Archive | Commentary RSS for this section

It’s All Right To Be Selfish

By Cheval John

I had expected to go to another level this year because of the wins I accomplished the previous year:

Speaking at two social media conferences (social media day lima in ohio and social media day houston)
Working as a volunteer at the social media command center during super bowl 51
Getting interviewed on some live streaming shows.

I was hoping the business was going to take off because of these wins.

That was not the case.

It seemed like I was going backwards.

I ended up working full time again as an employee at a lodging company because it was the right thing to do and my business depended on it.

From that, I realized that I was not getting any younger and I needed to watch out more for myself.

So I started exercising again since in more than a decade and hired an online personal trainer by the name of Monique Kabel to get me on the right track.

The interesting part is Ms. Kabel is based in Canada.

I found out about Ms. Kabel through Instagram because she was posting uplifting messages on her account.

She competed in the World Beauty Fitness and Fashion (WBFF) Competitions and knew a lot about getting ready to compete against others in the fitness industry.

She was not like half of those who would post their photos with a link to a product or service most of the time because of their influence.

Or try to sell to people when they connect with them.

She basically shared inspiration to those who needed it and also show a lot of her workout routines on instagram stories.

So I decided she was the one to be my personal trainer and it was the best decision.

She uses the Trainerize app to put together personalized workout routines that fit me.

This was the best alternative to going to the gym because of my work schedule.

At the same time, I learned a lot from my employers because they started from the ground up in the hotel industry.

Their example of how to be fiscally responsible to the point that I have become more disciplined in how to spend money.

This also helped me to keep Ms. Kabel as my personal trainer too.

It seemed like I have neglected my business (producing content here via blog post and podcast) due to this transition back to full time employment.

I realized that I needed to be selfish and take care of me first in order to be more creative and take care of the business.

Looking back on it, this year was not a setback at all because of the valuable lessons I learned from this experience which I will share with you now:

You Must Take Care Of Your Health

I can’t emphasize this enough.

Do not fall for the so-called hustle culture of working non-stop until you get results.

Being smart with how much food you consume and the amount of time you exercise can play a part in whether your business will succeed or not.

Also, get enough sleep because you can’t be creative if you are tired all the time.

Surround Yourself With Like-Minded People

They will always lift you up when you least expect and will never bring you down just to feel good about themselves.

Focus On The Process

When you aim for the results, you lose track on enjoying the journey and end up producing crappy content.

The true social media influencers (fitness included) focused on providing value to their audience and appreciated the journey to that success.

They were the ones that helped me to make it through this transitional year which will launch me to the next level in my life in 2019.

To conclude, here are some of the people you should follow on instagram if you want to start the new year right

Mindy Harley

David Marshall

Elizabeth Marshall

Lesley Maxwell

Ainsley Rodriguez

Michelle MacDonald

Joan MacDonald

Ryall Graber

Abbie Liu

Jenn Hermann

Jessika Phillips

Embracing Growth

By Cheval John

This has been a year of transition.

I had no idea that I would be working at a lodging company and learning the travel industry from the ground up.

In that time frame, I realized I needed to get back to exercising because I wanted to be here for a very long time.

I had the opportunity to learn from the best of the best in the travel industry and also learn how to become a better manager of my finances.

I also did not expect to take a long hiatus from my business because I was adjusting to being an employee again.

I am very appreciative of the lessons learned from this work experience and also managing my time better.

At the time of this post, I am back in Huntsville, Texas just for a day to see the growth of Sam Houston State University and cover the Bearkat Volleyball team’s matchup tonight.

What is really impressive is half of their season’s matchup have been televised live nationally on ESPN+ this year.

So it is safe to say small to medium sized businesses and even the smaller sports organizations are on a level playing field with the larger corporations.

I am getting back to the flow of blogging again.

So please bare with me and thank you for everything.

The New Game of Monolopy (Social Media Style)

By Cheval John

The game of monopoly have been very popular for many years.

The purpose was to own as many property as you can in order to have leverage over the other competitors.

Though it takes a while to play, it can bring out the competitive spirit of others.

Why bring up this game when we are in the digital age you might ask?

This game has similarities to where are in time.

The majority of the world have smartphones to where they have the power to choose what they can do with it.

They can watch netflix of their favorite television shows, take selfies of themselves having a good time with their friends, or record milestone moments in their lives.

Add on social media accounts and they can create the lives they want.

That is why you see many have youtube channels that have allowed them to have a loyal audience to the the point they become “famous”

It is the same with other social media accounts like instagram.

And many are trying to build a following as fast as they can so they can lure brands to work with them.

This explosive growth of the so-called “influencer marketing” is the catalyst of why many are trying to build a following as fast as they can.

For instagram alone, it is more than a billion dollar industry.

And if you are an instagram influencer, you got it made.

You might believe you can have access to events free and even think you can have free drinks at a pub.

You think the world will know about you because you are an “influencer”

The only problem is that many do not.

Ana Delia, who is a fitness professional basically sum it up in this post

So for the majority who think they are all that because they are influencers, sorry to break the news, you are only known in your space.

As Ana Delia also said in this same post, “Stay Grounded.”

Are Entrepreneurs Really “Unemployed”

By Cheval John

I saw a commercial during the Super Bowl on how a loan company simplifies the process of getting a loan for a home.

The comedian played the person who simplifies the complicated questions in relation to the company.

Video courtesy of Quicken Loans

What got my attention during the commercial was when a lady asked about a dating account when she saw entrepreneur and the comedian said, “unemployed.”

The truth: entrepreneurs create work for themselves.

Everyday, they have to go and find customers or clients in order for the business to thrive.

For example, a public relations agency has to look for clients and make a proposal in order to convince the person or organization on why they are the right fit.

The unemployed is searching for work with an organization hoping to land the job of their dreams so they can be have a salary to provide for themselves and their families.

They will attend networking events, volunteer for non-profits,participate in twitter chats or even do a live stream show to build long lasting relationships.

Sometimes the entrepreneur who does not have consistent cash flow will have to find part work in order to keep their business alive.

That does not mean they have given up on their business.

It only means they are reducing the stress of running a business.

Barbara Corcoran mentioned in a episode of Shark Tank she had to take a part time job in order to meet payroll for her employees in the early stages of her former company, The Corcoran Group.

If you are fortunate to pick up a second job while you are running your business, you are in luck.

You can build relationships with customers at your second job because that is what they pay you to do.

The thing is you should know how to use your time wisely and also use your common sense because you do not want to create a conflict of interest.

You should also have a positive attitude and see your second job as a venture fund because the company is “funding your business indirectly through a paycheck.”

Meaning you spend the money wisely and save up for expenses or courses which can allow you to learn a new skills that can benefit your business.

Instead of complaining about how much money you are making or why you are not where you are in your business, just be grateful.

You will end up learning valuable lessons.

I will share from my personal experience.

I had worked in a small coffee chain for about two years mostly in downtown houston.

The environment was not great for growth.

Though I could have brought value to them with social media in addition to the regular work duties, they did not give me the opportunity to run their accounts.

They did not allow me the flexibility to run my business whenever I was off because most of the time, they would try and call me in to work and expect me to drop everything for them.

Despite those challenges, I managed to learn everything I can from the business and also build quality relationships with the customers because most of them worked in corporate america in the downtown area.

When I left the coffee chain, I still see half of them whenever I am in downtown and they would ask how I am doing.

I thought I would not be an employee again because I like the freedom of running my business.

The problem was I was not making money consistently.

So when I the owner of a lodging company offered me work, I knew it was the right fit because it would give me the opportunity to learn more about the travel industry since I decided to pivot my business towards this sector.

I was a bit hesitant to take the work because I knew I would have to cancel some shows I had set up weeks prior for my podcast.

After talking to a few colleagues, I decided to become an employee again and work at the lodging company.

Since this business sector is new to me, I had to train on the basics of working in the lodging company.

I can say I had completed one month of working at the lodging company.

Though I am working every day in the night shift, I am very fortunate because I am learning from the owners on how to run a business the right way.

I am also learning more about the tiny details of how a business works including being a great sales person, how to be a supervisor to a degree and how to get back to saving money from the paycheck I earned.

Working at the lodging company allows me to be super focus on managing my time wisely so I can keep the business going.

If you think you are going backwards because you decide to get a second job while you are building your business, you need to get rid of that thinking.

Just because the super successful entrepreneurs says, “you are not an entrepreneur if you work part time,” does not mean they are 100% right.

Everyone have their own journey to success and these same entrepreneurs will not pay your expenses when you are fighting to build a good business.

So do what you need to do to keep your business afloat and treat your internal and external customers right.

You will learn valuable skills which will allow you to turn your business into a cash flow machine.

Podcast Anniversary Milestone Worth The Wait

By Cheval John

February 7th, 2018

Today’s episode of What’s The Word? featuring Kate Frappell, Design Lead at ManageFlitter is a very special show.

Kate is also the co-host of It’s A Monkey Podcast and is the producer of the popular twitter chat, #socialroi, hosted by Madalyn Sklar.

This episode marks the fifth year anniversary when I started the podcast on this very day.

I basically used my cell phone to host the show because I felt at that time I did not have the resources to spend on a microphone or editing type of equipment that goes into podcasting.

The platform I still use to this day to launch this show, blogtalkradio, made it simple for non-tech people like me to schedule the show and allow me and the guest to dial into the platform.

From there, the show goes live as an online radio show and then they process the interview and turn it into a podcast feed to distribute to iTunes (now apple podcasts), stitcher and google play music.

I honestly had planned to start the podcast in january after I had created the account with blogtalkradio.

However, the guest basically changed her mind and let me know she could not be a part of the podcast.

This taught me a lesson which I basically would recommend to anyone who is thinking about starting a podcast.

Never ask someone outside of the people you know very well to be a guest on your show if you are just starting out with a podcast.

Most of the time, the outside people will be nervous because they do not know what to expect if you are launching a podcast for the first time.

It is much better to have a track record of your show when you are pitching to most of the big name people because they want to make sure that your podcast fits their business or their brand.

My first guest was a professor at Sam Houston State University (SHSU), who had served in the white house during the ford and reagan administration.

I will admit that a bit of miscommunication led to a shaky start in the early going of the show.

But when the guest arrived, the show went well and had over a 1,000 downloads to my surprise.

In the first year and a half of hosting the show, the majority of my guests were professors and college coaches from S.H.S.U.

From there, the guest became more diverse due to the fact that publicist were reaching out to me to interview their clients and even from building long term friendships on social media.

Then the live stream revolution changed the direction in how I host the show.

Meerkat was launched in february of 2015 and was introduced at South by Southwest the following month of the same year.

Ironically, Periscope was launched in March of that same year and became an “instant hit” with consumers.

The live video platform, blab, was launched around mid-summer of 2015.

This app was the first to host entirely on computer and not on smartphones which gave people like me who did not own phones with apps at that time to participate in the live streaming revolution.

It also had the ability to record the live stream which would be saved as an mp4 video and a mp3 audio which made it easy for me to upload to blogtalkradio.

This also made me realized that I would need a quality microphone to make the live stream work.

So I bought my first microphone and jump right in the live streaming revolution.

As the saying goes, social media changes in an instant.

And that is what happened to the live streaming apps.

Meerkat disappeared within a year and blab basically disappeared in that same time frame.

While Periscope later integrated with Twitter and Facebook Live was officially launched in early 2016.

What is interesting to note is that the smart video companies have pivoted their services to be as compatible with the bigger social media platforms which are dominating the live streaming revolution.

Platforms like Zoom and Blue Jeans Network, which has been in business for years before the live streaming revolution, integrated their platform with the likes of YouTube Live and Facebook Live.

So now I am recording all of my podcast using facebook live via blue jeans network and today’s episode is part of it.

In this episode, you will hear:

-how Kate decided to become a designer
-how she became the lead designer for ManageFlitter
-what inspired Kate to live in Canada for an extended period of time
-the importance of live streaming
-why businesses should embrace social media

This episode was recorded on Facebook Live via Blue Jeans Network in January of this year before ManageFlitter’s one year anniversary of hosting the #socialroi chat.

Snippet on Vallano Media TV

Full Episode on BlogTalkRadio

Website: www.katefrappell.com

Twitter: @katefrappell

Quotes from Kate Frappell on:

STARTING THE #SOCIALROI TWITTER CHAT

I think mainly we just wanted to get the manageflitter name out there and better build relationships with our customers and our audience.

From our point of view, get inside the minds and find out what products they are using, how they are using them, why they like certain things and learn from them so that we can implement it into the internet social as well.

It’s been really good.

When I first started, I was like, “Oh, I’m not sure this twitter chat thing is all about” and now, I really like it.

I think they’re great.

I’ve met a lot of great people through twitter and joined all sorts of different twitter chats and had opportunities like this to talk on podcasts.

It’s been really good.

Great exposure as well.

That’s sort of the journey for #socialroi.

BUSINESSES HOSTING OR PARTICIPATING IN TWITTER CHATS

Twitter chats are an opportunity to log in and chat with other like-minded people or people who know more than you.

If you are an entrepreneur and you want to learn about, let’s say, social media marketing, you could jump on the #socialroi chat and find out how you can improve your return on investment using social media.

Everybody in the chat talking about the same thing.

We have different topics every week and you can just learn so much as an individual or as a small business.

You can meet people who give you business opportunities.

It’s sort of a never-ending cycle.

I think it’s really worth putting the time into networking.

From a personal point of view, I mean a lot of entrepreneurs starting out are very busy and there is a lot of networking events that you physically have to attend.

But for a twitter chat, you just have to log in.

You do not have to even leave your desk.

I think it’s fantastic.

LIVE STREAMING

I think it’s still growing to be honest.

I do watch some live streams, but they are not the first thing I go and look at.

If I log into facebook, I’m sort of just scrolling through my newsfeed as I am used to.

But, I will click on the occasional live stream and they end up being very valuable.

So I think it’s just a matter of time before people kind of adopt and get use to watching these live videos and understanding who’s behind the businesses that are hosting them.

I think I read recently that 80% of people would rather watch a video than read something, especially people on social media.

I think it’s gonna be good.

I think it’s really going to take off.

The other thing as well is it’s evergreen.

For example, even if someone’s not watching this video right now, it’s going to be on your facebook page and people can come back and watch it at any time.

PODCASTS

Podcasting is becoming more popular definitely.

Even if you look now at the amount of softwares that are out there to help with podcasting.

One of the big problems we have with the monkey podcast is not getting enough analytics.

The fact that Apple is actually building this software to look into the analytics of podcast listeners is saying a lot like where podcast is going, how popular it is, why people are listen to it.

Business people and entrepreneurs are going to need it if they are going to take on podcasting.

It has a lot of potential especially with mobile devices now.

It’s nice to listen to something other than music sometimes.

WORKING REMOTELY

We use slack internally.

That makes it super easy to message each other.

Slack made a huge difference in opening that communication online.

Plus, the time zone is not terrible.

9 a.m. in Sydney, Australia is about 2 p.m. pacific time here in the west coast of Canada.

So I have the morning by myself and then the afternoon, everybody is online.

It’s basically like working in Sydney, Australia in the afternoon.

It’s been really good.

Twitter obviously helps as well.

Everybody is on twitter quite a bit because the whole product surrounds twitter.

I would say that there’s e-mails as well and a little bit of skype.

Really, I just have to credit slack.

ON MOVING TO CANADA

What led me to come over here was I’ve always really liked Canada for some reason.

My aunt would give me travel guides to Canada for Christmas.

In 2015, I did a lot of traveling to New York, East Coast Canada, West Coast Canada and Alaska before going back home.

I got a taste of the different parts of Canada and most of the highlights which is sort of the nature of the bus tours.

I really like the west coast of Canada and knew I wanted to come back here.

I kept working and saved money.

Then I was like, “You know what, I really want to go and live there.”

I applied for my visa and I got it.

I had a chat with Kevin (Garber), who is the boss of Manage Flitter and he thought about it for a bit and said, “Look, we rather you keep the job and work remotely than quit.”

I said, “Thank you.”

I really like the team.

It worked out really well.

That’s how I ended up here.

BUSINESS OWNERS OR EMPLOYEES WORKING REMOTELY

I would recommend it in the sense.

If you have not worked remotely before, it’s a whole new adventure.

Make sure you put the time into your day and have the discipline to work, but also have the discipline to switch off because you can just stretch your work day out forever.

I’m finding a good balance and the flexibility is amazing.

So sometimes, if I want to do something fun in the morning, I can and then I can start my day a little bit later and I’ll be online when everyone in Australia is online and I can work a little bit late into the night to make up for that.

It’s a huge learning curve from a working career perspective.

If you go to a new place, it’s a whole new culture to learn.

You make a lot of new friends.

You have to put yourself out there.

It sort of pushes you outside of your comfort zone which is really important I think.

Who would you like to be a guest on What’s The Word? in the future? You can leave your comment below.