If I Could Have 3 Wishes..

Want to travel, but hesitant because you’d like to be making money rather than spending it? Or you simply just have no time? You are experiencing the same dilemma that every person, young and old, can understand. It’s a big commitment, spending money on something you can’t tangibly receive at your doorstep.

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Is it really worth it? It’s not like you can physically keep it and the longer it lasts the less you guilty you feel about its cost, so why do it? Because I don’t think I’ve ever met a single person who has regretted taking time to travel (pictured left, photographic representation of what you look like when you're a stressed, tired, sad, broke college student in need of a vacation). 

            If you feel the urge to go out and see the world, whether it’s right after college before starting your career, when you’re having a mid-life crisis (a real one, not one you have when you’re in your teens or early twenties), or at any other point in your life, do it. It will provide you with so much insight and clarity about whatever it is you’re in need of discovering. And if it falls short of these expectations, the worst that could happen is you took a break from reality, relaxed, and can now continue daily life with a lighter heart. So if you’re struggling to decide whether or not it is the right time to travel, the answer is yes, and here are a few things to help get you started!

            You could go to Cuba and come back for the same amount of money you’d spend on two pairs of Lululemon leggings. It’s under $350 for a round trip to Havana from NYC and a room or even an apartment down there through Airbnb costs $35 and up. I’ll do the math for you… a week in Cuba would cost somewhere around $700 depending on how much money you spend on food and activities. Compare that to $1100 for your round trip flight to Hawaii and you’re already saving money! On top of the fantastic pricing, the experience in Cuba would be full of life. With Caribbean culture all around, beautiful sunny days, and white sandy beaches, there is plenty to learn and enjoy.

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And if you’re an outdoors person, there are plenty of hiking destinations including a trail that leads to Salto del Caburni (Caburni River Waterfall), pictured to the right, located in the Parque Natural Topes de Collantes just outside of Trinidad.

            If you’re dying to get out of the America’s, however, Greece might be the destination for you. The flight price is about double that of Cuba, but you are crossing the ocean. Once you arrive in the beautiful country of cliffs and white houses and deep blue seas, the costs will be fairly minimal due to Greece’s unfortunately weak economy.

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Local accommodations are cheap and owners can offer tons of advice on places to go and see in the area that likely won’t be found on Google. There is also such a rich history and culture in Greece unlike anything in the Western world. It would be an amazing opportunity to experience and learn about how life has developed and spread. Additionally, island hopping is an option and ferries run for tourists and locals alike to travel between islands.

            So basically what I’m trying to say is that it is possible to travel frugally! Obviously you’re going to have to spend some kind of money wherever you go, but there are reasonable destinations out there within the “broke college student” budget. But if you’re looking to find ways to make fast money, which everyone should be interested in, check out this article. Instagram and Facebook are wonderful places to live vicariously through other people and create dreams of going all over the world, but maybe instead spend a little more time on Google Flights to get your butt to all those places? No more staring at a screen. Go!

Happens to everyone sometimes this does,

E

Silver Lining

Fairytale

            As I mentioned in my previous post, I’ve moved around quite a bit. Living in Canada then moving to California was a huge change. I lived in a rather normal town growing up and when we were set to move out to the West Coast, my parents told us it was going to be “like we were on vacation every day.” While that wasn’t necessarily true since vacation and relaxation are directly correlated and I for one was rarely relaxing, they weren’t entirely wrong. California is like a dream. You hear all about it and you probably don’t want to believe that it’s superior to other states or places and I didn’t even believe it when I lived there. Then I moved… And let me tell you, you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone. If you don’t have the privilege of living in California, it’s still a great travel destination with tons of activities to do, historic sights to see, and beautiful scenery.   

The Best of California:    

            Northern California is mountainous with tons of incredible hiking and rock climbing opportunities. Yosemite national park is located in Northern California, which is a hotbed for camping, hiking, and incredible views. Santa Cruz is an awesome place with a great beach and boardwalk, along with historic Redwood forests, and a “Mystery House” where gravity is all out of whack. And take a trip just twenty minutes up the road and you’ll find Wilder Ranch State Park, which is a gorgeous path along high cliffs overlooking the sea. San Francisco, one of my personal favourite cities, is also located in Northern California. It holds tons of famous destinations such as the Golden Gate, Ghirardelli Square, Fisherman’s Wharf and many more.

The Other Half of the Best:

            Take a long trip down South and you’ll meet all the dudes and dudettes of the state. There is a bit of a rivalry between the two halves, but it’s friendly (sort of). This is where you’ll find the places you read about it People magazine.The Hollywood sign and walk of fame, the gorgeous coastline along Highway 1 that you can drive down forever, and the beaches upon beaches each with their own special personality. Venice beach is full of life with bodybuilders showing off their abilities at the outdoor Gold’s Gym (it’s basically like you’re at a zoo watching the animals on display in their habitats), street performers, travelling shows and more! You can rent roller blades and bikes to ride along the beach path and hop in the water just to swim or take surfing lessons. This is just one unique beach that Southern California has to offer, but there are tons more. Newport, Laguna, El Matador, Coronado, Mission, Santa Monica and that’s just the start.

Bucket List Trip:

            I’ve driven down Highway 5 to get from SF to LA countless times, but they’ve always been with a purpose in mind. It’s on my bucket list to road trip down the coast and take all the time in the world to fully appreciate the beauty of California and all it has to offer. My personal plan and suggestion to others would be to fly into Sacramento, rent a car, drive east to Yosemite and use this as a starting point. Eventually make your way to San Francisco and then take Highway 1 to drive down the coast, making as many stops along the way as you’d like. Half Moon Bay, Santa Cruz, Capitola, Monterey, Carmel, Big Sur, Avila Beach, Santa Barbara, Malibu, Los Angeles, Catalina Island, San Diego. So before you get tied down into a job after graduation, before you start your summer internship, take time to yourself and time to explore. Any travel is great travel, but I would highly suggest the Golden State.

 Happens to everyone sometimes this does,

E

Once I was Eleven Years Old...

           When I was 11 years old, I lived in Ontario, Canada. I thought I had it made: At least ten best friends, excellent grades, a great hockey team…basically kicking elementary school’s ass. Then one day my parents sat me down and told me that we were uprooting and flying across the continent to Northern California. I remember so clearly the devastation I felt that day even 10 years later. I thought my life was over… Needless to say, I was a massive drama queen and present- day Emma is completely embarrassed of past Emma’s actions, so she will apologize on her behalf. (Photographic representation of what I felt like when we moved, pictured to the right)

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Actually, because I don’t like to associate myself with how I acted at that particular point in my life, from now on I’m going to refer to my eleven-year-old self as Past Emma- Pemma for short. Pemma was overwhelmed with sadness when she heard the news, as this would be her first big goodbye. It was not until Pemma’s high school years that she understood the hugely positive impact that relocating had had on her life and character and overall person.

            I was actually just talking to my mom about this the other day and asked her how she remembered me reacting to the news. She told me that of all four kids, I was the most genuinely sad, however I adjusted well upon our arrival. Little does she know that I stuck out like a sore thumb in my new middle school and arriving to school a week later than everyone else didn’t help my cause. In a sea of Abercrombie, Hollister, and Juicy Couture, I was Old Navy. And it would stay that way for the six years we lived there. But what did change throughout the time I spent in Norcal was how I felt about my Old Navy-ness, and I am convinced that I would not have built the same kind of self-confidence and social understanding had I stayed in my comfortable, familiar Canadian town.

            Unless you are one of those people who truly believe all Canadians live in igloos and ride polar bears to school, you probably wouldn’t expect the cultures in Canada and the US to be all that different. However, I was certainly in shock when I first arrived. For example, I wasn’t aware of the Canadian stereotypes mentioned above before I left Canada, which makes sense, but it was still alarming how little anyone knew about my home country. To this day I don’t know if they were serious. I would attribute their shortage of knowledge not to being unintelligent, but more so to not caring or lacking awareness. Had I not experienced life outside of “the bubble” and had parents who knew life beyond the dome, I would have been exactly like them. My environment and experience elsewhere, however, allowed me to identify these qualities in my peers.

            It was always so interesting to go back to Canada and visit my friends and see how much they had changed. If you’ve moved around at all, you’ll know how hard it is to maintain relationships, so I really only kept in touch with two or three people. Each of them was so unique and I always wondered if things would have been different between us had I stayed in Guelph and never moved. One of them went through a rebellious hippie phase and chopped off all of her hair while another grew strongly attached to make up and beauty. Needless to say, their transformations didn’t quite match up and they grew apart, yet I managed to remain close with each individual (Pictured right, my best friend and I after a year apart and nothing had changed)

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. I always wondered what my puberty-driven transition period would’ve looked like in Guelph surrounded by my old crowd rather than my the Norcal folks. To be quite honest, I don’t think my childhood friends and I would have stayed friends had we grown up together because our differences would have been too much to handle. So I think it would safe to say that moving actually saved my friendships.

            I hate sounding like I’m trying to be a wise old owl, because I’m 20 and know absolutely nothing, but I would argue that I know a little more than my friends in Guelph and California and any superiority I feel towards them in terms of having a better understanding of life I completely attribute to travelling. A change of scenery does wonders and people tell you that all the time, but it’s really really true!!! I learned more about life and myself after a week of living in a different country than I had in all of my 5 years in school. Sure I learned how to speak English… and French… and how to do math etc. But moving put me in a vulnerable position, one that I was forced to navigate on my own. I was the loneliest I’d felt in my life for that first week of school, and in order to rid myself of that feeling of loneliness, I had to step up and put myself out there and understand that people are just people and they’re not scary. This is a concept that even adults struggle with, so having been forced to figure it out at a young age is something for which I’m very grateful. It’s made me a more confident, outgoing, and self-assured person. My entire personal philosophy can be traced back to my first few weeks in middle school starting grade six. Did I put it into action right away? Absolutely not, because Pemma was a dummy back then and knew even less than current Emma and did the usual teenager thing where she left good friends to be cooler then eventually came back after realizing fake friends are the worst. But that was when it all started.

            I wouldn’t be where I am today, pursuing my goals and dreams playing NCAA hockey at Amherst College if I hadn’t

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travelled throughout my life. Moving is the ultimate way to get out of your comfort zone. It’s a huge resiliency test and totally expands your social capacity. I almost think it should qualify as an experience to put on your resume because you become so much better at interacting with people. It’s indicative of fearlessness, strength, and adaptation. You learn so much about differing cultures, regardless of how truly different they are, and have the opportunity and choice to navigate them with either a malleable or rigid identity. Each experience within a different community can teach you something new, all you’ve got to do is take it all in!

Happens to everyone sometimes this does,

E

Becoming an Internet Celeb

Hello Friends! 

No, it's not what you're thinking. Unfortunately, I am not about to announce my induction into the Internet Celebrity Hall of Fame... even though I know you're all thinking "What?" "How?" "You're so talented!". Thank you, but my platform is just not Jenna Marbles status quite yet. This article will actually discuss how I might go about trying my hand at celebdome if that were my plan!

Youtube channels and social media have become our new claim to fame and if it's something you're looking to do in your spare time, it could be really fun and literally pay off down the road! Here is an article from RenderForest, an online video and animation maker, talking about how someone might try to achieve legendary status on the interwebs. Check it out!

Happens to everyone sometimes this does,

E


 Tips to Creating a Successful YouTube Channel

In the last decade or so, social media platforms have become something that we visit on a daily basis whenever we access the Internet. Needless to say, these platforms have started affecting the way prospective customers think of a business. Keeping that in mind, businesses also have started leveraging the power of these platforms to reach out to new customers.

When we talk about social media platforms and online marketing, there are a few names that stand out. They are: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and YouTube, among the others. And believe me when I say this: YouTube is the most underutilized platforms.

Talking specifically about video sharing platforms, no other platform stands even close to YouTube. The best part is that there is no competition for YouTube. With over 1 billion unique users in a month and over 6 billion hours of videos watched in the same duration, this is a platform every business should look to leverage.

This article outlines how you can go about creating a successful YouTube channel. Here are a few things that you should take a note of:

1.   Have a cool intro

Your channel needs an intro. Renderforest intro maker provides a variety of different intros to choose from. It is one of the widest template categories provided by Renderforest, and is a good option for individuals who are interested in experimenting with various animations. There are hundreds of templates to choose from. Check them out here.

2.   Know Your Audience

This is something that comes directly out of a magician’s box. If you are familiar with your type of audience, it puts you in a better position to develop a content strategy. To be familiar with your audience, keep these four things in mind:

  • The age group of your audience,
  • Their professional qualifications and level of expertise,
  • Things they would search on YouTube, and
  • Their interests.

Now that you know your audience, you need to make sure that they stay connected to your channel. Not only this, but also you have to keep your content interesting so that they share your videos over social media.
Again as I mentioned about businesses leveraging the power of social media networks, this is how you can do it as well. So, before creating any type of content, let it be videos, infographics, posters, blog articles, etc., do a crosscheck to ensure that it caters to the particular audience that you want to target.

3.   Posting on a regular basis

Maintaining continuous contact with your audience is of utmost importance. All it takes is posting videos on your YouTube channel on a regular basis.

For this, you don’t need to go too harsh on your content strategy. If it is not feasible to produce a video every week, make it a bi-weekly thing. At the end, all you need to be sure of is that it you’re on some type of schedule. Mark my words!

What will this do? The answer is simple. I follow you today because I saw one of your videos and found it interesting. I am bound to watch another video you put on your channel and probably another etc. Once I start feeling that your channel is one that I find interesting, I will always look out for your videos.

4.   Good Quality Video

You see the bold letters? Yes, that is how important it is to have quality video. No matter how interesting the information in your video is, how it looks to the eye is more impressive. Having a good quality video makes sure that your videos actually look good to the audience. Coming back to the interesting information, it is equally important here as well.

So, two things here to focus on: Good quality videos & Interesting information

5.   Audience Interaction

In the second point, we talked about having a regular posting schedule. On the same lines, it is also important that you interact with your audience. If you are posting interesting content with good quality at a targeted audience, you are bound to get a lot of people to subscribe to you and follow you on a regular basis. When you have a number of followers, they will certail leave comments on your videos. When they leave comments on your videos, always reply to them. And when it is something negative, counter it effectively; It’s like silencing the critics! But in a positive way!

6.   Your views

When making your video, please remember to incorporate your own views. Think about the following:

  • What do you think about that topic?
  • How did your opinion come to be?
  • In what areas can improvements be made?
  • What are some things that you think people should consider when making these decisions? and
  • Why doing a specific thing is important?

What does this do? It adds a personal touch to your videos, hence connecting to your audience in a better way by including the required emotional aspect.

These are a few things that we think you should know. This will definitely help you out in creating a successful channel!

If you face any problems on the path to becoming successful, give us a call.

RenderForest:  (+374) 11 224 000