Tips for College Note Taking

With so much information coming at you from every direction, taking good notes is essential for success in college and taking poor notes can have a real effect on your grades. Read on to learn a few essential tips and tricks for making your notes work for you.

Materials

The following supplies can help you take more efficient notes:

• Notebooks or binders (separated by class)
• Graph paper (for diagrams)
• Pencils
• Pens
• Highlighters
• Small sticky notes

Students who have tablets or small laptops may find that a computer is the only tool they need for class notes. However, highlighters and stickies will still help these individuals take better notes while reading.

Class Notes

Because you can't write down every word the instructor says, it's important to have a strategy for taking notes in class. (Students who need an exact transcription should consider asking the professor for permission to audio record his or her lectures.)

First, be sure that you're sitting in a place where you can see and hear the professor clearly and clear your space of any distractions that will prevent you from focusing on class. (If you're taking notes on a PC, this may include turning off your wireless so you're not tempted to browse the Internet.) Next, make sure that all of your note taking materials are easily accessible.

Once class has begun, you'll need to identify what to write down. This will come naturally after a few courses, but in the beginning you may need to put some thought into it. If you've done the reading, you should know what information is in the textbook. You can gloss over that in your notes, simply recording the things that the instructor emphasizes as particularly important.

Information that should typically go into your notes includes:

• Things the professor puts on the whiteboard.
• Facts that you need to memorize, like names and dates.
• Formulae that you need to be familiar with, particularly in math or science courses.
• Details that your professor emphasizes as particularly important. Look out for signal phrases such as 'And most important...' or 'There are five reasons why...'
• And, of course, anything that the professor introduces with the words, 'This will be on the test.'

It's also worth noting (as it were) that you should write in phrases, not whole sentences, and use abbreviations to save yourself an immense amount of time when taking class notes.

Reading Notes

Although most students take class notes in high school, many college freshmen aren't used to taking notes while reading. However, you'll have a lot more reading in college than ever before, and you'll be expected to refer back to specific passages for class discussions, exams and essays.

There are three key methods for taking notes on your readings and they can be used in combination or by themselves, depending on what works best for you.

1. Highlighting or underlining important passages.
2. Leaving small sticky notes on important pages with a line number or other indication of the relevant passage.
3. Writing down main ideas or important quotes in your notebook.

Some students will also record their thoughts in the margins as they read and write down any words they found challenging to look up later.

Organizing Your Notes

Of course, notes are useless if you can't use them to find information later. It's therefore essential to write legibly and keep everything organized. You may find it most useful to develop an organization system that's intuitive to you, but here are a few ideas:

• Write the course name and date at the top of each page just in case some pages get separated.
• Keep all of your class and reading notes for one course together.
• File your notes chronologically.

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Tips Photography Composition Rules

10 Tips Photography Composition Rules

It may sound clicked, but the only rule in photography is that there are no rules. However, there are are number of established composition guidelines which can be applied in almost any situation, to enhance the impact of a scene.

These guidelines will help you take more compelling photographs, lending them a natural balance, drawing attention to the important parts of the scene, or leading the viewer's eye through the image.

Once you are familiar with these composition tips, you'll be surprised at just how universal most of them are. You'll spot them everywhere, and you'll find it easy to see why some photos "work" while others feel like simple snapshots.

Rule of Thirds

Imagine that your image is divided into 9 equal segments by 2 vertical and 2 horizontal lines. The rule of thirds says that you should position the most important elements in your scene along these lines, or at the points where they intersect.

Doing so will add balance and interest to your photo. Some cameras even offer an option to superimpose a rule of thirds grid over the LCD screen, making it even easier to use.

Notice how the building and horizon are aligned along rule-of-thirds lines. Image by Trey Ratcliff.

Balancing Elements

Placing your main subject off-centre, as with the rule of thirds, creates a more interesting photo, but it can leave a void in the scene which can make it feel empty. You should balance the "weight" of your subject by including another object of lesser importance to fill the space.

Here, the visual "weight" of the road sign is balanced by the building on the other side of the shot. Image by Shannon Kokoska.

Leading Lines

When we look at a photo our eye is naturally drawn along lines. By thinking about how you place lines in your composition, you can affect the way we view the image, pulling us into the picture, towards the subject, or on a journey "through" the scene. There are many different types of line - straight, diagonal, curvy, zigzag, radial etc - and each can be used to enhance our photo's composition.

The road in this photo draws your eye through the scene. Image by Pierre Metivier.

Symmetry and Patterns

We are surrounded by symmetry and patterns, both natural and man-made., They can make for very eye-catching compositions, particularly in situations where they are not expected. Another great way to use them is to break the symmetry or pattern in some way, introducing tension and a focal point to the scene.

The symmetry of this chapel is broken by the bucket in the bottom right corner. Image by Fabio Montalto.

Viewpoint

Before photographing your subject, take time to think about where you will shoot it from. Our viewpoint has a massive impact on the composition of our photo, and as a result it can greatly affect the message that the shot conveys. Rather than just shooting from eye level, consider photographing from high above, down at ground level, from the side, from the back, from a long way away, from very close up, and so on.

The unusual viewpoint chosen here creates an intriguing and slightly abstract photo. Image by ronsho.

Background

How many times have you taken what you thought would be a great shot, only to find that the final image lacks impact because the subject blends into a busy background? The human eye is excellent at distinguishing between different elements in a scene, whereas a camera has a tendency to flatten the foreground and background, and this can often ruin an otherwise great photo. Thankfully this problem is usually easy to overcome at the time of shooting - look around for a plain and unobtrusive background and compose your shot so that it doesn't distract or detract from the subject.

The plain background in this composition ensures nothing distracts from the subject. Image by Philipp Naderer.

Depth

Because photography is a two-dimensional medium, we have to choose our composition carefully to conveys the sense of depth that was present in the actual scene. You can create depth in a photo by including objects in the foreground, middle ground and background. Another useful composition technique is overlapping, where you deliberately partially obscure one object with another. The human eye naturally recognises these layers and mentally separates them out, creating an image with more depth.

Emphasise your scene's depth by including interesting subjects at varying distances from the camera. Image by Jule Berlin.

Framing

The world is full of objects which make perfect natural frames, such as trees, archways and holes. By placing these around the edge of the composition you help to isolate the main subject from the outside world. The result is a more focused image which draws your eye naturally to the main point of interest.

Here, the surrounding hills form a natural frame, and the piece of wood provides a focal point. Image by Sally Crossthwaite.

Cropping

Often a photo will lack impact because the main subject is so small it becomes lost among the clutter of its surroundings. By cropping tight around the subject you eliminate the background "noise", ensuring the subject gets the viewer's undivided attention.

Cut out all unnecessary details to keep keep the viewer's attention focused on the subject. Image by Hien Nguyen.

Experimentation

With the dawn of the digital age in photography we no longer have to worry about film processing costs or running out of shots. As a result, experimenting with our photos' composition has become a real possibility; we can fire off tons of shots and delete the unwanted ones later at absolutely no extra cost. Take advantage of this fact and experiment with your composition - you never know whether an idea will work until you try it.

Digital photography allows us to experiment with different compositions until we find the perfect one. Image by Jule Berlin.

Composition in photography is far from a science, and as a result all of the "rules" above should be taken with a pinch of salt. If they don't work in your scene, ignore them; if you find a great composition that contradicts them, then go ahead and shoot it anyway. But they can often prove to be spot on, and are worth at least considering whenever you are out and about with your camera.

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The Entrepreneur's Checklist

I was asked the other day what personality traits I thought were important to entrepreneurial success. I immediately gave my preprogrammed reply about passion and dedication and hard work. After taking some time later to ponder the question a little deeper (I normally operate in shallow waters), I came up with a more detailed checklist for entrepreneurial success. This is by no means a definitive list, but I'd be willing to bet that if you don't have at least a majority of these traits, your chances of business success will be greatly diminished.

You must be self motivated.

If you don't have the wherewithal to bounce out of bed each day without your spouse drenching you with cold water, chances are you don't have the self motivation or discipline required to be an entrepreneur. Business demands that you take action based solely on your own volition. You have to do a hundred things every day that will not get done unless you make yourself do them.

You can't be afraid of hard work.

If you think working for someone else is hard work, try starting your own business. You will be required to give every ounce of blood, sweat, and tears you can muster and then some. You will have to work long hours and be on call 24/7, at least in the beginning. If the mere thought of hard work makes you tired, maybe you should just keep your cushy day job.

You should have experience in the type of business you plan to start.

If you can't locate your car's engine you have no business buying an oil change franchise. The most successful business owners have prior experience in the industry in which they have set up shop. Consider working in an industry at least part time for a year before jumping in with both feet.

You must be able to climb back on the horse.

I always say: "If business was easy, everybody would do it." Starting a business is hard work and the odds for failure are against you in the first few years. If you want to ride herd on your own business, you must be willing to fall off your horse and get back on a few times without giving up.

You need the support of your family.

When you start a business you may have to spend more time away from the family than you like. The business may also put a strain on you financially. You will have enough obstacles in your way without having to worry if you have the support of your family and those closest to you

You must have a thick skin.

If your feelings are easily hurt, keep your non-threatening day job because business is not for you. Many days in business, rejection waits around every corner and you must be able to handle rejection without taking it personally.

You must interact well with others.

Being an entrepreneur requires interacting with a variety of people, from your own employees to vendors to customers to investors. You must have the ability to effectively manage people without offending them; the ability to accept good advice from mentors and politely discount the bad; the ability to overlook mistakes or quietly rectify them; and the one I have trouble with: the ability to tolerate incompetence without losing your cool (at least not on the outside).

The deeper your pockets the better.

The number one cause of business failure is a lack of money. Before you start your business you should have access to enough capital to see you through until the business can sustain itself.

You must be able to delegate.

Running a business requires the performance of dozens of simultaneous tasks and it's foolish to try to handle them all yourself. You must learn to put your trust in others. If you can't dish out responsibility without worrying over the result, your business growth will be limited.

Previous business ownership is a plus.

Prior business ownership is not a prerequisite, but it can't hurt. Many successful entrepreneurs have the skeletons of past businesses rattling around in their closet.

Another of my sayings:

Business is a lot like marriage: you learn a lot from the first one that may come in handy the second or third time around.

With that kind of advice you can see why I didn't go into marriage counseling.

Here's to your success!

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Success Quotes Will Not Motivate You

Success Quotes

Yes. You read it right. Despite the fact that there are tons of books collecting success quotes from successful people, success quotes are nothing more than inspiring things that you will forget right after you read them.

Success is a reward of actions. Some says massive actions. However, unless you are motivated, you can not make massive actions. But how you can get motivated? Success quotes will not help you. You need tools to drive you toward your success.

If it is not something like success quotes, then what will drive and motivate you to act massively and reap the rewards?

It's been said and written many times by successful people. You need a direction. A combination of vision and goals to get you motivated and act massively toward your success.

You may hear about research conducted decades ago. A group of people was asked to write their goals on a piece of paper. 25 years later, those people were reviewed. It's only 3% of them who became successful people. All of these people followed the instruction to write down their goals, while 97% who failed, did not follow the instruction. They simply ignored it.

Goal setting is a simple thing to do. Ironically, 97% of population do not do that thing and accept their 'destiny' as unsuccessful people. Why could this happen?

People have a tendency to be complicated. When it comes to a decision making, they will count on the most sophisticated technology proven tools. Meanwhile, to be successful, you even do not have to make a complex decision. You just need a desire to be successful. There is only one condition. You write down your desire, your passion, and your dreams and put it in a place you can see it every single moment.

You must be aware though that there are positive desire and negative desire. Positive desire is something you want to achieve in the future. Negative desire is something you want to avoid in the future.

You need to have both positive desire and negative desire to be a successful person. Do not forget to put pictures on your dreams and goals list. A new car, a new house, a demanding boss, traffic jams to and from your current office, etc.

Remember that you are not day dreaming. Put a date to each of your goals list. Goals are just dreams with deadline.

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Newsletter Benefit Your Business

Can Publishing a Newsletter Benefit Your Business?

In a Word, Yes!

Publishing a newsletter as a part of your marketing campaign can increase the potential profit from existing customers becoming long-term buyers.
Newsletters gives us a tool for collecting the email addresses of targeted visitors with the intent of turning them into paying customers.
Utilizing this tool also gives us the means by which we can remain in contact with an additional valued resource,"The Previous Customer."

If You want to keep customers, A Newsletter is a must.
If you don't have a Newsletter, you have no way of following up with your paying customers, or for that matter, any potential customers. Someone that has purchased from you once is very likely to purchase again. You don't want to run the risk of losing that person because you don't have a follow up method in place. A Newsletter.

The standard for publishing your newsletter is generally once a week. You may want to publish bi-weekly. If you find something of value that your customers might have an interest in, you don't have to stand on ceremony, you can notify them at will. The frequency of your publication will really be determined by your marketing niche. Who and What your marketing.

Your topics will be determined by your area of expertise. If your knowledge is limited, you may have to do some research in order to keep your subscribers informed, There is no shortage of pre-written articles, on any topic, you may be looking for. With Article Directories, such as this one, that abound the Internet, your search will be an easy one.
Of course you can always do the research and write the articles yourself, based on what you've learned. You also may want to consider subscribing to a Private Label Content site. You'll have access to pre-written articles available for re-write 

Your newsletter doesn't have to be "The Great American Novel." (:-) Quite frankly if it's too long, your readers probably will lose interest before they finish reading it. Sometimes a quick announcement about a New Product or Service will be sufficient. Other times a short 400 to 500 word article will do the trick. It will really depend on what you're trying to convey to your readers.

You'll also need to be consistant. With the thousands of newsletters that are available. You'll want to avoid having your newsletter mistaken for spam. Announce your publication in the subject line and don't forget to personalize it by inserting your subscribers firstname. Address them by their first name within the body of the message whenever and wherever possible. Personalization cannot be stressed enough. This function is available in most autoresponders.

To limit complaints or spam reports remind your readers that they agreed to recieve emails from you etc. Once again, most autoresponders provide this function without your having to do anything, other than putting your message in for sending.

Your newsletter will be your Brand. It will speak loud and clear about your business and will be your tool for building relationships with your customers. No other tool has this ability. Give your Newsletter the time and attention it deserves and it will reward you Over an Over again.

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