Tag: Education

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Becoming a Published Author: Embracing Independent Routes to Success

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In the past, aspiring authors often faced the daunting challenge of securing a traditional publishing deal to see their work in print. However, with the rise of digital technology and the democratization of the publishing industry, aspiring writers now have an array of options to become published authors without relying on a large publisher. In this article, we will explore how to pursue a successful writing career by leveraging independent routes to publication.

  1. Perfect Your Craft

The foundation of any successful author’s journey is honing their writing skills. Dedicate time to practice, read extensively, and seek constructive feedback from peers or writing communities. Joining local writing groups or online forums can provide valuable insights and opportunities to improve your writing.

  1. Write with Purpose

Discover your niche and write with a clear purpose. Whether it’s fiction, non-fiction, poetry, or self-help, understanding your target audience and the message you want to convey will help you attract a loyal readership. Passion and authenticity in your writing will resonate with your audience and set you apart from the rest.

  1. Edit and Polish Your Manuscript

Once you’ve completed your manuscript, editing and revision are essential. Consider hiring a professional editor or collaborating with beta readers to provide feedback. A polished manuscript increases your chances of creating a high-quality product that will be well-received by readers.

  1. Embrace Self-Publishing

Self-publishing has revolutionized the writing industry, providing authors with an accessible platform to share their work. Numerous self-publishing platforms like Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) and Smashwords allow you to publish your book in e-book and print formats without any upfront costs.

  1. Create a Professional Book Cover

A captivating book cover is crucial for attracting potential readers. If you’re not skilled in graphic design, consider hiring a freelance designer who specializes in book covers. A professionally designed cover will give your book the competitive edge it needs to stand out in a crowded market.

  1. Build an Online Presence

Establishing an online presence is essential for independent authors. Create a professional website, start a blog, and engage with readers through social media platforms. Building a strong author brand will help you connect with your target audience and gain a dedicated following.

  1. Utilize Marketing Strategies

Marketing is vital in the self-publishing world. Utilize various marketing strategies such as book giveaways, promotions, and collaborating with book bloggers or influencers in your genre. Building a mailing list of interested readers can also help you launch future books successfully.

  1. Leverage Print-On-Demand Services

To offer paperback versions of your book without investing in a large print run, consider using print-on-demand (POD) services. Companies like KDP Print and IngramSpark allow you to distribute paperback copies of your book globally without holding physical inventory.

  1. Network within the Writing Community

Networking within the writing community can lead to valuable opportunities. Attend writing conferences, join online writing forums, and connect with fellow writers, agents, and small publishers. Collaborations and mutual support can open doors to broader readership and potential publishing deals.

  1. Never Stop Learning

Continuously educate yourself about the publishing industry and marketing trends. Stay adaptable and be willing to adjust your strategies to meet changing market demands. As an independent author, staying informed and open to growth will aid in your long-term success.

In today’s digital age, aspiring authors have unprecedented opportunities to publish their work without relying on a traditional publisher. By perfecting your craft, embracing self-publishing, building an online presence, and adopting effective marketing strategies, you can realize your dream of becoming a published author without the need for a large publisher. Remember, success in the independent publishing world requires perseverance, resilience, and a genuine passion for your craft. Embrace these challenges, and your writing journey can lead you to new and exciting horizons.

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The Birth of AI and the Evolution of Mankind

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Artificial Intelligence is coming and there is no stopping it

The birth of artificial intelligence (AI) is a story of how mankind was able to harness the power of computers. Today, thanks to this technology, we can use our smartphones as GPS navigators and search engines and even talk to our computers like they’re human beings. But how did we get here? How did AI evolve? We’ll explore the history behind this groundbreaking invention and see how it has changed our lives — for better or worse.

It all started in the 1950s

Artificial intelligence is the field of study to make machines and computers more intelligent. It has been around since the 1950s but only recently became a buzzword in technology, media and business circles. AI is not a new concept; it refers to the idea that we can create machines that act with human-like intelligence by building computers that learn in a similar way that humans do.

The goal of AI research is to build computer programs capable of thinking like humans do, allowing them to navigate through life’s challenges on their own while adapting to changing circumstances and environments. The field encompasses many different types of research, including robotics (the creation of mechanical robots), machine learning (the use of computers for tasks such as pattern recognition) and natural language processing (understanding language).

The birth of AI in was controversial… and to an extent it still is.

AI is a controversial topic. The birth of AI in 1950s was also controversial, as it raised concerns about the future of mankind and what will happen if machines can think for themselves.

Scientists have been trying to figure out ways to make machines smarter since ancient times, but they didn’t really succeed until now. AI is the study of making machines and computers more intelligent, which means that they can react to their environment better than humans do.

AI has been around for thousands of years, but it wasn’t until 1950s when scientists started working on creating a machine that could think like humans do — and this research led us towards developing artificial intelligence today!

It is important to continue to evolve human intelligence as artificial intelligence becomes more advanced.

The more advanced artificial intelligence becomes, the lazier humans become as well. Humans need motivation in order to excel and make something of themselves; however, many people are too invested in their devices or other activities that do not require much thought or effort. The result has been a population that values entertainment over evolution.

This has created an environment where many people have lost their sense of wonder when facing new situations because they have already seen everything before via social media or other digital mediums such as video games which often give players only one path through a game without fail (although some games allow you multiple paths). This can be compared to how many people who use GPS routes versus those who learn navigation by landmarks rather than looking at an app on their phone for directions; although both options get them from point A-B successfully there is a big difference between actually knowing where you are going versus just following instructions given by another person or machine!

Additionally since we now rely heavily on machines for our daily routines such as washing clothes or booking travel plans online there may not always be time spent developing other skills like cooking meals from scratch instead relying solely on pre-made frozen foods sold at grocery stores because if something goes wrong with them then just throw away instead fixing anything yourself!

Human intelligence and artificial intelligence are two different things

Human intelligence and artificial intelligence have different strengths and weaknesses. Human intelligence is better at creativity, problem solving, and decision making; artificial intelligence is better at logic, memory, and speed. Humans are also better than machines at learning from experience — a skill that comes with being able to see patterns in the world around us. This ability to learn from experience makes humans more adaptable than machines, which are limited by their programming. However, AI can learn from data it processes much faster than humans can learn from each other due to its lightning-fast processing speed: whereas it would take thousands of years for one person’s lifetime worth of experiences to be processed by another human brain (assuming one million new neural connections per second), an AI system could process that same amount within seconds if given access to enough computing power!

Evolution is not a choice, it is a responsibility

Evolution is what we were born to do. We cannot change that fact — the only thing left for us to choose is how we will evolve. Will humanity take on this challenge and evolve their intelligence? Or will they throw in the towel and let AI take over our world?

If humans want to survive in an age of AI, they must find new ways to motivate themselves — they can no longer rely upon external rewards or punishments like food or death because these are no longer relevant. Instead, humans must find intrinsic motivation in their own lives: something that makes them feel fulfilled even if there aren’t any tangible rewards available at all times like food or safety from predators (which may not even exist anymore).

The answer lies within ourselves; if we look deep enough inside ourselves then we’ll discover what truly matters most: happiness! Humans want nothing more than happiness; whether it be through family life or work life or anything else under those umbrellas it doesn’t matter because at its core happiness means being content with who you are without needing anything else as motivation besides yourself (and possibly others). The only way for humans to thrive despite these challenges presented by AIs taking over everything around us is by evolving our intelligence so that we don’t get left behind while everyone else gets smarter faster than ever before.

We deserve the evolution

It is only a matter of time before artificial intelligence becomes more advanced and self-sufficient. The human race needs to evolve their own intelligence as well so they can keep up with AI’s rapid growth.

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4 Essential Traits to Running A Business or Being Self Employed

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Running a business or being self employed is not a simple task nor is it suitable for everyone, it requires a unique set of skills that one must continuously work on throughout their career. With that said, let’s explore the essential traits that one would need in order to pursue the life of self employment or being a business owner. 

1. Be an autodidact

For anyone who may not know, an autodidact is simply someone who is self taught. One who can teach themselves any skill or trade through a unique learning system that they have formed to accommodate their learning style that may not be suited for everybody. By being able to take a subject and create your own curriculum that is effective and allows room for improvement through trial and error. This is one of the best skills to have to achieve success in the realm of self employment or owning a business because you are able to teach yourself anything and not depend on a standard system to learn the things that interest you. 

2. Have self discipline

The 9–5 life can be stressful depending on the field that you are in but, can be relatively straightforward in terms of day to day task. When faced with self-employment or running a business there isn’t a higher up saying when you have to get something done or when you have a deadline because you are your own boss at that point. Getting up early and beginning your to do list is on you and while no one will penalize you for not completing certain tasks in a specific time frame, you will see a number of people no longer desire to do business with you. To know when to work and play is another extremely essential skill in order to run a successful business or be able to maintain being self-employed. 

3. Be a creative problem solver

Day to day tasks often are very unpredictable when you are self-employed or running a business. You could have a meeting in the morning, then need to finish a document by the end of the day, chase down payments by next week, create an ebook for a summer release, etc. In a nutshell, nothing is the same everyday so you need to be prepare to handle random things thrown at you everyday than expecting to have the same kinds of tasks all the time. This again goes back to being an autodidact and creating your own system for day to day things to ensure your own success!

4. Financial Literacy 

When you are your own boss and not facing taxes with every pay check it is especially important to know how to move your money around. There is so much temptation to spend or misuse your money, however; everyone has to pay Uncle Sam at the end of the day. 30% of all of your income goes to the federal government and that doesn’t include special business tax depending on what kind of company you have, the state tax or any other special tax that you may be subjected to. It is important to know how to have a nest egg, how to have your money prepared for taxes, how to have health insurance, and buy food and maintain a roof over your head. Financial literacy is an everyday thing that any small business owner and self-employed person needs to know in order to create long sustaining success in this lifestyle.

What is another essential trait that I may have missed or you think is very important? Are you self employed or run your own business?

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The Business Mindset Evaluation: If You Answer Yes to Most of These 6 Questions, You are Ready to Start a Business!

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Recently in the United States, a record breaking 4.4 million new businesses registered in late 2021. With this, we can conclude that we will see more people taking the risk, leaving the rat race and starting a path all their own that may inspire others. This now begs the questions, how do you know that you are ready to take those risks and make your own income? How do you know you have the mindset to begin this journey? If you can answer yes to most of these questions then you are definitely ready to take the leap of faith. 

  1. Are you comfortable with failure?

A huge roadblock for many people is the possibility of failing at an endeavor and feeling like there is no point if you can’t get it right. People who take the road of building a business or their own income, tend to see failure as the next step towards success. Trial and error are key components to making your own business. Because each business is unique in its own shape or form, people are the scientists behind their success, constantly making hypotheses and learning from mistake after mistake until they get it right. 

  1. Do you consider yourself a creative person?

One of the fun parts of running a business is being able to adjust solutions according to the situation. Need to make a logo? Work with a designer or learn to use Canva? Need to organize your finances, use Bill.com or Quickbooks? Working in the business of digital products, where do you expand? Managing online business? Make content about mindfulness? You are constantly thinking about what will be your next big idea to expand from where you are. Being able to know where you are and the different avenues you can go down are essential to make sure your business can survive for the next few years. 

  1. Do you mind working for free?

This is the most difficult one for myself as well but, is a hard truth that must be told to many looking to travel down this path. There are days and nights when you may be coming up with ideas or trying to make sure everything goes well when you launch a new product or service. It may be hours of editing or running around getting supplies to get things done for a deadline that you have created for yourself. Mind you all the free work that you are doing will pay off but instant results are never guaranteed so this is another key feature of being able to handle the business world in general. 

  1. Do you have a passion for the things you are interested in expanding on?

To avoid doing something that you do not enjoy, it is best to make sure you honestly love the field that you are pursuing. Why bother working on a fitness brand when you enjoy working out but don’t enjoy making videos or answering questions about the matter. Hobbies are hobbies, we do them because we enjoy them but do not always see them as a career interest. To be passionate, you must be interested in talking for hours about the subject, the different ways it can tie into other fields, and the future of this particular topic. Anything goes and ranges from pursuing a cooking career and brand to a prepping career and brand, just be passionate and know your niche. 

  1. Are you a patient person?

Patience is key in order for you to achieve the success that you are setting to have under your own business. It takes YEARS to see the results that you want, most people want to see their active and passive income equate to 6 figures within a few months and when that doesn’t happen, most people quit. The slow climb is what makes starting your own business or building your income worth wild. If waiting quite some time to get your business where it wants to be is something you are mentally prepared for, you should be fine!

  1. Are you comfortable risking your own money?

This step usually determines the breaking point for some people. Another unfortunate truth for most but not all because in this day and age, crowd funding is very possible but, it does take time away from possibly saving up your own money to move forward with your endeavors. You are looking to invest a good portion of your income that could have been spent on eating out, going out drinking, or attending a concert to pursue your dreams. Tie into the fact that you have to do work for free sometimes, wait for results, and learn from mistakes; it’s understandable why people are hesitant to take this path. 

The reward of working for yourself and pursuing your dreams by starting that business does make all these sacrifices worth it if you truly want it and believe in yourself. Your own hours, different avenues to explore, more control over your life; from my perspective, it would be personally hard to go back to the corporate world. I will end with a final note in that it is not a bad thing to not want to start a business and do other things. We are all unique and different so the concept of what will make us happy varies from person to person. Don’t be afraid to take risks but, don’t be afraid to say this is not for me :).

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The Starving Creative

Photo from Unsplash by Austin Chan

This needs to be said; we are living in a day and age where we have no creativity, no originality, we are living in a day and age where creatives are being rejected if they do not spew the same propaganda. Its is usually, same story, different character, and that is it. Do not get me wrong, it is amazing to see people of different backgrounds on tv, in movies, and in books; however, we are solely relying on obvious features of a person to connect with them rather than, uniquely distinct character traits that makes anyone special.

We went from creating things like The Matrix, Gattaca, Black Swan, and other incredible movies and books alike to repeating the same messages of doom and gloom whether it be a constant reminder of how different you are or how you need to be scared at every waking minute because you can die. That is not what a creative is, that’s what a propagandist is. The exact definition coming from the dictionary is “a person who promotes or publicizes a particular organization or cause (Oxford Languages)”. We have seen this in the classic sense of newspaper and magazine cartoons which is completely fine but, with recent world events we see it in every part of our lives. We need people to come forward and start seeing worlds and ideas that are beyond our known reality. You know what happens when you do that? You are able to create culture, you are able to bring people together, and you become a great contribution that mankind can look back on and still talk about.

Some of the most incredible creators such as Prince, Selena, Langston Hughes, Emily Dickinson, Marilyn Monroe, Sade, and so many others that I cannot think of at the moment have left a mark in society that new creators can come back to for inspiration. Now everything is just a simple reboot, reboot, reboot. Why? Because it is easier to just use concepts that have been used before and just adjust them to modern day standards. I am so bored seeing the same things, how many times can you remake something? People are being sedated in a sense with this mediocracy, giving them the same pill just a different color. I must say and do apologize to my young audiences, F**K THAT!

Frankly, I am going to create the things that I want and explore the things that I find fascinating like different personality types, space, adventure and make something original, make something fun!

If you are someone with a new creative idea or concept, I am telling you now, go for it! You have nothing to lose, we are living in an age where any dream is possible, mind you it is hard work like no other but, I would not be writing this to you if I did not believe you could do it. You want to make a comic book? Watch videos, contact people who have done it, and work hard like no other. The same goes for singers, download BandLab and get to work, if you are an artist, learn how to expand and go outside of your comfort zone for inspiration. Go back to the Golden Ages of creativity, because it starts with people having the balls to form our interpretations of the world around us. I may not know you but, I believe in you, be brave! Because you know what happens when you are brave, you bring hope, that hope is shown through your work, and when you create something that is inspiring, you are able to heal the world of despair by giving them a light at the end of the tunnel. 

Creativity is the cure to stale tasting world.

Photo from Unsplash by Bamagal

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Speaking My Language

Photo from Unsplash by Ehimetalor Akhere Unuabona

Despite the fast paced changes of society in recent years, that can be seen as both negative and positive; there is something to be excited about: the race to space. 

For years, the space industry has been focused on researching and understanding different galaxies beyond our universe. However, as of recently we are seeing a rise in interest to travel into space by both the private and government sectors. Elon Musk is trying to build the first successful space colony on Mars with flight tickets going out in late 2026 (subject to change check the website for all updates). NASA is currently working on a project to land the first woman on the moon and is hoping to make space tourism sustainable by the year 2028. While these are all exciting goals for mankind to look forward to, we tend to forget about possible encounters with different species and the potential barriers; to be more specific, understanding what the hell they are saying half the time. 

Language is a very complex system that human beings have used for years to help us communicate our inner thoughts. So much so that we have over 300 languages spoken today and approximately half of the population can speak two or more languages. With that in mind, who is to say that we are prepared to communicate with them? Who is to say that there are not any alien languages that we will all have to understand in order to join the ranks of space? We have seen in history that language barriers have caused problems in society, we may end up repeating history in a different environment if we are not careful. We have seen this in the past with numerous historic examples such as European expansion into the Americas, Africa, and Asia. The language barrier was a major key factor for colonization and while we as a species have managed to move past this and have become more open to understanding the language of others, we do often still have issues understanding one another especially in this day and age with numerous mediums. 

If anything, we can state that this is a time for us to improve our language and communication skills amongst each other as mankind prepares for our next giant step into the stars. 

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IAutism

Photo by Possessed Photography on Unsplash

Can artificial intelligence be the next leading advancement for those with disabilities?

In the year 2021, the world has progressed to help accommodate those who operate in a nuerodiverse manner in society. In fact, progress still continues to this day to help improve their lives from therapy to advanced technology. Currently, science has started to look at a new method to help improve the social & communication skills of those on the spectrum, artificial intelligence. 

Humans have always been social creatures that feed off each other’s energies. For those with autism who experience higher levels of anxiety when interacting with a new person, it can cause social interactions to be extremely difficult; as well as cause problems for them to operate in the workforce. Without a doubt, everyone is slowly becoming aware that artificial intelligence will be integrated into a number of career and education fields. Therefore, taking some of the anxieties that come with human interaction away and allowing new doors to open for those with autism to interact with the world. 

One of the latest technologies that is utilizing artificial intelligence for children with autism is the QTrobot. QTrobot was designed by LuxAI and has a unique built in operating system that can be programmed to suit every child’s needs. With the stigma that comes with nonverbal communication when having human interactions eliminated, QTrobot is able to vividly and clearly display different emotions that help build social skills that can then be applied to real world human interaction. 

Children on the autism spectrum would work alongside the QTrobot & a trained specialist to help them progress at a quicker pace to help them adjust to school and the workplace. QTrobot can also be programmed to help children with autism desensitize from over stimulating situations. To make a personal connection with the use of AI and autism, my own sister has been more inclined to use her verbal communication skills when she has interacted with Amazon’s Alexa, which does whatever she commands it to do which I think she is fascinated with. With this new technology incorporated into early intervention of children with autism, we could accelerate their progression to adjust to society. 

Along with having the assistance of AI that will be implemented in a number of work areas, we can expect more ASD friendly career choices to emerge to give opportunities that we have never seen before. 

Source: Lexi.com