Behaviorism-reinforcement Free Essays

It is difficult if not possible to measure what’s going on in a student’s mind at a specific moment. The students appeared to be paying attention were actually thinking non-academic issues, is not interested, is not motivated, is preoccupied with himself, among many other reason for non participation at school. Reinforcement rooted in the classic work of James Watson and B. We will write a custom essay sample on Behaviorism-reinforcement or any similar topic only for you Order Now F. Skinner. My discussion will include techniques, for increasing, decreasing, and maintaining behavior. There are many things to consider in the application of reinforcement so as to elicit behavior or the desired behavior. To give into consideration is that, reinforcement is more effective when it is immediate. If a response of a student is no longer reinforced, as in ignoring a given answer of a student every time a teacher throws a question or unintentionally took it for granted, the learner if again called his attention to give his answer will eventually given up the response. Another is, desired action are encouraged by a reinforcement specifically social reinforcement, which typically include attention can be verbal or nonverbal. For example, the expression on your face can carry an unmistakable message to a student. Usually, however, social reinforcers are verbal either accompanying some other form of reinforcement (â€Å"John, you can act as class monitor because of the way you behave in gym†) or taking the forms of words or phrase that signal your pleasure about the specific behavior. Social reinforcers expression, contact, proximity, privileges, and words. Giving positive remarks as the reinforcement every time the student performed better, finished a task or cooperate in the school activities are helpful in strengthening the students behavior or the possibilities of the repetition of the same positive behavior. A very shy child may find it difficult to join into classroom activities, specially if the school experience is new to her. The teacher’s role is to involve the child in the classroom activities. The child’s behavior should only be recognized when she is at the activity, though not necessarily participating. For example, when the child sits with the group at circle time, sits at a table where manipulative games or arts projects are provided. An activity within easy reach, when she is within easy reach of an activity, reinforce her, by praising and recognizing her behavior. Provide a reinforcement for every involvement in classroom activities as you notice it. A good reinforcement starts out with continuous reinforcement at the beginning stage of learning. Tangible reinforcers such as cookies and badges for young students or notes to parents or certificates for older students are just few examples which are necessary in the appliance of reinforcement so as to achieved desired outcome. In giving reinforcement, as progress in the skill or behavior develops, less emphasis should be placed on tangible reinforcers, such as food and tokens, while more emphasis should be given to social reinforcers, such as praise and attention. Reinforcement is given only after the learner gains sufficient skill at a task, be it participating in group work or writing, that later be strengthened or reinforced that later becomes automatic and habitual. Constant reinforcement means reinforcing the behavior of the student every time he participates. Applying a continuous reinforcement produces best results especially in new learning or conditioning situations. In education, we invoke behaviorism by awarding grades for various levels of performance that the more a student manifests interest in school/ classroom the more the behavior is reinforced so as to expect the same responses or behavior. If you wish to use positive reinforcers, and we all do, deliberately or otherwise, then you must be aware of how you use them. The following should put into consideration first; consider the age, interest, and needs of the students. Pieces of candy are not too motivating for adolescents, but they must be great for first-graders; know precisely the behavior you wish to strengthen and make your reinforcers sufficiently desirable; list potential reinforcers that you think would be desirable; vary your reinforcers and keep record of the effectiveness of various reinforcers on individual students. Positive reinforcement is a powerful principle and can be applied to great advantage in the classroom. All of us who teach, from the preschool to the doctoral level, use positive reinforcement. We must avoid, however, making students too dependent on the reinforcement we provide, particularly if we have initiated structured programs for students. We want them to work for those reinforcers that are natural to them. Punishment is a stimulus that follows a behavior and decreases the likelihood that the behavior will be repeated. It can be use to reduced inappropriate behavior but should be done sparingly as even psychologists advice it’s application in moderation. For instance, giving deductions or minuses on the accumulated grade in assignment every time a student misbehave e. g. shouting while the class in going on, decreases the likelihood of the behavior to be repeated. But when a student is not rewarded for appropriate or adaptive behavior, inappropriate or maladaptive behavior may become increasingly dominant, then punishment sinks in to eliminate such undesirable behavior. Sometimes, however, when the goal is to reduce or eliminate misbehavior, teachers consider using punishment (aversive procedures). A word of warning. Don’t fall into the trap of relying punishment. It’s easy; it frequently works for a short time (although not as well with the secondary school students); and gives you a feeling of having established control. Punishment can destroy rapport with the students if excessively used, it produces a ripple effect that touches all students and affects one’s teaching and it may have side effects of which a teacher is unaware. In general, reinforcing alternative behavior is a far better method than punishment. Sources: Elliot et al. ,(2004). Educational psychology 3rd ed. USA: McGrawHill. Essa,V. (1999). A practical guide to solving preschool behavior problems. New York:Delm How to cite Behaviorism-reinforcement, Papers

Sir Gawain and The Green Knight Imagery Essay Example For Students

Sir Gawain and The Green Knight Imagery Essay In literature, insights into characters, places, and events are often communicated to the reader through the use of imagery within the text. Thus is the case with Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The Pearl Poets use of imagery runs rampant within the work culminating to set forth the theme of mysticism and/or the supernatural. In this Medieval romance, the types of imagery used are that of the season or climate, the colors and textures of fabrics and jewelry, and that of the introduction of the Green Knight himself. The seasons play a major role in the development of the plot, allowing action to skip several months at a time by simply mentioning the turning of the leaves. The thematic imagery starts to outline the theme of the supernatural, when dealing with meteorological changes. For example when Gawain is searching for the Green Knights Chapel, it is mid-winter. Christmas is approaching, yet what answers his prayers comes in the form of something nearly unimaginable. We are made aware of the importance of the castle first when it just suddenly appears from nowhere and secondly when we notice it is set in a green field. The green field makes no sense to the reader because it is the middle of winter, but it does signify the fact that the appearance of the castle is not accidental. It is the combination of Sir Gawains prayer, the appearance of a beautiful summer landscape and the castle in the middle of it that strikes the reader and asks the question: What does it mean? The castle is great with a palisade of palings planted about for about two miles. It is shining in the sun, and Sir Gawain is standing in awe looking at it. He is thankful to Jesus and Saint Julian that they have put this castle there for him. (Mossakowski 1) This appearance in out of the middle of nowhere definitely carries with it some mystical, magical weight. The fog near the Green Knights demolished chapel can also be described as a change in atmosphere which leads to some mystical or magical emotions. The attires of the characters do not match up to these atmospheric conditions when it comes down the supernatural. If anything they can be said to have an unrealistic or inflated view of medieval life. The narrative opens with a holiday feast in King Arthurs court. The richness of this setting is represented by the decorations surrounding Queen Guenevere described in lines 76-80. With costly silk curtains, a canopy over, / Of Toulouse and Turkestan tapestries rich / All broidered and bordered with the best gems / Ever brought into Britain, with bright pennies / to pay. These lines also symbolize the queens role in the poem of a stately symbol of chivalric Camelot and as a female ideal. In this setting women are all around, but Guenevere is positioned above them and is surrounded by expensive, beautiful things. She is clearly made superior. Gawain, Arthurs knight who takes the Green Knights challenge, is portrayed in different lights as the story progresses. Descriptions of fabric and clothing are integral to this portrayal. When he is departing Camelot to find the Green Knight, Gawain is depicted as a virtuous, chivalrous knight bravely facing his fate. His clothing, therefore, is red, symbolizing courage, and bears a gold pentangle, a symbol of virtue. This is described in lines 636-639, On shield and coat in view / He bore that emblem bright / As to his word most true / And in speech most courteous knight. Later, when Gawain is taken in by the castle he happens upon, the fabric descriptions reflect how he is being taken care of. .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 , .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 .postImageUrl , .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 , .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611:hover , .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611:visited , .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611:active { border:0!important; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611:active , .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611 .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u9cd0f0cdaf09b49d5108740135dc5611:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Brett Anderson Essay For example, lines 856, A canopy over the couch, clad all with fur and 877 With quilts quaintly stitched, and cushions bedside give the reader a sense of Gawains being sheltered. Then, when he is preparing to go meet the Green Knight, contrast is shown between his former bravery and his cowardice since accepting the protective green girdle from the Green Knights wife by lines 2035-2036, That girdle of green so goodly to see / That against the gay .

Physician Assisted Suicide free essay sample

The role of a practicing medical doctor, or a physician, is defined by Mosby’s Dental Dictionary as a practitioner of medicine; one lawfully engaged in the practice of medicine. The essential word in this definition is lawful – physicians must act in a manner that is ethical to their practice and lawful to the country in which they are practicing. In most countries, murder and suicide are unlawful; therefore for a doctor to commit such an act would be considered as crime. For this reason, I stand by my belief that doctors should only prescribe life terminating drugs in certain cases, which I will explain below. To help strengthen my argument, I will use facts and opinions given by philosophers James Rachels and John Paul ll. James Rachels, an American philosopher who specialized in ethics, authored an article titled Active and Passive Euthanasia, which describes the difference between two forms of euthanasia. We will write a custom essay sample on Physician Assisted Suicide or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Active euthanasia is defined as a circumstance in which a doctor administers drugs into a patient’s body with intent to end their life. Passive euthanasia is when a doctor withdraws from giving their patient medical attention, knowing that without the care they will seize to survive. After reading Rachels’ article, I was able to differentiate between the two forms of physician assisted suicide, which essentially helped in my deliberation if it should be permissible. Additionally, my argument is based upon the definition and viewpoint philosopher John Paul II’s gave of euthanasia in his article The Tragedy of Euthanasia. In his article euthanasia is described as â€Å"an action or omission which of itself and by intention causes death, with the purpose of eliminating all suffering. † Paul stated that depending on the circumstances, this practice is malicious and can fall into the categories of suicide and murder (Paul 204). Another key component to my argument is derived from John Arras’s three criteria for physicians assisted suicide. The three criteria are: that all request for eath be truly voluntary, all reasonable alternatives to PAS and active euthanasia must be explored before granting the request for death, and a system must be kept to record all cases of PAS in order to prevent abuse (Arras 232). Arras created these criteria with the hopes that it would prevent abuse of physicians assisted suicide and that is only acted on in appropriate circumstances. The two criteria which support my argument is voluntary action and that all other options have been explored. Like Arras, I believe there are a limited number of situations in which PAS should be an option. From what I have gathered, I have determined my own personal opinion, which is that when physician assisted suicide is required and only when it is required, it should be completed as passive euthanasia. Situational details for my argument are as follows: Physicians assisted suicide should only be acted upon in extreme situations in which the patient has either 1. ) Been in a permanent vegetative state for at least six months, and the family has determined to seize treatment. In this circumstance, drugs should not be administered to illicit death. Instead, all treatment should be ended. 2. ) Been given a short amount of time (less than a month) to live and wishes to pass away peacefully instead of suffering, the physician can end treatment. In no case should a drug be prescribed to end the patient’s life, but by the patient’s request the physician can administer pain killers or a numbing drug for the patient to exit peacefully. 3. ) has an ample amount of time to live, but still has the desire to exit life, the physician should offer alternatives to the patient – euthanasia not being one of them. I have specifically identified the three situations above, because I feel only in these cases should the doctor seriously consider the option of PAS, or in the situation of option three, how to alternatively assist a patient who is seriously considering euthanasia. In the first case, I mention the doctor’s patient being in a permanent vegetative state – medically defined as patients who have an irreversible loss of brain damage who are left permanently unaware and extremely unlike to ever recover. The vegetative state case is a vital circumstance in which the doctor should consider euthanasia, because these patients will most likely never function fully as human beings again, therefore never to lead a life worth living. The decision is only to be made by the family, guardian, or caregiver of the patient rather the doctor should end treatment to allow to patient to live. However, this should only be done after six months of complete inactivity of the patient, to secure there is no chance of revival. If the family requests for their loved one to be kept alive after the six month, their wishes must be granted; the doctor shall have no say in the decision. In the case of a patient with a short amount of time to live (for example, if a disease was quickly eating and decomposing their body) and there was no cure that would keep them alive, doctors should also seize treatment if it’s is the patients wish to do so. If their wish is to be at peace for the remainder of their lifetime, the doctor should be admitted to prescribe painkillers or numbing medicines, in order to make the patient comfortable. Still, even in this circumstance, the physician should not consider active euthanasia. To prescribe a patient with deadly drugs at this point their life, would be to take a life too soon. Actions such as this would be considered murder, which is unlawful for a human being and unethical for a practicing physician. I included the third case in my argument, a patient with an ample amount of life left with the wish to end it, because I assume this is a case physicians are faced with commonly. A situation described in Timothy Quill’s article, Death and Dignity, pertains to this circumstance. One of Quill’s patients, a 45-year-old woman with Leukemia, has been under his care for years. One day she reached a point where her health had reached another decline, but instead of completing another round of chemotherapy, she wanted to enjoy the rest of the time she had with her family. After sometime, she requested sleeping pills from Quill, to exit life peacefully – he completed her prescription and within a matter of days she had taken her life. I believe Quill was wrong for giving her the prescription – this is a form of active euthanasia, and more so, a case of murder. The end of her life was determined by herself and Quill, not by the natural course her life was supposed to take. Yes, she would have eventually died at some point due to her illness, however her actual death was premature. A doctor should not have the power to decide the course of someone’s life. When a physician is presented with circumstances similar to Quill’s, they should insist on helping their patient find alternative options. This ties back into Arras’s three criteria – explore all alternatives to PAS before granting a patients wish to end their life. My justification for being completely against active euthanasia most likely stems from my strong sense of optimism. I believe life will lead its own course and should not be interrupted by others, but even more so I believe in a sense of hope and perseverance, and ultimately justice. When a patient decides to take his or her life and a doctor succumbs to the idea, the reality of the future for a patient is completely ignored. If the patient has an option between life and death – the option chosen should always be life. In our society we look down at perfectly healthy people who commit suicide, and I feel these situations are no different. I also believe these situations should be looked at in term of justice. A physician, rather given permission or not, has no greater right than any other human being to take another’s life. However, I do understand that while I am emotionally tied to this issue, there are others who think more strategically and who may have objections to the points I have made. The strongest objection I have discovered is that the fault should not be placed on the doctor, when the decision to end their life is the patients. They feel the doctor is not committing murder. I understand the logic behind this thought, however, I stand by the definition that I mentioned early in the essay – a physician is to act ethically and lawfully. More than any other duty of a physician, their job is to keep their patients healthy. In no way, does speeding up the process of death allow a patient to improve their health status. I also respond to this objection by restating that a physician has no greater right than any other human being when it comes to ending a life. A physician who commits active euthanasia should be accused and tried just as any other human who kills another. I believe physician assisted suicide should be legalized but with strict restrictions to prevent abuse and unnecessary deaths committed by physicians. The restrictions should follow stern codes, which will be determined by the government and medical associations, in order to maintain a just and trustworthy health system. Physician Assisted Suicide free essay sample In the medical field there are massive amounts of treatments for various diseases. Some treatments are going to help the patient feel more comfortable; however, some are going to counteract the problem, and others are going to help kill the patient. Physician assisted suicide is defined by medterms. com as â€Å"the  voluntary  termination of ones own life by administration of a  lethal  substance with the direct or indirect assistance of a physician.   Any person wishing to undergo assisted suicide in Oregon must be at least 18 years of age and have a terminal illness. This illness must be within its final stages and leave the patient with less than six months to live. Within these six months a patient can request the treatment, but must orally request twice, and provide a written request once as well. In order to receive this treatment, however, a second physician must give a second opinion on the length the patient has to live. We will write a custom essay sample on Physician Assisted Suicide or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In her article, â€Å"Physician-Assisted Suicide: Compassionate Liberation or Murder? Vicki Lachman talks about the option that patients have to request a lethal dosage of medication. She explores the moral conscience of nurses, the ethical and moral issues, and the legal issues that surround a patient’s request for lethal dosages. Similarly in her article, â€Å"Physician-Assisted Suicide: Development, Status, and Nursing Perspectives,† Theresa F. Rose gives background on the history of physician assisted suicide. She investigates the perspectives that nurses have on the issue and their personal views on the subject. Joris Gielen and his coworkers show a different angle in their article, â€Å"Religion and Nurses’ Attitudes to Euthanasia and Physician Assisted Suicide. † Their goal was to find the viewpoint of nurses on physician assisted suicide in regards to their religious beliefs. There are many different viewpoints on physician assisted suicide and they come from many different sources. Although physician assisted suicide may seem like a personal liberation from suffering for the patient, it is emotionally stressing on healthcare professionals. Within the healthcare spectrum the nursing staff is the closest to the patient and must deal with the moral feelings caused by physician assisted suicide. Nursing staff are going to have the closest contact with patients and their families, and therefore, will become attached to the families. This makes it difficult to live with such a decision. According to Lachman, â€Å"nurses who frequently care for dying patients did tend to be less supportive of euthanasia. †(124) Personally I can say that caring for a dying patient is very difficult. The patient may be struggling and having trouble breathing or swallowing, but they are still hanging on. In this case it is the nursing staff that tries to make the patient as comfortable as possible, but there is no thought of helping them die. There is a conscious thought to always have the patient’s comfort first place, and any other behavior would go against the moral standard set by many medical professionals. Assisting with suicide also violates the Code for Nurses with Interpretative Statements as well as any other ethical code put into place by established nursing associations. Doctors also have a moral issue in dealing with physician assisted suicide. Although the nurses generally have more contact with the patients, the doctors are still very present with patients. While nurses have the connection with patients that would be very difficult to harm, physicians have a very difficult job as well. The physician has to fulfill the wishes of the patient and prescribe the needed medication. This in itself seems unethical because the doctor is prescribing a lethal dosage of medication that will ultimately kill their patient. Furthermore, doctors must recite an oath that ensures they are only practicing to help patients, not harm them. The Hippocratic Oath is recited by new physicians stating they will practice medicine ethically. In the original version it says, â€Å"I will neither give a deadly drug to anybody who asked for it, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect. † This statement goes strictly against any physician assisted suicide plans. Ultimately physician assisted suicide goes against moral and ethical judgment that is placed within the â€Å"hands† of a practicing physician. Moral behavior of a murderer is considered lacking in many cases, but how are physicians who administer a lethal dosage of drugs any different? There are many physicians who are participating in assisted suicide, but they all have lives within their hands. They are responsible for the lives they have been entrusted with. In Norway any physician that helped with assisted suicide was charged with â€Å"accessory to murder. † In the United States there are many laws regarding murder, but accessory to murder is also a charge. A person who is considered an accessory to murder is â€Å"not typically present at the scene of the crime, but contributes to the success of the crime before or after the fact. † This statement creates a controversial wave within the country. Those physicians who are prescribing deadly doses of medication are knowingly providing a means to kill someone. Even though the physician does not administer the drugs themselves, the patient is still being killed because of the physician’s prescription. The immorality of prescribing lethal drugs may be heavily felt by the prescribing physician after administration. Many physicians are affected by the procedure after it has taken place. They are held responsible, but not liable, for the patient and their death. They provided the needed prescription to cause death to a patient. In a survey mentioned in an article by Kenneth R. Stevens, Jr. , M. D. , FACR, it was stated that, â€Å"53% of physicians received comfort from having helped a patient with euthanasia or PAS, 24% regretted performing euthanasia or PAS, and 16% of the physicians reported that the emotional burden of performing euthanasia or PAS adversely affected their medical practice. It is obvious that the effects of such a traumatic experience are hard on any physician. The act of killing someone, even if it is just prescribing the needed medication, is hard on the conscious mind of any psychologically sound person. Although it would seem that the physicians practicing physician assisted suicide should know what kind of psychological battle they are getting into, some are finding it m ore difficult than they first believed. These physicians have to prescribe a drug that will kill their patient, the one they have tried to keep as healthy as possible.

How to Create Amazing Content Upgrades for Your Blog - CoSchedule

How to Create Amazing Content Upgrades for Your Blog If you know anything about online marketing, you are aware of the power of email. After all, email has a 3800% ROI. Yes, email is that  powerful. But in order to use email to grow your business, you first need to have an email list. And to get one, you need to acquire subscribers. There are many tactics you can use to get more subscribers for your email list, but theres one that has been the darling of the online marketing world for the past few years. Im talking about content upgrades. If you dont know what they are, I will explain you everything you need to know about them. Lets get started. How to Create Amazing Content Upgrades for Your BlogWhat Content Upgrades Really Are A content upgrade is any kind of extra content that your blog's visitors can get access to in exchange for their email address. In a way, they resemble to lead magnets, in the sense you send them something for their email address. But what sets them apart is what makes content upgrades so effective. First of all, a content upgrade needs to be relevant  to the content piece that visitors are already consuming. Then, they need to add extra value  to the reader for free. Content upgrades need to add extra value to the readerFor example, the content upgrade you can find at the bottom of this article, a checklist with everything you will have learned, was made just for this article. On the contrary, if I had created a highly detailed and actionable yet unrelated lead magnet, it wouldn't have the same impact on you. You may not be as enticed to download it compared to the lead magnet because it may not be relevant to you. The key of a content upgrade, however, isn't just to let a visitor download something related to an article. In the case of this article, I could have offered you a resource list with related articles to this one. That could work because it's related to this article. But would it add extra value to you? Probably not. I could easily link to those articles and that would be it. What matters the most, and what makes people want to download content upgrades so much, is that they add a lot of extra value to the article, and most importantly, to the reader. Content upgrades are so hot right because for one reason: they work. Let me show you some examples of famous people that have used content upgrades to grow their businesses: Brian Dean from Backlinko  increased his conversion rate from 0.54%. to 4.82%. Clay Collins, co-founder of LeadPages, said that content upgrades  were the number one factor  in growing their email list. James Scherrer from Wishpond, found content upgrades convert  their visitors 575% better  compared to the articles that don't feature one. One company that uses content upgrades, not surprisingly, is , the company that hosts this same blog. I can't speak for their results, but I can imagine given the amazing job they are doing with their content marketing and promotion, and the relevancy of their offers, they must be doing great. For example, in one of their most recent articles, as soon as you start scrolling down they offer you a "template bundle" with information that is related and expands the idea of the article. I don't know about you, but downloading a bundle of templates sounds really good. This is how uses content upgrades, and they do it great. Now you know what they are and well they work, I will show you how you can create one to start getting these same results. Recommended Reading: 113 Content Types to Organize With Your Marketing Calendar How to Create Content Upgrades for Your Blog Step #1: Define the Problem Your Content Is Solving As you already know by now, content upgrades have to be relevant to your visitors' problems. As a consequence, before you create your content upgrades, you need to make sure you know what these problems are. You may think  you know, but you need to be 100% sure to be able to improve your conversion rate and make your visitors happy. In order to find your visitors' problems, you need to ask yourself a few questions that will help you dig deeper on the problem at hand: What is the content piece about? What is the audience? What problem is your content trying to solve? What are you trying to teach them? What can you  teach them? Let's take this article as an example. The answer to each question in the order they were asked would be: This article is about what content upgrades are and how to use them to get more email subscribers. The audience is made up of bloggers, content marketers, and marketing managers that are trying to grow their email list. Your problem is you want to grow your email but you can't or don't know. You may also want to grow it faster than you currently are. I'm trying to teach you how to grow your email list with a technique called content upgrades. I can teach you why they are so powerful because I have case studies to show, and also how to implement them because I have done it many times in the past. As you can see, all these questions put in evidence the problem this article is solving. This gives me a good idea of what you are trying to accomplish by reading this article, and how I can help you solving it. But most importantly, it gives me a better idea of how I can deliver extra value through the content upgrade. Creating content upgrades? Ask, "How can I deliver extra value?Step #2: Develop the Content Piece In this step, you only need to do what you normally would: you create your content. Since you already know the problem you are trying to solve, you only need to deliver that solution within your content piece. In the case of this article, it took me over 2k words to deliver all the value I could to help you solve your problem: growing your email list. Now, it's time to see how we can expand this value through the content upgrade. Step #3: Expand the Value You may know what problems your audience have, and you have already created the solution to that problem in the form of an article. Now it's time to expand on its value. First of all, remember there's a finite amount of problems you can solve for your audience, mainly because your audience is (and should be) finite as well. If you have ever created buyer personas for your blog, you know you need to target your content  towards a small group of people with a clear set of problems. With that said, you need to ask yourself, how will overdeliver  on your value? Just giving them a PDF without adding anything extra won't make much of a difference on your visitors' life. Always focus on adding more value, so it's a no-brainer for your visitors to download your content upgrade. The easiest way to expand on the value of your content piece is by taking the biggest lessons and insights, and make them better. There are plenty of ways you can do that: Expand on the insight Make it more actionable Make it easier to understand Show a step-by-step process of how you can implement it Show pictures of how it's done Show videos of how it's done Provide templates Provide transcriptions Provide a mind map with all the insights or concepts Create a graphic explaining them These ideas will help you provide the additional value your visitors are looking for, and what will make them want to download your content upgrade. Recommended Reading: The 6 Types of Social Media Content That Will Give You the Greatest Value Step #4: Define the Type of Content Upgrade Before we move on to the creation of the content upgrade, which is the one that most people focus on first, you need to define what kind of content upgrade you will create. Here's the thing, there are many types of content upgrades you can use. There's no right or wrong content upgrade per se, as it depends on your content piece, your style, and the value you are giving away. The most common ones are: Article in PDF Audio version Cheat sheet Checklist Resource list Templates Transcription Video Worksheets My favorite one is the checklist, as it takes a whole article, and condenses its value in a few pages. Not only that, but they are also action-focused. I've personally found they work better than the other ones as well. Still, you should try a few types and see which one works better for you. If you are still wondering what these different types of content upgrades look like, here there are some examples that will hopefully inspire you: Optin Monster Type: Cheat Sheat Article: 700+ Power Words That Will Boost Your Conversions Value: Get the each of the 700 words in one simple list, organized by type. Backlinko Type: Checklist Article: SEO Strategy Case Study (#1 Ranking 963% More Traffic) Value: Take a step-by-step look of the specific actions you need to implement to get more inbound links with guesto-graphics. Video Fruit Type: Video training Article: Expanded Guest Post: How to 100x the effectiveness of your next guest post Value: See a video screencast with Bryan Harris implementing the steps mentioned in the article to expand the value of the guest posts. Nerd Marketing Type: Audio transcription Article: Podcast 27: A â€Å"One-Two Punch† Email Campaign to Increase Order Frequency Value: If you can't listen to the podcast, or prefer to read and not listen (like I do), read a word-by-word transcription of the email campaign Drew Sanocki uses to increase order frequency. LeadPages Type: Worksheet Article: The Unique Content Process: How To Write What No One Has Ever Written Value: Find the most important insights of the unique content process explained in the article without having to sift back through the post later. Recommended Reading: How to Generate and Nurture Leads With Brittany Berger from Mention Step #5: Create Content Upgrade Now that you have everything in place, it's time to (finally!) create your content upgrade. Here's when you want to take some time to make sure you make your content upgrade as awesome as possible. After all, if you are giving away a lot of extra value, you can't do it while you are multitasking or in between calls. When creating your content upgrade, there are a few different roads you can take, from the best and most expensive to the cheapest (and probably worst quality). Hire a Designer This is probably the best way to go. Unless you are a designer yourself, you don't have the skills nor time to create a good-looking content upgrade. However, if you are going to hire a designer, make sure to get a good one. Remember that you always get what you pay for. If you have a designer in-house, then this is a no-brainer for you. But if you don't, it may end up being a bit expensive for you. Still, it may be worth the investment. If you are going to hire a designer, make sure to get a good one.Two companies that may help you create and design a high-quality content upgrade are Design Pickle  and Pug Shop Design. They offer design services for a flat free and at a good price. Use Beacon One tool that was created just to create content upgrades and lead magnets is called Beacon. It's probably one of the best-hidden marketing tools out there, so I highly recommend you take a look at it. It's a bit buggy, but it does its job at a good price. It has everything you need for any kind of content upgrade you want to create. They let you import your content, pick a template, customize it, and once you have it finished, you only need to click "Save" and "Export PDF" and you are done. If you end up downloading my content upgrade at the bottom of the article, you will see how their content upgrades look like. Use Canva Canva  is like Photoshop for amateurs (like me). You can make some pretty neat designs, and if you are creative enough, you may end up with a cool simple design. This is best for small checklists and the like, not for long or complex ones. Do It Yourself You can always fall into the common DIY trend and try to do something with Word, Pages, iBooks Author or Photoshop. Depending on your skills, this may be a good idea or not. If you are like me, it's probably not. I used iBooks Authorfor a while, and it worked pretty well. But they didn't look very professional, so I stopped using it once I started with Beacon. You can still use these tools for simple resource lists and PDF versions, not for checklists and worksheets, or any other more complex kind of content upgrade. Recommended Reading: How to Create an E-Book and Publish it on Amazon KDP Step #6: Create Landing Page If you remember what I said in the beginning, you give out content upgrades in exchange for someone else's email. But where do you make this exchange? It's not that your visitors will send you a postcard with their email address so you can add them to your list in 3 to 5 business days. That's a bit old-fashioned, don't you think? You need to do it in a convenient and seamless way. That's what landing pages are for. You create a page just for people to visit, put their email information, and download the content upgrade. My favorite tool to do this is by far LeadPages. You only need to pick a template, put the copy where it belongs, add your content upgrade, create a simple autoresponder email sequence, and publish it. This is how you do it: First, open an account with them. They don't have a free trial, rather they offer a 30-day money back guarantee. Either way, I highly recommend you spend the money on their tool, as it's one of the best and most fundamental pieces of any online marketing campaign. Once you have opened your account, you will be taken to My Page, which is kind of a dashboard for your account. Before creating the LeadPage, we need to add the content upgrade. To do that, click on your username on the right, and click "Lead Magnets". Click on "Create New Lead Magnet" button on the right. Then, give your lead magnet a name, upload it, choose a sender email and name. Finally, add a simple message that the recipients of the email will see when they get the content upgrade on their email account. Don't overcomplicate this, because you can change it later. Once you are done with this, go back to the LeadPages page and click on the "Create New Page" button. Then, pick any of the dozens of free templates they show you. Filter by "Opt In" and sort by "Highest Converting". Pick one of the first ones you see. For the sake of this example, I will use this article to create the landing page. As you can see below, I simply added the name of this article in the landing page's title, and nothing else. Before clicking the "Publish" button, we need to integrate the content upgrade. To do so, click the CTA button and then the little link icon that shows up below it. Then, click the "View/Edit" button as you can see below. Then, click once again the big CTA button, and when the "Edit Your Form" sidebar shows up to your left, click the "Follow-up" tab. In there, below the "Add a File", choose the content upgrade you previously uploaded. Then, click "Save Close Form". Then I clicked "Publish". Just remember people are already sold to your content upgrade, so you don't have to overcomplicate this. Look at my landing page below and you will see. It's uber-minimalistic. Just the name of the article, the download button, and nothing more. Just remember people are already sold to your content upgrade, so you don't have to overcomplicate this. Look at my landing page below and you will see. It's uber-minimalistic. Just the name of the article, the download button, and nothing more. Step #7: Promote Within Your Post Now it's time to put the content upgrade where it belongs: in your articles. You need to make sure people know there's something valuable waiting for them. Otherwise, they will most likely ignore it when they see it. You have a few options to do so. Create a Knowledge Gap This is something I learned from Bryan Harris. He recommends opening what he calls a "knowledge gap", like the one you found at the intro of this article, and then close it at the end, as you can see below. This creates a "gap" in the mind of your visitors that makes them want to scroll down and see what's the article about, and how they can get that extra value. Add Banners and Slide-Ins Another way is to add a static banner or a slide-in within your article so people "bump" into it as they read. This is what usually does, as I showed you before. Put It at the End (and Hope for the Best) This is what many people (or most?) do. They just put the content upgrade at the end with just a link, and hope people will find it. Apparently, these people think since they already took the time to create the content, they don't have the time to actually promote it correctly. Don't make this mistake. Make sure everyone finds and click on the link that leads to the content upgrade. Using the awesome Pareto Principle, 80% of your results will come from 20% of your time. This is your 20%, so make sure you use it right. Promote your content upgrade. Grow your list.

Risk Management and financial derivatives Essay

Risk Management and financial derivatives - Essay Example In this regard, pharmaceutical firms are relatively more volatile than most companies in other industries ("Risk Management in the Pharmaceuticals Industry" 2005). This paper discusses the major business risks that have significant impact on pharmaceutical companies, specifically AstraZeneca. Moreover, it explains how the company utilises derivative financial instruments such as interest rate swaps and forward foreign contracts to minimise its exposure to financial risks brought about by fluctuations in the interest rate and exchange rate. This paper also presents alternative strategies that the firm can adopt in order to hedge against these risks. Based on their annual reports, AstraZeneca and other multinational pharmaceutical companies including GlaxoSmithKline and Merck have identified risk factors affecting their operations. These are summarised as follows: Most pharmaceutical companies have recognised that the pharmaceutical companies throughout the world have become highly competitive ("Risk Management in the Pharmaceuticals Industry" 2005). AstraZeneca cited that industry consolidation have resulted in the establishment of few but very large and formidable companies which are able to match, if not exceed, the firm's resources allocated for research and development as well as marketing. This threatens the company's competitive edge, thus, directly impacting its bottomline ("AstraZeneca Annual Report" 2004). Similarly, GlaxoSmithKline explained that product innovations and advent of technological advances which competitors may adopt could adversely affect the firm's operating results ("GlaxoSmithKline Annual Report" 2001). These factors have facilitated the emergence of new global players, particularly in the markets of China and India, which are playing increasingly significant roles in the business models of industry players ("China and India: Risk and Returns in Asia's Blockbuster Pharma Markets" 2005). Apart form these, AstraZeneca also mentioned that risk relative to competition is aggravated by the loss or expiration of patents, marketing exclusivity and trademarks. The company noted that once patent protection or other types of marketing exclusivity for a certain product have expired, lower priced generic copy products may be legally manufactured. The introduction of generic products generally leads to substantial loss of sales for the pharmaceutical companies' proprietary products ("GlaxoSmithKline Annual Report" 2001). The competition from generic medicines exerts downward pressure on profit margins and results in decreasing revenues. This is evidenced by the study conducted by Deloitte which asserts that the very large number of drugs coming off patent in the next three to five years equates to billions of dollars in current in potential sales. However, it is estimated that the pharmaceutical giants could lose about $35 billion to $50 billion in product sales during the said time frame due to competition from generic brands. (Rhodes & Mulder 2004) Regulatory Approvals and Price Controls Pharmaceutical companies are also facing increasing pressures from regulatory bodies in various countries. In

The BP gulf oil spill Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The BP gulf oil spill - Assignment Example The BP gulf oil spill As a result of the explosion, 4.9 millions barrels of crude oil were released into the surrounding water before the wells were capped in July. The spilt oil caused considerable damage to the wildlife and marine animals. Similarly, on July 6th 2011, it was reported that ExxonMobil had spill around a 1000 barrels of oil into the Yellowstone River on the coast of Montana as an underground pipeline under the river bed ruptured. While ExxonMobil has taken on the responsibility of cleaning the river and all damage caused, the question arises whether the government has done enough to protect the environment from further such disasters. Surely after the BP oil spill, such a disaster should not have occurred, especially barely a year after the last one. What did the government do in light of the first disaster, and what will they be doing after this one? If these companies are drilling for oil, they are naturally doing it with the consent of the government, who are in turn doing it for the betterment of the citizens. But if they are doing so, do they not have a responsibility to ensure that all risk of the cost of doing so is reduced and minimal? And if it is indeed their responsibility to do so, in the light of the fact that failure to do so has occurred time and again, what is the government doing to prevent further such mistakes. More importantly, why do these mistakes occur, time and again. When investigatio n was carried out into the causes behind the BP oil spill it was found that had overlooked several factors, that had they been correctly addressed might have prevented the accident2. For the sake of cutting back on costs, BP, Halliburton and Transocean had worked on a lower budget, thereby compromising on quality control. For example. BP had overlooked the strength of the cement being used in the walls of the pipes, as well as incorrectly cementing the walls of the pipes34. Furthermore, the failed result of several pressure tests were also ignored, which had they been properly addressed, might have prevented the ultimate bursting of the well. But while BP was considerably criticized for their faults in preventing the oil spill, the fact was that the US government also missed considerable chances to prevent the attack and then later on further responses in light of the attack5. For one thing, officials initially underestimated the threat of a leak, taking on the word of BP officials when they were asked about it a year earlier6. Once the leak occurred, they underestimated the extent of the leak. They was assumed that oil on the surface of the water was merely that: on the surface. It was not understood that it was spilling from an underground source, and thereby spread not only on the surface but rather throughout the water. As a result of this underestimation, the government disregarded the need for critical action, trusting the word of the company that said would take care of it. Oil critics say that government officials rely on oil companies to manage the oil spills, meaning they do not go into the investigation personally by going on site or into an in-depth investigation, thereby making their response to the spill inadequate. Critics also say that the government should not trust that companies have enough resources to judge in advance whether a risk exists and then once it occurs, whether they have the resources to take care of it. In the light that it doe sn't, the government sh

International Financial Accounting and Theory Essay

International Financial Accounting and Theory - Essay Example The development of corporate governance in the UK since 1991 up to 2011 is assessed in this paper with a discussion on the various reports which are involved in the changes in the governance of companies in the UK. There were many corporate governance failures within UK companies such as Maxwell communications in the mid and late 1980s which included risky acquisitions, large debts and missing company assets. This led to the setting up of a committee in May 1991 which was chaired by Sir Adrian Cadbury to investigate the failures in corporate governance of companies with an aim of making recommendations for necessary changes to the control of companies. Shelmerdine and Walter (2001, p. 142) assert that the aim of the committee was to perform a thorough investigation of the corporate governance system in British Companies so that relevant suggestions would be provided in their report to ensure that the confidence of investors on the British Companies was regained. The Cadbury report wh ich was released in December 1992 recommended that the companies which were listed in the report had to provide their annual accounting reports which had to be reviewed by auditors for verification and compliance. The Cadbury report also recommended for a remuneration committee for each company to cater for the rights of the shareholders of British companies as said by Pendleton (2005, p. 107). The Greenbury Committee which was formed after the Cadbury Committee produced its report on corporate governance in 1995. The Greenbury committee was created in response to the need for a review of the remuneration of company directors. The Greenbury report which followed the guidelines of the Cadbury report made recommendations for the improvements on the control of the remuneration of company executives. Therefore the report recommended that the remuneration committees of companies should comprise at least three non-executive committee members to make decisions on executive remuneration pac kage. According to Sheridan, Jones and Marston (2006, p. 419), the Hampel committee which was created to recommend changes in the corporate governance of British companies released its report in 1998. The report recommended corporate governance which protected the interests of investors. The Hampel report acted to endorse the recommendations of earlier reports on corporate governance so that improvements were made. More developments in the corporate governance of the UK companies were demonstrated by the 1999 Turnbull Report which provided company directors guidance for internal control of companies which followed a combined code of early reports. The report defined the obligation of directors in relation to providing proper internal controls that ensured quality in auditing and reporting the annual financial reports as demonstrated by Pendleton (2005, p. 113). The Higgs Report of 2003 was based on the review of the effectiveness of non-directors in execution of their roles within c ompanies. The Higgs report was in support of the existing guidelines of corporate governance and created a guidance that was based on the review of previous scandals in British companies. The guidance of the Higgs Report was amended in December 2009 by the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA). The Draft guidance of the ICSA was