Thinking about moving to Australia? This article might come in handy.
It is written and experienced by a student studying and living in Australia. Therefore providing information and guidance with finer details. As it is said “Straight from the horse’s mouth” just for you from ‘EDUCATION STREET’ student Miss. Harleen Kaur currently studying Masters at Monash University (Feb 2016 Batch). She has very well articulated this article on her own sharing her own experience and ideology about Australia. She has been very kind to offer her email id, in case you have any further answers to seek: harleenkaur192@gmail.com.
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I came to Australia over a year ago for my Masters at Monash University in Melbourne. I wish I could say my time here has been a roller coaster ride but it has been pretty smooth.
Disclaimer: My opinions and experiences are based on my experience in Melbourne. I have no or negligible knowledge about other Australian states.
Jobs & Internships
I will not say it is difficult to find a part-time job in Melbourne given the amount of casual jobs that are available here. But it might be difficult to find a job that pays well. Most of the jobs here are approached via references. The pay differs with the job. If your employer is Indian, you probably are going to be paid between 10-17 dollars an hour. But there are many platforms that offer casual jobs. I have listed some of them below.
Gumtree
Seek
Airtasker
Many people go around and distribute their resume in restaurants and stores too for a job. No matter what part-time job you do, it will help you pay your bills.
Stay in Melbourne
Melbourne is expensive when it comes to renting a place. If you are living far away in the suburbs, you might be able to lower your expenses but that will increase your travel. On an average, students spend between 500-800 dollars on rent. This is for a single room. If you are okay with sharing, it might reduce. When I got here, I had found a place close to my university via Airbnb. It was pretty reasonable and the hosts were amicable. My suggestion would be to find a place that is close to university you are studying in because if you are actually serious about attending classes, you might not wish to spend a lot of time traveling because you will also need to come for group meeting which may last for a short while. I say this because I know a lot of people who chase money and skip classes to work. That is something that I never do but preferences differ from person to person.
Traveling
Public transport is not very reliable or cheap in Melbourne. For the sake of comparison, it is much easier to get around places at cheaper prices in Mumbai. Melbourne has three main modes of public transport: trains, trams and buses. Buses are very unreliable. So, try and find a place of residence close to either a train station or a tram stop. After a point of time, you will want to buy your own vehicle because public transport will not take you everywhere you have to go. If you are traveling in Melbourne, you will have to walk a lot. That helps with my cardio so that I don’t have to work hard in the gym.
Jokes apart, trains and trams run at a high frequency during peak hours and they run till late night on the weekends.
Culture in Australia
Australia is pretty laid back. The pace of life is very slow here. People hardly work over time. They do not work on the weekends. There is a good work-life balance for someone who is working full-time.
Melbourne has a brilliant food culture. You will find a variety of cuisine here ranging from 5 dollars a meal to 200 dollars a meal. People barely cook here. Take-outs are very common. I used to cook all my meals earlier and now, there are days don’t cook at all. Food-wise, you will not find it difficult to adjust here even if you are vegan or vegetarian. During the weekdays, most restaurants close early but the nightlife during the weekends is pretty smashing.
You will find a lot of Chinese and Indian diaspora here in the city. Australians primarily inhabit the regional areas of Australia. Australians do not generally go for a tertiary degree, at least not in the field of business and management. Don’t be surprised if you don’t find local students in your classes.
For those who love to shop, Melbourne is the place to be. Shopping here is a part of Australian culture and the cherry on the cake is the sale. There are sales going on all year round.
Weather in Melbourne
As you must have already heard, the weather here is erratic. You sometimes get to see 2-3 seasons in a single day. Winter clothes never go into storage because it can get chilly anytime. The seasons are opposite to what they are in India. It is summer during the months of November – February. It gets pretty hot. Winters get harsh in June and July. It sometimes goes as low as 1 degrees at night. Moreover, winter here is accompanied by the monsoon season. So, every morning when you wake up, check the weather for the day before you check your emails and WhatsApp messages from your girlfriend/boyfriend (haha!).
Racism
I do not agree with those who say Indians have to face racism abroad due to their accent and the color of their skin. Would you believe it if I said I have been a victim of racism in my own country, India. I have studied in Chennai and I was an outcast there because of my color and cultural background. Racism is everywhere in the world. You will be a victim of it if you try to be an American in Rome. The saying ‘when in Rome, be a Roman’ does actually hold a lot of meaning. Try and acculturate yourself when you go to a country. Be sensitive towards others, no matter where they are from. Something that might be a joke to you can be offensive to another person. People will be biased against you if you don’t behave in a civilized manner. I have, fortunately, never been faced with racism ever since I got here. As long as you don’t try and poke someone, you will be fine.
Studying in Melbourne
I am a student at Monash University and I like it here. Not because of the university and its infrastructure but because of the relationships I have cultivated here. Professors are very helpful here. And I am not just talking about Monash; I speak for most the universities. If you want their help, you have to ask them for it. Beating around the bush will not help. Maintain a healthy relationship with your professors. That will not only help with your assignments but also will help you with internships and jobs after your graduation. I have friends who have been offered jobs by their professors and I have been too. Look for internships during your vacation times. Check with your university if they offer any units or opportunities that you might apply for. This will help you gain local experience and improve your employability according to the Australian way.
To sum up, I would like to say that every individual has a different experience. My opinions and advice are based on my experience and you might hear something different from another person. So, don’t take my words to be the gospel truth but regard this article as a trailer to a movie. The reality is revealed when you sit through the movie experience. I hope you guys enjoyed reading this and found it helpful. Have a positive outlook and your experience will be rewarding. I wish you all the best.
If you wish to contact me regarding anything you need help or guidance with, feel free to email me on harleenkaur192@gmail.com. I will be more than happy to do so.
~
EDUCATION STREET Student
Harleen Kaur
Monash University
Master in International Business (prior an engineer)
I just saw it yesterday. And yes, I did leave the theatre crying like a kid. But it wasn’t merely the animation or the character sketches that melted my heart. I was blown away by the story’s underlying moral, which explains “we are all a part of those who came before.’
Deep, eh? The philosophy might be hard to articulate but no other form of media captures it quite like books do. Being one of our most ancient forms of communication, books manage to perfectly brew the essence of enlightened minds, making them accessible to curious thinkers across time and space.
So in a humble attempt to help you stand on the shoulder of some enlightened giants, we’ve put together a small list of 10 great books every university student should read.
From psychology to communication, and modern business to healthy living, this small list covers books that’ll make you street-smart to not just survive but thrive in an increasingly competitive job market.
How to Win Friends & Influence People ~ Dale Carnegie
The 48 Laws of Power ~ Robert Greene
Contagious: Why Things Catch On ~ Jonah Berger
The Lean Startup ~ Eric Ries
On Writing Well ~ William Zinsser
The Intelligent Investor ~ Benjamin Graham
Getting Things Done ~ David Allen
The War of Art ~ Steven Pressfield
Elon Musk ~ Ashlee Vance
How Not to Die ~ Michael Greger
Since we acknowledge and appreciate your ambition, we’ve included suggestions for more related titles after every synopsis. You can purchase the books from any of the links provided below their respective reviews.
Happy reading and perusing! Stay curious.
1. How to Win Friends & Influence People
~ Dale Carnegie
From group projects in college to business presentations at work, you’ll have to work with diverse personalities throughout your life, regardless of what industry you are in. To complicate it further, each member of your team will have different views, emotions, and backgrounds.
So how do you rope ’em all together and ensure that you survive all the differences and feuds, all the while moving towards a common goal?
Carnegie seems to have figured it out, and he’s made the secret formulae publicly available through his seminal study of what makes people tick. Motivation, as he explains, is the cornerstone of our behavior.
Once you learn the skill of knowing what people want, you can easily win them over with some easy mental tricks, nicely laid out in this title. If you had to pick just 1 book to read from our list, you should most definitely open up this treasure trove!
Brain Games (TV Series by National Geographic Channel)
2. The 48 Laws of Power
~ Robert Greene
Carnegie’s classic teaches you how to appear on the stage. Parellely, Greene provides guidance on the strings you’ll need to pull behind the curtains if you want to stay in the limelight long after your act is done.
We often foolishly believe that performance, hard work, and honesty are the cornerstones of success. But when you step into the corporate world, you’ll realize that the good guys seldom make it up the ladder.
To win the race, you must plot strategies, often at the cost of your own values and relationships.
It’s a bloody jungle, after all, so you can choose to be prey or strap up for the hunt. This book is the finest hunting gear in stock. Green outlines 48 Laws of Power to help you use your masters, subordinates, friends, enemies, media, and the mobs to harness limitless power.
A word of caution, though- reading the laws is like taking bitter medicine- you’ll be appalled to discover the savage side of man. But you’ll get over the shock soon, rest assured, and be well on your way to the shimmering carpet de rouge.
We know you’re just a student and there’s no real commercial brand you have to manage just yet. But we still think you ARE managing a brand, kind of. Just go look in the mirror. Do you see it? And do you get our point?
When you graduate very soon, you’ll be competing against thousands of other options who’ll be applying for your dream job along with you. To get hired, or if you’re an entrepreneur- to get invested in, you’ll need to sell yourself as the best product available on the market- for your managers, consumers, and staff as well.
In other words, you’ll have to convince others to put their trust, time, and money in you. But as every social psychology student learns, people hate to be ‘told to do something.’ We simply don’t take orders well.
So instead of launching your ideas on others faces, you’ll need to find a way to pull them towards you by giving a strong reason to support your big wild dreams.
You’ll have to make people want to listen to your story and share it ahead. This is exactly what ‘Contagious’ explores- how to harness ‘word-of-mouth’ to promote products, ideas, and dreams.
In her exciting and accessible style, Berger teaches you how to flint social fire and light up your career like a Broadway show. You should definitely read this piece if you want to learn about how and why most of us stay average anonymous Joes while a selective few redefine the meaning of fame itself…
There are 2 types of graduates in this world. First, there’s the majority who dream of getting hired by Google, Apple, and the likes. Then, there are idiots who have the itch to pave our own damn paths.
They want to create their destinies, make their luck, and prove everyone who told them, “You can’t do it!” horribly wrong.
Does that description fit you? Do you have a bug in your brain that keeps telling you to chat your own course? If its a confident yes, then Ries’ text is a perfect guide to kickstart your entrepreneurial adventure.
You’ll learn how to understand your consumers, design profitable ideas, bootstrap your own ventures, ‘pivot’ your business according to changing situations, and build a classic team to stay with you through it all…
The world might be turning towards visual content but we aren’t going to abandon words anytime soon, rest assured. In fact, millennials are making up for the lack of reading in the past few decades; all major film and Netflix producers are banking on literary hits; and the hunger for a good story or piece of advice in at an all-time high.
Considering all these trends, it might be a wise choice to pick up Zinsser’s handy tips and polish your writing before you sit down to sketch out your first CV. Yes, good writing is a skill that can be picked up- Actually, its always learned through observation, rejection, and practice.
So if you think that writing is an ‘art’ that only comes to people ‘naturally,’ prepare to be surprised after discovering the strategies sketched here. Once you read this book, you’ll never read any other book in the same manner. Zinner completely changes your outlook about the written word.
Who hasn’t dreamt of sailing the Bahamas on a private yacht stacked with gourmet wine and fresh coral catch? We’re all fighting to make big bucks and this book helps us to ensure our financial victory in the long run.
By effectively balancing theory and practical advice, Graham breaks down the nuances of managing your money regardless of what the volume is or isn’t.
We’d strongly recommend his advice to any and all students who wish to earn at least 10 times more than what they get for their pocket money…
Missed your assignment deadline? You can probably apply for an extension. Reached late for class? Most professors are kind enough to let you walk in.
But when you put on office shoes, you’re expected to run faster than the speed of light. Showing up a minute late might just spell your entire career.
Therefore, time management is an extremely crucial skill for people of our age, regardless of the industry we’re planning to lead ahead.
David Allen’s book is surely the best guide on this topic because it manages to cram centuries of practical advice on productivity, in under 300 pages.
It teaches you how to build a “collection bucket” to stock ideas outside of your mind and stay sharp, keep a “next actions” list to avoid thinking in the present, and do a weekly review of all your tasks, among other interesting tips.
Follow the principles laid out by our seasoned life coach, and you’ll never run out of time- or chase after it!
Innovation isn’t ‘creating things out of thin air,’ like we think it to be. Artists don’t just get lucky with an apple falling on their head; ideas don’t sprout out of the blue. Rather, artists simply borrow ideas already available in the world and reconstruct them to suit current and future needs.
Your initial attempts at innovation will often fail because your links are weak. As you read, observe, and experiment, the links start getting stronger- and your ideas start to make more sense.
Remember, no one catches the solution to anything out of thin air. No one has a completely successful first day at their new job.
Nobody just becomes a respectful somebody out of sheer luck. It takes years of screaming and awkward silence before the applause finally kicks in.
However, reading Pressfield’s book will definitely help you speed up this process. He delivers beautiful insights on why and how we keep ourselves from unleashing our full creativity and also suggests a simple remedy to overcome these inner artistic battles.
Whether you’re going through a block, or wish to start off on your journey as a creator, this book is a seminal guide on the tools you’ll need to splash colour on the canvas of your dreams.
He’s a legend in startup circles. He haunts the dreams of young innovators across the planet..and who knows, maybe even beyond. He’s humanity’s brightest and boldest visionary- the living exemplification of what it means to push one’s limits and dream filthy big.
Elon Musk has come a long way since he first started his career at the age of 12 by selling a self-made video game called Blastar for just 500 bucks. Now his net 20.6 billion dollars, last we checked- yeah, let that seep in.
Vance provides a riveting account of his struggles, triumphs, and failures with Tesla Motors, PayPal, SpaceX, and many other ventures he’s helped get off the ground.
Filled with anecdotes from his personal and professional lives, this book will give you a sneak peek into the life of an entrepreneur. We advise you to read the awesome story and use it as a boost to mint your own.
No matter how much knowledge you gain from reading these and hundreds of other books, your ideas are pretty much useless if you aren’t alive to sell them to the crowd.
To stay alive, you need to take good care of your body and attend to all its needs. But that’s easier said than done.
With mortality rates skyrocketing out of proportion- no thanks to junk food, pollution, rising stress levels, and sedentary lifestyles- it’s becoming increasingly hard to figure out a practical solution for our complicated ailments
Fret not, because this book outlines some little steps you can take to reverse all major medical issues and rejuvenate into a smoothly-functioning body. We won’t reveal the cool diet Greger recommends; but then again, it’s pretty obvious from the cover, innit?
With good wishes for a long and healthy life, we conclude our lineup for the top 10 books every university student should check out before embarking on his or her first job.
Hopefully, sifting through the pages of these intellectual gems will give your mind a good energy boost!
But if you’d like some more support with regards to your career development and university selection, do get in touch with us on Facebook at fb.com/educationstreet.
Wish you all the very best in all your future endeavors! Keep growing!
admin
By admin | 3 January, 2022
Computer Sciences vs. Information Systems Courses
COMPUTER SCIENCE & INFORMATION SYSTEMS Hey there! Are you confused between the two terms? Then you’re at the right place. We’ve got your back.
Here’s a comparison between the disciplines of Computer Science and Information Systems. While there is some overlap between the two disciplines, both of them equip learners with very different problem-solving orientation and set of technical skills.
If you’d like to discuss more career options in depth, feel free to ping us on our FB page; we’ll be most happy to help you out!
Computer Science
A CS major will find employment as a programmer working with state of the art hardware and software, using languages such as C and C++, and tools such as Oracle. They may be called upon to write new programs and develop applications individually or as part of a team.
Information Systems
IS majors typically find first employment as a programmer in either the private or public sector. They might be employed in a data processing environment supporting legacy applications or developing client/server applications. Also, they might be employed to support the development and use of applications in a client department.
-Software engineering, software integration Systems programming
-Operating system configuration, performance measurement, and analysis, capacity planning -Information center/Office automation -Database Management with SQL -EDP auditing/Quality assurance -Telecommunications -Planning/implementation -Security administration -Simulation and modeling -Disaster planning and recovery -Technical writing -Computer graphics -Human factors/interface design
Specifically, the IS graduates are most suited for:
Applications software development
-business applications programming, including record keeping, and transaction processing
-COBOL, C++, Visual Basic and JAVA programming
Business applications development
-Information engineering and applications integration
-Decision Support Systems design and support
-Data warehousing and mining
-Database management and administration
-Intranet/Internet management
-End-User computing support
-Management of IS/IT operations
-Hardware/Software sales representative
-Information center/Office automation
-EDP auditing/Quality assurance
-Telecommunications planning and management
-Disaster planning and recovery
-Technical writing and training
-Graphical User Interface (GUI) design
Computer Science
Computer Science (CS) grew out of the disciplines of mathematics and electrical engineering. It refers to the study of the machine itself and its use as a tool in various disciplines. A major in CS will know a considerable amount of mathematics which will help in technological applications such as computer networking, image processing, database design and development and artificial intelligence. A computer scientists’ strength lies in his or her ability to solve problems of efficiency and overall performance of applications from a machine perspective, and an overall technical orientation to problem-solving.
A computer scientist focuses on the development of solutions to problems taking into account the limitations of the machine and its resources, as well as how to best utilize the resources. He/she should be able to develop algorithms and data structures that can work within the constraints of available hardware and software to produce an acceptable solution. Most of the development will be done in high-level languages, such as C and C++, that can take full advantage of the system hardware and software resources.
Information Systems
Information Systems (IS) is the application of information technology to organizational and managerial needs. An IS major needs to be aware of what information technology can contribute to an organization and how to bring that solution to fruition. The strength of an IS major lies in his/her ability to apply the knowledge of information systems and technology to help organizations compete more successfully in the marketplace or to streamline current operations.
IS professionals utilize their business-based backgrounds in working with managers and users to specify technology needs that benefit the organization. In addition, they write programs to codify that technology and later manage it. As such, the IS professional might develop code for business transaction processing systems, client/server systems or end-user support systems; they might implement such systems in languages as COBOL, C++, Visual Basic or JAVA.
IS graduates also design and administer databases and data warehouses, analyze and implement enterprise-wide solutions to information problems and manage telecommunications efforts. Some I.S. graduates implement and manage corporate-wide Intranets. Finally, IS graduates can also provide project management skills, technical writing or training by melding their knowledge of information technology and business processes.
admin
By admin | 3 January, 2022
7 types of Professors you’ll meet in University
I taught for the first time today. The project entailed showing some underprivileged teens how they could use YouTube and other learning platforms to pick up practical skills that’d hopefully land them good jobs.
Initially, I was nervous about the plan because the kids didn’t know how to surf the web, lest create their own accounts on social media. But to my surprise, they picked it all up in just six hours.
I had so much fun with the bunch that when it was time to say goodbye, I promised to visit again next month, even though it isn’t included in the volunteering project.
As I walked out of the computer lab, one boy walked up to me and said, “Thanks a lot, bhaiyya. You’ve changed my life. I’ve always wanted to learn how to make my own picture (filmmaking). Now I can be a superstar, too!”
His words will stay in my heart forever: “You’ve changed my life.”
Isn’t it amazing how a few hours spent learning something new can change the course of your entire journey? How sharing a bit of your knowledge can give someone the means to move ahead in life?
Education truly is an enriching experience for not just students but teachers as well; and like most of the things in life, you won’t be able to appreciate all the feelings teachers go through unless you take up the role yourself.
Now that I’ve gone through the experience, I can finally understand the kind of hard work that went into every lecture my gurus delivered.
And most importantly, I share their compassion to impart the knowledge that they could’ve easily kept to themselves. So as a homage to these unsung heroes, we’ll be reflecting on the kinds of awesome professors who one meets in university.
This isn’t to say that they’re superhuman or perfect in any way. Sure, they do have their own set of flaws. But these shortcomings only prove that they’re humans like us.
And the very essence of being human lies in our will to keep learning from our mistakes, doesn’t it? On that note, I invite you to join me in celebrating the angels who bless us with the very gift of growth…
1. The Storyteller
Did he tell you about the time when he worked as a secret agent for the President? Or the four years he spent in Tibet, searching for the meaning of life? Or that encounter with an ancient King’s spirit in a haunted village in Rajasthan?
This raconteur always starts and ends every lecture with a mind-blowing personal experience, meshed with philosophical revelations that he has had on his various travel trips.
Gifted with the ability to turn boring theories and concepts into adventurous anecdotes, our magician of words will pull you out of the bland books and take you for a fun ride around the world.
Let me warn you, though- sometimes, the tales can often go on for eternity. You might just have to snap him out of Wonderland yourself. “Sir, but what about the exam syllabus?” You’ll complain.
“Ah, let me tell you about the time when I prepared the wrong syllabus for my board exams…” He’ll continue. We suggest you enjoy the slow-burning suspense while it lasts because our next professor directly cuts to the chase…
Specialities:
Coached Stephen King, J.K. Rowling & Arthur Conan Dyle
Lonely Planet’s ‘Hippie of the Decade’ Award
Co-produced the scripts of every super-hit Netflix series you’ve watched
2. The Rajdhani Express
Okay, we get it. You’re the world’s most adept genius on the subject. But can you please NOT gallop like Shoaib Akhtar in an Indo-Pak match? I mean, do you even breathe during the lecture?
Because you seem to just drag on from start to end without a single break! Yes, we’ve printed out all your PPT slides and completed the worksheet for today’s chapter (technically, Rohit did it…we just copied).
But if you’ll try to cover so much so fast, you’ll most definitely lose us somewhere down the road. So please DO go gentle into that good night, darling…or we’re just gonna doze off.
Specialities:
Jigglypuff’s sleep-inducing powers
Knows how to read from PPT slides
Speaks faster than the speed of light
3. The Heartbreaker
“Well, I hope he’s not married!”
That’s the first thought you’ll have when this cutie walks in.
But even after you learn that he was taken long ago *cue dramatic thunder music,* you’ll still hopelessly daydream about getting rescued by our Prince Charming on a shiny horse.
Adorned with a husky voice, a pair of geeky specs, and a sleek shirt that gives away chiseled abs, our hawt nerd will make it extremely hard for you to concentrate on the whiteboard.
But it’s okay if you forget to take notes. You can always walk up to him after the lecture and request for some ‘personal’ help…if you know what I mean
Specialities:
Mr. Universe 2015, 2013, 2010, 2008, 2006 & 2000
Hypnotic blue eyes
Captain of like twenty sports teams
4. The Wannabe Comedian
When you guys first met, he cracked a silly little joke on unemployment. But upon seeing your poker face, he admitted that those jokes just don’t work anymore. Ha! Get it? Get it? Unemployment jokes ‘don’t work!’
LMAO, isn’t he one hilarious chap? Well, if you’d like him to boost your GPA, you better pretend like he is!
A devout worshipper of Russell Peters, Vir Das, and Tanmay Bhat, our budding stand-up comic is always looking for opportunities to try out his latest quips in front of helpless students. I
‘d go on to suspect that he plans his entire lecture around that one stupid pun he picked up online.
Hopefully, all the hours spent on YouTube will inspire him to move beyond those stolen Dad jokes and embarrassing innuendos. Until then, you’ll just have to learn to be thankful for getting at least some entertainment in class.
Specialities:
I’ve never seen him teach anything seriously so I’ll just list out 3 bad puns. Enjoy!
I’d tell you a chemistry joke but I know I wouldn’t get a reaction
Why don’t some couples go to the gym? Because some relationships don’t work out
Did you hear about the guy who got hit in the head with a can of soda? He was lucky it was a soft drink
5. The Celebrity
When we were anxiously deciding on what majors to select, she graduated from Harvard with over 50 offers by the biggest companies in the world. When we were shuffling between active and passive voices to reach the word count for our essays, she authored journal articles, bagging international prizes for her work.
Consulting for startups in the Valley, representing social groups at UN summits, sitting on the board of huge lobby associations, writing books about her experiences in the industry, appearing in the local media for her discoveries…the list of her achievements goes on endlessly!
So it’s no surprise that a celebrity-like aura swoops over the lecture hall when she walks in, tapping on cherry-red heels, which are probably worth more than your tuition fees.
All things said and done, you should definitely stand on the shoulders of this smart giant. Maybe you can leverage her networks when its time to circulate the résumé? Or the least you could do is soak in all her experience!
But as you ask for the tiny favor, do hold in the urge to inquire about why she settled for teaching when she could’ve gotten hired anywhere she wanted to?
The answer will almost always be- “Because this is what I love.” And that folks, is a life lesson in itself.
Specialities:
Friends with all the big players in her industry
Holds shares of multi-billion dollar conglomerates
Redefined what ‘hard work’ means- extremely efficient & laborious, 100x yo lazy ass
6. The Garam Dimaag
There’s gotta be at least one hothead in every group, eh? He’ll spoil the party, cook up some drama, and hate on the whole damn world. Sans Kohli’s slang but 10x times his rage, our walking-talking volcano is capable of lashing out critiques at virtually every single person on the planet, dead or alive.
True to his reputation as the Devil of the campus, the signboard on his cabin’s door boldly reads “You shall not pass.”
You won’t be allowed you to quit without trying, though, because this boss will keep you on your feet and push you to do your best…although we’re pretty sure that no amount of your efforts will ever be enough.
Specialities:
Can boil up to 5,505 °C on Mondays, parent-teacher meetings, or grading weeks
Ultra-sensitive to sound, especially whispers from the last row
Will spot mistakes in any piece of text you hand in for correction
7. The Grades ka Rakshak
Just like Arjuna was counseled by Krishna in Mahabharata, this chill fella is our literally our ultimate savior when it comes to passing the semester and saving face in front of our folks.
He lavishly doles out deadline extensions, agrees to take revision lectures for those of us who never bother to attend regular classes, and literally reveals most of the exam questions in the form of pre-test tips.
Yes, the description might seem to read of a mythical creature, but trust us, such Godmen of extreme generosity do exist in the real world; you just need to select the right unit and hope Lady Luck to be on your side.
Specialities:
Millionaire, playboy & philanthropist- basically university’s Tony Stark
Can easily explain complex theories and concepts to 10-year-old kids
Was probably the Rancho of his own batch
By now, you should be largely prepared for the types of leaders you’ll learn from in university. But remember, no matter how cool or unlikeable these professors are, you’ve already met the single-most important guru who’ll guide you throughout your life- just take a look in the mirror, boss!
Know that you’re the greatest lesson you can ever pick up. You must constantly learn from your mistakes and experiences, wipe the board clean every night, and start fresh the next day. There’s so much to learn and a whole world to observe- so stay humble; stay sharp. And remember to tell yourself every day- “Ancora Imparo: I am still learning…”
TED, short for ‘technology, entertainment, and design,’ is a media network that co-organizes independent talks by entrepreneurs, activists, and artists around the world. Most of the talks are available on TED’s official YouTube channel & website.
After sifting through the latest uploads, we’ve curated some speeches that every young adult should definitely give a watch. You’ll learn how to effectively navigate through the problems everyone faces in university life. So grab some popcorn, empty your mind, and enjoy your personal lineup of 20 awesome ideas worth spreading and building on…
1. If you want to achieve your goals
https://youtu.be/V2PP3p4_4R8
You were told to select your university carefully because making the wrong choice would ‘ruin your entire career.’ In fact, you were probably told to take every decision with your end goals in mind.
Rivers dares to go against the conventional wisdom, explaining how you should focus your energy not on the destination but the path.
What matters is the journey and never the result. The more we focus on the outcomes, the lesser we will grow. Thus, it’s always a wise choice to dream less and act more.
2. How to magically connect with anyone
https://youtu.be/9UM0oA94p-Y
As a student, you’ll be working on a lot of group projects in university. Almost everyone on your team is bound to have different and often contrasting opinions on how the tasks should be carried out. In the midst of this melee, you’ll have to learn to balance everyone’s expectations equally.
You’ll have to make the best decisions without hurting anyone’s feelings, a skill which requires a good understanding of how people think. This is where Miller, the young illusionist, steps in.
He opens doors to the human psyche in a rather quirky way. By the end of this video, you’ll be well on your way to becoming a magician of words…
3. How to speak so that people want to listen
https://youtu.be/eIho2S0ZahI
Do you have to take great efforts to be understood clearly? Are you always finding yourself at loggerheads with the team? Have people complained that you’re boring, intimidating or just plain rude? Don’t you worry because Mr. Treasure here has simple remedies to solve all your communication problems!
All you need to do is to avoid the 7 deadly sins that only bad speakers commit: gossip, judging, negativity, complaining, excuses, lying, and dogmatism (self-centeredness). Parallelly, you can follow the four cornerstones of good communication- honesty, authenticity, integrity, and love, short for ‘H.A.I.L.’
Treasure goes on to dissect the intricacies of good vocation and ends his speech with short exercises that you can practice next time before you speak.
4. Why good leaders make you feel safe
https://youtu.be/lmyZMtPVodo
Meshed with stirring anecdotes from the battlefield, Simon Senek delivers a powerful presentation on the most important quality every leader should polish first and foremost: making an effort to make all team members feel safe, trusted & valuable.
This speech manages to condense the wisdom from some of the best leadership books in less than 12 minutes. So you should definitely give it a watch and try to apply its principles to every group project you do.
5. Why comfort will ruin your life
https://youtu.be/LBvHI1awWaI
Heard the saying, “Growth begins outside your comfort zone?” But what does that exactly mean? And does it really work? Isn’t sticking to your strengths the best strategy to succeed in life? Eckstrom breaks down the dangers of comfortable living using his theory of ‘growth rings.’
Order and predictable behavior, he notes, leads to predictable outcomes. So if you want to truly make a big impact on this world, you need to push yourself beyond the edges of what you know and like.
6. The art of being yourself
https://youtu.be/veEQQ-N9xWU
Most of us disguise our true selves to fit in with the crowd. We ‘go with the flow’ to avoid judgemental stares from people who actually don’t matter at all. This deliberate masking often comes at the cost of our own peace.
Let McHugh guide you back to your buried soul with her poignant speech on the practiced art of simply embracing who you truly are.
“But how is this relevant to me and other young adults?” You ask. A comment from the YouTube upload answers that best, “People who are frightened to be themselves, will work for those who aren’t afraid.”
7. Why do we ask questions?
https://youtu.be/u9hauSrihYQ
Students often complain about how ‘education’ has killed their desire to learn anything outside the textbook. And it is quite true that our study systems are still evolving to fit the needs and goals of growing millennials. So how do we keep our curiosity levels high in a restrictive environment?
The YouTube guru, famously called ‘Vsauce’ has the perfect answer. In his highly engaging discussion (the puns are awful, though!), Michael elucidates the importance and technique of asking the right questions at the right place and time.
So why do opposite poles of a magnet attract each other, again? We thought you might help us find out…
8. Looks aren’t everything
https://youtu.be/KM4Xe6Dlp0Y
Staring at the hot hunks and pretty gals in the hallway made me hate my body and drive it to extreme limits just to lose the flab. I stopped going out with my friends and ended up wasting a complete semester of my college life.
Fortunately, I met people who helped me regain my health and my self-confidence. I learned how important and healthy it is to love yourself for a change.
Maybe that’s why this intimate and brutally honest TED talk resonated with me on a personal level. The highly acclaimed model beautifully tackles the physical insecurities dilemmas that plague many university students today.
Of course, it’s an unfortunate truth that looks do matter but as Russel puts it, they don’t end up defining who you are.
9. Inside the mind of a master procrastinator
https://youtu.be/arj7oStGLkU
Guess I’ll write the synopsis of this video tomorrow. ‘Stranger Things: Season 2’ is here. Soz, fam. Bubye. #soMeta
10. To This Day: For the bullied and beautiful
https://youtu.be/sa1iS1MqUy4
They say words have the power to heal the world. Shane’s poetry certainly helps to soothe, if not fix, the wounds of those whose worlds have been torn down by bullies and trolls.
Keep tissues handy because this spoken word performance will thaw your heart and give you the greatest gift any artist could give to his audience- the gift of hope.
11. Why you will fail to have a great career
https://youtu.be/iKHTawgyKWQ
Don’t let the title put you off. In his brutally honest style, Smith deconstructs the common excuses and mistakes that keep many from achieving their career goals.
Sometimes you just need to be punched in the face with the raw naked truth- let Smith give you the bitter medicine today.
You’ll thank us tomorrow when you follow some of his solid advice.
12. How to Change Careers when You’re Lost
I know engineers from university who are working as agents for music celebrities today. I also have sleepy artist buddies from the golden years rising to the top of the corporate world as highly productive entrepreneurs of their time.
The truth is, we might’ve made plans for life but the plans life has made for us are often the opposite of what we’ve dreamt.
So how do you handle the unpredictable lemon-sour changes? Ricci teaches you how to squeeze ’em out and make sweet juice! A good companion to this talk is the book ‘Who Moved my Cheese.’ Be sure to pick it up when you get the time to read.
13. How one tweet can ruin your life
https://youtu.be/wAIP6fI0NAI
People like me depend on social media for our bread and butter. But even if you’re not in the digital industry like I am, you’re still largely dependant on the internet for getting most of your information.
While the web is an amazing tool for learning and growing, it can also turn out to be a nightmare if you use it carelessly.
Ronson warns youngsters about the dangers of posting everything online by narrating the ‘Justine Sacco Twitter‘ incident that destroyed the PR agent’s (how ironic!) entire career- all because of just one tweet.
While this shouldn’t scare you off the net forever, its a reminder of the scary truth- nothing you do online can be permanently erased. So choose your hashtags wisely.
14. The Power of Introverts
https://youtu.be/c0KYU2j0TM4
Group projects and activities are designed to force us out of our comfort zones and face the crowd with confidence and creativity.
But as we pick up skills from amazing speakers and extroverts, we should also learn to harness the magical power introverted individuals possess.
Cain’s insights shed golden light into the mind of the shy fella in the corner of the room…
15. A simple way to break a bad habit
https://youtu.be/-moW9jvvMr4
Whether its smoking or procrastination, bad hygiene or excessive masturbation, all of us fall prey to habits we know are harmful to our health. But despite the warnings our mind and the media blare at us all the time, we continue to laze around in the comfort these bad habits provide.
Brewer has the perfect solution to break ’em once and for all, and it’s not what you generally get in therapy ads. Its an unorthodox method but we personally like it a lot.
Does it work for you?
There’s only one way to ‘find out.’
16. Your body language may shape who you are
https://youtu.be/Ks-_Mh1QhMc
Research shows that almost 97% communication is non-verbal. In other words, we understand and judge people more by their postures than we do by their words.
The only catch is, we aren’t aware of the effects our body language has on the delivery of our messages.
Cuddy reveals the unconscious processes in style. She provides practical advice to polish our gestures to make ourselves heard.
17. I got ninety-nine problems…palsy is just one
https://youtu.be/buRLc2eWGPQ
The next time you complain about your problems, watch this woman own her large share of woes like a boss. In her refreshing talk, Maysoon discusses how she tackles her disability with a smile on her face and hope in her heart.
There are moments in this speech that just tugged our heartstrings.
We love the way Maysoon punches back instead of getting bogged down by the challenges life has been throwing at her.
The palsy patient’s story is truly an inspiration to anyone going through tough times.
18. Saying YES! to your Weirdness
As the aphorism goes, “If you weren’t a little weird, I’d think you were a little weird.”
JP explains why it’s healthy to embrace one’s absurdity. “Sometimes we take ourselves too seriously,” he notes, “We seek approval from others and ourselves constantly and obsessively. But we lose out on the colorful life that we’ve been blessed with. All this normalcy for what?”
You show ’em, JP!
You’re the boss when it comes to dropping the truth bombs in a comical tone.
19. How to start a movement
https://youtu.be/V74AxCqOTvg
Ever dreamt of starting your own movement but don’t know where exactly to begin? Sivers provides an easy method for social campaign creation using nothing but a YouTube video of drunkards dancing around.
Yes, you read that right.
In just 5 minutes, with the help of a clip featuring some crazy teenagers, Sears simplifies what looks like one of the hardest things to do in the world- changing it for good.
20. What adults can learn from kids
https://youtu.be/V-bjOJzB7LY
Adora is the hands down the most adorable speaker on this list. Don’t let her age misguide you into believing she’s any less talented than all our previous thinkers, though. In fact, as she argues in her snazzy speech, age isn’t and shouldn’t be a marker for an individual’s capability.
In fact, older people have more to learn from curious teenagers, as Svitak points out. So as you proudly grow into an adult, this talk might help keep the wildly imaginative child in you alive for years to come.
On that nostalgic note, we conclude our list of the most thought-provoking TEDx talks every young adult should watch. Which ones are your favorites and why? Would you like us to add some of your suggestions to our follow-up second list? Drop the links and your views in the comments section below!
And if you’d like to build and tell your own story on the TED stage someday, call us up at ‘+91 22 2568 1775’ for personalized career counseling and get the perfect launchpad for your professional dreams…
Yours in learning,
The happy folks at Education Street Pvt. Ltd.
admin
By admin | 31 December, 2021
Ultimate List of Free Online Tools for Students (2018)
Hola, amigos!
Here is a monster list of FREE online resources for curious students who want to build new skill sets, expand professional networks, and sharpen their practical knowledge about the modern world.
From scholarship search to class scheduling, from automatic citation generators to ebook libraries, from personal budgeting software to cheap restaurant aggregators, from mobile note-taking to internship/job portals- we’ve got it all covered right here, just for you.
You can star this page in your bookmarks bar or save the post as PDF file on your desktop for later use. Cheers!
Just like the tools mentioned above, we, too, want to empower you to chase your career goals abroad. For personalized counseling on global university application, visa and accommodation procedures, and entrance test preparation, please feel free to drop us a message on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/educationstreet/
At this time tomorrow, I’ll be a fresh graduate, all set to make my mark in the world. Obviously, I’m super-excited to see Ma yell, applaud, and embarrass me as I waltz onto the stage to collect the certificate.
But I’d be lying if I said I’m not equally nervous as I am thrilled about my future, and the new challenges it has in store. There are just so many choices to make, and aplenty more expectations to decide on the right ones…it’s scary, ya know.
The only thought that’s comforting me right now is knowing that even if I take the wrong steps, and even if I stray from my path, I’ll always have my small yet sweet circle of true friends to guide me back home.
So as we fight for the last pizza slice, and toast our beers to university life, I reflect on the craziest types of friends who I’ll never forget from my three years on these buzzing campus grounds…
1.The Hopeless Romantic
You might run out of drive space keeping track of all his crushes because he falls for a new one, every ‘single’ day (pun intended). The poor cute fella in desperate need of a hug, this young Romeo’s courting attempts are a hilarious delight to watch.
But be warned- along with the sweet shayaris before the proposal, you’ll also have to hear some serious salty sobbing that comes after rejection. The glum phase will only last for an hour or two, though, because he’ll surely spot another target in no time, and you’ll be back in a new Juliet’s pursuit.
2. The Besharam Bhukkad
Most people eat to live. Then there are those who live to eat. Our ever-and-always hungry Kumbhakarna has an appetite that’s larger than life. Whenever there’s a new restaurant opening in town, you’ll probably spot her signing up for the Gold membership card. With a coffee mug in one hand and a cheese roll (the legal one) in another, she’ll be munching on all things edible, throughout the day.
Although she’s good company for culinary adventures, we strongly advise against joining her at weddings, galas or any place with free food- because if you do, you might have to pretend to not know the big bear who just gobbled up three plates of the appetizers all by herself, and was spotted charging in for the main course.
3. The Great Khali
At the other end of the ‘fitness spectrum’ is the super-health-conscious gym freak, urging you to choose whey shakes and coleslaw over Miss Bhukkad’s sinful frappuccinos and loaded fries. Although he has the best interests at heart, his constant advice on weight loss and healthy living might be too heavy to lift at times, especially for those of us who barely manage to get out of bed.
What starts with a light jog at five in the morning and ends with an abs drill at eight in the night, his intense routine will make you wonder- “Itna energy laate kahase ho tum log?” Regardless of whether you feel motivated to follow his low-carb, whole-food, organic vegan diet, or you simply choose to hire him as a bodyguard-cum-wingman, having a hot hunk in the squad certainly ups your chances of getting more winks and fewer slaps.
4. The “Chal, Daaru Pite Hai” Dost
This party animal and her stash of booze do come in handy after failures, rejections, or embarrassments. But as you drink to the good life, just ensure that your parents don’t find out about the ‘bigdi hui laundi’ who’s spoiling their ‘saanskaari kid.’
Crazy yet caring at heart, she’s the best person to sip your first sip (and chug) with because you can completely rely on her to drag you back to the hostel room in case you pass out…although we’re pretty sure she’ll snap a stack of embarrassing photos to roast you for eternity.
5.The Samaj Sevak
Didn’t attend class? Exams giving you the heebie-jeebies? There’s nothing to fear, Mrs. Chatur Ramalingam is here. This time, however, she’s a humble chap willing to help, and word is, she knows Hindi pretty well.
She’ll teach you the main concepts the night before the test, willingly take the lead in group projects, and end up doing most of the work (not fair, lazy bums!) as you try to find the motivation you left back in your last life.
Armed with an arsenal of detailed notes, neatly filed lecture slides, and half a dozen pink post-its meshed to every page of a colorfully highlighted textbook (yes, he actually bought it!), Miss smarty pants is your Godsent gift for surviving Satan, I meant, your professor.
If you know a philanthropist who fits the description above, you should thank your lucky stars and give her a big smooch…along with the notes you borrowed from her decades ago.
6. The Sweethearts
These two lovebirds are living proof that soulmates do exist. Their romantic aura makes the world feel like a beautiful place worthy of hope and trust. But they might get a little too cozy at times, shamelessly making out behind the library racks, and then openly boasting about their physical escapades (It’s damn annoying. Get a room, you gaais!).
Although it’s adorable to watch them say the sweetest things about each other on anniversaries and double dinner dates, being too close to the cute couple might pull you right into the middle of the drama when they’re going through a rough patch or a breakup sombré.
Hopefully, the sweet valentines will get back together and let us all live happily ever after.
7.The Kabir Thapar
This cute hippie is all about road trips, deep meaningful talks, and polaroids under the stars. Other friends might cancel the Goa trip time and again but if you’re traveling with this curious trekker, you’ll get to camp out every other weekend and vacay.
With an ambition to tour the world and a wild head full of philosophical questions that’ll give you an existential crisis for sure, our thinking traveler is someone you’ll remember way down the line- thanks to his magnetism, thirst for adventure, and genuine charm.
Even if you forget, his endless Instagrams of all the places he took you to see will keep you company long after your golden days are gone.
8.The Gadget Guru
From game torrents to laptop upgrades, our screen specialist will make your life damn easy, or at least pass on enough ‘illegal content’ (hey, we don’t judge) to forget about all your miseries and woes.
Whenever you or anyone in your family is buying anything that works on sparks, you’ll probably call him up to ask for expert advice.
But when he starts rambling about specs, gigabytes and *insert big technical term here,* you’ll wish you had just gone with the cheapest option in the store.
9.The Next Ambani (a.k.a Bade Log)
While you were busy eating crayons and playing EA Cricket games, this baby genius was pitching startup ideas to Zuckerberg, Buffet, and Gates.
While you were obsessing over Marvel’s latest and waiting for your high school crush to reply, he was busy being way too productive for his age- attending interschool debates, representing the nation in UN councils, consulting for billionaires, designing artificial intelligence, and making retirement plans at fifteen.
Ambitious, enterprising, scarily creative, and a natural people-pleaser at heart, he can sell you a broken toothbrush for 50 bucks, and keep you coming back for more.
With a sharp eye for spotting opportunities, an unparalleled determination for following through, and business knowledge flowing in his bloodstream, he’s one of those lucky few who are just born to see, sell, and shine.
You can only keep marveling at his success and pray, “Star ban jaaoge tab doston ko bhul mat jaana ha!”
10.The Sleeping Beauty
“Wait, what were we talking about again? Sorry, I just took a l’ill nap!” No matter how noisy, uncomfortable, or bright the room might be, this perpetually sleepy panda can snooze literally anywhere, anytime. Her showing up in class is a rare celestial event, and her being awake to answer the professor’s questions, is an even rarer one.
She has tried coffee, tea, lime juice, and even bourvita but nothing seems to drive away her eternal craving for a soft snuggly bed. Her cell phone has more alarms than contact numbers, and they’re all rigged to ring at 5-minute intervals…but they’ll probably be snoozed for another five because…priorities!
Talking about priorities, my friends might have had (and do have) different goals, views, and interests but I think that’s what made the group so special- each of us completed a part of the picture in our own unique way. Instead of letting our differences divide us, we embraced them, cherished them, and vowed to learn whatever we had to offer.
I’m thankful I met these crazy people because they’re the ones who made university life a challenging yet exciting experience. After all, GPAs, resumes, and paychecks will keep changing shades but what’ll stay are the true friendships you’ve made along the way…
admin
By admin | 31 December, 2021
What Students can learn from AIB: All India Bakchod
Ma briskly pulled out my iPad’s earplugs and snatched it away. I had been caught streaming A.I.B’s ‘Knockout’ roast for the third time. Couldn’t help it, man. It was all the rage back then. Arjun Kapoor and Ranveer Singh, Bollywood’s rising stars, had sat through third-degree verbal burns to raise charity funds.
Brushing with race, sexuality, religion, obesity, and other sensitive issues, Knockout’s script went completely against our notions of appropriate public dialogue. When we heard of such outright slandering, that too, done in good spirit, our generation was completely hooked- everyone wanted to be a roastmaster. Adults, however, felt their morals were being attacked.
“Do you know what AIB stands for? Do you even get what they’re saying?” Ma grew impatient. Trying to gather my thoughts, I mumbled, “Ehh, AIB? I think it’s All India…All India…”
“All India WHAT?” She knew the answer. Just a few weeks earlier, at a wedding gala, my fam had ganged up to warn us kids about the dangers of streaming such ‘unsanskaari‘ channels online. Geetha aunty even went on to deliver a 20-minute speech on how these ‘anti-nationals propagandists’ (in half pants and geeky specs) encourage kids to disrespect their parents and fly off to Pakistan.
Still in Mumbai, Tanmay Bhat, the comedy troupe’s founder, continued to gleefully roast his artist friends. With the earplugs removed, a wave of laughter from my iPad filled the room. Although I’d heard Tanmay’s jokes before, I couldn’t stop myself from laughing like a drunk lil chimp.
Shaking her head in disbelief, mum strolled out of the room. “We’ll talk to your father about this!” She said. The following night, I was given yet another long lecture on how stand-up comics and artists are destroying our culture. “They should be banned- All of them! And this man should have his stuff taken away for a while.” Geetha aunty protested.
Of course, her sermons didn’t stop me from returning to AIB’s channel via a friend’s phone. I’ve always been in awe of their creativity and guts. And I’m not alone. Far from it. The brand has a following of 3.6 million users on Facebook and well over 2 million subscribers on YouTube. It has managed to grow from a small podcast into a pop icon in just 4 years.
Virality Specialists
From myths about mental health to sexism in films, from women’s health issues to overblown Indian weddings and senseless campus placements- AIB has left a footprint in almost every social squabble, giving stiff competition to dear Arnab da.
The nation wants to know- What’s the secret ingredient of their controversy, success, and fame? Why are they so good at going viral? At Education Street, we might have some insights into their strategies, at least the ones you can observe online.
So strap up for a monster-sized seminar on (i) how AIB manages to top the trendlines every month, and (ii) how you, as a student, can use their strategies to launch your own career into the stars.
Here’s an outline of the post to give you a gist of what we’re going to explore. You can choose the read the entire essay at your leisure or go for a point at a time, starting with the one that interests you the most. Just click ‘Ctrl+F’ or ‘Find in Page’ to explore.
Point 1: General: History: Skim through the team’s origin. The brief backstory will give context to my future points.
Point 2: General: Experiment! Experiment! Experiment: Observe the underlying philosophy that has contributed to their success as artists. This mindset is crucial for youngsters who’re just starting out in the corporate world, as I shall argue.
Points 3 & 4: Technical: Minting Social Currency and 10 Buzz Buttons: Get technical with AIB’s virality strategies. This might be helpful for students who want to know how they can stand out and be heard in an extremely noisy, fast-paced, and competitive world.
Point 5: Technical: Engage your Audience: Break down some promotional tactics AIB uses to engage their fans. This can come in handy for students who want to learn how to keep audiences and customers hungry for more.
Point 6:General: Innovation is a Team Effort: Learn some of the leadership and team-building qualities that the Bakchodians display. This is essential learning for future CEOs & community leaders.
Conclusion
Point 1: History
Back in 2012, Tanmay was still struggling to make it big in Bombay. His love for comedy had driven him to work on several television shows, college fests, and stand-up gigs. But there was an entrepreneurial flame in the chap, eagerly waiting to be sparked by someone who shared his passion.
Fortunately, he met Gursimran Khamba at an open mic event. The Delhiite had been doing a solo podcast for quite some time. Tanmay asked if he could hop on. So the duo started a parody of AIR (All India Radio), casually talking about politics, social issues, and personal experiences. Two more budding artists, Rohan Joshi and Ashish Shakya, joined from the third episode.
They started touring for live performances at small events. All the while, a partner manager from YouTube kept nagging them to join as creators on the growing platform. With a little hesitation, the boys agreed to try out something new. Unsurprisingly, their first few experiments turned out to be complete disasters.
Then, in September 2013, AIB got its first breakthrough with a sarcastic monologue on victim-shaming culture, ft., Kalki Koechlin. Titled ‘Rape: It’s My Fault,‘ the video clocked millions of views in no time and catapulted them to a whole new level of fame. Over the next few years, AIB would go on to inform and entertain through sharp observations of modern Indian society.
As Newton’s law of actions and reactions dictates, our young renegades have had many clashes with the Orthodox mob. Butthurt aunties and uncles file dozens of FIRs against Bakchod’s offensive content after every release. Thankfully, AIB has survived all their onslaughts, and its creative fire continues to blaze on.
So how do you keep climbing up when you regularly get death threats from haters vowing to bring you down? How do you keep your chin high when your own leaders declare bounties for beheading artists with different views? How do you discover your own voice and make it heard in such a noisy world? Keep reading to find out…
Point 2: Experiment! Experiment! Experiment!
Before we delve into the technicalities of AIB’s viral content formula, I want to share a different angle of looking at the brand, one that aligns with their core ideology. A caveat, this point is largely philosophical. If you’re someone who likes to directly get to the practical core of a subject, I’d humbly advise you to move on to point ‘3’ (Social Currency). You won’t be losing out on anything technical, rest assured.
Nevertheless, I for one, am of the belief that our beliefs are extremely powerful. Without the right mindset, no amount of knowledge will help you get ahead in life. As Neil DeGrasse Tyson says, “People who know how to think fare much better than those who simply know what to think.” The way in which we use our minds is as important as what we use them for. Hence, I’ve put this point first up.
Coming back to the different ‘angle’ I was talking about- to me, Khamba, Tanmay, Joshi, and Shakya, aren’t really comedians at all. They’re damn hilarious, don’t get me wrong. However, I personally like to think of them as scientists! After all, they do exactly what scientists dedicate their entire lives to- observation and experimentation.
The only difference here is what the two groups investigate. While most scientists study nature, stars, minds, bodies, or chemicals; AIB scans India for our most private stereotypes, prejudices, superstitions, and insecurities. Then, it throws them in our face. We’ll see how they do this so effectively.
Understanding Innovation
First, let’s understand that this is how all good art is made- by building and pointing out links between diverse thoughts, texts, and perspectives…by borrowing ideas and adding your personal touch, as Austin Kleon notes.
AIB borrows more from Western comedy than we’d like to think. Roasts have been going on in America since 1974, Bart Barker has been churning out music parodies since 2010, podcasts have been vogue since 2004, and branded content is as old as business itself. AIB is just extremely good and taking inspiration from older creators and selling it to desi viewers.
These aren’t my personal views. Tanmay himself has been very modest about how India’s artist community is still in its creative infancy. We certainly have a lot of lessons to learn from the West before we can label comedy as ‘mainstream’ entertainment like Americans do.
See, this is our problem. We get offended when someone deems our ideas as ‘stolen.’ In reality, no idea is completely independent or stoic in form. When we think of innovation, we fantasize about apples falling on our heads and brilliant ideas sprouting out of the blue. We sink deeper into our metaphorical bathtubs, waiting for a Eureka moment that is never going to come.
News flash! There’s no such thing as completely original art. To make something innovative, you have to go out and hunt ideas for years and years. All artists simply observe the world, borrow available information, and dare to question its foundations.
Witch tales existed centuries before Harry descended on Pivet Drive. MySpace was live a year before Facebook was conceived. Blackberries were the fad when Apple introduced touchpads. Rowling, Zuckerberg, and Jobs simply made existing ideas better, faster, and more convenient. Only, they did it like no one else had ever imaged in their wildest dreams.
For a more current example, check out this trailer for the upcoming movie, ‘Downsizing.’ Does it seem familiar? If you think you’ve heard this story before, you’re not entirely wrong. The concept of little people, or Lilliputians, was first proposed by a man named Jonathan Swift two centuries ago in his fable, ‘Gulliver’s Travels.’ The creators of Downsizing’ have simply used his basic idea and leveraged modern cinematic technology to reintroduce it in a new light.
Here, it’s important to note that all initial attempts at innovation are bound to fail. A new artist’s links are far too weak. As you read, observe, and experiment, the links will get stronger, and your ideas will start to make more sense. It takes years of stuttering, mumbling, falling, and screaming before genuine applause finally kicks in. It takes a lot of awkward exits before you get to make your first grand entrance.
How to Fail Successfully
AIB is no exception to this law of hard-earned success. Their first online creation, a parody of ‘Breaking Bad,’ flopped big time. Some of their initial ‘test-tube’ experiments with new recruits fizzled out. Their personal debuts as young comedians didn’t pay off for quite some time. Knockout almost landed the entire panel in jail. But these struggles haven’t stopped them from observing, pivoting and experimenting with new styles. Their failures have only made them bolder, better and ‘only much louder.’
I’d go on to say that AIB owes all of its current fame to the culture of experimentation. When approached for making YouTube videos, they were skeptical of the project, worrying the platform wouldn’t suit their standup ‘live mic’ style.
Eventually, they took a leap of faith and launched the brand online. Today, AIB’s entire business is based on the trending channel. If they hadn’t taken the risk to try out something that was completely out of their comfort zone, they wouldn’t have reached millions of people worldwide. Furthermore, AIB doesn’t restrict itself to a single style of content. In addition to their core satire sketches-
They have a music playlist called ‘Geetmala,’ which consists of song parodies…
They command a special wing for brand sponsors. ‘Vigyapanti’ introduces new products…
They run a podcast featuring celebrities from the media industry…
And they’ve even started a coaching school for aspiring artists called ‘First Draft’ (see point 4)…
Do you notice the diversity of voice and genre? They’re always coming up with new ways of approaching the same political issues. Similarly, as a student, it’s important for you to learn to step out of your comfort zone and pick up complimentary skills. It’s even more important to be mentally prepared for the inevitable pain linked with personal growth.
You’ve got to be okay with screwing up on your first few days in any new environment. You need to be comfortable with failure, rejection, and embarrassment. You gotta accept your mistakes and own ’em with dignity. Once you give yourself the space to mess up, you’ll begin to open new doors to your destiny. So keep an eye out and keep moving ahead. Ancora Imparo- We’re always learning.
Point 3: Sparking Buzz
We’ve seen some of AIB’s brilliant work ethics. Next, we’ll be dissecting their content strategy, which is based on the theory of ‘buzzmarketing.’ A marriage of two ideas, ‘buzz,’ and ‘marketing,’ buzzmarketing means converting your audience into your ‘salesmen,’ giving them a reason to talk about you, your ideas or your brand with their family and friends.
At a basic level, buzzmarketing translates into free publicity, ‘word-of-mouth,’ or social endorsement. Hughes (2008) defines it as any strategic campaign that “captures the attention of consumers & the media to the point when talking about your brand or company becomes entertaining, fascinating, and newsworthy.”
Before we delve any further into the crazy world of buzz, let’s take a moment to think about how buzzmarketing is relevant to young adults. We’re not managing any brands, right? So why do we need to know anything about this?
Here’s what I feel- You ARE managing a brand. Just go look in the mirror. Do you see it?
When you graduate very soon, you’ll be competing against thousands of other options for your dream job. To get hired, or if you’re an entrepreneur- to get invested in, you’ll need to sell yourself as the best product in the market- for your managers, consumers, and staff alike. This is exactly what buzzmarketers do. They give people a reason to invest their ‘talk time’ in their brand. They harness word-of-mouth.
How do they do that? And on the flip side, why do we tell our friends about their links, photos, videos, or posts? Why do some stories, products, and celebrities become breaking news? Why do things catch on? Enter Social Currency.
Point 3.1: Minting Social Currency
Our search for the secrets of buzz takes us back in time to August 2014. Poor Alia had become the ‘Bhatt’ of all jokes, thanks to a silly blooper on Karan Johar’s famous talk show. Everyone was laughing, shaming and trolling the young actress. Everyone except AIB. They spotted an opportunity to fight back. So they called up Alia and filmed a public statement. Here’s the catch. The resulting mockumentary wasn’t a defense at all- rather, it was a nod to Alia’s stupidity.
This was a totally unexpected response from someone who was getting so much slack for nothing. People were hungry for Alia to lash out. Nobody thought she’d rise up to the occasion and laugh at herself. When she finally did, the entire room fell silent. Whether you hate her or love her as an artist, you gotta agree, it was an impressive move.
Titled ‘Genius of the Year,’ the video follows Alia signing up with a ‘mental gym’ for a ‘brain enhancement’ course. Sharp and candid, this 10-minute short has amassed a whopping 18 million views over the years, making it the most popular piece on the channel till date. Why has it attracted so many eyeballs? Why is it still the most popular video when there have been bigger (in terms of budget, cast, topic, etc.) and more controversial uploads after its release?
Almost all the marketing professionals I’ve consulted on this topic say it was just a matter of the right timing. Since Alia was already trending online, any good content on the hashtag would organically gain traction as well. But is that it? Is buzz simply about getting the right timing? Well, yes. And no.
Timing is a crucial factor for virality. It’s not an essential one, though. AIB’s second most popular video, ‘Honest Indian Weddings’ was released in May, far away from the winter wedding season. Most of their famous videos like ‘The Great Media Circus,’ ‘Honest Campus Placements,’ ‘Times of Boobs’ and ‘Shit Indians do in Theatre’ have very little to do with the date of their releases.
So in addition to timing, there has to be another element responsible for the success of all these videos. Let’s take some cues from another event which led to a similar spike in the conversations centered around the brand.
Yes, you guessed it. I’m talking about THE ‘Knockout.’ By the time Bakchod was forced to take down the official version, netizens had already downloaded it on their drives. It spread like wildfire in WhatsApp groups. Even torrents popped up. AIB became the talk of the town once again.
I remember my entire class going berserk over the video, watching it again and again on their phones. The Roast was embraced by our generation. It was worshipped as the ‘coolest’ event of the year. Its still talked about at parties and alumni meets. New uncensored copies are uploaded by YouTubers every month.
Whenever I mention it to some of my close friends, I get the same reaction- “These guys have such balls, man. I could never say those things in front of my parents. They have all my respect!“
That’s it! ‘Balls’ is our secret ingredient.
Wait, what?
Point 3.2: Cool as a Water-cooler
Back in 2002, a beverage company named ‘Snapple‘ started printing trivia inside their bottle caps- Human eyes have over two million working parts. Pluto takes 248 Earth years to orbit the Sun. A piece of paper can be folded only seven times. The average person spends two weeks over his/her lifetime waiting for traffic lights to change. You blink over 10,000,000 times a year.
Woah, who knew, huh? Like Chinese Fortune Cookies, the idea became extremely popular in no time. “The facts were so surprising and entertaining that it was hard not to want to share them with someone,” Berger narrates in ‘Contagious: Why Things Catch On.” Snapple drinkers enthusiastically shared their new-found knowledge with family and friends, subtly promoting the brand in the process. But they weren’t just doing it because the facts were remarkable and rarely known. They did it because sharing the facts made them look cool as well.
When we share stories, secrets, and information, we mint something Pierre Bourdieu termed as ‘social capital,’ or in more recent terms, ‘social currency.’ Just like we use actual money to buy products, we use ‘social currency’ to form a desired positive image in front of our family, friends, and colleagues. We tend to talk about topics that make us seem cool, capable, knowledgeable, privileged, rare, interesting, and smart.
Social currency is the price we pay to get a certain position in the society. If we have boring hobbies or listen to outdated music, it’s unlikely that we’ll be the life of a party or the talk of our town. But if we’ve been through adventures and have visions to change the world, there’s a strong chance of people gravitating towards us.
Let’s not forget, they’re trying to mint social currency by hanging out with the cool kids, too. The rule applies to every single human being- A man is indeed known by the company he keeps- not just of people, but of ideas as well.
Considering this theory, it may be argued that people who were sharing the Roast weren’t doing so simply because of the verbal jibes. Call me crazy but I feel they were doing it, at least in part, for the symbolism behind those outrageous remarks.
The Roast, like the first ever iPod, was a symbol for youth, hippy culture, and all things cool. Talking about it satisfied our inner drives to be a ‘free-speech’ rebel, challenging the notions of what we can say out loud. Asking our colleagues if they saw the uncensored version made us look ‘chill’ and ‘unusual.’
Similarly, those who shared Alia’s mockumentary were trying to send a subliminal message to their social groups. They were using the video as a medium to express their belief in a mindset of being calm under pressure and reflective under scrutiny. Alia had become the new M.S Dhoni.
Even folks who had trolled her initially began to declare themselves as her fans, claiming to have found new respect for her remarkable response. People just wanted to make their thoughts clear to the public- “We’re mature as well. We can laugh at ourselves. Everyone makes mistakes. What’s the big deal?” If you think I’m making this stuff up, I invite you to take a closer look at the comments and shares-
To be able to laugh on oneself is probably the greatest gift one can ever have… making the negative into a positive is an art and the Bhatts are great at it… kudos to Alia for this giant step, she will leave all behind in time to come… all the best Alia!
This is very bold. Though I am not a fan and you are much younger than me, kudos to you for standing up. Anybody can make a mistake and you just happen to be a celebrity. CWK should have edited it out and just kept to bring some fun element to the show…but as usual media and people turned the whole thing against you. Just do what you do best and that is acting. You have a long way to go and improve a lot. Thank you, AIB for supporting her and making a point.
Such a sport this kid is..for all those who laugh at her for being a goofball@20,I know many people who@40, despite being well educated, do not know who our President or Vice President is?? I think she’s got a pretty sensible head on her shoulders for a 21 yr.old…
I love how she is completely okay with people making fun of her. And she is making fun of herself too. This is amazing…
She took it on herself…. she might didn’t have the general knowledge of who is the p.m but she is brave enough to make joke on herself.
It takes a lot of guts to make fun of yourself……she deserves respect.
That’s how people should be. The ability to laugh at your own self shows strength. Which is AWESOME !!
Making mistakes is a natural tendency of human beings. I make u make we all make!!!!
….And many more comments along the similar lines…
It’s no surprise that a video about laughing at yourself is the most viewed piece on a channel that is all about laughing at our own irrationalities as a society. AIB’s very agenda is to use humor as a soft mirror to reflect on our own biases, desires, and social customs. The videos put out on their channel exemplify rare values of courage, self-introspection, and entrepreneurship. Sharing these videos gives us a social ‘voice.’
This is precisely why AIB gets so much buzz. It doles out ‘social currency.’ Its unusual content makes us feel like we’re a part of a special artistic revolution set to overthrow current political systems. They give us the chance to express bold opinions, simply by sharing their sketches. We look cool in water-cooler conversations and hot in social gatherings when we support such daring ideas.
If making people feel cool ups your brand’s chances of getting mentioned, then a deeper question follows- Why? Why does a particular story make us feel like it matters and we should share it with those who matter to us? Why did the videos about the roast or a dumb actress owning up to her mistakes make for effective examples of social currency? Are there any features that all these viral stories contain?
Yes.
Meet the 10 buzz buttons.
Point 4: Buzz Buttons for Social Currency
Pick any currency. There will definitely be a guide on how to identify fake notes from real cash. For example, ET explains how the ₹2000 note has watermarks, electrotypes, latent images, angular bleeds, and specific digit fonts that are unique to its denomination. In fact, every note ever made has some distinctive features to avoid misuse as far as possible.
Similarly, social currency also travels through a very specific set of stories or ‘events.’ People gain desirable emotions, or at least expect them, when they share certain types of news. We can spot most of these ‘story structures’ in Hughes’ book titled ‘Buzzmarketing: Get People to Talk About Your Stuff.‘ He uses the concept of ‘buzz buttons’ to describe how all viral marketing campaigns share similar qualities.
When you push these 10 buttons, you mint social currency. We’ve already brushed through 2 of them, ‘breaking’ (timing) and ‘unusual’ (experimentation) in points 3.1 and 2 respectively. In point 3, we’ll be touching on 6 of them, and in point 4, we’ll discuss the remaining 2 buttons, ‘useful’ and ‘entertainment.’
Note that for the sake of this article’s length, we’ll only be skimming through the buttons and their application specifically in AIB’s ventures. If you’d like to go deeper and see more examples, I highly recommend picking up Berger’s and Hughes’ classics on the subject.
Sr.
BUTTON
DESCRIPTION
EXAMPLES
1
Unusual
different from expected pitches
Desi Mario, Geetmaala Series
2
Breaking
hot & current news in local media
The Bollywood Diva Song, India reacts to ban on pornography
3
David/Goliath
little underdogs go against big giants
Save the Internet: Net Neutrality Series against TRAI & Free Basics by Facebook
4
Controversy
divides crowd into 2 polarising groups
Rape- It’s Your Fault, The Demonetization Circus, Congress vs BJP
5
Taboo
sex, lies, religion, war, race, income, sexism
Man’s Best Friend, A Woman’s Besties, Times of Boobs
Tribute to Indian Ads, If People treated other Illnesses like they treat Depression
7
Celebrity
opinion leaders with huge fan followings
Shahrukh Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, Raju Srivastav, Kunal Nayyar
8
Gamification
rewards & competition
YouTube Comedy Hunt, First Draft Workshop
9
Entertainment
buzz trojan horses of stories & art
AIB: The Commentaries – Mummy Ka Call (Google Duo), AIB: Creep Qawwali (TrulyMadly)
10
Useful
practically beneficial information that saves money, effort, or time
If People treated other Illnesses like they treat Depression, AIB Meets Xbox One
David Vs. Goliath: Save the Internet Series
Let’s start with the buzz button, ‘David Vs. Goliath.’ Everyone loves to see an underdog go against the big boy on the block. The story has all the excitement of a Dragon-and-Prince folk tale. Two years ago, a Chennai-born rapper, Sofia Ashraf, exposed Unilever’s destructive practices in Kodaikanal in a spoof of Nicky Minaj’s ‘Anaconda.’ Her video titled ‘Kodaikanal Won’t’ clocked 4 million views, driving people to urge the giant to ‘clean up its mess.’
AIB played to a similar sentiment when it wrestled against TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India), COAI (Cellular Operators Association of India), Facebook (internet.org), and many telcos threatening net neutrality. Their ‘SAVE THE INTERNET’ videos garnered 6M views. They gave them some major airtime with media houses like CNN, NDTV, TimesNow, and Headlines Today.
If you’re guessing all this coverage must’ve given them a good bump in reach, your guess is on fleek. Note the spike in views at around April 2015, thanks to the neutrality campaign’s effect, compounded by some post-Roast controversy.
Controversy: The Demonetization Circus
Moving on to controversy, it seems we have a strong urge to be correct about our initial views. AIB has capitalized on this urge time and again. Look at their shorts, ‘Congress vs BJP,’ ‘The Demonetization Circus,’ and ‘The Day India Resigned.’ What do they all have in common? They pit two political polars against each other in a fiery battle.
The ‘Desi Rewind 2017 #PeekeMatChala‘ is a musical debate on whether this year rocked or sucked. What do you think? And what do your friends think? Pretty sure y’all can disagree on a lot of points.
As another example of using controversy to spark buzz, take a sip from the legendary 1975 ‘Pepsi Challenge.’ Blue-dressed Reps set up booths in malls, encouraging shoppers to take a single blind test taste with two cups each containing their drink and the rival Coke.
When asked which drink they prefer, most of the testers leaned towards, you guessed it, Pepsi. Taste tests popped up in schools, offices, and homes as well. Everyone was debating about which drink is better, pushing Pepsi’s sales through the roof.
Taboo: Man’s Best Friend
Let’s look at a similar button, taboo. The Roast falls into this category. People will always be divided over what topics we can openly discuss. Sex, lies, religion, war, race, income, terrorism- these are extremely sensitive issues no one usually brings up at the dinner table. Openly talking about them is a guaranteed way to get buzz.
Reflect on the videos ‘Man’s Best Friend,’ ‘A Woman’s Besties,’ and ‘If People Treated Other Illnesses Like They Treat Depression.’ What topics do they all discuss? Shhhh…we don’t say such things loudly.
Emotions: Tribute to Indian Ads
AIB is particularly good at pushing the ’emotional’ button of buzz. Alia’s mockumentary belongs to this group because it evokes awe and surprise. Videos like ‘Tribute to Indian Ads’ and ‘The 2017 Song’ appeal to the nostalgia and happiness of 90’s kids and millennials respectively. Shorts like ‘Demonetization Circus,’ ‘Rape: It’s Your Fault,’ ‘Thank You Congress,’ and ‘Online Harassment, Order Now!’ feed off the growing public anger towards our patriarchal systems.
Pay particular attention to Naveen Polishetty’s viral ‘Average Mishra’ monologue in ‘Honest Campus Placements.’ Remember where you’ve seen the style before? Rajat’s character in ‘Pyaar Ka Punchanama’ delivered a similar speech on how having a girlfriend is just another way to torture yourself. Both the rants arouse extreme frustration and anger in viewers. Both of them got the same overwhelming response.
Whatever moves our heart also moves our lips to talk. Emotions lead to buzz. IPA (The UK-based Institute of Practitioners in Advertising) has confirmed that campaigns with purely emotional content perform about twice as well (31% vs. 16%) as those with only rational content.
Slurp on how Maggi from Nestlé has been appealing to our nostalgia through advertisements featuring moms, students, and office-goers. They’re celebrating relationships over a hot bowl of the nation’s favorite snack. It isn’t ‘just a pack of noodles.’ It’s a Khushiyon Ki Recipe! A masala of love!
Celebrity: Podcasts with Stars
Buzz is not always restricted to our family and friends, though. It can also be sparked by ‘opinion leaders,’ folks who happen to know their industries damn well. So we look up to them for advice on what, when, where, how, and why to buy.
Examples include beauty bloggers, game reviewers, movie critiques, gadget gurus, sports analysts, fitness coaches, celebrity cooks, and news journalists. Marketers determine the perfect match by judging the quantity and quality of their fan following (lifestyle, age, sex, hobbies), their content form (images, articles, videos, memes), their most recent buzz spikes (news in media), and their predictive future value as a celebrity (considering metrics of the overall industry).
AIB has been very smart in choosing the right partners. All their tie-ups are either highly relevant to their industry or synced with ongoing controversial figures from partner fields. As examples, listen to the informative podcasts with Colin-Sherwood, Kunal Nayyar, and Anurag Kashyap.
Or think about the appearances by Kangana Ranaut (just during the Roshan debacle), Shah Rukh Khan, and Nawazzudin Sidiqque. If you observe the latter group closely, you’ll see a connection between their respective cameos/talks and ongoing media controversies.
Gamification: YouTube Comedy Hunt
Next up is ‘gamification.’ It’s the art of applying game elements to any campaign, organization, or activity. Marketers love this process because games are mental chocolates- their primary purpose is to please players. And as we discussed, anything that makes a customer feel good is an untapped mine of buzz.
For example, take a scoop from Ben&Jerry’s “Which ice cream flavor are you?” quiz on Buzzfeed. You need to pick a movie, select a social issue you care about, choose a book you love, guess at what you’re likely to do on a Saturday- and vanilla! You’ll know just the kind of ice cream flavor that describes you best.
Instead of plainly promoting their products, Ben&Jerry’s gave people the chance to fool around and share the quiz’s results. It’s a silly thing but people still took the bait in millions. Everyone loves a fun game.
Similarly, Bakchod’s collab event, “India’s Comedy Hunt,” managed to turn the creatively demanding task of producing comedy videos into a competitive game for artists who were just starting out. Along with Kanan Gill, East India Comedy, Shudh Desi Endings, and a few other leaders, they launched a public YouTube channel where users could submit their entries for funny online sketches.
The organizers would then judge the entries based on production quality, topic selection, scripting, and other parameters. There were loads of prizes to be won, and of course, an ultimate winner to be crowned in the grand finale. The channel attracted more three million views. Youngsters were thrilled to get a free stage to test their creative skills. If you want your audience to stay, just give ’em a chance to play!
By now, you should have a fair idea of how to start beneficial conversations. The job is only half done, though. Creating a viral message is one thing. Packaging and putting it out on the shelves is a different task altogether. If your product doesn’t have an equally interesting pitch, I assure you that it won’t be noticed, regardless of how good it might look on paper. This brings us to AIB’s second weapon- brand engagement.
Point 5: Engage Your Audience
Watch “Close Distance Relationships,” a satire on how technology has ruined romance. The scene is set in a high-end restaurant. Richa is complaining about having gotten a job offer in her boyfriend’s city. Perplexed, Naveen asks why she thinks moving closer is bad for their relationship.
“Because texting is better than talking. The OnePlus 5T phone’s 6-inch bezel-less screen is best at hiding all the flaws,” She replies, “I just can’t be in a short-distance relationship.” Naveen tries his best to prove that meeting face-to-face is more fun than chatting.
But he always ends up contradicting himself by using a phone to debate against technology. On one occasion, when he tries to unlock the cell to show a meme, Neha reminds him of the model’s brand new face lock feature. In another instance, he’s aroused by reading Neha’s back-to-back sexts, a nudge at the cell’s speedy connectivity.
Finally, Naveen gives up and literally shifts out so that his partner can pursue her dreams. “I can’t believe you changed cities for me!” Neha blushes. “I can think of ways for you to thank me,” Naveen winks. “Send ’em in portrait mode. Suits you best.”
Smartly done. We learn about 5T’s features without the characters making a single direct reference. Its only after the climax that Biswa and Naveen go all out to sell the brand. Because the product is so seamlessly interwoven with the script, most viewers don’t even notice they’re being sold to until the very end. However, for those of us who’ve followed the channel religiously, this isn’t a new strategy at all.
Sponsored Content
AIB has produced more than half a dozen videos in partnership with sponsors like Google Duo, Swiggy, Microsoft, Quickr, Truly Madly, SnapDeal, Ola, and Sallu Bhai (just kidding with the last one!). When Microsoft asked to help boost sales for Xbox One, they chose to literally play around with the gadget, showing how games and gamers have both evolved over the ages. We get to know about the console’s seamless activation and voice recognition technology, dual screen split, Skype integration, and many other cool features. There’s still no direct mention, though. Just a damn funny story.
Quickr’s ‘Mobile Bechna Hai’ and ‘Date Film’ are both hilarious depictions of our price-conscious bargaining culture. Google Duo’s ‘Mummy Ka Call’ is a quirky commentary on the desi mom’s surveillance habits. TrulyMadly’s ‘Creep Qawwali’ is another piece of genius mocking India’s stalker community in its search for bobs and vagenes.
For dessert, Swiggy’s ‘Honest Bars & Restaurants’ is a delicious case study of our dining etiquettes. My personal favorite is Ola’s #PeekeMatChalaa campaign. It manages to raise awareness about drunk driving and sells Ola as the solution to the problem- talk about knocking two birds with one stone.
AIB’s tactic of using narratives isn’t restricted to marketing products. When they wanted to raise awareness of how tabooing mental health is affecting our nation’s progress, they didn’t just list out statistics or complained about the issue. Instead, they put a creative twist on the problem by ridiculing our baseless assumptions in a short parody, ‘If People Treated Other Illnesses Like They Treat Depression.’
Through an entertaining script, AIB managed to pull us in and take action on the issue. The video currently sits at 1.5 million views. Do you think they would’ve gotten the same response with the title, ‘People treat Depression like Shit’?
All these clips highlight the golden difference between buzzmarketing and traditional sales. While companies promote, brands engage. Companies spend millions to push their ideas all out. Brands, however, envelop their visions with entertaining and informative content.
Smart marketers bury their pitches under awesome stories or life hack tips, always posing as pundits, entertainers, storytellers, saints, saviors, or even friends- big hearts who just want to help and make you laugh. Who says no to such caring buddies, huh?
Crowdsourcing Ideas
Talking about buddies, AIB also crowdsources stories through their ongoing social media campaign, ‘#AIBJagrata.‘ Under the hashtag, fans are encouraged to reveal intimate anecdotes and thoughts publicly. If your squad were a band, what would its name be? What would you want a free lifetime supply of? Do you regret pooping after eating something expensive? And which house was considered to be the best in your school? It was Hogwarts for me!
Sr.
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Sell with Storytelling
Why do the sponsored stories and Jagrata’s nuggets get so much traction? One reason might be related to how our neurons respond to narratives, both real and fictional. “Just as the brain detects patterns in the visual forms of nature – a face, a figure, a flower – and in sound, so too it detects patterns in information,” writes Frank Rose.
“Stories are recognizable patterns- they usually have a start, middle, and an end; a problem, struggle, and a solution; a hero, villain, and conflicting values; a beam of light, darkness, and the Force- and in these patterns, we find meaning. We use stories to make sense of our world and to share that understanding with others. They are the signal of the noise.”
As every Disney movie goes to show, stories combine entertainment and utility by teaching us morals and making us laugh or cry at the same time. They are an easy medium to cash out social currency. People tell tales either because it makes them look cool and in the know (privilege, celebrity, breaking), or because they’re amazed (emotion, taboo, unusual), or because they want to help their loved ones save money/effort/time, or simply because they want to prove themselves right by analogy and example (controversy).
For buzzmarketers, the challenge is to embed their ideas deep into a good storyline, tightly knitting their products with the external narrative. “If a product’s role is integral to the storyline, our brains accept the brand and remember its presence.” Martin Lindstrom notes in his book, ‘Buyology: Truth and Lies About Why We Buy.’
This is one of the main reasons why AIB’s adverts are so popular and successful. They don’t look like adverts at all. The sponsors (or ideas) aren’t forced into the stories. Rather, the integration is seamless and subtle in every case. The videos are primarily entertainment, information, and just pure fun.
The takeaway here is that Bakchod, like all smart brands, takes great care to vessel its main ideas in entertaining storylines. This makes it much convenient and pleasurable for people to share the ideas in their groups. Just like kids are taught manners and values through Panchatantra or Grandma’s tales, adults learn a lot about brands through the stories other users share.
Now, crafting good stories needs an equally good and capable team. It’s not just 4 crazies sitting in Starbucks who make the content we love so much. More than 50 writers, actors, DOPs, line producers, make-up artists, sound recordists, editors, social media gurus, dressmen, camera attendants, caterers, finance controllers, production suppliers, creative directors, animators, spot runners, and other creatives work together to bring a rough script onto our screens. This brings us to the last stop of our journey in creative anarchy…
Point 6: Innovation is ALWAYS a team-effort
Market leaders are known for notoriously stifling fresh talent. Whenever a new player moves in, the giants scurry to squash any and all potential threats. Rockefeller acquired 22 of his 26 Cleveland oil refinery competitors, BlablaCar bought Carpooling and AutoHop to dominate Europe, and Chicken giant Tyson foods decided to invest in a direct threat by backing the vegan startup, ‘Beyond Meat.’
You’d expect AIB to play the same game and maintain its dominance in the local content industry. Except, it’s doing the exact opposite by kindling new talent and supporting young artists. They’re actually inviting and training more creators through initiatives like ‘Comedy Hunts’ (see gamification point) and my personal favorite, ‘First Draft.’
In ‘First Draft,’ budding storytellers attend lectures, interact with top industry professionals, learn the skills essential to screenwriting, and leave with their own first draft of a movie or series – with all expenses covered by AIB. The Bakchodians believe that India is full of storytellers. But too often, their stories go untold due to a lack of training, exposure, and opportunity.
Instead of enjoying the spotlight, they’ve chosen to invite others on the stage and join them in creative destruction. They could’ve chosen to retire and spend their earnings touring the world. Instead, they chose to go beyond the call of duty and involve youngsters in the creative process.
AIB refuses to view art as a competition. Rather, they consider it a community, a family of sorts. In fact, Tanmay and the others are publicly known to be humble and simple chaps in real life, always greeting their fans with boundless enthusiasm and gratitude.
AIB also cares greatly about its employees. When Mamlesh Tiwari, the editor of over 50 AIB videos, decided to take a break from sketches and switch to film or writing, Tanmay wrote a heartwarming recommendation on his Facebook page, requesting people to approach him for potential projects.
The recommendations, free workshops, tutorials garner an aura of support, friendship, and brotherhood for the team. These leadership qualities the Bakchodians display are worth noting for aspiring CEOs and community leaders.
In his riveting TED talk, Simon Sinek notes, “Good leaders make the choices to sacrifice their comforts and sacrifice the tangible results so that the people remain and feel safe and feel like they belong- and when they make that choice, remarkable things happen. Leadership, then, is a choice. Not a position.” It’s a choice to care about your team, your community, your world.
Conclusion
Their brotherly spirit is why AIB has become something more than just a YouTube channel. It’s not simply a content creation company anymore. AIB is a way of life. Its a philosophy every youngster should adopt early on in his or her career. With the right ‘A: attitude’ towards failure and success, coupled with the ability to ‘I: interact’ with your listeners, and supported by a humble spirit of ‘B: Brotherhood,’ you can certainly change the entire world.
You won’t require a Harvard degree, a huge number of followers, or a well-fed bank account to make it to the trending page. All you’ll need is the courage to go against the grain and follow your heart. That’s exactly what the word ‘Bakchod’ essentially means. Someone ‘hatke.’ Someone who completely disregards rules, logic, and social norms. Who dares to go make his own path.
Apple’s advert sums it up best. Bakchods are “the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. While some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do…”
Think differently. Think Bakchod.
Amendments
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If you spot any incorrect data, please educate the author at fb.com/manikrege with links to facts.
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By admin | 31 December, 2021
Why Study in New Zealand?
Top 6 Reason to Study in New Zealand.
Planning to study abroad starts with the choice of country, which is one of the crucial decision to make as your entire journey is at stake. It’s important to take the informed decision before you initiate your dream for higher studies abroad.
Here are some interesting facts about New Zealand which makes it one of the stable choice for Study Abroad.
TOP Ranked University:
New Zealand has 8 universities which are all public university and ranked among the top 400-500 universities in the world.
Sr. No.
University
World Ranking 2017 (QS)
1
The University of Auckland
81
2
University of Otago
169
3
University of Canterbury
214
4
Victoria University of Wellington
228
5
University of Waikato
324
6
Massy University
340
7
Lincoln University
343
8
Auckland University of Technology (AUT)
441-450
Popular Programs:
The number of international student flying to New Zealand for higher studies has increased in recent times because of its well diverse programs availability in these universities and Polytechnics. New Zealand Institutes also provides vocational courses in Tourism, Hotel Management and many others. Popular programs that eyed by international student are MBA, Master of Professional Accounting, Tourism and Hotel Management, Engineering, Agriculture Science, Finance etc.
Duration of Course and Entry Requirement.
The best part of New Zealand programs are their duration of the courses. In general all major courses are of 1 year full time study.
Sr.no
Entry Level
Requirement
IELTS
Duration of Course
1
Level 5 (Diploma Program)
12th standard
6 band with no band less than 5.5
1 – 2 Years
2
Level 6 (Diploma Program)
12th Standard
6 band with no band less than 5.5
1-2 Year
3
Level 7 (Graduate Diploma )
Bachelor
6.5 band with no band less than 6
1 year
4
Level-7 (Bachelors)
12th standard with good aggregate for bachelor
6 band with no band less than 5.5
3 -4 years
5
Level 8 (PG)
Good aggregate in bachelors
6.5 band with no band less than 6
1 year
6
Level 9 (Masters)
60% + minimum for master course in Universities
6.5 band with no band less than 6
1 Year ( Some courses includes internship so course duration can go upto 16 months)
Work Opportunity:
New Zealand allows their International student to work part time. An international student is entitled to work up to 20 Hours/Week during the course and 40 Hours/Week during vacation. Really well paid part time jobs, earning around 15 NZ$/ hour. This helps you to take care of the living expenses in New Zealand.
Post Completion of the course international student has 1 year of job search visa which allows them to search a job and gain international work experience and exposure.
Ease of Visa Acquisition and PR:
Getting your work visa extension is relatively less complex in New Zealand as compared to other study abroad destination subject to you having a good job. Once international student has spent couple of years in the country they can also apply for Permanent Residency. PR in New Zealand is simplified and achievable.
Country and People:
One of the most liveable country in the world with warm welcoming people in the country.
Few Facts about the demography of New Zealand
Population: 4.43 million (Statistics NZ, 2012)
Land Area: 269,652 sq. Km (Statistics NZ, 2012)
Capital: Wellington
Largest City: Auckland
Other Major Cities: Christchurch, Dunedin, Hamilton, Nelson, Bay of Plenty
Official Languages: English, Maori
Currency: New Zealand Dollar ($NZD)
Main exports: Wool, Food and Dairy products, Wood and Paper products
Main imports: Education and Tourism
GNI per capita: US $26,100 (Statistics NZ, 2012)
Time Zone: NZST (UTC+12)
Famous for: Wine, Wood, Wool, Milk and Milk Products, Education and Tourism
WES stands for World Evaluation Services. It is authorized to do evaluation of foreign transcripts and convert it to US education system. Most of the US universities rely on their evaluation & recommend students for their evaluation report.
WES offers two types of evaluation namely Basic & ICAP. Basic evaluation cost is little less than ICAP. Most of the universities tend to ask for ICAP evaluation report as it is detailed one but some universities like SJSU accepts basic evaluation report also. So, students can check university website for the same. Further, they charge you separately for report generation & delivery of report to each selected university.
For evaluation process, WES asks for academic documents from your university and so you are required to send your mark sheets & degree certificate attested by your University & NOT college. Every University in India has a different procedure to issue attested copies.eg: University of Mumbai takes 7 to 25 days to issue from the day you submit it to them. Some students get the same in 7 days, whereas some students get in within 25 days. There have been instances where students have got in 2 days also, but I am not sure how perhaps it could be because of reference they may have in university. (It is suggested to give additional copies of transcripts at the time you go to their office to submit your academic documents, so you can utilize it for any other university also if they ask you transcripts by the degree granting university).
The process for WES application goes as under:
Step 1
You must create your account on WES.
Step 2
You must add the US university name which has asked you for WES evaluation and further select the service you would like to go for either Basic or ICAP.
Step 3
Make a payment by credit card & submit the application.
Step 4
After submitting the application WES generates your reference number.
Step 5
Courier your documents attested by your university to WES with reference number on it. Remember you are not required to put “FROM” address on this envelope as it is attested by university & them already have their stamp on it.
Step 6
Keep checking your status on WES account because they keep updating your status, after evaluation they will send you also one copy of the report.
Note: WES takes 7 days’ time to generate your report from the day they receive your transcripts, so it is suggested to apply well in advance considering your university deadlines. Hence you should give your marksheets, transcripts & degree certificate (if available) to your university as soon as possible.
After you receive your attested documents you must courier it to WES on their given address by putting your reference number which you get after submitting your application & making payment to WES.
By: Madhavi Palange
Senior Counselor and Branch Head- Education Street.
For more details: Contact https://educationstreet.in/about-education-street/contact/
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COMPLETE HONEST GUIDE TO STUDYING ABROAD AFTER GRADE 12TH
