changing, change is on the horizon. As a a firm believer in crowdsourcing, I asked my favorite Jerusalem-based Facebook group where people thought a diplomatic district could emerge in the city. After all, embassies tend to cluster together — and usually base themselves in more affluent parts of capital cities. Where in Jerusalem fits the bill? + +Here were some suggestions floated, including my own: + + * Talbiyeh + * Rehavia + * Katamon + * The high tech parks in Malha and Har Hotsvim + +The influx of embassies to Jerusalem that Netanyahu could bring a small influx of international diplomats and visitors to the city. It could be a return to Jerusalem’s previous embassy era — times 10 — filled with missions who are actually there to represent their countries to the State of Israel. + +If and how that might happen will be an interesting process to observe. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Where-Should-I-Create-My-Business-Content--Blog--Website--Or-Social-Media-.md b/posts/medium/Where-Should-I-Create-My-Business-Content--Blog--Website--Or-Social-Media-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d4417f19f700cf06f4561029dca3f0d88c41c33c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Where-Should-I-Create-My-Business-Content--Blog--Website--Or-Social-Media-.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# Where Should I Create My Business Content: Blog, Website, Or Social Media? A Technical Guide To Distribution + +#### A quick rule for where to post your content on the internet + +Where to publish your business content can be an oddly technical decision. Consider it carefully before starting to create content. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/facebook-application-icon-147413/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +When it comes to content marketing, many businesses are looking for actionable guidance on _where_ to content market and _how_ to content market. It’s a question I get asked all the time. But particularly — oddly — the first of those. + +The second (the _what_ to create) is a bigger question to explore that includes a lot of constituent elements to be able to answer. Elements like: + + * **SEO strategies**(do you have one? what keywords are you targeting? who are your competitors and what are they doing?) + * **Creating ‘content’ that’s fundamentally useful to its intended audience.** Do you know what you have to say? Do you know what information your audience(s) might appreciate? + * **Marketing strategy.** The bigger picture thinking that incorporates aspects of your overall approach to marketing such as tone of voice. Do you have one? What is it? If yes, we should aim to have this initiative fit within it. + +Because _what_ you should be posting on different channels requires looking at a few different aspects of a business, many business owners feel tempted to just jump straight to distribution. + +On face value that approach (“we’ll figure out what to say in a second — but where should we start?”) sounds like poor strategic thinking. + +Logic seems to dictate that you should figure out _what_ you have to say before you figure out where to say it. But oddly enough, there are a couple of general points about distribution that can be advanced for a lot of clients. + +Disclaimer: this guidance reflects my general approach and other marketers may disagree with it. If you want a fuller version of this post complete with the technical SEO detail (about canonical tags etc) then jump to this: + +[**Should You Publish Your Blog On Your Site Or Elsewhere On The Internet?** +_Publishing on Medium, LinkedIn, or your blog. Does it really matter?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/should-you-publish-your-blog-on-your-site-or-elsewhere-on-the-internet-f8622d824a6d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/should-you-publish-your-blog-on-your-site-or-elsewhere-on-the-internet-f8622d824a6d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/should-you-publish-your-blog-on-your-site-or-elsewhere-on-the-internet-f8622d824a6d) + +### Always Start With Owned Assets And Distribute Outwards To Social Networks + +Here’s the Golden Rule — or at least the one I advocate to my clients. + +And before you point out the hypocrisy, yes, I’m writing this while creating content on a non-owned channel (Medium). What can I say? I take backups and do tend to create SEO assets and landing pages on my site. Blogging I tend to do here. So do as I say not as I do. You’ve heard it before. + +**If you have the patience to do so, I recommend investing the small amount of time required in setting up your own infrastructure and always starting from there.** + +By infrastructure I simply mean: + + * **Your URL (domain name).** Ideally you’ll want to choose this carefully because: building up domain authority is a long process and you won’t want to invest a lot of work into that only to see your efforts greatly diminished after a flash rebrand. + * **Your hosting** : You’ll want to host your website somewhere that you can easily take home with you (digitally). Infrastructure is a bit of a misnomer here because the vast majority of businesses these days (especially SMBs) are hosting on shared or virtualized infrastructure — so you’re really just plonking some files on somebody else’s infrastructure. Unless you want to actually buy or least a dedicated server. And even then you’ll probably be hosting it offsite. So ultimately the only question is _how much_ control are you willing to surrender to other providers. + +For the latter, it might sound I’m getting you lost in the technical weeds already but I’m pointing out all this for a reason. + +Vendor lock is almost always a bad thing. This is why I would never advise a client to build a blog on Wix and will try to steer clients away from this idea while hopefully not sounding like I have an axe to grind (other than my opinions, I really don’t). + +At the time of writing, Wix doesn’t allow you to take a backup of your own site. Attempting to build your digital castle on a vendor that doesn’t even let you back up your own data is a terrible idea. + +**With everything to do with content marketing, your focus and mindset needs to be on the long term.** + +A “ _we make it really easy”_ platform like Wix might make it a lot easier to build a flashy website here and now and get it up and running for that trade show next month. But again, with content marketing you want to be placing your focus instead on long term stability and scalability. One aspect of that is portability. By owning your codebase (yes, even a blog is ultimately code) you can move around between different providers if and when you require. + +Put in the effort up front to save yourself headaches and spiraling SaaS budgets in the long run. + +### Don’t Create Content On Social Networks. Instead, Share Content To Social Networks. + +So here’s the actionable takeaway from the above. + +Social networks are once again other people’s castles — at least digitally speaking. + +Whenever you sign up to a social network you’re agreeing to abide by their terms of service. + +**You’re the guest in their castle. And they can kick you off the grounds if you fail to abide by that TOS. The TOS can change. So can the features they’re prepared to offer you for free. Or for a certain payment per month (perhaps beyond what you can afford).** + +Want to “growth hack” your way to (short term) gains by manipulating social algorithms? + +Have you considered the fact that all the above can change at any given moment? That the rug can be pulled out from under your strategy if your strategy is predicated on what you think you know about another provider’s algorithm. Do you have any say over the evolution of that algorithm? Do you have any means of validating what you _think_ you know about it? + +So again, we need to keep our long term focus in mind. If we start a blog on LinkedIn Pulse, we’re allowing LinkedIn to choose the SEO tags that will accompany our post and play a large role in determining its organic discoverability. If we start the blog on our own site we can forget about those issues. One less problem to worry about even if our go to market might be delayed by a few days (or weeks). + +### Here’s How I Categorize Marketing Channels + +I like to divide up marketing channels for distributing content according to the following schema: + + * **Are they onsite or offsite resources?** Onsite resources are those that you provision such as your blog. That’s your URL that you’re “building up” every time you publish a new post which gets added to a sitemap which then gets indexed by search engines. An offsite resource is somebody else’s URL. Like the one you’re reading this post on. + * **Are they owned or non owned?** I mean this from an editorial perspective and not whether you actually own them or not. Clearly, I don’t own Medium.com. But I do retain total control over what I publish on this account. If I write for Medium publications, on the other hand, I’m publishing to the same domain. But I no longer have editorial control over the channel because there’s typically an editor who has to approve my post and can change what I write. + +And here are chart versions showing how each common publishing initiative falls under this framework: + +### And Now, Here’s What I Would Recommend + +So let’s jump to my boilerplate actionable tips: + + * **Invest the small amount of time and capital in setting up your own infrastructure to host your own content — from day one.** Doing this for text is easy. For audio and video, it’s still doable — it’s just harder and the files are larger which can mean that the cheaper and less technically challenging options aren’t options for you. You can absolutely host and serve embedded video and audio from a server that you own or rent and later distribute the podcasts and upload the videos to YouTube. + * **Share your content across social media channels**. There’s nothing wrong with sharing short form insights from your content on social media channels even if — to get pedantic — that means we’re creating _some_ content there (or rather derivative versions of our primary content). We’re trying to get this right rather than perfect. Build and curate the best social networks for your brand and engage with others on them to build an audience and widen your reach. But don’t create directly on these. + +Or even shorter: build your blog (or audio and video hosting server). Publish there first. Then syndicate that content to social networks and anywhere else you think it could go that might refer traffic _back_ to _your_ castle. + +Put up whatever billboards on other people’s castles you can. Just realize that they could demolish them and evict you at any moment. + +But hopefully you’ll already have gathered a tribe that leads to _your_ castle by then. That might sound Machiavellian. But remember that social networks are utilizing your data and that by engaging there you’re helping make them attractive venues to advertise on and hence monetize. It’s a form of symbiosis. Ergo, you’ve nothing to feel bad about. + +Doing the above is what I believe to be the best way to commit to content marketing and inbound for the long haul. But I also believe that that’s the only way to go about doing it. + +[**The Ultimate Long Game, Content Marketing Demands Its Own Mindset Too** + _When transitioning from outbound to inbound-led marketing, attitudes need to change as well_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687) + +[**Inbound Marketing Is Investing — For Brand-Builders** + _When you think about, developing inbound collateral and investing in financial vehicles have a lot in common_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03) + +### Want To Learn More? + +I specialize in helping technology companies, entrepreneurs and brands to develop, refine and execute thought leadership and content marketing strategies. RosehillMarcom.com. diff --git a/posts/medium/Where-To-Find-Freelance-Writing-Gigs---A-Guide.md b/posts/medium/Where-To-Find-Freelance-Writing-Gigs---A-Guide.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..26c2de5a52fb3af8771772c387a7d24d9328ca8d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Where-To-Find-Freelance-Writing-Gigs---A-Guide.md @@ -0,0 +1,105 @@ +# Where To Find Freelance Writing Gigs — A Guide + +Where to find freelance writing work? There are various directions to take + +On the freelance writers’ Reddit ([/r/freelancewriters](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/)) as well as on just about every writers’ forum in existence there is a flurry of near daily questions all asking permutations on the question: _“where can I find work as a freelance writer?”_ + +Despite how often this question is asked, the answer doesn’t change over time. Or if it does, it only does so every X many years (for instance, there was a time before marketplaces were a thing). + +I’m writing this post for the benefit of anybody that stumbles upon it as well as my own. Because constantly filling your pipeline with leads is vital — as I have repeatedly emphasized — and it’s also useful to diversify your lead-hunting toolkit. + +Doing any one thing over and over again — like cold pitching — gets boring. From a simple efficacy standpoint, I also reckon that a blended strategy bears the best fruit. + +With that in mind, here’s my runthrough of the various places in which one can find freelance writing work. I’ll add some observations based on my own experience. And I’m dividing these roughly into inbound and outbound approaches. I find it helpful to think through this rubric because, in my experience, it makes a difference as to the type of client you’ll attract. + +### Outbound Methods + +Cold calling — and cold emailing — are outbound methodologies + +In a nutshell this means “you find them.” These methods bring you out into the big bad world in order to find your next freelance writing clients. + +#### **Cold pitching:** + +In the context of looking for freelance writing work, we’re generally talking about cold emailing rather than cold calling. You could also add potential clients on LinkedIn and try to strike up a conversation that way. + +For cold emailing, I like to use LinkedIn to identify points of contact and Hunter.io to track down their contact details. I also use Klenty to build automated drip email cadences. + +There are a few things to say about cold emailing. Firstly, it’s massively time consuming. You need to (ideally) make sure that you’re contacting a finely curated pool of contacts and to personalize your pitch. + +I’ve used it successfully to land both direct clients and agencies. However, the results have sometimes not been pretty. **Many writers have remarked that cold pitch recipients are aghast to discover how much professional writing costs — even if it’s only a few hundred dollars.** + +There’s also something about cold pitching that feels like it sets you up on the back foot. Particularly in an ultra competitive market like freelance writing, that might be a competitive disadvantage you could live without. + +Finally — and maybe this is just me — but I find that going through this process for any length of time gets quite depressing particularly as your likely success rate is reasonably low. It’s also repetitive, particularly if you go through the motions of doing it every year or so — as I did for a while. + +My advice is to be very tepid about cold emailing. Laser-focus on some very high value prospects and email them personally one by one. Do that now and again and only when you’re genuinely very interested in the idea of working with an organization. True enthusiasm is hard to fake. + +#### Advertising: + +Next up on the list is advertising. Traditionally this means buying spots in newspapers, on radio, etc. In the modern era we’re talking about digital advertising and PPC. + +No experience to offer here, I’m afraid, although it’s on my list of tactics to try. Google and LinkedIn are probably the best ad networks to target. + +#### Job applications: + +If somebody is looking for a freelance writer(s) then there’s a good chance they’re going to post on some job board. + +There’s ProBlogger, LinkedIn, and other places like Facebook groups — among many other sources including remote / digital nomad specialist boards (really, there are a lot). + +My observations are similar to cold pitching. If you’re applying for remote writer gigs you’re giving yourself pretty terrible odds and are potentially up against thousands of other applicants all of who might be undercutting you. + +#### Marketplace: + +You can sign up on Upwork or Fiverr and start doing gigs this way. Again, the odds here seem terrible to me. I’ve also never worked through a marketplace and my zero gig history has scared away the few leads I did manage to talk to. There are lots of writers that have figured out ways to cut through the race to the bottom and come out on top — but I’m unfortunately not one of them. + +#### **Trade shows:** + +Not relevant right now but one that writers operating somewhere where a lot of potential clients are physically based (major cities like New York and London) should almost certainly consider. Go out to where clients are likely to be and try to meet them in person. + +#### Word of mouth: + +Lots of people build their freelance writing businesses on this alone and I think that if you can you should do so (while also covering some other bases just so that you’re eggs aren’t all in the basket of your network). + +Tap into your professional network. Put out feelers indicating that you’re looking for freelance writing work next time you’re hanging out with friends or former colleagues etc. I think this merits its own category (vs. cold pitching) because it really requires a different approach. + +### Inbound Methods + +Now let’s look at ways in which you can try to bring potential clients to you. I have a couple of hesitations about how well inbound can work for freelancers (if we all do it, isn’t it going to get a lot harder for any one of us to cut through the noise?). + +But in general I think that this is a much more wholesome and automatically preferable way to go about doing things. + +#### **Inbound marketing:** + +Inbound marketing is a whole methodology and encompasses a lot of different activities which are all centered around becoming more discoverable. + +If you don’t know anything about inbound then you can get a good handle on it in an hour or so or by taking one of Hubspot’s courses. + +As many writers spend a lot of time working on content marketing clients and for inbound agencies we also have a natural leg up here: we just need to do for ourselves what we do for our clients. + +Knowing a bit about digital marketing and keyword research would be very useful too — as would a subscription to a service like Moz, SEMRush, or Ahrefs. + +Inbound and content marketing go beyond activities like starting blogs and podcasts. In fact, it’s a whole methodology. Put yourself in the shoes of your target customer. What would they be searching for to find someone like you? Then, help them with that process. + +#### Public relations: + +Closely allied to this is public relations (PR). Raising your profile and establishing yourself as an authority on some subject you write about is a good way to draw clients to you. + +You could sign up for HARO alerts and pitch the media for comment on anything you have expertise on. + +#### Referrals: + +Getting your current clients to send you on more work is an ideal way to grow your freelance writing business. If you freelance for a medium or large organization then you could also ask your point of contact to push you on internally. This is unlikely to happen without you taking action. You need to be proactive about asking your clients to recommend you. And, of course, you need to do good work for them? + +### Which Do I Recommend? + +Personally, I’m excited about inbound marketing. While I’m undoubtedly a few years late to the party, I’ve already seen concrete results that it works — just last week I received two leads through landing pages I had added to my website in the summer. + +In fact, I wish I had done this a few years’ sooner rather than spend so much time on methods like cold emailing just because I was familiar with them. + +The freelance writing market is also incredibly competitive. Therefore, I think it’s always worth asking “where are people hunting for work?” — and then try something completely different (yes, I’m a contrarian). + +Personally, I reckon that not enough freelance writers get out from behind their computers and engineer ways to meet potential clients face to face. And that too many don’t pay attention to their blogs because that’s what they’re doing for clients every day. + +Word of mouth is a great method too. Activities such as building networks and inbound marketing are both more enjoyable than outbound methods that aim to distract people into providing attention. + +Ultimately, a mix is good. But include in it the most probably candidates for success. diff --git a/posts/medium/Where-To-Find-Indian-Food-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/Where-To-Find-Indian-Food-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..172b6c6000fd781328d8c60ab22290e9db50310e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Where-To-Find-Indian-Food-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,139 @@ +# Where To Find Indian Food in Israel + +#### Places to nosh on Indian food in Israel + +If I only had Indian food to eat for the rest of my life, trust me, I wouldn’t complain. + +During my tenure living in London, while studying for a journalism degree, I ate the delightful produce of Indian Veg, in Islington’s Chapel Market, virtually every day. + +A sort of deconstructed saag paneer with basmati rice from Munnar in Tel Aviv. Photo: Daniel Rosehill + +It was at the point that an Indian friend pulled me aside to warn about the dangers in eating curry so often. + +As Indians are wont to do (cultural observation: they often speak in an oddly formal register of English), he pulled me aside and warned, without elaborating further, about the possibility of “gastrointestinal distress” that attends to those who overindulge in spicy lentils. + +It was at this point that I realized how much I loved his country’s vegetarian-heavy food. + +In fact, alongside Nepalese — with its famed _aloo bodi tama_(black eyed pea curry with potatoes and bamboo shoots) — it’s my favorite cuisine out there (although Burmese, a recent discovery, would give it a run for its money). + +Unfortunately, for Indian foodies, Israel probably isn’t the best place to be on the globe. + +Thankfully, that doesn’t mean it’s the worst either (until the Icelanders prove to me otherwise, I’m going to pin that title on them; I just can’t imagine vindaloo being eaten in frosty Reykjavik). + +In Israel, unfortunately, there’s a relative paucity of ethnic restaurants (note: the last time I made this claim in public, somebody wisely corrected me that Jewish food, and Israeli cuisine, are both considered ‘ethnic’ in other parts of the world). While falafel and shawarma joints are a dime a dozen (Ethiopian thankfully is also here), seeking out Thai or Indian eateries is a somewhat more challenging endeavor. + +This is exemplified by the fact that in Israel’s capital, Jerusalem, there is still no Indian restaurant that serves meat. The causes of this lamentable state of affairs are hotly debated, but I think it’s fair to say that Israel’s restrictive immigration laws have a lot to do with this. + +Nevertheless, all hope is not lost. + +Although you’ll be hard pressed to find good British Indian Restaurant (BIR) takeaways in Israel — the staple establishments that dot Manchester’s Curry Mile — you’ll find a few more traditional style Indian eateries that are often owned by Israelis and modeled after the kind of places popular with backpackers. + +Here are a few of the options that I’m familiar with (with the exception of Jerusalem, in the interests of brevity, the selection offered here is very much non-exhaustive; plenty more choices can be found by perusing Google Maps). + +### Jerusalem + +Sadly, Jerusalem now only sports one dedicated Indian food establishment — Jeera on Heleni Ha-Malka Street. Although it’s an improvement on the count that we had just a few months ago — which was zero. + +[**Log into Facebook** + _Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know._ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/jeera.jerusalem/ "https://www.facebook.com/jeera.jerusalem/")[](https://www.facebook.com/jeera.jerusalem/) + +The city has tragically remained bereft of an Indian restaurant that serves meat since the closing of Kohinor many moons ago, a restaurant that once operated branches in a hotel and on Hillel St. downtown. (In Israel, kosher restaurants serve either meat _or_ dairy — since Jewish religious law precludes mixing the two.) + +Run by an Israeli chef who traveled extensively throughout India, Jeera is vegetarian — and has plenty of vegan dishes on the menu too. + +Expect a hearty mix of samosas, thali platters, and delicious dosas to scoop it all up with. + +Enjoying the food in Jeera, Jerusalem, which is conveniently situated next to HaTaklit pub. Photo: Daniel Rosehill. + +Jeera is under the supervision of Tsohar, which is an alternative (but Orthodox) kashrut certifying body in Israel. + +While that’s a plus for many who are eager to see diversification in the kosher certification market in Israel, not all kosher-eaters “accept” their _hasgacha_(certification). + +Occasionally Jerusalem is also home to visiting Indian chefs which provides us with a reprieve from the otherwise limiting Indian food scene here. + +My currying claim to fame: I met Sanjeev Khapoor while visiting here a few years ago. Although my first question was “do you know Vah Chef [Sanjay Thumma, an Indian YouTube and TV personality]?” he didn’t appear offended. + +The author (L) with famed Indian chef Sanjeev Kahpoor. Right: the author’s wife. + +Other Indian options in Jerusalem: + + * [Zigmond in Rehavia](https://www.facebook.com/zigmondbarjerusalem/) also does a thali platter. There are a few decent beer taps on offer too. + * The popular Abraham Hostel, a backpacker’s favorite, has been known to host Indian food nights. + +### Tel Aviv + +Still moving through my stomach as I type this is the excellent output of the Munnar vegetarian Indian restaurant in Tel Aviv. + +#### Munnar, Nahalat Binyamin 68 + +Foreground: paneer with spinach. Photo: Daniel RosehillPhoto: Daniel RosehillPhoto: Daniel Rosehill + +Munnar not only serves a delightful assortment of Indian vegetarian cuisine — everything my dining partner and I ate was truly excellent — it’s also adorned with the type of accessories you’d expect in a traditional Indian eaterie. + +Kingfisher beer is both on tap and in bottles and Hindi music fills the air. + +While this place doesn’t have any kosher certification, it’s vegetarian-only. + +The dining space is intimate, although there are also a few outdoor tables for those who prefer to soak up the busy Tel Aviv streetscape _al fresco_. + +I can’t wait to go back. + +#### Tandoori, Zamenhoff St 2 + +If there’s one Indian in Israel that best captures the British Indian Restaurant (BIR) taste, I would award that honor to Tandoori in Tel Aviv. (Note: that claim might offend the proprietors who are, I believe, the descendants of authentic Indian Jews). + +Tandoori, which is located just a stone’s throw from Dizengoff Circle, _isn’t_ vegetarian. But it’s also not kosher. + +The menu features an assortment of regional curries — the staples like vindaloo, _tikka masala_ and _chicken makhani_ are all represented here — as well as vegetarian and vegan friendly options like _aloo mattar_ and _jeera aloo_. + +The mark of more authentic Indian food establishments, both nan and _roti_(flatbread made with whole wheat _atta_ flour) are represented on the flatbread menu. + +#### Salaam Bombey (סאלם בומביי), Yehuda Ha-Levi 44 + +Formerly a hole-in-the-wall on Dizengoff St that offered an incredible lunch deal, Salaam Bombey somewhat recently moved into extended premises on Yehuda HaLevi street. + +While my last visit there predates the beginning of my photo-taking phase (a relatively new development, like my selfie stick-toting one), the food was both delicious and visually appealing. + +You can mix and match an assortment of different delights including many different kinds of _dahls_ , dips, and rices. + +Salaam Bombey now works through the popular Israeli delivery services 10Bis and Wolt. + +Some of Salaam Bombay’s selection. Screenshot: 10Bis + +### Ramla and Lod + +The location of the few Indian restaurants in Israel is very much tied up with where the relatively small population of Indian Jews — and their descendants — moved to in the country. + + + +To grossly generalize, Indian restaurants in Israel can be divided into two categories: + + * **Those run by Indian Jews or their children/grandchildren.** The dynamics of integration being so, the older generation tends to be more interested in keeping their origin country’s culinary traditions alive than their Israeli-born offspring. + * **Those run by Israeli Jews who went backpacking in India after the army and developed a hankering for Indian food.** They open Indian restaurants to cater for the tastes of other Israelis who fell in love with Indian food and tourists + +Many Indian Jews who made _aliyah_ are Cochin Jews whose point of origin is the Kerala region in India. + +Kerala is one of the most well-known sub-cuisines in Indian culture, known for its use of seafood and coconut (the Kerala region has a coastline of almost 600KM). + +All this is to explain why Indian restaurants can be found operating in the cities of Ramla and Lod which don’t rank high among the most well-known of Israeli cities. + +#### Maharaja, Sderot Herz 87, Ramla + +Located just a few minutes’ walk from Ramla’s busy food market (itself worth exploring), Mahraja is an authentic Indian eaterie that — at least when I last visited — combines a small eaterie with a busy Indian food store. + +The grocery section includes well-stocked refrigerators where you can find everything from frozen paneer through to _dabba masalas_ for holding spices (the latter, naturally, aren’t stored in a refrigerator!) + +[**Log into Facebook** + _Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know._ www.facebook.com](https://www.facebook.com/MaharajaIsrael/ "https://www.facebook.com/MaharajaIsrael/")[](https://www.facebook.com/MaharajaIsrael/) + +The menu is posted on their Facebook page and contains everything from basmati rice through to curries. + +### Your Kitchen + +Good Indian food not being abundant in Israel — at least in parts of it — sometimes it’s just easier to make your own. + +I’ve been able to source good pots and pans from restaurant supply stores (one of my most longstanding recommendations). The more obscure items — like _copper handis_ for serving rice — I either buy online or in an Indian store. + +One of my great dreams is to own a Preetha “mixie” (mixer-grinder). These I haven’t been able to source locally, although picking one up is on my to-do list the next time I’m out of the country. + +BIR style chicken vindaloo with a side of pita bread. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Batches of base gravy, a BIR essential. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Red lentil dahl (left) and turmeric rice (right) stored in gastronorm pans. Photo: Daniel Rosehill.Working is better with curry. Photo: Daniel Rosehill diff --git a/posts/medium/Where-does-thought-leadership-fit-in-the-marketing-and-sales-funnel-.md b/posts/medium/Where-does-thought-leadership-fit-in-the-marketing-and-sales-funnel-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5f980ad953035baa4bab12a884a01bd60238ccdf --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Where-does-thought-leadership-fit-in-the-marketing-and-sales-funnel-.md @@ -0,0 +1,57 @@ +# Where does thought leadership fit in the marketing and sales funnel? + +Anybody that spends enough time thinking about their content marketing will at some point encounter the concept of the marketing and sales funnel. + +A simplified representation of it can be remembered with the mnemonic AIDA: **A** ttention, **I** nterest, **D** esire, **A** ction. + +A simplified version of the marketing and sales funnel represented as AIDA. Source: Pixabay + +You won’t have to dig far through Google to come across many difference taxonomies and ways of representing the funnel. But dig through enough examples and you’ll start to notice some commonalities: + + * **Most break the funnel down into three constituent parts: top of funnel (ToFu), middle of funnel (MoFu), and bottom of funnel (BoFu).** Developing awareness is a top of funnel activity. Cementing desire, overcoming objections, and validating needs are mid-funnel activities. While validating potential ROI and business need are bottom of funnel activities. + * **Some authors will regard the marketing and sales funnels as two separate animals while others will plot all stages onto one funnel.** The sales component of the funnel in AIDA is represented with AIDA. (I think that plotting all stages onto one diagram makes things simpler.) + * **Those that are more sales-focused will often superimpose three labels onto the funnel:** lead generation (at awareness), lead nurturing (mid-funnel: consideration and intent), and sales (evaluation and purchase). + +Content marketers are accustomed to thinking about the collateral they create as targeting certain stages of the funnel: + + * **Blog posts are quintessential ToFu activities** letting the world know that you exist and ranking for the right keywords. + * **E-books and reports are common MoFu assets**. These are detailed enough to help overcome objections and help validate needs. + * **Competitor comparisons and testimonials and case studies are commonly thought of as BoFu assets.** These affirm the last remaining doubts that your company is trustworthy (testimonials and case studies offer social proof) and help satisfy those signing off on the purchase that it will be possible to achieve positive ROI through adopting the product/service being sold. + +[**Content Marketing and Thought Leadership: What's the Difference?** +_Content marketing is a well-established discipline for generating inbound leads through keyword targeting and other…_ www.marketingprofs.com](https://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2021/44489/content-marketing-and-thought-leadership-whats-the-difference "https://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2021/44489/content-marketing-and-thought-leadership-whats-the-difference")[](https://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2021/44489/content-marketing-and-thought-leadership-whats-the-difference) + +But what about thought leadership? + +### Where Does Thought Leadership Sit In The Marketing Funnel? + +The first thing to say is that there’s no one right answer to this question. + +Different marketers have different conceptions of what true thought leadership _is_ — although I have my preferred definition (“thought leadership is the act of sharing original insights and thoughts with a target audience to help develop awareness and interest in the thought leader, his/her organization, or the product or service being sold.”) + +Thought leadership and content marketing can be distinguished on a few key grounds (for more detail, see my piece for Marketing Pros above): + + * Thought leadership is more commonly non-promotional + * Thought leadership, in light of the above, can commonly be leveraged off-site by being placed in editorial publications + * Thought leadership — to merit the title — needs to be original and of legitimate interest to its readership. Content marketing doesn’t necessarily have to cross this bar. + +My opinion is that**thought leadership sits higher in the funnel than content marketing**. + +Of course content marketing can and commonly does work at the top of funnel level — developing awareness about the company and its offering through, for instance, informational blogs. But it can work throughout the full length of the funnel right down to facilitating conversion from leads to customers. + +Thought leadership — on the other hand — tends to be a top to mid funnel activity. + +Organizations and individuals commonly use thought leadership to: + + * Establish their credibility as an expert operating in the field. This is essentially an awareness activity — whether the awareness being generated is about the person him/her-self, his company, or the product being offered. + * Convince the target audience of the reputability of themselves or their organizations. I would place this as a mid-funnel activity because it essentially involves overcoming objections. + +Thought leadership, however, rarely operates at the bottom of funnel level. While showcasing one’s expertise or interesting ideas might be a terrific way of warming up relationships — or establishing them — when it comes time to go in for the sales classic content marketing assets, such as case studies, are often the preferred means. + +When conversations move to brass tacks — can we make money from this? — the time for establishing one’s legitimacy or credibility or expertise is in the past;. + +The above explains partially why thought leadership and content marketing can be used in combination and why, indeed, they’re often such a potent one-two. + +Thought leadership tends to operate higher in the marketing and sales funnel than content marketing. Understanding their differences and approaching them as unique activities with different targets can help authors to derive maximum value from both — and realize their synergies. + +_Daniel Rosehill is the founder of_[ _DSR Ghostwriting_](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) _, a thought leadership writing service and marketing consultancy specializing in helping develop and execute thought leadership campaigns for clients in the technology sector._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Who-hires-ghostwriters--These-people-.md b/posts/medium/Who-hires-ghostwriters--These-people-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fca4cb39f30c30f6ef94c6d60450cbe2fde06b61 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Who-hires-ghostwriters--These-people-.md @@ -0,0 +1,70 @@ +# Who hires ghostwriters? These people! + +#### Thinking about working with a ghostwriter, but not sure it’s a “done thing”? Some professionals who commonly work with ghostwriters + +Ghostwriting clients are almost as diverse as ghostwriters themselves. Image: Pixnio. + +When it comes to ghostwriting, there’s a lot of information floating around the internet. Many, in particular, are confused about whether the whole business of ghostwriting is “legit.” + +[**Is Hiring A Ghostwriter Legit | Insights by DSR Ghostwriting** + _As I wrote previously, ghostwriting is a field saddled with various myths and misunderstandings. These include: Lumping…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/is-hiring-a-ghostwriter-for-your-next-book-project-legitimate/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/is-hiring-a-ghostwriter-for-your-next-book-project-legitimate/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/is-hiring-a-ghostwriter-for-your-next-book-project-legitimate/) + +It’s easy to understand why many internet users are confused. + +For one, there’s an enormous variance in terms of moral flexibility among those who call themselves “ghostwriters” (note: most of my business comes from ghostwriting work). + +A ghostwriter could be: + + * **A skilled writer who helps a CEO perfect articles** informing the public about what his/her organization does + * **A speechwriter helping a head of state** prepare a major policy address + * **An “academic ghostwriter”** who secretly authors a student’s university coursework, thereby allowing the latter to deceive an educational institution into awarding an artificially high grade + +You can probably guess my feelings about the whole industry of academic ghostwriting (my last example): I think it’s illegitimate and sullies the professionalism of those who work in what I would call more “legitimate” ways. + +Let’s put those helping charlatans land ill-won grades into a separate bucket. Who are we left with? These are some of the individuals that commonly hire ghostwriters for their writing projects. + +### Time-strapped business leaders and entrepreneurs + +One of the most voracious hirers of ghostwriters are all manner of business executives and entrepreneurs. + +Business leaders are often subject matter experts (SMEs) who know a lot about their area of knowledge but who are poor communicators. + +The SME-writer collaboration has proven its worth across all manner of industries and geographies. + +Both tiny startup CEOs and Fortune 500 executives can be found working with ghostwriters to help them take their know-how and package it into eloquent language. + +Business leaders are likely to enroll the help of ghostwriters to help author material like: + + * Keynote addresses at industry conferences + * Op-eds and guest blogs in significant trade media publications + * Blog posts on the company website or newsletter + * Investment relations (IR) materials + +### Politicians and diplomats + +I have long argued that speechwriters should be included in the fold of those we commonly think of when we use the term “ghostwriter” (purists tend to apply it only to those who work on book publishing projects for their clients; these days I think a more expansive definition is far more logical). + +Speechwriters, after all, are commonly employed in writing words that get attributed to another individual — in speechwriting lexicon, the person often referred to as the principle. + +Politicians and diplomats are some of the most frequent users of speechwriting services. While politicians at the highest levels will often retain dedicated speechwriters (White House speechwriters tend to accrue some level of notoriety) those with less demanding schedules will either write their own speeches or outsource the speechwriting process to a marketing agency or a speechwriting specialist. + +Those in the policy sector — including politicians — are often overwhelmed with requests for speaking engagements. Furthermore many of their speeches are expected to communicate important nuances of policy and are likely to attract media attention. + +Even if they don’t commonly think of themselves as retaining the services of ghostwriters, many politicians and diplomats do exactly that. + +### Celebrities + +Celebrities and policy professionals: two groups of individuals that commonly require the services of speechwriters. Photo: Wikimedia + +Another addendum to the category of individuals with sometimes monstrously busy schedules, celebrities also often find themselves being prodded to offer their written or spoken thoughts on issues of interest to their fans. + +Rather than turn these down on account of their demanding schedules, some speechwriters will turn to speechwriters. Speechwriters may be drafted to help celebrities: + + * Pen acceptance speeches. While short, these often attract lots of media attention. If every word matters (and will be reported on) a professional speechwriter is sometimes the best and safest choice! + * Author autobiographies. Particularly popular during the holiday season, it’s no secret — both inside the industry and outside of it — that many celebrity memoirs are not, in fact, written by the celebrities themselves but rather by writers on contract. + +The above is an extremely non-exhaustive list of those who commonly hire ghostwriters. + +Even if the ghostwriting marketplace has its shady operators and sub-niches, overall there are more “legitimate” uses for ghostwriting than “black hat” ones. + +_Interested in working with a professional ghostwriter for your next thought leadership campaign or non-fiction book ghostwriting project? Daniel’s writing website is_[ _DSRGhostwriting.com_](http://DSRGhostwriting.com) _._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Who-is-a-ghostwriter--Why-do-they-ghostwrite-.md b/posts/medium/Who-is-a-ghostwriter--Why-do-they-ghostwrite-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b39d1cf210ddbddf4255f4a70d0bc72a5d3f88a9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Who-is-a-ghostwriter--Why-do-they-ghostwrite-.md @@ -0,0 +1,122 @@ +# Who is a ghostwriter? Why do they ghostwrite? + +#### A surprisingly diverse group of people call themselves by the title. Here are some of them. + +Who is a ghostwriter and why do they do what they do? + +If you’re thinking about hiring a ghostwriter for your next writing project, then you may be wondering what kind of writer voluntarily submits to a writing relationship in which they don’t even get credit for their work? + +**Isn’t that kind of like the literary equivalent of shooting yourself in the foot, you might be wondering?** + +Even if you’ve hired one — admit it, you may have wondered this! + +Who are these writers with a self-destructive bend? And why aren’t they writing for credit like … those writers you have on your bookshelf? + +If you’ve ever been curious about who gets into ghostwriting — and more importantly why! — then let me provide a little bit of context. + +Spoiler: there’s more than one ghostwriter in the room. + +### What’s a ghostwriter? + +Firstly, before we look at _who_ ghostwrites let’s ask _what_ is a ghostwriter. + +Classically, a ghostwriter is a writer employed in order to help draft _books_ — specifically — on behalf of an attributed author. + +However, I would propose that these days it makes more sense to take a wider view of the definition and consider a ghostwriter to be anybody that works on writing projects that ultimately are bylined (attributed) to another party. + +Adopting the wider definition, we could say that ghostwriters are involved in producing: + + * Books + * Speeches + * Articles and blogs + * Social media posts + +### Freelance Writers Who Don’t Mind Foregoing A Byline + +While the name may make them sound somewhat cryptic, in reality most ghostwriters are simply freelance writers who are okay with the publishing relationship they agree to. + +Writers will also vary in terms of how much ghostwriting they undertake. Many will have a byline-friendlier writing gig on the side — perhaps as a journalist. This gets them over the hump of not getting attribution for their work. They can still show to prospects that they’re an active writer. + +Other ghostwriters focus exclusively on ghostwriting (all their work is attributed to their clients). They have to be a little bit more creative in terms of how they showcase work to their clients. Some in this category might even engage in recreational writing just to show that they’re “active.” + +Others engage in a mixture of attributed content marketing and ghostwriting. Some even add freelance journalism into the mix and draw income from a variety of sources. + +But why do freelance writers ghostwrite at all? + + * If they’re getting attributed work elsewhere they can afford to forsake some of the credit for their writing + * There’s a strong demand for ghostwriting work from the people who hire ghostwriters + * Ghostwriters can sometimes charge more because they forego the marketing advantage that comes with having your work attributed to you + +[**Who hires ghostwriters? These people!** +_Thinking about working with a ghostwriter, but not sure it’s a “done thing”? Some professionals who commonly work with…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-hires-ghostwriters-these-people-d0e3ce1e991b "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-hires-ghostwriters-these-people-d0e3ce1e991b")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/who-hires-ghostwriters-these-people-d0e3ce1e991b) + +For many aspiring book authors, ghostwriting is also an interesting way to get their toes wet in the writing market without actually writing their own work. + +This is somewhat similar to the reasoning for which aspiring or indie authors commonly employ pen names (pseudonyms) — except ghostwriters are generally guaranteed payment for their work. + +### Communications and PR Firms Often Ghostwrite + +A lot of corporate ghostwriting is actually undertaken by public relations and communications firms. + +Many medium and larger companies outsource much of the day-to-day heavy lifting of marketing to these organizations. + +While some specialist PR firms only handle _aspects_ of communications (to certain stakeholders; examples: investor relations and internal communications support firms), many will also have a team of writers on hand to draft material for their clients. + +PR firms aren’t typically the best port of call for personal ghostwriting projects — such as book authorship. But they are commonly drafted in to help with the following projects which those in the corporate realm more frequently use: + + * Speechwriting + * Article and blog ghostwriting + * Media relations related ghostwriting + +### Personal Assistants Can Serve As De Facto Ghostwriters + +In practice, a lot of day to day ghostwriting gets handled by personal assistants and other such unofficial communicators. + +In particular a lot of speechwriting gets handed over to: + + * Executive assistants + * Administrative assistants + +While these individuals may not be personally titled as ghostwriters or even serve as professional communicators, they nevertheless end up picking up a _lot_ of the slack when it comes to helping busy executives meet their communications objectives. + +In particular “assistants” can be found helping the following individuals with writing projects: + + * Politicians + * Diplomats + * Business executives + +### Internal Marketing Teams + +Finally, not all the heavy lifting that marketing teams undertake is outsourced. + +Plenty of marketing managers and assistants help out with ghostwriting projects on behalf of their colleagues. + +For instance, marketing professionals could find themselves: + + * Ghostwriting thought leadership articles on behalf of the company’s CTO + * Writing a speech for the CEO to be delivered at an industry conference + +### Ghostwriters Of Dubious Credibility + +I’ve made the point before that not all _ghostwriting_ is what I would consider to be legitimate. + +Academic ghostwriting is an example of a field that I think _bone fide_ ghostwriters should have nothing to do with — because it essentially helps its customers to perpetrate academic fraud. + +Nevertheless, for the sake of completion, add it to the list of domains where self-described ghostwriters can be found operating. + +### There Are More Ghostwriters Out There Than Meet The Eye + +Believe it or not those who explicitly market themselves as ghostwriters — like me !— are, I believe, in the minority in the ghostwriting world. + +[**DSR Ghostwriting | Thought Leadership And Content Marketing For Tech Clients | DSR Ghostwriting |…** + _By: Daniel Rosehill SPECIALTIES: PUBLIC RELATIONS AND DSR GHOSTWRITING CLIENTS HAVE INCLUDED Download a free white…_ dsrghostwriting.com](https://dsrghostwriting.com/ "https://dsrghostwriting.com/")[](https://dsrghostwriting.com/) + +While dedicated ghostwriting specialists do exist, equally lots of ghostwriting, for both individuals and companies, is done by: + + * Generalist freelance writers + * PR professionals and firms + * Marketing teams and managers + * Consultants + * Assistants + + _Interested in working with a specialist ghostwriter to help plan and execute thought leadership campaigns or non-fiction book projects? Daniel’s website is DSRGhostwriting.com._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Who-should-you-attribute-your-thought-leadership-to--You-or-your-business-.md b/posts/medium/Who-should-you-attribute-your-thought-leadership-to--You-or-your-business-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..230fbeab22a36784624ba20c6d8ced290f866f4c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Who-should-you-attribute-your-thought-leadership-to--You-or-your-business-.md @@ -0,0 +1,62 @@ +# Who should you attribute your thought leadership to? You or your business? + +Who’s the best person to attribute your thought leadership to? It depends + +Whenever prospective thought leaders are looking to devise a thought leadership campaign, one of the first questions they may ask internally is **“who should take “credit” for the thought leadership** : the thought leader or the organization?” + +In practice, this is a question about the byline or attribution of the piece. + +The person to whom a piece of writing is bylined is presented to the world as the authoring party, irrespective of whether or not he or she actually wrote the text. This person will be responsible for defending any arguments advanced in the thought leadership and may be required to participate in debates that arise from its creation with other industry experts. + +Deciding whether an internal team member should serve as the organization’s spokesperson or whether a piece should be bylined collectively, to an organization, is therefore more of a strategic decision than it might at first appear. + +Of course, it is possible for some thought leadership to be attributed to an individual and the rest to a team. But consistency is key. Whatever option is chosen, the decision about which spokesperson to use should be undertaken carefully and in coordination with any overarching PR strategies that the organization may have in place. + +This piece outlines three factors that those preparing thought leadership campaigns may wish to consider when choosing how to attribute each piece in the campaign (or all of them). + +### Is Personal Branding A Consideration? + +When planning thought leadership attribution, many organizations will weigh up the relative strength of their prospective spokespersons’ personal brands with the reputation of the organization. In many cases, this will be the deciding factor about who to attribute thought leadership to. + +Thought leadership marketing is undertaken by organizations ranging from pre-seed funded startups through to major international corporations with hundreds of employees dedicated to the effort. + +Likewise, those who might wish to present themselves as thought leaders may be relatively unknown startup employees whose fame does not extend beyond the office. Or they might be seasoned businesspeople with well-established professional images that they can leverage. If the latter, those individuals may be hesitant about the idea of lending their byline to the publishing effort. But it may be in the business’s definite interests to have them do so. + +As a rule of thumb, if the personal brand of the potential thought leader greatly exceeds that of the organization, then it may make more sense to attribute much of the thought leadership campaign to an individual — or a group of them — rather than the organization as a collective. The downfall of this approach is that as soon as those people leave the organization, so do their reputations. + +If the authoring party of a thought leadership campaign is the founder of a startup, however, then that person may expect to stay close to the organization for the foreseeable future. In cases such as these, presenting a founder or a co-founder as a thought leader might be a strategically sound decision. + +**Summary:** _Consider the relative strengths of the brand of the business and that of the individuals to whom the thought leadership might be attributed. Consider also which is likely to have more staying power._ + +### How Personal Is The Narrative Being Woven? + +Another question to consider is to what extent the narrative of the thought leadership could be described as “personal.” + +Thought leadership often leverages statistics, case studies, or data insights in order to extrapolate observations about the future of an industry. + +But often personal anecdotes and narratives are required in order to get hard information across in a more palatable fashion. A mixture of hard reasoning and human observations is an effective and engaging way of presenting arguments that is widely used by orators. + +An organization’s story, for instance, might be tightly wrapped up with the reason why the founder started the company (its background narrative). + +Consider, for instance, the case of Facebook, which famously grew out of its founder’s dorm project. For such organizations, it would often make sense that the initial thought leadership be authored by the founder or co-founder. The founder can cite entertaining anecdotes from the company’s formative days to explain why it came into existence and its overall purpose. + +Once organizations grow and mature, however, they often find that their thought leadership matures from the reason for the company’s existence — and its mission — through to more nuanced commentary around certain issues, such as its strategic product vision. Once this evolution has taken place, thought leadership can become less centered around a person. In these cases, a change of approach may be warranted. + +**Summary** + _Consider the extent to which the thought leadership is going to rely upon personal anecdote and stories to make its point. Thought leadership that is framed more personally may have to be attributed to an individual — or a group of them._ + +### Will The Thought Leadership Need To Be White Labelled? + +Thought leadership and content marketing[ remain distinctive pursuits](https://dsrghostwriting.com/insights/the-4-key-differences-between-thought-leadership-and-content-marketing-entrepreneur-com/). But in the interest of streamlining operations, small marketing teams often need to make more profit out of less work. + +**Summary:** _Ask whether the thought leadership will have to be bled into derivative works. If that is the case, then it may make more strategic sense to attribute it collectively._ + +In large international organizations with subsidiaries, a core library of thought leadership writing may need to be respun and rewritten for local media markets. In cases like these, attributing thought leadership collectively — to the organization — tends to make more sense than tying it to any one individual. If thought leadership assets are going to have to be “shared” among different teams, then it’s often better that no one individual can lay claim to the work. + +By contrast, if an organization doesn’t envision a need to create derivative works of an original piece of thought leadership, then attribution to a specific executive may be more logical. + +### Pick Your Spokespersons Wisely + +Public relations (PR) strategies often lay out careful guidelines around which individuals are authorized to represent the company and across which media formats. + +That same level of attention to detail should go into the important consideration of how to attribute thought leadership writing. The selection should be made carefully and guidelines followed consistently across distribution channels. The three factors above can help determine the most appropriate course of action. diff --git a/posts/medium/Who-wants-to-be-on-Reddit-s-first-podcast-for-writers-.md b/posts/medium/Who-wants-to-be-on-Reddit-s-first-podcast-for-writers-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..93e13664ab9ecd6c989188f43337a2b92c9bbc85 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Who-wants-to-be-on-Reddit-s-first-podcast-for-writers-.md @@ -0,0 +1,87 @@ +# Who wants to be on Reddit’s first podcast for writers? + +#### Could anonymity change a writers’ podcast — for the better? + +What would a podcast be like by writers in the shadows? + +A few weeks ago, I had a brainwave. + +**What would happen if we took a Reddit community — a subreddit — and gave it its very own podcast?** + +Not a podcast “owned” by any one person — conventionally a host. + +**But rather a distributed podcast, collectively run, that had its “home” aboard a social network?** + +**And what if — like Reddit — _most_ of its contributors were anonymous?** + +Many freelance writers who are invited onto podcasts use the platforms as content marketing opportunities. Which is understandable. I’ve done the same thing. + +But what about a podcast by writers for writers in which guests, by virtue of being anonymous could be totally uninhibited about their experiences as writers? + +**Could writers be more brutally open about the trials and tribulations of making it as a freelance writer if the world — and even the host — didn’t know their true identity?** + +**And could that honesty, in turn, create a more valuable listening experience?** + +These were the thoughts that, yesterday, led me to speak into a microphone and create this: + +For those interested, The Freelance Writers of Reddit Podcast (episode count: one) ([Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/4V9jK1tVdttzA6kaoajKRO)) is an effort to find answers to all of the above questions. + +It’s also a podcast produced in the hope that a mixture of anonymity and on-the-record views from attributed freelancers could give the podcast that extra bite of authenticity and candor versus other writers’ podcasts currently on the market. + +That’s the elevator pitch. + +And because most Redditors take protecting their anonymity very seriously — that includes me — here are some thoughts I’ve hemmed out specifically a bout how this could be done in a way that allows those that want to to remain in the auditory shadows. + +### How To Pitch Yourself As An Anonymous Guest + +Interested in coming on the show as a guest? That’s awesome. + +The podcast will consist of two formats: + + * Conventional host-guest interviews + * Monologues from contributors. These are suitable for total anonymity but will be backended and prefaced by an introduction/conclusion from the rotating host so that they’re in context for listeners. + +Here are some ways you can do that. + +#### Totally Anonymously + +**Method 1 (Reddit):** + + * Drop /u/freelancewriterspod a direct message on Reddit + * Send a link to a recording of your monologue (e.g. via WeTransfer). If you want to be even shadier and modify the pitch so that your true voice is obscured — you’re welcome to + * We’ll listen to the recording and if it’s worth sharing edit it into an episode + +**Method 2 (Email):** + + * Set up an account on Protonmail with an alias. If you want to tie it to your Reddit identity I suggest [yourReddithandle]@protonmail.com. + * Pitch your idea and/or send your recording to the email below. + +#### **Not Anonymously** + +Feel free to drop me a message. Contact options here. + +[**Here’s how to reach me by secure (PGP) email** + _I’ve been using PGP encrypted email for a number of years now._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/heres-how-to-reach-me-by-secure-pgp-email-c1ac58d7dc51 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/heres-how-to-reach-me-by-secure-pgp-email-c1ac58d7dc51")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/heres-how-to-reach-me-by-secure-pgp-email-c1ac58d7dc51) + +### Technical Details and Stack + +**Recording for synchronous guest interviews (remote):** + +[**Cleanfeed** + _Cleanfeed is multitrack, multi-party live audio and recording, using only a browser Easy to use You'll have your first…_ cleanfeed.net](https://cleanfeed.net/ "https://cleanfeed.net/")[](https://cleanfeed.net/) + +#### **Hosting:** + + + +#### **Syndicated on:** + +Spotify + +### Notes + + * The podcast is for writers who are on Reddit. + * The podcast is not affiliated with any particular subreddit, including /r/freelancewriters. + * The podcast is not affiliated with Reddit itself (the company that operates the social network by the same name). + * If you’re not on Reddit you’re still welcome to pitch yourself as a guest. You might just need to set up an account to pitch yourself. Anonymity is the interesting angle here. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Whoa--I-can-relate-freakishly-well-to-almost-all-of-this-.md b/posts/medium/Whoa--I-can-relate-freakishly-well-to-almost-all-of-this-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..36741295c49f8c5e1ac5a447c18cbf035d480691 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Whoa--I-can-relate-freakishly-well-to-almost-all-of-this-.md @@ -0,0 +1,27 @@ +# Whoa. I can relate freakishly well to almost all of this. + +Whoa. I can relate freakishly well to almost all of this. + +I'm both a somewhat shy person. + +But I also feel a strange and sometimes irrepressible need to share what's going on in my life - and head - with the world. + +One line here really stood out for me: "I want to be recognized, but at a very safe distance." + +I'm also (broadly speaking) in comms and PR. + +Friends who have seen me pull a few tricks getting press releases into newspapers and things of that nature sometimes refer to me as a "marketing genius" (I'm far from it) and ask me why — if I'm so good at promoting others — I do a pretty bad job at marketing myself. Or if I do market myself, then I hold back. Which usually makes that marketing a whole lot less effective. + +The reason? A lot of what you wrote. It's not that I don't want to. It's just that without a bit of distance it starts to quickly crush at my sense of self-confidence. + +Oh and guess what? + +I actually *did* publish a book under a pseudonym. For a couple more reasons than the ones you've outlined here. But guess what else? I regret the decision. + +Besides all the practical difficulties (how do you arrange podcast interviews under a fake name?) ... I find myself needing that distance less and less as I become more confident in who I am. + +And any measures designed to shield myself from that process are regressive and risk taking me back to that point where I felt the need for a fake name; to create an agency business structure when it was mostly just me (so I wouldn't have to say that I want your business!); etc, etc, etc. + +Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to reading more from you! + +\- Daniel diff --git a/posts/medium/Why--For-Now--I-ve-Stopped-Worrying-About-My-Data-In-The-Cloud.md b/posts/medium/Why--For-Now--I-ve-Stopped-Worrying-About-My-Data-In-The-Cloud.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..eb20dbf73f6dade81926355913532858d443e325 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why--For-Now--I-ve-Stopped-Worrying-About-My-Data-In-The-Cloud.md @@ -0,0 +1,399 @@ +# Why, For Now, I’ve Stopped Worrying About My Data In The Cloud + +#### If You’re A Regular Joe Tech User We’re All Hopelessly Beholden To The Random Decisions Of Big Tech. On Consumer SaaS And Its (Underdiscussed) Backup Problem + +Those who follow me online may have gleaned, at some point, that I’m something of a backup anorak (translation for Americans: nerd). + +A typically vaguely bleak looking data center. An integral part of the world of big tech. Photo by [Manuel Geissinger](https://www.pexels.com/@artunchained?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/light-construction-industry-internet-9101888/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +I was kindly introduced as such by the guy who’s basically the world’s foremost expert on backups (no, I kid you not, there really is such a guy). + +His name is [W. Curtis Preston](https://twitter.com/wcpreston?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor). He lives somewhere in California, I believe. He’s literally written the book on backups (one forthcoming). And he even had me on his excellent podcast, [Restore It All](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/backup-centrals-restore-it-all/id1469663053#). + +If you’d like to hear Curtis, [Prasanna Malaiyandi](https://twitter.com/pmalaiyandi?lang=en), and yours truly discussing why backing up consumer SaaS products is so difficult, then check out our conversation from last year. + +[**Why is it so hard to backup consumer SaaS products? (Restore it All Podcast #74)** +_Daniel Rosehill, a self-described "backup anorak," joins us to discuss how difficult it can be to backup consumer SaaS…_ www.backupcentral.com](https://www.backupcentral.com/why-is-it-so-hard-to-backup-consumer-saas-products-restore-it-all-podcast-74/ "https://www.backupcentral.com/why-is-it-so-hard-to-backup-consumer-saas-products-restore-it-all-podcast-74/")[](https://www.backupcentral.com/why-is-it-so-hard-to-backup-consumer-saas-products-restore-it-all-podcast-74/) + +My other backup claims-to-fame? + +I’ve created my own backup documentation and watched in amazement as it’s been forked on Github by somebody who cared enough about backups to find the repository. + +[Other geeks have ](https://youtu.be/mRk1JAdaCBM?t=1323)gotten a good laugh out of what I described (then) as my best Ubuntu backup strategy to date (the link is to an episode of the Linux Game Cast). I’ve been tweeted by Ubuntu who affirmed that backups are, indeed, rather vital. Vendors have shipped me backup appliances to test out. It takes time and effort to achieve this kind of notoriety in the backup world. Trust me. + +And you know what? It all came to nothing. At least on a personal level (my interest in backups has led to dong some work with vendors). Or at least to an awkward pause in my thoughts on backup. + +Because if you’re worried about protecting your data in the cloud — and I still say that you should be — then your current options for adequately protecting your data are pretty darn limited and there’s no point pretending otherwise. You have, to choose from, a few mostly lousy options. + +Because having only bad options is arguably better than having none at all (arguably; this doesn’t apply to beer, or so some argue), let me walk you through those anyway. + +But first: is this actually a problem? Yes. Perhaps not one that threatens the planet with immediate extinction. But one which could nevertheless threaten to destroy your data through various means. + +And why should you care? Here’s why. But first, let me handle the most common objection. + +### But … Isn’t The Cloud Backup!? + +Nope. + +Committing data to the cloud does not mean that you have backed it up. + +It just means that you’ve taken data from a source that you own (your computer, your phone) and moved it to somebody else’s computer. + +To be technical, it increasingly means that you’ve connected to some piece of software using a web browser and have used something like a keyboard and mouse to create data directly in the cloud. + +It’s not written to your computer at all. Its original source is in a filesystem and database that you don’t control. Increasingly, that’s how us consumers are creating data. Zero local touchpoints. And not a thought given to how we can retain a copy for ourselves. A small point that matters lots (thanks for pointing this out, during our episode, go to Curtis Preston). + +Equally, that simplistic representation that backup enthusiasts love to trot out (about the cloud being somebody else’s computer) is kind of inaccurate, at least as it’s commonly understood. Because it makes the situation seem wary more relatable than it actually is. + +The “computer” in this picture might actually be a huge bank of computers operating in a data center. + +In fact, unless you’re dealing with a total minnow, it probably is. The era of on premises data storage is nearing its end. That new flashy scheduling software you signed up for probably builds on infrastructure that they rent from one of the major providers on today’s market: AWS, Azure (Microsoft), or Google Cloud Platform. + +Even if you use a _ton_ of different SaaS tools, there’s a high chance — nay a probability — that almost all the data you create in the cloud is being centralized in data storage operated by one of those companies. + +Perhaps one or two of those startups is CTO’d by some cranky dude who insists on keeping a server in the basement. Bad news: he’ll probably be retired soon. A rep from one of the big cloud providers will eventually get to him and they’ll migrate. Welcome back to the cloud. Data from a bunch of other tools you use is probably on some other computer here. + +Those data centers are controlled by some of the strictest security you can imagine. Increasingly, they’re even linked together by a monolithic worldwide network of underwater cables that actually constitute the majority of the internet (the technical term is the “backbone”). + +[**Submarine Cable Map** + _TeleGeography's comprehensive and regularly updated interactive map of the world's major submarine cable systems and…_ www.submarinecablemap.com](https://www.submarinecablemap.com/ "https://www.submarinecablemap.com/")[](https://www.submarinecablemap.com/) + +Private concerns are (increasingly) laying trans-oceaning cable to move your data more efficiently between their main data centers and possibly also smaller data centers that are used to serve data more efficiently to your consumers (AWS Cloud Front). Remember when famous dudes like Marconi were messing about with getting the first messages across the ocean? Now it’s the tech giants doing it. Less glamorous. But the interests are becoming far more concentrated. + +[**Google Owns 63,605 Miles and 8.5% of Submarine Cables Worldwide** + _Fast Facts: Google owns major shares of 63,605 miles of submarine cables. Google will be the sole owner of 10,433 miles…_ broadbandnow.com](https://broadbandnow.com/report/google-content-providers-submarine-cable-ownership/ "https://broadbandnow.com/report/google-content-providers-submarine-cable-ownership/")[](https://broadbandnow.com/report/google-content-providers-submarine-cable-ownership/) + +Therefore, whether you’ve thought about this or not, if you use the cloud at any kind of scale, the bits and bytes that constitute your data are actually probably spread out all over the world (literally). They’re duplicated, replicated, and virtualized many times over. + +Therefore, if you want a copy of your data, then I hate to break it to you, but you probably can’t rock up to one of Google’s data centers with a plug-in SSD and a smile (although you can use something called Google Takeouts, although it’s kinda rubbish — says I — limits how often you can download your own data, and provides so means for automating the extraction process). “Where’s the mainframe,” you may rail in protest? There is none. It’s in the cloud, you see. + +Oh, and that computer? + +There may be (nay, there almost certainly is) some load balancing going on so that your data might be pulled from different sources depending on what the current network conditions are like. + +So your data isn’t really on any specific computer but rather sharded between a bunch of them and where you or anybody else gets it from is actually determined by (yet another) server. + +Which is why even in a netherland world you couldn’t fish it out onto your drive. But ultimately — even if temporarily — it will exist on some piece of hardware that provides storage. At the end of the day, data has to be stored somewhere for it to exist. Even if there’s virtualization and a whole other bunch of complicated stuff taking place with it. + +An NAS: the Synology DS 920+. Think of it like a data center that lives in your home. Photo: Author. + +And the “person” operating that data center? + +Larry from Google probably isn’t syncing your data onto his laptop at Google HQ and the laptop doesn’t have a nice bit of labelling on it that says “customer 102”. Rather, it might be a gigantic tech corporation worth billions of dollars. Provisioning that infrastructure is the shared concern of one team and not any one person. Which oddly equally means, of course, that nobody’s really responsible for all your “stuff.” + +### As A Consumer On The Cloud, You’re A Tiny Minnow In An Ocean Full Of Bigger Fish + +The good news is that these big cloud companies who are increasingly taking over the world of tech know that if they randomly loose your data, then consumers are going to be annoyed and start talking about it on places like Twitter which in turn will drive away other users. They’ll probably start leaving. In droves. + +And so they don’t want Daniel from Medium to write an angry post on Medium about how Google totally screwed up and lost all his wedding photos without any means of recovery thereby leaving him high and dry and wedding photo-less. Even though it’s way easier for that to happen than you might think. + +More churn. Less revenue. + +So Google institutes systems that will be good enough to prevent 99% of users from doing something like that through their own actions. Safeguards, essentially. + +So that’s well and good. + +But to pretend that major tech companies think about these things in any more empathetic terms — I contend — would be to unrealistic. + +Ultimately, they’re financial animals beholden to the interest of their shareholders and they don’t really give a crap about your wedding photos even if they mean the world to you. Even if the photographer got locked out of his cloud too and there’s literally nowhere else that they exist. You’re one of tens of millions. You’re not even a business much less an MSP. Or so I contend. + +So what they do is get really good at ensuring that that probably won’t happen through a fault of their own (or a combination of faults). + +They create elaborate systems for ensuring _redundancy_. And then make sure that you’re responsible for backup in a section of the fine print that they know you’ll probably never read. Alternatively you may get some basic backup functionalities. But they’re squarely in control of them. + +Even the acronyms that represent the documentation you probably forget about and which may have spelled all this out manage to sound snooze-inducingly boring. + +EULA. TOS. Who has time for any of this? Click next and get the stupid thing up and running already. Who cares where my data is going! It’s in the cloud! You don’t actually mean to suggest that a company as big as [major tech provider] isn’t backing up my stuff, do you?! + +If you’d like to know more about the thing that folks commonly mistake for backup (redundancy), then look up [the various types of RAID](https://www.steadfast.net/blog/almost-everything-you-need-know-about-raid). + +You can even build your own miniature data center by buying a device known as an NAS and buying a few TBs worth of storage from your local tech store. You’ll have redundancy in operation right beneath your dishwasher. How cool is that? + +Your Google Drive probably actually looks something like this in real life. Although it may not actually be on a physical computer like this for very long. And even if it were, it would be on a virtualized layer of it. Confused yet? Photo by [panumas nikhomkhai](https://www.pexels.com/@cookiecutter?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-and-gray-mining-rig-1148820/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Oddly, by setting up your NAS, you may now actually have a better backup system in place than the one that you think you’re getting from your billion dollar cloud but actually aren’t. There’s one major difference, at least. You own it (at least the hardware). And with ownership comes control. + +But what’s backup anyway? + +Backup is typically a point-in-time copy of your data. + +It’s created through one of several means (incremental, full, differential). But that’s already more detail than you need to know about backup. (If you want all the details, listen to the Restore It All Podcast. They have a few on how Hollywood does backup. Seriously, it’s interesting stuff). + +_Backup_ is designed (among many other uses) so that if you royally screw up by deleting your files and then emptying them from the bin that there’s still some way of retrieving those wedding photos. + +Or if your whole filesystem gets locked down by ransomware. + +Scoop up a clean copy and restore from there. At least that’s the idea. (True backup vs. backup-ish is another fine point for to be debated). + +But if redundancy is just a live _copy_ of your data so that it’s always there, then all those safeguards go right out the window. And that’s why redundancy isn’t considered backup even if the two are often mistaken. + +If data source A is a useless chunk of data that’s been encrypted by some malicious ransomware and it’s replicated immediately to data source B then data source B isn’t any better. You’ve just got two useless chunks of data on two different storage media rather than one. You’ve duplicated bad data. Good news for whoever sold you the disks. + +You know what else you need for any backup system that’s not under your control to be worth its salt? + +You need a data restore plan. + +Somebody prepared to actually operate the restore part of the backup operation (common backup refrain: all backups need to be periodically tested for restorability). + +And you need some kind of a service level agreement (SLA) that sets out data restorability objectives. To define both the maximum period of time to get the first system back in operation and then longest amount of time that can elapse. + +The next time you feel like prodding around some terms of service (TOS) agreements which you signed but have totally forgotten about then see what they say about backup. + +Or just study for an AWS certification like I was doing last year. + +When you do, you’ll learn quickly about the shared security model. + +AWS will give you infrastructure to work with. But it doesn’t take responsibility if you prodigiously screw up thereby destroying all your data contained therein (rm -rf / anyone?). You take responsibility for things _in_ the cloud. They keep the cloud itself running. Mishaps happens more often than you might think. And it’s more problematic when users aren’t aware of what they need to be taking care of. + +Most cloud providers will ensure redundancy and uptime. + +They’ll make sure that your data is accessible. + +But take a closer peek under the hood and you’ll see that most also conveniently shift the responsibility for backup off their shoulders and back onto yours (wait … are _you_ the backup!?). + +They assume that you do your own backups. + +You do, right? Didn’t think so. + +But you COULD. Just follow my instructions. + +### Option 1: Take Your Own SaaS Backups Even If That Means Writing Data Request Emails Every Few Weeks + +A typical backup approach as implemented by a major online tech provider, Quora. Screenshot: publication date. Photo: Author. + +Software as a Service may sound like something you heard about in the news in reference to a massive IPO but it’s actually something you probably use every day of your life. + +Gmail? + +Google Drive? + +That cloud hosting thingymajig where you upload your invoices to so that you don’t get an even more horrible bill from the taxman? + +Yes, all the little tools we rely upon like that. And increasingly so. + +But wait. Stop and think about it for a second. + +Software you use. That’s running in the cloud. So … not on your computer. + +You don’t need a program to use it like in the old days when you had to fiddle around with CDs. + +That must mean that somebody else is provisioning the “stack” needed to make it accessible: the software, the operating system it runs on and finally the hardware (storage and computing) needed to make it run. Somebody else’s computer. Sound familiar? + +Indeed they are. This is SaaS. And when you stop to think about how much SaaS you might already be relying on for essential things — functions that if a business we would surely be earmarking as “mission critical” — then you might begin to understand the extent of the vulnerability we all face when we entrust all our data to cloud providers. + +But what can go wrong, you might ask? + +So the redundancy is probably going to protect you in an everyday sense of the word. But if you really run into the odd periodic disaster than you’re not going to be saved. + +But what if you needed an actual _backup_. Like when: + + * Your primary data system gets corrupted by ransomware and you don’t have money to pay the ransom. + * Your website gets infected by malware and you discover that backups weren’t included in the shared hosting plan you signed up for. + * You accidentally overrode all the mechanisms designed to make sure that you keep your own data like the trash bin on Google Drive etc and then wonder what’s the “second backup” built into the system (“THERE IS NONE!?!?!”). You may be really surprised to learn that if you did that then there may be absolutely zero way back to your data. Doesn’t Google have a backup system? Probably. Are they going to initiate a custom restore just for you? Probably not. Sorry. You’re one guy. Of tens of millions. Welcome to the bottom of the tech totem pole. + +You may also return from vacation to find that you’ve been locked out of your own Google account for a trivial reason (you logged in from different IPs and had to change password because the cloud service didn’t like this pattern of activity which it deemed suspicious; but you forgot to update the password on your phone and thus your email client was repeatedly checking for email using an outdated password. And now your cloud provider thinks somebody’s trying to hack into your data but you don’t actually know who they are and they won’t tell you…). Think that doesn’t happen? It just did to me. + +[**What’s The Worst That Could Happen If You Got Locked Out Of Your Google Account?** +_Relying on the cloud for everything seems great. Until it unexpectedly turns on you and you can’t legally leave your…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/whats-the-worst-that-could-happen-if-you-got-locked-out-of-your-google-account-a543368f06a4) + +So what you could do is take your own cloud backups. + +We need to cover every piece of data that we commit to the cloud and don’t keep in some primary storage system that we’re already backing up. + +Think that sounds easy? It’s not because: + +a) If you’re like most consumers, you’re probably backing up zero data on any system whatsoever and have been proceeding this way since you were born. + +b) When you consider the amount of cloud hosted data systems you use on a daily basis and entrust your data to, your head is probably going to start swimming. + +Medium.com? The writing you’re creating here lives in the cloud until you scoop it out. + +Post photos on Twitter? Tweet? + +Use Facebook? + +Comment on connections’ post on LinkedIn? + +Data, data, and more data, dear readers. + +You’re probably creating some many hours of the day even if all you’re doing is leaving comments on cat videos on YouTube. + +But if there’s no backup being provided — and you don’t want to arbitrarily lose any of it — then what are you going to do exactly? How will you be able to construct a backup archive of those comments on cat videos if you get locked out of your Google account (which is your sole means of accessing YouTube)? + +The answer to the above is what led me to try to map out the backup approaches of the most common cloud providers. + +The Mediums, LinkedIns, Githubs, and Reddits of this world. + +You can peruse that documentation here. It may already be outdated. + +[**GitHub - danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches: Periodically updated markdown documentation…** + _Periodically updated markdown documentation summarizing manual / non-programmatic methodologies to back up commonly…_ github.com](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches "https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches")[](https://github.com/danielrosehilljlm/CloudBackupApproaches) + +But to save you some clicking, here’s what I found out: + + * There are some cloud services that don’t let you backup your data at all. Yes, really. + * Others liberate only a portion of the data and leave others locked up in places like content delivery networks (CDNs) that they use to serve images more quickly. + * Some provide automated backup processes. Others manual ones. And others have totally manual ones in which you need to write to the company to request a backup archive. And if it weren’t for things like GDPR, there’s a good chance this last group of companies wouldn’t be providing any backup functionality at all. + +Despite these limitations, you could try your best. Here’s where the backup geeks and anoraks of the world do their thing. They use CLIs, VPS or dedicated hosting plans, and do other things that most people can’t. All in order to try extract their own data from the various places it winds up on the internet. + +But to start out small you could: + + * Create a backup calendar. Just a regular digital calendar but give it a separate name. + * Create recurrent tasks for your backup operations so that you don’t forget. Or you could set up a backup day. + * Create a checklist to make sure that you don’t miss out on any services. Now copy and paste the checklist into your backup calendar. Today’s the day you get to write to Quora and Reddit to pull out your latest answers and posts. + * Log in to each platform you use every 3 months and create or request a backup. Package everything up into a zip archive. Don’t forget to include your web hosting, if you have any. And all the bits and pieces it might contain such as filesystems, MySQL databases, etc. + * To fulfill the 3–2–1 aspect of backup best practice, you’re also going to need to mirror this archive, every few months, to the cloud or some other offsite location. If you have an NAS running at home, then you can speed up this process a little bit by using something like Hyper Backup to just replicate it onto another storage medium. + +Tired already? Your backup day fell out during your vacation and you’re now lying on a beach in the Caribbean sipping beer? You get where I’m coming from. + +### Option 2: Use More Complicated And Inferior Tech To Run Your Digital Life And Quietly Begrudge Those Blessed Souls Who Aren’t Woke To The Vulnerability Of Their Data + +If you fully embrace the backup lifestyle, then you can start doing things like storing offsite backups in your car — or in friends’ houses. Photo: author. + +Ignorance is bliss. But if you’re made it this far, then the bad news is that it’s already too late for you. You’ve become one of us. The data fiends. You know about the problem. It’s too late to turn back. (Want to find more? Check out /r/datahoarder for a start). + +After my recent temporary lockout from Google, I became acquainted with the online community known as /r/degoogle. + +This community has put together some amazing resources on how to work around the services provided by tech giants like Google. And there are other subreddits too dedicated to helping users achieve similar purposes (/r/deamazon). A whole network of minds busily trying to figure out ways to reduce their dependency upon these tech giants. + +### The Unexpected Problems When You Try To De-Google + +The rationale behind most of these communities is pure-spirited and seems to be roughly the same. + +These major tech companies have gotten too big. They’re too well-funded. Their services are too good and we’ll all become dependent upon them. Hopelessly so. Because they don’t really care about us. They’re under our skins. But we need to be our own dealers. Of technology, that is. + +My initial euphoria wore off, however, after I realized that I had been there, gotten the t-shirt, and threw it away a few years ago. + +I once ran my own web server, you see. I used an old laptop and repurposed it for this job by installing Ubuntu Server. Set up port forwarding so that it could be accessed from beyond my local network (LAN). The works. + +I decided that I couldn’t continue having my data locked up in Google. + +And so I signed up for one of the various open source platforms that provides server side scripts that aim to provide something like the familiar panoply of services Google provides and puts them … wherever you want them to go. Like that laptop I mentioned. + +Around the same time, I eradicated Android from my phone and installed a custom operating system. Downloaded apps from a third party marketplace instead of the App Store. + +And the more I got into this, the problems began to stack up. + +> _“Dude, you just pulled out my email server and I’m pretty sure the guy I just emailed was about to download my resume!”_ + +> _“What!? That plug next to the fridge with a beer label stuck to it!? The one running into that beat up looking netbook you bought on a flash sale”_ + +> _“Yes. That’s got like my entire life on it. And my website!”_ + +These are credible words that have probably been uttered among roommates hosting their own tech on-premises. + +Home internet connections, you see, aren’t typically intended to be used to run amateur data centers from. You can get better lines, for sure — look for a symmetrical connection — but that’s probably going to come at a cost. + +Data centers have elaborate systems for failover. Both of internet connectivity and of power. You may wish to provision both. So add a beefy UPS or a small generator to your shopping list. + +The upload speeds on many consumer-grade connections are heavily throttled. Which means that downloading anything larger than a couple of megabytes from your self-administered web server is likely going to be a frustrating experience. + +The vast majority of home internet users don’t set up port forwarding or run web servers either, you see, so doing so is a pretty good way to flag yourself as an aberrant subscriber. So your ISP is liable to assume that you’re doing something shady. + +And the tech? + +Let’s just say this. I’ve been using Linux day to day for more than 10 years. You don’t need to tell me about how buggy tech can become when there’s no money going into the ecosystem. It’s worse. + +You end up using worse technology that’s ten times more complicated to set up while your roommates accidentally knocks off your web server just as your best job prospect is about to download your resume and your ISP starts wondering if you’re operating something illicit on the dark web. Not fun. + +### Option 3: Accept Data Insecurity As A Lamentable Fact Of Consumer Life In Today’s Cloud. + +A representation of technology infrastructure previously operated by the author. Photo: author. + +Why does consumer SaaS protection suck so badly in comparison to what’s available in the enterprise space, you may be wondering? + +A lot has to do with the fact that most consumers don’t think that there _is_ a problem to begin with. The cloud = backup lie has proven to be a difficult old trope to do away with, you see. + +And trying to get people who believe everything is dandy to pay for a solution they don’t think they need is probably not the best marketing proposition you can shoot for. I should probably know that. + +If nobody’s going to pay (or hardly anybody) then nobody has a particular incentive to engineer a solution. + +The next obstacle on the road: + +The fact that most cloud / SaaS tools don’t want consumers to be able to easily migrate their data between providers. + +Data portability isn’t in their interests.They’d prefer that you stick around as a long term customer. So you’ll have them to work with also. Unenthusiastic technology partners who lack any incentive to help you do your job on the one side and a disinterested market on the other. Anybody down for the job? + +I once believed that I had a great business idea at my fingertips. It involved essentially this: finding a way to integrate the hundreds of SaaS tools consumers use into one database that could be piped into Google Drive / AWS S3 / wherever else folks like to keep their storage. Then backed up for safekeeping. + +I spoke to a couple of folks in the industry who gave me a runthrough of basically this. Sadly, I scratched it off my list — even though I still think it would be an epic tool and one I would happily pay for myself (there _are_ some cloud to cloud backup tools that cover consumer SaaS, but none that covers the assortment of tools that I use.) + +The strange synthesis of all my thinking outlined above: + +I still think that data protection is vital, even for consumers. That’s why I spelled out the problem that many people are unaware that they face. Or (because it’s not a problem until it’s a problem) let’s call it a vulnerability instead. + +In fact, with GoogleGate still etched fresh in my memory, I believe more than ever that anybody that commits crucial data to the cloud needs to find a way to be able to adequately back it up. + +I think it’s a great pity that — relative to the way organizations are helped to protect their data — this market is so bereft of solutions. + +As I learned, it’s apparently that way for a reason — and that’s a commercial incentive. + +Unfortunately, at some point, life got busy. + +As you may have noticed if you follow this Medium channel, I’ve been getting into video lately. + +I now need to back up GBs and TBs of data rather than the humble PDFs and photos I backed up when I mostly “just” wrote. + +So let me tell you a few secrets. + +But only if you don’t tell my backup buddies. + +I haven’t managed to reliably offsite all the originals of my videos yet. They’re kinda heavy and my internet is slow. + +I should really run a Clonezilla backup on my desktop too. Because I’ve added a few programs to it this week and probably haven’t done a thorough backup on it in a while. + +At some point my desire to be creative took over my desire to protect my data. + +And I realized that as one guy with an internet connection there’s only so much that I can do to work around a technology industry that — in large part — simply doesn’t care much about this problem. + +In consumer SaaS land, we’re mostly still flying blind. + +Letting big tech hold our data hostage. + +Leaving it to the unincentivized (open source) community to develop hard-to-backup alternatives that don’t really stand a chance of being replacements for Google considering the massive financial inequalities they face. It’s a David vs. Goliath battle that nobody’s going to win. + +I still care about backup. + +I’d love for all the data I create on the cloud every day to be at my digital fingertips — on my NAS — by the same evening. + +But there’s no way for me to achieve that without dedicating hours per day to the process. And I just don’t have time for that. + +For now, I’m choosing the digital path of least resistance. I wish there were better options. But unless I’m missing them, there aren’t. + +What can you do? + +Consider becoming a consumer advocate for backup. No, really. + +Scrutinize your favorite SaaS providers’ backup options — or lack thereof. + +If you find them lacking, or absent entirely, then let them know about it. + +Look into other options and if you find them tell the provider that you’re leaving or have left because you don’t want them to be the sole custodian of your data. + +The more people that do this, the quicker companies will feel compelled to offer proper solutions. + +We may live in a world in which ownership of our own data stops being a right the moment we entrust it to somebody else and their computers. + +But we also live in a world which provides few acceptable options for those of us who want to maximize our potential online. We need a LinkedIn account to do business (we just can’t back it up automatically). Etc, etc. + +Take a deep breath but keep up the energy. + +It’s our data. + +The digital imprint of our lives. + +And I believe it’s worth fighting for. + +### Some Of My Old Writing On Backups And Data Protection + + _(Backing up writing is still something I do diligently)._ + +[**My (Ultimate!) Ubuntu Backup Strategy** + _What I’ve Been Using To Keep My Desktop Safe From Accidental Deletion, Disk Failure, and Other Forms of Destruction_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78) + +[**My Approach To Backing Up My Online Writing** + _I have written a lot about backups in recent months . So much so that I reckon that there is probably an entire book’s…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521) + +[**How To Backup Your Data From Reddit** + _For those who didn’t catch the memo, I’m a massive advocate for taking (3–2–1 compliant) backups._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-data-from-reddit-f12934fabbfe "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-data-from-reddit-f12934fabbfe")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-data-from-reddit-f12934fabbfe) diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-A-Hermetic-Separation-Is-The-Only-Solution-To-The-Israeli-Palestinian-Conflict-I-Believe-In.md b/posts/medium/Why-A-Hermetic-Separation-Is-The-Only-Solution-To-The-Israeli-Palestinian-Conflict-I-Believe-In.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f5892261847f80428ed2be052112b76cb0dad088 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-A-Hermetic-Separation-Is-The-Only-Solution-To-The-Israeli-Palestinian-Conflict-I-Believe-In.md @@ -0,0 +1,71 @@ +# Why A Hermetic Separation Is The Only Solution To The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict I Believe In + +The junction outside the JVP Complex in South Jerusalem where this morning’ stabbing attack took place. Photo: author. + +This morning, a terrorist attack took place _almost_ outside my front door. + +According to Google Maps, the distance, as the crow flies, between my apartment in South Jerusalem and where a random Israeli jogger was stabbed solely because he was presumed to be Jewish is a little over one kilometer. + +I regularly frequent the site of the stabbing to take walks and shoot videos. As my escapades this Purim laid bare, I’m currently woefully out of shape and — had I not stubbed my foot last night and had it not been _Shabbat_ — I might even have thought about taking a jog this morning along that route. In other words, it could have been me. + +For those unaware, there has been a long series of knife attacks by so-called lone-wolf attackers taking place in Jerusalem. + +The Israeli pressed dubbed this the “knife intifada” to distinguish it from the earlier and more violent intifadas that took place when Palestinians were able to easily move suicide bombers between the West Bank and Israel. + +The security barrier — which the Western World loves to decry, perversely, as a mechanism to ensure “apartheid” — has been responsible, in large measure, for the amelioration of that dynamic. + +These lone-wolf stabbing attacks are somewhat seldom reported in the Western Media. At least, they don’t grab headlines in the same manner that Israeli bombardments of Gaza (in response to rocket attacks) tend to do. + +Israelis love to point to things like this as examples of the Western Media’s implacable bias against their country. I just think that individual knife attacks aren’t as “sexy” — or newsworthy — as major military aerial campaigns that can injure hundreds. We tend to forget that we’re but a small blip in the Middle East and that international readers have other issues with greater import upon their daily lives. + +### The Wall Alone Isn’t Enough To Ensure Israelis Security + +When I moved to Israel — 7 years ago — I began to be fascinated by borders (or more truthfully, it encouraged a longstanding fascination to grow). + +Their contours throughout this land. What they looked like from spitting difference. And how those living adjacent to them felt about living on the fault line that divides between the world’s only Jewish state and the Muslim-dominated Middle East surrounding it and largely hostile to its very existence. + +I’ve since traveled across large swathes of the country — including trawling through obscure castles in the north — in order to see more of them up close (the pursuit makes for interesting tourism for the adventurous. My advice is to keep one eye on the news before setting out and not to get _too_ close). + +However when I first moved to this city, Jerusalem, those years ago, one question, among many others, stood out in my mind. + +The security barrier may create a physical separation between the West Bank and Jerusalem — secured by checkpoints, electronic surveillance, and barricades (_note for the pedantic: this is only partially true. A daily influx of illegal migrants and the astonishing fact that it remains partially unfinished tell the honest story that it’s a useful but not wholly effective barrier)._ + + The separation barrier as it divides between Ras al-Amud and Abu Dir in East Jerusalem. Photo: Author. + +But what, I wondered, is standing between East Jerusalem and the West? + +East Jerusalem contains neighborhoods that are entirely antithetical to the existence of the State of Israel and which endorse the militant aspects of the Palestinian cause (this morning’s attacker simply walked up from the nearby neighborhood of Abu Tor). + +What’s stopping a would-be attackers from — Gd forbid — picking up arms in Ras Al’Amud or Issawiya or Jabel Mukaber and walking to Ben Yehuda Street, the nightlife capital of the city’s west? + +The answer — I’m sad to report — is mostly ‘nothing’ (or rather, informants, active police surveillance, and other such methods that stop short of imposing a physical barricade). + +### Why I Back Total Separation Between Israelis and Palestinians + +Jews living in West Jerusalem but beyond the Old City — like me — have become somewhat smugly content with the Israeli security apparatus’s careful management of this ultimately untenable situation. + +In doing so we’re but a microcosm of broader Israeli society and part of a broader dynamic of making the best out of an uncomfortable security reality. The Tel Aviv Bubble benefits as much from Israel’s policy-less art form of managing the impossible through dominance in security and technology as much as we do. + +During times of heightened unrest — and the upcoming Muslim holiday of Ramadan is a frequent catalyst for that — we’ve become used to heeding the calls of family members living abroad, like those of foreign embassies, which adjure us to avoid “flashpoints.” The Old City — and more specifically Damascus Gate — is the usual prototypical one. “Don’t go there; but let’s meet for lunch here” (even if the distance between the two is only a kilometer or two). + +The Jewish residents of those most battle-hardened parts of Jerusalem — I’m speaking about the Old City — tend to be the most ideologically motivated. + +And so we — the lesser “extremists” (for isn’t a Jew living in Jerusalem, in the Muslim world’s eyes, extremism by definition?) — engage in a convenient form of mental NIMBYism. That’s _their_ problem. And when tensions abate we can go back to visiting during mostly secure times. + +But what happens when random acts of nationalistic violence — I prefer that to the blunt “terrorism” — are perpetrated far from that? In downtown? In the middle suburbs of Jerusalem which feel just far enough away from the flashpoints to feel safe? This morning provided a grim warning that such a reality is, sadly, not inconceivable. + +A signpost reading “Stop, there’s a border ahead of you” near Israel’s northern border with Lebanon on the Blue Line. Photo: author. + +In an era in which Amnesty International has unfairly accused Israel of operating _de facto_ apartheid and one in which Donald Trump made the building of a wall with Mexico a core tenant of his election manifesto, it may seem counter to the Zeitgeist to argue that more walls and more separation are necessary. + +And yet, having studied this conflict for many years — and lived in the very heart of it for several — that’s precisely what I think is needed to ensure a future that’s workable for both of us. + +The reaction to this heinous attack in the Palestinian media lays bare a totalitarian worldview that’s uncompromising and impossible to negotiate with. The random Israeli jogger who crossed paths with the stabber, this morning, was a “colonist” injured in a legitimate act of resistance. + +And that’s the very thing I’m forever trying to explain to well-meaning Westerners. The dominant Palestinian worldview sees every Israeli — and every Israeli town, Tel Aviv as much as Ariel — as a “settlement.” The only way to “liberate Palestine” when that’s the formula being relied upon is to completely eliminate Israel and Israelis. In their entirety. Gd forbid. + +It would be nice to think that if more effort were invested in the moribund peace process — or more lavishly generous iterations of the Abraham Accords were offered to Palestinians — that we could all forget about this ugly war. + +Sadly, when ideological opposition rather than territorial squabbles pit these two peoples together, I don’t see that happening. Ever. And so I think that complete and hermetic separation represents the best solution. + +Your state (or territory) there. Mine here. Perhaps we’ll have mutual tourism. The odd inter-party meetup could be nice as well just to break the ice. But to believe in the notion that two peoples can ever live peacefully atop the same tiny piece of land is to engage, I believe, in noting better than willful delusion. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Are-Most-Writers-and-Marketers---Totally-Obscure-.md b/posts/medium/Why-Are-Most-Writers-and-Marketers---Totally-Obscure-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a428bb2df2af0b352f64201cc919c7131a15aee4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Are-Most-Writers-and-Marketers---Totally-Obscure-.md @@ -0,0 +1,115 @@ +# Why Are Most Writers and Marketers … Totally Obscure? + +#### Perhaps Because Content Marketing and Blogging Is Largely Perceived As White Noise + +Browsing the [freelancer writers’ community on Reddit today](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/comments/jckuai/how_do_content_marketers_market_themselves/) I came across an interesting post from [/u/Penguin-Pete](https://www.reddit.com/user/Penguin-Pete/). + +‘Pete’ asked [‘How Do Content Marketers Market Themselves?’](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/comments/jckuai/how_do_content_marketers_market_themselves/). + +Pete described a trajectory that sounded quite a bit like my own — including the fact that he’s a writer and Linux enthusiast. There aren’t too many of us. + +Penguin Pete started blogging about Linux. And then transitioned into more generalist freelance technology writing. However, he found that the only traction he was gaining— from a personal branding perspective at least — came from being cited in obscure sources. More irksome still, he found that what he wrote about had become outdated as technology evolved. + +Or as Penguin Pete put it more colorfully: + +> **I was syndicated in an online magazine, cited in Wikipedia on arcane tech topics, and to this day you’ll find my website credited in programming language manuals, pointing to dead links**. All gone, and there’s no going back either. Modern audiences are 90% mobile, nobody needs command line tutorials to script on a phone. + +These days — perhaps, one senses, in a bid to accrue that limelight which he never did — Penguin Pete says that he is active on many fronts. + +He writes about more mainstream topics such as content marketing but finds that he (or she)_“ends up in the blender with the rest of the chum”_(Penguin Pete, if you ever read this — I loved how colorful all your descriptions were!). + +He’s all over social media. He ensures that he receives as many byline opportunities as he possibly can. But he thinks that few people are interested in finding out more about the author. I think that he’s probably right. + +In short, Penguin Pete seems to feel like he is trapped in obscurity but can’t think of a way out. Reading his post, you get the sense that that fact pains him. + +And then he adds. + +Freelance writers; The anonymous hands behind the internet + +### “Nobody Else Seems To Be Doing Better” + +This is the part of Penguin Pete’s prosaic post that really piqued my interest. + +He adds: + +> “Every other freelancer I work with has the same experience.**We’re all stuck being the anonymous voice of the web.** Nobody seeks out a blogger by brand name …. Even the big names in content marketing we have (like Seth Godin) are only famous to other bloggers, not clients.” + +The curious thing is that despite accruing little notoriety, Pete’s work — like mine right now — seems to be going well. + +The irony is that Peter and I are both likely in the business of helping our clients raise their public stature and reach larger audiences. It’s just that we can’t seem to replicate the fruits of that labor for our own personal brands. It’s almost as if the system we’re a part of precludes the cogs who turn the wheels of content marketing from themselves becoming well-known. + +Pete says that he picks up referrals and seems to be doing well on marketplaces like Upwork. But ultimately, and in spite of this success, he feels stuck from a personal branding perspective. And, ironically, the busier he gets the less time he has to work on branding. It’s almost as if the harder Penguin Pete turns the cog that makes his clients better known and more profitable, the further he himself sinks into obscurity. + +He concludes by asking: + +> “**Have any of you tried to climb out of the pit of anonymous typists and make a brand name for yourself?** How is it there’s professional Instagrammers out there with zero skills who are famous just for being famous, but people who work for a living can hardly own their own name anymore.” + +### Content Marketers Make The Internet Run + +Penguin Pete’s post struck a nerve with me because I get _exactly_ where he is coming from. + +I could rebut his point by pointing to the existence of freelance writers that have attracted _some_ degree of notoriety in the freelance writing world — and in fact to further the debate I did. But truth be told, outside of that small bubble, these freelance writing gurus remain relatively dim lights on the firmament of the internet and the world at large. + +As Penguin Pete alludes to, freelance content marketing writers sort of make the internet run. + +But the problem is that, for the most part, they’re cogs in a marketing wheel — not thought leaders themselves. Sure, they have independent voices. But the problem is that they’re never heard — at least within the content of their work. Their voice, to the outside world, is synonymous with that of the brands which they write for. And sorry to be blunt but that voice is more often than not eminently forgettable. + +This doesn’t detract from the somewhat cruel nature of the irony that Penguin Pete is alluding to here. + +You probably spend a good chunk of your day reading articles and blogs and listicles and consumer technology reviews. + +You’re likely interested in the content and how that can benefit you. + +You may even have acted on content marketing and bought a product without knowing it. But you don’t really stop to think who actually writes all this stuff. If you see a name, as Penguin Pete says, you probably don’t stop to read their bio or think about the person behind the prose. And that’s because if the author and the brand are the same — and the brand perhaps partially interests you (at best) — then the reader doesn’t likely consider the author worthy of independent attention. + +Penguin Pete (should I just start saying ‘PP’?) later adds in a comment reply + +> “Content marketing on the Internet is the backbone of world commerce right now! We should unite and demand star billing!” + +But for most part content marketers are neither stars nor star billers. + +### My Thoughts: Nobody Really Cares About Content Marketing — Except (Perhaps) Content Marketers + +I feel Penguin Pete’s frustrations. + +Truth be told, I too thirst to make an impact upon the world. And as a fellow obscure writer, I, like Penguin Pete, languish in relative obscurity. + +But even my brief sojourn into journalism— founding a student news website and then interning at and reporting for a major news website — undoubtedly paved the road to non-obscurity in a much more appreciable way than being a content marketer has. + +Despite Cork Student News being nothing more than a non-official website covering happenings at University College Cork, a petition my website ran was featured in national media. I got to interview CEOs and politicians. To land an internship for Irish Central in New York City which saw me doing everything from spending time mingling with Irish-Americans in upstate New York to flying down to Florida to cover an Irish dancing finals. Down the line, that afforded me the privilege of being able to cover a state visit first hand as part of an official media pool. I even appeared on Canadian national television offering my prognostics about whether the Irish government would need an EMF bailout. It opened doors. Doors that led past obscurity. + +The difference + +I was involved in creating an informational product that people _chose_ to consume. And even if it were less lucrative than content marketing, people were therefore more interested in knowing _who_ was behind the words. + +The truth about content marketing — particularly if a lot of what you do isn’t bylined — is that it’s almost built for obscurity. A lot of it isn’t all that good and even if what you’re authoring is some of the better stuff, there are a lot of voices vying for readers’ attention. + +And I believe that’s because content marketing — make that marketing in general — is ultimately concerned with paving the way for sales. + +As a general rule, people try to close their doors to any form of advertising — whether it’s explicit (a TV spot — buy this car!) or more subtle (here’s our latest blog — read this and maybe buy from us down the line). + +People don’t really _want_ to hear the messaging of this content much less know who devised and executed those campaigns. It’s just that they might have followed your brand’s Facebook page or Instagram profile and therefore your content is kind of _there_. But who wrote it? It’s an immaterial detail. + +Clients, for their part, are interested in knowing whether the projects they invest in are producing positive ROI. If they’re thinking about hiring you as a content writer, then they’re interested in knowing whether or not you’re good. Attaching any prominence to you would mean diluting their brand message. + +Hence why, as Penguin Pete observed, it’s possible to be an eminently successful content marketing writer while remaining … well, completely unknown to the world at large. + +In my comment reply to Penguin Pete’s post I drew a distinction between content marketing writers and writers whose output _does_ make a neutral or positive impact upon the viewer. + +If you’re enjoying the first season of _Teheran_ then you might be interested in learning more about the scribes who put together the script for the show that you’re watching. What’s their background? Did they work with the Mossad to make the plot lines credible, you might wonder? + +I posit that resolving the answers to these questions is a much more compelling endeavor for your average human than ascertaining what makes the person that wrote _“Why Our Breakfast Cereal Is The Best”_ get up in the morning. + +We’re happy to let the second author remain an anonymous collection of pixels. Whereas the first is somebody we might credibly want to engage in. And it’s this innate human curiosity that can pave the road to stardom. + +Like Penguin Pete, I aspire to make my mark on the world. But realistically a field’s potential for fame is tied to what it helps achieve for the world at large and the impact it makes upon the person reading/watching/consuming it. I know that however professionally satisfying and lucrative what I’m currently doing is, it’s not the right paradigm within which to make that happen. + +Because, being brutally honest, in the minds of most consumers, content marketing is white noise. If there’s signal there at all, it’s mildly interesting information, but information that is squarely tainted by the authoring party’s ulterior motive. To sell you something. + +This, in a nutshell, is why I believe one doesn’t find many famous content marketing writers. + +If Penguin Pete is aspiring towards greater recognition, then I humbly suggests that he writes a book (just a non promotional one). Or founds a startup that does something useful and which changes, if not the world, then his locality. Or screenwrites a notable movie. + +Because the rest, to the majority of the world at least, is just sales fluff. And those that write it are probably destined — in the words of Penguin Pete — to remain confined in the “pit of anonymous typists.” Even if it’s the pit that makes the internet turn. And even if it pays well. + +**_Disclaimer:_**_My opinions are liable to fluctuate from day to day and depending upon how many hours I slept the preceding night and when I last ate. My thoughts here reflect my thinking at the time of publication only._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Books-Remain-The-Gold-Standard-Thought-Leadership-Asset.md b/posts/medium/Why-Books-Remain-The-Gold-Standard-Thought-Leadership-Asset.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d2ae76e132a0dc2de87c1c9b88372854af195270 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Books-Remain-The-Gold-Standard-Thought-Leadership-Asset.md @@ -0,0 +1,39 @@ +# Why Books Remain The Gold Standard Thought Leadership Asset + +#### Whether published in print or digital, books remain central assets for many thought leadership campaigns + +Books. New distribution methods but still regarded as gold standards for thought leadership. Image: Wikimedia + +If you’re looking to establish yourself as a recognized thought leader in your space — somebody whose expertise on a particular subject is widely recognized and appreciated — then you may have come across a reference to books being the “gold standard.” + +While it’s true that there are more ways for content producers to reach audiences than at any previous point in history, there’s a still a case to be made in favor of this commonly held belief. + +Here’s why — for prospective thought leaders — books are still valuable assets worth investing time in producing. + +### Books Have A Higher Barrier To Entry + +While a blog post can be authored in perhaps a few hours, full length books are complex pieces of “content” that take time and care to research and author. + +This means that the barriers to entry to become a book author are arguably higher than, say, starting a podcast. This, in turn, means that fewer thought leaders have written books than have written shorter, more digestible forms of authorship. + +### Books Give You Space To Really Delve Into Your Ideas + +Most paperbacks run up to 300 to 400 pages in print. Around 90,000 words is typical. + +90,000 words is enough verbiage to contain 90 x 1,000 word blog posts. This might be a year’s worth of authorship — or more depending upon how frequently you update your blog. + +With books, you have space to fully flesh out and develop your ideas. + +Because thought leadership is concerned with showcasing your expertise, this in turn provides you with a greater opportunity to really show off the length and breadth of your knowledge on a topic. + +### Books Are Perfect Springboards For Promotion + +When was the last time you heard about somebody giving a speaking tour about a blog post they had written? Or signing autographed copies of a case study? + +Marketing has always remained an important component of the book-writing process — whether authors publish directly (self-publishing) or via an established publishing house. + +Books are still perceived as substantial, weighty pieces of authorship. Book authors, in turn, are expected to put in the hard graft to promote them via speaking and media engagements. + +When it comes to thought leadership, every little bit helps. So long as you are sharing original insights that your audience will likely find valuable, you can continue to build your industry reputation. + +_To learn more about how DSR Ghostwriting can help you plan and execute thought leadership campaigns, visit_[ _DSRGhostwriting.com_](http://www.dsrghostwriting.com) _._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Content-Marketers-Need-Their-Own-Buyer-Personas.md b/posts/medium/Why-Content-Marketers-Need-Their-Own-Buyer-Personas.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a6d811ef5f70489031b6c52e9f3b9963c6b2f478 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Content-Marketers-Need-Their-Own-Buyer-Personas.md @@ -0,0 +1,84 @@ +# Why Content Marketers Need Their Own Buyer Personas + +#### To truly create impactful content marketing, we need our own questions about who we’re marketing to answered + +Data is value for marketers working across disciplines, but content marketers need particular questions answered about their target audiences. Photo by [Negative Space](https://www.pexels.com/@negativespace?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/blue-and-green-pie-chart-97080/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Whenever marketers sit down to try figure out the best way of reaching a marketing segment, buyer personas are one of the first words to get thrown into the mix. + +A buyer person is sort of like a marketer’s caricature sketch. + +When we’re trying to figure out _who_ we’re marketing to, it’s helpful to have a little bit more detail than just _“anybody who might potentially want our product.”_ That goes for any company selling anything from peanuts to cybersecurity consulting. And it doesn’t give us much in the way of _detail_ about what makes our marketing program unique. + +The more detail we can imbue these sketches with, therefore, the better. They should be kept well-updated. And they’re enormously helpful to have whenever sitting down to write content. In fact many content marketers would argue that you shouldn’t write content marketing without them — and I’d agree. + +Equally, with many businesses investing so much in their content marketing programs, I think there’s room to argue that content marketing deserves its own personas. + +These could be derivative works of the main marketing personas. Ie — they’re updated in parallel and in coordination. But they deserve at least separate headings. Here are some of the things that are worth including. + +### We Need To Know What Type Of Content They Trust — And What They Don’t + +Some people will tell you that they really can’t stand most YouTubers — and that’s perfectly fine! Photo by [freestocks.org](https://www.pexels.com/@freestocks?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-space-gray-iphone-5-34407/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +If you’re conducting interviews to develop lifelike credible buyer personas — and that would be a great idea — then make sure to ask them where they consume content that they currently _trust._ + +Of course, it’s fine and to be expected that in the process of answering that question they might tell you what type of content they _don’t_ enjoy. + +If they say “I hate scammy YouTube videos that are full of production value but convey little information,” — then that’s information that should be jotted down too. + +If you’re approaching content marketing for the first time, then you may have thought about playing it safe and simply starting by setting up a blog. + +There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that approach although most content marketing strategists, and I, would recommend that you should cover a number of different bases (for more detail, see below). + +[**Where Should I Create My Business Content: Blog, Website, Or Social Media?** +_A quick rule for where to post your content on the internet_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe) + +But by actually _speaking_ to people in the industry you might pick up the names of a couple of obscure trade media publications that may have up to now totally evaded your intention. (Note: trade media publications sometimes have a bit of an old-school vibe to them, even when they go online. But don’t discount any based upon first appearances!) + +Perhaps being published in these outlets is considered a somewhat essential hallmark of authority in your industry. So go out and solicit this information every time an opportunity like this presents itself. + +### We Can Learn Specifics Things About Their Tone Of Voice + +Although every professional is unique, it’s sometimes the case that people who go into a certain industry tend to have more in common with one another than those who make their living through pursuing other occupations. + +Industries often also develop specific preferences when it comes to communications. + +A client who once worked in the construction trades was able to tell me what kind of content would be likely to engage that audience: + +_“The threshold for marketing fluff is very very low,”_ Mentor A once said. “ _You want to be extremely to the point with everything that you write for this market. Avoid complicated language. Don’t feel the need to make things sound positive just for the sake of it, either. They see right through that. They want to hear it straight up. Just as it is.”_ + +That kind of clarity is refreshing. + +In other instances, clients have told me that their internal style guides call for unrelenting positivity. Even the slightest hint of negativity (“a badly written style guide won’t help”) must be skewed to the positive (“well-written style guides can yield exceptional results!”). + +Clearly it would be very hard if not impossible to nail these two requirements at the same time. That’s why the more specific your interviews can be the better. + +This is also why content marketing specific personas are, in my view, a great idea. The kind of tone of voice the clients talk in among themselves and favor from external parties mightn’t be considered a high priority marketing factoid. But when it comes to content marketing it can make the world of difference. + +### We Can Learn What Type Of Content They Typically Enjoy Consuming + +Even the format that people like to receive their content marketing in can vary enormously between industries. + +Certain people —and I’m one of them — live and breathe email. These folks can be especially receptive to information that’s sent to their inbox at regular intervals. + +Traditional business audiences sometimes think that for thinking to be considered worthy of executive attention, it needs to be encapsulated in the format of a white paper — with traditional white paper design. + +“I’d love to bring this thinking up the line, but is there any chance you have a white paper that speaks to this?” is a question that many enterprise salespeople have encountered at some point during their careers. + +Another industry might think that a white paper is just a ridiculous and pretentious-sounding name for a long blog post. Why’s it called white? (Answer: archaic governmental convention). Why can’t you just send that in an email? + +You get the drift. + +Both non content marketers and content marketers need to know certain top of line information about the individuals to whom they are marketing. + +These might include facts like occupation, age, and pain point(s). + +These are helpful to start creating a mental image of who we’re marketing to, what we might expect them to look like, and where they can be found in the organizations they work for. + +In addition to that, it’s enormously helpful for content marketers to know a thing or two about their content consuming preferences. + +This can avoid us a lot of unnecessary pain by going into the content creation process for this audience truly cold. + +If we really know nothing about the kind of information this segment tends to consume and how they typically like it packaged we’re likely to find our content failing to resonate with a lot of people. + +Content marketing specific personas can be a rich addition to the regular stock of personas the marketing team is developing. The more you know about how your target audience gets its industry news and the format in which they like it to be communicated, the more likely you are to create collateral that truly resonates with them and ideally moves them to take action. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Does-Everything-In-Israel-Seem-To-Cost-Too-Much-.md b/posts/medium/Why-Does-Everything-In-Israel-Seem-To-Cost-Too-Much-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..94bbfa51c44d6de9eb774749c0385314dc460d4b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Does-Everything-In-Israel-Seem-To-Cost-Too-Much-.md @@ -0,0 +1,83 @@ +# Why Does Everything In Israel Seem To Cost Too Much? + +#### Why are we, in Israel, consistently paying inflated prices for low quality products backed by (often) terrible customer service? + +As I’ve mentioned a few times on this blog, I’m currently in the process of finishing purchasing supplies for a recording studio. + +We’re getting there. + +A reasonably decent microphone I have. The gimbal has been purchased. And now we’re down to sizing up the finishing touches — such as an LED light to help me stand out a bit against my background. + +[**My Photo (And Video) Reel From The Past Few Months** + _Bits and pieces from my camera and YouTube feed_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-photo-and-video-reel-from-the-past-few-months-bb2d87d1c0f8 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-photo-and-video-reel-from-the-past-few-months-bb2d87d1c0f8")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-photo-and-video-reel-from-the-past-few-months-bb2d87d1c0f8) + +Having just wrapped up a trip to the US replete with some perhaps over-enthusiastic buying, I decided to take a little bit of time out of my day to spec out this last remaining purchase. + +To get things rolling, I logged onto one of the major photo and video suppliers in Tel Aviv: Yugend. I checked out their lighting product page and happened upon a light at the lower end of their budget towards a price point that, in a couple of months, I could probably afford. A YouTube review had mostly positive things to say about it. + +This was one of those consumer purchases squarely in the category of things one would have to buy locally. At 5 Lbs / 2.2 KG there’s no way this thing is fitting in a suitcase. It’s too bulky and heavy to ship affordably. If you live in Israel and want an LED studio light then you’re probably going to have to tap the local market. + +The product page looked this this showing the price as 1,300 NIS. At today’s currency exchange rates, that’s $403 (US), €343, and 290 GBP. + +And here’s where things got interesting. + +Whenever I’m sizing up a purchase in Israel that might involve spending few hundred dollars, I like to run at least one price comparison with a foreign website. I _expect_ things in Israel to cost more — like I expect the sky to be blue. But I’d still like to know whether I’m paying two times over the odds or fives times. + +There was nothing particularly extraordinary about this particular price comparison. I could have repeated this hundreds of times and got similar results. But as I copied the screenshots into a Google Doc I said I may as well share them here too. + +### B&H: Almost Half The Price + +To find out what this light would cost in other counties, I decided to simply plug the product name into Google. + +Thereupon, I was directed to a product page on the B&H website. And guess what? At the first datapoint, we can see that the light already costs virtually half of what it does in Israel. + +$403 if you buy the light locally in Tel Aviv. $219 if you happen to live in NYC or anywhere B&H delivers too. Same company. Same light. Different prices. + +### Ireland, the UK Are Cheaper Too + +But you might argue that B&H is a monolith and your average Israeli camera store isn’t likely going to be able to command anywhere near the same kind of purchasing power. + +Fair point. So let’s take a look at somewhere smaller. I grew up in Ireland and it’s as easy to find price points from Irish sites as it from any other shop on the internet. + +A quick Google query will get me quickly to a camera store in Ireland that’s selling the same piece of gear: + +PhotoSpecialist.ie is powered by Kamera Express (based in the Netherlands). And they’re managing to sell the light for €239. + +This is the Israeli price at the time I’m typing up this post: + +Which — to state the obvious — is more than €100 over the Irish store. + +But let’s jump across the sea and check out the UK. + +We could order from the same site and pick up the light for +£205.50. + +Or we could buy from a small photographic supply place for 224 GBP. Let’s go for the latter. + +224 GBP comes out to basically 1,000 NIS (1,001.61). So we’ve just saved 300 NIS by not shopping in Israel. That’s 67 Pounds Sterling. So enough to buy a few rounds of ale (probably cheaper than beer in Israel too) and celebrate our new purchase. + +### And The Winner Is Down Under + +Now where is this product coming from? + +I’d never heard of Nanlite and I’m guessing that this mightn’t be the best LED light that’s been ever made. I suspected that it was a Chinese company. And a quick perusal of their website confirmed my suspicion. + +Nanlite’s corporate site lists the company’s business address as being in Guandong in China. + +While browsing for sources I came upon an Australian photo site. + +Remember: we considered whether logistics and the difficult of sending goods to Israel might be one of the explanations for why this product cost more in Israel than it did in everywhere else we’ve looked at so far. + +And yet here we have an Australian site that’s selling the same lite for just AU$349. At today’s rate, that’s just 825 ILS. Which is 475 NIS cheaper. And if the US dollar is your preferred means of reference, that’s $147. + +### Israel .. .A Land Of Extortionate Consumer Prices + +Various explanations can be offered for the overpriced cost of living in Israel that seems to affect everything from the price of car fuel to camera lights to supermarket pizza. + +It’s expensive here. There are protectionist policies. And yet I wonder whether simple greed and profiteering plays the largest part. + +A few weeks ago I enquired from another Israeli camera store whether a particular microphone was in stock. My communication received a response in the form of an annotated screenshot with the “in stock” text circles as if I couldn’t understand how to read. + +Israelis are accustomed to paying way over the odds for consumer merchandise that’s tightly controlled by monopolistic importers. The kick in the teeth is the often ungrateful attitude and abysmal customer service that follows after your purchase. + +As a general principle with very few exceptions, Israel is grossly overpriced — and the internet allows us to easily see by just how much. It’s a broken paradigm. And the sooner it can be changed the better. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Every-Content-Marketing-Team-Should-Create-Its-Own-In-House-Stock-Library-bd55b6025a5.html.md b/posts/medium/Why-Every-Content-Marketing-Team-Should-Create-Its-Own-In-House-Stock-Library-bd55b6025a5.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4bc9a2081c6df2df61e7efda4adc457df2d85c44 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Every-Content-Marketing-Team-Should-Create-Its-Own-In-House-Stock-Library-bd55b6025a5.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,116 @@ +# Why Every Content Marketing Team Should Create Its Own In-House Stock Library + +#### Besides saving money, you can add more impactful imagery to your content marketing + +Stock library photos. + +You either love them or you hate them. + +If you’re looking for some free pictures to throw into things like Medium blogs, then Pexels is pretty good. I’ve used a lot of photos from their talented creatives and try to[ send a few images back too](https://www.pexels.com/@daniel-rosehill-963960). + +Within the corporate world, or simply among those happy to pay licensing fees for images, Shutterstock has long been the dominant name. Although increasingly its dominance is being challenged by players like Stock Unlimited, Adobe Stock, and others. + +**The problem with even good stock imagery is that … well, it’s still stock imagery.** + +Often, there’s something vaguely impersonal about it. It tends to look scripted. The talent a little too good-looking to be credible. The smiles a little too-beaming. And of course, you don’t gain exclusive rights to use it — for the monetization structure to work from the photographer’s perspective, they have to be able to sell recurring rights to it. + +It’s absolutely possible that your competitors or everybody else in your industry is using the same few pics. You could, in inadvertently, have just suggested that the face of your brand is the same as another brand the reader is familiar with. + +This (below) is a nice composition (it’s from Pexels). But it still has that very stock-y vibe going on. + +Photo by [Andrea Piacquadio](https://www.pexels.com/@olly?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/smiling-formal-male-with-laptop-chatting-via-phone-3760263/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +**But there’s another compelling reason why you might want to think about using your _own_ stock images (I’ll explain what I mean by that later).** + +Often, they… well, look fake. I’ve often heard Content Marketing Managers contend that they _know_ that users are able to sniff out what’s stock and what’s “real,” although if there’s been UX research done on this point, I couldn’t locate it when I published this blog. + +**That being said, I think that developing your own stock image library is actually an enormously satisfying endeavor.** + +I’m not necessarily talking about cost savings — you could, for instance, pay a professional photographer to take photographs that _you_ arrange. + +I’m talking about creating photographs that you take which you know _might_ be required down the line for some of your content marketing assets, but which you don’t have an _immediate_ requirement for. + +Here’s all you need to get organized. + +### Prerequisites For Building Your Proprietary Corporate Stock Image Library + +It should go without saying … but here it is anyway. + +You’re obviously going to need a camera and whatever else you think might spruce up your images. + +Of course, the quality of your gear is going to make a difference to the final stock images you produce. + +You _could_ get away with shooting stock clips on your phone. But you’re very unlikely to replicate the results you could obtain with a mirrorless or DSLR camera. + +### Task 1: Get Organizing and Describing Your Photos + +**The key to developing a good stock image library is … developing a very keyword-rich taxonomy that you can search through when you later have an actual need to recall these images.** + +Organizing images into folders is great too — they pretty much all do this. But sometimes the easiest way to just create data that can be searched through is by adding tags and descriptions. When you begin storing hundreds or thousands of images you’ll really appreciate the time-saving involved. + +This is where good old elbow grease comes into its own. Although AI has slowly been moving into this space (for instance, to automatically add ‘alt’ tags for the vision-impaired), if you’re just starting out, then you probably can’t go wrong with writing the descriptions by hand. + +Editing a batch of photos using Darktable for Ubuntu Linux 20.04 LTS. Screenshot: AuthorCreating a new tag for assigning images to using DigiKam. Screenshot: authorAdding image metadata in Darktable for Ubuntu Linux. Screenshot: author + +I’m a Linux user, so the photo organization software that I’m familiar with is unlikely to ring much of a bell among those on Windows or Mac. But Adobe Lightroom, DigiKam, and PhotoDirector (more beginner friendly) are all well-known names in this product category. + +If you want to go more lightweight, then simply look for a tool that edits the EXIF metadata. Typically, cloud-based photo storage solutions will be able to read and import that metadata alongside the images themselves. So once you have this added to every image in your library, you’ll be able to use these for a variety of purposes. + +Photo organizers tend to bring a few core functionalities together: + + * **They allow you to add descriptions to photographs** and mark up other meta properties + * **They allow you to apply edits in bulk** so that you don’t need to edit every photograph one by one + * **Frequently, there’s also a cloud upload functionality** so that you can quickly upload your photos to a cloud photo organizer + +### Should My Stock Library Be Hosted Locally Or In The Cloud? + +To again state the obvious: + +Whenever you’re moving data to the cloud (simple translation: somebody else’s computer!) you typically have to pay for the privilege of using up storage that you can maintain access to. + +After all, somebody needs to provision the storage space that you can store your photos on. + +**Photo storage websites that also include some organizing functionalities include:** + + * Flickr + * Google Photos + +**You can also use any filesystem-based cloud storage tool.** + +These typically include desktop clients with synchronization functionalities — so you can add your photos to a local folder and they will quickly be replicated on the cloud: + + * Google Drive + * Spider Oak + * Picture Life + +The benefit of storing photos in the cloud: anybody can access them, wherever they are in the world. + +In most cases, this option makes much more sense for businesses. + +### Can I Do This For Free? + +If you’re looking for a quick and easy solution to just get rolling with this project with minimal hassle, then Google Photos is a really simple solution. + +If you have a Google or Google Workspace account, then this should be rolling out of the box. + +After shooting some photographs, you can organize them on your local computer and _then_ upload to Google Photos. Or you can do all the work there. + +If you’re going down the Google route, it’s worth familiarizing yourself with the differences between high quality and original quality images. + +[**Google Photos "High quality" vs "Original"** +_How does Google Photos work? Google Photos is a very convenient platform that lets you share all your photos, and…_ www.phonearena.com](https://www.phonearena.com/news/Google-Photos-High-quality-vs-Original-Whats-the-difference-and-should-you-care_id93938 "https://www.phonearena.com/news/Google-Photos-High-quality-vs-Original-Whats-the-difference-and-should-you-care_id93938")[](https://www.phonearena.com/news/Google-Photos-High-quality-vs-Original-Whats-the-difference-and-should-you-care_id93938) + +Google’s compression algorithm is pretty good. So if you want to conserve on space, you can choose this method to store more at less data overhead. The blog linked above is worth checking out — it shows that it’s very hard to tell the difference even at high levels of zoom. + +Two things you’ll want to add if you’re working within the browser: + + * The location where the photo was taken + * A description. This is where you can populate keywords to help you retrieve the photograph later + +Adding some data fields to a Google Photos photo. Photo: author.Using Google Photos, you can also bundle photos into albums — like I did here for an article I wrote about setting up a home load balancing router. But if you populate the image info fields, you’ll be able to add more info that will make search retrieval much faster. Photo: author. + +Developing your own proprietary/in-house stock image library can be a great way to regain a sense of ownership over the visual imagery that accompanies your marketing collateral — whether blog posts, white papers, or other assets. + +Shoot photos whenever the opportunity presents itself, organize them meticulously, and store them in a system that your whole content-producing team has access to. + +You may find that you never need to buy a commercial stock image again. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Flight-Mode-Has-Been-My-Best-Productivity-Enhancing-Intervention-to-Date.md b/posts/medium/Why-Flight-Mode-Has-Been-My-Best-Productivity-Enhancing-Intervention-to-Date.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..86226dd2839e15ac12870526201c9440e3f1d583 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Flight-Mode-Has-Been-My-Best-Productivity-Enhancing-Intervention-to-Date.md @@ -0,0 +1,127 @@ +# Why Flight Mode Has Been My Best Productivity-Enhancing Intervention to Date + +**And I Think That Synchronous Communication Platforms Like WhatsApp And Slack Are Today’s Destroyers of Focus** + + Flight mode: it has more uses than just travelling in an airplane! + +[_(This blog was originally posted this to /r/productivity_](https://www.reddit.com/r/productivity/comments/g0hz4x/my_best_intervention_so_far_flight_mode/) _, the main productivity-related subreddit._ _I have lightly edited that post here for clarity. It summarizes the ideas I presented in_[ _a post I wrote on the topic of responsiveness_](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive/) _, and the beginnings of my movement against it, a few months ago_.) + +*** + +I wanted to share the very best change I have made towards enhancing my productivity and focus to date (and happiness — because when I get into long focus periods I tend to be happier; [there’s a good Medium post by ](https://medium.com/@ellekaplan/how-to-achieve-happiness-with-flow-according-to-psychology-b90b5b81b554)[Elle Kaplan](https://medium.com/u/b1d0183fcddc) [summarizing the theory and mechanics of that here](https://medium.com/@ellekaplan/how-to-achieve-happiness-with-flow-according-to-psychology-b90b5b81b554)). + +And that’s this: + +**For about the past three months, I’ve been keeping my phone in flight mode for the majority of the day …. 7 days a week.** + +I know we all know what flight mode is and what it’s intended for… but for a long time I never thought about using it when not in an airplane! + +The inspiration came when one day I went into a meditation store asking for a physical meditation timer. + +The lady behind the counter couldn’t understand why I didn’t just use an Android app like anybody else living in modern times. + +My rationale for wanting a physical timer device was that the possibility of notifications would prevent me from getting into focus properly … and I didn’t want to have to turn my phone off and on every time I meditated. + +Without pausing for breath she presented the solution: “flight mode”. + +And that got me thinking! + +### Why This (Currently) Works For Me + +**How can I (currently) get away with — effectively — being disconnected from phone calls for most of the work week, you might be wondering?** + +I think it’s important to explain the ‘how’ because these circumstances don’t apply to a lot of people. + +I work from home at least half the week. + +I _do_ have calls with clients and family but nowadays those mostly take place over Zoom. + +If I get a random call out of the blue there’s a very high to overwhelmingly high chance that it’s either a telesales person or something else that I could live without. + +**RELATED:** + +[**My (Unorthodox) Productivity Resolution For This Year — Be Less ‘Responsive’!** +_So the new year has rolled around and with it will inevitably follow a slew of ‘My Top Resolutions’ posts on social…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0 "https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0")[](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive-e7b2b5d6fac0) + +If they are sufficiently determined to reach me they can leave a voicemail, which I automatically receive by email which I continue to check at regular — but not overly regular — intervals. + +If it were something truly catastrophically urgent I figure that they would be trying to reach me through other channels too. Although thankfully total catastrophes are relatively rare occurrences. + +I communicate professionally by email and encourage clients to summarize and sent all their feedback there, wherever possible. And if a call makes more sense Calendly has made fixing a mutually convenient time trivially easy. + +I opt out of SMS messages (and avoid 2FA by SMS whenever possible — because it’s anachronistic and dependent upon having a connection to your carrier’s network rather than simply the internet. + +And for friends, etc, I have email, Facebook, or can pick up the phone and call them (or WhatsApp them) _after_ I’ve finished my work for the day and I emerge from flight mode. + +As you might be guessing, it has caused _very occasional_ problems receiving deliveries and stuff ….. but just once or twice. + +Nowadays, because of the health situation that has so deranged normal life for us, delivery people have gone from being receptive to the idea of leaving packages unattended to actually insisting on it per national health protocols. If there’s food delivery scheduled I can simply keep an ear out for the doorbell to ring. But even before that I just stuck up a sign by the door saying please leave stuff here! So irate delivery people demanding to know why I missed their call are thankfully few and far between. + +### My Key Belief To Date: Synchronous Communication Platforms Are The Most Damaging Of All To Productivity! + +My transition towards spending most of my week in flight mode is just one component [of my overall strategy to get better at focusing](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive/) (the other is limiting email / Facebook / Reddit / Twitter / LinkedIn checks to a certain number of times per day). + +But I would say that not being distracted by a constant barrage of WhatsApp messages and a lesser peppering of phone calls has made the biggest favorable difference to my productivity, focus, and happiness compared to any other intervention with which I’ve experimented to date. By a long shot. + +Rather than switching to flight mode overnight, I’ve been on a sort of gradual transition. + +Firstly, I would just pop into flight mode when I was working on something that needed a lot of focus … like an important piece of writing for a client. + +I find it extremely hard to write well when distractions abound, which is probably why — for me, at least — open offices are comparable, in terms of productivity, to trying to hammer out a white paper from the back of a bus. + +Then I started dropping into flight mode for whole mornings and afternoons at a time. + +Then, one day (probably two weeks ago) I misplaced my phone somewhere at home, failed to locate it for an entire day, and happened to have the most productive day in probably six months. + +The rest, as they say, is history. + +So how do I make sense out of all this and join up the dots between less frequent interruptions and greater periods of focus time? + +**My theory — and I would be surprised if it has not already been proven true — is that the more synchronous/real-time the communication platform the more detrimental it is to one’s productivity.** + +Therefore I would class as very high risk, distracting, and productivity-eroding: + + * WhatsApp + * Slack + * Facebook Messenger + * Phone calls + * Random people barging into your office showing up at your door!Prod + +Slack is a particular nemesis of mine because — under the guise of purporting to improve upon a perfectly good system (email) — it, in fact, simply sets as an enforced expectation that internal communications all merit instantaneous responses rather than those deemed sufficient over email. + +Email’s vestigial merit — though fast eroding — is that people’s expectations remain at least somewhat tempered by the platform’s perceived rigidity. (This is, I believe, actually an unconscious hangover from the days when the send/receive function would run at an irregular interval, like every ten minutes, making responding to emails sooner than that period technically impossible.) + +And these are the modes of communication — fundamentally asynchronous in nature — that I believe can be managed carefully to yield optimal results and a healthy balance between ‘responsiveness’ and mental health: + + * Post! (Yes, as in snail mail!) + * Email + +So for my WhatsApp, to begin a move away from the platform, I recently changed my status to: + +_“I don’t check WhatsApp that often. Consider emailing [myemail]”_ + +In fact I continue to poll my WhatsApp for messages once or twice a day and remain in touch with people through it. However, I have tried to avoid the expectation that I will get back through it “right now”. + +Besides being interested in enhancing productivity and finding ways to stem the erosion of focus time that society seems intent upon grafting upon curmudgeons like me that feel an innate need to resist the trend, I’m also a big fan of the _kaizen_ (continuous improvement) methodology. + +So I’m actually thinking about ways to disconnect even more thoroughly from WhatsApp. + +Ie, the strategies I have presented here are mere works in progress and could well take on an even more extremist dynamic in the future. + +But this is what has helped so far. + +### I Get That This Couldn’t Work For Many (Most?) People + +That’s about all I have to share in this little update on the subject — although the few interventions I have instituted so far have thoroughly improved my day-to-day workflow, so I feel a strong desire to share them with anybody else interested. + +Remember that I’m self-employed and have the luxury (!?) of working from home almost any time I feel the need or desire. So I’m totally aware that this wouldn’t be viable for many occupations and industries. + +I can imagine that there is no way that an ER doc could pull this off. + +Or even a salesperson for that matter. + +But I believe that for at least _some_ people — and probably _more_ people than we think if can find ways, societally, to be [a bit more flexible about what we consider acceptable ‘responsiveness’ — this ](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/my-unorthodox-productivity-resolution-for-this-year-be-less-responsive/)methodology can yield substantial benefits in terms of enhanced focus, productivity, and, consequentially, happiness and fulfillment. + +Any feedback (what else I could be doing, how I could make this better, flaws, etc) greatly appreciated! + +Thank you for reading. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Freelancers-And-Toxic-Clients-Frequently-Meet-Up---And-What-You-Can-Do-About-It.md b/posts/medium/Why-Freelancers-And-Toxic-Clients-Frequently-Meet-Up---And-What-You-Can-Do-About-It.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8d57cd6c0bfc418245b471d9b873cb2ea6b05914 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Freelancers-And-Toxic-Clients-Frequently-Meet-Up---And-What-You-Can-Do-About-It.md @@ -0,0 +1,81 @@ +# Why Freelancers And Toxic Clients Frequently Meet Up — And What You Can Do About It + +#### Why freelancers tend to encounter bad clients over the course of their writing careers + +Freelancing: here’s why it can be a minefield of bad clients, especially for those new to the game. Photo by [Andrea Piacquadio](https://www.pexels.com/@olly?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-with-hand-on-temple-looking-at-laptop-842554/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Browse through any freelancing forum on the internet — or just talk to your nearest friendly freelancer— and you’ll come across plenty of war stories from those who have been unfortunate enough to encounter clients they consider ‘toxic’ during their freelancing career. + +The dynamic is so pervasive, in fact, that there’s an entire website dedicated to anonymously amassing such stories from the freelancing world. + +It’s hilarious and terrible all at the same time. If you’re a chiseled veteran of the freelancing world like the author then I’m certain you’ll find much to relate to there. + +[**Clients From Hell - Horror stories from freelancers** + _We got an email from a client we have done some campaigns for in the past Client: You provided us SEO consultation when…_ clientsfromhell.net](https://clientsfromhell.net/ "https://clientsfromhell.net/")[](https://clientsfromhell.net/) + +During the course of my five plus year tenure in freelancing/self-employment, I’ve encountered several clients who — to my mind — fit pretty closely the definition of what I’d consider toxic. + +As I spoke to other freelancers, I quickly began to understand that virtually _all_ of us had had such experiences at some time or another. The next question I asked myself was _why_. + +This blog provides some thoughts to answer that question. + +### Freelancers Encounter More Clients Than Employees Do Employers + +Freelancers vary in terms of how many clients they tend to feel comfortable working with at any one time. + +My preferred ‘volume’ is somewhere between five and seven. Any more than that and I start mixing up client names and forgetting who does what. But I’ve heard of freelancers who commonly work with more than ten clients simultaneously and have no problems doing so. + +Given the fact that most freelancing clients are — by necessity — temporary in nature, the cumulative number of companies that your average employee and freelancer are going to encounter over the course of their career is likely to only increase over time. + +In light of simple mathematics, your average self-employed freelancer/consultant is likely going to end up working with more companies than your average employee is over the course of their career. The explanation? Most salaried employees only work with one employer at a time and jobs tend to be less temporary than freelancing ‘gigs.’ + +There are plenty of poorly run and dysfunctional companies in the world. When you really play the field you’re bound to run into them. + +### To An Extent, Freelancers Self-Select For Price Shoppers + +There are plenty of respectable reasons why companies turn to the freelance talent pool when they need to get a project taken care of. + +Perhaps they can’t find the talent they need in their locality. In some cases, they know that the requirement is very temporary and can’t justify a full time hire. In some instances, trying out freelancers is a way of dipping their toes into a certain pool of candidates without committing to a full time hire (and it works both ways; some freelancers may ‘trial’ potential employers by starting out as freelancers with them). + +But there’s also one that can’t be avoided. Many companies turn to the freelance talent pool — especially marketplaces like Upwork and Fiverr — because they want to pick up talent on the cheap. And these are precisely the type of client that you’ll want to go out of your way to avoid. + +Freelancers need to remember that they can be big conspicuous targets for all manner of “price shoppers” and those intent on scoring project staffers for the lowest price possible. The solutions? Charge for value delivered and don’t compete on price. Raise rates to a level at which you’re no longer towards the bottom of the deck. + +Freelancers can also: + + * Be pushed into unreasonable deals without having the experience to identify that they’re being taken for a ride. + * Not know what reasonable boundaries might look like much less how to set them. For instance, many freelancers offer unlimited meetings on low value deliverables like small writing projects. I would argue that this doesn’t make any business sense. + +### Freelancers Create An Expectation That They’re Disposable + +Yup. + +In the cruel and sometimes heartless world of freelancing, clients know that they can pick up and ditch freelancers as their heart pleases without having to worry about pesky things like benefits. + +Another important point to bear in mind is that — in many freelancing relationships — the freelancer is a remote entity who only exists as pixels on a computer screen. + +It’s a lot easier to screw over Dave (freelancer) when you know that you can fire him at a moment’s notice and that you’re never going to run into him while having a drink at your local bar. + +Our disposable and remote nature makes us vulnerable to exploitation and predatory clients. This is partially why having rigorous contracts is so essential. + +### Freelancers Can Be Lousy Salespeople — And Too Often Are + +I’m looking at you, Daniel (that’s me)! + +While freelancers can be very competent professionals within the areas they focus on — say writing or digital marketing — it’s rare to find a freelancer who’s a true jack of all trades in _all_ the areas they would ideally know about. + +As self-employed businesspeople, freelancers aren’t just project ‘doers’- they’re also the mangers of their own businesses. They need to market themselves in order to land work. And they need to do all those things that salespeople do in order to close out business. + +Lead qualification is one of those core sales activities that it’s very easy to neglect until it’s too late. Once freelancers get past the stage of exuberance that people are reaching out to _them_(inbound marketing) they need to realize that the job’s only a quarter the way done. + +Next comes lead qualification and making sure that the leads under management actually represent quality opportunities that are likely to yield mutually satisfactory business relationships. Finally, freelancers need to know enough about contracts to be able to come up with terms that are going to protect them in the even that expectations become misaligned and something goes wrong. + +The freelancing life can be one fraught with ups and downs — and one of the most common ‘downs’ is the feeling that one is dealing with a seemingly unending litany of dubious clients. + +If that’s happening to you — I’ve been there! — then take a look at how you’re presenting yourself to clients and (just as importantly) how you’re managing leads. + +If you’re selling on price, find a way to sell yourself on the potential value you could deliver. But if you _insist_ on selling by price, then at least make sure that it isn’t a cheap one. + +Finally, cut yourself just a little slack. + +Understand that, as a freelancer, you’ll potentially work with ten times as many companies as your friends working a 9 to 5 if you do this over the course of your career. There’s an upside so that and it’s partially what keeps freelancing interesting — you’ll get to work with lots of different companies and industries. But it also comes at a cost: you’re officially now ten times as likely to run into charlatans, dysfunctional startups, and cheapskates (or all three!) as those working in an office. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Geeks-Running-Marketing-Departments-Might-Be-A-Recipe-For--Branding--Disaster.md b/posts/medium/Why-Geeks-Running-Marketing-Departments-Might-Be-A-Recipe-For--Branding--Disaster.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..05458777938d226278ed4b315b7d7530e157e436 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Geeks-Running-Marketing-Departments-Might-Be-A-Recipe-For--Branding--Disaster.md @@ -0,0 +1,109 @@ +# Why Geeks Running Marketing Departments Might Be A Recipe For (Branding) Disaster + +#### What’s obvious to you could be revelatory to your best prospects. Just don’t tell your CTO. + +Geeks and code “ninjas”: frequently terrible at explaining what they actually do. Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/business-charts-commerce-computer-265087/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Six months or so, I had an introductory call with D. + +D. isn’t his real name of course. I’m not yet crass enough to splash my current (or past) clients up here on Medium*. + +But I’ve always wanted to write a blog intro that sounded like I was involved in some kind of undercover investigation. + +Sadly, I’m not. I’m just a marketer. You probably already knew that. But D. was a real living breathing lead that took up a slot in my schedule one morning. + +D., along with his business partner, was trying to get a cybersecurity startup off the ground. + +Bur D. wasn’t just a founder — he was also a developer with a strong background in the technology industry. He got in touch with me because I’ve done quite a bit of work in the space and he needed to tell his startup’s story to … the world (read: potential investors). + +Unfortunately, like many very smart people, D. did an utterly lousy job at selling what his company did. + +When I asked him to describe what this latest earth shattering addition to the cybersec startup ecosystem was about _(as a startup marketer one must remain ever skeptical_) D. reverted to something like this: “oh, we do phishing detection. We’re phishing SaaS” + +But D.’s company did much more than that. + +(*I will never be that crass.) + +### Never Take A Founder’s Description Of What Their Company Does At Face Value + +Besides skepticism, here’s another survival trait you must develop when working with startups: + +_More skepticism._ + +Don’t take anybody at face value. Especially when it’s startup founders describing what their company does. + +This is because startup founders — as wonderful as they are — have several tendencies that us marketers have to try to deal with and work around: + + * They dramatically _oversell_ what their company does + * They dramatically _undersell_ what their company does + * They use so much jargon to describe what their company does that it’s almost impossible to tell which of the above is most likely to be true without taking the founder out for drinks + +(Stage three is the most fun until the suspense wears off). + +D. fell squarely into categories one and three. + +His startup was a lot more than a simple phishing simulator that could cook up some dodgy looking emails and try to train staff to spot basic social engineering exploits. Botch the Microsoft logo, cook up an obviously fake URL, and see who’s clued-in enough to call the dud out. Many of those exist. I had one as a client. + +No. D’s platform did a lot more. + +I like to think of myself as a tech geek with a marketing brain. + +So instead of listening to D. talk me through his sales pitch for the hundredth time (_the problem: it’s been scripted to mindlessness_), I asked him to _show_ me what the product did while I peppered him with questions and took notes. Live fire. + +Yes, the tool simulated phishing attacks (_the problem: so do many others_). But as I took notes I immediately noticed something a lot more significant: _it was also providing actual endpoint protection while it did so._ + +D. was creating a solution that did the cooking up a fake URL thing and send it to the staff thing that many IT compliance departments have to subscribe to in order to tick an employee awareness box (unlike many cybersecurity threats, social engineering attacks rely upon smarter humans for prevention). + +But it went beyond that. + +It was a two way street. + +There was a real phishing scanning process happening too sending suspicious samples back to IT. D. had created a two way street. Train the people up. But the solution is more than just a simulator. Two boxes ticked. I could see IT departments loving it. + +The problem: nothing in what D. had said or communicated on his website explained any of that, much less highlighted it as their key differentiator. + +### If Your Geek Copywrote Your Site, Your USP Might Be Shrouded In Jargon + +To keep the data lovers reading this happy, here’s another stock image of some pie charts. Photo by [Lukas](https://www.pexels.com/@goumbik?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-blue-ballpoint-pen-on-white-notebook-669610/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +The problem: + +D. was so immersed in technology that he couldn’t see why or how what his tool was doing was unique. + +He was three feet from the codebase at all times. And two feet from the text. + +So to him the two way tango his product was doing wasn’t really that spectacular. + +When I pointed out to him that the feature was _actually a pretty big deal_ — like the small but big thing that could really distinguish them from many of their competitors — D.’s response was a modest laugh. “Yeah, I guess it’s cool that it does that,” he said. Cool! Cool!? + +D’s problem was this: + +He knew that phishing and hacking and cybersecurity were hot topics at the moment. There’s lots of surface-level buzz about them. + +And so he did what most startup founders do when they think “it’s time to market” and decided to put out some more noise that included as many buzzwords as could possibly be fit within the confines of a presentation. + +But he also didn’t realize that just talking about the same thing was going to get his startup lost among a sea of noise — and companies that did what his also did. + +The problem with throwing jargon onto your website for the sake of adding jargon is that you risk obscuring the truth of your company’s mission. Of its uniqueness. Of what makes it stand out from its competitors. + +The problem with having the same people who wrote the codebase also write the website text is that they’re often unable to see what’s unique about what they do. Blinded by their own closeness to the product. + +D. will stand out to me for some time as a classic case study in this respect. + +He was certain that everybody would be so interested to hear about his phishing simulator. + +I suspected that he was going to get quickly forgotten about among a tidal wave of noise from platforms all doing roughly the same thing. + +As talented as many startup visionaries are, sometimes even very smart people struggle with relatively simple things. + +Thus it is that those who can conceive of artificial intelligence algorithms or new approaches in cryptography often fail woefully at describing what their company actually does to the world. And when you’re not clear in your messaging, you’ll quickly realize that nobody gets you — or cares. + +[Here’s a shameless plug](http://www.rosehillmarcom.com) if you want an external eye on your startup. + +Don’t assume that just because your CTO is a brilliant developer his elevator pitch actually communicates the uniqueness of his platform. + +_Do_ challenge every assumption about the company. Including those the founding team wants to brush off. + +Through distrust and relentless questioning the truth of the message can ultimately be arrived at. + +Which is why sometimes marketing is a great gig for skeptics like me. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I--Deliberately--Haven-t-Monetized-My-Medium-Account-To-Date.md b/posts/medium/Why-I--Deliberately--Haven-t-Monetized-My-Medium-Account-To-Date.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9fbd665c5fff3461d4c4e777df2b160d06db7389 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I--Deliberately--Haven-t-Monetized-My-Medium-Account-To-Date.md @@ -0,0 +1,102 @@ +# Why I (Deliberately) Haven’t Monetized My Medium Account To Date + +#### It may stand in defiance to some people’s idea of conventional logic, but I don’t see this account as part of my monetization plan + +Many in my social and professional network have become acquainted to seeing me share Medium links. + +I’ve been an active user of this platform for two years now. + +During that time, I’ve written nearly 300 posts spanning everything from how to set up a virtual number the DIY way (my first post!) through to posts intended to promote my business and information intended to help other freelance writers. + +_My publication about freelance writing:_ + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + + _My thought leadership publication is content marketing on behalf of my writing business:_ + +[**All About Thought Leadership** + _All About Thought Leadership contains insights about using thought leadership as part of your inbound marketing…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership "https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership")[](https://medium.com/all-about-thought-leadership) + +A couple of my friends have expressed surprise and sometimes even incredulity that I don’t monetize my Medium writings. + +Because the “monetize everything” drumbeat reverberates a lot louder than the “do it for fun” one, I wanted to share why — up until this point — I’ve taken this decision. + +_(Because it’s always possible that I will change my mind, I’m explaining the decision I have taken up to the time of this writing.)_ + +### Why I Post On Medium + +To explain why I _don’t_ monetize my Medium account, let me explain why I _do_ write here in the first place. + +In general, I’m a huge advocate for self-hosted and open source software. Of course, Medium isn’t this. But so long as I can keep a backup copy of my writing here (I’m very careful to do so!), I’m happy to entrust my writing to a platform that I don’t manage even though, in doing so, I realize that I’m forsaking the benefits that could accrue by posting on my own website. + +[**My Approach To Backing Up My Online Writing** + _I have written a lot about backups in recent months . So much so that I reckon that there is probably an entire book’s…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521) + + _(Caveat for my fellow backup fiends: when you’re backing up your Medium writing, be aware that — at the time of writing — the images remain locked up in the CDN. So you’ll want to back those up separately. One way to do this would be to draft your posts elsewhere before publishing on Medium)._ + +[**How to backup your articles from Medium — and one thing you should know!** +_I’ve been using Medium as a hosted blogging platform for the best part of 2 years now._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0) + +Posting on Medium allows me to publish on a platform that’s: + + * **Professionally hosted**. Think: extremely limited downtime. When sharing my writing, I also don’t have to share my personal domain which hosts other material. + * **Lighting fast**. While I generally have good things to say about my host, drafting writing on my self-hosted Wordpress blog (which sits behind Cloudflare) is just a _lot_ slower than writing on Medium which is almost always an extremely fluid experience. Because I draft most of my writing directly on the internet, I really hate even small lags as they slow down my ‘flow’. So long as my internet is reliable, I find drafting in Medium as fast as drafting on a word processor. The UI is also very minimalist which allows me to focus on my writing and not get distracted by buttons I don’t need. + * **Audience centric:** I love the fact that Medium makes it easy to build an audience through its social profiles-and-followers design. Sure, I could do the same thing by adding an opt-in box after my writing on my site. But the options aren’t mutually exclusive. Seeing my audience slowly build up over time is also encouraging. It’s also nice to be able to see _who_ has engaged with my writing enough to click the follow button. Rolling out these features on a blog that I self-host would be, if not impossible, certainly very challenging. + * **Got everything I need** : In order to author writing that reaches and influences, I really only need a few things. A WYSIWYG text editor — and Medium’s is a delight to use; hosting that’s reliable (see above): and, ideally, a statistics dashboard so that I can see what writing is trending. The last provides a feedback loop so that I can see what’s resonating and what’s not. Medium provides all of these things in one very easy to use package. + +### The Benefits of Posting Here: Inbound Marketing And An Audience + +My Medium dashboard at the time of writing. I love the fact that it’s so easy to access stats/analytics through the platform. And more than 1,000 views per day doesn’t sound too bad to me. + +I post on Medium to share my thoughts with the world. For me, in light of the above, Medium is the most efficient and enjoyable way of doing that. I currently receive in the region of 30K views per month to my writing here. To my mind, this is a significant audience reach that I’m eager to grown even further. + +I write on Medium in order to leverage an easy way to **reach an audience.** + +And through maximizing my audience reach, I can: + + * Ensure that the content marketing I share here (the minority of my posts) reaches the widest possible audience in order to be as effective as possible. Because even the best content marketing isn’t very effective if nobody’s reading it. + * Ensure that my personal material — everything else! — also reaches the widest possible audience. The (sometimes unexpected) results of this have been everything from backlinks to my personal site through to radio appearances after producers discovered my content. + +On the flip side: + +**If I paywall my content by attempting to monetize it, I substantially reduce the size of my potential audience because internet users that might discover my content organically possibly either _aren’t_ premium Medium members or will have exceeded their monthly free article quota.** The result of either: my writing won’t get read by anybody but the minority of web users who pay for a premium Medium sub. + +Sure, I can share the friend link in order to bypass the paywall, but it’s the original link that indexes in Google. **The organic discoverability of my writing therefore plummets way down.** + +What this means, in simple terms, is that by _not_ placing it behind a paywall the writing I post on Medium which gets indexed in Google — and because Medium is a high-DR site it tends to rank highly for keywords — can be seen by as many people as possible. + +I don’t advocate writing for _exposure_ in order to develop professionally or accrue clips (I have plenty of those). But I think that if you’re writing for fun or to share ideas — as I mostly am here — then it makes sense to attempt to get your writing read by as wide a group of readers as possible. + +What’s the point of writing content that nobody ever reads? + +### Inbound Leads Are A Lot More Valuable To Me Than Medium Payments + +The second reason I would give if you asked me why I haven’t monetized my Medium writings — again, at least until now — is that the money on offer isn’t enough to entice me to do so. + +Furthermore, it seems to me that if you’re attempting to approach Medium as a channel to be monetized, you need to publish here: + + * As frequently as possible. Not that I don’t write here quite often, but to date, I haven’t set out to write at a certain frequency just to write for the sake of writing. In my opinion, this is almost certain to eventually lead to cluttering up the internet by creating useless writing. + * In a clickbaity style. Because I don’t publish here for money, I write the way I want to write. Sure, it’s great if people discover my writing. But I don’t need to use things like clickbait headlines in order to maximize clickthroughs and views. Because I’m focused on reaching as wide an audience as possible and on discoverability, my main concern is with sharing authentically — and hopefully conveying useful information. + +Everything I have read affirms my belief that — minus a very select few — most Medium writers earn relatively little money through their attempts to monetize their platform. + +However, if I share content here that results in an inbound business lead that ultimately converts to become a client: + + * I could sign up a client on a $1,000 monthly retainer and make $12,000 from that client over the course of a year + * A book ghostwriting my client could discover one of my posts on this topic and sign me on for a book deal. Five figures or above. + +### For Me, Audience Value Exceeds Likely Monetization Potential + +The cost-benefit analysis I have outlined above has led me to believe that it’s wise to resist the temptation I inevitably sometimes feel (when I receive claps that _could_ be earning me money) to monetize my Medium profile. + +Through making it very easy to draft writing in a great user interface that is hosted on reliable infrastructure, Medium has made it possible for me to both write quite prodigiously and to get my writing in front of readers. + +For me, both at the time of writing and up to this point, the benefits of this have outweighed the money I _might_ be making by putting this writing behind a paywall. + +_— With thanks to_[ _Medium_](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) _and_[ _Medium Staff_](https://medium.com/u/a32c340ea342) _for creating this platform._ + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I--Still--Haven-t-Left-Reddit.md b/posts/medium/Why-I--Still--Haven-t-Left-Reddit.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..74c31dac289ad4fc430264bcfa4790792c82f755 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I--Still--Haven-t-Left-Reddit.md @@ -0,0 +1,72 @@ +# Why I (Still) Haven’t Left Reddit + +#### Despite receiving a litany of harassment and abuse which went unchecked, I haven’t stopped posting in one of the internet’s most controversial social communities + +Reddit: while often useful, it can also be a haven for abuse. But is there anything that we — or Reddit — can do about that? Photo: Author. + +Earlier this year, I received an unexpected spate of harassment and bullying on the popular social network known as Reddit. + +[**Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit** + _Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2) + +I watched with surprise and disappointment as an anonymous internet troll called me “ugly AF” and told me — while denying having anything against Jews of course — to get my “big beak” off the network post-haste. + +There were dozens more comments all in a similar vein — attacking my appearance, the size of my nose, leveling a low-life slur to denigrate Asperger’s patients towards me, and generally berating whatever I posted. + +Entire threads have been started about me in hate communities so toxic that even Reddit has banned them from its site. Although the abuse itself sprouted forth from a community that most people would have considered innocuous. + +The trolls proved oddly relentless in their quest to inform me that they found the size of my nose or my appearance distasteful. They followed me here to Medium to continue leaving the abuse as comments; defaced petitions I created on Change.org with more bullying; and sent repeated emails to my any website I operated with …. yet more bullying. + +When it kicked off, I announced my intention to leave the network as soon as I could give myself a bit of mental space to move on from the abuse. But three months later and I’m still an active and typically daily participant, although I’ve stubbornly refused to set digital foot back in the community from which the abuse first sprung. + +Here’s why. + +### I Realized It’s Impossible To Effectively Police Any Large Online Space + +Truth be told, I was less angry at my bullies — there are bigots and hateful people everywhere and nothing is going to change that — and more angry at Reddit itself.. + +How could such a colossal name in tech be so unwilling to take abuse seriously? Wasn’t Reddit like … getting ready to IPO!? (Yes, it is; and its frequent failure to adequately tackle abuse has frequently come up in the conversation surrounding that plan). + +I would describe my decision to cut Reddit some mental slack as less about forgiving the network and more about understanding the obstacles in faces in ensuring adequate moderation. + +Consider for instance the fact that: + + * **There are more than 2.8 million subreddits on the network.** Each subreddit is its own discussion forum, typically on somewhat niche subjects. Moreover (to the best of my knowledge) _all_ these subreddits are managed by unpaid moderators who clearly lack a financial incentive to do an excellent or even uniform job at stamping out hate on their communities. + * **To the best of my knowledge, nobody knows exactly how many admins Reddit keeps on staff** — those are the full-time paid Reddit employees that form the official moderation structure above ‘mods’ — but the number is believed to be south of 500. You do the math. If both of those estimates are accurate, each Reddit admin would be responsible for overseeing the activity of 7,000 subreddits each. And remember — each subreddit is its own online community with potentially tens of thousands of participants and dozens of daily message threads. + +The above led me to conclude that: + + * **Reddit likely can’t do a good job at stamping out hate even if it wanted to.** Even with the help of AI — or the automod filters that are popular in cleaning up much of the most egregious garbage on subs — there are just way too many users and way too much activity and far too few full-time staff members focused on keeping the network ‘clean’. + * **In light of that dynamic, Reddit likely has to focus its intention on the most egregious and damaging communities and offenders.** While I might have felt slighted and hurt by an anonymous internet randomer berating my appearance, it’s hardly likely to be top of their agenda. A far right wing community seeking to coalesce support for conspiracy theories about the pandemic? That’s potentially far more damaging — at least to Reddit itself. + +### Learning To Accept An Internet Tainted By Hate + +Reddit — or any large social network–currently all fall prey to roughly this same set of dynamics. + +They’re simply too gargantuan to be well-policed. And so — like a banana republic unserved by law enforcement — they can be expected to devolve, at best, to mostly safe spaces with a fringe edge. + +Reddit is unique among major social networks in that the vast majority of users posts from pseudonymous accounts. In the absence of social consequences for their actions, Redditors can get away with being meaner and nastier than their identified counterparts on Facebook. + +We may all aspire to live our digital lives in an internet that isn’t tainted by cyberbullying and harassment. But for the moment we have to accept the fact that that vision simply isn’t likely a realistic one. + +### Reddit’s A Unique Animal That Does One Thing — Niche Discussion — Very Well + +Reflecting on my own experience using Reddit also helped to put the strange period of abuse I experienced in perspective. + +The vast majority of interactions I have had on Reddit have been positive. + +While I’m unlikely to win any awards for optimism any time soon, I’d like to think that this is a reflection of the fact (or at least what I believe to be fact) that most people mean well. + +Reddit’s bewildering mass of niche communities has led to the creation of some excellent fora for discussing niche topics. Oddly, it’s often these more niche subreddits that are appreciative of the network’s existence and less tolerant of the kind of abuse that’s liable to drive many users off the network before they’ve had a chance to see what can be good about it. + +We live, for the moment, in an internet that’s mushroomed at a quicker pace than we — as societies — have been able to devise systems to regulate it. + +This dynamic can be seen no more clearly than in the realm of social networks. + +While these gargantuan communities may have quickly become embedded into the fabric of our daily lives, many of them are already far too large to be properly policed by humans. + +Reddit — with its anonymity and user-base that dwarfs its staff — provides a great case in point here. + +Failing the development of more effective means to solve this problem, this may leads to us having to simply find other ways of dealing with online harassment and abuse that are unfortunately more reactive in nature than we’d like: + +Focusing on providing education and support for those who have suffered the damaging effects of cyberbullying would be a good place to start. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Always-Ask-Prospects-To-Explain-What-Their-Companies-Do.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Always-Ask-Prospects-To-Explain-What-Their-Companies-Do.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b0a02a04aacd5488afee62d99e9264a3db492a10 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Always-Ask-Prospects-To-Explain-What-Their-Companies-Do.md @@ -0,0 +1,65 @@ +# Why I Always Ask Prospects To Explain What Their Companies Do + +#### Whether there’s a mission statement or not, prompting founders to explain their value prop in natural language can help elucidate their true purpose + +Asking company founders to outline their organization’s vision in unscripted language can be a powerful way to gain clarity on an organization’s vision. Photo: Wikimedia + +Over the course of the past five years working as a marketing communications consultant, I’ve spent a fair amount of my time holding early and later stage conversations with all manner of startup founders. + +Typically passionate and excited to talk about their businesses, this is often a professionally rewarding activity — even if, if I’m to be honest, my conversion rate for startup prospects doesn’t always match that of larger companies (startups may be full of energy, but things tend to get lost in the shuffle too!) + +My sales process is functional if not particularly imaginative. + +As I have shared plenty of times on this Medium page, I made the shift — roughly a year ago — from an outbound-led process to an inbound-led one. After prospects are sufficiently interested by something about me to want to schedule a Zoom call, I direct them towards an embedded Calendly form. + +There, I ask them the classic questions. Who are you? Who do you represent? Why are you thinking about engaging in thought leadership (example)? There are a couple of BANT questions in there too and then prospects are free to place the booking. + +### “Can You Explain What Your Company Does To Me?” + +The preparatory phase for any giving meeting — on my end — involves checking out the company’s website and looking up the professional background of the party who booked the meeting. + +Nevertheless, I virtually always ask my prospects to explain (verbally) what it is that their companies do fairly early in the call. + +Here are a few reasons why I’ve maintained this practice over the years. + +### It Helps Me Spot Obvious Branding Mismatches And Compare What A Company Really Does With What They Talk About Doing + +As a marketing communications practitioner, I see my job as: + + * Identifying what makes a company unique and special + * Finding ways to communicate it that are engaging and impactful and which will, hopefully, cut through the noise made by competitors. This is the communications part of the gig — which is actually the majority of work that I get involved with + * Focusing those communications on the target personas which the organization is pursuing — because simply creating noise without a strategy to back it doesn’t tend to lead to very successful results. In practice, this involves a lot of time spent looking at value propositions and messaging. As well as how to steer prospects through a marketing and sales funnel through inbound. + +When I look at organizations’ branding through the lens of PR, I also spend a lot of time delving through Google search results to ascertain the state of play for an organization’s image on the outside looking in. What would your average person think about this organization? And one of the first places they’re likely to look is that company’s website. + +This is the first reason for asking a company founder to explain their organization’s purpose. It allows me to quickly identify basic branding problems that are created by the often large gap between what an organization _actually_ does and what it _tells the world_ that it does. + +### It Helps Me See How Does Somebody With Passion Explains Their Business Mission + +Often, marketing websites — nay, marketing generally — is somewhere towards the bottom of a new startup’s to-do list. Sometimes, they’re even drafted by agencies as sort of placeholders that give a _rough semblance_ of what the company does. At other times, companies create websites primarily because they just want to have any old web presence rather than none at all. In short, they think that it makes them look more “legit.” + +The problem with the above is that such copy is often conceived and written in a sterile environment. Or by outsourcing partners who mightn’t have a full grasp on the nuances of the business they’re trying to promote. + +This is another reason why getting a download on a business’s USP from the horse’s mouth — the founding team itself — can often make an enormous difference in honing in on what a company is _really_ about. + +### It Answers The “Man On The Street” Test + +One of the great advantages of working as a consultant is the ability to work with a variety of companies and industries. + +While I have my specialties, even with tech, I inevitably end up speaking to founders from industries that I’ve never dealt with before. This is the best way to expand into new verticals and markets, after all. + +From a MarCom (marketing communications) standpoint, such conversations are often particularly valuable. + +Because when I come to a discussion with almost no background knowledge about an industry or the challenges its participants face, it give me a very good idea whether your average “man on the street” will have a chance of being able to understand it either. + +Of course, many companies — especially those selling B2B — _aren’t_ targeting your average man on the street. Rather, they’re trying to communicate with a specialist audience and readership. Nevertheless, an axiom of effective communication is that it should be readily intelligible. If a business’s key collateral falls down on this litmus test, there’s a good chance that a lot of people checking out the website are feeling similarly bamboozled. + +The above reasons are why regardless of whether I _think_ I understand what a company does from its website, reputation, or marketing material, I always make a habit of asking startup founders — or those representing their organizations — to tell me, in their own words, a little bit about what they do. + +Essential to the success of this exercise is that the communicator doesn’t feel under any pressure to make their company “sound good” or to get a scripted elevator pitch across. If they have any rehearsed lines, direct them to put them out of their mind. + +In order to really get a firm grasp on what a company is doing — and what it’s doing differently — you need to listen patiently while the representative describes their company’s vision, uniqueness, and value proposition in his or her own words. Leading questions can help to tease out the nuance. + +This is one part of the lead warm-up conversation that can make a big difference to assessing whether a potential working relationship is likely to be a successful match. + +Because to be happy working with an organization, it helps to at least understand what they’re trying to achieve! diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Believe-Freelance-Writing-Courses-Are-Bad-For-Writers.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Believe-Freelance-Writing-Courses-Are-Bad-For-Writers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7b917ad8b5c60c144baef1737f9b78d5356ff406 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Believe-Freelance-Writing-Courses-Are-Bad-For-Writers.md @@ -0,0 +1,97 @@ +# Why I Believe Freelance Writing Courses Are Bad For Writers + +#### There’s Nothing You Can’t Learn For Free Online + +A laptop and pen. Source: PXHere.com. [CC0 Public Domain.](https://pxhere.com/en/photo/987538) + +This evening, I received a rather strange press release through my writing website. + +The sender was offering a freelance writing course. The sender also appeared to believe that I worked for NPR. Mail merge error? Carelessness? Who knows (or cares). + +The sender’s LinkedIn indicated that he/she had worked as a freelance writer for all of 12 months. The press released was written in thoroughly broken English. I had seen enough. + +_Exit stage: shady freelance writing course provider number one thousand and two._ + +### Apprenticeship Or Course: Which Model Makes More Sense? + +Making a full time living as a freelance writer is an insanely difficult undertaking. If you’re reading this Medium post, then there’s a good chance that you already agree with that. + +But is it _complicated_ to be a freelance writer? + +I would argue that the answer is ‘no’. + +There are a couple of things about freelance writing that have been written so many times that they’re barely worth elaborating upon: + + * **You should focus on a popular niche** (but ideally one that’s also lucrative and which relatively few people are qualified to write about); + * **You need to have some idea about how to find clients** , how to market yourself, how to send invoices, and how to pay your taxes + +But it isn’t that cut and dried to get started. + +The difficulty in making freelance writing work, for most people, lies in two areas. + + * For one, it’s bloody hard work — like massively hard work. For a lot of people the initial ROI (huge work, modest income) just doesn’t make sense. + * Additionally, there’s an awful lot of detail to bed down (like how much to charge for a case study and whether or not to require an upfront payment on a white paper?) Those are the kind of things that most people learn as they crop up. Otherwise, the list of permutations to cover in a one fits all curriculum would be simply too vast. + +Traditionally, there are two modalities to choose from when it comes to upskilling: take a course (learn from books first) or sign up for an apprenticeship (learn from people first). Ultimately both lead to learning by experience but the journey towards that point differs. + +Tellingly, journalism — the distant forebearer of many of today’s crop of freelance content marketers—worked through this system (as former “cub reporters” are aware). + +For today’s crop of freelance writers, I would argue that Google is just about the best apprenticeship available and anecdotal experience is a valuable and readily available supplement. If writers are willing to share their knowledge freely online, then one need only follow the guides of predecessors to avoid having to reinvent the wheel. In a sense, therefore, freelance writing courses interrupt that tradition of information sharing. + +### Course-Giving As The Pinnacle Of Freelancing Writing Success + +The above is partially why I feel strongly that writers need to stick up for other writers. It’s also something that we see a lot of in practice. Freelance writers write about writing in publications (like The Book Mechanic!), help each other out in Facebook groups, and mentor each other through the grueling aspects of working in the business. + +Most of us face a tough industry, especially those of us in the freelance world: pressure from clients to produce more work in less time is commonplace, sometimes unrelenting. The globalization of the freelance marketplace in particular has had an overall erosive effect on rates. + +But ultimately, and in spite of these challenges, many writers write because they love writing and want to inspire the next generation to make a go of working as one. + +Freelance writing courses frustrate this cycle of knowledge sharing. One writer’s desire to monetize their knowledge becomes a barrier for the next in line. Which is another reason why I don’t believe it’s reasonable to use those that want to join the industry as cash-cows to be milked. + +More presciently, the skeptic in me finds it very hard to believe that it’s possible for most writing courses to offer any independent value. + +Why? Firstly, there isn’t all that much to learn — at least to the extent that we’re talking about objective truths, which is what many would agree courses _should_ consist of. + +Secondly, because most How To Become A Freelance Writer In 30 Days courses are almost certainly simply sharing information that has been written about before: in other courses, in books, and in podcasts. Or more likely in all of them. Niche down, you reckon? You didn’t say! + +Many freelance writing courses are also liable to create unreasonable expectations among entrants to the writing market. + +No certification program has ever managed to distinguish itself as the gold standard for writers, especially for generalists. It is highly unlikely that one ever will— if most writing success comes down to a mixture of grit, networking, and experience, what exactly is there to be certified in? + +Even many graduates of third level journalism programs — including the author — are skeptical about the value of their training. In an increasingly crowded market, experience, connections, and portfolios are what help many writers stand out. + +Marketed through glitzy landing pages adorned in red ink selling the dream of making tens of thousands of dollars while decked out in pajamas, many freelance course authors promise a life of luxury (after passing through their course). Even though, often, that dream contradicts their own path to success. + +Of course, when you think about, this makes total sense — because selling a formula to success that simply consists of lots of hard work, a desk littered with coffee cups and writing briefs, and occasionally scouring Google and Reddit for information like the rest of us isn’t going to lead to many signups (“couldn’t we do that ourselves,” they might ask. The answer: “yes!”) + +#### Freelance Writing Courses Undermine Freelance Writing + +Finally, it is my strong belief, even if it’s an unpopular one, that the mushrooming of copycat freelance writing courses we’re currently witnessing actually undermines the profession of freelance writing. + +Hear me out on this last one. + +Judging by the courses on the market today — and the names behind them — one would be led to believe that the pinnacle of success as a freelance writer today is to teach other freelance writers how to … be freelance writers. + +To my mind it makes the industry look predatory, mercenary, and bereft of a sense of collegiality. + +The message it sends out is also clear: writers don’t help other writers … unless they’re paying a subscription fee. + +Most freelance writing courses are good … for lining the pockets of those offering them. + +Like many courses, they are built upon shaky logic. If freelance writing were truly the path to success those selling courses about it were claiming that it is, why would those that have climbed the mountain need to operate passive income schemes in the first place? + +If they loved writing and other writers and wanted more than anything for them to succeed — a common claim — then why would they be monetizing their information rather than offering it pro bono? + +These are good tough questions to ask any course-giver — after validating the fact that they’ve been working as a freelance writer for more than a year. + +It’s possible (I’ll admit) that there are a select few offering genuine value that can’t be found elsewhere. + +But I assert that the vast majority of writing courses are simply repackaging open source information adorned with the bowtie of attractive marketing and well A/B-tested landing pages. + +Independent research is a valuable skill to have as a writer. Those thinking about making a living from it could start by figuring out how to get the same information from unbiased (and free!) sources. + +Most “How To Make A Living As A Freelance Writer Courses,” in my estimation, are bad for the world — and for the professional image of writers. + +**You just read another exciting post from the Book Mechanic:** the source for writers and creators who want to make more work that sells and sell more work they make. + +If you’d like to read more stories just like this one [**tap here to visit**](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic?source=post_page---------------------------) diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Decided-To-Share-Publicly-About-Having-Adult-ADHD.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Decided-To-Share-Publicly-About-Having-Adult-ADHD.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..dbd456edca00c42e31023825ab5a03adfa6b0672 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Decided-To-Share-Publicly-About-Having-Adult-ADHD.md @@ -0,0 +1,100 @@ +# Why I Decided To Share Publicly About Having Adult ADHD + +#### Shame gets us nowhere. Also, I’m excited about the journey + +A doctor’s office. Image: Pixabay + +A few days ago, I decided to write an article here about my diagnostic process that led to being diagnosed with ADHD. It was a process I went through in my early 30s. + +[**My ADHD Diagnosis Story** + _Cross-posted from Twitter, lightly redacted, and expanded:_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c) + +To date, I’ve written more than 300 articles here on Medium. I use it as a public diary of sorts to collect and share my thinking about issues ranging from how to charge for freelance writing (for plenty on that,[ see my Medium publication](https://medium.com/freelance-writing)) to [what I think about gastronorm pans.](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/6-reasons-to-start-using-chef-pans-in-your-home-kitchen-7e14d6e81370?source=post_internal_links---------3----------------------------) It’s a mixed bag. And I write primarily for the joy of writing without thinking about who’s going to read it (for that reason, my writing here isn’t paywalled). + +As a result of this publishing activity, I also receive a healthy dose of feedback from readers, conveyed both privately and publicly. I enjoy the engagement and meeting these people, if only through the internet. It’s fun. + +While I tend to write my articles in an hour or two _after_ I’m finished with my day job (also writing), this one actually took a bit of forethought. + +Some of my thinking process: + +Do I really want to tell the world that I have ADHD? + +What if a potential client — or employer — stumbles upon the article and decided against hiring me on that basis? + +These are all legitimate concerns. + +[As are these questions](https://wayahead.org.au/telling-your-story/) which Way Ahead — an Australian mental health association — has prepared to help guide potential ‘sharers’ through the process. + +And here’s why I ultimately decided in favor of sharing anyway. + +### Shame Is A Major Impediment To Accessing Mental Health Care + +The majority of feedback that I have received since posting my article has been positive. + +Friends who I discovered by chance have ADHD have re-connected to ask what I think about Vyvanse and whether they should consider it too (answer: ask your doctor this). + +One person reacted negatively and amplified, if only briefly, the doubts that ran through my head before publishing. + +While I understood the logic of those questions I had just grappled with, I also couldn’t help but notice that this person appeared to be looking at the whole issue of ADHD through the prism of shame. “I don’t take pills,” this person proudly affirmed. + +The line of thinking went something like this: ADHD — or depression, or anxiety — is something shameful. If you have it, keep that dirty secret to yourself. + +To my mind, this is the kind of thinking that belongs in past centuries. It’s the fire that keeps the stigma that surrounds mental health burning. And prevents people who need it from reaching out for help. + +Then I thought back to all the useful articles about mental health I read during my own diagnostic process. All the videos I had watched. Such as the excellent How To ADHD channel by [Jessica McCabe](https://medium.com/u/c8cabf25e06c). Driven To Distraction which was the book full of patient anecdotes that sounded like my life story. + +What if Jessica had felt that keeping her ADHD to herself would be the more prudent course of action? + +Or if the authors of Driven to Distraction had decided it might detract from their professional reputation as doctors to author a book about treating ADHD? + +The internet is a vast and rapidly mushrooming place. + +My article is but a drop in an enormous ocean of the collective stories that mental health patients have shared with the world. + +Nevertheless, at least it’s a drop. + +If only one or two readers are encouraged to reach out for help from their healthcare providers …. it was worth sitting down to draft it. + +### ADHD Is Still Misunderstood. Too Many Think It’s A Children’s Illness + +I think that sharing _any_ mental health struggle publicly can be helpful — whether it’s depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, or bipolar disorder. + +But ADHD in particular seems to be badly misunderstood. + +ADHD patients seem relatively unique in that only they are regarded, by some, as exaggerating something inherent in all humans (a sometimes flakey ability to focus — don’t we all kind of have that?!). + +Patients with depression are rarely accused of having found a way to legitimately take those SSRI medications that every college student wants to get their hands on as a performance enhancer. + +But ADHD patients _do_ face the ridiculous charge that they’re signing forms at a pharmacy to access controlled substances because they want to get amphetamine derivatives on the reg. + +Far too many also buy into a picture of ADHD that predates the evolution of medical science. + +ADHD isn’t a monolithic entity that can be tidily summarized as a child running around a room. It has subtypes, at least one of which can mimic anxiety and depression. + +The more people that can understand this the better. + +### I Like Writing. And I’m Excited + +As I shared in my post, my self-mediation process that persisted for more than 10 years and which _finally_ led to me asking enough questions to get diagnosed was self-medicating my ADHD tendencies with large daily measures of caffeine. (Fun fact: I haven’t drunk coffee in over a year and now hate the smell of it; sensory sensitivity is a facet of ADHD; although maybe it just brings back bad memories). + +I’m beyond excited to be almost finished replacing that substance with a couple of dozens of miligrams of a laboratory-produced substance which I can dose only once a day. If you were in my position, I venture to think that you would be too. + +Imagine being dependent upon coffee — or caffeine pills — for your focus and getting work done. + +And — because caffeine doesn’t have a very long duration of action — being sort of involuntary wed to your espresso maker so long as you want to get work done (it also has a high tendency to produce insomnia and cause anxiety). Now imagine being able to take a pill once a day and getting the same effect with much less unwanted consequences such as tossing and turning at two in the morning. Maybe that helps explain why I’m really excited to be embarking upon this phase of the journey. + +Do I worry that a potential freelance client will see this and decide not to hire me? + +Not really. + +Do I expect that there will be those among the readership who will react negatively and think that I’m imaginging things or making excuses? + +Yes I do. + +But setting that expectation in advance is a good way to make it less powerful. + +Besides, I don’t intend shouting about ADHD from the rafters. Right now, it’s just what’s on my mind. And would I want to work for such a judgmental client? Probably not. Clients and employers should be more worried about those with mental health issues who are _not_ receiving treatment. + +Having ADHD is a challenge — no doubt about it. + +But playing a tiny role in helping to break down the stigmas that surround it and mental health care generally is a rewarding activity. It’s one that I’m happy to play a small roll in. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Despise-The-Word--Content---And--Freelancer--.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Despise-The-Word--Content---And--Freelancer--.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..8e7f17ca912e918b98f30b222b859db88d18ce09 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Despise-The-Word--Content---And--Freelancer--.md @@ -0,0 +1,90 @@ +# Why I Despise The Word ‘Content’ (And ‘Freelancer’) + +It’s the end of another busy week writing and interacting with clients. Which means lots of writing, a few phone calls and …. lots of scrolling through my LinkedIn feed and hearing people’s feelings about writing ‘content’. + +One of the great beauties of the internet is that it helps every curmudgeon like me to feel as if they are part of a large community — even when, in fact, our views are marginal in the broader scheme of things. + +‘Content’ is up there with ‘freelance’ in terms of words that I vigorously resist using to describe what I do. + +And lest you mistake me for a lone wolf, here are some other angry online people that feel similarly: + +[**Don’t Call it Content** + _Please, for the love of all that’s holy, nuanced, and true, stop calling writing content._ writingcooperative.com](https://writingcooperative.com/dont-call-it-content-7ff5947ae69c "https://writingcooperative.com/dont-call-it-content-7ff5947ae69c")[](https://writingcooperative.com/dont-call-it-content-7ff5947ae69c) + +[**Stop Calling Yourself a "Freelance Writer" - WriterAccess** + _No matter what your content writing rates might be, when you tell people you're a freelance writer, you get one of two…_ www.writeraccess.com](https://www.writeraccess.com/blog/stop-calling-yourself-a-freelance-writer/ "https://www.writeraccess.com/blog/stop-calling-yourself-a-freelance-writer/")[](https://www.writeraccess.com/blog/stop-calling-yourself-a-freelance-writer/) + +For the purposes of posterity — and of encouraging other writers to keep up the good (but futile) fight — let me describe, in brief, why I feel this way. + +### ‘Content’ Is Ridiculously Non-Specific + +Almost everybody in technology has likely come across the abbreviation content management system (CMS). + +Wordpress powers about 30% of the internet. Drupal and Joomla are major engines too. + +CMSs were necessitated when websites went from being by and large static to resources to dynamic ones. The emergence of blogging and the transition of news media online also expedited their development. Managing a website with 1,000s of articles individually would be virtually impossible. People needed a way to manage the creation and delivery of content more efficiently. And one which was more user-friendly than typing HTML into a code editor. + +Wordpress: a major CMS + +CMSs typically consisted of themes which were build around templates. These used serverside languages such as PHP which allowed website designers to build a consistent outline for their websites and to store **‘content’** in a database that could be injected whenever they, say, needed to add a news article to a news website. + +The footer, header, and sidebar elements could be designed once and then added to each page of the site with a simple PHP call. This greatly increased the efficiency of website design and made it easy for newspapers and other publications to create online replicas of their print editions. + +For those old enough to remember a time when websites simply consisted of a few inter-linked HTML files (not so long ago — I am a member of that club!), this was a big step forwards. + +A CMS like Wordpress would present end-users with a text editor, a few extras (like the ability to add images) and a publish button. + +Once the online scribe was done penning his contribution and the ‘content’ was published it would be written to the database and the ‘content’ thus delivered into new web page ready for users to access through their web browsers. + +I doubt much thought went into this or whoever decided upon the acronym CMS realized that he or she was foisting the word ‘content’ on writers for generations to come. + +But it seemed like a fine term to use to describe the ‘stuff’ that went into a typical blog post: the words and images and later things like embedded audio and video. + +But what makes sense in the nomenclature of managing technical systems — where shorthand always reigns supreme — doesn’t necessarily mean much in real life. + +(Another reason, using writing as an example: from the standpoint of those that use the term both the verbiage at the back of a cereal box, and a white paper, would be ‘content’. In reality these are very different types of writing which call for different skill-sets on the part of those writing them, and that difference can be reflected by using alternative descriptions: like copywriting and white paper writing). + +### There’s Nothing Wrong With Calling Writing ‘Writing’ + +As a writer, my central issue with the word ‘content’ is that it has led to the insipid devaluation and commoditization of writing. This is a process which we are seeing continuing through this day with the gradual erosion of rates that writers have been fighting against for years. + +In content’s non-specificity lies its potential to cause harm to our industry and the rates that creatives are able to command. + +Because when we amalgamate writing, photography, audio, and video production under one non-specific rubric — and tell the world that that’s what we’re comfortable calling ourselves — we encourage others to see various forms of creative expression as one monolithic hub of ‘stuff’ between masthead and footer. + +Because if we, as writers, are not going to be bothered to call our words ‘writing,’ then why should our clients make the effort to? + +Despite my (strong) feelings about the word ‘content,’ I think that content marketing has been an overall positive trend. + +Much excellent podcasting, video, and writing has been created by marketing teams to create relationships with listeners and readers through informing them and delivering value rather than by going on the hard sell. + +This, in turn, has resulted in the outpouring of plenty of objectively worthwhile information into the world. Not all of it is compelling. Not all of it is well-produced. But enough of it is that its beneficial effect extends beyond the value it brings to its prospects. I like to think of inbound marketing as an information vortex. Sure, prospects get caught up in its spiral just as those creating it intended. But, as a positive collateral effect, so do not many non-buyers who are edified by its information without having to offer anything — even money — in return. + +I humbly propose that calling this deluge of ‘stuff’ ‘information’ (as in ‘information marketing’) might have been a better way of describing the potpourri of writing, audio, and video that characterize many inbound marketing strategies. + +Doing so would honor the skills and talents of the creatives that contribute to its creation and avoid denigrating any of its components by referring to it as a mere constituent of a nebulous and ill-defined heap of ‘stuff’ between websites’ headers and footers. + +### And ‘Freelancer’ + +It would seem like overkill to write a whole second post just to rail against the word ‘freelancer’ so I’m choosing to tack it onto this one instead. + +‘Freelancer’ is another word that I feel adds no value to the world. + +In fact, I believe that it actually works against those that use the term by implying that they are somehow less professional than those working full-time for one employer in an office. + +Here are some facts — at least those that I perceive to be factual: + + 1. **If you’re a full time freelancer than you are, in fact, a small business owner**. You pay taxes, engage in sales and marketing (even if you don’t realize you’re doing it). The only difference between you and somebody who markets themselves as this, in fact, might be the word you are choosing to describe yourself. + 2. If you’re a part time freelancer then you still own a business. It’s just that it’s not at a very high level of scale. And it isn’t large enough to constitute your whole income yet. + +### How We Describe Ourselves Matters + +I wage a constant battle between having to occasionally refer to myself as a ‘content writer’ (strictly for SEO purposes) and trying to actively resist the term. If there is a way that I can attract prospects without once describing myself as a ‘content writer,’ then I will continue to do so. + +Whatever type of creative you are, I believe that referring to yourself as a ‘content creator’ is doing yourself a mild disservice. + +My objection to the word ‘content’ is really that it is a needless catch-all. + +If we can more accurately describe what we do as writing, photography, or podcasting (or a mixture of those things), then why do we need to imply to clients that we are part of some homogeneous community of creatives that together makes the ‘stuff’ that helps them sell their things online. + +In writing — as in most creative fields — specialty is the key to earning better rates. The distinctions between various forms of creative expression continue to matter — just as they did before CMSs were invented and people put websites on the internet by uploading a slew of individual HTML files. Playing into a mode of thinking that undermines our own professionalism is not wise thinking. The language which we use to describe ourselves has a powerful impact on that. And the choice of words is ours to make. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Don-t-Usually-Deal-With-Clients-Who-Ask--Can-You-Do-It-For-Less--.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Don-t-Usually-Deal-With-Clients-Who-Ask--Can-You-Do-It-For-Less--.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4ea78bdea8488d5eb14cb2fe90160a28f3d8b91e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Don-t-Usually-Deal-With-Clients-Who-Ask--Can-You-Do-It-For-Less--.md @@ -0,0 +1,119 @@ +# Why I Don’t Usually Deal With Clients Who Ask ‘Can You Do It For Less?’ + +#### It’s an unpopular opinion, but I hate negotiations. This is why. + +Haggling prospects: Some love the budget dance. I personally hate it. Photo by [Wendy Wei](https://www.pexels.com/@wendywei?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/radish-and-carrots-1656663/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +One of the beautiful things about working as a full-time freelancer is getting a crash course in running a business. If you do this for long enough, you’ll also deal with plenty of contract negotiations, including some which you may find icky. + +Part of the process of running a solo business is also figuring out what works for _you_ and your mental health. + +Which is why — although it may strike many as grossly inflexible — as a general principle I don’t end up doing business with clients who try to undercut my rate before we’ve started working together. + +I’m writing this blog post not to vent about thrifty clients. But rather to explain my reasoning precisely _because_ I imagine it’s unpopular. + +As I’m based in Israel, this policy has also meant that I’ve tended to work with more international clients than local ones. The stereotype about Middle Eastern haggling, in my experience, is totally true. I’ve found international clients less likely than local ones to attempt the “how about $X?” dance. + +So here’s why when a prospective client asks “can you do it for less?” my response is usually both ‘no’ and a gentle way of trying to say ‘please find another freelancer.’ + +### I Find It Disrespectful + +I’ve dealt with a number of prospective clients over the years who have raised multiple million dollars in funding only to attempt to shave $50 off a piece of marketing collateral. The attitude puzzles me every single time even though I’ve seen it often. + +I have also sometimes gone along with the negotiation process solely to see what happens as you go through it. In virtually all cases, my response to ‘can you do it for less?’ is a simple negative — I know my rates (more on that later). But I’ve also typically noticed that those prospects quickly backtrack and meet your rate. Which again puzzles me: what happened in five minutes that magically changed your budget? + +The implication I draw from situations like these is that the client had the requisite budget to begin with but was hoping that I (the vendor) would be prepared to settle for less than what I had advertised. + +When that’s the operative tactic, I assume — maybe unfairly — that the client was hoping to leverage something like my desperation — or lack of business — to save themselves a buck. There’s a power imbalance inherent in the relationship between most freelancers/consultants and most businesses. I don’t like when people try to leverage that. + +### In My Case, Haggling Usually Signals Cheapness + +Do I think that there’s no place for haggling or negotiations in the business world? + +Absolutely not. + +But I also think that the acceptability of haggling depends to a large extent on the value of what you’re selling and who your prospective customer is. + +Negotiating a six figure contract would be prudent. Trying to knock ten cents off a one dollar tomato would strike most as downright cheap. + +Personally, I don’t object to negotiating a four figure contract retainer. We’re talking about an ongoing expense and for a small business that might be a substantial drain on their budget. Likewise, I think that a business attempting to negotiate a salary is both perfectly reasonable and to be expected. + +However, when I find myself dealing with a client who asks whether a one time writing project can be done for $300 or $350 rather than $400, I tend to view it as a sign that that client is going to be difficult about money from the first project through to the last. Value-based buyers (more on that later) tend to be focused on the bigger picture and aren’t looking to save themselves pennies. + +Yes, I _can_ shave half an hour off the project to make it work. But when I’m compromising on quality over such petty numbers, the project is unlikely to be rewarding on my end. Think: worse portfolio samples or ones that I wouldn’t want to use at all to land more work. The reasons begin to stack up. + +When a client asks “can you do it for less?” I weigh up what kind of money is at stake and who the client is and whether they really need to cut corners or are just trying to leverage their size. + +If I’m dealing with a highly profitable business that’s trying to shave pennies off a marketing spend — and I’ve seen that many times — I take it as a sign that they or their organization doesn’t value or respect the type of service that I provide. In turn, that would likely portend a frustrating working relationship. + +### I Know How To Price. Doesn’t Haggling Assume That I Don’t? + +I’ve been working as a freelancer/consultant for more than five years now, including almost three years doing this as my full-time living. + +[**How to Set An Hourly Freelance Rate** + _Two months ago, I provided some guidelines for tackling one of the most difficult aspects of working as a freelance…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf) + +One of the trickiest parts of freelancing is knowing how to quote well — particularly for us writers who are often far more comfortable dealing with words than with numbers. Which is why I’ve spent a lot of time staring at spreadsheets in the small hours of the morning in order to figure out how much I need to charge to make this line of work viable for my financial situation. + +In general, quoting more complex projects is harder than quoting for simple ones. But if I’m preparing a quote for a very simple project — let’s take writing a blog post for argument’s sake because it doesn’t get much more straightforward than that — I do so with a reasonable degree of mathematical precision. + +My process is simple. I always control for scope (I generally limit writing clients to one revision before overages apply). And then I estimate how long a project will take before multiplying that estimate by my hourly rate. + +The process has taken years of practice and _“whoops, I didn’t charge enough”_ moments to get right. Which is why when a client asks whether something could be done for less, saying no is usually just me being honest — assuming they want the project done well, that is. + +### Haggling Can Signal Difficulty + +Those on the other side of the “should you negotiate” argument will say that negotiation is just a part of business. I agree but loop back to my point about the contract value making a big difference. + +When clients have asked the “can you do it for less?” question there have times when I have said “sure.” + +Without fail, the clients that succeeded in saving themselves small sums of money also ended up being the most difficult to work with. + +I love working with clients who assume that I know how to quote and don’t quibble about my rate. I also love those who tell me up front what their budget is so that I can see whether it’s viable for me. I have often had a client tell me their budget only to quote them less than what was available. + +Almost always, working with clients like these are the most seamless experiences — and when they happen, they leave me kicking myself for choosing to take on a haggler when my gut instinct told me to run. + +### Haggling Signals Price-Based Rather Than Value-Based Buying + +If I were asked to give only one tip to newbie freelancers, consultants, or anybody selling a knowledge-based service it would be that you always want to be selling your _value_ to a business rather than a price. + +The reason for this is very simple but extremely important (I picked this up from a sales book years ago but have sadly forgotten its name!) + +**In today’s globalized economy, there is always somebody who will be willing to do it for less. And guess what? If a business hires you because you’re cheap, they’ll also leave you as soon as they can replace you with somebody cheaper.** + +[**Price buyers vs. value buyers: the easiest way to screen potential clients** + _If you’re selling solely by price, there’s almost always somebody cheaper_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/price-buyers-vs-value-buyers-the-easiest-way-to-screen-potential-clients-5815509af5ac "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/price-buyers-vs-value-buyers-the-easiest-way-to-screen-potential-clients-5815509af5ac")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/price-buyers-vs-value-buyers-the-easiest-way-to-screen-potential-clients-5815509af5ac) + +Early stage haggling is an indication, for me at least, that a business is just looking to squeeze a service into a line item which means that they’ve capped its value at less than what you have. I prefer to sell value and find clients who will make the budgetary magic work on their end. + +### I Know It Shouldn’t, But Haggling Triggers Me + +Let me tell you something. Being a freelancer ain’t easy. + +Over the course of five years, I’ve dealt with some amazing clients. But also some downright abusive ones. + +Finding a way to assert and then sell my value has been a long struggle for me and an uphill battle with lots of self work to become more assertive. As it has for many. And dealing with clients who don’t want to pay for that brings back a lot of bad memories for me. + +Another top freelancing tip: deal with nice people who you’l enjoy working with. + +If a prospective client starts trying to haggle my rate before we’ve even talked about our first project brief, the relationship — for me — is already starting out on a bad foot. + +I don’t want my first move in a business relationship to be a concession or settling for less. + +### I Rarely Haggle + +One final point that I think is worthy of inclusion. + +Having dealt with plenty of prospective clients whose first move was to ask whether I could sell my time for less than I was asking, I rarely ask a seller the question in return. + +Might they be overshooting and expecting the customer to haggle? That’s the culture in some parts of the world, including where I live. In those situations, I’d rather simply buy from somebody else. + +Which is why whether I’m buying tomatoes for my dinner or the services of a contractor for a company I’m working for, I assume that those I’m doing business with know how to price their services. Am I leaving money on the table? I assume so. But it would be hard for me to maintain an anti-haggling posture if I leveraged the same tactic myself. + +As you can probably tell, I’ve never worked as a business negotiator! + +Everybody has their own way of running a business and their own level of comfort in dealing with the sometimes uncomfortable business of negotiating contracts. + +I’m neither suggesting that not haggling is a universally good practice nor necessarily advocating that any of the reasons I’ve offered above are correct. + +However, they are _my_ reasons for not generally choosing to engage in the budgetary dance and why I usually avoid furthering such prospects in my pipeline. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Have-Suspicions-About-Alex-Fasulo-s-Claimed-Fiverr-Income.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Have-Suspicions-About-Alex-Fasulo-s-Claimed-Fiverr-Income.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bd76514c85092d7345fc575d5d895e9fad0949a8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Have-Suspicions-About-Alex-Fasulo-s-Claimed-Fiverr-Income.md @@ -0,0 +1,357 @@ +# Why I Have Suspicions About Alex Fasulo’s Claimed Fiverr Income (Or Methods) + +#### Fiverr Freelancer Claims Massive Income; Sells Courses On Becoming A Digital Nomad; Should A Familiar One-Two Raise Question Marks? + +A video is currently doing the rounds on online writing communities. + +[The video is a clip from CNBC](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHhYtZV_T9M&ab_channel=CNBCMakeIt) which features Alex Fasulo. + +It is described thusly: + +CNBC video description. + +I’ve received the video from no less than three freelancing contacts over the past 24 hours (ETA: make that five now, including a family member!). The coverage [has also kicked off](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/comments/m5rl86/freelance_writer_makes_378k_per_year_on_fiverr/) an interesting thread on Reddit. I’m told by contacts in the US that the story is “all over” major TV networks. + +Much has been written online about Fasulo by both her fans and by her detractors. + +Disclosure: as an outspoken opponent of often worthless freelance writing “courses” (**effectively just get-rich-quick attempts by their operators aggressively marketed through inflated promises of massive wealth**) I trend towards the latter camp. + +[**The abbreviated playbook for becoming a fake course millionaire** + _6 Easy Steps To Cash In On Your Claimed Huge Income_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-abbreviated-playbook-for-becoming-a-fake-course-millionaire-4951bc857de "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-abbreviated-playbook-for-becoming-a-fake-course-millionaire-4951bc857de")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-abbreviated-playbook-for-becoming-a-fake-course-millionaire-4951bc857de) + +I’m also something of a dogged investigator with a degree in journalism that I should probably put to more use. + +So the following are reasons why — having watched the CNBC video and scrutinized her online footprint — I am skeptical (make that disbelieving) about Fasulo’s claimed Fiverr income. + +That’s an income which the CNBC video intimates neared $400,000, is made solely by Fasulo, and is made solely through Fiverr. + +🤨 + +Let’s do a little digging. + +### 1\. Making Money on Fiverr Is Hard Work. Fasulo Intimates That She Makes An Outsized Income There Single-Handedly. + +Firstly — and I’m starting with my weakest reason — the marketplace on which Fasulo claims to be making a vast annual fortune is not exactly known as a place overflowing with dough. + +At the very outset of the CNBC interview, Fasulo boldly states: + +> **_“My name is Alex Fasulo. I’m 28 years old. And I make $378,000 per year as a freelance writer on Fiverr.com”_** + +This simple but powerful fact immediately raised my suspicions about the claim. + +As a freelance writer with five years’ experience — and more than 10 in writing — I prefer to maintain my own clients. My per-word rates (typically $0.30-$0.50) would appear to be a multiple of what Fasulo charges. At the time of writing, I don’t outsource. And though people like Fasulo would almost convince me otherwise, I’m not ashamed to say that I’ve yet to broach even the six figure mark. + +[**Is “six figure” culture income-shaming ordinary earners into depression?** +_Is is time for five figure earners to rally around a hashtag to show their pride?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-six-figure-culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-a56c8202b5c2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-six-figure-culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-a56c8202b5c2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-six-figure-culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-a56c8202b5c2) + +While I don’t doubt that there are freelancers who _do_ make handsome incomes on both Upwork and Fiverr, **Fasulo claims to be making a particularly extraordinary one — not a vast distance from half a million dollars per year.** + +Don’t get me wrong. Experienced writers that have accrued years of experience _can_ and _do_ breach the vaunted “six figure” threshold. + +But claiming to be closer to half a million in gross revenue — before hitting one’s thirtieth birthday and doing it all via a predominantly low-end marketplace— is a claim that just struck me as a little outlandish. + +Fiverr started as a marketplace for buying up $5 gigs. The majority of high-earning freelance writers in my personal network have made their money through working directly with clients — or they have gone on to larger pursuits than freelance writing. + +Making this much money through freelance writing on Fiverr by oneself just seems …. incredibly far-fetched. + +But let’s dig deeper. + +**(Edited to add: since this piece was first published, Fasulo has admitted to using “co-writers” on her Fiverr profile. More on that later).** + +### 2\. The Writing Gigs Fasulo Mentions Aren’t Typically High Paying; Her Rate Appears Suspiciously Low Given The Massive Income She Claims + +A blog post gig that Fasulo is selling on Fiverr. The rate starts at just $100 per blog. Screenshot 17/03/21, Fiverr.com@alexfasulobiz via TikTok. Published: 30/03/21. [Link.](https://www.tiktok.com/@alexfasulobiz/video/6945160269471501574?lang=en&is_copy_url=0&is_from_webapp=v3&sender_device=pc&sender_web_id=6933219673447024129) + +During the CNBC interview, Fasulo divulged several insights about her freelance writing business that made me immediately suspicious about how she could have reached the level of scale that would generate almost $400K in revenue doing what she says she is doing. + +Firstly, Fasulo says that she _“mostly ghostwriters blogs and ebooks.”_ (We’ll get to the kind of ebooks she is writing later.) + +But here’s what jumped out to me more than that:**blogs and ebooks don’t tend to be the most profitable writing formats to work in, particularly when you’re charging rates as low as $100 for the former.** + +With volume of course anything is possible (sell a million one dollar t-shirts and you’re a millionaire). + +But Fasulo doesn’t mention that she outsources — remember that she says that she makes her extraordinary income as “a freelance writer” (in the singular). Which leads to another big loud ‘HOW!?’? + +As a general rule of thumb, copywriting pays more than content. And things like landing pages and UX copy tend to be more lucrative than blogs, which are sort of a beginner-friendly format at the bottom of the writing ladder (not putting them down; I work on plenty for my own clients). + +If I were trying to make an astronomical income on Fiverr, firstly I probably wouldn’t even attempt to do it through writing. As a brain-intensive activity, it’s just too hard to scale, at least without outsourcing. And I _definitely_ wouldn’t choose these formats or price at these rates. + +Fasulo’s Fiverr handle — Faswaldo — has a blog post gig listed with rates that start at just $100 for a _“500 word SEO-optimized blog post with keywords included.”_ + +Speaking of which, here’s one of the negative reviews from her Fiverr handle (to be fair, her overall rating remains positive; 4.7/5 at the time of writing). + +A few of the negative reviews allege that Fasulo is using some kind of automation software which would be one explanation for her apparently superhuman work volume. This is one of the few possible explanations that make sense to me if her income is truly what she claims it to be. + +Fasulo’s turnaround times also seem suspiciously fast, particularly for one person who would need to be churning out projects at Herculean volume to organically make the type of income she claims to. + +Check out her [Fiverr profile](https://www.fiverr.com/faswaldo) and you will witness an almost constant stream of deliveries. It almost seems like the freelance writing version of a factory production line. + +A random screenshot showing delivery two hours’ ago + +**During the interview with CNBC Alexandra Fasulo claimed to put out a 10,000 word ebooks in two days.** + +To me, this signals a very high probability that she is writing low quality fluff kind of work, which — and here’s the problem — also tends to pay poorly. + +Writing 5,000 words of quality material per day is almost impossible if you’re working with a continuously changing marketplace clientele such as the one that Fasulo is presumably working with. + +According to a title during the video _“she [Fasulo] charges $1,000 for a 10,000 word e-book.”_ + +**But here’s the problem with that: $1,000 for a 10,000 word e-book works out to just ten cents per word.** + +That’s a pretty dismal per-word rate that would be more typical of rookie freelancers. Per-word rates can range as high as $2/word. + +For context: the Editorial Freelancers’ Association (EFA) lists a recommended per-word rate for business/sales writing of $0.16-$0.20 per word. Even against this very low bar, Fasulo is undercutting the market rate (a worthy bone of contention in its own right). + +So again we come back to the volume hypothesis. And again have to ask: how? + +The EFA’s recommended rates chart + +**During the CNBC interview Fasulo mentions that she has written _“ebooks for quite a few dogs.”_** + +Call me suspicious, but writing ebooks for dogs on a freelancing marketplace doesn’t seem like the logical way to me to scale your annual income to close on half a million dollars. + +All these details together make me very — nay extremely — suspicious about who Fasulo is working for, and how these kind of projects at these kind of rates could possibly add up to an almost $400K yearly income. + +### 4\. She Talks Incessantly About Her Income. She Also Conveniently Has A Vested Interest For Doing So — She’s Selling A Course + +In yesterday’s Medium post I shared what I termed the Self Perpetuating Income Cycle of Freelance Course “Gurus”. + +[**The almost totally secret to getting FILTHY RICH as a freelance writer** + _Sports cars, Rolexes, and private jets. Follow my guide and they can be yours. Yes — even as a freelance writer!_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573) + +Have a look at what I propose the typical dynamic to look like: + +How fake course gurus make and maintain their money + +**Let me be clear here: I am not alleging that Ms. Fasulo is a fake online course guru.** + +I am merely saying that the behavior she displays fits with the typical pattern that these individuals (shall we call them hucksters?) display. + +Therefore, I argue that there are reasons to be suspicious about taking her claimed income at face value. + +[**The almost totally secret to getting FILTHY RICH as a freelance writer** + _Sports cars, Rolexes, and private jets. Follow my guide and they can be yours. Yes — even as a freelance writer!_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-almost-totally-secret-to-getting-filthy-rich-as-a-freelance-writer-1ec92274b573) + +The playbook which those who _are_ fake course gurus adhere to can be summarized as follows (at least as I observe it): + + * **1\. Aggressively flaunt wealth** (whether real or apparent) + * **2\. Develop a sycophantic following** on social media. Instagram and Tik Tok are the classic platforms for attracting this kind of follower with vacuous surface-level content. + * **3\. Announce a course promising to help sycophantic followers share in the narrative being portrayed** + * **4\. Monetize sycophantic following through aforementioned course** + * **5\. Start becoming actually wealthy through passive income from course** that sells the vision being marketed + * The cycle repeats + +Thus these individuals are often (deservedly) derided as “fake millionaires” or “Fiverr millionaires.” If their income isn’t ill-gotten, it’s the product of exploiting the ambition of desperate people. + +### The “Six Figure” Branding She Sows Everywhere Online Seems Highly Coordinated. Could There Be An Ulterior Motive? + +I ran an[ “exact match” search for Fasulo’s name](https://www.google.com/search?q=%22alex+fasulo%22&oq=%22alex+fasulo%22&aqs=chrome..69i57.2131j0j1&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8) in order to dry dredge up as much information as I could about her online before writing this. + +The results contained almost nothing but iterations of her branding as a “six figure freelancer,” or “$300,000 freelancer.” + +The messaging appeared to me to be extremely consistent which, I suggest, raises a suspicion that it may have been coordinated. If not professionally then at least through a concerted attempt at creating a personal brand which spinrs around the fulcrum of high income. + +This looks very much to me like a premeditated attempt to spin a narrative for an ulterior motive — which I suggest might be selling courses teaching others how to become rich. + +Vanity SERP 1 + +Even Fasulo’s podcast appearances all focus on her “six figure freelancer” status that she repeats _ad nauseam._ + +As I went through the SERP, the “six figure” results went on and on…. + +Vanity SERP 2 + +And on….. + +Vanity SERP 3 + +And the publicity machine just marches on and on: + +### 5\. …. Oh, And Guess What? She’s Selling A Freelance Success Course (Plus Some Other Stuff) + +**But wait, there’s more!** + +Although Fasulo claims to be nearing the $400K mark on Fiverr — surely a vastly comfortable income in Florida! — she nevertheless has chosen to run a “freelance crash course” promising to teach other freelancers how to _“earn real money from home using just your laptop.”_ + +Whenever somebody claims to be making an extraordinarily high income and then also attempts to monetize their method for teaching others how to achieve that vaunted income I suggest that ….. people should be very suspicious. + +[**MentorCamp - Alex Fasulo Freelancer** + _Real-world education for the new generation_ study.mentorcamp.io](https://study.mentorcamp.io/freelancer140843750 "https://study.mentorcamp.io/freelancer140843750")[](https://study.mentorcamp.io/freelancer140843750) + +The course retails at the time of writing for $47 (of course, the landing page claims that it’s grossly marked down — another favorite tactic of the high pressure get-rich-quick dream-sellers) + +The course which Fasulo is selling raises the obvious suspicion that the course creator is using exaggerated claims of wealth to lure fans into paying for courses — which generate the _real_ income that in turn drives the cycle described above. + +I also regard — until proven otherwise — any course that teaches one how to freelance as a shakedown. The information is freely available for free online. Those who truly want to help other people become better freelancers tend to share some of that information for free and not be so obsessed with monetizing that “knowledge.” + +One final detail here: Fasulo also sells Amazon books. + +Her latest one is called Freelancing On Fiverr? Any guess what the subtitle is? + +If you guessed “how I made six figures in six months” then — you would be right! + +**Conclusion:** Fasulo probably has other income streams beyond Fiverr. But if she’s truly making such a ginormous income there, why is she bothering? She’s also an income braggart who also happens to sell a course… + +### 6\. Mathematically, Her Claimed Fiverr Order History Seems Difficult Or Almost Impossible To Achieve, At Least Without Outsourcing At Volume + +On her personal website — amidst the relentless repetition of her status as a “six figure freelancer” — Fasulo claims to have completed 11,000 orders on Fiverr: + +Screenshot from Fasulo’s website 17/03/21 + +Faulo’s LinkedIn — and her byline at the time of writing was “online course creator at MentorCamp” — states that she graduated high school in ‘’11. + +[An interview with AuthorsUnite](https://authorsunite.com/freelance-writer-in-fiverr/#:~:text=Hey!,York%20and%20Albany%2C%20New%20York.) pegged her at 26: + +Examining the source HTML shows that the page was published this year: + +Extract from the HTML for the Authors Unite piece + +Now get ready for some number-crunching. Roll out your calculators if you feel like checking my workings: + + * At 26, Fasulo has been alive for roughly 26 x 365 days = 9490 days.This means that if she were fulfilling the orders single-handedly, she would have to have completed 1 Fiverr order per day every day since she was born (11000/9490 = 1.16). + +**But there’s only one problem: Fiverr was only founded in 2010.** + + * Roughly 11 years have elapsed since that point, or 4015 days (11 x 365). + * 11000/4015 = 2.74. + +**Assuming, therefore, that Fasulo joined the marketplace the moment it was launched and never took a single day off since — not even a single one, remember! — she would have had to produce on average 2.74 gigs per day every single day of the calendar year.** + +I suggest that this is suspicious — particularly if Fasulo says that she does not outsource the work. + +And if she _does_ outsource or subcontract, is she really a “writer” or just a _manager or_ — more harshly — a digital sweatshop owner? + +Something — whether income or its provenance — simply doesn’t add up here. + +_(ETA: Skip to point eight. Fasulo clarified on Tik Tok that she has a “writing team” and that it’s her and two other writers fulfilling gigs on Fiverr.)_ + +### 7\. Fasulo Produces Shallow Clickbait Content Again … About Making Money. Could She Just Be Trying To Monetize Her Course? + +Fasulo recently produced an eight second YouTube video entitled “You Can Make $1,000+ Per Day Writing Blogs.” + +The clip features nothing of substance other than her slapping the camera and ends with a prompt “I make $1,100+ day per on Fiverr. Ask me how :)”. Fiverr was missing a capital ‘F’ — surely an error that would be uncharacteristic from a writer of such prodigious accomplishment. + +Here again I rely upon my intuition. This kind of clickbait content just isn’t the kind of thing that legitimate marketers use to sell themselves. + +In addition to the micro dancing clip, Fasulo also recently released a 15 second video entitled “[You Can Make 3K+ Your First Month Freelancing”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jgkx58n9wU) which consisted of her gyrating for the camera. + +**At the time of writing, I believe it’s fair to say that Fasulo hasn’t made any attempt to share earnest and helpful advice with her fans.** + +Without any “preview” available it’s impossible to gauge the quality of the content up for sale. **But wouldn’t somebody who stood by the value of what they were selling be prepared to share some of it for free?** + +Instead, she’s sharing clickbait content that I believe is designed only to drive hype for her courses which again makes me question her motives. + +Fasulo is most active on TikTok — a social network that centers around sharing short videos. This screenshot is representative of her typical output, which frequently features her syncing to a music background. + +**Again I ask: If Fasulo is the real deal and truly an expert on freelancing, then why doesn’t she share more substantial information with her fans?** + +### 8\. Fasulo Outsources. But Why Did She Not Divulge That Until After This Piece Was Published? + +If you want to check out Fasulo’s activities on social media then [Tik Tok](https://www.tiktok.com/@alexfasulobiz?source=h5_m) and [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/alexandrafasulo/?hl=en) are apparently the places to follow her. + +Yesterday — four days after this article was published — Fasulo released a Tik Tok video in which she divulged that she is not the only one doing the writing on Fiverr. + +In a Tik Tok video entitled “[How I Manage My Writing And VA Team Today](https://www.tiktok.com/@alexfasulobiz/video/6942493908052102406?lang=en&is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v3)” Fasulo states: + +> “For the first 4 years of freelancing I did everything by myself … **[now] I currently work with 2 other writers.** At this point, for anybody who orders me on Fiverr, it’s me and two other writers. **I’ve been very transparent about this.** I don’t want anybody to think that I’m doing all of this by myself” + +Here are my questions in return: + + * Why didn’t you mention this to CNBC? + * Why did you mislead the media and your followers? + * How can you possibly call that transparency? + +### 9\. Real Writers Know How To Capitalize + +I’ll let this one speak for itself. What kind of a writer — especially one that’s supposedly in such outrageously high demand — doesn’t know the basic rules of capitalization and punctuation? + +Source: @alexfasulobiz via TikTokIbid* * * + +### Update: Fasulo Claims CNBC “Cut Out” Core Details Of Her Freelance Writing Business + +[**In plot twist, Alex Fasulo claims CNBC “left out” outsourcing detail from viral clip** + _In sit-down interview, Fasulo claims news network “left out” critical details about her Fiverr income_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/in-plot-twist-alex-fasulo-claims-cnbc-left-out-outsourcing-detail-from-viral-clip-20dd22cc29ba "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/in-plot-twist-alex-fasulo-claims-cnbc-left-out-outsourcing-detail-from-viral-clip-20dd22cc29ba")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/in-plot-twist-alex-fasulo-claims-cnbc-left-out-outsourcing-detail-from-viral-clip-20dd22cc29ba) + +### And Finally: Here’s Why I Don’t Like Dubious Course Promoters + +I have an issue with people aggrandizing claims of wealth in order to sell freelance writing courses for the following reasons: + + * **It makes freelancers as a whole look bad.** Freelance writers are not digital snake oil salesmen. By and large we’re hard workers who pull off a difficult job under tough industry conditions. Many course promoters unfortunately are. Call them the outliers of the industry, but I believe they make us all look of dubious integrity. + * **It wastes the energy and money of desperate freelancers who in almost all cases do not need the material that these course sellers are selling.** I find the whole self-perpetuating income cycle I described above cynical and exploitative. + +Sadly, there are many gullible people who cannot see through all the above which is why I dedicated two hours of my week to writing this post. + +Here’s an example of what I’m talking about. + +There are hundreds of comments like it on YouTube and even reaction videos from credulous followers, many of whom appear to be shy of their thirtieth birthday. + +Sorry, Darrah, but I have a feeling — just a little one — that you’re wrong. + +To restore your faith in the intelligence of humanity, here’s somebody a little more circumspect: (also from the comments on the CNBC piece) + +I also — as a much more general principle — find relentlessly flaunting one’s wealth distasteful. I suggest that unless individuals have a good reason to do so this is the kind of information better kept to one’s self. + +I wrote the above to cast doubts about the veracity and credibility of the income that Alexandra Fasulo claims to derive solely through Fiverr. + +The case of Alex Fasulo is — to my mind — a sad indictment of the American obsession with “making six figures” (sorry, Americans) and a demonstration of how readily some audiences will eat up any claims to surpass an arbitrary income threshold. + +[**Is “six figure” culture income-shaming ordinary earners into depression?** +_Is is time for five figure earners to rally around a hashtag to show their pride?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-six-figure-culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-a56c8202b5c2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-six-figure-culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-a56c8202b5c2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/is-six-figure-culture-income-shaming-ordinary-earners-into-depression-a56c8202b5c2) + +While industriousness is to be commended, I think that misleading gullible followers certainly isn’t. + +I also think that those who are prepared to self-promote aggressive claims of self-generated wealth should have the transparency to back them as openly as possible. + +While Fasulo has wasted no time in appraising us of her six figure income, she has not provided the kind of granular insight into her business that would robustly support those numbers. + +The internet is rife with misinformation. + +As I demonstrated by manipulating my own Upwork dashboard with dev tools, screenshots can be easily doctored. Just about anything involving a computer can be faked. + +What’s illegal to doctor (and thus hard): IRS tax returns. + +Finally: + +The Fiverr website is hosting a press release recounting Fasulo’s prior claims. + +A Fiverr press release + +If the network wants to use Fasulo as a flagship case to sell others on a likely unrealistic pipe dream of making “six figure” yearly incomes through their network, I encourage them to support this effort for transparency. But real transparency. + +### Addendum: The Media (And YouTubers) Are Incredibly Credulous And Are Predictably Lapping Up The Story Without Batting An Eyelid + +I’m still waiting for anybody else to have the guts to ask questions about how Fasulo is deriving her income. + +In lieu of that, here’s a bunch of fawning media coverage which just adds to the narrative that Fasulo is working to spin. + +The lack of probity from respectable media outlets is a mixture of astonishing and concerning: + +(Yes, that was CNBC really reporting on a private individual’s car purchase). + +YouTubers are just as quickly taken in. Here are a bunch of inane reaction videos from other millenials. + +Graham Stephan describes himself as a “real estate investor” and [had this to say on this reaction vid](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whNF01dvdno&t=1s): “If you’re watching this [Fasulo], I’ll pay you $1,000 to write a book for Ramsey. And I’ll sell it. I bet people would love to hear about his escapades. A day in the life of a cat … Then I could say ‘my cat is a published author’” + +The blind following the blind: another YouTube influencer, Graham Stephan, of the Graham Stephan Show, admires Fasulo’s income, and proudly intones: “if you’re watching this right now, I’ll pay you $1,000 to write a book.” + +Unsurprisingly Fasulo pitched an interview in response to the glowing “reaction”. She’s also unsurprisingly happy to write an ebook about Stephan’s cat. At the time the screenshot was taken, Stephan pinned the post to the comments section. + +Another YouTuber with (apparently) a low BS threshold, Charlie Chang, interviews Fasulo to learn of her “secrets”. [Link.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JB0Qp7TP6Yk&t=14s&ab_channel=CharlieChang) + +And here’s _my_ reaction vid: + +_Disclaimer: I’m not responsible for, nor do I necessarily endorse, submissions to the comments section of this post. I’m also not interested in adding hearsay about Ms. Fasulo to this article. This post was intended to kickstart a larger debate on dubious online operatives, income-bragging, and course-selling — particularly the nexus between all three._ + +### Update 08/21: Closing Comments, Thanks For Participating + +I write pieces on Medium from time to time. It’s a hobby. To get out views and connect with others that have them to offer in return. + +When I wrote this piece about a Fiverr influencer that was starting to go viral on American news stations, I never expected it to generate much of a reaction. + +I wrote it primarily because I find the cloak and dagger mechanisms of dubious online fads pretty fascinating to observe — and to dissect. This struck me as great fodder for such material even though it was far from the first article on the subject I could have written. + +Since writing this piece, it’s gone sort of viral in its own right. It’s spawned a podcast episode, a couple more blogs that have quoted it as a source, and I’m sure it’s annoyed more than a few people in the process too. + +Equally, it’s been a few months since I last thought about it. I’ve moved on to a lot of interesting things since, including making videos of my own. Looking at those who inspire you is more fulfilling than analyzing those who don’t. + +For that reason, I’m closing the discussion on this piece now. There have been quite a few comments but I simply don’t have time to moderate this discussion, particularly given the nature of it. Thanks to everybody for participating and for engaging. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Really-Can-t-Do-LinkedIn-Anymore.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Really-Can-t-Do-LinkedIn-Anymore.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..dd03e22948be0900112f399f3a644fd47ef4814a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Really-Can-t-Do-LinkedIn-Anymore.md @@ -0,0 +1,121 @@ +# Why I Really Can’t Do LinkedIn Anymore + +#### Is Content Curation The Key To Staying Sane In Today’s World? + +This morning, I sat waiting for a doctor’s appointment. Two things in my experience are great conduits for making either really bad rash decisions or really great ones. And this morning, I had both on my side. + +Firstly, I was forced to be with my thoughts — as one is when spending 30 minutes in a sterile waiting room. + +Secondly, I was woefully short on sleep which seems to always do a good job at taking away that mental filter that asks _“would it really be a good idea to write about this, Daniel?!”_. + +I brought my Kindle along for the ride, but I was too groggy to flick through the book I’m reading. So instead, I did what I think a lot of us do when we can’t quite think of anything better to do or when we can’t summon the mental energy to do something like read a book or hold a conversation with a stranger. I began flicking mindless through my LinkedIn feed, Twitter feed, email, and Facebook. + +And just like that, a few thoughts surfaced to mind: + + * Why I am doing this!?!? + * I really, really detest LinkedIn. Or at least what it has become. + * I need to stop exposing myself to its toxicity every day. + * When I get home, I have to write a quick post getting this off my chest + +### The Home Of The Humble Brag + +I signed up for LinkedIn pretty early in the game. I’m now on profile two, but I believe my true signup date was around the year 2008. + +I instantly saw the appeal and use of a professionally-oriented social network. Actually I still do which is why I intend keeping my profile even if I don’t plan on posting to my feed or my company page! + +LinkedIn promised to be a worldwide directory of business contacts, like an online global phone directory of sorts. Using LinkedIn, you could figure out who was the CxO at what company. You could add those you do business with and watch your high school friends climb the corporate ladder from afar. + +### **And then …. the feed happened.** + +It’s my contention that the concept of a social feed, and of sharing updates, is the undoing of many otherwise functional and enjoyable social platforms. + +Take Facebook, for example. I _love_ Facebook groups. People often use them to help one another — which is awesome. Facebook statuses about your lunch or your latest fab vacation? Often a (fast) race to the bottom. Need I mention Instagram? + +LinkedIn’s feed, to my mind, has been in a steady state of progressive mental rot for the past few years. I used to think that those humble-bragging, sharing pseudoinspirational posts or telling the world how wonderful their current or (I love this) past employer is were a small but vocal minority. I no longer believe that to be the case. + +LinkedIn’s many noxious characteristics would take a while to fully enumerate — and I have to wrap up this post in time for dinner so I will skip over them. But if you’ve found this post, we’re probably on the same page about most of them. + +One that I see all the time is the spreading of misinformation by self-appointed ‘gurus’ with blissfully ignorant followers who are only too happy to rant and rave about advice that is often simply bad. + +It is not rare, on LinkedIn, to see eminently bad business advice dressed up in jargon-laden and pseudoinspirational language that goes relatively viral and receives hundreds of likes. In other instances simple truisms — your product should meet some consumer demand! — are greeted with the kind of awed, rapturous response that one might expect the discovery of electricity was. + +Testimonials are a popular feature that simply add to the overall atmosphere of flaunting everything good about oneself in the most effusive way possible. There was a quaint time when one’s job references were handed to a prospective employer as a contact list on a piece of paper, shielded from the public eye (or that of one’s “network”). Thanks to the advent of LinkedIn that practice — which I self-defeatingly cling to — has been rendered as historic as MS-DOS. + +Another common species is the mindless but pleasant sounding post. + +Parsed grammatically, jargon stripped, one can often figure out that the post either said nothing or said something that was patently nonsensical. But in many LinkedIn users’ desperate (and eminently transparent) bid to look connected and knowledgeable (posting) and to inform their network that they are engaged and plugged in to other influencers (commenting) these posts often pass off as the real deal without anybody batting an eye. + +Finally, there’s the idea that sharing what you’re passionate about with strangers is smart because it will lead to business. I post about my love of flags. A quirky connection is also a vexillologist. Boom — we can do business! This doesn’t sit well with me because I find it totally insincere. Sharing what you’re passionate about is wonderful — start a blog. Sharing it with a random corporate audience on the hope that you can leverage it to do business …. to me strikes of naked opportunism. + +Call me a contrarian (I am) but I think it’s all phoney. And frankly, I think I’m happier neither seeing nor partaking in the game. + +LinkedIn: in many respects, a mental landfill + +### Does Everybody Actually Hate LinkedIn? + +The aspect of LinkedIn which I find most comical is the fact that countless people like me appear to be scratching our heads and wondering whether we’re the only ones on the planet that find the average contents of its news feed utterly odious. Could we perhaps have been gaslighted by the corporate world’s collective adulation of a social network? Then there are those who — instead of allowing themselves to be driven insane, like me — delight in making fun of the often transparent ridiculousness of the network. + +A tiny selection: + +From a fellow Medium writer (one example of many): + +[**I’m starting to hate LinkedIn** + _Every time I open the LinkedIn app on my phone, my feed contains the usual suspects — corporates promoting the good…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/the-innovation/im-starting-to-hate-linkedin-e5b858b8c837 "https://medium.com/the-innovation/im-starting-to-hate-linkedin-e5b858b8c837")[](https://medium.com/the-innovation/im-starting-to-hate-linkedin-e5b858b8c837) + +From Reddit: + +From Twitter: + + + +Several of my friends — and, of course cherished LinkedIn connections — have professed to me that, like me, they find LinkedIn to be toxic and depressing but go along with it anyway sharing the breed of “content” which seems to be most in vogue there at the moment (I call this content pseudoinspirational because, typically, it lacks any originality). + +Increasingly, this content follows exactly the same formula, written in hurried two line paragraphs to convey a sense of frenetic energy while the author conveys some great insight. Replete with, and ending in, the mandatory hashtags: + +_** You’re only as good as your last job! **_ + +_Today, I ended my tenure at X. And what an amazing experience it has been. Y (make sure to tag) was simply the best boss ever. (Smiley emojis)._ + +_I’m sure that X is destined for paradigm-disrupting success, but my voyage takes me to Z who [boilerplate company tagline supplied by incoming HR]._ + +_This time I get to officially join the C Suite! I can’t believe I’ve come this far in five years and sometimes don’t think that I’m really worthy. (Humblebrag)_ + +_The path, though windy, has taught me some powerful lessons. Don’t give up on your dreams. You’re only as good as your last job and without the amazing guidance of X I surely couldn’t have got here. Keep dreaming and remember that everything is possible._ + +_#careerpivot #loveX #loveY_ + +Seeing a hubmlebrag squeezed in between two odes to current and incoming bosses and one stanza affirming well-trodden truisms is the norm on LinkedIn. Obvious questions lurk in the background (if X was so wonderful and you believe in its mission, why are you leaving?). But LinkedIn is not the place for answering difficult questions. + +I would therefore summarize the situation like this: + +Countless people realize that the pervasive culture of self-aggrandizement and falseness on LinkedIn is distasteful, highly irritating and the mental equivalent of a corporate landfill stuffed to the brim with inspiring messages and talk of impending blue skies. But people go along with it because they perceive it to be professionally expedient to do so. And today I thought: I personally think that life is too short for that. + +(Afternote: People _do_ share great content on LinkedIn. I realize that. This post is not directed at them). + +### The Content I Curate + +This led me to my second thought. + +We can all agree that the world is drowning in ‘content’. There’s — literally — too much of it out there to consume in an average human lifetime. We have reached content saturation on steroids. + +With that in mind, my strategy, going forward, is to more carefully curate the content that I consume through the internet. + +Just as I wouldn’t eat a plate of junk food for lunch (okay, who am I kidding) I shouldn’t subject myself to scrolling through 30 minutes of reading departing employees extolling the virtues of their former boss because it’s part of their strategy to look good. + +On a network by network level, my abridged thoughts are currently something like this: + + * **LinkedIn:** Good as an online Rolodex and for mapping out organizations. The feed, and statuses being shared there, have become too toxic to bother with. + * **Twitter:** Filled with many mundane trivialities and mental noise such as people’s opinions about political candidates and parties. One can obtain a worthwhile feed, but only after fairly careful curation. + * **Facebook:** Love Facebook groups. Like the idea of having profiles (like LinkedIn, a personal Rolodex). Hate just about everything else about it. + * **Reddit:** Reddit’s anonymity unfortunately creates a culture of pervasive nastiness and toxicity. However, there are friendly and wholesome subreddits. It’s actually my favorite social network in spite of its flaws. + * **Quora:** Lots of useful info here. Unfortunately lots of bot answers too. + +The best investment of attention of all, in my opinion, remains non-fiction books. Particularly those that that were deemed worthy of publication by a publishing house (yes, self-publishing is great, but I believe it still matters). + +To my mind, the signal to noise ratio of the LinkedIn feed is woefully low. It stimulates — in me and others — repeated feelings of professional inadequacy and resentment. I can use without that mental drain. And I think that other information channels provide better ROI in terms of insights and knowledge gleaned in returned for mental focus. + +Time is valuable. LinkedIn is only a website. For all the accolades it accrues, I find that life is more pleasant without reading its feed. + +I continue to stay in business without ever having really ‘got’ it. Actually, scratch that. I understand what LinkedIn is and roughly how the came works. + +But I refuse to participate in it. If I’ve no option but to play the game, maybe I’m in the wrong area and I’ll go pick mangos in a field where being “connected” on LinkedIn isn’t a job requirement. But, until then, I will resist until the bitter end. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Think-A-25--Billable-Ratio-Might-Be-Most-Realistic-For-Freelancers.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Think-A-25--Billable-Ratio-Might-Be-Most-Realistic-For-Freelancers.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..96dc0ab877b8e9326af392b25985ca6209428924 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Think-A-25--Billable-Ratio-Might-Be-Most-Realistic-For-Freelancers.md @@ -0,0 +1,74 @@ +# Why I Think A 25% Billable Ratio Might Be Most Realistic For Freelancers + +#### You Can’t Be Productive All The Time + +How much time do you really spend working? + +I’ve discussed here, before the fickle but important business of computing your target hourly freelancing rate. + +[**My Freelance Hourly Cheat Sheet** + _Several people have reached out to me recently on foot of two Medium posts which I wrote trying to dispel some of the…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-freelance-hourly-cheat-sheet-cd21b602b15f "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-freelance-hourly-cheat-sheet-cd21b602b15f")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/my-freelance-hourly-cheat-sheet-cd21b602b15f) + +[**How to Set An Hourly Freelance Rate** + _Two months ago, I provided some guidelines for tackling one of the most difficult aspects of working as a freelance…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/how-to-set-an-hourly-freelance-rate-eb72f3234caf) + +Mathematics, to put it mildly, are not my favorite subject in the world. Also: everybody has their own proprietary twist on figuring out this important calculation. + +The novelty of my approach — as I discussed in the posts linked above — is something I call the “billable ratio.” + +The billable ratio is the percentage of time during which you are not actively working on billable client work. + +Broadly speaking, to figure out your hourly rate, you divide the total amount of hours you work by your target income. There’s a little bit more magic involved to compute for expenses and vacation and sick time (you subtract those from the stock of hours you have and add expenses over the head of your income). + +Here are the formulae: + +The billable ratio exists because you’re not getting paid for the various activities that are necessary to make your freelance business tick over but which aren’t billable to clients: + + * Marketing + * Sales + * Administration work + * Invoicing + * Fixing your website + +### Knowledge Workers Don’t Typically Work 8 Hours Back To Back. Why Should You Expect Yourself To? + +The more I think about it, however, I think that even setting your billable ratio at 50% might be overly optimistic. + +Here’s the reason. + +If you think that you’re going to be spending 8 hours per day on productive work (whether billable or non-billable) then you’re probably mistaken. And this faulty assumption is going to result in a skewed end figure. + +If you work from this assumption, then you’re not factoring in the time that you spend: + + * Procrastinating + * Browsing the internet + * Reading Medium posts like these + +Sure you could subsume this under the header of “professional development” (as a non-billable). But I think that you’re better off just seeing it as what it is: non-productive downtime. + +But guess what? That’s totally normal and is in fact [how most humans work at knowledge-centric jobs.](https://productiveclub.com/time-spent-working/) + +Research has shown that your average office worker is only productive for 3 hours per day. The rest of the time? Meetings, water cool chats, and checking the phone. + +This is why, in short, I think that setting your billlable ratio at 25% of your available stock of time actually makes more sense: + + * Firstly you’re accounting for the fact that half your workday is likely to be spent on non-productive activities that are both unbillable and unrelated to furthering your business + * Then you’re factoring in the 50% of _that_ stock of time (50% * 0.5 = 25%) that’s going to be spent on all the various non-billable activities that keep your business ticking over. + +### Sample Working At 25% Nonproductive Factor + +To be less dramatic and factor in 25% non-productive hours (so 75% total productive hours) and 50% client billable activities your total billable factor would be 100 x 0.75 x 0.50 = 0.375. + +If I planned on earning a monthly income of 15,000 NIS (and had 1,000 NIS in average monthly expenses) then I would need to cover 16,000 NIS per month (turnover) through my hourly. + +There are 22 working days in your average month. Subtracting 2 days for vacation means dividing by 20. 16,000 / 20 = 800 NIS. + +Billing at a total ratio of 37.5% would yield an hourly here of 800*0.375 = 300 NIS / hour. + +### Lesson: Don’t Undershoot On Your Hourly + +It’s very easy to undershoot on your hourly. + +This means that you’re going to be chasing your tail trying to keep up with the demands of your clients all while wondering why you’re feeling burnt out and frazzled. + +I’m updating my billable recommendation from 50% to 25% to reflect the time that freelancers are humans and will likely be spending time during the workday on non-billable objectives as well as commercially-related non-billable hours. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Think-Hasbara-Is-A-Waste-of-Time--And-Resources-.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Think-Hasbara-Is-A-Waste-of-Time--And-Resources-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..22a87ef9c70d801358c13172d82abf470d780944 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Think-Hasbara-Is-A-Waste-of-Time--And-Resources-.md @@ -0,0 +1,127 @@ +# Why I Think Hasbara Is A Waste of Time (And Resources) + +Three days to go until 5780 becomes 5781. Out with the old and in with the new. + +So — as I’m particularly fond of airing the more unconventional of my opinions, and what better time of the year than this one? — here’s one such unpopular opinion, and a post, that will probably forever rule me out of getting a job at AIPAC, BICOM, or the Stand With Us. + +But it’s also one which I feel like merits a public airing anyway. + +I believe that most _hasbara,_ at least as it is conventionally done, is a complete waste of precious time and state resources. + +And here are some reasons why. + +Ever hear about Israel’s Ministry of Strategic Affairs? + +How about a front company it set up? (For details, read [Noa Landau’s excellent reportage in Haaretz here](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-set-up-a-front-company-to-boost-image-and-fight-bds-this-is-how-it-failed-1.9030179)). + +Front companies and cloak and dagger public manipulation campaigns are the kind of thing that _hasbarists_ — and Palestinian propagandists, I hasten to add! — thrive upon. They’re shady, sometimes involve layers of deceit and — most critically — they protect those ultimately involved in the activity of propagandizing for Israel from having to answer difficult questions such as: _“can you prove that this activity actually works?”_ + +Israel has dedicated significant resources over the years towards combating various forms of delegitimisation — most notably the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) campaign. Its preferred weapon of choice: _hasbara_(note: _hasbara_ means, roughly ‘explanation’ rather than ‘propaganda’; public diplomacy is also a reasonably good translation). Favored tactics include speaking tours, newsletters, and very partisan briefings to policymakers. + +However, the problem with this tactic is nobody really seems sure about how much the propaganda and explanations are really helping. + +[What _is_ reasonably clear](https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2018/01/26/how-much-does-bds-threaten-israels-economy/) is that BDS has not had an appreciable effect upon Israel’s export-led economy. What is unknown — and perhaps also unknowable — is to what extent the success of that effort can be attributed to _hasbara_. + +[Landau’s piece](https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-set-up-a-front-company-to-boost-image-and-fight-bds-this-is-how-it-failed-1.9030179) for _Ha’aretz_ illustrates well why the _hasbara_ industry needs to demonstrate a positive return on investment (ROI). For in many cases — most specifically through the Ministry of Strategic Affairs — it is drawing funds down from the public purse. And — as nobody needs reminding right now, but particularly the country’s small business owners — Israel’s public purse is not as awash with money as some believe it to be. + +Publicly funded _hasbara,_ as an organized activity, remains largely unaccountable. Unless it is prepared to do demonstrate effectiveness and submit to a regime that demands accountability, continuing to fund it is simply poor governance on the part of its government backers. + +### 2\. Hasbara attempts to control minds + +The American and Israeli flag outside an AIPAC meeting. Photo: Ted Eytan (Reform.net, Creative Commons) + +Personally, I enjoy making up my own mind about things. + +As an Irish-born Jew, you could say that I was born into a paradigm that primed me to support Israel. We diaspora Jews tend to hear about Israel through a slanted lens, whether it’s from our families, in our synagogues, or on the websites that we frequent. + +I’ve attempted to educate myself about the arguments of the other side. And I’ve concluded that, some major grievances with Israeli policy notwithstanding, I’m happy to continue supporting the State of Israel and defending Israel’s right to exist. + +Unfortunately much _hasbara_ aims to deny the privilege and joy of independent research to its target audiences around the world. + +For instance: the orchrestrators of many _hasbara_ efforts seem to believe that by repeating the same trite talking points endlessly their audiences will be muted into quiet agreement with their points. I think that that methodology is worthy of rejection. + +Those of us who live in Israel know that the vast majority of Israel’s separation fence amounts to nothing more than a smart fence and not a wall. We have seen it from our cars and our buses. Those who have received mail circulars from their local Israeli embassy or pro-Israel lobby have undoubtedly been appraised of that fact too, perhaps several hundred times over. Whether or not somebody is willing to accept the truth of that statement ultimately depends upon whether they are rationally motivated or not. And when it comes to Israel — and anti-Semitism needs to be mentioned here — many fall into the latter category. Repeating even a truth endlessly ultimately achieves nothing if people are not prepared or willing to listen. One could argue, in fact, that this tactic only pushes potential friends further away. + +### 3\. Hasbara distorts for its own ends + +Salim Joubran, among other court justices, with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Rivlin. Source: Wikimedia + +If you’ve been on the circular that I mentioned above, you are undoubtedly aware of the fact that Israel’s Supreme Court once had an Arab-Israeli justice on its panel: Salim Joubran, now retired. + +_Hasbarists_ will waste no effort in in, again, appraising anybody who is willing to listen of that fact. + +While Joubran did indeed serve on Israel’s Supreme Court, the picture which _hasbarists_ attempt to paint by repetitively highlighting this fact is not an accurate one. + +Arab-Israelis ( interjection: I prefer the term ’48 Palestinians) and Jewish Israelis are, for the most part, very poorly integrated. Arab-Israelis have frequently voiced complaints about experiencing racism and discrimination in Israeli society and of hitting a glass ceiling through which they cannot break. Without wishing to assert that those claims are valid, I wish to make this point: Joubran is the exception rather than the rule and to pretend otherwise is to be willfully disingenuous. + +_Hasbarists_ — like any organized group with an agenda — will happily highlight outliers and trivalities in order to try to make a point. + +Personally, I’m happier with the truth: Arab and Jewish Israelis work side by side but the societies interact to only a very minimal extent. Working relationships excepted, meaningful integration where I live, in Jerusalem, is thin on the ground. + +I believe that honesty is the best policy and that it would be better — for us _and_ for the world — if we started being honest about what realities on the ground are here. + +### 4\. Hasbara detracts from legitimate goals + +It’s become almost a rite of passage for many American Jews to join a _hasbara_ organization on campus in order to defend Israel from the many lies and mistruths to which it is subjected. + +Personally — although I also dabbled in the _hasbara_ world during that time in my life — defending Israel for free from mobs of haters sounds like a terrible waste of one’s college years to me. + +There are many things about Israel that need improvement and [which I have highlighted previously in this blog.](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel/) + +For one, our cost of living is too high for our average salaries which results in Israel’s middle class living far closer to working class levels of GDP per capita than is the case in other OECD nations. + +There is a lack of cohesion between various groups in our society — notably _haredim_ and the secular. Amazingly, Israel’s education system, particularly in STEM subjects, needs improvement. The pandemic is currently raging through our society. Environmentalism in Israel is in its early stages and Tel Aviv’s beaches are [the third most polluted in the Mediterranean](https://www.timesofisrael.com/tel-aviv-beaches-are-no-3-in-plastic-pollution-in-mediterranean-ecology-group/#gs.fnnyq0). + +Need me to go on? + +My point is that I believe that — if we rack our brains hard enough — we all, as friends and builders of Israel, can find much better things to do than to spend time engaging in online flame wars about why the kites carrying incendiary devices from Gaza are a serious threat to the welfare and lives of residents of the embattled South. They are. But perhaps not everybody on the internet needs to know about that. + +As an _oleh_ — like many — I see part of my mission by living and paying taxes here as working, with other Israelis, to make the country a better place for this and coming generations. + +I see positive change happening at a dazzling pace and almost infinite places in which _olims’_ talents can be put to good use. + +Duplicating resources by making the same endless point (Israel is right) just detracts from necessary alternative effort in my view. + +### 5\. Hasbara puts us on the defensive + +Tel Aviv’s shoreline. Image: Pickist. + +Once, while a student at University College Cork (UCC) in Ireland, I won myself a free ticket to a gig by interjecting with what the college’s debating society viewed as the best audience interjection of that evening. + +I made the simple point that Israel is not a soccer team and that there’s no need to behave as if it is. Years later, I make the same point. And unfortunately, I see this as the most entrenched part of the significantly entrenched conflict in this part of the Middle East. + +Supporters of Israel and the Palestinian cause both tend to behave as if they are supporting soccer clubs or rivals in a talent contest. + +In this construct of the conflict, no misdeed can be conceded — and no positive deed met with anything but the highest form of adulation and praise. Either side has to be always right; apologizing is seen as a weakness; strength, and wavering commitment to the party line, is seen as a virtue. Sadly, to a large extent, this belief system has become subsumed into Israel’s early culture. + +The above is why, in my opinion, we end up with slogans such as the IDF being “the most moral army in the world.” To which I ask: have we really assessed the moral standing of every other nation’s armed forces to make that comparison? And is subjecting a population of millions to military rule supremely moral? In this framework, we are left with each side trying to repetitively make the case that everything their preferred “team” does is perfect. + +Irish filmmaker Nicky Larkin, a few years ago, created a documentary called [‘Forty Shades of Grey’](https://www.cultureunplugged.com/documentary/watch-online/play/54209/Forty-Shades-of-Grey--Israel-Palestine-). In media interviews, Larkin has told of how he went from being a card-carrying member of the Irish opposition to Israel to being largely undecided about the conflict and seeing instead that a lot of wrong (and right) was being done by each side. + +Larkin’s process, to an extent, parallels my own with the exception that I have gone from being relatively right wing to relatively left wing to (now) feeling rather confused by the whole thing. There isn’t one narrative or one truth. Both viewpoints have some merit and factual basis. + +If you can survive hearing both side’s opinion long enough and not go crazy during the process, I believe that many will be left with the unsatisfying conclusion that the true answer to “who’s right here?” is “it’s very complicated.” + +### Would we be better off without it? + +The above points together represent my main grievances with _hasbara_. + +I could include others — for instance the simple fact that much of the activity falls on deaf ears — but the main points are well captured in the above. + +Lest the above has suggested otherwise — and not that this stands a remote possibility of happening — I should make clear that I do not endorse the view that all _hasbara_ must be immediately terminated and its leading organizations wound up. + +Rather, I endorse the opinion that it perhaps time that we began a more frank conversation about whether _hasbara_ actually achieves its objectives and merits the public and charitable funding that a lot of its leading organizations receive. + +Poring over _hasbara_ and Friends of Israel organizations with the fine toothed comb of an auditor would, I suspect, reveal countless instances of needless duplication of resources. Rationalization is in order too. But I believe that it’s time we took _hasbara’s_ indefinite continuance off the list of things that we collectively think must be continued no matter what. + +Israel has a right to defend itself against the egregious lies to which it is often subjected on the international stage — this I agree with and affirm. + +Yet, in large part, I believe that work should remain the purview of Israel’s professional diplomats rather than unpaid amateurs — and that we should begin asking why the budget of the latter has been so systematically eroded over the years? + +At the very least, I think it’s time that we began a new conversation about _hasbara_. + +With newly minted bilateral ties with the UAE and Bahrain in its stride, Israel is no longer the poor victimized puppy of the Middle East. + +Perhaps it is time that we began amending our behavior to reflect that. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Think-NOT-Monetizing-Your-Passion-Projects--Including-Writing--Might-Be-The-Smarter-Approach-.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Think-NOT-Monetizing-Your-Passion-Projects--Including-Writing--Might-Be-The-Smarter-Approach-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..89bbf24140f5dfbb7dac69d58492357a92764abe --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Think-NOT-Monetizing-Your-Passion-Projects--Including-Writing--Might-Be-The-Smarter-Approach-.md @@ -0,0 +1,111 @@ +# Why I Think NOT Monetizing Your Passion Projects (Including Writing) Might Be The Smarter Approach… + +#### Sometimes not monetizing projects is the better (but less profitable) approach + +Should your Medium blog be a creative passion or a fun hobby? Here’s why sometimes I think the latter is the better approach. Image: PXHere.com + +A few days ago, I shared why I have — up until now at least — deliberately refrained from monetizing this Medium channel. + +I wrote the post to attempt to provide a counterpoint to the “monetize everything” war cry which encourages creators to develop and aggressively monetize “side hustles” with the idea that one might hit it big: + +[**Why I (Deliberately) Haven’t Monetized My Medium Account To Date** + _It may stand in defiance to some people’s idea of conventional logic, but I don’t see this account as part of my…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62) + +Today, a question from a friend reminded me why I _don’t_ generally monetize writing that I do for fun or to build an audience. I thought it would be worth sharing that broader reasoning too. + +In response to anything I share that’s unrelated to my business — example: [afteraliyah.com](http://afteraliyah.com), a website I recently launched, and which[ today included a piece about the arrival of salt and vinegar crisps to Israel](https://www.afteraliyah.com/news/rapture-among-english-speakers-in-israel-as-salt-and-vinegar-crisps-come-to-market/)–I often receive the same two questions: + + 1. What’s your “end game” with this (insert recent project, whether a Medium publication, a website, or a podcast)? + 2. How are you intending to make money from this? + +For things that I write for fun on the internet — or for some other non-profit motive — the only truthful answers are typically: + + 1. Because I enjoy writing / creating / sharing knowledge and perspectives with others. + 2. I’m not. + +There are always ways one can attempt to monetize online content. + +In the case of these examples I could: + + * Serve banner ads for my website about life in Israel + * Paywall all my Medium articles + +But I think that many content creators are better served by _not_ attempting to turn every passion project into a monetized side hustle. + +A few reasons to support that line of thinking are below. + +### It Keeps You Focused On Monetizing Your Main Business + +My main line of business is selling freelance writing and marketing consultancy packages to clients. + +My average monthly client value ranges from $500 (at the low end) to several thousand dollars per month. Even Medium Partner Program earnings of a couple of hundred dollars per month wouldn’t make a substantial contribution to my revenue base. Which is why I don’t limit my audience reach, at the moment, by engaging in the program. + +That sharp dichotomy brings me a lot of clarity. + +_This —_ freelance writing for clients— is where I make my money (at the time of writing). _This_ is where I want to keep my (fickle) focus. The mental energy that’s left over from that process can be channeled however I want it. But the expectations of using this to build income that can sustain me are “there” and now “here”. + +Essentially, while I _am_ interested in exploring passive income sources such as e-books (I have a couple already on the market), I want to bridge a gap between what I do for money and what I do for fulfillment. + +If those two things can coincide — that’s nice. In fact, that would be enviable. But for most getting to that point takes a lot of time. + +But I enjoy committing to projects just to channel my passion and creative energy without the expectation that they will turn a dime. Such projects might be: + + * A podcast + * A YouTube channel + * A blog + +I can put time into them as hobbies. But so long as they’re non-professional pursuits I can hold myself to some kind of account to place them within their proper limits in my schedule. + +### It Gives You A Sandbox For Your Paid Pursuits + +My friends will remember the intentionally bizarre publicity campaign that I put together for my own wedding with the intention of shoring up interest among my friends in Ireland to make the international commute (with no direct flights) to attend the event. + +Some social media for my #weddingofalifetime publicity campaign for my wedding. + +While it’s likely that most just chalked the wackiness up to eccentricity, the reality is that I sometimes use such opportunities (hobby PR project of sorts) to test out new marketing techniques that I later roll into my actual paid work with clients. + +For instance, during my wedding campaign I learned how to: + + * Set up and operate a robocalling system + * Create a system for sending out personalized thank you videos to attendees + * Create a sync between Eventbrite and Mailchimp + +Learning how to put the digital nuts and bolts together to make the above happen was fun and the campaign gave those who attended my wedding plenty to laugh about. + +But it’s also knowledge that I might be able to use professionally down the line. + +### You Can Be Creatively Uninhibited + +I make a living through selling thought leadership and content marketing services to my clients. + +These are both activities that — to be done well — require thinking and strategy. + +While this is a good thing — clients get better results. It equally means that I can’t just sit down in front of a text editor and write about whatever comes to mind. Before I sit down to write anything for my clients — or for my own content marketing — I ideally need to be thinking about: + + * SEO and discoverability + * Messaging and the target audience + * PR concerns like positioning + * Where this piece will sit in the context of the overall strategy at work + +**Writing for fun, or simply for passion or meaning, means that I can free myself from some of those constraints.** + +I _want_ my writing to get read — sure. But if I really want something I’m going to write it. Even if from an SEO standpoint the topic would likely be considered a non-runner. + +To really channel my authentic self into my writing, I need to have free reign over what I put on the page and not be held hostage by a strategy document or the dictates of SEO best practices. + +I’m not trying to present writing about things you’re passionate about and writing for money as mutually exclusive options. + +I think that if you _can_ make a living through creating content that you’re totally passionate about that you’re in an incredibly enviable situation. And having a reasonable degree of interest and passion in your professional writing is, in my view, essential for success. + +Nevertheless, for many, achieving the lofty position of writing (or creating) full-time about what you love isn’t an option — at least one that’s immediately available. + +I think that limiting readerships and constraining creativity by focusing on monetization for passion pursuits too early on in the game can be a mistake that ultimately takes an enormously enjoyable and liberating activity for creatives — creating to communicate or for some other non-profit motive— and subjects it to the same confines that govern the more restrictive work that many of us do during our “day jobs.” + +Even if those also involve creativity, many creative types encounter them as obstacles of sorts. Many of us dream of being totally unencumbered by any external factors in order to produce the very best work that we’re capable of. Depriving one’s hobby writing (or filmmaking or podcasting) of that freedom can be limiting. + +And anyway: sometimes the joy and “payment” we derive from creating unfettered work that we’re truly passionate about is worth more than the monetization potential available at that moment. + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-Won-t-Be-Sharing-Client-Gifts-on-LinkedIn.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-Won-t-Be-Sharing-Client-Gifts-on-LinkedIn.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0c777af47d2dce4a7b341aaac5d9480f1b4a86e9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-Won-t-Be-Sharing-Client-Gifts-on-LinkedIn.md @@ -0,0 +1,53 @@ +# Why I Won’t Be Sharing Client Gifts on LinkedIn + +Over recent weeks, I’ve aired my views about LinkedIn to my network. + +I’ve made the point that — while I see great value in LinkedIn as a means for connecting with other professionals and mapping out organizations — I think that in too many other respects it’s become a toxic breeding ground for jealousy, humble-bragging, and virtue-signalling. + +I refer, to the most part, for the LinkedIn feed and not to other aspects of the platform. There is good there. But a lot of bad. So I’ve come to the conclusion that carefully curating the feed is essential to maintaining equanimity while browsing its contents. + +(And it must be pointed out: for all the self-aggrandizing promotion, there are worthy and important conversations being held there). + +[**Why I Really Can’t Do LinkedIn Anymore** + _Is Content Curation The Key To Staying Sane In Today’s World?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-really-cant-do-linkedin-anymore-f2bd18349f48) + +[**What Does Bragging on LinkedIn Actually Achieve?** +_Is There Any Point To Signalling Your Achievements?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-does-bragging-on-linkedin-actually-achieve-da792667be4c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-does-bragging-on-linkedin-actually-achieve-da792667be4c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-does-bragging-on-linkedin-actually-achieve-da792667be4c) + +One of the many features of the LinkedIn feed that has been ticking me off recently is the growing trend of people posting a corporate gift hamper along with some cringeworthy ode to their boss and/or employer. + +In case you don’t know what I’m talking about, the usual formulation is something like this: + +### Why I Will Not Be Posting Gift Pics + +I’m not refraining from client gift hampers because I don’t get any. + +Surprisingly, nice clients _do_ buy their freelance writers gift baskets and other niece things around holiday time (I also, when appropriate, try to reciprocate the favor). + +Instead, I just think that this is another one of the many features of LinkedIn that doesn’t make the world a better place. And which I will therefore refuse to participate in so long as it’s a viable option for me to do so. + +For one, I think that gifts should remain nice _private_ gestures between a business and their staff. + +It’s lovely that many organizations are in a position to reward their staff albeit in this small manner. But — after a brutal year in business for many — surely there are many organizations that can’t afford this small luxury, let alone to keep their doors open? + +As with many facets of LinkedIn, the result is thus to simply create jealousy and a dismal contest among companies who are trying to outdo one another with the best gift hampers. + +Judging by the gift hamper photos that crop up like mushrooms around this time of year, I can also only assume that many HR managers and departments are creating the _expectation_ that their staff will post the hampers, with some laudatory words about the company, on LinkedIn. If not an ode to one’s “great boss” then it’s typically an exclamation of “how well taken care of” one feels as an employee. + +HR departments using this strategy are effectively using their employees as advertising billboards. + +Employees who play the game of their own volition and post about how wonderful their company is for sending them a gift are only playing into the above. At least in my (highly partisan) view. + +While it’s a nice gesture, sending your employees a gift hamper does not make a company a “great place to work.” It’s a minor perk. + +Finally, of course, posts like this fail the “who cares?” test. + +Those sharing gift hamper photos are contributing absolutely no value to the lives of anybody unfortunate enough to stumble upon them. + +Or maybe I’m just that rare breed of misanthrope that is insensitive to these things and isn’t excited to know that somebody I once met at a conference five years ago received a nice bottle of peanuts and some honey for the holidays from their employer. + +Enough said. + +I’m going to enjoy some peanuts and wine that I purchased for myself! + +I will not be posting the photo on social! diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-am-not-a-fan-of-the-Jerusalem-Municipality.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-am-not-a-fan-of-the-Jerusalem-Municipality.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..004a9213faadfdd4cdc6882b586d1fa87374ba06 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-am-not-a-fan-of-the-Jerusalem-Municipality.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +# Why I am not a fan of the Jerusalem Municipality + +#### Please stop digging up every corner of this beautiful city + +Well. + +It’s around seven in the morning during the weekend in Israel and I’ve been awaken — as I am wont now — by the familiar grating sound of the backup beepers which indicate that the municipality’s JCBs are busily digging up the pavement immediately outside my front door. It’s become an industrial alarm clock of sorts. + +(The same one the electric company dug up in the summer; the same one that most residents and store-owners on the street seemed to be perfectly happy with.) + +[**On Leaving Jerusalem (After Four Years)** +_Four years. That's how long I have been living in Jerusalem. For three and a half of those years, I spent almost all my…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/on-leaving-jerusalem-after-four-years/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/on-leaving-jerusalem-after-four-years/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/on-leaving-jerusalem-after-four-years/) + +I’m previously expressed my thoughts about the city of Jerusalem. + +I came here six years ago. I’d imagine I’m one of relatively few people in history that have made the transition from Cork, Ireland to Jerusalem. + +I never chose Jerusalem. The cheesy follow-on would be “Jerusalem chose me” — although it always strikes me as immodest to make that claim about such a vaunted and historical city. + +When Jews begin the process of moving to Israel, they typically do so via an agency called the Jewish Agency (JA) or Nefesh b’Nefesh. + +Growing up in Ireland, the Jewish community I was part of was vanishingly small. My late grandfather, Fred Rosehill (z’l) was responsible for keeping the fire alight. But making _aliyah_(moving to Israel) from a place that small was challenging, although not impossible. + +My _shaliach_(emissary) flatly declared me to be an “academic” (no that doesn’t mean that you have tenure; just that you’re a college graduate). I was destined for Ulpan Etsion. And Jerusalem’s intake happened to accord most tidily with my planned date. + +### Six Years of Construction + +The weird thing about Jerusalem is how much the city has grown on me. + +I think that Jerusalem is actually a very apt city to live in having moved from Cork. + +Unlike Jerusalem, Cork is Ireland’s second city. But like Jerusalem it’s the country’s decided underdog (for those not aware, although Tel Aviv isn’t Israel’s capital, it’s by far the more glamorous and celebrated of the “siblings”). + +Like Cork, Jerusalem lives in the shadow of another city (Tel Aviv). And like Cork, the young people of Jerusalem tend to flock _out_ of the city in search of better employment prospects elsewhere. But also like Cork, they often do so only reluctantly. Jerusalem holds a special place in its residents’ hearts. + +If I can praise but one thing about Jerusalem it’s the fact that it has _just enough_ of everything. + +Kosher Indian? There’s now one (vegetarian, but it’s a start). You have one good DJ store. A few good bars. Many falafel stands and synagogues. Enough gyms that one isn’t starved for options (although Tel Aviv’s scene is undoubtedly superior). + +But if there’s one thing I am _not_ fond of about Jerusalem it would be the relentless construction going on. And for that I have to blame: the _iriyah_ (municipality). + +A weekend sight — JCBs outside the front door. The Municipality used the public property outside our front door as a holding site for weeks during the summer while they worked on repaving works. The plant in the foreground was immediately outside our apartment. From it, you could lean over and touch the vehicles! + +I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that during the six years I have called Jerusalem home I have lived within 50 meters of a construction site for more years rather than not. As I work from home (mostly), finding ways to navigate noise pollution has become an unfortunate fact of life for me. + +The amount of construction going on in the city is relentless. And — from what I have been able to tell — very little of it is coordinated with residents, at least in meaningful ways. + +Right now the city is ripping up the (to my eyes) perfectly good pavements lining our neighborhood. Last summer it was the electric company digging up the road. The city’s workers appear to pave for about half the day — conveniently starting at 06:30 on the dot. As if to prolong the suffering, they’re even doing one side of the street at a time. + +After moving from a more central neighborhood where the municipality was doing the same thing — and literally stationed outside our front door (see above) — we thought that moving out of the center would get us some peace and quiet. + +Nope. + +Construction hasn’t been our only complaint. + +During the entire length of the summer — with the city under lockdown — the Jerusalem Municipality insisted on running a street festival immediately outside our front door. Think a clown screaming into a microphone for 4 hours two nights a week. To the delight of children. To the adults living across the street? Not so much. + +I complained. Repeatedly. As did other residents. The city’s response (effectively): be grateful for the “entertainment”. + +The City of Jerusalem makes it extremely difficult for renters to pay their _arnona_ — municipal taxes; and Jerusalem’s are about the highest in the country — in a way that doesn’t put them at the mercy of potentially exploitative landlords. + +Tel Aviv lets residents pay every two months, which means that renters can only pay what they need to. + +In Jerusalem you have to sign on for paying a year at a time. Miss a payment or letter from the city? There’s a good chance that a summary lien (Hebrew: _ikul_) might be placed on your bank account. + +The Jerusalem Municipality undoubtedly does some good things. It excels, from what I can see, in trying to portray Jerusalem favorably on the international scene. Yet my observation from more than half a decade of living in the city is that that commitment is not matched by how it treats its own tax-paying residents. + +For a city that constantly laments the fact that it’s hemorrhaging young people, it could start with examining what it’s doing to make the city a nice place in which to live. A recent quality of life survey amongst Israeli cities ranked Jerusalem in last place. + +[**Quality of Life Index: Kfar Saba leads, Jerusalem ranked worst** + _Kfar Saba, Ramat Gan and Rehovot have the highest quality of life among large cities in Israel and the Tel Aviv…_ www.jpost.com](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/quality-of-life-index-kfar-saba-leads-jerusalem-ranked-worst-653614 "https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/quality-of-life-index-kfar-saba-leads-jerusalem-ranked-worst-653614")[](https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/quality-of-life-index-kfar-saba-leads-jerusalem-ranked-worst-653614) + +The development of Jerusalem is a thing that many Zionists celebrate. Yet noise pollution is something that we should not have to tolerate as a fact of life. + +It feels to me as if a far better balance could be struck between the exigencies of developments and the needs of residents. + +Until that balance _is_ struck my thoughts about the City will remain not warm and fuzzy. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-don-t-think-Israel-needs-its-own-Holocaust-Remembrance-Day--Yom-HaShoah.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-don-t-think-Israel-needs-its-own-Holocaust-Remembrance-Day--Yom-HaShoah.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..72aace7240d7e0ceafb09a0004aa8b1b0a986a6b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-don-t-think-Israel-needs-its-own-Holocaust-Remembrance-Day--Yom-HaShoah.md @@ -0,0 +1,118 @@ +# Why I don’t think Israel needs its own Holocaust Remembrance Day, Yom HaShoah + +More than five years ago, [Ariel Rubinstein](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ariel_Rubinstein) was brave enough to offer, in Ha’aretz, these twelve reasons why he believes that Israel should do away with its own Holocaust Remembrance Day, Yom HaShoah (paywalled). + +[**A dozen reasons why Israel should do away with Holocaust Remembrance Day** + _Holocaust Remembrance Day should be canceled, because the few who do have someone to remember will not forget those who…_ www.haaretz.com](https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-time-for-israel-to-cancel-yom-hashoah-1.5351447 "https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-time-for-israel-to-cancel-yom-hashoah-1.5351447")[](https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-time-for-israel-to-cancel-yom-hashoah-1.5351447) + +In particular one paragraph caught my attention and emboldened me to share, here, my own reason why I have long quietly supported Rubinstein’s viewpoint: + +> _“Holocaust Remembrance Day should be canceled, because we must not ground our existence here [in Israel] solely on our being perpetually persecuted. If we do not distinguish ourselves culturally and religiously, it would be better for us to assimilate among the nations.”_ + +The following opinion is offered with the sincere desire _not_ to cause offence or hurt to those who very much believe in the merit of this national Israeli institution. + +### The Yom HaShoah — Yom Atsmaut Tie-In Feeds Into The Trope That Israel Exists Because Of The Holocaust + +If you want to know my thoughts on the commonly heard trope that Israel exists “because” of the Holocaust (or “because Jews needed a safe haven from persecution”) then the below poster, from the Israel Advocacy Movement, does a reasonably good job at summarizing my views on the matter: + +Credit: The Israel Advocacy Movement + +My Zionism is of a pretty classic variety (some might say even fundamentalist): I believe that the State of Israel exists in order to facilitate the homecoming of the Jewish people to its ancestral homeland. It’s the Jewish manifestation of self-determination. Any other benefits that such a homecoming may have are — in my view — ancillary. + +Unfortunately, by creating a national day calendar that deliberately juxtaposes Yom HaShoah (first) and Yom Atsmaut (Israel’s national day) in close succession, Israel plays into the notion that the country exists _because_ of the horrors of the Holocaust. (Yom HaShoah is fixed on Nissan 27 in the Hebrew calendar while Yom Atsmaut is on 5 Iyar. In practice, the two commemorations are spaced about a week apart in the secular calendar.) + +The juxtaposition of the two commemorations sends out a powerful message, or at least a strong subtext: _because_ of the events which this day commemorates (Yom HaShoah) we are able, one week later, to celebrate the beginning of our statehood. + +I and others who celebrate our existence here as a manifestation of our coming home reject any such attempts to forge such a nexus. + +### The Strongest Reaction To Anti-Semitism Is The Success Of The State of Israel. If Only In A Small Way, Yom HaShoah Undermines It + +You could say that my views regarding the issues that surround Israel are a potpourri of perspectives that don’t box me conveniently into any one camp or stereotype. + +[**Why I Think Hasbara Is A Waste of Time (And Resources)** +_Three days to go until 5780 becomes 5781. Out with the old and in with the new. So - as I'm particularly fond of airing…_ blogs.timesofisrael.com](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/ "https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/")[](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/) + +For instance: + +I’m largely opposed to hasbara — Israel’s policy of investing heavily in public diplomacy in order to ‘explain’ the righteousness of some of its policies or combat some of the distortions leveled against it. + +_Part_ of my reasoning for holding such a viewpoint is the fact that I believe that a lot of hate — particularly of the irrational kind that emanates from a strong dislike of Jews— is best left to foment among itself where ultimately it will lead to the self-destruction of the haters. Reacting to it with a slew of state-sponsored propaganda is, in a sense, the real life equivalent of “feeding the trolls.” + +I also believe that the best answer to anti-Semitism — particularly the kind cloaked in anti-Zionism — is the continued success, by and large, of the State of Israel, the only Jewish country in the world. + +The disruption to daily life in Israel that Yom HaShoah closes might be small,but nevertheless, it impacts in a perceptible way upon the quotidian here in Israel: + + * By law, restaurant and places of entertainment must remain closed + * Workplaces grind to a halt, briefly, as employees are expected to pay respects to an air raid siren that serves as a moment of commemoration + +The most defiant answer to the horrors of the Holocaust is the continued success of the Jewish people in spite of the attempt to annihilate them from existence. + +Their success in coming home and achieving self-determination shortly thereafter — a historical event without precedence — was simply the icing on the cake. But A didn’t justify B. + +### Yom HaShoah Makes Permanent Our Collective Sense of National Grief + +To the best of my knowledge, Yom HaShoah — Israel’s national remembrance day for the Holocaust — doesn’t have a sell-by-date. There is no law in the Knesset that institutes that the national day of grief for the horrors of the Holocaust must end by a certain year. + +However, I think it’s unrealistic for us to think that — however awful the near annihilation of our people was — it needs to be remembered, on its own day, in perpetuity. + +Sadly, many tragedies have befallen the Jewish people over the eons of history. + +Indeed we must never forget the horrors of the Holocaust. But do we need a day upon which to mourn over it in perpetuity? + +And even if we argue that the answer is ‘yes,’ how can we honestly expect to compress a grieving process about something as monstrous as the Shoah into one day — a day that the calendar dictates to us? + +In the Jewish mourning process that follows the loss of a loved one (_aveilut_), restrictions are gradually lifted upon close survivors until none remain in place at all. Thereafter, the loved one is memorialized and grieved for one a year. Jewish tradition even discourages excessive visits to the resting place of the loved one. + +So I ask for Yom HaShoah: while I don’t argue that we shouldn’t appoint a national day on which to commemorate and grieve for the Holocaust — whether an exclusive one or one shared with other tragedies — I wonder whether the state ceremonies and enforced restrictions should continue indefinitely into the future. + +Would it be more fitting if the day were rolled into another national-religious holiday that commemorates a tragedy that befell the Jewish people — such as Tisha B’Av? And if Israelis weren’t prevented from living their lives and buying food once a year because the country were forced into closure? + +Furthermore, by suggesting that the existence of the State of Israel is predicated upon our persecution — as the close juxtaposition of the two dates does — Yom HaShoah risks engendering in us a never-ending persecution complex. + +It also encourages a reactionary mentality that views every negative response to the State of Israel (commemorated on Yom Atsmaut) as rooted in the evils of anti-Semitism (commemorated one week previously on Yom HaShoah). + +While _much_ anti-Israelism is indeed rooted in thinly veiled anti-Semitism, not all of it is. + +### Israelis Don’t Need To Be Reminded Of The Dangers Of Hatred And Anti-Semitism + +Every year, on Yom HaShoah, Israel’s political class follows through with a predictable series of events designed to commemorate those who perished in the Holocaust. + +And yet in the very same country and on the very same day hate crimes continue which demonstrate the futility of ever eliminating hatred and prejudice through national displays of commemoration. + +Just as no amount of _hasbara_ will succeed in making everybody love Israel, no amount of national commemoration or remembrance ceremonies will ever succeed in blotting out anti-Semitism from the world. + +Here’s a salient example. The day before I wrote this piece, in the mixed Arab-Jewish city of Lod, Israel — as on a previous year — Arabs set off fireworks during ceremonies to commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day. + +[**Lod Mayor livid over fireworks on eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day** + _A video posted to social media on Wednesday evening shows the launching of fireworks by Arabs in Lod as the memorial…_ www.israelnationalnews.com](https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/299855 "https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/299855")[](https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/299855) + +The messaging doesn’t require the interpretative skills of a Talmudist: like terrorists handing out candies in the wake of an atrocity, we delight in your suffering. Indeed, if it were up to us, we’d like it to continue. + +Israel does not need to institutionalize a separate day of morning for the Holocaust to provide its citizens with a reminder of the dangers of anti-Semitism and unfettered hatred. + +Israelis get near weekly reminders whenever a terrorist carries out a stabbing attack in its capital. + +Or when its northern neighbors — or those in the south — rain missiles upon the country’s towns. Or when Iran continues in its efforts to build a nuclear weapon with the intent of annihilating it. + +For the world at large, one can argue that some sort of permanent commemoration of the horrors of hate crimes and persecutions is a needed and salient institution. + +Here in Israel, the experience is lived every day of the year. Including, ironically, on its national day of commemoration. + +### In A Sense, Yom HaShoah Blinds Us To The Grief Of Others + +While it is to be expected that Israel will commemorate a tragedy that befell the Jewish people, and on the dangers of anti-Semitism, equally, in a sense, fixating solely upon the Holocaust and upon Jew-hatred encourages us to ignore other forms of persecution and racism that exist around the world. + +The above — I rush to add — is not an attempt to draw an equivalence between the Holocaust, anti-Semitism, and other form of suffering. + +But Israel and the Jewish people do not hold a patent — nor a monopoly — upon being on the receiving end of acts of national persecution. + +Institutionalizing in Israel a day of commemoration only to remember _our_ painful experience with persecution and hatred in a sense blinds us to the (present-day) suffering of others. + +While it is to be expected that — in the Jewish State — we will put our own national commemorations above those of others (all nations are selfish in that respect!), I believe that equally our own painful history of persecution shouldn’t blind us to the suffering endured by other peoples, including those going on in the world today. + +_Author’s note: Due to the fact that, sadly, I have spent much of this week receiving anti-Semitic online bullying — a fact that reminds me of the need to take anti-Semitism seriously — I have had to turn off comments on any Medium article that touches upon these themes as, unfortunately, the haters have continued their abuse here._ + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-m-Stopping-Posting-on-Reddit.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-m-Stopping-Posting-on-Reddit.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bcae0182b543b30865ec68b5ead52429e43d7a9b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-m-Stopping-Posting-on-Reddit.md @@ -0,0 +1,156 @@ +# Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit + +#### Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for anonymous trolls and haters + + _— Crossposted from Reddit:_ + + Reddit: a sprawling online community but also the home of much cyberabuse. Photo: Pixabay + +For the purpose of posterity and before I request an archive of this account: + +Joining Reddit has been an interesting experience. + +[**Sign the Petition** + _Reddit is a valuable online social community but has also become a festering hive of online hate, abuse, and…_ www.change.org](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups "https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups")[](https://www.change.org/p/reddit-request-that-reddit-ban-anonymous-signups) + +According to my account panel, my cake day (when the account originated) is on August 19th 2015. Which means that I’ve had this account for more than 5 years. Although I think I only really began actively using Reddit 2 years ago. + +In theory, I love the concept of Reddit, which I think explains why I’ve kept using it all this time despite — at so many points — feeling like throwing in the towel on participating in its communities. + +It captures the aspects of social media — and social networking — that appeal to me. Namely — group-centric discussion. It largely discards those that do not — like sharing photos of one’s breakfast. + +Whether you’re into Turkish coffee or Netflix documentaries or anime — there’s a subreddit for you. In fact, there are over two million of them. That’s pretty powerful. + +Unfortunately Reddit also has one outstanding feature that has made me progressively more uncomfortable as time has gone on: Reddit attracts a lot of vicious haters as well as those who — in the words of one Redditor I’ve digitally befriended beyond the platform — show a complete lack of “charity” to those with whom they engage online. + +It was an excellent and apt description and one which I can’t better. + +Somebody with a total lack of “charity” isn’t quite the same thing as a hater. + +It’s just somebody who’s not a very pleasant person at their core but who couldn’t show their true selves “IRL” (internet slang: in real life). Because, when you’re not telling the world who you are, no social consequences attach to being mean. + +Somebody who lacks charity consistently assumes the worst intentions of others; is needlessly abrasive when arguing with others; and doesn’t think twice about signalling their hostility. In my experience, this describes plenty of Redditors. + +When I first began actively using Reddit, I did so because the anonymity afforded me to open up about a couple of mental health issues at a time when I wasn’t prepared to discuss these openly (for those wondering, I’m talking particularly about ADHD.) + +This was a huge growth experience for me and I continue to see the enormous value of anonymity for this reason. I should also note that these communities — in contrast with much of Reddit — are by and large incredibly supportive and filled with kind-hearted individuals rather than those who are mean and toxic. + +_(Although I should add that I’m increasingly uncertain about the merit of even this use-case compared to speaking to a professional or seeking out non-anonymous but confidentiality-found communities. To the extent that there is a valid use case for anonymous online communities — survivors of abuse who really can’t risk their identity being public , perhaps— I think that it’s a relatively marginal one.)_ + +However, the more time I have spent on Reddit — and the more abuse and harassment I have been subjected to here (and I use those words advisedly; I’m not trying to dramatize things like disagreement) — the more I have come to believe that anonymity is best reserved for things _like_ discussing mental health in an anonymous but supportive and well-moderated environment. + +In response to a very dubious infraction — posting from both a public and private account on several threads a single handful of times — I encountered my first Reddit hater. + +For this minor offence (perhaps misleading, but not even against Redditor’s terms of service) the Redditor launched into an aggressive tirade by PM. Later, when I tried to make amends again and once more offer an apology, the Redditor labelled me “full of shit,” “a manipulative liar,” a “sociopath” and a “social deviant.” The last message in the tirade included the affirmation “my anger really isn’t about you. It’s about what you represent. You are precisely the type of person I will continue to avoid, online and in real life.” + +After I posted this goodbye post to Reddit, a fellow Redditor took up my case, asking whether I had been a victim of cancel culture for feeling so hated that I felt forced to leave the platform. + +In response I was accused of _being_ the thread’s poster; called a “sperg” (five upvotes; at the time of writing unmoderated); and was told repeatedly that I was overreacting to some mild disagreement that I should be able to handle. + +Tellingly when the thread’s poster — my also anonymous supporter — questioned whether my Judaism could have something to do with the online hate I seemed to attract on the platform the comment was hastily deleted with the stern warning that the sub doesn’t tolerate ridiculous accusations (but I guess accusing somebody of having Asperger’s is fair game). + +So here’s what I have to say about Reddit: + +If there’s a compelling reason to stay anonymous — anonymity seems to attract the best in people. + +If there isn’t — it seems to consistently bring out the worst in them. In some instances, these individuals can become totally unhinged and vicious. And when abuse is cloaked in the cover of anonymity and facilitated by communities that are unprepared to take the dynamic seriously, I personally find it a lot harder to deal with. + +Ultimately, Reddit is an online platform. And unless I’m deriving massive value from it that I can’t elsewhere — which I’m not — on the balance of things, I don’t think it’s worth putting up with the type of cyberabuse that Reddit seems to excel in facilitating and which I’ve personally experienced repeatedly. + +Sadly, far too many Reddit moderators are unwilling to take abuse to members seriously. In many cases, such moderators even take an active hand in continuing it. + +Ironically, despite the negativity of much of my experience there, my time on Reddit has proven the catalyst for some significant personal growth — although it’s a type of growth that has ultimately led me to believe that it’s best that I cease participating on the platform altogether. + +I’ve now discussed, through a public Reddit account, most things that I previously posted privately; and I’ve found other fora for those that I cannot discuss in that manner. I am grateful to the platform for that and for the information that I have learned from other Redditors through posting on it. + +As the country I live in emerges from lockdown, my overarching goal for this year is to spend more time engaging with real world communities than online ones. + +But if the latter, I want to focus on trying to find fora that share Reddit’s ability to create communities around niche topics without the toxicity that unfortunately seems to be the tagalong to the anonymity which it facilitates. + +As cheesy as it sounds, my overarching personal development goal for this year is to be more authentic and to surround myself with more positive, supportive, and authentic people. Increasingly, I’ve found that posting on Reddit runs contrary to that objective. + +For anybody considering a similar move: I emanate encouragement. + +I believe that there is a toxic streak running through Reddit that is far too pervasive and that there is far too much bullying there that goes uncontested and unchecked. + +In the absence of an effective system for vetting moderators, and the huge size of the website, I also believe that ensuring a safe online space, conducive to wellness, is likely impossible. At least without some fundamental changes that the platform is probably not primed or willing to facilitate. + +It was an interesting learning experience. But I’m ready to move on. + +### **_Update the next morning: in reaction thread, accused or faking my own defense, having Asperger’s, “playing the race card” for raising possibility of anti-Semitic motives; also, more abuse_** + +In an interesting an unexpected development, a few hours after I post my goodbye note, a Reddit supporter starts a thread about my decision to leave and the video I posted. + +Discussion devolves into claims that I left Reddit because I couldn’t handle criticism when — in fact — I was subject to ad-hominem insults, harassment, and group bullying. + +Anonymous haters even suggests that I set up a fake account in order to start the thread supporting my decision to quit: + +Another anonymous hater calls me a “Sperg” (a derogatory term for somebody with Asperger’s apparently). Receives 5 upvotes from other haters. + +But Reddit moderator “can’t recall the last time someone replied with personal attacks or insults” (later describes ‘Sperg’ ad-hominem as “lighthearted and jovial”). + +Elsewhere, comment alleging that the hatred I drew might be due to anti-Semitism is removed by moderation and called a “ridiculous allegation.” (I guess remotely diagnosing Asperger’s is not!?) + +My persistent hater describes my previous questioning of another poster that their hatred may be motivated by anti-Semitism as “the racist card.” + +Moderator describes my YouTube video calling out Reddit cyberbullying “professional suicide” and hopes that I’ll “think better of it and remove it.” + +One more Redditor suggests I’m reacting negatively to abuse because I “pin” some of my personal value on how my Reddit posts are received: + +Another Redditor — posting after the “sperg” slur — opines that I’ve simply “been disagreed with” before concluding “and that’s fine”) + +#### Allegation of Anti-Semitism Banned. Same Moderator Then Allows Ad-Hominem “Sperg” (Asperger’s) Slur, Describes It As “Lighthearted and Jovial” and “Not A Personal Attack.” + +Reddit moderator opines that Redditor’s “Sperg” slur was “lighthearted and jovial” describes it “not as a personal attack.” + +For this Reddit moderator, the “drama” that the thread ensued was “fun”: + +In previous interactions, Redditor aggrieved at my previous decision to post from two accounts on the same thread describes me as a “social deviant” + +Exchange ends unproductively with more gratuitous insults: + +The end to my Redditing career: being called a “jack**s” and “ugly AF”. + +### More Hate From Anonymous Redditors After Bully Starts Thread About Me On Notorious Hate Subreddit /r/Drama: Working In Thought Leadership Means I “Deserved Bullying Sooner” + +Redditor aggrieved at being called out for bullying starts thread in Reddit community for “drama” in order to continue train of abuse: + +“Moderators” that divulge the identity of abuse reporters and then themselves join in the abuse: + +A Reddit moderator divulges the identity of a harassment report and then contributes a little more to the abuse. Source: /r/drama. + +More bullies join in the party — request that I open comments on my YouTube videos highlighting Reddit bullying so that they have more online spaces within which to harass me. Continue with Reddit haters’ favorite ad-hominem insult describing somebody as having Asperger’s (“speging out”). + +### Update 2: I Got Suspended From Reddit For Reporting My Own Cyberbullying; The Cyberbullies Got A Free Pass And Delighted In My Suspension (Yes, You Read That Right) + +The final update in this magnificent piece of the theater of the absurd is as follows. + +Shortly after writing this post, I received a warning from Reddit. I was perplexed. I had reported vicious cyberbullies for calling me “f**king pathetic,” a “Sperg,” and various other slurs. + +I heard nothing from Reddit. Except this: + +In something so strange you almost couldn’t make it up, I was being warned for reporting abuse I received on the notorious hate subreddit /r/drama. The thread in question was started precisely to gang trolls up on me. + +The cyberbullies, on the other hand, were free to continue with their harassment, which they naturally delighted in: + +Likely explanation: in response to reporting abuse, the trolls reported _me_ for report abuse — and somehow they got away with a warning whereas I got suspended. Report abuse alleging report abuse (phew!) is something that the network should probably look into. + +Update: to give Reddit credit, they eventually rescinded the ban: + +### More Comments + +### Angry (Anonymous) Reddit Bullies Crowd Onto The Comments Section Here (On Medium) To Continue Abuse And Gaslighting — Throw In Reference To ‘Big Beak’ Nose + + _Edited to add: predictably, Redditors — angry at being called out on perpetrating and facilitating online abuse — crowd into comments section here to continue their work._ + +_Combination of gaslighting — how dare somebody post about this! — and more (anonymous) abuse…_ + + Followed by a nice anti-Semitic reference to a “big beak”Yup. Cyberbullying isn’t real.Classic gaslighting. Those who call out online abuse are just being “sensitive” and a “bubble boy” + +A Change.org petition I started to encourage Reddit to put more effort into policing harassment was also defaced. The incident happened the day after the Reddit bullying began. + +_Note:_ I ultimately decided to stop posting in my hitherto favorite subreddit but to continue posting elsewhere on the network. Reddit is a vast amalgamation of communities and a huge online space with many users, most of whom are not bullies or trolls. Why throw out the good with the bad? + +**Edited to add:** + +_Because I’m not interested in having more anonymous Redditors swarm into my comments section posting anti-Semitism, I’ve closed the discussion. But anybody that has something nice to say is welcome to get in touch to do so._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-ve-Been--Reluctantly--Writing-About-Ireland-And-Israel-Lately.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-ve-Been--Reluctantly--Writing-About-Ireland-And-Israel-Lately.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ac55d0de82ea4926595b8302ba3bde4e5711f29f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-ve-Been--Reluctantly--Writing-About-Ireland-And-Israel-Lately.md @@ -0,0 +1,166 @@ +# Why I’ve Been (Reluctantly) Writing About Ireland And Israel Lately + +#### Ireland has elevated hatred of Israel to a fundamental part of its national identity. Can’t we wretched Zionists say a word or two back? + +The Palestinian flag flies above Dublin City Hall last month. Dublin’s Mayor refused to meet with Israel’s ambassador in Dublin before profusely welcoming the Palestinian representative. Photo: X. + +I’ve received a steady train of emails, WhatsApp, and Twitter messages since writing a piece a few days ago arguing that it’s time for Israel to begin responding more hawkishly to the extremely hostile foreign policy being pursued by the Republic of Ireland currently. + +We may never be able to placate the never-ending chorus of criticism towards Israel from Ireland, now reaching perhaps an all-time fever-pitch. But can we at least try to close the door shut a little tighter? Crazier thoughts, I suggest, have flashed across the blogosphere. + +As I’m permanently behind on responding through all the aforementioned channels and have given up trying to hem coherent thoughts into 140 character statuses, I thought it better to try to corral some follow-up thoughts into another blog. + +I’ll try to be a little more brief this time. + +[**Is It Time For Israel To Break Off Relations With Ireland?** +_Relentless in its hostility to Israel, Ireland is now leading the charge to to nix an Israel-EU trade tie. Is it time…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israel-please-cut-ties-with-enemy-ireland-its-way-beyond-closing-time-89d2d18bdce8 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israel-please-cut-ties-with-enemy-ireland-its-way-beyond-closing-time-89d2d18bdce8")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/israel-please-cut-ties-with-enemy-ireland-its-way-beyond-closing-time-89d2d18bdce8) + +### If Things Weren’t Always So Awful Between Ireland and Israel, They Could Almost Have Been Good + +Firstly, although I’m sure it doesn’t seem this way, I don’t really enjoy opining on Ireland’s reaction to Israel. + +Having left Ireland almost a decade ago, it’s justifiable to say that I’m out of touch with the goings-on in that part of Europe. This, I concede, is a legitimate charge against these musings. + +It’s a common trope of online debates about Israel to accuse those of defending the Jewish state to be on some kind of shadowy payroll operated by some dubious Zionist cabal or another (anti-Zionists love their shadowy cabals). + +Irish Twitter users have accused me more than once of being the Mossad’s “representative for Ireland.” _Hasbara_ unfortunately really isn’t my thing. + +_So why do it then?_ + +It’s not because I hate Ireland (_accusation number two_). Ireland is a country with many wonderful qualities. Before my main association with Ireland became “ _the people who send me hate mail on Twitter,_ ” I used to have fond memories from growing up in Cork. + +Ireland and Israel share some common features, after all. Such that if the relationship between the two countries weren’t so poisoned by never-ending rancor, it isn’t hard to imagine how friendly cross-pollination might emerge around themes like cultivating diaspora populations and being small countries (and markets) that have to ‘think global’ to have a chance at all. + +Efforts have been made in some of these domains often without much fanfare. + +But the whole … political thing … has often proven an insurmountable dampening to otherwise bold plans (_case in point: El Al’s announcement today to kill the Dublin route, alongside Marrakesh and South Africa. The first direct airlink between Israel and Ireland was the product of years of lobbying from parties on both sides of the relationship. It wasn’t ended only by looking at a spreadsheet)._ + +[**El Al axes Dublin, Marrakesh flights** + _The Israeli carrier, which halted flights to Dublin and Marrakesh in October, will not be resuming flights for the…_ en.globes.co.il](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-el-al-axes-dublin-marrakesh-flights-1001469534 "https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-el-al-axes-dublin-marrakesh-flights-1001469534")[](https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-el-al-axes-dublin-marrakesh-flights-1001469534) + +### What Happens When Supporting Israel Becomes A Social Opprobrium In A Western Society? Look At Ireland For Answers + +But let me come back to the question of _“why bother with this fruitless business?”_ + +Anti-Israelism is now a global commodity. I believe that there are valid reasons to be critical of the actions of The Jewish State or to express profound concern about the mounting civilian death toll in the Gaza Strip. Even if I disagree with your reasoning. + +There are countries which have come to be regarded as “critical friends.” + +I mull over these thoughts frequently, in fact. But an answer to “ _what exactly does proportionality?_ ” demand continues to evade me. It seems to be doing that to everyone. + +So I support the effort to destroy Hamas and anyone else who seeks Israel’s destruction. In Ireland the only acceptable translation for this statement is that I’m a supporter of genocide and the murdering of babies. + +But the big proportionality question isn’t the only thing I mull over. + +I find it perplexing that a country like Ireland of self-avowed _noveau_ secular Western liberals would choose to cheerlead for an organisation — Hamas — whose worldview is essentially the conquest of the entire non-Muslim world and its subjugation to a radical interpretation of Islam. Has nobody at least read the Wikipedia!? + +But I accept that a war like the one that Israel is prosecuting in Gaza cannot be conducted without safeguards and limits to prevent civilians from harm. But all these facts lead me is to an inescapable grey zone of wondering without resolution of “where is the line drawn?”. + +So let me circle back. + +The only factor which has motivated me to write articles like this, or tweets, is the fact that — in Ireland — virtually nobody else is doing it. + +None of this is intended to detract from the excellent efforts of the Irish Israel Alliance or friends of Israel. But one gets the feeling that we might all fit in a small country pub without bumping elbows. + +And one set of actors has been notably quiet- their voices not heard but often spoken for by third parties. And that has been that of Irish Jews. + +Not all Jews in Ireland are Zionists, of course and in these ramblings I speak only for myself. There aren’t many of us in the first place, needless to say. + +But many are growing increasingly concerned by the climate of debate around Israel in Ireland. + +This isn’t about attempting to suppress freedom of speech or conflicting with your different opinions on this war. It’s about being legitimately concerned by the circus of Israel-hate that seems to have developed there. + +Jews in Ireland are afraid to identify as Jewish (that is unless their political opinions accord with the majority). + +I have always felt compelled to hide the fact that I live in Israel when visiting Ireland. Now I’d regard doing so as inviting a lynch mob to come get the pitchforks out. If an barman were to refuse to serve me a drink on account of being a “genocide supporter” I would be unsurprised to find that the barman had been awarded the freedom of the city and come to be venerated as a national hero. + +For Jews and Israelis, the Ireland of 2024 has come to feel like an especially menacing place, almost the stuff of nightmares. Its lush landscapes and the famous congeniality of its people embittered by the realisation that the _“land of a thousand welcomes”_ isn’t so welcoming to “our kind”. And in this aspect, yes, I see some things in Ireland that I don’t see elsewhere. + +In London, thousands march weekly in pro-Palestine demos. A minority of protesters engage in manifestations of blatant anti-Semitism. Their manpower might be stretched beyond its limits, but the Metropolitan Police make at least a token effort to bring individuals to justice. + +While British politicians critical of Israel are not short in number, they usually at least stop short of calling for the complete annihilation of Israel by means of “intifada” or state defiantly that “Israel does not have a right to defend itself, but Palestinians do.” Members of the parliament’s pro-Israel caucus can be counted on more than one hand. + +Were a member of national parliament to do these things, one would expect some degree of criticism. In Israel the sometimes unhinged rhetoric of radicals usually receives condemnation, often a round one. + +In Ireland things are not so. Jews and Israelis have drawn what I suggest to be a logical conclusion. That the country tolerates anti-Semitism and actively encourages all acts of hostility towards Israel. + +In the Irish orgy of hatred against the State of Israel, there’s barely a sector of society that doesn’t get involved. + +Ireland’s media, for one, is almost universally biased against The Jewish State. + +This week, Ireland’s basketball team is mulling the difficult question of whether to boycott playing Israel. The team is contemplating receiving a six figure fine simply to assert its privilege to refuse to play basketball against Israel's side. + +The chief of the basketball association has emerged as an opponent of the prospective boycott. But not because he finds the idea of boycotting a sporting team repulsive. But rather because he doesn’t think it would “help”: + +“What’s happening in Gaza is dreadful, we all acknowledge that,” John Feehan intoned. + +“[But] the issue is whether this is going to make a difference to the Israeli government and, quite frankly, we don’t believe this would make a blind bit of difference,” he said. + +There are groups of Irish sports fans “for Palestine” who exert pressure on everyone — like Robbie Keane — who doesn’t conform to their blanket criticisms of the actions of the Jewish State. + +Hundreds of Irish artists have signed onto a pledge committing them to indefinite BDS against Israel. Trade unions are at it too. Recently, a teachers “for Palestine” grouping has emerged and a collective of psychotherapists even felt the need to come together to announce their moralising opposition against Israel. + +Irish social media is a torrent of abuse and hatred hurled at the Jewish State and Jews generally often laced with transparent anti-Semitism. I get tagged alongside former Justice Minister Alan Shatter and the Israeli Embassy whenever people wish to remind Irish Jews of how disliked they are in Irish society. These are the penalties for “speaking out”. + +I believe it is factually correct (if depressing) to state that there is not one friend of Israel among the 160 legislators in Ireland’s lower house, Dáil Éireann. Zero. Pull out a spreadsheet. How can this be? + +The anti-Israelism stems from the top and makes it way down to party backbenchers. The only issue the Government and Opposition have to argue about regarding Israel is how critical they wish to be towards it. + +The chamber came close to passing a motion which would have forced the expulsion of the Israeli Ambassador. Perhaps it was reasoned that doing so would deprive the Gaza protests of one of their beloved slogans (“Israeli Ambassador: Out, Out, Out!”) + +Ireland’s Prime Minister was busy working in Brussels last week attempting to get a trade agreement between Israel and the EU revoked. With an air of sheepish curiosity, Varadkar said that Ireland was pushing to “investigate” whether the human rights clause merited that the treaty should be “reviewed”. You can guess the outcome the Irish are batting for. + +Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister — who has previously held himself out as a “friend” of Israel — intoned last week that Israel must be “held to account” for its war in Gaza before instructing legal officials in his department to consider whether Ireland could join South Africa in pursuing an absurd charge of genocide against Israel. + +A former Israeli diplomat posted to Ireland once expressed the view to me that Micheal Martin was _“one of the better ones”_ in a political sphere that can essentially be measured in degrees of hostility to Israel from “foaming at the mouth” to “only slightly virulently against us.” + +Measured against the diatribes of Richard Boyd Barrett Micheal Martin might indeed be “better.” + +But as they say, with friends like these, enemies are hardly needed at all. If Ireland’s perennial Israel bashing were actually an orgy one might even venture to say that it would be a bloody good one. + +So having already said more than I should, I’ll try to get around to the point: + +Not living in Ireland, I have the luxury of saying what I know more than a few to be thinking without waiting for a brick to fall through my window. I don’t take this for granted. + +Nobody in the pro-Israel community is expecting Ireland to become a beacon of support for the Jewish State. But I’m happy that we’re finally becoming a bit more gutsy in calling this unsettling national pastime of Israel-hating out for what it is: A perverse obsession whose roots are starting to look like all kinds of things that have nothing to do with a benevolent dedication to “human rights” (only in Israel, of course). + +But perhaps they could do us a couple of courtesies nevertheless: + +If you’re going to accuse us of being an _ethic cleansing genocidal regime_ (insert insult- we’ve heard them all), at least have the good grace to allow us to defend ourselves now and again from those ridiculous charges. + +And when the Mayor of your capital city gleefully refuses to meet our Ambassador before celebrating the presence of the Palestinian representative — who by the way has refused to condemn Hamas and their actions on October 7th — don’t be surprised if we come to regard you as simply hateful. + +[**Lord Mayor of Dublin u-turns on decision to hold meeting with Israeli ambassador next week** + _The Lord Mayor has written to the Israeli ambassador to Ireland to cancel the meeting._ www.thejournal.ie](https://www.thejournal.ie/lord-mayor-israeli-ambassador-meeting-6231031-Nov2023/ "https://www.thejournal.ie/lord-mayor-israeli-ambassador-meeting-6231031-Nov2023/")[](https://www.thejournal.ie/lord-mayor-israeli-ambassador-meeting-6231031-Nov2023/) + +When your largest county council decides to ban itself from purchasing goods or services from anybody who _supports_ Israel … anywhere on Earth … don’t be surprised when Israelis and Jews come to regard your insistence that _“we’re just against Zionism! We have nothing against Jews!”_ as a crock-full of lies now hanging out for the world to see and gawk at a little perplexed. + +And speaking of which, if you understand the first thing about the Jewish people, you’ll surely know that the BDS stickers which appeared in Irish supermarkets last week describing products as _“contaminated with Zionism”_ are grossly offensive to the vast majority of the world’s Jews. I hate to be the one to point out that these things are shocking and that the fact that they seem to be commonplace is in itself another kind of shocking. But they are. + +As I’m not the only one writing pieces like this, I know it seems that we’re “hating on Ireland” or reciprocating your fixation — and that this is all a massive form of deflection from your legitimate right to criticise the actions of our state. + +But we’re hard-pressed to find another country that’s doing a better job at proving to us that a significant chunk of anti-Israelism really isn’t about Israel. Or October 7th. Or Gaza. + +And one more request. This one in particular earnest. + +Please oh please stop trying to convince us — or even yourselves — that you’re “neutral”. The gaslighting is almost as bad as the hate train. + +When parts of the Arab world tell us that they hate us, they at least do it to our faces. If nothing else their honesty and transparency is a form of refreshing candor. If nothing else, you can perhaps learn the art of being direct from them. + +This hiding behind neutrality stuff is a form of gaslighting that has gone on way too long. + +You don’t get to say that you’re neutral while bringing the knives out at the EU. Or while proudly flying the flag of Palestine from your city halls the day after endorsing BDS and declaring your territory “Apartheid Free”. + +You’ve solidified your reputation as the most anti-Israel country in Europe. You’re moving up the national leaderboard now. So some honesty is well in order, we think. + +I won’t bore you with vague thoughts about karma that I’m not sure are even compatible with my religion. So I’ll just leave it at this. Actions have consequences. + +Even when you’re steadfastly sure that all this hatred of Israel will simply leave you with a pristine reputation for all eternity as the morally enlightened underdogs of the world who called out the horrible Jewish State out for the monstrosity that it is. Not everybody is enamoured by it. + +Anyway, that’s all I’ve got for tonight. + +It’s fun speaking ineffable truths sometimes. + +Even if they don’t earn you a paycheck from the Mossad. + +Or just give you a headache. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-I-ve-Stopped-Identifying-As-A--Freelance-Writer----Or-A-Writer-At-All.md b/posts/medium/Why-I-ve-Stopped-Identifying-As-A--Freelance-Writer----Or-A-Writer-At-All.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a44101f06bc9ece27caed826f5532b517378bf31 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-I-ve-Stopped-Identifying-As-A--Freelance-Writer----Or-A-Writer-At-All.md @@ -0,0 +1,215 @@ +# Why I’ve Stopped Identifying As A ‘Freelance Writer’ — Or A Writer At All + +#### Professionally, I’m Putting ‘Writer’ Behind My Other Trump Cards — For Good Reason. Why I Think The ‘Writer’ Label Can Be An Impediment To Taking On Serious Work. + +Journalism’s been cash-crunched. Content marketing is often undervalued. Where does that leave today’s crop of “writers” and aspiring ones? Photo by [Andrea Piacquadio](https://www.pexels.com/@olly?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/selective-focus-photo-of-person-writing-3807741/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +To most of my professional network, and friends, I’m _“Daniel the writer — who likes tech.”_ + +And though some of you may know me only digitally, it’s been that way for quite a while. + +Back when I was a law student, living in Ireland, I founded a news website to cover ongoings on my local campus, University College Cork (Cork Student News). + +It mushroomed until it became the second most visited student website in the country (this was back in those halcyon days when not _everything_ was on the internet). I sold the domain when I realized that while I _did_ have many dreams for my future, none of them involved being a grown-up university news magnate. + +The news site, however, had a pivotal impact upon the later direction of my career. + +I realized, belatedly, that my passion was for creativity and storytelling and not learning about the nuances of Irish case law. I loved interviewing even when it only meant speaking to a local politician about their views on an impending conferring fee. I loved writing and sitting down at a desk to hem my thoughts out — like I’m doing now. I loved, too, the technical aspects of learning about audio and video and how to use these formats to enrich the written word. I became immersed. + +As tends to happen with passions, what started as a sidebar increasingly became a real thing. I spent my first summer in university interning at IrishCentral.com, an Irish-American news website. I was sent on assignment to cover an Irish dancing contest in Orlando, Florida (no, really). And hung out in Irish-American bars in the Yonkers on similar pretexts. The first field use my first voice recorder saw was recording a speech given by Brian Cowen, a former prime minister of Ireland, while on a state visit to New York. + +I clicked with Niall O’Dowd and admired how a scrappy small team of Irish expats and locals managed to both keep the generational Irish-American community feel connected to the “homeland” while also serving as an informational source for those more fresh off the boat. The internship provided a great hands-on overview of professional news production (Irish Central also publishes a print paper and a magazine). More importantly, it provided encouragement to keep veering in this new direction. + +The momentum continued when I came back to Ireland. Through doing some post-internship reporting for Irish Central, and thus being eligible for a press card, I managed to receive admission to the press pool covering the first state visit of a British monarch to Ireland. The real one replete with stringers for the Wall Street Journal and undercover bodyguards who told you they were freelancing too (they just looked like they could bench press the podium). It all seemed a lot more interesting than trying to remember whether Donoghue or Stevenson drunk that ill-fated bottle of ginger beer. + +I went on to study journalism in the UK as a postgrad student which allowed me to make the acquaintance of a visiting student from the US who affirmed that we were _“cursed to be good writers.”_ We got back to drinking warm ale as journalism students are wont to do during their off-hours. I didn’t think anything about the remark. Ten years later, I think I finally get him. + +I came back to Ireland to write my thesis but ended up taking my first job running marketing communications for a [startup](http://ecanvasser.com). + +I left that job to move to Israel for no other reason than I felt that it was the right thing to do (if you want my whole take on that, watch the YouTube clip below). + +After a brief and inglorious stint as an Amazon customer service associate (my visa date to Israel got changed; I’d already quit my job), I finally hopped on a plane with about 40 KG worth of luggage in tow. And now I’m writing this post from an apartment in Jerusalem. + +I briefly attempted to rejoin the journalistic fold (although unlisted on my formal resume, I spent my first summer here copy-editing for the _Jerusalem Post_). Then, during a moment of mental sobriety, I determined that unless I developed a real taste for Ramen it was probably unviable to continue in journalism over the long term. Career-wise, I picked up where I left off running marketing communications for another startup. Some time later, I decided to part ways with my hitherto employer in order to “freelance,” having gathered enough clients on the side. Three years and some small iterations later, that’s roughly where I find myself today. + +### My Bitter Conclusion: For Most Professionals, Freelance Writing Simply Isn’t The Best Space To Be In + +I’ve been writing, professionally, for more than a decade. During the course of that time, you could say that I’ve written many things for many different people. Maybe that should be next party intro. It sounds suitably cryptic (I like cryptic). Some of those “things” have included: + + * Advertorials on behalf of government agencies trying to sell Americans on visiting Irish islands. + * A resolution granting honorary citizenship of a city (not really a “thing”, but whatever) to a famous author. + * Conference speeches for startup CEOs. Speeches for mayors. + * A clickbait article on what one’s best options for microwaving a burger might be once the munchies kicked in. The website tanked in a few months (this was one of my first “freelance content marketing clients.”) + * A pseudonymous book that went out of its way to offend its intended readership as a wacky publishing experiment. I pick up some small royalties from Amazon. I dream of both doing more extensive bylined publishing and of writing something much closer to my heart through the pseudonym device. + * Scripts for marketing videos. + * A couple of books accredited to other people. + * Way too many press releases, blog posts, white papers, and other manifestations of content marketing to possibly even try to remember. Seriously. Hundreds? Thousands? I’ve never counted. + * Geeky how-tos for how to most efficiently backup a Linux server. Thought pieces for Entrepreneur. Other journalistic output. The kind of hobby writing you’re reading now. + +Recognition? Success? + +I’ve been named as one of the top cybersecurity writers “out there” by a magazine in the space. One of the top SaaS writers too. I’ve paid my rent and bought some cool tech toys. I haven’t set foot in an office as a full time salaried staffer for three years. That’s more than I expected. + +I’ve also shared just about everything I’ve learned about freelance writing here on Medium as a way of open-sourcing what I’ve learned and trying to help others navigate these sometimes choppy waters. + +[**Open Sourcing Isn’t Just For Code — The Value Of Sharing Know-How Even When (Almost) Nobody Is…** + _Why I Believe In Posting About Obscure Topics That I Know Few People Care About_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/open-sourcing-isnt-just-for-code-the-value-of-sharing-know-how-even-when-almost-nobody-is-bfdafba1aaf2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/open-sourcing-isnt-just-for-code-the-value-of-sharing-know-how-even-when-almost-nobody-is-bfdafba1aaf2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/open-sourcing-isnt-just-for-code-the-value-of-sharing-know-how-even-when-almost-nobody-is-bfdafba1aaf2) + +I receive the odd email of thanks and it’s satisfying to know that what I’ve written there has helped people trying to figure it all out. + +So it’s nice to have helped. But I think I’m just about done with branding myself as a writer. At least as a commercial one. + +[**Freelance Writing** + _Everything about the art and craft of running a freelance writing business including client management, growth…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing "https://medium.com/freelance-writing")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing) + +### If You Want To Capture The Extent Of The Value You Bring To Your Clients, Writing’s Typically A Pretty Bad Way To Go About Doing That + +The problem with doing an awful lot of writing is that your reputation as a “writer” becomes so deeply entrenched that it becomes an uphill battle to shift out of that mold. A career straitjacket of sorts. If you already have a foreboding that writing’s going to be a difficult trajectory, then that’s something worth keeping in mind. + +But why might you want to shift gears in the first place? Let me keep going and I’ll get there. + +I’ve talked here about the value of inbound marketing. I stand by all that verbiage. It really works and writing about that (as intended) has landed me work (thereby further demonstrating that it works!) + +But (to state the obvious) how you brand yourself matters immensely. + +These days, I receive a somewhat steady stream of inbound queries. Last week Germany. The previous week Singapore. They both wanted a writer. + +Pick up referrals? Open up the email and you’ll see the dreaded first line: _“I’d like to introduce you to Daniel, a writer we’ve worked with.”_ Burn the email! + +For those really interested, I could explain that a lot of the things I’ve done professionally (and do for clients at the present) actually have nothing to do with writing — say, setting up marketing automation funnels for one (lest you need a reminder, I’m geeky). That about half my clients last year weren’t writing clients but rather marketing communications clients — and that writing is only typically a _component_ of that. + +But that’s not what a busy agency account manager wants to here. They need a box ticked. That’s nice. But stop confusing us. We need somebody to write our blog posts. You’re a writer, no? We can offer $300 for that post. + +The problem? That’s no longer the type of work I want to be taking on. I’ve graduated and aspire towards greater accomplishments than following your prescription (I mean, brief). And I’d imagine that most long term content marketers (or however you wish to self-describe) will end up feeling that way too. Perhaps within just a few years. + +Problem 2? Cohesive branding can be surprisingly difficult to budge. Particularly when you’ve done things like write guides on how to _brief_ those dreaded entities called … freelance writers (the ‘FW’s from hereonin). + +[**How to Brief Freelance Writers Like a Pro** + _On any given week, I receive anywhere a number of briefs for pieces of writing from clients. On any given day, my home…_ www.business2community.com](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261 "https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261")[](https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-brief-freelance-writers-like-a-pro-02366261) + +So what’s with all the heartache? + +Well, here’s the central problem with writing and being a writer. The elephant in the middle of the idea of making this work as a long term career. + +Writers are massively undervalued. In fact, even finding spaces that will actually _pay_ you to write isn’t even that easy. So if you’re an undervalued content marketer, you can at least take solace in the fact that you made it to the second rung. + +Journalism is tanking (or has tanked) and so many writers have wound up on the “dark side” of comms. + +Don’t get me wrong. You _can_ make a reasonable living doing those careers in-house (I did!). But most of the difficulties I’m describing here relate to attempting to graft what you’ve learned in journalism onto the world of freelance writing. These are the dark areas on the Doppler that you’ll want to navigate around. + +Rate pressure is, in my view, the central problem. It’s a pernicious erosive force beating away at the freelance writing community and their ability to keep what they do viable. And it doesn’t square at all with the notion that good writing requires good pay. + +### Is The Freelance Writing Market Actually Getting Worse For Writers? + +Some more observations: + +Not only do I not see this trend going anywhere. I see it taking on problematic new contours. + +Let’s take the technology sector. + +Those who don’t work in the industry assume that everything touched by technology is golden. Don’t get me wrong (again)— there’s absolutely lots of money to be made by interacting with the space. But here’s what I’ve also learned. The _level_ you engage at makes an enormous difference — actually it flips the whole thing on its head. Sorry to be so Machiavellian. But I’ve got rent to pay and I don’t particularly like Ramen. + +Tech journalism? + +A few months ago I was speaking to one of the leading tech websites based in the US about writing some evergreen articles for them. I liked the thought of the byline. But I couldn’t bring myself to write for the compensation. About $100 per article. I won’t name some of the other rates I’ve been paid. It typically made less than content marketing. + +I have relatively deep knowledge about a few specific areas in tech that are really borne out of personal experimentation and interest. Linux. Backups. I’ve had clients in just about all these spaces- and more. The overarching freelancing drumbeat is to niche down. Make supply and demand work in your favor. But even here one encounters the same troublesome dynamics I alluded to above. + +In a globalized freelancing marketplace, one in which Upwork is always only one click away, even being able to write about relatively obscure topics doesn’t necessarily command a premium. Over the last couple of years, I’ve noticed companies making increasingly odd demands, many of which have even seemed outlandish. I’ve been unable to meet some of them. But I also wonder who they find after their quest? And how the compensation being offered might entice them to take on the gig. + +> _Prospect:_ + +> _“We need a writer with deep experience writing about Dev-Ops and who has great samples to share preferably from a global brand. But we also need somebody who’s done some work with clients in Asia.”_ + +> _Clients:_ + +> _“Perhaps before we go any further take a look at my rates card.”_ + +> _Prospect:_ + +> _“What’s this!? Our budget is about $100 per piece.”_ + +Earlier this year, I dealt with a company which had just raised $10M+ funding rounds attempting to haggle $100 off a writing project. It was a catalyst moment that prompted another valuable conversation with another marketer: what’s up with this? How can this be? What’s going on? + +My friend had answers — or at least opinions. In his view, writing simply isn’t regarded as “higher order” work and I hate to say this but I agree entirely. My opinion is what I’m trying to get across in this post. Sadly it’s mostly this: in an industry that grossly undervalues writers and often treats them dismally too, to get ahead, don’t be a writer. You can still write. But tweak what you do. And how you describe it. + +### Done With Being The Writer Guy (Or Gal)? Here Are Some Alternative Paths And Labels + +Writing has always been what I’ve enjoyed doing — although my job titles have stated that I managed marketing communications on behalf of clients. These fields, for what it’s worth, involve _lots_ of writing (for PR, that depends a little upon what you do). + +[**Marketing Communications (MarCom): What We Actually Do Within Marketing Teams** + _There are career guide descriptions of what marketing communications professionals do. But here’s how I’ve experienced…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/marketing-communications-marcom-what-we-actually-do-within-marketing-teams-10c30a3f1b6c "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/marketing-communications-marcom-what-we-actually-do-within-marketing-teams-10c30a3f1b6c")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/marketing-communications-marcom-what-we-actually-do-within-marketing-teams-10c30a3f1b6c) + +The trick I’ve found is to talk about this without drawing much attention to … you know …. that time you took to your keyboard to actually hem out a press release. Don’t speak of that ghastly activity that begins with ‘w’ and ends in ‘-ing’. That’s peasant work! + +Tell them about how you took the company’s messaging and solidified it into a press release and who you worked with and what the process was and how you identified pitching targets and what kind of coverage you achieved and how these “slammed” their KPIs. Just don’t discuss the ‘d’ word (the drafting). + +I can’t tell you that I’ve uncovered the secret to career success yet. + +Or even to making it in self-employment as an independent/self-employed marketer. + +But I can tell you that shifting my business — and how I lead conversations — away from my writing experience and onto how I, say, advised a company to rearchitect its messaging has had a vastly positive impact so far. + +Different conversations. Different numbers. Different clients who even relate to me differently. Better and more productive working experiences. They may _involve_ writing projects. But it seems that so long as they’re not framed _around_ it and I’m not introduced to the client as the “content writer” (note: please don’t ever call me that; I had a call recently where I was intro-d using that dreaded combo and I was tempted to abort). The outcomes are vastly different as well as the line items clients are happy to sign off on for the invoice. + +And honestly: while it represents progress for me, it also makes me a little bit sad. + +Understanding messaging is integral to corporate writing. + +Writers — even those who haven’t had direct experience doing anything else — are often in a good position to make intelligent suggestions about both that and other aspects of branding and communications. + +The thinkers of the marketing world commonly execute. But whether you place emphasis on the thinking that you did (strategy) or the execution (writing) has a massive influence on how you’re paid. + +Far too many in the marketing world — both in agencies and in-house at companies — see freelance writers as the occupiers of the lowest rung on the totem pole. The mere executors there to follow instructions. + +A branding consultant or PR consultant or generalist strategist might comfortably make a few thousand dollars plotting out the key messaging targets for a series of blog posts (or far more than this). But the writer is liable to face pushback if he points out that $200 isn’t a viable budget for a blog post. It’s what’s left over from the actual process we ascribed value to that produced the vision for what we’re trying to communicate. We just need you to execute these bullet points. If you could throw in a discount that would be even better. + +It’s true that this dynamic is worse in some parts of the world than others — at least that’s what I’ve encountered. But I’ve also noticed certain commonalities that transcend geographical divisions. + +I would love to say that us writers should bond together to try to change this. But honestly, I think it’s too late for that. The ship has sailed. The industry may not have quite capsized yet but it’s become so difficult to survive in that it’s become exhausting to attempt to do so. And thankless. + +We’ve got a few fall-guys for this state of affairs. + +Low barriers to entry. + +The fact that anybody can call themselves a writer and that in an era when many clients think that SEO is just about hitting keywords a sizable chunk of the market couldn’t really care less about quality. + +Fall guy two: other writers. + +There will always be somebody willing to write for less or who will play the volume game to their financial success (low rate, high volume; common niche, SEO work). But for true writers, this kind of paradigm towards success is anathema. If that’s what writing has become — or the only way to make it work — then perhaps it’s time to do more. And rebrand accordingly. We didn’t get into writing to do _this_(SEO post about microwaving burgers, I’m absolutely looking at you). + +Speaking of that, this summer I finally began the slow process of rebranding _myself_. The process is tedious and slow and I do it in fits and spurts between actual work. By the way, this piece isn’t part of the effort. This is for other writers navigating the same changes. + +The good news is that I’ve started. It’s a deliberate process. And it represents the fact that my long term outlook for freelance writing isn’t rosey. We need to branch out. And if the world doesn’t see much value in what we do, we need to find other ways to show what we know we’re capable of. + +I may still love writing — it’s why I feel drawn to do things like write out this blog post even though I’m technically supposed to be done with work for the day. + +But I have more of my career ahead of me than behind. + +I’m not going to spend it fighting an industry that seems to be rife with exploitation and under-pay. That would be a waste of potential. I have bigger dreams than changing how marketers perceive writers and better things to do than push back on asks to discount my rate than $100. + +There are glimmers of light on the other side of this process. + +I love when clients understand the value I can bring to their businesses as a marketing communications consultant and send me briefs — I mean projects — that allow me to shine where I can. + +It’s the kind of thing I’ve been doing quietly for years. But I bought into the idea that specialization is king and that (in my conversations, in my marketing) I should play up my writing experience and downplay the other things I do and have done. In retrospect, that was probably a very big mistake. + +One other result of this process? + +If a client asks me whether I’m taking on new clients or whether I’m interested in a referral I have to make what probably seems like an unusual request. + +Please don’t mention anything about writing, good sir or madam. If you absolutely must then please reserve it for the last paragraph + +In fact, please don’t use the word ‘writer’. You can mention that I did some good writing for you but don’t call me a writer. + +And under absolutely no circumstance ever use ‘content’ and ‘writer’ in juxtaposition because that makes me sound like I’ll write yer old blog post for $20 while watching late night TV and sipping Ramen out of a plastic bowl (plastic … the bowl absolutely has to be plastic). Yuck! + +Leave ‘freelance’ off the email if you can, too. + +Please and thank you. + +It’s better communications, you know. + +Better branding. + +Maybe I’m a marketer after all. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Inbound-Marketing-Is-Amazing-For-Freelancers--And-Freelance-Writers--39d195f693.html.md b/posts/medium/Why-Inbound-Marketing-Is-Amazing-For-Freelancers--And-Freelance-Writers--39d195f693.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..55b2dce5ab5b0d6bfaa43cb30bb268d4c79156de --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Inbound-Marketing-Is-Amazing-For-Freelancers--And-Freelance-Writers--39d195f693.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,66 @@ +# Why Inbound Marketing Is Amazing For Freelancers (And Freelance Writers) + +#### Some advantages inbound marketing has to offer for micro business units + +Inbound marketing: leveraging the power of digital magnetism to attract freelance writing clients. Photo: BJU Press Blog (Creative Commons) + +The most significant business pivot I’ve made probably since I started freelancing is shifting from an outbound-first marketing methodology to an inbound-first one. + +Think a lot less cold emailing (I don’t miss it!) and a lot more blog post writing. + +My inbound marketing efforts haven’t always been as focused or strategic as they could be (for those wondering, nothing I write about freelancing is part of that strategy!). But they have already begun to pay dividends in the form of a steady trickle of leads into my marketing and sales pipeline. + +For those not au-fait with the marketing vocab. I blog, podcast, and YouTube about my ghostwriting business. Now some people find me through the internet. + +Inbound marketing is powerful for many businesses. But I think that it holds some unique advantages for those at the most diminutive level of scale: the solo freelancers of this world. + +### It Works While You Sleep + +As solo business units we have to be very judicious about how we spend our time. + +In freelance writing, time is money. That hour you spent trying to track down the contact email for a prospective client could be spent doing your taxes, issuing your monthly invoices, or …. you know, actually writing. + +**Against this constant backdrop of “a lot to do, not a lot of time to do it in,” inbound marketing provides an excellent solution that allows writers to get more done marketing-wise … while they sleep (literally).** + +How does that work exactly? + +Cold email pitching — a mainstay of some freelance writers’ client acquisition approaches — diminishes in value rapidly over time. You send out your pitch and it either sparks interest or it doesn’t. And if it doesn’t, it’s likely to quickly become deluged under a pile of more time-sensitive email. + +Inbound marketing assets — like blogs — increase in value over time. Your website increases in SEO value. You gain subscribers and followers and your audience grows. + +For freelance writers short on time but high on …. urgent priorities, inbound marketing is an ideal way to get your daily marketing done without you actually doing anything at all. + +Want to learn more about inbound? Hubspot’s certification is a great starting point and also a fitting accolade to sport as a freelance writer, particularly if content marketing rather than journalism is your jam. + +[**Courses & Lessons | HubSpot Academy** + _In this free certification course, you'll learn the fundamentals of inbound marketing, from content creation and social…_ academy.hubspot.com](https://academy.hubspot.com/courses/inbound-marketing "https://academy.hubspot.com/courses/inbound-marketing")[](https://academy.hubspot.com/courses/inbound-marketing) + +### It Can Dredge Up Surprisingly Big Fish + +Pitching medium to large organizations can be extremely tricky. + +Trying to land Microsoft as a client for your (solo) freelance writing business? + +Believe me, if they work with freelance writers at all making that sell without a warm introduction is going to be a massively uphill challenge. + +One of the particular beauties of inbound marketing for freelancers and other micro business units is that it can allow you to punch vastly above your weight when it comes to client acquisition. + +Why? + +Because the world of organic SEO is a beautiful meritocracy of sorts. If you know what you’re doing and how to rank for keywords, you can manage to steer traffic away from agencies with waay more budget for you. + +The result? Using inbound marketing it’s possible to capture some really oversized clients. Even as a humble solo freelance writer. + +### It’s Sustainable + +I don’t know about you (fellow freelance writer on Medium), but I find that writing is a energy and focus sapping endeavor. + +So is cold pitching and managing digital advertising spends in a way that attempts to score ROI without sapping vast amounts of budget. + +At some point the prospect of sitting on a beach while sipping from a cold beer / cocktail is going to sound a lot more appetizing than fishing for the email address at your latest prospect or trying to work out their internal email structure using Hunter. + +Another facet of inbound marketing that I love as a freelance writer is the fact that it’s sustainable. + +As mentioned previously, assets like blogs and podcasts are — to an extent — evergreen. This doesn’t mean that you don’t need to update the content you publish to keep it fresh and relevant or keep your audience engaged. But you have more leeway than you do with cold pushes. + +Inbound marketing is the gift that can keep giving. Both when you’re at the coalface working on more compelling writing to attract leads and when you finally manage to take some well-deserved rest and relaxation. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Ireland-is-trying-to-learn-Israel-s-COVID-vaccine-playbook.md b/posts/medium/Why-Ireland-is-trying-to-learn-Israel-s-COVID-vaccine-playbook.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..40630e47b3ad1c00d28ff5d817ebd6068f4b96d4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Ireland-is-trying-to-learn-Israel-s-COVID-vaccine-playbook.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# Why Ireland is trying to learn Israel’s COVID vaccine playbook + +#### Israel’s vaccine campaign has been quick and dirty. But effective. + +My phone (and email) have been buzzing over the past few days with messages from radio show hosts and producers in Ireland who are eager to hear what living in Israel is like as the country rolls out its vaccination program, which is currently the fastest in the world. + +My interview with PJ Coogan on Cork’s 96FM last week: + +[**PODCAST EXTRA - Life After COVID-19 Cork Man Daniel In Israel | Cork's 96fm Opinion Line on Acast** + _Israel has the most people vaccinated in the world and is starting to lift restrictions. But how does that work? Does…_ play.acast.com](https://play.acast.com/s/corks-96-fm-opinion-line/podcastextra-lifeaftercovid-19corkmandanielinisrael "https://play.acast.com/s/corks-96-fm-opinion-line/podcastextra-lifeaftercovid-19corkmandanielinisrael")[](https://play.acast.com/s/corks-96-fm-opinion-line/podcastextra-lifeaftercovid-19corkmandanielinisrael) + +I shared some thoughts with the _Irish Independent_ [here.](https://www.independent.ie/world-news/coronavirus/i-cant-wait-to-have-my-first-pint-meet-the-irish-expats-in-israel-ready-to-resume-normality-40153545.html) + +Usually, whenever Israel is brought up in Ireland it’s in relation to the conflict with its neighbors in the Arab world. + +But the Irish media landscape and Twittersphere has been buzzing to a different tune over the past few weeks (_mostly_ ; the issue of how Israel has handled Palestinian vaccinations has also cropped up with predictable regularity). + +Everybody, it seems, is interested to know how Israel managed to rollout its vaccine delivery program at record speed. + +Why the fascination? + +Firstly, in this respect at least, Israel is an excellent case study to follow. + +Israel has now vaccinated more than 50% of its population with a first dose* — with more than 4.5 million citizens vaccinated. (These figures are lagging). + +[**Health Ministry: In latest milestone, over 50% Israelis vaccinated with 1st dose** + _Just over half of Israel's population has had at least a first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, the…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/health-ministry-in-latest-milestone-over-50-israelis-vaccinated-with-1st-dose/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/health-ministry-in-latest-milestone-over-50-israelis-vaccinated-with-1st-dose/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/health-ministry-in-latest-milestone-over-50-israelis-vaccinated-with-1st-dose/) + +By comparison, Ireland is still well short of administering one million vaccinations: + +Ireland’s COVID-19 vaccination figures at the time of writing, numbering a little over half a million. Source: Cork Independent via Twitter. + +On a per-capita basis, Israel beats out not just Ireland but …. right now, the entire world: + +Other reasons for this unusual wave of fascination with Israel: + + * **Ireland and Israel both have relatively small populations.** Ireland’s population is a tiny bit shy of 5 million. Israel has roughly 9 million citizens. In other words, Israel has roughly double Ireland’s population. + * **Ireland and Israel, geographically, are both relatively small countries** + +But most significantly, Israel is quite significantly ahead of Ireland in terms of its vaccine rollout. Thus, the Irish are looking to Israel — with its vaunted high-tech prowess and its nimble size — as a possible bellweather for what might be to come there. + +In this respect, Israel is at the bleeding edge of the opening up experiment — the perfect status for a startup nation that’s famous for its tendency to do things on the fly. Ireland’s rollout will be slower but it gets to learn the lessons from the Beta test pool. + +Epidemiologists are keeping a close eye on developments. But those managing public health drives will also be looking to see how, in particular, how Israel handles its green tag system from a technological perspective. + +Ireland has committed to a high state of lockdown that will last until April 5th. That gives the country a month to learn from the international experience — including that of Israel — to prepare for its own easing of restrictions. + +When it comes to its vaccine rollout, my guess is that certain factors have given Israel a decisive advantage, particularly vis-a-vis Ireland. + +These are simply my beliefs from time living in both countries. + +(I grew up in Ireland and moved to Israel six years ago). + +### Israeli Healthcare Is Both Centralized And Electronic + +In Israel, every citizen is required to belong to one of four health maintenance organizations (HMOs; Hebrew: kupot holim). + +The HMOs are responsible for providing essentially all front-line medical services including GP services, specialist services, medical imaging and diagnostics, and treatment. + +There _is_ private/supplementary health insurance in Israel. But the bulk of medical services are provided through the HMOs. More presciently, everybody — employed or otherwise — needs to be a paid up member of a HMO. + +Each HMO operates a national infrastructure of clinics and the various HMOs have tie-ins to different hospitals. + +The most striking feature of healthcare in Israel — from an Irish perspective — is the extent to which it is electronic. + +The second most striking feature is how quickly everything works: I was recently able to book an appointment with a pulmonologist, for my asthma, in less than a week (although some specialists take longer). The system is used to working quickly. + +By logging into my HMO’s website, I can do everything from book a GP’s appointment to view and print out my latest blood tests to see a complete history of every doctor’s appointments including prescriptions issued. + +The same system appears to have made it very easy for the HMOs to quickly roll out a triage system for administering the vaccinations. All you had to do was click a button to book your appointment. SMS messages and emails were used to notify members when they were eligible to receive their first dose. + +An online menu from the Macabbi HMO for booking vaccine appointments (in Hebrew). Screenshot: author. + +Therefore, when it came to rolling out the online infrastructure necessary to support the mass booking of vaccination appointments, relative to Ireland, Israel was at a massive advantage in two respects: + + * **Almost every citizen already had access to an online medical system.** Each HMO only needed to develop a bolt-on to its platform for booking appointments. + * **Information was centralized in four bodies rather than hundreds — more likely thousands — of GP surgeries.** Each HMO rolled out its vaccination program triage slightly differently. But it wasn’t hard to follow updates on when [your HMO] was beginning to offer vaccines. Information — and IT — was already centralized. + +Israel’s widespread use of electronic medical records (EMRs) was instrumental in another important respect: it allowed the country to cut a data-for-vaccines _quid pro quo_ agreement with Pfizer. Its system was already equipped for the collection — and anonymizing — of medical data. + +Israel was able to leverage its small size, the fact that it was primed to aggregate and analyze anoymized data, and the fact that it served as a perfect test case to its advantage. + +[Details on Israel’s Pfizer deal: NPR.](https://www.npr.org/2021/01/31/960819083/vaccines-for-data-israels-pfizer-deal-drives-quick-rollout-and-privacy-worries) + +**My vaccine certificate displayed in my HMO’s website** + +My digital coronavirus vaccine certificate (private details redacted). As available through my HMO’s website. + +### Other Factors That May Have Influenced Israel’s Success + +What else do I think has made a difference? + +Here are my amateur hunches: + + * **Logistical excellence:** As a country that has had to develop extensive know-how in the fields of logistics and home front operations, Israel was primed to be able to roll out a vaccine effort as expeditiously as possible mobilizing whatever resources were necessary to make things work. The country has done everything in its power to roll out vaccines to its citizens including using its foreign intelligence agency to procure PPE and other supplies when needed. Israel is used to having to fight its own corner. + * **Geopolitics:** Unlike Ireland, Israel isn’t a European Union (EU) member state. It has been unencumbered by cross-jurisdictional politics when planning its rollout, although there has been plenty of dissent internally. + * **Tech prowess:** Israel is a smartphone-addicted nation and the tech hub of the Middle East. It has been willing to use whatever technical systems it had at its disposal to better its management of the pandemic. This has included — controversially — using its internal intelligence agency to track citizens’ smartphones and, more recently, quickly developing a smartphone application to support its green passport scheme. + +As is well known, Ireland and Israel have a tumultuous relationship on the political level. + +Despite that, many in Ireland are looking to Israel for cues in how to handle its own response to the pandemic. + +In this response, Israel might provide a good role-model. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Israel-s-Self-Righteous-Reaction-To-Its-Border-Police-Officers-Makes-Me-Vaguely-Uncomfortable.md b/posts/medium/Why-Israel-s-Self-Righteous-Reaction-To-Its-Border-Police-Officers-Makes-Me-Vaguely-Uncomfortable.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9cb8fc5d92a96bfc605738974b2e469b22ce83df --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Israel-s-Self-Righteous-Reaction-To-Its-Border-Police-Officers-Makes-Me-Vaguely-Uncomfortable.md @@ -0,0 +1,51 @@ +# Why Israel’s Self-Righteous Reaction To Its Border Police Officers Makes Me Vaguely Uncomfortable + +#### Posing with sweets the day after killing a terrorist — even if justified — is just kinda gory + +Yesterday afternoon in Jerusalem, at a place marked by repeated violence, a Palestinian assailant, who was in Israel illegally, stabbed an ultra-Orthodox Jew on his way back from prayers. Although his condition was initially reported as serious, the victim is thankfully making a recovery. + +Swiftly, upon sighting the now familiar sight, Border Police officers swung into action. A video freely available online showed that the subject was incapacitated and lying on the ground when the police discharged more rounds, thereby killing him. + +Given that the gory moment was captured on video, it sparked a national debate that soon spread around the world. + +Briefly, the moment was compared to the Hebron shooting incident involving Elor Azaria. Charges of extrajudicial murder swiftly pored in from predictable sources. + +Prime Minister Naftali Bennett was at the helm of standing up for the soldiers, releasing a statement in support of their action. But it was the pictures that appeared in the media later in the day that made me more uncomfortable. In the interest of furthering debate about what an appropriate Jewish response to actions like this should look like, I offer the following. + +### Posing For The Press The Day After Taking A Human Life Is In Bad Taste + +Lest this blog post be misunderstood in any way, I am glad that the terrorist involved in yesterday’s incident was apprehended, even though lethal means were ultimately used. Attacks against innocent civilians are indefensible. + +I also, however, have no experience in the realm of combat or anything related to the military. For me to comment upon whether the use of live fire was justified here would be as bad as taking an opinion on something related to the pandemic. I’m not an epidemiologist so I try not to do this. But I am a human. Prime Minister Bennett’s admonition against judging decisions taken in a flash of adrenaline from an armchair sounds prescient to my ears. + +Nevertheless, when it comes to defending lethal action taken to prevent further terrorism, I believe that defending those actions as justified is about as far as we should take things. + +Celebration, in my opinion, is already a step too far. Even if doing so appears to be the Israeli way. I believe that the taking of human life, even when justifies, calls for a measure of solemnity that is sorely lacking from the images distributed by the Border Police. + +Today, the above image began circulating through Israeli news outlets. Judging by the caption it was a handout from the Border Police spokesperson itself. + +It shows the two soldiers — whose faces are censored — posing alongside the commander of the Border Police and another officer. The force’s commander, Amir Cohen, is faintly smiling. + +Another photograph — shared on another media outlet (above)— shows the pair being embraced by another unnamed member of the force. The two can be seen clutching _sufganiyot_ the fried donuts that are popular during Chanukkah. + +I find that all vaguely unsettling. As I do the reaction. + +For the act of subduing a stabber by shooting him to death — an act that clearly has been deemed at least somewhat dubious — the pair have been branded as nothing less than national heroes. + +According to the force’s commander, Amir Cohen: + +“You acted with determination, quick-thinking and professionalism to prevent the terrorist from harming you and other civilians in the area,” Cohen told the officers. Israel Police Commissioner heaped the praise on quicker, calling the pair “two heroes.” + +Here’s my viewpoint again. It may be eminently unpopular. But I’d like to put it out there anyway. + +Virtually everybody can agree that subduing an knife-wielding terrorist was a proper response. Some may disagree about whether the use of lethal force was justified in this case. + +Nevertheless, “לא תשמח בנפול אויבך” (do not rejoice upon the downfall of your enemy) is one of the Torah’s precepts. I always understood it as being closely allied with the prohibition against taking revenge. + +We can defend the actions of the two Border policemen without going on a self-righteous orgy of praise about their “heroic” swiftness. The life of a subdued attacker was snuffed out on video in a clip that much of the world has now seen. + +When we Jews see photographs of Palestinians celebrating the killing of innocent civilians with the handing out of sweets and launching of fireworks we are rightly revolted. It’s sick. It’s perverse. And it shows the ugliness of exactly the kind of thing the Torah prohibits. + +For that reason, I don’t believe that distributing smiling photographs to the media of the two policemen who less than 24 hours previously took the life of another human is in good taste or appropriate. And especially not the one of them being handed sweets on base. + +It’s needlessly callous. It’s in bad taste. And I don’t believe that it accords with good Jewish values or tradition. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-It-Sometimes-Makes-Sense-To-NOT-Blog-On-Your-Own-Platform.md b/posts/medium/Why-It-Sometimes-Makes-Sense-To-NOT-Blog-On-Your-Own-Platform.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ffc1e8aaaaf1684c893b9b92aa9202c81ce9b61e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-It-Sometimes-Makes-Sense-To-NOT-Blog-On-Your-Own-Platform.md @@ -0,0 +1,141 @@ +# Why It Sometimes Makes Sense To NOT Blog On Your Own Platform + +#### There are some significant reasons why it actually makes more sense to distribute content marketing over non-owned channels like Medium + +Building your own digital castle isn’t always the best or only approach to blogging. Photo by [Iain](https://www.pexels.com/@iain-1191393?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/old-medieval-ruins-of-dunluce-castle-on-ocean-coast-in-northern-ireland-famous-place-in-uk-2350368/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Periodically, potential clients ask the _“where should we be blogging?”_ question. + +I’ve covered this question in details here before. With charts. And stuff. + +But really: if you’re into SEO, technology, and want a run-down of the pros and cons of distributing via owned, non-owned, editorial, and non-editorial channels (this is my favored breakdown), consider checking out the below: + +[**Where Should I Create My Business Content: Blog, Website, Or Social Media?** +_A quick rule for where to post your content on the internet_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/where-should-i-create-my-business-content-blog-website-or-social-media-a4d5fee3adfe) + +Here’s that chart I mentioned which is the breakdown I typically use to plan content distribution strategies for clients. + +I need to _think_ about whatever potential distribution channel has to offer from SEO and technical standpoints before deciding what the best use is for any given business. + +Then, I advise upon things like what offsite:onsite ratio makes the most sense. Sometimes, I even direct clients towards specific hosting solutions. + +I’ve also explained, more recently, why the recent Facebook outage actually _doesn’t_ mean that you shouldn’t post there. + +This is a simplistic solution to draw from a small piece of downtime. There are lessons there about redundancy that are much more valuable. + +[**No, The Facebook Outage Doesn’t Mean We Should Avoid Creating “On Rented Land”** + _The Digital Prepper’s Perspective: Everything On The Internet Is A Risk. Facebook’s Outage Is Just A Reminder About How…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/no-the-facebook-outage-doesnt-mean-we-should-avoid-creating-on-rented-land-8e3cb5b3a439 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/no-the-facebook-outage-doesnt-mean-we-should-avoid-creating-on-rented-land-8e3cb5b3a439")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/no-the-facebook-outage-doesnt-mean-we-should-avoid-creating-on-rented-land-8e3cb5b3a439) + +But mostly, the incident just reaffirms what people like [Joe Pulizzi](https://medium.com/u/1a20e5e98a31) (and lesser known mortals like I) have been saying all along: Don’t _build_ your content empire on non-owned channels like social media. Syndicate to them. + +If you do that, things like your social media channels disappearing from the internet for a few hours will never be more than minor annoyances. + +Achieving internet resources that actually _are_ incredibly reliable (five nines high availability etc) is massively expensive and complicated. You got it (Facebook) for free. It will probably go down now and again. It’s still not a bad deal so long as you set your expectations about what it can offer accordingly. + +They’re great places to amplify and develop audiences, sure. And frankly, as it doesn’t cost anything to use them, it makes sense to tack however many think you can competently manage onto your content distribution plan (just don’t overstretch yourself because if you can’t keep up engagement it will end up _hurting_ your brand.) + +That means that you can have your cake and eat the pie too… or whatever that dang saying is. + +All that being said, you may be looking at me like a massive hypocrite right now. + +Dude … don’t YOU blog on Medium? Am I not reading this piece on MEDIUM DOT COM? + +Why yes, I do. I have my own (owned) blog too — a few of them, in fact. And yet I’ve barely posted there in two years. Here’s why. + +### For 99% Of People, Other People Manage Web Infrastructure More Competently Than They Can + +I’ve mentioned here, lots of times, that I use Reddit quite actively. + +Over the years, I’ve found two main uses for Reddit: + + * Discussing … mental health issues (Reddit is great if you want to stay anonymous online while still connecting with other humans) + * Discussing technology + +I dabble in home networking and doing things like creating internet connections that stand little chance of going down. + +[**How To: Set Up A Cellular-Backed Highly Available Home Internet Connection** + _An owned hardware solution for setting up ISP connectivity with cellular failover for high availability home networking…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-set-up-a-budget-home-internet-network-with-backup-cellular-connectivity-ad5ab3740da5) + +But you know who knows about 100 times more about networking than I do: your average professionals systems administrator (sysadmin). Even one fresh out of college. OK, almost certainly also your average first year computer science student. I’m a mere marketer who likes to geek out on this stuff. + +That being said, let me recount, in short, the history of cloud computing: + +Back in the bad old days, every business used to sort of operates its own mini data center and provisioned computing resources there. That was called “on premises” because … well, the tech was literally stored at their business premises. + +In these more enlightened times we have collectively realized that it makes more sense to split things up. (This is actually, incidentally, the basis upon which international trade is founded. Let every country (or company) focus on whatever it does best.) + +So instead of duplicating thousands of mini data centers we let companies like AWS and Google and Microsoft manage big old clouds. This generally means that we can operate much more reliable tech. At that level of scale, these monoliths can afford to set up crazy networking architectures encompassing everything from load balancing to high availability to ensure that stuff …like your blog…. almost never goes ‘down’. + +And we just get involved at the operating system or software layer once everything has already been set up (Iaas, Paas or SaaS depending upon how deeply you want to get involved.) + +Because companies like Amazon and Google are massive and filled with really smart people, they can also do a much better job at keeping infrastructure online than we can. This is simply economies of scale in action. + +Doesn’t that mean that you should do something like install Ghost on something like Digital Ocean? Probably. But you can take baby steps to get to the deep end of the pool. Start with SaaS. + +Your average SaaS product — Medium is just a SaaS publishing tool — is probably: + + * Faster + * More secure + * More reliable + +Then anything you could set up yourself. + +At least on cloud infrastructure that’s really easy to set up- such as shared hosting. + +### Worried About Adversaries And Arch Blog Nemeses? Blog On A Shared Platform To Make Yourself Harder To Target + +This one is pretty niche and not likely to apply to many but let me have a go at it anyway. + +Running your own website brings with it some _slight_ risks. More so if you operate your website on dedicated rather than shared infrastructure. + +You become a clearly distinguishable target. One website. One IP (or IP range). + +What am I talking about in concrete? + +Things like: + + * DDoS attacks + * Simple hacking attempts + +When we shift from managing our own infrastructure to using infrastructure managed by somebody else, we also shift the burden of keeping that infrastructure secure onto their shoulders. + +We’re also widening the attack surface from our unique IP to … every device on a whole network full of them. Wide attack surfaces make hackers’ jobs harder. + +Yes, I’m still talking about blogging here. + +If for whatever reason you’re worried about that kind of thing and don’t have the resources of a big corporation to rely upon, by blogging on something like Medium you make it somebody else’s job to: + + * Prevent hackers from reaching your backend + * Prevent hackers from making your blog inaccessible + +### You Can Still Back Up Your Data + +One of the reasons that I’m such a big backup geek is that they make it really easy to liberally sprinkle your data all over the cloud. + +If you’re certain that you have an original copy of all your … images, blogs, and data … then distributing it elsewhere becomes WAY less risky. + +Because we’re just talking about writing here, here’s a piece I wrote on that subject: + +[**My Approach To Backing Up My Online Writing** + _I have written a lot about backups in recent months . So much so that I reckon that there is probably an entire book’s…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-approach-to-backing-up-my-online-writing-fc6ccc252521) + +But all you really need to do is follow the foundational principles of good backup hygiene. Most pertinently the 3–2–1 rule. + +It’s typically _more ideal_ to build your own SEO castle than it is blog on rented land. + +This is accurate. + +BUT: + +If you’re just looking to get started and/or don’t have time, patience, or energy to deal with ensuring technical parameters like: + + * Performance + * Cybersecurity + +Then it may actually make more sense to initially blog on somebody else’s platform. + +Keep diligent backups and you can always move data across when you decide that the time _is_ right to start building your own castle. + +— + +I run [Rosehill Marketing Communications](http://rosehillmarcom.com) and specialize in working with emerging technology clients and leaders to plan and execute thought leadership-led communications strategies that help share a vision for the world they’re helping to build tomorrow. Client have included entrepreneurs, marketing agencies, and publicly listed listed FinTech providers. To learn more, visit RosehillMarcom.com diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Knowledge-Management-Is-Important-To-Creating-Vibrant-Async-First-Cultures.md b/posts/medium/Why-Knowledge-Management-Is-Important-To-Creating-Vibrant-Async-First-Cultures.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..935ef17e28a6fade4fe7079cdf633a6beb0395d0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Knowledge-Management-Is-Important-To-Creating-Vibrant-Async-First-Cultures.md @@ -0,0 +1,56 @@ +# Why Knowledge Management Is Important To Creating Vibrant Async-First Cultures + +#### Documenting organizational know-how from day one can make it much easier for teams to collaborate without unnecessary meetings that bog down productivity + +Organizations can hold vast swathes of internal knowledge. Extracting and organizing that information can be a substantial time-saver. When coupled with asynchronous approaches to communication, the time of key executives and stakeholders can be saved from unnecessary one-way information transmission sessions. Photo by [mentatdgt](https://www.pexels.com/@mentatdgt-330508?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/white-wooden-bookshelves-1319855/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Over the years, I’ve become an enormous advocate for asynchronous communications and working cultures that default to async-first. + +This trend has been expedited — enormously — by the pandemic. The working world quickly discovered the full potential of Zoom. And almost as quickly Zoom went from a nice novelty to a daily nuisance. + +The learning the world woke to was simple: meeting bloat isn’t just a problem when people are working together in the same building. Distributed teams of all variety — both remote and hybrid — can similarly have their productivity stymied by a daily avalanche of unnecessary and dubiously necessary meetings. In the startup world, particularly, digital meeting bloat is endemic. Knowledge management can be an internal practice that can slowly chip away at that problem. + +_(Note: If you’re also enthusiastic about async, check out WeAreAsync.com which hosts a jobs board and education hub dedicated to advocating for async-first cultures. Organizations listed as async-first include some leading tech players like Buffer, Zapier, doist, and GitLab)._ + +[**A Community for Asynchronous Teams** + _Ping. You lose your train of thought. ‍Ping. You check a message and 20 minutes later you're still doom scrolling…_ www.weareasync.com](https://www.weareasync.com/ "https://www.weareasync.com/")[](https://www.weareasync.com/) + +### How Knowledge Management Can Support Async First Working Cultures + +Another initiative that I’m passionate about is the sometimes tedious, sometimes derided, but often highly important work of cataloging and documenting an organization’s store of institutional knowledge. + +And the point of this blog: To make the point that robust knowledge management should be considered a key stepping stone towards achieving a fully async-first culture. + +Knowledge management involves cataloging and organizing the knowledge that’s required to make a company effective and profitable. + +It involves polling executives about what unspoken rules exist in the company and making sure that the unwritten gets documented somewhere. Then pretending that you’re the company’s internal librarian and organizing the material into some way that makes sense. + +**What’s the connection to async?** + +**_I would surmise that were your average meeting-bloated organization to undertake a process intended to pinpoint the key drivers of excess meetings, many would discover that repetitive information-transmission sessions were a major driver of that wasted time._** + +_Take the following example:_ + +A startup institutes an onboarding process for new hires, who happen to be coming in the door currently at dizzying pace. + +HR devises a detailed onboarding plan that involves meetings with no less than 10 internal stakeholders deemed key. + +The problem here? + +**These meetings don’t need to be synchronous become they consist, mostly, of one-way communication from the stakeholder to the new hire.** + +**Furthermore, much of the information being conveyed is repetitive.** + +**That information could much more effectively be captured once, documented, and then amassed into a repository which new hires could be given access to.** + +That repository could consist of an internal video library, a textual medium, or even an employee-only podcast that new hires could listen to while at the gym. + +Documenting internal knowledge is an important value-add that can make even small organizations more impactful. + +Repetitive instances of knowledge transmission — like onboarding process — often default to synchronous communication methodologies for no good reason. + +This can quickly bog down the calendars of high value contributors by having them repeat the same information to new hires. + +Capturing and documenting that knowledge once is more effective. + +When coupled with an asynchronous approach to communication, the time savings can compound. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Low-Rate-Writing-Didn-t-Work-Out-For-Me.md b/posts/medium/Why-Low-Rate-Writing-Didn-t-Work-Out-For-Me.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d0dc97219316e9469f41e6db74fd68ba6b0a5adb --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Low-Rate-Writing-Didn-t-Work-Out-For-Me.md @@ -0,0 +1,116 @@ +# Why Low Rate Writing Didn’t Work Out For Me + +#### Burnout, burger articles, and large amounts of caffeine didn’t bring me to writing joy + +Everybody starts somewhere. My first freelance writing projects were about microwaving burgers. Image: Wikimedia + +Five years ago, at a time now in the distance recesses of my memory, I (accidentally) set out on my journey to become a freelance writer. + +I had just moved country (from Ireland to Israel) and was looking for my first job. As I scoured the job boards, I began noticing that a lot of companies were looking for freelance writing support. + +This seemed like something I could do. I had a degree in journalism and had intended to make that my profession (I continue to engage in a little freelance journalism, but have concluded, for the time being, that it’s just too hard to make a living doing that in today’s job market). + +At university, I ran a student news website. Writing was what had always engaged and motivated me. And while I had always set my sites on in-house positions rather than contract work, freelance content marketing seemed like a good way to pay the bills while I was on the job hunt. + +Three years later and I had enough writing work on my plate to be able to make the transition _out_ of a full-time job in marketing communications and go full-time with the freelancing. + +But there were plenty of interesting blips and detours all the way. Figuring out a viable rate has been one of them. + +### Writing About Microwaving Burgers + +By comparison to the kind of things I’m writing about for clients today, the first gigs that I took on were almost comically weird. + +I didn’t have a niche. Nor did I particularly intend making freelance writing a long term thing. I needed to pay rent and power and humus and beer. So I took what came my way. + +Some of my first projects are seared in my memory. + +In one, I was writing clickbait video descriptions about the best ways to microwave burgers as well as celebrity gossip (note: there aren’t many who are less interested in pop culture than I and I’m not sure I’ve ever microwaved a burger in my life). The copy was passable and I got a mild kick out of this weird way I had discovered to make money on the internet. + +Next, I was (inadvertently) creating fake news for a company that turned out to be an ORM outfit trying to protect the online reputation of fraudsters. The con-men weren’t really investing in blockchain. They were just trying to get news of their arrest pushed down Google by the misinformation I was (inadvertently) helping to spread. Ouch! + +Thankfully, my clickbait video writing days — like my time protecting the reputations of gangsters — didn’t last all that long. I graduated from the first tranche of freelance writing clients — the really dubious stuff — and onto the second one. But I stayed at the second tier for too long. + +### Why Grunt SEO Writing Work Didn’t Work For Me + +At the second step up in my freelance writing ladder, I was now working for legitimate organizations. No more fake news or thoughts about how to best Netflix-and-Burger. Just companies that could supply a _lot_ of work that didn’t take much mental effort to produce. + +In the interest of not badmouthing specific past clients (I’ve never worked through content mills) I’m being sparse with the deals. But it was in the domain of bulk SEO work that anybody who has started out as a freelance writer is probably familiar with. + +I thought, at this time, that I had figured out the basics of what to charge for writing and how to charge for it. Sadly, the kind of rates I was commanding — eight cents a word seemed reasonable to me at the time — put me in the rookie territory of the market. And not realizing that kept me there for longer than I needed to be. + +Hemming out SEO-oriented “content,” I was a purebred volume player — because it’s the only way to make this business model work as a writer. + +Which is why when people point out to me that you can make a decent income from a low per-word rate I do a silent eye-roll. Trust me, I know. I did this for the best part of a year. + +[**Charging Freelance Writing Clients Per Word — Pros and Cons** + _Does Journalism’s Gold Standard Make Sense in Content Marketing?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0 "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/charging-freelance-writing-clients-per-word-pros-and-cons-36933b6719d0) + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +Here’s the thing about writing for low rates. + +When you’re living in a country with a developed world cost of living and are charging $100 a pop for your product, you need to produce a _lot_ of product in order to keep your head above financial water. + +Day after day I hemmed away furiously at my keyboard, driven by a daily deluge of caffeine. The coffee helped me both pull crazy hours and push the monotony of writing about the same two or three topics out of my mind. (A feature of volume SEO work tends to be that you end up writing about whatever verticals are in high keyword demand; which means lots of recurring topics). + +### Then I Realized: This Isn’t Sustainable + +My daily caffeine-and-writing binges were beginning to take a toll on both my physical and mental health. + +When your business model is predicated upon churning out lots of relatively cheap work, you don’t have much time left at the margins to actually _think_ about what you’re writing. Nor, often, do you have time to eat lunch or step back from your computer once in a while. + +The strangely mindless ritual of writing SEO content every day had also dulled my senses to the point at which I hadn’t really stopped to _think_ about what I was writing about. + +What was the _point_ of all this “content” that I was being paid to create? Was it good for the world? And — even as a side hustle — what was this kind of working doing for my career? (Answer: nothing, a serious negative). + +My monthly invoices were totting up surprisingly well — as anybody that has managed to make this kind of business model work probably knows (it really _can_ work). + +**But simply looking at the financial viability of freelance writing was keeping me distracted from some bigger picture things, including my satisfaction, or lack thereof, with the work I was being paid to produce.** + +At nights, after the rush of the day’s push for deliverables was over, as well as the caffeine, a few recurrent thoughts hit me like a train: + + * When I aspired to become a writer, hemming out SEO content wasn’t what I envisioned. + * This isn’t sustainable. Like, at all. + * This is making me pretty miserable. + +The daily burst of adrenaline was keeping these all at bay. But only because I was productivity numb. They were there lingering in the background all along. + +When I dove deeper into _why_ this SEO writing phase wasn’t working out for me, I was able to realize some things that I needed to work on in order to make freelance writing more fun. Essentially, to take the pain points and try to flip them into benefits: + + * **I didn’t believe in the mission of the organizations for whom I was writing.** I wasn’t trying to help awesome business owners to get their message out to the world. I was simply a cog in an SEO machine. + * **There was no creativity involved in this writing whatsoever.** The wrong kind of SEO writing is constraining and template-driven. My clients were forcing me to write for search engines, not people. + * **By working for clients who were only willing to pay the bare minimum rates needed to compensate me for my time, I had to work at a furious pace that was totally unnatural (symptom: caffeine abuse).** Furthermore, because I only barely had enough time to write the articles, I didn’t have enough hours in the day to look for better-paying work. I was thinking about making this freelance writing thing a full-time reality. But oddly this work was keeping me trapped in the SEO-writing doldrums. I couldn’t keep working at the margins of viability. I needed both more satisfying work. And some padding. + +### The Type Of Work That I Do Now + +These days, I do rather different work for rather different clients. + +I focus on thought leadership because I always enjoyed crafting opinion pieces and true thought leadership (note: much is not) is all about helping authors share great ideas in order to achieve marketing objectives. + +I still do some content marketing. SEO is naturally a component of that and there’s plenty of SEO-focused work that isn’t mind-numbing. But it’s no longer the totality of my business and I no longer work for clients who are only willing to pay the bare minimum required to get the job done. Because I know that if I’m being honest with myself I simply can’t. + +(Disclosure: as anybody who has seen me post on freelance writing forums knows, I’m very far from having “figured out” freelance writing to the point that my business is ideal. I’m still very much actively figuring things out. But I’m a good deal further on than where I was a few years ago.) + +How did I get from tier two to tier three? + + * I realized that feeling some sense of connection with the mission of the businesses I was writing for was essential for me. + * I realized that I needed more than just financial viability for freelance writing to work for me. If I didn’t, the low-end SEO work would have been perfectly fine. But it wasn’t. + * I realized that I couldn’t work for clients who only paid the bare minimum required to produce work. When I figured out how much I _needed_ to be charging for writing not to be a sprint — and how much to charge per hour — my rates rose significantly. + +In light of all the above, I’m now a mid-tier writer and not an entry level one. + +I still periodically encounter leads who are aghast at the idea that a writer could quote $400 for a blog post. And I periodically question my own decision to get to this point and to turn down a lot of opportunities on the grounds that they don’t meet my rate. But then I realize that there’s no way I can put myself back on the hamster wheel of low budget SEO work. + +Massive side benefit: when you’re being compensated decently for your writing you can also: + + * Afford to take a walk or prepare a healthy lunch + * Afford to buy yourself books about marketing and content creation that will make you a better professional and increase your career prospects + * Let go of the lingering sense of resentment that many feel when they let themselves work for cheap, below their market value + +But most importantly, charging more freed up time in my calendar to look for better-paying work and got me out of the trap of being stuck writing an endless stream of SEO content. + +If that’s where your writing business is now, I recommend considering the above. + +[**Opinion: $300 Really Isn’t A High Rate For Freelance Writing Services** +medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/opinion-300-really-isnt-a-high-rate-for-freelance-writing-services-8581a0139d1a "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/opinion-300-really-isnt-a-high-rate-for-freelance-writing-services-8581a0139d1a")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/opinion-300-really-isnt-a-high-rate-for-freelance-writing-services-8581a0139d1a) diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Medium-Still-Isn-t-A-CMS-Killer--Sadly-.md b/posts/medium/Why-Medium-Still-Isn-t-A-CMS-Killer--Sadly-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e5548effac1093dceac672832825ba34c1b208f8 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Medium-Still-Isn-t-A-CMS-Killer--Sadly-.md @@ -0,0 +1,64 @@ +# Why Medium Still Isn’t A CMS Killer (Sadly) + +#### As much as I absolutely love Medium (really), long term, I’m probably still shifting to a new platform + +Medium is useful but also missing some really essential features. For that reason, ironically, it’s not yet on par with even basic content management systems. Screenshot: author. + +Recently, I published another hundred articles on Medium. I did so in the span of about six months. I think. That information isn’t easily available to me through the dashboard. This is part of the reason I’m thinking about leaving. + +I’ve recently been on something of a posting spree here, jumping in to share some thoughts whenever I have them to offer. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that posting here has improved my online quality of life. + +It offers speed and performance that my self-hosted Wordpress instance could only dream of. The UI is an absolute distraction-free pleasure to draft in. + +Because it’s so fast, fluid and enjoyable, I can unburden myself of my ideas and thoughts and passions between doing the more humdrum client work that I do day-to-day. I love the social aspect, too. It’s a network. I can get to know other creators and they can get to know me. It’s fun. + +Other milestones crossed: I was recently curated into one of Medium’s official technology publications, [OneZero](https://medium.com/u/3a0e8cb45af4); I recently surpassed the 500 follower mark; and I’ve begun getting the odd piece of engagement through Medium’s recently launched newsletter feature. + +It’s been fun. But I’m still not committed. + +There are a few reasons why. + +### It’s Minimalist And Easy To Use. But It’s Lacking Some Very Basic CMS Functionalities. + +Before I ever heard of [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6), I spent way too many years running blogs on Wordpress for myself and clients. + +To a lesser extent, I’ve dug into Joomla, Drupal, and the long tail of self-hosted CMSs that come after them. I’d like to think that I know what’s out there in the world of open source self hosted CMS pretty well. + +This is why I find it so disappointing that Medium lacks some _really really basic_ functionalities that make CMSs so useful (and I mean this as respectfully as possible; there’s something slightly uncouth about criticizing Medium on Medium!) + +At the time of writing (this is a very partial list): + + * **Medium lacks any bulk editing functionality whatsoever.** When you have several hundred articles posted on the platform, it becomes impractical to apply bulk changes. Virtually any CMS — and certainly Wordpress — has this as a foundational feature. + * **Medium lacks a plugin library to build upon its core functionality of publishing.** What you see is what you get in terms of functionality and Medium rolls out changes and upgrades rather slowly. This is actually kind of a good thing. Wordpress’s plugin library is something of a mess. I kind of like the fact that [Medium](https://medium.com/u/504c7870fdb6) calls the shots in terms of what’s available for us. The problem is that those baked-in functionalities are rather limited. + * **The stats dashboard lacks some really basic data points that makes it far less useful than it could be for content marketing.** While I can see how many reads and views my writing have received over the past thirty days, there’s no easy way to see the bigger picture — what my one year trailing average has looked like or extrapolate into the future. Medium has done a great job at creating a minimalist UI. But I think it’s taken simplicity too far. + +Here’s another glaring feature missing from the UI: there’s no way to search through your own posts! + +Do you see a search bar? Because I don’t! + +### Its Backup Functionality Really Isn’t Up To Snuff. Which Is A Problem Because It’s SaaS. + +As a backup fiend, backup-ability is one of the first things I look at before committing any major tranche of data to the cloud. + +I’ve documented, previously, how to back up your Medium.com stories. + +[**How to backup your articles from Medium — and one thing you should know!** +_I’ve been using Medium as a hosted blogging platform for the best part of 2 years now._ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-backup-your-articles-from-medium-and-one-thing-you-should-know-b9a8a4873cc0) + +Unfortunately, it’s not really a great backup process. As very few other people seem to have noticed, the backup export you get out doesn’t include the images you’ve included with your stories. Rather, those are locked up in the CDN and you only get paths to them. + +### Medium Is Entirely Outside Of Your Control. + +The biggest problem with relying on Medium to run your blog is that it’s an entirely owned platform that is fully controlled by a third party. + +You get to control, to an extent, the fonts and colors you’d like to use with your profile. But that’s really about the extent of it. + +Without a plugin library, there’s not much you can really “do” with your blog subdomained on Medium.com. + +Medium is a fantastic online publishing platform. + +It makes quickly publishing writing on the internet very easy. + +At the same time, compared to even a minimalist CMS, it’s missing features. A lot of features. And really basic ones too. + +I continue to recommend publishing on Medium for some uses. Particularly for brands that are just getting started. But I always attach the caveat that (this goes without saying!) you should take backups of everything you publish here. Never fully entrust data to a provider you have no control over. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Most-Thought-Leadership-Misses-the-Mark.md b/posts/medium/Why-Most-Thought-Leadership-Misses-the-Mark.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..119ee811df59532db936ee70ab482686e9ccfbb6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Most-Thought-Leadership-Misses-the-Mark.md @@ -0,0 +1,113 @@ +# Why Most Thought Leadership Misses the Mark + +#### If you’re not sharing original insights, then you’re probably not writing thought leadership + +Photo by [Giorgio Trovato](https://unsplash.com/@giorgiotrovato?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) on [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/dartboard?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) + +When many organizations think about rolling out a thought leadership strategy for their business, and get round to planning out the nuts and bolts of implementation, they tend to subsume the activity into their overall content marketing efforts. + +After all, if you have a writer on staff, or work with a trusted freelancer, why wouldn’t the same strategy and tactics work across both formats? And what’s the difference anyway? Doing this would be mistake number one. + +### Thought Leadership Needs to be Different + +Whether delivered from a podium or a page, good thought leadership needs to distinguish itself from content marketing + +The unfortunate reality is that content marketing’s rise to stardom as the central cog that makes inbound marketing spin has both risked eclipsing thought leadership entirely, and created a lot of confusion about what purebred thought leadership looks and reads like. + +Many labor under the misunderstanding that thought leadership and content marketing are one and the same — which simply isn’t true. + +Others think that thought leadership is a vacuous buzzword trotted out by self-important executives who love seeing their bylines in newspapers and their introductions read off at industry conferences. Mostly, this isn’t the case either. + +The truth about thought leadership is that it _is_ a valuable and distinct activity from content marketing — although the two are closely allied and can be used, in tandem, to good effect. + +Equally, however, much thought leadership fails to live up to the title that it bears — which only provides further ammunition to those who wish to conflate the two. Or who proclaim that everything written or communicated can now all be shoveled under the nebulous heading of “content” (my feelings about that are probably clear). + +In this article, I’d like to quickly outline what thought leadership is. + +Secondly, I’d like to provide some guidance as to what authors need to do to make sure their thought leadership does more than just contribute more white noise to the internet and world often drowning in it. + +### Thought Leadership Is About Quality Thinking — Not Creating Buzz + +Thought leadership’s primary attribute is that it leverages the _quality_ of an organization’s thinking in order to open the door to new business opportunities. It tends to feature prominently in long-cycle B2B sales processes. + +In this competitive environment, major buyers are aware of who the major vendors vying for business in their space are, and roughly what they do. + +But when the stakes are large (think: sometimes eight-figure large), and when decision-makers are looking at developing long term partnerships with key vendors, competence, an acceptable price point, and a strong value proposition aren’t enough to seal the deal — even all together. + +Instead, vendors often look for an added ‘X factor’ to help differentiate between prospective suppliers. And the X factor which thought leadership seeks to address and cement is an organization’s strategic vision. + +Communicating a strategic vision involves explaining things beyond what a company does, who comprises its leadership team, their backgrounds, and what products it sells. + +Those are basic metrics that are almost certainly part of any buying department’s due diligence process. Beyond these variables, prospective buyers will want to get a sense of the kind of stuff that makes up the company’s DNA. What industry trends are on its radar? What are its projections? Where does it see its role in this evolution and what does it think of the potential disruptions of the day? Finally, how deep is its thinking (this is often described as ‘caliber’ of thought)? + +Answering these questions is the stuff that true thought leadership is made of. + +### Thought Leadership vs. Content Marketing + +Content marketing has a valuable place in the marketing mix. But it’s not a substitute for true thought leadership + +In light of the above, some differences between thought leadership and content marketing might already be obvious. + +For one, most fundamentally because it would be striking the wrong tone, thought leadership isn’t typically about going on the hard sell. + +Instead, a much more nuanced approach is required — one which pays close attention to positioning, messaging, and strategy. + +Secondly, thought leadership, in a sense, involves leveraging a unique peer to peer channel of communication. + +Authors aren’t talking _down_ to customers to whom they hope to sell in the sense that content marketers might do to their would-be customers (many would dispute this, but, pragmatically, this is often the case). + +Rather, they are talking laterally to industry partners — often those at the same level of the organizational chart and in very comparable companies. + +Ultimately, yes, they hope to sell to them — all forms of marketing lead to cash registers, or at least are supposed to. + +But, to better align with the protocol and proclivities of buying audiences at large organizations, the process often needs to be a little more oblique. + +Kickstarting a relationship is often the more credible and tactful first objective. + +Thought leadership boldly builds reputation, furthers personal brands, and uses expertise and authority to realize business objectives. More subtly, it sells. + +But if it lacks nuance, carries the wrong tone, or just doesn’t offer any insights, then it risks being simply content marketing directed at the wrong audience. + +### Thought Leadership’s Two Requisite Ingredients + +Successful thought leadership needs to have two successful ingredients to make it a success. + +And there’s a hint: the answer to what these are is in the name. + +#### 1\. Original thinking + +When Edelman and LinkedIn polled decision-makers about what they thought of the thought leadership they were reading, very mixed feelings arose. + +A minority of readers rated what they consumed as excellent and only 29% of those surveyed said that they received valuable insights more than half the time. + +This is indicative of a rush to produce ineffective thought leadership. + +The key variables being leveraged when thought leadership is undertaken are the quality of the thinking, the insights conveyed, and how original they are. + +By comparison, in content marketing, authors leverage the sharing of free information with prospects in order to (hopefully) realize favorable business outcomes. + +Thought leadership bereft of insights is as ineffective as content marketing without content. + +Those reading thought leadership are often senior-level executives. When they receive bad thought leadership — and, by inference, have their time wasted — the effect for authoring parties isn’t negative. It’s damaging. [Statistics bear that out.](https://www.edelman.com/research/2020-b2b-thought-leadership-impact-study) + +#### 2\. Leading thinking + +A recurrent theme from Edelman and LinkedIn’s surveying of thought leadership readers is that too much writing being disseminated under the thought leadership banner consists of mere white noise. + +If thought leadership _does_ contain insights, it might contain insights that just about everybody in the industry is sharing. This too should be avoided. + +A prescient example comes from much of the commentary about the business impact of the current pandemic. + +While many of the observations are worthy and logical — it’s going to prove a catalyst for remote working because now many of us have to! — many of them already appear trite. + +Several of them, like the foregoing, have now been repeated in just about every permutation and spin imaginable on thousands of company blogs. Much of the commentary is eminently forgettable. Differences in industry aside, many of the pieces are barely distinguishable from the next. + +If these observations were not obvious and hadn’t been widely discussed, they _might_ be considered thought leadership. + +But that would also require the authoring party to have some particular expertise to leverage in offering the commentary, to be among the first on the scene to offer it, and to do so in a way that resonated with the right target audience. + +If that target audience were CTOs looking for secure connectivity options, for example, the article, speech, or white paper would have to include the required technical depth, ideally contain research to back up the findings, be relatively non-promotional in tone, and be framed as a contribution to a two-way dialogue to which they could respond and contribute. In other words: not content marketing and not more of the same. Rather: clear original thinking that contains a good measure of originality. + +Despite the surfeit of information, writing, and noise inundating our screens, Kindles, and televisions, true thought leadership remains a relatively scarce commodity in marketing. + +Those authoring it would be well-advised to resist the desire to hem it out as quickly as possible. And to focus instead on answering two questions: does it share original thinking and is it leading? If these can be answered in the affirmative then there’s a good chance that what you’re authoring is thought leadership and not content marketing. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-So-Many-Young-Israelis-Are-Feeling-Bleak-About-Their-Financial-Futures---In-Spite-Of-The-.md b/posts/medium/Why-So-Many-Young-Israelis-Are-Feeling-Bleak-About-Their-Financial-Futures---In-Spite-Of-The-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..dc87574b473b31aeabab3f05250dce27d06dd4c0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-So-Many-Young-Israelis-Are-Feeling-Bleak-About-Their-Financial-Futures---In-Spite-Of-The-.md @@ -0,0 +1,118 @@ +# Why So Many Young Israelis Are Feeling Bleak About Their Financial Futures — In Spite Of The… + +#### The other, underdiscussed side of the Israeli “success” story: how a sky-high cost of living and never-ending real estate bubble have conspired to create a bleak financial future for Israel’s shrinking middle class + +Israel may be beautiful. But for young Jewish immigrants (“olim”), there’s a much uglier side to the country to countenance: a sky high cost of living and unstoppable real estate market has put property ownership out of reach for many of them. Photo by [Adam Grabek](https://www.pexels.com/@agmakonts?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/flock-of-white-birds-photo-during-sunset-784849/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Today,_Times of Israel_ journalist Ricky Ben David published what I think is the best and most in-depth exploration written to date in English of the country’s real estate bubble and the troubling financial picture it has created for the country’s young immigrants. + +There have been a few noteable pieces written in both Hebrew and English recently. And really, I think that this one if the most noteworthy of the lot (I’m quoted briefly but that has nothing to do with my assessment!). If you want a quick run-through on where things stand and why and how they got here — check the below out: + +[**Israeli housing prices have nearly doubled in a decade, with no signs of slowing** + _It's Saturday night on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv and a group of protesters is again gearing up for a rally…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/?fbclid=IwAR3EgHnchkLKfpYTvgWWordukzKJpsmvZlC7D4K1Aqi4JS25Gbig3DFoYyg "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/?fbclid=IwAR3EgHnchkLKfpYTvgWWordukzKJpsmvZlC7D4K1Aqi4JS25Gbig3DFoYyg")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/?fbclid=IwAR3EgHnchkLKfpYTvgWWordukzKJpsmvZlC7D4K1Aqi4JS25Gbig3DFoYyg) + +In fact, the _TOI Investigates_ piece goes far beyond simply cobbling together a few sobering statistics about the insane sums of capital needed to buy a small apartment in today’s Israel ($682,608 is the national average for a four bedroom _apartment._ And if you read the piece please keep one thing in mind as you pour over the numbers: these numbers are referring to _apartments_ and not _houses_ as the referenced dwelling units.) + +It’s an unflinching look, rather, at Israel’s increasingly dysfunctional macro-economics which are increasingly leaving the country’s shrinking middle class in the cold. + +It also speaks of the bitter and frankly hopeless financial reality that lies behind Israel’s breathless reminders of how it turned the desert sand into high-tech silicon and has emerged, in the blink of an eye, as a regional superpower. Perhaps unintentionally it explains why some _olim_(Jewish immigrants) like me have become so skeptical of _hasbara_ since moving here. Because the narrative being spun about Israel’s success, and excitedly regurgitated in the Diaspora, does not tell the full story of what it’s like to actually live here. + +It’s the reason that many young immigrants to Israel — including me —sometimes wake up, open Google News, and feel like we’re living in some Zionist spin-off of _The Matrix_(sorry, it’s my favorite analogy for the world recently. I should really watch it again). + +Israel’s successes are undoubted. Inbound venture capital flows and startup buyouts seemingly unending. The alliances with the UAE and Bahrain forebode a better future for the country in which it is no longer a pariah among the Arab world. All of these dynamics are optimistic and encouraging for those who, broadly speaking, consider themselves supporters of the country. + +And yet, it’s difficult to wake up in the same country and feel very hopeful for your _own_ personal future knowing that the roof over your head will perhaps always remain the property of a diaspora Jew who thinks that Israel is a great investment opportunity (it really is; and no, not all Jews are wealthy. But those who _are_ do appear to be driving, disproportionately, the property bubble). A few newly minted tech millionaires. But everybody else? + +The duality is interesting. + +On the macro level, Israel is a massive success story — undoubtedly. + +But so far that wealth has not trickled down to your average citizen. + +For your average non-trust-fund toting guy like me who works in marketing and pulls in an average salary (there are hundreds of thousands of us living here and sorry if this sounds like wallowing in self-pity) this creates a very strange feeling. + +We support Israel and remain committed Zionists. And yet also have the vague sense of feeling like street beggars who have stumbled into the lobby of a five star hotel. We’re not financially endowed enough to afford this country. We should buy a Goldstar (an Israeli beer) and leave. This isn’t a place for us. We’re too poor. + +What The Likud and right wing governments have succeeded in building in the span of a few decades: a country that — virtually overnight — has turned a poor socialist backwater utterly on its head. And turned it into a dog eat dog hyper-capitalist mini-America replete with the worst of American economic problems but bereft of its redeeming features: high income inequality and meager social support coupled with a national average salary that is still grossly underpowered for one of the most expensive cost of livings on the planet. + +This represents, to my mind, nothing less than a massive betrayal of the Zionist ideal. And yet it remains grossly unerdiscussed. + +Here are some stats: + +### During The Pandemic, This Year Alone, Real Estate In Israel Has Risen 12.5% + +Nothing, seemingly nothing, can arrest the endless rise of real estate in Israel. + +According to numbers from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Israel’s national statistics arbiter, the prices of new homes has risen 12.5% _during this year alone_. + +You read that right. + +During this calendar year alone — which, needless to say, still has almost a full business quarter left in it — the average cost of a new home in Israel has increased by more than 10%. During a pandemic year. + +### Israel’s “Incentive” To Encourage First Time Home Ownership: A 20% Discount On Homes In Peripheral Parts Of The Country + +Israel is doing something to try stymie this situation alright. But it’s governmental _kamtsanut_(miserliness). + +In the words of Ofir — one of the quoted sources in the _Times of Israel_ piece the scheme “has to be a joke”…. right? + +The government offers a 20% reduction on the cost of property. But there’s a catch. The plan won’t be implemented in “luxury areas” such as Tel Aviv and Hertzlia. + +[**Say Goodbye to Buyer's Price: New Minister of Housing welcomes back the Target Price plan** + _Less than two months after the inauguration of the new government, and against the background of a sharp rise in…_ www.buyitinisrael.com](https://www.buyitinisrael.com/news/say-goodbye-to-buyers-price-new-minister-of-housing-welcomes-back-the-target-price-plan/ "https://www.buyitinisrael.com/news/say-goodbye-to-buyers-price-new-minister-of-housing-welcomes-back-the-target-price-plan/")[](https://www.buyitinisrael.com/news/say-goodbye-to-buyers-price-new-minister-of-housing-welcomes-back-the-target-price-plan/) + +This massive caveat creates a few significant problems: + + * The vast majority of employment opportunities in the State of Israel are located in these so-called “luxury areas” of the country. + * In the second most expensive real estate market on the planet, and one in which property prices have risen 12.5% in one year alone, 20% is a tiny drop in the bucket that will do little to make property affordable. + * Not many want to live in these non-luxury areas. + +And more presciently: + +By trying to stimulate development outside of its major cities, Israel appears to be banking on the development of infrastructure which it doesn’t yet have in place connecting those cities to the _merkaz_(center of the country; roughly: Tel Aviv and environs). During a time when the world is moving towards remote working and resisting the notion of a daily commute to work, Israel appears to be banking on it instead. Urban planners can tell me if this is as bad a policy move as it sounds. + +### Israel’s Elite Owns 67% Of The Country’s Property Stock + +This one is mind-boggling. + +According to a report published in 2014, the top 10% of Israel’s population holds a whopping 67% of the country’s property stock (writing folk like me require numbers to be periodically broken down: two thirds of the property in Israel is owned by just one tenth of the population). + +[**Israelis as rich as most Europeans - report** + _Israelis are the sixth wealthiest people in the Middle East and Asia, and as wealthy as the average European, if not…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israelis-as-rich-as-most-europeans-report/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israelis-as-rich-as-most-europeans-report/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israelis-as-rich-as-most-europeans-report/) + +Israel’s rapid shift from poor country to wealthy Middle Eastern one has created a strange sort of generational wealth transfer on steroids. Today’s _olim_ are the losers of that process. The prior ones are the beneficiaries. Even within the ranks of _olim hadashim_ there’s a massive inequality gap that has been scarcely discussed. + +For those who got “in” early by virtue of their year of birth and _aliyah_ , the country was affordable and housing cheap. Those who got “in” later find themselves paying rent to Israeli landlords–or earlier _olim —_ who often hold multiple properties throughout the country used as investment assets. I can’t help but think that this isn’t the Israel that the Zionist pioneers dreamed about creating. + +### Downpayments Are Centrally Regulated To A 25% Minimum. This Puts Property Ownership Out Of Reach For Many + +The Central Bank of Israel mandates a 25% floor on mortgage downpayments in Israel. Compare this to the 10% first time buyer scheme offered in Ireland. But forget about the sub-prime lending crisis. It’s prudent central banking policy. But the collateral effects seem to go unconsidered. + +You can compare property in markets like Israel and Ireland in other ways. Actually, you can do so without leaving the comfort of wherever you’re reading this from. Daft.ie is the main property website in Ireland. Yad2.co.il in Israel. Google Translate will get you the rest of the way. + +But something that it’s easy to ignore: not only does the affordability picture look extremely difficult, this isn’t comparing apples with apples. It’s comparing _apartments_ with _houses_. This fact is understated. + +So just how difficult is getting on the property ladder in Israel? The _Times of Israel_ piece spells it out in grisly detail. + +Minus large inheritances or startup exits, for even most middle class earners, possibly impossible. A worldwide dynamic? Yes. But one in which I and several economists quoted in the piece contend is grossly exacerbated in Israel. + +In the coastal city of Herzlia, your average four room apartment costs more than one million dollars. Needless to say, a 25% downpayment moves the sum of capital required for purchases north of the $250,000 mark. That’s more than a quarter of a million dollars. If you put away $1,000 a month in savings, it would take you 250 months of savings to afford the downpayment. Rounded to the nearest integer, that’s 21 years. + +In a country with an average monthly income of just 12,500 NIS (annualized, that’s about $46,000 at today’s rate), saving that kind of money just isn’t realistic for many. + +It’s extremely difficult to draw any positives from Ben David’s piece. + +But because — as a geek — I tend to see the world through tech analogies, let me leave you with one: + +In software, a known bug is better than one which hasn’t been discovered yet and may be lurking in the worst possible places of the codebase. + +The economists, civic activists, and others quoted in Israel’s piece together paint a very grim picture of the affordability of property in the country. But they also speak to a widespread acknowledgement of the extent of the problem. + +The challenge for tomorrow’s policymakers — actually today’s, this crisis is urgent — addressing them. + +### More Articles About Israel And Its Cost Of Living + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +[**The Pros and Cons of Living in Israel** + _(And Why I Still Think the Cost of Living is the Elephant in the Room!)_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10 "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/the-pros-and-cons-of-living-in-israel-5caa0c76bb10) diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Sticking-With-Content-Creation---Over-The-Long-Term---Is-Essential-To-Its-Success.md b/posts/medium/Why-Sticking-With-Content-Creation---Over-The-Long-Term---Is-Essential-To-Its-Success.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a739e77c9a8bd76fccc9b2656ba4c133ec2090f5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Sticking-With-Content-Creation---Over-The-Long-Term---Is-Essential-To-Its-Success.md @@ -0,0 +1,140 @@ +# Why Sticking With Content Creation — Over The Long Term — Is Essential To Its Success + +#### For businesses and brands, content creation can follow a predictable cycle that leads to quick disappointment. Preparing for it can help you stick with the process. + +I’ve discussed before — on this Medium account and elsewhere — about how important it is to adopt a long term mindset when you’re starting out with creating content and leveraging inbound marketing. + +For one, I’ve made the point that mindset is one of the most overlooked aspects necessary to succeed in content marketing and (for most its ultimate goal) inbound lead generation. + +[**The Ultimate Long Game, Content Marketing Demands Its Own Mindset Too** + _When transitioning from outbound to inbound-led marketing, attitudes need to change as well_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687) + +I’ve also likened content marketing to investing. This is my go-to mental imagery — so feel free to borrow it for your brain! + +[**Inbound Marketing Is Investing — For Brand-Builders** + _When you think about, developing inbound collateral and investing in financial vehicles have a lot in common_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03) + +If we reason that content marketing is an activity that’s going to pay long term dividends but not necessarily yield much return over the short term then — although I don’t have a degree in investing — I reckon that this is a pretty solid analogy. + +For content creators — especially personal brands and businesses who _are_ in it for concrete and clear reasons — the initial phase of moving from having an idea to set up a blog to actually getting going with it can involve moving across familiar territory. + +The good news is that once you understand what’s happening in the background it can be easier to do what you need to in order to give it the best possible chance of actually succeeding. + +### Mapping The Gartner Hype Cycle Onto The Content Creator’s Typical Mental Rollercoaster + +Gartner — the market research and advisory firm — is famous for having created what it calls the hype cycle that attempts to describe the probable reaction of a market to any major technological disruption. + +[**Hype cycle - Wikipedia** + _The hype cycle is a branded graphical presentation[clarification needed ] developed and used by the American research…_ en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hype_cycle "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hype_cycle")[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hype_cycle) + +The hype cycle has been criticized for not being based on evidence. It’s given me enough amusement over the years that I’m willing to brush that inconvenient fact aside. + +As a long-time observer of tech trends, my experience (albeit anecdotal) also provides it with enough validation that it validates the trajectory it sets out — at least for me. + +Because, yup, it kinda describes how things typically roll in tech. + +Somebody comes up with a disruption that promises to change the way things are done in a market or segment thereof. Companies start pouring dollars into conferences, an echo-chambering bubble is formed, and everybody gets way too excited for their own good because that’s sort of how echo chambers work. Then the market realizes that they’ve grossly overinflated an idea that _does_ have merit but its potential is circumscribed by all sorts of inconvenient and boring details like accessory technologies that still need to be developed, regulations that need to be passed, etc. + +Finally the real innovation happens. When nobody — or rather less people — are looking. And oddly enough it’s in this relatively quiet corner of the trajectory that the real value is engineered and brought out to society. Long after the cleaning crews have scooped up the confetti from the conference centers. + +So if I were to attempt to map the typical mental journey that a business content marketer goes through and plot it from the moment the “big idea” hits to when it’s executed (published) and beyond that, then I reckon it would look a lot like this: + +Here are its constituent elements described: + +### The Valley Of Great Ideation + +One day — while filling out a spreadsheet — Mr or Ms. Marketer comes up with a great idea for “content.” + +[**Why I Despise The Word ‘Content’ (And ‘Freelancer’)** +_It’s the end of another busy week writing and interacting with clients. Which means lots of writing, a few phone calls…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-despise-the-word-content-and-freelancer-3f33fccac0bd "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-despise-the-word-content-and-freelancer-3f33fccac0bd")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-despise-the-word-content-and-freelancer-3f33fccac0bd) + +Let’s put aside for a moment my typical grievances with the term “content.” Or let’s not. + +Personally, I think it would be better if we talked about coming up with creative _ideas_ and then mapping them onto the _format_(or _formats_) that we thought might resonate best with our target audiences. + +_Content_ by itself means nothing. The back of a cereal box contains _content_. What text isn’t _content_(or audio, or video)? Your audiences don’t care for content because the way the term is currently used is hopelessly over-generalized. If you’re doing content marketing, they care for messaging that sets out how you might resolve their _pain points_ and appreciably improve their life in some other way. You gotta be more specific. + +But whatever. Content has already become sadly entrenched and this is probably how the marketing manager in this sketchy would actually think about the brainspark moment. So content it is. We have a great idea. But we need to get from here to action. + +We haven’t really _done_ anything yet so we’re kinda in a valley here, at least from a productivity standpoint. But we have great plans for how to change all that and we’re sure it’s going to change the course of our business (lives?) once our prospects land on this thing. + +### The Upward-Rising Ascension Of Content Creation + +Now, of course, we need to actually get this content out to the world. + +The mechanics here aren’t really pertinent to the broader message that I’m trying to communicate so let’s quickly gloss over them. + +Agencies may need to be drafted in. You can totally hire somebody like me which is totally not why I wrote this but nevertheless if I’m writing all this “content” then I guess I better start doing a better job at plugging myself. + +Anyway. + +You’re now on the upward rising ascension of doing. + +It feels good at this part of the journey. Fancy people with cameras have shown up and they’re taking amazing looking photos. They’re all talk about platforms and how you’re going to distribute this “content.” + +Mental images have started clouding your consciousness. You’re trying to focus on that graphic promoting this “content” in InDesign but you keep having unwanted fantasies about picking up some award for this outstanding campaign. + +Then the big day arrives. The approvals have been secured. Your content is ready to go out the door. It’s time to hit that big bold publish button. + +### The Rapidly Plummeting Mental Sinkhole Of Non Immediate Validation (And Premature Celebrations) + +You wake up groggy and hungover from that celebration party that you threw celebrating the release of your latest piece of “content.” The one you were so sure was going to light the industry on fire. + +You log into your email. To Twitter. You check your YouTube stats. + +And yup. + +Nobody really cared. + +You refresh every app on your device. You throw a pillow at the wall. You wait an hour and try to chill out. And yup. This time you’re sure. Basically nobody cared. + +Your lead volume is minimal. Your engagement volumes fall way short of what you projected. Your latest piece of “content,” it seems, has been a dud. Too bad all the vendors at your party are still going to have to get paid. + +### The Long Trail Of Increasing Returns + +The good news is that the story either gets better from this point forward or — at very least — it doesn’t get worse. + +In the worst case scenario, your initial suspicions are confirmed. + +You’ve produced content that doesn’t interest the industry. + +_But that’s okay._ + +You’ve iterated. You can bring that data back to the drawing board and have a think about what you could have done better for next time. + +But you’d be irresponsible to go through that debriefing process until the market has had a decent chance to actually take a look at what you’ve had to say. + +You can spend time dissecting the nuances of what you _think_ major technology platforms are doing to their algorithms. Even though as an external party that’s often a dubiously worthwhile process. + +Or you can remember that people are busy and have a lot of “stuff” going on and that at any given moment your “content” may have been fighting for distribution with 100s of other pieces. + +The good news is that social media distribution isn’t your only pickup channel. Whatever way you dice the stats, that has a pretty short half life. + +[**The Lifespan of Content on Social Media** + _Do your social media posts get their 15 minutes of fame? As much as we hope their legend will live on to rival those of…_ www.oktopost.com](https://www.oktopost.com/blog/lifespan-content-social-media/#:~:text=The%20study%20found%20that%20the,half%2Dlife%20is%203.2%20hours "https://www.oktopost.com/blog/lifespan-content-social-media/#:~:text=The%20study%20found%20that%20the,half%2Dlife%20is%203.2%20hours")[](https://www.oktopost.com/blog/lifespan-content-social-media/#:~:text=The%20study%20found%20that%20the,half%2Dlife%20is%203.2%20hours) + +Thankfully you have a plan B. If you’ve created evergreen content then you’re also banking on the power of organic discoverability. That’s actually a more interesting hand to play because: + + * If feeds into things like your reputation and technical SEO factors that all take a long time to develop. Thus, it builds upon itself. So rather than having a one time shot at success, you can play the increasing odds on a long term playing field. + * You’ve created “content” that might take a while to be digested by the industry. Things like the news cycle might affect it too. What you wrote may largely fall on deaf ears today but be wildly appreciated in a few months’ time when you’re not the only one talking about this. (And the advantage there: you might now be able to claim to have been the first). + +Remember as well that: + + * Initial and long term receptions to a piece of “content” can be markedly different and a “viral” initial reception that doesn’t actually bring in many qualified leads isn’t likely all that useful to your business. + * Republishing and refreshing older pieces of content can be powerful ways to bring them up to speed and update their contexts. Just because a piece is “old” doesn’t mean that it has to sit there. You can invest far less effort than what it took to produce the content in the first place and leverage it again. + +Like driving for hours through undulating countryside, transversing the long road of potential increasing returns is an activity that may best be undertaken while also thinking about other things. Or listening to a good podcast. + +Maintain, curate, and refresh (see above). But you can also let things operate in the background. I like to call organic discoverability on pieces of content that you’re not actively curating the most basic (and oldest) form of marketing automation. No integrations or fancy SaaS tools required. + +### Don’t Quit At The Sinkhole + +It’s entirely up to you to what extent you or your business wishes to engage in content creation. + +You can do a 80:20 outbound:inbound mix. Skip out on inbound marketing entirely. Or focus all your time and energy on creating assets that you hope are going to entice people to do business with you. + +But whichever option you choose, it would probably be a mistake to skip out on the whole thing the moment you feel out those painful depths that constitute the Sinkhole Of Non-Immediate Validation. + +In the terms through which businesses are accustomed to categorizing KPIs, content creation is a _leading_ indicator. You need to engage in it before you see results. + +Do what you want with your content marketing approach, but consider whether pulling the plug after the initial wave of non-euphoric validation might be the smart move over the long term. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-The-43K-Milestone-Matters-For-Content-Creators--And-Why-It-Doesn-t--.md b/posts/medium/Why-The-43K-Milestone-Matters-For-Content-Creators--And-Why-It-Doesn-t--.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f633ce83cede5b95cd3f930eee753026b2d383bf --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-The-43K-Milestone-Matters-For-Content-Creators--And-Why-It-Doesn-t--.md @@ -0,0 +1,107 @@ +# Why The 43K Milestone Matters For Content Creators (And Why It Doesn’t!) + +#### The one view per minute milestone means some serious eyeball-time. But that doesn’t mean your content will suddenly ‘work.’ + +Recently, I decided to look into the statistics panel of this Medium account. + +While I notice the odd nudging of the followers count (I won’t lie, it’s encouraging to know that my writing is slowly reaching a wider audience), I seldom venture into the stats page. That’s too … numbery (I’m a creative, not a data geek). + +At the time of writing, this is where things stand: + +My first job was to interpret that data: what’s a view and what’s a read? + +[**The Most Important Thing To Know About Medium’s Read Ratio** + _So, Medium’s Read ratio. What is it and why is it important? Medium explains their Read ratio with following:_ blog.markgrowth.com](https://blog.markgrowth.com/the-most-important-thing-to-know-about-mediums-read-ratio-7b05752bdd5d "https://blog.markgrowth.com/the-most-important-thing-to-know-about-mediums-read-ratio-7b05752bdd5d")[](https://blog.markgrowth.com/the-most-important-thing-to-know-about-mediums-read-ratio-7b05752bdd5d) + +The short of it is that reads are people who read your piece all the way through.Views are those who click into your article but don’t make it all the way through. + +From a content marketing standpoint, I’d almost consider views to be _just as_ significant. + +[**If “Nobody Reads Online” Why Bother With Content Marketing At All?** +_People read differently on the internet. But beyond catering to that, it shouldn’t impact how you try to reach them as…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-nobody-reads-online-why-bother-with-content-marketing-at-all-ea63acd9f00a "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-nobody-reads-online-why-bother-with-content-marketing-at-all-ea63acd9f00a")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/if-nobody-reads-online-why-bother-with-content-marketing-at-all-ea63acd9f00a) + +**You don’t need people to be fully engaged in your writing for them to get the gist of it.** + +And as I wrote recently: the fact that nobody reads online doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t engage in content marketing. _Au contraire!_ It just means that you have to pander to different modes of consumption. + +Proof two: think at how _you_ consume content online. I can’t answer for you, but I’ve often been profoundly impacted by articles that I only skimmed. Sometimes if the “profoundness” there only means taking purchasing decisions. + +I tend to write pieces that are on the longer side and more stream of conscious oriented. I do my Medium-ing mostly at night and mostly for fun. Hence I’m flattered by every single reader that makes it from the top to the bottom. But I don’t _expect_ that many will engage to that extent. + +Nevertheless, over the course of the past 30 days, more than 6,000 people did just that, which translates to roughly one read (all the way through) about every seven minutes. + +Perhaps those numbers are small peanuts for some creators, but I’m humbled and flattered to have got some thinking across to enough human beings to populate a small town. + +Then I got to thinking about the 20K figure. What does that mean exactly? + +### Somebody Clicks Into My Writing Every 2 Minutes On Average + +But let me digress — as I’m wont to do when writing here. + +In addition to this Medium page, I run a small YouTube channel. + +There, you can hear me ramble on about a variety of topics that mostly only other geeks find interesting. I’m into Linux. Home networking. That sort of thing. + +The topics may be niche, but sharing them brings me great joy. + +Every geek risks being a misunderstood loner until the power of the internet brings them into contact with others who “get it.” Even if the connections are purely digital, there’s joy in sharing. + +I don’t show my subscriber count on YouTube, but it’s small. I’m closing in on the 300 milestone. + +In the grand scheme of things, you could call me a tiny creator. A minnow in a big sea with a lot of very sizeable fish swimming in it. + +And yet, like Medium, YouTube allows you to access your channel analytics. + +If you go into the advanced mode you can get a bit more granular with your filtering. + +Yesterday alone, my videos received more than 300 views. + +The cumulative watch time came in at just shy of 16 hours. + +My videos logged more than 2,300 impressions. In one day. + +For me — that’s really not bad. + +### In Content Marketing, Even Small Numbers Can Translate To Significant Engagement + +Why do I mention all this? + +Trust me, it’s not to boast. + +Any of the big time Medium accounts and even small YouTubers are running rings around my numbers. They’re laughing at my dashboards as I show them! + +But you know what? + +In marketing, we get so caught up thinking about engagement in terms of KPIs that are sometimes way oversized for our actual needs. + +Because when it comes to engagement — and creating content that reaches the right audiences — it’s far more about _who_ you reach than _how many_. + +Of course, it’s nice to be able to boast about how 100,000 people view your blog per month. + +But if only 1% of that audience fits within your qualification criteria, then all those eyeballs aren’t going to win you very much business. + +In a 30 day calendar month, there are 43,200 minutes (60 x 24 x 30). + +If I round up to the 20,000 view mark, that means that _almost_ one person every two minutes is clicking onto something that I wrote on Medium and one person is reading the whole piece every seven minutes. 7 days a week. 24 hours a day. + +For a small content creator like me, that metric is huge. My posting here has landed me business. Kicked off relationships. It’s been worth it. And as a means of creating engagement, I believe it can scale a lot further. + +The summary version of this post: + +You don’t need to shoot for massive engagement metrics just to see ROI from your content marketing. + +Writing about tech topics and posting videos about Linux, I’ve scaled to a level at which somebody reads at least a sentence that I wrote around every two minutes. That activity goes on while I sleep. While I shower. And while I’m out drinking beer at the local pub. + +Vanity metrics might be easier to achieve than you think. But it’s really the strength of that audience that’s going to be the biggest determinant of your content’s success. + +You — and your brand — can do the same. + +Actually, it can do a lot better. + +### But If You Need Some Vanity Metrics … + + * **At 21.5 views/month** … you’re getting one viewer per minute + * **At 6K reads / month** … somebody is reading something you wrote in its entirety approximately 200 times per day (6,000/30). That’s about 8 readers per hour (200/24). Or about 1 every 7 minutes (60/8.3). + * **At 43K views/month** … somebody is checking out something you wrote approximately one time every minute + * **At 83K views/month** … you’re on target to get 1 million views per year. + diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-To-Trust-Your-Gut-Instinct.md b/posts/medium/Why-To-Trust-Your-Gut-Instinct.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..db95b1e9e22c85a2a7f941afd104ec97123f892f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-To-Trust-Your-Gut-Instinct.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# Why To Trust Your Gut Instinct + +Gut Instincts Are Like an A + +[**Somebody on Quora asked: “What is your advice to an aspiring freelancer?”**](https://www.quora.com/What-is-your-advice-to-an-aspiring-freelancer) + +[And I answered:](https://www.quora.com/What-is-your-advice-to-an-aspiring-freelancer/answer/Daniel-Rosehill-7) + +**Accrue experience and then trust your gut.** + +In general I don’t claim to be the knower of all things. + +**However, when it comes to being able to detect potentially problematic clients — my instincts are off the charts accurate.** + +[**5 Red Flags to Help Avoid ‘Difficult’ Freelancing Clients** + _I recently wrote about my deliberate decision to be less responsive — about how taking slightly longer to get back to…_ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/5-red-flags-to-help-avoid-difficult-freelancing-clients-52f57507a43d) + +**Unfortunately a problem that dogged me for years has been my lifelong habit of second-guessing myself.** + +And inevitably, at least when it has come to business, this has had negative repercussions. + +E.g. a year ago a client approached me asking about a writing project. + +I saw an immediate cluster of red flags. + +Subtle verbal nuances in the brief that indicated that they held freelancers in very low esteem. Something very close to the effect to _“you need to do this absolutely pefectly. We will be checking!”_ — which is a veiled threat in a brief. And a budget that I felt was insufficient for the project, which was an exceptionally complex piece of writing about a highly technical topic. + +However, in that particular moment, I felt like being a bit more positive. And I was tired of spotting these things and turning work away (note: this isn’t really something to get tired about and is a necessary part of running a sales funnel; however, if it happens too often you probably need to just your marketing). + +So I decided to run it by a friend. _“Seems like a fine budget,”_ she enthused, as she encouraged me to be just a little bit more flexible and just try one project as a pilot. + +**That one project was an absolute nightmare that derailed my business for two weeks.** + +The client was atrocious to deal with and their process — which they promised was hands-off and easy-going — turned out to be the complete opposite, effectively decimating my hourly rate on the job. They were horribly disorganized. And even got aggressive and abusive with me when I at one point suggested perhaps using somebody else for the job. This was a fist for me. + +**My instinct was 100% accurate and I was a fool to doubt it.** For the rate that I ended up making, I would have been much better off just saying ‘no thank you’ and finding other uses for my time. + +[**Freelance Writing Pricing: Per Word, Per Hour, or Per Project? And How Much Of Each?** +_Most freelance writers would agree that pricing is just about the hardest thing to get right in this job._ medium.com](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a "https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a")[](https://medium.com/dsr-ghostwriting/freelance-writing-pricing-per-word-per-hour-or-per-project-and-how-much-of-each-d7c418a573a) + +That’s not actually that amazing, though. + +[There’s actually science behind gut instincts.](https://www.joinonelove.org/learn/yes-trust-gut-heres/#:~:text=Gut%20instinct%2C%20or%20intuition%2C%20is,body%20that%20only%20you%20experience.) + +Like machine learning models, they get better the more underlying data they are fed. + +**In other words, past experience allows you to form that visceral impression that usually steers you in the right direction when it comes to making difficult decisions about your business.** + +So my advice is: + +Don’t make the mistake that I have made far too many times. + +Accrue enough experience to develop a good gut instinct. But once you have that basis of underlying data upon which your AI model can turn (let’s call it ‘autonomous intelligence’), be very reluctant to change it — only making small adjustments to it here and there as your experience evolves. Like actual AI models, gut instincts also get more accurate as the pool of underlying data they are based upon grows. Therefore, you should actually be much more reluctant to ignore them as your experience amasses. + +**Also: don’t get in the habit of asking others for their input about your problems too often.** General guidance is fine (what’s a good rate for X?). But be wary of any advice that is predicated upon understanding something that is very specific to your circumstances and prior experience. Because the people offering their two cents won’t have that underlying data to steer their decision-making. + +If you _do_ let people make decisions for you, as I did, after a short phone call then you’re just getting their input based on facts — without that pool of experience to color it with essential nuance. That doesn’t make much sense. And if you do this continuously (and I often did), then you’ll also be constantly buffered about by people’s opinions, which frequently differ. It makes a lot more sense to develop your own built-in decision making engine and deploy it whenever the application of simple rule-based logic doesn’t yield a clear-cut answer. We might refer to this as ‘mulling it over’. But often all it means is that the answer is going to have to be derived from our prior bank of experience rather than a presentation of the cut and dried facts of the situation which calls for a decision. By calling that an ‘instinct’ we are actually allowing ourselves to be misled into thinking that that instinct (do X, do Y) is something capricious and unreliable. In fact, it is the exactly opposite of that. + +For the above reason, it’s also important to optimize for experience. + +Ideally in addition to optimizing your business for income. But if you’re in a position of great privilege you may be able to optimize for just experience for a while. + +That experience has great potential value in terms of giving you sharp intuitions that can guide you through the jungle that you will likely encounter when you step out into the world of sales and marketing. + +If you’ve gone to the trouble of garnering the experience necessary to develop a strong gut instinct, then wasting it by not applying it is actually a pitiful waste, if you think about it. You betray yourself every time you choose to ignore it (at your own peril). + +If you do use it, it has the potential to save you enormous time and frustration. + +So my advice: + +All my most painful freelancing experiences happened when my gut instinct reared its head up and I chose to ignore it nevertheless. + +Make the smart decision. Accrue the experience needed to develop a strong gut instinct. When you have that done, deploy it to your advantage in the marketplace. + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Use-Optical-Media-For-Data-Archiving-In-2024--An-FAQ.md b/posts/medium/Why-Use-Optical-Media-For-Data-Archiving-In-2024--An-FAQ.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..608d72d69d19c2bdbd859d69cd5e6dc3931424d1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Use-Optical-Media-For-Data-Archiving-In-2024--An-FAQ.md @@ -0,0 +1,102 @@ +# Why Use Optical Media For Data Archiving In 2024? An FAQ + +About my archiving approach (methodology): + +[**My Optical Media Digital Archiving Workflow (V2 02/24)** +_Should I Use M-Discs Or “regular” Blu Rays?Target:_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-optical-media-digital-archiving-workflow-v2-02-24-b15e35c3a17d "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-optical-media-digital-archiving-workflow-v2-02-24-b15e35c3a17d")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-optical-media-digital-archiving-workflow-v2-02-24-b15e35c3a17d) + +Part of my digital archive. Photo: author. + +**I’m beginning to get the same questions a lot from people curious about optical media archiving so thought I would write up a quick FAQ:** + + * **_Why not just store ‘stuff’ on the cloud?_** + +The approach linked to above is intended for people who want to create physical archives of their digital data. + +There are a number of reasons why some people feel uncomfortable committing important personal data to the cloud. The cloud is … simply somebody else’s computer. + + * **_But … isn’t optical media dead?_** + +Optical media’s popularity has drastically declined but it remains a relatively popular medium for data archiving thanks to the relatively longevity of the medium in cold/offline storage environments. + + * **_Why not use LTO?_** + +LTO is great for cheap archival storage. But it’s not actually a great medium for cold/offline archival. + +Tape can experience data rot in as little as 30 years. + +Many forms of optical media are rated for stability in excess of 100 years. + + * **_But … hard drives are so much cheaper!_** + +The advantage of optical media for archival use-cases is data permanence and not cost savings. In cold storage environments, archival-grade optical media can be expected to outlast HDDs and SDDs by many decades. + + * **_Is it time consuming?_** + +Refining the workflow and writing about it has been far more time-consuming than the actual process of maintaining the archive (but this has been a labor of love and a source of periodic joy for me. I get a somewhat regular stream of emails from other optical media users around the world!) + +I create about 2 x 25GB BD-Rs per month. I could reduce my frequency further by using bigger discs but … I quite enjoy the monthly ritual and creating physical products from my creative efforts. Burning those two discs requires about 10 minutes of hands-on effort. + + * **_Don’t you need to store lots and lots of discs?_** + +If you’re a photographer/videographer (etc) storing relatively modest quantities of personal data …. this doesn’t require as many discs or as much room as people seem to imagine. + +It took me the bulk of 2 years to fill up half a small box…. and many of those discs were test burns. If you use the largest capacity media on the market currently (128GB BD-R) you can use even less space. + +Imagine you’re archiving episodes of your podcast and each episode is about 100Mb. You can fit more than 1,200 episodes on a single 128GB BDXL. You get the idea. + +Some BDXL discs I purchased from Amazon Japan. Photo: author. + + * **_Should I Use M-Discs Or “regular” Blu Rays?_** + +People have different opinions on this, often strident ones. + +**I have come around to the opinion that “regular” inorganic HTL Blu-Rays with MABL are perfectly good enough for archival use.** + +I would still focus on buying media from reputable manufacturers and avoiding ‘bargains’. Shop for quality. + +I still use lots of M-Discs but no longer regard them as ‘essential’. + +I do _not_ believe that Verbatim are selling regular HTL media as BD-R Mdiscs (_see: the “fake M-Disc charge”_). + +However, I do believe that they have done a woefully inadequate job at explaining how their BD-R M-Discs are superior to their regular product line (assuming, of course, that they are). I would personally like to see head to head comparisons in accelerated ageing conditions and a much higher degree of transparency about the differences between the products (insofar as information can be disclosed without revealing trade secrets). However I also think that it’s a somewhat moot point because I believe that MABL discs are “good enough”. + + * **_What about using CDs or DVDs for data storage?_** + +I don’t recommend using CD-Rs and DVD-R for data storage, including products marketed as “archival grade.” + +The gold CDs look impressive (visually) but still contain organic dyes in the recording layer. + +I would take a bet on an MABL BD-R disc over these products any day of the week. + + * **_What burner should I buy for the M-Disc?_** + +Assuming you’re looking at BD-R M-Disc and not the DVDs … just about any Blu Ray burner on the market should be able to read and write them. + +For BDXL .. it’s worth double-checking the spec and remembering that tri-layer (BD-TL) and quad-layer (BD-QL) are usually listed separately. + +I’ve heard that Pioneer make good products and recently picked up the BDR XD08. + +A stronger belief is that products with an independent AC-DC supply should be favored over those that can only draw bus power from USB connections. I would favor internal SATA drives in an enclosure over external slimline ones. + +I’m waiting on mine in the mail and plan to swap over to that as my primary device and keep the Pioneer for times when I’m travelling. + + * **_Are you worried about deprecation?_** + +Personally, no. + +Consider the existence of the humble floppy disc which has a miniscule storage volume and is subject to data rot. Despite the existence of far more advanced storage technologies, reading floppy discs — if they’re good — is trivially easy and floppy disc readers can be found without difficulty. + +Optical media remains in widespread circulation. There will come a point in time at which optical media will be greatly threatened by deprecation. By that time successor technologies for offline data storage will likely have come to market. This will not be an overnight process. + +Digital data preservation is a relatively new discipline — beginning with the advent of computers less than a century ago. Best practices are very much in their early stages of formulation. + +But long term data preservation efforts to date have focused on periodically moving data to newer storage technologies. You may have once owned VHS tapes or had an older relative who did. Like me, you might have digitised them. You might have digitised them onto optical media and later moved them to a cloud. This is roughly “the way” so far. + +I see no reason why those choosing to preserve data in archive on optical cannot follow the same process. + + * **_Do you use ‘the cloud’?_** + +Like most people I use all manner of cloud services on a daily basis. I also use clouds for backup. (But … backup isn’t archival!) + +For archiving my personal data … this is the method I’ve chosen to run with. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-You-Need-Gastronorm-Pans-In-Your-Life.md b/posts/medium/Why-You-Need-Gastronorm-Pans-In-Your-Life.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0a1ea0524f9c24ffaf4a09c336568077b32d0315 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-You-Need-Gastronorm-Pans-In-Your-Life.md @@ -0,0 +1,179 @@ +# Why You Need Gastronorm Pans In Your Life + +#### You know those things they have at salad bars? They’re also amazing at home + +To continue with the long progress of documenting random things I find interesting — evidenced visually by the mushrooming tags cloud in the sidebar of this blog — I thought I would write up a quick note on my love of Gastronorm pans, and commercial-grade cookware in general. + +[According to Wikipedia:](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastronorm_sizes) + +> **_Gastronorm sizes_** _are standard sizes of_[ _containers_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Packaging_and_labeling) _used in the_[ _catering_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catering) _industry specified in the_[ _EN_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Committee_for_Standardisation) _631 standards_ + +Relatively few outside the catering and restaurant industry even know that these things exist. + +Here are some reasons that I think is a travesty. + +A row of quarter / one-over-four hotel pans / gastros beneath some daily staples in a (consumer) refrigerator + +### 1: They Make Your Home Feel Like An All-You-Can-Eat Buffet + +Few places in the world are as wonderful as _all you can eat buffets_. + +Speaking of which, add that to my list of gripes in the [Ireland vs. Israel post](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/myblog/ireland-vs-israel-my-thoughts-after-5-years/): this country is virtually bereft of them! + +If you want to recreate the magical feeling of gorging on vast quantities of ethnic food within the comfort of your own home, all you need is a pile of GN pans (best known to those in the catering and food industry as ‘hotel pans’ or ‘gastros’), a _bain marie_(or alternatively a more consumer-oriented electric buffet pan warmer; [Amazon link here](https://www.amazon.com/Oster-Buffet-Server-Warming-Stainless/dp/B002FWTOQM)), and a massive appetite. + +### 2: They’re Made for Restaurants (And Caterers) — So They’re Food-Industry Rugged + +Gastronorm pans are as hearty as they look. Trust me, these things will take a beating. + +Gastronorm / hotels pans can be: + + * **Used as a percussion instrument in combination with your favorite’s chef’s spoon** , which is another piece of industrial cookware that everybody absolutely should own. + * **Used as a form of cymbal by clacking the Gastronorm’s lid against the body of the Gastronorm repetitively.** + * Alternatively, used in the same manner as a form of kitchen gong to indicate when a dish has been completed. + +More conventionally, they can be: + + * Put in an oven + * Put in a freezer + * Put in a fridge + * Put on a hot plate + +### 3: They’re Versatile! Perfect for Carrying, Storing, Heating, Freezing, and Serving + +Get some chef pans, a label maker, some waterproof labels — and you’re ready to host at scale — and in style! + +Anybody that’s been to a buffet has almost certainly interacted with a gastronorm pan — although few besides the restaurant owners probably know them by that name. + +Gastronorms fit perfectly in the refrigerator and I’ve observed that there seems to be some weird Gastronorm/refrigerator dynamic at play. + +I can stack two 10cm Gastronorms into the lower shelf of my fridge and they fit _perfectly_ with not a excess millimeter of headspace gone to waste. + +Better than that, GN pans are the perfect receptacle for every stage of the food preparation and consumption process. + +You can: + + * **Store raw ingredients** in Gastronorms + * **Store coked ingredients** in Gastronorms + * **Heat up food for serving** directly in a Gastronom + * Insert said Gastronorms into a _bain marie_ or place them onto a trivet to serve you or your guests from + +### 4: They’re Modular (And Made To An International Standard) + +Goat on a bed of freekeh in a GN pan + +**GN pans are perfect for stacking one on top of the other** in a way that regular kitchen storing bowls simply are not. + +Because they’re standardized according to a European directive (“ [EN-631](https://infostore.saiglobal.com/en-gb/Standards/EN-631-1-1993-334060_SAIG_CEN_CEN_767432/): Materials and Articles in Contact with Foodstuffs — Catering Containers — Dimensions of Containers”), difference sizes of GN pan can also be stacked one on top of the other in a refrigerator. + +Forget trying to get that IKEA bowl to sit on top of that rectangular box thing you got as a gift from your coworker. + +Gastronorms fit perfectly whether alongside or on top of one another and make fantastic use out of refrigerator storage space. + +To work out what will fit, all you need is to know some simple arithmetic: two 1/4 tubs will fit on top of a 1/2, etc. + +In fact, the more Gastronorms you own the more uses you seem to find for them, just as you will often see in commercial kitchens. + +I have one dedicated solely to housing lids for the other pans in my kitchen while another is boxing off ice storage trays in the freezer compartment. + +Another fun facet of knowing Gastronorm sizes not to be taking lightly is that **you can impress serving staff and friends by being able to describe the size of pan an ingredient is being held in.** + +If there’s a cooler party trick, I don’t know of it. + +_“Some cabbage please,”_ marks you out as just another average punter looking for a sandwich filling. + +“ _Can I have a big of the cabbage? You see the one in that quarter [Gastronorm]”_** _subtly communicates to staff that they’re dealing with a fellow food industry professional_** and that they better be on their guard to make the best sandwich in the world for you. I’m just trying to be funny, of course. + +Speaking of GN sizes, that’s actually my favorite thing about them. + +As mentioned, **it’s a legitimate international standard.** + +There are no regional or international “interpretations” that I’m aware of as to what size a quarter pan should be. + +The only differences you’ll find between manufacturers relate to the material used (you can find stainless steel, the commercial kitchen standard, as well as aluminimum, glass, and even plastic). + +The sizes are described as fractions of a full (1/1 pan), such that four 1/4 Gastronorms (called a “quarter pan”) would fit perfectly into a horizontal 1/1 pan at a sandwich counter. + +### Embracing The Gastronom Way + +As trivial as it may seem, **the Gastronorm pan size convention is one of the best examples of successful international standardization (and cooperation) that I have ever come across** , although granted my expertise on this matter is minor. + +Pan sizes for the restaurant industry seem to be internationally uncontroversial, which makes me wonder why can’t we do the same about a lot of other things such as the unit of measurement for reporting temperature in or whether we use the metric or Imperial system? + +I don’t know if anybody has — or can — quantify the costs to the aviation industry of having disparate systems for denoting air pressure and calibrating altimeters in the US and Europe (by reference to air pressure as pounds per square inch of mercury and Hecopascals respectively). + +But surely simply having two measurement systems for denoting the exact same measurement has both a direct financial cost as well as a less tangible one in the form of creating confusion between people from different “systems”. Not to mention the fact that it adds to the body of knowledge which somebody working in the other “system” needs to familiarize themselves with. + +Not so in the comparatively enlightened catering world. + +You can literally walk into a restaurant supply store in countries separated by thousands of miles and you will find the same familiar fraction-based sizes. + +I think that’s pretty cool. + +But coming back to my gastronorms. + +The ones I have at home are: + + * **1/4 pans:** rectangular; enough to hold about four servings of a dish. 1/3 pans are roughly the same shape but slightly longer and wider. I would find them a little too large. + * **1/6 pans** : square; enough to hold about two servings of a dish. Also a great size for storing prepped ingredients. + * **1/9 pans:** small pans that can fit in the side of a fridge and which are great for storing small quantities of sauces, like pesto. + +GN pans also come in a variety of standardized depths. + +Typically, they can be the following depths, in mm: + +This adds another dimension to their versatility. + +A deep sixth (1/6 x 200mm) is perfect for ladelling soup out of into a bowl while a flat 40mm deep third would be a great size in which to store chips, for extraction with a pair of kitchen tongs. + +### 5: You Buy Them in Restaurant Supply / Catering Stores + +**Restaurant / catering supply stores are surely one of the most underrated shopping experiences on the planet.** + +If you can find one that isn’t trade-only (doesn’t sell to just restaurants) **you can buy professional-grade cookware for often the same price as you can buy grossly inferior consumer stuff.** + +Additionally, restaurant supply places stock: + + * Things like chef spoons which aren’t typically found in consumer kitchen stores. + * Things like giant 40 liter aluminium pots for homebrewing which would also never be found in a store for general consumers. + +These are also fortunately the home of Gastronorm pans! + +You will feel like a kid in a candy store as you eagerly eye up new depths of pans to add to your collection. Perhaps you want a 2/3? Or even a 65mm deep 1/3. Your options are wide open. + +### 6: They’re Transportable + +I’ve frequently brought Gastronorm pans to friends’ homes for meals. + +The only negative is that the lids don’t seal fully — so a strip of sellotape can be required to make sure that nothing spills. + +Otherwise, because they stack so well, you can easily bring a dish or a selection of them to your next meal, stick them right in the oven / on the hot plate to warm up, and then just put the pan on a trivet for serving. + +You can comfortably fit a stack of three or four quarters (stocked vertically) into an IKEA bag containing everything you need for a successful Indian dinner party: + + * A quarter full of curry + * A quarter full of rice + * A quarter full of popadoms + * A quarter full of fruit salad + +You could also throw in a few 1/9s full of various dips along the side if you had room. + +You get the idea! + +How more convenient could it be? + +### Additional Benefits of Gastronorm Life + +Some other subtle ways in which adopting the _Gastronorm Way_ has brought positive change into my life: + + * **I’m never missing a lid**. I separate between meat / dairy / for-Passover-only in my kitchen and label each Gastronorm body and lid accordingly with dishwasher-proof stickers. Other than that, GN pans and lids are completely interchangeable — irrespective of the depth of the pan. + * **My fridge storage is _way_ more efficient: **I have less random ingredients lying around as cooking — and actually eating what I cook (next point) — helps stuff get used up. Everything fits into well-organized blocks into my fridge and dry wipe markers help keep track of what is what (and when it might be expected to go off). + * **I eat _way_ more leftovers. **Traditionally, I a terrible food waster and poor at eating leftovers. Since I’ve adopted the _Gastronorm Way_ I, for some reason, am much better at eating leftoveres in the fridge. It’s also really easy to combine separate dishes. + +### Share My Gastronormania? + +Sadly I’ve yet to find a non-restaurant-owner that shares my enthusiasm and still get quizzical looks when I need to profess to being a private customer at my nearest catering supply place. + +If you’re also riding the GN-pan bandwagon, [drop me a line](https://www.danielrosehill.co.il/). + +_ \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Your-Freelancing-Life-Doesn-t-Seem-Real.md b/posts/medium/Why-Your-Freelancing-Life-Doesn-t-Seem-Real.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0286f42c0aacd30ea5ae20e3e10126a36e9765d4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Your-Freelancing-Life-Doesn-t-Seem-Real.md @@ -0,0 +1,97 @@ +# Why Your Freelancing Life Doesn’t Seem Real + +#### Do you have proof that your client isn’t an AI bot or is it just a hunch? + +This super cheesy graphic was courtesy of Pixabay + +In another interesting thread from the [freelancer writers’ subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/), [/u/StuBermann ](https://www.reddit.com/user/StuBergmann/)asked (paraphrased, especially to keep the language PG-friendly for you younglings): + +_“What’s the end goal for a freelancer? There’s no corporate ladder to move up, no promotions, no partnership or managerial position you can work towards. Even though it’s much better than being a corporate robot, I’m still just trading time for money.”_ + +Stu (I’m going to assume it’s a Stu) then floated a few ideas. He could: + + * Create a content agency + * Build and grow his own network of sites + * Go down the course route, developing a writing course ([don’t do it, Stu!](https://medium.com/the-book-mechanic/why-i-believe-freelance-writing-courses-are-bad-for-writers-125c7b8e56d7)) + * Create a lead generation site for writing work and sell the leads + * Keep writing but invest the earnings in something else + * Write an epic fantasty series and sell the rights to HBO + * Create a software tool for freelance writing + * Build and sell content websites from scratch + +### How Can We Ensure Growth? + +Stu’s thread caught my attention because I spent a good chunk of Friday evening discussing this very topic with my reluctant unwitting business strategist (that happens to be a family member). This chat lasted three hours which means that I’ll probably need to do some private journalling time before I can inflict that kind of misery again. + +[**How To Grow Professionally As A Freelance Writer** + _Simply Earning More Money Isn’t Enough To Keep Satisfied_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-grow-professionally-as-a-freelance-writer-3f51d3772226 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-grow-professionally-as-a-freelance-writer-3f51d3772226")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/how-to-grow-professionally-as-a-freelance-writer-3f51d3772226) + +I also thought it was interested that although I know nothing about /u/StuBermann (isn’t that the odd beauty of Reddit?) that it seems as if we’re doing a lot of the same thinking. + +For instance I also dream of writing a series and selling it to a television network ( — _my script is roughly for a satirical series laughing at the ridiculousness of moving to Israel. I have the opening scene clear in my end which is exactly what happened to me: you get to the airport and the guy who’s supposed to greet you doesn’t show up and then some burly Israeli taxi driver strings your worldly possessions to the roof his taxi with some lanyard that looks like it fell off the back of a truck somewhere in Ashdod while he drives you across the country, to a dingy absorption center, at what feels like twice the legal speed limit. The target audience is probably an Israeli station rather than HBO. But I digress — )_. + +Like the original poster (OP), I’ve also thought frequently about starting an agency. + +But more than those similarities, I also feel like /u/StuBermann and I are going through the exact same thought process — despite the fact that we’re probably thousands of miles away and probably also have relatively little in common besides the fact that we’re both freelance writers. + +Perhaps, like me, Stu is inwardly surprised that he (or she) is succeeding at making a living while working from home on the internet. Like me, Stu might struggle with imposter syndrome and wonder if the day is nearing when his clients will realize that he’s actually a massive fraud. + +Maybe Stu also feels at times like he’s living his own real life version of _The Matrix_. He might wonder, at times, whether somebody slipped him a red pill while he was sleeping one night and whether his clients aren’t actually real but rather some clever AI bot that have been imbued with the ability to provide feedback and master corporate speak. _(About three months ago, I actually jokingly told a client that I wasn’t sure he was actually a human. “I’m real!” was the pleading message I got back. But it took actually meting for coffee before I was fully convinced…)_ + +Perhaps, like me, Stu periodically pauses after a grueling day at the computer, maybe with his favorite alcoholic concoction in hand (is Stu a beer guy or a whiskey man?) and wonders why — despite making an objectively reasonable salary doing this — there is a voice inside his head that says “ _WTF am I doing with my life!_ ” + +### Are You Creating Meaningful Work? + +Firstly, I think that ensuring growth as a freelance writer is essential. + +My post above covers the various ways in which I think we can engineer that. Here it is again. + +[**Redirecting you - Medium** + _Edit description_ medium.com](https://medium.com/r?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdanielrosehill.medium.com%2Fhow-to-grow-professionally-as-a-freelance-writer-3f51d3772226 "https://medium.com/r?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdanielrosehill.medium.com%2Fhow-to-grow-professionally-as-a-freelance-writer-3f51d3772226")[](https://medium.com/r?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdanielrosehill.medium.com%2Fhow-to-grow-professionally-as-a-freelance-writer-3f51d3772226) + +Secondly, I’m perfectly fine stating for the record that freelance writing probably isn’t _my_ ultimate goal. Writing _is_ a long term goal of mine in the sense that I love the process of writing and love trying to influence people with words (I also love reading other writers’ work). But writing for corporate clients, at least as a freelancer, might not be. + +When I “dream big,” I tend to think more along the lines of running a startup or managing communications for some famous politician (my first career dream was becoming a speechwriter!). Periodically I have great ideas but haven’t found time yet to action them — between client work and writing I’m, well, usually too busy. That time, I hope, will someday come. + +All that aside, I think that Stu’s post teases out a few very important observations. And this is where I think we find common ground and probably many others do too: + + * **Firstly, I think that as creatives, us writers need passion projects.** I don’t think my clients would be offended if I told them that content marketing, and helping them write it, isn’t my ultimate passion in life, even if I’m perfectly good at it. Although there’s a good chance that they mightn’t hire me again. Has anybody actually dreamed about becoming a corporate blogger when they’re all grown up? Is it okay if we can admit, publicly, that that also includes many of us freelance content marketing writers? I would guess that there are few writers for whom that is truly the case. My hunch is that both Stu and I aspire to creating greater and more meaningful work than the type we currently do for clients. This is why, I’m guessing, we’re both drawn to the idea of creating some of our own work. I think if we’re both wondering “where is this going?” it’s fair to assume that we’re both not feeling a creative itch that our day to day work doesn’t satisfy. It’s leading us to question, in the small hours of the night, where is this going? This is what we’re doing now. But what do we _ultimately_ aspire to do? + * **Freelancers need growth as much as in-house people do.** I’ve made this point before. There’s a very real threat that freelancing will turn into the work for yourself version of a dead end entry level job if you let it. I’m currently strategizing how I can upgrade the type of work that I do in the next calendar year. Everybody has ambitions. Few are happy to do the same thing year in year out. In a paradigm in which growth isn’t a built-in feature, it’s vital that we devote time to making it a reality. + +### Does This Feel Real To You? + +Does your freelance work feel like The Matrix? + +Let me be brutally honest. + +Although I’ve about to enter my third year as a full time freelancer — and my average salary this year has been above the national average where I’m based — freelance writing doesn’t yet seem real to me. + +Part of the cause is that I have prioritized working with international clients over local ones. That means that I haven’t gotten out of the office as much as I’d like to meet and great clients and attend things like conferences and trade shows. Increasingly, I realize that this is an unsustainable approach, or at least an inherently unsatisfying approach (for me). + +I have a social life — sure. Am I a hermit? No. But if all working life can be conducted from a home office behind a monitor — then I think there’s something deeply unfulfilling about that. + +So if you’re in the same boat, I don’t think it’s surprising that you might be thinking along the lines of where this leads to. Because evolution is _necessary_ or you would eventually go crazy. + +I have no idea about /u/StuBermann’s work life. But in my case, running an online business —albeit a relatively thriving one — also simply doesn’t feel secure. Again, this prompts me to think about evolution. + +If I can’t meet my clients for a drink, get the inside scoop on what’s going on for them, and establish a real-life camaraderie, then I know that I remain but an amalgamation of pixels to them. As they are to me. To succeed in the long term, that needs to change. + +I can’t remotely diagnose anybody’s freelance writing business. But I can empathize and sense that I share essentially the same set of concerns as this Reddit poster. Which, for me at least, is telling. How many other freelance writers out there are having the same thoughts? + +If you take a long view of history, you’ll realize, for instance, how unnatural it is for humans to sit on an airplane and travel between continents in mere hours. Comparatively speaking, this is a bleeding edge development! + +I think that when it comes to working online we’re all fighting with a similar dynamic. It’s too new. We’re not adapted to it yet. There are pivots that, collectively, we need to make before we can accept this way of working as normal. + +For me, right now, freelance writing isn’t the full picture that provides all the satisfaction I need to feel professionally fulfilled. + +Even if it _is_ a great way to make a living, I need something external to that to feel satisfied creatively. So long as it doesn’t feel real, I will crave a way to take things offline. And until I feel like the relationships that sustain my business are real enough that I can rely upon them, I will worry about things like career growth, income stability, and how to build a professional network that feels sufficiently robust to me. + +I’m not saying, by the way, that achieving those things isn’t possible within the context of freelance writing. Just for many early stage freelancers, these kind of things are likely unfulfilled aspirations — which will gnaw at us until they are realized. + +Freelance writing can be a great way to make a living. But it carries with it an occupational risk of stagnation that is easy to underestimate. Particularly if you never expect to do it full time and then wake up one morning and realize that that’s precisely what you’re doing. + +This time of year, in particular, provides a great opportunity for full time freelancers to figure out what our long term career aspirations are. + +To reflect. To take a break from the coal face. To strategize. + +And try to bridge any gaps between our professional and creative aspirations and the work we’ve engaging in to live. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-Your-Online-Reputation-Is-Like-Your-Marketing-Bank-Balance.md b/posts/medium/Why-Your-Online-Reputation-Is-Like-Your-Marketing-Bank-Balance.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6ffe3e5e301fdb56b9a68933c9d739a1d1410b22 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-Your-Online-Reputation-Is-Like-Your-Marketing-Bank-Balance.md @@ -0,0 +1,70 @@ +# Why Your Online Reputation Is Like Your Marketing Bank Balance + +#### It’s never too late to start investing .. or getting in on inbound marketing + +Those reluctant to get going can think of online reputation building as like investing. It’s smart to start as early as possible. But it’s better to start late than not beginning at all. Photo by [Alexander Mils](https://www.pexels.com/@alexandermils?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-100-us-dollar-banknotes-2068975/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +For many years now, I’ve been both practicing and preaching the dogma of inbound marketing. + +With clients, I began by leveraging my experiencing heading up marketing communications at tech startups in order to set the wheels of inbound marketing campaigns in motion for their businesses — hosting the interviews needed to get credible case studies drafted and, of course, writing the blog posts that went along with them too. + +Later, I realized that spending 40 hours a week mostly writing was both exhausting (in a very unsustainable way) and somewhat constraining. It was time, I realized, to shift gears. + +As a creative, I derive energy both from deep “focus work” — that’s the writing aspect — and from the more free-association-led thinking work that ideates the big ideas and gives campaigns their vital direction. + +For that reason, I began focusing on content strategy as an ancillary service offering — later making it a prerequisite for new clients I signed on (the latter decision took some more thinking to arrive at. I realized that being a writer without any say in campaign direction was essentially a manifestation of the _‘responsibility without authority’_ problem that plagues many workers and famously erodes esteem). + +It would be disingenuous for me to say that every marketing campaign I have worked on over the years has been a resounding success — that every inbound marketing strategy has blossomed from lines on a content calendar into revenue-laden marketing gold. In fact, that would be a flat out lie. + +There have been flops. Clients have broken off contracts after failing to see the ROI that they expected. Equally, however, I won myself some fans. Clients gushed about how they were now seeing a steady stream of inbound leads. No more cold emails! + +### Starting The Inbound Journey For My Own Business + +The first two years of running my freelance business were marked by scrambling — to get client work done; to complete tax forms; to learn the proper coding for deductible business expenses. + +But when I finally found time to wrest myself from the day to day minutiae, a thought came to mind _: “shouldn’t I be doing this for myself too?”_ + +The results of investing in my own inbound marketing were as good as a successful roll-out for a typical client. + +Whereas I initially relied upon a mix of human marketing (AKA putting out feelers on Facebook), cold emailing, and other outbound-led approaches to client acquisition, inbound marketing has long superseded those as my main methodology for finding new work. It’s now the fuel that makes my business tick over and keeps leads arriving to my inbox. + +To be clear — I still engage in _outbound_ marketing. In the tumultuous world of freelancing, I preach diversification as the guiding North Star that needs to animate all other strategies. Until you’re 100% sure that your content funnel is good enough to always keep piping in leads — mine isn’t — I wouldn’t recommend relying upon it entirely. + +But outbound has long played a decidedly second fiddle to inbound in how I go about obtaining the work that keeps my business producing revenue. I haven’t had to look back yet. + +### Your Online Reputation Is Like Your Bank Balance + +I’ve argued before that the process of inbound marketing has a lot in common with investing. + +[**Inbound Marketing Is Investing — For Brand-Builders** + _When you think about, developing inbound collateral and investing in financial vehicles have a lot in common_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03 "https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03")[](https://medium.com/daniel-on-marketing/inbound-marketing-is-investing-for-brand-builders-ff22f6d10e03) + +For one, results tend to get compound. + +As you build up a following on one platform, it’s easier to get noticed on a second one. + +And — more simply — as you continue to distribute material that attracts attention you build up a following in the first place. + +But more pertinently, perhaps, it’s a slow and arduous journey. + +Publishing 100 blogs overnight in a last ditch Hail Mary attempt to lure clients to a tanking business is highly unlikely to work for a mixture of technical (SEO) and human (lack of audience) factors. + +Outbound marketing is invariably the better weapon to fan the flames of short term funnel crises. + +But if you’re looking to build sustainable growth — a far less chaotic and more preferable enterprise — then inbound marketing is the way to go. + +I think of my own inbound marketing development as a lifelong process of investment. Its success is measured in yearly increments — a luxury I’m rarely allowed with clients. + +The fruits of that slow effort are slowly accruing influence, notoriety, and — for my business — inbound leads. The first two make the last of those objectives far easier to achieve. For when people know your name and trust your brand, you can skip over a lot of the tedious work in initial business development processes. + +I don’t expect that I’ll have the luxury of hanging up my shoes until I retire. So I’ll keep petering in deposits until then. + +The beauty of this inbound-led approach is that I can vary up how fast and hard I work. + +Perhaps this week I’ll pour in lots of effort to content creation. Then I’ll take a break for a couple of more in order to recuperate. With outbound-led approaches, you never have the luxury of stepping back. Another reason why inbound — I argue — is the better strategy to adopt. + +The online reputation which I’m slowly building through content is like a bank balance — or perhaps a pension fund balance is a better analogy. + +It’s in a decent place for a young saver in his 30s. But there’s plenty more room for growth. There will be a lifetime-worth of growth, in fact. + +Your online reputation is like your bank balance. Today’s online content landscape may seem daunting, overwhelming, and bereft of opportunity. That’s an illusion — there are still lacunas to be filled and opportunity to be exploited from doing so. It’s better to begin investing now rather than never. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-ghosting---and-ghosts---simply-suck.md b/posts/medium/Why-ghosting---and-ghosts---simply-suck.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..56a684fc7974d489d19c236cc29b620e9e9201e5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-ghosting---and-ghosts---simply-suck.md @@ -0,0 +1,108 @@ +# Why ghosting — and ghosts — simply suck + +#### People need to stop making excuses for lousy behavior + +As I look back on this year of business, I’m reminded about all the sweat and tears that have gone into running a full time freelance writing business. + +It’s been worthwhile — this has been my best year in business yet. But equally, it’s been exhausting. + +[**The Secret Sauce Behind My Best Year Freelancing Yet** + _(You Should Run Financials More Often Than Annually )_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-secret-sauce-behind-my-best-year-freelancing-yet-f1f58c919d5e "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-secret-sauce-behind-my-best-year-freelancing-yet-f1f58c919d5e")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-secret-sauce-behind-my-best-year-freelancing-yet-f1f58c919d5e) + +The surprising truth of the matter is that the writing part has probably been the easiest aspect of running this shop. + +It’s what I signed up for and it’s what I’ve been doing for a while. + +Rather, it’s the business development and sales work that goes into this that is much more challenging and often just as time consuming. + +Along with the occasional disappointment that comes with realizing that a hard-won account simply isn’t a good fit and is destined for the “old accounts” folder. + +[**What I’m Like To Work With** + _What’s The Point In Hiding Who We Are?_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-im-like-to-work-with-3aee31e361ef "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-im-like-to-work-with-3aee31e361ef")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/what-im-like-to-work-with-3aee31e361ef) + +It makes sense that I’m feeling that this year more than others. I’ve been worried about the pandemic’s potentially negative effect on business since it started. I think my concern is justified. So I’ve doubled down on my sales and marketing trying to cover both inbound and outbound channels. + +This activity has won me business. But equally it’s made me very distasteful about a practice that I think has become far too commonplace: professional ghosting. + +### Ghosting Is (Almost) Never Okay + +Ghosting doesn’t make people happy. Photo: Pikist + +The impetus for this post was this nice piece from [Elizabeth M. Jones](https://medium.com/u/7e37913d8f29): + +[**Why Ghosting Haunts Freelancers and What You Can Do About It** + _Ghosting is a lamentable reality of dating, job hunting, and yes, even (especially) freelancing._ medium.com](https://medium.com/@elizabethmjoneswrites/why-ghosting-haunts-freelancers-and-what-you-can-do-about-it-f5519faa28e4 "https://medium.com/@elizabethmjoneswrites/why-ghosting-haunts-freelancers-and-what-you-can-do-about-it-f5519faa28e4")[](https://medium.com/@elizabethmjoneswrites/why-ghosting-haunts-freelancers-and-what-you-can-do-about-it-f5519faa28e4) + +Unlike most pieces about the ills of ghosting, Jones discusses the mental aspect of ghosting upon _ghostees_ , citing this quote from [freelance PR consultant Michelle Garrett](https://michellegarrett.com/) (which I couldn’t agree with more!): + +> “[Ghosting] is sort of devastating mentally and emotionally. You feel like you’ve built a rapport — then they just vanish. **Not only is it rude, it’s hurtful. I still feel hurt when I think about these situations.** It also makes it difficult to trust moving forward. I think I’ve learned not to get my heart set on anything until you’re actually working on the project.” + +The problem — to my mind, at least — is that ghosting is no longer a marginal communications policy pursued by those lacking good manners. And if my experience is anything to go by, it’s — shockingly — at risk of becoming the professional norm. + +As Michelle’s quote articulates, ghosting doesn’t have a neutral effect on recipients. Communicating nothing, in fact, communicates rather a lot: That the recipient wasn’t worthy of being contacted. Ghosting is causing a lot of hurt to go around. Which is why I think it’s important that we collectively do our part to try change the culture. + +### Is Being Cynical A Trait Worth Cultivating? + +No one on the line: being ghosted can make even routine client contact seem fultile + +Besides this initial dejection that ghosting causes (more so for first-time ghostees), the collateral damage of ghosting can be significant. Those who are repeatedly on the receiving end of ghosting can have difficulty forming trust in future relationships (this, of course, applies beyond the business context). + +Additionally, as a repeat ghostee, it becomes harder to convey enthusiasm when you know there’s a high probability that that mental energy you’re thinking about expending on a project will be in vain. Yet not conveying your enthusiasm is a surefire way to lose a bid. This creates a difficult and energy-sapping Catch 22. + +Like Michelle, the only time I really get excited about a project these days is when the ink has dried on a contract. I’ve learned this by experience after rushing to tell my friends and family about this “cool new potential client” that had just dropped me an email (only to never be heard from again). + +**This may be a sensible adaptation for me and others to make, but I think we should question whether we’re okay that this has become an essential survival trait in the professional environment we have created.** + +All ghosting is not created equal and I think it’s also important to recognize that some forms of it are more likely to hurt more than others. It’s these forms that I think we need to put our effort into combating. + +The hurt and disappointment that ghosting causes rises in direct proportion to the mental energy that the eventual ghostee expends on investing in the relationship. + +On several occasions, I have spent a couple of hours on phone calls with excited-sounding potential clients — inbound leads, no less — before putting together proposals for them, often at short notice. + +On all these occasions, I had alternative uses for my time. On several of them, I expended significant effort to turn these projects around in time for a deadline. Sometimes, this involved skipping lunch. When the client couldn’t even muster a “no thanks,” the feeling of betrayal was palpable. + +_This_ is precisely the type of ghosting that really makes me despair a little about the state of the current professional world we’re all navigating. + +Not acknowledging a carefully crafted pitch might, to some, seem rude. But it doesn’t cause the same level of grief as the former example. It’s these instances that, I think, need to be called out. + +### Ghosts Can Do Better + +Like many freelancers, my conversion rate for landing new clients is, I estimate, somewhere in the region of 20%. + +This means that for every four opportunities I speak with, one will go on to become a customer. The other four? More often than not the only way I know the projects aren’t going ahead is through silence and follow-up emails going ignored. Inevitably, there has been a slew of phone and email correspondence in the interim. When this grinds to a screeching halt I know that I can safely put the prospect into the ghosts folder. + +If there’s one solace I can take from my experiences with ghosting, it’s that while ghosting may be endemic, it’s thankfully not yet universal. We’re not doomed yet! + +Just as there are plenty of ghosts in this world, there remain a few old-timers that are punctilious about responding to all freelancers, job applicants, and queries — even if all they have to say is ‘thanks for your time, but no’. And that simple communication is often all that I — or other potential ghostees — are looking for to get closure on a process. + +This is also why I think that we need to stop making excuses for ghosting. + +_“People ghost because they’re busy,”_ really doesn’t cut the mustard. + +If people are too busy to be able to manage a relationship, they shouldn’t initiate one in the first place. + +Blaming ghostees for ghosting, or telling them to _“get over it,”_(a famous response of salespeople) is a form of gaslighting that we would do well to recognize. + +_Ghostees_ should not be scolded for not “following up” more aggressively or assailed for not trying harder to get the _ghosters_ to deign to acknowledge their existence (I take particular issue with recommendations to do the latter). + +On the other hand, ghostees _should_ get over ghosting for the sake of their productivity and their mental health. Dwelling on the rubishness of it all won’t help. They may _have_ to try harder if they’re being held to a sales quota. (_Although personally, I feel that many people should just knock ghosters off their agenda entirely_). + +Neither of these recommendations validates the practice of ghosting, however. + +In more cases than not, ghosting is simply unprofessional and rude. No amount of mental backgammon can rewrite that fact. + +Despite all the above, most people, I reckon, have probably unintentionally ghosted somebody else. I know that I have, although compared to some of the ghosting I’ve experienced, I think that my infractions to date have been on the mild side. We all get busy from time to time and sometimes we get insanely so. It’s inevitable. + +But there’s a long stretch between occasional instances of accidental ghosting and the professional culture that is fast developing in which ghosting is entrenching itself as a valid and tacitly accepted surrogate to a simple ‘no’. + +This culture, through its prevalence, positively validates ghosting. This simply isn’t okay. + +Ghosting isn’t a kind way of letting people down gently, as is sometimes argued. In fact, avoiding hard conversations because they’re unpalatable to you is precisely the opposite of that. + +This coming calendar year, let’s all try to do better. + +Let’s stop making excuses for ghosting where none should exist. + +And, more importantly, let’s stop ghosting one another. + +If we do this, a kinder and more healthy professional culture can develop. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-is-Ireland-the-most-anti-Israel-country-in-Europe-.md b/posts/medium/Why-is-Ireland-the-most-anti-Israel-country-in-Europe-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4143f6801b8b8836b760a84f831d5ec8f6039721 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-is-Ireland-the-most-anti-Israel-country-in-Europe-.md @@ -0,0 +1,46 @@ +# Why is Ireland the most anti-Israel country in Europe? + +Paraphrased via Quora: + +[**Why is Ireland the largest opponent of Israel in Europe, despite having once been a major supporter?**](https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Ireland-the-largest-opponent-of-Israel-in-Europe-despite-having-once-been-a-major-supporter) + +Ireland’s longstanding opposition to Israel has — in my view — a few contributory factors. + +### **Firstly there’s the extremely pervasive idea that the Israel/Palestine conflict is “the same” as the Northern Ireland/ Israel conflict.** + +According to this historically ignorant comparison, Israel plays the role of the evil colonialist British. And by extension, the Irish feel an obligation to sympathise with the so-called “underdogs” in this conflict, the Palestinians. + +This comparison relies on denying more or less the entirety of the Jewish experience in Israel — and discounting the entirety of Jewish history and the Jewish people’s millennia-long connection to Israel. For only by negating these inconvenient facts can Jews be cast as the necessary invading “colonialists.” + +Likewise in the Irish discourse the historical existence of a longstanding state called Palestine — which was supposedly displaced by those invading Zionists — is never questioned. Indeed this false narrative is enforced in educational textbooks. + +I believe that those making this comparison either show themselves up as being ignorant of Jewish history or — just as possibly — are selectively quoting facts to suit their narrative. + +In any event, I would regard the comparison as being historically and factually spurious. + +### **Another contributory factor that has to be noted is anti-Semitism.** + +Irish political discourse against Israel often contains antisemitic remarks. + +At a recent rally in Dublin, for instance, Richard Boyd Barrett (an elected member of Ireland’s parliament) demanded that Israel be “brought down” through “intifada” — asserting also that Israel was only interested in “power and money.” + +He also claimed that Israel was subhuman stating that one can only negotiate with “humans” — implying that Israelis were not. + +Nobody including me knows the extent to which anti-Israel sentiment is motivated by anti-Semitism given that anti-Semites (including Richard Boyd Barrett) generally go to pains to avoid self-identifying as such. + +My longstanding view is that Ireland is _not_ extraordinarily anti-Semitic. But what is remarkable about Ireland — compared to other Western liberal democracies — is the extent to which blankly antisemitic discourse (like that referred to above) is allowed to go unchallenged. + +### **Finally there is prevalent media bias against Israel in Ireland** + +If social media is a good barometer for general Irish opinion, statements from the IDF or official organs of the Israeli state are afforded zero credibility while the statements of terrorist groups such as Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad are regarded, _a priori_ , as sound. + +A former Irish diplomat [recently stated](https://www.gbnews.com/news/the-guardian-antisemitism-outrage-analysis-niall-holohan-ireland) that the diminutive size of Ireland’s Jewish community gave it “free rein” to take a more “principled” (read: anti-Israel) position. + +[**The Guardian sparks outrage as it casually carries 'antisemitic' comments in analysis piece** + _The newspaper has since issued a correct and removed the controversial coments from the article_ www.gbnews.com](https://www.gbnews.com/news/the-guardian-antisemitism-outrage-analysis-niall-holohan-ireland "https://www.gbnews.com/news/the-guardian-antisemitism-outrage-analysis-niall-holohan-ireland")[](https://www.gbnews.com/news/the-guardian-antisemitism-outrage-analysis-niall-holohan-ireland) + +Although this statement reflects the opinion of only one person, it does raise the well-justified question of whether the comparative lack of pro-Israel voices in the Irish public sphere — including its parliament — is a contributory factor to the extent and vigor of the antipathy against the world’s only Jewish State. + +_About me:_ + +A Jewish person born in Ireland. I immigrated to Jerusalem from Cork, Ireland in 2015 and have lived here ever since. I have been observing Ireland’s position vis-a-vis Israel for a couple of decades now. diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-might-you-want-to-use-your-real-name-on-Reddit--ac51be1bb2f.html.md b/posts/medium/Why-might-you-want-to-use-your-real-name-on-Reddit--ac51be1bb2f.html.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7afe2fb30f4554dcead66dc0eedef6a5f578ce79 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-might-you-want-to-use-your-real-name-on-Reddit--ac51be1bb2f.html.md @@ -0,0 +1,53 @@ +# Why might you want to use your real name on Reddit? + +#### Foregoing anonymity (or pseudonymity) can help combat cyberbullying + +A Reddit screenshot: Sort: Pixels + +I’ve spent quite a bit of time this week thinking about Reddit, one of the world’s most popular social networks. + +After receiving nasty anonymous abuse on the platform, I’ve been thinking about whether or not I want to continue contributing there at all — and how, if at all, the network can be a safer and more supportive space for its users. + +[**Why I’m Stopping Posting on Reddit** + _Reddit has a serious problem with cyberabuse. While I’ve posted about its merits, I’m sick of being a punching bag for…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-im-stopping-posting-on-reddit-648959536be2) + +One of my more unusual decisions on Reddit has been to post, almost entirely, from an account that makes my real identity plain. This marks me out from probably 80% of the network — although recently I’ve found more posters doing the same thing. + +Here why you might want to follow suit — or not. + +### Pro: Using A Real Name Discourages You From Bullying Or Being Mean To Other Users + +Reddit’s notorious toxicity — at times and in places — is largely believed to be driven by the fact that most users are anonymous and the signup process requires almost nothing in the way of corroborating identity checks. + +One can sign up for a Reddit account completely anonymously using a simple handle — like danielmediumpostingaccount. + +Unfortunately the ease with which posters can create anonymity for themselves also makes Reddit a perfect platform on which to bully, harass, and troll other users. When there are no social consequences to being mean to others, users often behave in needlessly callous ways. + +I believe that voluntarily using your real name is one way that _could_ help make the platform less mean-spirited — as at times it is — without detracting from the quality and volume of discussion taking place there. + +### Con: You May Need A Second Account For Specific Purposes + +While using a public Reddit identity may be well and good for most posting activity, you may still have good reason _not_ to attach your identity to certain posts: + + * That touch upon employment + * That touch upon health and mental health + +For these instances, you may wish to reserve a second “private” Reddit handle (in Reddit lingo, commonly called an ‘alt’ — short of ‘alternative account’). + +Reddit Enhancement Suite (RES) makes it easy to toggle between two or more Reddit account: + +[**Reddit Enhancement Suite** + _A suite of modules that enhance your Reddit browsing experience_ chrome.google.com](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/reddit-enhancement-suite/kbmfpngjjgdllneeigpgjifpgocmfgmb "https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/reddit-enhancement-suite/kbmfpngjjgdllneeigpgjifpgocmfgmb")[](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/reddit-enhancement-suite/kbmfpngjjgdllneeigpgjifpgocmfgmb) + +### Con: Deranged People Know Who You Are + +Due to the aforementioned anonymity, Reddit attracts its fair share of hateful individuals. + +Depending on what you post about, and how controversial it is, you may have good reason to wish to avoid having these people know your true identity. + +On the flip side of this argument, you could argue that any time you post _anywhere_ on the internet — including here on Medium — such individuals can find out who you are and what you stand for. + +To receive posts like this to your inbox, please consider signing up for my personal email newsletter: + +[**Daniel Rosehill** + _Daniel Rosehill Email Forms_ danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020 "https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020")[](https://danielrosehill.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=3783e42b60560108f2f0fd374&id=72917fe020) diff --git a/posts/medium/Why-we-don-t-need--Anglo--representation-in-Israel.md b/posts/medium/Why-we-don-t-need--Anglo--representation-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b80376995877818f84588f8d1bd9ccae98eb2910 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Why-we-don-t-need--Anglo--representation-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,61 @@ +# Why we don’t need “Anglo” representation in Israel + +#### Are There Any Issues That “Anglos” Can Really Agree Upon? + +Recently, English-language social media in Israel has been awash with discussions about the failure of parties to list any viable candidates from English speaking backgrounds for representation in the forthcoming Knesset. + +[Writing here](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/anglos-need-to-work-for-the-change-we-seek/) in the Times of Israel (blogs), David Fine, founder of The Anglo Vision, described it most colorfully as a “slap in the face” of the Anglo community, arguing that a voting bloc which numbers more than 350,000 Israels — and which has been integral to Israel’s growth — deserves prominent representation in the Knesset. + +With respect to Mr. Fine, and the others espousing such a position, I believe that their view is mistaken. + +Here are some reasons. + +### Israel Needs Political Cohesion + +As anybody who has walked into a voting station in an Israeli election and been confronted by a massive wall-full of party options knows, Israel is not exactly short of political parties. + +The story of the emergence and ultimate dispersal of these parties also tends to be one of scatter-gun fragmentation. The genesis of many of these smaller parties is often a disaffected visionary being denied a cabinet position in a larger party and deciding to form their own list. + +However many smaller parties fail to meet the electoral threshold. The result of this splintering is that those seeking an alternative to the protracted _status quo_ of Likud-dominated politics ultimately end up dissolving their voices into nothingness. + +Although the Israeli Democracy Institute has examined the issue, Israel does not currently operate a system such as the Single Transferable Vote (STV) favored in Ireland and Malta. + +Unless the national cohort of “Anglos” (English-speaking Israelis) can be mobilized to all vote in favor of exclusively “Anglo” issues, they will simply end up voting for nothing and nobody. + +### There Are No Unifying Issues + +For those unfamiliar, “Anglo” — in the strange hybrid of English and Hebrew often favored among immigrants to Israel — is generally understood to be a contraction for ‘Anglophone,’ which means an English speaker. + +However, there are sizeable populations of English speakers from all over the English-speaking world, including the USA, the UK, Australia, and more. + +Parties are generally structured around a central manifesto setting out their views on issues. But what unifying views are likely to exist among a community that is so heterogeneous? + +Among the “Anglo” community can be found _peaceniks_ that vote for Meretz and live in Tel Aviv and die-hard nationalists that live in Hevron. Environmental conservationists and big business capitalists. Those in favor of Israel returning to its socialist roots and those in favor of deregulation. Joint smokers and anti-drug crusaders. + +Furthermore, an Anglo is a linguistic rather than a cultural definition. + +What about other immigrant communities to Israel who happen to speak Spanish, Russian, or French? Are their interests so different than our English speakers’ that they, too, deserve their own parties and places on party lists? Or should we rather unify under the banner of _olim_? + +French _olim do_ face their own issues — and have been particularly affected by the bureaucratic issues involved in the non-recognition of foreign credentials. But rather than transform the Knesset into a Model UN with emissaries from each language group, perhaps working _together_ for better bureaucracy would be a more sensible aim? + +I suggest that if we started a party for _olim_ from every country and language group that we would only exacerbate the balooning of parties that exist now only as Wikipedia entries for defunct political entities. + +Amalgamating the various issues we face under collective banners is likely to make resolving them more efficient. The only common denominator among _olim_ to Israel — which they share with Jewish Israelis — is their Zionism. _This_ is the only credible unifying issue around which to form political parties in Israel. + +### An Olim Party Would Merely Entrench Non-Integration + +Ultimately, Israel is a melting pot into which dissolve the cultures and collective experiences of _olim_ from every nation. + +Indeed, the country is built upon immigration and the experience of immigrants. + +The establishment of Modern Hebrew as the official language of the Jewish State was among the first and most important initiatives of the Zionist movement. + +Those pioneers understood that linguistic convergence, rather than splintering, was the only means upon which a Jewish state consisting of Ethiopians and Americans and Australians could possibly function. + +Fixating upon how many _olim_ we have running on party lists or forming our own Anglo parties would only entrench the existing marginalization of English-speaking immigrants in Israel. + +This community _does_ need better support. Better access to Hebrew instruction. And to work under fairer employment frameworks so that they do not continue to be exploited by unscrupulous employers. But all of these things could be achieved without the existence of specific parties just for _olim_. + +The story of _aliyah_ is one of a pooling together of efforts and convergence around a central idea: that of Zionism and rebuilding the Jewish homeland. Less than one hundred years later, it would be a pity to begin pulling in the opposite direction. + +Daniel Rosehill is a professional writer based in Jerusalem specializing in ghostwriting long-form thought leadership content for technology executives and public sector clients. diff --git a/posts/medium/Will-A-Backup-Drive-Survive-A-Year-In-My-Car-.md b/posts/medium/Will-A-Backup-Drive-Survive-A-Year-In-My-Car-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..243806138981dbf9542dc92bb1c8bf84cc8a6762 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Will-A-Backup-Drive-Survive-A-Year-In-My-Car-.md @@ -0,0 +1,71 @@ +# Will A Backup Drive Survive A Year In My Car? + +#### Come back soon for the answer! + +I’ve discussed here before[ some of the unconventional places I’ve thought about using](https://medium.com/@danielrosehill/project-offbeat-offsite-backup-storage-271aeb3431db) to store an offsite backup. At one point, I was even considering digging a ditch in a field and periodically excavating and re-burying a drive (that was an interesting proposition). + +The backup problem I’m trying to solve here is essentially that my home internet connection (below) isn’t really strong enough on the upload side to move full size Clonezilla disk images up to the cloud. + +I have no real need to store a daily incremental in cloud storage — seeing as I’m already doing it on a local drive and taking Clonezilla images to store at home — but I figured that it would be nice to keep at least one Clonezilla image in cloud storage. + +[**My (Ultimate!) Ubuntu Backup Strategy** + _What I’ve Been Using To Keep My Desktop Safe From Accidental Deletion, Disk Failure, and Other Forms of Destruction_ medium.com](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78 "https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78")[](https://medium.com/daniels-tech-world/my-ultimate-ubuntu-backup-strategy-5c34da4b1f78) + +After exhausting some of the more conventional options (safe deposit boxes are unreasonably expensive in my area), I determined that my car is the best place that I can think of which fulfills the criteria for storing offsite backups. + +It’s reasonably offsite for backup purposes, it’s easily accessible, and I don’t need anybody else to plan my visits to it. + +But there’s one key question to resolve: + +### Can A Hard Drive Survive A Car? + +Hard drive enjoying a trip to the beach. First day of ruggedization testing. So far so good. + +To make one last attempt at seeing if there were possibly better options, I turned to the good people of [/r/datahoarder](https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/) to see what they had to say about the issue. + +Synology DSM Hyper Backup. I’m using this to mirror the NAS onto external storage + +Reddit identified several potential issues here. + +### Heat + +Heat was one that everybody seemed ready to pick on. But searching for data on this, I found that hard drives (HDDs) are more resistant to heat than one might expect. + +The first Google result I encountered after typing in ‘what temperatures can hard drives survive’ led me to believe that there’ s a lot more room for safety than most people were making out: + +Further research indicated that safe operating temperatures for cold storage and in disk-in-use were roughly the same thing. The likelihood of disk failure is _probably increased over 50C_ — which is about the upper limit of the operating temperature that most manufacturers recommend. + +But realistically, if your car is in the shade (and unless you live in the far reaches of Siberia) my research indicated that there’s very little likelihood that ambient temperatures on either end of the spectrum are going to pose a credible problem to the health of your average hard drive. + +### Vibrations + +A more credible threat than heat is vibrations. + +And this is why many posters recommended storing the backup on SSD rather than HDD. + +Hard drives — unlike SSDs — have physical mechanisms responsible for maintaining data integrity. As Brett Kelly writes for Electronic Products and Technology (EP&T): + +> “Vibration can cause small variations in the position of the head with respect to the track, so it can be an enemy of the proper functioning of HDDs.” + +To attempt to protect against this thread I’ve bought a shock proof case from the internet. At least that’s what it markets itself as such. Some of these look substantially better than others (see: Amazon options below). But due to the pandemic my options are once again limited to Aliexpress. + +### Moisture + +The final natural element threatening to destroy my data in storage is moisture. I’m not very worried about this particular environmental factor. The car should remain free of it particularly as the hard drive will be stored in a reasonably airtight case. + +### Bit Rot + +Finally, I face the reality that data stored on hard drives is subject to mechanical deterioration over time — or bit rot. The monthly runs against Hyper Backup should provide periodic early detection against this threat. I’m not sure whether subjecting the hard drive to more strenuous storage conditions will increase the probability of this problem. Then again, I’m also not sure that anybody else does. I can only imagine that few people have deliberately stored storage in their car long term as a means of keeping an offsite backup. + +### The Plan + +In order to test out: + + * Whether it’s possible to you use your car as a location for offsite backup + * Whether SDD protects against bit rot to an appreciably greater extent than HDD + +My plan is to run Hyper Backup copies from my NAS onto _both_ storage media, stick them in the car for a year, and see if both disks remain intact. Disks will be rotated monthly to update the offsite backup. + +Synology should give me early warning about impending disk failure and bad sectors. The worst case scenario, for me, is simply that I loose $50 on a destroyed disk and have to buy a new one — in a better offsite location + +I will update with the progress of this experiment. diff --git a/posts/medium/Will-Sharing-Your-ADHD-Diagnosis-Destroy-Your-Professional-Reputation-.md b/posts/medium/Will-Sharing-Your-ADHD-Diagnosis-Destroy-Your-Professional-Reputation-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..83111c4926195517b2a0bc63e7c2ce816562bda3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Will-Sharing-Your-ADHD-Diagnosis-Destroy-Your-Professional-Reputation-.md @@ -0,0 +1,78 @@ +# Will Sharing Your ADHD Diagnosis Destroy Your Professional Reputation? + +#### Those thinking about sharing an ADHD diagnosis–particularly the self-employed — often worry about the effect it will have on their professional reputations. I did too. And shared anyway. + +ADHD: will sharing your diagnosis turn potential clients away? Photo by [Pixabay](https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/books-business-computer-connection-459654/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + + _(Note: I am not a mental health professional. This blog post reflects my feelings and personal experiences only. If you are interested in checking out resources from mental health professionals, then check out the resources section at the end of this piece.)_ + +A few months ago, I took the (very uncomfortable) decision to share that I was diagnosed with ADHD here on Medium. + +[**5 Reasons ADHD Medication Is Better Than Caffeine** + _Natural isn’t always better — and other reasons why I finally bit (or swallowed) the psychostimulant medication pill_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-reasons-adhd-medication-is-better-than-caffeine-b69dd800e5f0 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-reasons-adhd-medication-is-better-than-caffeine-b69dd800e5f0")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/5-reasons-adhd-medication-is-better-than-caffeine-b69dd800e5f0) + +I did so primarily because writing is both what I do for a living — well, mostly, at least — but also because it’s a hobby. + +I write because I enjoy writing. And it didn’t feel natural to share most of my story without including a key aspect — particularly as it’s an aspect that I’ve been very focused on recently. + +I also wanted to raise awareness of the fact that many pre-diagnosis ADHDers attempt to self-medicate using caffeine. + +I did this, with some degree of success, for more than 10 years. Because I have a lot to say about the pitfalls of doing this, I was particularly keen to get across why this is typically a bad idea and help other patients see through the flaws in this strategy. I wanted to help. + +But because I was apprehensive about sharing, I ran the idea by a couple of people first. + +To the first individual: I mentioned that I had been diagnosed and also that I was working on a draft about my diagnostic experience that I intended sharing. I told the same thing to a friend who happens to be a mental health professional training for a post-doctoral degree in psychology. + +The two reactions were strikingly different. + +### “Keep That To Yourself. Your Clients Won’t Hire You If They Find Out” + +The only negative reaction I received from my sounding board of a few people — let’s call this person Mrs. A — was a doomsday prediction that disclosing my ADHD diagnosis would have a chilling effect on my inbound lead generation efforts — which I’ve discussed here frequently. + +Mrs. A — who, it should be pointed out, doesn’t believe in the general concept of mental healthcare, although I have the strong feeling that she is in need of it — was adamant that mental health diagnoses, being shameful things, should be kept to oneself. + +Mrs. A. affirmed that she was aware of the general trend of openness in mental health these days, but pined for a time when people kept “problems” like ADHD, anxiety, and depression where she felt they belonged — in the closet, or rather, in doctors’ offices. + +All Mrs. A knew about ADHD was that a “friend,” who she regarded as “crazy,” had been diagnosed with the condition too. It was an unsupportive and discouraging conversation — even hostile at times — from beginning to end. + +All I can say is that so far that prediction has thus far (and thankfully) been proven to be flatly wrong: Since tweeting a few times about ADHD and penning a few Medium posts, I’ve had more clients contact me about working with me than usual. + +Perhaps correlation isn’t causation and I’m not suggesting that sharing these things has _helped_. But given that a couple of these leads have come from LinkedIn — where I’ve shared this once — I can’t help but wonder whether at least _one_ person has seen my post and decided to reach out anyway. If that was you — and you’re reading this — it would give me tremendous encouragement if you let me know. + +Among Mrs. A’s abundant judgment, however, was a kernel of truth, or rather a seed of doubt that I shared: Perhaps potential clients really _would_ be apprehensive about the idea of hiring somebody who they knew had ADHD. + +Would that impact their ability to get the job done? Would they be disorganized and ineffective to work with? + +### Mental Health Professional: People Appreciate Transparency; Some May Really Like Sharing + +My friend — Mrs. B — is both a mental health care professional in training and about the most emphatic person I have ever met. I am certain that she will be a credit to her profession and will make a positive contribution on the lives of her future patients. + +So while I mentioned this to Mrs. B primarily to solicit her _professional_ opinion on the potential perils of disclosing a mental health diagnosis publicly, I was also interested to hear what she had to say on the topic of professional repercussions. The seed of doubt that was preventing me from hitting the publish button. + +Her advice was salient and I believe on point. And so I’m repeating it here. + +She told me that _some_ people will react negatively to an ADHD diagnosis. Both in personal and professional settings. In other words: it’s better to prepare for it than to be taken aback when it inevitably occurs. + +Will there be clients who will see one of these posts and decide that I’m not the person for the project / job? I’d imagine that the likelihood of that happening is high. Although I’d also point out that these probably wouldn’t be the type of clients I’d want to work with. So a pre-qualification filter of sorts. + +On the other hand, she surmised that people hiring writers — or communicators — might even _expect_ writers to be in the habit of communicating things themselves, much in the manner as I do. While I’m wont to think that sharing a mental health diagnosis could ever be an _advantage_ , the effect on these readers — she predicted — would be neutral. + +After hearing both sides of the argument, I decided to go ahead and share my ADHD diagnosis story on Medium. That night, I slept like a log, which is usually my litmus test about whether I’ve made a correct decision. And since doing so, I’ve felt a lot less inhibited about where and how often I mention that fact. + +[**My ADHD Diagnosis Story** + _Cross-posted from Twitter, lightly redacted, and expanded:_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/my-adhd-diagnosis-story-410010a3ba6c) + +I do so knowing — and expecting — that there are going to be those in the audience who react negatively to what I have to say. But I also know that there’s a chance that what I write might help another ADHD patient or even a few of them. And so, on the balance, I’m more than happy to put these articles out into the ether. + +Perhaps I’m being naive or overly-optimistic, but so far I don’t feel like sharing that I have ADHD has adversely impacted my professional reputation. + +People still reach out to me about work and a couple of friends have mentioned it in passing in conversation. + +The reaction, if anything, has been: “that’s just one of those things that Daniel has and writes about.” In other words, no big deal. + +I’m hoping things will stay that way. + +### Resources + +[**Should I Disclose My ADHD? | ADHD At Work** + _Many individuals with ADHD ask themselves at some point in their career: Do I tell my employer about my ADD/ADHD? You…_ adhdatwork.add.org](https://adhdatwork.add.org/disclosing-adhd-at-work/ "https://adhdatwork.add.org/disclosing-adhd-at-work/")[](https://adhdatwork.add.org/disclosing-adhd-at-work/) diff --git a/posts/medium/Will-tomorrow-s-freelance-writers-be-the-custodians-of-bots-rather-than-wordsmiths-.md b/posts/medium/Will-tomorrow-s-freelance-writers-be-the-custodians-of-bots-rather-than-wordsmiths-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..63d92b8eafaf0fc0b90b9b7c9450d12b463f77e6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Will-tomorrow-s-freelance-writers-be-the-custodians-of-bots-rather-than-wordsmiths-.md @@ -0,0 +1,80 @@ +# Will tomorrow’s freelance writers be the custodians of bots rather than wordsmiths? + +#### Will overseeing AI bots be the fate of tomorrow’s freelance writing generalists? + +Will tomorrow’s freelance writers be bot masters rather than wordsmiths? Image: Pixabay + +This morning, I received the following contact form via my writing website. + +Among a competitive field, it might just be the worst inbound query I’ve received through my writing site this year (thankfully there have been good ones too but a lesson worth learning early: when it comes to lead generation, inbound does not automatically translate to quality). + +While my normal course of action would be to hit the delete button in half a second and move on with my inbox patrol / morning, this message shook me up just a little. Blinking and groggy, had I just unknowingly stared into the grim abyss of the future for writers? + +Whether it was human or bot authored is irrelevant to me (to me, it looks like the work of a scraping bot). + +It was proposing something that I sensed might lurk just over the horizon for tomorrow’s freelance writers: + +We’d like you to supervise the work of our AI bot. + +And we’re going to pay you even less for it. + +### How much freelance writing work will AI bots capture? An open debate + +The debate around to what extent we can expect AI bots to replace the work of human writers has been a staple fixture of discussion on online writing communities for the past number of years. + +My viewpoint — which I’ve aired here and elsewhere— has been that I predict that AI bots are going to scoop up much of the low end, volume-dominated side of the content writing market. + +The type of bulk work and dubious “reviews” that affiliate marketing site operators commission to drive traffic to their sites. If you’ve already started out on the journey of trying to make a living at this, then you probably know the type of work that I’m talking about. + +My contention was — and remains — that this will be a broadly good thing. + +The rationale? Writers won’t have to work the tedious entry level part of the market that’s comprised mostly of low rate clients who don’t care an ounce about quality. This type of writing isn’t fun to write, edit, or commission. Keyword-stuffing can be left to the robots. Less miserable, soul-sapping work to go around. + +But what if there’s more to it than that? + +**What if writing will indeed be viewed as a supervisory rather than creative skill? What if this _is_ the future not just for low level clients — but for the whole market?** + +The situation, perhaps, can be compared to the rapid developments in automation that we’ve seen in the aviation industry over the past 100 years — still a formative period in the history of flight. + +These days more than 90% of the flying time on any commercial flight is conducted entirely by an autopilot while the captain and first officer supervise the route, liaise with ATC, and monitor systems. + +Developments in avionics even rendered the work of dedicated flight engineers largely obsolete. There has been speculation for years that ATC itself will be next. Perhaps pilots after that. + +The role of professional pilots has therefore been confined to executing only the starting and finishing touches — takeoff and landing — involved in piloting an aircraft. The rest of their input is effectively as an expert overseer of systems. + +If an engine catches fire — they know what to do. We still _need_ them to be sitting in the cockpit in order to zoom from A to B. But even us mere passengers have long accepted the fact that they’re not the ones actually making most of those graceful banks. A computer is executing that. + +Which leads me to ask: + +Could this be the fate that waits around the corner for professional writers? + +And if it does, should we accept lower compensation in exchange for less creative output? + +### Tomorrow’s writers will need to be quasi SMEs to make a living. But will they be paid appropriately? + +I’ve talked previously about the differences between writers and SMEs. + +While I’ve written about some pretty complicated things in my day — cost-saving automation layers in cloud workloads and developments in machine learning for two — I’ve noticed an increased demand for _bone fide_ SMEs over the years too. + +The catch? Many clients seem prepared to pay more for expertise. Except when it comes to writers. + +While my current client workload is more strategy-focused than writing-oriented (although I’m still doing a good amount of writing), I remain concerned by the rise in clients I’m seeing who want writers to work on near subject matter expert (SME) level projects for … comparative peanuts. + +[**Do You Need A Writer, An SME, Or Both?** +_And Why Clients Need To Understand The Differences_ medium.com](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/do-you-need-a-writer-an-sme-or-both-769161f4c73c "https://medium.com/freelance-writing/do-you-need-a-writer-an-sme-or-both-769161f4c73c")[](https://medium.com/freelance-writing/do-you-need-a-writer-an-sme-or-both-769161f4c73c) + +Another inbound lead this week (this time arriving via referral) led marketing for a complicated cybersecurity solution being sold to telcos — in an expensive country. His request: a two page brochure outlining a very specific aspect of the company’s solution. Which sounded fine. Until he disclosed his budgetary limit: roughly $100. + +For tomorrow’s writers to have a fighting chance at making a viable living in this increasingly competitive market, we’re going to have to become quasi SMEs rather than the overseers of the work of bots. But that’s only half of the equation. We’re also going to need to work with a market that’s prepared to value the time and expertise we’ve developed sufficiently. + +We have to be several steps ahead of automation in terms of our knowledge. And to do something that the bots of tomorrow won’t be able to. Niche-ing ever further down is going to become an even more important prerequisite for success as the gig economy continues to mushroom and widen and more freelance writers in more countries continue to fight over roughly the same pool of clients. + +I hate to be such a fatalist, but I’m not convinced that even that’s going to be enough. + +I suspect, rather, that every full time content marketing writer is going to have to command several ancillary skills beyond writing. Strategy and SEO would be good places to start. + +Until the robots catch up with that, at least. + +— — + + _What’s your prediction for how AI writing bots are going to affect the future of freelance writing? Please feel free to share your thoughts below!_ diff --git a/posts/medium/With-Purim-Imminent--Nation-Prepares-To-Get-Wasted-on-Zoom-Chats.md b/posts/medium/With-Purim-Imminent--Nation-Prepares-To-Get-Wasted-on-Zoom-Chats.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3d54cf96b276f5e808442aeb7a7b3765124b18c5 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/With-Purim-Imminent--Nation-Prepares-To-Get-Wasted-on-Zoom-Chats.md @@ -0,0 +1,29 @@ +# With Purim Imminent, Nation Prepares To Get Wasted on Zoom Chats + +With just a few hours left until the beginning of Purim — the Jewish religious holiday marked by a traditional injunction for celebrants to become grossly inebriated — Anglos (and _sabras_) around Israel were on tenterhooks preparing to get absolutely wasted on Zoom calls with their friends. + +Although _After Aliyah_ was feeling too lazy this morning to reach out to [Paneco](http://www.paneco.co.il) — Israel’s online alcohol retailer — it has very strong reason to believe that the drinks retailer is currently preparing for a period of extremely buoyant sales. + +Although this mental image isn’t grounded in empirical evidence or actual observations or anything other than a fleeting mental image while typing up this article, _After Aliyah_ imagines that _shlichim_(delivery people) up and down the country are hurriedly getting patrons their booze in time for the big festival. + +Likewise _After Aliyah_ has reason to believe that this evening there will be considerable pressure placed upon the nation’s internet infrastructure due to the demands placed upon it by potentially hundreds of thousands of simultaneous Zoom calls. + +Engaging in Zoom calls involves uploading considerable amounts of data to the internet. This technical fact — this website fears — could place extreme pressure on the country’s internet. + +The traditional Thursday evening lockdown activity of getting plastered on Zoom calls while pretending to enjoy remote drinking with friends (read that to yourself again and tell us it’s not true) is expected to be compounded over the upcoming holiday by a triple shot measure of religious zealotry as even traditionaly sober people — such as your parents — figure out how to use Zoom and pour themselves an evening “nightcap” (or three). + +Although Purim is usually celebrated in Israel with jubilant street parties and other festivities — along with the religious requirements like hearing the _megillah_ — this year the country has decided to announce a three day curfew, limiting citizens to within one thousand meters of their homes between 20:30 and 05:00 each night. + +While the traditional Purim social fixation is on coming up with imaginative costumes, this year equal attention will be devoted to which funny background people can put on their Zoom calls — or so says Shmuli Rubinstein, a sociological consultant plying his trade on Facebook and who contributed commentary to this piece. + +Drawing his observations upon social media data, Rubinstein — who also described himself to us as a “big data consultant” — said that the conversation this year has shifted away from costumes and onto alcohol deals and Zoom backgrounds. + +“I don’t actually have access to Google’s real-time search data,” Rubinstein candidly admitted. “But if I did, I could totally see how searches for ‘cheapest Arak Tel Aviv’ would be up by .. let’s say 512%. But that may or may not be true of course.” + +Although anecdotal evidence suggests that the nation’s young people are ill-content with the idea of the upcoming lockdown, Rubinstein pointed out that alcohol’s soporific qualities could quickly change that dynamic. + +“Right now we’re mired in what I refer to as the Pre Purim Rage,” he said. “This period is marked by a lot of anger about the imminent lockdowns and we’re seeing high volumes of rage against the government on social media,” he said. + +“But by about seven or high o’clock this evening the first and second drinks should have kicked in and a lot of people will have reconciled themselves to vegetating on the couch after hearing the _megillah_ ,” Rubinstein said. “So I expect a downturn in the angry postings around then.” + + _Purim begins in Israel this evening after sundown._ diff --git a/posts/medium/Writer-s-block--friend--Or-foe-.md b/posts/medium/Writer-s-block--friend--Or-foe-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0fd88fe7b502c20f9aae67affe9deb9ab6d4808f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Writer-s-block--friend--Or-foe-.md @@ -0,0 +1,89 @@ +# Writer’s block: friend? Or foe? + +#### Instead of getting frustrated by our periodic inability to write, maybe we should be getting inspired? + +I suffer, periodically, from writer’s block. There I said it. + +Now I feel like a true writer. Where’s my badge? + +But how do I deal with writer’s block you may ask? + +Did you know that you can fit about two cups of coffee into a tiny pill the size of a breath mint? + +Cram one of those down your throat and you’ll be writing — and dancing with the stars for good measure — in no time. + +Caffeine pills next to a keyboard. Source: author. + +There’s one thing they never tell you about becoming a writer in journalism school. You have a lot to write about. (I joke). + +Remember that time in college when you had a big term paper to write but left it hang for a week because you were sitting on the sofa watching television? Imagine that being your everyday life. And you need to write a long list of those term papers in order to pay rent and have food to eat. Welcome to my life, dear reader. + +The problem about using stimulants to override writer’s block is that it works really fricking well. + +The precise blunt force cognitive weapon that you choose isn’t really important. You ingest a substance that affects your central nervous system (CNS) in some way that increases focus. + +Caffeine works, although its affect in ADHD patients can be paradoxical (yes, there are people who can fall asleep immediately after a double espresso). So does Ritalin. Adderall if that’s your thing and you have a script. I could go on. You don’t need me to. + +Before you accuse me of making light of ADHD and ADHD meds you should know that my use of these substances is not illicit and the above should not be construed as encouraging buying Ritalin off the street. + +I was diagnosed last summer. I have a script. I’ve signed for it at a pharmacy like some kind of desperate fugitive getting their legally mandated fix and scribbled my identity number on a piece of paper. So there. You should feel bad now for pre-judging me. + +I was also diagnosed with mild depression — the old term is dysthymia and I actually prefer it a lot to the newfangled persistent depressive disorder (PDD). (Also because I’m curmudgeonly and dysthymia sounds like something from a period novel that you medicate with some concretion which you buy in an apothecary. Pharmacy … how you have nothing on that term). + +The depression aspect, for me, is quite mild. Part of me suspects that it’s all just ADHD (or the byproduct of horrible cognitive distortions) because when I’m having a great run with the focus — and getting stuff done — I feel like I’m on cloud nine. + +Or just that I’ve had some unfortunate life experiences along the way and feel a little bleak about the world at times and the fact that we live in a generation in which owning property feels kind of impossible (didya hear that, Medium — impossible I say?). These questions, unfortunately, aren’t the kind of thing you can figure out overnight. So my process goes on. But progress is definitely being made. + +In any event. + +Observing my mood and my ability to write on any given day, the curious thing that has struck me is how wildly my personal pendulum of productivity swings. I can go from hardly being able to finish a sentence to typing up 1,000 words in about the time it takes to prepare lunch. + +Some days just writing 1,000 words takes me a few hours of tedious procrastination in mental “preparation work”. I Reddit (I love Reddit). Lift some dumbbells. Reach for the caffeine pills. + +On others, the only “substance” required is my sheer enthusiasm for what I’m writing about. I’ve gone through crazy elated bursts of writing productivity during which I’ve barely slept or eaten for three days. Writing hangovers, if you’ve ever experienced them, are definitely a thing. You’re mentally wrung out. (Before you worry more about me — or wonder if I need to add another condition to my list — I should make clear that this has happened maybe once in my life. I’ve written a few books here and there. And when I had enough enthusiasm and passion they basically wrote themselves. No focus required. One cup of coffee was perfectly sufficient.) + +The point I’m building to is this. + +Writer’s block can be a sign that you’re depressed. + +It can also mean that you’re really anxious about something. + +You don’t need to be a CBT-trained therapist to make sense of why this is so. You’re so distracted by something that’s on your mind that you don’t have cognitive space with which to write. + +However, it can also be a sign that you’re not really writing about what you want to be writing about. + +On most days — especially recently — I’m pretty content. But I still have the odd day in which I couldn’t write something if you paid me a million dollars to do so. + +And the more I think about it, that’s a massively valuable clue — like a big, red flag toting one — that what you’re writing about isn’t aligned with what you really want to be doing in life. + +Maybe you’re writing content marketing and just don’t really care about what your client does (or believe in their mission statement)? + +Perhaps you’ve realized that writing brand journalism just isn’t what you want to be doing with your life? + +These are the kind of thoughts that — if you hold off on the caffeine for just a moment — I contend many writers will find lurking. + +Drowning writers’s block in caffeine (or other stimulants) works extraordinarily well. I can tell you that because I’ve been doing that on and off for the best part of ten years. + +But rather than stopping to medicate (or self-medicate), perhaps it’s worth also pausing and using it for a period of reevaluation. + +Is this what I really want to be writing about? + +Where am I going with this writing? Where am I going in general? + +What would I rather be doing? + +I won’t get all armchair therapist on this but I have no doubt that a qualified one would tell you to throw that feeling some compassion — hello ACT — and then see where that conversation with that frustration, and inertia leads you. + +Writer’s block is a very real force. + +For hobbyist writers, It can be rocket fuel for frustration. + +For professional writers, it can mean the difference between a record month’s work and ….. financial failure. + +The more I experience it — my recent track record has been relatively decent of late — the more I believe that writer’s block is actually a signal that we writers need to leverage ad nurture. To help us find our direction. + +It can be bludgeoned into non-existence by cups of coffee (at least for me). + +But rather than take the blunt force approach, it might be worth sitting with it and asking what clues it might hold as to whether what you’re writing about is really aligned with what you want to be doing in your life. + +Taking a moment to sit with it, accept it, and listen to it can yield some fascinating insights. diff --git a/posts/medium/Writing-hangovers-are-a-thing--Reading-is-one-of-their-cures-.md b/posts/medium/Writing-hangovers-are-a-thing--Reading-is-one-of-their-cures-.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..13ab471dd3b18469c3d8f1cd004c2f05961b68f0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Writing-hangovers-are-a-thing--Reading-is-one-of-their-cures-.md @@ -0,0 +1,146 @@ +# Writing hangovers are a thing. Reading is one of their cures. + +#### While I love them, creative spurts can also lead to burnout + +Can one too many Medium articles can be as tiring as one too many cocktails? On writing hangovers — and how to avoid or treat them. Photo by [Michal Lizuch](https://www.pexels.com/@michal-lizuch-417916?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-man-pouring-liqueur-on-glass-2919731/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Last week, I went a little too hard on …. the writing (also on the beer one night, but that’s a story for another day). + +Although I’ve never set out to write every single day — and think it’s typically bad advice that I counsel against — I ended up churning out about 3 pieces per day, just on Medium, every day towards the end of last week. + +How and why did I have so much to write about? + +As I shared here recently, I use this Medium blog as my creative blank canvas. It’s a sort of staging environment for the ideas percolating through my head. + +[**Why I (Deliberately) Haven’t Monetized My Medium Account To Date** + _It may stand in defiance to some people’s idea of conventional logic, but I don’t see this account as part of my…_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-i-deliberately-havent-monetized-my-medium-account-to-date-7df00cbcae62) + +My stories aren’t paywalled which means that this writing isn’t a money-making enterprise for me. And in stark contrast to the kind of thing I help clients with — putting together detailed editorial calendars and meticulously scheduling social posts are core activities–my writing here isn’t planned for the most part either. + +My creative process is as open-ended as my (non-existent) editorial calendar. + +Sometimes, when I’m doing something else, or picking up groceries, a thought strikes that I _need_ to get onto paper. + +At other times, I wait until a nice organized creative window presents itself to hash it out. At other times again — particularly if there’s a business angle involved so that I can justify interrupting client work— I drop whatever I’m doing to get drafting. + +Typically, I’m busy either with client work and fit this Medium posting around the margins. There are days — in fact probably most — when I don’t write for fun at all and use my leisure hours to socialize or do just about anything else. + +But the time periods during which I’m particularly busy with freelancing work _and_ get a creative spurt are the ones that set me up for writing hangovers. + +This happened towards the end of last week when I found myself almost falling asleep at a party because I was so spent from a week of back-to-back assignments and learning the rudiments of photography. + +Writing hangovers, I believe, are remarkably present among writers — who tend to both be passionate creative types _and_ who work in an increasingly output-driven demanding profession. + +So let’s dive a bit deeper into them — and how you can get back on the writing straight and narrow. + +### Writing Hangover: Symptoms + +Like the better-known kind of hangover that follows on from excessive alcohol consumption, writing hangovers involve a kind of mental fogginess and weariness that isn’t relieved by adequate sleep as well as a general sense of exhaustion and stifled creativity. + +That’s my experience and definition of them anyway. + +What do they feel like if you’ve never experienced one? + +One who is used to getting up and hammering out creative work — like writing or painting or film-making — might find himself suddenly inexplicably unable to do so despite all the required background material being in place. + +You slept plenty, the coffee’s on your desk, but you just can’t seem to bring yourself out of procrastination mode. You might also feel just generally exhausted and like doing anything _other_ than spending time sitting in front of a computer. + +Burnout, it should be pointed out, isn’t a medically-recognized syndrome. But having experienced it myself, I’m in little doubt that it’s a real mental condition. Writing hangovers, to my mind, are like shorter-lived and less severe versions of that. + +Differential diagnosis and disclaimer: I’m neither a physician nor a mental health expert and coined the term writing hangover to refer to a _short lived_ period of exhaustion after an intense burst of writing. If you’re worried, or it’s going on longer than a few days, consider reaching out to see one of the above. + +### Writing Hangover: Treatment + +Like the hangovers that are induced by consumption of alcohol, the severity of a writing hangover is commensurate to the amount of consumption that preceded it. + +Which is to say: + +The more vigorously you write and the shorter the time period during which you write, the worse the subsequent period of mental burnout can be. + +Like those that involve alcohol, writing binges are the most like likely to lead to adverse symptoms. Like with alcohol, the Mediterranean-style writers of this world — who write in moderation and rarely over-indulge — are most likely to come out on top. + +There’s one other commonality between the two that I’ve found. + +Just as sometimes you can miraculously avoid post-alcohol hangovers by factors that aren’t immediately clear to you — or maybe that’s just me? — sometimes it’s possible to bounce back from intensive bursts of writing without any subsequent fatigue. + +At other times — again like alcohol — a thoroughly sensible level of consumption can leave you worse for wear the following day. A lot demands upon your overall conditioning. + +But like alcohol-induced hangovers all hope is not lost. + +Like alcohol hangovers, prevention is preferable to frantically looking for cures. But if you find yourself at the latter juncture, it’s also better to know what to do ahead of time. + +For writers, that means understanding that expending creative energy comes at a cost and if you want to avoid feeling lethargic for a few days you have no option but to pace your creative output or — even though this can be painful — scale it back. + +Sure, you can avoid self-care and pull subsequent all-nighters hammering out your book — and going to work the next day. But ultimately you have to realize that there’s likely to be a mental price tag attached to such decisions. When it comes to writing, there’s rarely such thing as a free (energetic) lunch. + +Sometimes, however, creatives are wont to stifle the creative urge and just want to get their output out while it’s top of mind. In other words, writing hangovers tend to happen. In that case, hangover remedies come into play. + +### Complete Digital Disconnection + +My observance of this aspect of Judaism can be patchy at times, but if there’s one part of the religion that I both love and think is an amazing concept is Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest. + +I don’t want to interject too much religion into a blog that’s supposed to speak to people of all faiths, but please consider disconnecting completely from electronic devices for 24 hours as a non-denominational recommendation (observance of the Shabbat mandates this). This is the writing hangover equivalent of reaching for the vitamins and water. + +While this may smack of superstitious thinking (or a confirmatory bias) to some, I honestly see a correlation between how well I manage to disconnect on Shabbat and how productive I am in the days that follow it. + +Disconnecting means more than just turning off your computer, although that’s a great start. + +You need an activity to fill in the void left by the absence of sitting at your desk and working at your computer. + +In Judaism, that filler activity tends to be a mixture of prayer, socializing, and recuperation (read: sleep). But you can find the cocktail — I mean blend! — that works best for you. + +[Lyndsay Knowles](https://medium.com/u/747e352768d1) wrote a nice piece for The Writing Cooperative on the subject. + +[**Living Is Part Of the Writing Process** + _Why a short break worked to my benefit — and might work to yours._ writingcooperative.com](https://writingcooperative.com/living-is-part-of-the-writing-process-1cd3240ea6f9 "https://writingcooperative.com/living-is-part-of-the-writing-process-1cd3240ea6f9")[](https://writingcooperative.com/living-is-part-of-the-writing-process-1cd3240ea6f9) + +The title speaks volumes. And its kernel is roughly this: + +> And when you write about your life, as I often do, getting out and living — being present with the people you care about — is part of the writing process. + +If you write all the time but do nothing but sit at a computer and type at a keyboard, you’re likely to eventually run out of original and inspiring things to write about. + +Disconnecting has both negative and positive aspects: removing yourself from the repetitive aspects of your day-to-day and immersing yourself in something more engaging. + +If you need some recuperation to shake off the weariness of a writing hangover, don’t forget to account for both aspects in your plan of action. + +### Reading Other Writers’ Work + +It (almost) goes without saying — at least according to many — that every writer should be an active reader. + +Personally I find reading both relaxing and informative. + +But for whatever reason, I have a hard time doing much reading when I’m immersed in one of my creative spurts. + +It’s almost as if I have two settings: writer and reader. I can stay in one setting without much effort, but I have immense trouble keeping both switches turned on at the same time. + +Something that I’ve discovered over the years is that reading can serve as a nice antidote to writing-related exhaustion. This is beneficial and logical on a few levels: + + * After a busy period of creative work, it’s relaxing; + * It fills your head with new ideas and samples of great work that you may wish to emulate. For writers, both professionals and hobbyists, it provides inspiration; + * It gives you something to do and think about instead of your writing business / your own writing pursuits + +The trouble that I find — you may too — is making the transition. Going from a hectic period of writing for clients and into consumption mode doesn’t happen overnight for me — and I mean that quite literally. + +I’m the type of person who has a hard time switching off and gets a lot more out of a week off than a day. + +Irrespective of how you’re mentally wired, if you’re tired enough to have Googled ‘writing hangover’ (and if you’re here, there’s a good chance you have), I’d like to offer this as a remedy to put into your hangover toolkit. + +If you’re a professional writer who’s burning the writing candle on both ends — combining client work with your own — then I reckon there’s a good chance that this post resonated with you. + +Even if you’re “just” a passionate creative with a day job, it’s easy to forget how mentally draining even creative work undertaken for fun can be. + +The best way to combat writing hangovers, in my experience, is to carefully meter out your creative energy. + +But sometimes energy gets in the way and we’re left looking for cures. + +If that’s where you are, then consider giving the above your consideration. + +_Final thought:_ + +If your writing hangover originates from an over-aggressive content marketing push — mine sometimes have — then I think it’s helpful to remember that content marketing is the ultimate long game. + +You (likely) don’t need to create an arbitrary amount of content _today_ in order to achieve long-success. You (likely) don’t — and shouldn’t — write every single day in order to become a better writing. + +[**The Ultimate Long Game, Content Marketing Demands Its Own Mindset Too** + _When transitioning from outbound to inbound-led marketing, attitudes need to change as well_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/the-ultimate-long-game-content-marketing-demands-its-own-mindset-too-f197dc704687) diff --git a/posts/medium/You-Didn-t-Ask--But-The-Only-Reason-I-Live-In-Israel-Is-Because-I-m-Jewish.md b/posts/medium/You-Didn-t-Ask--But-The-Only-Reason-I-Live-In-Israel-Is-Because-I-m-Jewish.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a87d945fc6291e6e2736832973cd0838ac9c0494 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/You-Didn-t-Ask--But-The-Only-Reason-I-Live-In-Israel-Is-Because-I-m-Jewish.md @@ -0,0 +1,132 @@ +# You Didn’t Ask, But The Only Reason I Live In Israel Is Because I’m Jewish + +#### The Weird Viewpoint Of A Pragmatic (Or Critical?) Zionist + +Photo by [Adam Grabek](https://www.pexels.com/@agmakonts?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/flock-of-white-birds-photo-during-sunset-784849/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +Firstly, credit is due to ‘Chaya’ ([Twitter](https://twitter.com/chayarivka)) for giving me the inspiration to finally get this post out. It’s been sitting in my drafts folder for a couple of weeks now and probably wouldn’t have advanced past that state had I not come across her tweet this afternoon. + +Chaya’s post asked: + +> _I’m writing an article about why young people should make aliyah but not for the usual reasons of our great economy/jobs/safety … let me know why YOU made aliyah?_ + +I know nothing about Chaya other than that I have been following her Twitter feed for a few weeks now and that she says she also lives in Jerusalem. + +Her posts are enthusiastic and her views articulate. I don’t wish to make an example of Chaya. Nevertheless, she provided a convenient reminder of the fact that — when it comes to Israel — the views of even those who support the cause of Zionism are frankly all over the place. + +### True Story: I Didn’t Move To Israel For The Weather + +During the course of talking to prospective business clients on Zoom, I often get asked why I moved from Ireland to a hot country in the Middle East. The accent and the location don’t match so it’s a nice segue into more serious conversation. Or so, I imagine, they hope. + +This presents a challenge for a few reasons: + + 1. It’s a business call and prospects aren’t looking to hear your life story. + 2. Divulging the actual reason would involve getting off conversation-warming chit-chat and into some really heavy stuff that the questioner was probably not hoping to solicit. + +And that’s because to answer the second question honestly would involve affirming something like this: + +_“So I moved to Israel because, as a Jew, I felt out of place in a country where I was a tiny religious minority. And after coming on a Birthright trip here, I couldn’t understand why Jews would want to live anywhere else in the world when they had the option of living in a country that was their homeland and where they achieve self-determination over their own affairs. Given that we Jews have a country of our own for the first time in roughly 2,000 years, I see it as my responsibility to play a role in its evolution. Even if that just means living here and paying taxes to it. I’d feel like I was derelict in some duty if I didn’t at least make a go of it. And living here, I feel as if our destinies are intertwined.”_ + +I might add that I’m the only one in my immediate family to have taken this decision. And that I genuinely mean no offence to any Jew living in the Diaspora. They can follow their conscious and I can follow mine. + +After taking a deep breath and wondering how to navigate this now loaded subject, the questioner might ask:_“well, do you like living there?”_ + +And then things might start to look even weirder. + +### Feeling Committed To Israel Doesn’t Mean I Think The Country Is Perfect + +Over the course of more than six years living here, I’ve noticed that there are some rather glaring differences between those who — to the rest of the world — would probably just look like a monolith of Israel-loving Jews. + +On the one hand are the Tanakh-thumping Zionists. I’m by no means citing the Tweeter as an example of this group (on the basis of one tweet I can’t pretend to fully understand her worldview). But their ideology seems to be something like this: + +_“We support Israel and its right to exist. We see any criticism of anything to do with Israel as a challenge that must be faced down. Everything Israel does or can do is perfect!”_ + +From the comfortable pastures of the diaspora, it’s a lot easier to maintain this kind of worldview than when you’re on the ground living in Israel. + +[**Crazy Financial Statistics About Israel** + _Will Israel’s Cost Of Living Fall Post-COVID?_ medium.com](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac "https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac")[](https://medium.com/living-in-israel/crazy-financial-statistics-about-israel-426bb0e633ac) + +You admire from afar Israel’s military successes. You buy into the relentless torrent of self-congratulatory spin that Israel’s politicians and government agencies put out about the country — spin that I’m not entirely sure that even many working in that industry themselves believe. + +The rhetoric that describes Israel as the global pinnacle of innovation and that occasionally explicitly lauds the “Jewish genius” that took us here (sorry to say, [but that’s a real quote](https://mfa.gov.il/MFA/PressRoom/2018/Pages/PM-and-DM-Netanyahu-visits-Israel-Aerospace-Industries-17-Dec-2018.aspx) from an Israeli titan of industry). + +A (self-proclaimed) bastion of equality amid a swamp of Middle Eastern dictatorships home to the (again self-proclaimed) “most moral army in the world,” and which spares no time in reminding everybody else of that assertion. A country small in size but large in ambition and which — it might seem, many would lead you to believe — can do no wrong. + +And then you move your life here. + +You may not feel qualified to adjudicate upon the army’s claim of world-leading morality, but you do begin to notice that seemingly everything is unnecessarily expensive and that — for far too many — the cost of living and the average salaries are grossly out of proportion. + +You encounter an Israeli-made product in a supermarket in the US selling for less than it does in Israel. And you draw your own conclusions from that the least of which might be “this country is flawed.” + +You spend an hour driving here and conclude that driving in Israel is objectively more stressful than your home country. + +Curious at the sites of destitution you may encounter, you run a few searches in Google and are confronted by the fact that Israel was — at one time — the country with the highest poverty rate in the OECD. + +You notice that your home internet connectivity is pretty spotty despite living in the capital city of the high tech metropolis and confirm that — yes really — it’s actually better in the rural part of America that your relatives live in and which doesn’t make a song and dance about its technology scene. But wait … wasn’t this place supposed to be!?!? + +Are these trivial examples? Absolutely — I’m aware that they are. But I’m citing them only to make a point. + +The illusion of Israel being perfect rapidly begins to crumble because in a flawed country it’s completely untenable to sustain for anybody with intact critical faculties. + +And you find yourself becoming slowly more perplexed at some of the statements that end up feeling far closer to propaganda — and which seem to entirely invalidate the experience you’ve had by actually living in the country. + +### Israel Has Pros And Cons — Like Any Country + +Before we go any further, let me hit you with a shocker. + +If I wasn’t Jewish, I almost certainly wouldn’t be living in Israel. At least in its current guise. + +In fact I’ll go one step further: I would probably never even come to visit. Without the feeling that living here was an essential part of something much larger than me and which I _do_ believe in, it’s probably not a country that would be top of my relocation list. Funny, isn’t it? + +Isn’t Israel a major tourist destination? Somewhat. + +But if you want my honest opinion it’s not really worth the price tag. + +For one, it’s grossly overpriced. + +Overall, Israel does a lousy job at customer service. + +There’s way too much rudeness here that grates on my nerves at least once every few days like when I hold a door open for somebody only rarely to receive a cursory “thanks” in return. All those things would aggravate me. They might change but that’s how I’d rank it now. I’ve tried staycationing here and concluded that it’s just not a good use of money. Thank you, Ryanair. Sorry, Israel. + +If I were a history buff I might be tempted to come once but honestly, I probably wouldn’t be back. A relative visiting my wedding had his corporate laptop seized at the airport and then sent to its destination by security which probably based his “security profile” on the fact that somebody 20 years ago with the same passport had attempted to bomb an airplane. You can live without that kind of hassle if you don’t feel any kind of affiliation to this place. + +Are there good things about living in Israel? + +There are lots of them in fact! + +But I wouldn’t move here just to experience them: + +The weather is good. + +There’s good innovation in the country. + +It’s an interesting part of the world with some nice local travel opportunities. + +And the negatives (beyond what I’ve outlined): + +Constant construction and noise (it’s my secret contention, well now a public one, that Israel may have the highest per capita rate of construction in the world.) + +A plurality of overpriced and abusive local businesses who treat customers with disdain because they know they have no better option and a code of defamation law that makes complaining about bad service a potentially actionable claim. + +[**Israel: Sharing a Post on Social Media May Constitute Defamation. Liking it Will Not. - Pearl Cohen** + _Article written by Adi Shoval In a recent decision, the Israeli Supreme Court held that sharing a defamatory post on…_ www.pearlcohen.com](https://www.pearlcohen.com/israel-sharing-a-post-on-social-media-may-constitute-defamation-liking-it-will-not/ "https://www.pearlcohen.com/israel-sharing-a-post-on-social-media-may-constitute-defamation-liking-it-will-not/")[](https://www.pearlcohen.com/israel-sharing-a-post-on-social-media-may-constitute-defamation-liking-it-will-not/) + +I could go on with both categories — both only scratch the surface and hit upon superficial points — but I think I’ve made the point. + +Now and again, I write articles on the internet highlighting facets of life in Israel that I think could use improvement. + +Defamation is a great example. Israel draws inspiration for its code from Biblical sources but perhaps there’s a way to achieve that without allowing bad businesses to cow disgruntled customers into silence. + +I write these not to be negative but to try to draw attention to issues that I think are too often swept under the rug by a torrent of enforced positivity that creates an endless tide of echo chamber propaganda, much of which ends up being grossly misleading and inaccurate. + +Where I feel I’m able to do so, I float some ideas. Others have done the same. + +For anybody who has ever wondered why I continue living here in _spite_ of having many issues with the country here’s your answer. I do it because I believe that Israel is the only place I should be living in the world and that it’s my responsibility to help make it better. That doesn’t imply that I think it’s perfect — in fact it doesn’t even imply that I think it’s a good place to live. + +That commitment has limits. I might leave for a period. I might leave forever. But I wouldn’t look back upon my time here with regret. Because it was an attempt to contribute to a movement that I believed in. I still do. + +Zionism is a broad synagogue. And so are the viewpoints of those who have moved to Israel. + +Some of us (appear to) really drink the Kool Aid. They thrive on the positivity and they should enjoy it — so long as they don’t try to invalidate the experiences of the many Zionists who have lived in Israel only to emerge with a more critical perspective that looks a bit like mine (the problem is that they often do). + +From the viewpoint of traditional migration theory, there’s nothing about our decision to relocate here that’s rational. It supercedes that. So if you’re perplexed the next time you encounter a critical Zionist — even an Israeli by choice — you may wish to keep that in mind. diff --git a/posts/medium/Your--Writer--Could-Be-A-Much-More-Central-Marketing-Player-Than-You-Realize.md b/posts/medium/Your--Writer--Could-Be-A-Much-More-Central-Marketing-Player-Than-You-Realize.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0fce5799d4edd198198082159673da75b19ff3f7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Your--Writer--Could-Be-A-Much-More-Central-Marketing-Player-Than-You-Realize.md @@ -0,0 +1,82 @@ +# Your “Writer” Could Be A Much More Central Marketing Player Than You Realize + +#### When building out a marketing team, don’t assume that your writer can “only” write + +If your conception of a writer is somebody chained to a keyboard for their entire workday, you could be missing out on some of the value that these integral parts of the content marketing puzzle could be bringing to your team. Photo by [Min An](https://www.pexels.com/@minan1398?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) from [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-using-typewriter-1448709/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels) + +A couple of months ago, I shared an article here on Medium about why I no longer present myself, to prospective clients, as a “freelance writer.” + +[**Why I’ve Stopped Identifying As A ‘Freelance Writer’ — Or A Writer At All** + _Why I (Sadly) No Longer Think Freelance Writing Is A Good Space To Be In_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/why-ive-stopped-identifying-as-a-freelance-writer-or-a-writer-at-all-1cb41acce9fb) + +I have nothing but respect for full-time writers. I’ve been writing, professionally, for more than ten years. And it’s been a colorful journey at every step of the way. + +However, I’ve come to the painful conclusion that writers tend to be grossly devalued by companies — and often their contributions go underpaid too. + +You can be a writer with a strong background in strategy — or public relations or SEO— but so long as you begin a conversation with the “w word”… or use it prominently in your collateral….you’re pegged as the ‘writer.’ And once you’re bracketed as such, it can become a professional straitjacket. + +To sell clients on _results (_ value) instead of deliverables (outputs), I suggest that it’s in many writers’ best interest to find an alternative way to describe what they do professionally. + +[**Price buyers vs. value buyers: the easiest way to screen potential clients** + _If you’re selling solely by price, there’s almost always somebody cheaper_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/price-buyers-vs-value-buyers-the-easiest-way-to-screen-potential-clients-5815509af5ac "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/price-buyers-vs-value-buyers-the-easiest-way-to-screen-potential-clients-5815509af5ac")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/price-buyers-vs-value-buyers-the-easiest-way-to-screen-potential-clients-5815509af5ac) + +Although this may strike as disingenuous, I contend that it doesn’t have to be. Thinking more strategically about how to present what you do can instead be a way to engage in more professionally suitable and satisfying work — that commands higher compensation too. + +A writer who has developed extensive expertise in SEO could describe themselves as an SEO specialist first and foremost (who also happens to be able to do the writing) rather than as a writer with SEO knowledge. + +The difference here might seem like one of semantics. But in my experience — having made such a transition in my own personal branding — it can be anything but. + +An SEO consultant might be called upon to provide advice and join in higher level conversations about marketing strategy. A writer … just “does” the writing. (Can you see how language can subtly devalue?) + +Very few professionals aspire to be thought of as task rabbits. The “elevated” writer is likely to feel more valued and inclined to produce his or her best output than the writer who is simply handed already conceived briefs for delivery. Simply being asked “what do you think about this idea?” is a good starting point to see what might lie behind a writer’s wordsmanship, although it’s only a start. + +### Where Writers Can Add Value Beyond The Writing Process + +There are a few areas in which freelance content writers can commonly “add value” to the overall content marketing effort beyond getting through the actual writing. + +Given that building out a whole content marketing team involves a _lot_ of hiring and expense — if you want to do it right, at least — if you can find another specialty they may not be bringing to your attention you can make your recruitment effort that much easier. + +[**Content Marketing: Who Do You Need On Your A-Team? (Key Hires)** +_If you’re looking to build up a robust content marketing function, these are the key people you need on your team_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-marketing-who-do-you-need-on-your-a-team-key-hires-e9cbaae1c1e1 "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-marketing-who-do-you-need-on-your-a-team-key-hires-e9cbaae1c1e1")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/content-marketing-who-do-you-need-on-your-a-team-key-hires-e9cbaae1c1e1) + +Here are a couple of ideas to get you started. + +#### **Content Strategy** + +I have a blog post to write down the line: all writers must aspire to become strategists. I suspect it’s going to rub up a few of my writer friends the wrong way. + +Writing is great, don’t get me wrong. But see my foregoing comment about nobody liking feeling like a guinea-pig. + +Taking in briefs and spitting out white papers, blogs, and other finished writing deliverables is just eventually not going to be enough to keep many professionals content. It’s also, I contend, unsustainable. Writing has to be among the most demanding of activities out there from a focus perspective. I don’t even think that simply delivering writing products all day every day is mentally _sustainable_. + +The good news is that if you _do_ spend a few years doing lots and lots of writing, you develop an eye for what works and what doesn’t. You begin to get a feel for … strategy. + +Writers who mature into content strategists can advise upon: + + * What topics might be of interest to your intended readership, blending SEO know-how with a more intrinsic feel for what’s going to connect at the moment. + * The best distribution channels to tap into in order to reach new customers. + * How to measure the effectiveness of existing content marketing efforts and how to iterate from that data in order to continuously improve. + +#### Search Engine Optimization (SEO) + +Great writing isn’t going to be of much use to the business if it’s too deeply hidden in Google to ever find a reader. + +Search engine optimization (SEO) has become quite an elemental skill in today’s content marketing landscape. + +At a minimum, most content marketing writers are familiar with basic SEO conventions, including setting out a hierarchy, utilizing keywords efficiently, and writing good meta titles and descriptions. + +However, some writers, over time, begin to develop more extensive knowledge. + +Working with digital marketing practicioners — who specialize in this field — can be a great way for writers to sharpen their knowledge and competent SEO practicioners in their own right. + +Writing is clearly an essential skill for many content marketing efforts. + +Although brands are increasingly diversifying into audio and video, text-based communication remains the most practical entry-level for many seeking to institute and ramp up their content marketing production. + +There is, however, a tendency on the part of marketers to overlook the many other skillsets that “writers” may have developed over the course of their career. + +Whether they’ve worked in-house, freelance, or a mixture of both — I think the likelihood is high that your “writer” may have a few hidden tricks up his or her sleeve that you could be taking advantage of. + +Building out a thriving content marketing team takes times and effort. But if you can find a few players who can contribute value in a multitude of different areas, that task can be made far simpler. + +The next time you’re having a conversation with a prospective “writer” hire, ask them to tell you a little bit more about their professional experience — and what motivates them besides writing. Once you give the conversation space to blossom, you may be surprised to hear the results. diff --git a/posts/medium/Zionists-and-Israel--supporters---your-anti-Irish-racism-is-hypocritical--sickening--and-shameful.md b/posts/medium/Zionists-and-Israel--supporters---your-anti-Irish-racism-is-hypocritical--sickening--and-shameful.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cc5a6365e68903278e5eb072d99b1e37e71bda0a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/medium/Zionists-and-Israel--supporters---your-anti-Irish-racism-is-hypocritical--sickening--and-shameful.md @@ -0,0 +1,133 @@ +# Zionists and Israel “supporters”: your anti-Irish racism is hypocritical, sickening, and shameful + +#### Why, as somebody who supports Israel politically, I feel completely alienated from the mainstream pro-Israel movement + +I am an Irish Jew. + +In 1989, I was born in Dublin to a Jewish mother, thereby both ensuring both my status as a _halachic_ Jew and guaranteeing me the ability to make _aliyah_(move to Israel) under the Law of Return should I choose to do so. + +25 years later, in 2015, I exercised that right. Therefore, rather than penning this entry from Cork, Ireland, where I lived for most of my tenure in the Republic of Ireland, I am writing it from Jerusalem, Israel instead. + +Politically, I would be considered broadly pro-Israel — certainly by Irish readers. + +I am enthused by the State of Israel. It represents, for me, the reestablishment of the ancient Jewish state in its historical homeland. The most momentous development in 2,000 years of Jewish history and the logical end to the Jewish people’s long history of nomadism in the diaspora. + +Nevertheless, I fail to believe that the State of Israel is sacred or above criticism — which is where the pro-Israel community and I begin to tug in opposite directions (for in the age of Trumpism and Bibism, political leanings can only be absolute). + +During the course of Israel’s foundation, I accept that another people was inconvenienced, displaced, and worse by another people’s gain — whether they were a sovereign people or not matters not one iota, in my opinion (contrast and compare: “there was never such thing as a Palestinian state.”). To date, no adequate solution has been found to redress that situation. I don’t defend or condone the fact that Israel seems content to entrench a _status quo_ in the West Bank, and elsewhere,__ whose conditions are often inhumane. + +But as somebody who actually _lives_ in Israel — and typically, by the way, Israel’s most virulent online supporters do not, this point I try to underscore — my focus is much more internal than political. + +The most hot-button issue as a young Jewish immigrant: The cost of living here and the stark unaffordability of property, a theme expounded upon elegantly by Ricky Ben-David in the _Times of Israel last_ week. Even if you’re a non-Jew living in Croatia, we may have more in common than you realize. + +I care also about the fact that my local convenience store has decided to stop stocking a local perry cider that I thought was rather excellent. This, I believe, was a misguided decision; although maybe, as many American Zionists would tell me, that’s just the Irish drunkard in me talking. These, rather than boycotts or Iranian _ayatollahs_ , are the concerns that animate my day to day life. + +As an Irish Jew, I’m also one of the people that American Zionists and Israelis never realize they’re offending when they lash out at Ireland’s (perceived) anti-Israel obsession and decry its people as a nation of backward simpletons. We’re far too small a cohort of the Jewish world. Nobody has ever heard of us. They think we exist only in James Joyce novels. + +But by extension that group of imbeciles and drunkards and buffoons would include me. I have my moments, maybe moreso after a few swigs of perry. I think that Israel by and large handles the potato poorly and that Irish chips are eminently better. But on the whole I don’t think that would be a fair characterization. + +I’ve also written, before, about the fact that the oft-repeated claim that there is _no_ anti-Semitism in Ireland is delusional. Although equally I think that’s hardly surprising. Is there any land on the planet bereft of hatred towards another people? If the responses I’ve read today were anything to go on, there are anti-Irish bigots living in the State of Israel too. + +So while I’ve tried to pour some cold water on the “there’s no anti-Semitism in Ireland” line, equally, I’ve never claimed that the entire country is universally set against Israel or Jews. That would be equally false. + +And moreover, how possibly could I? I lived in Ireland for 25 years. I have friends who have quietly told me that they admire and support the Jewish state and those who are opposed to its policies but whom I do not regard as likely closet anti-Semitics. Like any absolutism, the claim is both untrue and destructive. But it’s the reactive racism that seems baked into much of the pro-Israel community that concerns me more. + +[**Please don’t tell me that there’s no anti-Semitism in Ireland. There is.** +_Or that Ireland “only has a problem with Israel”_ danielrosehill.medium.com](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b "https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b")[](https://danielrosehill.medium.com/please-dont-tell-me-that-there-s-no-anti-semitism-in-ireland-there-is-7575673229b) + +### What If … We Didn’t Lose Our Collective Crap At Every Perceived Slight? + +This week, the “pro-Israel” community (_the quotation marks are to question whether their actions actually support Israel at all, by the way)_ has its collective knickers in a twist about the fact that an Irish novelist, Sally Rooney, has decided _not_ to sell translation rights to one of her books into Hebrew. Shock and horror! + +Don’t get me wrong. I’m against racism. I’m also against BDS. If for no other reason than that by targeting civil society it’s typically utterly ineffective. Dialogue generally heralds, if not progress, at least understanding. By seeking to stymie that unconditionally, I fail to see what it achieves. + +Rooney’s play here was also transparently stupid: probably 100 Israelis would have been interested in buying the translated version of her book (sorry, Sally, but you’re just not that famous here). But the Jewish world have enabled her to do precisely what she intended in, as usual, a spectacular fashion: Turn a molehill into a mountain, thereby probably driving up her sales. Clever us Jews, eh? + +This is because the refusal to sell a novel for translation to Israel — while racist and potentially inconvenient to a minuscule pool of readers who can probably read it in English anyway— was deemed an insult so grave that it called for nothing less than an international freak-out in response to it. That’s kind of how the Jewish and pro-Israel world operates. + +For Israel and the Jewish diaspora, the move, it seems, must be countered with the same energy invested in combating the nuclear ambitions of the Iranian state. + +We must waste no time and energy in telling the novelist that she is being very, very bold by doing what she has done. (Note: one Israeli statesman, Diaspora Minister Nachman Shai, literally went that far, hectoring Rooney for what he termed her “certificate of bad behavior.”) Letters to the editor and angry tweets must be churned out in their tens of thousands all echoing the same same of outrage, dismay and shock at the decision. We could never even dream about just letting this one go. + +And so, as my opinion is probably very clear here, I’d like to suggest another approach. + +Israel, as I have mentioned, represents the realization of Jewish self-sovereignty. At least that’s how it’s perceived in Zionist terms. + +For the first time in two millennia, we have an army defending our borders. + +The country is widely understood to be defended by a nuclear deterrent. It would be worth, therefore, asking whether our unmitigated rage might need some sort of triage system. + +After all, being permanently angry and the on the hunt for boogie-men isn’t mentally healthy. A good army knows when to conserve its ammunition. The Jewish world sometimes, it seems, doesn’t. + +So perhaps we could… you know … take a tiny step back and remember the very real problems facing the property market in Israel? Or just get on with enjoying the weekend and the sunny weather and all that? Because that’s actually a far more enormous threat to Israel’s future than the fact that we won’t be able to read this novel which, in a few years, the world will likely have entirely forgotten about. + +[**Israeli housing prices have nearly doubled in a decade, with no signs of slowing** + _It's Saturday night on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv and a group of protesters is again gearing up for a rally…_ www.timesofisrael.com](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/ "https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/")[](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-housing-prices-have-nearly-doubled-in-a-decade-with-no-signs-of-slowing/) + +Other actors are proportionate and worthwhile targets for our indignation and rage and action too, by the way. + +Iran threatens to blow us up and obliterate the State and therefore it is worthy of unrelenting attention and diplomatic effort. I’m glad that that appears to be the case. + +But we can probably all find better reading alternatives to a book about a fling between a couple living between Rome and Dublin, which I understand is _Beautiful World’s_ plot-line. Even _Kupat Rashit_ sounds better to me (the plot-line of that Israeli TV series, by the way, is the dysfunctional nature of a typical Israeli supermarket and a cranky old miser who permanently wants a discount on cottage cheese. I’m not sure if there are English subtitles yet, but I highly recommend it). Or .. I don't know … watch my videos about Linux on YouTube. There are alternatives out there. I promise. + +Moreover, it’s about time that we questioned whether the kind of reactionary vitriol we’re used to instituting is constructive towards our broader remit in the world (for us Jews, that is). + +The response mounted by the Jewish world in reaction to things like Rooney’s book is massive, coordinated, and international. + +There’s no global Jewish cabal, that I promise too (if there is, I must have misplaced my membership card). But we do seem to have some pretty good internal systems for coordinating these moments of mass hysteria and vengeful Whack-a-Mole. I have a theory. It probably doesn’t win us any friends or draw anybody any closer to supporting Israel. + +The other development to come out of the Jewish world this week, at least the part of it that intersects with Ireland, was a 200 page report — which appears to consist mostly of armchair research into the online posts of fringe political elements. In entirely predictable fashion, this has been seized upon in the Jewish world as evidence of Ireland’s unwavering anti-Semitism. + +It’s not. It’s proof that among Ireland’s political class and supporters of the Palestinians cause anti-Semites are to be found lurking. That’s kinda unsurprising really. Racism, really, is in every land. But the corollary of that is not that every person is a racist. + +That we can be so quick to look past critical thinking to back that just because is concerning. + +But more than that is the unmistakably anti-Irish racism that permeates the reaction to it. + +### Tip-Off: If The Irish Wanted To Compile Their Own Dossier On Jewish Racism, They Probably Could. In Like, A Day + +If somebody in Ireland wanted to emulate Collier’s dossier about Irish anti-Semitism, you know what, they wouldn’t have to look very far. At all. + +Right now, in fact, they could probably get through the work required in a day. + +For as long as I’ve been observing, with disappointment, Irish expressions of anti-Semitism online, I’ve been noticing pro-Israel voices feel the need to throw some racism back over the fence — labelling the Irish a nation of potato-eating simpletons. + +For us to remark about one dynamic without accepting the other is, as ever, to be baldly hypocritical. + +A few minutes on Twitter — and elsewhere on the internet — yields only a very partial selection of the typical hyperbolic thinking, supremacism, and reverse-hate that seems highly prevalent among the “pro-Israel” ranks. + +Sadly, being an Irish potato-head drunkard and all that, I’m vaguely tipsy after my one beer. + +But I did manage to dig through Twitter and the _Jerusalem Post_ talkbacks and unearth a few. These aren’t the most savory or extreme by any measure. But they’re good representations of the kind of dynamic I’m talking about. + +And you know what: if I had enough time to dedicate to compiling the “evidence” I could probably compile my own 200 page manifesto. I could even charge that all Jews and Israelis hate Ireland. And just like the charge leveled in the other direction, it would be completely false. Utterly so, in fact. + +### Enough With The Reverse Hatred, Please + +The pro-Israel community — at least in parts — is a curious beast. One that at times I find thoroughly dislikeable for its insistence on adhering to a singular black-and-white interpretation Israel; one that can countenance no thought that the country can be anything less than perfect. + +That’s why I have trouble even using the label “pro-Israel” as an identifier. It suggests, to me, that I must be an unwavering supporter of everything Israel does. If a journalist writes about the state of the housing crisis here, I must question her motives and query whether it might, in fact, have been fake news (I don’t make this up by the way; I saw such discourse on Facebook this week). Alternatives like “I generally support Israel politically” are far clunkier but, to me, feel more accurate. My support is not unconditional. + +Elements of the pro-Israel community seem positively obsessed to the point of paranoia with highlighting every perceived slight and bias against the Jewish State or the Jewish people. My belief has long that this has long been a massively distracting force. While sometimes important, it also blinds us to many problems facing us here in Israel. + +More than that, the movement also harbors within its ranks plenty of open racists who will gladly through racism back in the other direction whenever they think it’s warranted. + +As a Jew, I feel the need to interdict some of my religion’s teachings just to make the point that the entire religion isn’t represented by these angry folk on Twitter. Judaism forbids both racism and revenge. It’s not Jewish to slur epithets towards an Irish person about them being a drunkard or a buffoon. It’s “pro-Israel” only as a vocal and repugnant element perceive it to be. Above all, it’s not constructive. + +Undoubtedly, nobody thinks, or cares, about the tiny minority of Irish Jews in the world like me — who read comments about the Irish being drunkards, potato-heads, or stupendous idiots and can’t help but feel rage and offence ourselves. But that’s just how it goes. When you’re a bigot, you never know really who’s going to be reading your posts. We’re the very insignificant collateral damage of this indignant reverse racism. + +If it’s any consolation to the Irish let me at least give you my take on it. + +I reckon that most of those alleging that everybody in Ireland hates Israel haven’t actually been to Ireland. They probably never made it to Israel either. They mightn’t have got beyond their country or state. For all I know, they could be a teenager typing from their mother’s basement. + +But I do know that their stance is suffused with toxicity. + +There are ways to support Israel. Although most probably don’t involve doing so from behind a computer, which is the notion of the “online war” that official Israel has perplexingly been very eager to encourage. + +Israel — and the Jewish people — can become okay with being disliked by some. We can’t badger or argue with everybody into getting on our side. Especially not with insults. + +- + +_— Clarification: it is not alleged here that most, or all, Jews, Zionists and Israel supporters are anti-Irish nor racists. Simply that there is a vocal element that are and that they are shameless hypocrites._ + +— _Comments are being disabled on this one because … Israel._ diff --git a/posts/toi/10-Things-Id-Like-To-Change-About-Life-in-Israel.md b/posts/toi/10-Things-Id-Like-To-Change-About-Life-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6a7d090c599ddd2c6563701115d7a95a6610fa52 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/10-Things-Id-Like-To-Change-About-Life-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,149 @@ +# 10 Things I’d Like To Change About Life in Israel + +When not thumping out writing projects for technology clients or tending to my new and thriving YouTube channel (just kidding, I have 10 subscribers), I have been known to frequent the odd Facebook group. + +Although they can be addictive, over time I have found a way to make them work for me without derailing my work day: log out of Facebook rather than close the tab down and disable notifications when you’ve had enough of the back and forth. + +One of the groups I have discovered is one which — controversially — provides a safe forum for those considering leaving Israel. In Israeli circles, ‘yeridah’ — the process of leaving Israel — has always been rife with controversy (The Jerusalem Post has a good piece explaining the dynamic here). + +The group comprises individuals that have already left Israel after moving here, those that are hell-bent on doing so, and those who — like me — are just kind of continuously thinking about it (one study I read indicated that 40% of olim eventually return to their countries of origin, so those in the undecided category has to comprise a pretty large contingent!). + +Although it could well be my imagination, I believe that in recent weeks and months I have noticed a change in the discourse about leaving Israel — a more open and tolerant one emerging, in which pointing out some of the things that need urgent rectification in the country is no longer met with the typical aggressive and dismissive response of “if you don’t like it here, you can leave”. + +I have seen this at the national level in which even right-wing voters have been unable to contain their disgust at the extravagant government that has been assembled during a time of national austerity (a wave of protests swept through the country). + +And I have also seen this on an inter-personal level. Now, with the country partially shut down and citizens swiftly deprived of the Amazon free shipping offer which took the country by storm, it’s painfully obvious, once again, that Israel is vastly overpriced and simply unaffordable for too many to live in. + +And so — emboldened by my previous Medium post on this topic as well as a blog post I contributed to this website about how I would like to see Israel in ten years — here’s a slightly expanded wish list of the things I would like to see change in the country by the time the next generation arrives. + +1. A Lower Cost of Living + +As I mentioned in my blog post, an informal poll which I initiated on aforementioned Facebook group showed that for the vast majority of people, Israel’s extremely high cost of living (it was recently named the eight most expensive country in the world) is the main factor pushing people out of Israel. + +Studies have shown that as many as 41% of the country lives in some kind of overdraft. + +Although it may sound like the stuff of conspiracy theories, a vast percentage of the Israeli economy is controlled by a small number of tycoons. + +Israel’s economy is one dominated by oligopolies and monopolies at virtually every level. And immigrants are tired of being paid insufficient salaries that don’t match up to the cost of living. Despite the rosy picture painted by Nefesh b’Nefesh and other organizations, I and many olim can attest that many of our first friends in Israel have since left the country for precisely this reason: they found maintaining a reasonable standard of living in the country, or surviving, simply impossible (and yes, that even includes those working in “high tech”!). Although it typically happens with less fanfare than the arrival of a Nefesh b’Nefesh flight full of new immigrants, olim are voting with their feet and leaving the country — and have been for some time. Israel’s absurd cost of living is unsustainable. To keep voluntary migrants in the country, this simply has to change. + +Possible solutions: + +Israel enacting more aggressive antitrust law and lessening bureaucracy to encourage international competition in the market as well as local small + +Israel could consider abandoning its often restrictive policy of not recognizing international standards which again restricts foreign competition. + +2. Breaking The Property Bubble + +If you thought that $10 beer was bad, just wait until it’s your turn to start thinking about getting on the property ladder. + +This piece, by Simona Weinglass (for this website) does an excellent job of summing up the dynamic for far too many. + +To quote from that article: + +“Unless they are in the top 20 percent of income earners, Regev told The Times of Israel, or unless they already own significant assets, a typical professional couple making aliya from abroad will likely never be able to save enough money for a down payment on an apartment.” (Eitan Regev was one of the researchers at the Taub Center for Social Policy Studies that commissioned the paper being referenced in the piece). + +This generation’s difficulty in getting on the property ladder is well-known and not a uniquely Israeli phenomenon. But with absurdly high real estate prices propped up by restrictive government control of land the dynamic in Israel is exaggerated. + +Possible solutions: Israel developing currently sparsely populated peripheral areas such as the Negev and Golan and making them attractive for young people to move there. Most saliently, these areas — and Jerusalem — needs jobs. And lots of them. + +3. Less Shitat Matzliach (Taking Advantage) + +I’ve talked about freier culture in several pieces before. + +If that word is new to you then this piece I wrote about how to work with Israelis — and do so while keeping your sanity — might be of interest. + +A working culture prevails in some quarters in Israel in which it is seen as smart and tactful to try out-negotiate the vulnerable — often new immigrants — into taking bad deals or accepting salaries that are not commensurate with their skills. + +Too many immigrants end up getting repeatedly burned by unscrupulous employers. Again, immigrant exploitation is not a uniquely Israeli phenomenon. But, as the only Jewish country in the world, and one premised on Jews uprooting their lives in order to share in a collective form of national self-determination, I feel like we can and must do better than taking advantage of one another at every opportunity. Many Israelis are the grandsons and granddaughters of immigrants. Taking advantage of those two generations down the line is nothing other than shameful opportunism. + +Possible solutions: Some kind of collective moment of national reckoning that life is not a zero sum game and compromises can be reached at whereby both parties in an employment relationship benefit. Mercilessly haggling down contractors and employees is not a great way to get them to do their best work. Additionally, a raising of the national minimum vacation day allowance from its current paltry figure of 12 to 20, which would be more in line with (non-US) international norms. + +4. Better Customer Service + +If you’ve never been to Israel then you might be unaware that customer service is often painfully bad here. + +Putting a finger on ‘how’ or ‘why’ isn’t all that simplistic. A the retail level, tellers will commonly ignore customers and pay attention to their smartphones instead (or complete their stock take and keep the customer waiting in line until it is convenient for them to serve them!). + +At a more national level, many Israelis and immigrants alike have amassed vast collections of horror stories about dealing with some well-known national utility and telecommunications providers. By the standards of Western democracies, Israel’s current defamation laws are also stifling. This contributes to a culture in which businesses feel able to treat customers with impunity. They know that they don’t have many alternatives. And even if they did, complaining about their treatment on Facebook, to warn other customers, could constitute an actionable offence. + +Possible solutions: A gold standard customer service award, independently audited, which would allow those Israeli businesses which take customer service seriously and treat their customers fairly to objectively demonstrate this. More international competition and exposure should raise standards. More generous consumer protection law would prevent businesses from being able to treat customers poorly. + +5. Politicians That Serve The People (Rather Than Themselves) + +I don’t want to slant this politically by advocating for a political side of the political spectrum, although recent happenings have indeed pivoted me to one end of that spectrum. + +Instead I will say this: recent events in Israel have made it abundantly clear (for me and for many) that too many Israeli politicians care about very little other than their own preservation in power or that of their “tribe” — which might be a particular religious sect or a narrow demographic of immigrants. As I wrote in my last piece decrying the grossly bloated government we’ve been foisted with, it’s a system which seems to have cronyism and a lack of accountability hard-wired into it. + +To my eyes, Israel’s political system is thus both hopelessly divided and myopic in terms of its relentless, though justifiable, focus on security matters. Voters vote in party lists rather than individual candidates with constituencies and politicians have a longstanding habit of forming tiny splinter parties the moment they hit a disagreement with the party leader. As a result, the vast majority of the country which doesn’t share in the bounty of the “high tech” job market (the ‘periphery’ — the country beyond the ‘merkaz’) finds itself underrepresented. But even within the merkaz there is no door to knock at when, say, your local municipality decides to begin a noisy street party outside your front door and refuses to listen to your complaints or those of local residents . + +Additionally, the national level focus which this system necessarily engenders continuously pushes what for me are the “hot button” issues (cost of living, cost of property) to the periphery of the political discourse. Instead, macro issues, of collective importance, dominate the political agenda at both municipal and national level. Thus, a cable car to the Western Wall is deemed a vital infrastructural project for Jerusalem despite the fact that many residents oppose it. It strengthens Israel’s connection to the Old City and shows off that connection to the world. Never mind the fact that many local residents think that it is going to be an eyesore and an extravagant waste of the city’s perennially limited budget. There are other more controversial examples. But suffice to say that in Israeli politics whoever is perceived as toughest on security traditionally wins the game. + +Possible solution: Reform of the political system led by experts in the field. + +6. And End to Hasbara (And National Gloating!) + +People won’t like this one — at least not the second part — but I’m going to include it anyway. + +I’ve long argued that hasbara (Israeli public diplomacy) has not demonstrated a positive return on investment (ROI), despite the millions that are pored into it. + +Furthermore, I believe that this form of global echo-chamber self-righteousness is a prodigious waste of the intellectual resources and energies of many devoted and talented friends of Israel worldwide could put towards more constructive ends. + +Instead of serving as needless and often overlapping amateur spokesperson for the Jewish state (or commandeering organizations with often almost identical mission statements) these individuals could focus on developing skillsets that are of use to the economy here and move to the country they so profess to cherish. + +Hasbara, to my mind, is like a national attempt at defeating the classroom bully by dint of protracted reason and logic. In my view, it’s never going to work. Israel’s existence hasn’t made anti-Semitism go away — it has merely changed form and become harder to detect. I would love to see Israel draw what I feel is the right conclusion from this lesson and pull the plug on this insidious waste of resources that serves the detrimental purpose of constantly putting Israel and Israelis on a defensive footing when it comes to justifying their positions. + +Although Israel’s achievements are impressive, if it were to put an end to hasbara culture perhaps — just perhaps — Israel also might be a little less hyperbolic in the claims it makes about itself to the world. + +In my view, Israel is a country that is doing tremendously given the circumstances and its age. Nevertheless, its leaders, I believe, are too trigger-happy to claim that it is the “best in the world” at every endeavor under the sun. Israel has made achievements in the space of 100 years that few would have thought possible. But rather than engaging in vain and premature boasting about its handling of a public health crisis, mending its fences and internal divisions would be an important activity that merits attention at this moment. + +Possible solution: Stop funding hasbara organizations unless there is clear evidence that they serve a constructive purpose and do more than make people feel good about answering fire with fire. While at it, stop answering back every criticism the worlds make. Let people disagree and think differently. Instead, focus inwardly on construction and on growth. + +7. Better Tenant Protection Law. Better Renting Options. + +For many immigrants that face a lifetime of renting, Israel’s rental system, at least in its current guise, simply doesn’t serve their needs. + +The country’s rental stock is overwhelmingly dominated by what are colloquially referred to as ‘mom and pop’ landlords — ie one of the hundreds of thousands of sabras who chipped in on property when it was cheap and are now renting them out as sources of passive incomes to more hapless recently immigrants. + +Unless Israel’s macroeconomics are to dramatically change and property is to suddenly become affordable, Israel needs a stock of professionally managed property. Additionally, it needs proper tenant protection law unlike the Fair Rental Law which ultimately proved teeth-less. Otherwise, renters will continue to be used and abused by often unscrupulous landlords that cannot be held to any kind of account. Renting in Israel is currently a jungle. That needs to change. + +Possible solution: Devise tenant protection law that isn’t so hopelessly ambiguous that it gets thoroughly twisted by those adept in the art of practicing shitat matzliach. Involve actual renters in the formulative process for that legislation and not MKs who are unlikely to have ever rented in their lives. + +8. Better Consumer Protection + +Like tenant law, consumer protection law in Israel currently, frankly, often sucks. + +Israel, in my opinion, should enact far more generous consumer protection law that force retailers to do better than fob them off to usually unhelpful (and monopolistic) “official importers” whenever a defect emerges with the pricey electronic they bought just a few months ago. + +Possible solution: Enact consumer law with teeth. Again, the gold standard idea: devise a way to highlight businesses that are expending effort to buck the often downward trend. + +9. Better Post-Aliyah Support + +Despite some glossy web pages and brochures from official government organizations, Israel’s approach to post-aliyah, at the moment, can essentially be summarized as “you sink or you swim and we don’t care much either way” + +It’s time that Israel recognized that the survival of the fittest methodology may work in army bootcamp — but it doesn’t work towards keeping people in the country and becoming happy and constructive citizens of it. + +Many olim have become discouraged and demotivated by far too many negative experiences in Israel. The rate of suicide among olim in Israel, tragically, remains at a multiple of the national average. It’s time that the State prioritized keeping those that have already made the move to the country. Post-aliyah — and those olim that have moved here — have for too long played a very distant second fiddle to those who are already in the country. Priorities need to be reshuffled. It’s time to change this. + +Possible solution: Invest in post-aliyah to the same extent as investing in aliyah. If as many people leave Israel as come in, all that has been created is a revolving door of Jewish immigrants! + +10. Better Banking + +If one thing epitomizes so much of what is wrong about life in Israel, for immigrants, then it is the banking sector. + +Banks, in Israel, often offer notoriously poor customer service, charge outlandish fees for the provision of very little service (including extremely limited opening hours), offer miserly credit card rewards, and are held to absolutely no form of accountability. Paradoxically, for a high tech pioneer, banking and financial services in Israel can often also seem rather surprisingly low tech: PIN codes on credit card payments are only just being introduced and contactless payments are still a far cry. + +Possible solution: Reduce bureaucracy so that Israeli FinTech pioneers don’t just see the country as a tiny test market not worth investing in. Introduce an efficient and online only bank that can afford to charge reasonable fees. + +That’s All I’ve Got! + +That’s about the totality of my quick brainstorm. + +I could write a list of twenty things that I like about Israel (right now, summer watermelon would be very close to the top). + +But I feel like focusing on things that need to change might be more constructive. + +Israel is always fast changing. I hope that in the years to come it will continue to innovate and become an even better place in which to live. + +https://soundcloud.com/drosehill/whatiwouldchangeaboutisrael + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/10-things-id-like-to-change-about-life-in-israel/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/16-facts-about-Ireland-to-get-Israeli-Jewish-tourists-excited-about-visiting.md b/posts/toi/16-facts-about-Ireland-to-get-Israeli-Jewish-tourists-excited-about-visiting.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d9eecf435dfe8810dfcbbd4bc9544250f8d43eb1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/16-facts-about-Ireland-to-get-Israeli-Jewish-tourists-excited-about-visiting.md @@ -0,0 +1,203 @@ +# 16 facts about Ireland to get Israeli & Jewish tourists excited about visiting + +Embed from Getty Images + +El Al announced this week that it would be cancelling its service to Dublin, which only began operating this March. + +But just in case you were excited about the prospect of a trip to the Emerald Isle next year, here are some facts about the country which may be of interest to potential visitors from Israel. + +1: Its Prime Minister Supports BDS + +In case you missed this week’s hot-button issue in the always “colorful” world of Ireland-Israel relations, here’s the scoop: + +Ireland’s women’s basketball team recently got themselves into a bit of political mud for deciding that they should boycott a fixture against Israel. The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) said that the Irish team would have to pay fines totaling more than €100,000 for the privilege of being… you know… racist. + +Embed from Getty Images + +Ireland’s Prime Minister, Leo Varadkar (the same guy of Emily Hand “lost and found” fame, by the way) responded by saying that “it may well be appropriate” to “expel” Israel from sporting or music events like the Eurovision (or a basketball game). I think he just doesn’t want Ireland to have to pick up the tab for doing the expelling. Isn’t this essentially state-endorsed BDS? It sure sounds like it to me. + +2: Its Eurovision Contestant Wants Israel Kicked Out Of The Context… As Do The Wolfe Tones + +Embed from Getty Images + +It’s not just the thoughts of playing Israel in basketball that stirs up the enmity of the Irish, it seems. + +The idea of competing against us in Eurovision is also a noxious prospect to many in Ireland. Joined by other noted European moralists the Swedish and the Finns, support for Ireland to boycott the song contest was extremely widespread with its contestant ‘Bambie Thug’ affirming that she didn’t believe it was fair for the EBU to have one rule for Russia and another for Israel. + +Beloved (to some) trad group ‘The Wolfe Tones’ stated in January that they would be interested in representing their country. But only on the precondition that Israel were banned from competing. One gets the feeling it wasn’t a sincere offer. + +3: A Member Of Its Parliament Has Openly And Repeatedly Called For Israel’s Destruction + +Just in case you needed a model for what fringe antisemitism in mainstream western politics looked like when it’s allowed to go unchallenged, Ireland’s Richard Boyd Barrett and the People Before Profit party he heads provide an excellent example. + +Last December, Boyd Barrett called Israel a “filthy” “psychopathic” state adding that it had to be “brought down” through the process of “intifada.” + +The remarks were shared at a public event in Dublin city centre. After I shared the remarks on Twitter, my video went viral accumulating more than one million likes. + +The comments were brought to the attention of the country’s deputy prime minister who said that he would tend to see them as wrong. + +Ireland, by the way, is busily debating the parameters of potential hate speech legislation. + +But an unspoken exemption seems to be in place whenever Israelis or Jews are the targets. + +4: Ireland Is Home To A Political Party Which Calls For Israel’s “Total Dismantlement” + +People Before Profit also recently released a pamphlet calling for the “total dismantlement” of the State of Israel and its replacement with a state called .. you guessed it .. Palestine. + +For clarification, the party added that calls of “From the river to the sea” are not antisemitic. The pamphlet was not condemned in Ireland’s parliament because that would require the presence of somebody who didn’t hate Israel. + +5: You Might Bump Into A Self-Published Antisemitic Rag While You’re There + +An Irish conspiracy theorist and a business partner publish a freesheet “newspaper” entitled “The Irish Light” (the name might provide a chuckle for fans of irony, of course, as it does an exemplary job at spreading scientific illiteracy, racism, and all manner of general darkness on its often unwilling recipients). + +The publication frequently engages in the kind of grotesque antisemitism that many of my age probably naively thought died out a generation or two ago. + +A screed entitled “How The Jews Conquered Ireland” lashes out at “Jewish control” in Ireland including the age-old charge that Jews enslave societies through usury. + +The piece also takes aim at two Irish Jews — Ronit Lentin and former justice minister Alan Shatter—highlighting them as “agents of destruction” intent on destroying Ireland. + +Ironically, Lentin is an advocate for the Palestinian right of return. She is, however, Jewish. + +6: In Ireland, There’s A Palestine Support Group For (Almost) Everyone! + +In Ireland whether you’re a politician who hates Israel, an artist, a teacher, a psychologist, or anybody else .. the good news is that you can find cosy intellectual shelter in your nearest Palestine support group. You could fill up a phone directory with them! + +A group of academics repeatedly write to newspapers arguing for an academic boycott of Israel. + +In 2021 a pledge to boycott Israel circulated by the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) attracted more than 1,000 signatures. + +A grouping of 250 psychologists wrote to the newspapers last week stating that they were “united in their horror” at the events unfolding in Gaza (on October 7th and other global conflicts, it seems, they are mute). + +A group called “Irish Sport For Palestine” recently sprung up and began advocating for a boycott by the women’s basketball team. The Irish Palestine Mental Health Network is a real organisation and its top recommendation (filed under: “do no harm”) is “refrain from holding conferences in Israel.” + +The Irish media does not need its own affiliate grouping. It’s simply the Irish media. + +Irish Pets for Palestine and Galway Goldfish For Gaza have both as far as I know not been formulated although I thought it would be remiss to deprive this readership of these creative and alliterative possibilities. + +There’s also the Cork Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Dublin Gaza, Gaza Action Ireland to name but a few more options. + +7: Ireland’s Largest Local Government Body Recently Voted To Support BDS… Against Anyone Who “Supports” Israel + +Embed from Getty Images + +Ireland’s largest county council (local government body) by territory governed, Cork County Council, recently passed a motion. + +It stated that: + +Cork County Council declares the country of Cork to be an apartheid free zone, a space of proactive solidarity with the Palestinian people. It commits to encourage and assist all efforts to show solidarity and fundraising for humanitarian efforts in Palestine.” + +It added that: + +Cork County Council declares its support for the BDS campaign and agrees not to purchase goods or services produced or provided in whole or in part as is practicable by Israeli companies or companies that support the Israeli state.” + +So there you have it. + +This might just be the world’s most far-reaching statement of endorsing BDS by a government body. + +You don’t only get on the blacklist with Cork County Council for being Israeli. Supporting Israel is enough of an ideological crime to have you shunned. + +Dublin City Council seems to pursue a similar policy. Last December it refused to meet with Israel’s ambassador to Ireland (before hosting—to the usual confetti-throwing—the Palestinian envoy). Two months ago Dublin concluded a treaty of friendship with Ramallah. + +Ireland is also home to an initiative called the ‘Apartheid Free Zones’ (AFZs) designed to encourage companies and local government bodies to declare their territories Israelrein. + +8: Ireland Wants To Cancel Israel’s Trade Agreement With The EU + +After a brief period of condemnations of Hamas that felt extremely strained, Ireland’s reaction since October 7th has been one of increased solidarity with the Palestinians. The chorus of criticism from every part of Irish society is now, one feels, deafening. + +In the wake of the tragedy, Ireland’s president backtracked from statements from the EU Commissioner stating that the “EU stands with Israel” reasoning – presumably – that such a wording was unacceptably supportive. Ireland tried but failed to interject moral equivalency into an EU resolution released shortly after the tragedy. + +Not content with their legion efforts to harm Israel at the UN and through funding partisan anti-Israel NGOs, Ireland is now going for the jugular at the EU attempting to have the trade agreement between Israel and the EU nixed on account of a human rights clause. + +Of course, Irish statesmen are wont to put it that bluntly. Instead Prime Minister Varadkar statement that his country and a few other states were “interested” in having the document “reviewed”. No prize if you can guess correctly the outcome he’s rooting for. + +9: Ireland Is Considering Supporting South Africa At The ICJ + +Irish lawyer Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh emerged as one of the “stars” of South Africa’s absurd intervention at the International Court of Justice. The Irish counsel was providing support to the South African side alleging that Israel was conducting a “genocide” in Gaza. + +Embed from Getty Images + +It seems that Ireland’s legal eagles may soon find themselves with more opportunities to hurl lies towards Israel before the world. + +Following the preliminary ruling, Irish Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Micheal Martin instructed lawyers to investigate the possibility of Ireland joining the ICJ case in support of South Africa. Israel, he said, needed to be “held to account” for their actions in Gaza. + +Ireland’s justice minister – Helen McEntee – has already stated that she would be “in favour” of Irish intervention. Which begs the question of why the Irish feel the need to go through with the charade of supposedly “evaluating” the prospect. We await the decision with bated breath. + +10: Despite Being Massively Anti-Israel, Ireland Somehow Sees Itself As Neutral + +If mental gymnastics were a sport, Ireland might consider fielding a national team. + +Perhaps more amusing than all the criticism is Ireland’s longstanding commitment to a “neutrality” that nobody else seems to really understand. + +The definition is somehow considered to extend to Israel, too. + +At a debate in its parliament shortly after October 7th, Irish politicians expressed concern that some of the statements emanating from their colleagues could be perceived as harming Ireland’s vaunted “neutrality.” + +In other news, the sky is pink. + +11: Ireland Invests In Anti-Israel NGOs + +Non governmental organisations (NGOs) are great political proxies for governments who don’t want to openly declare their foreign policies. Ireland provides an excellent illustration of this point. + +Ireland has provided state funding to organisations including Addameer and Al-Haq which Israel proscribed as terrorist organisations owing to documented affiliations with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). + +12: Ireland Is A Big UNRWA Funder And Decided To Continue Providing Money To The Organisation After The Recent Revelations + +Embed from Getty Images + +In the wake of October 7th, Ireland decided to earmark €10M of its taxpayers’ money in emergency support to UNRWA to provide “emergency support” for the organisation. + +In the wake of revelations showing that some UNRWA employees were active participants in October 7th, Ireland decided to double down on its commitment to the agency stating that the government in Dublin had no intentions of pulling funding. + +13: The Palestinian Ambassador—Who Refuses To Condemn October 7th— Is Adulated By Sinn Fein + +Shortly after the October 7th massacre, the Ambassador of Palestine to Ireland Dr Jilan Wahba Abdalmaji interviewed on Irish radio. She was repeatedly asked if she would condemn Hamas and the heinous atrocities which they had just committed. She repeatedly refused to do so. After three persistent attempts, the interviewer—with an air of sorrow—gave up the chase. + +For being Palestinian, Ambassador Wahba Abdalmajid has become a sort of sudden star among the Irish left. Abdalmajid has become a regular fixture at Sinn Fein conferences where she is frequently afforded standing ovations. + +Her October 7th denialism appears to be just another uncomfortable fact that the Irish do not want to get into. + +14: Israel’s Ambassador To Ireland, However, Was Almost Voted Out Of The Country + +Embed from Getty Images + +Israel’s many opponents in Ireland frequently demand, with bated breath, to “expel” the Israeli Ambassador from Ireland. + +Lest you fall for the idea that this is a “Gaza War” thing, a previous resolution came before the Oireachtas in May, 2021. It alleged that “the Israeli ambassador’s presence in Ireland is untenable in these circumstances.” It failed. + +Alongside other trending classics at Ireland pro-Palestine rallies like “from the river to the sea” and “globalise the intifada,” “Israeli Ambassador: out, out, out!” has become a favourite rallying-cry for the masses who protest Israel’s war in Gaza every weekend in cities across the country (a pro-Houthi slogan got an airing in Cork recently too). + +Last November, the Social Democrats brought a motion before parliament which would have forced the expulsion of Dana Erlich, Israel’s ambassador to Dublin. The vote was defeated by 85 votes to 55. + +I’m not sure what wrongs Erlich must have committed on previous forays to be condemned to a posting to Ireland, but I have heard high praise from those who know her. At the very least, she’s a few thousand measures more diplomatic than I am. I wish her better luck with her next posting. + +15: Irish Jews Are Concerned By A Rise In Antisemitism + +It should come as no surprise that in this climate of Israel-hatred anti-Semitism is also a growing concern. + +Last week BDS activists placed stickers throughout supermarkets in Ireland stating that Israelis-made products were “contaminated” with “Zionism” and “apartheid.” I guess if you don’t have that many actual Jews to go after, these kind of theatrics are about the best that you can do. + +Ireland’s Jewish population is small. Most Jews who were born there, like me, have since left. Those still in Ireland report concern about the rise in antisemitism including on university campuses. + +Ireland is also home to an Israeli expat population many of whom moved to Ireland for employment. Israeli software company Wix set up an office in Dublin a few years ago and recently made the news when an employee there took to social media to label Israel a “terrorist state.” She was dismissed. Ireland’s Prime Minister advised her to seek legal recourse. + +At a recent debate in University College Dublin, a Jewish student was screamed at by a Jihadi supporter who stated that Hamas will commit October 7th “again and again”. It is a troubling climate. + +16: Ireland’s Government Could Become Even More Anti-Israel After The Next Election + +Ireland took a full 15 years to offer de jure recognition of Israel, only doing so in 1963. It previously refused to recognise the Jewish state citing alleged violations of UN resolutions. In Irish-Israeli relations there is not much new under the sun, it seems. + +If Ireland and Israel were two prospects on a dating website, you’d imagine that some newfangled algorithm might suggest them to be a match. + +Both are small countries. Both have large diaspora populations that help to amplify their international reach. Both have transitioned rather rapidly from poor economies dominated by agriculture to export-oriented forward-looking economies with a strong affinity for technology. + +There’s just one obvious spanner in the works and it probably doesn’t need to be stated. + +Perhaps the most interesting question looming in Ireland-Israel ties is “how bad can things possibly get with a country in the EU?” + +An accession to government by Sinn Fein after the next General Election would provide a datapoint on exactly that kind of scenario which may prove instructive for broader approaches to foreign relations. + +Because for all the noise that they make, in the broader scheme of things, huffing and puffing at the EU and trying to rally up a few stragglers to form a “Western buddies of Hamas” type geopolitical alliance may be the most harm that they can do. + +For now. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/16-facts-about-ireland-to-get-israeli-jewish-tourists-excited-about-visiting/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/16-facts-about-ireland-to-get-israeli-jewish-tourists-excited-about-visiting/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/5-positive-changes-Ive-observed-in-Israel-this-year.md b/posts/toi/5-positive-changes-Ive-observed-in-Israel-this-year.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5b834ed0b8253ea86197297209129238a4efe1dc --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/5-positive-changes-Ive-observed-in-Israel-this-year.md @@ -0,0 +1,60 @@ +# 5 positive changes I’ve observed in Israel this year + +Living in Israel can be a frustrating experience. For most people who live here, that probably doesn’t require elaboration. + +But just when you’re nearing the end of your tether and having thoughts of yerida, you notice that things are changing here — for the better. + +For some reason, I get usually encouraged by the small positive changes when I notice them – the type of things that most people brush off as minor developments or curiosities. + +I remember during my first year of aliyah watching in amazement as the Rav Kav customer service center transformed – almost miraculously, almost overnight—from a cesspool of bureaucracy to a network of gleaming customer service centers that wouldn’t look amiss in London or Paris. In my mind at least, it almost happened that fast. I think I almost cried. + +Although I’ve made no secret of my grievances with several aspects of life in Israel (especially the cost of living), I believe that Israel is advancing forward as a country at a steady pace, despite its young age. In parts, it’s this very frenetic pace of developments that can make Israel seem like such a perpetual balagan. The journey can be chaotic and stressful, but seeing some of the outcomes makes it seem much more bearable. + +These innovations might seem small, but they mean we’re on a forward trajectory. Things are getting better. Where gaps exist between the standard of living in Israel and the West, they are closing. + +Like many, I’ve spent the majority of the last year in relative social isolation. But these are the things I’ve noticed between forays into the outside world. + +Our Bank Cards Now Have PIN Codes + +One of the strange facets of life in Israel that has always freaked me out has been that – until very recently – bank cards here didn’t come with PIN codes. + +Although in practice, card management companies have great self-service features now – such that if you lose your card you can quickly freeze it – that meant that anybody who stole your card could begin racking up purchases just by picking a card off the street and forging a signature. + +2. Contactless Payments Are Here + +I remember marveling on one of my first trips back to Ireland at this fantastic new contactless payment technology that seemed to be everywhere. + +You just held your credit card up to an EMV reader and – boom! – you could pay for services (this innovation is particularly dangerous in the setting of a bar). I must have looked like something out of a historical novel as I admired it. + +Not only had contactless payments arrived to Ireland, as I found out on my flight home, but they existed throughout Europe too (I began to feel like a very backward foreigner from the Middle East). + +Their arrival in Israel – a home of technology, but mostly focused on the export market – has been a little more delayed. But I can confirm that this advance happened sometime over the past year while I, and much of society, were largely ensconced in our apartments. + +Banks have begun issuing cards with EMV chips and EMV point of sale (PoS) terminals are now ubiquitous. If your card doesn’t have a chip, it’s worth asking for a replacement that does. The initial usage limit was 200 NIS (roughly $60 at today’s rate) which is to be raised to 300 NIS by year end. + +3. Contactless ATMs Are Also Here + +Last news on the financial front. + +Many ATMs are sporting the contactless payment technology too. My recollection is a little spotty but I can recall seeing one last week in Jerusalem. + +4. (Almost) Everybody Wears Face Masks + +As a fairly early pandemic precaution “adopter” I can remember attracting stares back in February when I first donned a face mask. + +Face-mask-wearing isn’t 100% perfect. Compliance varies by city. But compared to how things were less than a year ago, the difference is night and day. + +5. The Home Delivery Market Has Exploded + +Drive through any main street in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv these days and you can’t miss the 10Bis and Wolt delivery drivers shepherding takeaway to hungry patrons. + +10Bis has been around for years and is particularly popular as a sort of employee perk (and enticement) among Israeli technology companies. Wolt is fast expanding and bringing its delivery service to new areas. + +Like Deliveroo—the food delivery service that operates throughout the UK, Ireland, and elsewhere—10Bis and Wolt make sure that their couriers are decked out in bright flashy gear sporting company colors and branding. They’re impossible to miss. And make the cities feel that bit more urban as a result. + +Of course, they’re also carrying something. The COVID restrictions have forced many restaurants to go online and virtually every time I log into 10Bis there’s a new delivery option. + +It’s the worst of times – to have a social life. + +And the best of times – to be stuck at home gorging on fast food and tipping your delivery driver with contactless. + \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/6-Great-Things-About-Living-In-Israel.md b/posts/toi/6-Great-Things-About-Living-In-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..dc1b4e97ecd0377c152424efac58377442f457da --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/6-Great-Things-About-Living-In-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,49 @@ +# 6 Great Things About Living In Israel + + If you’ve a news junkie or are just passively interested in the countries and geography of the Middle East, then Israel is probably best known to you as a land of geopolitical unrest. Or perhaps as the place where Tel Aviv is located and a lot of humus and falafel is eaten. + +For those who actually come to make a home here, however, Israel also offers a lot of positive — as well as some limitations. I’ve discussed some of the latter challenges before (did you know Israel is the eighth-most expensive country in the world with the second-highest real estate per square meter?). + +Nevertheless, regardless of whether you’re living in Israel because you think it’s your only true home, you’re a diplomat stationed here, or you happen to have been moved here for job reasons, there are also undoubtedly many positives about life in Israel. + +Here are some of them. + +It’s The (Only) Jewish Homeland + +For Jews, this reason tends to trump all the downsides. For non-Jews: if your Jewish friends are staying in Israel despite constantly grumbling about the cost of living, this might be the reason. + +Israel is the world’s only country with a Jewish majority. The only country in which Jews aren’t an ethnoreligious minority And the only country in which the national holiday calendar accommodates those of the Jewish faith. + +It’s the land where Judaism originated and to which a hefty percentage of world Jewry returned after the state’s establishment in 1948. + +Nowadays, more Jews live in Israel than in any country in the world, including the US (although, thanks to the long tail of the Jewish diaspora, the majority of Jews continue to live outside the country). + +It Has Fantastic (Cheap) Healthcare Now moving onto factors that apply regardless of your religious affiliation. Healthcare in Israel is (generally) of high quality and very affordable. Every citizen is required to be registered to one of four official kupot holim (health maintenance organizations). These provide access to family doctors and other specialists as well as subsidized medicines and diagnostic services. Israel also makes extensive use of electronic medical records (EMRs). Booking a doctor’s appointment in Israel is as easy as logging into your kupa’s website (or smartphone) app and selecting a convenient time. I can call up my latest blood tests just as easily. And to see a specialist I often only need to wait a few weeks. How cheap are we talking? My asthma inhaler costs me 28.66 NIS (at today’s rates: €7.65 / $8.92). A 90 day supply of omeprazole cost me 54 NIS (at today’s rates: €13.85 / $16.81. That’s just $5.60 a month! The Weather Is Great Compared to Western Europe’s often dreary skies (I come from Ireland — enough said!), Israel is drenched in sunshine almost year-round. Tel Aviv and Jerusalem both have an average of more than 3,300 hours of sunshine per year. Jerusalem has an average of 554mm of rainfall per year. Cork, Ireland, by comparison, has more than double that amount (1,228). Largely dry sunny weather translates to: Plenty of opportunities to eat and host outside + +Plenty of opportunities to go to the beach and sunbathe + +Lots of excellent freshly grown produce Everybody Is Very Direct Don’t get me wrong about this point: Israelis frequently drive me crazy. There’s (often) a glaring lack of basic manners and courtesy here. One sees this when attempting to purchase goods and services (right now, let’s just say that Israel probably won’t be in the reckoning for any customer service awards); when driving on the roads and contending with the maniacal tendencies of other drivers; and when holding open a door for a group of strangers only to be met with silence in place of a ‘thanks’. Exceptions apply to all the above, of course, but … dynamic that’s pronounced enough to be noticeable. Nevertheless, this unique culture also has its upside. Everybody in Israel is extraordinary direct. This is something that those working with Israelis can use to their advantage. A friend who works in branding recently explained that, in Israel, he would feel comfortable telling a client that a Powerpoint could be skipped and he could summarize his advice in a few sentences. An American client, by contrast, might insist on receiving a deliverable even if it weren’t actually useful to achieving the project outcome. Israel is heavy on startups where hierarchies tend to be flat and lines of communication direct. If you like straight-talking in-your-face cultures, then you’re probably going to enjoy interacting with Israelis. It’s Really Small Israel’s diminutive size is as much an advantage as it is a drawback. Just how small are we talking? Israel measures just 22,145 km². Ireland, by contrast, is 84,421 km² — 3 .8 times the surface area. If you want to measure Israel by comparison to your preferred point of reference, then check out TheTrueSize.com. The advantages of Israel being tiny: You can see the whole country in a few days + +Nowhere is really ever that far (you could drive the length of the country in one day) Despite Israel being tiny geographically (and topographically ) it’s an extraordinarily diverse place: drive ten minutes outside Jerusalem’s packed neighborhoods towards the Dead Sea and you’re surrounded by desert and camels. The Golan — remarkably sparsely inhabited compared to the rest of the country — contains lush green pastures that remind (in places and in seasons) of Northern Europe. Tel Aviv and the merkaz is the country’s bustling center. There’s a lot on show — in a very small space. Israel’s also a good regional base to do some travelling from. You can travel into Taba, Egypt by crossing a land border with Eilat. Jordan is accessible through several land crossings. Turkey, Greece, Italy, and Cyprus are all close by. The Open Skies Agreement means that Ben Gurion Airport is now on the map. Ryanair even flies to Israel now! The Food Is Excellent As a meeting and melting pot of many different Jewish diaspora cultures, Israel is home to a remarkable milieu of world cuisines. There’s of course plenty of hummus on offer. But I must confess that I think hummus is wildly overrated. + +Much more exciting than humus is Ethiopian food. Thanks to the influx of Jewry from this part of Africa one doesn’t have to travel that far in Israel to dig into some injera and misir wot. + +Other excellent delicacies that can be found in abundance in Israel: + +Falafel + +Shawarma + +Knaffe + +Persian food, French patisseries + +Turkish coffee (caveat: not so easy to find somewhere that knows how to prepare Turkish coffee properly and doesn’t just pour hot water on top of grounds; Israelis call this ‘botz’; I call this an abomination.) + +Israel Can Be A Great Place To Live + +Despite the sky-high cost of living, the country’s precarious geopolitics, and the now annual tradition of holding elections, Israel is, in many respects, a country that offers its citizens a high quality of life. + +There’s lots more to say. But the best thing to do is to come to see things for yourself + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/6-great-things-about-living-in-israel/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/6-great-things-about-living-in-israel/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/A-DIY-Sightseeing-Tour-Along-Israels-Borders.md b/posts/toi/A-DIY-Sightseeing-Tour-Along-Israels-Borders.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..30b43be701770c0643562cf13eb0602ca397119f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/A-DIY-Sightseeing-Tour-Along-Israels-Borders.md @@ -0,0 +1,119 @@ +# A DIY Sightseeing Tour Along Israel’s Borders + +Just before Israel’s second lockdown began last week, I had the opportunity to take a trip up north for some peace and quiet before being confined to a one kilometre radius for the next three weeks. + +Although it wasn’t the intended theme of the trip, while there I also got up to some ‘border spotting’ on the frontiers with Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. + +I’m never quite sure how widespread being interested is in borders is — if at all. In fact, the only evidence I have to suggest that some other humans are interested in the subject is the /r/borderporn subreddit which has more than 50,000 subscribers. + +My interest in borders probably dates back to visiting Nicosia, Cyprus as a child on vacation. Nicosia has an international border running right through it between the almost entirely unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and southern Cyprus. The fences, fortifications and border markings are images that still stick with me. These days — not so far from Cyprus — I can see some border lines and crossings on my own terms. + +Israel’s Four Land Borders + +Israel has land borders with four countries: Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Egypt. + +Of these, Israel is legally and technically at war with both Lebanon and Syria. There are peace treaties — albeit cold ones — in place with both Egypt and Jordan. + +Although in Israel’s early days the (then open) Jordanian border was a restive one, with cross-border fedayeen attacks from the Hashemite Kingdom into Israel, these days the most volatile borders are those on the north with Lebanon and the de facto border between Israel and the Gaza Strip (which was recently host to a protracted period of protests). + +Although UN Security Council Resolution 1701 called for a disarmament of Southern Lebanon and the absence of armed elements other than the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) to the south of the Litani River, Israel’s recent discovery and neutralization of a series of cross-border Hizbullah attack tunnels demonstrates what even the street cats in Israel knew. That Hizbullah is active in Southern Lebanon right under the noses of UNIFIL, the UN peacekeeping mission which is supposed to monitor the implementation of the various UN resolutions affecting the territory. + +The Northern Border: Lebanon / Blue Line + +Israel’s northern border with Lebanon is — de facto and unless another one supersedes it if a peace agreement is reached — the same thing as the UN Blue Line which was originally drawn for the purpose of determining whether Israel had withdrawn its troops from southern Lebanon in accordance with another UN resolution. + +Part of UNIFIL’s mandate these days involves marking the Blue Line with centimetric precision in coordination with both the IDF and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF). + +This job might seem noncontroversial but can, in fact, result in armed standoffs between the two sides as captured in this fascinating YouTube video. + +For those interested in the kind of work which marking the Blue Line entails, this video provides more interesting information about how UNIFIL does it. The Blue is marked out — literally — with blue cylinders. + +Because Israel and Lebanon are at war there is no civilian crossing accessible between the two territories. There is one crossing at Rosh HaNikra which leads to Naqoura on the other side, which is host to UNIFIL headquarters. This crossing is only used by UN personnel. Although on occasion Israel and Lebanon have exchanged POWs through it. + +In terms of physical appearances: civilians are not able to access the border by Rosh HaNikra. Its fencing, which straddles a hilltop, is not visible from the popular grotto tourist site below. Like in Taba, Egypt, a series of buoys are used to designate the border’s extension into both countries’ territorial waters. + +Tracing the Blue Line in Google Maps from Rosh HaNikra eastwards, one can find various Israeli border towns and nature reserves which directly abut the border — including the controversial Sheba Farms which can be driven through by taking Route 999 westwards towards Ghajar. + +Among the most conspicuous of these is Ghajar which — judging by Google Maps — appears to run over the Blue Line. + +Ghajar has its own fascinating history but unfortunately civilians are not generally allowed to enter without explicit permission from the army and an invitation from somebody in the town. In effect, the town itself is a closed military zone. The Jerusalem Post has an interesting write-up about the village, which houses Israel’s only Alawite community, here. The town’s mukhtars (village leaders) asked to be on the Israeli side of the border and so it has remained — although Israel has periodically come under pressure to pull out of the town altogether. + +Among the most impressive and best-known places to see the Lebanese border is Metulla — which is Israel’s northermost town. + +Geographically, Metulla protrudes as a finger into South Lebanon. It is surrounded on three sides by the rolling hills of Southern Lebanon and the border and Blue Line wraps around the town — sometimes at a distance of a kilometer and at other times at a distance of mere meters. + +Immediately to the West of the village is the Lebanese town of Kfarkela where one of the discovered Hizbullah attack tunnels was located submerging. + +These areas are more tense, from an operational standpoint, than they look. + +The IDF is on record as stating that that town and Aadaysit Marjaayoun — which directly abuts Misgav Am and is located immediately south of Kfarkela— are meeting points for Hizbullah special forces. + +The paramilitary group also boldly erects posters in territory facing the town in a crude form of psychological warfare. Large Palestinian flags, Hizbullah ones, and posters praising Hasan Nasrallah flutter conspicuously in areas where Hizullah is sure they can be seen from the Israeli site. As The Tower reported, one poster — facing Metullah — carried the message “we are coming” in Hebrew with a photo of Ayatollah Khomeini looking over the Dome of the Rock. + +The posters and flags were not erected next to Metullah by chance. + +Hizbullah has made explicit, on many occassions, its plans to launch a ground invasion of Northern Israel from the restive northern border with Israel. It has even used environmental NGOs as fronts to conduct close-range reconnaissance on Northern Israel from this area. + +Despite the fact that it is reasonable to assume that this part of the Lebanese border is under continual close observation from both sides to the conflict, the nature surrounding Metulla — where the border wraps and mere hundreds of meters from the hilltops Hizbullah flags flutter — is deceptively lush and peaceful. Despite the road signs warning of the danger of rocket attacks, the territory around the border with the Gaza Strip, where several Israeli kibbutsim are located, is similarly pastoral. + +The border fence runs right along the northern half of the town and intersects it at a roundabout — where it is literally on the side of the road. + +To the west, the fence runs along a Lebanese road running parallel to Kfarkela. To the east, the border — and the Blue Line markers — are within meters of the Nahal Ayun nature reserve with its breathtaking waterfall. The waterfall and nature reserve are popular hiking sites — although those visiting them are probably less interested in their relevance to the border than the author. + +Around Metulla, Lebanon is so close that individual cars, houses, and even occasionally people can be clearly seen with the naked eye — as well as the aforementioned Hizbullah flags and posters. It’s a strange place. Beautiful. Deceptively quiet. And potentially explosive. + +Syria: DMZ / Purple Line + +Relative to the Lebanese border, and judging by media reports, Israel’s border with the Syrian DMZ has been quieter — although Israeli territory and civilians have occasionally been caught in errant crossfire between rebels and pro-government forces battling for control of the Syrian territory just across the fence past the DMZ. + +Relative to Lebanon, there are less Israeli towns and sites from which to see the Syrian DMZ (Alpha Line) border up close. Perhaps the best site is in the Druze village of Majdal Shams. The road which skirts the town’s eastern edge runs right next to the border fence where the border fence is close enough to touch (note: don’t do this! — even if the fence is electrified it’s generally a good idea not to arouse unnecessary suspicions!) . If you’re curious, search for directions to Givat Htisaacott and you’ll soon see Israel’s characteristic smart fence snaking its way up the hilly territory that lies on Israel’s side of its DMZ with Syria. + +It’s worth explaining for a moment what a typical border in Israel actually looks like — because it differs a little from the image that the media creates. + +Except in places where they are fortified with concrete walls and additional fortifications (for a reason) Israel’s borders typically consist of a steel fence, a patrol road, sand to spot infiltration attempts (Bedouin soldiers, in particular, are expert at deciphering these), and another fence. + +Unless you know it’s there — and minus a few sensors jutting out of it — it doesn’t look vastly different from the perimeter fence of an airport or a line of wire a farmer might use to demarcate the boundaries of his land. + +Typically, a sliver of land before the border itself is fenced off and the land behind it (between it and the actual border) is declared a closed military zone (CMZ; Hebrew: שטח צבאי סגור). + +Civilians can access up to the fence marking the start of the military zone — although many mistake that fence for the border itself, which it almost always isn’t. + +The military zone abutting the border varies in its width. In less security-conscious times, some of Israel’s borders were open — or only marked by a single “offline” fence or a coil of barbed wire. Sometimes, the fence and the actual border are a few meters part. In other places, Israel has allowed quite a wide “no man’s land” which is effectively only open to the army. However the border is physically demarcated, it is generally understood that most true surveillance takes place through unseen electronic sensing means and — with friendly nations — through cooperation and the exchanging of human intelligence (HUMINT). + +There is only one crossing between Israel and the DMZ with Syria at Quneitra. It is mostly used by clergy, UN personnel, and for special purposes by the Druze population of northern Israel — such as selling apples or sending brides to be married to Syrian Druze. The last of these uses was the subject of The Syrian Bride which should be required viewing for every Israeli border afficionado. + +Jordan + +Unlike the Syrian and Lebanese borders, Israel’s border with Jordan is technically one between two nations at peace. + +Therefore, unlike the Lebanese and Syrian borders there are three crossings open to civilians: near Beit Shean, at Allenby Bridge, and at Aqaba — the Jordanian city directly opposite Eilat. + +Israel’s border with Jordan follows three main sections. + +In the north, it follows the course of the Jordan River. With the exception of pilgrimage sites, the fence on the Israeli side is generally set some meters before (West of) the river — sometimes, as mentioned, at a surprisingly wide berth. + +Then, the border follows through the center of the Dead Sea. The presence of the border — running through the center of the Dead Sea — is not typically noted or signed at some of the popular Dead Sea tourist beaches (perhaps intentionally as the signs are something of an eyesore). This is actually anomalous. Technically, to be consistent, Israel should erect “Stop border in front of you!” signs at Kalia Beach where tourists enter the sea. Because were it not for buoys, the presence of lifeguards, and observation, there is nothing stopping anybody from swimming into Jordan. + +Finally, it becomes a long land border — stretching all the way from the southeastern tip of the Dead Sea through to Eilat where the border fence separates Eilat from the Jordanian city of Aqaba which is immediately to its East. + +There are a few sites on the Israeli side where one can get right up to the border (on the river) and see into Jordan — to the point of being able to see houses, people, and cars. + +The ones I recommend visiting are: Gesher Adam (Damia Bridge) — which served as a goods transit point between Israel and Jordan up until the Second Intifada — and Qasr El Yahud. + +The latter is a pilgrimage site by day and a closed military zone by night. Israel demarcates its border in the river with a series of buoys in places where tourists visit and not at all for the most part. At Qasr El Yahud, a Jordanian religious site is located ten meters across the river flanked by a Jordanian flag. In Israel, it’s harder to get much closer to neighboring countries than this (without visiting them!) + +Egypt + +Israel’s long land border with Egypt meanders through the Negev Desert stretching all the way from Eilat to the Gaza Strip where, at Rafah, the border with Gaza is manned by Egypt. + +This being arid desert country, there aren’t many Israeli communities or sights that abut the border so relative to the borders with Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria there’s less to see. + +There is only one major crossing with Egypt. The Nitzana Border Crossing is used only for commercial trade between the two countries although on occasion people move through it. The border for tourists to cross into Sinai, and then the rest of Egypt, is located at Taba which is an Egyptian seaport directly south of Eilat. + +Crossing the border involves passing through an Israeli terminal and then walking through a long tunnel that involves entering a territory that feels like a No Man’s Land but which is technically in Egypt. Egyptian soldiers sit immediately beyond a gate which bears a sign warning travelers that they are about to leave Israel. + +After a short walk, one arrives at the Egyptian border control facility. An Egyptian sports center abuts the maritime part of the border as it stretches into the sea. I have no idea how access is controlled. Over land, the border is a commanding steel fence meandering between the mountains of the desert and can be seen from the hotel resorts of Taba itself. + +More Photos From The Border + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/a-diy-sightseeing-tour-along-israels-borders/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/a-diy-sightseeing-tour-along-israels-borders/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/A-Real-Persons-Guide-To-Making-Aliyah.md b/posts/toi/A-Real-Persons-Guide-To-Making-Aliyah.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b0fe4f71c7f7c853115ca76d4da4290c03e2d7ae --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/A-Real-Persons-Guide-To-Making-Aliyah.md @@ -0,0 +1,87 @@ +# A Real Person’s Guide To Making Aliyah + +Congratulations! + +If you’ve made it to this URL, you must be thinking about making aliyah. Otherwise known as moving to Israel. + +In doing so, you’ll be playing a small role in the most monumental national project in more than two thousand years of Jewish history. + +You’ll also be exercising a right that Israel has enshrined in one of its most Basic Laws. + +And — lest you need humbling, assuming as well that you’re amenable to religious inspiration — taking advantage of an opportunity that many eminent rabbis throughout history, not to mention Moses, would have given anything to be able to achieve. You’ll just need a PCR test, an apostille stamp, and whatever else the Jewish Agency has deemed essential.. + +You should also know this. + +If aliyah is your decision, or something you’ve expressed interest in, then from this point onwards you’ll also be subjecting yourself to an avalanche of propagandist information about Israel. + +It may be laudably well-intended — those writing it, after all, may seem themselves as carrying out a sacred religious mission in bringing more of their coreligionists back home — but you’d do well to read it while bearing in mind that it’s not written for neutral objectives. It’s there to sell you on moving to Israel. Like all forms of sales literature, it’s biased. + +Equally, you may soon discover that there are plenty of disaffected olim who would only love to tear your dream asunder and who will waste not a second in forewarning you about the bumpy ride that you likely have in store, perhaps to share some of their own tales of woe. + +Over the years, I’ve written plenty about the pros and cons, as I see them, of living in Israel. And yet, I’d hate to have deterred anybody from giving it a shot, at least. It’s your life. I’m biased heavily, by the way, towards the idea of at least trying. (I just don’t see the value in keeping mute about some of the problems here; others do). + +Aliyah is a uniquely personal decision. And the most useful advice you receive about where to live in Israel (etc etc) may actually come from those who don’t feel like they have a stake in your move. + +The water coolers of the Israel-based English-speaking community — Facebook groups and the like — may therefore prove more useful sources of information than state-sponsored publications brimming full of only beaming faces waving Israeli flags. + +With all that introduction out of the way, here’s what I have titled The Real Person’s Guide To Making Aliyah. + +This will be short (I’m hoping to cap this post at 1,000 words). It is not written with the intent of making Israel look good. And finally, it’s merely a reflection on what I’ve learned during my own aliyah journey which is only seven years old. + +It’s unapologetically un-politically correct. It’s un-Jewishly correct, if such a thing can be said. And finally, it’s decision-ambivalent. Come or go. I just happen to think that at least trying is a good idea. + +Become a coding prodigy from birth if possible + +There are three things that can set you up for success in Israel. + +One of them — inheriting a large trust fund or being born the progeny of shipping magnates or anything else that might insure you an illustrious financial future — isn’t really under your control. + +The other — becoming a coding prodigy — isn’t really under your control either. Because not everybody has a head for Java and Linux commands and other highly employable skillsets. + +The last one — learning Hebrew — mostly is. At least to the extent that most people can pick up the language or enough rudiments to get by. Naturally, the more you know, the better.ome a coding prodigy from birth if possible + +Jewish mothers the Diaspora over cling to outmoded and frankly ridiculous beliefs about what respectable “Jewish” professions for their sons and daughters should look like. Upon arrival in Israel, you will quickly see that there is no such thing. + +In a Jewish country of almost ten million citizens, there are Jewish bus drivers, car attendants, and yoga teachers. + +Nevertheless, Tel Aviv was recently crowned (shamed?) as the most expensive country on the planet. + +Israel, in general, is massively overpriced. I paid almost $15 for a cheese sandwich at a café yesterday. Living here without earning a good salary becomes, for too many, a thankless and grueling struggle. + +You can move to Israel as a poet without speaking a word of Hebrew. Nothing and nobody will stop you assuming you qualify for an aliyah visa under the Law of Return. + +But if you come as an algorithm engineer while speaking at least the basics of the language, you’ll find yourself at a massive advantage. + +Move to Israel as early as possible + +Growing up in the minuscule Jewish community of Cork, Ireland (at times my family constituted as much as 25% of the Jewish community!), I had virtually no connections to Israel. + +During my seven years of living here, I have noticed that many American Jews who move here do have that connection. It can be fostered via periodic vacations in Israel. By studying here for a year. By attending summer camp in Israel. + +These kinds of trips, I believe, offer an enormous advantage for future prospective olim. + +For one, they acclimatize you to what life is actually life in Israel so when you discover that your Birthright experience and day to day life here don’t neatly accord, it doesn’t come as an unpleasant surprise. + +You’ll get an early memo about the cost of living. You won’t be shocked —as I was — to discover that people often don’t thank you for holding the door open. Etc, etc. + +Israel’s culture — very macho, very Mediterranean — is an acquired taste. Many never adapt to it. But if you can start that process earlier, I reckon you’re setting yourself up for another advantage. + +Don’t over-prepare + +I only have two regrets about my aliyah so far: + +I failed to adequately research my career prospects in Israel. Had I done so, I would probably have abandoned the idea of working in journalism or even marketing. Thankfully, I’ve been able to make a living here. But it’s been the harder path, full of frustrating job experiences and pivots into freelancing, etc. Friends who have an affinity for sales work or development have encountered a better and more stable job market with higher salaries to boot. I didn’t come when I was 19, when I finished high school. I made aliyah instead at the withered old age of 25 — almost 26 — and found myself unwanted by the military apparatus, a bumbling curiosity from Ireland replete with asthma and bad eyesight. When I looked into making aliyah at 19, I couldn’t bring myself to accept leaving my family to go live in a different continent. Serving in the army is another great moment of integration for many olim and I would advise pursuing it if financially possible (again I return to shekels and agorot; when the idealistic discussion of service comes up, few pause to ask whether olim can afford to serve the country militarily.) + +Other than that, I have zero regrets. Or at least no significant ones. + +While I would probably not have chosen to live in Jerusalem, I blindly followed the advice of my shaliach and went to ulpan here. Whereupon, I met my now wife. For the most part, I enjoy living in the city, even if the Friday early Shabbat closures sometimes drive me crazy. + +I didn’t partake in a lengthy pilot trip as is routinely advised. + +Having essentially no Jewish friends growing up, I had nobody to have long Skype calls with to ask whether Ulpan B was as good as its website made out. + +Instead, I took a flight from Cork to Tel Aviv via London Heathrow with the maximum baggage allowance of three suitcases. I bought a six pack of beer to assist with any “oh crap, what have I done with my life” moments that might manifest in the hotel after arrival (they actually didn’t, although the beer was still enjoyed). And half a kilogram of coffee to get to work the next morning. Which was also enjoyed. + +For the most part, it’s worked out. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/a-real-persons-guide-to-making-aliyah/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/a-real-persons-guide-to-making-aliyah/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/A-look-inside-Israels-kosher-goat-meat-revolution.md b/posts/toi/A-look-inside-Israels-kosher-goat-meat-revolution.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0ae3dad9e0dc3f3a0c0a717bdd0787b108eb6dd3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/A-look-inside-Israels-kosher-goat-meat-revolution.md @@ -0,0 +1,155 @@ +# A look inside Israel’s kosher goat meat revolution + +This Rosh Hashana 5781, dinner tables around Israel and the Jewish world were being adorned with the usual staples. + +Apples. Honey. The simanim. And — for some — kosher goat meat. + +When people think about kosher meat, the usual staples usually come to mind: chicken, beef, and lamb for the most part. + +Most longterm keepers of kashrut from populous Jewish communities might also have tasted a few meats they thought somewhat exotic in their time. Meats such as duck, goose, and even buffalo. + +Yet there’s one meat which seems to curiously evade most kosher eaters’ attention. Which is a great pity because — arguably more than any meat — it is the one with the longest history in the Jewish tradition. + +And that is: goat meat. + +The Meat of the Ancient Israelites + +Ever wonder what the figures of the Tanakh would have eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and how such a diet would differ from the diet prevalent in Modern Israel (a mish-mash of the cuisines of various cultures with decidedly Middle Eastern influences)? + +If you have then there’s a plethora of scholarly research to wet your curiosity and while there’s some overlap between the two (chickpeas were popular back then too!) there are also marked differences — which is almost inevitable considering the long passage of time between the beginning of the Jewish Diaspora and the foundation of the modern State of Israel. + +Wikipedia, for one, has an interesting page on the diet of the Ancient Israelites — which is a good starting point for anybody interested in learning more. + +The subject is of interest to archaeologists too who are often able to piece together the approximate diet of the ancient denizens of these parts by finding their cookware and storage vessels on excavation sites. + +And, of course, there are books. + +Nathan McDonald’s “What Did the Ancient Israelites Eat?: Diet in Biblical Times?” does pretty much what it says on the tin — in exhaustive detail. The more recent Household Food Storage in Ancient Israel and Judah merits mention too. + +By all accounts, the most distinctive feature of the diet of the Ancient Israelites, by reference to today’s Western diets, was that it was largely a vegetarian one — dairy and legumes (mostly chickpeas, lentils, fava beans, and bitter vetch) made up the main dietary proteins while bread was a daily staple (more on that later). + +Meat, when it was eaten, tended to be reserved for special occasions like weddings and major festivals. + +Kosher birds were also eaten, including those which are extremely hard to pin down today (ever seen pigeon at your friendly kosher butcher?). + +The kosher meats which are the most commonplace today ranked comparatively down the food chain or were not eaten at all. + +Spices we take for granted on our supermarket shelves — turmeric, for instance — were exorbitantly expensive import items and most dishes were modestly flavored with things like garlic, cumin, and leeks. + +Turkey shawarma hodi? Not so much. + +And forget chopping up some nice Israeli tomatoes to serve it with. Tomatoes are a New World nightshade and weren’t even known to European explorers until the 16th century or so. + +Goat Was The Leading Meat + +But what about this meat eaten on special occasions, you might be wondering? + +You guessed it! Goat likely came in first place — with sheep meat relegated to a slightly distant second (veal would have also been eaten but only, in all likelihood, by the elite). + +There are many other fascinating tidbits one can pick up by studying what archaeologists have discovered about the diet of the people of the Bible. + +For one, barley — rather than wheat — was the most important grain during the Biblical period and up to approximately the period of the First and Second Temple. + +Unqualified, the לחם (lehem; bread) referred to in the Bible therefore likely refers to barley bread. + +Barley flour is comparatively hard to find these days — including in Israel — and yields much flatter loaves than wheat due to its lower gluten content. + +Fenugreek — which is rarely seen in Israel in its dried leaf form (the ingredient known to Indian food aficionados as kasoori methi and Persian food fans as shanbalileh)— was also consumed as was a legume called bitter vetch. If you’re sufficiently motivated, you can easily grow your own fenugreek and bake your own 100% barley flour bread. + +All these Biblical asides are just really to say that slices of goat meat served on a bed of scorched ripe wheat (what we today know as freekeh is also of ancient origin!) is actually much more authentically and historically Jewish than the turkey served on wheat bread that you might find at your local shawarma shop — bathed, as it typically is, in a fragrant rich blend of exotic spices. + +Remember that the next time somebody tells you that goat meat “isn’t something Jews eat.” + +Sourcing Goat Meat + +As goat’s relatively lowly standing in the modern kosher-keeping world bears out, at some point in history it appears as if the meat fell out of favor with the Jews — such that the mere mention of eating kosher goat meat these days is often enough to cause looks of astonished bewilderment. “You had goat for yom tov?!” I was recently asked. + +It’s hard to piece together the ‘why’. But by several measures it is decidedly odd that kosher goat should be thought of as anything but normal. + +The Ancient Israelites were, in large part, a nation of goat herders — and, as the Tanakh bears out, shepherding was the prototypical Jewish occupation in the ancient world. + +The Ancient Israelites drunk goat’s milk, slept in tents made from goat hair, and — on rare occasion — ate from their animals’ meat. It was, you could say, a goat-centric life. Perhaps their flocks never made it to the Diaspora with them after the Exile? + +The answer as to why and when goat slipped off the kosher food agenda is probably unknowable — and I’m certainly not the best-placed person to attempt the guesswork. + +But whatever the explanation, the perpetuation of the modern Jewish alienation from goat is certainly strange given that the meat remains a very popular meat in the Muslim world. Goat meat is also widely enjoyed by both our Palestinian neighbors and those in neighboring countries. It is a staple in hallal butchers. And even though a claim that goat meat is the most popular red meat in the world was debunked, it also enjoys widespread popularity beyond our region on an international scale. So why not among Jews? + +The Israel Kosher Goat Meat Buying Network (IKGMBN) + +It was against this backdrop of wishing to cook goat for its historic significance but struggling to find it that, one rainy day last winter before Shabbat, I started a frivolously intended Facebook group entitled Israel Kosher Goat Meat Buying Network (IKGMBN) + +The group is its infancy with 45 members, although several leading luminaries from the Israel kosher goat world have left thoughtful recipes and videos to share their enthusiasm for kosher goat meat among the kindred spirits which it contains. + +I started the group in a fit of frenzied excitement after a local (kosher) butcher told me that he would be able to procure us a goat if we could find a slaughterer to schecht the animal. This is the kind of thing that sounds a lot normal depending on what mood you’re in. + +We were two steps away from kosher goat meat — or so it seemed! And if enough people would sign up for the buying consortium I hoped the group would facilitate, I wouldn’t have to worry about fitting an entire animal in an Israel-sized top-loading freezer compartment. At the least, I thought a couple of friends might get a laugh out of the group’s preposterous title and acronym. + +Sadly, the proposition was quickly torn asunder by members of the potential buying consortium who pointed out that arranging private shechting while remaining compliant with the Ministry of Health’s veterinary standards would be nigh on impossible. The search for a reliable supplier went on. But a community, at last, had been assembled. + +The Kosher Goat Underworld + +Although the initial burst of excitement was to be short-lived, the nascent goat-eating group confirmed my suspicion that I was not alone in wishing to find a source of kosher goat meat. + +What I discovered was akin to a sort of kosher meat buying underworld that it appeared had been in existence for some time (by ‘underworld’ I do not mean to suggest that the activity being organized is in any way illegal; simply that it is a niche interest organized by word of mouth). + +I soon learned that a patchwork of shohets (ritual slaughters) worked with farmers — mostly in the north of the country — in order to procure goats for kosher slaughter. + +These were then either sold directly online or through buying consortia to exotic meat fanatics dotted through the country — from Metullah to Eilat. + +The market which these groups sold into was as loosely organized as the supply side of it was — which consisted of a network of entrepreneurs, specialty meat purveyors, and people with mobile refrigeration to bring the meat to enthusiast buyers around the country. There were the goat-eating die-hards who had amassed dozens of recipes and would eat it virtually every month, the curious (like me), as well as those who were also aware of goat’s Biblical origins and eager to try it for that reason. + +Although Israel’s main goat meat suppliers now sport flashy e-commerce websites, a lot of goat-related discussion, it seemed, was still taking place over WhatsApp and social media. + +The result is that the market, as it exists today, is a charming mixture of the intimacy of word-of-mouth and the convenience of being able to place orders online through an automated system. + +A goat-supplying contact might drop you a WhatsApp message to let you know that goat has been procured and is in stock. Pay online by credit card and a few days’ later it’s lying in your refrigerator waiting to be cooked up for Shabbat. + +These days,the ranks of those interested in kosher goat meat in Israel appears to be swelling. Although in the broad scheme of things it remains comparably small. Those interested are disproportionately passionate about reviving the ancient Jewish custom of consuming goat on special occasions — or whenever else meat is eaten. + +More than anybody, perhaps, Artzenu Meats — a niche provider based in Tsfat — has helped both popularize goat meat in Israel and made obtaining it more accessible. Right now, it is, as far as I know, the most reliable source of kosher goat meat in the country. + +Despite that, their availability of goat meat is periodic and updates as to availability are conveyed both through the company’s Facebook page and (sometimes) through the aforementioned niche collective of English-speaking, kosher-keeping goat meat enthusiasts (Israel Kosher Goat Meat Buying Network). + +Through its online website, the company sells a variety of cuts of goat meat ranging from ribs to shoulder to neck and chops. + +Prices — in the author’s estimation, at least — are high — and certainly a multiple of what breasts of chicken cost at a local Shufersal. + +This is potentially a product of the limited economies of scale which this market currently enjoys. But one could also see the higher cost of the meat Arzenu sells as more in tune with the ancient Israelite way of reserving meat consumption for festivals and special occasions. Eating meat less frequently lowers demand. Raising meat more humanely raises costs. The ultimate product costs more. + +In the midst of all the questions that kosher goat meat’s disappearance and revival on the culinary scene raises, one thing is clear. + +As more kosher-keeping goat eaters clamor for their meat of choice it can be expected that more competition will be introduced to the market and prices will fall. And who I am to hide the fact that spreading the message that goat is a Jewish meat was part of the motivation for writing this post? + +If you took nothing else from this strange Times of Israel blog post let it be that kosher goat meat can be procured. + +Cooked — or thrown on the grill — I can confirm that it is an exquisitely tasty meat that has a slight but not overpowering hint of gaminess. If you enjoy lamb, or mutton, then goat will likely be right up your street. + +Most recipes for lamb can be adapted and — for that extra Biblical fidelity — it can be served with a side of freekeh or unhulled barley. + +Goat not only can be kosher it is — in a sense — the original kosher meat. + +Jews have been eating kosher goat meat pretty much since there have been Jews in the world. + +Right now, in Israel, kosher goat meat is not commonplace. + +But there are those who eat it. + +Most importantly, it is available. And it is rather tasty. + +If you’re interested in helping revive goat-eating among kosher-keeping Jews, then feel free to spread the word and support those selling it. + +B’teavon. + +Further Reading + +Where To Buy Kosher Goat Meat in Israel + +Artzenu Meats* + +Facebook Communities + +Israel Kosher Goat Meat Buying Network (IKGMBN) + +Other than being a customer, I have no commercial affiliation with Artzenu Meats. The information contained in this blog post represents my opinions only. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/a-look-inside-israels-kosher-goat-meat-revolution/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/a-look-inside-israels-kosher-goat-meat-revolution/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Corona-Diaries-1-Socially-Isolating-in-Jerusalem.md b/posts/toi/Corona-Diaries-1-Socially-Isolating-in-Jerusalem.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b2786496be0a33713d5a6ca193da2506c659970e --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Corona-Diaries-1-Socially-Isolating-in-Jerusalem.md @@ -0,0 +1,281 @@ +# Corona Diaries 1: Socially Isolating in Jerusalem + +How Did We Even Get To This Point? + +I’m calling today “day 3”. (Although, in truth, this is the first day that I’ve been completely apartment-bound.) + +When I think back about this eerie new world we’ve all been unwittingly thrust into, it’s hard to even grasp at the suddenness with which life has so drastically and unrecognizably changed for all of us. + +Into a reality that, just a month ago, would seem not only unimaginable but also preposterous. (Mirroring guidance issued by Saudi Arabia, Israel’s government announced today that people were not to leave home “unless absolutely necessary”; the government intends using technology intended for tracking terrorists to monitors confirmed infected citizens’ whereabouts). + +The first time I heard about “the virus” was about a month ago when I was talking, via WhatsApp, with an Irish friend based in Hong Kong. + +He mentioned something about being stuck at home eating noodles. + +And I had a laugh conjuring up the mental image — and thinking how unfortunate it was that there was another crisis in Hong Kong just after the civil unrest there seemed to have finally died down. And then I went about my Friday as normal, wholly unaware that it would be the last totally normal Friday I have had since. + +The novel coronavirus’s encroachment into my life since has been but gradual constant — like a slow-moving tsunami spreading from the East drawing slightly closer every day. + +Now, the wave feels like it’s about to crest. + +The Wuhan Meat Market + +After learning that the virus had both a name and a family (is that humanizing it?) I watched distressing footage of the Wuhan Meat Market — and understood that SARS-CoV-2 was a zoonosis, like SARS-CoV-1 (better known simply as ‘SARS’), which had probably leap-frogged from bats to humans, probably through one or several intermediate species, although we’re not quite sure which yet. + +And that was when I first remember feeling scared. + +Looking at the footage from Wuhan and learning — as Vox nicely summarized — why deadly viral pandemics seem to consistently emerge from China, I couldn’t escape the feeling that the Almighty was exacting divine retribution for humanity sinking to the depraved depth of layering dead pangolins upon dead bats upon live snakes and offering them all up for human consumption. + +Belief systems and cultures of course differ quite starkly in what animals they consider acceptable for human consumption. But I found it hard to escape the belief that history is repeating itself (it is!); or that there is some universal set of morals underpinning the world, such as not eating live animals, that had been violated — and that some monstrous punishment is being meted out to the world in retribution. + +And to be transparent — I felt, in that moment, a sense of seething anger towards China for allowing the selling of wildlife meat in wet markets to persist. + +Previous pandemics, including SARS, have shown these to be an unsafe breeding ground for the transmission of deadly zoonoses. China, and the world, had time to learn this lesson and institute reforms. Instead, during the crucial first 30 days, its regime expended effort on trying to frantically silence whistleblowers and suppress the spread of information that another deadly virus has escaped the bottle. And China’s problem became the world’s one in very short shrift. Now, with mounting infections and deaths in countries as far removed as Brazil and Japan, it’s clearly far too late to be talking about containment — an our only hope is that next time will be different. + +(As the above probably makes clear, I am religious, although I tend to keep that fact private; note two: the exact chain of transmission is still undetermined, although both bat and pangolins share more than 90% of the novel coronavirus’s genetic material and the pandemic’s origin was almost certainly the Wuhan Market). + +**** + +Thankfully, in those first moments of blind panic (“humanity is threatened by another BAT disease!?”) I thankfully happened upon Dr. John Campbell’s excellent YouTube channel which I have been watching every day since. + +And, after watching his videos, that raw fear was replaced firstly by a sense of academic concern at what was then, as now, a very rapidly unfolding and complicated public health situation. + +Because as we all now know by now (if not, we should!) the novel coronavirus is nothing like the seasonal influenza. + +It is both many times more deadly and contagious and — at this moment in time — we have neither a vaccine nor treatment to stop its spread or treat its symptoms. + +But digging a little bit deeper, the picture began to look even more worrisome (this was probably when I should have stopped Googling!). + +20% of those that catch the disease go on to develop a more severe disease course and require hospitalization — a percentage so high that it is virtually guaranteed to overwhelm the capacity of health care services and outstrip the supply of artificial ventilators. Unless we can all do everything to #flattenthecurve, that is. + +The frightening statistics don’t end there. + +5% of patients overall need mechanical respiration and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). And while both are lifesaving medical interventions, the former is associated with pulmonary fibrosis. + +There is also some evidence that the virus may be neuroinvasive, shutting down patients’ autonomic reflex to breathe as part of its respiration-disabling double-whammy. And like SARS, patients who develop a severe disease course but recover appear to be left with pulmonary fibrosis as a result – although the samples size was small and it’s clearly too early to gauge the long-term results. And finally, given the virus’ similarity to SARS, the potential for psychiatric sequelae and fatigue syndromes cannot be discounted. + +To top it all off, just after reading that the virus appeared relatively benign to the young and middle-aged, I discovered that comorbidities including my own (I have asthma) muddied that picture. + +If that’s not scary, then I don’t know what is. + +Nobody, including me, is safe from this invisible monster jumping borders and communities on what seemed like an hourly basis. + +And so it was time to find out what I could do to stack the odds as far as possible in my favor. + +Stage One: Gathering Good Information From Wherever It Can Be Found + +When faced with crisis, my primal instinct is to gather information. + +I’m a nerd, a digital native, and Google to me feels like a sort of wide omniscient elder who has been answering life’s most intractable questions for me since before my bar mitzvah. + +With this deadly virus spreading by the day, it felt like a race against time to arm myself with all the knowledge I could about what I could do do from a prevention standpoint. + +So I downed a cup-full or two of my experimental coffee-water-solution and got to what felt like work. + +The headline information was clear: This virus may infect if not all of us then the majority of us some time over the next two years. + +I toyed very briefly with the idea of going into a sort of permanent quarantine — avoiding society until such time as a vaccine or cure was developed. And then realized that that would essentially be impossible. (As thing stands, the government is in the process of making that choice for us.) + +I began checking out Reddit in depth for the first time in months, trying to pick out legitimate information from conspiracy theories and misinformation on the various subreddits covering the spread of the new human disease caused by the novel coronavirus: COVID-19. + +When even governments are arguing basic facts about the virus that’s easier said than done. + +One evening, as I sat trying to figure out which hand sanitizer to add to my shopping list for the next day’s errand (this was shortly before pharmacies ran out) I turned to Google for an answer and got this in return: + +That screenshot is completely unredacted save for the black border which I have added for clarity. + +Seeing USA Today and CNN.com in stark disagreement at the top of a Google search was almost as terrifying as learning that another deadly bat virus was hopping ruthlessly between continents and threatening entire age demographics with obliteration. + +My all-knowing oracle was confused. + +And it seemed like nobody — from governments to health ministries — knew quite what to advise. And that made things all the more scary. + +After spending a few days of not doing much besides reading the news, bringing my hitherto neglected Twitter account back to life, and trying to make sense of whatever information I could glean from Google, Facebook, Reddit, PubMed, and a million and one other websites, I felt confident that I had learned everything I needed to know about the virus in order to prepare myself. + +Do face masks work? Nobody really knows, but get a good one anyway and know what certification to look for if you’re buying one. (And make sure there are enough for healthcare workers!) + +Can the virus live on surfaces? Yes, but it’s susceptible to bleach, so start spraying surfaces every other day. + +And, most pressingly, Is takeout safe? There’s no evidence the virus can survive in food. So it’s probably safe to engage in some calorie-therapy and stuff your face with delivery pizza (just don’t forget to remove the box!) + +After three highly-caffeinated days of frenetic Googling, I was beginning to feel like I had a pretty good handle on things. And as the first reports of asthmatics faring well with the virus thankfully began coming in, I began to feel a bit more reassured that all wasn’t necessarily doom and gloom. There was a feint glimmer of hope — and that was enough to save me from spiraling into a frenzy of worry. + +During those first frantic days (while work essentially fell by the wayside) I made what I suspected might be my last hurried forays for a while into the outside world: stocking up on any remaining essentials, ensuring that I had a nebulizer and reliever asthma inhalers on hand, and buying a few extra bottles of wine to take the “bite” off staying indoors for weeks on end (no, I am not trying to advocate using alcohol to escape reality; but at a time when it feels like the world is in collective meltdown, a glass of wine, or two, can be mildly therapeutic; okay, so maybe I am — but just a little!) + +But as I took my last trips to supermarkets and pharmacies, I grew increasingly concerned. + +Everywhere I went, I noticed that people were doing literally everything they were not supposed to be doing. + +Hugging. Kissing. Shaking hands. Chatting and gesticulating frantically in closely-knit groups. (I worry that the virus’s rapid spread throughout Italy has been due, at least in small part, to the rather up-close-and-personal Mediterranean culture that Israel largely shares.) + +My brief forays out were, oddly enough, turning out to be more stressful than my days spent at home. + +Buying my hand sanitizer, I shuffled awkwardly to the side of the checkout counter, trying to keep two meters from the clerk — only to have another shopper brush right behind me a second later. Keeping to the government guidelines was not only hard; it was downright impossible. + +Taking one last wistful look at my local high street, I resigned myself to staying at home for the immediate future. + +The very first time I really felt as if my liberty had been curtailed was Thursday night, which is the start of the weekend in Israel. + +On the work front, it had been an unusually grueling week and there was no end in sight. Usually, I hang up my writing shoes for a few hours and pick things up again on Friday morning, putting in a last few hours before the start of Shabbat (the Jewish Sabbath). But this Thursday night was going to be different. + +The attitudes of my family in Ireland, and my wife — along with those of the world, it seemed — were changing by the day. + +Exchanging views and news on the virus with friends on WhatsApp, I noticed that I was suddenly no longer the crazy guy reading from other crazies on Reddit and frantically trying to save myself from impending doom. + +When I floated the idea that getting out of our comfortable-but-not-opulent Jerusalem apartment for a few hours might do us a bit of good, I was met with an uncertain and decidedly cautious stare in return. + +I chugged a cup of coffee and spurted out a few more hours of work, falling asleep, exhausted, in the early hours of the morning. (Note: if you work from home and are social-isolating, then you’ll really learn the value of pacing yourself!) + +And I cried just a little inside. + +An Unfestive Purim + +Until there was official guidance for asthmatics I was choosing to play it safe and socially isolate — not leaving the apartment save for essential purchases. (Interestingly, the official guidance is now for vulnerable population groups to do just that.) + +But after about a week of voluntary social isolation I finally cracked. + +The occasion was Shushan Purim, the happiest of Jewish holidays in which — I exaggerate not — Jews are injured to drink alcohol to the point at which they cannot distinguish between Haman (an evil tyrant who plotted unsuccessfully to annihilate the Jews) and Mordechai, one of the heroes of the Book of Esther. + +Along with, I’m pretty sure, the majority of Jewish Jerusalem, I begin looking forward to Purim about three months in advance. + +The great joy aside, however, events on the ground were already beginning to shift rapidly — part of the chaotic new world order that we are all grappling to come to grips with. + +The Jerusalem Municipality, siding with the Government which had just announced its first official limits on crowds, had chosen to ban the traditional boisterous party in the Mahane Yehuda Market and that on the nearby Nissim Bahar Street in the city’s English-speaking-heavy Nahlaot neighborhood. + +But then this photo (which has now gone locally viral) was posted to a popular English-speaking Facebook group and began doing the rounds. + +It showed hundreds of patrons squished into the market’s small lanes doing the exact opposite of social containment. + +Seeing that photo (which is not my own — so rather than reproduce it I’m instead linking to it here) I was on the verge of drinking more coffee and doing more work. It was unsafe to go out! + +And then, suddenly, I felt a strange but fervent urge to do precisely that and celebrate one final time. A compulsion borne out of equal parts boredom, religious fervor, the desire to let a little bit loose, and desperation. It was time to emerge — if only for one last time! + +So emerge I did, blinking and grimacing into the outside world, stumbling into a taxi (from confusion, not drunkenness!). + +For those wondering what quarantine will be like, and who haven’t yet started socially isolating, I can affirm that even after a few days, emerging back into the outside world feels a little bit strange — intoxicating even. + +There’s so much stimuli to take in — the sky seems somehow brighter, a routine conversation with a cab driver suddenly engrossing. The whole experience can be overwhelming to overly-sensitized senses dulled by the boredom of four repetitive walls. + +But what I can say, in retrospect, is that I do not regret going out on Purim Shusan — not even one bit. + +Yes, I tried my best to keep a safe social distance, washed my hands meticulously, and carried a tub of hand sanitizer in the back pocket of my jelabiah (my costume for the day). + +But I also got moderately inebriated, per the religious commandment; wandered into a synagogue where, after jumping around to strange religious techno blasted from massive speakers, I prayed passionately for the end of this bitter virus flooding through our communities and the world; and then, expunged of energy to seek divine intervention, I visited my favorite bar and enjoyed another kind of intervention: one tremendous, extremely bitter IPA. + +I lived. I had fun. And best of all I forgot about the coronavirus for a few hours. + +But just as I suspected when I was going out — it was to be the last time for a while. + +Several days later bars, restaurants and all other recreational facilities were ordered closed. + +And Then …. Everything Got Very Real + +Although I’m writing this only a few days after it, my little Purim expedition has proven strangely therapeutic — and I’m still yielding the benefits. + +Having enjoyed one last foray into the real world (while knowing that it might be my last foray for a while), I’ve made an uncomfortable and cold peace with living a more limited version of life at home for a while. + +Which, as I write this, seems like a pretty good way to sum up my existence. + +And, in part because of that expedition, I’ve stopped feeling sorry for myself. Because there’s truly no reason to. We’re all going through this together. And there’s something oddly comforting and cohesive in our shared mission. + +If this didn’t feel quite real two weeks ago — picking up on hard news about this virus from an English doctor on YouTube and some Reddit threads — then it certainly does now. + +There are nightly emergency press conferences about it, such as the one I have screenshotted above, which the government is streaming on YouTube — creating a strange sort of cognitive dissonance caused by hearing some very un-routine information, like the exercise of emergency powers, delivered over a friendly and familiar medium like YouTube. + +And there are police showing up on doors to check for quarantine-evaders. And loudspeakers broadcasting news of the latest government restrictions to devout Jews in Mea Shearim and other ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods who don’t carry smartphones. + +Like I imagine is the case in many places, virtually nobody in Jerusalem is talking about anything else. + +Two weeks ago, I decided to risk what I was sure would be major embarrassment and cancel a couple of meetings with clients in Tel Aviv. I figured it wasn’t worth the risk. + +Today, I’m not sure whether it would be legal for those clients to meet with me; citizens have been adjured to remain at home “unless absolutely necessary” — although the ban has no legal enforcement mechanism and so remains underpinned by a sort of honor-system, although the police is clamping down on those who might be evading quarantine. + +It’s all changing overnight. + +And so, as fast as things have evolved, I’m grateful for the knowledge which I was able to tap into at the last minute (truthfully, I should have been following this for months). + +I’ve prepared myself as best as I can for the virus, although filling remaining knowledge gaps has taken a lot of time (how should you wash your clothes to remove the virus? Do you need to wash fruit and veg?). And that gives me some comfort. + +Truthfully, none of us should feel like we’re that far behind the class. Humanity’s collective understanding of the novel coronavirus remains extremely limited; but at the same time there’s only so much you need to know to adequately prepare yourself. There comes a point at which you need to say “I’m practicing prevention to the best of my abilities and I can do no more.” + +If you made it this far then, as you might have guessed, I’m taking things relatively seriously — although my measures pale in comparison to those I’ve seen documented in some accounts online. + +I’ve set up a “decontamination zone” at the entrance to my apartment. This is where all goods from the outside world enter but do not pass as they must be considered automatically, if invisibly, contaminated. (And yes, it’s really hard to write about this without sounding like a mad conspiracy theorist). + +I’ve stocked up on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) so that — should the pandemic get extremely severe — I can venture into the outside world with the best possible protection to. .. I don’t know …. put the rubbish out. + +And I’m being parsimonious about my visits into the “outside world” — which now seems like a vaguely malicious sort of place beyond the expanses of my oddly comfortable personal bubble. + +Yesterday, I ventured out into that area to see a gastroenterologist because I’ve had (what I believe to be!) some complications from gallbladder surgery several months ago. + +The gastroenterologist prescribed a bile binder to help things settle down. + +Today, I decided that it was not worth visiting the pharmacy to pick it up. + +I can survive without it for a few weeks — or should that be months? Hopefully, things will have settled down by then, along with the level of bile refluxing into my stomach. Although I — like anybody — am no longer really sure of what will be even tomorrow. + +Oddly enough, in the interim, all this has started to feel quite normal. And, surprisingly, all this focus time has its perks. + +As a writer, I love writing entries like these just for the joy of writing — and it’s nice to have comfortable time to do this after also getting other work done. Usually, I cram these projects into the small hours of the morning, if I manage to get to them at all. + +The epidemiological situation is changing rapidly. + +I stick to a daily YouTube diet of Dr. Campbell and Peak Prosperity to try keep on top of the big picture while filtering out much of the unnecessary detail such as the continuously-rising case counts. I’m trying to cut down on monitoring the lower-level picture as it’s dissected on Twitter, Google News, and other sources. + +And I’m taking pleasure in the little things. + +We’re still ordering the odd takeout. + +Delivery people who once took my odd requests to pick up a tip from atop a flower vase as a doomsday-like oddity are now insisting on similar precautions themselves. + +Because if there’s one thing it’s worth looking forward to at the end of the day it’s a Burrito and some nice wine. + +I’m finally getting value out of that Netflix subscription which I’ve been paying for for six months but barely using. + +And there’s now a daily recreation schedule affixed next to the mask-donning (and doffing) instructions to make our apartment feel more like some sort of temporary holiday resort rather than an open prison which the government is sensibly adjuring us not to leave. + +And far from being a place of boredom, life within these four walls is so busy that it’s sometimes hard to keep up. + +Work has been buoyant — there’s the usual volume that clients send me along with requests for ad-hoc pieces about remote work, how to remain productive during the coronavirus, etc. As I’ve spent so much time thinking about it, these are practically writing themselves. + +And there’s so much news to legitimately keep up with, such as government restrictions and orders that are changing by the day. + +During the course of the last few hours alone there’s been a dramatic increase in the lockdown (all non-essential trips outside of one’s home are officially discouraged) and public transport will cease during weekends and nights. + +Halfway through writing this post, the police knocked on our door to make sure we’re at home. + +All this feels slightly odd — while also feeling normal. + +A the same time, the learning about what to do and avoid doing goes on and — I must make a dastardly confession — it has become a perverse enjoyment of sorts. + +I need to figure out how to use my new nebulizer just in case as I might be relying upon its services if I get a serious exacerbation of my asthma due to the virus. + +And I need to try out my new face visor for the first time (okay, that might have been a little overkill). + +Although simultaneously, while trying on face visors and half-face respirators, the gravity of the crisis facing the world doesn’t evade me. + +But I’ve come to realize that there’s no point stressing about it either — it’s bad for our immune system and exacerbates asthma, you know. + +I’m happy and grateful to be living in a country that, along with too few others, seems to be taking delaying the spread of the virus extremely seriously. + +My chief criticism, in fact, has been that the lockdown hasn’t been tough enough and that “recommended” measures — such as non-essential services avoiding workplaces — are being trounced upon by employers who won’t tolerate any disruption to their businesses whatever the cost, including their health and that of their employees. + +That and the fact that I couldn’t figure out a way to get Guinness in time for Patrick’s Day. + +As my friends keep reminding me these are extraordinary and wholly unprecedented times so it’s natural that it feels like we’re all living in a hastily improvised movie of sorts. + +There’s no playbook for how to get through this — for the world or for us. + +So we all have to do our best — together. + +But for now, for me, a hefty dose of information, the busyness of work, some Netflix, and the odd drop of wine are enough to get me through this. + +So let me end this by reiterating more or less what I spoke silently while in a state of de-quarantined and slightly inebriated rapture during my recent Purim festivities: + +May we all keep safe and healthy. + +May all those who have contracted the coronavirus make a speedy recovery. + +And, as quickly as it came, may its spread be brought to a speedy and decisive end. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/corona-diaries-1-socially-isolating-in-jerusalem/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/corona-diaries-1-socially-isolating-in-jerusalem/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Could-Donald-Trump-prove-to-be-Israels-Trojan-horse.md b/posts/toi/Could-Donald-Trump-prove-to-be-Israels-Trojan-horse.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..effadacb741ebcf678d4f65609be8ca8304214e6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Could-Donald-Trump-prove-to-be-Israels-Trojan-horse.md @@ -0,0 +1,97 @@ +# Could Donald Trump prove to be Israel’s Trojan horse? + +It’s news to few that the Israeli right has been tripping over itself with adulation since Donald Trump’s shock election victory. + +Prime Minister Netanyahu has set the overall messaging for the coalition, praising a ‘new era’ of relations with the new president and penciling in his first face-to-face with the new president in under a month. + +The now-Likudnik Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat has gone further, using a YouTube video to charge that former President Obama “surrendered to radical Islam” during his term in office. + +Unfettered by the watchful eye of the former administration for only a few days, he has ensured that the Jerusalem Municipality green-light the construction of 566 housing units over the Green Line. + +More significantly, plans to legally annex Ma’ale Adumim, undoubtedly the first step towards Naftali Bennet’s fantasy of asserting Israeli sovereignty over all of area C in the West Bank, are on hold for only a month now and rapidly gaining traction. + +The bilateral in Washington the plans are on hold until is less than a month away and the proposal already enjoys support from virtually all the right-wing parties in addition to carrying the PM’s imprimatur. + +And then there’s perhaps the biggest issue of them all: the campaign promise to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which everybody from Netanyahu to an opportunistic property developer are hell-bent on ensuring the President holds good on. + +But what if… + +But imagine, for a moment, that the following were to pan out.. + +Emboldened by Trump’s pre-election foreign policy rhetoric, Israel takes a series of increasingly daring unilateral steps in the West Bank that pits itself even more squarely against the consensus of the international community than it already stands. + +Firstly, as soon as next month, the Knesset formally annexes the Jerusalem commuter settlement of Ma’aleh Adumim and the E1 zone – the first time the government has formally annexed territory since 1981 when it passed the internationally unrecognized Golan Heights Law. + +This move is soon followed, as Bennett and the right crave, by annexation of the nearby settlements of the Gush Etzion bloc, the Jordan Valley, Ofra, and – significantly – the West Bank’s biggest settlement, the city of Ariel. + +Spurred on by the Trump administration’s tacit silence in the face of Israel’s biggest move vis-a-vis the Palestinians in decades, the Bill to annex all of area C into Israel proper becomes law, effectively extending the borders of the state on the East to the Jordanian border. + +At this point, what happens on the international diplomatic front is anybody’s guess, but imagine again the following possible reaction. + +The tinderbox explodes + +The Palestinian street and leadership (plus anyone with access to a map of the region) is forced to accept that the two state solution or any hope of Palestinian statehood is now well and truly dead in the water. + +The new facts on the ground – namely that 61% of the West Bank has been formally subsumed into Israel at the swipe of a pen – have driven a legal nail in the coffin of the Oslo Accords as well as the entire two state process. + +The parameters of any future Palestinian state are now necessarily limited to the disjointed and non-contiguous islands of areas A (Palestinian cities), the villages of area B (which the IDF co-administrates), plus the Gaza Strip under Hamas rule. + +Even Meretz and Bt’selem are forced to finally admit: it’s simply not going to happen. + +After the already ongoing talks are concluded, the US embassy is finally moved to Jerusalem, and if they haven’t already done so by now, the Palestinians hold good on their threat to “unleash all weapons” on the US administration at the UN. + +Domestically, Palestinian social media becomes more virulently awash than ever before with incitement demanding a popular jihad to counter not just the fictitious “threats to Al Aqsa” that kicked off the nine month long knife intifada, but the “death-knell to all of Palestine” that the annexation has resulted in in their eyes. + +Something far uglier than the knife attacks is unleashed by a population who now feel as if they have nothing left to lose. + +And unlike the knife intifada, reaction to these seismically destabilizing events spreads like wildfire to arouse the sympathy of the entire Arab World. + +In the worst possible case scenario, the Arabs launch their first unified war against Israel since 1967 – except that this time it resembles a doomsday battle of Biblical Gog and Magog proportions, with armies and paramilitary state proxies spanning everybody from Hamas to ISIS joining forces to open fronts against Israel. + +The borders of Gaza, Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan – not to mention the air – come under an unprecedented assault. + +Assuming that Israel survives, a series of right-wing proposals that have long been considered marginal or the exclusive preserve of the far right are now considered acceptable mainstream topics for debate by the Israeli public. + +Their extremity is made infinitely more palatable by both the renewed wave of violence that Israel presumably faces after its unilateral annexation of most of the West Bank and the “new relationship” with the improbably supportive Trump administration. + +Now that its role is ultimately going to be limited to administering a few city-states in the West Bank, should Israel forcibly dismantle the PA altogether, as many on the right have long hoped? + +Now that the State and its institutions extend almost there, does Israel finally have the demographic balance and wherewithal to annex Ramallah, Jenin, and the remainder of the West Bank as well? + +Other, more Kahanist, ideas could emerge in addition. + +A change of mind + +And then, one day, President Donald Trump (or his property tycoon son-in-law that he’s confident will somehow broker the world’s most intractable religious/political conflict) simply changes his mind about the whole Israel thing. + +Of course, Trump making a radical turnabout is hardly without precedent. + +ThinkProgress reckons that on his first day in office alone he broke 34 campaign promises ranging from renegotiating the NAFTA deal to not instituting a bizarre policy of removing two regulations for every one institution. And that list only adds to his broken pre-election promises which included a worrying threat to “jail” Hilary Clinton. + +As domestic opposition to Israel’s recent actions swells to bursting point in the US, Trump pivots for populism and joins the masses. + +‘Obama was right after all,’ he decides. + +The US aligns itself, for the first time, with the now worldwide chorus of nations contemplating unprecedented measures against Israel, and the ‘new era’ in the ‘special relationship’ that had seemed so promising topples like a sandcastle. + +Given the unprecedented international isolation Israel is sure to incur if it goes ahead with the unilateral measures it is contemplating, the sudden withdrawal of its traditional military and diplomatic bulwark could make the days of Obama’s abstention at Resolution 2334 seem halcyon by comparison. + +A dangerous strategy + +The above is all, of course, nothing but wild hypothesis. + +But to take President Donald Trump’s shock election as a salient example, crazier things have happened in the world. + +Right now, the most right-wing government in Israel’s history is busily contemplating taking legal measures that would be unprecedented in its history and institute irreversible changes to its policies with the Palestinians. + +In doing so, many among its ranks are relying on the support – or, more accurately, the pre-election overtures – of a President that by many observers’ reckoning seems deeply unstable in his worldview. + +The Israeli right are undoubtedly currently relishing the prospect that Trump’s ascent to power will provide a much awaited window of opportunity to finally put the two state issue to bed in Israel’s favor. + +But predicating that goal on Donald Trump’s support, which could mount to nothing but hot air, seems like a very dangerous game to play. + +A lot will presumably change in the region’s politics over the coming six months. + +Hopefully President Trump’s current encouragement of the right to action its wildest dreams won’t emerge as a Trojan horse strategy that will one day take Israel – and the entire world – by surprise. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-donald-trump-prove-to-be-israels-trojan-horse/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-donald-trump-prove-to-be-israels-trojan-horse/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Could-freier-culture-be-behind-Israels-pandemic-figures.md b/posts/toi/Could-freier-culture-be-behind-Israels-pandemic-figures.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bfba580211eae71293c01c22f978b432669a8fd6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Could-freier-culture-be-behind-Israels-pandemic-figures.md @@ -0,0 +1,97 @@ +# Could ‘freier culture’ be behind Israel’s pandemic figures? + +Browsing through my Facebook feed recently, I came across an interesting parody of a Ministry of Health poster. It was created by Ittay Flesher, a Jerusalem-based journalist and fellow Times of Israel blogger. + +It bore the title “פראייר בעד ארצנו” along with the subtitle “אפילו אם אחרים לא, אני שמור הל ההנחיות”. + +Translation into English: + +“A freier (sucker) in favor of our country. Even if others do not, I obey the guidelines.” + +The graphic — which is currently doing the rounds on Facebook groups — followed on from a couple of interesting pieces of commentary in the media recently. + +Writing in Ha’aretz, Anshel Pfeffer was among the first to bravely question whether Israel’s appalling coronavirus numbers could be attributable, at least in part, to the national obsession with not being a freier (sucker). + +Pfeffer contends that: + +“This year, the non-freier has evolved. Avoiding freierdom is no longer an individual pursuit, the man against the system. Under COVID-19, we now have entire sectors of the Israeli population determined not to be freierim. + +I’ve written before — on this blog and elsewhere — about the far-reaching influence of freier culture in Israeli culture. It’s a culture which I like to remind myself is in its first one hundred years of evolution. By comparison to world civilizations, it could fairly be described as being in its formative stages. + +Writing in Ynet a few days ago “(Israelis must show some national responsibility”), Sharon Kidon points to the lack of cohesiveness in Israeli society — what I would call a “me-first” culture — as driving Israel’s dismal demise from being a global model for handling the coronavirus to becoming the country with the highest per-capita infection rate in the world. + +Like Pfeffer, Kidon doesn’t spare the Balfour Street anti-Netanyahu protesters from excoriation, asserting that Israel is a nation of tribes and “each tribe cares little for the rest.” + +Who’s The Real Sucker Here? + +My opinion — for those who follow this blog — is that Kidon and Pfeffer are merely looking at different sides of the same coin. + +For months, I have privately held the belief that freier culture is what is driving Israel’s failure to rein in its sky-high infection numbers. + +Here’s why. + +The Haredim, as has been covered, have been holding large weddings in violation of government orders. But the largely secular middle class has been congregating on beaches and around Balfour Street too — the latter even going so far as to hold a celebratory meal in a show of flagrant disregard for social distancing. + +The commonality between the two? + +Both groups know that they can get away with disobeying official recommendations. Obeying almost unenforceable government directives would be a freier move. And what could be a worse badge of shame to bear than that?! + +As bad as Prime Minister Netanyahu’s frequent complaints that the Israeli public refuse to follow his government’s directives may look from the outside, I believe he has a point. + +Because just as freier culture disregards social norms, laws, and what should be done in favor of what can be achieved to advance one’s interests, it disregards the interests and the wellbeing of anybody other than the freier-avoiders themselves. + +Freierism is, effectively, the ultimate selfish mentality. A mode of behavior which implies that there is no normative reason to follow the will of the collective (the law) or the other in lieu of the pursuit of one’s own exigencies. In the freier mentality, the effect on the other matters nought. If I or we can get away with something that’s enough justification to engage in a behavior. + +When anti-freier culture is elevated to the level of being a cherished national characteristic, and in instances in which enforcement of laws and regulations is rendered almost impossible — such as at the present — mass civil disobedience is its inevitable consequence. + +Time To Make Freyerism A Cultural Relic? + +As I wrote in this blog previously (“Could Israelis Be The Ultimate Freyers?”) nobody seems sure about where the Israeli aversion to suckerdom originates from. + +Perhaps it stems from the gritty nature of life in the Israeli military — which a nation of conscripts is necessarily exposed to? + +You might argue — depending on your political inclination — that the callous kind of behavior that enforcing a military occupation requires creates a mass belief that pushing ahead and being aggressive is the way to get forward in life, regardless of how much misery that inflicts on the other party. + +Whatever its cause, freier culture (and its partner in crime, shitat mazliach — “the successful method” — getting away with what you can) seem to be exerting powerful and detrimental effects upon Israel’s ability to face down the virus. + +And if you agree with me in attributing Israel’s epidemiology in part to this cultural attribute, then I argue you must agree that freier culture is not the innocuous and somewhat comical force that many observers of Israeli culture — both internal and external — believe it to be. + +I believe that the national obsession with not being a freier is a force for massive harm. And that we are witnessing its bitter fruits in Israel’s failure to deal with the coronavirus. + +This is because the deeply entrenched Israeli belief that to be a freier is a terrible thing ends up equating civility, good behavior, and following laws with being a sucker. The corollary becomes that bad behavior, disregard for the needs of others, and open defiance of the law are accepted and sometimes celebrated traits. + +Letting somebody buying a can of tuna go ahead of you at the supermarket when you’re shopping for a family of ten? + +Nice American manners, perhaps. But doing so would also be the quintessential frier move. + +So would yielding in traffic to let somebody go ahead of you. Be strong and cut them off before you do! + +Saying “bevakasha” (please) and “toda” (thank you) before and after ordering a coffee? Manners are great in the US and all, but do you really want the person behind the till to think that you’re a pushover before you’ve even received your latté? + +Those examples suffice. + +For more than 70 years, the Jewish state has withstood almost constant attempts to annihilate and harm it from actors both within Israel and outside of it. + +But maybe it’s time that we thought about dispensing with some cultural defensive mechanisms — and began asking whether aspects of Israel’s formative culture are part of the collateral damage of those wars. + +If Israel is to move from being a nation of infighting tribes to a united country, citizens, including you and I, need to start understanding the importance of the collective. + +This means caring for the other — whether that’s a person or a tribe. Following the laws that the country has set to stop the spread of the pandemic would be a good starting point. And what could possibly provide a better warning against the pitfalls of ignoring unity and cohesiveness than the current public health situation? + +Israeli society has come to festishize strength, aggression, and military might. Cultural norms that have flowed from this include never being wrong, never apologizing, and never — never! — being a sucker. None of these, I believe, are good absolute values to hold. + +I’ll let you in on a secret. + +There’s a very good chance that you won’t be ticketed if you choose to spend the rest of the hagim with you family in the North. + +Or invite them all over to yours for a grand big meal. + +Even with the help of electronic surveillance, it’s simply impossible for a police force of 30,000 to keep close tabs on the day to day movements of a population of millions. + +But just because it’s possible doesn’t make it right. Preserving public health is more important than you seeing your relatives. + +Even if we’re called freiers for doing so, let’s do our part to stop the spread and follow the Ministry of Health guidelines. + +Together, let’s change freier culture. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-freier-culture-be-behind-israels-pandemic-figures/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/could-freier-culture-be-behind-israels-pandemic-figures/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Fact-Check-Is-Freelancing-in-Israel-Almost-Impossible.md b/posts/toi/Fact-Check-Is-Freelancing-in-Israel-Almost-Impossible.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e2c80e363d89c098df1ba264858b441f87e310e6 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Fact-Check-Is-Freelancing-in-Israel-Almost-Impossible.md @@ -0,0 +1,69 @@ +# Fact-Check: Is Freelancing in Israel ‘Almost Impossible’? + +For those who follow my antics and many questions on social media, I have carved out a reputation as quite a prodigious poster on Facebook Groups where I can frequently be found crowdsourcing all manner of information. + +This wasn’t always the case — in fact, I can’t recall ever being a member of a Facebook Group before making aliyah. But, like many, Secret Jerusalem proved to be the gateway drug that opened up a whole world of Anglo-centric online discussions. + +The truth is that so long as my posting and commenting doesn’t derail my workday inordinately, I have no problem with this label. Call me a Facebook Group addict — as I’ve just called myself. Minor derailings of my productivity aside, I greatly enjoy engaging in the various thriving communities which the social network hosts. + +So, this afternoon — in Rifka Lebowitz’s excellent Living Financially Smarter in Israel group — I asked (in more words than these) why one frequently hears the following: + +“It’s impossible to be self employed in Israel.” + +“It’s not worth it to be self employed in Israel” + +For the sake of completion and transparency: I’ve been self-employed here for 5 years, although I have only been doing it full time for the past two. Yes, I ran a side gig alongside a salaried job for a while. That was exhausting, but provided a conduit that later allowed me to go out on my own full time. + +This has surprised me. Israel’s bureaucracy gets a bad rap. And I’ve certainly not shied away from pointing out some of the problems in this country (see, among others: Ireland/Israel comparison post). However, my overall experience managing my tik (file) as a self employed individual in Israel has been positive. + +With the help of an excellent accountant (who I’d be happy to recommend privately), I have careered my writing business through its formative days and to its current lofty status as a VAT non-exempt trading entity (Hebrew: osek murshe. And that was a joke). + +There have been minor bureaucratic hiccups, sure. My capital assets have been audited — as almost all freelancers’ are (sometimes with annoying frequency). I narrowly evaded a fine from the tax authority after forgetting to make one of my bimonthly reports (hint: set Google Calendar notifications!). But other than that my journey so far has gone off more or less without hitches. + +Is It Really All That ‘Bad’? + +The purpose of today’s thread was to try establish whether there is any truth in the commonly aired claim that being a freelancer in Israel is specifically more expensive than being an employed worker (Hebrew: a sachir). + +Before starting the thread, I was aware of several aspects in which we atzmaim (self-employed workers) get the short end of the bargain. + +For one, we pay slightly higher Bituach Leumi (social security) contributions than our 9-to-6-ing brethren. Employees’ contributions are made both by themselves, as deductions from their salary slips (tlushim), and on the employer’s end. Needless to say, as an atzmai (independent worker) you don’t get benefits. For Irish readers: Bituach Leumi is roughly equal to PRSI and the systems are comparable. + +Others lamented freelancers’ lack of benefits and sick days. While I’m glad that that was pointed out, this isn’t an Israel-specific drawback of freelancing. In my postings about how to set a freelance hourly rate, I have emphasized the importance of building in both benefits you are not receiving and unbillable hours. The figure that comes out the other end may surprise you (and your clients), but it’s what you need to charge to make freelancing viable. In other words: I don’t think this is a direct deficiency of the arrangement. + +Then there was the aforementioned bureaucracy. Here it was nice to be on the other side of the table defending the virtues of living in Israel for a change. My experience has been that it is more than manageable with the aid of a competent accountant (and while in general I’m a DIY sort of guy, I strongly recommend hiring one if you’re looking at freelancing here). + +So what’s left? + +Dual Taxation, Pensions: The Other Drawbacks + +With the help of the financial boffins on the Living Financially Smarter group I came up with several additional reasons which had evaded me. And — for the sake of potential freelancers — I’m using this blog to pass them on to you. With these, I can understand a little bit more clearly why so many are eager to point out that being self employed in Israel has its drawbacks. Under some circumstances, it probably indeed doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. + +Americans (dual American-Israeli citizens) are liable for American social security contributions . This is due to America’s unique policy of taxing its citizens extraterritorially. + +. This is due to America’s unique policy of taxing its citizens extraterritorially. Israeli employers also contribute to pensions and savings plans. A good example cited is the keren hishtalmut. + +There were other examples given which I would put in the category of “universal freelancing drawbacks” versus Israel-specific situations. Nevertheless, for the sake of drawing a complete comparison between being a sachir and atzmai these are worth keeping in mind: + +Company cars are relatively commonplace in Israel. Freelancers, needless to say, do not typically receive benefits of these kind from their clients. + +Freelancers, needless to say, do not typically receive benefits of these kind from their clients. Israel’s social security system affords no benefits essentially to laid off unemployed workers. Grants for freelancers during the pandemic — which have been made available — have been means-tested versus last year. But these grants were anomalous and the situation is usually that if you’re self employed and your work suddenly dries up, you’re eligible for nothing. The system takes. But it doesn’t always give. + +Grants for freelancers during the pandemic — which have been made available — have been means-tested versus last year. But these grants were anomalous and the situation is usually that if you’re self employed and your work suddenly dries up, you’re eligible for nothing. The system takes. But it doesn’t always give. Self employed workers in Israel also do not qualify for dmei havra’ah (recuperation pay). This is a relatively small sum and is a fringe benefit with an interesting history! + +The Upsides Which Many Forget + +My thoughts about self employment in Israel are that while there are definitely drawbacks it’s all too easy to forget that, equally, there are upsides to working for yourself here. + +Let me list what I see as the major ones: + +English speakers based in Israel have a great opportunity to work with clients internationally that is often not fully appreciated, in my view. See my previous post on this subject here. + +Consider also Israel’s salaries — which often lag behind the West (in Israel, salary erosion is a significant problem). English speakers in Israel often run into a relatively low salary ceiling through which it can be difficult to break. This is particularly true for those manning (or woman-ing) an English job in Hebrew. How many rungs can there be to climb between new hire content writer and Marketing Manager? Israeli companies’ proclivity to only use the country as a small initial test market exaggerates the dynamic: often, once scale happens, jobs don’t stay in Israel (or the ones that do don’t lend themselves to growth). Of course, mastering professional standard Hebrew is the obvious solution. But self employment can actually offer a way for English speakers to make a higher income than they could command in a salaried position. + +As my initial musings on the subject and the answers I received bear out, the answer as to whether or not it’s worth it to be self-employed in Israel is not clear cut. + +It depends heavily upon factors such as one’s individual financial situation, how important income stability is, and whether one’s second citizenship is to the US or to some other country. + +At the very least, this was another interesting Facebook thread! + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/fact-check-is-freelancing-in-israel-almost-impossible/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/fact-check-is-freelancing-in-israel-almost-impossible/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/How-Azaria-put-the-maturity-of-Israel-itself-on-trial.md b/posts/toi/How-Azaria-put-the-maturity-of-Israel-itself-on-trial.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a74ae670168040fb5d0d8082bf298273c48482c4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/How-Azaria-put-the-maturity-of-Israel-itself-on-trial.md @@ -0,0 +1,69 @@ +# How Azaria put the maturity of Israel itself on trial + +There are strong reasons to view the sentencing of Elor Azaria, the soldier convicted of killing an unarmed Palestinian in Hebron almost a year ago, as an epic failure for Israeli democracy (or if not, at least – yet again – for its international image). + +In spite of that, I believe the fact that the soldier was ultimately convicted of manslaughter – and that the army managed to withstand the relentless pressure of a powerful public mob trying to sway the outcome of the trial – is a positive testament to Israel’s relative and growing maturity as a state. This is particularly true given the fact that , in international terms, it is still in its infancy. + +At the least, the trial will be remembered in Israel for decades to come as one of the country’s first, serious moments of self-reflection. + +For Israelis, the trial represented a brutal trashing out of the historically fraught dynamic of prosecuting the epitome of ‘one of our own‘ in the corridors of the country’s highest martial court. + +Considering the additional loaded context of the ‘victim’ of this self-prosecution being a sergeant in the army – the paternalistic institution that, to an extent, commands unquestionable adulation from the general public, and to which the country owes its very survival – and the civil war atmosphere that erupted during the trial seems almost inevitable. + +The trial of Azaria + +A quick recap for those unfamiliar with the incident that brought Elor Azaria to public attention. + +Azaria was captured on amateur video shooting Abed al-Fattah al-Shari, a Palestinian resident of the city, eleven minutes after he had been non-fatally shot by other soldiers responding to a stabbing attack that he had perpetrated. + +For this criminal act (which, for many, seems to toe a very thin line between manslaughter, extra-judicial military execution, and outright murder) Azaria was this week sentenced to 18 months in prison – which is often, incidentally, the same jail time handed down to Palestinians caught throwing rocks at Israelis. + +Besides, for many observers, the punishment transparently not fitting the gravity of the crime, there are other aspects of the trial and its ongoing aftermath that don’t cast Israel in a particularly positive light and conjured the feeling of a ‘show trial’ followed by a slap on the wrist punishment in the minds of many. + +To name a few: + +Why, after his conviction, was Azaria allowed to remain in the army at all (part of the military court’s sentencing was demoting Azaria’s rank from Sergeant to Private)? + +In stark contrast to the atmosphere when Palestinians face Israeli military tribunals, why did the gallery, in which a gloating Azaria was allowed to sit surrounded by the cheering presence of his family and supporters during both sentencing and hearing, better resemble the partisan atmosphere of a football stand than a courtroom? + +And on what grounds are Israel’s prime minister, and many right-wing members of parliament, now calling for the convicted soldier’s pardon? + +The trial of maturity + +Despite the shocking nature and conclusion of Azaria’s trial for many, I believe that the legal battle waged between the army prosecutor and he and his supporters has proven to be a landmark trial of another variety for Israeli society. + +Its outcome, although far from fair or desirable, represents proof of Israel’s growing maturity as a young nation navigating the complicated dynamics of self-responsibility and extends the concept that nobody in society – even that quintessential patriot, the serving conscript – is beyond the reach of the law to new reaches. + +An interesting facet of the Azaria trial is that it is far from the first time in the country’s 69 year history that a member of its army has gone on trial for murder or manslaughter. + +The divisiveness it engendered among his “supporters” and those, on the other hand, calling for him to be allowed stand trial, however, was entirely unprecedented in its vigor and viciousness. + +Besides ending in the conviction of a soldier for manslaughter, the trial also baldly exposed a diametric rift within Israeli society. + +On the one hand, legions have emerged (disconcertingly including the prime minister) of those who are prepared to allow their sense of empathy with their fellow citizen – especially those defending the country – to overcome any measure of justice, logic, or ethical concern they may have of the fact that an appropriate form of punishment is necessary to deter humans from unnecessarily killing one another, whatever the context that happens within. + +In their worldview, Israel’s battle with the Palestinians is a zero sum moral race to the bottom in which Israel and its army needn’t hold itself to any higher standard than that of a terrorist lunging at an enemy target with a kitchen knife. + +For them, the concept of a soldier being forced to stand trial is mutinous, no matter how egregiously that soldier violates the country’s own military law. If through some miscarriage of justice that soldier is somehow convicted of a military crime, an executive pardon must, on principle, be tendered irrespective of any objective reasoning to justify its granting. + +On the other, the army, beginning with Azaria’s commander, Tom Na’aman (who confronted the soldier almost immediately after the incident) adopted a swift and resolute stance since the beginning of the case that Azaria must stand trial for his actions just as a civilian would under comparable circumstances. + +In defending the trial’s continuance, the political establishment has also resisted enormous public pressure – including planned concert rallies from celebrity singers and a mass protest on Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square – to avoid forcing its outcome to be dictated by sheer populism. + +Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman urged restraint from the young soldier’s vocal supporters and helped cement the message that Israel is a country ruled by law and not by the sentiment of a lynch mob. + +An ongoing test + +The court’s judgment may have been handed down, but the test of Israel’s maturity goes on. + +Even after Azaria’s conviction (which, the soldier’s family have said he will probably not appeal), calls from ministers continue to mount for Azaria’s pardon. + +Some have cited security concerns, arguing that the precedent could create reluctance on the part of soldiers to engage with enemy combatants; others have framed the need to pardon Azaria in purely emotive reasoning. Given Netanyahu’s avowed support for the measure, there is a real chance that Israel’s President may accede to the request. + +Pardoning Azaria after his questionably lenient sentence would almost certainly unravel whatever progress Israel has made as a nation in traversing the public debates that have shaped around his emotionally fraught trial. + +It would also cement another message to the world that Israel’s judiciary is nothing better than a series of kangaroo courts prepared to whitewash the actions of its citizens or military when it suits them to do so. + +Such a verdict in the trial of Israel’s handling of the Azaria issue would be a disappointing conclusion. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-azaria-put-the-maturity-of-israel-itself-on-trial/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-azaria-put-the-maturity-of-israel-itself-on-trial/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/How-To-Freelance-Internationally-From-Israel.md b/posts/toi/How-To-Freelance-Internationally-From-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..536462fd04d3e0858d054ed908ee58781e501d50 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/How-To-Freelance-Internationally-From-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,119 @@ +# How To Freelance Internationally. From Israel. + +There is a pervasive myth among Israel-based expat freelancers that the only place to go hunting for clients is right here on our doorstep — in Tel Aviv and the merkaz. + +Alternatively, people think that freelancing internationally is possible but they imagine that it is far too complicated to even bother trying. + +Both myths are precisely that — myths! — and I wanted to write this short post to help freelancers understand that if you’re an Israel-based atzmai (independent) that the world is virtually your buri (because, you know, oyster ain’t kosher). + +Note: I am originally from Ireland and so am not subject to the US’s extraordinary extraterritorial tax laws. At least not for the moment. I am also neither an accountant nor a tax planner, although I retain one of the latter. However, I have been living in Israel and freelancing for a mixture of local and international companies for the past four years. So I can tell you what has worked for me. And, more importantly, what’s possible. + +Why work internationally, you might be wondering? + +It’s fun and a learning experience ! If you need to visit your clients, you have an excuse to travel to another country (during normal times, of course) + +! If you need to visit your clients, you have an excuse to travel to another country (during normal times, of course) You diversify your business by having clients in other world markets. Think: reduced risk. + +Think: reduced risk. There are a lot more potential clients in the world than there are in Israel . For example: US population: 382 million. Israel population: 9 million (rounded). The US market alone is more than 40 times the size! + +. For example: US population: 382 million. Israel population: 9 million (rounded). The US market alone is more than 40 times the size! More companies that are passed the startup phase. While Israel is deservedly known as the Startup Nation, if you want to work with larger organizations and multinational corporations (useful to boost your own brand recognition) then the picking is a little thinner. + +While Israel is deservedly known as the Startup Nation, if you want to work with larger organizations and multinational corporations (useful to boost your own brand recognition) then the picking is a little thinner. International clients often pay better rates. This depends very much what you freelance in, of course, but in some ‘niches’ the disparity can be large. + +And the downsides: + +It’s harder to visit clients than it is in Israel + +Time zone differences can be a pain to work around. P articularly if you’re working with clients on the west coast of the US. See my run-through of which time zones are workable, and which are very difficult, here. + +articularly if you’re working with clients on the west coast of the US. See my run-through of which time zones are workable, and which are very difficult, here. International clients usually need to be educated on the Sunday to Thursday workweek (unless they have worked with Israel-based teams before) + +(unless they have worked with Israel-based teams before) When you set rates in foreign currency, you assume some risk that the foreign exchange rate between that currency and the Israeli shekel will move against you. But remember: you can renegotiate rates periodically. + +So here’s what’s required. And what I recommend. + +1. Target Your Website Internationally. Be Mindful About Perceptions + +I’ve written a post here before about mistakes that Israelis typically make when speaking English. Well guess what? Many long-term olim actually begin to suffer the effects of language attrition: the gradual loss of one’s mother tongue while in a non-Anglophone environment. + +I’ve seen some freelancers that even drop a few words of Hebrew into their website copy in order to try endear themselves to local clients. There’s nothing wrong with this per se. It’s just that, of course, international clients are not going to understand what these words mean. Hevanta? + +Think, also, about what brands and companies you might want to highlight having worked for or which portfolio samples you send to non-Israeli clients— some big local names might not resonate internationally but you may have worked with some smaller international clients that might make a bigger splash to an overseas prospect. It’s easy to forget that Israel is a bubble (this goes for any local market, of course). + +It’s also, I believe, impossible to avoid politics completely when it comes to Israel. + +My policy is to be completely transparent about where I am based and to try mention that at the very outset of the conversation with a prospective client. + +My personal website has an Israeli domain (.co.il) for this very reason and I cringe whenever I see Israeli companies try to downplay their Israel footprint because they are ashamed to state where they are from (yes, this happens). + +Politics and business are better not mixed, in my opinion. However, I think it’s still good to be mindful that your clients’ perceptions of Israel and your own might differ very markedly. If you did what you regard as great work for a biometrics company whose facial recognition software is deployed to monitor people at checkpoints in the West Bank, be aware that that might create an ethical problem for your client. + +A little tactfulness is called for in certain circumstances. But I believe that most clients either react neutrally or positively to Israel-based service providers — and when dealing with technology companies Israel’s reputation as a world leader in technology and cybersecurity can even confer a competitive advantage. + +Where that is not the case, you will hopefully still be able to put your political differences to one side and enjoy a fruitful professional collaboration in spite of those gaps. + +Finally, if you own a website, then you should certainly be using Google Analytics to track your traffic and see where it’s coming from. + +Keep an eye, in particular, on the geography view to see which which countries, outside of Israel, your website is resonating with. + +Monitor trends and consider new geographies to prospect to that you may have neglected for no good reason. + +2. Set Up Payment Options + +Although Payoneer was founded in Israel, I much, much prefer Transferwise for its ease of use — and I unreservedly recommend it to freelancers looking to do business with the world. + +Although Transferwise’s debit card hasn’t yet rolled out in Israel (alongside Revolut!), you can simply set up Borderless accounts to receive foreign currency payments locally. + +For those unfamiliar: these are basically virtual bank accounts. You get payment details in the country in which they are based and can give these to your clients. They then simply pay you by making a local bank transfer. For you this means no long waiting times for international wires to process. For your client’s A&P people it often makes things a little bit more convenient too. + +Local bank accounts are available in several countries worldwide including the US — so you can give your clients American virtual account details and they can make a transfer over the ACH system. + +After your clients pay in to your local accounts you receive a notification from Transferwise and can either choose to hold the money in the virtual account until the exchange rate is most favorable (this is what the financially savvy people do, I hear) or convert it immediately in to NIS and then move it into your local account. + +Transferwise also provides you with a very favorable exchange rate that is relatively close to the mid-market and, after connecting your Israeli bank account, you can move the money seamlessly through their system in a matter of days. + +To make it as easy as possible to get paid I recommend setting up a few more payments gateways. + +Paypal is a no-brainer for moving money quickly around the world (and please note, although their fees might seem expensive to some, you cannot charge your clients the fees under their terms of service). + +But you can also look into setting up accounts with Payoneer, Skrill and others. + +Give your client plenty of options and don’t try to charge them the fees your payments processing gateway or solution levies. Other than that it’s proper credit control with a small bit of FX risk on the side. + +3. Buy A Good (720P / 1080P HD) Webcam and Microphone + +Showing face virtually is just about the best that many of us can do these days with international travel restrictions and locked down airports. So this is actually a great time to get comfortable with videoconferencing in lieu of in-person meetings. Remote working is currently surging in popularity. So if you haven’t thought about approaching clients beyond Israel this might even be a particularly opportune time to consider doing so. + +In terms of technology: I use Calendly and Zoom, integrated, to allow prospective clients, wherever they are in the world, to quickly and easily book a meeting on my calendar. I carefully control the settings to give myself enough time to prepare for meetings (I set a 24 hour minimum booking period). And I mark off my calendar when I am on vacation. + +I recommend setting up separate accounts for your business with both. If you’re doing a lot of Zoom calls then it’s also worth upgrading to the paid tier to get rid of the 40 minute restriction. Upgrading Calendly gets rid of the “Powered by Calendly” branding (among other things). Finally, a backdrop can be useful if your home office is a cluttered mess. + +To create a strong professional impression I also recommend investing in a good quality webcam and microphone / headset. + +A webcam that can deliver video in 720P or 1080P HD will make a better professional impression than a cheap one that is only capable of delivering a slightly blurry image and laggy audio. + +KSP and Ivory both have a good selection and you can buy others online. + +4. Send Tax Documents in English + +It should go without saying, but make sure that your invoicing program is equipped to send out invoices and receipts in English. And make sure that you’re using the setting when billing international clients. + +Also, be mindful that other countries may have different bookkeeping conventions than Israel and that things like an אישור בעלות חשבון בנק are clearly not going to mean anything to a client based in Brooklyn. + +Whether you’re an osek patur or an osek murshe work with an accountant if you have any specific questions about how to bill and invoice international clients as compared to Israeli cones. + +You Can (And I Believe That You Should) Work With The World + +Unless I’ve been missing something (in which case sorry for the misinformation!), there is really nothing difficult about working with international clients. + +The same commonsense rules of freelancing apply, of course: if it’s a large project get an upfront deposit, try to be courteous and professional, and deliver your work on time, on spec, and on budget. + +While there are undoubted downsides to not having local clients, I believe that the upsides outweigh them: in terms of having a client base that is diversified both geographically and by industry. You also get to contribute to Israel’s export market in a small way. And — if you make a positive impression! — help put Israel on the map as an emerging labor market with plenty of well-educated Western talent for service providers. That, in my opinion, is a benefit not to be sniffed at. + +Clients can be found both in English-speaking countries and in other markets in which companies wish to communicate or work through English. + +Besides Israel, I’ve personally worked with clients in the US, the UK, Ireland, Hong Kong, and Singapore — to name but a few. + +Good luck in your journey! + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-freelance-internationally-from-israel/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-freelance-internationally-from-israel/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/How-To-Work-With-Israelis-And-Enjoy-The-Experience.md b/posts/toi/How-To-Work-With-Israelis-And-Enjoy-The-Experience.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..f6a0c68320888929dc72ed7d2b2bc100d0f66d5f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/How-To-Work-With-Israelis-And-Enjoy-The-Experience.md @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +# How To Work With Israelis – And Enjoy The Experience + +As a new immigrant and now small business owner (I eschew the term “freelancer”) I’ve spent the last five years, in large part, working with Israelis. + +At any given time, my client base typically contains a mixture of Israeli and international clients. For more on why I think every Israel-based freelance should consider working with clients based abroad, see this post. But suffice to say that there are no major impediments to doing so and there’s a much larger pool of potential companies to work with outside of Israel. + +Even though working with international clients has obvious upsides, as a technology writer, it makes obvious sense to keep an eye and an ear on the local market. Besides, there’s something just more wholesome about working with people down the road — even if that “road” is Highway One connecting Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. + +Last year, I wrote a very long post comparing my native culture (Ireland) with that of Israel. It’s here. To save you wading through what Medium describes as a “44 minute read” (yes, I really went all out!) let me summarize by saying that I can hardly think of two more different cultures: both to live in and work in with. + +If you have also made the uncomfortable transition from a soft-spoken, self-effacing culture to a much more aggressive and assertive one, then here are some pointers and observations that might make the journey across the divide a little easier. + +In Israel, Arguing Is Regarded As Normal and Healthy + +Despite being here for more than five years, the very word “argument” still evokes a sort of visceral discomfort in me. + +I remember attending my first Shabbat meal in Israel (a Friday night dinner traditionally held to mark the beginning of the Jewish Sabbath) and being perplexed and somewhat aghast at the sight of friends using their recreational hours to pull apart one another’s beliefs and gesticulate frenetically in heated debate. + +“You can’t be serious!” “You’re 100% wrong!” + +For me, hearing people yelling or screaming at one another invokes an automatic stress response. + +The Irish, like most Western cultures, form social bonds through congeniality and seeking out the company of people among whom they are more likely to reach consensus on matters like lifestyle and thought. + +For Israelis (Jews?) there’s a sort of violent screening process which involves putting large groups around a table habitually, laughing and screaming at one another, and then making friends based on whoever you forged the strongest connection with (which could be either party to the debate!). Cultures are nuanced and viewing societies as monoliths is completely inaccurate. So although you will find that many Israelis themselves share this discomfort, it’s nevertheless a prevalent feature of Jewish Israeli society — and, by extension, its work culture. + +Truth be told, I’m still not a crazy fan of the whole love of argument thing but I have come to see enormous value in not keeping things bottled up or trying to circumvent differences of opinion. And one context in which I think expressing one’s viewpoint from the outset and with vigor is almost always beneficial is the business one. + +Because let’s face it: we all engage in business in order to make a living. + +Skirting around uncomfortable things like money just because it’s an unpleasant conversation topic (which it sometimes is!) is simply neither a winning strategy nor one that is viable over the long-term. + +And here’s why in Israel this is especially important. + +In my Ireland vs. Israel post I wrote about an aspect of Israeli culture that I’m not so keen on. It’s called shitat matzliach and essential involves trying to force the weaker party into a bad deal because, well, you hope that they’re’ a freier (pronounced “fr-eye-er”; translation: sucker) or because they don’t know any better. It’s like freyerism’s lesser known but more malign sibling. + +In Ireland, this would be called “chancing your arm.” + +Living and working in Israel there is a strong chance that you will come across companies or individuals that are strong proponents of this methodology, particularly when they’re dealing with olim (recent Jewish immigrants) who mightn’t know their market value or rights. + +The prevalence of shitat matzliach in the Israeli workplace is another reason why speaking up and arguing is not just important but actually vital for your economic survival. + +In other words, genteel newbie immigrants, as painful as the process is going to be, start learning assertiveness along with how to conjugate verbs in the pa’al family. + +What may be a nice-to-have now may become an adaptive trait when you’re fighting for your first contract or pay rise. + +You Need To Say No To BS Wherever You Find It + +Now let’s get to practical applications for assertiveness. (And I should point out that I think assertiveness training would be a great line of business for somebody. Or is that what life coaches do?) + +If a well-funded Israeli cybersecurity company wants you to run a PR campaign for them and tries to get you to take a budget of 2,000 NIS a month ($582) to do so, then (assuming you have at least some experience) you need to look them in the eye — or speak to them down the phone — and tell them that their budget is a joke. + +OK, so maybe “lo maspeek” (not enough) might be more diplomatic. + +There’s another reason it’s important. + +Many olim have had to learn this the (very) hard way and have been burned — sometimes many times — by Israeli companies, whether they worked for them or with them as a contractor. + +As a result, one encounters many olim (immigrants) who are extremely skeptical about working with Israelis and might even tell you — off-the-record, of course — that they have therefore chosen to simply bypass the local market by working exclusively with international companies. + +In other words, for them, the potential upside isn’t worth the risk. + +If a company is trying to push you into a bad deal— as you will sometimes find that they are— it’s important to resist the temptation to just walk away (and I’m writing this to myself as much as to anybody that reads this). Don’t let your previous experiences discolor your judgment coming into a new one, even if there are many negatives ones tipping the scale in favor of your skepticism. + +Instead, gather intelligence in order to know what a fair budget or salary is for your position. Then stand your ground and push back on the unreasonable request. (Note: this is why I think being transparent about salaries among peer groups is so important). + +Sometimes the company will be unreasonable and let you walk away. Other times they’ll sit down and negotiate with you. + +But, at the very least, you owe it to yourself to try. + +(Israelis are incredibly informal and if you need to really demonstrate how worked up you about the dud deal you’re being offered you might need to drop an expletive. Just make sure to pronounce it bull-sheet if you do. Just kidding, don’t do that!) + +Israelis Let By-Gones Be By-Gones Amazingly Quickly + +The other thing I’ve noticed about working with Israelis is that — just as arguments can escalate quickly and frequently — Israelis tend to forget about “professional disagreements” in short order too. + +Not only that, but relationships that momentarily soured can quickly blossom. + +In Israel, you could perhaps say that the standard deviation of relationship states is simply higher than that which exists in many other cultures. + +I’ve had several frank “professional disagreements” with clients in Israel over the years. Sometimes, I felt as if a bridge had unfortunately been burned in the process. Only to find that same individual referring me to a contact of theirs several months later. + +At first, I thought the person had forgotten about the fact that we disagreed about a project — or I that I had to ask them to stop calling me on weekends about projects. + +In fact, we were just seeing things through different frames of reference. + +Because of shitat mazliach if you’re working with Israelis you need to be really good at setting boundaries. If you aren’t, you run the risk of being taken advantage of from time to time. + +In the Israeli client’s eye, me telling them not to call on weekends was me setting my “red line” (note: Israelis selectively love a few phrases in English; “red lines” is one of them). + +The same rule about trying to keep relationships with clients warm and healthy and trying not to burn bridges applies in Israel just as it does anywhere else in the world. + +But don’t think you’re going to risk a major falling-out with an Israeli client just by summoning up the temerity to express occasional differences of opinion. + +Those that have visited Israel will surely have observed that Israelis live their lives frenetically. + +They’ve probably forgotten about it by lunch. + +Israelis Love The Telephone (And WhatsApp …. And ….. The Fax Machine) + +At the risk of de-marketing myself to Israelis once again (but we can disagree, right?), I should point out that communication can be another gap that Israelis and immigrants need to bridge. I’m one of those weird old-schoolers that positively adores email. (Yes, you read that right.) It’s not that I have any particular aversion to phone calls. It’s just that if I need to say “thanks, I got the brief — will try get it back to you by end of week” — I’m more likely to put that into an email than pick up the phone just to say that. Israelis are obsessed with their phones and — relatively to many cultures — also have comparatively little concept of privacy or individual rights. You’ll see this at a societal level when you find out that a government agency can summarily put an ikul (lien) on your bank account because you never got an arnona bill (municipal tax). And you’ll encounter this when riding on a bus when the man next to you decides to call his mother to fill her in on how his appointment with the gastroenterologist just went. Israelis will take phone calls while participating in meetings, “serving” customers at café, and waiting in line to pay. It’s all audible. It’s all in your face. It’s all right now. And that’s just how things work here. So if you want to align workflows, you need to adapt. Although this is largely the situation now, it’s easy to forget that Israel is less than one hundred years old. The country is dynamic. And in a constant state of flux. My only request for long phone calls, like to convey feedback on a draft, is that they be scheduled. And in the relatively short period I’ve lived here (five years) I’ve seen this slowly become the norm. Less sporadic calls. More “can we have a chat to discuss this at 15:00?”. I always see the Israeli workplace retaining some distinctive features. Flat hierarchies and informality are the most striking ones. But with so much cross-pollination between Israel and other labor markets, particularly the American one, I see the differences eroding over time. The other interesting facet of Israeli work culture is their love of WhatsApp in universal contexts — spanning both business and personal uses. I strongly suggest that anybody working for themselves and dealing with Israelis buy a second SIM card and install WhatsApp Business which effectively gives them a duplicate WhatsApp account with which to interact with clients (as a bonus: WhatsApp Business allows you to set autoresponders and holiday messages). As an informal and Mediterranean culture, the personal/professional line can be less clearly delineated in Israel than in other countries. I have found maintaining a separate phone line invaluable in setting boundaries. Finally …. yes, the fax is still a thing here although less so each year. Thankfully, the Knesset introduced a law two years ago making it mandatory for government agencies to give citizens the option to send correspondence through a newfangled technology that I believe is called electronic mail …. or was that a Telex machine? + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-work-with-israelis-and-enjoy-the-experience/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-to-work-with-israelis-and-enjoy-the-experience/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/I-Predict-Netanyahu-Will-Win-the-Next-Election-in-Israel.md b/posts/toi/I-Predict-Netanyahu-Will-Win-the-Next-Election-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..0153760b02d0cbe43cdc3b8a1441a3ec6912f6c7 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/I-Predict-Netanyahu-Will-Win-the-Next-Election-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +# I Predict Netanyahu Will Win the Next Election in Israel + +This morning, Israel woke up to the news that the Blue and White party will support a bill tabled by Yair Lapid to disperse the Knesset and trigger new elections. + +The process of ugly recriminations and backstabbing that has been going on ever since the coalition was formed will continue in earnest. + +Recounting the petty quotes leveled back and forth is useful only for triggering a headache. + +I stopped following the details months ago. + +Be’kitsur, the short version is that Likud blame Blue and White and Blue and White blame Likud — for the handling of the coronavirus crisis; for the disagreement over whether to pass an abbreviated or full budget. + +Like children caught in a bitter and protracted custody dispute that has carried on for well over a year now, the ordinary Israeli people don’t really care about the details any more. + +We’ve been here before. We’ve heard the arguments. We’re tired, fed up, and just want an end to it. + +All but the most ardent of political anoraks have surely concluded that they have better things to do than hear these two squabble. + +Enemies Can’t Govern + +In truth, news of the government’s apparent impending demise isn’t really news. + +The budget and the coronavirus are really only the straw that broke the camel’s back. + +The root cause of the rancor and ill-will that has oozed out of press releases and quotes is that the “coalition” in which Benny Gantz served as the “Alternate Prime Minister was doomed from the outset and marked by nothing but acrimony and infighting. + +Calling this government a “unity” government was an almost ironic joke. An infighting faction can’t lead a country. + +Even the foundational agreement out of which the coalition was formed — the prime minister rotation agreement under which Benny Gantz was supposed to assume the helm — seemed like a delusional pipe dream. + +One would be hard-pressed to find anybody in the country — including, most suspect, Benny Gantz himself — who genuinely believed that the deal was going to go ahead. + +One didn’t need to be an expert in body language, or have inside connections, to read the signs of ill-will between the country’s two “leaders.” + +Gantz has looked worn-out and exasperated in photos with the Likud leader. + +If one wanted to get caught up on the daily tit-for-tat, one could also open up the morning newspapers to read the latest salvos for oneself. + +Social Protests Will Come To Nothing + +Despite this state of affairs, I don’t see any change in the offing. + +As a somewhat mitzva-following Jew, I don’t gamble. But if I did, I would be tempted to bet the contents of my apartment that the Israeli public will exonerate Netanyahu of any blame in the farcical situation to which the country’s political system has descended. + +Those who have followed the anti-Netanyahu protests that have swept the country for the past six months might express surprise at this prediction. Haven’t people turned up by the tens of thousands to protest the government for the past six months, after all? + +Yes, but to my mind, those protests amounted to a protest against democracy itself by a vocal minority of the population. + +Netanyahu didn’t descend on Israel from another planet. Nor was he forced into office through a military coup. He was dutifully elected. + +So what is there to protest — what has there ever been to protest? — if not the actions of the citizenry itself? + +Like any democratically elected leader, Netanyahu is not forced to heed the demands of an angry mob. Only the dictates of the ballot. + +Nothing But Likud Under The Sun + +I wrote, a few days ago, about some of the innovations sweeping these shores. I think that the country is moving in positive directions. In spits of its politics and not because of it. + +Nevertheless, I feel deeply pessimistic about Israel’s political future which — at this point in time — seems to bode a future of corruption, stagnation, and growing right wing nationalism. + +If Israelis vote for Netanyahu again in the next election, as I predict they will, then they will show that the anger and protests directed toward the government over the past six months — and the pained cries of an Ashdod falafel seller—were for the most part hot air. + +Throughout its voting history, the Israeli public has shown repeatedly that it is amenable to spin, rabble-rousing, and scaremongering. + +A press release or two from Balfour Street pinning blame on the government’s collapse on Benny Gantz and large segments of the population will be instantly bought out. + +Because, by capitulating to Netanyahu’s demand to form a doomed government, and by buying into the illusory promise of one day becoming Alternate Prime Minister, Benny Gantz showed that he is guilty of the worst sin in the eyes of many Israelis: being weak; being a freier. + +Next March, if Israel goes to its fourth election in two years, the country’s citizens will have a chance to put their ballot papers where their mouths have been for the past year. + +I will neither be voting for Netanyahu nor Benny Gantz. To my mind, both are culpable for the situation Israel finds itself in. One in which a government, seething with hatred for itself, mired in backstabbing, is forced to go to repeat elections during a pandemic — for the second time. + +I predict my vote will be in the minority. + +I hope that I am proved wrong. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/i-predict-netanyahu-will-win-the-next-election-in-israel/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/i-predict-netanyahu-will-win-the-next-election-in-israel/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Irelands-attempt-to-have-Israel-kicked-out-of-the-EU-explained.md b/posts/toi/Irelands-attempt-to-have-Israel-kicked-out-of-the-EU-explained.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..42818d842d73c9fc58d9feb94140415762dfc690 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Irelands-attempt-to-have-Israel-kicked-out-of-the-EU-explained.md @@ -0,0 +1,69 @@ +# Ireland’s attempt to have Israel ‘kicked out’ of the EU explained + +Ireland recently decided to team up with Spain in an attempt to have Israel “kicked out” of the EU. + +Here’s a quick explainer as to what this is about. + +What’s Ireland trying to do? + +Ireland is trying to have the EU-Israel Association Agreement rescinded. It is doing so upon the basis of a clause (article 2) that commits both parties to the respect of human rights and the upholding of democratic principles. Ireland is charging that Israel is in breach of that, according to their interpretation. + +In full, article 2 reads that: + +“Relations between the Parties, as well as all the provisions of the Agreement itself, shall be based on respect for human rights and democratic principles, which guides their internal and international policy and constitutes an essential element of this Agreement.” + +What is the EU-Israel Association Agreement about? + +Clearly, Israel isn’t a member state of the European Union (EU). + +However, Israel is part of a grouping of nations known as the ‘Southern Neighborhood’; those which are proximate to the EU landmass and which enjoy commercial relations with Europe. + +The EU-Israel Association Agreement is a framework that underpins much of the ties and trade between Israel and the EU. Trade relations between Israel and the EU, for example, are governed by a Free Trade Area that was established on the back of the Agreement. + +The Agreement provides for official cooperation and dialogue between Israel and the EU. Agreements like the Open Skies Agreement were, in part, built on the back of the framework. Other agreements like Horizon 2020 were more easily concluded because of the existence of the broad-reaching Association Agreement. + +What is the Barcelona Process? + +The Barcelona Process established the Southern Neighborhood in 1995 and formalised cooperation between the EU and countries close to its borders. Other nations at the inauguration of the Southern Neighborhood included Morocco and Libya. + +What would happen if Ireland and Spain’s review were “accepted,” so to speak? + +That’s open for debate but the Irish media is spinning the push as the first move towards formal economic sanctions against Israel being imposed by Europe. + +An article reporting on the development in The Irish Independent was headlined: “Ireland and Spain take first European steps towards economic penalties on Israel over war in Gaza.” + +Ireland asserts that it is merely asking the EU to “look into” the issue of the human rights clause. But it’s pretty clear that its intentions for doing so are solely fixated on trying to find grounds to suspend the Agreement on that basis. + +How much trade does Israel do with the EU? + +According to the European Commission, the EU is Israel’s largest trading partner accounting for more than a quarter of its trade in goods in 2022. However, the EU also imported €17.5BN worth of goods and €6.9BN worth of services in 2022 and 2021 respectively. + +Does the Irish-Spanish effort have any chance at success? + +Basically, no. + +Although the European Commission has said that it will be happy to look into the issue, suspending the Agreement would require a unanimous vote of all 27 EU member states. Given the support shown by several European nations towards Israel, this possibility seems almost impossible. + +Embed from Getty Images + +What’s the point then? + +Pushing for trade sanctions against Israel at EU is a good way for the Irish Government to make it look like they are doing something “about” Israel that goes beyond mere rhetoric and condemnations. + +Hostility towards Israel in Ireland is extremely widespread and the push for economic sanctions – along with a complete boycott – has been made by several factors in government. Even Ireland’s Prime Minister recently opined that it would be reasonable for Israel to be “expelled” from sporting and cultural events. + +I thought Ireland was a “neutral” country? + +Nobody but the Irish seem to understand what this means. + +What is Israel going to do about the push? + +Probably nothing as it seems like an extremely unlikely attempt. + +However, the move to harm a substantial part of Israel’s economics is an exceptionally hostile position. + +The increasingly hardline position which Ireland is pursuing vis-a-vis Israel is drawing increasing attention worldwide, including from those driving job creation in Ireland. + +The Irish may find themselves cutting off their nose to spite their face and appease incredibly high hostility to Israel with futile attempts not supported by their European partners. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/irelands-attempt-to-have-israel-kicked-out-of-the-eu-explained/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/irelands-attempt-to-have-israel-kicked-out-of-the-eu-explained/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Is-Criticizing-Israel-Kosher.md b/posts/toi/Is-Criticizing-Israel-Kosher.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..cf7add77e4b82a9188c270f4474fba4226b6237a --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Is-Criticizing-Israel-Kosher.md @@ -0,0 +1,97 @@ +# Is Criticizing Israel Kosher? + +Last week, on a Facebook group, I disclosed a customer service technique that I have been keeping secret for all these years. + +I have written before that customer service in Israel is often problematic. While plentiful exceptions exist, there is enough bad even abusive customer service in Israel that it often leaves an impression upon both immigrant residents and visitors alike. + +Some of the worst perpetrators here, in my experience, are international representatives of international conglomerates. Think names that you think are household ones but which — you will soon discover — are actually just Israeli franchisees. + +And here’s my technique. + +Looping in EMEA + +On a single handful of occasions over the past five years, I have received truly abysmal service from Israeli representatives of international chains that would put the latter’s hard-won reputation for customer service utterly to shame. And — after waging a futile battle to get customer service locally — I realized that there was a vulnerability that could be exploited. + +Israeli companies that do customer service poorly largely do so because they are part of a monopoly or oligopoly. In other words, they are artificially shielded from competition. + +In other instances, they know that they have a captive market — Israel is surrounded on all sides by either the sea or enemy states and getting products into the country and through customs isn’t exactly for the feint of patience. When these two dynamics run together — and when sometimes a measure of not really caring about customers is added to the mix — the result can be toxic. + +While I believe the above to be true, for international franchisees of major companies, maintaining their monopoly position as the exclusive importer or representative of a parent international company in Israel is often very lucrative business. And when reputations with the right people are on the line, “אין מה לעשות” (“there is nothing that can be done,” an oft-repeated quip in Israel) often turns to “how may we help you today?” + +The trick I have found — and I emphasise strongly, this is a last resort tactic — is to turn to the international parent company and ask for their assistance. I think it’s fairer to loop their Israeli representative in on the correspondence than to go totally behind their back and in fact this is often enough to spur the latter into resolution mode. The appropriate point of contact for the former, from my experience, is usually either the company’s EMEA management layer or head office. + +Why does this work so well? + +Companies want to preserve uniform representatives no matter which franchisee customers are ultimately dealing with. Sometimes those franchise relationships are governed by contracts which state that the former must uphold the company’s overall customer service standards. + +Israeli franchisees, for their part, want to stay on good terms with the companies they represent. And as a consumer, you presumably want to get good service. In other words, there is a rare confluence of interests. + +Unfortunately, when I sat down to put this into action last week I included one string of words which I later regretted. I told this company’s EMEA contact that: + +“Like most Israeli companies, they do not believe in answering the listed telephone number – or responding to emails, or providing customer service in general.” + +How Much Criticism of Israel Is Warranted, Welcome, and Acceptable? + +While my technique was well received — and many even reported that they had used it themselves to good effect — I was surprised by how vitriolic the reaction I received from some quarters was for “badmouthing Israel to the world” in my email through the addition of the words “like many Israeli companies”. One individual even went so far as to call my email “despicable.” And although this particular instance may be a classic storm in a teacup issue, I believe it does raise some broader issues worth discussing, which is why I am posting it to this blog. + +To my detractors, I tried to explain that, last week, I was dealing with a cluster of horrible customer service situations uniformly involving Israeli companies. That I was irate, as a result, at the time I wrote the email. That I acknowledged that that addendum about “like many Israeli companies” added nothing to the complaint other than belying the fact that I was cranky and partially venting at the time I wrote it. That I would take it back if I could. And that I understood that it was also unfair to the many Israeli companies that go out of their way to show their customers that they care. + +In other words, through tacking four inopportune words onto a sentence which I subsequently decided to share publicly, I had now, for many, badmouthed Israel the world and was hearing all about how terrible a sin that was. + +Where Does Legitimate Criticism End – And ‘Treason’ Begin? + +And yet, although the part about badmouthing Israel currently falls flat on my ears, it has got me thinking about where exactly we believe the parameters to lie in our dialogue with the world about the Jewish state. I believe this question is particularly pertinent to immigrants like me who often, in a sense, have one foot in the diaspora and another in Israel. + +Additionally, for religious Jews — and many Israelis, both olim and sabras are religiously observant Jews — the whole issue of how and when to criticise both facets of Israel and the policies of the government opens up a Pandora’s box of legal and moral issues. + +Most broadly, religious Jews try to follow the halachot (laws) of lashon hara — which prohibit broad categories of defamatory speech. + +Morally, the Sin of the Spies (Hebrew: the meraglim) resonates throughout Jewish teachings as an example of the kind of Divine punishment that even internal criticism of Israel can be expected to be met with. + +The negative reports about the Land of Israel that ten of the twelve spies brought back was seen as sinful and was punished, in kind, by a prolonged exile in the desert. + +And that’s not the end of the potential issues involved. + +The technique I described above even, for me, raised questions of mesirah (reporting the actions of a Jew to a non-Jewish institution). For halahically observant Jews, whether a criticism about an institution or country is permissible or not is supposed to depend on more than what kind of mood we are in when we pop open our Gmail. + +While I understand and appreciate those concerns (and I should point out that I’m interested in learning more about lashon hara and associated halachot), I’m still not clear on exactly how to relate to Israel within the confines of those parameters. + +For instance: + +If no criticism of Israel is acceptable — at least to the world at large — then aren’t we effectively left with a universal forced culture of hasbara — one in which Israel’s morality is necessarily exaggerated at times and uncomfortable truths are scrubbed from the record or relegated to the footnotes? + +In a world in which every news story can be translated into any language at the click of a button through the wonders of Google Translate, how is it possible to have a functioning press, much less a government opposition, if every word uttered about one’s fellow Israelis (the lion’s share of whom are Jews) needs to be positive in tenor? + +More pertinently for this websites: is kosher journalism — at least journalism as most of us know it — an oxymoron or is there rather some way for the maxims of lashon hara and the vital institutions of a western democracy, including a free press, to coexist? + +If, on the other hand, nothing good is said about Israel to the world, and we, olim, only contribution to uttering its criticisms, then surely we are part of the problem of the often unfair defamation that Israel receives on the international stage? + +The ramifications for the answers to these question stretch far beyond my small complaint about a customer purchase. + +They extend to whether we view Breaking The Silence’s presentations to the United Nations General Assembly — and left wing Israel NGOs’ work in general — as forthright and valuable expositions of a left wing viewpoint or as acts of treason that deserve punishment. + +To whether Israel should continue to invest resources in hasbara (public diplomacy) or whether it should give up trying to dominate the narrative of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by disseminating information that sometimes seems as slanted and obsessively partisan as that emanating from the other side. + +The answer to these and other questions like them, I believe, have to lie somewhere in the middle + +For Israel to continue to improve and make strides in the world, some form of internal dialogue is clearly necessary. The demonstrations on Balfour Street that have garnered international media attention have been accused of sullying Israel’s appearance in the world. But how else is organised opposition to Netanyahu’s rule possible? + +A democratic government cannot exist if every one of its actions is deemed beyond criticism — and Israel calls itself Jewish and democratic in character. Can those really coexist in a global village in which no internal dialogue of any significance can truly be shielded from foreign ears and eyes; in a world in which what happens in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv can resonate internationally before the next morning has dawned? + +On the other hand, it makes sense to me that we should have some limitations in place — and a sense of patriotism in our hearts — that should steer us away from egregiously bashing our countrymen and countrywoman at every opportunity, and in every forum whether big (the UN) or small (one manager at a company). + +For example: it would seem counterproductive, to me, to deny that Ireland has a problematic relationship with alcohol. And I don’t feel like writing that is unjustly diminishing Ireland in the world’s eyes. + +On the other hand, I would not feel comfortable holding an Irish passport while criticising every facet of the country. + +Right now, I feel much the same about Israel, even though the dynamics entailed are not quite the same and the reaction to criticism, in Israel, seems to me to be far more controversial. + +So for now — and until I have learned more about the laws of lashon hara and how they apply to occasional criticism of the Jewish state, its institutions of government, and even some of its franchisees — I only have the questions which I have shared here, borne out of an admittedly trivial experience with a customer service email. + +But sometimes it’s the small day to day happenings that throw up the biggest and most meaningful questions. + +At the very least, clarifying, for observant Jews, exactly where we believe the boundaries of allowable and unwarranted criticism of our own country lie, is an important conversation worth having. + +When I have more answers, I will share them. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/is-criticizing-israel-kosher/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/is-criticizing-israel-kosher/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Is-This-Israels-Political-Lowpoint.md b/posts/toi/Is-This-Israels-Political-Lowpoint.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..91d955978459be717a4a349b1fe317a4abc1472b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Is-This-Israels-Political-Lowpoint.md @@ -0,0 +1,81 @@ +# Is This Israel’s Political Lowpoint? + +Today, I made a bold and slightly melodramatic claim. + +Writing on Twitter — which often means writing to myself — I proclaimed that I had “given up” on Israeli politics. + +That’s it! I’m out! No more! + +The truth is that that was slightly dishonest. + +After all, if I didn’t care about Israeli politics, why would I be sitting here writing this? I think the answer is that I do care but think that — right now — the political circus isn’t worth caring about. + +Here’s why I feel that way. + +Nothing New Under The Sun + +Excuse my pessimism, but as a longtime observer of the political field here it seems as if we’ve reached a point in the road at which change has become impossible. + +The dynamic has become truly circular. + +Netanyahu is the country’s longtime political leader. He shows no signs of wanting to cede his grip on power. Right now, there’s no immediate successor in sight to his lengthy reign at Israel’s helm. + +Behind him is Israel’s right-wing conservative base. Tourists visiting Tel Aviv would be forgiven that Israel is a bastion of left wing liberalism. One need only look at the poll numbers to understand that this is not the country’s true character. + +In today’s Israel, the young are more right wing than their parents. Trump is lionized here. Whatever tourism brochures would have you believe, the country’s character is largely right wing, nationalistic, and conservative. And Bibi — who many credit for bringing relative security to Israel and for converting Israel form a socialist backwater to a regional high-tech power — neatly epitomizes those values. + +The Prime Minister, however, is subject to an ongoing judicial investigation. Even though the court system says otherwise, many of his opponents have opined that this makes him unfit to hold office. + +Splinter Parties And Generals + +In Israel’s political system, the electorates votes for a political party’s list rather than for an individual candidate. + +Israel’s democracy can best be described as factious. This is complicated by the fact that many of the parties represent narrow interest groups. And there are many of them. + +The emergence of repetitive splinter groups — typically led by a disaffected individual who felt wronged by his hitherto party’s leader—has traditionally served merely to dilute the voter base. Many of these parties don’t reach the electoral threshold. + +Often, these splinter groups—who in recent years have been at the helm of the “anybody but Bibi” movement—are led by former IDF generals. For many Israelis, strength appears to be the ultimate personal virtue (or at least this is my opinion). + +The suitability of the IDF as a breeding ground for the country’s future leaders has never really been proven. But this is not a fact that does anything to slow down those who throw their hat into the race. + +The futility of following this broken playbook seems lost on many Israeli political leaders. As does the fact that following this broken formula is what has brought us to the current protected and bitter stalemate. + +What’s Missing: Representation + +Israel’s political circus appears bereft of a few things. + +For one, it strikes me as obvious that the system we have today has created a system in which politicians feel a primary sense of allegiance to their party leader and not to the voter. This is highly problematic for a few reasons. + +The interests of the average citizen is conspicuously average in Israeli political discourse. It has been this way for such a long time that it’s hard to remember a time when things were otherwise. + +Israeli politicians do not feel the need to explain what they can do for the people, as many politicians do. The concept of representation and accountability are about as foreign here as cold summers. + +Instead, manifestos tout the strength of the party or create a cult of personality around the leader or merely set out the party’s stance on issues of national importance. The left is as guilty of this as the right. Those that buck this trend become known for their policy like Gesher (cost of living) or Alei Yarok (legalization of cannabis). + +Successful branding for the Israeli market also means that the leader should be perceived as tough, unflinching, and a good deal-maker. Which is why successive former army chiefs have been spun as good candidates. + +Where policy can be found, it most often comes in the shape of positions about macro security issues—like the omniscient Iran threat—rather than about trifling domestic causes like Israel’s sky–high cost of living or its potential lagging competency in STEM subjects, the engine that will drive tomorrow’s high tech growth. Israelis remain focused primarily on survival — even if that means getting a lousy deal form their representatives in return. + +Lest I be mistaken, I don’t argue that those running for office shouldn’t have to prove their suitability to run for office or personal virtue. I simply argue that that can’t be all that’s on the party agenda. As Israelis currently let it be. + +Israelis have allowed themselves to become accustomed to a political system that doesn’t even pretend to watch out for their interests. + +With no constituencies, politicians don’t feel answerable to anybody but the party leader. The bitter fruits of this: unyielding loyalty, rather than proficiency, has become the foremost value which politicians will go to enormous lengths to exemplify. Unsurprisingly, a system of mafia-like cronyism has taken hold and percolated through all levels of the political system from the Knesset down to municipal governments. + +Israel and Israelis need to move past the Bibi vs. Anybody-but-Bibi charade for their own good. And to begin holding their politicians to account. But they stubbornly refuse to let themselves. + +For many, observing the soap opera unfold seems like a more appealing proposition than asking candidates what they can do for the people. Likewise, whether those arguing the case are former IDF generals or repurposed needn’t matter one iota. + +It’s inconsequential. + +Israel needs unity, strong policy, and a a leadership that cares about the people. Whoever can bring that change should be welcomed. They just better have a better reason than that their name isn’t Benjamin Netanyahu. + +Israel needs a political system in which politicians are made to understand that they work for the people. A disruption of the status quo. One in which polticians should vouch for their constituents’ interests in parliament. And not merely for their own. + +Israel needs a system in which politicians feel obliged to field manifestos for running than office and to articulate a positive vision for the country and all its citizens. + +A system which calls for a higher standard of debate than negative campaigning. It won’t emerge through expecting more of the same and demanding nothing more of candidates than a shared disdain for the current leadership. + +Until then what’s in the news is a soap opera. Not politics. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/is-this-israels-political-lowpoint/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/is-this-israels-political-lowpoint/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Israel-Plans-To-Scrap-Judicial-Review-But-Whos-Really-To-Blame.md b/posts/toi/Israel-Plans-To-Scrap-Judicial-Review-But-Whos-Really-To-Blame.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..9e4aecb8641ca0a9f92c564c8ee66060c981b3d4 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Israel-Plans-To-Scrap-Judicial-Review-But-Whos-Really-To-Blame.md @@ -0,0 +1,111 @@ +# Israel Plans To Scrap Judicial Review. But Who’s Really To Blame? + +Many years ago (like most memories before making aliyah, it feels like another lifetime), I sat in a classroom at an Irish university learning about the fundamentals of legal systems. + +While my law degree didn’t prove the springboard into a successful career as a legal high-flyer that my family probably hoped it would, it did provide a basic framework into the operation of legal systems (jurisprudence and constitutional law were my favorite modules). And it gave me some pause for thought about the role systems of laws have to play in shaping the contours of society. + +Public debate in Israel has been rife with two words lately — judicial review. + +Their ongoing mention has thrown me straight back to those old days sitting in a library thumbing through huge legal tomes (they’re always huge); keeping myself awake with endless cans of Monster Energy (this is one vice I’ve thankfully managed to ditch); and hoping that I would pass the exam so that I could move on to thinking about lighter subjects during the summer months. + +Is Israeli Democracy Truly “Sacred” Or Do We Just Really Like Saying That? + +The current political upheavals that we are witnessing in Israel have been cast, by their opponents, as an assault on what they conceive to be the sacred institution of Israeli democracy. + +Israeli democracy finds its most ardent supporters on the political left, which is also why Israel’s rapid lurch to the far right has fanned the flames of what feels, at times, like a civil war in the brewing (although NGOs have also coopted themselves to the cause. One prominent opponent of the tabled reforms that will surprise nobody: The Israeli Democracy Institute). + +Embed from Getty Images + +Besides arguing for the superiority of democracy over the alternatives on the table — autocracy, theocracy, or a classically Middle Eastern admixture of the two — those railing against the collapse of Israeli democracy commonly base their arguments on the vision for the country set out by its secular Zionist pioneers in 1948 and the period leading up to the formation of the state. + +Israel’s founders, they say, always envisioned the country as being a Jewish state in character but not entirely in its legal tradition (specifically one based upon Jewish religious law, called halacha). The game plan, it’s argued, has always been to model Western democracy in a unique way that remains faithful, at the same time, to the unique cultural and religious background of Jewish tradition. And to be exemplary in achieving these two goals that must be forced, at all costs, into a rigid and uncompromising compatibility. + +According to this logic, any dramatic changes to this initial conception of the state — such as summarily doing away with judicial review as a part of its governance — is akin to spitting in the face of those who cleared swamps of malaria so that we could be debating this on the streets of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem or The Times of Israel. An act of gross betrayal. Something we must not let happen at any cost. + +Those on the other side of the argument — probably unnecessary disclaimer: this is broadly where I sit— would argue that there’s nothing sacred or unchallengeable about democracy as a system of governance (even if, to paraphrase Churchill, one maintains that it’s the least bad option out there). + +But these are the battle lines as they’ve roughly, so far, been drawn. + +Would Ending Judicial Review Mean The “Death” Of Israeli Democracy Or Just A Change In Its Terms? + +At the weekly protests that have taken place throughout Israel over the past month — often dragging more than 100,000 protesters out of their homes onto rainy winter streets — the most striking and recurring motif has been lamenting the impending “death” of democracy as an institution. + +Those protesting — and currying support for the cause — insist that we find ourselves currently in a perilous position of nationhood: Perched at the top of a fast precipice with Israel’s demise at its bottom and nothing now standing to arrest our freefall into the abyss of banana republics, Middle Eastern backwaters, and other examples of failed states. For if one’s vision of and support for Israel hinges upon its application of democracy, then the current changes do, indeed, herald cause for huge concern. + +The likely objectives of the protesters remain unclear – excluding the possibility of a coup d’état, even these successive large turnouts don’t have the power to force legal change. But in the coverage that has surrounded them and the debates they have provoked, some fundamental questions have gone largely unaddressed. + +The Questions That Need To Be Asked Beyond The Slogans + +While the debate about judicial review in Israel has been dominated by sloganeering, we haven’t had a chance to hear much discussion of some very important questions that really underpin it and why Israel is potentially headed in this direction. + +I suggest those to be: + +Testing critically, and ideally empirically, the important premise that democracy — and specifically one involving a system of judicial review —is indeed what the vast majority of Israeli citizens want as their system of governance. If it is not, maintaining judicial review is … well, somewhat undemocratic. + +Asking that if democracy is a system of governance that gives expression to the will of the majority of a country’s citizens, then what happens when a majority of the electorate decides that it is no longer the model they wish to pursue? + +If those favoring a halachic-run state (Hebrew: medinat hahalacha ) outbirth and outnumber their secular counterparts, is some kind of theocracy not the inevitable outgrowth of Israel’s democratic beginnings? + +Some more fundamental questions that, I believe, merit far more prominent discussion than they have enjoyed in the public debate to date: + +Is judicial review such an essential feature of the checks and balances system of a democracy that one that lacks it must be considered to be no longer democratic? + +Can we accept that — just as there are different flavors of ice cream in the world — democracy comes in more than one variant? And that a democracy bereft of the function of judicial review is still a form of government worthy of being called by that name? + +Surveying the landscape right now: are there examples of countries that remain democratic — if we accept that to mean the holding of regular free elections – and which do not have a process for judicial/constitutional review? Who are they? + +And if we wish to compare our situation to that of theirs, how do they balance power between the three classic organs of government to prevent abuse of power and the emergence of dictatorships? + +Democracies Can Exist Without Judicial Review + +The most contentious aspect of the tabled reforms in Israel has been the proposal to prevent the Supreme Court from striking down decisions of the legislature. + +In other words: if the Knesset passes a law, then it will enacted, as intended into law. The ability of actors to institute lawsuits against the State through the court system to challenge the legality of such laws will be revoked. + +The implications of this proposed change may at first glance seem technical. But they are both stark and far-reaching. + +A government can, for instance, table and pass legislation fine-tuned to the needs of one individual (such as Aryeh Deri MK). Or it can choose to make fundamental changes to the character of the state through rushing legislation to that effect through the chamber. When an ideological obstacle is removed from the picture (such as an activist supreme court at odds with the outlook of the government) all this rearchitecting work becomes much easier. We’ve already seen worrying evidence of how rapidly the current government intends exploiting all these vulnerabilities. + +Because democracies necessarily involve a few representing a many, for most supporters of democracy, these kind of possibilities need to be somehow taken off the table as possibilities. + +Otherwise, the will of the people — and the intention of democracies is after all to reflect that — can be quickly transposed into “advancing the personal interests of the head of the party and his/her cronies.” + +Democracy, it turns out, is a fickle beast requiring constant tending and not a switch that can be turned on and left to its own devices. It is also highly susceptible to the abuse of power – which is why most democracies invest great thought into devising so-called ‘checks and balances’ mechanisms to prevent exactly this. + +Now here’s the part that gives me at least some confidence that the direction Israel is heading in isn’t the express line to an autocracy. + +I would suggest that if Israel can bolster other processes as a counterweight to the neutering of the judicial review function then there’s still hope that it can avoid the doomsday fate that many are foreseeing – even if judicial review does, indeed, get the axe. + +While Americans have a marked tendency to assume and regard that judicial review is an essential part of democracy — in the US, the highest court in the land has seen this right as its prerogative since the early nineteenth century, Supreme Court justices are public figures, and their rulings are hotly debated in the media — a whistlestop tour of present day legal geography proves that this is not, in fact, the case. + +New Zealand, for one, has no judicial review. The constitution of the Netherlands is so adverse to the idea that it forbids it. Finland, Sweden, and Switzerland — commonly used as examples of model states with traditions of innovative policymaking — are examples of countries that also do relatively fine without it. + +The difference between Israel and these countries? + +None of them are involved in an ongoing fight for their survival which requires the making of hugely difficult decisions. + +They don’t, to the best of my knowledge, house different groups comprising substantial swathes of the population who hold vastly differing and conflicting visions for the fundamental makeup of their country. + +Only New Zealand, among them, has an uncodified constitution. Israel’s surrogate for a constitution – The Basic Laws – is a collection of 13 statutes which set down fundamental principles of the State. Some of these can only be changed by a supermajority. + +At least some of these countries have a constitutionally enshrined process of referendum, thereby bolstering the power of the people over their elected representatives. So-called direct democracy is another powerful means of circumventing the potential rule-by-mob phenomenon that tends to emerge (as it is now in Israel) in environments where parties can only realistically govern by coalition but where coalition partners are also the result of inscrutable political jockeying that is unseen and unknowable to its potential voters. + +Reframing The Cause Of Israel’s Impending Democratic Deficit + +In light of all the above, I would suggest that another way of looking at the worrisome path Israel seems to be shuttling down is as follows: + +Israel’s plans to do away with judicial review do not represent a catastrophic and fundamental threat to its nature as a democracy. + +Rather, the proposed changes seek to undermine democracy in Israel as it has existed up to now. + +They would serve to expedite a quick transition towards a more autocratic means of governance. But in doing so they are merely highlighting problems that have been lingering just below the surface since the State’s foundation. + +Preexisting features of governance in Israel — the lack of a single constitution as a clear source of supreme law, conflicting and unresolved natures about fundamental questions of state among large sectors of its population, the lack of a guaranteed process for referenda to safeguard the integrity of that document, and all these things taken together — created, and continue to create, the perfect bedrock for a shift to autocracy to take place. + +Unless this is changed, Israel’s system of governance will continue to be fertile territory for strongmen (and strongwomen) to take the country, essentially, in the direction they and their political bedfellows of the day personally choose. True democracy will continue to be inverted into the rule of one-plus-friends. + +I don’t believe that the current political developments presage the death knell to Israeli democracy. I see them, rather, as part of a problematic and inevitable transition towards autocratic rule that’s been decades in the making. The threat to judicial review may be today’s pitched battle. But there’s a much larger war at stake than this too. + +The rights of the electorate in Israel — to have the actions of government reflect their will and to expect that reasonable safeguards against abuses of power are instituted and remain in place — need to be elevated through the rationalization of our disparate system of Basic Laws into a single source of higher law with guaranteed plebiscites over any possible change in terms. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israel-plans-to-scrap-judicial-review-but-whos-really-to-blame/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israel-plans-to-scrap-judicial-review-but-whos-really-to-blame/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Israels-leaky-security-barrier-a-free-pass-for-terror-cells.md b/posts/toi/Israels-leaky-security-barrier-a-free-pass-for-terror-cells.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b2f74177c75f379bcaa939d0401f337601a2df95 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Israels-leaky-security-barrier-a-free-pass-for-terror-cells.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# Israel’s leaky security barrier a free pass for terror cells + +It took security officials less than a day to ascertain how two Palestinians from near Hebron had managed to enter Israel bearing firearms and infiltrate into the heart of Tel Aviv without raising an alarm. + +Like the twenty-one year old resident of Qalqilya who drew a knife on a Tel Aviv promenade in March, killing an American tourist and injuring eleven others, the cousins from Yatta responsible for Wednesday’s deadly attack entered Israel through one of the many gaps in Israel’s security barrier. + +The incident prompted the usual response from defence officials, who seem to have adopted a de-facto policy of committing to piecemeal fixes to the incomplete security infrastructure after each round of attacks without promising to finally finishing the remaining 320 kilometre stretch of the barrier that remain incomplete. + +Unfinished business + +The story of the construction of the security barrier is not a case study likely to grace the pages of project management textbooks for years to come. + +Conceived amidst international outcry after the Second Intifada as a means of preventing armed terrorists from crossing into Israel and committing mass casualty attacks, work on the barrier effectively ended without explanation in 2007 with an average of just 5km. of barrier a year having been added to it since. + +The extent of the ‘gaps’ that remain to the barrier – the vast majority of which consists of an unassuming 10ft high fence rather than the towering concrete slabs depicted in media coverage – represents more than six times the distance between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, a significant stretch of Israel’s minuscule territory. + +Political spats between Palestinians and the army – often trashed out at Israel’s left-leaning High Court – as well as territorial difficulties have impeded some segments of the politically contentious barrier from being built. + +No clearer explanation than shifting military priorities has ever been given from official quarters, however, to explain why the controversial security project was essentially abandoned only 60% complete. + +Netanyahu’s hawkish security policies, as well as the international condemnation incurred from only the partial finishing of the barrier, makes his seeming inability to bring it to completion all the more perplexing. + +Although police and security officials have occasionally referenced their unease at the situation after attacks, most Israelis would be shocked to learn that the security barrier is simply incomplete. + +It has only been since successive terrorist attacks were discovered or proven to have been made possible because the attackers crossed through the disingenuously titled ‘gaps’ in the fence (some sections extend for over ten kilometres) that the issue has received prominence in the Israeli media. + +Maps of the barrier route produced by left-wing advocacy group B’Tselem show that the barrier as it stands falls far short of its stated purpose of preventing suicide bombings from the West Bank and represents more of a deterrent or inconvenience than an actual obstacle to unauthorized Palestinian entry into Israel. + +While major Palestinian cities in area A have been effectively barricaded, adjoining villages as well as swathes of rural areas abutting Israeli territory often have not. + +The situation as it stands primarily results in thousands of Palestinians without entry permits illegally living and working in Israel but has been proven – as on Wednesday – to also also allow free passage to terrorists, who by simply taking a circuitous route from their place of origin in the West Bank can enter Israel unimpeded by either checkpoint or barrier. + +Even in areas where the fence stands, would-be assailants can use ladders or simply their hands (the fence is not electrified) to manually scale it. + +Palestinian news wire Ma’an, in a 2013 article, described how easy it was for West Bank Arabs to cross into Southern Jerusalem via the valley in Al Walaja adjoining the city’s Malha neighbourhood, which affords free access to the country’s capital. + +“It’s very normal to cross like this,” an unnamed source said, citing the main strategies necessary to evade Border Police patrols as being hiding behind boulders and trees. A photo from a Btselem reporter shows that this isn’t an exaggeration. + +Budget or security + +At a time when Israel is building a high-tech fence along its last open border adjoining Jordan in the Arava region, it is somewhat remarkable that the relatively benign security conditions Israel has been experiencing for the past few years eclipsed the issue of finishing a series of gaping holes around the West Bank. + +This is, after all, the territory from where the vast majority of suicide bombers emanated during the harrowing days of the Second Intifada, and two-thirds of whose residents recently affirmed their support for the current wave of stabbings against Israelis. + +The majority of attacks in the current popular Palestinian uprising have been carried out with knives by attackers from East Jerusalem – within the course of the barrier and Israel ‘proper’. + +However the most gruesome of the attacks, such as Wednesday’s, have been perpetrated by attackers who exploited the vulnerabilities of the barrier to cross into Israel from Palestinian villages in the West Bank. + +Although the government is quick to point out that the barrier has decreased terror attacks inside Israel by an estimated 90%, the recent attacks have brought greater public awareness to the vulnerability of the presently porous barrier encircling the West Bank. + +It has also led many to the uncomfortable realization that the security it provides may be more of a mirage than commonly thought. + +Whatever military or budgetary decisions that deemed the barrier’s completion a low priority have time and again been proved wrong. + +Netanyahu, always eager to prove his security credentials, should take Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman’s demand for more than “just words” at face value. + +His opportunity to do so: finish the barrier once and for all. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-leaky-security-barrier-a-free-pass-for-terror-cells/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-leaky-security-barrier-a-free-pass-for-terror-cells/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Jerusalems-pristine-snow-day-sullied-by-ugly-politics.md b/posts/toi/Jerusalems-pristine-snow-day-sullied-by-ugly-politics.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..803429bf0f8bab98a4ce440f746a9626517fa1a9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Jerusalems-pristine-snow-day-sullied-by-ugly-politics.md @@ -0,0 +1,39 @@ +# Jerusalem’s pristine snow day, sullied by ugly politics + +For those who missed the news, yesterday, Jerusalem awoke to a snow-covered city coated in white. + +Jerusalem receives snow fall at most about once a year. During the seven years I have been living in the city, we have received three major snow events, including one last year. + +For the most part, however, Jerusalem winters are just more benign versions of the winters I grew up with in Ireland: Relatively temperate affairs marred by periodic drenching downpours and the odd storm (although it must be pointed out that Irish infrastructure seems substantially more resilient to the effects of rainfall than its Middle Eastern counterpart). + +Like many snow-obsessed Jerusalem residents, I spent much of Tuesday glued to social media receiving obscure updates about isobars and declining conditions in the upper atmosphere that heralded the imminent arrival of snowfall (for this entertainment I turned to Jerusalem Weather Forecasts — an excellent amateur weather buff’s pet project replete with detailed explanations that went far above my pay grade). + +Just as predicted, around 19:00 IST the first signs of snow began to fall over the city. As before, social media got there before the news did — I received the first hopeful updates about snow sighting in Jerusalem’s more elevated northerly neighborhoods and soon enough it had reached us in the city’s South. + +Thoughts then turned to how I could postpone as many business meetings as possible the next day so that I could frolic around outside hurling snowballs, like other fully grown adults with bills to pay. + +Then to where my gloves were. And finally to whether my camera had charge so that I could shoot some videos for my YouTube channel (mandatory plug — here’s the link — I shot some videos of the snow in Baka). + +Between ventures outsides and reluctant meetings I posted some of my own photographs to social media and marveled at others’ — sighting beautiful snowfalls in places of the capital that I didn’t have time to reach (as expected, the snow only clung to the ground for one day. Given the already short winter days here, I, like many, felt a vaguely stressful urge to spend as much time as possible in the snow before it melted or night fell!). + +And there, the first signs of ugly political point-scoring were evident. + +Although most of my few Twitter followers would, by now, probably consider me a through-and-through leftie (Hebrew: smolani; I rue how the word has devolved into a semi-insult in Hebrew), I lay the blame for this unnecessary bout of aggravation squarely at the door of our neighbors in East Jerusalem. + +In an attack method that was as resourceful as it was sickly abhorrent, Palestinians apparently took to throwing disguised snowballs — containing rocks — at random Jewish bystanders and police. Terror snowballs — quite literally. + +In an attempt to take advantage of the inclement weather and the relative chaos it brought to the city, Palestinians began rioting in A-Tur and elsewhere in Jerusalem. + +The narrative was quickly — and again, this is as clever as it is perverse — twisted to the fiction that Israeli police had cruelly prevented Palestinians from playing in the snow. + +The complete and utter lie (the arrests were in response to rioting) was quickly and predictably swallowed up by partisans on social media — Israel once more portrayed baselessly as the inhumane and sadistic villain in the familiar script that dictates how the conflict here is viewed in the West. + +Later, beautiful photographs of everywhere in Jerusalem decked out in snow were tweeted. While the hasbara world apparently missed the gawking opportunity to shove in a bit of sloganeering about snow now being visible in Israel’s eternal capital (or something to that effect), the opportunity was not lost on the Palestinians. + +They enthusiastically tweeted how the “occupied Old City” was now blanketed in snow — while reminding that over in A-Tur those nasty IDF soldiers had cruelly arrested them while trying to have a good old snowfight (just kindly ignore the fact that those snowballs contained rocks intended for lobbying at passers-by and that when police arrived at the scene they were met with stone-throwing and assailants wielding baseball bats.) + +Can’t we just put our differences aside and enjoy a rare day of fun together in the snow? + +In Jerusalem, as we learned yesterday, the answer is apparently, sadly, a resolute “no.” + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/jerusalems-pristine-snow-day-sullied-by-ugly-politics/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/jerusalems-pristine-snow-day-sullied-by-ugly-politics/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Lessons-from-an-Israeli-Palestinian-beer-and-burger-meetup.md b/posts/toi/Lessons-from-an-Israeli-Palestinian-beer-and-burger-meetup.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..76fbd7e980932860ba87b87a77bcfabfcaa7c122 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Lessons-from-an-Israeli-Palestinian-beer-and-burger-meetup.md @@ -0,0 +1,75 @@ +# Lessons from an Israeli-Palestinian beer-and-burger meetup + +Last night, at an undisclosed location in the West Bank (I’ve been waiting my whole career to say that), a group of Israeli and Palestinian civilians, including the author, sat down over hamburgers, beer, and baklava in order to trash out the politics of one of the thorniest conflicts on the planet. + +It’s probably fair to say that this, alone, represented a significant shift from most of our mid-week routines and dining habits. + +After enough years of living in this part of the world, a subtle sort of ennui over the conflict eventually settles over life. + +As day to day living goes on — with its doctors’ appointments and kid pickups and work meetings—the conflict (mostly) fades, conveniently, into the background. Until rockets rain down on your city, forcing you into shelter, or the IDF enters your village in the middle of the night, piercing the evening quiet with shouts and stun grenades. + +But for most denizens of this land, such moments of stark in-you-face encounters with the conflict are (thankfully) fairly rare. + +For the most part, its ugly manifestations doesn’t arrive on your doorstep (if you live in Hebron or the Shuafat Refugee Camp that might be different. But most people don’t). + +Instead, it’s a dislikeable but ongoing facet of living in a part of the world contested by two different peoples. A conflict that most rational actors would rather didn’t exist or which would at least reach a speedy resolution. Sort of like the permanently dreary weather in Ireland. Without the politics part and the rockets and the humvees. + +Against the backdrop of such boredom — and the longtime moribund state of the peace process — it’s easy to become jaded. + +Eating hamburgers and knaffe with some likeminded and agreeable Palestinians is a fun way to spend an evening — something foreigners often fail to grasp about the conflict is that Israelis and West Bank Palestinians enjoy scarcely any interactions — but on a day when stray Gazan rockets landed near Tel Aviv and the IDF returned with attacks on positions in Gaza, do such well-intentioned acts amount to anything other than a tiny drop in the ocean of hatred and ill-will? + +The Details Missing From Both Sides’ Narratives + +To answer my own question “probably not.” + +But it would be a mistake to deny that small personal investments of time and effort cannot at least ameliorate the plight of living in this part of the world even, if only, for the participants themselves. + +The meetup — facilitated by a Jewish activist known only by his kunya of ‘Abu Jibreel’ — reinforced, for me, that black and white views and divisive narratives are at the root of so much that is wrong in this part of the world. + +That even token gestures of coexistence — like eating a burger — can thaw at least some of the ice that has frozen over relations between Jews and Arabs. And perhaps, with more positive developments on the political front, bode the way for a bright future. + +I’ve already aired my views about hasbara here — typically described as pro-Israel advocacy although its apologists are ever-quick to remind that its literal Hebrew translation is more like “explaining.” + +As a once-aspiring journalist (I now work on what journalists call the “dark side” of communications), I positively hate it. + +For its selective distortion of facts. For its relentless focus on glorifying Israel and casting the Palestinians as the unending baddies — as if it were laying out the plot line to an old-time Western and each side had to reach caricature level proportions before the audience could be satisfied that they’d gotten their money’s worth. + +But above all, for its gross simplification of the conflict here and for its unapologetic belief in the idea that hate must be confronted with a furious avalanche of state-sanctioned and funded propaganda. Even from a perspective within the pro-Israel camp, I see its activity as unconstructive — even, in fact, harmful. + +Equally, the information emanating from the pro-Palestinian camp is scarcely any better — in fact, it’s typically worse. + +Official Palestinian news sources effectively serve primarily as mouthpieces for Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the most virulent and violent constituents of the Palestinian cause, furthering blatant lies and inciting violence against both Israel and individual Israelis. + +Context gets thrown out the window — or sacrificed on the altar of portraying Israel and Jews as quasi-demonic entities intent on causing the maximum amount of harm to their neighbors on the other side of the wall (it’s never mentioned that it was constructed for security). It reaches comic proportions, too. A picture of Jews quietly visiting the Temple Mount and abiding by the Waqf’s onerous restrictions is routinely described as a “raid” — conjuring the idea of hordes of religious fanatics trampling footloose over Muslim holy sites. + +But most unfortunately, perhaps, the narratives of both governments — Israel and the PA — are argued strongly enough by themselves that they have succeeded in spawning worldwide networks of ‘Friends of’ organizations who have made it their life’s mission to convince the ambivalent majority that what they thought about the Israel-Palestinian conflict ain’t really so — and only if they could read this leaflet or come to this lecture they might cast the shadows off their minds. The world is therefore constantly being evangelized by not one but two false dogmas about the same tiny patch of land. It’s no wonder that most roll their eyes at mention of the conflict here. + +This propagandization of the conflict (I made up that word, by the way) is unhelpful on many levels. + +But majorly so because it obscures what Irish documentary-maker Nicky Larkin called the ‘Forty Shades of Grey’ which he sees as being inherent to the conflict (Larkin came to make the documentary as a committed Palestinian activist but came to the conclusion that both sides commit a lot of wrong; hence the work’s name). + +At every meetup I’ve thus far participated in, it’s those shades of gray — and the mutual ignorance that comes from living in close proximity but worlds apart — that emerge shining most strongly. + +When attempting to organize one of the first meetups, our organizer, Abu Jibreel, suggested, naively, that we meet in a café in Jerusalem. (West Bank Palestinians require a special permit in order to visit Jerusalem and, these days, the Israeli Army isn’t exactly giving them out like candy. The idea was thus a non-runner). + +In response, a Palestinian suggested that we venture into Ramallah instead. (Equally problematic. Israelis are legally prohibited from visiting cities located in area A. A recent torching of a car carrying Israelis who accidentally strayed into the city reinforced the necessity of the ban). + +On a more subtle level, each meeting is filled with lots of little learnings. + +Each glimmer of information may not— in its own right —provide fodder for the next Hollywood blockbuster. But cumulatively they cast some much-needed humanity on what — for almost everybody on each side of the conflict — would simply otherwise simply be the “other.” + +Last night, for instance, I learned that the northern city of Tulkarm is considered one of the more conservative Palestinian cities. + +Somebody’s mother wanted their daughter to marry only somebody from the same town. Palestinians learned of the various levels of kosher certification, a concrete manifestation of the fact that even Israel’s Jewish population is divided on many levels. We got to know one another. We… co-existed. + +The last time I checked Google News, last night’s meetup hadn’t, unfortunately, succeeded in bringing about the end of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. + +Nevertheless, it did succeed in bringing together 10 Israelis and Palestinians who otherwise would have remained unknowing but mortal enemies, seeing one another perhaps only through the lens of international news coverage about the hapless state of the dispute between these two peoples. + +For that reason, if only, it was worth braving last night’s rain to enjoy some burgers, beer, and good company. + +— + +To protect the identity of the participants some insignificant details have been changed. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/lessons-from-an-israeli-palestinian-beer-and-burger-meetup/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/lessons-from-an-israeli-palestinian-beer-and-burger-meetup/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git "a/posts/toi/My-Thoughts-On-Simona-Weinglasss-ORM-Expos\303\251.md" "b/posts/toi/My-Thoughts-On-Simona-Weinglasss-ORM-Expos\303\251.md" new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..6ce2f3bee1b6f68768edac511a5f9c45fb74da5f --- /dev/null +++ "b/posts/toi/My-Thoughts-On-Simona-Weinglasss-ORM-Expos\303\251.md" @@ -0,0 +1,87 @@ +# My Thoughts On Simona Weinglass's ORM Exposé + +Today, this website published another excellent TOI Investigates piece from Simona Weinglass. + +For those unaware, Simona Weinglass is the same reporter who penned the epic ‘Wolves of Tel Aviv’ exposé that essentially kickstarted the slow and ongoing meltdown of the disgraceful, deceptive binary/forex industry. + +Beyond kicking off legislative action here in Israel, the piece has been shared more than 23,000 times at the time of writing — indicating that it also started an important conversation that, when it comes to Israeli high-tech, “all that glitters is not gold.” + +I can imagine that some might view airing Israel’s dirty economic laundry with a jaundiced eye. + +I would argue that Israel’s authorities have proven themselves unwilling to fully crack down on some of the dubious industries they are home to. And that without the uncomfortable light of international media coverage, it is doubtful that anything would have changed at all. + +For instance, it has been the FBI — not the Israeli authorities — that has led the charge against prosecuting the binary/forex lynchpins who were the masterminds of the type of (sort of) unsuspecting olim operatives that Weinglass sourced comment from. (According to one immigrant worker quoted in Weinglass’s piece: “I was told to tell people I had years of experience in the market, that I had studied at Oxford and worked for the Bank of Scotland.”) + +Judging by the posts on Israeli job boards, it would also appear as if efforts to completely stymie the industry here have been unsuccessful. This is unsurprising. + +Apparently buckling under industry pressure, the law that eventually passed the Knesset was a watered-down version of what it was originally intended to be. Unlicensed marketers of other financial products — namely forex — were allowed to continue operating. + +In response to the legislation, many online crooks moved operations overseas on paper. Given their proximity to Israel, Cyprus and Malta remain popular destinations. While other shifted into fields with comparable potential for mischief, particularly the cryptocurrency space. + +It is sad, but not unexpected, that it was the US that ultimately succeeded in landing the first major prosecution of a binary lynching and not Israel: Lee Elbaz was sentenced to 22 years in prison by a US court last December. Most of binary options’ victims were based overseas, although the activity emanated from Israel. But — thanks to the Times of Israel’s dogged investigative work — Israel had sent out a clear message that it was not going to allow its territory to be used as a base for overseas scams. + +My Encounter With Israel’s ORM Industry + +Simona’s deserving target today was the dubious field of Online Reputation Management (ORM) which also has a substantial presence in Israel. + +Despite the impression which the coverage might give, ORM is not inherently a bad industry. + +ORM can be used by those with excellent reputations to proactively manage what appears about them on Google, the great arbiter of five second public opinion. + +Because it’s involved in managing reputations, however, ORM is a field that is rife for abuse — and many choose to chase after the easier and more lucrative money that lies in helping fraudsters and scammers to shield their misdeeds from the first page of Google. + +Thus, while not inherently toxic, the field has unfortunately become a magnet for “black hat” operatives who exploit the same tactics that those looking to proactively preserve good reputations use in order to keep the doldrums of “bad news” from blowing over their personal reputations. + +I should know. I got a brief glimpse into the field through my freelance work. + +“Our Client Has Some Bad Press” + +I’ve been working as a freelance writer for five years, although it’s only been my full-time income for two and a half of those years. And, like most freelance writers, I’ve gradually ascended through the client ranks. + +The low-point of my first year in business was probably writing a description for a clickbait video about the various ways in which one could microwave bacon. Written from an office in the epicenter of Jerusalem. By a Jewish author who attempts to keep kosher. + +A less obvious one that sneaked into my client list via a referral was a content marketing firm that purported to be based in Cyprus. Which made it strange that the founder seemed to have never heard of Larnaca and had an Israeli cellphone number. + +The client approached me with a quandary. It began with the wonderful euphemism that their client had unfortunately accrued some “bad press.” What had in fact transpired was that the firm’s client had just been arrested — oh my! — but, ever the industrious duo, they had just pivoted into a new line of business. + +In retrospect, it was woefully stupid of me not to stop my engagement with this client right there and then. DSR Ghostwriting, I should state, is not generally in the business of promoting the newfound commercial interests of suspected (now confirmed) fraudsters. Although equally, doesn’t everybody deserve a second chance? + +Or perhaps, rather than being naive, maybe I was simply intrigued by the brief. After all, it offered far more mystery and intrigue than penning another video description about how the high setting was the best option to get your bacon extra crispy. + +The brief was for a series of five articles. It explained — without mentioning the fact that it was a barefaced fiction — that the two unlucky jailbirds were “investing heavily” in blockchain. Yes, I had heard of it. The interesting thing was that, despite my best online sleuthing, there was no mention of an association between the misfortunate Israelis and this new technology. + +It got better. + +The brief also stated that the articles were to be written from different “tones of voice.” Unknown to me, but apparent later, that meant that the articles were not in fact works of ghostwriting for the unlucky client — incarcerated on some far-off tax haven. Rather, they would be spun out onto various fake news websites that the client illicitly operated and attributed to fictitious reporters who were disseminating completely fake news about the duo’s investment in blockchain. I discovered these intriguing details retrospectively through simply running “exact match” searches on the illicit content that I had helped author. + +A week later, while paying courtesy calls, I met my client at a swanky cocktail bar in Tel Aviv which curiously sounded as if it was a coffee shop. The good thing about meeting clients in person — I’d call this Client Management 101 — is that you pick up tidbits which the client would never put in writing or say over the phone. + +This meeting didn’t disappoint. + +Appearing somewhat inebriated and clutching what might have been one of many beers that evening (I’m not sure coffee was even on the menu) the client confidently confided “just write anything, mate. It’s total b***cks.” + +An Industry Built On Lies + +After learning that my Cyprus-base client in all likelihood lived in Israel and wasn’t visiting home on a business trip, and that she was presiding over a marketing operation that involved writing complete fiction for convicted fraudsters (at this point I was asking myself: is anything true?) I pieced together a little bit more about what Online Reputation Management (ORM) was and how it all works. I should qualify that with: black hat ORM. + +Putting my experience together with Simona Weinglass’s reporting today, it would appear that Israel is home to a cluster of ORM companies that play the decidedly black hat side of the game. + +Having become acquainted with the methodologies that some operators use to promote fake content and attempt to artificially suppress real news carrying negative sentiment, I would venture a guess at the number of such operatives based here as a few. And to clarify: I am not alleging malfeasance against any company in particular. + +Naturally, I can’t go into detail about who my former client was — or who their client was, the person I was inadvertently creating ORM articles for. + +All I can say is that while nothing appeared on Google about their newfound proclivity for investing in blockchain that I was writing about, there was plenty of coverage from top-tier media about their arrest for not reporting million of dollars of profit hidden in tax havens. + +The two at the center of this scandal — like the company helping them (and note: the company wasn’t mentioned in Simona’s coverage) — were both residents of Israel. + +By utilizing the services of an ORM specialist to create fictitious articles about their investments in Blockchain, the pair were hoping to divert the narrative from their arrest and push the damning content about their arrest on tax evasion charges further down the Google rankings. + +There’s much more to the machinations of the ORM companies than this. But these are the essential details. At least as I’m familiar with them. + +The black hat ORM machine that proliferates in Israel is another dirty industry that does Israel’s international reputation no favors. The world, olim and the State of Israel would all be better if it didn’t exist here. + +It is one of several — and it is great that the TOI is lifting the lid on these industries. + +Now I must go. Thankfully, I have more legitimate work to attend to. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/my-thoughts-on-simona-weinglasss-orm-expose/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/my-thoughts-on-simona-weinglasss-orm-expose/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/One-Year-Later-Jerusalems-Hottest-Food-Celeb-Still-Serving-Up-Post-Fulls-Of-Delight.md b/posts/toi/One-Year-Later-Jerusalems-Hottest-Food-Celeb-Still-Serving-Up-Post-Fulls-Of-Delight.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..067894e2080721c8b8c1c8f8d20db2a9fcfae34b --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/One-Year-Later-Jerusalems-Hottest-Food-Celeb-Still-Serving-Up-Post-Fulls-Of-Delight.md @@ -0,0 +1,67 @@ +# One Year Later, Jerusalem’s Hottest Food Celeb Still Serving Up Post-Fulls Of Delight + +A little over one year ago, few Jerusalemites had heard the name Shimshon Sam Leshinsky. + +The soft-spoken Australian immigrant resides in the Jerusalem suburb of Har Homa — far from the bright lights of downtown. + +He works in administration for a government department. And nothing much about his aliyah story to date seems that extraordinary. + +But that’s where the similarities between Shimshon Leshinsky and your typical aliyah story end. + +Leshinsky is no ordinary immigrant — in fact, he defies even well-worn influencer stereotypes (he doesn’t own a selfie-stick, is far past his teens, and cares more about honesty than going viral and hashtags.) + +One year since he began sharing his iconic food reviews on the Secret Jerusalem Facebook group and Shimshon’s fame has spread far and wide through Jerusalem and beyond. + +He cannot walk far through the city without being mobbed by fans — or at least taken aside by some wellwishers who want a selfie with their foodie hero. + +Leshinsky is open about the fact that he has accepted the hospitality of several of his readers who have had him over as a guest (he enjoyed one of his first Thanksgiving dinners in Israel thanks to a family he met through the network). He refers to these readers as “Secret Jerusalem friends” and is sometimes escorted by a growing entourage of them as he samples the capital’s offerings. In this way, Leshinsky bridges the gap between the virtual world of the popular social networking group and the real world that he we all inhabit in parallel—reaching across demographics to provide a staple of interest for residents both young and old, Hebrew-speaking and Anglophones. + +His fans appear to enjoy something of a parasocial relationship with the food icon even if it’s hard to spend time on the Jerusalem restaurant scene without rubbing shoulders with the food reviewer (he comes attired, almost always, in a characteristic jacket and tie). + +He’s shared with us details of his simachot including his daughter’s wedding last year and his delight at discovering his new in-laws’ traditions. + +He espouses the distinctly Jewish idea that social networking is like participating in a virtual Shabbat meal. + +And Leshinsky has surprised many of us with his adventurous palette that seems to vacillate effortlessly between sampling fiery Moroccan delicacies and classically Ashkenazi organ meats. Although the food reviewer was recently attacked for referring to arepas as “Venezuelan pitas,” Leshinsky takes these little moments of learning in his stride. For Leshinsky and his indefatigable palette, it seems there is always something else to try—always a new corner of the Jewish world left to experience vicariously through its culinary imprint upon Jerusalem’s restaurant scene. + +As Leshinsky’s reviews have amassed in number — at this stage, I estimate he’s published well in excess of 100 of them — so too has his repute. + +He’s been interviewed on multiple media outlets — both English and Hebrew-speaking (his review of Effendi was picked up by Kan’s radio show). And his reviews — famed for their candor and refreshing wit — have been spawned an unofficial fan-run fanpage with more than 1,000 likes. A tongue-in-cheek campaign to elect Leshinsky mayor even surfaced on the network. + +Who is Leshinsky and how did he get here? + +He Runs Between Restaurants To Keep Fit + +Having enjoyed three enjoyable lunch dates with Shimshon over the course of the pandemic — I recorded Shimshon’s first video review during my last one at Yolo Bakery — I’ve gained a little bit of insight into the culinary life and brain of this shadowy south Jerusalem figure from down under. + +For one, Shimshon plans his reviews out ritualistically (I work in communications and admire his organizational skills in this respect). + +Although associates say that he sometimes keeps his day’s reviewing agenda a closely guarded secret—for by now there are few venues in Jerusalem that haven’t heard of his name. He jokes about running between food excursions to keep fit; appears to rarely eat in his own home; and peppers his reviews, like a steak, with well-seasoned anecdotes about his time living in the city and his family’s origins in Australia. + +Readers of the Jerusalem Post have been given reasons to believe that that newspaper’s own food correspondents may be taking the odd cue from Leshinsky’s eating forays. A series of copycat reviewers has even sprung up on the website — beginning their own reviews with Leshinsky’s classic barrage of questions intermixed with shrewd observations; a highly unusual verbal potpourri of information. + +As is well known, Shimshon insists on paying in full for his meals — he doesn’t want there to be any doubts on his absolute impartiality — and he shares my journalistic disdain for reviewers who receive meals that were comped by the venues. But he also appears to plan his next review destination carefully ahead of time. + +Jerusalem’s food scene is always coming and going with new arrivals. + +Sadly, over the course of this harsh pandemic, many great establishments have been forced to shut their doors. + +Leshinsky’s main motivator — besides being, apparently, a voracious enjoyer of food — is to shine a spotlight on some of the city’s fine cuisine. + +I attempted to borrow some of Leshinsky’s industriousness recently when I reviewed a new meat restaurant in Baka. I was quickly and rightly assailed for my failure to note the teudah —at least more assiduously than “it’s kosher of some variety or another” (the remark was somewhat in jest, which is always difficult to translate into black and white text on the internet). After one year in the review game, Leshinsky doesn’t make these mistakes. + +He is quick off the mark when a new restaurant opens its doors. Liberal with the details. And recently hasn’t shied away from pointing out when the odd food establishment in Jerusalem didn’t live up to his exacting standards. + +*** + +Over the course of the year, Leshinsky’s tireless reviewing has won him many fans — and a few detractors. + +His reviews have mapped out the city’s evolving culinary scene for countless English-speaking residents of the city — as well as visiting family and overseas Jews. + +He’s ventured into writing about subjects such as flower hills and doors — but he makes clear that food is where his heart lies. + +It’s hard to believe it — the pandemic creates the sense of a time warp — but it’s been more than one year since Shimshon Leshinsky first burst onto the Jerusalem social media scene and began penning his catching reviews. + +Most would agree that the city’s English-speaking community has been richer for his contributions. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/one-year-later-jerusalems-hottest-food-celeb-still-serving-up-post-fulls-of-delight/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/one-year-later-jerusalems-hottest-food-celeb-still-serving-up-post-fulls-of-delight/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Pragmatism-not-bridge-building-governs-Israels-emerging-peace-ties.md b/posts/toi/Pragmatism-not-bridge-building-governs-Israels-emerging-peace-ties.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e70025337263acdc17ff104197a76357573881d9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Pragmatism-not-bridge-building-governs-Israels-emerging-peace-ties.md @@ -0,0 +1,69 @@ +# Pragmatism, not bridge-building, governs Israel’s emerging peace ties + +I’ve been as interested as anybody to learn about the announcement of diplomatic relations that have become a staple item in the news agenda in Israel for the past few months. + +Although I’ll admit that my first thoughts have tended to turn to food. + +“What’s Butanese cooking like? Will they open a takeaway in Tel Aviv?” + +Sorry for being so debased. And hungry. + +Regardless of whether we’ll be eating kosher jasha maroo and ema datshi next year in Jerusalem, it does seem certain that these ties are going to continue blossoming. + +The pattern seems to be obvious now. Such that it can almost be predicted. + +Insiders will leak cryptic clues that “more ties on the way” (note: the circle has already repeated itself and Oman and Indonesia are being billed as the next in line). + +Then, one sunny morning, when Israelis have finished their morning coffee and forgotten about the latest round of speculation, social media will blow up with news that another former foe has announced ties with Israel. It’s happened — again! Then the Tel Aviv Municipality will light up City Hall with the colors of the new diplomatic partner’s national flag. Then we’ll all go back to worrying about the pandemic. + +Many on the right in Israel have predictably seized upon this unexpected diplomatic windfall as proof of the genius of the now bygone Trump era — a reign, like that of Bibi, that they would seemingly wish continued indefinitely. + +“Can you imagine Biden achieving any of these things? NO!” an angry-sounding commented intoned on the Jerusalem Post’s talkback sections. That type of discourse is pretty indicative of the lot. + +While I have no doubt that the ties will benefit Israel, I think that pragmatism provides the best explanation for their sudden mushrooming. + +A Changed Calculus Governing Relations + +The question at the heart of the emergence of ties between Israel and the Arab World is to what extent Arab nations are prepared to place Arab nationalism above the pragmatism. + +And the emergence of ties between Israel and the UAE means that —in the eyes of many—the formula which historically governed ties has been upended. + +You don’t need to be a prize-winning economist to see the positives for Israel’s new trading partners. + +Normalizing diplomatic relations with Israel affords Arab countries a closer trade relationship with the regional superpower of the Middle East. One which can offer their countries technology exports and other know-how if their leaders allow it. + +Emirati leaders have set the tone for the dance. + +Their messaging has focused around highlighting to Israelis that this will be a “warm peace” — drawing a sharp distinction between relations with Egypt and Jordan. + +While Israel and Egypt and Jordan are at peace, nobody is under any illusions about the depth of animosity that lie beneath the agreements. Periodic incidents like the shooting of a guard at the Israeli embassy in Amman and the tension over the returning of the “Island of Peace” enclave to Jordan underscore the depths of the division. + +Secondly, UAE leaders have highlighted how their country can work with Israel for mutual benefit. Here, they have been transparent in their emphases — focusing on the commercial and economic nature of the relationship. + +Thani Al Shirawi, vice-chairman and deputy managing director at the Al Shirawi Group of Companies, told an Israeli conference that the UAE could help the Startup Nation become the Scale Up Nation — referring to the high density of early stage startups in Israel but also to the fact that, as a tiny market, Israeli startups have historically needed intermediate markets from which to scale (a role up to now played predominantly by the US). + +Although relations between Israel and the Emiratis have been quietly cultivating themselves for some time, the very sight of an Emirati businessman openly addressing an Israeli forum and calling for a “marriage” between the two countries would have been unthinkable just a few short years ago. + +That is because the emergence of diplomatic and trade relations with Bahrain, the UAE, Morocco, and Bhutan represents nothing short of a betrayal — by the Arab world — of the Palestinian cause. + +The geopolitical signal being sent out is clear: relations with Israel are no longer predicated upon Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians or the reaching of some kind of mutually satisfactory resolution to their conflict. + +The moribund peace process — and the fact that the “Deal of the Century” is worth possibly only the paper it was written on — is no impediment to the advancement of bilateral ties. + +Once the UAE broke ranks on this, the cascade that followed was almost inevitable. The internal Arab calculus around the Israel question has shifted. Somebody just had to be the first one willing to publicly rewrite the equation. + +If forming ties with Israel no longer means being excommunicated from the pan-Arab fold, then there can only be net gains from doing business with Israel. Few countries want to shoot themselves in the foot by looking a gift horse in the mouth. + +While the ties are certainly a boon for Israel’s export-led tech industry, in the minds of many, it would nevertheless be a mistake to mistake moves taken due to economic exigency for the beginnings of a new era of lasting peace with the Arab world. + +The peace is not cold a la Jordan and Egypt. But it remains to be seen whether economic benefit can truly lead to a more significant rapprochement with dimensions that surpass the exchange of goods and services. + +Henry Kissinger once said that America has no permanent friends or enemies, only interests. + +Those words resonate beyond the context in which they were originally uttered. + +For some friends of Israel, the carte blanche that the Arab world has provided it will be an unwelcome development. With the Palestinians’ hand further weakened by their marginalization from the Arab world, Israel has almost no incentive to put any more effort into pursuing peace talks with them. + +For Israel, the establishment of ties with new trading partners will be a boost to its industry. The UAE relationship in particular will provide Israelis with a valuable regional hub from which to explore new markets. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/pragmatism-not-bridge-building-governs-israels-emerging-peace-ties/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/pragmatism-not-bridge-building-governs-israels-emerging-peace-ties/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Qalandia-rescue-is-just-the-latest-Area-A-Waze-incident.md b/posts/toi/Qalandia-rescue-is-just-the-latest-Area-A-Waze-incident.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2a37146900fbe6de0894e963e38098692c303fa1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Qalandia-rescue-is-just-the-latest-Area-A-Waze-incident.md @@ -0,0 +1,43 @@ +# Qalandia rescue is just the latest Area A Waze incident + +The dramatic scenes in Qalandia this morning were the result of the latest in a series of blunders by Israelis that have crossed into Palestinian-controlled territories after using the Waze navigational app. + +Surprisingly, given the IDF’s technical renown, it isn’t even the first time its soldiers have strayed into area A after taking directions from the Israeli-founded navigational tool: Two IDF soldiers strayed into Tulkarem last June and had to be rescued by Palestinian forces. + +Thinking back on how horribly this morning’s mission could have gone wrong had massive firepower not resulted in a mostly successful evacuation, I’m not sure what’s scarier: the fact that IDF patrols operating in some of the most volatile territory in the Middle East are seemingly relying on a civilian traffic navigation app for directions or the potentially nightmarish repercussions, should this happen again, if the often tenuous security cooperation between the IDF and the PA doesn’t bear fruit. + +Lest you need reminding, the horrendous scenes in Ramallah in 2000 happened after an almost identical navigational hiccup to this morning. + +Despite measures taken by the app to allow users to opt to navigate only through Israeli-controlled territory, however, I think that the complex security situation in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Israel, is perhaps equally to blame for the potentially perilous misadventures many of its users seem to have encountered. + +Although prominent red warning signs adorn most approach roads to Palestinian cities from the major Israeli traffic arteries, the transition between area A (-under the Oslo Accords; sole PA governance, entry illegal for Israeli citizens) and area B (Palestinian villages under PA governance but Israeli military control) is often bereft of such notices. + +The same goes for the transition across Green Line itself, unless the security barrier or a checkpoint makes the transition obvious. + +Similarly, although a complicated and shifting network of permanent and temporary checkpoints intercedes between the main Palestinian cities and villages throughout the West Bank, there is – astonishingly – often nothing other than a security gate intervening between Jewish settlements and the Palestinian cities and refugee camps and in their hinterland. + +Once on the road, even relatively simple navigational facts about the West Bank such as the exact route of the security fence (usually abutting built-up Palestinian territory) or the status, under the Oslo accords, of a particular Arab settlement, are often practically unknowable to those without military training. + +This potentially hazardous traffic terrain (where roads are often shared between Israeli and Palestinian traffic) is a substantial part of Israel’s road network. + +Besides being the means of accessing Israeli settlements for those wishing to do so, traversing the West Bank is also the primary means of making less politically contentious journeys such as reaching the Dead Sea from Jerusalem. The secondary route linking Jerusalem to Tel Aviv also crosses most of its width. + +In Jerusalem, the situation is even more potentially precarious for drivers. + +The vast majority of Palestinian settlement within the municipal boundary falls inside of the security barrier and within the freely accessible area C, where there is full Israeli sovereignty (the Shuafat refugee camp – classified as area B – and a strip of land within the Jerusalem municipality but beyond the security barrier are the two exceptions.) + +This means that proud Zionist neighborhoods and patriotically (and occasionally violent) Palestinian ones are juxtaposed and inter-connected. + +For those unfamiliar with the city’s layout, a swift transition between the Hebrew alphabet and the Arabic one (as well as the comparative underdevelopment of East Jerusalem) is often the only forewarning that another civilization and political movement has been transitioned into in the breadth of a few yards. + +So while five Waze-toting Americans had their vehicle firebombed – and were selflessly rescued by a local Palestinian – after entering a village near Hebron – other users encountered violent attacks after simply straying into the neighborhood of Wadi Al-Joz, close to the Old City. + +Waze, like most navigational services, avails of a complex algorithm to try direct its users between places on what it calculates to be the most expeditious route. + +It has responded to well-highlighted danger cases by instituting safeguards to keep its users – which include Palestinian motorists – out of places where their personal security is liable to be compromised. + +Unfortunately, the security situation in Israel and the West Bank makes it both dissimilar to any other driving environment in the world and especially hazardous for those inadequately prepared for the intricacies of navigating some of its more dangerous parts safely. + +For this fact, Waze is not to blame. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/qalandia-rescue-is-just-the-latest-area-a-waze-incident/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/qalandia-rescue-is-just-the-latest-area-a-waze-incident/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Re-imagining-Aliyah-As-The-Jewish-Immigrant-Experience.md b/posts/toi/Re-imagining-Aliyah-As-The-Jewish-Immigrant-Experience.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..7835133b32d5a2acbc42933d4bdc4620bf7f20ed --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Re-imagining-Aliyah-As-The-Jewish-Immigrant-Experience.md @@ -0,0 +1,79 @@ +# Re-imagining Aliyah As The Jewish Immigrant Experience + +To the best of my knowledge, research into aliyah — and post-aliyah retention — is a field in its infancy. + +Thankfully, that is fast changing. + +The literature narrating olim’s experience in Israel — and asking hard questions about why many of them return to their countries of origin — is growing. + +Former Ambassador to the US Michael Oren penned an articulate and insightful piece on this website a few days ago. It’s well worth a read. + +It laid bare some uncomfortable realities about life in Israel that seem starkly at odds with Zionism, the ideological tenant upon which the State of Israel is founded (indeed they are). + +For one, as Oren explains, even within the vaunted halls of the Knesset there is a general apathy towards aliyah — sometimes even a hostility — that runs entirely contrary to the lip service Israeli politicians routinely pay it as an ideal. + +To weathered long term olim , inured to the trials and tribulations of life in this quarrel-strewn part of the Middle East, this probably comes as no surprise. To those yet to step on the plane to Israel, however, this fact alone may strike as quite shocking. And rightly so. Because it is. + +This shocking attitude on the part of our overpaid and largely unaccountable parliamentarians needs fixing. + +Without it, it’s unlikely to expect the kind of concrete policy reforms that Oren argues urgently need enacting. + +When there’s a will, there’s a way. And when nobody really cares about aliyah because it’s largely the concern of people without much influence in Israeli society, it’s hardly surprising that issues like these simply languish until we reach a breaking point of rage (see: 2019 Ethiopian protests against police violence). + +When it comes to how we, olim, think about aliyah, however, I’d like to suggest that there’s also an attitude that we can adopt. + +It’s to stop thinking of aliyah as a unique immigration phenomenon, a message which is heavily pushed by Nefesh b’Nefesh, the Jewish Agency, and just about everybody else who evangelizes the Jewish Diaspora with grand messages about the merits of coming “home” to Israel. + +Rather, it’s time to start thinking about aliyah as simply today’s normative Jewish immigrant experience — much as perhaps showing up to Ellis Island from Poland was in the last century. + +And when we start conceiving of aliyah through a frame of reference that more closely mirrors its grisly reality, we can do a better job at advancing our shared struggle for a better future in Israel. + +Aliyah Is No Exception To The General Law Of Immigration + +So I’d like to suggest that it’s high time that we stopped thinking about aliyah as the great exception to The General Law Of Immigration. + +Because that’s what we currently largely do think. + +We think that because we’re Jewish — and this is a Jewish country founded on Jewish values which we Diasporans and tsabrim share — that our experience as immigrants to Israel will, somehow, be different. + +Consistently, generation after generation, we find that it isn’t. + +Rather, we find that it’s just about as good — and as bad — as that of Jamaicans showing up as immigrants to New York. + +Some of us stay. Some of us return to our countries of origin bearing horror stories about the squalid apartment we rented in Ramat Gan or Tel Aviv. Some of us thrive and manage to climb through the ranks of Israeli society (or at least its high tech world). And some of us don’t. + +Many of us, however we end up, report instances of exploitation and discrimination along the way. In a country with stifling defamation laws, and a sizeable population of immigrants who believe that maligning anything about Israel is a religious sin, most of these go unchronicled, the stories exchanged only around informal water coolers. + +And those very same crushed expectations are the root cause of huge amounts of heartache and bitterness among those who have found themselves used, abused, and thrown out on the garbage heap of Israeli society. That may not be the majority of olim. But they are a portion of them. And vocal. + +No, the General Law isn’t a real thing, by the way. But if it were, it might go something like this: + +Immigrants the world over are generally taken advantage of by a malevolent minority of the population who look to exploit weaker segments of society for underpaid labor — or to rent them shoddy accommodation without properly informing them of their rights (or ripping out their toilets while they are at work, etc etc). This is a problem that plagues immigrants the world over and which has spurned some excellent literature over the years (I contend that many olim would find much that resonates in Orwell’s Down and Out in Paris and London) . Which is also why most people don’t willingly subject themselves to this plight (this is the key point about which Israel and Zionism truly are exceptional and perhaps also what underlies this mental disconnect; largely, from Western countries, it’s a very voluntary migration pattern.) Immigrants the world over generally struggle to get the non-immigrant majority — or at least its political class — to adequately care about their issues. Because generally, as individuals and collectives, humans are selfish creatures who care about themselves and their problems. In a tribal society such as that which exists within modern Israel, this dynamic is magnified. Ben Gurion once remarked that “We will know we have become a normal country when Jewish thieves and Jewish prostitutes conduct their business in Hebrew.” He made an immensely important point. In one enormous respect — it’s the world’s only Jewish country — Israel in unique. In so many others, it’s banally mundane. Immigrants face concrete challenges to their absorption. In the case of Israel, these are usually both linguistic and cultural. As such, it’s quite normal for immigrant communities to exist within enclaves as they make the slow process of assimilating into the larger culture that surrounds them. Maligning so-called Anglo enclaves is therefore quite unreasonable, or at least the kind of double standard that those who peddle in hasbara often love to complain about. At a minimum, it’s quite understandable that they exist — much as London has entire neighborhoods that culturally and demographically resemble Ireland. + +Aliyah May Achieve A Beautiful And Unique End. But It’s A Gritty, Typical Immigrant Experience Nonetheless. + +So aliyah — like Israel in so many respects — is a paradox. + +Both unique and commonplace all at the same time. Which — doubly paradoxically — almost makes it somewhat unique. + +Compared to other major population movements, it’s a sui generis form of population movement. + +Aliyah represents the homecoming of the Jewish people to their ancestral homeland, a process of re-self-determination without many (if any) historical parallels. That’s why we, Jews, largely engage in it. + +Olim largely move to Israel because they feel an ideological pull to do so; the weight of history, even. It’s a pull migration. Commonly, modern day olim commit to aliyah, and Israel, knowing that it will represent a substantial hit to their financial future and standing in society. + +For those truly committed to the ideal, the satisfaction of playing a role in the migration usually mitigate against all the hardships encountered along the way. And so they go through with it anyway. + +So while most olim can probably agree that the enterprise of aliyah is lofty and even sacred, that doesn’t mean — I contend — that we need to keep paining ourselves to prop up an image that depicts aliyah as some kind of Zionist fairytale. + +Because it’s not. It’s a gritty and jagged immigrant experience — even the quintessential one — undertaken by a heterogeneous group of Diasporan Jews from Addis Ababa, Paris, London, New York, and everywhere in between, to a somewhat dysfunctional and young state in the Middle East. + +We don’t speak the same language. We often don’t look the same. And yet we share many of the same challenges. + +Rather, aliyah — while unique — is awfully common. + +Filled, often, with dodgy employers who forget to make pension contributions (I’ve had that happen); landlords who rip out your toilets while you are paying rent (ditto); and other ugly manifestations of the gritty existence that typifies life as an immigrant the world over. + +It’s the Jewish immigrant experience, no less. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/re-imagining-aliyah-as-the-jewish-immigrant-experience/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/re-imagining-aliyah-as-the-jewish-immigrant-experience/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Second-friendly-fire-death-could-further-rules-of-engagement-debate.md b/posts/toi/Second-friendly-fire-death-could-further-rules-of-engagement-debate.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..eaae69582586bd996fcce2a8b7a72258cf704cca --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Second-friendly-fire-death-could-further-rules-of-engagement-debate.md @@ -0,0 +1,33 @@ +# Second friendly-fire death could further rules of engagement debate + +This afternoon’s tragic death of Eliav Gelman, an IDF reserve captain killed by army fire responding to a terrorist attack – the second friendly-fire fatality in the past three months – could build support for army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen Gadi Eisenkot’s comments last week which called into question the propriety of the security establishment’s ‘shoot to kill’ stance frequently employed against Palestinian assailants. + +The 30-year-old father of two reservist died as a result of fire directed towards a Palestinian attacker who jumped upon him in the notorious Etzion Junction in the Gush Etzion area south of Jerusalem, the popular hitchhiking post that has been the site of almost weekly violence since the beginning of a wave of Palestinian stabbing attacks erupted last October. + +Today’s incident follows last December’s accidental death at Jaffa Gate outside Jerusalem’s Old City in which a 40 year old Israeli man died after being wounded by errant police fire responding to another attempted stabbing. + +The timing of this afternoon’s tragedy could re-invigorate the debate surrounding comments made by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen Gadi Eisenkot last week in which the senior officer criticized the rules of engagement regarding attacks by unarmed Palestinian attacks. + +“When there’s a 13-year-old girl holding scissors or a knife and there is some distance between her and the soldiers, I don’t want to see a soldier open fire and empty his magazine at a girl like that, even if she is committing a very serious act,” the army chief told a group of high school students last week, in response to a question questioning the army’s “lenient” operating procedures in such circumstances. + +Although the army chief did not propose a means of non-deadly engagement with attackers (although Tasers guns are in use by Israel police, they have not been widely employed in the current terror wave against nationalistic attackers) he added that “the army cannot speak in slogans such as ‘If a person rises to kill you, kill him first,’”– referring to an edict in Jewish religious law permitting preemptive response to an attacker in defined circumstances. + +Eiskenot’s remarks quickly drew the vitriol of right-wing Rabbis and legislators, including Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely who accused the army chief of damaging Israel’s image by lending credence to allegations by Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom that Israel was committing “extrajudicial killings” by responding with deadly force against Palestinian attackers rarely bearing firearms. Transport Minister Yisrael Katz (Likud) later accused the military head of encouraging “hesitation and risking lives.” + +The widely-reported comments were brusquely dismissed by Prime Minister Netanyahu at the subsequent Cabinet meeting, but the premier and other ministers subsequently lent support to his views. + +Although the majority of shooting responses to Palestinian attackers have been conducted by the police and Border Police, the latter contains a sizable number of IDF conscripts and is often deployed to assist army troops, particularly at flash-point sites where a large amount of the attacks have occurred. + +Those arguing in favor of the appropriateness of the current security response to stabbing attacks – a mostly daily occurrence since the outbreak of violence – point to the fact that while the assailants are mostly unarmed, they sometimes are. + +Two terrorists armed with automatic weapons opened fire on Israeli police at Damascus Gate last week and sappers defused two pipe bombs in a kiosk outside the Old City of Jerusalem this morning. + +In addition, the consequences of stabbing attacks with knives are, of themselves, often fatal: 28 Israelis have been killed and over 300 wounded since the spree of violence, thought to be primarily driven by Palestinian libels – made viral by social media – that Israel is plotting the destruction of the Al Aqsa mosque, began four months ago. + +However lessons that could be learned from today’s tragedy, and that in December, perhaps merit inclusion in the counter-debate. + +That no matter how urgent the need to “neutralize” those bent on indiscriminately attacking civilians, responding with fire-arms in the densely populated and chaotic milieu in which most of the attacks occur also poses a threat to those in the vicinity. + +Or eve more tragically, as today, to the attack victims themselves. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/second-friendly-fire-death-could-further-rules-of-engagement-debate/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/second-friendly-fire-death-could-further-rules-of-engagement-debate/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Silencing-Criticism-Doesnt-Help-People-Stay-in-Israel.md b/posts/toi/Silencing-Criticism-Doesnt-Help-People-Stay-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..42e5c13f22077ce1c8d75511486a8165f1bccdb9 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Silencing-Criticism-Doesnt-Help-People-Stay-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,95 @@ +# Silencing Criticism Doesn’t Help People Stay in Israel + +Illustrative: An El Al airline plane at Ben Gurion International Airport on August 17, 2016. (Tomer Neuberg/ Flash90) + +For Jews who have uprooted their lives to live in Israel, getting here can often end up being the easiest part of the journey. It’s afterwards that the challenges start. + +In recognition of the fact that many that move to Israel don’t end up staying (at least not for very long … or for life), a wellspring of energy has developed in recent years around the idea of getting olim to stay in Israel. Those that offer this service tend to call it post-aliyah support. Or retention. + +The flagbearer for this movement has been Keep Olim In Israel (KOII) — which is both a Facebook group and a non-profit that describes its mission as to “empower, support, and inspire olim.”. + +More established aliyah organizations — namely the Jewish Agency (JA) and Nefesh b’Nefesh (NBN) — also devote resources to the same cause. In terms of organization, many make the charge that these are nowhere near as extensive as their efforts to bring Jews to Israel. + +While the energy and mission is well-intended, equally I feel that a lot of the dialogue around retaining olim becomes unconstructive or actually ends up only emboldening them to leave. + +In some cases, this happens after disaffected olim feel marginalized and excluded by conversations about what they should think about living in Israel or how positive they should remain in conversations about it. Or about how they should feel about the State itself, its politics, and their relationship to it. + +These are some aspects of that culture that I think we would be richer without. + +Silencing Criticism of Life in Israel + +While there is much to love about life in Israel, equally, a bed entirely full of roses this country ain’t. News flash: no country is. + +But if often feels as if — when it comes to Israel —those who defend it feel the need to apply a different logic. One which excludes the possibility of there being challenges. + +I have been particularly vocal about criticizing the cost of living in Israel. Although truthfully it is the relatively low real income — and the impossibly high cost of real estate for today’s young generation— that are the more pressing issues. + +Silencing criticism of these and other dynamics very often emanates from those that grew up in a different financial reality than which exists in today’s Israel. + +Or (sometimes) from those who have benefited from the largesse of family members or of generational wealth. In Israel, things — especially real estate prices — change quickly. Veteran olim, in particular, can treat relative newcomers with astonishing unkindness when these conversations are aired. Often, they are not fully appraised of current realities when doing so. + +While argument and counter-argument is healthy, I believe that silencing those who try to contest a dominant narrative, or ask difficult but important questions, is not. + +The counter-arguers can be acerbic and insistent in their criticism that those questioning the financial reality in Israel must be privileged, deluded, or missing out on the obvious. Or all three! + +This dynamic — which sometimes strays into the realm of what could be called toxic positivity — is not a healthy one. + +Silencing Leftist Political Views + +Today’s Israel (with the exception of the Tel Aviv bubble) has become overwhelmingly nationalistic and right-wing in its dominant political orientation. + +In fact, for those who live here, it’s hard to imagine a time when the political pendulum didn’t swing this way. + +David Horowitz, writing for this website, has predicted that with virtual certainty the forthcoming coalition will be the most right wing yet. + +Emboldened by the Trump years, perhaps, left wing supporters have become objects of derision and magnets for hatred in today’s Israel and among those who support the country from afar. + +“Leftist,” has, for many, become a smear word used to delegitimize any opinions that don’t accord with the right wing worldview. Those criticizing the Balfour Street protests were wont to use ad-hominems to label all the protesters as deluded leftists. + +Increasingly, and as a result of this pressure, left wing voices are feeling marginalized, scorned, and unwanted in today’s political conversations about Israel and within it. Many are feeling intimidated or are being silenced into expressing viewpoints that would have been uncontroversial just a few years ago. + +A political conversation in which the prerogative to be left wing has been taken off the table is, in reality, merely an echo chamber. To many, this feels like a dangerous dynamic. + +Silencing Conversations About Leaving Israel + +Leaving Israel has always been fraught with controversy. At least within it. + +Israel depended upon immigration for its initial survival. Although it sometimes feels as if this fact has vanished from the collective memory. + +But how far have we really come in this conversation since the days in which those who left were openly derided? + +Remaining blindfolded to the possibility that there is a life outside Israel does nothing to encourage people to stay. + +In fact, it just makes them feel trapped and pressured. Perhaps the zealous assertions that nothing could possibly be wrong in Israel stem from this feeling too. + +For some olim, chul (countries besides Israel; abroad) is a periodic escape valve. Others leave for good. + +Attempts to stifle conversations about leaving Israel ignore the fact that, in the modern world, emigration is a fact of life. Those who do leave are sometimes wished a hearty “good riddance” by those who remain. Such bitter exits likely diminish the chance that the emigrées will one day return. + +Growing up in Ireland, emigrating to the UK, the US, or Australia — for part of one’s career or all of it — was never derided. I can’t recall hearing those who left derided as traitors or accused of having vivid imaginations for believing that a better life might exist outside the country’s borders. + +While the dynamics clearly differ, I believe that a more open conversation about decisions to stay in Israel or leave it could actually — counterintuitively — make people more comfortable about planning a long-term future within its borders. + +It’s time to normalize this conversation and stop marginalizing those who engage in it by insisting that Israel is utopia and that the rest of the world is sub-standard. This conversation is ridiculous. + +Israelis often think about their country in mistakenly dichotomous terms: one is either for us or against us, a friend or a foe. + +Too often, that same black or white logic gets applied internally by those who come to live here. + +You’re either all in or you must be a hater. Stay for life. Or be gone for good. + +My belief is that stifling criticism of internal dynamics, contrarian (read: left wing) political views , and conversations about leaving Israel ultimately do nothing to help the country or those who live in it. + +Shutting down debate with hivemind mentalities does not lead to progress and stifles plurality of thought. + +These dynamics, rather, only succeed in creating one narrative and making large parts of the population feel alienated and bleak about envisioning a future here. + +Or to feel alone when, in reality, that isn’t the case. It’s simply that others aren’t getting a chance to raise their voice in agreement or are too intimidated to do so. + +It is my hope that as time goes on a kinder conversation will develop in and about Israel and decisions to live in it or leave. + +One that embraces rather than silences divergent views. + +That conversation is ours to architect. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/silencing-criticism-doesnt-help-people-stay-in-israel/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/silencing-criticism-doesnt-help-people-stay-in-israel/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/The-Apology-Israels-Leaders-Wont-Dare-Utter.md b/posts/toi/The-Apology-Israels-Leaders-Wont-Dare-Utter.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2bd9fafb5e6b55de08ce71a09c68a461008134a1 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/The-Apology-Israels-Leaders-Wont-Dare-Utter.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# The Apology Israel’s Leaders Won’t Dare Utter + +Today marks day 333. + +333 days since the 20th Knesset voted to dissolve itself. + +Over 300 days during which Israel has been led by a series of caretaker governments. + +A period during which ministerial portfolios have been jockeyed around as thinly disguised political favors, during which Likud loyalists such as Amir Ohana were wedged into the head of key departments, and when a succession of ministries (four, soon to be one) were seized by the country’s indefatigable leader. + +Almost an entire trip round the sun during which Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, has passed no legislation — save for the legally mandated acts promulgating its dissolution and fixing the date for the elections for its short-lived 21st sitting. + +A year during which countless projects have been put on budgetary ice — ranging form major infrastructural ones to proposed bus routes in Ashkelon — and public sector workers remain in a kind of indefinite hiatus, never quite sure who will remain at the titular helm of their department — or from which party, or for how long. + +It’s been 32-days-short-of-a-year worth of endless media speculation as to whether Likud or Blue and White would get the first go at forming a coalition. + +A year of op-eds, incessant media commentary and radio debates, and the endless rumor of “coalition negotiations” that forever seemed to portend the arrival of a stable government. + +Except that, almost a year later, we’re still no wiser as to when that day might come. + +It’s been a year which has seen Israel’s diplomats take their grievances over remuneration to an unprecedentedly worldwide audience. + +A year during which we learned that many of Israel’s diplomatic missions do not have budget to throw Yom HaAtzmaut celebrations (Israel’s Independence Day); that the ambassador to Brazil apparently sleeps on a mattress on the floor; and during which envoys in far-flung corners of the world even went so far as to threaten to subvert the state they represent. + +It’s also been a year during which Israel’s leadership has seen fit to spend billions of shekels on elections, re-elections, and (in all likelihood) re-re-elections — all of which could have been avoided had Netanyahu not made a calculated gamble to “improve the lives of the public and the State of Israel,” as Yariv Levin, who introduced the bill dissolving the 20th Knesset, then promised. + +It’s been a year during which — quite literally — the country’s supply of butter has run out, as Israel’s customs authorities find themselves bereft of the authority to institute the emergency measures necessary to ensure that Israelis have something other than humus and labneh to spread on their breakfast pitot. + +And a year during which anybody (or anybody that hasn’t yet given up on following the news, at least) has been forced to listen to an unending litany of negative campaigning and ad-hominem attacks which have often explicitly targeted entire segments of Israel’s population for ridicule. + +Avigdor Lieberman, we heard from MK Yisrael Eichler (UTJ) just last week, is a self-hating Jew who is apparently employing methods from the playbook of the anti-Semitic Russian czars of old in an alleged attempt to divide and destroy the Jewish nation. You couldn’t make some of it up. + +But above all, it has been a year of relentless factionalism, of petty in-fighting, and childish name-slurring that has led to what President Reuben Rivlin — invoking a never before used prerogative to hand the power to form government directly to any of the Knesset’s members — rightly described as “a time of unprecedented darkness” for Israeli politics. + +Its culmination? + +Israel’s unlikely ‘kingmaker’ and former Netanyahu ally Avigdor Lieberman effectively ends Blue and White’s coalition-building mandate by announcing that his party will lend it support neither to Likud nor to Blue and White. + +Netanyahu — who, if he goes down, will apparently not do so without a fight — comes out with all guns blazing and lambastes what he sees as a ‘coup’ attempt by the triumvirate of Israel’s judiciary, police service, and (of course) its media, adding that “we need to investigate the investigators and the state prosecution”. + +And Blue and White leader Benny Gantz, for his part, warns that Netanyahu is holding the people of Israel “hostage” to his desire to stay in power. + +Conspicuously absent from the statements and talking points of any of Israel’s “leadership” have been two pivotal words “we’re sorry.” + +Because in truth only their factionalism, hatred, and inability to put ideology (or personal expediency) before the interests of the State have stood in the way of forming a stable government and have brought Israel to a nadir that feels a lot like the political equivalent of bankruptcy. + +It’s hard to imagine that — were they alive today — Israel’s founders would not look at this ugly, protracted political stalemate and year-long marathon of negative campaigning, finger-pointing, and recrimination-throwing and not feel like giving up on the whole initiative of building a Jewish state. + +Many Israelis feel justifiably disenfranchised and alienated by a year of electioneering that has been virtually bereft of any meaningful treatment of issues that affect them, the average citizen — more saliently socioeconomic ones. The average citizen whose needs the finger-pointers seem to have forgotten that they are in power to represent. + +Voters have heard plenty about how “King Bibi” is in a “different league”, how Benny Gantz will put “Israel before all” — but precious little about what anybody will do for them. + +It is high time that Israel’s politicians stopped playing their jaded blame game and campaigning solely based on ideology and macro issues such as national security. It is time that — in a spirit of humlity — they explain to the public what they intend doing for them — and their country. + +Israel undoubtedly sits at a critical juncture and the coming weeks and months will provide pivotal answers for questions of far greater importance than how long Benjamin Netanyahu can resist corruption charges and public pressure by remaining at the country’s helm. The country’s very national character is at stake. + +The least its citizens deserve for enduring the mess that got them here is an apology from their leaders — if they even still remember who they are. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-apology-israels-leaders-wont-dare-utter/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-apology-israels-leaders-wont-dare-utter/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/The-Israel-I-Would-Like-to-Live-In-In-10-Years.md b/posts/toi/The-Israel-I-Would-Like-to-Live-In-In-10-Years.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4a84d488804694338a55255229ce1ff092deb139 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/The-Israel-I-Would-Like-to-Live-In-In-10-Years.md @@ -0,0 +1,157 @@ +# The Israel I Would Like to Live In In 10 Years + +The coronavirus crisis has afforded us all a collective moment of pause. + +In light of that, I did a little thinking this morning about the type of country I would like Israel to become in 10 years’ time. + +Not in order to point out its flaws — but rather because I feel like we (as individuals and as a collective) are taking stock of our lives right now. + +How did we get to this point? What can we learn from this experience? And how would we like to grow as a result of it? + +Here’s what I came up with for national changes. + +In the Israel of 5790 I would like to see: + +1. A Lower Cost of Living + +This week, on a Facebook group, I took a straw poll. + +My answers were designed to tease out immigrants’ commonly-voiced frustrations about life in Israel. But respondents were free to add their own options too. + +One poster complained that the food was too spicy. + +Another lamented Israel’s drift away from its democratic roots. + +But guess what came out on top? + +Yup, the cost of living. + +I’ve made the case before that Israel’s extremely high cost of living — recently ranked the eight highest in the world, ahead of the US, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Korea — is the elephant in the room facing the future of organized aliyah. + +And, as I still believe in the Zionist ideal, I think that that is a gross betrayal of Israel’s founding tenants: that it would be an everlasting home for all Jews, irrespective of their socioeconomic status. + +I know Diaspora Jews that would like to live in Israel but feel that they cannot afford to to do so. In a country with a paltry minimum wage of under $7 an hour (but the living costs of Manhattan!), getting by here — especially for many older citizens —simply isn’t an option. Never mind a comfortable retirement for all too many the concern about becoming destitute is all too real. + +Sadly, Israel’s sky-high living costs have repeatedly gone almost unaddressed in the country’s repeat elections — because whether Bibi was fit to stand for office, whether Gantz once saw a psychotherapist, and the perpetual threats of Iran and Hamas were evident ally more important than addressing the fact that more than 41% of the country is in overdraft. + +But if my straw poll and social network are anything to go by, this is the hot-button issue facing young immigrants. + +2. More Affordable Property + +Paying almost $10 for a local lager in a Tel Aviv bar, as we’ve just discussed, is one thing. + +But feeling like you will never own the roof over your head is an altogether more serious financial impediment. + +Before you point out the obvious, yes, I am aware: Generation’s Y limited ability to get on the property ladder is not a uniquely Israeli problem. + +But in a country with artificially inflated real estate costs from foreign demand, restrictive government policies around the private ownership of land, a high cost of living, comparatively low salaries, and downpayments that typically start at 25% — the only outcome of this grim calculus for many young immigrants is simply a lifetime of renting. + +This, needless to say, is bad. + +But Israel’s poor tenant protection law (an attempt to outlaw charging tenants agents’ fees has proven completely ineffectual) and the lack of professionally managed property in the country simply make this is a totally unsustainable situation. + +For Israel to be the return to the Jewish homeland that so many Jewish generations dreamed of, those Jews that uproot their lives to come live here need to have a home they can call their own. + +It’s time we recognized Israel’s smoldering housing crisis as the threat to Zionism that it is. + +3. A More Vibrant, Prosperous Jerusalem + +The few people that follow this blog (hello friends!) might remember my piece from about a year ago in which I bid a public goodbye to the Holy City. + +Yeah … that sort of never happened. + +Instead, in the interim, I have amassed one more year’s experience of living in Jerusalem. + +And I have this to say as a result: + +It’s time that Jerusalem stepped out from Tel Aviv’s shadow. + +It’s time that Jerusalem stopped looking and feeling like a provincial European town. + +And it’s time that Jerusalem stepped up to its status as Israel’s capital. + +Jerusalem gets a lot of lip-service from Israeli politicians. There’s even a special Ministry of Jerusalem — now manned by a dedicated minister. + +Don’t get me wrong: I like Jerusalem — if I didn’t I wouldn’t have stuck out five years here. But I think that it’s nowhere near fulfilling its potential. + +And to reach that it needs: + +Jobs. And lots of them. + +Better transport. + +More entertainment options (ahem, bars) + +4. Some Cultural Shifts + +I’ve written a little bit about some of the more unusual aspects of Israel’s culture. + +Particularly the pervasive national fear of being a freier (sucker) — and how I think that it, in fact, has massively damaging repercussions. + +Because when being nice or mannerly is perceived as being a freier nobody can be too nice or mannerly to a stranger — and the result is that a rather unkind, rude, and aggressive society develops around that belief. + +I’ve also written about shitat mazliach (the “successful method”) and it and frierism tend to go hand in hand: such that one fears one’s peers labelling him a freier because one also fears that the other party may be chancing his/her arm. + +This places out in shopping lines. In salary negotiations. And — to dramatic effect — in the chaotic state of the country’s roads. + +After plenty of analysis, I think I get where this all comes from. + +Israel’s early history was etched out in gruesome warfare and no doubt some measure of deception and mistrust was as valuable a survival skill as knowing how to dispatch an Uzi. The idea that Israelis can never give an inch — or admit to being wrong (for that, too, is a form of weakness— is often taken just a little bit too far. + +If there’s any chance that we could agree to get rid of all that — that would be just lovely. + +Please and thank you. + +5. Better Customer Service + +Firstly, let me clarify a few things. + +Customer service in Israel is getting better. + +In the early days of my aliyah, when I lost my Rav Kav (national travel card) I had to get one replaced. + +Paint was peeling off the walls. Stale smoke wafted in from the bus drivers nearby. And when I summoned up the nerve to interrupt her phone conversation, the woman manning the desk looked back at me quizzically — as if I had asked her to explain Einstein’s Theory of Relativity in university-level detail. + +Three years later and the Rav Kav office in the Tahana Merkazit (Central Bus Station) is a shining beacon of efficient bureaucracy. Its clerks beam back ear-to-ear smiles at those that need their travel cards replaced, knowing that they are about to execute a well-oiled standard operating procedure — and that’s if one needs to visit the office at all, because so much can now thankfully be done by computer. + +Of course, I exaggerate on both accounts. + +But I do remember the staff looking perplexed at what must be among the most routine of tasks which a travel card office can engage in. And it has vastly approved in both appearance and function in the years since. Dramatically so. + +However, many Israeli businesses could still use a few refreshers on Customer Service 101. Those are that: + +Shouting at your customers is never okay + +When a customer walks into your premises and you are paid to work as a shop assistant you should stop using your phone or conducting your stock check in order to attend to that customer’s needs. The customer should not have to wait until it is convenient for you to finish. + +“The customer is always wrong” is not a good attitude either. + +Arguing with the custom to convince them that they are wrong is generally not appreciated — even if you mean to be helpful + +Fobbing warranty repairs off to the official importer is … aggravating + +Things are getting better. But …. lee-at, lee-at as they say (slowly slowly). + +Some Other Minor Gripes + +And some other major wishes that didn’t merit their own sections. + +I would like to see: + +Less income inequality: despite the IT boom, Israel has historically posted some shocking poverty numbers. It also remains among the countries with the highest measures of income inequality in the world. Israel’s rapid shift from socialism to capitalism has been a tide that has not risen all the boats. I would like to see that change. + +despite the IT boom, Israel has historically posted some shocking poverty numbers. It also remains among the countries with the highest measures of income inequality in the world. Israel’s rapid shift from socialism to capitalism has been a tide that has not risen all the boats. I would like to see that change. Less noise. Is there any chance people could stop the whole communicating by shouting at one another thing? Also: there is no need to use your phone over loudspeaker in a public space. In fact, it’s rude to have a loud conversation on a bus. + +Is there any chance people could stop the whole communicating by shouting at one another thing? Also: there is no need to use your phone over loudspeaker in a public space. In fact, it’s rude to have a loud conversation on a bus. Less corrupt politicians that don’t have the public’s interest at heart: At a time of almost unprecedented national austerity, Israel’s government has just assembled the most enlarged and lavishly expensive cabinet in its history. Yet again, Likud party politics, rather than the good of the people, has determined key cabinet and ambassadorial appointments — including the almost unprecedented posting of one diplomat to both the UN and the US. In 10 years’ time I would like to feel like I am living in a country that cares about me — and other citizens — not what’s expedient for them, their tribe, or their party. + +At a time of almost unprecedented national austerity, Israel’s government has just assembled the most enlarged and lavishly expensive cabinet in its history. Yet again, Likud party politics, rather than the good of the people, has determined key cabinet and ambassadorial appointments — including the almost unprecedented posting of one diplomat to both the UN and the US. In 10 years’ time I would like to feel like I am living in a country that cares about me — and other citizens — not what’s expedient for them, their tribe, or their party. Better education, better health: Yes, Israel is traditionally thought of as strong in both those respects. But Israel’s education system has been showing concerning metrics for some time now. Likewise — if it weren’t for some brilliant Israeli ingenuity — the health system was almost caught with its pants down at the most unfortunate moment. + +And finally: + +I would like Israel to start being honest about what it is. Because in my opinion, Israel is part theocracy, part democracy, part dictatorship … and part something else entirely. What I think about that is irrelevant to this blog. I simply wish that the country would start trying to placate the Western world by trying to seem like them. Israel is not. It never has been. + +Because in my opinion, Israel is part theocracy, part democracy, part dictatorship … and part something else entirely. What I think about that is irrelevant to this blog. I simply wish that the country would start trying to placate the Western world by trying to seem like them. Israel is not. It never has been. I would like Israel to stop engaging in hasbara. Yes, you could say that I’m an anti-hasbara and proud of it. If Israel’s year-long electoral stalemate proved anything, it’s that the societal divisions in this country run deep and run raw. In the words of President Rivlin, Israel’s society needs mending. And, as I have hopefully pointed out, there is a lot of work to do. We can all live without amateurs trying to make our case to everybody on the internet that has a grudge against us and redirect that energy internally. And besides … Israel may not always be right … but it is always changing. + +What changes would you like to see in the Israel of ten years’ time? + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-israel-i-would-like-to-live-in-in-10-years/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-israel-i-would-like-to-live-in-in-10-years/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/The-Strange-Case-Of-The-Gashlighting-Irish.md b/posts/toi/The-Strange-Case-Of-The-Gashlighting-Irish.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e0b4f6182757554f0eb330f9a2c218432aaad9f0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/The-Strange-Case-Of-The-Gashlighting-Irish.md @@ -0,0 +1,58 @@ +# The Strange Case Of The Gaslighting Irish + + +For Israelis and Jews, the world we are navigating since October 7th feels barely recognizable. Yet, taking the long view of Jewish history—or Israel’s relatively short one—our existence has always been marked by struggle. + +Since its foundation in 1948, Israel has never truly known peace, existing in states of crisis of varying magnitude. What was destroyed on October 7th was not just a sense of innocence but also our belief that managing crises could ever be a sustainable long-term strategy. + +Why Does the Post-October 7th World Feel So Foreign? + +What is it about today’s world that feels so profoundly disturbing? It’s the rapid mutation of anti-Israel sentiment into something much more sinister: the familiar face of anti-Semitism, accompanied by delegitimization and ostracization. This shift has been neither slow nor gradual—it’s as if the pendulum swung overnight, barely after the dust settled on October 7th. + +We’ve long taken solace in the idea that no matter how bad anti-Semitism becomes, we now have a state and an army. But the subtext—that nations may not annihilate us militarily but will use other means to delegitimize us—has become harder to ignore. This helps explain why questions like “Why does Ireland hate us so much?” have become pressing topics within Israel and the Jewish world. + +Ireland’s Approach to Israel: Dishonest, Delusional, Malicious + +Israelis find Ireland’s longstanding hostility both perplexing and difficult to reconcile. The schism between these two nations cannot be explained solely through simplistic metaphors. Recently, Ireland announced its intent to join a legal persecution of Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on irrational grounds, while its Prime Minister simultaneously claimed Ireland is “not anti-Israel.” This duplicity underscores Ireland’s role as ringleader in Europe’s efforts to ostracize Israel. + +Optimism about future relations seems unwarranted. Regardless of political shifts in Ireland—whether left or right—hostility toward Israel remains constant. When Simon Harris became Prime Minister in April 2024, he simply continued his predecessor’s anti-Israel policies while claiming to pursue peace. Yet this supposed commitment to peace seems limited to targeting Israel alone. + +In Irish elections, opposition to Israel has become a key differentiator among candidates eager to outdo one another in punishing Israel. Addressing domestic issues like housing or healthcare often takes a backseat to Israel-bashing—a trend that never seems to go out of vogue in Ireland. + +Although more balanced EU nations have rebuffed Ireland’s efforts thus far, it’s hard to overstate the damage they’ve attempted. Ireland sought to undermine EU-Israel relations by proposing that foundational agreements be torn up—essentially creating a kangaroo court with predetermined conclusions against Israel. This attempt at diplomatic sabotage aimed to harm Israel as much as possible without firing a single bullet. + +The rot of anti-Israelism in Ireland starts at the top. President Michael D. Higgins has accused Israeli diplomats and Jewish representatives of hyperbole when raising concerns about rising anti-Semitism in Ireland—a claim starkly contradicted by incidents like the recent beating of an American wearing a Jewish symbol in Dublin. Such dismissals echo troubling historical parallels where Jewish warnings about anti-Semitism were ignored. + +Ireland’s hypocrisy extends further. When anti-Jewish stereotypes were found in Irish school curricula, the Department of Education dismissed these concerns outright. And if there was a single incident that epitomized Ireland-Israel tensions, it was a women’s basketball game where Irish players protested against their Israeli counterparts by turning their backs during the national anthem—a move celebrated uncritically in Ireland. + +Ireland’s Uniqueness: The Monolithic Nature Of Its Anti-Israel Agitation + +Ireland’s hostility toward Israel is not unique in Europe but stands out for its unanimity and intensity. + +While other nations may criticize Israel, they often engage as honest brokers or dialogue partners. In contrast, Ireland tolerates rhetoric openly endorsing Israel’s destruction without consequence. + +Members of Parliament who support violent “resistance” against Israel retain their seats or are re-elected, while those who espouse classic anti-Semitic tropes face minimal repercussions. + +This lack of accountability creates an environment where anti-Israel sentiment dominates public discourse unchallenged. Even minor deviations from this norm invite vitriol: an Israeli expat was reportedly denied candidacy by an Irish political party for not aligning with its monolithic anti-Israel stance. + +The hostility extends beyond politics into culture and society. A theater receiving state support hosted a comedian who denied atrocities committed on October 7th, while a politician faced national outrage for failing to disclose earnings from an Israeli company—his association with Israel deemed an unforgivable sin. + +Closing the Embassy: A Pragmatic Decision + +Given this relentless animosity, it is commendable that Israel has chosen to close its embassy in Dublin—a small act of diplomatic self-respect and pragmatism. Critics like Yair Lapid argue that such moves play into the hands of Israel’s detractors and that persistent engagement might eventually break down hostility. However, this approach borders on blaming ourselves for others’ hatred and ignores the futility of engaging with those determined to vilify us. + +Diplomacy has its limits. Nothing about Ireland’s actions suggests any potential for change; its trajectory is one of increasing hostility toward Israel. By closing the embassy, Israel acknowledges this reality and asserts its red lines for bilateral relationships worth investing taxpayer money into. + +This decision also challenges Ireland’s self-proclaimed neutrality—a stance that rings hollow given its alignment with groups hostile to Israel. True neutrality requires moral clarity; staying neutral in the face of movements seeking our destruction is neither tenable nor virtuous. + +A Shift Toward Pragmatism + +Shuttering the Dublin mission reflects a broader shift in Israeli foreign policy toward pragmatism over idealism. It recognizes that geopolitical relationships cannot always fit neatly into traditional alliances or blocs and that engagement levels with EU member states can vary based on their actions rather than rhetoric. + +From a budgetary standpoint, reallocating resources from unproductive missions like Dublin is prudent. Historically, countries where Israel has closed embassies include Iran and Mauritania—nations overtly hostile or inaccessible to Israelis. While Irish law still allows Israelis entry, the atmosphere of hostility renders this distinction almost meaningless. + +Opening A Door To Better Paths + +The closure of Israel’s embassy in Dublin restores dignity to its foreign policy and signals that relations must be based on mutual respect rather than enduring one-sided animosity. While it’s uncertain how this decision will shape future relations between Israel and Ireland—or within broader international dynamics—it marks an important step toward asserting self-respect on the global stage. + +In closing this acrimonious chapter with Ireland, we hope it opens doors to brighter opportunities elsewhere. \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/To-Attract-Half-A-Million-New-Immigrants-Israel-Needs-To-Up-Its-Offer-First.md b/posts/toi/To-Attract-Half-A-Million-New-Immigrants-Israel-Needs-To-Up-Its-Offer-First.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..173e13effa7c1b3420eef229ea40249e107e293c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/To-Attract-Half-A-Million-New-Immigrants-Israel-Needs-To-Up-Its-Offer-First.md @@ -0,0 +1,113 @@ +# To Attract Half A Million New Immigrants, Israel Needs To Up Its Offer First + +A few days ago, I wrote an article on my personal blog about Aliyah Day — Israel’s annual “celebration” of aliyah. + +As I opined there, Israel’s current approach to aliyah is dishonest. + +It reports, with great fanfare, on its successes -— namely how many new immigrants arrived every year. + +Meanwhile, it shrouds in mystery, or at least bureaucratic confusion, the number of immigrants who leave the country. That latter number is believed to be very high, and this is a longstanding trend. Without being able to weigh the increase in aliyah against yeridah we’re unable to derive useful information about net gains and what trends in that respect are looking like. + +If Israel’s current approach to aliyah can be compared to a business, it couuld be likened to one that reports only on its annual sales without mentioning anything about its operating expenses (or thus, its profit margins). The picture can only ever look various shades of good. This is problematic. + +After learning that aliyah to Israel is apparently up year-on-year, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett seized upon the opportunity to unveil what have been called “ambitious” new plans to recruit half a million new immigrants (olim hadashim) from the “West” by 2031 (as another commentator pointed out, by focusing solely on the “West” the Prime Minister indirectly snubbed potential olim from other parts of the world.) + +Bennett’s attitude, in my opinion, represents one of unbridled entitlement. It looks potentially like the latest manifestation of a well-worn and tragic saying among English-speaking immigrants to Israel: “Israelis love aliyah. They don’t love olim.” + +If Israel wants to attract a large cohort of highly-educated potential immigrants from the West, it needs to be prepared to offer a quid pro quo and to seriously up its game in retention — because many are currently reaching for the door and leaving. + +That’s only common business logic, I would contend. + +When a business tries to recruit talent, it generally tries to offer better terms than what those employees are already receiving and the US — for all its problems —generally offers a high standard of living. I know, I’m mercenary. + +If we’re looking to not just maintain existing levels of aliyah but also scale them up, then that quid pro quo needs to be one more compelling than “come to live in Israel and fulfill the Zionist dream.” + +Generations of immigrants have been attracted here by the same marketing line only to have their hopes and Zionism dashed by some of the dynamics they have encountered after answering that call. + +Fortunately, there are some great ways for Israel to actually do just that. Here are a few of them. + +Reduce government over-regulation in the housing market to make home ownership a realistic dream for olim + +David Horowitz, who edits this website, recently cited me as an example of a tragic oleh (should I print new business cards?). + +I have been gainfully employed for the majority of my time in Israel. I left a relatively prosperous life in Ireland, voluntarily, to live here. I met my spouse in Israel and got married at a venue in Jerusalem overlooking the Old City. For the majority of my career in Israel, my salary has met or exceeded the national average. + +In some respects, it sounds like the prototypical aliyah story that Bennett is trying to replicate. + +And yet in a property market in which the average downpayment required for a mortgage now stands at more than a quarter of a million dollars (for an apartment), I can’t think of any clear path for me to accrue enough capital to quality for a mortgage. That doesn’t mean I’m poor. It just means that I’m not spectacularly wealthy for a 32 year old. Who else would be in a position to have those kind of savings on hand? (For those unfamiliar with the bitter state of the housing crisis here, Ricky Ben-David’s piece in this publication, which is where the above link directs to, is well worth a read.) + +This isn’t me being pessimistic or defeatist. This is realism and rejecting toxic positivity. There are hundreds of thousands of olim like me living in Israel. Unlike me, they probably don’t like sharing personal thoughts on Medium. And so you won’t hear that much from them online. But they exist. And if you can find them, they’re vocal. + +Ben-David’s article provided many worthwhile starting points for the government to explore — although (and I’m sorry to be pessimistic again) — I’ve yet to see evidence that their commitment to aliyah in words is matched by much in the way of action. + +If it were, the country’s only home ownership incentive scheme would not be a miserly 20% discount in peripheral and economically less-desirable parts of the country. + +For one, Israel should break the KKL’s ludicrous monopoly on the supply of land for development in Israel. + +The land of the State of Israel belongs to the Jewish people and not to a government-sanctioned monopoly that benefits only developers and those already well-off (unsurprisingly, Israel now has one of the highest rates of income inequality in the world as measured by the Geni coefficient). + +Israel’s government has become like OPEC trying to maintain artificially high oil prices. This isn’t fair to olim. This isn’t fair to tsabras either. + +Second idea: begin taxing through the teeth foreign Jews who are driving the real estate market ever-northward (it’s time we stopped calling it a bubble). + +Yes, this will mean turning away a lucrative source of capital for developers and banks. It will also mean making Israel far more liveable for those who have upended lives to already be here. + +We need nothing less than a new social contract in Israel. One in which those living here come first. If you want to get in on the real estate boom, you should be prepared to back Zionism with your life. A tough offer? Unpalatable for Parisian millionaires? Undoubtedly. But the alternative threatens the viability of the ideology also. + +Create a fairer job market + +These are plenty of good jobs in Israel alongside some that pay well and others that pay very well. + +Unfortunately, immigrant exploitation has been a longstanding complaint for those living here. French immigrants, in particular, have complained about unwieldy bureaucracy standing in the way of them having their foreign-earned credentials recognized in Israel. Exhausted, frustrated, and embittered many have returned home vowing never to step foot in this country again. + +Furthermore, participation in Israel’s high tech sector — the nucleus of the economy -—currently stands at a mere 10%. In a figure that was truly shocking, it was recently revealed that the nucleus of this sector of the economy is currently comprised of no more than 20,000 workers—from a population that exceeds nine million. + +The corollary is obvious but bears frequent repetition nonetheless: the vast majority of Israelis — olim and otherwise -—are not employed in “high tech.” + +In return for this push for more immigrants, Israel needs to do more to support olim through their journey towards what appears to be the only part of the economy capable of providing salaries good enough to meet the cost of living in one of the most expensive localities on this planet. + +Sanctions need to be created and enforced targeting companies who fail to inform immigrants of their rights from the entrance interview through to the time they leave the company. + +Above all, empathy needs to be afforded towards the plight of olim who finds themselves in a country in which they are no longer native speakers trying to simultaneously forge ahead with their career, make friends, and figure out everything else required to live in Israel. + +During the course of my six years in Israel, I have encountered pension contributions that were mysteriously never paid from companies who bragged, on Facebook, about how much they loved workers and the “family” environment they had created. Among other things that would be too risky to publish. My story is far from unique. It’s everyday. + +Invest in post-aliyah + +Walking around Israel today, you may be flabbergasted by the number of stray cats in the country. + +Urban legend has it that things weren’t always so. + +Apparently in a kind of guerilla effort to curb the (then) rat problem in the country, the (then) British governors of Israel imported cats en masse. + +The rat epidemic was brought under control. + +More modern methods for this kind of thing were invented. + +And yet the cats remained. + +Hanging out in dumpsters. Being all cat-like. And spawning some great memes about how while foreigners imagine living in Israel to avoid dodging rockets, for those of us living here it just as often feels like dodging stray cats. + +Israel’s approach to olim has been very similar. + +The country invests tremendous resources on what can only realistically be likened to state-funded propaganda encouraging Jews around the world to come to Israel. + +Statesmen like Prime Minister Bennett laud the value of aliyah and encourage Jews to uproot their lives to gain citizenship. Netanyahu has dubiously used anti-Semitic attacks as springboards from which to state the same case. + +And yet far too often when those immigrants do precisely that they feel very much like North Korean exiles who returned to their land of birth by state propaganda only to find a miserable wilderness in place of the lush plains that were described (note: I’m not comparing the severity of these two situations, only trying to point out some commonalities). + +Too often, new immigrants to Israel find themselves at the mercy of exploitative employers. And landlords. (One of my former ones ripped out the toilet in my apartment while I lived there. I never received redress). + +*** + +Although I may sound bitter (in some respects I am), I continue to support aliyah. + +I proudly espouse the belief that during the first time in more than two thousand years when Jews have self-determination, this is the only place in the world in which they should live. + +Nevertheless, I think it’s beyond time that Israel thought pragmatically about aliyah. The ideological diehards who will endure decades of under-employment, exploitation and endless renting solely to live in this country are likely grossly outnumbered by the ranks of those who will call it quits after they see the writing on the wall. + +Israel needs a new social contract which puts the interests of its own citizens above those of the Jewish Diaspora which has traditionally provided a financial bedrock for the country. + +Israel is no longer the poor state it was after the time of its formation. It’s time to put Israelis first. Including those yet to arrive. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/to-attract-half-a-million-new-immigrants-israel-needs-to-up-its-offer-first/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/to-attract-half-a-million-new-immigrants-israel-needs-to-up-its-offer-first/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/We-dont-need-Anglo-representation-in-Israel.md b/posts/toi/We-dont-need-Anglo-representation-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..afd1168c11c42f9978effb94229bf0c88a36e901 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/We-dont-need-Anglo-representation-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +# We don’t need ‘Anglo’ representation in Israel + +Recently, English-language social media in Israel has been awash with discussions about the failure of parties to list any viable candidates from English speaking backgrounds for representation in the forthcoming Knesset. + +Writing here in The Times of Israel (blogs), David Fine, founder of The Anglo Vision, described it most colorfully as a “slap in the face” of the Anglo community, arguing that a voting bloc which numbers more than 350,000 Israelis — and which has been integral to Israel’s growth — deserves prominent representation in the Knesset. + +With respect to Mr. Fine, and the others espousing such a position, I believe that their view is mistaken. + +Here are some reasons. + +Israel needs political cohesion + +As anybody who has walked into a voting station in an Israeli election and been confronted by a massive wall-full of party options knows, Israel is not exactly short of political parties. + +The story of the emergence and ultimate dispersal of these parties also tends to be one of scatter-gun fragmentation. The genesis of many of these smaller parties is often a disaffected visionary being denied a cabinet position in a larger party and deciding to form their own list. + +However many smaller parties fail to meet the electoral threshold. The result of this splintering is that those seeking an alternative to the protracted status quo of Likud-dominated politics ultimately end up dissolving their voices into nothingness. + +Although the Israeli Democracy Institute has examined the issue, Israel does not currently operate a system such as the Single Transferable Vote (STV) favored in Ireland and Malta. + +Unless the national cohort of “Anglos” (English-speaking Israelis) can be mobilized to all vote in favor of exclusively “Anglo” issues, they will simply end up voting for nothing and nobody. + +There are no unifying issues + +For those unfamiliar, “Anglo” — in the strange hybrid of English and Hebrew often favored among immigrants to Israel — is generally understood to be a contraction for “Anglophone,” which means an English speaker. + +However, there are sizeable populations of English speakers from all over the English-speaking world, including the USA, the UK, Australia, and more. + +Parties are generally structured around a central manifesto setting out their views on issues. But what unifying views are likely to exist among a community that is so heterogeneous? + +Among the “Anglo” community can be found peaceniks that vote for Meretz and live in Tel Aviv and die-hard nationalists that live in Hebron. Environmental conservationists and big business capitalists. Those in favor of Israel returning to its socialist roots and those in favor of deregulation. Joint-smokers and anti-drug crusaders. + +Furthermore, an Anglo is a linguistic rather than a cultural definition. + +What about other immigrant communities to Israel who happen to speak Spanish, Russian, or French? Are their interests so different than our English speakers’ that they, too, deserve their own parties and places on party lists? Or should we rather unify under the banner of olim? + +French olim do face their own issues — and have been particularly affected by the bureaucratic issues involved in the non-recognition of foreign credentials. But rather than transform the Knesset into a Model UN with emissaries from each language group, perhaps working together for better bureaucracy would be a more sensible aim? + +I suggest that if we started a party for olim from every country and language group that we would only exacerbate the ballooning of parties that exist now only as Wikipedia entries for defunct political entities. + +Amalgamating the various issues we face under collective banners is likely to make resolving them more efficient. The only common denominator among olim to Israel — which they share with Jewish Israelis — is their Zionism. This is the only credible unifying issue around which to form political parties in Israel. + +An olim party would merely entrench non-integration + +Ultimately, Israel is a melting pot into which dissolve the cultures and collective experiences of olim from every nation. + +Indeed, the country is built upon immigration and the experience of immigrants. + +The establishment of Modern Hebrew as the official language of the Jewish state was among the first and most important initiatives of the Zionist movement. + +Those pioneers understood that linguistic convergence, rather than splintering, was the only means upon which a Jewish state consisting of Ethiopians and Americans and Australians could possibly function. + +Fixating upon how many olim we have running on party lists or forming our own Anglo parties would only entrench the existing marginalization of English-speaking immigrants in Israel. + +This community does need better support. Better access to Hebrew instruction. And to work under fairer employment frameworks so that they do not continue to be exploited by unscrupulous employers. But all of these things could be achieved without the existence of specific parties just for olim. + +The story of aliyah is one of a pooling together of efforts and convergence around a central idea: that of Zionism and rebuilding the Jewish homeland. Less than 100 years later, it would be a pity to begin pulling in the opposite direction. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-we-dont-need-anglo-representation-in-israel/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-we-dont-need-anglo-representation-in-israel/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/What-To-Know-Before-Working-With-Freelancers-in-Israel.md b/posts/toi/What-To-Know-Before-Working-With-Freelancers-in-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3badf2b44ca32ae26365c78445bb058cc1fdf531 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/What-To-Know-Before-Working-With-Freelancers-in-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,99 @@ +# What To Know Before Working With Freelancers in Israel + +These days, the world is a global and interconnected village. And increasingly, companies are turning to unconventional labor pools to make sure that the pandemic disruption doesn’t also adversely impact the due date of their projects. + +Just as I advocate that every Israel-based English-speaking freelancer should at least consider the possibility of working with clients based out of the country, I also recommend Israel as a labor base to companies looking for new places in which to onboard talent. + +If the thought of working with a freelancer located in the Middle East gives you a case of the nerves, here’s a quick rundown of everything you need to know. + +We Can, And Do, Work Internationally + +Extricating Israel from its political situation is just about impossible. + +So with that said, it’s true that there are a few countries with which Israelis are legally banned from doing business with. + +That list is: Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon. + +If you’re based in one of these countries, then there’s a good chance you can’t access this website. + +The good news is that Israelis can do business with every other country on the face of the planet — including the UAE and Bahrain with whom Israel recently concluded diplomatic and peace agreements respectively. + +Of course, many countries have their own compliance requirements to take into account. Dual US/Israeli citizens need to manage their own tax affairs and currently need to pay double social security. But for the rest of us, the only question is whether you can work with us. + +3. Our workweek is Sunday to Thursday — And Business Hours Are (About) 09:00 to 18:00. + +Israel is located in the Middle East, where Sunday to Thursday workweeks are not uncommon due to the fact that Friday is the Muslim holy day (and in Israel’s case, Saturday is the Jewish one). + +Wikipedia tells me that this working schedule is shared by Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, The Maldives, parts of Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Saudi, Sudan, and Yemen — among others. + +Israelis also work relatively long hours. Standard office hours are typically 09:00 to 18:00 rather than 9 to 5 — although in practice Israelis tend to be early birds. Operating hours of 08:00 to 17:00 are also relatively commonplace, particularly in the government sector. + +Which leads me on to: + +Many Israelis are religiously observant Jews. Jews will not use electronics, including phone and email, during the Jewish Sabbath. This takes place from before sundown on Friday through to the same time on Saturday approximately. + +Bear this in mind before asking if an Israeli resource could join a call that works out to be 20:00 in Israel on a Friday evening. They might not be able to for religious reasons. + +4. Our Holidays Are Jewish Holidays. + +Israel’s national day calendar is based upon the Jewish religious calendar. + +Israel also has a national day of its own (Yom Atsmaut) and a couple of other Israel-specific observances. + +Israel’s national day calendar is available online and can be added to popular calendar systems such as Google Calendar. + +5. Our Time Zone Is GMT+2 + +As a small country, Israel unsurprisingly has only one time zone: Israel Standard Time (iST). + +Israel switches to Israel Daylight Time (IDT) at roughly the same time of year as the US and Europe. + +Its offset from Universal Time Coordinated (UTC) is two hours positive. Which means that Israel — almost all of the year — is two hours ahead of the UK and Ireland, one hour ahead of central Europe, and one the same time zone as Eastern Europe. + +I’ve written previously about which time zones it’s easy to work with Israel from. The West Coast of the US is challenging. With the West Coast of the US, the offset is usually nine hours negative. But Europe and the East Coast of the US is not. + +Feel free to peruse that article to get the detail. Suffice to say that Australia and New Zealand is just about the only major English speaking geography with essentially no business hour overlap. + +6. Our Currency is the New Israeli Sheqel (NIS). Also: Payoneer Started Here + +Israel’s official currency is the New Israeli Sheqel (NIS) which is a minor world currency used only in Israel. + +Fortunately, there’s no need to worry about dealing with an obscure foreign currency if you’re sending money to suppliers in Israel. + +Payoneer, which facilitates low cost international foreign exchange (FX), was actually founded in Israel. Transferwise is an excellent option too and my personal recommendation. + +Israel-based freelancers that have these payment options configured can accept payment in the US dollar, the British pound, and the Euro. TransferWise’s Borderless accounts system makes this simple. If nothing else works, there’s also Paypal —and bank wires. + +5. Israel Is Home To A Diverse And Well-Educated Talent Pool — And Most Know English + +As a young country built on the back of Jewish immigration from around the world, Israel is home to a diverse and well-educated talent pool. + +Israel is one of the best-educated populations in the world — with the average of residents holding a tertiary degree floating well above the OECD average. + +Additionally, around 85% of Israelis speak English. + +Of course, English is the native language of many immigrants. + +But even if you’re dealing with native-born Israelis (tsabrim) there’s a good chance that they’ll have enough English to comfortably slot in alongside your in-house team or freelancers from other countries. + +6. Internet Connectivity Is Good And Widespread + +Of course, if you’re thinking about working with somebody in another country you might be wondering whether they … well, have internet access. + +Internet access is adequate and the country was recently ranked eigth in a recent digital quality of life survey. + +That doesn’t mean that Israelis have bad internet. It just means that some countries have faster and better connectivity. + +Internet infrastructure in Israel is provided by two main providers while the country is currently in the process of rolling out fiber optic for faster home connectivity. 5G licenses were recently granted to mobile network operators (MNOs) and the network has now gone live across the country — although of course many mobile devices do not yet support it. + +Consider Using Israeli Freelancers For Your Next Project + +These days, Israeli freelancers are tapped for their talent by far more than Jewish-owned companies with family members in the country. + +Israel represents a viable and strong labor pool for worldwide projects looking to outsource to new labor bases. Those looking to work with Israel-based freelance resources should bear in mind that Israel has an unusual Sunday to Thursday workweek and that its national day calendar is based around the Jewish calendar. + +This means both that some Jewish holidays — like Rosh HaShanah — are national days off. While some days off in the rest of the world — like New Year’s Day — are regular working days in Israel. + +Working with Israel-based freelancers can be a rewarding experience for both sides. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/what-to-know-before-working-with-freelancers-in-israel/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/what-to-know-before-working-with-freelancers-in-israel/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/What-Was-It-Like-Growing-Up-Jewish-in-Ireland.md b/posts/toi/What-Was-It-Like-Growing-Up-Jewish-in-Ireland.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..3953acb50a81b541d82f3124948d4b74a9101cfd --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/What-Was-It-Like-Growing-Up-Jewish-in-Ireland.md @@ -0,0 +1,225 @@ +# What Was It Like Growing Up Jewish in Ireland? + +I’ve written before about the trials and tribulations of making aliyah — and the ways in which I think Israel’s culture is similar to Ireland’s and differs from it. + +One of the benefits of staying in Israel long enough to be considered an oleh hadash-that-isn’t-so-hadash is getting past the “where did you come from and why did you move to Israel?” routine that prefaces meeting new people here. + +Having gone through the following enough times to last a lifeline (over the course of five years, I add), here’s a template FAQ to which I will be referring future inquisitors. + +*** + +Person at Shabbat table: You have an accent! Where are you from? + +Me: That’s a Nachlaot accent. Didn’t you know? + +Person at Shabbat table: I mean, where did you live before Nachlaot? + +Me: Rechavia. + +Person at Shabbat table: Where are you originally from? + +Me: I was born in a hospital. + +Person at Shabbat table: In what country was that hospital located? + +Me: Western Europe + +Person at Shabbat table: Oh, you’re from London! Do you know Harry Cohen? How about Rivka Solomons? Have you visited Golders Green? + +Me: (Reluctantly) No, I’m from Ireland. + +—Israelis and olim alike very seldom meet people from Ireland and assume that all English speaking olim are, by default, from the US. So, to fend off a puzzled “Eer-land?!” I sometimes need to add, for emphasis, “Guinness!” “Riverdance! ” “Michael Flatley!”— + +Person at Shabbat table: Oh, you’re from Ireland! I’ve never met a Jew from Ireland! Are there many Jews in Ireland? (Why do people always ask these two questions in this exact succession?) + +Me: It’s a very small community. There are about 2,500 Jews in the country, mostly in Dublin. I grew up in Cork, in the south of the country. + +*** + +Once the above routine has run its course I try to change subject as quickly as possible. + +Irish people’s go-to for this purpose is always the weather — but in a country with as stable as predictable a climate as Israel that doesn’t help much. + +That’s great chicken soup, X, where did you get the recipe from? + +My discomfort with talking about growing up in Ireland is definitely palpable and I’m sure that it has given more than one person pause for worry about my sanity. Why do I hate talking about it? + +For one, I’ve had this conversation about a thousand times. I have more to say about it than would be appropriate for friendly small talk with somebody I’ve just met (see: below). And, perhaps most significantly, because I moved to Israel, in large part, precisely to avoid this conversation — to become part of the mainstream. + +So — for one time only — let me open up a bit about it and give the subject a good airing. + +Growing up Jewish in Ireland + +I was born in Dublin, Ireland’s capital, to a Jewish mother and a Catholic father. + +Growing up, we lived overseas for a few years: in Aberdeen, Scotland and in The Hague in The Netherlands (my late father worked for Halliburton and the moves were job-related). + +After a few years, we returned to Cork, Ireland’s second city, where my mother is from. My late maternal grandparents lived in the city about twenty minutes’ drive from our house. + +It took me a while to even realize that I was Jewish — that I was somehow different from my friends and just about everybody except my immediate family members. + +In fact, my first memories after moving back to Cork have nothing to do with religion at all. I have fond memories of making Lego movies with my friend and going through a phase of being obsessive about working out in the gym. The latter seems to have passed (sadly). + +Gradually, the feeling that I was different — which is why, in effect, I don’t like talking about this — crept up on me. Slowly, insipidly at first, I began to feel like a fish out of water. + +That — for those looking for the TL;DR — is really how I would define my experience of being an Irish Jew. + +Of being extremely uncomfortable with the exceptionalism of those dual and seemingly conflicting identities. And of being very conscious of not quite fitting squarely into either bracket. + +Part of the reason I don’t like being wheeled out as the Irish Jew party trick, or grilled about my background, is because it makes me feel like an imposter. Because in truth, I’ve never felt authentically Irish. Or believed that I was perceived as such by my compatriots. In equal measure, it’s also just an uncomfortable topic — and not all the memories which being reminded of my Irish-Jewish identity bring back are good ones. + +It’s unsurprising, I guess, that my first memories of realizing that I was Jewish were through the lens of being aware that I was different than the mainstream — the outsider, the odd one out. + +Receiving exemptions from religious education in primary and secondary school. Not really knowing what to do with my hands — or my eyes — when The Angelus or The Lord’s Prayer came through the school intercom system twice a day. + +Bringing chicken sausages, in lieu of pork ones, to my primary school’s barbecue and being asked how on earth chicken can be put into sausages (the same way pork can?). + +Cork’s Jewish community, throughout the time I lived there but particularly before I left for Israel, was vanishingly small. + +My grandfather, the late Fred Rosehill, effectively served as the tiny congregation’s leader. This video (I make a cameo appearance — and have a better barber now) does a nice job at explaining the community’s origins, its history, and its slow demise. + +The permanent community — at the ‘height’ I remember, at least — consisted of perhaps a dozen individuals, to offer a generous estimate. + +The community’s ranks were swelled—usually temporarily, although occasionally not—by Israeli expats. They typically moved to Cork to work in one of the international companies dotted throughout the city. Many were not religiously inclined and interested in affiliating themselves with the tiny local Jewish community. Besides the very few that took up permanent residence in Cork, those that joined our ranks inevitably left when they returned to Israel — or elsewhere. + +Gradually — as congregants died, disassociated from the community, or moved to Israel (or elsewhere) — the tiny numbers that it consisted of slumped even further. + +To the point (which stretches as far back as I can remember) that assembling a minyan was a heroic initiative that would require congregants travelling from adjoining counties for some special purpose. For High Holidays, Chabad trainee rabbis were “imported” from the UK to ensure a minyan (quorom) throughout the day. They reported drawing bewildered looks — and occasionally teasing leers — as they traveled through the city. + +There were no regular services during my involvement with the Cork shul except for a Shabbat service that was held once a month. My bar mitzvah was the first to be held at the shul in a long time. + +Growing up, I spent a considerable amount of time with my late grandfather. Were it not for his influence and determination to keep the community going despite its small numbers, and the internet, I’m not sure that I would have had a strong enough Jewish identity to prioritize moving to a community where Judaism was practicable. + +The Shul That Became A Museum + +Growing up, I spent a large amount of time helping my grandfather to give tours of the synagogue to school groups. + +And to take care of the many unglamorous activities that go into maintaining even a small Jewish community function (my late grandpa was a stickler for making sure that the community email newsletter list was always kept well updated!). + +Countless schools and museum groups visited the shul on South Terrace which was later deconsecrated and is no longer in use. At other times, these were visiting Jewish groups from the US who stopped off in Cork during a cruise itinerary. + +One thought kept creeping up on me, but more so after my first trip to Israel, was that the shul was seeing more use as a museum than it was as a place of religious worship. And Judaism doesn’t belong in a history book. + +However, the real impetus to start looking for places to emigrate to was attending a Birthright trip to Israel when I was 16 or so. + +A Chabad rabbi in Ireland — Rabbi Zalman Lent, who now serves as Rabbi at the Dublin Hebrew Congregation — got in touch as he was leading a group from Ireland on a Birthright trip to Israel. (At least, this is how I remember events). + +At this time, my only exposure to Judaism, besides helping out at the shul, was through listening to podcasts (Chabad.org’s audio catalog, and then the wonderful Rabbi Eli Mansour, were my go-tos). + +I attended Presentation Brothers College (PBC) — a Catholic high school. Growing up, I didn’t have a single Jewish friend. This was due to demographic reasons rather than by choice: there were possibly two Jewish kids my age in the entire city and county and neither went to my school. At the time I attended, I was the only Jewish pupil in the high school which had more than 500 pupils. + +Besides Cork, the only Judaism I was familiar with — from visits to family members abroad — was that of the diaspora (the UK, the US, and Israel are where most former Cork Jews have moved to). There, as far as I could observe, Jews lived in close-knit communities, often attended separate high schools, and seemed to keep close to, but at a slight difference from, the societies that surrounded them. + +Ultimately, what I perceived to be a somewhat closeted existence appealed to me about as much as staying in Cork with its almost total dearth of Jews and the institutions needed to live an observant Jewish life (it probably goes without saying, but I should point out that there was no source of kosher meat either). + +My first trip to Israel opened my eyes to a different possible way of life which both afforded the ability to live a fulfilled Jewish existence but which didn’t require choosing one’s city or social circle based on their religion. (If you see Judaism as an ethnicity as well as a religion this isn’t as self-contradictory as it might at first seem!) + +It was a place where, unlike Cork, I wouldn’t be a minuscule minority — where I was part of a community that was now a mostly historical artifact that evoked the occasional attention of the media and scholars as well as the reluctant interest of bored high school students who chose Judaism as one of their focuses for their Religious Studies exam. + +As the world’s only Jewish majority country — the one in which Judaism began — Israel also offered something which the diaspora, in its entirety, simply couldn’t. + +A place where being Jewish was the norm. Where the things needed to live a fulfilled Jewish life, including religious holidays, were baked into the country’s very DNA. And a society in which keeping kosher didn’t mean having to choose between three obscure restaurants in whatever neighborhood the city’s Jewish community deemed best suited to establish a center for itself. + +On the linear scale of the Jewish world, Israel was the polar opposite of Ireland. + +I was sold. + +Staying in Cork + +I don’t believe in dwelling on regrets, but if I had to list one of my biggest ones so far, it was probably staying in Cork for university (as well as studying something I wasn’t passionate about — for another post, or better none at all). + +The passing of my late father, right before I started my law degree, had a lot to do with that. I had looked into studying in New York, the UK, and Israel (and received offers), but I ultimately chose to attend my local university and live at home (regret number two; Take it fro me: you don’t want to be learning how to iron your clothes during ulpan!). + +At this stage, my consciousness had been fully awoken to being Jewish — I was now teaching myself ktav Rashi to be able to learn the Talmud. But also to the fact that Israel was rather despised in the country I lived in. + +Through my trips to Israel and the continued inspiration of Rabbi Mansour’s wonderful audio shiurim, I was also beginning to take religious observation more seriously in a city and college campus that was almost devoid of Jewish life. + +To move closer to keeping kosher for instance I adopted a vegetarian and then pescetarian diet. But I found the diet constricting. Besides, having to keep quiet about my growing observance felt a bit too much like being a Marrano in Inquisition-era Spain. + +As I entered university, I couldn’t help but notice that merely mentioning Israel in conversation felt akin to walking around campus with a megaphone and cursing one’s lecturers. This is a battle and feeling that is probably familiar to many American readers. But there was something about facing this feeling almost alone that felt particularly isolating. + +Is There Really No Anti-Semitism in Ireland? + +When people ask what growing up Jewish was like in Ireland, they often next want to know whether I encountered anti-Semitism during my 20 or so years living in the country. + +The party line of Irish Jews since time immemorial has been that the country is almost totally devoid of anti-Semitism and that Ireland has an exemplary and unique track record in being almost totally untinged by anti-Semitism. + +To the extent that — save the Limerick Pogrom — there haven’t been any mass waves of overt anti-Semitism in the country those making that assertion are correct. + +But internally — and here publicly — I have always both contested that narrative and felt that several historical facts (such as Jews’ exclusion from certain social clubs to name one) flatly contradicted that claim. + +Growing up, I have memories of us, and my grandfather, receiving anonymous anti-Semitic phone calls and voicemails. As uncommon as these incidents were, they did happen. Repeatedly — and particularly when the Israeli-Arab conflict was at its most restive. + +When I wound up the student news website that I founded and edited at the local university, its Wikipedia page was defaced with a comment alleging that the “chief Jew” deleted the page “in a hissy fit”. (On the second part, the poster wasn’t wrong — I pulled the plug on the site rashly). + +This unnerved me more than direct name-calling. Tracing the IP, I could see that it came from somewhere on the college campus. Despite my best efforts to keep a very low profile about my Jewishness, somebody knew who I was, that I was Jewish, and evidently didn’t like that fact. The hardest abuse to take can be that which is cloaked in anonymity. + +Other experiences that I remember as deeply uncomfortable were more direct. + +There was, for instance, the English teacher who would frequently begin classes on literature by lecturing the class about how “the Jews” were stealing Palestinian land. Sitting a meter from the teacher, I maintained a fixated stare on my desk. + +In general, and despite the above (which represent exceptions rather than the norm), I believe that Irish society is tolerant and respectful towards its minorities, including Jews. But equally, I cannot say that I never experienced anti-Semitism while living in the country. + +More than that, though, I always felt profoundly uncomfortable — and, I’m sorry to say, embarrassed — about being Jewish in Ireland. + +Although globalization is fast changing things, many Irish people only know about Jews and Judaism from American media. + +Commonly, after mentioning that I was Jewish, my interlocutor would assume that I was joking. Before realizing that I was not and being hushed into embarrassed silence. + +I was acutely aware of the fact that I was and am likely the first and only Jew that many of my friends had met outside of the context of popular culture. + +If my experiences seem exaggerated or imaginary, then I encourage anybody reading this to read the comments section on any story about Israel on Irish news websites. + +While it’s easy to dismiss those commenting on news websites as a fringe but vocal minority (another party line), to watch many anti-Semitic canards enjoying open and popular support was and remains highly disconcerting for me. + +The Jews control the media; Israel is built on stolen land; what the Jews are doing to the Palestinians is worse than the Nazis. Statements like these slip into Irish conversations about Israel, whether in radio chat shows or on online fora — and opposition is thin on the ground. + +The distinguishing feature of Irish opposition to Israel and its championing of the Palestinian cause is its often ferocious virulence. + +To fail to ascribe anti-Semitic motives to at least a portion of this tidal wave of hate — or to claim that there is no anti-Semitism in Ireland at all — is, in my opinion, to be willfully disingenuous. + +Why I Left Ireland + +The above probably makes clear why I ultimately left Ireland and came on the crazy journey called aliyah. In doing so, it may also leave the false impression that I deeply dislike the country of my birth — which is very far from the case. + +I enjoyed living in Ireland even if — from a Jewish perspective — it caused me to feel increasingly alienated from the country whose passport I held and ill at ease with my own identity as an Irish Jew. + +And if this sense of discomfort began at a slow simmer, then it reached boiling point when I began to identify with the Zionist cause — and sensed that virtually all of society held that movement, and often the existence of the State of Israel, to be anathema to their moral code. + +Most pragmatically, I couldn’t think of a way to marry within the faith — something which I achieved by moving to Israel!. I also couldn’t envision a long term future in a country where it felt like there was an obvious and sometimes painful dissonance between the passport I held and my religion. Nor one in which merely mentioning the word ‘Israel’ felt like breaking a societal bamboo —which left my options as either to join my voice as a Jewish one in opposition to the country or wage a futile war to challenge mistruths and distortions through hasbara (I delved in that world and — as I recently wrote here — I don’t think that most hasbara is constructive or a good use of time). And finally, simple truth be told, I couldn’t stomach more fish and lentils. + +Being Jewish in Ireland was slightly weird. Slightly embarrassing and uncomfortable (for me, perhaps also for others). And something which I usually felt everybody would prefer was just skipped over in conversation whenever it cropped up. For me, and as my own sense of Jewishness and self matured, that simply wasn’t a paradigm that was compatible with being proud about who I was. + +My emigration push factor was simply that I felt uncomfortable — at times profoundly so — with being Jewish there. + +The countervailing pull factor was that Israel offered a unique selling proposition which no other Jewish community in the world could equal: somewhere where being Jewish was the norm rather than the exception. + +For the record, while comparing my experiences in these two countries, there are aspects of Ireland that I far prefer to Israel. + +Let me end this blog post by listing them. + +For one, I think that Ireland has a warm and accepting culture — one which is largely free of the unbridled aggression that sadly seems to be endemic in much of Israeli society. + +Like Israel, Ireland punches above its weight internationally — both in terms of the success of its diaspora population and its prominence on the international stage. + +Israel, like Ireland, has a relatively thriving tech scene — and one which, like Israel, is focused internationally. + +Shitat mazliach and freier culture thankfully doesn’t have a grip on Irish society as it does here. Where Israelis value being often abrasively direct, the Irish value being friendly (if sometimes only outwardly) and congenial. In truth, I’ve come to believe that both approaches have merit. Manners are treating others with consideration are emphasized virtues in Irish culture — in Israel, all too often, the former regarded as a waste of time and words. + +Despite all the above, and my sense of feeling proud about where I came from, I couldn’t envision a future staying in Ireland. + +I was tired of feeling slightly ashamed and embarrassed about who I was: always the odd one out (even if that exceptionalism went unspoken).The slightly embarrassed (and perhaps embarrassing) exception to the Irish Catholic stereotype. Kyle from South Park — except in real life. + +Feeling comfortable in my own skin — and figuring out who I am (not quite Irish, not quite Israeli — perhaps just a person figuring out his place in the world?) is a slow process of reawakening that is still going on to this day. Even as I write this. + +Ireland was, all things considered, kind to me and my family — who arrived there in the late nineteenth century (like most Cork Jews) fleeing religious persecution and forced conscription in Lithuania. + +I still have family in Ireland, do business with clients in the country, and am proud to hold an Irish passport (and to fly its flag on my roof). + +But — as the long history of the Jewish diaspora bears out, a legacy of nomadic wandering which I believe only the founding of a Jewish state could interrupt — I, by moving to Israel, have broken a chain of living in the country that only stretches back three generations. And that, in a nutshell, is partially why I believe that Israel must exist. + +Jews have shuffled between countries since the time they went into exile — facing periodic persecution and expulsions. Sometimes, the road has taken them to common destinations like New York or London. Sometimes to off the beaten track places like Cork. The only place I can see us having sticking power as a people, and being comfortable in our collective skin, is where it all began — here in Israel. + +And that — in much more detail than I typically volunteer at a Shabbat meal — is why I made aliyah. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/what-was-it-like-growing-up-jewish-in-ireland/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Where-Are-Jerusalems-Embassies-Going-To-Go.md b/posts/toi/Where-Are-Jerusalems-Embassies-Going-To-Go.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..668042928ad976728baaf119c050ccac6628a79f --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Where-Are-Jerusalems-Embassies-Going-To-Go.md @@ -0,0 +1,79 @@ +# Where Are Jerusalem’s Embassies Going To Go? + +It’s been a frenetic few weeks on the diplomatic front for Israel. + +To recap some of the breathtaking developments (and what’s speculated might be next to come): + +Meanwhile, news of potential embassy openings in Jerusalem has been equally fast paced, undoubtedly accelerated by Israel’s unexpected breakthroughs in normalizing its relations with the Arab world: + +The US and Guetemala: A Lonely Duo + +Despite the ambitious signage erected by some Jerusalem developers, promising that “soon, Jerusalem will be home to 200 embassies,” (above) Israel’s capital is currently home to only two of the 89 resident embassies in the State of Israel, the vast majority of which are located in Tel Aviv and the adjoining city of Ramat Gan. + +The United States famously moved its mission to Jerusalem in May 2018, prompting speculation that an influx of embassies was about to begin. Currently, the US Embassy is located on a meandering road off the Arnona neighborhood — housed in the same building that, up to the change of status, housed the US Consulate to Jerusalem. The mission in Arnona also formerly subsumed the Consulate close to the King David hotel in downtown Jerusalem which was shuttered after the State Department vested the Embassy with authority to engage in direct talks with the Palestinian Authority (PA). However, the site is not intended to serve permanently as the US’s Embassy in Israel. Apparently a site closer to Derekh Hevron, in Arnona, is the preferred location. + +The only other UN member state with a permanent embassy currently in Jerusalem is Guetemala, whose mission is located within the high tech park in Malha in South Jerusalem. Guetemala and Paraguay both moved their embassies to Jerusalem shortly after the US did but only Guetemala stayed put. Just four months after moving to Jerusalem, Paraguay, a poor Latin-American country of just under seven million citizens, returned to Israel’s coast — causing Israel to shutter its mission to the country in turn. + +Amid the frenzied excitement that accompanied the US’s move, few noted that it was not the first country to have moved its embassy to Jerusalem since the foundation of the state — or that Jerusalem previously enjoyed a now historic embassy era. + +Until 2012, Paraguay itself maintained its embassy in Mevasseret Tsion. According to Israeli journalist Gideon Remez, the city was once home to 13 embassies with El Salvador the last country to up sticks and move back to the coast. According to Remez Israel’s passage in 1980 of Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel — which affirmed Israeli sovereignty over both halves of the city — gave the remaining embassies the impetus to leave. + +Other even older missions to Jerusalem were and are primarily ecclesiastical in nature. The Vatican maintains a mission in the East of the city. The Russian Consulate — now a historical landmark — was established in the mid 19th century. Jerusalem’s oldest formal diplomatic missions represented the interests of pilgrims. Most of its current ones liaise (quietly) with the PA. And perhaps in the future they will be accredited to the State of Israel. + +Jerusalem’s Nine Consulates (That Don’t Deal with Israel!) + +These days, in addition to the two embassies currently located in Israel’s capital, the city is home to nine consulates and consulate-generals (a consulate general is typically the highest ranking mission below an embassy for countries that maintain a network of consulates in a receiving country). + +Many mistakenly assume that these are diplomatic missions to the State of Israel, although subtle clues — like the absence of Israeli flags at these missions — belie the strange truth. Surprisingly, not only is this not the case, but none of the missions in the city even recognize Israel’s claim to sovereignty over Jerusalem (at least not past the Green Line). + +As Eylon Aslan-Levy reported in this excellent piece for The Tower the missions are sui generis institutions in several respects. For one, in most cases, they are officially accredited to Jerusalem — the city — in a strange hangover from the time when the international community envisioned Jerusalem as a corpus separatum, governed by a plurality of foreign nations, or rather by a taskforce of them. An examination of the websites of the missions bears this out. The website of the British Consulate General in Jerusalem, for instance, describes the mission’s purpose as representing the UK “in Jerusalem, West Bank, and Gaza.” The Wikipedia page for the Consulate General of France in Jerusalem — which has a colorful history dating back to the 17th century — baldly notes that the mission “does not have diplomatic relations with the State of Israel.” + +De facto the mostly European missions in Jerusalem serve as representations to the Palestinian Authority (PA) — quasi-embassies effectively despite their formal status as consulates — while Israel begrudgingly tolerates their continuance in a city they refuse to recognize its sovereignty over. + +Several are also self-contained diplomatic missions not subservient to their sending country’s embassy to the State of Israel — located, of course, an hour’s drive to the West. There are other less intriguing curiosities about them. Nobody I have spoken to — including those working at missions to Ramallah — seems quite sure why some missions to the PA are based in Ramallah itself while others are stationed in Jerusalem. It’s a strange situation — in both its history and its continuation. + +A Poisoned Relationship + +Most of the international community continues to repudiate Israel’s claims to sovereignty over the city of Jerusalem — at least the whole of it. Israel’s sovereignty over the the part of the city to the West of the Green Line is a consensus issue only on a de facto basis, although, amidst warming ties, Russia recognized Israel’s sovereignty over West Jerusalem de jure in 2017. Progress in the international community’s relationship with Jerusalem, where it comes, is fitting. And the poisoned root of the issue — and of the strange preponderance of “foreign” embassies in Jerusalem — is Israel’s conquest of East Jerusalem, in 1967, which was done by force and promptly deemed illegal by the United Nations (UNGAR 69/12). The poisoned relationship most countries have with Jerusalem is far-reaching. The protocol of most countries requires their Israeli embassies to studiously refrain from holding national day celebrations in the city. But interacting with Israeli government bodies there is, of course, a requirement of the job. + +So who exactly is “in” Jerusalem besides the two embassies to the State? + +The UK, Spain, France, Sweden, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Belgium, and Denmark all maintain Consulates or Consulate-Generals in the city. While the missions of France, Greece, Denmark, and Italy are located to the west of the Green Line, the others are nestled in East Jerusalem (along with several residences of heads of mission — both those whose representations are based in Ramallah and in Jerusalem itself). The latter are clustered around the relatively opulent Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. + +Last but not least, Jerusalem, like most world capitals, is home to a smattering of honorary consulates usually only noticeable by an errant plaque and national flag atop a private residence. + +Honorary consulates are quasi-amateur diplomatic missions usually helmed by an unpaid individual who serves as a bridge between the countries (in Israel such individuals tend to be Jewish immigrants, whether first or second generation). The honorary consul is typically vested with some diplomatic responsibilities — such as issuing emergency passports — but is neither typically a paid professional nor do they enjoy the full diplomatic privileges granted to professional diplomats under the Vienna Convention. + +Where Will Jerusalem’s Diplomatic Quarter Be? + +Undoubtedly, Israel is strongly committed to encouraging the nations of the world to move their embassies from the coastal cities of Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan to Jerusalem — and, despite the doubts of some, that dream appears to be slowly becoming a reality. Signs of the encroaching foreign diplomatic presence in the city are subtle. Last year, Australia opened a Trade and Defense Office in Jerusalem. It’s tucked away, somewhat incongruously, in the city center WeWork, sharing floor space with freelancers and tech entrepreneurs. Last year, Hungary opened a trade office in the city. The Hungarian PM was keen to emphasize that the mission was to enjoy “diplomatic status.” + +Encouraged, no doubt, by these small advances, Israel continues to do its part to make its dream of the dawn of the embassy era in Jerusalem a reality — although almost undoubtedly more lobbying for this takes place behind the scenes than in front of them. + +As a means of pressuring nations to avoid using backdoor methods to obtain diplomatic representation in Israel’s capital, the Foreign Ministry has said that it will refuse to accredit any new honorary consuls in Jerusalem. Given that, in the space of a month, Israel has struck a normalization accord with the UAE and three embassies have committed to moving to Jerusalem it no longer seems so crazy to ask: “where are they all going to go?” + +And if they do all move to Jerusalem, the question looms as to how they will all fit into a city that is notorious for its overcrowding and complicated politics? + +Will major Western countries opt for power plays like the United States or make do with more modest surroundings, as is the case with many missions in Ramat Gan? What neighborhood will be Jerusalem’s Embassy Row (Washington DC’s embassy neighborhood)? + +While that question might depend upon the arrival of a critical mass, the property developer’s rosy prognostics about an impending wave of embassy arrivals mightn’t turn out to be far wrong. + +Although only 85 countries currently maintain embassies in Israel, there are more than 190 UN member states. The discrepancy between the two is due to the fact that some smaller countries maintain relations with Israel through their embassies in other countries (such as Cyprus; this practice is known as maintaining non-resident ambassadors). Additionally, Israel does not have diplomatic relations with a variety of nations including, up to recently, the UAE. Both situations are theoretically fluid. In other words, it is conceivable — if unlikely right at this moment — that more than 100 countries might one day move their missions to Jerusalem. + +Today, that thought might still have a ring of fanciful speculation. But given the pace at which events are changing, change is on the horizon. As a a firm believer in crowdsourcing, I asked my favorite Jerusalem-based Facebook group where people thought a diplomatic district could emerge in the city. After all, embassies tend to cluster together — and usually base themselves in more affluent parts of capital cities. Where in Jerusalem fits the bill? + +Here were some suggestions floated, including my own: + +Talbiyeh + +Rehavia + +Katamon + +The high tech parks in Malha and Har Hotsvim + +The influx of embassies to Jerusalem that Netanyahu could bring a small influx of international diplomats and visitors to the city. It could be a return to Jerusalem’s previous embassy era — times 10 — filled with missions who are actually there to represent their countries to the State of Israel. + +If and how that might happen will be an interesting process to observe. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/where-are-jerusalems-embassies-going-to-go/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/where-are-jerusalems-embassies-going-to-go/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Why-I-Think-Hasbara-Is-A-Waste-of-Time-And-Resources.md b/posts/toi/Why-I-Think-Hasbara-Is-A-Waste-of-Time-And-Resources.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fcc13a9ae2c1cb39d2084f58cd64db204901d3d0 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Why-I-Think-Hasbara-Is-A-Waste-of-Time-And-Resources.md @@ -0,0 +1,123 @@ +# Why I Think Hasbara Is A Waste of Time (And Resources) + +Three days to go until 5780 becomes 5781. Out with the old and in with the new. + +So — as I’m particularly fond of airing the more unconventional of my opinions, and what better time of the year than this one? — here’s one such unpopular opinion, and a post, that will probably forever rule me out of getting a job at AIPAC, BICOM, or the Stand With Us. + +But it’s also one which I feel like merits a public airing anyway. + +I believe that most hasbara, at least as it is conventionally done, is a complete waste of precious time and state resources. + +And here are some reasons why. + +Hasbara Is Largely Unaccountable + +Ever hear about Israel’s Ministry of Strategic Affairs? + +How about a front company it set up? (For details, read Noa Landau’s excellent reportage in Haaretz here). + +Front companies and cloak and dagger public manipulation campaigns are the kind of thing that hasbarists — and Palestinian propagandists, I hasten to add! — thrive upon. They’re shady, sometimes involve layers of deceit and — most critically — they protect those ultimately involved in the activity of propagandizing for Israel from having to answer difficult questions such as: “can you prove that this activity actually works?” + +Israel has dedicated significant resources over the years towards combating various forms of delegitimisation — most notably the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) campaign. Its preferred weapon of choice: hasbara (note: hasbara means, roughly ‘explanation’ rather than ‘propaganda’; public diplomacy is also a reasonably good translation). Favored tactics include speaking tours, newsletters, and very partisan briefings to policymakers. + +However, the problem with this tactic is nobody really seems sure about how much the propaganda and explanations are really helping. + +What is reasonably clear is that BDS has not had an appreciable effect upon Israel’s export-led economy. What is unknown — and perhaps also unknowable — is to what extent the success of that effort can be attributed to hasbara. + +Landau’s piece for Ha’aretz illustrates well why the hasbara industry needs to demonstrate a positive return on investment (ROI). For in many cases — most specifically through the Ministry of Strategic Affairs — it is drawing funds down from the public purse. And — as nobody needs reminding right now, but particularly the country’s small business owners — Israel’s public purse is not as awash with money as some believe it to be. + +Publicly funded hasbara, as an organized activity, remains largely unaccountable. Unless it is prepared to do demonstrate effectiveness and submit to a regime that demands accountability, continuing to fund it is simply poor governance on the part of its government backers. + +2. Hasbara attempts to control minds + +Personally, I enjoy making up my own mind about things. + +As an Irish-born Jew, you could say that I was born into a paradigm that primed me to support Israel. We diaspora Jews tend to hear about Israel through a slanted lens, whether it’s from our families, in our synagogues, or on the websites that we frequent. + +I’ve attempted to educate myself about the arguments of the other side. And I’ve concluded that, some major grievances with Israeli policy notwithstanding, I’m happy to continue supporting the State of Israel and defending Israel’s right to exist. + +Unfortunately much hasbara aims to deny the privilege and joy of independent research to its target audiences around the world. + +For instance: the orchrestrators of many hasbara efforts seem to believe that by repeating the same trite talking points endlessly their audiences will be muted into quiet agreement with their points. I think that that methodology is worthy of rejection. + +Those of us who live in Israel know that the vast majority of Israel’s separation fence amounts to nothing more than a smart fence and not a wall. We have seen it from our cars and our buses. Those who have received mail circulars from their local Israeli embassy or pro-Israel lobby have undoubtedly been appraised of that fact too, perhaps several hundred times over. Whether or not somebody is willing to accept the truth of that statement ultimately depends upon whether they are rationally motivated or not. And when it comes to Israel — and anti-Semitism needs to be mentioned here — many fall into the latter category. Repeating even a truth endlessly ultimately achieves nothing if people are not prepared or willing to listen. One could argue, in fact, that this tactic only pushes potential friends further away. + +3. Hasbara distorts for its own ends + +If you’ve been on the circular that I mentioned above, you are undoubtedly aware of the fact that Israel’s Supreme Court once had an Arab-Israeli justice on its panel: Salim Joubran, now retired. + +Hasbarists will waste no effort in in, again, appraising anybody who is willing to listen of that fact. + +While Joubran did indeed serve on Israel’s Supreme Court, the picture which hasbarists attempt to paint by repetitively highlighting this fact is not an accurate one. + +Arab-Israelis ( interjection: I prefer the term ’48 Palestinians) and Jewish Israelis are, for the most part, very poorly integrated. Arab-Israelis have frequently voiced complaints about experiencing racism and discrimination in Israeli society and of hitting a glass ceiling through which they cannot break. Without wishing to assert that those claims are valid, I wish to make this point: Joubran is the exception rather than the rule and to pretend otherwise is to be willfully disingenuous. + +Hasbarists — like any organized group with an agenda — will happily highlight outliers and trivalities in order to try to make a point. + +Personally, I’m happier with the truth: Arab and Jewish Israelis work side by side but the societies interact to only a very minimal extent. Working relationships excepted, meaningful integration where I live, in Jerusalem, is thin on the ground. + +I believe that honesty is the best policy and that it would be better — for us and for the world — if we started being honest about what realities on the ground are here. + +4. Hasbara detracts from legitimate goals + +It’s become almost a rite of passage for many American Jews to join a hasbara organization on campus in order to defend Israel from the many lies and mistruths to which it is subjected. + +Personally — although I also dabbled in the hasbara world during that time in my life — defending Israel for free from mobs of haters sounds like a terrible waste of one’s college years to me. + +There are many things about Israel that need improvement and which I have highlighted previously in this blog. + +For one, our cost of living is too high for our average salaries which results in Israel’s middle class living far closer to working class levels of GDP per capita than is the case in other OECD nations. + +There is a lack of cohesion between various groups in our society — notably haredim and the secular. Amazingly, Israel’s education system, particularly in STEM subjects, needs improvement. The pandemic is currently raging through our society. Environmentalism in Israel is in its early stages and Tel Aviv’s beaches are the third most polluted in the Mediterranean. + +Need me to go on? + +My point is that I believe that — if we rack our brains hard enough — we all, as friends and builders of Israel, can find much better things to do than to spend time engaging in online flame wars about why the kites carrying incendiary devices from Gaza are a serious threat to the welfare and lives of residents of the embattled South. They are. But perhaps not everybody on the internet needs to know about that. + +As an oleh — like many — I see part of my mission by living and paying taxes here as working, with other Israelis, to make the country a better place for this and coming generations. + +I see positive change happening at a dazzling pace and almost infinite places in which olims’ talents can be put to good use. + +Duplicating resources by making the same endless point (Israel is right) just detracts from necessary alternative effort in my view. + +5. Hasbara puts us on the defensive + +Once, while a student at University College Cork (UCC) in Ireland, I won myself a free ticket to a gig by interjecting with what the college’s debating society viewed as the best audience interjection of that evening. + +I made the simple point that Israel is not a soccer team and that there’s no need to behave as if it is. Years later, I make the same point. And unfortunately, I see this as the most entrenched part of the significantly entrenched conflict in this part of the Middle East. + +Supporters of Israel and the Palestinian cause both tend to behave as if they are supporting soccer clubs or rivals in a talent contest. + +In this construct of the conflict, no misdeed can be conceded — and no positive deed met with anything but the highest form of adulation and praise. Either side has to be always right; apologizing is seen as a weakness; strength, and wavering commitment to the party line, is seen as a virtue. Sadly, to a large extent, this belief system has become subsumed into Israel’s early culture. + +The above is why, in my opinion, we end up with slogans such as the IDF being “the most moral army in the world.” To which I ask: have we really assessed the moral standing of every other nation’s armed forces to make that comparison? And is subjecting a population of millions to military rule supremely moral? In this framework, we are left with each side trying to repetitively make the case that everything their preferred “team” does is perfect. + +Irish filmmaker Nicky Larkin, a few years ago, created a documentary called ‘Forty Shades of Grey’. In media interviews, Larkin has told of how he went from being a card-carrying member of the Irish opposition to Israel to being largely undecided about the conflict and seeing instead that a lot of wrong (and right) was being done by each side. + +Larkin’s process, to an extent, parallels my own with the exception that I have gone from being relatively right wing to relatively left wing to (now) feeling rather confused by the whole thing. There isn’t one narrative or one truth. Both viewpoints have some merit and factual basis. + +If you can survive hearing both side’s opinion long enough and not go crazy during the process, I believe that many will be left with the unsatisfying conclusion that the true answer to “who’s right here?” is “it’s very complicated.” + +Would we be better off without it? + +The above points together represent my main grievances with hasbara. + +I could include others — for instance the simple fact that much of the activity falls on deaf ears — but the main points are well captured in the above. + +Lest the above has suggested otherwise — and not that this stands a remote possibility of happening — I should make clear that I do not endorse the view that all hasbara must be immediately terminated and its leading organizations wound up. + +Rather, I endorse the opinion that it perhaps time that we began a more frank conversation about whether hasbara actually achieves its objectives and merits the public and charitable funding that a lot of its leading organizations receive. + +Poring over hasbara and Friends of Israel organizations with the fine toothed comb of an auditor would, I suspect, reveal countless instances of needless duplication of resources. Rationalization is in order too. But I believe that it’s time we took hasbara’s indefinite continuance off the list of things that we collectively think must be continued no matter what. + +Israel has a right to defend itself against the egregious lies to which it is often subjected on the international stage — this I agree with and affirm. + +Yet, in large part, I believe that work should remain the purview of Israel’s professional diplomats rather than unpaid amateurs — and that we should begin asking why the budget of the latter has been so systematically eroded over the years? + +At the very least, I think it’s time that we began a new conversation about hasbara. + +With newly minted bilateral ties with the UAE and Bahrain in its stride, Israel is no longer the poor victimized puppy of the Middle East. + +Perhaps it is time that we began amending our behavior to reflect that. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-hasbara-is-a-waste-of-time-and-resources/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Why-I-Think-the-US-Mediation-Attempt-Helps-Nobody-and-Could-Harm-Israel.md b/posts/toi/Why-I-Think-the-US-Mediation-Attempt-Helps-Nobody-and-Could-Harm-Israel.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..d2674bf25a7b457dc38fe9004923bbae653fe38d --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Why-I-Think-the-US-Mediation-Attempt-Helps-Nobody-and-Could-Harm-Israel.md @@ -0,0 +1,89 @@ +# Why I Think the US Mediation Attempt Helps Nobody (and Could Harm Israel) + +Like most political news junkies, I’ve been keeping a close eye on reactions and statements following last week’s conference in Bahrain which Jared Kushner has unsurprisingly hailed as “a tremendous success.” + +Frankly, I find the whole thing rather unsettingly bizarre. + +That feeling is compounded when I read that at the Israel Hayom Forum in Jerusalem yesterday (held partially to fête visiting former US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley) mega-donor Miriam Adelson floated the idea of grafting a “Book of Trump” onto the Bible. (Perhaps the Americans have understood that even the speculative Golani Trumpville wouldn’t be enough to satisfy his ego). + +For one, there’s the fact that the Bahraini summit which was intended to kickstart the “deal of the century” — beginning with the unveiling of its economic component — saw the participation of neither party to the conflict (save, of course, for the attendance of a minor Israeli delegation of business-people and journalists). + +Additionally, there’s the fact that the Palestinians supposed to be bought out by the $50 economic woo stridently rejected the idea of receiving the aid even before it had commenced. + +Which begs the question how the extensive infrastructural stimulus package outlined in “Peace to Prosperity” can ever be executed when its intended benefactors plan on refusing to cooperate with it. + +But more than that, even those as unschooled in the art of international negotiations as the author surely realize that an interlocutor must enjoy some measure of trust from both sides to stand some chance of being able to successfully lend their “good offices” to resolve the dispute between the parties. + +The grisly history of the conflict itself underscores that point. + +Israel’s poisoned relations with the United Nations (UN) on the political level has surely not facilitated the work of its humanitarian missions in the West Bank and Gaza nor proved conducive to helping it successfully convey its security challenges to the other UN agencies monitoring its borders with Lebanon and Syria. Nor was the peace process quite as moribund during the Obama administration as it is today. + +Blatant Partisanship Helps Neither Side + +The above is why I find it remarkable that Jason Greenblatt, in interview with CNN, thought it wise to state that he has not “found anything to criticize” about Israel’s relations with the Palestinian Authority (PA). + +After repeatedly (and often justifiably) “slamming” both factions of Palestinian society for everything from corruption to human rights abuses, one might think that it may have been more diplomatically prudent had Greenblatt simply evaded the question to lend at least some semblance of impartiality to his mandate as Special Envoy for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. + +The truth, however, is that Greenblatt’s rather bald bias towards Israel neither exceeds nor expands upon that evoked by the other two major US figures attempting to broker a deal with the Palestinians: Trump’s other special advisor Jared Kushner and the incumbent US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman. + +Friedman, in an interview with the New York Times, recently weakly endorsed Netanyahu’s electoral promise to annex part of the West Bank, stating that he believes Israel “has the right to retain some, but unlikely all” of the territory. + +An anonymous White House official quickly poured cold water on the Ambassador’s comments, commenting that “no plan for unilateral annexation by Israel of any portion of the West Bank has been presented by Israel to the US, nor is it under discussion.” + +The US Ambassador is also an outspoken supporter of the settlement enterprise and was president of the American Friends of Bet El Yeshiva Center non-profit when it donated $12,000 to the religious center on the settlement. + +When talking about Israel, Jason Greenblatt has termed former Transport Minister’s rather fantastical plan to build a railway across the Middle East as a “railway for peace.” (It must be pointed out that, at the time of writing, the high-speed Jerusalem to Tel Aviv railway, which runs a distance of less than 60 KM., remains unfinished). + +When talking about the Palestinians, by comparison, Greenblatt has described their situation as one which “they caused.” + +In fact Greenblatt’s praise of the condolence visit of an unofficial Palestinian coexistence group, who visited the grieving family of Ori Ansbacher, might well be the only kind words he has ever had for Palestinians or the administration in Ramallah. + +Besides attempting to thrust an unwanted economic stimulus package on the Palestinians, Kusher has proven a little more tactful and measured, stating that the as-of-yet unreleased political component of the plan should ultimately lead to some measure of Palestinian self-governance. + +However, from everybody’s perspective but their own, it’s obvious whose side the American triumvirate are on. + +It’s also obvious that the effusive reciprocation from the Israeli side has been equally without measure. It’s a dynamic that hasn’t gone unnoticed in Washington, with former CIA chief Leon Panetta telling Army Radio last week that the bilateral ties seem to have “gone overboard.” + +Yair Netanyahu, a self-appointed representative of the Israeli people (and arguably the unofficial interim Foreign Minister) recently told a US. conservative news network that the American president s universally regarded as a “rock star” in Israel. And of course, Benjamin Netanyahu’s theatrical unveiling of the sign for an unfunded, unplanned town in the Golan, to be named in Trump’s honor, drew international attention. + +Has the US Permanently Relinquished its Status as a Broker? + +It may come as a surprise that, despite the above, I consider myself towards the right of the political spectrum when it comes to Israel and the Palestinian conflict. + +I believe that the Palestinian leadership’s century-long tradition of rejectionism means that the Americans’ plan is destined for the dustbin of history. + +What the negotiators of the Oslo Accords and the Peel Commission failed to achieve will not be realized by a team of negotiators that seem blissfully unaware of what many (including the author) believe to the problem which underlies the entire Arab-Israeli conflict: the existence of an independent Jewish state in what was once Arab territory. Previous fora, at the very least, enjoyed the cooperation of both parties to the conflict. + +The uncomfortable truth, which Washington and its envoys have yet to internalize, is that no amount of money nor infrastructure will placate the hearts, minds, and stomachs of a leadership that quite likely does not want to peacefully coexist under the two state framework that the majority of the international community has long advocated for. + +At the very least, a Palestinian leadership intent on peacefully coexisting with Israel would be foolish not to require guarantees of territorial contiguity and an end to the expansion of settlements before economic development were even discussed. + +To agree to an economic stimulus package without first understanding the political contours of the “deal of the century” would be a recklessly imprudent betrayal of the interests of their own people. + +The Trump triumvirate’s attempt to graft their capitalist values on a Middle Eastern religious and territorial conflict is doomed for failure. + +A section of Palestinian society may be fine with the idea of putting their aspirations of statehood on the backburner while they enjoy an economic infusion, but the effect — if positive at all — would be unlikely to be anything but temporary. + +If nothing else, the Palestinians have made abundantly clear that their aspirations of statehood are not up for sale. + +What Could it Mean for the Future? + +Israel’s decision to cooperate with the Americans’ renewed peace initiative was likely taken out of political expediency and a desire to stay on good terms with the Trump administration. + +The American gestures of friendship towards Israel, such as moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem, have been partially symbolic — and have not led to the influx of diplomatic missions to Jerusalem that Netanyahu had improbably hoped for. + +The concessions Israel may be expected to make in exchange for the unprecedentedly favorable attitude of the US administration remain worryingly unclear. + +For the current and future US administrations, Kushner and Greenblatt’s faltering efforts in Bahrain may have permanently relinquished the superpower’s ability to serve as an independent broker in the Israel-Palestinian conflict. But what other outcome could have been anticipated from a summit which even the US conveners have been warning for month “might fail.”? + +The political and diplomatic fallout from Bahrain will likely take time to become clear. + +Feeling spurned by the Palestinians, I envision that the US will move to implement an even more aggressively partisan policy of support towards Israel’s increasingly right-wing government, which could become unprecedentedly so depending on the outcome of the recalled election, which might see Netanyahu forming a hardline coalition with the far-right. + +Despite Netanyahu’s boasts of Israel’s “unprecedented” achievements on the diplomatic stage, with only other fellow far-right nationalist governments for enthusiastic bedfellows, it could be argued that Israel’s foreign policy has never been as poorly diversified as it is now, with unknown consequences should the US relationship falter or a less pro-Israel accede to power. + +An effort by an unabashedly partisan Trump meditation team to broker the world’s most intractable geopolitical conflict was destined for failure before it even began. + +I just hope its consequences stop at that. + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-the-us-mediation-attempt-helps-nobody-and-could-harm-israel/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-i-think-the-us-mediation-attempt-helps-nobody-and-could-harm-israel/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/Working-With-The-World-From-Israel-Time-Zones.md b/posts/toi/Working-With-The-World-From-Israel-Time-Zones.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ab9e3fb47ba0a2a3059c578759e880b55b92490c --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/Working-With-The-World-From-Israel-Time-Zones.md @@ -0,0 +1,171 @@ +# Working With The World From Israel — Time Zones + +In my last article here, I explained why freelancing internationally, from Israel, makes a lot of sense. + +On one leg: + +The international market is a lot bigger; it’s interesting to work with international cultures; sometimes (field-dependent) project rates are more buoyant; and really, it simply isn’t all that hard. + +Besides the issue of getting paid (two words: Paypal and Transferwise) the other issue that stops people from thinking outside the merkaz is time zones. + +In this article, I want to give a quick run-through of which international time zones are ‘Israel-friendly,’ which are less so, and which are almost downright impossible to work with. + +What Is Israel Time? + +Given that Israel is a tiny country it unsurprisingly has only one time zone: Israel Standard Time). + +This is two hours ahead of UTC (coordinated universal time). Israel Standard Time (IST) changes to Israel Daylight Time (IDT) on the Friday before the last Sunday of March. The time zone revers to IST on the last Sunday of October. + +The differences with Europe’s daylight savings time, and those of the rest of the world, are slightly jagged. Ireland, for instance, turned over to daylight savings time on the 29th of March this year — two days after Israel. It returns to winter time on the same date, however. + +These minor differences aside, the offset for Europe is therefore: + +1 hour ahead of the European continent / Central European Time (CET) + +2 hours ahead of Western European Time (WET) + +On the same time zone as Eastern European Time (EET) + +Time Zone Overlays + +And the source data: + +The Hard Ones: Time Zones Without Overlapping Business Hours + +Thinking about working with a client in Auckland, New Zealand? + +New Zealand is currently on New Zealand Daylight Time (NZDT) which is UTC+13. + +This means that: + +09:00 in Aukland is 22:00 in Tel Aviv. + +17:-00 in Aukland is 06:00 in Tel Aviv. + +Thus, office hours do not intersect at all. + +And if you want to work with a client based in New Zealand that needs same day responses, you’re going to have to start working night shifts and stocking up on midnight snacks. + +Likewise, the difference with Australia is extremely difficult to work with. + +Australia has three major time zones: + +Western: UTC+8 (same as China) + +UTC+8 (same as China) Central: UTC +9.5 + +UTC +9.5 Eastern: UTC +10 (southern hemisphere winter), UTC+11 (southern hemisphere summer). + +It’s usually easier to remember this by notable cities. So: + +Melbourne is currently on UTC+11 (they’re on summer-time!). Which means: + +09:00 in Melbourne is 00:00 in Tel Aviv. + +17:00 in Melbourne is 08:00 in Tel Aviv. + +So if you’re at your desk early you can catch somebody at the end of their workday just before you get into yours. + +Difficult But Doable: Pacific Time / The West Coast of the US + +A much more common time zone for Israeli businesses to have to plan around is that on the West Coast of the USA —correctly termed Pacific Standard Time (PST) in the winter and Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) during daylight saving’s. + +Lots of Israeli companies are based in Silicon Valley — and many have teams both in San Francisco and Tel Aviv. + +While not quite as bad as the almost impossible New Zealand differential, working with PST/PTD from Israel can still be rather unkind on one’s circadian rhythm — and social diary. + +Unlike New Zealand, California is also in the Northern hemisphere — and therefore is also on winter time. + +Pacific Standard Time is currently UTC-8, while Israel is UTC+2, so the difference is 10 hours. + +Therefore, at the moment: + +09:00 in San Francisco is 19:00 in Tel Aviv + +17:00 in San Francisco is 03:00 in Tel Aviv + +Even if you want to hold calls up to midnight Israeli time, that will only take you to 14:00 in California. + +As any Israel-based support rep dealing with clients on the West Coast will tell you: it’s a tricky one. + +How To Work With PST And Retain Your Sanity + +A few weeks ago, I was holding near nightly calls with the West Coast, near morning-ly calls with Israeli ones, and feeling like I was teetering on the edge of a nervous breakdown as a result. + +Knowing that she has spent years working between Israel and her native California, I asked my former boss, Sivan Sidney Cohen P.E., Founder of Noria Water Technologies, for some pointers. + +Sivan’s tips: + +If you don’t have a specific reason to target the West Coast, you might find Europe / the East Coast more manageable. + +Limit your calls with the West Coast to two evening per week at most. Sivan suggested Tuesdays and Wednesdays as people aren’t fond of conducting business development calls on Mondays and I’m fond of not spending the equivalent of my Friday night working (Israel runs on a Sunday-Thursday workweek). + +Sivan suggested Tuesdays and Wednesdays as people aren’t fond of conducting business development calls on Mondays and I’m fond of not spending the equivalent of my Friday night working (Israel runs on a Sunday-Thursday workweek). If you’re on call with the West Coast, cut your usual workday a little short, take a rest (or go to the gym) and then begin your calls. + +Don’t let clients to push back your meetings to times that aren’t manageable for you. Set yourself a firm limit (stopping at 22:00 to 22:30 IST) and stick to it. + +Working with Other US Time Zones (and Canada) + +Obviously, the further East you travel from the West Coast of North America the smaller the time differential with Israel becomes. + +Discounting Alaska and Hawaii, the other major time zones you’re likely to come across are Mountain Time (UTC-7), Central Time (UTC-6), and Eastern Time (UTC-5). + +The UTC offsets, again, are applicable only at the time of writing. Daylight saving time in Israel, the US and the rest of the world is not coordinated. So for a few weeks of the year, the difference will be reduced by one hour. + +But currently and for most of the year: + +09:00 in New York is 16:00 in Tel Aviv. + +And 17:00 is midnight (00:00). + +As Israeli offices tend to work to a 09:00 to 18:00 working day, this means that there are a couple of hours overlap with the East Coast which can be worked without having to get on late night calls. + +Canada has six time zones. + +You’re probably unlikely to be working with a client in Gander (Newfoundland Standard Time, UTC -3.5). + +Halifax, and Novia Scotia, is on UTC-4. + +Working With Europe and the Near East + +By comparison to the US, working with Europe is relatively straightforward for Israeli companies. + +Ireland, the UK, and Portugal are the three countries on UTC — so the time difference is two hours. (Time zones can get a little confusing. If you want to know the difference between UTC and GMT read this; but, in a nutshell, when GMT-keeping countries move to daylight savings time they are on UTC+1). + +Central Europe is on Central European Time (CET) — which is UTC+1 during the winter, creating a one hour time difference with Israel. + +Eastern European Time (EET) (the area in purple above) has no time difference — and that’s the time zone that Bulgaria, Greece, Estonia, Finland, and most of the Middle East is on. + +This is convenient for Israeli companies because there’s been a huge trend in recent years to outsource software development to some of these countries, particularly Bulgaria and the Ukraine. + +Parts of Africa, most notably South Africa, are also on this time. + +Note that, incongruously, Turkey is hour ahead of Israel (UTC+3) despite the fact that some of its territory is further West. And finally, there are a few Near Asian territories on UTC+4 (Azerbaijan). + +Working With Asia / The Far East + +Of course these days Israeli businesses are looking Eastward almost as much as they are looking to the West — seeking to do business with established Asian superpowers as well, more quietly, with countries such as the Gulf States that are discretely shoring up bilateral trade ties. + +To give a quick run-through: + +Russia has a mind-boggling 11 time zones. But most significantly its capital, Moscow, is one hour ahead of Israel. + +Dubai (United Arab Emirates / UAE) is 2 hours ahead of Israel. + +India , despite being a subcontinent, only has one time zone: India Standard Time (IST — we share an acronym!). It’s at UTC+5.5, which means that they’re three and a half hours ahead of Israel. + +, despite being a subcontinent, only has one time zone: India Standard Time (IST — we share an acronym!). three and a half hours ahead of Israel. China likewise is on a single time zone: UTC+8. This places them six hours ahead of Israel. Hong Kong SAR is on the same time — as is Singapore. + +UTC+8. This places them six hours ahead of Israel. is on the same time — as is Singapore. Japan is on UTC+9. + +Let’s break down China, Hong Kong SAR and Singapore — because of their significance and the fact that they’re all on UTC+8. + +09:00 in Beijing is 03:00 in Tel Aviv + +17:00 in Beijing is 11:00 in Tel Aviv + +This means, of course, that Israeli businesses can begin their day early to overlap by a few hours with the Far East. + +There’s Always Somewhere To Work With! + +**Source:** [https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/working-with-the-world-from-israel-time-zones/](https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/working-with-the-world-from-israel-time-zones/) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/posts/toi/as-iran-readied.md b/posts/toi/as-iran-readied.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..254d645ba094e9179597ea20898a518752dc91a3 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/toi/as-iran-readied.md @@ -0,0 +1,42 @@ +# As Iran Readied Its Missiles for Israel, Ireland Hobnobbed with Its Emissaries + + + A tale that even by the dismal standards of relations between Ireland and Israel seems almost incredulous: + +Irish political parties are in the habit of holding annual gatherings of their memberships to exchange ideas and bolster support. + +So it was that the Fianna Fáil party, Ireland’s largest political party by seats held, planned their 82nd ‘ard fheis’ in Dublin’s Royal Convention Centre this past weekend. + +About three thousand miles away, the Iranian ayatollahs and the IRGC must have been busily putting the final touches on a barrage of missiles and drones they hoped might put an end to the Jewish State — a project decades in the making. + +Nobody reading this will require reminding that modern day Ireland has turned into possibly the most permissive culture of Israel-hatred in the Western world. A more politically correct description would be that Ireland is the outlier in Europe when it comes to Israel. Why couch the truth in euphemisms? + +In the span of just two weeks, Israel’s ambassador, Dana Erlich, has received hoax anthrax and had her face plastered around town with posters demanding her immediate expulsion. Appropriately, like their allies frantically clearing grocery store shelves of tainted Israeli products, the graphic designer chose yellow for the motif. + +Ireland has recently had a change of leadership with the election of its fresh-faced 37 year-old leader Simon Harris. + +But lest anybody imagine that this might bode the beginning of a more conciliatory approach towards Israel from Dublin (hey, pigs might yet fly), the new PM has shown that, when it comes to Israel, he’s a new chip off the old Israel-hating block. + +Harris used his first speech to the Irish people to elaborate not upon the extent of his ambitions to solve Ireland’s housing problem or overhaul its healthcare system but rather to reiterate the strength of his opposition to the Jewish State. + +He reached for an interesting metaphor, casting the leaders of Israel as opprobrious, odious beings. The Irish people are “repulsed” by Netanyahu he told the audience unflinching to rapturous applause. + +It was against this backdrop of never-relenting but quietly escalating vitriol that Israel’s ambassador in Dublin, Dana Erlich, was formally “disinvited” to the Fianna Fáil ard fheis (the move, it bears note, has wide precedent: Erlich was deemed too odious to meet Dublin City Council members while her Palestinian counterpart, who refuses to condemn October 7th, has taken on the stature of a semi-deity). + +The spiteful disinvitation was leaked to the media, of course, replete with whatever mental gymnastics were required to make this accord with a policy of “neutrality.” + +But you’ll never guess who made this year’s invitation list? + +# The Iranian Ambassador. + +No, actually. Ireland refused to invite Israel’s ambassador to a policy conference so that it could make space for the ayatollahs’ rep in Dublin. + +I saw this posted firstly on Twitter but (as a one-time aspiring journalist) have learned the value of double-checking facts. + +But there it was. The morning’s edition of The Irish Times (Ireland’s newspaper of record) carried the following lines, conveyed nonchalantly: + +“More than 1,500 of the party faithful were in place for Mr Martin’s speech at the Dublin Royal Convention Centre, including a number of ambassadors. Iranian ambassador Masoud Eslami was invited to the ardfheis but Israeli ambassador Dana Erlich was not.” + +Those who share my vigorous criticism of Ireland’s unrelenting scolding of Israel have been wont lately to remind the Irish that they were the only apparently civilised state who chose to offer condolences to Germany on the death of Hitler. + +Let me suggest that we don’t need to look decades into the past to support our idea that this animus isn’t grounded in anything like reason. \ No newline at end of file