Always been a fan of the Special One. Yes, Jose Mourinho. The brilliant football manager. Often says a few harsh things, seems a little arrogant but there’s no going away from what he has achieved at so many football clubs.
And today’s thought… somewhat funny, but somewhat interesting.
We use our energy in different ways.
Many times, it’s fighting the old, the existing… what’s happening/happened.
However… what we should be doing is using our energy to build the new. What is needed in this world, in our communities to improve and make better. That is where our energy should be focused. Look to the future… look to the new.
Ok, I know it’s been a while – a lot has been going on, however – I knew for a fact, that you’d be thinking, hope Bal writes something about Elon buying Twitter! And yes, here it is… a quick blog post about Elon and Twitter.
For those who don’t know what Twitter is – Twitter is an American microblogging and social networking service on which users post and interact with messages known as “tweets”. Registered users can post, like, and retweet tweets, but unregistered users can only read those that are publicly available.
There’s millions, if not billions of people who use Twitter. And if you’re on there and not following me… I am @balbansal
Now, to the story in hand. Elon, who we all know from SpaceX, Tesla, etc… has gone and bought it for a cool $44bn.
Elon (who is worth $273bn) said…
“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated,”.
“I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans,” he added.
“Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.”
The move comes as Twitter faces growing pressure from politicians and regulators over the content that appears on its platform. It has drawn critics from left and right over its efforts to mediate misinformation on the platform.
In one of its most high-profile moves, last year it banned former US President Donald Trump, perhaps its most powerful user, citing the risk of “incitement of violence” – remember that?
At the time Mr Musk observed: “A lot of people are going to be super unhappy with West Coast high tech as the de facto arbiter of free speech.”
So there you go… Elon has bought Twitter, will enable a number of changes and as he loves ‘free speech’, it will be very interesting to see how the platform develops. Obviously he’ll be looking for a return on his investment but moreso… what is interesting is, he’d promised the World Health Organization, that if that could show a detailed plan on how to solve world hunger, he’d donate $6bn to the cause… they showed him the plan, but I’ve not heard about the $6bn being donated. Maybe he’ll tweet it soon….
So, what features do you think he should introduce first?
We know, in today’s world, there’s a lot of information.
We only have to open any social media platform, and there’s so much content available for us to consume… it’s crazy!
For example, you could stumble on various YouTube videos if you were looking to buy a new tumble dryer and were not sure which one to go for! Clearly explaining the benefits of a heat pump version as opposed a normal condenser one (real life example!).
With so much information, data and content – we need to ensure, that we take time for ourselves and disconnect.
Daily activities, such as work, home, family, friends, social media, other items will take their toll. Make sure, you are able to give what you can. And every day, it won’t be 100%.
We think, showing up daily is 100%. But is it really? What it actually means is that there’ll be various levels… not everyday, each day is the same.
Like anything in life, there’ll be ups and downs (smiles and frowns). What is important is you realise this. Not everyday, when you show up – means you do 100%. There’s so many external factors that can effect how you operate, how you do things.
Therefore, on Sunday… before the week ahead – make a list of things you want to accomplish. Things you want to achieve and things you’d like to do.
This way, you have goals, and know what you need to do. Yes, external factors might prevent you or slow you down, but if you’re focused, if you know what you want… chances of you getting it are higher.
Self-care, we speak alot about it, and it is important.
Technology can help.
I’ve said this before.
Technology is not to blame. It’s the users who are to blame.
Users should know when to stop. (I’m included in this as a user)
Or at least slow down. Or use it when required.
So take every Sunday to look after yourself.
Sunday Self Care – to prepare you for the week ahead.
First and foremost – apologies.
I know a few of you have reached out to me, asking – where’s my blog posts, where’s my Friday Thought… can I share an update on particular tech, what do I think of the latest gadgets, etc…
I’ll be honest. It’s not that I had too much going on. It’s just someone, made a few comments, that seemed to suggest, I shouldn’t be posting as much.
I started this blog several years ago. I know I don’t have millions of readers – and you know what, that’s absolutely fine. Because, what I do know… is there are some readers. And they engage with me. And I know I’m making a difference.
So, I had to re-collect my thoughts. Think about, the purpose of this blog – and then do what I want to do.
And with that, I give you my Friday Thought… I’ve been following Steven for a while, and really do like his perspective on life…
As ‘normality’ kicks in, with covid-19 restrictions lifting, many folk have started to go back into the office. And is this the right thing to do?
You remember the office right? – the commute to the office, the sitting around, the coffees, etc.. oh, and yes – don’t forget the work.
For the office-based folk – homeworking enabled them to the work they could from an office – but at home. Now… couple of things when you’re working from home (many would’ve realised…)
The whole social aspect is kind of lost at home. You can try a zoom beer hour, it’s not the same thing.
Now saying all the above. I’m not saying you have to go into the office. What I’m actually saying is, you need a model that works for you. What is best for you, home working might be best for your personality – you might enjoy it, maybe you hated the commute, maybe you never took those coffee breaks, maybe you didn’t enjoy talking to other – and just loved the excel file your head was buried in all day.
Everyone is different.
Telling people to go back into the office is not the right thing.
Everyone should be able to make their own decision.
I’m going back into the office a day or two a week.
Why?
One size does not fit all.
It’s what works best for you.
And with today’s technology enabling us to work from anywhere… do we really need offices?
I remember the old days… vaguely… when hard cash was used to purchase items. And if you didn’t have the money, then guess what… you couldn’t really buy it. Yes, you could go ahead and borrow money… but it came down to knowing what you had.
Technology has and has not…. helped.
Fast forward… we had debit/credit cards… now, we can pay via phone/watch and in some instances, we have repeat orders (where we get items delivered and automatically charged to our account!)
The issue here is… with this happening, we become a little lazy.
Not checking accounts. Not doing the due diligence required.
I’ve just been reading an article on the BBC News website – https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-60464668
Online subscription scams, many using bogus celebrity endorsements, are costing victims tens of millions of pounds a year,Â
And it’s easy to fall victim.
The ‘fraudsters’ have become more clever. Making websites, apps, letters, etc… all look real and authentic!
But there’s some good advice available to help you but be careful when…
There’s some great advice available regarding scams, phishing, etc.. – https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/how-to-spot-a-scam-alFiz5h8mnJ9
If you’re not sure – ask someone you trust.
In this day and age, with so much information, so much happening on social media, tv, youtube, etc… do not underestimate the value of Doing Nothing.
It’s been a few weeks, since I shared that I was on the local Gurdwara (Sikh Temple) committee, as the Youth and Community Officer. I’ll still be honest, not something I wanted to do, but once I said yes… it was full steam ahead. And I’ll be sharing my progress here – I’ll put it under the category YCO!
So… with the mindset I have, I asked the sangat (folk who attend the Gurdwara), if they had any ideas to increase community engagement and/or help with the youth who attend. Lots of great ideas… but also, comments and ‘things’ they want fixed.
It’s great – looking forward, but sometimes, you need to fix what you have before you can move forward.
Let me give you an example. There’s a projector and screen in the main hall. And it’s not worked for several years. Many want it to work. They want to read the hymns. It’s these small things. So, I enquired. It’s all run from a laptop (so this is on my list of ‘things to do’ – get the laptop running, make sure the screen works and hook it all back up!)
BAU – Business As Usual. (in the below Horizon 1)
(Yes – I did have to put a technology spin on this).
So whilst we are on the Horizon 1 (BAU), there’s an element of the Horizon 2 and 3 – looking to the future, and more importantly being aware of the disruption points.
And bringing this back to the Gurdwara.
So I’ve started doing some basics… such as, taking over their social media.
I started an Instagram Account and started to post more on their Facebook account.
The results…
253% Increase in Post Reach!
189% Increase in Post engagements.
19% Increase in New Page Likes.
It’s all about the engagement. More photo’s. More videos.
Instagram is growing also – with 182 accounts reached in the past 30 days!
You have to start somewhere.
Next up… (my recommendations) are… a website. Whilst I face many challenges to digitise the ways of working – we are definitely headed in the right direction. I’d also like to say Thank You – to all those who reached out to me, supported me, offered me advice and shared contacts of those who’ve been on a similar journey. It’s much appreciated.
So in summary, there’s 2 things…
I don’t really share a lot on here, what else I do… Well, I kind of do with the football – but this blog mainly focuses on technology, new things that can help in life and a few motivational quotes to get you thinking about life.
So, I’m going to do something here – which may, or may not work. I’m going to share, (on a regular basis), success (however limited it may be), within a new volunteer role I’ve recently accepted.
The local Sikh Temple, had some ‘openings’ for local volunteers… so they could be part of the ‘management committee’. Every two years, the Sikh Temple holds elections – but this time, they had enough people to go ahead without elections. One of those people, who had their name put forward… was me! So, cut long story short… I’m the Youth and Community Liaison Officer for the Ramgarhia Sikh Temple, Nottingham.
Now… let’s be honest. Many of you will go to Google, and type it in to understand a bit more about what Bal has got himself into…
And so… you’ll quickly notice, they have a presence on Facebook… (who doesn’t!), and a few other websites share some information. But no website of their own….
Online presence is so important. For an organization. To communicate.
And I’ll be honest, there is soooooo much to communicate. In addition, your website provides the organisation with so much more….
So… as I mentioned as the start of this blog post, I’ll be sharing more on this journey of mine with you. First things first, is to understand the current landscape and the Sikh Temple’s Online presence. Then it’s about enhancing those channels and communicating more, providing options and most importantly… being clear what the Sikh Temple provides.
We often do over look the basics. Because we don’t know how to go about it. Because we don’t know where to start. Because we don’t understand the importance of it. Because…. there’s so many reasons. But the key thing here is, this is a journey and we are all going to be on it – yes, you included! As you’re reading this… I’ll ask you to be part of the journey!
So, I’m armed with my 30/60/90 Day plan.
And I’ll keep you updated!
(Once I’ve shared my plan with the Management Committee – I’ll for sure share it back here, and share the feedback I get!)
