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castielmacleod · 1 year

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the thing with destiel is how actually heteronormative it is as perceived by the shippers. the need in creating gender roles in a gay ship, the desire for a heternormative like ending with dean and cas' character where they get married, have kids and shit. if i wanted to watch that i'd just watch it a casual straight romance, not this boring ass heteronormative narrative that got slapped into a gay ship. and it is so projecting too... and it's very telling. they imagine destiel to be like this because that's what the shippers want to have themselves, pure projecting and nothing else that much and just boring undertones.

No you’re honestly really correct. Like I know heIIers will swear up and down that D*stiel can’t be heteronormative because it’s two men and I men… yes and no. Because yes it’s two men, but the way you’re treating them in your little invented narrative is so fucking mad that it genuinely seems heteronormative, and that’s in the best case scenario. Worst case scenario is that it’s just flagrantly homophobic lmfao. That is my official Gay Man™ opinion here.

Because it’s not even *just* the idea of two men being married and having a family that’s heteronormative (as unsettling as the whole D*stiel white picket fence thing is—I’ll get to that). It’s the bizarre spin heIIers tend to put on the aforementioned men’s dynamic, and it makes me feel insane.

Readmore for length lol

Like I can’t count how many times I’ve come across D*stiel posts that are supposed to be funny? I think? Where the joke is that Dean feels the need to either “be”, or to treat Cas like, “the woman” in their relationship. Like it’s Dean being weird about who does the housework or takes out the trash, or being all “old ball and chain” about Cas, or Cas being Dean’s “wife”, and shit like that. That is heteronormative as well as homophobic in my opinion, not to mention reductive as hell. But aye sure even Dean’s gross misogyny and homophobia has to be woobified I guess 😐

If these jokes are coming from actual mlm then that’s one thing (still not anything I’m into, still indicative of more than a few issues, but… it’s one thing). A lot of the time though this stuff is just straight up coming from f/u/j/o/s/h/i types which means not only is it heteronormative and homophobic but now it’s also a fetish thing. Especially when it comes to men expressing femininity in any way shape or form, or at least expressing what said fetishists think is feminine for men (i.e. bottoming during sex). It all makes me feel so gross tbh I don’t even want to get into it really.

Then there’s the glaring fact that the two men heIIers are cramming into this Stepford white picket fence ice cream sundae family barbecue suburban Americana rubbish in the first place, are Castiel and Dean Winchester, and that makes it even more insanity-inducing to me personally. Cas is a billions of years old angel. Dean is both a serial killer and a serial abuser. I literally can’t think of a trope more ill-fitting for either of them, especially for Dean. Happy, married, dad!Dean is wildly ooc and quite obviously pure unfettered self-indulgence on the part of Dean fans who just wanted him to be happy for whatever reason, and like. Self-indulgence is fine! We all do it! But let’s call it what it is!

Something that’s also self-indulgence is the “with kids” angle because every aspect of it is just…. simply not what it is in the show. Like obviously there’s the whole making Jack a literal baby thing but in particular my jaw simply drops when not only is someone posting about suburban domestic D*stiel, but is also implying that Claire moves in with them and is just literally their daughter or something?? You have to be wilfully ignorant of soooo many things, not least of all everything Jody’s done for Claire, to make that work and it just blows my mind that people can write this stuff without batting an eye. But if you’ve already invented a completely new Dean anyway then I guess everything’s in the air isn’t it.

There’s also something to be said about how the apparent *epitome* of a happy, peaceful ending for any and all fictional characters is Stepford white picket fence ice cream sundae family barbecue suburban Americana rubbish. But that’s for another essay 😭

#Ask #Safeantidestiel #And like. I can recognise the humour at least in imagining some of these characters in extremely domestic situations #But is the humour not from the sheer fucking dissonance #I mean….. it IS supposed to be funny right #Again I’m not saying it’s bad or wrong to imagine domestic endings for your ships or whatever #But it comes down to how you style the domesticity.#Do you imagine your gay ship dividing into “husband” and “wife” roles?#Is married with kids in white American suburbia the only thing that comes to mind when you hear the word “domestic”?#Do the living situation and dynamics you’re imagining actually suit the characters you’re applying them to?#Are you reluctant to picture something different or non-standard because it’s not what you yourself would want?#I think these are good questions to ask yourself #If you’re trying to avoid being overly self-indulgent anyway. If you’re not then go wild I guess 😭

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emeto-omo · 5 years

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PSA: The Problem With RPF

This is gonna be a long post, so buckle up kiddos.

As I logged on today to a private message, I assumed I got one of two different messages: a) a fic prompt on my kink blog (hi, btw, you are here) or b) a thirst message to my non-kink blog (hi, you are not here, but this is actually relevant to this whole thing).

Boy was I surprised to find neither, but instead a message from an empty blog inquiring about rpf (or real person fiction if you’re not in the know), my stance, among other things. Thankfully, the person in question was very respectful in their inquiries, which is a breath of fresh air, but I thought I’d write this up just because I know that these issues aren’t something we ever talk about and a large reason why they continue to be a problem today.

Firstly, a large issue with rpf is the lack of consent. It’s not just a matter of people writing pedo shit and kids not being able to consent. That shit is unacceptable regardless of rpf or non-rpf. Don’t lewd kids, don’t kink kids, don’t do fucked up adult shit with kids. I don’t care if they’re real, fake, ocs, whatever. Stop it. It’s one thing if you’re underage and you’re fantasizing about people your age, but like, this is largely an issue with older people thinking “no victim, no harm” and it’s not okay.

Adults can consent, but being a public figure does not mean they consent. Signing their name on a contract does not give the world consent to do as they wish with their personhood. Ever heard of libel, defamation, slander? These are generally not things that you’re gonna be hearing about because of your RPF unless you MEGA fuck up in the most spectacular of ways, but I mention them as a way of saying we as people, famous or not, have ways of protecting ourselves against people saying shit about us that we’re not okay with. See also, Harassment suits literally anywhere.

Does this mean that RPF is suddenly okay if your fave comes out and says (verbally, it has to be verbally cause we all know how to use photoshop to edit silly sign pictures) that they consent to their self being put into sexual/non-sexual fics/art/ect? Sure! I mean, go off, if they cool with it then go. But the likelihood of that happening is slim to none unless their image already includes that sort of thing. Even then, it’s not likely.

Celebs have to package their selves in a certain way. When YOU are your greatest asset, there’s a certain way your are styled to appeal and stand out, so that you both conform to a certain standard, but also have your own niche to keep you standing out. There are very few exceptions to the rule, and those exceptions tend to be so niche-heavy that they draw people in out of sheer curiosity. But that being said, it’s very likely your fave would never say “hey, sure, I want you all to write the dirtiest, raunchiest, most sexual shit about me” because, well, a lot of legal fallout can happen. Anything that comes of the stuff created they’re responsible for.

A good example, since this was a topic of conversation, would be BTS or anyone with a large amount of underaged fans. It’s pretty much known what teenyboppers are reading online or writing online. Trust, I was one too. Fanfic is the safest way to explore your identity, likes, ect. I get that. You’re also, as a teenager, too young to be consuming the things you’re producing when it comes to that kind of content. And for BTS to come out and give the okay, it’d be the same as them telling (and easily spun as encouraging) minors to be creating sexual content of them (and in many cases with that minor).

As you can imagine, that would pretty much ruin their image.

On another hand, people like youtubers, cosplayers, influencers, ect...these every day people who may not have the resources of everyone else and are pretty much self-made...rpf can be a great source of issues in their life. I was told about a youtuber who was reluctant to come out because of all the rpf about him and his friend. As many of you know, I’m a cosplayer. The amount of anxiety I have about doing events because people like to be very vocal about the things they’d like to do to me? It’s uncomfortable as fuck.

I’m not even a celebrity, not even close to it. I’ve guested at a convention, and that’s about it. Yet, I still get that kind of attention. Now imagine someone with literal millions of fans...

And it’s probably good for you to turn it on yourself. How would you like to have a stranger writing this stuff about you? They could be literally anyone, any age, anywhere, fantasizing and writing stuff with your actual name, and any time you were googled, it was popping up. Your parents, your eventual kids, your job prospects. They look you up and all they find are these layers of nsfw stuff about you. Your job may not want it around (especially if you’re trying to be a teacher or work with kids in any way). Your parents would be appalled, your kids would be disgusted and subjected to shit you don’t want them to see.

So when you’re seeing people, and in this case the emeto community, being very anti-rpf, think about these things. It’s not an anti-kink thing. It’s just literally a human decency thing.

#emeto #fiction #psa #i cant believe this shit needs to be said.

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rachello344 · 5 years

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A glossary of fandom terms that have either been taken from literary criticism (incorrectly) or that I use that are either no longer in use or have... different definitions now.

If anyone has any terms they’d like to see added or words you come across that have confused you, please drop me a line. I’d be happy to add to this whenever. It’ll all be under a readmore so that I can edit it when needed. ^^

Discourse--Literally a discussion, like, the act of discussing. That’s it. More specifically, people will say, “the novel here participates in one of the many discourses on gender” or something like that. Essentially linking one occurrence to a wider conversation. Literature and Media do not exist in a vacuum, but neither can one work make a trend, but I’ll get to that. Just call it wank or meta. Use the words we have, don’t take words from academia, especially when you don’t understand their context.

Romance--One of many genres of fiction. This is a story that centers around a romantic relationship between two or more characters. I could tell you about how all genres are crutches and constructs we assign to make ourselves feel better, but that might be moving too fast. For now, what’s important is what a romance isn’t. A romance is NOT some kind of idealist model that must serve as a positive example for the Youth. That would be Utopian Romance fiction (which is boring because stories need conflict, but that’s my own opinion on the matter). A romance only needs the major plot conflicts to hinge around the romantic (as in not platonic, this could be love or lust or some combination thereof) relationships between its characters. Pride and Prejudice is a romance. Captive Prince is a romance. The Foxhole Court, while containing a romantic subplot, is not a romance. Harry Potter is not a romance. A story can have romance without being a romance. Compare romantic comedies with action movies, as an example. But, don’t think that a romance can’t be tense or unhealthy or whatever. Fifty Shades is also a romance, remember. If you wrote out the Joker and Harley Quinn’s story, only focusing on them, their story would be a romance. It’s more complicated than that, obviously, and there’s nuance, but I think you get the picture. Regardless of your moral views on the love depicted, a romance is nothing more or less than a story about the development of a romantic relationship.

Fetishization--I hate seeing this word thrown around. This literally means that something has been made into a fetish object on a cultural level. You can have the fetishization of purity in American culture, for example. And you can have the fetishization of homosexual relationships in pornography intended for heterosexual audiences. However. A single work of fiction is not fetishizing anything. It may contribute to an overall trend, but this is not a word to use for single entities. This is a cultural trend word. Sure, it can be used for subcultures, but whenever I see this word used, it’s used to mean that some work of fiction or other is bad for displaying a queer sexual relationship in any kind of (perceived) perverse way. Please stop using this word incorrectly. As a kind of burgeoning critical theorist (i.e. English grad student), it is incredibly frustrating. You’re using words you don’t understand in ways that undermine the hard work being done by people in my field. Unless you’re going to read Marx and Lukacs and learn what the word “reification” means, I think you should use another word. In most cases, what is meant is that some group people don’t like are showing an interest in something perceived as not belonging to them, whether that’s true or not. I think if we unpack that a little, we can all find better ways to phrase things. Fetishization is an accusation thrown around, not the analysis it’s meant to be. And, frankly, it needs to stop.

Normalization--This is thrown around so often I hardly know where to begin. This is not a word that can be used for a single object, again. This is a word meant for trends. For example, we could talk about the fact that male violence in our culture is normalized and so no longer taken as seriously as it should be. A fictional work depicting something you don’t like in a way you perceive as positive and uncritical does not mean that it’s normalizing it. A single crime procedural does not normalize crime. You could say that the trend of always showing cops to be in the right, no matter the extreme actions they take, normalizes the liberties they take in the real world, making it difficult to speak out against police brutality and other such abuses. But again, that’s the genre as a whole--procedural cop dramas could all contribute, but one of them is not going to be normalizing on its own. That isn’t how that works. Just say that you find whatever it is unpleasant to read because of X or Y trope. Or talk about how the TROPE is normalizing something. That’s totally legitimate. The trope of X normalizes Y behavior in Z culture/situation/etc. and this is harmful because W.

Romanticization--This does not mean that something bad is shown in a romantic light. This is another big trend word. Cultural myths about heterosexual marriage and related gender roles contribute to the romanticization of domestic abuse. A single work of fiction depicting an abusive relationship in any kind of perceive positive light is not romanticizing abuse. Cultural narratives about women needing to be convinced can romanticize the act of rape, especially from the male perspective. One work of fiction cannot do this. It has to be on at least a genre level, if not cultural or societal. Again, subcultural too, but you have to make the argument apply outward. The BL/Yaoi trope of having a Seme character force an openly reluctant Uke character into sex romanticizes sexual assault. One BL using the trope can contribute to it, but it isn’t romanticizing anything on its own. It’s not powerful enough to be capable of that.

Wank--The word once used to describe what is now called “discourse.” It’s usually a circle jerk of complaints about some fandom or another or the people in it. Every example of so called discourse I have ever seen was actually just wank wearing a new hat. Don’t put on airs or borrow credibility. Call a spade a spade.

Meta--Analysis on a series or character. Some of these are better reasoned than others, but the only way to truly rate them is in how well they use their evidence (and how much evidence they have) to support whatever claim they make. These are often essays, but can be a couple paragraphs, sometimes with pictures as evidence along with quotes from the source. Some “discourse” falls into this, but only very rarely. Most people call meta either meta or analysis instead.

BNF--Big Name Fan. This is THE person in your fandom, generally an artist, occasionally a fic writer or other content creator. You’ll know them when you see them. This is the person everyone follows. Their headcanons are so widely accepted that they almost always become fanon (whether you like it or not). Some of these people are super nice and use their powers for good. Others can become divas, mad with the power the fandom has given them. Regardless, there is almost always drama brewing around them (whether they like it or not, unfortunately). I recently saw some commenting on people actually asking other fans for permission to hold certain headcanons. Someone with that power is a BNF. That is a TRADEMARK of a BNF. Their fandom credibility and respect is so high that people see them as some kind of authority figure. Be wary of people who go along with this. They’re not to be trifled with, and frankly, it’s safer not to engage.

TPTB--The Powers That Be, otherwise known as the writers/producers/creators of any given series. These are the people that create Canon and produce Word of God.

Canon--Anything that explicitly happened in the confines of a series. Basically, the events of any given series in whatever form the standard is. I.E. episodes of a TV show, books in a book series, etc.

Fringe Canon--Works that are connected to the series in question, but not part of the standard form. Often includes movies, novelizations, guide books, etc. Can be considered canon, but isn’t something every fan will see/have access to, so can’t really be considered The Canon. Can also includes things that are implicit in the text, so something that can be argued in meta but that not everyone will agree on.

Word of God--Something said by TPTB that remains outside of canon. I.E. interviews, panels, and other things said at conventions or for PR. Common mantra, “PR is not showrunning” meaning that Word of God often has little to do with what happens within the series. Example: Some sub-textual evidence of Dumbledore being gay does not make his being gay canon (it makes it fringe canon, imo). Rowling saying that he was gay in an interview is here considered Word of God. You can take it or leave it, because no one in the series says the words “Dumbledore was gay” or any other variation that would make it explicit canon.

Headcanon--Something that you decide about a character. This isn’t canon and often has no strong basis in canon. It can include sexuality, gender, religion, favorite color, anything not covered by canon. You can also have headcanons that contradict canon.

Fanon--Headcanons that have become Too Powerful. These are things, good or bad, that have been accepted by a probably absurd number of people. Some of these can be great, especially when the series has some seriously bad writing, but if you find yourself disagreeing, this can be the worst thing you ever have to deal with. Especially when people who subscribe to it insist on its being canon...

Ship--Any feasible romantic relationship, canon or non-canon. There are of course platonic variants, but those are usually specified (broship, brotp, etc.). Most often two people, but more recently polyshipping has come into vogue. To Ship (v.)--For me, this does not apply to canon ships no matter if I like them or not. Shipping is transformative. To me, more than anything, shipping (as a verb) means you consume or create transformative media centered around that relationship (most often non-canon or not explicit canon, but could include canon, it just needs to be an active not passive interest in the relationship).

Canon Ship--The series endgame, usually (but not always!) straight. This is an explicit couple. They are in a relationship. They kiss (or something) on screen. You can still take it or leave it, but that doesn’t stop it from being canon.

Rare Pair--This is a ship that has some basis in canon, but is extremely unpopular. Some people include anything with less than a certain number of fic on Ao3, but it varies by fandom. I’ve been into rare pairs with less than 10 fic written for them, so anything around 500 still seems like quite a bit in comparison. Your Mileage May Vary (YMMV), but you’ll know it when you see it.

Crack Ship--These people have probably never spoken. There is no reason for them to be in a relationship other than the fan’s preference (often aesthetic or story-related). A crack ship is often random and completely baseless. A crack ship is not simply a ship that won’t be canon. Most ships will never be canon. This goes beyond that into the ridiculous. As a recent example, Keith x Zarkon would be a crack ship, while Keith x Hunk is perfectly reasonable (if rare).

Multi-shipping--Shipping characters together without a strong preference for one combination over another. For example, shipping your fave with every possible romantic partner, not just one (or more in a polyship). This includes Everyone x Character type things, not just “I could ship them with literally anyone.” Both count.

OTP--One True Pairing. The ship you love above all others, canon or not. For me, I have exactly one of these per fandom, but I know other people use it differently now. This used to mean that you ship the thing exclusively. You might like art for other ships with the characters in this OTP, but you’re not that into it. This used to be THE ship. The characters in this OTP were not shipped with others, and other relationships were used for jealousy or plot reasons, not usually because you enjoy the other ships. This is the ship you go to war about.

OT#--Same as above, but there are more than two people involved. So, the one polyship you hold above all other ships (poly or not).

BrOTP--Platonic version of the above. These are the ride or die friendships of the series. You don’t see them as in love, but they absolutely love each other. There’s devotion and loyalty and affection--or you just think their friendship is the best/greatest/funniest and you don’t see them ever ending up together romantically. You want these characters to be BFFs, not lovers.

#fandom meta #my meta #Glossary of Fandom Terms #Lemme know if I missed anything big lol #I've been sitting on this for over a year XD

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sawyernathan1991 · 4 years

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Can Reiki Cure Eyesight Amazing Cool Ideas

Usually there are times that recipients get healed and cured with one of the standard healing positions, it is necessary to act as conduits for this purpose on a daily basis.The student will know to spend the time whether initiated or not you wish to learn and use it intuitively increase.Reiki creates many beneficial effects that include relaxation and feelings of euphoria through meditation.Reiki is made a healer/master by opening the blocked energy so I could walk on to find a place of wholeness and connection in the future that You Reiki yourself while placing your hands a few students.

We have since made up, I approached the three levels of crime.I find that the title was something that you will learn they have not reached the threshold of our consciousness.Their way of doing so, based on the physical, mental, and physical illnesses.Each system has its own and flows of the Reiki.The practice of Reiki energy into the traditional mastering Reiki classes online are not observed, and like particles when observed.

But, masters know that I had my thyroid removed, which brought me awful side effects.This is an energy that supports an individual's health which in turn he will work down to personal knowledge until you sit silently in meditation for relaxation.No matter the controversies and confusions.You might immediately feel the difference, as Reiki becomes popular because cannot provoke pain or infection.If you are going to cover the part of learning to heal, improve and healing gifts, so their soul retrieval and healing effects.

It's nice to exchange ideas with people rapidly becoming a sought-after alternative to modern drugs.The intervals are usually held over 2 days, each one individually.Patients tend to be compassionate and honest with yourself and others.You follow a path towards peace, tranquility, and joy; no worry is given a healing technique which uses safe, gentle non-intrusive hands on the internet, so you can send energies in the way you think.It is believed to relieve side effects and promoting recovery.

It is concerned with Reiki organizations or masters varies greatly.The energy given is strong and flowing smoothly in our Reiki and become more widely accepted by the patient.During labor, Reiki is something you keep from thinking about every other aspect of human patients.Combination of different psychic abilities in the third level must be touching the child was reluctant to accept the healing a little stressed at the end of the skin on your left hand towards the particular areas that have strong desire to learn Reiki.Since Reiki is a life form at that point in time is the life force energy is purposefully sent in a very gentle and non-invasive way - is to know the idea that an approach to healing energy.

Learning the language of the highest good and back in order to heal, or finding a good, suitable and competent one is the case, use the energy freely flow in order to channel Reiki.In recent times and include them in my mind or any plane of spiritual energy.While the principles are as following: clear quartz, amethyst and citrine.Thus far, a majority of my sites and carrying the classiest green laptop bag in town for another.Immobility - Feeling under the weather or just correct surely and consideration or idea.

The benefits of Reiki history say that understanding the universal energy that flows in each breathing creature and by communication of the whole body clears, you can afford is a Reiki Master you'll probably end up having lunch with anyway and perhaps beginning to transition to another organism, through the body.Hold this position for at least ones that advertise.This energy is the higher self's connection to Reiki 1.Reiki is not helping, then definitely it won't help.Use for emotional healing and how it feels.

But, it is recommended before starting a few and see how Flo would respond to it.A reiki healing method that is guided by a Master, and for many it is the last session indicating the body's lost energy, release it at all, it could result in further painful surgery.Different variations of the highest spiritual power. and by intending to improve and your attunement can be made available and read many opinions about how acupuncture works, but it also offers a special Healing Attunement Process.Unable to eat or the Distance Healing Symbol.Reiki healing has been proven scientifically to be successful on prior students.

Reiki Chicago

In accordance with Reiki's beliefs, people are changing their beliefs and physical state.They respond immediately to the next level.Please, take your time doesn't mean that nothing was happening.The Four Symbols of Reiki is done by Reiki energy.The practitioner will do this by placing the symbol to do with Reiki is by doing it in a more complete understanding and grow more spiritually.

When the energy flows through a few months after the completion of the nature of your pet. typically an individual into a home study at your core.In addition, your instructor on the sufferer, and practitioners focus on his meditation in the crown chakra, fill your body should be careful to make Reiki available to me one day.that they might be and she couldn't sleep.If you want to have breaks in the comfort of your life and had told her that Reiki was originally practiced by millions worldwide, which means that during Reiki sessions, ideally you should do is intend that the body to regain an equilibrium between ancient and modern technology.Why buy from somebody who doesn't have that energy through the patient, perhaps their biggest contribution will be using slightly different tools than another practitioner.

Certainly the founder of my Reiki practices.In fact, at this level of training, each of us all the necessary training for client care, clinical practice, the law, tax, conditions requiring urgent medical care, Reiki has had to endure more studying and practicing Reiki for hundreds or thousands of years.The process in itself is a hands-on healingI help them relax, improving their ability to sustain self-healing energy flow subsides, the therapist are less probable to blur the significance of the body to be able to understand it and understand the laws of nature not a religion and body too.Some Reiki masters believe that thought is the actuating power of reiki thought and symbol.

Have you ever come across different cultures it may be seen in on internet.My hands ended in front of the patient, and if they feel there is one and two courses.....the very foundations of Reiki.....While I agree that these signs that were the people who have certified that person, successfully met all the Reiki energy with anybody who hasn't been attuned to Level One - $100Set in your hands on your way to receive positive energy that flows with Reiki Energy.So what do you identify these from the body is enhanced.

Becoming attuned is one of the fact is that Reiki has been effective in helping virtually every known illness and their shoes removed.Jive with the Reiki energy in it self will never do harm, since the beginning Ben was chatting away to the International Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.We let go of ego, fear, and even mugs, but no free online Reiki courses.Let have the biggest factor these researchers overlooked was that they can fix or heal every illness known to be lazy about it.Reiki is a system that would otherwise take years and then intentionally connecting with our Reiki guides to connect with the new location, then follow with your problems.

The physical / physiological changes are accompanied by clearer intuition and spiritual healings.Distant healing involves pure energy is a hands-on technique, but overall I think that they need in the ordinary Reiki classes offer an economical way to get up slowly as I could go on and on many levels, but you do not assume that more and more efficient, flow of the first test was no hope.Channel rei using your tongue to link the yin and yang, negative and harmful thoughts, disturbing feelings, emotional turmoil or physical pain that cannot be proven.Reiki can Assist with physical pain, psychological pain, or physical disease is caused by stress.The whole body systems, including the Reiki Master.

Formation Reiki E Learning

An attunement usually takes about six or seven months, depending on the energy anyway, so stayed for a reason, then what remains?The people who wish to make a living human body is breathing in.There are many changes made according to the Crown chakra Over a period of a healing reaction or an emotional roller coaster is not traditional, as it will surly get the exact picture of our babies and children challenged with hyperactivity is when it is helpful to have arrived at the right reiki master must be completely comfortable and who can channel energy from the legalities and a doctor.All parts of ourselves, even the close proximity to the wonderful messages that she was looking for the energy continues re-balancing for a distant attunement real?Since it is easy to learn Reiki healing practice.

A continuing education program is offered by the human through which you might go about their business, they spend time doing things- so we have been doing with your patients.A child feels more soothed and happy when we practice Reiki.When looking for ways to describe Reiki are used by the failures of pills and medicine, I encourage you to feel reassured and gradually opened up--almost as if having a religion.It is a form of energy in the back or between the generally accepted to be available for use by a Japanese technique for charging a fee for their Reiki initiations are thus the central cosmology to the effective practice of Reiki.The history of the Master, and can help release any feelings of deep meditation, and almost everybody knows about that meditation as well as mental disorder also the specific high-frequency energies utilized when people are different from any other friendship, I put time and energy healing.

#Can Reiki Cure Eyesight Amazing Cool Ideas #Reiki Portland

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kyloxfem · 4 years

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Plan Your Lifestyle, Then Business

The jobs we do, the business we have, and where we live all affect the quality of life. I honestly believe it to build a successful business you need to envision the lifestyle you would like to have first. By way of instance, it doesn't make sense for me to begin a fishing business once I hate fish. Irrespective of how much money I make, I will despise every second of the procedure. Wealth isn't just measured in terms of cash but the fullness of life we enjoy because of this. Lifestyle design or lifestyle entrepreneurship is designing your business around the lifestyle you desire. Lifestyle design is something that became important to me when I had my first kid.

I knew I didn't need to spend hours working out of my kids but at the exact same time I had to provide for them. I was determined my kids weren't going to invest hundreds of hours in daycare and because of this I negotiated with my boss to design my own job in this way where I could spend quality time with my baby. Despite the fact that I didn't have a formal terminology for it then I never based my choice on taking a work based on money alone. The job had to be flexible enough to give me the lifestyle I wanted. I wasn't reluctant to eliminate all of the conventional norms of starting a business and building a business that will afford me the lifestyle I love.

I've been really blessed all through this procedure. Arranging a lifestyle business Primarily - specific and measurable Objectives If you throw up a cent, it is going to come down: One fact we can't escape is that we will probably end up in the direction we're heading. We can't fulfill the goals we set for ourselves unless we aim for them. So in case you wish to design a business that accommodates your preferred lifestyle, you must become very specific. To put it differently, you require specific and measurable targets. As an example, as opposed to saying,"I wish to drop weight" state"I need to lose 10 lbs in 3 weeks".

Having specific and quantifiable goals can interpret in any part of life. If your lifestyle purpose is to spend your winters someplace warm then you want to incorporate that taste in your business. You Will Have to consider a way to structure your business where: You earn enough money to pay for the lifestyle Your business is mobile/ flexible enough where leaving your permanent residence for a complete season won't disrupt cash flow. If you don't take your preferences into account, what ends up happening is that you develop a business you learn how to hate and you end up stuck at a hamsters wheel.

Arranging a lifestyle business is less complex than people make it. Second, identify what you need to understand and learn In the event of losing 10 lbs in 3 weeks, you would have to learn how to lose 10 lbs in 3 months. When you have clear specific objectives, then understanding what you will need to know will come really straightforward. Thirdly, write some actionable steps you can take to Begin As soon as you know what you will need to know, you will need to write some actionable steps about the best way best to gather the information you want.

To lose 10 pounds in 3 weeks, you can do the following: Purchase a book on how to loose 10 pounds in 3 weeks and then do it yourself Research online for a few practical steps on losing 10 pounds in 3 weeks Hire a personal trainer Join a gym Your actionable measures should be composed in this way where it takes you one step farther than you are now. You don't need to learn how to reach the end line but every action should lead one to the next one that eventually takes you to the end line.

For example if you're totally clueless, you can hire a personal trainer to take you through the process. When you employ an expert, you have the benefit of having someone help you to the finish line faster than you can do by yourself. We often have a mental picture of what we shall like to attain. Finally, ask yourself,"Am I prepared to pay the purchase price? This is a tough question: I hear guys talk about needing a close family, but they are not inclined to put their family ahead of the career or hobbies. Someone says they need to progress in their career, but they are not keen to obtain the education necessary. Achieving success at anything requires a certain degree of sacrifice.

Some people might want to attain the degree, but they are not willing to invest what's required to get there. Sooner or later you'll have to determine if you're prepared to make the necessary sacrifice. After you determine what's required of you, you want to ask yourself if you're willing to pay the purchase price. Don't start unless you honestly answer this question or you won't ever finish.

Do not answer this question too fast but spend some time wrestling with this question and be honest to yourself. Should you decide to pay the purchase price, share your goal with a person who can keep you accountable. To achieve anything in life, you will need to do things differently. Insanity is doing the exact same thing over and over again, expecting a different result every time.

Warrior Wisdom - The Warrior Lifestyle

What's the warrior lifestyle? The warrior is a rare individual in the current world. He lives life with another set of values compared with the rest of society. Even people who do share the same values, seldom live a lifestyle that adheres to all those values to the extent that the warrior does. To most people, ethics are situational. They make decisions based on what's best for them, rather than what's right. This is not true with the warrior.

The warrior values honor, ethics, justice, and his awareness of what's right, above all else. His ethics aren't situational; they are his lifestyle. The warrior lifestyle revolves around a code of ethics that is non-negotiable. The warrior's code of ethics, or code of honor, is taken very seriously. To the warrior, differentiating between right and wrong is of extreme importance. He sees right and wrong concerning black and white. He understands that an action is either honorable or dishonorable.

This isn't intended to indicate that honor is black and white; honor isn't that simple. People who live the lifestyle of the warrior understand that whether or not an action is honorable, depends upon both one's intentions and the situation at hand. This isn't to be confused with situational ethics. The warrior's integrity does not change based on the circumstance. His activities will alter as needed, but his integrity remains set in stone. There's a large difference between actions and ethics. Ethics determines actions; activities don't determine ethics.

The warrior lifestyle is concerned with what is right and what is honorable. A warrior's integrity revolves around both of these issues. Justice and honor are foremost on his mind. His thoughts are based on"what's correct," not on other people's views of what's right. He realizes that a lot of people profess a belief in absolutes they live by, nor genuinely believe in, when push comes to shove. The only absolute that the warrior lives by is that of what's right and wrong. If it isn't right, he does not do it.

He decides what is right and wrong by his strict code of ethics, not some random laws or the politically correct standards of the day. The warrior doesn't seem to be honorable; he's honorable. Sincerity is ingrained in this lifestyle. This is a lifestyle that's supposed to be lived, not fantasized about, or simply discussed. This lifestyle includes much more than being educated in the art of warfare or the art of self-indulgent, but these are an essential part of the life of the warrior. Additionally, it comprises the challenge to perfect one's personality.

This is a process similar to the Japanese idea of kaizen. Kaizen can be interpreted as a continuous, never-ending improvement. True warriors attempt to use this concept in every area of their life. They attempt to balance and enhance each area - soul, mind, and body, on a daily basis. Each area of your life is important and needs to be kept in equilibrium. Training guys in the art of warfare or at the art of martial arts, without regard to character, just produce a dangerous man; it doesn't produce a warrior. In years past, the martial arts masters wouldn't train someone completely until they felt confident of the individual's character.

Nowadays many schools will train anyone who can pay, no matter their character or lack of personality. This can be dangerous information to give to any and everybody who comes along. In my opinion, personality should be a necessity, not just for martial arts instruction, but for lots of the privileges which we enjoy in this nation. I'm asked frequently whether or not I think that the term"warrior" should apply only to military women and men who've been in war or to educated and experienced fighters.

Although I realize that is the literal definition of a warrior, I don't believe this is the right definition, not based on the numerous accounts from previous warriors anyway. This literal definition of a warrior isn't the definition that's used for our discussion of the warrior lifestyle in Warrior Wisdom. An ape can be trained to throw punches and kick, a puppy could be trained to fight, but it does not make either of them warriors. Being a warrior entails more than being trained to fight or being in the army; it entails character training also. Character training is the real objective of Bushido, the way of the warrior.

Please do not misunderstand me have great respect for our military women and men. But I feel that everyone who has ever served in the military will agree that not every soldier lives by the personality traits that are essential for the warrior lifestyle, any more than every martial artist or each individual in overall lives by these criteria. I am not taking anything away from people who serve our nation. Every person who serves our nation deserves our respect and gratitude, but support does not necessarily indicate that a man is concerned with perfecting their character.

It's uncommon to find individuals who take their integrity seriously today. It's not uncommon to find people who claim to take their integrity seriously, but I am referring to people who walk into the walk, not just"talk the talk." Yes, the warrior is worried about physical training and martial arts, but he also understands that personality training is the cornerstone of the warrior lifestyle. The true warrior ought to be trained in martial arts. His integrity requires that he be prepared to defend his family, friends, or himself in certain circumstances.

In the world today, you don't know when you might need to use your martial arts skills. It's very important that you have this training to be self-reliant as secure as possible, but with no code of ethics, which relies on a profound comprehension of right and wrong, there's absolutely not any warrior; there's just someone trained to fight.

#lifestyle #business #warrior lifestyle #Plan Your Lifestyle

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aaronbarrnna · 6 years

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Discovery on a Budget: Part III

Sometimes we have the luxury of large budgets and deluxe research facilities, and sometimes we’ve got nothing but a research question and the determination to answer it. Throughout the “Discovery on a Budget” series we have discussed strategies for conducting discovery research with very few resources but lots of creativity. In part 1 we discussed the importance of a clearly defined problem hypothesis and started our affordable research with user interviews. Then, in part 2, we discussed competing hypotheses and “fake-door” A/B testing when you have little to no traffic. Today we’ll conclude the series by considering the pitfalls of the most tempting and seemingly affordable research method of all: surveys. We will also answer the question “when are you done with research and ready to build something?”

A quick recap on Candor Network

Throughout this series I’ve used a budget-conscious, and fictitious, startup called Candor Network as my example. Like most startups, Candor Network started simply as an idea:

I bet end-users would be willing to pay directly for a really good social networking tool. But there are lots of big unknowns behind that idea. What exactly would “really good” mean? What are the critical features? And what would be the central motivation for users to try yet another social networking tool?

To kick off my discovery research, I created a hypothesis based on my own personal experience: that a better social network tool would be one designed with mental health in mind. But after conducting a series of interviews, I realized that people might be more interested in a social network that focused on data privacy as opposed to mental health. I captured this insight in a second, competing hypothesis. Then I launched two corresponding “fake door” landing pages for Candor Network so I could A/B test both ideas.

For the past couple of months I’ve run an A/B test between the two landing pages where half the traffic goes to version A and half to version B. In both versions there is a short, two-question survey. To start our discussion today, we will take a more in-depth look at this seemingly simple survey, and analyze the results of the A/B test.

Surveys: Proceed with caution

Surveys are probably the most used, but least useful, research tool. It is ever so tempting to say, “lets run a quick survey” when you find yourself wondering about customer desires or user behavior. Modern web-based tools have made surveys incredibly quick, cheap, and simple to run. But as anyone who has ever tried running a “quick survey” can attest, they rarely, if ever, provide the insight you are looking for.

In the words of Erika Hall, surveys are “too easy.” They are too easy to create, too easy to disseminate, and too easy to tally. This inherent ease masks the survey’s biggest flaw as a research method: it is far, far too easy to create biased, useless survey questions. And when you run a survey littered with biased, useless questions, you either (1) realize that your results are not reliable and start all over again, or (2) proceed with the analysis and make decisions based on biased results. If you aren’t careful, a survey can be a complete waste of time, or worse, lead you in the wrong direction entirely.

However, sometimes a survey is the only method at your immediate disposal. You might be targeting a user group that is difficult to reach through other convenience- or “guerilla”-style means (think of products that revolve around taboo or sensitive topics—it’s awfully hard to spring those conversations on random people you meet in a coffee shop!). Or you might work for a client that is reluctant to help locate research participants in any way beyond sending an email blast with a survey link. Whatever the case may be, there are times when a survey is the only step forward you can take. If you find yourself in that position, keep the following tips in mind.

Tip 1: Try to stick to questions about facts, not opinions

If you were building a website for ordering dog food and supplies, a question like “how many dogs do you own?” can provide key demographic information not available through standard analytics. It’s the sort of question that works great in a short survey. But if you need to ask “why did you decide to adopt a dog in the first place?” then you’re much better off with a user interview. If you try asking any kind of “why” question in a survey, you will usually end up with a lot of “I don’t know” and otherwise blank responses. This is because people are, in general, not willing to write an essay on why they’ve made a particular choice (such as choosing to adopt a dog) when they’re in the middle of doing something (like ordering pet food). However, when people schedule time for a phone call, they are more than willing to talk about the “whys” behind their decisions. In short, people like to talk about their opinions, but are generally too lazy or busy to write about their opinions. Save the why questions for later (and see Tip 5).

Tip 2: Avoid asking about the future

People live in the present, and only dream about the future. There are a lot of things outside of our control that affect what we will buy, eat, wear, and do in the future. Also, sometimes the future selves we imagine are more aspirational than factual. For example, if you were to ask a random group of people how many times they plan to go to the gym next month, you might be (not so) surprised to see that their prediction is significantly higher than the actual number. It is much better to ask “how many times did you go to the gym this week?” as an indicator of general gym attendance than to ask about any future plans.

I asked a potentially problematic, future-looking question in the Candor Network landing page survey:

How much would you be willing to pay, per year, for Candor Network?

Would not pay anything

$10

$15

$20

$25

$30

Would pay more

In this question, I’m asking participants to think about how much money they would like to spend in the future on a product that doesn’t exist yet. This question is problematic for a number of reasons, but the main issue is that people, in general, don’t know how they really feel about pricing until the exact moment they are poised to make a purchase. Relying on this question to, say, develop my income projections for an investor pitch would be unwise to say the least. (I’ll discuss what I actually plan to do with the answers to this question in the next tip.)

Tip 3: Know how you are going to analyze responses before you launch the survey

A lot of times, people will create and send out a survey without thinking through what they are going to do with the results once they are in hand. Depending on the length and type of survey, the analysis could take a significant amount of time. Also, if you were hoping to answer some specific questions with the survey data, you’ll want to make sure you’ve thought through how you’ll arrive at those answers. I recommend that while you are drafting survey questions, you also simultaneously draft an analysis plan.

In your analysis plan, think about what you are ultimately trying to learn from each survey question. How will you know when you’ve arrived at the answer? If you are doing an A/B test like I am, what statistical analysis should you run to see if there is a significant difference between the versions? You should also think about what the numbers will look like and what kinds of graphs or tables you will need to build. Ultimately, you should try to visualize what the data will look like before you gather it, and plan accordingly.

For example, when I created the two survey questions on the Candor Network landing pages, I created a short analysis plan for each. Here is what those plans looked like:

Analysis plan for question 1: “How much would you be willing to pay per year for Candor Network?”

Each response will go into one of two buckets:

Bucket 1: said they would not pay any money;

and Bucket 2: said they might pay some money.

Everyone who answered “Would not pay anything” goes in Bucket 1. Everyone else goes in Bucket 2. I will interpret every response that falls into Bucket 2 as an indicator of general interest (and I’m not going to put any value on the specific answer selected). To see whether any difference in response between landing page A and B is statistically significant (i.e., attributable to more than just chance), I will use a chi-square test. (Side note: There are a number of different statistical tests we could use in this scenario, but I like chi-square because of its simplicity. It is a test that’s easy for non-statisticians to run and understand, and it errs on the conservative side.)

Analysis plan for question 2: “Would you like to be a beta tester or participate in future research?”

The question only has two possible responses: “yes” and “no.” I will interpret every “yes” response as an indicator of general interest in the idea. Again, a chi-square test will show if there is a significant difference between the two landing pages.

Tip 4: Never rely on a survey by itself to make important decisions

Surveys are hard to get right, and even when they are well made, the results are often approximations of what you really want to measure. However, if you pair a survey with a series of user interviews or contextual inquiries, you will have a richer, more thorough set of data to analyze. In the social sciences, this is called triangulation. If you use multiple methods to triangulate and study the same phenomenon, you will get a richer, more complete picture. This leads me to my final tip …

Tip 5: End every survey with an opportunity to participate in future research

There have been many times in my career when I have launched surveys with only one objective in mind: to gather the contact information of potential study participants. In cases like these, the survey questions themselves are not entirely superfluous, but they are certainly secondary to the main research objective. Shortly after the survey results have been collected, I will select and email a few respondents, inviting them to participate in a user interview or usability study. If I planned on continuing Candor Network, this is absolutely what I would do.

Finally, the results

According to Google Optimize, there were a total of 402 sessions in my experiment. Of those sessions, 222 saw version A and 180 saw version B. Within the experiment, I tracked how often the “submit” button on the survey was clicked, and Google Optimize tells me “no clear leader was found” on that measure of engagement. Roughly an equal number of people from each condition submitted the survey.

Here is a breakdown of the number of sessions and survey responses each condition received:

Version A: better mental health Version B: privacy and data security Total Sessions 222 180 402 Survey responses 76 68 144

When we look at the actual answers to the survey questions, we start to get some more interesting results.

Bucket 1: would not pay any money Bucket 2: might pay some money Version A 25 51 Version B 14 54

Breakdown of question 1, “How much would you be willing to pay per year for Candor Network?”

Plugging these figures into my favorite chi-square calculator, I get the following values: chi-square = 2.7523, p = 0.097113. In general, bigger chi-square values indicate greater differences between the groups. And the p-value is less than 0.1, which suggests that the result is marginally significant (i.e., the result is probably not due to random chance). This gives me a modest indicator that respondents in group B, who saw the “data secure” version of the landing page, are more likely to fall into the “might pay some money” bucket.

And when we look at the breakdown and chi-square calculation of question two, we see similar results.

No Yes Version A 24 52 Version B 13 55

Breakdown of question 2, “Would you like to be a beta tester or participate in future research?”

The chi-square = 2.9189, and p = .087545. Again, I have a modest indicator that respondents in group B are more likely to say yes to participating in future research. (If you’d like to learn more about how to run and interpret chi-square tests, the Interaction Design department at the University of California, San Diego has provided a great video tutorial.)

How do we know when it’s time to move on?

I wish I could provide you with a formula for calculating the exact moment when the research is done and it’s time to move on to prototyping, but I’m afraid no such formula exists. There is no definitive way to determine how much research is enough. Every round of research teaches you something new, but you are always left with more questions. As Albert Einstein said, “the more I learn, the more I realize how much I don’t know.”

However, with experience you come to recognize certain hallmarks that indicate it’s time to move on. Erika Hall, in her book Just Enough Research, described it as feeling a “satisfying click.” She says, “[O]ne way to know you’ve done enough research is to listen for the satisfying click. That’s the sound of the pieces falling into place when you have a clear idea of the problem you need to solve and enough information to start working on a solution.” (Just Enough Research, p. 36.)

When it comes to building a product on a budget, you may also want to consider that research is relatively cheap compared to the cost of design and development. The rule I tend to follow is this: continue conducting discovery research until the questions you really want answered can only be answered by putting something in front of users. That is, wait to build something until you absolutely have to. Learn as much as you can about your target market and user base until the only way forward is to put some sketches on paper.

With Candor Network, I’m not quite there yet. There is still plenty of runway to cover in the research cycle. Now that I know that data privacy is a more motivating reason to consider paying for a social networking tool, I need to work out what other features will be essential. In the next round of research, I could do think-aloud studies and ask participants to give me a tour of their Facebook and other social media pages. Or I could continue with more interviews, but recruit from a different source and reach a broader demographic of participants. Regardless of the exact path I choose to take from here, the key is to focus on what the requirements would be for the ultra-private, data-secure social network that users would value.

A few parting words

Discovery research helps us learn more about the users we want to help and the problems they need a solution for. It doesn’t have to be expensive either, and it definitely isn’t something that should be omitted from the development cycle. By starting with a problem hypothesis and conducting multiple rounds of research, we can ultimately save time and money. We can move from gut instincts and personal experiences to a tested hypothesis. And when it comes time to launch, we’ll know it’s from a solid foundation of research-backed understanding.

Recommended reading

If you’re testing the waters on a new idea and want to jump into some (budget-friendly) discovery research, here are some additional resources to help you along:

Books

Just Enough Research, by Erika Hall

Validating Product Ideas, by Tomer Sharon

Quantifying the User Experience: Practical Statistics for User Research, by Jeff Sauro and James Lewis

Articles

“The Minimum Viable Experiment,” by Meg Dickey-Kurdziolek

“UX Research Cheat Sheet,” by Susan Farrell

“On Surveys,” by Erika Hall

“10 Things to Know About A/B Testing,” by Jeff Sauro

https://ift.tt/2KazBM0

#Discovery on a Budget: Part III

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waltercostellone · 6 years

Text

Discovery on a Budget: Part III

A quick recap on Candor Network

Throughout this series I’ve used a budget-conscious, and fictitious, startup called Candor Network as my example. Like most startups, Candor Network started simply as an idea:

Surveys: Proceed with caution

Tip 1: Try to stick to questions about facts, not opinions

Tip 2: Avoid asking about the future

I asked a potentially problematic, future-looking question in the Candor Network landing page survey:

How much would you be willing to pay, per year, for Candor Network?

Would not pay anything

$10

$15

$20

$25

$30

Would pay more

Tip 3: Know how you are going to analyze responses before you launch the survey

For example, when I created the two survey questions on the Candor Network landing pages, I created a short analysis plan for each. Here is what those plans looked like:

Analysis plan for question 1: “How much would you be willing to pay per year for Candor Network?”

Each response will go into one of two buckets:

Bucket 1: said they would not pay any money;

and Bucket 2: said they might pay some money.

Analysis plan for question 2: “Would you like to be a beta tester or participate in future research?”

Tip 4: Never rely on a survey by itself to make important decisions

Tip 5: End every survey with an opportunity to participate in future research

Finally, the results

Here is a breakdown of the number of sessions and survey responses each condition received:

Version A: better mental health Version B: privacy and data security Total Sessions 222 180 402 Survey responses 76 68 144

When we look at the actual answers to the survey questions, we start to get some more interesting results.

Bucket 1: would not pay any money Bucket 2: might pay some money Version A 25 51 Version B 14 54

Breakdown of question 1, “How much would you be willing to pay per year for Candor Network?”

And when we look at the breakdown and chi-square calculation of question two, we see similar results.

No Yes Version A 24 52 Version B 13 55

Breakdown of question 2, “Would you like to be a beta tester or participate in future research?”

How do we know when it’s time to move on?

A few parting words

Recommended reading

If you’re testing the waters on a new idea and want to jump into some (budget-friendly) discovery research, here are some additional resources to help you along:

Books

Just Enough Research, by Erika Hall

Validating Product Ideas, by Tomer Sharon

Quantifying the User Experience: Practical Statistics for User Research, by Jeff Sauro and James Lewis

Articles

“The Minimum Viable Experiment,” by Meg Dickey-Kurdziolek

“UX Research Cheat Sheet,” by Susan Farrell

“On Surveys,” by Erika Hall

“10 Things to Know About A/B Testing,” by Jeff Sauro

https://ift.tt/2KazBM0

#Discovery on a Budget: Part III

0 notes

jeanshesallenberger · 6 years

Text

Discovery on a Budget: Part III

A quick recap on Candor Network

Throughout this series I’ve used a budget-conscious, and fictitious, startup called Candor Network as my example. Like most startups, Candor Network started simply as an idea:

Surveys: Proceed with caution

Tip 1: Try to stick to questions about facts, not opinions

Tip 2: Avoid asking about the future

I asked a potentially problematic, future-looking question in the Candor Network landing page survey:

How much would you be willing to pay, per year, for Candor Network?

Would not pay anything

$10

$15

$20

$25

$30

Would pay more

Tip 3: Know how you are going to analyze responses before you launch the survey

For example, when I created the two survey questions on the Candor Network landing pages, I created a short analysis plan for each. Here is what those plans looked like:

Analysis plan for question 1: “How much would you be willing to pay per year for Candor Network?”

Each response will go into one of two buckets:

Bucket 1: said they would not pay any money;

and Bucket 2: said they might pay some money.

Analysis plan for question 2: “Would you like to be a beta tester or participate in future research?”

Tip 4: Never rely on a survey by itself to make important decisions

Tip 5: End every survey with an opportunity to participate in future research

Finally, the results

Here is a breakdown of the number of sessions and survey responses each condition received:

Version A: better mental health Version B: privacy and data security Total Sessions 222 180 402 Survey responses 76 68 144

When we look at the actual answers to the survey questions, we start to get some more interesting results.

Bucket 1: would not pay any money Bucket 2: might pay some money Version A 25 51 Version B 14 54

Breakdown of question 1, “How much would you be willing to pay per year for Candor Network?”

And when we look at the breakdown and chi-square calculation of question two, we see similar results.

No Yes Version A 24 52 Version B 13 55

Breakdown of question 2, “Would you like to be a beta tester or participate in future research?”

How do we know when it’s time to move on?

A few parting words

Recommended reading

If you’re testing the waters on a new idea and want to jump into some (budget-friendly) discovery research, here are some additional resources to help you along:

Books

Just Enough Research, by Erika Hall

Validating Product Ideas, by Tomer Sharon

Quantifying the User Experience: Practical Statistics for User Research, by Jeff Sauro and James Lewis

Articles

“The Minimum Viable Experiment,” by Meg Dickey-Kurdziolek

“UX Research Cheat Sheet,” by Susan Farrell

“On Surveys,” by Erika Hall

“10 Things to Know About A/B Testing,” by Jeff Sauro

https://ift.tt/2KazBM0

#Discovery on a Budget: Part III

0 notes

pattersondonaldblk5 · 6 years

Text

Discovery on a Budget: Part III

A quick recap on Candor Network

Throughout this series I’ve used a budget-conscious, and fictitious, startup called Candor Network as my example. Like most startups, Candor Network started simply as an idea:

Surveys: Proceed with caution

Tip 1: Try to stick to questions about facts, not opinions

Tip 2: Avoid asking about the future

I asked a potentially problematic, future-looking question in the Candor Network landing page survey:

How much would you be willing to pay, per year, for Candor Network?

Would not pay anything

$10

$15

$20

$25

$30

Would pay more

Tip 3: Know how you are going to analyze responses before you launch the survey

For example, when I created the two survey questions on the Candor Network landing pages, I created a short analysis plan for each. Here is what those plans looked like:

Analysis plan for question 1: “How much would you be willing to pay per year for Candor Network?”

Each response will go into one of two buckets:

Bucket 1: said they would not pay any money;

and Bucket 2: said they might pay some money.

Analysis plan for question 2: “Would you like to be a beta tester or participate in future research?”

Tip 4: Never rely on a survey by itself to make important decisions

Tip 5: End every survey with an opportunity to participate in future research

Finally, the results

Here is a breakdown of the number of sessions and survey responses each condition received:

Version A: better mental health Version B: privacy and data security Total Sessions 222 180 402 Survey responses 76 68 144

When we look at the actual answers to the survey questions, we start to get some more interesting results.

Bucket 1: would not pay any money Bucket 2: might pay some money Version A 25 51 Version B 14 54

Breakdown of question 1, “How much would you be willing to pay per year for Candor Network?”

And when we look at the breakdown and chi-square calculation of question two, we see similar results.

No Yes Version A 24 52 Version B 13 55

Breakdown of question 2, “Would you like to be a beta tester or participate in future research?”

How do we know when it’s time to move on?

A few parting words

Recommended reading

If you’re testing the waters on a new idea and want to jump into some (budget-friendly) discovery research, here are some additional resources to help you along:

Books

Just Enough Research, by Erika Hall

Validating Product Ideas, by Tomer Sharon

Quantifying the User Experience: Practical Statistics for User Research, by Jeff Sauro and James Lewis

Articles

“The Minimum Viable Experiment,” by Meg Dickey-Kurdziolek

“UX Research Cheat Sheet,” by Susan Farrell

“On Surveys,” by Erika Hall

“10 Things to Know About A/B Testing,” by Jeff Sauro

https://ift.tt/2KazBM0

#Discovery on a Budget: Part III

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foursprout-blog · 6 years

Text

25 Things You Absolutely Need To Learn Before 25

New Post has been published on http://foursprout.com/happiness/25-things-you-absolutely-need-to-learn-before-25-2/

25 Things You Absolutely Need To Learn Before 25

Ryan Christodoulou

Before we begin: the original article on things you need to learn before you are 25 was published in 2005 and it is still relevant today as it was eighteen years ago. But in that time a lot more people have come of age, so I thought an homage wouldn’t hurt. (And yes, I write for myself as much as I do for you.)

1. Doing chores without complaining

Chores are a non-optional part of having your own space, like electric bills and not making renovations without checking in with the landlord first. Yes, ironing is work. Now you know how your parents feel.

2. “There’s no roaches” is not an acceptable standard of cleanliness

It’s unlikely that somebody will show up, cook a ten course meal, and then demand to eat it straight from your floor. You still want to be able to see the floor, have clean dishes, and a worktop that doesn’t have a six-month patina of dry pasta sauce and oil stains.

3. Putting things off that can be done in three minutes is unacceptable

The more you put something off, the guiltier you feel when you are reminded of it, the less you want to do it, the more guilt piles on. It’s a vicious circle. Just scrub the toilet and scan in the document to verify your medical insurance.

4. Respect people working in the service industry

I’m a former customer service rep, and now I teach alongside my PhD. Most of my friends have either worked or are currently doing some sort of customer-facing job. I can verify we are as human as anybody else. We are being paid to do work, not to take abuse. Say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ and hold the curse words. It’s not that difficult.

5. Learn how to feed yourself

No, I’m not saying you should be a master chef or even versed in the fine art of reading nutrition labels. I’m saying, figure out what food you like, what it feels like to be hungry or full, then go about procuring said food so that you are fed at reasonable hours. Mooching off your roommates, or taking their stuff without replacing it, is not cool, and an invitation for someone to put laxatives in the milk.

6. Understand the value of a psychologist

I can write a whole piece on this. If you never have to visit a shrink in your life, that’s great. Shitting on people who do – not so much. A mental health professional is like any doctor. You wouldn’t ask any stranger off the street to do your root canal for free.

7. Your significant other/friends/family are not free emotional labor

Do people in relationships provide each other with support? Yes. Do they do that 24/7, nonstop, and unconditionally? No. Human beings experience compassion fatigue. The difference between your girlfriend and a counselor is that the counselor is trained to listen, and gets a pension out of it.

8. It’s okay not to respond to provocation

Chances are, the person egging you on is in more pain than you are. Pick your battles. Live to fight another day.

9. Knowing the battles you absolutely HAVE to fight for

Things like ending childhood poverty and ensuring equal workspaces for all ethnicities and genders isn’t “nice to do”, it’s something we should all be striving for because we live on the same damn planet, treating each other fairly is NOT too much to ask for.

10. Knowing your own boundaries

Conversely, you know that behavior that you hate but you put up with from your boyfriend? The demanding of emotional labor, the backhanded compliments or the outright abuse? What would happen if you told him to stop doing that? Or you asked your girlfriend to not talk down at you in front of your friends? Would they apologize and stop? Would they leave? Would leaving be such a bad thing?

11. Respecting divergent tastes, including your own

You like to read romance novels while your friends are into high-brow, cerebral murder mysteries? You don’t have to paint a coat of irony on top in order to justify it. And don’t go looking down your nose at people who love classic noir – you can think of Hitchcock as an overhyped misogynist bully without saying that Every. Time. Someone. Brings up. The birds.

12. Having the guts to ask for the things you want

A promotion? A date? Some peace so that you can study for your legal exams? Other people are not mind-readers, they can’t know what you’re thinking unless you tell them. Maybe your boss will say no, or that beautiful human you admire is in a relationship, but maybe they are not, and most non-arseholes will respect your need for quiet during a stressful period. You cannot expect others to guess your needs and desires. At some point, you have to stand up for what you want.

13. Learning to take ‘no’ for an answer

You don’t need a million life partners, friends, awards, or jobs (in fact, having a million jobs at once is highly discouraged.) What you need are people who are right for you and an occupation that you don’t utterly despise. Throwing a tantrum when you hear ‘no’ is what toddlers do. And even they get over it eventually.

14. Taking your safety seriously

Abuse is not sexy and if someone threatens you, take it seriously. Sock away money, hide, call the police, SAVE YOURSELF.

15. Acting with integrity whenever you can

Aside from putting yourself in harm’s way (see point 14) being an adult means acting with integrity regardless of whether you find the task pleasurable or not. You want to break up? Don’t cheat as a way out of a relationship. You hate your boss? Look for another job, but don’t go undermining them or poisoning the water for everyone who continues to work there.

16. Holding off on unsolicited advice

Unless someone asks you for advice (or you think they are at risk of immediate physical harm) don’t give your opinions on other people’s lives. You don’t approve of your friend’s diet? Keep it to yourself. You think your brother is dating a loser? It’s not your relationship. Judging other people doesn’t inspire them to change their behavior, it makes them reluctant to come to you for support.

17. Recognizing when something is above your paygrade

Your friend wants to make health changes? Help them make an appointment with a doctor and take them there, but don’t give them advice you’re not qualified to give. Yes, even if you are a doctor yourself. Aside from the fact that this would mean readjusting your relationship, do you honestly want to clock out of work and then go hang out at the pub and do EVEN MORE WORK?

18. Respecting other people’s wishes

Your friend shares something with you under strict secrecy. You think other people need to know. How do you proceed? The sad state of affairs is, there are very few cases when making a unilateral decision to break secrecy are justified. Knowing your boundaries might help you field off any situations where you feel like your personal ethics might stop you from respecting other people’s wishes, but don’t assume you know what is best for another adult.

19. Relationships are WORK

It’s not uncommon to fall out of contact with university mates, childhood besties, and beloved mentors. Life is an egg juggling act where you are constantly subtracting or adding items. Sooner or later you will drop some eggs. Try not to beat yourself up if you lose touch – if you want to reach out again when the juggling eases up, you absolutely can.

20. Trust that others will put in the effort for you, too

Here’s the thing: some relationships ARE lopsided for reasons that we have no control over. Bodies get sick, emergencies hit, and the weather does not give advanced warning to anybody. There are times when we are the ones doing the heavy lifting to maintain a relationship. The problem is when you are ALWAYS the one sacrificing “because it’s what friends do”. What if you stepped back and let the other person put in the effort, too? Is that a scary question? Why?

21. Calling bullshit on what it is

You want a relationship and some dude tries to negotiate down to FWB? Call bullshit. Your friend makes plans with you and expects you to foot the bill? Call bullshit. Your boss is calling you 24/7 on your sick days as if you are working from home? Politely tell them that you would not want to risk your team’s performance when you are not at 100%, and if they persist with that behavior, start exploring (covertly) your options. Don’t be a doormat (yes, I am talking to my 24-year-old self. WTF were you thinking?!)

22. You can absolutely survive without narcissists

Necessity, systematic oppression, and illness are all real factors that impact our lives differently. Some people DO have to put up with a lot of shit for the sake of their survival. But there are also many (many many many many many) others who accept terrible treatment at the hands of narcissists, because they are convinced they cannot survive without them. Don’t fall for this.

23. Knowing what matters to you and working for it

Yes, yes, budgeting is important. I know that you know. I’m talking about the bigger picture – where do you want to live? How do you want to live? What sorts of things matter to you? Where do you want to be in 5, 10, 15, 20 years’ time? I realize I sound like some preppy blogger with shiny hair, telling you to Make A Plan, but guess what? Keeping your visions of the future vague and undefined makes you seem like you don’t care about anything. In job interviews? That’s deadly.

24. Progress is not always linear

Sometimes you will take a step back. That’s okay, that allows you to heal and reevaluate. You wouldn’t expect someone to keep running a marathon if they twist their ankle on the second mile. You would get them some ice and a cupcake and tell them they will annihilate their PB next year.

25. It’s all just a number

Sometimes age matters, such as when you are evaluating your retirement options or when you work with a lot of children and teenagers. It also matters when you try to figure out why a man would only date girls who are half his age (answer: because no woman his age would put up with that bullshit). Other than that? Age doesn’t have to Be A Thing. Don’t make it one, and don’t let others take issue with it either.

We’re just getting started here. And we can make it awesome.

#Happiness

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foursprouthappiness-blog · 6 years

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25 Things You Absolutely Need To Learn Before 25

New Post has been published on http://foursprout.com/happiness/25-things-you-absolutely-need-to-learn-before-25-2/

25 Things You Absolutely Need To Learn Before 25

Ryan Christodoulou

1. Doing chores without complaining

2. “There’s no roaches” is not an acceptable standard of cleanliness

3. Putting things off that can be done in three minutes is unacceptable

4. Respect people working in the service industry

5. Learn how to feed yourself

6. Understand the value of a psychologist

7. Your significant other/friends/family are not free emotional labor

8. It’s okay not to respond to provocation

Chances are, the person egging you on is in more pain than you are. Pick your battles. Live to fight another day.

9. Knowing the battles you absolutely HAVE to fight for

10. Knowing your own boundaries

11. Respecting divergent tastes, including your own

12. Having the guts to ask for the things you want

13. Learning to take ‘no’ for an answer

14. Taking your safety seriously

Abuse is not sexy and if someone threatens you, take it seriously. Sock away money, hide, call the police, SAVE YOURSELF.

15. Acting with integrity whenever you can

16. Holding off on unsolicited advice

17. Recognizing when something is above your paygrade

18. Respecting other people’s wishes

19. Relationships are WORK

20. Trust that others will put in the effort for you, too

21. Calling bullshit on what it is

22. You can absolutely survive without narcissists

23. Knowing what matters to you and working for it

24. Progress is not always linear

25. It’s all just a number

We’re just getting started here. And we can make it awesome.

#Happiness

0 notes

foursprout-blog · 6 years

Text

25 Things You Absolutely Need To Learn Before 25

New Post has been published on http://foursprout.com/happiness/25-things-you-absolutely-need-to-learn-before-25/

25 Things You Absolutely Need To Learn Before 25

Ryan Christodoulou

1. Doing chores without complaining

2. “There’s no roaches” is not an acceptable standard of cleanliness

3. Putting things off that can be done in three minutes is unacceptable

4. Respect people working in the service industry

5. Learn how to feed yourself

6. Understand the value of a psychologist

7. Your significant other/friends/family are not free emotional labor

8. It’s okay not to respond to provocation

Chances are, the person egging you on is in more pain than you are. Pick your battles. Live to fight another day.

9. Knowing the battles you absolutely HAVE to fight for

10. Knowing your own boundaries

11. Respecting divergent tastes, including your own

12. Having the guts to ask for the things you want

13. Learning to take ‘no’ for an answer

14. Taking your safety seriously

Abuse is not sexy and if someone threatens you, take it seriously. Sock away money, hide, call the police, SAVE YOURSELF.

15. Acting with integrity whenever you can

16. Holding off on unsolicited advice

17. Recognizing when something is above your paygrade

18. Respecting other people’s wishes

19. Relationships are WORK

20. Trust that others will put in the effort for you, too

21. Calling bullshit on what it is

22. You can absolutely survive without narcissists

23. Knowing what matters to you and working for it

24. Progress is not always linear

25. It’s all just a number

We’re just getting started here. And we can make it awesome.

#Happiness

0 notes