The Best Way of Communication Essay Example for Free

The Best Way of Communication Essay Nowadays, much of the communication that takes place involves some sort of equipment, such as faxes, telephone calls, and e-mails. According to an investigation by The Associated Press (2010), communication equipment is becoming indispensable to people. In other words, people rely on it as never before. Is it proof that face-to-face communication is no longer important? Absolutely not! Face-to-face communication lets people directly know the actual personalities of people, and interact with each other without any barriers. Although as advanced technology develops, people have many new ways to keep connect with others, face-to-face communication is still the most important and effective method to communicate with others in education, business, and daily life. Education Online education is a teaching method, which uses a network media to allow students and teachers to carry out teaching and learning activities even thousands of miles away. First of all, it really breaks the constraints of time and space, because students and teachers do not have to go to school buildings. They can learn or teach anytime and anywhere. For example, Open University of Britain offers an online and distance education system called ODE, which has a worldwide reputation for education. This program, which has flexible teaching time, exclusively utilizes the online mode of teaching without any face-to-face sessions. In this way, Open University enrolls new students worldwide, and it gives people who do not have much time opportunities to gain professional knowledge. The students do not have to go to Britain, and they do not have to pay the high living expenses of studying in the UK. What’s more, the ODE, through a network teaching platform called FirstClass, provides online learning guides, software demo sites, articles, reports, books, and information resource links to students, and the students can get those resources at anytime. There are other online courses offered by reputable universities and colleges that allow students from different countries to opt for courses pertaining to their individual fields of education. According to an investigation by The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, there were over 3,000 open courseware courses  available from over 300 universities worldwide in 2006. For example, Open Yale Courses provides free and open access to a selection of introductory courses taught by distinguished teachers and scholars at Yale University. The aim of the project is to expand access to educational materials for all who wish to learn. In addition, each course includes a full set of class lectures produced in high-quali ty video accompanied by such other course materials as syllabi, suggested readings, exams, and problem sets. The lectures are available as downloadable videos, and an audio-only version is also offered. These courses allow people access to information and knowledge in their favorite fields. However, distance education lacks discipline and provides poor opportunities for interaction and social networking. This is because distance education operates through the Internet. This makes it unnecessary for professors and students who are in the same course to synchronize with others in the same time and space. It acts as a driving force for mobility of students, which causes confusion for classes and makes it hard for professors and administrators to supervise students. In addition, the students who attend online courses come from all walks of life, and their social rank, life experiences, attendance goals, learning styles, and cultural and educational backgrounds are all different. These things also increase the difficulty of management in the online education. On the other hand, in face-to-face education, teachers and administrators can monitor and manage students completely, making it possible to keep matters in good order. Students in online courses can, however, access knowledge and information much more easily. It makes students rely on the Internet, not only for personal uses but for work and study as well. As a result, students will sit in front of computers for hours each day and lack enough emotional communication. Today’s distance education neglects the factor of the emotions of students, and is not concerned with the emotional communication between teachers and students. More importantly, emotional education is a significant part of education, particularly in primary and secondary education. Teenagers form their values and moralities when they communicate with teachers or classmates in classes and schools. This is what distance education cannot achieve. As John Dewey (1944) said, Science and technology are not personality forces. They only act as intermediaries in education. No matter how powerful distance education is, if it ignores the  human emotions, it will lose the fundamental purpose of education. Therefore, distance education should never be a substitute for face-to-face education. Last but not least, in distance education, when teachers, students, and educational institutions use copyrighted materials, they cannot get the same treatment as people in physical classrooms. In other words, distance education will suffer many copyright infringement problems. According to the U.S. Copyright Law (1976), Section 110 (2), distance education has three weaknesses. The first is that the law has limited the types of copyrighted materials it recognizes in distance education: only non-dramatic works, articles and music are allowed to be shown in distance classes. Also, in the process of distance education, teachers, students and education institutions easily land in copyright infringement problems. Business With the development of technology, communication equipment is constantly emerging, such as email, the cell phone, text messaging, etc. In business communication, email is the most common method all in use over the world. It has three main advantages: it makes business information more accessible; and it provides for swifter communication in business activities; it breaks the constraints of time and space for business people to make contact with business partners. According to an investigation by the Direct Marketing Association in 2009, if an American business person invests $1 in commercial email, he would get $43.61 in return in one year. It seems that sending e-mails is a best way in business communication. However, the prospects for commercial email have not been good recently. When people receive hundreds of junk emails each week, the high rate of investment return will no longer exist. According to an investigation by FOB Business Forum, subscribers’ inboxes are full of needless emails currently, and 60% of subscribers choose to ignore all emails, this dashes to pieces business people’s hope for electronically establishing relationships with clients. On the contrary, in face-to-face communication, there is not much guesswork involved. Therefore, business people can set the foundation for trust with customers swiftly, and lasting business relationships easily. Video conferencing is also a popular commercial communications media in the 21st century. It is almost like the face-to-face meeting and non-verbal communication is also possible in video  conferencing. In fact, Dr. Albert Mehrabian, author of Silent Messages, said that over 90% of human communication is through nonverbal language like postures, gestures, eye contact and facial expressions. Video conferencing allows people to observe others’ appearances, movements and facial expressions in the same conferencing. What is more, people can show any material object, drawing and document they want. It enables businessmen to maximize the effectiveness of their negotiations. On the other hand, the success of video conferencing proves that face-to-face communication in business is still more effective than other types of communication. However, establishing video a conferencing network requires a great deal of funds, and the cost of maintaining and repairing the video equipment is also very high. It seems that video conferencing is not appropriate for all companies or organizations if face-to-face communication is still feasible. Email and video conferencing are not substitutes for face-to-face contact at all. As the economists Jess Gaspar and Ed Glaeser (2007) have pointed out, they are complements to face-to-face communication. Daily life In today’s world, a variety of communication equipments are packed into our life and electronic communication is better and cheaper than it is ever been. However, abusing communication equipments make people lacks emotional communication and provides poor opportunities for social networking. For example, in workplace, personal face-to-face communications can help people build relationship with their colleagues. The complexities of interpersonal relations cannot be interpreted by an e-mail, and a quick e-mail is absolutely not enough to maintain close association between two people. What is more, face-to-face communication is the key point in teamwork. According to an investigation by Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication (2006), people who worked together and communicate with colleagues face-to-face did a better team job than another team who only use intercom to communicate with each colleague. Conclusion We live in the 21st century, an era of advanced science and technology, in which we have a great variety of communication equipment, such as cell phones, faxes, Internet, etc. These things bring a lot of benefits for all aspects of people’s lives. However, other types of communication can never  be a complete substitute for face-to-face communication. In business, education or daily life, face-to-face communication is the best method to communicate with others. References Browning, Dominique (Dec 4, 2011). Talking Face to Face Is So Yesterday. New York Times (Dec 4, 2011), p. SR.5. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com Gopal, Namita (2009). Business Communication. New Age International, Daryaganj, Delhi, IND, 74-77. Harford, Tim. FT.com site: Undercover economist: Keep it real. FT.com (Jan 26, 2007), p. 1. Retrieved from http:// www.ft.comLoose, Cindy. Online Education to Be Free; N.Va. Billionaire Envisions Cyber-U. The Washington Post (Mar 15, 2000), p. A.01. Retrieved from http://ic.galegroup.com.libproxy.bridgeport.edu

Epilepsy and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Case Study

Epilepsy and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Case Study People with chronic and complex conditions are usually characterized by complex causality, multiple risk factors, a long latency period, a prolonged course of illness that cannot been cured, and functional impairment (Wilkes, Cioffi, Warne, Harrison, Vonu-Boriceanu, 2008). These people are often treated by primary care professionals such as the community care. Community care plays a key role in our health system; it can avoid patient readmission to the hospital, reduce healthcare costs, and make patients feel more comfortable when they have treatment at home (Wilkes et al., 2008). In the case study, Jessica is suffering epilepsy and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, which affects her daily life and her self-care behaviour. As a community care registered nurse (RN), I will promote Jessica’s knowledge about her chronic illness and health history, perform nursing assessments, and support her and her family with regard to her continuing nursing care. My primary goal is to improve Jessica ’s health condition and help her maintain her normal daily social and career life style (Lubkin Learsen, 2013). As an RN, on the first day visit with Jessica. At the beginning, I will establish therapeutic relationship with her by communication and also observing her facial expression, body language and listening voice tone. Arnold Boggs (2011) stated the foundation of nursing skills are approaching to therapeutic relationships and good communication in nursing practice and identifies trust, respect and honesty which are guiding professional actions. Meanwhile, her health history needs to be obtained by using oral communication skills, such an interview with her and her partner, without any judgment and by using open-ended short questions (Lubkin Learsen, 2013). In addition, the RN need perform a physical examination that includes general observation and checking BP, pulse, temperature, BGL, height, and weight. The information obtained during this phase contributes to an overview that identifies Jessica’s current and past health state and provides a baseline assessment to evaluate fut ure changes (Brown et al., 2014). It is important for the RN to indicate Jessica’s past and present medical conditions and treatments, which can create a suitable care plan and provide unique care. Ekman et al. (2011) believe all care providers should create personalized nursing care to people with chronic illness and help them to achieve their individual goals. The research shows epilepsy is the most common serious chronic neurological disorder of young people, with public misinterpretation inducing fear and social stigma, which leading to prejudice and discrimination in school, workplace, and community (Coker, Bhargava, Fitzgerald, Doherty, 2011). As a RN should educate Jessica by explaining the pathophysiology of epilepsy; for example, McCance, Heuther, Brashers, Rote (2014) state that â€Å"seizures are the abnormal discharge of electrical activity within the brain; the epilepsy is repeated recurrence of seizure activity which results from underlying disorder of the Centre Nerves System (CNS)† (pp. 679). In the past, Jessica’s seizures have been infrequent, brief, and often well controlled by medication. However, she may also suffer from greater degrees of depression, anxiety, and be prone to the social and vocational limitations that the illness usually brings (Coker et al., 2011). Furthermore, there are many risk factor s that can cause breakthrough seizures; these include diet, medication withdrawal, and alcohol consumption. Jessica may not aware of such factors due to a lack of specific knowledge (Coker et al., 2011). At the moment, Jessica is starting to withdraw from her anticonvulsant medications and avoiding her GP’s advice by continuing to drive her car; she also went to a dance club and drank alcohol. All of these affect her health conditions. Jessica also has Type 2 diabetes, a common chronic multisystem disease related to abnormal or impaired insulin production, with high risk of macrovascular and microvascular complications that lead to illness or disability and death (Hicks, 2008). There is no specific research on the association of epilepsy and Type 2 diabetes, but studies have found that seizures can occur during diabetic ketoacidosis when the body cannot get enough insulin; meanwhile, in many cases, epilepsy-related seizures may be mistaken for the symptoms of hypoglycaemia (Schober Holl, 2011). The aim of treatment is to control her blood glucose level (BGL) between 4 to 7 mmol/L, which reduces the risk of diabetes complications (Hicks, 2008). Currently, Jessica’s BGL shows12.9 mmol/L because of poorly controlled diet and excessive weight, which presents a greater great risk of cardiovascular, kidney, and metabolic diseases. After explaining the two chronic diseases to Jessica, during the time as an RN, I will perform a nursing assessment that includes a neurological observation assessment, nutritional assessment include regular BGL checks, behavioural assessment, and psychological assessment. Neurological observation is the collection of information on a patient’s central nervous system and neurological status, incorporates monitoring of the patients level of consciousness, pupil reaction and motor function, and observation of vital signs (Brown et al., 2014). It is important to monitor Jessica’s neuron function due to frequent seizures, especially after being hospitalized with tonic-clonic coma and unconsciousness. Regular BGL checks will help with her awareness of her glucose level and encourage regular administration of her hyperglucagonemia medication. The aim of intervention for Jessica is to control her high BGL and assess her normal diet, which can reduce diabetes complications so t hat she can achieve the quality of life she desires. Research has found that to control chronic complications from diabetes, a patient needs good self-care behaviours; for example: healthy diet, regular exercises, weight loss, taking medications as prescribed, blood sugar monitoring, and good support from family (Huang, Hung, Stocker, Lin, 2013). Behavioural assessment can help monitor her health condition and achieve goal setting, problem-solving, and medication adherence. The nurse can provide an accessible, relaxed environment to help Jessica focus on what she can do rather than what she cannot do, and act as a channel for her and her partner to discuss their fears and anxieties associated with her chronic illness (Welsh, 2008). She also told her GP that she did not need any more prescriptions for her anticonvulsant medication. Studies show that withdrawal from epilepsy medication has significant implications for lifestyle and circumstance, and that the patient should stop drivi ng (Coker et al, 2011). As the result, as an RN I need to consider Jessica’s dilemma carefully as it impacts her independence regarding transport and that, in turn, impacts her employment and income, self-esteem, and quality of life. The nursing intervention can include broader aspects of care including assessing Jessica’s needs, providing advice on associated topics to help her understand her condition and the management plan, and asking her partner to join her care (Welsh, 2008). For example, her partner, Martin, should be aware of her health condition including driving, potential pregnancy, alcohol use, employment restrictions, and other safety issues. On the point of RN also provide referrals to other professionals such as dietitian, social workers, counselling services, and family support groups. The role of the community RN is not only managing a patient’s chronic illness, but also to seek more assistance or research to improve the effectiveness of patient cares (Chen et al., 2012). The research shows that education in combination with psychological intervention can support medication adherence (Dean, Walters, Hall, 2010). In Jessica’s case, the RN needs to understand the negative impact that psychological issues can have on her lifestyle and chronic disease management, for example the chronic disease may cause her anxiety, and depression. As the result, we might arrange for Jessica to attend some group meeting or study conference about young people with chronic diseases. The fundamental nursing requirements are skills in communication, listening, counselling, and teaching to support the patient and her family (Welsh, 2008). There are two priorities for the RN’s follow-up with Jessica. As we noticed that before the current seizure, Jessica had weened herself off her anticonvulsant medications because she wanted to become pregnant and is perpetually in noncompliance with regard to her diabetes. The aim of the community service nursing intervention is to improve Jessica’s quality of life through needs-led primary health care with a person-centred approach to her individual needs and create a treatment plan that will improve health outcomes (Ekman et al, 2011). As Jessica is of child-bearing age with epilepsy, she merits unique consideration. Because withdrawal her antiepileptic drugs will increase seizure frequency, as an RN will need to be informed when Jessica contemplates pregnancy and refer her to a specialist before conception. Meanwhile, an occupational therapist will assess any risks in her home environment; a counselling service also be needed. From this point, the RN should consider the patient’s needs and communicate with a multidisciplinary team (Lubkin Larsen, 2013). We will need to motivate Jessica to take responsibility for her own self-care by using motivational interviewing and health coaching to incorporate behaviour change principles that promote healthy activities (Lubkin Larsen, 2013). For example, as an RN need to understand and explore Jessica’s motivation for becoming pregnant and keep her current life routine by listening with empathy because her opinion and methods may be different than they would be with a person who didn’t have complex medical issues. This will empower Jessica, encouraging her hope and optimism to follow the current treatment plan as well as to consult other health professionals. The primary goal is to maintain good self-care attitudes that will enable Jessica’s knowledge and understanding related to her ability to successfully cope with the disease in her normal life (Coker et al., 2011). A study by Soubhi et al. (2010) shows that strong self-management programs are amongst the best evidence- based interventions for improving outcomes. Thus, promoting self-care will empower Jessica to make independent decisions. The result will be an improvement in her quality of life and a reduction of psychosocial problems. In conclusion, from a community nursing service perspective, the experience of care giving to Jessica with her chronic and complex conditions has been extensively addressed. Meanwhile, an RN with an increased understanding of Jessica’s experiences will gain greater insight into the care she needs to improve her health and provide more effective healthcare delivery in the community (Soubhi et al., 2010). References Arnold, C. E., Boggs, U. K. (Eds.). (2011). Interpersonal Relationships: Professional Communication Skills for Nurses (6th ed.). Missouri: Elsevier. Brown, D., Edwards, H., Lewis, S. L., Heitkemper, M. M., Dirksen, S. R., O’Brien, P. G., Bucher, L. (Eds.). (2014). Lewis’s medical-surgical nursing: assessment and management of clinical problems (4th ed.). Chatswood, Australia: Elsevier. Coker, M. F., Bhargava, S., Fitzgerald, M., Doherty, P. C. (2011). What do people with epilepsy know about their condition? Evaluation of a subspecialty clinic population. Elsevier Ltd: Seizure 20, 55-59. doi: 10.1016/j.seizure.2010.10.007 Chen, M. S., Creedy, D., Lin, S. H., Wollin, J. (2012). Effects of motivational interviewing intervention on self-management, psychological and glycemic outcomes in type 2 diabetes: A randomized controlled trial. Elsevier Ltd, International Journal of Nursing Studies, 49, 637–644. doi:10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2011.11.011 Dean, J. A., Walters, J., Hall, A. (2010). A systematic review of interventions to enhance medication adherence in children and adolescents with chronic illness. Arch Dis Child, 95, 717–723. doi:10.1136/adc.2009.175125 Ekman, I., Swedgerg, K., Taft, C., Lindseth, A., Norberg, A. †¦Sunnerhagen, S. K. (2011). Person-centered care-ready for prime time. European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing 10, 248–251. doi: 10.1016/j.ejcnurse.2011.06.008 Huang, C. M., Hung, H. C., Stocker, J., Lin, C. L. (2012). Outcomes for type 2 diabetes mellitus patients with diverse regimens. Blackwell Publishing: Journal of Clinical Nursing, 22, 1899-1906. doi: 10.1111/jocn.12123 Hicks, D. (2008). Recent developments in the management of type 2 diabetes. British Journal of Community Nursing, 6(11). doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.12968/bjcn.2001.6.11.9458 Lubkin, I., Larsen, P. (Eds) (2013). Chronic illness: Impact and interventions (8th ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones Bartlett. McCance, L. K., Heuther, E. S., Brashers, L. V., Rote, S. N. (Eds.). (2014). Pathophysiology: The biologic basis for disease in adults and children (7th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier. Schober, E. Holl, R. (2011). Epilepsy in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Diabetes Voice 56(2), 43-44. Retrieved from https://www.idf.org/sites/default/files/attachments/DV_56-SI2_Schober-Holl.pdf Soubhi, H., Bayliss, A. H., Fortin, M., Hudon, C., Akker, V. D. M., Thivierge, R. †¦ Fleiszer, D. (2010).Learning and caring in communities of practice: Using relationships and collective learning to improve primary care for patients with multimorbidity. Annals of Family Medicine, 8(2), 170-177. doi:10.1370/afm.1056 Welsh, M. (2008). The practice nurse’s role in the management of epilepsy. British Journal of Community Nursing, 6(3). Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11923723 Wilkes, L., Cioffi, J., Warne, B., Harrison, K., Vonu-Boriceanu, O. (2008). Clients with chronic and complex conditions: their experiences of community nursing services. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 17(7b), 160-168. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2702.2008.02454.x

Gender Equity Essay -- Essays Papers

Gender Equity Are male students and female student’s receiving the same opportunities when it comes to Math and Science in the schools? I don’t believe they are. This is why gender equity is a major problem facing our schools today. Many girls are having very negative attitudes towards Math and Science. Through doing research on this topic I found out why. In the article How Research Helps Address Gender Equity, a very shocking and eye opening thing was written. I learned that children as young as kindergarten already have formed set stereotypes about Science and Math. The boys in the class wanted to and believed that they could be Scientist while the girls in the class did not. They perceived being a Scientist as a mans job. As children get older and move up in their grades things don’t seem to be getting any better, only worse. A three year study was done in fourth, sixth, and eighth grade classrooms in four states and they discovered that teachers actually call on and give more feedback to boys. The teachers answer to this study was that boys were more demanding and they called out more then girls. However it was found that if girls act this way they were penalized for it (Sadker D, Sadker M, and Stulber L, 1993). Teachers also challenge boys if they give the wrong answer, and if girls give the wrong answer they are more apt to call on another person. I was surprised by this research because I hadn’t actually noticed these things occurring while I was in school, but now that I look back at it I realize that it did. As I got into course three Math, a lot of girls had dropped out including myself. One of the major reasons I dropped out was the fact that my Math t... ...on since I will be going into teaching shortly. I know that it will be my job as a teacher to promote equality in my classroom. Works Cited Bailey,S., & Campbell, P(1999). The Gender Wars in Education. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on March 18,2001: http://www.trac.net.users.ckassoc.gender_wars.htm. Baker Dale(2001). Teaching for Gender Difference. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on March 18,2001: http://narst.org/research/gender.htm. Beyond Title IX:Gender Equity Issues in School (2001). Retrieved from the World Wide Web on March 18, 2001: http://www.maec.org/beyond.html#intro. Damnjanovic, A., & Kahle, J. (1997) How Research Helps Address Gender Equity. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on March 18, 2001: http://narst.org/research/gender2.htm. Sadker, D., Sadker, M., & Stulberg, L (1993). Fair and Square. Instructor Gender Equity Essay -- Essays Papers Gender Equity Are male students and female student’s receiving the same opportunities when it comes to Math and Science in the schools? I don’t believe they are. This is why gender equity is a major problem facing our schools today. Many girls are having very negative attitudes towards Math and Science. Through doing research on this topic I found out why. In the article How Research Helps Address Gender Equity, a very shocking and eye opening thing was written. I learned that children as young as kindergarten already have formed set stereotypes about Science and Math. The boys in the class wanted to and believed that they could be Scientist while the girls in the class did not. They perceived being a Scientist as a mans job. As children get older and move up in their grades things don’t seem to be getting any better, only worse. A three year study was done in fourth, sixth, and eighth grade classrooms in four states and they discovered that teachers actually call on and give more feedback to boys. The teachers answer to this study was that boys were more demanding and they called out more then girls. However it was found that if girls act this way they were penalized for it (Sadker D, Sadker M, and Stulber L, 1993). Teachers also challenge boys if they give the wrong answer, and if girls give the wrong answer they are more apt to call on another person. I was surprised by this research because I hadn’t actually noticed these things occurring while I was in school, but now that I look back at it I realize that it did. As I got into course three Math, a lot of girls had dropped out including myself. One of the major reasons I dropped out was the fact that my Math t... ...on since I will be going into teaching shortly. I know that it will be my job as a teacher to promote equality in my classroom. Works Cited Bailey,S., & Campbell, P(1999). The Gender Wars in Education. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on March 18,2001: http://www.trac.net.users.ckassoc.gender_wars.htm. Baker Dale(2001). Teaching for Gender Difference. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on March 18,2001: http://narst.org/research/gender.htm. Beyond Title IX:Gender Equity Issues in School (2001). Retrieved from the World Wide Web on March 18, 2001: http://www.maec.org/beyond.html#intro. Damnjanovic, A., & Kahle, J. (1997) How Research Helps Address Gender Equity. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on March 18, 2001: http://narst.org/research/gender2.htm. Sadker, D., Sadker, M., & Stulberg, L (1993). Fair and Square. Instructor

Subculture Essay -- Punk Subcultures England Essays

Subculture There is something about the ideology of a subculture that sparks an interest in me. Maybe it is intriguing due to its members’ originality, courage to stand up for beliefs, or freely expressing their own self- identity. A subculture forms by individuals taking a risk, separating themselves from the mainstream, and forming their own distinctive norms, not caring what the â€Å"normal† members of the mainstream society think of them. Or do they care? Maybe that is the exact statement a subculture is making. Maybe these individuals are forming these groups so that people will care. Maybe their rebellious attitude is a final, somewhat desperate approach to getting that response. The images being portrayed in most subcultures are indeed attention- getting. Perhaps then, attention- seeking is the main goal of these groups. In analyzing the specific subculture of â€Å"punk†, these questions seem to fall towards the greater issue of â€Å"external vs. internal† . External indicates that this subculture is making a statement, merely through an image culminated on the exterior. Internal suggests a deeper, often political, and vigorously bold statement, such as protesting for citizens’ rights, rebelling against class structure, or publicly claiming a self- identity. Also, was punk a movement that said what it wanted to, and is now only a historical memory of the past? Or is America carrying out the motives of what England’s punk culture did at the time? The subculture defined as â€Å"punk† originated in England in 1976, with its end in 1981. There were several reasons for the emergence of such a radical movement. Its popularity grew day by day, with millions of kids who could identify with these people. Millions of kids, not only from the... ...culture today falls directly onto the external, with little substance holding it up. Punk has allowed it to become a community of elitists, and has become as restrictive as the mainstream culture they once so strongly opposed (Chamberlain). In the end we can only ask, although the official era of punk was over in England in1981, is punk really dead? Or has it simply evolved from an internal, deeper movement into an external, superficial image? Perhaps throughout the last three decades, the image taken from the initial punk has evolved into a style that is merely external. Maybe that is all that original punks would want. Works Cited The Quintessential Punk†. Bryn Chamberlain. Dec. 1995. 2 April 2004. . Wells, Steven. Punk: Young, Loud, and Snotty.† Thunder’s Mouth Press NY, NY. 2004. Subculture Essay -- Punk Subcultures England Essays Subculture There is something about the ideology of a subculture that sparks an interest in me. Maybe it is intriguing due to its members’ originality, courage to stand up for beliefs, or freely expressing their own self- identity. A subculture forms by individuals taking a risk, separating themselves from the mainstream, and forming their own distinctive norms, not caring what the â€Å"normal† members of the mainstream society think of them. Or do they care? Maybe that is the exact statement a subculture is making. Maybe these individuals are forming these groups so that people will care. Maybe their rebellious attitude is a final, somewhat desperate approach to getting that response. The images being portrayed in most subcultures are indeed attention- getting. Perhaps then, attention- seeking is the main goal of these groups. In analyzing the specific subculture of â€Å"punk†, these questions seem to fall towards the greater issue of â€Å"external vs. internal† . External indicates that this subculture is making a statement, merely through an image culminated on the exterior. Internal suggests a deeper, often political, and vigorously bold statement, such as protesting for citizens’ rights, rebelling against class structure, or publicly claiming a self- identity. Also, was punk a movement that said what it wanted to, and is now only a historical memory of the past? Or is America carrying out the motives of what England’s punk culture did at the time? The subculture defined as â€Å"punk† originated in England in 1976, with its end in 1981. There were several reasons for the emergence of such a radical movement. Its popularity grew day by day, with millions of kids who could identify with these people. Millions of kids, not only from the... ...culture today falls directly onto the external, with little substance holding it up. Punk has allowed it to become a community of elitists, and has become as restrictive as the mainstream culture they once so strongly opposed (Chamberlain). In the end we can only ask, although the official era of punk was over in England in1981, is punk really dead? Or has it simply evolved from an internal, deeper movement into an external, superficial image? Perhaps throughout the last three decades, the image taken from the initial punk has evolved into a style that is merely external. Maybe that is all that original punks would want. Works Cited The Quintessential Punk†. Bryn Chamberlain. Dec. 1995. 2 April 2004. . Wells, Steven. Punk: Young, Loud, and Snotty.† Thunder’s Mouth Press NY, NY. 2004.

Is Coca Cola the Perfect Business? Essay

A. One of the most important skills to learn in managerial economics is the ability to identify a good business. Discuss at least four characteristics of a good business. Based on the article about Coca-Cola, there are five essential characteristics of a business for it to be considered as a â€Å"Good Business†. First, it should be appealing to both young and old alike. Second, it must have a distinct characteristic which cannot be easily imitated by others. Third, it must already made an impact to the market because it has already earned a large portion of market share. Fourth, profit margin and rates of return should be high. And Lastly, it must have a competitive advantage or economic moat. Appealing to both young and old alike. The product that the company sells / offers can be used or consumed by people of all ages. It must be enjoyed not only by selected markets rather it should be enjoyed by all. Distinct characteristic which cannot be easily imitated by others. The product that the company sells / offers must be unique and exceptional. It must safeguard it’s â€Å"secret ingredients†. So that it cannot be easily imitated by others. Large portion of market share. The product that the company sells / offers is used or consumed by a large portion of the market and must be preferred above other companies who are in the same line of business. A good business must able to deploy a lot of incremental capital at an above average rate of return for a long time. If a business is able to do that, it will in effect be helping its shareholders compound their money at a good rate of return and saving them the trouble of having to invest the extra dividends they would have received if the company didn’t reinvest in its operations. A durable competitive advantage or economic moat is what sets apart the good and great companies from the mediocre and downright lousy companies. A significant competitive advantage allows a company to earn better than average profits or maybe even excellent profits, and protects the company’s profits from competitors that want to get a piece of the action. A strong brand, being the low-cost producer, patents, and having a near monopoly over a certain market are some sources of competitive advantage. B. Identify and talk about at least four companies that you regard as having the characteristics listed here. Apple Company – This popular company is the brain behind gadgets like iPod, iPad, iPhone, and MacBooks. Their products are user-friendly and can easily be used by people both young and old. Also, Apple always sees to it that their products offer unique features which suit the people’s wants and needs enabling the people to patronize their products; thus in return, earning a large portion of market share compared to other competitors. SM Investments Corporation – This is composed group of companies: Retail, Mall Operations, Property, and Banking & Finance. RETAIL – SM is the Philippines’ most dominant player in retail with 193 stores nationwide. Of these, 46 are SM Department Stores; 37 are SM Supermarkets, 76 are SaveMore branches; and 34 are SM Hypermarkets. MALL OPERATIONS – SM is the Philippines’ largest shopping mall developer and operator with 46 malls nationwide. SM Prime also owns 4 malls in China’s second and third-tier cities, namely Xiamen, Jinjiang, Chengdu, and Suzhou. By the end of 2012, SM Prime will have a total of 46 malls in the Philippines and five in China with a combined GFA of 6.3 mn sqm. PROPERTY – SM’s property group is a fast emerging business with interests in residential, commercial, leisure and hotel development.SMDC is rapidly growing with 15 residential projects under its SM Residences and two projects under its M Place brand. BANKING & FINANCE – SM’s bank network is the largest in the Philippines with its 41% interest in BDO Unibank and 20% interest in China Banking Corp. In 2Q 2012, BDO became the country’s largest bank in terms of assets with 744 branches nationwide. Chinabank is the 8th largest with 307 branches nationwide. ABS-CBN – is a major Filipino commercial television network owned and operated by the Filipino media conglomerate ABS-CBN Corporation, a publicly traded company. It is the country’s leading television network with an advertising revenue amounted to 17.5 billion pesos for the fiscal year 2011 San Miguel Corporation – is Southeast Asia’s largest publicly listed food, beverage and packaging company with over 17,000 employees in over 100 major facilities throughout the Asia-Pacific region. San Miguel carries many brand names in the Philippine food and beverage industry, including San Miguel Pale Pilsen, Ginebra San Miguel, Monterey, Magnolia, and Purefoods. San Miguel Beer is one of the largest selling beers and among the top ten selling beer brands in the world. SMC manufacturing operations extend beyond its home market to Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and Australia; and its products are exported to 60 markets around the world. C. Suppose you bought common stock in each of the four companies identifies here. Three years from now, how would you know if your analysis was correct? What would convince you that your analysis was wrong? Supposing I bought common stock in each of the four companies indentified above; three years from now, I would know that my analyses were correct by simply looking back and evaluating if the company still suffice the list of characteristics of a good business. I will be convinced that my analyses were wrong if it will not suffice even just one of the characteristics listed for it to be considered as a â€Å"good business†.

Effective Career Management and Planning Essay

For individuals career management is one of the important tasks which should be arranged in order for theme to be employable, and successful in their work and life. This essay introduces terms career management, career planning and explain how these two tasks are linked together. Subsequently it also explain how to effectively manage careers. Lastly conclusion and explanation will be given on who is responsible for managing careers, as well as who should plan individuals career to improve effectiveness. There is many ways to describe career management. As it is described by American Management Association it is a cycle of events that enables individuals and companies to achieve their goals (HR Focus 1999). Good management of careers would preferably put employees in most profitable and competitive situation for the businesses, at the same time employees are required to understand what skills will help them to improve and develop in order to achieve rewards from work and personal life. There are two different career managements: organizational and individual (De Vos, A et. all 2008). Organizational career management is set to improve workers effectiveness, this is achieved by findings what workers want and helping them in achieving the goals, at the same time selecting the employees who deserve opportunities the most, in order to motivate them. Individual career management is effort which individual puts to improve career aspiration, it is also very important that employees, while satisfying their personal goals, also satisfy the goals of the organisation. In changing economy of 21st century, people are not able to remain in only one job for the duration of their life. As Handy (1976) said traditional careers are not compatible with new organisation structures. It is also proven by Guest and Mackenzie (2006) that the number of the opportunities of work promotion decreased which would make it more difficult for the employees to move up the ladder in their organisation (Newell 2000). Due to the changes in the organisations, and the fact that employees are not able to work for one employer for the duration of their career, puts more responsibilities for managing careers on the employees themselves in order to achieve their life ambitions. Career management in today’s world requires people to learn continuously for the duration of their career due to increasing amount of technology being used in day to day work. To be competitive in the work, employees have to be current with new technologies and skills, which will increase their employability. Another very important skills employees have to develop are relationships with colleagues and competitors, which will help in observation how the industry is changing, to be modern and competitive in the workplace. Psychological contract is a mutual obligation of employees and employers, this obligation can include promises and expectation from both parties of the contract. Over the years Psychological contract has changed dramatically due to changes in the economy. Psychological contract no longer gives job security, and mainly focuses on short term financial relationship (Atkinson, 2002). These changes put more responsibilities on employees and demand from them to be highly skilled, and marketable. Career planning is a part of career management which consist of activities which lead to achieving career goals, as well as finding their strength and weaknesses (Orpen 1994). Tasks are associated with exploring people’s interests and abilities; it also should include identifying new skills people want to develop. Career planning also involves drawing action plans and making sure the plans are realistic. Planning is one of the tasks which are compulsory to remain employed and competitive in employment market. Planning of career must include variety of strategies carried out in order for the individual to be successful. In order to develop a career plan individual have to go through four steps: self assessment which helps people identify their skills and qualities, research which is design to introduce individual to job from inside, decision making requires individual to choose one of the options available, and lastly taking actions such as looking for jobs as well as keeping in touch with the people in the field (Zigelstain, T). Each of these steps is design to help individual find his ideal career based on skills and attributes of individual. Research conducted by Orpen (1994) shows that the employees who plan and use different tactics are more successful in their careers even if the tactics do not work. The responsibility of managing and planning the careers for individuals lies between the employers and employees, mainly because employment is seen as a relationship between these two parties. It is very important that there are different tasks assign to this two parties in order for them to work effectively. Then again career management on the organization side helps empl oyee become more successful, encourages workers to identify what they want, it also support self-development (Barnet & Bradley 2007). Involvement of the organisation in career management brings confidence to an employee which makes them feel their careers are better. Taking in the account the fact that in today’s world people will frequently change jobs- as indicated by Bureau of Labour Statistics 64% of individuals change job between 5 to 14 times in their life (Loretto 2010)- responsibility of managing career is principally placed on the individuals themselves. In the conclusion it is vital to saying that the career management and planning is very important in individuals’ career. Tasks associated with planning and managing help people to uncover their skills and attributes which then can be used in their career. Managing careers is broadly responsibility of employees, but in order for the employees to take the right steps in managing the career help from employers in form of various activities is needed. If the help from the organizations is not significant there will be only little progress made in managing the careers (Newell 2000). At the same time due to changes in economy and organizations themselves people have to take control in planning and managing their careers on their own in order to make career effective and gain benefits as well as satisfaction from work and personal life. Without participation in the tasks associated with planning and managing careers individuals will find it very difficult to find the precise occupation in which they will feel comfortable. Concurrently share responsibility of career management improves performance as well as increases benefit for organization and individuals. There will be help available from your employer in managing and planning career but before individual or graduates get job they should take control of their career and life.

International Business Strategy Master Case Study

International Business Strategy Master - Case Study Example How should Starbucks manage the paradox of profitability and responsibility Andrews (1997: p. 52) defines corporate strategy as "the pattern of decisions in a company that determines and reveals its objectives, purposes, or goals, produces the principal policies and plans for achieving those goals, and defines the range of business the company is to pursue, the kind of economic and human organisation it is or intends to be and the nature of the economic and non-economic contribution it intends to make to its shareholders, employees, customers, and communities". Corporate strategy in effect maps out the businesses in which an organisation intends to compete in a way that focuses resources to convert distinctive capabilities into competitive advantage. (Andrews, 1997). Economists are not in agreement as to a common definition of multinational or transnational enterprises (MNE/TNC). Multinational corporations have many dimensions and can be viewed from several perspectives (ownership, management, strategy and structural, etc. (Root 1994, Hill 2007). According to Ghoshal. et al (2002), A multinational Entreprise (or transnational corporation) is a corporation or enterprise that manages production establishments or delivers services in at least two countries. Most multinationals have budgets that exceed those of many countries (Ghoshal et al. 2002). This paper addresses some of the pertinent issues that affected Starbucks in 2006. The paper further discusses the advantages and disadvantages of the different models of entry used often adopted by Multinationals. The last section of the paper looks at Stakeholder mapping of Starbucks and how each of its Stakeholders affected its strategies 2.0Identify and assess the strategic challenges confronting Starbucks Corporation in 2006. Use your findings to critically evaluate the firm's decision not to compromise on its "basic principles" (Case Page 303) as its expands internationally. Today's business environment is increasingly becoming more turbulent, chaotic and challenging than ever before and to survive, it is vital that a firm understands the strategies underpinning the success of rival firms and try to emulate, or do something better than the rivals. This study is initiated to investigate the core features underpinning H&M success when compared to it competitors. Within the context of today's global competition, businesses and firms no-longer compete as individual companies but try to corporate with other businesses in their activities (Wu & Chien 2007:2). These researchers went further to argue that, this strategy has become quite common in many businesses including the retail clothing chain stores. The conventional vertical integrated company based business model is gradually being replaced by collaborative relationship between many fragmented, but complementary and specialized value stars and constellation (Wu & Chien:1). The problems and challenges that Starbucks faced in 2006 can be explain inline Porters five forces. Porter (1985:4) contends that the Five Forces define the rules of competition in any industry and at the same time marks the bases for understanding a company's success. Porter (1985) went further and argues that, competitive