Let's blog!

You know how you make a plan and you decide what you are going to be doing every day, you have it all scheduled out neatly, so that you get everything done?
Yeah, that was me at the beginning of this year. One of my resolutions was to organise my time better, so that I find time to do what I love while still doing all the stuff I have to. It sounds great, doesn't it? That's what I though, and it works perfectly, in theory.
Sadly, real life takes over pretty quickly and you get, let's say sidetracked by certain things, be it fun activities, a new job opportunity, or learning something new. To sum it up, life happens. You can't really plan for that. So needless to say my perfectly planned out schedule became pretty irrelevant fast. I'm still trying to find that super-organizer that will adapt to my life, preferably on it's own, ha ha. So that it can keep up with everything I have and want to do.
Wow, quite an introduction to what I wanted to say, which was, my blog has been "silently" screaming for attention, ha ha. So here I am, to the rescue of my blog that I'm pretty sure has been feeling like that kid in the back of the class that eats it's hair and has no friends. Be it, my white horse is missing, also my shining armour is at the cleaners, but hey, those are just details. Sneakers and jeans should get the job done just as well. You see it's Friday, so that means casual clothes *hah, who am I kidding, casual-comfy clothes are a constant in my life*.
Okay, enough of this blabbering, let's catch up! Let's see, work is pretty much a given, started learning new skills, checked out the Adwords conference that brought us the new updates *how awesome was that?!*, kept up with friends and life in general also, my Instagram has gotten a lot of my attention lately.
Let's chat a bit about that, what do you all think about Instagram? Everyone else find it incredibly addictive, or is that just me? I'm pretty much on it 24/7 checking for updates from my favourite 'grammers or just searching for new inspiration. It's also a pretty great platform to make new business contacts. I got to step out of my comfort zone and collaborate with a clothing company, which was pretty awesome! I'm also in the process of planning some sort of summer getaway which might turn into an early-autumn getaway, but oh well, vacation is still vacation. Am I right?
So that's pretty much what has been keeping me busy, what about you guys? Anyone have any fun adventures to share? Or fabulous updates? I'm all ears.
Till then, I'm going to start my friday tradition of a 30 second dance party and get this day started.
Geek out!

How to Reach That Proverbial Finish Line

Well hello Friday! Nothing quite like that last stretch before the finish line, that last breath of air you take to get you to there. You muster up all your courage and forget pain or how tired you are, you gather up all your strength and scurry up to break that bow at the end of the line. That's pretty much the general feeling on Fridays. Fridays are the proverbial last stretch on our way to that glorious finish line that is the weekend. Some of us reach for that last bit of strength to get through the day and others reach for inspiration or humour to pass the time. Luckily the Internet provides both, be it in the form of a great article about the new marketing trends or tweaks that help take your campaigns to the next level, or a funny panda trying to get on a swing relentlessly without succeeding. We all have our secret weapons. These things are pretty easy to find, seeing as how the Internet is pretty much that all you can eat buffet that provides everything you could need. Then again some materials are better than others, so I'm going to share some of my favourites.
How about that cute panda trying to make                          Or the little pug playing with his owner?
it on the swing?
            

There's no shortage of funny gifs that will keep you laughing while you wait for the day to pass. You can't really go wrong when browsing the 9gag gallery or thehumourtrain.
There's also those buzzfeed articles, you know the ones that don't really do much for your career but do wonders for passing the time. Like when start searching for something random and get lost in all the "noise" so you end up on one of these somehow?
http://www.buzzfeed.com/shannonrosenberg/love-you-more-than-pizza#.tsg8WZxg5, though let's face it, we all kinda wanted to read that one. In the end I leave you with an uplifting motivational message to kick start today. "You're one in a melon."
Geek out!

Deadpool review. A Must See Or Fox's New Cautionary Tale?

"Hello my little lovelies."

Deadpool was one of the most anticipated movies of 2016! I mean it took over the marketing world both offline and online and they just ran with it, you couldn't watch a trailer without seeing something about Deadpool, this movie was everywhere! Which is usually the standard go to marketing plan with any new 20th Century Fox movie that's coming out, but they took it to a new level with this Ryan Reynolds movie. The investment did pay off with the movie being the second-biggest grossing R-rated film of all time, earning 619.3 million USD worldwide.
Like with all Superhero movies it has a wide audience, everyone loves a good Superhero, especially one with a twist. The twist being he's no Superhero at all actually. Free of the burden of the usual Superhero stigma of respectful and nice and a basic good conscience, Deadpool takes the term Superhero pretty loosely and just goes ahead and loses his social filter when it comes to pretty much everything. It didn't get a G rating for nothing after all. But with all the swearing, cursing, sex scene and a full on naked Ryan Reynolds, comes also comedy and as he puts it a "love story".

The story is basically about Reynolds who has left the special forces and a dishonourable discharge behind and has become a mercenary for hire. Everything is going great for him, he even meets someone who's crazy fits his crazy. Until he is told his days are numbered. To the rescue comes an evil scientist with the promise of Superhero like abilities thanks to a black-market treatment for cancer. Only to find out he's being turned into a super slave. After torture and a rogue experiment he leaves Deadpool completely disfigured, but gives him the ability to regenerate from pretty much anything. He escapes and later goes hunting for the man who did that to him, Ajax *also known as Francis*. 

What makes this movie so fun to watch is the refreshing script and freedom when it comes to the overly sarcastic Reynolds. He truly is enjoyably obnoxious! Also awareness of his own fictional status and constant name dropping of fellow superheroes along with real life actors makes for a fun experience. With a fresh new take on the Superhero movie genre Deadpool changed the Superhero game, proving sarcasm and profanity can fit a hero. It's cool, it's fun, it will make you laugh, cry and go awww only to make you laugh again. So to all the movie lovers out there, I highly recommend watching Deadpool, it will make for one fun movie night, perfect for the weekend!

Geek out!

Here's Why Instagram Is The New Social Superpower

The giant himself.

We live in a busy world where technology seems to be our best ally. Even though we are drowning in social platforms and new apps that are being developed every day, there are a few platforms that remain "Social Superpowers" as I like to call them. In a time when there are hundreds of copies made of a new app every week, some of them hold their own by following some simple rules, mainly one rule: UX. I think the user experience is one of the most important factors in creating anything that is meant to be used by everyone in the world, since ultimately the users have the power to make or break it. 

So in the arena of Twitter and Facebook, comes Instagram. One of the fastest growing giants of them all, with over 400 million monthly users it surpasses even Twitter. So let's get to it, what is this undisputable's giants secret?
The first reason Instagram is so popular is that it's very user friendly. The interface was created for the every day user. The upload process, the profile settings and even following new profiles is easier than ever.
Then there's brand awareness. While we may not like to admit it we are influenced by society and marketing. Recommendations and advertisements play an important factor in our decision making process. We follow what others do and try new things based on what we see.
The 3rd reason is the freedom it provides. No longer are photographers defined by professional camera's and the technical details. With one smartphone users become 21st century photojournalists. Sharing their view of life and stories with their followers, not unlike a photographer does at an art gallery, turning Instagram into their showing room and followers into their captive audience.
The 4th reason are the number of edit settings. No longer do users have to turn to Photoshop or Illustrater to make their pictures perfect. Instagram offers a wide variety of filters as well as individual edit options to fix everything from lighting to contrast. Giving every day people the chance to be recognised among the best.
The 5th reason are the opportunities it creates. With high quality content comes opportunity. Companies often enter partnerships with Instagrammers that have a big following to promote their services or products. Giving marketers access to a new and real audience and Instagrammers the chance to make a living by doing what they love.

So there you have it, Instagram came - gave users what they wanted - and secured it's place among the giants of today's social media platforms.
Geek out!

How to Survive Rainy Days

Coffee? Yes please!

While I love rainy days as much as the next person, that is permanently attached to a fuzzy blanket and lost in her Netflix queue, I do think that a full week of rainy days is a bit much. Luckily I have a few tips on how to get through one of those weeks.
The first step, and maybe the most important one, is to always have hot drinks around. Be it coffee for the caffeine addicts or tea for the bookworms. Next on the list is making sure you're dressed warm enough. My favourite choices usually include an oversized sweater with some warm leggings and comfy boots. In case you're lucky and happen to have a few days off from work then it's fuzzy pajamas all the way!
While these are all important another thing to not forget are headphones and a good playlist. You can't get through a rainy day without music *you can't really get through any day without music, or is that just me?*. If you're at home order some great food, get under the blankets and just watch movies all day. There's no better therapy than movie therapy.
Now if you have to actually be productive, shutting the blinds might just save you from wasting time at work and not completing your projects. I always get distracted by the sound of the raindrops on the windowsill, so I tend to stay away from windows. Just stick to your desk and focus on your work, try and distract yourself with funny memes or reading the latest news from around the world, get lost in a great article about new marketing strategies or look at travel websites and plan a vacation, or go searching for some cool tutorials, just find stuff that takes your mind of the horrible weather outside. And don't go falling into a seasonal depression thinking about how life is unfair and start remembering all the things that went wrong in your life so far. That won't help anyone, neither you nor your colleagues who will probably be wondering why you're on the floor rolled up as a ball crying your eyes out. Instead turn your office into a music filled hangout and get to work!

Valentine's Day Aftermath

Tulips and coffee sound perfect to me.

Well, here it is. Monday morning, the 15th of February, also known as the day after Valentine's day. This day has become one of the most popular and commercially profitable days of the year. Advertisers unite to create some of the most heart warming and tear-jerking commercials, that advertise the importance of getting the perfect gift, making the right restaurant reservation and all the other details that make up the perfect valentine's day celebration. They have infiltrated everything, starting with the flowers and ending with the clothes you wear. 

Now you might say: well wait a minute, aren't you being a bit harsh? Or cynical?
All I can say is, in my eyes this isn't a real holiday. Not in the traditional way at least. It just makes people crazy, puts unwanted pressure on relationships and, with the help of the formerly mentioned advertisers, creates unrealistic expectations.
I mean come on, people nowadays will not be happy with just getting some beautiful flowers unless they have a hidden Tiffany box in the bouquet. Limits have to be pushed and new ones created. What's next? Buying a puppy that delivers the flower bouquet with the hidden Tiffany box?
Celebrating love should be simple, classic and elegant. Not this over the top circus like event. But then again, that's just my opinion. Though, I have to give it up to the marketing world, they sure created a massively productive beast turning Valentine's day into a brand that dominates the film and business industry while taking over the online world for a few days a year.

There are of course the people that chose to celebrate in a more modest way, Netflix and food! Flowers are always welcome of course. Yep, you guessed it, that's how this blogger spent last Sunday and I have to say, it was like a mini vacation and I loved every minute of it. Let me know what your thoughts are on this beloved holiday and how you spent it. Gear up for a new week with some good reading materials and coffee of course. 

Geek out!