Episode #28: Missy Vetrano
Our guest this episode is Missy Vetrano; a geek for life, role player, and higher ed admissions professional.
Read MoreWhy is the Gaming Industry Growing So Fast?
The gaming industry is an industry that is growing at an exponential rate. Last year, according to some UK stats, the gaming industry was worth over a record-breaking $5 billion, not to mention the impact that the gaming industry had on other industries like merchandising, entertainment, and film. So at the rate things are going, it is likely that the industry will be adding at least another billion dollars to that in the next few years. In fact, when you look at those kinds of stats, it is making the gaming industry the fifth largest in the world, and the biggest in places like Europe as a whole. Pretty astounding just how much of an influence it can have.
The rise of gaming has a lot to do with the advancements in technology, and the fact that you can press download, and in an instant you will have it on your phone or tablet. Not to mention the fact that you can easily watch gamers play online, as well as YouTube videos. So if you want to know how to do something for your game, you are likely to reach out to one of these sources.
Because so many people are gaming, at least at some point in their week, it has meant that some previous and quite dull tasks, including things like fact-sharing, have been given a whole new lease of life. And this is a trend that quite rightly, companies are taking note of and using it to their advantage. Increased awareness around gaming and more of a positive look at gaming has impacted the whole industry of gaming in a positive way. For companies and gamers, it leads to more funding opportunities, and a chance to make a business out of gaming if they haven’t already. Take a game like RunScape, for example. There are several sites online that sell RS Gold for gamers to buy, so that they can carry on in their game and get bigger and better at it. This wouldn’t have even been considered an idea for a business even ten years ago.
When more people are wanting to work in the sector, then t shows the demand for it, and that in turn, will have influence over the gaming companies and how they decide to do things. And this rolls out to gaming in a professional sense too. You don’t just have to see gaming in the traditional or recreational sense, as educational establishments can use the industry to their advantage too. It is what the students will understand, so certain parts of it can be carried over.
The industry is on the rise and here to stay, because of the top talent that the industry recruits. It needs to attract the right skilled workers to the job roles, otherwise they will go elsewhere for work. So it is a competitive job industry. And when a company hires the brightest and the best, the jobs will be more competitive, and more people will want to work there, as their business growth will get better and better. In that vein, it can be easy to see why there are several Universities around the world now that are doing gaming-related degrees. It shows that it is an industry that is here to stay.
Funding for the industry has to play a big part in the rise of the industry. For example, if there wasn’t the same funding, then would the same companies be able to do what they do and make the games and apps that they make? The support and funding needs to be staying at the same level, if not more, to help grow the industry. It would be interesting to see how the industry would do as a whole, if some of the funding were to be cut.
Not for profit groups like British-based Creative England, is an example of the kind of funding that has helped the industry to grow. Using things like ‘games labs’ they are able to train people up, and help people to learn the skills that they need to develop games or simply to get into it at a deeper level. And with the rise of VR gaming, it will be good to see how things like these ‘games labs’ can help people learn about a whole brand new element to gaming.
What are your thoughts on this? How far has the gaming industry got to go? It would be great to hear what you think.
4 Things Your Business Can Do To Support #MeToo
It’s becoming increasingly harder to watch the news without hearing of new allegations of sexual assault. Hollywood is, quite rightly, in the spotlight at the minute and will be for years to come. However, normal, run-of-the-mill businesses aren’t immune to allegations either. What has been shocking about revelations is how prevalent sexual impropriety is in the workplace. Women from around the world, from all walks of life, have shared very similar stories. This means one thing – it may happen in your business. So, the question for bosses is: “what can I do to support the work of #MeToo?” Here are four pieces of advice that will help.
Accept It
It’s a massive cliché, but the first step on the path to recovery is to admit there is a problem. Don’t get sucked into the attitude that it’s only the top movie execs that are to blame. Sexual assault in the workplace takes many forms and your employees may see it on a daily basis. By understanding it happens, it will make the company more aware. Also, and this is essential, it encourages the management to take a stand. Accepting that it can be a problem anywhere in the world means you have to make the office aware of the company’s policies and what is and is not acceptable.
Delegate Power
Let’s not dilute your role because the boss always has the final say. However, you can’t deal with potentially hundreds of people o a daily basis. There is a reason for managers – they’re the firm’s eyes and ears. They should also be the police officers in the office regarding sexual harassment. Managers are the first port of call. For example, a worker will go to them to report the issue because they have a connection. But, if the line managers aren’t empowered, then the workforce won’t feel as if they can communicate. Ensure they know how to listen and help, but, most importantly, make sure they make coming forward easier.
And Outsource Expertise
The company needs detailed and exhaustive policies to safeguard its employees. There’s one hitch – you’re not an expert. Everyone understands the basics because they are not complicated. But, once you get into the nitty-gritty, then it becomes harder to police. Winer, McKenna & Burritt is a law firm that deals with sexual harassment cases. With a law firm such as this on your side, it is far easier to create solid, unshakeable policies. Please don’t let ego get in the way. Where there is a gap in knowledge, you should outsource to a third-party.
Make Training Mandatory
Training seminars are a good idea even if the office is squeaky clean. Firstly, some people may not know what constitutes harassment and assault. As shocking as it sounds, it’s true. Secondly, training reinforces the business’s rules and regulations. Sending out an email blast is a start but it only raises awareness of the issue. To change behaviors, the firm has to teach its employees how to act professionally.
How do you plan on helping the women and men who have been brave enough to speak out?
Episode #27: Alfred Day
Our guest this episode is Alfred Day; DC Comics fan, Disney lover, and higher ed professional!
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The Impact Of Cheating On Modern Video Games
Over the last handful of decades, the gaming industry has changed by a huge degree. In the past, most of the games being played in homes will have revolved around a board, a set of cards, or both, and wouldn’t have any moving parts. Arcades changed all of this, though, with companies making the first games consoles to replicate their larger cousins. In recent years, the evolution of this market has gone in a slightly different direction. Instead of growing, it is now maturing, and cheating is one of the biggest areas which has to be dealt with.
Like any type of game whether it's board games of the past like Monopoly or casino and card games such as Roulette and poker, there are always going to be inventive and creative ways that people try to get an advantage over someone else or the house. CardsLenses for example (click here) is one such unique system whereby marked cards can be seen via an optical contact lens. However, video game advantage has become an industry in and of itself.
About five or six years ago, video games on consoles were a simple disk, and didn’t require any verification to play. Only games on computers which were able to save them to a hard drive has to use codes to activate titles after they were purchased. As time has moved on, though, developers and their bosses have had to look for new ways to hold people accountable. This is done through accounts which tie your games to your user login. Preventing copyright infringement and theft, this sort of approach is a great way to stop people from stealing their games. On top of this, it can also make it a lot easier for moderators to ban cheats, as all of their details are saved on a central network. Of course, though, this doesn’t make users like it any more.
Most of the worst cheating doesn’t happen when purchasing a game, instead being a process which people will use to give themselves an upper hand while playing. For FPS games, aimbots, cheats, and other tools are used to enable users to rack up points while other players helplessly try to win. In other games, like MOBAs and RTS titles, lag switches are very common, putting all of the other players into an unusable state of high-latency. To get around this, most developers use anti-cheat systems to automatically remove cheaters from the game.
Automated processes rarely work as intended, though, and it can be hard for them to pick out when new tools are being used. Companies like TKO hacks can give you a good idea of how quickly this sort of software is developed and changed, along with the claims which their makers make regarding the chances of being caught. This leaves game developers having to rely on players to report those which they think are cheating in their games. While systems like this are great in theory, they tend to be very hard to implement properly. There are certain games on the market which enable users to ban each other when they send a lot of reports.
Hopefully, this post will inspire you to start working harder to spot the cheats in your next gaming experience. A lot of people find it hard to notice this sort of activity, instead thinking that they have lost their touch in their favorite games. In reality, though, there are loads of people willing to bend the rules to win, and you have to be vigilant if you want to do your part.
Easy Ways to Make Money from Gaming
Do you love gaming? Then you’ll be glad to know that it is more than possible for you to make money from it! Gaming really does have so much to offer and when you are good at it, you can easily turn it into a money-making avenue. It doesn’t take long to get started and you can easily help others out at the same time as well. If you want to get some ideas then you can find out whatever you need to know below.
Streams
When you are able to stream, everyone can see your gameplay. You can have advertisements on your gaming stream and you can also ask your loyal audience to either donate or subscribe to your services as well. The problem here is that it can take you a while before you can build up your audience and you may spend a lot of time trying to work out why nobody is viewing your channel. The main thing that you have to remember here is that streams do take time but if you are able to invest then you can easily make money from it at a later date. Podcasts are another great option as well, if you have the time.
Writing Guides
New players love reading guides. If you are a gamer then there is a high chance that you have read a guide or two in the past. If you want to make money from gaming then writing guides is certainly a possibility. You can upload your guide to YouTube or you can even publish them as an EBook if you want. You can even get advertisements or you can sell your guides for a small profit every time. You will need to invest a ton of time in order to make the most out of your money-making adventure and the main reason for this is because you will need to provide way more insight when compared to other people.
Gambling
Gambling is also another way that you can make money from games. Bitcoin Rush casino is great here and you would be surprised at how easy it is for you to really feel satisfied when you take away a win. When you are able to learn and develop strategies for online games, you can sell them while also making money from the game itself.
Trading In
When you are done with your old games, do you keep them as a part of your collection? If you want to make money then why not sell your old copies? When you have completed the game, there isn’t much point in you keeping hold of your copy and this makes the whole idea of gaming much cheaper. Sure, it may be more efficient to buy your game as a digital copy but at the end of the day, if you are able to buy a hard copy you can then go on to sell it at a later date. You can even keep an eye on auction sites to try and get a good deal, before selling that but at a higher price.
Episode #26: Brian LeDuc
Welcome to another great episode of the podcast!
This episode is proudly supported by Swift Kick, an amazing leadership and team development organization that helps people all over the country learn how to build incredible communities.
Check them out, and if you mention "Higher Ed Geek", you'll get $500 off their speaking fee.
Our guest this episode is Brian LeDuc; education designer, and higher ed hustler!
Listen to the episode below, or subscribe and listen via iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, RadioPublic, or Google Play.
Episode #25: Ashley Artrip
Welcome to another great episode of the podcast!
This episode is proudly supported by Swift Kick, an amazing leadership and team development organization that helps people all over the country learn how to build incredible communities.
Check them out, and if you mention "Higher Ed Geek", you'll get $500 off their speaking fee.
Our guest this episode is Ashley Artrip, a higher ed adjacent professional stationed at the intersections of the future of work and education.
Listen to the episode below, or subscribe and listen via iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, RadioPublic, or Google Play.
Here's everything we mention in the episode:
Connect with Ashley: LinkedIn
Principles by Ray Dalio
Music by pond5.com
Thanks for listening!
Putting Some Fun Into Your Business
Most entrepreneurs don’t work hard at their ventures simply because they want to make money out of them. Instead, you work hard because you feel passionate about what you do, and you want to enjoy the career you build for yourself. Of course, though, along the line, it can be easy to forget about this important part of business. With all of the serious work you have to do, the lighter side of things will often slip by. It doesn’t have to be this way, though, and this post is going to be showing you what can be done to turn things around. Anyone should be able to make their business more exciting with an effort like this.
Before you start working on making your business fun, it’s worth putting in some time to figure out why this is important to you. On a personal level, this will give you a much higher chance to finding job satisfaction, as you will be happy with what you’re doing each day. Along with this, though, you also have to think about anyone who might be working for you. People will always work harder when they enjoy their job, and will often stay with your company long into the future if you can give them something enjoyable everyday.
Achieving a goal like this takes some very specific work. Your company is going to need to go through some changes, with protocols and other routines being adapted to make sure that they fit into your new needs. There are a lot of approaches you can take to add some fun to your business, though, and this makes it a little easier when it comes to choosing one. Below, you can find a long list of a range of the different changes which can be made to most workplaces to enhance the time everyone has in your business.
Light Targets
There are few things in the world which can motivate people like a bit of competition. Of course, when you’re at work, you don’t want this to be stressful, but you still have the chance to keep everyone on their toes. Light performance targets which employees can compare with one another will always be a powerful way to improve office morale. This can be easily achieved using a TV which posts people’s latest results, along with the targets which they should be meeting. While this will make people feel uncomfortable at first, it could make their working life a lot more productive.
The benefits of this sort of arrangement come in many different forms. For one, your employees will be happier with their work, as they will be able to see direct results in the form of targets being met. Along with this, you will be able to start using these numbers as a way to weed out the weak links within your team. Of course, along with these benefits, though, you have to be careful; being too intense with these goals will make people feel miserable. Striking a balance which makes this fund will be a challenge, and it will be worth listening to your employees to make sure they are happy.
Social Time
For a lot of people, one of the best parts of going to work at the start of the day will be the people they interact with. Likewise, you will probably be fond of the people working for you, or they wouldn’t be at your company. Social time while working is one of the best ways to make a job more enjoyable. People will have the chance to catch up, share ideas, and get help regarding their work, all without having to break any rules. This sort of system works best in places where people working around each other. Of course, though, it has to be handled correctly if you want it to work.
Over the last few years, there have been loads of studies into the impact of short breaks on people’s ability to work. Most have found that having breaks every twenty to thirty minutes can drastically improve someone’s productivity, while also giving them the chance to relax. These breaks don’t need to be very long at all. As a business, this will reward you with more work being completed, all the while keeping the people working for you happy, and making the business a lot more fun.
Games And Play
It’s hard to talk about having fun at work without thinking about games. Even when people are busy at their job, there is always a little bit of room for this sort of fun, and there are loads of different ways to add it to your company. Small sports tables are some of the best for this, with examples like football being very popular. While these activities are fun, they don’t make a big mess, and this makes them much easier to deal with. A lot of modern companies are also employing the power of games consoles to perform this role. Of course, though, this will be expensive, and it may not work well for your employees.
Having the chance to perform an activity which will occupy their minds without having to think about work will always make employees happier. As long as play time is kept separate from work time, this sort of idea can be great for your business. People will respond very well to the chance to have some fun like this, making it a great way to build your team, while also giving people something to do on the breaks. TV is very popular as a substitute for this, but will often make people feel sleepy and ready to go home.
Time Away
While embezzlement isn’t on your mind, there are a lot of ways in which a business owner can benefit from their work. Companies can buy their own property, land, and other large items, giving them a lot of power to make your life better. An executive condo Singapore, for example, would give you the chance to travel throughout the year, and it could be entirely owned by the business. Whether this is for simple fun or for actual business trips, being able to afford this sort of option will be a great boon, and will be worth working towards if you have the means.
Of course, if something like this is owned by the business, you’re not the only one who can use it, and this gives you a good chance to make your employees a lot happier with their roles. Having company vacations as a benefit on their job description will make a job much more desirable. Along with this, you will also get the chance to reward hard work, promoting it in the future. Most of all, though, as the biggest benefit you will receive, this will make everyone in the company a lot happier. There isn’t any reason to keep this to yourself, as you will only need it a couple of times each year, and this gives you a great way to make people happy.
Varying Work
Finally, as the last idea to consider, it’s time to think about the boredom which repetition can bring with it, and why you should be working to escape it. Doing the same work everyday will quickly become very tiring. Most people will feel bad about their career, slowly wearing on them until it doesn’t work anymore. Of course, though, when you run your own company, you have the chance to vary your work as little or as much as you want. One day, you could be working on your biggest project, completing work which is essential to the business. On the next, though, you could be doing some accounting, giving yourself the chance to enjoy a varied work week.
Like the other areas on this list, this sort of approach can also be passed down to the people working for you. Varying the work of your employees will always make them happier, as long as the work they are doing is worthwhile. Of course, though, it isn't just about happiness, as this can also impact the quality of their work. Even if they don’t realise it, your employees will get sloppy over time if they are doing the same work. Taking an approach which gives them unique tasks each day, you will keep them on their toes, and bad habits will struggle to form. Along with this, everyone will have a lot more fun.
There are a lot guides around the web which are dedicated to teaching you how to better use your employees. From ideas which involve strict monitoring to ones which are much more free, there are loads of different areas which can impact this for an employee. Of course, as a big part of this, it’s critical that you consider yourself in the equation. Your business is there to serve you above all else, and this means that you should always be working to find new ways to make it work for you.
Book Review: Rework
My latest review is for the 2010 advice book, Rework, from the founders of productivity tool, Basecamp.
To start off simply, I really liked this book. As someone who is trying to work out starting something, I valued the perspectives outlined here. It resonated as the work environment I yearn for and would hope to create if I'm able to build what I'm working on right now. It disrupts all the norms we've come to expect from office jobs, and allows us to make more human focused companies.
Here's one of my biggest takeaways:
"Rockstar environments develop out of trust, autonomy, and responsibility. They’re a result of giving people the privacy, workspace, and tools they deserve. Great environments show respect for the people who do the work and how they do it."
This could sum up my general feelings about workplace dynamics and what we need to create to have positive outcomes for everyone involved; managers, employees, and customers. My advocacy for remote work is based in this sentiment, as well as flexible work hours. Balance comes from working where and how we're most productive. It could be sitting in the office from 9-5, or working 10-6 from a home office, or two four hour chunks split up so you can still have some personal time during the day or eat dinner with your family.
Another few points in the book I love are about workaholics:
"If all you do is work, you’re unlikely to have sound judgments. Your values and decision making wind up skewed. You stop being able to decide what’s worth extra effort and what’s not. And you wind up just plain tired. No one makes sharp decisions when tired.
"In the end, workaholics don’t actually accomplish more than non-workaholics. They may claim to be perfectionists, but that just means they’re wasting time fixating on inconsequential details instead of moving on to the next task.
"Workaholics aren’t heroes. They don’t save the day, they just use it up. The real hero is already home because she figured out a faster way to get things done."
I experience this a lot in my current job. I'm all about working smarter, not harder, and allowing myself to know that the work will be there tomorrow and it isn't the end of the world to leave and pick it up later. Especially when it's not a real emergency.
There's a lot to enjoy in this book if you're interested in this sort of thing and it's an easy read too. I was able to consume it in many bite sized chunks during some recent trips. I look forward to checking out their other book; Remote, as well as their podcast based on the Rework book.