From the recent practice survey we conducted at Brookline Tai Chi and experiments I’ve been running in online learning, it’s become clearer and clearer to me that most people need some external motivation when they are learning a new skill. That’s not a judgment about willpower and motivation, it actually says more about the way [...]
by on April 21, 2011
Cross-Posted from Trainerfly: Launching an Online Course
Check out this post from the Trainerfly blog. I talk to teachers and trainers all the time who want move beyond their live events, but the number of steps it takes, and the technology required to make it work seem overwhelming. Hopefully, I’ve made a little dent in that perception!
by on February 23, 2011
xkcd: Let Go
Be sure to mouse over for the original title text from the comic (Thanks, Nate!).
by on January 20, 2011
Simplicity, Persuasion and Technology
I’ve been reading/watching a lot of BJ Fogg’s work lately. He studies the persuasive power of technology for positive behavior change. You’ll recognize my interest here if you read some of my recent posts on game design mechanics and the potential to integrate technology into real world learning.
by on January 4, 2011
Crossfit’s Brilliant use of Game Mechanics
Background: Recently, TechCrunch featured an article about the playdeck they use at SCVNGR that outlines the mechanics of gameplay. The article cites at TED talk by game designer Jane McGonigal, which I talk about here.
by on January 3, 2011
Epic Meaning, Sheep Knuckles, and The Institute for the Future
Jane McGonigal gives a fascinating talk about the “superpowers” cultivated by the game-playing masses (more than 500 million with another billion coming up in the next decade!). Obviously we all have the image of the gamer locked in his mother’s basement, endlessly pawing away at an electronic reward system, like a hamster. McGonigal’s takeaway is [...]
by on December 31, 2010
Out with the Old….Business Model
It’s the end of the year and it’s time to get out of old habits and mindsets. So, here’s my prediction for the best business model for independent fitness and wellness pros, for the next DECADE. Yeah, I think it’s going to take a few years to unfold, but the groundwork has been laid:
by on December 29, 2010
Hybrid Business Thought Experiment
I’m working strictly on a hunch here, but I think there’s a connection between the sentiment I tried to express here about not getting lost in the bells and whistles of technology, and this article about “hybrid businesses”.
by on December 29, 2010
Become an Enterprise of One
Over at TechCrunch, Stephen Martin lays out his thesis about an interesting turning point for entrepreneurs in this economic climate. I could quote the piece at length, but I think this part is especially important: These business mavericks live by a new dynamic of success — unique individual strengths, expertise and credibility — fueled by [...]
by on December 14, 2010
Turning the Wheel
Claude Hopkins, in Scientific Advertising: A Rapid stream ran by the writer’s boyhood home. The stream turned a wooden wheel and the wheel ran a mill. Under that primitive method, all but a fraction of the streams’ potentiality went to waste. Then someone applied scientific methods to that stream — put in a turbine and [...]
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