Giving = Positive Self Feeling

I chose this clip to talk about Positive Self-feeling. This video shares with the audience that being rich is not about how much you have but how much you give. The video is an advertisement for Community Chest a fund-raising group.

This advertisement runs through the growing boy and his father, as his father teaches him along the way. The father is teaching his son about how to be happy and have purpose in life. He teaches him that to be happy and to be truly rich it is not about the money. To be rich and truly happy is about those whom you serve and help to be happy. Those whom you give to.

This advertisement is a good example of Positive Self-feeling. It demonstrates Positive Self-feeling by showing the audience that even though you may not have a lot, or that you may be disappointed in your life with some of the outcomes, giving will help you feel better about the situation.

The boy in the video was disappointed with his father for what he felt they lacked. The boy grew up thinking his father was a failure. After his father's passing he began to realize, starting with some letters, what his father was about. The boy felt guilt did he did not see the wisdom in his fathers teachings. He decided to give back so that he could feel better about himself. Giving back helped him to erase the bad memories of the way he treated his father. This was his way of giving back to him.

I believe that after the boy discovered what his father had been doing in his name his emotions were of the second process premise of guilt. This guilt caused the son to search out a way to make amends with his father. This second process premise helped him to see the bigger picture of what his father was teaching him.

This video helps create a cognitive effect I'm many of us who have all felt similarly about their parents teachings. I do feel at times that I see these teachings and feel the same type of feels that help me to strive to self-check and work harder to be better. This cognitive effect helped the boy in the video change his life around to give back. Like the boy videos and reminders such as this create the same type of cognitive effect in me.

The Keys and Tools of Robbery Prevention- (out of class presentation)

One of the main concerns in banking, which brings about constant training and conditioning of each branch employee, is robbery. Not necessarily for the loss of the money that gets taken, but more for the safety and security of the customers, employees and the financial institution itself.

I chose to present my "hip pocket" out of class speech to the members of my team at a local financial institution where I work. The topic was the keys and tools of robbery prevention, but also what happens after a robbery. My team members consist of men and women ranging in age from 18 to 55. My object was to help educate and increase the level of preparedness for what to do during and after a robbery.

At our financial institution we train monthly on how to recognize, deal, and cope with a robbery. We have implemented trainings and security measures that will ensure the safety of our customers and of our employees. The training and practice help to keep our procedures at the top of our minds. This allows each of us to be proactive and calm in the event we are presented with any situation that resembles an attempted robbery. Our motto is awareness equal prevention.

I presented a recent situation that occurred at our branch that showed the preparedness of our team in preventing a possible dangerous situation. I talked about the importance of the training that we have received, which aided in handling the situation at a remarkable level. The actions that were taken helped to prevent any situation form escalating into a more serious one.

I presented to my team specific training on key tools that are in place to help prevent a robbery. I also spoke about important professional habits that we could create to help to pay closer attention to every situation that may unfold. We specifically talked about "heads up 7up", a game that the majority of our team members played while in grade school. We use "heads of 7up" at our branch to ensure that every individual that enters our location is greeted, and that everyone is looking and aware of every situation.

The atmosphere of this situation, being around team members whom I interact with on a daily basis, was not very stressful. The nerves that usually accompany public speaking were not so intense which made standing up in front of everyone bearable.

I used my iPad with the application of keynote to present my slides. The difficulty of an iPad is that the slides are not very large. I found myself having to walk around the circle to give each team member a closer view of the images that I used to portray each topic. This may have been beneficial, where I usually find my legs gridlocked when presenting.  The small slides forced me to move about and interact in a more relaxed manner. The ease of the keynote application made it easy to hold the iPad in front of me and tap to move each slide forward. The position of the iPad also helped to prevent me from looking at the slides, allowing me to create eye contact with each team member.

The feedback that I received, I feel, was a mix of honest and helpful to biased due to their relationship with me. I feel that some understood the purpose of the audience evaluation, and some may not have felt that they could openly share. I received some good feedback, specifically that when presenting to individuals with such a large age range, it is important to be able to grab their attention at all age levels. Using tone and variation can help to capture an audience even when there are large age differences. I feel that was excellent feedback and is definitely something that I will implement and work to improve. I feel this is an area where great improvement is needed to create more meaning in my presentations.

I feel this was a great opportunity to receive feedback from individuals who have to sit through my speeches and trainings on a regular basis. I feel that this insightful feedback will help to improve the level and quality of the trainings and in the end help to have a team that is more prepared for every situation.  I will definitely continue to look for feedback to help better my team.

Bullied and Beautiful

Shane Koyczan gave an inspiring Ted Talk in his own amazing way, with poetry.  In Shane's poem, he talks about a problem in our society.  The problem of bullying, and what it does inside of that individual.

The story that Shane shares, with his poetry, is that of The Triumphant Individual in Reich's Cultural Parables.  Maybe not an individual triumph that gets the girl, the fame, or the riches in the end.  He tells about a triumph all his own, "the balancing act of life.  That is now has less to do with pain, but more to do with beauty."

Shane does a remarkable job sharing the pains of feeling alone, and cast out due by being bullied.  He describes the first process premise of needing reassurance, and emotional security, when he as child traded homework to fit in.  Shane creates a cognitive affect in his audience using that same premise.

The cognitive affect in us all is the realization of the remembrance of these feelings, and the need for reassurance and emotional security.  "That is why we cheer on the underdog," Shane says.  He persuades his audience, through this cognitive affect, to think differently about being asked as a child, "what do you want to be when you grow up?"  He helped us all to see when we grow up there is nothing wrong with being us.  Shane then emotionally lifted the audience helping them to understand that the bullies were wrong.  "We are not abandoned cars," we can get up when we are down.

Shane also ties his story, about his life, into Maslow's Hierarchy of needs.  He talks about esteem and being determined to love himself "despite the ease at which I lean towards the opposite."  He shows the value of loving yourself, overcoming, balancing life, and knowing you’re beautiful.

Shane was successful with his usage of the process premise.  Shane made his point through persuading us all to remember, we made it through being bullied.  "We graduated,” we are balancing life, sometimes there are ups, and there are many downs.  Shane is successful at persuading us all that we too "only have to walk to get gas."

Found Apple Computer Charger

There was an apple computer charger left in class tonight 06/02.  It was on the side of the room the Professor Young sat on.  I have the charger with me.  Please call me 4358791124, and we can coordinate getting it back to you.

VOYEURISM What's Next?

Catherine Crump gives a Ted Talk about license plate readers and what that our local police department, and the federal government is doing with this stored data. Catherine's speech shows one of Larson's Cultural Images and Myths, the myth is the presence of conspiracy. Catherine wants her audience to believe that storing this data will lead to the data being, "abused, maybe for blackmail, maybe for political advantage, or maybe for simple voyeurism."

What caught my attention to this conspiracy was the word voyeurism. Merriam-Webster.com defines voyeurism in two ways: first, "one obtaining sexual gratification from observing unsuspecting individuals who are partly undressed, naked, or engaged in sexual acts; broadly: one who habitually seeks sexual stimulation by visual means." This definition shocked me, how could someone interpret the act of storing data to lead to voyeurism? I decided to give Catherine the benefit of the doubt and go with Merriam-Webster's second definition, "a prying observer who is usually seeking the sordid or the scandalous." Although it is not quite as drastic, it is still quite shocking that one would think the storing of data could lead one to believe in this result.

I'm not saying that Catherine's speech does not shed light on, what most would consider, an infringement on our right to privacy. I am not here to debate the right to privacy or whether or not data should be stored at all. I am here to point out the presence of conspiracy that exists in her argument. Catherine is taking what could be a small situation, that could be meant to keep us safe, and turns it into something of greater risk. The situation thus is escalated from safety of the public to the public’s lack of safety and privacy, hence the presence of conspiracy.

Catherine is using scare tactics. The firsts process premise would describe these scare tactics through Maslow's Hierarchy of needs, with our need to feel safe, and Packard's "Compelling Needs", emotional security. Catherine wants her audience to feel unsafe due to the collection of this data, by the government. She wants her audience to feel that their emotional security and safety are in jeopardy and does this by using the second process premise of fear.

Catherine starts her speech by comparing the collection of this data to what took place in Ferguson Missouri with the death Michael Brown. Catherine compared the surveillance equipment that collects this data, to advanced battlefield weapons and equipment used in war. Catherine's comparisons bring the second process premise of fear immediately into the conversation.

Catherine attempts to create fear are too far stretched to making one believe that voyeurism could take place. However, Catherine's use of the process premise will make us think differently about the collection of data in the future. She does create a cognitive affect in her audience that is brought on by the presence of conspiracy. I do feel, on the negative side, that this speech nurtures the distrust of government that is growing in our society. More positively the speech will encourage us all to possibly ask more questions.

Catherine's purpose in her speech might just be that, to make us think and ask. Catherine probably wants us all to be a little less trusting of what the government tells us. That we should all be more involved with what is going on in our communities, making sure it is the right thing for us all. I would say Catherine's usage of the process premise succeeded in creating the cognitive effect of influencing a change in the way we look and think at this situation.

To GMO or Not

Pamela Ronald a plant geneticist is trying to persuade her audience to take a second look at genetically modified organization (GMO) specific to food. Pamela's talk compares the use of GMO's with the great need of good food in order to nourish the growing population without destroying the world. Pamela is using the process premise of needs, specifically Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs with regards to the safety of the human population. Pamela is attempting to show that the human populations safety need is in reducing the use of harmful expensive pesticides, and naturally reducing pests with a final goal of overcoming malnutrition.

Pamela attempts to motivate the audience into persuasion through discussing widely know facts about the children who have malnutrition in third world countries. Pamela wants to motivate the audience to have a greater acceptance of GMO food so that these foods can be used to solve their food needs. The speaker is also using this information to play on the human emotions of the audience, which is the second process premise. Using the first process premise to discuss the need for the basic human need of safety. These individuals do not have enough food to guard the safety of their health due to the use of pesticides or pests destroying their crops, causing malnutrition. Pamela also uses the second process premise to motivate the audience on an emotional level through sadness for the situations that these people find themselves. Fear of the outcomes is also a part of this process premise, fear that if a resolution cannot be found and agreed upon to solve the problems that the negative statistics will continue to be prevalent. Pamela is trying to move the feeling about the use GMO's from low motivation to high motivation.

Pamela addresses the abilities that we have to help this situation. We now can genetically engineer plants that can withstand the harsh conditions of the areas where individuals live. This will allow the local farmers the ability to grow the plants necessary to feed their families. Modifying these plants will allow the plant to grow and thrive in the environments where farmers have struggled to feed their families due to the loss of their crop. There is currently high ability that will allow geneticists to modify plants to feed the growing population. Geneticists are growing in ability to continue to modify plants to help communities thrive instead of die. She explains that the problem with the ability is that there are individuals standing in the way with lack of information. These individuals arguing against GMO's, and are preventing the farmers the ability of growing the modified plants.

Pamela is triggering the emotions of the audience by talking through the tragedies that are occurring in other countries due to the lack of good foods. She uses triggers of the success of GMO foods in other countries that will help lower the negative statistics due to the causes of malnutrition. However Pamela misses an opportunity to encourage the audience to action. She does not invite them to get involved with supporting the cause nor does she explain how they can become involved. She talks about our general responsibility in needing to get involved and to scientific innovation. I feel she missed an opportunity to get specific about how individuals can get onboard and help the cause. She failed to trigger into action the audience but rather gave them information that they may or may not know how to use.

I feel the speaker did reach the audience on an emotional level, tugging at the heartstrings for the needs of the children in third world countries. I feel the two process premises she used helped open the door to a better understanding of her cause to gain a wider acceptance for GMO foods especially for those who are going without. Further triggers will be needed to get the audience out of their seats to plant the seeds to move the work forward.

Yes, Let's Do This!!!