Arguments behind ethical relativism - Free Essay Example

The discussions presented by James Rachel on the issue of cultural relativity and the ethical relativity is the premise that different cultures have different moral codes that guide given actions of individuals. In that sense, variations in the morality from one culture to another provides space to assert that right or wrong is a matter of the personal opinions which is then a subjective issue on different cultures. An illustrative example given by Rachel is a case of one culture viewing cannibalism as a standard dynamic in the society while the next culture frowns upon acts of cannibalism and therefore making right or wrong a varying opinion from cultures to cultures. In trying to understand the different moral epistemology theory mentioned and the ontological summarization in the discussions by Rachel, results in an argument about cultural or ethical relativism is that full of fallacy. Another illustration on the premise that different cultures have to defer moral codes is the general assumption by many that the earth is flat yet in actual proven scientific senses it is spherical. The divergent opinions on the actual shape of the earth and belief in either of the arguments do not disqualify the other argument only because one does not agree with the perceptions of the other. Given the stated positions of different moral views about certain circumstances in the society regarding morals, we, therefore, lack stable and contingent reasons to believe that ethical relativism is a real school of thought. On the contrary, to above analogies by Rachel, there are certain grounds to argue that theory of ethical relativism is wrong. The first reasoning behind Rachel’s arguments against the theory of ethical relativism is the fact that we cannot stand up and claim that our cultures and perceptions are morally upright and superior to those of others who don’t share the same ideologies with us.   The historical acts committed by other communities like the German Nazi, however, stand to be criticized whichever logic they used to orchestrate such injustices, and hence it becomes morally plausible to say that ethical relativism is a false concept. Another argument against cultural relativism is that to hold the theory it then casts a shadow of the doubt to the ideals of moral progress through cultural transitions by integrating other cultures and adapting them as part of the moral grounds on which people’s actions can be held to merit. The strength of the arguments on different morals of various cultures and it is a matter of personal opinions is the appeal to have tolerance to individual morals held by some cultures. An important argument in that regard of tolerance is the ability to speak the truth against opposite injustices like was done against Nazi Germany. As it is put by some saint ‘in all non-essential things, respect for diversity. In essential things, unity. In all things love’. In the same vein, the non-consensual bride kidnapping as common in some cultures requires unity against because that is morally implausible. Ethical responsibility is the function of knowledge and enlightenment and hence those trapped in ignorance of harmful cultures and morals approved by people of their ilk but frowned upon by others like the non-consensual bridal kidnapping. Lack of blame among those who approve such acts still warrants condemnation from those that morally feel that such actions are wrong.

Human Trafficking in Our Own Backyard - 726 Words

Human trafficking is an important problem in world politics that is not currently receiving the attention that it should. This is a terrible practice that involves the exploitation of workers, violation of human rights, and the encroachment onto the body when human trafficking turns sexual. Human trafficking is a huge issue that much is still unknown about. When we think of this practice we often think of the issue that only occurs overseas in poverty-stricken nations however this practice is very prevalent in our own backyards. And this is one of the biggest myths itself: trafficking does not always require the passage of transnational borders to be considered trafficking. Recently this issue has stepped more into the public eye when a sex trafficking scandal was exposed before the super bowl only two weeks ago. A fox article reported that children as young as 13 were missing and rescued by law enforcement as pimps had brought these children to New Jersey with the intent of selling their sexual services for money to tourists. In fact it is estimated that hundreds of thousands of children are at risk in the United States for this kind of exploitation. These statistics are extremely hard to estimate however because unfortunately, so many human trafficking cases still p roceed without consequence. (Polaris project). It is also important to realize that trafficking occurs in many countries and not just to women or children. However the United Nations Office on Drugs and CrimeShow MoreRelatedTheu.s. Constitution : Abolition Of Slavery837 Words   |  4 PagesConstitution: Abolition of Slavery (1865). Our Documents. Accessed December 19, 2015. http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=truedoc=40page=transcript. This website provides an image of the original U.S. Constitution, which includes the 13th Amendment. The 13th Amendment, passed by Congress in 1865, explicitly states that neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist in the United States. Jordheim, Alisa. Made in the USA: The Sex Trafficking of America s Children. Oviedo, Florida:Read MoreHuman Trafficking : An Evolving Global Phenomenon1719 Words   |  7 PagesHuman trafficking is an evolving global phenomenon that lacks adequate attention and information. The global issue has been around for many years, but it has been hidden and kept a secret by so many who knew it was going on. Today, there are â€Å"approximately 800,000 people trafficked across international borders† and many more trafficked from state to state (Richards 155). No longer is human trafficking hiding in the shadows of a small farm or town that is hidden away from a busy city near by. HumanRead MoreHuman Trafficking Is A Modern Day Form Of Slavery1393 Words   |  6 PagesDo you know what human trafficking is? Well, human trafficking is just another name for modern slavery.   Different medias, like television shows and movies, make it look like human trafficking only happens in foreign countries or to foreign citizens.   That however, is dangerously untrue.   It is one of the biggest crime industries in America, behind drug and arms dealing.   It’s happening right in our backyard, human trafficking is extremely prevalent in big American cities and states with internationalRead MoreThe Growth Of The Global Commercial Sex Industry1151 Words   |  5 Pagesand the list of these human rights violations is long. Furthermore, one of the most infamous crimes in recent years recaptured our attention is human trafficking, which is known as, buying and selling people. Trafficking humans have existed since the beginning of civilization, but in recent years the scourge of trafficking, has exponentially increased due to globalization, the magnitude of poverty, organized crime, government corruption, and (as it relates to sex trafficking) the growth of the globalRead MoreGovernment Mock Congress Research : Outline Template1708 Words   |  7 PagesCaveat Outline Template Introduction Hook: There is modern day slavery in the United States, which is known as Human Trafficking. The most common form of human trafficking is prostitution. Mostly young girls and women. Then there are the agricultural workers, domestic workers, childcare providers, construction workers, day laborers and restaurant workers that have been transported to our country or are already living in the United States. Many of these people that have passports or any other typeRead MoreThe Problem Of Human Trafficking1328 Words   |  6 Pagestaken from their homes and put into human trafficking. Every individual is supposed to be given the opportunity to a long and happy life but, with human trafficking standing in the way, millions of people are subjected to illnesses, diseases, and unhappiness. Human trafficking has taken over the lives of many, especially in Bangladesh. A country that is subjected to filth, poverty, and sex trafficking. Bangladesh is one of the top countries for human traffick ing. The people of Bangladesh are in needRead MoreAnalysis Of The Story Another Survivor By Jill Leighton1687 Words   |  7 Pagestwo, was to be submissive, a bottom.† Footnote: Jesse Sage and Liora Kasten, eds, Enslaved: True Stories of Modern Day Slavery (New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2006), 68. Denied basic necessities, which present formidable health problems. Victims of human traffickers are dependent on their traffickers for basic necessities (food, water, shelter, clothing, and safety). †¢ â€Å"Sleep deprivation serves as punishment and a control mechanism, rendering slaves physically unable to resist their bosses or attemptRead MoreThe Criminalization Of Prostitution And Sex Work1103 Words   |  5 PagesIn a cozy, first world country, the realm of crime, abuse, and drug use, seems like it is worlds away, when in reality, these horrific acts occur in our own backyard. But to a prostitute, it’s their entire world, being forced to work in the grit and grime of the streets, and to make a dangerous living in the underground. The criminalization of prostitution and sex work is flawed at its very core- men and women shouldn’t have to lower their standards of living in order to exercise their rights toRead MoreHuman Trafficking : The Biggest Crimes That Is Held All Around The World1939 Words   |  8 PagesHuman trafficking is one of the biggest crimes that is held all around the world continuing today. What is exactly human trafficking? It is the i llegal movement of people, typically for the purposes of forced labor or commercial sexual exploitation (Healy, 2012). Many young girls are being taken from their homes and may never return. Also men and women are being trafficked. This happens in areas like fishing boats, construction sites, farms and factories, and brothels and private homes (Healy, 2012)Read MoreThe Film, Taken, An Action Packed Thriller That Starred Irish Actor, Liam Neeson2441 Words   |  10 Pagesportrays the character, Brian Mills, a former CIA agent who experiences the horrific ordeal of his daughter’s abduction while she and her friend are visiting Paris, France. The viewer learns that Mills’ daughter has been abducted by an Albanian sex-trafficking gang, with the sole intent of selling her as a prostitute for high profit in Europe. This movie adeptly exposes the shameful truth of a very real problem in today’s society. While Hollywood and television networks highlight the problem of modern

Essay about Use of the Fences Metaphor in Describing...

Use of the Fences Metaphor in Describing Racial Injustice in Toni Morrisons The Bluest Eye, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, the Song Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, and August Wilsons Fences In todays world it is difficult for young people to get a good handle on the past. This is especially the case when talking about the history of African-Americans in the United States and the consequences of racial injustice which they faced. Toni Morrison shares her thoughts on this topic in her novel The Bluest Eye through the use of the metaphor, the hem of life. This idea of marginalizing African-Americans was used well to describe the hardships of most African-Americans throughout history. A more effective metaphor was†¦show more content†¦Douglass expressed these emotions in his narrative and could be seen in particular when he was utterly astonished, since [he] came to the north, to find persons who could speak of the singing, among slaves, as evidence of their contentment and happiness (367). With slavery came a fence of ignorance towards African-Americans. The contempt Douglass expresses clearly depicts the difference between the thought patterns of people in the south as compared to the somewhat naà ¯ve thinking of the north. Douglass makes it sound as if there is a line or fence that ran right across the country where the people on the side seemed to be uneducated about what was happening south of them. The spirituals which Douglass detested so much can also be looked at when using fences to describe the history of African-Americans. Swing Low, Sweet Chariot is a spiritual that leaves its meaning up for interpretation, but still makes the point that slaves wanted to cross into a free society. The first way one may interpret this spiritual is by saying it is describing slaves being taken away via the underground railroad to safety. It is written, [t]ell all my friends Im coming too (371), so perhaps those who were singing want to join their friends in safety. The slaves are saying they want to break away from restraint and go to where they can be free. They would then be crossing over the fences of supreme oppression to a place were whereShow MoreRelatedParable Of Despair By Octavia Butler2151 Words   |  9 PagesThomas Sweeny-Wong Period 5 Parable of Despair The world is dying. There is too much injustice. We need to fix it. --Thomas Sweeny-Wong The future is tough to predict. Parable of the Sower is a very well-written science fiction novel by Octavia Butler. The setting is California in the year 2025. The world is not prosperous anymore and has turned into a poverty stricken place. There are countless homeless people, jobs are scarce, and there are very few communities of homes. The fewRead MoreOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 Pagesnumbers on foreign-born peoples counted in national censuses. This, too, is an imperfect form of measurement because some censuses count foreign birth, while others only count foreign residents who have not become citizens and others merely note racial or ethnic distinctions. This measurement may also count people who did not move while international borders moved around them. The many nations that emerged from the breakup of the Soviet Union account for a good proportion of the increase fromRead MoreLogical Reasoning189930 Words   |  760 Pagesattribute the work in the manner specified by the author, namely by citing his name, the book title, and the relevant page numbers (but not in any way that suggests that the book Logical Reasoning or its author endorse you or your use of the work). (2) Noncommercial You may not use this work for commercial purposes (for example, by inserting passages into a book that is sold to students). (3) No Derivative Works You may not alter, transform, or build upon this work. An earlier version of the book was

Essay On Shakespeare Sonnets Example For Students

Essay On Shakespeare Sonnets William ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was a great English playwright, dramatistand poet who lived during the late sixteenth and early seventeenthcenturies. Shakespeare is considered to be the greatest playwright ofall time. No other writers plays have been produced so many times orread so widely in so many countries as his. Shakespeare was born to middle class parents. His father, John, was a Stratford businessman. He was a glove maker who owned aleather shop. John Shakespeare was a well known and respected manin the town. He held several important local governmental positions. William Shakespeares mother was Mary Arden. Though she was thedaughter of a local farmer, she was related to a family of considerable wealth and social standing. Mary Arden and John Shakespeare were married in 1557. William Shakespeare was born in Stratford in 1564. He was oneof eight children. The Shakespeares were well respected prominentpeople. When William Shakespeare was about seven years old, heprobably began attending the Stratford Grammar School with otherboys of his social class. Students went to school year round attending school for nine hours a day. The teachers were strict disciplinarians. Though Shakespeare spent long hours at school, his boyhood wasprobably fascinating. Stratford was a lively town and during holidays, it was known to put on pageants and many popular shows. It also held several large fairs during the year. Stratford was a exciting place to live. Stratford also had fields and woods surrounding it giving William the opportunity to hunt and trap small game. The River Avon which ran through the town allowed him to fish also. Shakespeares poems and plays show his love of nature and rural life which reflects his childhood. On November 28, 1582, Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway ofthe neighboring village of Shottery. She was twenty-six, and he wasonly eighteen at the time. They had three children. Susana was theirfirst and then they had twins, Hamnet and Judith. Hamnet,Shakespeares son, died in 1596. In 1607, his daughter Susana gotmarried. Shakespeares other daughter, Judith, got married in 1616. In London, Shakespeares career took off. It is believed that he may have become well known in London theatrical life by 1592. Bythat time, he had joined one of the citys repertory theater companies. These companies were made up of a permanent cast of actors who presented different plays week after week. The companies werecommercial organizations that depended on admission from theiraudience. Scholars know that Shakespeare belonged to one of the mostpopular acting companies in London called The Lord ChamberlainsMen. Shakespeare was a leading member of the group from 1594 forthe rest of his career. By 1594, at least six of Shakespeares plays had been produced. During Shakespeares life, there were two monarchs who ruledEngland. They were Henry the eighth and Elizabeth the first. Bothwere impressed with Shakespeare which made his name known. Thereis evidence that he was a member of a traveling theater group, and aschoolmaster. In 1594, he became an actor and playwright for LordChamberlains Men. In 1599, he became a part owner of the prosperous Globe Theater. He also was a part owner of the Blackfriars Theater as of 1609. Shakespeare retired to Stratford in 1613 where he wrote many of his excellent plays. There are many reasons as to why William Shakespeare is sofamous. He is generally considered to be both the greatest dramatistthe world has ever known as well as the finest poet who has written inthe English language. Many reasons can be given for Shakespearesenormous appeal. His fame basically is from his great understanding of human nature. He was able to find universal human qualities and put them in a dramatic situation creating characters that are timeless. Yet he had the ability to create characters that are highly individual human beings. Their struggles in life are universal. Sometimes they are successful and sometimes their lives are full of pain, suffering, and failure. .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 , .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 .postImageUrl , .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 , .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49:hover , .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49:visited , .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49:active { border:0!important; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 { 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; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49:active , .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 .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; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49 .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u8ca639dbf529844f1afbd029d8608a49:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Youth Rebelliion In The 1950's EssayIn addition to his understanding and realistic view of humannature, Shakespeare had a vast knowledge of a variety of subjects. These subjects include music, law, Bible, stage, art, politics, history, hunting, and sports. Shakespeare had a tremendous influence on culture and literature throughout the world. He contributed greatly to the development of the English language. Many words and phrases from Shakespeares plays and poems have become part of our speech. Shakespeares plays and poems have become a required part ofeducation in the United States. Therefore, his ideas on subjects such as romantic love, heroism, comedy, and tragedy have helped shape theattitudes of millions of people. His portrayal of historical figures and events have influenced our thinking more than what has been written in history books. The world has admired and respected many great writers, but only Shakespeare has generated such enormous continuing interest. My source states explanations rather than opinions on why Shakespeares contributions to literature are so vast. My source devoted thirty pages to William Shakespeare. Shakespeares plays are usually divided into three majorcategories. These are comedy, tragedy, and history. Three plays which are in the category of comedy are The Comedy of Errors, TheTaming of the Shrew, and The Two Gentlemen of Verone. Threeplays which are in the category of tragedy are Romeo and Juliet,Titus Andronicus, and Julius Caesar. In the category of history,three plays are Henry V, Richard II, and Richard III.

Tale of Lynx free essay sample

Partnership with Doug Curtis I do not believe Milmo made a good decision partnering with Doug Curtis to start Lynx. Milmo never had a great confidence and rapport with Doug Curtis. After the failure of the real estate idea Milmo mentioned that â€Å"I didn’t love the guy and I had to think hard about it †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ , that shows he never really believed in Doug but went ahead with Dough relying on Dougd’s experience with VC. Although Doug was considered a â€Å"veteran entrepreneur† he did not contributed to Lynx as mush as a founder member is expected to do. He was not a technical expert so he couldn’t contribute technically to the company. He had lot of experience with VS but reading the case it doesn’t look like he had a lot fo contribution in getting funding for Lynx and it was primarily Milmo who was the captain to secure funding whether it was from Early Advantage Capitol, Novel Ventures or RazorzEdge Captial Partners. We will write a custom essay sample on Tale of Lynx or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page There are also concerns that Doug have ethics issues. Although Milmo concluded the issue of Doug paying himself more than he deserved to be a one time lapse but I think Milmo didn’t wanted to make a big fuss about this issue so he settled on his conclusion. But I still have concerns how ethically positive Doug was. 2. Partnership with Javier Pascal I believe Milmo made a very good decision of partnering with Pascal but didn’t do a good job at very clearly defining Pascal’s role and responsibility which eventually caused lot of issues. This was especially imperative considering Pascal’s strong personality. Its clearly evident that the software Pascal architected was great, considering that software was architected in a scalable manner thus enabling Lynx to change their strategies few times and come with different products with the same baseline software. 3. Equity distribution among the founder members. I believe Milmo did not distributed the equity in the company wisely esp considering he had learnt a lesson early in his life during the venture he made in the â€Å"Jeopardy† game show. As the idea and concept on which Lynx is uild upon was of Milmo he should have strived for a much higher equity than Doug and should not have divided the equity equally among the founders. AlthoughI agree with his decision of making the equity of Curtis and Pascal vest over two years so as to keep Curtis and Pascal focused on the job. 4. Continuing with his MBA at Harvard. I believe Milmo made a very good decision to get into Harvard the second time and finish one sementer and then left to pursue his idea. It was a right choice as it kept the Harvard MBA option open for Milmo as if he would not have joined Harvard the second time, it was pretty much a closed door for him. . CEO structure I believe Milmo made a big mistake in defining the organization structure and did not clearly defined the roles and responsibilities of the founders. Ideally all the founders should have taken the roles which are their primary strengths and should have clearly defined the decision making structure. Although Milmo mentioned that the â€Å"triumvirate† structure worked for them but I believed it also let to several confusions for the employees and as Lynx expanded this confusion increased more and more. Apart from confusion, I believe making Doug CEO didn’t resulted in making best use of his expertise in sales. 6. Hiring strategy Question 2. Has the founding team done a good job of structuring itself and building the Lynx organization? I believe the founders didn’t do a good job in structuring and building the Lynx organization. Clearly the executive team structure was not defined based on the core expertise of the corresponding individual esp. Doug Curtis. For example Doug Curtis is considered expert in Sales for VC backed companies, so should have been focused on Sales. Similarly for Pascal although the role of CTO was correct for him but the roles and responsibilities for CTO position did not seem to be clearly defined and communicated. Pascal’s sole existence in the company was technical in nature but he started getting interested in pricing and business development discussions which is not the right thing to do for a CTO of a technology startup. Considering the primary business idea was of Milmo and he was instrumental in bringing Doug and Milmo on board he should have taken the lead in being CEO, President and Chairman. Further instead of making a triumvirate making decisions, he should have made a clear decision structure. He should have let Pascal take all the technology based decisions and Doug all sales based decisions. For any decisions overlapping in need for sales and technology, Milmo should have got involved and ensured that in case of situation where there is no agreement among all 3 founders, the decision will be taken by vote and all the 3 founders has to abide by the decision and move forward in the best interest of the company. Clearly this structure was missing and all the founders spent and wasted a lot of time arguing with each other. Also I believe Milmo did a good job of having a clear strategy about hiring but at some point in time as Lynx expanded he should have acted fast and changed his strategy. I believe having a good mix of â€Å"Renaissance people† and not so ‘Renaissance people† would have helped Lynx especially when they transformed and expanded. I do not believe if someone wants to leave, paying him/her double the salary is right strategy as this might set a wrong precedent and cause a ripple effect of everyone doing the same thing. Question # 3. If you are James Milmo, are you going to fight back against changing your strategy, or are you going to agree to the change demanded by your board member? What factors motivated his demand? Should James have known this was coming? How could he have avoided the problem? Answer: Question # 4: If you are James Milmo at the end of the case, what is your biggest worry? What can you do to manage that issue? Answer: As James Milmo my two biggest worries would be: 1. As Milmo my first biggest worry is the spoiled relationship with Pascal. My immediate target would be put an end to the spoiled relationship with Pascal. Spending or wasting lot of time and energy in debating and arguing on simple things is not helping Lynx or Milmo in any way. (to me, demands of Milmo sounds reasonable as he is reacting to market and is seeing what his competitors are doing and what Lynx should do to ensure they don’t land up behind the competition in few years. ) I would setup a process on how key decisions can be taken esp when there is not a clear agreement amongst all the parties involved. There has to be a process on moving ahead and not keep circling with debates and arguments. I also believe Milmo should take the position of CEO so he has the final decision making authority for Lynx in case a decision cannot be taken at people below him. If these processes are put in place and still do not work I will let go Pascal. Although loss of Pascal will be a loss but I think there is enough technical talent within Lynx ( brilliant kid, technical manager etc) to fill the gap of Pascal in due course of time. . Strategic direction of the company: As Milmo, my second biggest worry would be set a clear defined strategy for Lynx. What is the market Lynx should go after, should Lynx focus on their current target market, should Lynx keep growing customers and increase revenue. Milmo with his executive team has to do due diligence and come with a defined strategy and then spent all the energy executing that strategy, with an open eye on the market.

15 Tips For Planning Successful Social Media Events

15 Tips For Planning Successful Social Media Events A great and memorable event  Ã‚  takes time, money, sweat, tears†¦well, hopefully not tears. But it does take a lot of planning to get it right and, when the event is over, youll discover that each person had a completely different experience at the same event. So how do you prepare for something, like a conference, meetup, or press event, and how do you prepare for the reaction to it? Each week, I attend  1 Million Cups  here in  Bismarck-Mandan. At each meeting, a local  entrepreneur  will present their business idea, answer and ask questions, and get feedback. 1 Million Cups is also a great way for people within the community to network and drink a free cup of coffee. I started going for the free coffee, to be honest, but the event was so well done and insightful that I kept coming back. In fact, I now live tweet on their Twitter account each week! What could make an event that good? How can you plan an event like that yourself? 1. Give yourself time. No matter how small or simple the event, you need to give yourself enough time to troubleshoot and problem solve. A lot of last minute details will pop up and youll want to have time to deal with them. This means you need to start planning early for several things: Booking speakers:  A speaker will need anywhere from six months to a years notice before they agree to speak at an event. If you are extremely lucky, a speaker will be able to come last minute but DO NOT rely on this. Have a speaker booked months in advanced and even have a back-up or two. This will help prevent scrambling at the last minute for a replacement, or ending up with no speaker (or a bad speaker). Booking a venue: One of the first things on your to-do list should be to book a venue. Without knowing what your venue is capable of, you really cant plan much. Have a back up venue, just in case. This is especially important if the event takes place outside (weather can be unpredictable.) Booking a block of hotel rooms:  Along with a venue, your event may need to have a block of hotel rooms set aside for guests traveling to multi-day events. You want to be sure attendees will be able to find a place to stay; the last thing you want are hotels that are full and have no rooms left. Contacting the press:  People have to know about your event if you want them to attend, so dont be shy about letting the press know youre having an event. Send them a press release with the information about the event, including information that alerts them to whether or not the event is something they might want to cover. Keep in mind that this is a short list. There are a multitude of things that need to be planned ahead of time. 2. Focus on your goal. Stick with the theme/purpose of the event. It’s easy to get side-tracked or want to please more people, but stick with your goal. A lack of focus makes it difficult to pull an event together and the end result is confusing for the guests. In order to determine your goal, think about what feeling you want people to walk away with. Do you want people to be inspired? Do you want people to   take action? Do you just want people to be entertained? What do you want people to bring to the event and what do you want them to take away? 3. Make useful lists. When planning any event, lists are your best friend. You can use any list system youd like, but make sure that the  important tasks are first. When creating your list, the most challenging and important tasks should be on top of the list. For example, the venue, food/drinks, and speaker/entertainment have to happen, so be sure those are in place first. When the big items are in place, you’ll find it easier to plan the smaller details. Plus, it can be hard to plan the small details if youre not sure how big the venue will be, what the time the caters are showing up, or what type of entertainment there will be. Think big-picture first, then worry about the details. Where will you keep your list? Evernote  Is my personal favorite. Its a great platform to get organized and Im able to share it with multiple people. Google Docs  is similar to Evernote, and great for those who make heavy use of Google products already. There, your able to create documents and share them with people. They can have specific permissions, like just being able to view or being able to edit the document. Google Keep is a simple note and list application that makes lists easy. Wunderlist  lets you plan for events, collaborate with others, and access the lists from anywhere. Which ever list platform you choose (and you might even choose pen and paper), just be sure it fits what you need. Complex tools dont always help plan for simple events. There are a lot of  online resources  to help you with lists for event planning, but you should always customize a pre-made planning list for your own event. Each event is unique. Whats your favorite list app? What do you use for planning? 4. Get help from others. Asking for help isn’t a bad thing. Volunteers can be a great source of help, as long as you know where to find them. Find groups or organizations that might be interested (or benefit) from your event. Reach out to local universities to see if students would be interested, particularly those with related majors. Students might be a great source for help with social media, marketing, or public relations, for example. They build experience and a resume, and you build a great event. Dont forget to reach out to your own social media fans or blog readers. They might love to help, too. Consider giving away free entrance or other swag as an incentive to get involved. There are always some little details that need to get done. Give them to your volunteers to do. Just be sure to treat them well and thank them. This will make them want to help you out again. Planning an event? Get volunteers, and give them ownership. Their enthusiasm helps build the event.5. Know what your audience expects. What does your audience expect from your event? As I mentioned earlier, I attend a weekly event called 1 Million Cups Bismarck-Mandan. There are 1 Million Cups events all around the United States. I guarantee each event is different, although the goal of each is the same: to engage entrepreneurs in communities around the world. My expectations for my first event were low, because I had never heard of 1 Million Cups before. However, after the first event, my expectations rise every time. Now, I expect there to be an insightful speaker(s) who has a unique business/business idea. I expect them to give advice to the audience, but also need advice back. I expect there to always be delicious coffee and friendly people to network with. Ive gone to eight of these events and I have yet to be disappointed. Its important for an event to reach and connect with their audience. 1 Million cups connects with me because Im interested in what the speakers have to say. I love getting and giving advice, meeting new people, and I have a strong love for coffee, especially free coffee! Determine your target audience for your event. Find what interests them so you know how to plan everything from speakers to entertainment and food. Know if your audience will have disabilities and plan accordingly making sure everyone has access to the full event. 6. Have the outcome in mind. What would you like the outcome to be? Is there a call to action? Would you like people to sign up or buy something? Join a movement? The outcome is different than the goal. The event has a purpose, and the outcome is the action that comes from that purpose. Perhaps your goal is to inspire people to help out in their community. The outcome might be an entire community-first movement from those who participated. Or perhaps you hope the outcome is a stronger connection between the community and your business (e.g. Riggs Partners and their efforts with Smashburger). 7. Scheduling the date and time. Be smart when you’re planning the date of the event. Don’t plan it too close to holidays or other similar, related events that are happening in the area. Make sure your target audience won’t have to decide between your event and another one. Yet again, knowing your target audience helps. Does your event target high school students? Make sure youre not conflicting with sports seasons or extra-curricular events. Full-time workers? You might want to keep your event to weekends. If you do have to schedule your event the same day as another event, make sure its at a time that doesnt conflict with the other event or try to make your event more appealing than the competition. 8. Be realistic about whats possible. It’s fun to day dream about events, but make sure you’re being realistic when planning. Know how much time you have to pull off the event and know your budget. If you’re planning a bigger event, give yourself a few months. You wont necessarily need more money for a bigger event, youll just have to be more creative. 9. Stick with SMART goals. Be smart and stick with SMART goals. This will help keep the event reasonable. S Specific. Use action verbs to describe the 5 Ws: who, what, when, where, and why. M Measurable. Make sure your goals can be measured. If they cant be measured, how can you let sponsors know if you were successful or not? A Achievable. Once again, be realistic. Its so easy to think big, but plan for what your resources and time allow. R Relevant. The goals need to be relevant to why youre planning the event in the first place. T Time-bound. Set mini goals for when tasks need to be completed to help keep you and your team on track with time. 10. Budget It’s easy to say, â€Å"Oh, this will be a small event. It won’t cost much,† and never set a budget. If you do this, you’re setting yourself up to over spend, by a lot. Set a budget, keep an expense report. If you find yourself straining against your budget, youll have to get creative (maybe even DIY!). There are many places you can go to help for planning your budget and working with finances. Mint.com, for example, is free and fast. Another site is Planning Pod, which can do much more than just help you with a budget. Planning Pod can help you track, create, build, manage, collaborate, and prepare. You can also create your own budget managing system using Excel or a Google Docs spreadsheet. Its also important to know how you are paying for an event. Are you paying for the event through sponsors? If so, be sure to get your sponsors first, before you sign contracts or start spending money on the event. It would be unfortunate to have a sponsor pull out of the event when you have signed contracts and booked the venue and entertainment. 11. Get Creative Bring in fresh ideas. It’s important to try new and creative things at events. And if you use DIY, it can help keep the cost down. How do you keep the cost down and stay creative? You could find a few DIY books, watch DIY shows, orPinterest.  Its a great resource for event planners. You can browse for ideas for all types of events, finding ideas on everything from food, drinks, decorations, games, and more. It’s like the holy grail of DIY. Julius Solairs  lists 20 different Pinterest boards to follow for different components of events. This post by   Angela Schelp has some tips on how to plan an event via Pinterest. This post  by Yusno Yunos has some great ideas on why using Pinterest is an exceptional tool for event planners. As you can see, Pinterest is a great tool to use when it comes to planning events. If youre not a fan of Pinterest, try DIY blogs that focus on great event planning. Youll find  great blogs  that give you the help and inspiration needed for planning a variety of events. Whenever there is a craft fair near by, go to it. You may not buy anything, but they are a great place to get ideas and meet makers who might be able to help you out with your event for a reasonable cost.  I was involved with a fundraiser where we were to have a product to sell. When I was brainstorming ideas I thought about a tie blanket I saw at a craft fair. We were able to get fabric stores to donate the fabric, and the fundraiser turned out to be a huge success. Ideas are everywhere. 12. Marketing One of the most important aspects of an event is marketing it. If you want people to show up, you need to let them know the event is happening. Dont just assume people will tell their friends and the event will spread by word of mouth. Where is your audience most likely to see your message? TV? Radio? Social media? Promote your event where your audience is. You might even want to send  out a press release. In order to help organize your marketing efforts, a marketing plan is necessary. Youll be dealing with press deadlines, and staggering your promotion of the event on social media. Perhaps youll be writing blog posts leading up to the event, and have to coordinate with writers and designers for those posts. A plan–with a timeline–is the only way youll get the marketing to fall into place. An editorial calendar is a great tool, too. 13. Incorporate social media Every event should incorporate social media. Not just to promote an event, but also during the event. If Twitter is an appropriate medium for your audience, create a hashtag for your event. It will help people spread the excitement of the event while at the the event, or while talking about attending the event. Attendees can interact with one another. It will also make measuring your reach on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, more effective. Another reason to use social media is because its an inexpensive way to market/advertise your event. By creating a hashtag and an event landing page on your site and on social media platforms, you start the conversation ahead of time.

Strategic Management Meredith Belbin Research Paper

Strategic Management Meredith Belbin - Research Paper Example The Team Role theory sprung from the research done by Meredith. It sought to understand human behavior, by studying individual’s affinity to behave in a certain manner, and their contribution in relating with others. This defined way, gave the theory a meaning. In addition, it helped understand one’s behavior and the behavior of fellow team members (Larson & LaFasto 2006; Adair 2007). Meredith outlined nine team roles. A completer has an attitude to plan ahead, and ensure that targeted goals are attained. A coordinator is composed even in the face of controversy, whereas an implementer works with the interests of the company and not his own. A monitor evaluates proposals with a detached mind (Parker 2004; Rees 2001). A plant is an intellect that solves difficult problems, whereas, a resource investigator is always in a position to relate to people and explore things associated with outsiders. A shaper considers all possible means, to solve a problem and leaves out the unnecessary ones. A specialist provides rare expertise and skills, whereas a team worker promotes team spirit (Gardenswartz 2003; Belbin 2006). Meredith Belbin is a British researcher, born in the year 1926. He obtained a first and second degree at Clare College, Cambridge, in Classics and later Psychology. He worked as a researcher upon completion of his doctorate at Cranfield College. Later, he became the chairman of the Industrial Training Research Unit (Carr 2001). He and three other scholars, Bill Hartston, Jeanne Fisher and Roger Mottram, began a seven year task. They held three games a year, and each game constituted eight teams. In each meeting, they observed and recorded the contribution of each team. Belbin established Belbin Associates, with an aim to publish and promote his research in the year 1988 (Belbin 2003; Maginn 2007). The theory is of immense importance, because it helps understand individuals own behavior and