3 Types of Avoidance

If you are one of those who commonly avoid tasks or certain situations, it could be for several different reasons. But before you can work on solving or completing a task you’ve been putting off, it’s essential to narrow down what type of avoidance you are using to avoid something in your life so you can know how best to combat it. 

 

Emotional Or Cognitive Avoidance

 

This type of avoidance usually happens internally and can’t be seen by anyone other than the person experiencing the avoidance. When you, emotionally or cognitively, avoid something, it means that you avoid thinking about it. This can mean either blocking out the thoughts when they come to mind or repressed memories that are incredibly stressful. Emotional avoidance is especially prominent after someone has experienced a trauma and is very common in people living with PTSD. Sometimes this type of avoidance requires medical intervention to resolve. 

 

Situational Avoidance

 

This type of avoidance is much easier to see among your family and friends. Situational avoidance is when you specifically avoid a certain person, place, or thing which may remind you of something which makes you unhappy. This frequently happens in friend groups when certain group members have had an altercation and don’t want to go to events where they may see the person they have disagreed with to avoid causing problems. You may also notice this type of avoidance in a friend who constantly changes the subject when a particular topic comes up in conversation.

 

Protective Avoidance

 

This type of avoidance is where you may go out of your way to protect yourself from feeling a certain emotion or experiencing something again. For example, someone who was the victim of a robbery may obsessively check the locks on all the doors in the house to ensure they are locked. This type of avoidance can be one of the most dangerous as it can quickly escalate to more serious conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder or an eating disorder.

 

Conclusion

 

If you find yourself avoiding certain tasks, thoughts, or people, it’s time to evaluate why you are doing so, keeping the three types of avoidance in mind. Once you have discovered just what you are avoiding and why only then can you work towards fixing the issue and getting professional help if you find that you can’t overcome your avoidance tenancies alone. 

 

How to Prepare to Speak in Public

While we can never truly eliminate the fear of public speaking, we can take some basic steps to reduce that feeling of total helplessness and channel nervous energy into our presentation.

 

The key is preparation 

 

Abraham Lincoln once said, "If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six sharpening my axe." Hold on to this thought. 

 

Feedback

 

Take advantage of having time before that next speaking engagement. Start by creating a simple two or three main point presentation, and do it in front of a video camera. Then watch yourself. Pay attention to what both looks and sounds good, figure out how it can be made better, then try again. If you can, present it in front of friends or family, and then ask them what worked and what didn’t. Often what we think looks or sounds a certain way is far different from the perspective of an audience member. This kind of feedback is invaluable. 

 

Watch Your Voice 

 

When you are watching yourself, pay attention to your voice. Don't let a weak voice betray your nervousness. A soft voice sounds apprehensive. Speak louder than you would one-to-one, but without shouting. Shouting rarely works on stage, but a strong voice draws instant attention and gives you credibility. 

 

Watch Your Eyes 

 

Use your eyes. Don't stare at the ceiling or the floor, and don't try to imagine everyone in their underwear--that doesn't work. Instead, look random people in the eye and hold them for 3 to 5 seconds each. This can take practice. Again, use your family and friends. This technique alone will make you look like a professional speaker. 

 

Don't Be Afraid to Pause 

 

A nervous speaker tends to rush. This not only gives away a speaker's anxiety, but it can ruin wonderful opportunities to make an audience think about a point that was just made. If your mind goes blank, just pause and collect your thoughts. But stay with them; stay engaged. Your audience will watch with wonder and anticipation. 

 

Learn How to Utilize Notes 

 

Prepare your notes using just key or "trigger" words. You should be speaking on content that you are familiar with - so it's enough to just talk about what you already know. The key words simply guide you to the next thought. Never write a speech out word for word and try to memorize it. A speech written out is a train ready to get derailed. Fear and anxiety will cause you to forget a word or sentence and then your brain loses the pattern. It never works. Instead, use the key words to remind you of what to say and then just speak from your heart. Your audience does not know your speech and won't know you made a mistake unless you tell them.

 

12 Tips for Nurturing Your Personal Freedom

There’s a lot of pressure to conform to society’s definition of success. Right from school, you hear that there is pretty much one path. A good job, a one-way upwards career trajectory, a family, big house, lots of money. But your personal freedom doesn’t get mentioned. Nor does inner peace. But you don’t have to step too far outside your regular life to allow space for greater contentment, and freedom from the anxieties and pressures of modern life. 

 

There are some key things you can do right now to nurture your personal freedom and achieve greater contentment with your life. 

 

• Let go of past hurts and sufferings, acknowledging what you have learned along the way.

• Believe in your heart that you deserve love and good things in your life and that you wish these for the other people in your life. 

• Act kindly in your interactions with other people, whether it’s friends, family, colleagues or the person you walk past in the street. People will remember how you treated them long after they have forgotten your words.

• Be kind to yourself and acknowledge that you mostly do the best you can. And when you make a mistake, you learn from it and do better. 

• Acknowledge that you have control only over your actions and reactions. You can’t control other people, but you can control how you respond to them.

• Own your past mistakes but do not let them define you. 

• Be at peace with change and accept that it is part of the ebb and flow of life. 

• Set goals to achieve what you want out of life but be flexible and prepared to adapt to changing circumstances. 

• Don’t compare your life to others, especially as they present themselves on social media. People always display their best sides and rarely acknowledge weakness or when things are going badly. 

• Choose to be compassionate. Most people are trying to do their best most of the time. 

• Be grateful for where you are, and what you have right now. Don’t get caught up in a dissatisfaction loop where the other guy’s life looks better. Chances are you are already living an abundant life.

• Learn to relax and allow things to be, rather than try to second guess all the time. Adopt the Buddhist philosophy of detachment, breathe, and let go of anxiety. Allow and trust that the Universe will give you what you need.

 

Using Time Blocking to Stay Motivated

What happens when we push our brain to keep thinking, focusing and creating hour after hour? It shuts down. It goes on strike. It says “I’m outa here, buddy”. This is especially true when we keep requiring it to focus on the same task for hours at a time. Neuroscience now tells us that changing tasks regularly, taking consistent breaks and blocking out our time keeps our brain more engaged when it is working so that we actually get more done in less time.

 

So, let’s look at blocking time. This is not a new concept. But it’s one we don’t use often enough to maintain our enthusiasm and focus, not to mention our mental and emotional health. Blocking time is a way to schedule your work hours in a way that sets up a dedicated time to a particular task. And then, when that time is up, you switch to a new task. 

 

But why you may ask, is this important to performance and productivity?

 

●      Keeps your brain from getting bored (aka, low motivation)

●      Mentally prepares you for the tasks ahead

●      Lowers stress because you see work getting done

●      Ensures no multitasking occurs

●      Improves self-confidence in your ability to succeed

 

So, how should you go about blocking your time? Usually, it’s recommended to work in 2-3 hour work chunks at a time, while allowing a short 5-10 minute break every 30-45 minutes.

 

1.  Decide how you will block your time. There are many ways to do this, including various apps and email calendars. Google Calendar is a great way to get started because it’s easy to use and readily available.

2.  Chose the date and time for your task. Remember to keep it to 2-3 hours if possible.

3.  Decide where you will complete the task.

4.  Include any details you need to remember before performing the task in the memo area. This will make it faster to get started when you get to that time block. No searching for the sticky note you wrote the directions on.

5.  Set reminders so you know when it’s time to switch tasks. You can get a reminder via email, pop-up or app notifications.

 

Using time blocks keeps your motivation high for all the reasons stated above, and also because it allows you to use several of your skill sets each day. It breaks up the monotony of doing the same task all day long.

 

3 Effective Ways To Make Each Of Your Videos Great

Creating videos is a time-consuming process so you want to ensure that every one of your videos is great. In this article, we will reveal 3 very effective tactics that you can use to get the best results from all of your videos. 

 

1. Use Storytelling in your Videos

 

People really enjoy stories so you can use this to your advantage with your videos. A lot of video marketers make their videos too salesy. They try to aggressively push their products and services on to the viewers who do not appreciate this. Nobody wants to watch a video where they are going to be sold to.

 

The very best videos always add value. They provide good information and advice that the viewer can use to improve their life. Just creating ads for your products and services is not going to have the desired effect.

 

With every one of your videos, you want to stir up strong emotions in your viewers. The best way to achieve this is to use storytelling. Tell your viewers the story behind the creation of your products and services. A story that explains how a product changed your life will have a good effect on your viewers.

 

Plan out your videos to include good stories. If you have proof that your products and services work (which you should always have) then weave this into your story. When you tell your story, make sure that you emphasize the benefits to the viewer of using your products and services to achieve their goals.

 

Your aim is always to make a good connection with your viewers. Tell stories about your business, yourself and your products and services. Explain how you got involved in your business and why you decided to create your products and services.

 

2. Make a Good First Impression

These days, people have very short attention spans so you need to make the first 10 seconds of your video really count. This is a very short amount of time for you to make an impact but you must focus on this. 

 

Bear in mind that your viewers have a lot of choice. If they are not impressed with the first few seconds of your video then they are likely to go elsewhere. During the first 10 seconds, tell your viewers what your video is about and what they can expect. Do this in a way that will make them want to stick around and watch the rest of your video.

 

3. Tell your Viewers what you want them to do

 

One of the biggest mistakes that some video marketers make is expecting their viewers to know what they want them to do. It is very likely that your viewers will not know this so you need to tell them more than once in your videos.

 

If you want your viewers to click the link in the description and sign up to your email list then tell them this. Of course, you need to put this in a way that they will perceive this to be beneficial to them.

 

Don’t just add your calls to action (CTA) at the end of your videos. Not everyone is going to watch your videos until the end. Tell them at the start and in the middle if your video is long enough. Make sure to tell them to subscribe and like your video too.

 

Create Different Types Of Videos To Meet The Needs Of Your Audience

There are a number of different types of videos that you can create to ensure that you cover the needs of your audience. Some of your audience will not know much (or anything) about you while others that are existing customers will know a lot. Make different types of videos to cover your bases here.

 

Explainer Videos

 

Explainer videos are high-level and provide a good overview of things. These are perfect for members of your audience who know little about you and your business. Think about explainer videos as an introduction to your business and brand.

 

A lot of savvy video marketers use explainer videos to generate new leads for their business. In all of your explainer videos you want to convey the message that you can help your audience and that you know what you are talking about.

 

How-To Videos

 

How-to videos are extremely popular. When you create these types of videos you will be showing your audience how to achieve something. Make sure that all of your how-to videos provide step-by-step instructions that your viewers can easily follow.

 

Find out what burning questions your audience has in your niche. Create how-to videos that answer these questions. Your audience will really appreciate that you have created these videos and will perceive you as an expert. 

 

For how-to videos to provide the best results for you it is essential that you know your audience really well. When you are able to provide answers to the questions that they have they are going to trust you a lot more which is exactly what you want.

 

Create Product and Service Demo Videos

 

Demonstration videos are a great way for you to increase your conversions. You are letting your audience know what your products and services do and the benefits that they will get from using them. It is important that you are not too pushy in these videos. They are “show and tell” videos that are gently persuasive.

 

When you are planning your demo videos always think about “what’s in it for them”. Explain the reasons that you created the products and services and the problems that they solve. Show your audience how easy it is for them to use your products for maximum benefit.

 

Create Videos that show you are an Expert

 

It should always be your aim to prove to your audience that you are an expert in your niche. Your audience will always prefer to work with experts and it will definitely increase the trust that they have in you.

 

Think of ways that you can demonstrate thought leadership in your videos. Be prepared to give your perspective on things and suggest that your approach is the best. You need to be prepared to share what you know in these videos and not hold back.

 

Create Videos with Social Proof

 

Nothing will increase your conversions more than social proof. Nobody in your audience wants to be the first to try out a product or service that you offer. They will want to see that others are using them and getting good results with them.

 

Case study videos are very effective. Think about the case studies that you can put together and use in your videos. Make sure that you add facts and figures that fully support any claims that you make.

 

Effective Tactics For The Best Video Marketing Results

Having invested a lot of time and effort (and sometimes money) creating your videos, you want to ensure that you use the most effective video marketing tactics to get the best results. There are things that you can do which will always get good results for you. In this article, we will reveal 3 proven video tactics that work time and time again.

 

1. Be Consistent with a Video Schedule

 

You are committed to provide your audience with great video content that will help them. They really appreciate this and want you to provide more videos. We recommend that you treat video marketing as a series of campaigns rather than just creating a bunch of videos. 

 

Having a large number of subscribers for your YouTube channel or followers for your Facebook Page will provide great exposure for your videos. One of the best ways to increase your following is to be consistent with your video posting.

 

Your audience will want you to upload great video content on a regular basis. When you provide value in your videos, your audience will look forward to your next video. It is best for you to create a video content schedule and decide how often you will create and post new videos.

 

No matter how good your videos are, people are not going to wait too long for you to post the next one. By creating a video schedule in advance, you can plan for your video content for a number of weeks ahead. This way you will always know what your next video is going to be about.

 

It is critical to establish a regular posting schedule for your videos. When you do this, your audience will be keen to come back for more. If you decide that you will create and post a new video every week then stick to this. Make sure that you post your new videos on the same day each week as well. Your audience will get to know your schedule and expect this.

 

2. Create Demo and Tutorial Videos

 

Demo videos are a great way to showcase your products and services. When you create these in the right way, they will really help your audience to understand the benefits of your products and services. If people see a product demo video on your website, then there is a very good chance that they are going to watch it.

 

Tutorial videos are also very popular and helpful. Your audience is likely to have a number of burning questions that they want answers to in your niche. You can create videos that answer these questions and keep your audience happy.

 

A good tutorial video will have a number of simple steps for the viewers to follow. If your tutorial video is getting long then break this up into different parts. When you help your audience, they will reciprocate by purchasing your products and services.

 

3. Expand your Reach with Facebook Targeting

 

With a Facebook video ad, you can define your audience using different criteria. This will ensure that only people within your target audience will see your video content in their newsfeeds. It can be a very cost-effective way to reach a lot of people with your videos. You can easily define your audience by their interests and other factors and target them specifically.

 

Get Setup Right For Creating The Best Videos

To create the very best videos you need to use the right tools. Your audience is not going expect a Hollywood production from you but they will expect good quality. If you make low quality videos then you will quickly lose your audience. Worse than that, you will destroy any trust that you have built up with them.

 

Get the Right Equipment

 

A good HD camera is essential for making the best videos. If you have a smartphone then the camera in this is likely to be good but you should think about investing in a good quality web cam or outdoor camera. A smartphone video is better than nothing but other cameras will produce better results.

 

If you are going to shoot most of your footage indoors then an HD webcam that you can connect to your computer is a good choice. There are some good examples available on Amazon and other online retail websites. You should be able to find a high-quality web cam for under $100.

 

When you are planning to create a lot of videos outdoors then you will need an appropriate camera for this. These can get expensive so do your homework here and compare prices. The money that you invest in a good camera will pay you back in the end.

 

You must use a high-quality microphone for your videos. Your audience are not going to be impressed if the audio quality of your videos is poor. There are plenty of good quality microphones available for under $100.

 

Do you need to purchase lighting equipment for your videos? Again, this is a concern for indoor videos more than outdoor ones. It is crazy to put in a lot of planning and effort to make your videos and have them spoiled by poor lighting conditions. There are low-cost lighting solutions available.

 

Video Editing Software

 

You are going to make mistakes when you are creating your videos so you need to use a good video editing application to make your videos the best they can be. Fortunately, there are a lot of free video editing solutions available for both Mac and Windows computers.

 

There are premium video editing suites that have a lot of great features but you don’t need these to get started. Search for free video editing software and you will see many useful applications you can use. Make sure that you learn how to use your chosen video editing software.

 

Screen Capture Software

 

It is very likely that you will want to record your computer screen and use this in your videos. In order to do this, you will need screen capture software. There are some really good free options available for this and you can use premium solutions too.

 

You can integrate slides that you have created in Microsoft PowerPoint or other presentation applications. Screen capture software is great for making over the shoulder videos where you are demonstrating something on your computer.

 

Use Audio Editing Software 

 

The audio quality of your videos is very important. A lot of video marketers record the narration for their videos after they have the main footage. You can use a powerful free audio editing suite like Audacity to produce the best audio results.

 

How To Optimize Videos For Search

One of the major advantages to uploading your videos to YouTube is that people can find them using the search feature. This is true of Facebook to a lesser extent as well. If you do not optimize your videos for search then you will reduce the chances of your videos being discovered. Your YouTube videos can appear in Google search too.

 

Conduct keyword Research

 

The first step to optimizing your videos for search is to perform keyword research. You need to know what terms people are using to find the information that they need in your niche. It is not difficult to conduct keyword research for videos and you can do this for free when you use the Google Keyword Planner.

 

With the Keyword Planner you will find related search terms and the estimated search volumes. Although this is based on Google search, the numbers will be fairly accurate for YouTube search as well. Another great tool for keyword research is the free browser extension called vidIQ. This will show you the tags used by high-ranking videos and other useful information.

 

Add your Main Keyword to your Video Titles

 

The title of your video is very important for optimization. Look at your keyword list and identify a main keyword and some related secondary keywords for your videos. Add the main keyword in the title of your video. 

 

When you are at the start of your video marketing journey, we recommend that you target long tail keywords rather than the very competitive ones. As you start to rank for these terms, YouTube will take notice and start to rank you for the tougher keywords as well.

 

Make your Description Keyword Rich

 

You must provide a description for your videos. In this description you want to add a link back to your website and provide a persuasive text body to encourage people to watch your videos. You can add your main and secondary keywords in the description.

 

Don’t go crazy with your keywords in your description. There is no need to add your keywords more than once. Make sure that the keywords naturally flow with the rest of the words you use. YouTube does not like keyword stuffing and will penalize you if you do this.

 

Use Keyword Tags

 

For your YouTube videos you have the chance to add tags to your videos which you need to do. Here you will enter your main and secondary keywords. Use vidIQ to identify the tags used by the most popular videos and use some of these as well. Don’t overdo it with the tags. A maximum of 8 to 10 is recommended. 

 

Create a Great Thumbnail

 

Use a different thumbnail for each of your videos. Your thumbnail needs to encourage users to click and watch your video. You can create YouTube thumbnails very easily using Canva.com for free. Decide on the style of thumbnail that you want and stick with this for consistency with your videos.

 

Add Transcripts to your Videos

 

A lot of people will want to use subtitles with your video so make sure that you provide this. There is an automatic transcription feature in YouTube that you can use first. Afterwards you can go and edit the transcript (there will usually be a few mistakes).