Saturday, August 22, 2020

A Commitment to Curiosity free essay sample

Responsibility and interest are not constantly reciprocal. Energy and commitment permit me to maintain my commitments effectively, yet my longing for the unforeseen pushes me to look for new encounters. My companions joke that I will be the first to leap out of a plane or trek through remote areas in Africa essentially to extinguish my longing for the obscure and expand my comprehension of the world and my place in it. My sophomore year, I found a grant that would permit secondary school understudies to take flight classes through the Auburn Aviation Association. My mother about had a coronary failure when I requested that her sign my application papers and was significantly increasingly stunned when I won the grant. Neglecting to see the madness in figuring out how to fly a plane before I had my driver’s permit, I went to ground school classes two times per week for four months. I lost myself in such thoughts as gyroscopic parade and g-powers, finding the classes significantly more requesting than my math schoolwork. We will compose a custom article test on A Commitment to Curiosity or on the other hand any comparable point explicitly for you Don't WasteYour Time Recruit WRITER Just 13.90/page While my grant cash did exclude flight exercises, I was uninterested about how I would utilize what I realized. I was basically connected with and fretful to know more. That equivalent interest has driven me to join and lead such clubs as Salsa/Swing, Go Green, Math Circle, and French Club. I have joined the Grant Advisory Board for Youth in my locale, chipped in as a camp instructor at the Placer Nature Center, helped develop the primary crosscountry course at my school and chipped in with the Meadow Vista Trails Association. I have recorded a CD of my piano exhibitions and composed the neighborhood Pioneer Day fun run with my crosscountry group. Each experience has helped me to remember the estimation of every day. Responsibility is basic, yet interest permits me to make the most out of life.

Wednesday, July 15, 2020

Thumbtack founder Marco Zappacosta about his entrepreneurial journey

Thumbtack founder Marco Zappacosta about his entrepreneurial journey INTRODUCTIONMartin: Hi, today we are in San Francisco with Thumbtack. After announcing a big round of financing one month ago we are talking to Marco the founder of Thumbtack. Marco, who are you and what do you do?Marco: So, my name is Marco and Thumbtack helps customers find and hire local professionals. So if you need to paint your house, find a math tutor for your child or a caterer for your event, we are the best way to get introduced to the right professional. And it’s something that we have been working on for the last 5 years.Martin: Can you tell us, what is it like to start a company?Marco: So it’s a very satisfying sort of scene of vision that you had sort of come to life, attracting great people and working with them to realize that vision. But it’s also fairly stressful because everybody get’s sort of wrapped up in this dream. And it’s hard to realize your dreams and so there is a lot of stress and making sure it’s coming about the right the way and working the way you want it to.Martin: What have been the major obstacles and how did you overcome them?Marco: I’d say there were three major obstacles.The first one was learning to attract customers and professionals, as a market place without that network you really have almost value and so we had to learn how to attract these people to us and do that in a very scalable and repeatable way. That took us a long time to figure out.Then the challenge became, Okay we have a network of customers and professionals, what’s the best way to introduce them such that it gives the customer confidence to hire and it gives the professional a real shot to sort of win the business. And we tried sort of lots of different interphases and had to really learn the right way to bring people together. And that was another big challenge.And then the final one was, how do we sort of layer on our business model on top of these interactions, now we knew how to bring people together, but what was the right thing to charge for, how should we charge, how much should we charge, that also took us quite a bit of time to figure out.So it was probably three and a half years until we had it all figured out and in the last 18 months things have really accelerated because thankfully it worked.Martin: Great and how do you test your hypothesis of how you want to acquire customers or how you want to match the professionals with the customers by not only having incremental improvements but maybe also testing some revolutionary hypothesis?Marco: So I mean, I think there are two answers, one is sort of cultural and organizational and one is tactical.It is very important for the process and the organization to let people take big bets because the truth is you don’t always know what’s going to work. We’ve been surprised many times by things we thought would be great that didn’t work or things that we didn’t think would be that important and turned out to be hugely important. And so you have to sort of organizationally allow for that otherwise you are going to stifle innovation.And then the other question is tactically, actually how do you do it. It’s a scientific method. It’s not new, you have a hypothesis, you run a very controlled test and you measure the results in a statistically sound way and from that you are able to look back and say, ‘Was my hypothesis validated? And did I sort of learn what I thought I was going to learn?’ and then sort of think again and run another one.Martin: What did you do before you started this company?Marco: So I started Thumbtack right after I went to college and so the short answer is not much. But the longer answer is that my co-founder and I during college had started a student advocacy group together. It was non-profit, it was very different then the sort of technology business we’re in today but it was still start up and it was very fun to build something out of nothing and we sort of got hooked on that and decided to do it again and that’s why sort of after graduating I decided to pursue this dream.Martin: But why did you focus on that specific market? What is your relation to that? Why does it motivate you?Marco: So, we did in some ways what you’re not supposed to do which is decide to start-up a company and then go think of an idea. But thankfully, I think we did it in a good way in that we didn’t index on our interest or our passions but instead said, what’s the biggest problem we think we can solve with technology? And we started thinking and looking and what we realized was that there was this gigantic market, this local services market with hundreds of millions of customers, 10 of millions of professionals and it was very old. There really hadn’t been much innovation in how they found each other, how they came together, how they worked together and we felt that it was inevitable that technology would help these people. And I think what really motivates me and really I think Thumbtack is tha t both the macro and the micro of it. The macro of it is a big problem and it’s satisfying to work on sort of big things that can have a huge impact. But then like what really likeâ€"you feel day to day is the stories of impacting individuals, it’s the pest control guy in Brooklyn sending us flowers to say thank you for all the business that we’re now sending him, or the busy mom who is sending pictures of her birthday party that she was able to throw with Thumbtack. That feels great and that’s certainly is a bigger part of the motivation that we all feel.BUSINESS MODELMartin: And you said you tried to change this old model of match making into a new one. Can you tell us in terms of the business model what is the innovation behind Thumbtack?Marco: When you think about it, people have been hiring plumbers since plumbing existed, so a long time. And since the dawn of the yellow pages, it’s been very easy to find names and numbers, but that’s only half of the challenge, the n you have to figure out which of the these plumbers out of this entire list is available to serve you, what they are going to charge you and how qualified are they to do the job. And to do that today or before Thumbtack was an incredibly manual process. You, the customer, had to call, you had to sort of get quotes, then you had to call their references or sort of see what past work they’d done. And it was immensely time intensive. So instead, we created software to replace that, such that you tell us what you need. As a customer you sort of itemize the project, we package that up, send that to our network of qualified professionals who serve your areas and the ones who are then sort of available and interested get introduced directly to you and with that we bring all the reviews, the pictures, the credentials that you need to make a confident hiring decision. And so for the first time, the data that you need, the professionals that you need come to you. And this is much better fo r the customer obviously and it’s actually much better for the professional as well. If you think about their past in terms of marketing solutions they had, they had the yellow pages, they had things like that but they were always sort of fishing blindly, they just put up an ad and hoped people saw it now we bring them a customer and we say, ‘Hey, there is a customer that is looking for your services in your area, here is what they want, are you interested?’ And they have all the discretion to decide, ‘Okay yeah, this is a great customer, I am free that day’ and at that point they get introduced, so we’ve made it better for both sides and that’s why the model is growing so fast.Martin: And is the service provider only paying for the introduction or really for the closing of the deal.Marco: Yes, they pay for the introduction. Interestingly, we try doing it on a deal, but it actually caused problems because for the professional, there was no fee up front and so they figu red, they just respond to everything, even when they weren’t a great a fit. You, the customer, said, ‘I need the plumber to come on Saturday’ and me as a plumber says, ‘Well, I’ll say I can come on Sunday, maybe he’ll change his mind’. But that’s not a great response for you. So we had to change the incentive such that only the professionals who were really motivated to sort of get introduced to that customer were actually the ones who got through and we have to make sure on our end to charge appropriately such that they have a great ROI and they sort of get a lot of value out of Thumbtack.Martin: And how do you analyze this kind of incentive network?Marco: Quantitatively and qualitatively. There is a lot of data that you could look at to understand what are the dynamics at play and how is it evolving and then also you have to listen to the qualitative feedback, talking to professionals, talking to customers, seeing the support tickets that we get to learn, again wha t’s working and what’s not.CORPORATE STRATEGYMartin: Let’s talk about the corporate strategy. I mean, Thumbtack is some kind of a market place so it’s driven by network effect and effects of scale. What other type of competitive advantage do you want to create or already have compared to other competitors?Marco: So, you are absolutely right that there are network effects at play but in our case there is not just one network. In fact we have as many networks as we have customers because what matters to you as a customer is only the professionals who will come to you. You don’t care about the ones that are 100 of miles away. And so that is the huge challenge with the space is that you have to build local networks over and over and over. Our advantage over our competitors is that we’ve created a marketing sort of solution, a way for these professionals to grow their business that is so much better and so obvious that we don’t need a sale force to push it onto them, we cer tainly buy ads to build awareness of this solution, but they then sign up and it’s totally self serving, we start sending them customers and because of that we’ve been able to reach a scale much faster than really anybody else. We now have more paying professionals than Yelp or Angie’s list and they’ve been at it over a decade each. So that’s really where the advantage comes in, it’s the model that unlocks the growth potential.Martin: Marco, when you started, what was your go to market strategy, did you just expand on local cities, or did you just try to reach more national, or grow several cities at a separate time, or did you take it step by step? How did you do it?Marco: The sort of traditional way to do it is city by city and I think that was the advice that we were getting at the time. But the city by city model is expensive. You’re investing a lot of dollars in one city and we honestly did not have that much money to start, so we said, ‘Is there a more scalable way we can do this and what that really means is, is there any software or programmatic way to do it? And that’s what we focused on early on, how can we get these markets going, without a big investment but simply with software to find the right professionals and find the right customers and bring them together. And we found that, it took us a couple of years to figure it all out but that then unlocked the ability to go sort of nationwide very quickly. So we’re already now nationwide, we serve hundreds of categories across all these cities and it’s really sort of the model but also sort of then marketing strategies that allowed that.Martin: Can you a little bit elaborate on how the software that you used works?Marco: So I mean there are a couple of things that you have to do, you have to find professionals, so you have to go out to the web and figure out who is a professional, in what city and what do they do. Then you have to sort of bring them the right customer at the righ t time and so it’s sort of a matching problem. By doing that, it’s a great way to sort of build a relationship with a professional because we can say, ‘Hey, here is a customer, are you interested? Come to Thumbtack and there’s a lot more like them’. And so it’s really sort of a ‘matching and discovery’ challenge that we’re able to solve programmatically.Martin: Actually, can I imagine it working like this: You have started with a platform, people come to the website, both sides. But when you see, ‘Okay, there is some demands generated but we don’t have the right profession, then we go out there and search the web, contact those guys, sending them emails and say, ‘Okay, we have some kind of demand, would you be interested in this kind of purchase order then register at our platform’.Marco: That’s right.Martin: Okay great.Marco: And these small businesses they all want more customers and so when you bring them one, they are very receptive to that and obviou sly the onboarding has to work well, the marketing messages has to be correct, but at the end of the day we are bringing them what they want and so that’s a great way to start the relationship.MARKET DEVELOPMENTMartin: When looking at other platforms that are similar but not identically alike, Elance or Odesk, I perceive a very big trend towards lowering prices over there for the offering, what type of trends can you identify on your platform?Marco: So, both Odesk and Elance are virtual marketplace so they source their labor globally and I think there is definitely a sort of downward pressure on price when you are looking at these global markets. On the more localized basis, we don’t see that happening as much. There are some industries where the market is expanding tremendously like digital photography, it is much easier to be a photographer today than it was 20 years ago and so the market has gotten a lot bigger and therefore prices has come down. But by enlarge we don’t vie w ourselves as a way to increase or decrease prices, we want to help bring transparency to this sector such that customers are assured that they’re paying a good prices and that the professionals are educated about what the market is going for these days. But we ourselves aren’t trying to move it up or down because we just want to make matches based on what the buyers and sellers want, both of their interests matter to us.Martin: You said that you currently have round about 100 categories or so called sub-markets that you are trying toMarco: Hundreds actually.Martin: Hundreds okay. Are there any other specific markets you think are worthwhile pursuing in terms of matching buyers or sellers, related to those professional services? I suppose that is what you are going after.Marco: So, one big category that we don’t do today is sort of child care. We think that’s one that will be well suited for an online market place in fact there are a few companies doing this, we chose not t o focus on it because it is sort of unique in its sort of demands and sort of needs and that. I think is a big one that we will add at some point but for the time being we’ve got our hands full with all the categories we have so we’re not going to be expanding anytime soon.Martin: I could imagine that the matching process or algorithm in this different sub-market is slightly different for each of the sub-markets. How do you manage this kind of complexity by having different kinds of algorithm?Marco: It’s one that adapts to the local environment, so matching professionals, thinking about sort of distances, travel, there are affects on the local level which really matter. If you are based in New York City, New Jersey is very close but it takes forever to get to, so you’d much rather travel in New York City than across the Hudson into New Jersey. So we have to be smart about these sort of local needs when we match but at the end of the day what we are doing is bringing people t ogether and that is fortunately a generalized solution across all of our categories and across all of our locations.Martin: Great.ADVICE TO ENTREPRENEURS In San Francisco, we talked with entrepreneur Marco Zappacosta, the co-founder CEO of Thumbtack, of about the business model and history of Thumbtack. Furthermore, Marco shares his learnings and advice for young entrepreneurs.The transcript of the interview is included below.INTRODUCTIONMartin: Hi, today we are in San Francisco with Thumbtack. After announcing a big round of financing one month ago we are talking to Marco the founder of Thumbtack. Marco, who are you and what do you do?Marco: So, my name is Marco and Thumbtack helps customers find and hire local professionals. So if you need to paint your house, find a math tutor for your child or a caterer for your event, we are the best way to get introduced to the right professional. And it’s something that we have been working on for the last 5 years.Martin: Can you tell us, what is it like to start a company?Marco: So it’s a very satisfying sort of scene of vision that you had sort of come to life, attracting great people an d working with them to realize that vision. But it’s also fairly stressful because everybody get’s sort of wrapped up in this dream. And it’s hard to realize your dreams and so there is a lot of stress and making sure it’s coming about the right the way and working the way you want it to.Martin: What have been the major obstacles and how did you overcome them?Marco: I’d say there were three major obstacles.The first one was learning to attract customers and professionals, as a market place without that network you really have almost value and so we had to learn how to attract these people to us and do that in a very scalable and repeatable way. That took us a long time to figure out.Then the challenge became, Okay we have a network of customers and professionals, what’s the best way to introduce them such that it gives the customer confidence to hire and it gives the professional a real shot to sort of win the business. And we tried sort of lots of different interphases and had to really learn the right way to bring people together. And that was another big challenge.And then the final one was, how do we sort of layer on our business model on top of these interactions, now we knew how to bring people together, but what was the right thing to charge for, how should we charge, how much should we charge, that also took us quite a bit of time to figure out.So it was probably three and a half years until we had it all figured out and in the last 18 months things have really accelerated because thankfully it worked.Martin: Great and how do you test your hypothesis of how you want to acquire customers or how you want to match the professionals with the customers by not only having incremental improvements but maybe also testing some revolutionary hypothesis?Marco: So I mean, I think there are two answers, one is sort of cultural and organizational and one is tactical.It is very important for the process and the organization to let people take big bets bec ause the truth is you don’t always know what’s going to work. We’ve been surprised many times by things we thought would be great that didn’t work or things that we didn’t think would be that important and turned out to be hugely important. And so you have to sort of organizationally allow for that otherwise you are going to stifle innovation.And then the other question is tactically, actually how do you do it. It’s a scientific method. It’s not new, you have a hypothesis, you run a very controlled test and you measure the results in a statistically sound way and from that you are able to look back and say, ‘Was my hypothesis validated? And did I sort of learn what I thought I was going to learn?’ and then sort of think again and run another one.Martin: What did you do before you started this company?Marco: So I started Thumbtack right after I went to college and so the short answer is not much. But the longer answer is that my co-founder and I during college had s tarted a student advocacy group together. It was non-profit, it was very different then the sort of technology business we’re in today but it was still start up and it was very fun to build something out of nothing and we sort of got hooked on that and decided to do it again and that’s why sort of after graduating I decided to pursue this dream.Martin: But why did you focus on that specific market? What is your relation to that? Why does it motivate you?Marco: So, we did in some ways what you’re not supposed to do which is decide to start-up a company and then go think of an idea. But thankfully, I think we did it in a good way in that we didn’t index on our interest or our passions but instead said, what’s the biggest problem we think we can solve with technology? And we started thinking and looking and what we realized was that there was this gigantic market, this local services market with hundreds of millions of customers, 10 of millions of professionals and it was ver y old. There really hadn’t been much innovation in how they found each other, how they came together, how they worked together and we felt that it was inevitable that technology would help these people. And I think what really motivates me and really I think Thumbtack is that both the macro and the micro of it. The macro of it is a big problem and it’s satisfying to work on sort of big things that can have a huge impact. But then like what really likeâ€"you feel day to day is the stories of impacting individuals, it’s the pest control guy in Brooklyn sending us flowers to say thank you for all the business that we’re now sending him, or the busy mom who is sending pictures of her birthday party that she was able to throw with Thumbtack. That feels great and that’s certainly is a bigger part of the motivation that we all feel.BUSINESS MODELMartin: And you said you tried to change this old model of match making into a new one. Can you tell us in terms of the business model w hat is the innovation behind Thumbtack?Marco: When you think about it, people have been hiring plumbers since plumbing existed, so a long time. And since the dawn of the yellow pages, it’s been very easy to find names and numbers, but that’s only half of the challenge, then you have to figure out which of the these plumbers out of this entire list is available to serve you, what they are going to charge you and how qualified are they to do the job. And to do that today or before Thumbtack was an incredibly manual process. You, the customer, had to call, you had to sort of get quotes, then you had to call their references or sort of see what past work they’d done. And it was immensely time intensive. So instead, we created software to replace that, such that you tell us what you need. As a customer you sort of itemize the project, we package that up, send that to our network of qualified professionals who serve your areas and the ones who are then sort of available and interest ed get introduced directly to you and with that we bring all the reviews, the pictures, the credentials that you need to make a confident hiring decision. And so for the first time, the data that you need, the professionals that you need come to you. And this is much better for the customer obviously and it’s actually much better for the professional as well. If you think about their past in terms of marketing solutions they had, they had the yellow pages, they had things like that but they were always sort of fishing blindly, they just put up an ad and hoped people saw it now we bring them a customer and we say, ‘Hey, there is a customer that is looking for your services in your area, here is what they want, are you interested?’ And they have all the discretion to decide, ‘Okay yeah, this is a great customer, I am free that day’ and at that point they get introduced, so we’ve made it better for both sides and that’s why the model is growing so fast.Martin: And is the service provider only paying for the introduction or really for the closing of the deal.Marco: Yes, they pay for the introduction. Interestingly, we try doing it on a deal, but it actually caused problems because for the professional, there was no fee up front and so they figured, they just respond to everything, even when they weren’t a great a fit. You, the customer, said, ‘I need the plumber to come on Saturday’ and me as a plumber says, ‘Well, I’ll say I can come on Sunday, maybe he’ll change his mind’. But that’s not a great response for you. So we had to change the incentive such that only the professionals who were really motivated to sort of get introduced to that customer were actually the ones who got through and we have to make sure on our end to charge appropriately such that they have a great ROI and they sort of get a lot of value out of Thumbtack.Martin: And how do you analyze this kind of incentive network?Marco: Quantitatively and qualitatively. Ther e is a lot of data that you could look at to understand what are the dynamics at play and how is it evolving and then also you have to listen to the qualitative feedback, talking to professionals, talking to customers, seeing the support tickets that we get to learn, again what’s working and what’s not.CORPORATE STRATEGYMartin: Let’s talk about the corporate strategy. I mean, Thumbtack is some kind of a market place so it’s driven by network effect and effects of scale. What other type of competitive advantage do you want to create or already have compared to other competitors?Marco: So, you are absolutely right that there are network effects at play but in our case there is not just one network. In fact we have as many networks as we have customers because what matters to you as a customer is only the professionals who will come to you. You don’t care about the ones that are 100 of miles away. And so that is the huge challenge with the space is that you have to build loca l networks over and over and over. Our advantage over our competitors is that we’ve created a marketing sort of solution, a way for these professionals to grow their business that is so much better and so obvious that we don’t need a sale force to push it onto them, we certainly buy ads to build awareness of this solution, but they then sign up and it’s totally self serving, we start sending them customers and because of that we’ve been able to reach a scale much faster than really anybody else. We now have more paying professionals than Yelp or Angie’s list and they’ve been at it over a decade each. So that’s really where the advantage comes in, it’s the model that unlocks the growth potential.Martin: Marco, when you started, what was your go to market strategy, did you just expand on local cities, or did you just try to reach more national, or grow several cities at a separate time, or did you take it step by step? How did you do it?Marco: The sort of traditional w ay to do it is city by city and I think that was the advice that we were getting at the time. But the city by city model is expensive. You’re investing a lot of dollars in one city and we honestly did not have that much money to start, so we said, ‘Is there a more scalable way we can do this and what that really means is, is there any software or programmatic way to do it? And that’s what we focused on early on, how can we get these markets going, without a big investment but simply with software to find the right professionals and find the right customers and bring them together. And we found that, it took us a couple of years to figure it all out but that then unlocked the ability to go sort of nationwide very quickly. So we’re already now nationwide, we serve hundreds of categories across all these cities and it’s really sort of the model but also sort of then marketing strategies that allowed that.Martin: Can you a little bit elaborate on how the software that you used works?Marco: So I mean there are a couple of things that you have to do, you have to find professionals, so you have to go out to the web and figure out who is a professional, in what city and what do they do. Then you have to sort of bring them the right customer at the right time and so it’s sort of a matching problem. By doing that, it’s a great way to sort of build a relationship with a professional because we can say, ‘Hey, here is a customer, are you interested? Come to Thumbtack and there’s a lot more like them’. And so it’s really sort of a ‘matching and discovery’ challenge that we’re able to solve programmatically.Martin: Actually, can I imagine it working like this: You have started with a platform, people come to the website, both sides. But when you see, ‘Okay, there is some demands generated but we don’t have the right profession, then we go out there and search the web, contact those guys, sending them emails and say, ‘Okay, we have some kind of demand, would you be interested in this kind of purchase order then register at our platform’.Marco: That’s right.Martin: Okay great.Marco: And these small businesses they all want more customers and so when you bring them one, they are very receptive to that and obviously the onboarding has to work well, the marketing messages has to be correct, but at the end of the day we are bringing them what they want and so that’s a great way to start the relationship.MARKET DEVELOPMENTMartin: When looking at other platforms that are similar but not identically alike, Elance or Odesk, I perceive a very big trend towards lowering prices over there for the offering, what type of trends can you identify on your platform?Marco: So, both Odesk and Elance are virtual marketplace so they source their labor globally and I think there is definitely a sort of downward pressure on price when you are looking at these global markets. On the more localized basis, we don’t see that happening as m uch. There are some industries where the market is expanding tremendously like digital photography, it is much easier to be a photographer today than it was 20 years ago and so the market has gotten a lot bigger and therefore prices has come down. But by enlarge we don’t view ourselves as a way to increase or decrease prices, we want to help bring transparency to this sector such that customers are assured that they’re paying a good prices and that the professionals are educated about what the market is going for these days. But we ourselves aren’t trying to move it up or down because we just want to make matches based on what the buyers and sellers want, both of their interests matter to us.Martin: You said that you currently have round about 100 categories or so called sub-markets that you are trying toMarco: Hundreds actually.Martin: Hundreds okay. Are there any other specific markets you think are worthwhile pursuing in terms of matching buyers or sellers, related to those professional services? I suppose that is what you are going after.Marco: So, one big category that we don’t do today is sort of child care. We think that’s one that will be well suited for an online market place in fact there are a few companies doing this, we chose not to focus on it because it is sort of unique in its sort of demands and sort of needs and that. I think is a big one that we will add at some point but for the time being we’ve got our hands full with all the categories we have so we’re not going to be expanding anytime soon.Martin: I could imagine that the matching process or algorithm in this different sub-market is slightly different for each of the sub-markets. How do you manage this kind of complexity by having different kinds of algorithm?Marco: It’s one that adapts to the local environment, so matching professionals, thinking about sort of distances, travel, there are affects on the local level which really matter. If you are based in New York City, New Jersey is very close but it takes forever to get to, so you’d much rather travel in New York City than across the Hudson into New Jersey. So we have to be smart about these sort of local needs when we match but at the end of the day what we are doing is bringing people together and that is fortunately a generalized solution across all of our categories and across all of our locations.Martin: Great.ADVICE TO ENTREPRENEURSMartin: Marco, we always try to share some knowledge from entrepreneurs like you to people interested in starting their business. What advice can you give them? Maybe we can start by sharing your advice, dos and don’ts on raising money or managing investor relationships.Marco: Okay. I think one piece of advice with regard to raising money that is important to keep in mind is that every round is a bridge round and it is a bridge to somewhere and the most important thing to articulate is not your past success but what are the milestones that this money is going to take you too and why those milestones are worth achieving. I think people often look backwards when thinking about their pitches, ‘Oh we did this, we accomplished that’ and that’s great but really what investors are looking for and what matters is where you going to get? And why is that somewhere I that I should invest in.Martin: So would you recommend saying, ‘Okay, currently my status is x, like my company valuation is x, by taking your money we will increase more of the equity value or enterprise value’?Marco: Ah, yeah though, I think you have to break it down a little bit more and instead say, ‘Okay, we raised angel money to validate the product and to begin to unlock some sort of growth through a couple of distribution channels. We’ve now proved that and now we are looking to raise a series A to really scale this. And we think if we raise x million dollars we will be able to get to y traction and if we do that puts us in a great place to raise a follow on sort of amount of fundraising’. It’s about getting to a milestone that’s valuable and interesting and sort of articulating that very specifically.Martin: What other advice would you give your friend who is coming to you and saying, ‘I want to start a company’.Marco: I think it’s people should assume it will take a decade. So, when you are thinking about an idea or thinking about working with someone you should ask yourself, is this something I want to work on for a decade? Is this somebody I want to work with for a decade? I think that perspective helps clarify sort of whether things are worthwhile or not because in the moment sure, I can stomach most things but for a decade you have to be very sure. But that’s really the timescale over which these things happen and they don’t happen overnight and you have to have the sort of determination to grind it out over that many years.Martin: That’s right. Thank you very much for your time, Marco.Marco: Alright thank you.Marti n: And next time you’re looking for a job maybe as a service professional, maybe use Thumbtack. Thank you very much.Marco: Good, thank you.Martin: Thank you very much, Marco.

Thursday, May 21, 2020

Causes And Effects Of Couloma - 1488 Words

Plasmas containing charged nano- and micro-particles have been extensively studied for several decades. Since they are of fundamental interest, such complex plasma systems have attracted research attention in diverse fields, and novel phenomena have been found and investigated, including the formation of Coulomb dust crystals, dust vortices and voids, cosmic clouds, etc. (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) 1–6 (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) Dusty plasmas are also relevant to plasma confinement in fusion research and many technological applications. (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) 1,7,8 (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) Many properties of dusty plasmas are†¦show more content†¦(-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) 25–29 (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) In Ref. (-- removed HTML --) 26 (-- removed HTML --) , the time-dependence of the charge of 6.8 (-- removed HTML --) ÃŽ ¼ (-- removed HTML --) m-diameter dust particles in the afterglow of a complex rf plasma under microgravity conditions was investigated experimentally and theoretically. It was found that the dust particle can retain a negative residual charge for a long time. (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) 26 (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) In Ref. (-- removed HTML --) 30 (-- removed HTML --) , the mean residual charge for 200-nm-radius particles was measured in the afterglow of an rf plasma. It was reported that negatively and positively charged as well as neutral dust particles can coexist for more than a minute after the discharge was switched off. (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) 30 (-- removed HTML --) (-- removed HTML --) In Ref. (-- removed HTML --) 31 (-- removed HTML --) , it was shown that particle diffusion in the afterglow of a dusty plasma can be used to establish several properties of the active plasma. In Refs. (-- removed HTML --) 28 (- - removed HTML --) , (-- removed HTML --) 29 (-- removed HTML --) , (-- removed HTML --) 32 (-- removed HTML --) , and (-- removed HTML --) 33 (-- removed HTML --) , plasma

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Should Minds Be Forced Down The Throats Of Youth

Every generation has their own ideal of the â€Å"perfect American†, and each generation seemingly losing the right of free thinking more and more. Our society is releasing the grip on the freedom to have an opinion that doesn’t agree with the minds of others. Minds are being persuaded to think a certain way in order to have a sense of belonging. Opinions are being forced down the throats of youth in America. Opinions that correspond with major topics such as race, gender stereotypes, or gender orientation are the topics that people have forced their opinion into the circuit for many years. Through the generations the right to an opinion has changed a great deal. Going from two major opinions to allowing for everyone to have their own is how the negative and positives of Americans have evolved. Along with free thinking the change in work ethic is a main change that is shown through the generations. Americans have been about to advance with the insight of our grandparents generation by learning through their mistakes as well as their successes. Personally my grandparents have been the ones to go to great lengths in order to provide the best lifestyle for themselves as well as their children. They have been positive examples of the way Americans worked hard to provide for their families. Knowing that they weren t going to be handed food or money they chose to work for what they wanted to obtain. With their generation being stocked full of hard working, dedicated people itShow MoreRelatedMustang Convertible Is No Different1320 Words   |  6 Pagesdifferent. Much like where its name is derived from, it seems to gallop through town stealing the attention of all who witness the glistening green tint. It is not a statement; it is not a cry for attention. Simply put: it is youth. Before embarking, the top is set down like the curtain of a play waiting to burst with art. Setting off with the sun behind his back, he reminds himself that he will grow old. Following aspirations requires something much more dependable. A man’s first car will simplyRead MoreChapter 1 : The Story Of Alaynas Tale1084 Words   |  5 Pagesof her betrothed. However, Alayna could hardly care less about prosperity in this case because she was in the arms of the man she wanted. To hells with what others thought of her. Alayna felt a blush bloom on the apples of her cheeks as she glanced down at his breast plate, â€Å"It’s probably been ages since you’ve had a proper tilt.† â€Å"Truly.† The Dornishman agreed, â€Å"The last tourney I went to was the tourney at Storm’s End held in honor of Lord Steffon.† â€Å"I’d wager you’re itching to redeem yourselfRead MoreThe Health And Safety Code Section 85.007 Education Program1323 Words   |  6 Pagesstudents say they have had sex; and 15 percent of high school students have had sex with four or more partners during their lifetime,† (NCSL). In our society today sex is a very open subject and is being observed by young adults in everyday life. Walking down the street we see half naked women plastered on billboards and street signs, leaving nothing to the imagination and making adolescents everywhere question why and wonder what that is. As children we are taught that abstinence before marriage is theRead MoreEvolution Of Education : How Much Has Education1545 Words   |  7 PagesGreece the Greeks were rather fond of their gods and had spiritual peace with themselves. Robert Guiespi states, â€Å"The goal of education was to prepare the child for adult activities as a citizen.†. Like the early period they focus ed on teaching their youth what was vital to be a citizen, this however varied between city states. In Athens, a democratic city state, they taught all forms of education, as well as dabbled into military, whereas Sparta had no forms of education, and hardcore military trainingRead MoreLoss of Innocence in Sarah ´s Key1747 Words   |  7 Pageswas going to get her†¦. These blood-thirsty monsters. Monsters! She hated them. She wished them all dead. The bastards. She used all the swearwords she knew, all the words her mother had forbidden her ever to use†¦. She screamed the swearwords in her mind†¦.he would not find her. Never bastards, dirty bastards. ( Rosnay129-130) Sirka has to hide from the Germans under the potatoes, because she knows that they are coming for her. The thought of the Germans get[ting] her is causing her to useRead MoreThe Black Cat By Edgar Allan Poe2214 Words   |  9 PagesA man who has abused his pets and killed his wife is sentenced to death, but were these transgressions made in the clarity of mind or was it an act of madness? In the short story THE BLACK CAT by Edgar Allan Poe, we follow the ramblings of a man who is sentence to death on the very next day for his act of murder. Do not take his ramblings to heart as he is an unreliable man but see for it what it really is. The beginning of the story starts out in a jail cell where the narrator is hours away fromRead MoreDescriptive Essay : Names Of Nicknames1973 Words   |  8 PagesNicknames are fleeting. They stay for a time and leave too quickly. In this way, a nickname given as a child does not become any older than a child. Adulthood whisks it away, flying through time in a whirlwind of bittersweet memory. That’s the way it should have bee n, but for us, it was different. We gave each other nicknames at seven years old. When we were thirteen, it was still the only thing that felt comfortable to say. Everyone except you called me Kimberly. It too grown up, you said, so you calledRead More The Dramatic Monologues of Robert Browning Essay2233 Words   |  9 Pagesactions. This is why we are shocked when the speaker, in the same tone, tells us, ‘†¦all her hair In one long yellow string I wound Three times her little throat around And strangled her.’ The lack of emotion which the steady rhythm conveys is very important in the characterisation of the speaker as it shows the speakers state of mind. Had the rhythm broken and quickened at dramatic moments the speaker would seem more impulsive and insane, but instead his calm mediated manner makes himRead MoreSix Paragraph Essay on the Pearl by John Steinbeck1771 Words   |  8 Pagestheir community? Even worse, the life of their child. While Kino did not intend to lose any of these attributes in his quest for a better life, his stubbornness guided him to murder and ultimate heartbreak. It leaves the reader questioning, what price should be paid to attain the luxuries one wants from life? John Steinbeck’s novella, The Pearl, follows a poor Indian/Mexican pearl diver as the best find of his life slowly morphs into the greatest misfortune he had ever known. Blinded by opportunity,Read MoreTheory and Pratice of Gay Marriage2384 Words   |  10 Pagestriangles, and no, t here are no secrets: rather, their marriage might not be recognize if they live in the United States. When asked if we should treat everyone fairly, regardless of sexual orientation, gender, religious status, age, race, etc. the replied with enthusiastic is yes. However when we asked the same people who replied yes, if same-sex marriages should be allow, you received mixed answers. There are valid reasons brought up by those who oppose same sex marriages such as moral and religious

Hey Jude Free Essays

Assignment 1: The Name / Ice Breaker Speech Goals: This assignment is designed to provide an initial speaking experience in a low risk situation. It provides practice using your name as the basis for the brief speech. Be as creative as possible, using any method (narrative, etymology or your name, visual aids, etc. We will write a custom essay sample on Hey Jude or any similar topic only for you Order Now ). The goal is to get the class and instructor to remember you. Preparation: Think about your name and the best way to get the class to remember you’re your speech should only be 1 to 2 minutes, therefore, practice and time yourself before-hand. This speech should be delivered extemporaneously from brief notes that occupy no more than one side of a single 4 X 6 note card. You should not read your speech and should use as much eye contact as possible. Grading Guidelines: Grade Value |20 points; Evaluation Sheet for Feedback Purposes | | | | |Time Limit |2 minutes (you must speak for at least 1 minute to pass this assignment) | |Note Cards |1 permitted | |Visual Aid |Required | Learning Outcomes: Assessment of this assignment will focus primarily on measuring two outcomes: 1. Demonstration of the student’s ability to manage or to overcome communication apprehension in front of strangers. 2. Performance of the student’s ability to create an original speech Critique Sheet for Name Speech Name:_____________ Grade:________ Object: _________ Time: _________ Things you did well: Aspects of you speech/delivery you need to work on: Assignment 2: Demonstration Speech Goals: This assignment applies basic concepts necessary to creating speech structure. The goal of the demonstration speech is to show the audience how to do something. It is often called a process speech because you are showing the audience how to complete steps in a process. Description: Present to your audience with a tutorial on â€Å"how to† do/create something. You must formulate your instructional speech by creating main points about the process and sub-points further supporting/explaining the process. You will need an introduction and conclusion. Preparation: You should select something that you know how to do well. Think about how you would teach someone the steps in the process. The steps in the process are the main points, â€Å"First, †¦ Second, †¦ And finally,†¦Ã¢â‚¬  You will bring into class what you need to demonstrate the process and demonstrate as you teach the class. Grading Guidelines: |Grade Value |5% of total graded work | |Point Value |30 points | |Time Limit |3 to 5 minutes | |Note Cards |1 | |Visual Aid |Optional | Learning Outcomes: Assessment of this assignment will focus primarily on measuring three outcomes: 3. Demonstration of the student’s ability to analyze discourse using their critical reasoning skills 4. Demonstration of the student’s ability to recognize diversity in the audience 5. Demonstration of public performance skills |Assessment Rubrics: |Unsatisfactory |Emerging |Developing |Advanced | | |(0 – 7 points) |(8 – 15 points) |(16 – 23 oints) |(24–30 points) | | |Ideas may not be focused or |Listener can follow the |Generally well organized |Thesis is clearly stated | | |developed; the main purpose |speech only with effort. |but better transitions |and developed. The main | | |is not clear. Main points |Main point is not clear. |needed from idea to idea. |argument and supporting | | |are difficult to identify. Transitions need to be |Sequence of ideas is |arguments are clearly | | |Transitions may be needed. |developed. The audience |logic al and is followed |articulated. Clear | |Organization |There is no logical sequence|has difficulty |easily, complemented by a |transitions. The article | | |of ideas in the speech. The|understanding the speech |clearly discernible |source is clearly stated. | |main idea from the article |because the sequence of |structure. The main idea |The types of supporting | | |is not presented or is |information is unclear. |is presented with |material used in the | | |unclear. Supporting |There is an attempt to |supporting arguments. At |article are clearly | | |arguments from the article |illustrate supporting |least one type of |articulated. | |are not presented or are |material used in the |supporting material is | | | |unclear. Supporting |article. |presented. | | | |material from the article | | | | | |are not presented or are | | | | | |unclear. | | | | |Does not present his/her |Citations are attributed |Citations are generally |Student has a clear grasp | | |information in the form o f a|incorrectly. Student has a|introduced and attributed |of the content. Student | | |speech. Student does not |partial grasp of the |appropriately. Student is |demonstrates full | | |have grasp of content and |content. Listeners |at ease with expected |knowledge by answering all| | |cannot answer questions |recognize errors to be the|answers to all questions |class questions with | |Content |about the subject. Over |result of nervousness. |but fails to elaborate. |explanations and | | |dependence on notes is |Student does not provide |Over dependence on notes |elaboration. Note cards | | |observed. |enough detail in each main|may be observed. are used for reference | | | |point to inform audience. | |only. | | | |Aspects of the speech are | | | | | |too elementary or too | | | | | |sophisticated for the | | | | | |audience. | | | |Listeners can follow the |Vocabulary is somewhat |Language is appropriate, |Sentences are complete and| | |speech, but they are |limited or inappropriate. |but word choices are not |grammatically accurate. | | |distracted by some |Language used is mostly |particularly vivid or |Words are chosen for their| |Verbal Effectiveness |grammatical errors and use |respectful or in offensive. |precise. Language is free|precise meaning. Language| | |of slang. Some sentences |Speaks with clarity |from bias with one or two |is free from bias. | | |are incomplete/halting. |sporadically and tone |minor exceptions. Speaks |Language choices are vivid| | |Language includes some |remains neutral for the |with clarity to the target|and precise. Speaks with | | |identifiable bias. Some |most part. |audience. |clarity and confidence to | | |listeners will be ffended. | | |the target audience; | | |Responds to questions | | |Informative tone is very | | |inadequately. | | |evident throughout. | |Nonverbal Effectiveness |Maintains no eye contact |Maintains eye contact |Maintains eye contact for |Maintains eye contact | | |with the target audience. regularly. Student is |the most part. A positive |consistently and uses body| | |Listeners may be confused. |aware of importance of |use of body language is |language effectively to | | |The speaker cannot be heard. |body language although |demonstrated. The |create interest. The | | | The delivery detracts from |s/he struggles with it. |delivery generally seems |delivery is extemporaneous| | |the message. Eye contact |Pacing is sometimes too |effective – however, |– natural, confident, and| | |may be very limited; the |fast or too slow. The |effective use of volume, |enhances the message. | | |presenter may tend to look |presenter seems |eye contact, vocal |Posture, eye contact, | | |at the floor, mumble, speak |uncomfortable. The |control, may not be |smooth gestures, facial | | |inaudibly, fidget, or read |audience strains to hear. consistent; some hesitancy|expressions, volume, pace | | |most of the speech; gestures|Vocal tone, facial |may be observed. Some use|indicate confidence, a | | |and movements may be jerky |expressions, clothing and |of nonfluencies is |commitment to the topic, | | |or excessive. Disfluencies |other nonverbal |observed. Mostly, |and a willingness to | | |are used excessively. expressions do not detract|articulation and |communicate. The vocal | | |Articulation and |significantly from the |pronunciation are clear. |tone, delivery style, and | | |pronunciation tend to be |message. Audience members | |clothing are consistent | | |sloppy. Poise or composure |can generally hear the | |with the message. Delivery| | |is lost during any |presentation. |style and clothing choices| | |distractions. | | |suggest an awareness of | | | | | |expectations and norms. | | | | | |Limited use of | | | | | |nonfluencies is observed. | | | | |Articulation and | | | | | |pronunciation are clear. | | | | | |Audience members can hear | | | | | |the presentation. | Critique Sheet for Demonstration Speech Speaker’s Name:_____________________________________ Topic:___________________________________________ Items of Evaluation: 0 1 2 3Rhetorical device (AGD)/Credibility/Exigency 0 1 2 3Purpose statement/Preview 0 1 2 3Main ideas are easily followed/Transitions 0 1 2 3Language is vivid/clear/fluid 0 1 2 3Speech is well organized 0 1 2 3Demonstration is appropriate 0 1 2 3Voice is used effectively 0 1 2 3Nonverbal communication is effective/Eye contact 0 1 2 3Conclusion is effective 0 1 2 3Overall effectiveness TOTAL SCORE: _________ COMMENTS: Assignment 3: Informative (You are the Expert) Speech Outline Goals: This assignment is designed to provide the opportunity to put communication theories and concepts from the course into practice. Specifically, it aims to use skills in invention, such as structuring an appropriate introduction, selecting speech materials based on analysis of the members of the audience, and arranging that information in a clear format, as well as skills in speech performance, while informing the audience on a particular topic. Description: As a speaker, your purpose is to share information with the audience. This is not a â€Å"how to† or persuasive speech; you should not preview a step-by-step process or try and convince the audience of the merits of the topic. Rather, you are to give your audience new/useful information regarding a topic that is important to you. This may be your major/intended career, a hobby/sport that you are passionate about, something that you have had personal experience in or are planning on pursuing. Logical arrangement of main points and supporting information should provide your audience with understanding of the chosen topic. To complete the assignment, you are required to submit a complete full-sentence outline and bibliography in advance, as well as deliver a successful informative speech to the class. Speech Preparation: All attempts to persuade should be avoided in this assignment. All topics must be pre-approved by your instructor. Be prepared to deliver the speech extemporaneously. You will be penalized 20 points for excessive reliance on note cards. The speech presented in class must include the following: 1. An appropriate introduction, including all six components of an effective introduction 2. Evidence of audience analysis throughout the speech (what will make the topic interesting for audience) 3. At least three main ideas with two sub-points for each 4. Use of at least two different types of supporting material (book/newspaper/journal article, television/radio, interviews, Internet . com . org . net, etc. ) 5. Citation of at least four sources. Four sources is the minimum requirement. Your sources must be cited aloud, during your speech. 6. An appropriate conclusion. Outline Preparation: You must turn in a complete, typed, full-sentence outline – including a bibliography – to your instructor before you deliver the speech. If you do not bring your outline to your instructor prior to your presentation, you may be denied the opportunity to speak. If the outline is not in full-sentence format, you will be penalized with a deduction of 15 points from your final grade. The total point value of the outline is 30 points. Guidelines: Grade Value: |17% of total graded work | |Point Value: |100 points (70 speech/30 outline) | |Time Limit: |5-6 minutes | |Note Cards: |4 maximum | |Visual Aid: |Required | |Outline/Bibliography: |Required; 15 point penalty if not ready when due | Learning Outcomes: Assessment of this assignment will focus primarily on measuring the following outcomes: 6. Demonstration of decreased communication apprehension 7. Demonstration of t he student’s ability to recognize and adapt to diverse audiences 8. Demonstration of the student’s ability to create and to perform an original speech to inform Assessment Rubrics: |Unsatisfactory |Emerging |Developing |Advanced | | |(0 – 17 points) |(18 – 34 points) |(35-52 points) |(53–70 points) | | |Ideas may not be focused or |Listener can follow the |Demonstrates an awareness |Speech follows persuasion | | |developed; the main purpose |speech only with effort. |of the nature of |format: three main | | |is not clear. The |There is a great deal of |persuasive speeches. points; | | |introduction is undeveloped. |information that is not |Reproduces most of the |problem-cause-solution | | |Main points are difficult to|clearly connected to the |conventions in their |structure. Thesis is | |Organization |identify. Transitions may be|thesis. Main points are |speech. Generally well |clearly stated and | | |needed. There is no |not clear. Transitions | organized but better |developed. Clear | | |conclusion or may not be |need to be developed. The|transitions needed from |transitions. The | | |clear the presentation has |audience has difficulty |idea to idea. Sequence of |introduction gains the | | |concluded. There is no |understanding the speech |ideas is logical and is |attention of the audience,| | |logical sequence of ideas in|because the sequence of |followed easily, |provides a clear purpose, | | |the speech. |information is unclear. |complemented by a clearly |enhances the speaker’s | | | | |discernible structure. credibility with a source,| | | | | |previews main points, and | | | | | |demonstrates significance. | | | | | |There is a clear action | | | | | |step and an overt call to | | | | | |action. | |Does not present his/her |Few, if any, sources are |Supporting material may |Student has a clear grasp | | |information in the form of |cited. Citations are |lack in originality. |of the content. Citations | | |an informative speech. |attributed incorrectly. |Citations are generally |are introduced and | | |Student does not have grasp |Student has a partial |introduced and attributed |attributed appropriately | | |of content and cannot answer|grasp of the content. |appropriately. Student is |and accurately. Supporting| |Content |questions about the subject. |Listeners recognize errors|at ease with expected |material is original, | | |Different sources of |to be the result of |answers to all questions |logical and relevant. | | |information are not used. |nervousness. Student does|but fails to elaborate. |Student demonstrates full | | |Inaccurate, generalized, or |not provide enough detail |Over dependence on notes |knowledge by answering all| | |inappropriate supporting |in each main point to |may be observed. class questions with | | |material may be used. Over |informaudience. Aspects | |explanations and | | |dependence on notes is |of the speech are too | |elaboration. Note cards | | |observed. There are not |elementary or too | |are used for reference | | |three clear, distinct main |sophisticated for the | |only. Speech is | | |points. |audience. | |informative. | |Listeners can follow the |Vocabulary is somewhat |Language is appropriate, |Sentences are complete and| | |speech, but they are |limited or inappropriate. |but word choices are not |grammatically accurate. | | |distracted by some |Language used is mostly |particularly vivid or |Words are chosen for their| |Verbal Effectiveness |grammatical errors and use |respectful or inoffensive. |precise. Language is free|precise meaning. Language| | |of slang. Some sentences |Speaks with clarity |from bias with one or two |is free from bias. | | |are incomplete/halting. sporadically and tone |minor exceptions. Speaks |Language choices are vivid| | |Language includes some |remains neutral for the |with clarity to the target|and precise. Speaks with | | |identifiable bias. Some |most part. |audience. Tone of voice |clarity and confidence to | | |listeners will be offended. | |demonstrates some attempt |the target audience; | | |Responds to questions | |to be informative. |Informative tone is very | | |inadequately. | |evident throughout. | |Nonverbal Effectiveness |Maintains no eye contact |Maintains eye contact |Maintains eye contact for |Maintains eye contact | | |with the target audience. |regularly. Student is |the most part. A positive |consistently and uses body| | |Listeners may be confused. |aware of importance of |use of body language is |language effectively to | | |The speaker cannot be heard. |body language although |demonstrated. The |create interest. The | | |The delivery detracts from |s/he struggles with it. delivery generally seems |delivery is extemporaneous| | |the message. Eye contact |Pacing is sometimes too |effective – however, |– natural, confident, and| | |may be very limited; the |fast or too slow. The |effective use of volume, |enhances the message. | | |presenter may tend to look |presenter seems |eye contact, vocal |Posture, eye contact, | | |at the floor, mumble, speak |uncomfortable. The |control, may not be |smooth gestures, facial | | |inaudibly, fidget, or read |audience strains to hear. consistent; some hesitancy|expressions, volume, pace | | |most of the speech; gestures|Vocal tone, facial |may be observed. Some use|indicate confidence, a | | |and movements may be jerky |expressions, clothing and |of nonfluencies is |commitment to the topic, | | |or excessive. Disfluencies |other nonverbal |observed. Mostly, |and a willingness to | | |are used excessively. |expressions do not detract|articulation and |communicate. The vocal | | |Articulation and |significantly from the |pronunciation are clear. tone, delivery style, and | | |pronunciation tend to be |message. Audience members | |clothing are consistent | | |sloppy. Poise or composure |can generally hear the | |with the message. Delivery| | |is lost during any |presentation. | |style and clothing choices| | |distractions. | | |suggest an awareness of | | | | | |expectations and norms. | | | | |Limited use of | | | | | |nonfluencies is observed. | | | | | |Articulation and | | | | | |pronunciation are clear. | | | | | |Audience members can hear | | | | | |the presentatio n. | Critique Sheet for the Informative Speech Speaker: _________________________ Topic: __________________________________ Grade: _____ Time penalty: _____ Final grade: _____ |   INTRODUCTION (15 pts. ): _____ |COMMENTS SUGGESTIONS | |0 1 2 3 |Gained attention and interest | |0 1 2 3 |Introduced topic clearly | |0 1 2 3 |Motivated the audience to listen | |0 1 2 3 |Established credibility | |0 1 2 3 |Previewed remainder of speech | DISCUSSION (18 pts. ): _____ 0 1 2 3 |Main points well organized/developed | |0 1 2 3 |Clearly focused topic | |0 1 2 3 |Originality of ideas | |0 1 2 3 |Language: vivid, clear, creative | |0 1 2 3 |Identified with audience throughout | |0 1 2 3 |Transitions: quality, points well identified | SUPPORTING MATERIALS (6 pts. ): _____ |0 1 2 3 |Quality: credible sources | |0 1 2 3 |Quantity: enough supporting | CONCLUSION (9 pts): _____ |0 1 2 3 |Reinforce theme | |0 1 2 3 |Summary clear | |0 1 2 3 |Sense of closure | DELIVERY (12 pts. ): _____ 0 1 2 3 |Level of animation/confidence/dynamism | |0 1 2 3 |Gestures: effective, appropriate, | |0 1 2 3 |Voice clarity, vocal emphasis | |0 1 2 3 |Extemporaneous style and use of notes | GENERAL EFFECTIVENESS (10 pts. ): _____ |1 |2 |3 |4 |5 | Assignment 4: Persuasive Speech Outline Goals: This assignment is designed to provide the opportunity to put the all of the knowledge and skills from the course into practice. Specifically, it aims to put into practice skills in audience analysis, argumentative reasoning, and management of personal ethos, while attempting to persuade the audience. Description: As a speaker, you must aim to persuade or to actuate the class to your way of thinking on a specific topic. Within your speech, you should present a problem, the reasons that problem exists, and what we can do to fix that problem using documented evidence (not just your opinion) to convince your audience. To complete the assignment, you are required to submit a complete full-sentence outline and bibliography in advance, as well as deliver a successful persuasive speech to the class. The Speech is worth 70 points and the outline 30. Speech Preparation: You may choose to structure your speech in one of two organizational designs: the motivated sequence design or the problem/cause/solution design. Be prepared to deliver the speech extemporaneously. You will be penalized 10 points for excessive reliance on note cards. The speech presented in class must include the following: 1. An appropriate introduction — meeting the six criteria 2. Evidence of audience analysis throughout the speech 3. At least three main ideas with two sub-points for each 4. Use of at least two different types of supporting material 5. Citation of at least six sources. Your sources must be cited aloud during your speech. 6. An action step in your last main point (solutions). You may wish to solve your problem through legislation or by changing an existing system. In addition, you must provide the audience with the potential to act based on your speech. The action step is literally something that your audience could do once they leave the classroom were they motivated to action by your speech. 7. Evidence of persuasive organizational development 8. An appropriate conclusion 9. An attempt to enhance ethos through your appearance Outline Preparation: You must turn in a complete, typed, full-sentence outline – including a bibliography – to your instructor before you deliver the speech. If you do not bring your outline to your instructor prior to your presentation, you may be denied the opportunity to speak. If the outline is not in full-sentence format, you will be penalized with a deduction of 15 points from your final grade. The total point value of the outline is 30 points. Grading Guidelines: Grade Value |17% of total graded work | |Point Value |100 points (70 speech/30 outline) | |Time Limit |7-9 minutes | |Note Cards |4 maximum | |Visual Aid |Optional | |Outline/Bibliography |Required; 15 point penalty if not read y when due | Learning Outcomes: Assessment of this assignment will focus primarily on measuring the following outcomes: 1. Demonstration of the student’s ability to recognize and adapt to diverse audiences 2. Demonstration of the student’s ability to research, analyze, and reason from evidence to create logically sound arguments and conclusions 3. Demonstration of the student’s ability to create and to perform an original speech to persuade Assessment Rubrics: |Unsatisfactory |Emerging |Developing |Advanced | | |(0 – 17 points) |(18 – 34 points) |(35-52 points) |(53–70 points) | | |Ideas may not be focused or |Listener can follow the |Demonstrates an awareness |Speech follows persuasion | | |developed; the main purpose |speech only with effort. |of the nature of |format: three main | | |is not clear. The |There is a great deal of |persuasive speeches. |points; | | |introduction is undeveloped. information that is not |Reproduces most of the |problem-cause-solution | | |Main points are difficult to|clearly connected to the |conventions in their |structure. Thesis is | |Organization |identify. Transitions may be|thesis. Main points are |speech. Generally well |clearly stated and | | |needed. There is no |not clear. Transitions |organized but better |developed. Clear | | |conclusion or may not be |need to be developed. The|transitions needed from |transitions. The | | |clear the presentation has |audience has difficulty |idea to idea. Sequence of |introduction gains the | | |concluded. There is no |understanding the speech |ideas is logical and is |attention of the audience,| | |logical sequence of ideas in|because the sequence of |followed easily, |provides a clear purpose, | | |the speech. |information is unclear. |complemented by a clearly |enhances the speaker’s | | | | |discernible structure. |credibility with a source,| | | | | |previews main points, and | | | | | |demonstrates significance. | | | | |There is a clear action | | | | | |step and an overt call to | | | | | |action. | | |Does not present his/her |Few, if any, sources are |Supporting material may |Student has a clear grasp | | |information in the form of a|cited. Citations are |lack in originality. |of the content. Citations | | |persuasive speech. Student |attributed incorrectly. Citations are generally |are introduced and | | |does not have grasp of |Student has a partial |introduced and attributed |attributed appropriately | | |content and cannot answer |grasp of the content. |appropriat ely. Student is |and accurately. Supporting| |Content |questions about the subject. |Listeners recognize errors|at ease with expected |material is original, | | |Different sources of |to be the result of |answers to all questions |logical and relevant. | | |information are not used. |nervousness. Student does|but fails to elaborate. Student demonstrates full | | |Inaccurate, generalized, or |not provide enough detail |Over dependence on notes |knowledge by answering all| | |inappropriate supporting |in each main point to |may be observed. |class questions with | | |material may be used. Over |persuade audience. | |explanations and | | |dependence on notes is |Aspects of the speech are | |elaboration. Note cards | | |observed. There is no |too elementary or too | |are used for reference | | |action step. |sophisticated for the | |only. | | |audience. | | | | |Listeners can follow the |Vocabulary is somewhat |Language is appropriate, |Sentences are complete and| | |speech, but they ar e |limited or inappropriate. |but word choices are not |grammatically accurate. | | |distracted by some |Language used is mostly |particularly vivid or |Words are chosen for their| |Verbal Effectiveness |grammatical errors and use |respectful or inoffensive. |precise. Language is free|precise meaning. Language| | |of slang. Some sentences |Speaks with clarity |from bias with one or two |is free from bias. | | |are incomplete/halting. |sporadically and tone |minor exceptions. Speaks |Language choices are vivid| | |Language includes some |remains neutral for the |with clarity to the target|and precise. Speaks with | | |identifiable bias. Some |most part. |audience. Tone of voice |clarity and confidence to | | |listeners will be offended. | |demonstrates some attempt |the target audience; | | |Responds to questions | |to be persuasive. Persuasive tone is very | | |inadequately. | | |evident throughout. | |Nonverbal Effectiveness |Maintains no eye contact |Maintains eye contact |Maintains eye contact for |Maintains eye contact | | |with the target audience. |regularly. Student is |the most part. A positive |consistently and uses body| | |Listeners may be confused. |aware of importance of |use of body language is |language effectively to | | |The speaker cannot be heard. |body language although |demonstrated . The |create interest and | | |The delivery detracts from |s/he struggles with it. |delivery generally seems |persuade. The delivery is| | |the message. Eye contact |Pacing is sometimes too |effective – however, |extemporaneous — natural,| | |may be very limited; the |fast or too slow. The |effective use of volume, |confident, and enhances | | |presenter may tend to look |presenter seems |eye contact, vocal |the message. Posture, eye | | |at the floor, mumble, speak |uncomfortable. The |control, may not be |contact, smooth gestures, | | |inaudibly, fidget, or read |audience strains to hear. |consistent; some hesitancy|facial expressions, | | |most of the speech; gestures|Vocal tone, facial |may be observed. Some use|volume, pace indicate | | |and movements may be jerky |expressions, clothing and |of nonfluencies is |confidence, a commitment | | |or excessive. Disfluencies |other nonverbal |observed. Mostly, |to the topic, and a | | |are used excessively. expressions do not detract|articulation and |willingness to | | |Articulation and |significantly from the |pronunciation are clear. |communicate. The vocal | | |pronunciation tend to be |message. Audience members | |tone, delivery style, and | | |sloppy. Poise or composure |can generally hear the | |clothing are consistent | | |is lost during any |presentation. | |with the message. Delivery| | |distractions. | |style and clothing choices| | | | | |suggest an awareness of | | | | | |expectations and norms. | | | | | |Limited use of | | | | | |nonfluencies is observed. | | | | | |Articulation and | | | | | |pronunciation are clear. | | | | |Audience members can hear | | | | | |the presentation. | |Critique Sheet for the Persuasive Speech | |Speaker: _________________________ Topic: _____________________________ Grade: _____ | |Time penalty: _____ | |Final grade: _____ | |INTRODUCTION (15 pts. : _____ | |COMMENTS SUGGESTIONS | | | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Gained attention and interest | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Introduced topic clearly | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Motivated the audience to listen | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Established credibility | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Previewed remainder of speech | | | |DISCUSSION (21 pts. ): _____ | |0 1 2 3 | |Main points well organized/developed | | |0 1 2 3 | |Clearly focused topic | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Adequate Solution Steps | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Language: vivid, clear, creative | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Identified with audience throughout | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Transitions: quality, points well identi fied | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Speech is Persuasive: Weakening/Strengthening Commitment, Conversion, Induces a Specific Action | | | |SUPPORTING MATERIALS (6 pts. : _____ | |0 1 2 3 | |Quality: credible sources | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Quantity: enough supporting material | | | |CONCLUSION (6 pts): _____ | |0 1 2 3 | |Summary clear | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Sense of closure | | | |DELIVERY (12 pts. : _____ | |0 1 2 3 | |Level of animation/confidence/dynamism | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Gestures: effective, appropriate? | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Voice clarity, vocal emphasis | | | |0 1 2 3 | |Extemporaneous style and use of notes | | | |GENERAL EFFECTIVENESS (10 pts. : _____ | |1 | |2 | |3 | |4 | |5 | |6 | |7 | |8 | |9 | |10 | | | |Inadequate | |Poor | |Satisfactory | |Excellent | |Superior | | | EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITY Public Speaking in the Real World Total extra credit points: 10 You’ve probably thought it at some point during the class or another, when on earth am I going to have to use this? Or, you might be forced to watch upcoming presentations in your other courses and begin to realize just how terrible a poor public speaker can be as an audience member. However, effective mastery of public speaking is a skill that will help you achieve in your career no matter what level or industry you aspire to get into. This assignment will help you realize that as well as become a more effective critic of the messages you consume. Requirements You will attend at least one public speech or lecture this semester, you can attend a lecture sponsored by your department, a lecture or presentation sponsored by Communication Studies, or something you sponsor through your extracurricular or social organization. The only requirement is that you witness a public speech at least 10 minutes in length so that you have something to critique. – You must attend the speech in person. – You must obtain a program or some kind of record of your attendance to attach to your critique. Analysis To obtain full credit for this assignment you must turn in a 1 – 2 pg response (single space) to the speech you witnessed. Feel free to critique the speaker as much as the speech itself. If it was bad or boring to watch, tell me about it and explain why you think it went wrong. A quality paper will exhibit the following – One paragraph describing the rhetorical situation : occasion, audience, speaker and speech (at least a sentence or two for each part). Provide your perspective as to the exigence of the particular speech or lecture. – A second paragraph should analyze the content of the speech. How did the speaker gain your attention, did he or she have a clear preview statement/thesis. How did the speaker reinforce ethos? Were there transitions or a clear organization pattern. How was the speech organized? A successful paragraph should adequately address all of these elements. – A third paragraph should adequately assess the style and delivery of the presentation. What was the level of energy/dynamism, how did the gestures and nonverbal delivery enhance the presentation. How did the speaker use their voice and inflection? Was there adequate examples of extemporaneous delivery? – A final paragraph should offer conclusions about the speech you watched, and what you have learned from the process. How will your future presentations in this course and in your life be enhanced by what you observed. – All papers must have your name and course section # to receive full credit. How to cite Hey Jude, Papers

Friday, April 24, 2020

Speech for Recognition Day Essay Example For Students

Speech for Recognition Day Essay Like most of you today, my feelings are really overwhelming. I know, you guys are as excited about this event as I am so excited to speak before you today. Not so long ago, I was seating exactly where you are right now and hearing an inspirational talk from a guest speaker back then. Yes, I am but a proud alumna of T. Paez and soon you too will be part of the Alumni. I never really imagined myself addressing you for your Recognition Day. I never thought I could be the right person to inspire you today. Nevertheless, here I am, years after I made my first wise choice. We will write a custom essay on Speech for Recognition Day specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now That choice back in 1981 gave me freedom and life that I have today. Today, T. Paez will name those outstanding students who brought honors to themselves, and to this school. As we, you gather here and start viewing those simple and ordinary faces, you will realize that these achievers are exactly as everyone else. The only thing different is that, they have made their choices. That is to STAND and be recognized in the area where they choose to be the best one. It is a matter of CHOICE. It is between doing the right thing or not, or be recognized in good things or in all foolish activities. You see, life is but an everyday activity filled with options. It is a daily routine to choose†¦ and to decide†¦which one to pick up and which one to set aside. You started your day by waking up asking yourselves if you are feeling going to school or not, if will you have your Mommy’s breakfast or just have some food in school instead, or it will be a just plainly picking up colors for the day. Things like these, without you realizing, we are actually having tireless choosing and deciding moments the whole day. But this morning I will give a big significance on this human activity which is our freedom to choose. Our freedom to choose includes freedom NOT to choose. By these two opposing but actually related liberties, we need to choose both for our benefit. This is easy as we are just going to use our freedom to choose, to select the good and the useful for us. While on the other hand, you have to use your freedom NOT choose for those immaterial to you, for those irrelevant and seems to be a waste of time. Today you are seating here, others are watching around and waiting to be finally witnessed who the achievers this year. Let me tell you this, this event is not only for those who achieved something and pinned with medals but also for others to get inspired to achieve something. Medal is one thing and achieving is another thing. It does not mean that if you did not get any medal you can achieve anything later on. You may not be recognized today for your outstanding things you have done, but soon enough you will be recognized and applauded with need of any medal. So what I am actually pointing out is that with or without the medals, you all can be achievers. WE can all be achievers. It is just a matter of choice and choosing the right one. Eventually, batch after batch you gain the freedom to exit through the portal of this school in order to face a new life and a new challenge, and to pursue your happiness based on YOUR CHOICE. You have been empowered to choose, and right here right at this very moment, you need to reconsider the choice you have made before you finally get through with that gate (point the gate)-make your tough choice. .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 , .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 .postImageUrl , .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 , .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38:hover , .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38:visited , .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38:active { border:0!important; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38:active , .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38 .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u89647c2857172f9727701c033d7b1c38:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The Deadly Social Cloud (satire) EssayWhy? Because this will eventually change the course of your lives towards the future, as you are heading towards you goals. This will change you and your personalities before the eyes of everyone. You must remember the road to success has never been easy. It is an up and down rough road, and life out there is a jungle full of formidable traps and unnecessary stops. Time and opportunity have their own ways to test you just to keep you away from reaching your choice. You must fight hard and fight back all the time. Back in time, we must say that poverty is not a hindrance to success. That is absolutely true. Although it is becoming stereotype slogan, today I must tell that YES indeed poverty is never an obstacle but rather an inspiration to reach our goals to go further beyond those traps and stops get through to the valley of vast land of skyscrapers and life style of high technology. Think about pain and hardship you guys are encountering and think about an escape plan from this hardship. Use it as your motivation and as you weapon to beat poverty itself. Let poverty deteriorate from its inside. You will see after every positive step you have won, success is never been sweeter. It doesn’t mean that if you cannot be an astronaut; you can never be a pilot too? Or if you cannot be a pilot, it doesn’t mean you can never be in the airplane? If you cannot be a school teacher, it doesn’t mean you cannot be a mentor to others. And think about this, not only the doctors take care of the sick; you can always be a nurse. And the same is TRUE that if your parents cannot afford to send you to college it doesn’t mean you can never be in college and finish you study. You belong to new breed and new generation. The generation of cell phones and laptops, finishing your college education is no longer too impossible if you will really TRY. If you will really STRIVE, not hard but harder. This is your dream and this is your choice, we have constitutional freedom to choose, use it! And from this day on you have to choose the right thing. Nobody must stop you, not even your own self. GO for it! You have to lay down your rules. Lay down your plans, and make a self analysis. You must understand, that most of the time the paths going to your dream will never be a straight one and seldom are there for shortcuts. Patience is a virtue and it is the order of the day, every single day. You will meet a lot of people, tens of thousands of them and you need to interact with them. You might forget who is sitting next to you today, but never forget your choice and those people who help you on the way up, as you go up higher and on your way down. Well of course, as you traverse the density of life, you cannot just go through by yourself without people close to you. People you know and people you are about to know. As the saying goes, â€Å"Do unto others what you want other do unto you† and BE A BLESSING TO OTHERS all the time. It will level you up and boost your energy in this game of life when you do well to others. Try contributing noble things and try to share; you don’t need to expect something in return because for sure blessing awaits you as your reward at the end of the day. This is a challenge to all of you, both those who have been recognized for their remarkable achievement this year and to those who have been in their silence but doing equally great things in their fields: WILL YOU GO FURTHER OR WILL YOU STOP RIGHT HERE? It’s your choice.