What a year 2018 has been – as shared in my recent blog post.
And for many of you – I’m sure over today and tomorrow you will also reflect on 2018.
For some – it’s been challenging.
For some – it’s been celebratory.
Many set new goals and look at the new year to change and improve. To enable oneself to control what they can and look for the positives in life.
I hope in these few days of reflection you know that the story isn’t over… let the next chapter begin.
That’s right folks – after talking about it (no pun intended) I have only gone and recorded myself talking and therefore created my first podcast!
It’s mainly about Robots, Workplace – how the skills we need will change for future needs and I interview Nico Orie – asking him about robots, millennials and the next Kodak.
I will get better at these – I’ll try to find some better intro music, and work on those sound levels!
Now, if you’re on apple – you can catch it via this link (or open the podcast app on your phone and search for ‘Think Lean Get Digital’) – https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/think-lean-get-digital/id1447639190?mt=2&uo=4
If you are on an Android device, you can either use Google or Spotify – links below..
https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80NzZkMjFjL3BvZGNhc3QvcnNz
And please… I appreciate feedback, so if there’s particular topics you’d like me to talk about, interview certain people… please let me know in the comments box below this blog.
Indeed. What a year. 2018. What a fabulous year. Achieved a lot. Travelled even more. Met some wonderful people. Thoroughly enjoyed it!
Back in February, I started with my ‘Thursday Throwbacks’… with the first one being of me outside Kodak (my first ‘proper’ job)
Yep – I continued those throughout the year – every month… every first Thursday of the month, I would share a Thursday Throwback.
I also kept up with my Friday Thoughts! – these have somewhat become a little popular, with folks talking about them and asking me about them.
My personal favourite, was this one…
Isn’t it true!
Then.. in May, I had the opportunity to speak at the Nottingham Trent University with some very important people.
Here’s me hold a nerf gun, with the inventor of the Nerf Gun, the Sheriff of Nottingham and her guards! – at the top of Nottingham Castle!
I have always appreciated the love given to me –
And then came the Summer of 2018… and wow, what a summer. The football, the hot weather… but for me, it was reading a particular book – that has changed my way of thinking and is now, one of my favourite books of all time.
Thank you to everyone who’s supported me throughout 2018.
As I shared at the start – it’s been fabulous.
What does 2019 have in store Bal?
Well…. you’ll be excited to know, my first podcast went live only recently. So I will be recording more of them…. then there’s my YouTube channel, which I’ve set up and will be sharing more on there.
I’ll off course continue with this blog… and for those asking, about my Friday Thoughts… they’ll be available to buy on Canvas Prints early 2019! – Perfect for you home, study, office…. to keep you inspired and to keep you going!
So I just wanted to say a HUGE… THANK YOU!
For the love and support. Thank you… Bal.
Just wanted to wish you all a very, Merry Christmas. Hope you able to switch off for a while, take some rest and spend time with loved ones… oh, and consume copious amounts of food.
There’s some great advertisements that come on around Christmas.
The Coca-Cola Christmas truck is one that signals the start of Christmas… and then there’s the John Lewis ad that everyone looks forward to.
Not only the ads, do we watch on TV… we have our favorite films… and one of mine is Home Alone…
What a classic.
And this year – Google have out done everyone. They’ve pulled together one of the best ad’s I’ve seen in 2018.
Combining not only one of my favorite films – but also showcasing technology is awesome! – Truly brings to life, how technology has made our life so much easier (and secure!)
They’ve made that iconic home – a smart home.
On Sunday, I was on the Radio. Yep – BBC Radio Nottingham, sharing my usual Technology update… but also, I was set a challenge.
Choose some Tech-related Christmas stocking fillers! – Basically, cheap/low cost Christmas presents… One for a male in his 50’s, a lady in her 40’s…. and a teenager.Â
Easy.Â
Well…. I thought it’d be easy! – But in all seriousness… there’s so many tech-type presents  you could buy for that stocking.
That’s right – it’s a Tech Tool pen… Pen, Stylus, Level, Flat head and Philips screw driver and a ruler!Â
How awesome is that!!! And how much? – £10.99 from Amazon.Â
Up next… as it’s cold, you need to keep warm… so how’s about some Bluetooth Gloves?
That’s right! – These gloves connect to your phone via Bluetooth and you can make and receive calls! How. Awesome. Is. That. ?
It’s got a built in mic… and speaker phone! – Connects to iPhone, Android, all types!!!! And how much? £12! Only…. £12!!!
Ok… and finally…  for the teenager… as they’re always on their phones, listening to music and watching YouTube videos, why not enhance the sound?… yep… why not a Bluetooth Speaker?
And the best thing is… they can connect to any tablet, phone, etc… and only £10!!! – now, you could get them cheaper by shopping around, and you can pay a little more… and you’d get a little better speaker… key thing is, they’ll connect to the device and play your music to a better level than your headphones.Â
So challenge complete!
Hope I’ve been able to provide you with some more ideas… and don’t leave it too late… order soon, as many items take a little while to be delivered.Â
Now, many folk reading this blog post may not remember the old trusted Fax Machine.
Basically, you’d write something on a bit of paper. Feed it through the machine, dial a number and hey presto – the message would be printed onto paper on the other side.
It’s got a brilliant history…
Now – I was very very young when the fax machines were around – and being honest, never really got to use them. Therefore the process I mentioned above is what I think would’ve happened – any older or experienced folk – feel free to correct me.
The great thing is – technology has helped us to transmit messages so much more quickly, easily and being able to save a few trees!
That’s right – the trusted email was introduced to the masses – computers were more available and the fax machine was no longer.
Or was it….
Well, the Health Secretary in the UK has told the NHS – that they have to stop buying fax machines by March 31st 2020.
The Royal College of Surgeons estimated there’s about 8,000 fax machines being used in the NHS!
I just can’t believe we’re using them! – let alone saying we’ve got to stop buying them!!
In this digital era we live in… there’s so many options… firstly, the trusted email…
There are so many ways to communicate… digitally!
Yes, there’s Whatsapp, Facebook Messenger, so many more… In fact, many are moving away from email and using collaboration tools such as Slack.
In a way… I’m glad they’ve finally decided to stop buying them. Any guesses on how long before they’re using an online collboration tool?
Well, it’s nearly Christmas, we’re all getting into the festive spirit – Christmas parties, drinks, food…. and then realising…. we need to order some presents for family and friends!
Don’t panic! I’m back again this year – with some suggestions of what you could buy… my Top 3 Christmas Tech Type of Gifts!
Okay, let’s not waste time…. straight in at my Number 1, is my idea that will be great for anyone, anywhere and to do… anytime! Also – it’s not physical, so it doesn’t take up space, you’ll have something you can do it on… AND, they’ll spend hours on it!!!
That’s right! – If your family/friend/whomever you’re buying for… take them to the clouds! – well, let’s be honest, we don’t need physical dvd’s, or any storage device. Netflix offers so much content – you can watch it on your phone, tablet, TV, etc…
And the prices aren’t too bad either! Now the best thing is – you can have multiple users!!
Now, there is also Amazon Prime – that offer their streaming service, which is also good – but for me, Netflix just edges it to Number 1.
2. Smart Watch
Now, I’ve recommended this a few times – and will recommend again.
Doesn’t matter if you have an iPhone or an Android (Samsung, Google, etc..) type of phone. There’s plenty of watches out there, that can sync to your phone.
Also, you don’t need to get the ‘norm’. Armani and various other designer makes are also making ‘Smart Watches’ – for which, look much nicer.
So be it the latest Apple Watch – with a whole host of features and health tracking…
Or the Samsung Smart Watch…
Smart Watch and tracking is a must. There’s also Fit Bit that offer a great health & fitness monitoring – so have a look at what type of person you’re buying for, what device they have already – and then purchase the type of smart wearable accordingly.
3. Tile (Tracking Device)
Now – are you the type of person that leaves keys laying around, or misplaces the phone…. or just in generally, leave things here or there?
Well…. here’s the answer. A device called Tile.
It’s a small tracking device that you can attach to anything… keys, phone, camera, etc… and track it.
It’ll let you know location. It’ll make a beeping noise. It’ll alert you.
Now, in addition to the beeping and alerting – there’s so many other features such as being part of the ‘Tile’ network…. and then there’s changeable batteries (there’s a version with built in batter for 1 year) and for five extra bucks you can get the one with the changeable batteries – which is the one I would recommend.
So a nice little present – you can also buy packs and there’s offers on if you search on Amazon.
… And Finally,
I thought, why not include one last… final…. funny… idea for a present.
Now… we spend a lot of time on our phones. Let’s be honest.
And most of us, the screen isn’t the biggest. And for most older folk…. their eyesight isn’t the greatest.
Therefore, I present to you… the Phone Magnifier!
That’s right – simple yet so effective! – turns that little screen into a big screen! – well… a decent size!
The back stand allows any phone to sit there. And then by magic… it appears on the large screen!
You can find it on the usual shopping sites, Groupon, Amazon, etc… all different varieties are available… some made from wood! – which I would recommend, less plastic the better!
So folks… there you go. Hope you like my Top 3. I will be sharing more, as I’m radio over the next few days an will be sharing more gifts ideas… from the big and expensive to the cheap stocking fillers. All with one thing in common… using technology!
It’s been 10 years since Woolworths left the High Street.
It was a bit of an institution. But the time had come to close it’s doors based on poor sales and customers, just not buying anymore. There were a couple of reasons – mainly, their music and DVD part of the business which was so profitable wasn’t doing so good – because habits had changed, with on-line music available.
The whole business couldn’t have been held on just it’s famous pic’n’mix.
They had a lot of stores up and down the country.
What happened then, Bal?
Well – a new ‘shopping model’ appeared. Pound World/Land/Everything.
The stores that sold everything for a pound was a simple and effective model. Very successful – and they bought many of the stores where Woolworths used to be, and set up shop.
But even today – they’re not doing so well. In July, PoundWorld announced they’ll close 150 stores of it’s total 335 stores with administrators looking for a buyer. Poundland isn’t performing too well either.
The High Street is changing. Shopping habits are changing. We’re shopping more and more online. But moreso, via our mobile devices.
As per a previous blog post – we’re in that phase of ‘Bricks and Clicks’ – where retailers need to have a strong on-line presence aswell as maintaining their high street presence, because we’re going through that ‘transition phase’.
In the future – we’ll have less physical stores for us to visit. They’ll be more ‘experience outlets’. Where we can go, and experience whatever it is we want to buy. Then have the ability to order on-line and for it to be delivered at home.
In addition – smaller outlets, for those essentials on the way home from work. Using technology to make it a quick and easy experience – similar to the Amazon physical store.
And as today is ‘Cyber Monday’ – how long that term will last, i’m not sure – because alot of the sales on Friday were on-line… means we’ll be more ‘cyber shoppers’ than before.
So… most of us (in Europe) will have got used to ‘Black Friday’ sales. It’s the Day after Thanksgiving and… it’s when everyone (nearly everyone), goes out shopping.
Now… the ‘Black Friday’ Sales have spread to across the world.
And here in Europe… we have them too.
In fact… they started earlier… Amazon and many other retailers started sharing some great offers earlier in the week…
For example, Curry’s had this fantastic offer on earlier in the week…
Now… like or loath them  – the sales, do offer some great value.
Whilst we have some high-street retailers offering discounted products… you’re best bet to find a bargain would most probably be on-line.
Amazon (and there’s others) start to prepare and entice folks in…
Now, there’s some guidelines I’d suggest you follow…
1. Do your Research! – Is it a good product? Have you read the reviews? Don’t just buy it because it looks good and it’s reduced in price (even if it’s got 70% off!). Look around the internet, read what people are saying about it – and if it’s worth purchasing.
2. Sign Up! – That’s right… sign up to newsletters and emails from your favourite retailers. That way, you’ll receive notifications before others of deals and offers that are available.
3. Don’t Worry! – missed out on an item? Didn’t get what you wanted? Don’t worry… we’ve got Boxing Day sales coming up… then you’ll have New Year Sales… and if you’ve followed Points 1 and 2 above, I’m sure you’ll find your item at a good price at some point in the year.
Well, I hope you have a great time shopping…!